(Through the Bible) Ezekiel 40-48 — Chuck Smith

Ezekiel 40–42: The Measurements and Design of the Future Temple

We want to get into the study of Ezekiel tonight, and right off the top, I would like to confess to you that of all of the Bible and the passages in the Bible, I understand this the least. I do not pretend to have a full and complete understanding of Ezekiel chapters 40 through 48.

In fact, I have greater difficulty with these passages than I do any other section of the Bible. And because I do lack personally in an understanding of this section, I do find it extremely difficult to minister from this particular section of the Scriptures.

I can't wait till I get back and get into the book of Daniel. And when we return, your next assignment will be Daniel, the first six chapters, and I can hardly wait to get into Daniel because that I understand.

Now, Ezekiel up to this point, I feel a pretty good grasp and understanding of it, but beginning tonight with chapter 40 and going through the end, I get lost. I don't understand it completely. And to help an understanding because he is describing the new temple that is to be built now from the description of this temple.

It will be a temple that will be built during the kingdom age after the return of Jesus Christ. This will not be the temple that would be rebuilt during the in the very near future under the decree that is made by the Antichrist.

But this is yet future. Now we've passed out diagrams for you by which we have sought to more or less draw a diagram for you of this new temple that it is to be built. Notice that basically it is square and the outer walls of this temple are 500 cubits long and 500 cubits broad.

Now, this is the building itself. Outside of this, there is the wall that is 5000 or 500 reeds. Now, to help you understand, we get into cubits, reeds, and we're into types of measurements that are not familiar with us.

According to the definition, the cubit here is a cubit plus a span, the cubit that he measured with, which would be the cubit is the length from your elbow to your fingertips. And the span, of course, is from your thumb to your fingertip.

So the length from your elbow to your fingertip, about 18 inches plus the span gives you about 24 inches. So you're dealing with cubits of 24 inches. Now, as you look at this diagram again, you notice this outer wall of the building would then be about a thousand feet, 500 cubits, which would make it about a thousand feet, which means that that is a fairly good size building comprising 100 ,000 square feet within the perimeters of the building.

So then you notice this inner court, that inner court is a hundred cubits square, which would mean about 200 feet square. So again, you begin to get the size of this building. It is quite large indeed.

An inner court, 200 feet. This building from wall to wall is about 180 feet. So you add another 20 feet and the same distance back and you have the inner court here, which is about a 200 foot square. So that helps you then to get the overall idea of the overall size of the building.

It is quite a large building, the new temple that will be built, plus the wall that goes around it at 500 reeds. A reed is five of these cubits, which would be 10 feet in length. So the wall around the whole thing would be almost a mile square.

Now, at the present time in Jerusalem, there is no area where this could be built, especially on the Temple Mount. The Temple Mount that was vastly enlarged by King Herod is nowhere near a mile square.

The Temple Mount, Jerusalem’s Earthquake, and the New Mount Zion

In fact, the whole old city of Jerusalem is just about a mile square. So, when Jesus returns and prior to the return of Jesus Christ, there are to be many cataclysmic events. The book of Revelation, for instance, describes a tremendous earthquake that is going to jolt Jerusalem.

So that a tenth part of the city will be destroyed. This, plus the other cataclysmic events that are described in the book of Revelation, the present situation of Jerusalem with the earthquake and, of course, when Christ returns, there will be a great cataclysmic event in that the Mount of Olives will be splitting in the middle and a new valley will be formed.

And no doubt with the new valley that is formed and this great shaking of the earth, a new mountain will be shoved up. And this mountain will be called Mount Zion and it will be very high in the sight of all of the earth according to the prophecies that are in Isaiah and in Jeremiah.

So that the new temple will be built then upon this new Mount Zion. And thus, the large area that is devoted for the temple, but you see the diagram here of the buildings themselves. And thus, as you go through Ezekiel, beginning with chapter 40, as Ezekiel is taken by the Spirit and is shown this new temple of God, it's in the 20th year of our captivity, which would have been the year 572 B .C.

In the beginning of the year, which would have been April, the 10th day of the month, in the 14th year after the city was smitten, in the self same day, the hand of the Lord was upon me and brought me thither.

In the visions of God, he brought me into the land of Israel. He set me up on a very high mountain by which was the frame of the city on the south. So there is a very new high mountain that rises up there in Israel, in the area of Jerusalem.

And he brought me thither and behold, there was a man whose appearance was like the appearance of brass with a line of flax in his hand and with a measuring reed he stood in the gate. And the man said unto me, Son of man, behold with your eyes and hear with your ears and set your heart upon all that I will show you for to the intent that I might show them unto thee you have been brought here.

So he meets the man who introduces himself and says, now, you know, pay careful attention to all these things I'm showing you because for this purpose you've been brought here. And then declare all that you see to the house of Israel.

So in these passages we are dealing in the kingdom age and with the house of Israel we are not dealing with the church. And really this temple that is to be built and its worship is not related to the church but it is related to Israel in the kingdom age.

And so it is to be related to the house of Israel. Now, behold, there was a wall on the outside of the house roundabout in the man's hand, a measuring reed of six cubits long. The cubit is about 18 inches, 10 feet by the cubit and a hand breadth about 12 feet.

He measured the breadth of the building, one reed in the height, one reed. Then he came to the gate which looked toward the east. Now, you notice on the bottom of your diagram we've drawn here the gate towards the east.

We've only drawn three steps. There are seven steps leading up into that gate. And the gate itself becomes a corridor because on either side you have these rooms that go along and then the area known as the pavement, sort of a porched area that is in the pavement there.

And it describes the porch and the arches and the various carvings of the cherubim that are upon these arches and on these posts. Now, I'm not going to try to go through and follow this all with you. It gets very laborious.

And therefore, I'm going to allow you that opportunity if you so desire to get the thing in your mind to take the diagram that we have prepared for you and as best you can follow it through, read it out, and see if you can more or less figure this whole thing out.

You have the inner court in verse 27 toward the south. Now, you'll notice that there are gates that come in on three sides, both into the outer court area here and then three more gates corresponding with the outer gates into the inner court area.

Those steps coming into the outer court area are seven steps upward. Coming into the inner court there are eight steps. So you are coming from a lower plane rising to a higher plane and then the temple house is yet on a higher level.

So the whole thing is ascending up. But you have the three gates, no gate to the west. But there are gates to the east, to the north, and to the south. But none coming from the west. And so you come in through these gates into the outer chamber and then up through the steps into the inner court.

Now, only a certain group were allowed on into the inner court. Those that were making the sacrifices themselves. You find the altar of burnt offering in the middle of the inner court and then on the west side you find the temple house itself and the holy place within the temple house.

The holy place being 20 by 20 or about a 40 foot cube area. Now, as you go into these measurements you'll find that they are many of them in multiples of 12 which I'm sure has some significance. But just what the significance is I cannot tell you for sure because I don't know.

There's a lot of things that people can read into things. I would rather not read things into it but just read it as it is and that which I understand tell you that which I don't understand just let you know that I don't understand it.

What its significance or whatever. But I've noticed in going through many multiples of 12. So in chapter 41 he continues to describe the temple and the post and all. He measured in verse 4 you get into the temple house itself and to the holy place which was 20 cubits before the temple.

This is the most holy place. The temple house itself is 20 cubits by 40 cubits which would be about 40 by 80 feet which is a fairly good size room in itself. And he describes in verses 18 and 19 the cherubims that are carved upon the various palm trees and all on the doors of the inner house and upon the walls and all of these carvings of the cherubim and palms and the temple and the sanctuary had two doors verse 23 and the doors had two leaves of peace turning leaves.

In other words the double doors much like we have coming in here and the doors opened as these doors do. Then he brought me into the other court verse or chapter 42 to the north and he brought me into the chamber that was against the separate place and as I say I'm going to leave you with this.

You may take this diagram home and the separate place is that area you'll notice that surrounds the temple house itself and he begins to describe for him here this separate place that was about the temple house.

Verse 13 there where the priest that approached the Lord shall eat the most holy things. So you see this little chamber for the priest and there are four of them off of this separate place where the priest eat before the Lord of the portion of the sacrifices that are brought and they shall lay the most holy things the meal offerings the sin offerings the trespass offerings for the places holy and when the priest enter therein then shall they not go out of the holy place into the other court but they shall lay their garments were in the minister for they are holy they shall put on other garments and shall approach those things which are for the people.

So there are special robes for the priest when they're in this place and they're not to be worn outside. Now in chapter 43 he brought him then to the gate that looks towards the east. This is at the bottom of your diagram.

The Return of God’s Glory and the Second Coming of Christ

And behold the glory of the God of Israel came from the way of the east and his voice was like the voice like the noise of many waters and the earth shine with his glory. Here you have the return of the glory of God to Israel.

Now earlier Ezekiel saw in a vision the glory of God leaving the temple and gradually as it left the temple it settled at the gate towards the east and then it ascended and God's glory was removed from Israel.

Here we find the glory of God returning to Israel. And again even as the glory of God departed by the gate to the east so the glory of God returns by the gate to the east. And his voice was like the noise of many waters in Revelation chapter 1 as John is describing Jesus Christ in his glory.

He does declare that his voice was like the noise of many waters. I would assume that this reference here in Ezekiel is a reference to the return of Jesus Christ in glory. Then shall they see the Son of Man coming with clouds and great glory and he shall set his foot in that day on the Mount of Olives and it shall split in the middle and a new valley will be formed from east to west when the Mount of Olives is split in the middle.

Now according to other passages of Scripture when Christ returns you remember when he ascended he went with his disciples to the Mount of Olives and when they had gone as far as Bethany which is just over the top of the Mount of Olives Jesus ascended up into heaven and the disciples were standing there gazing up into heaven as they watched the cloud catch him out of their sight.

And two men stood by them in shining apparel and said ye men of Galilee why stand ye here gazing into heaven for this same Jesus shall come again in like manner as you have seen him go into heaven. And so the coming of Jesus Christ as he went in glory up into heaven he'll come again setting his foot on the Mount of Olives.

A great cataclysmic event takes place as the Mount of Olives splits no doubt creating what we will get to later this new stream that will issue from the southern part here I mean from the eastern part here down on the bottom part of your page the new stream that will issue from the temple of God which will flow down to the Dead Sea and we'll get to that after a while but this is all a part of this great geological structural change that will take place when the Mount of Olives splits and when the city is shaken and the preparation for the return of Jesus Christ the establishing of his kingdom.

And the earth shined with the glory as Christ returns there in verse 2. Now as he returns surrounded of course with the angelic beings the cherubim the Bible speaks about his coming with the angels it also speaks about his coming with the church coming with clouds and great glory.

Clouds symbolically are numbers of people throngs of people. Paul said when Christ who is our life shall appear then shall we also appear with him in glory. Then shall they see the Son of Man coming with the angels to judge the earth and so the saints that came with him.

Revelation 19. So Christ coming with the heavenly multitude to establish God's kingdom upon the earth and the glory of the Lord came into the house by the way of the gate whose prospect is toward the east.

So the spirit took me up and brought me into the inner court and behold the glory of the Lord filled the house and I heard him speaking unto me out of the house and a man stood by me and he said unto me Son of Man the place of my throne and the place of the soles of my feet where I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel forever.

And my holy name shall the house of Israel no more defile neither they nor their kings by their whoredom nor by the carcasses of their kings in the high places in their setting of their threshold on by my threshold and their post by my post and walls and so forth my holy name.

They will not defile anymore by their abominations which they've committed. Now let them put away their whoredom and the carcasses of their kings far from me and I will dwell in the midst of them forever.

And so the declaration of God's coming the coming of the kingdom to dwell in the midst of the people. So Ezekiel is commanded to show these things to the house of Israel that they may be ashamed of their iniquities and let them measure the pattern and all.

Now he in verse 13 gives you the measure of the altar and we have the altar there in the center of the whole building complex. And this altar is a fairly good size altar. It has four horns on the corners of the altars and they offer the sacrifices.

In verse 19 through the end of the chapter the priest make the offerings of the sacrifices and all the various offerings burnt offering and the peace offerings. Now here's where one of the problems arises.

