EZEKIEL, XL. PRELIMINARY NOTE ON Chapter S 40-48. These closing Chapter s of Ezekiel form one continuous prophecy of a distinctly marked character. They present a vision of the Temple in minute detail, with careful measurements of its parts; various ordinances for the Temple, for the Levites, and th... [ Continue Reading ]
XLIII. The new Temple had now been shown to the prophet with all its arrangements and measurements; it remained that the structure should be divinely accepted by the manifestation of the glory of the Lord, as in the case of the Tabernacle (Exodus 40:34), and of the former Temple (1 Kings 8:10; 2 Chr... [ Continue Reading ]
WHEN I CAME TO DESTROY the city. — That is, _to announce its destruction._ (Comp. Ezekiel 32:18; Genesis 49:7; Isaiah 6:10; Jeremiah 1:10.) LIKE THE VISION THAT I SAW. — Comp. Ezekiel 1:4, &c.; Ezekiel 3:23; Ezekiel 10:15; Ezekiel 10:22. The manifestation of Divine glory to the prop [ Continue Reading ]
BROUGHT ME INTO THE INNER COURT. — Having seen the Divine glory enter by the eastern gate, the prophet, himself a priest, is brought into the court of the priests, and there sees the glory of the Lord fill the house as of old.... [ Continue Reading ]
I HEARD HIM SPEAKING. — Although the pronoun is not expressed in the original, there can be no question that God Himself spoke directly to the prophet, as in Ezekiel 44:2; Ezekiel 44:5; Ezekiel 44:9, &c. “The man” is without the article in the Hebrew, which leaves it uncertain whether the same being... [ Continue Reading ]
THE PLACE OF THE SOLES OF MY FEET. — Comp. 1 Chronicles 28:2; Psalms 132:7. I WILL DWELL... FOR EVER. — This should be the peculiar distinction of the Temple seen in the vision. The Tabernacle and Solomon’s Temple had both been accepted as the peculiar dwelling-place of God, but both had passed awa... [ Continue Reading ]
AND THE WALL BETWEEN. — The sense is given in the margin: there was _only_ a wall between me and them.... [ Continue Reading ]
NOW LET THEM. — This is not an imperative, but a simple future, as in Ezekiel 43:7. The house of Israel will now put away their abominations, and God will dwell in their midst for ever. Carcases = idols, as in Ezekiel 43:7.... [ Continue Reading ]
SHEW THE HOUSE. — This is still in vision; “make known to the people the new Temple and its appointments,” that, seeing God’s gracious purposes, they may repent of their evil doings. LET THEM MEASURE THE PATTERN. — That is, let them carefully consider and follow out the provisions God had made for... [ Continue Reading ]
IF THEY BE ASHAMED. — The same thing which had already been declared positively is now expressed contingently, showing that the sanctification of the people and God’s dwelling among them were correlative facts; the one could not be without the other. Many expressions of nearly the same meaning are h... [ Continue Reading ]
UPON THE TOP OF THE MOUNTAIN. — Comp. Ezekiel 40:2. The command to keep and observe everything is closed, as often in similar cases, by a summary statement of the reason: for the whole surroundings of the dwelling-place of the Most High are holy. With Ezekiel 43:13 a new part of the vision begins,... [ Continue Reading ]
A CUBIT AND AN HAND BREADTH. — The measurement of the altar begins with the statement that the cubit used was of the same length as before (see Ezekiel 40:5). The description that follows (Ezekiel 43:13) will be made clearer by a simple diagram, with references to the parts described. The size of th... [ Continue Reading ]
IN THE DAY WHEN THEY SHALL MAKE IT. — This looks to the future, and implies that the whole structure of the Temple, and its acceptance by the manifestation of the Divine glory, though necessarily represented in the vision as already done, were yet in the future. The phrase, “in the day when they sha... [ Continue Reading ]
THOU SHALT GIVE. — Ezekiel is not actually to do this, like Moses, as the appointed consecrator; but, as frequently in prophecy, he is told _to do_ that which he foretells is to be done. OF THE SEED OF ZADOK. — See Note on Ezekiel 40:46. (Comp. also Ezekiel 44:15.) A YOUNG BULLOCK. — In the case of... [ Continue Reading ]
TAKE OF THE BLOOD THEREOF. — Comp. Exodus 29:12; Leviticus 8:15; Hebrews 9:18; Hebrews 9:22. Nothing is here said of the pouring the rest of the blood at the foot of the altar, as required in the law, and nothing of the burning of the fat upon the altar, because the prophet throughout supposes the r... [ Continue Reading ]
BURN IT IN THE APPOINTED PLACE. — The flesh of the ordinary sin offerings was to be eaten by the priests; but when the victim was a bullock, as in case of a sin offering for the high priest (Leviticus 4:3; Leviticus 4:11), or for the whole congregation (Leviticus 4:13; Leviticus 4:20), it was to be... [ Continue Reading ]
A KID OF THE GOATS. — More exactly, _a buck of the goats._ This was the sin offering prescribed for a ruler (Leviticus 4:22). The expression “as they did with the bullock,” implies that the ritual was the same, and the flesh burned in the same way. At the consecration of the altar in Exodus 29:36, a... [ Continue Reading ]
HAST MADE AN END OF CLEANSING IT. — Not an end of the entire service of consecration, but of the sin offering for the day, for Ezekiel 43:25 says distinctly that both a sin offering and a burnt offering were to be offered on each day of the seven. The reason that the burnt offering is not mentioned... [ Continue Reading ]
CAST SALT. — The word means _throw_ or _pour,_ indicating a more copious use of salt than the seasoning ordained by the law (Leviticus 2:13).... [ Continue Reading ]
SHALL CONSECRATE THEMSELVES. — Our version has here followed the Masoretic emendation of the text; the literal translation of the text itself is, _shall fill its hand,_ referring to the altar. To “fill the hand” is a synonym for consecration, commonly applied to the priests, who were consecrated by... [ Continue Reading ]