“Then he entered before the inner [Sanctuary],”¹ 41:3. i.e., to the wall that separated between the Sanctuary and the Holy of Holies. “He measured the doorpost² of the entrance,” i.e., the width of the frame that covered the wall, “it was two cubits.”

footnotes: ¹ Yechezkel ² This is the meaning of the Hebrew word איל.

In the Second Beis HaMikdash, this place was occupied by the *amah traksin,*³ (Yoma 52a), the term means “the cubit that is inside and outside,” i.e., the Sages were unsure whether its measure should be part of the Sanctuary or part of the Holy of Holies. in which there were two curtains, not a wall, as stated in Tractate *Yoma.*⁴ 51b-52a; see also Middos 4:7. Bava Basra 3a, b explains that they did not build a wall because the Second Temple was higher than the First. In the First Temple, the Sanctuary was only 30 cubits high, while in the Second Temple, it was 40 cubits high. A wall only a cubit thick would not be sturdy if built to such a height. Nevertheless, the width of the wall was not increased, because its original width was established by Divine revelation. Thus, they returned to the pattern established in the Sanctuary of Moses and utilized curtains as dividers. Similarly, in the Mishkan in the desert, there was a curtain separating the Sanctuary from the Holy of Holies.⁵ 26:33. In the Future Beis HaMikdash, there will be a wall⁶ 26:31): “You shall make a curtain.” with a doorway between the Sanctuary and the Holy of Holies, as it is written:⁷ 41:23. “There were two doors between the Sanctuary and the Holy Chamber.”

footnotes: ³ According to Rashi ⁴ See Yoma ⁵ See Shmos ⁶ I.e., in addition to the curtain. The curtain is required, for we are commanded (Shmos ⁷ Yechezkel

“The entrance was six cubits” high. “The width of the entrance was seven cubits.” “Its doorposts were rectangular”⁸21. and “it had two doors”⁹23. that would close one opposite the other, one attached to the northern doorpost, and one to the southern one.

footnotes: ⁸ Ibid.: ⁹ Ibid.: