THE NEW TEMPLE (EZEKIEL 40:1 TO EZEKIEL 48:35). The book of Ezekiel began with a vision of the glory of God and the coming of the heavenly chariot throne of God in order to speak directly to His people through Ezekiel (chapter 1). He then recorded the departure of God's glory from Jerusalem and the... [ Continue Reading ]
THE VISION OF THE NEW TEMPLE (EZEKIEL 40:1 TO EZEKIEL 42:20). The Man With the Measuring Reed (Ezekiel 40:1). ‘In the twenty fifth year of our captivity, in the beginning of the year, on the tenth day of the month, in the fourteenth year after the city was smitten, on the selfsame day, the hand of... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And he brought me there, and behold there was a man whose appearance was like the appearance of brass, with a line of flax in his hand, and a measuring reed, and he stood in the gate.' The man's appearance ‘like the appearance of brass' depicts him as a heavenly visitor (compare Ezekiel 8:2). He w... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And the man said to me, “Son of man, behold with your eyes and hear with your ears, and set your heart on all that I show you, for it was with the intention that I show them to you that you were brought here. Declare all you see to the house of Israel.” ' Ezekiel was to take careful note of all th... [ Continue Reading ]
THE MEASUREMENT OF THE WALL OF THE OUTER COURT. ‘And behold there was a wall on the outside of the house round about, and in the man's hand a measuring reed of six ‘long cubits', being a cubit and a handbreadth in length. So he measured the thickness of the building, one reed, and the height one re... [ Continue Reading ]
THE MEASURING OF THE TEMPLE (EZEKIEL 40:5 TO EZEKIEL 42:20). There follows now the measuring in detail of the temple and the temple area, and we may ask what is the purpose of these detailed measurements? In actual fact they were very important for they confirmed the reality of the invisible temple... [ Continue Reading ]
THE MEASUREMENT OF THE EAST GATE. ‘Then he went into the gateway which looked towards the east, and went up its steps, and measured the threshold of the gate, one reed broad, and the other threshold, one reed broad. And the side-rooms (or ‘guard chambers') were one reed long and one reed broad. And... [ Continue Reading ]
‘He also measured the vestibule of the gate towards the house which was one reed. So he measured the vestibule of the gate, eight cubits, and its posts, two cubits, and the vestibule of the gate was towards the house. And the side rooms of the gate eastward were three on this side and three on that... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And there was a barrier in front of the side rooms, one cubit on this side and one cubit on that side. And the guard rooms were six cubits on this side and six cubits on that side.' Detail is given of the guard rooms in order to draw attention to their importance, and to demonstrate their symmetri... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And he measured the gate from the top of one side room to the top of another, a breadth of twenty five cubits, door to door.' The twenty five cubits is possibly represented by adding the six cubits of two opposite side rooms, to the thirteen cubits which is ‘the breadth of the gate' (i.e. of the i... [ Continue Reading ]
‘He also made posts of sixty cubits, and the court to the post, the gate round about. And from the forefront of the gate at the entrance to the forefront of the inner porch of the gate were fifty cubits' The sixty cubits would be the gateposts at the outer end of the gate, forming a deliberately im... [ Continue Reading ]
“And there were narrowing windows in the side rooms, and to their posts within the gate round about, and likewise to the colonnade. And windows were round about inward. And on each post were palm trees.' Windows of the kind described (compare 1 Kings 6:4) were scattered all round the gateway, provid... [ Continue Reading ]
“Then he brought me to the outer court, and lo there were chambers, fronted by a pavement, erected round about the court. Thirty chambers were fronted by the pavement. And the pavement was beside the gates, corresponding to the length of the gates, even the lower pavement.” Chambers were built arou... [ Continue Reading ]
THE MEASUREMENT OF THE OUTER COURT (EZEKIEL 40:17). The outer court surrounded the inner court and the sanctuary on three sides, (the inner court and the sanctuary being surrounded by another wall with three gates in it), the fourth side of the sanctuary along with the building behind it being agai... [ Continue Reading ]
“Then he measured the breadth from the forefront of the lower gate to the forefront of the outside of the inner court, a hundred cubits both on the east and on the north.” Thus the outer court was one hundred cubits, from the inmost part of the gateway to the inner court, all round on three sides.... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And the gate of the outer court whose prospect is towards the north, he measured its length and breadth. And its side rooms were three on this side and three on that side. And its posts and its colonnades were of the same measurements as the first gate. Its length was fifty cubits and its breadth t... [ Continue Reading ]
THE INNER COURT - THE COURT OF THE PRIESTS. It is extraordinary to me that given that the difference between priest and laity has been cancelled by the new covenant, so that all God's people are royal priests (1Pe 2:5; 1 Peter 2:9; Revelation 1:6; Revelation 5:10), some would argue on the basis of... [ Continue Reading ]
THE MEASUREMENTS OF THE EAST AND NORTH GATES OF THE INNER COURT. ‘And he brought me to the inner court towards the east, and he measured the gate in accordance with these measurements, and its side rooms, and its posts, and its colonnades, in accordance with these measurements. And there were windo... [ Continue Reading ]
‘There was a chamber with its door by the posts at the gates. There they washed the burnt offering. And in the porch of the gate were two tables on this side and on that side, on which to slay the burnt offering, and the sin offering and the guilt offering. And on the side outside as one ascends to... [ Continue Reading ]
THE EQUIPMENT FOR SACRIFICE (EZEKIEL 40:38). Full provision was made for sacrificial activity, including whole (burnt) offerings, sin offerings and guilt offerings. Approach to God still required the full sacrificial rites, the same as before the exile. So there were eight or more tables for the sl... [ Continue Reading ]
‘And there were four tables for the burnt offering, of hewn stone, a cubit and a half long, and a cubit and a half broad, and a cubit in height. On these were laid the instruments with which they slew the burnt offering and sacrifice. And hooks a handbreadth long were fastened within round about. An... [ Continue Reading ]
THE CHAMBERS FOR THE PRIESTS (EZEKIEL 40:44). ‘And outside the inner gate were chambers for the singers in the inner court, which were at the side of the north gate. And their prospect was towards the south, and one at the east gate having the prospect towards the north. And he said to me, “This ch... [ Continue Reading ]
THE VESTIBULE FOR THE SANCTUARY. ‘And he measured the court, one hundred cubits long and one hundred cubits broad, foursquare, and the altar was before the house.' The inner court was foursquare and attention is drawn to the fact. This was regularly a symbol of perfection. Compare Exodus 26; 1 King... [ Continue Reading ]
‘Then he brought me to the porch of the house and measured each post of the porch, five cubits on this side and five cubits on that side, and the breadth of the gate was three cubits on this side and three cubits on that side. The length of the porch was twenty cubits, and the breadth eleven cubits,... [ Continue Reading ]