And that is why would sin offerings be made in the kingdom age. For we know that the Old Testament sacrifices all pointed to that one sacrifice of Jesus Christ whereby our sins would be purged once and for all.

And in Hebrews we are told that Christ has suffered once and for all that he is the sin offering of which all of the Old Testament offerings were just a shadow the substances of Christ. Why then will they be offering sacrifices again in the new temple during the kingdom age.

And many suggestions have been offered for the reason for these sacrifices. Some of them saying well this is all symbolic they really aren't offered. I cannot accept that many people spiritualize them.

I cannot accept that. I think that it speaks very plainly that there will be these offerings offered during the kingdom age. Now as we look at the Old Testament sacrifices that were made we realize number one that they did not actually put away sins.

The Lord said that when they make the sacrifice it shall be for a kofar which Hebrew word is covering and so the sins will be covered. It doesn't say they would be put away they would be covered. Now in Hebrews we read that it is impossible that the blood of bulls or goats could put away sin but all they could do was to speak of the better sacrifice which was to come that is of Jesus.

So the Old Testament sacrifices did not put away sin but they testified of that sacrifice that would come by which sins would be put away once and for all. I believe that the only explanation that can be given for sacrifices here in the temple in the kingdom age is that these sacrifices are memorial sacrifices.

Looking back at what Christ has done even as the Old Testament sacrifices look forward did not put away sin but gave anticipation for the sacrifice that would be offered even now these are offered in memorial.

As we look back at that sacrifice of Jesus Christ now you remember that Jesus took bread and broke it and gave to his disciples and said take, eat, this is my body broken for you. He took also the cup after supper and he said take, drink this is the blood in the new covenant that is shed for the remission of sins.

For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup you do show the Lord's death until he comes. This do he said in remembrance of me. And even as we have our communion services and we break the bread and we drink the cup in remembrance of what Jesus did in his death for our sins.

So when sacrifices are reinstituted in the kingdom age they will not be for the purpose of putting away sin but they will be memorial offerings by which we will be reminded of that sacrifice by which the sins were put away.

And we'll be looking back to the cross and the sacrifice that was made there by Jesus Christ the sin offering being made here in the kingdom age and that is to me reading it the way it says but in seeking to understand it that is the only understanding that I personally can come to the reason for there being a sin offering sacrifice in those days.

Ezekiel 44 and the Identity of the Prince

Now as we get to chapter 44 we come to a prophecy that is so often misinterpreted and I must confess to you that I have often misinterpreted this prophecy and as I read it more carefully and have read it more carefully this time and this is one of the problems I have with this last portion of Ezekiel that every time I read it I seem to see something else that I didn't quite understand before and my whole views have to change again.

But he brought me back to the way of the gate of the outward sanctuary which looks towards the east and it was shut now you go over to Jerusalem today and the east gate of the wall of Jerusalem is shut it has been walled shut there are big stones and the gate is shut and they will often point to this gate and declare to you that this gate being shut is actually the fulfillment of Ezekiel 44 and that this gate is shut and it's going to be shut until the prince comes to enter through the gate.

But if you'll read the whole thing carefully you'll come to first of all the realization that the prince here is not Jesus Christ. For as we move along a little further the prince has sons who he gives his inheritance to the prince is mentioned some 13 times here and he will be a prince but not as we so often have thought of as Jesus Christ.

The gate that is here shut is open for the prince he uses it as an entry and as an exit that is the gate towards the east and it's only for his entrance into the court. Those others who come in come from the gates to the north and the south but it is not the gate that is called today the golden gate on the east wall of the ancient wall of Jerusalem.

Now the reason why that gate is closed and walled up is someone misinterpreted this prophecy a long time ago of the prince or the Messiah coming in through the east gate and they thought that they would hinder his coming by sealing up that gate towards the east.

