Read Ezekiel 45
Israel Fully Restored
45 “‘When you allot the land as an inheritance, you are to present to the Lord a portion of the land as a sacred district, 25,000 cubits long and 20,000 cubits wide; the entire area will be holy. 2 Of this, a section 500 cubits square is to be for the sanctuary, with 50 cubits around it for open land. 3 In the sacred district, measure off a section 25,000 cubits long and 10,000 cubits wide. In it will be the sanctuary, the Most Holy Place. 4 It will be the sacred portion of the land for the priests, who minister in the sanctuary and who draw near to minister before the Lord. It will be a place for their houses as well as a holy place for the sanctuary. 5 An area 25,000 cubits long and 10,000 cubits wide will belong to the Levites, who serve in the temple, as their possession for towns to live in.
6 “‘You are to give the city as its property an area 5,000 cubits wide and 25,000 cubits long, adjoining the sacred portion; it will belong to all Israel.
7 “‘The prince will have the land bordering each side of the area formed by the sacred district and the property of the city. It will extend westward from the west side and eastward from the east side, running lengthwise from the western to the eastern border parallel to one of the tribal portions. 8 This land will be his possession in Israel. And my princes will no longer oppress my people but will allow the people of Israel to possess the land according to their tribes.
9 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: You have gone far enough, princes of Israel! Give up your violence and oppression and do what is just and right.Stop dispossessing my people, declares the Sovereign Lord. 10 You are to use accurate scales, an accurate ephah and an accurate bath. 11 The ephahand the bath are to be the same size, the bath containing a tenth of a homer and the ephah a tenth of a homer; the homer is to be the standard measure for both. 12 The shekel is to consist of twenty gerahs. Twenty shekels plus twenty-five shekels plus fifteen shekels equal one mina.
13 “‘This is the special gift you are to offer: a sixth of an ephah from each homer of wheat and a sixth of an ephah from each homer of barley. 14 The prescribed portion of olive oil, measured by the bath, is a tenth of a bathfrom each cor (which consists of ten baths or one homer, for ten baths are equivalent to a homer). 15 Also one sheep is to be taken from every flock of two hundred from the well-watered pastures of Israel. These will be used for the grain offerings, burnt offerings and fellowship offerings to make atonement for the people, declares the Sovereign Lord. 16 All the people of the land will be required to give this special offering to the prince in Israel.17 It will be the duty of the prince to provide the burnt offerings, grain offerings and drink offerings at the festivals, the New Moons and the Sabbaths—at all the appointed festivals of Israel. He will provide the sin offerings, grain offerings, burnt offerings and fellowship offerings to make atonement for the Israelites.
18 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: In the first month on the first day you are to take a young bull without defect and purify the sanctuary. 19 The priest is to take some of the blood of the sin offering and put it on the doorposts of the temple, on the four corners of the upper ledge of the altarand on the gateposts of the inner court. 20 You are to do the same on the seventh day of the month for anyone who sins unintentionally or through ignorance; so you are to make atonement for the temple.
21 “‘In the first month on the fourteenth day you are to observe the Passover,a festival lasting seven days, during which you shall eat bread made without yeast. 22 On that day the prince is to provide a bull as a sin offering for himself and for all the people of the land. 23 Every day during the seven days of the festival he is to provide seven bulls and seven rams without defect as a burnt offering to the Lord, and a male goat for a sin offering. 24 He is to provide as a grain offering an ephah for each bull and an ephah for each ram, along with a hin of olive oil for each ephah.
25 “‘During the seven days of the festival, which begins in the seventh month on the fifteenth day, he is to make the same provision for sin offerings, burnt offerings, grain offerings and oil.
Go Deeper
These last chapters of Ezekiel can remind us of the specification laid out for the previous temples and the original tabernacle in the wilderness. The focus then turns to a “prince”, but not a king. Why would Israel need a prince instead of another king? In the time frame this vision occurs, Israel has not seen the coming of the Messiah–like we have not seen the Second Coming. Just like the leaders we have been given in the present time, this prince is necessary for the purpose of upholding justice and righteousness (v. 10). He is also in place to put away violence and oppression (v. 9).
The reminders and requirements for legal measurement and justice are not for the future, but they are also for us now. And that is why the ruler of mankind is only a prince, because the spots for kingship have been taken, and it will be clear that this ruler is not the ultimate authority, but is himself subject to being ruled by others and being subject as well to the law.
But why through a prince? After all, if God wanted to right now, in this life, he could make sure that we were governed by perfect beings. But we are not. We are given practice in self-rule and self-government over ourselves, our families, our churches, our societies, and while we are not often very good at the practice of authority, we are expected to practice it anyway. And so it is in the world to come as well.
For us now and in the future, the coming rule of Jesus Christ and of resurrected believers over humanity does not mean that God is taking away from mankind the responsibility of self-government and developing the capacity to rule and judge justly. Therefore, on top of this physical layer of government we have been given we find a spiritual layer that keeps us within boundaries while we are here in our physical beings. And, as often happens, from learning about how human beings will rule in the millennium, we can learn something about how God wishes for us to exercise authority for the purpose of justice and righteousness here and now.
Questions
- How does God ask us to respond to Him as part of our relationship with Him?
- How can you be more content with the inheritance you have been given (not just physically, but spiritually) here during your lifetime?
- Considering how justice is meted out in this day and age, what can we do as Christians to make sure our balances are true when we interact with those (and issues) that surround us?
Pray This
Father God,
Thank you for the blessing and allotments you have set aside for us here on earth, as well as in Heaven. We know that you have gone to prepare a place before us and will rule with ultimate justice and authority when we come to your heavenly throne. Thank you for giving us the accounts of Ezekiel’s visions so we can see that you are the true creator and ruler of the universe. Help us to follow the guidelines you give us and the ability to respect the princes you set before us. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
2 thoughts on “Ezekiel 45”
As God’s people who have been given much, much is required. His order establishes righteousness which must mark our lives. In our daily interactions with others, and most importantly in our relationship with God, we are to be completely trustworthy and conduct our lives with justice and truth. Selfishness, greed, dishonesty and deceit are a stench to holy God, and should never be found in us. We must take an account, repent when we fall short, and exude gratitude to our God who loves us from death to life.
BUT GOD, He knew that we are selfish and prideful and could never do apart from Him. We have to have Him in all that we do and He has to represent us as we walk through this life. When we don’t show the God in Christ in us, we faltered. Every day, every interaction every situation Christ, the cornerstone should be shown and represented by us. God is very precise in all things and still is.
God thank You for Your precision and that all consuming love for me!!! Thank You for Your word being a lamp unto my feet and light unto my path. God I worship You and am so amazed at the delights of all Your glory!! Thank You for answering my prayers with a new job. I give You glory,honor and so much thanksgiving for how amazing You are in Jesus name amen
WOOHOO!!!