Ezekiel 45:1

God’s plan for the *temple was part of a much larger plan. In the end, this *vision will include the whole country called *Israel. But here, God describes the district round the *temple.

The main principle in this chapter is that everything belongs to God. And God’s people show this when they give part of everything back to God. Where possible, the first part goes back to God. He deserves whatever is best.

The complete area in verses 1 to 6 is a square. We have seen that the *temple had a square plan. Here we see that the area round the *temple also had a square plan.

The larger part of this square was *holy land. It was for the priests and *Levites. But a smaller part (verse 6) was for all the *Israelites.

We need to understand that this arrangement has never existed in the past. It is an ideal arrangement, to teach us about God. In the past, the *temple was inside a city. People carried on their business even by the walls of the *temple. But at this ideal *temple, the surrounding area is all *holy land.