But as I read this more carefully I find that this is the gate to the sanctuary it will be in this new temple and it is the gate into the sanctuary itself and thus cannot be that gate towards the east that you find blocked over there and I suggest that you read this again more carefully now I found this a great disappointment because I love to point out that gate to the people and read to them this prophecy out of Ezekiel and show to them how look, it's sealed, it's shut and it's going to remain that way until you know, the Messiah, the prince enters in but the prince here is not referred to as the Messiah nor is he referred to as David now in other places we do have the prince David and the reference there and the prince definitely there is Jesus Christ but this prince is never referred to as David here in 44th chapter onward and it speaks much about the prince and as I say, it speaks of his sons to whom he gives an inheritance and his sermons and that pretty much precludes Jesus Christ as the prince.

But as we read it he brought me back to the way of the gate of the outward sanctuary and it looks towards the east and it was shut. Then said the Lord unto me this gate shall be shut. It is not to be opened and no man shall enter in by it because the Lord, the God of Israel hath entered in by it.

Therefore it shall be shut. The glory of the Lord entered in by the east gate and for that reason it was to be shut but it is for the prince the prince he shall sit in it to eat bread before the Lord.

He shall enter by the way of the porch of the gate and he shall go out by the way of the same. And then he brought me to the way of the north gate before the house and I looked and behold the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord and I fell on my face.

So coming around to this gate to the north as Ezekiel looked in even as the glory of the Lord filled the temple of Solomon so the glory of the Lord filled the temple area and Ezekiel falls upon his face.

The Lord said unto me son of man mark well and behold with your eyes and hear with your ears all that I say concerning all of the ordinances of the house of the Lord and all of the laws thereof and mark well the entering in of the house with every going forth of the sanctuary.

So he's told now by the Lord to make a careful account of this mark it well thou shalt say to the rebellious even to the house of Israel. Thus saith the Lord God O ye house of Israel let it suffice you of all your abominations in that ye have brought into my sanctuary strangers who were uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh.

Circumcision of the Heart and the Reality Behind Religious Rituals

Paul the Apostle speaks about circumcision of the heart. And many times people who go through a ritual that has a symbolism soon begin to trust in the ritual but there is no reality and thus it is a meaningless ritual.

The ritual of circumcision was actually to speak of a people who were not living after the flesh but living after the spirit the cutting off of the flesh and so it was the denial of the flesh life to live the life of the spirit.

But the rite itself did not guarantee that many people had gone through the rite of circumcision were still living after the flesh and so the whole ritual was totally negated by the fact that they were living after the flesh.

Now the ritual of baptism is to signify that your old man was crucified and you are living the new life after Jesus Christ. The old man after the flesh is dead he is buried in the waters of baptism and now you have a whole new life in the spirit.

But the ritual is totally meaningless if after the baptism you are still living after the flesh the old life of the flesh and after the nature of the old man and I don't care how many ways or times you've been baptized.

It's only a ritual and it becomes a meaningless ritual unless there is the reality that has been carried through in your life. And so the important thing is not if you've experienced the ritual but have you experienced the reality of which the ritual is a symbol.

And so he speaks here of the uncircumcision of the heart. And Paul picks that up in the book of Romans showing to the Jews that the right of circumcision was totally negated by the fact that they were still living after the flesh.

For God wants the circumcision of the heart not of the flesh. And it's the circumcision of the heart that counts. That is what is going on within your heart is what really matters to God not what you've done in outward rituals.

And this is where people today who are trusting in rituals are in great danger because it could be just a meaningless thing that you have gone through. And the church has many rituals that become totally meaningless unless there is the corresponding reality in your life the ritual means nothing apart from the reality that has happened in your life.

So you say well I take communion so I've been baptized so those are marvelous rituals. They are very meaningful rituals if the truth has been actualized in your own experience. But there are many people that are just trusting in the fact that they have taken the communion so my sins are washed or I've been baptized so you know I'm a new creature but there's got to be a corresponding reality in our lives.

And so God is speaking against these that have come in before him uncircumcised in their hearts and in their flesh. And so in this future temple there will be nothing allowed in that defiles or that is defiled.

Priestly Holiness, Giving, and Service Without Pressure

Now there's an interesting thing to me as we get down to verse 17 it shall come to pass that is when the priest enter in at the gates of the inner court they shall be clothed with linen garments and no wool shall come upon them while they minister in the gates of the inner court and within.

So once they come into that inner court the area where the priest came to minister to the Lord the offering and the sacrifice and so forth there was to be only linen garments worn no wool they shall have on linen bonnets on their heads linen breeches on their loins.

They shall not gird themselves with anything that causes sweat. Now that to me is extremely interesting. God really doesn't want you to sweat when you're serving him. But perspiration is quite often a sign of the lack of inspiration.

And when you don't have inspiration quite often you need perspiration to get through. Now Jesus said my yoke is easy my burden is light. One thing God never wants is that man complaining of his service or what he has given to God.

That is why the New Testament teaches us that you are to determine in your own heart what you're to give. No one should be pressuring you, pushing you exciting you to give. But every man should determine in his own heart that which he is going to give to the Lord.

And then he should give to God with a joyful heart or with a hilarious spirit. For God loves a hilarious giver. God wants you to be hilarious over everything you've given to Him. He never wants you to be grudging or griping about what you've given.

God doesn't want any service that requires sweat. God doesn't want any complaining over what has been given to Him. Therefore if you cannot give to God hilariously you would be better off not giving at all.

Especially if you find yourself complaining or griping about what you have given to God. What an insult to God that I would go around complaining or griping about what I gave. That is why we are extremely careful here never to try to excite people to give to God or even to encourage people to give to God.

In fact, you notice you were at the third service. I think it was this morning when Mark was making the announcements after he said the ushers will now come to receive the offering. I've told the young men now look, we don't take offerings from people.

We receive offerings. We'll be glad to receive what you want to give to God. But we're not going to take anything from you. We don't want to take anything from you. If you want to give to God, we'll receive it.

But it's completely up to you what God has laid upon your heart. There'll never be any pressures for pledges or anything else because that is something between you and God. And when you give it to God you should be giving it hilariously happily, joyfully unto the Lord and that the Lord accepts and will bless you for it.

But He doesn't want you going out of here saying, oh, you know I don't know what I'm going to do. I've given so much to God. Oh, I'm saying God just can't stand that. And He doesn't want that kind of giving.

Nor does He want pressured service where I'm under a pressure. I'm sweating. You know, as I'm serving God and so, it's very significant to me that they are to wear only linen. They're not to wear anything that would cause sweat.

Now, when they go out to the people then they change their garments and the garments that they ministered in. They lay them there in the holy chambers. Now, neither are they to shave their heads nor allow their locks to grow long.

They shall only pull their heads. Neither shall any priest drink wine when he enters into the inner court. Again, God does not want service under any false stimulant. We remember when the tabernacle was first erected there in the wilderness and the fire of God came and kindled the coals on the altar and the sacrifice was consumed an exciting moment because here was spontaneous combustion.

They had set the sacrifice upon the altar. They were ready to institute the whole thing. When fire came from God and the altar was kindled an exciting moment because the glory of God ascended upon the tabernacle and all of the people fell on their faces when they saw this and it was a glorious, exciting moment.

God manifested His presence in the midst of the people and the two sons of Aaron grabbed their little censers and they put incense in them and they went to offer incense before the Lord. But they lit their censers with fire that God called strange fire.

And the fire came out from the altar and the two sons of Aaron were killed, were consumed by the fire that came from the altar. And then the Lord in instructing Moses said tell Aaron and his sons that they are not to drink wine when they come or before they come to offer before the Lord the sacrifice or when they come before the Lord to serve not to be drinking wine because God does not want service out of any kind of a false stimulus.

God wants your mind to be totally clear. I know what I'm doing. I'm not being falsely stimulated as I am serving God. I know that God has forgiven me but I am guilty of having stimulated people to serve God with false stimulants.

I used to offer to the children bicycles that they would bring so many to Sunday school. The one who brings the most will get a free trip to Disneyland. And I used to offer all kinds of incentives to get the kids you know to hustle their friends into Sunday school.

And these incentives that I was offering to the children were actually false stimulants. And I was guilty of offering these kind of false incentives for serving God. The only incentive that God wants you to serve Him with is the incentive of a heart of love Paul said for the love of Christ constrains me.