Presents
Pamphlet #8044 Ezekiel chapter 44
Is everyone who claims to be a Christian going to be able to enter the kingdom and sit at the feet of Jesus during the Millennium?
Is everyone who claims to be a Christian going to be able to enter the kingdom and sit at the feet of Jesus during the Millennium?
How about those shepherds and preachers who lead their people in praise and worship and give sermons claiming that God says "this" in the Bible and He says "that" in the Bible, when He doesn't say it at all? How about those preachers who cast out demons and sickness right there on stage in the name of Jesus as they knock people down? Jesus didn't knock people down when He healed them, He always lifted them up.
How about those who hold chicken barbeques to raise money to send missionaries abroad or who "fund raise" to feed the hungry children in third world nations or even this nation? Certainly those are good and noble works, but are they worthy of salvation? And how about those who elevate themselves on podiums which become pedestals and those who sit high in stature in the sanctuaries of major Christian denominations, arrayed in their "oh so religious" attire, who perpetuate the traditions and rituals and idolatrous doctrines of the church, but never quite get around to teaching His Word? What about those preachers? What will they be doing in the Millennium? In this study we shall see what probation the Lord has in store for them for 1000 years.
First, let's hear Jesus Christ answer the opening question for us, "Is everyone who claims to be a Christian going to be able to enter the kingdom and sit at the feet of Jesus during the Millennium?"
You see, a person either believes Jesus Christ and what He says, or he doesn't, and therefore would rather do the "church thing", which "thing" is religion, not Christianity. There are MANY (see next vs.) today who call themselves Christians who do all the things they believe they are supposed to, because they are told from men who claim to be Christ's representatives that this is what God wants them to do in order to be in good standing.Matthew 7:21
Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
There is just one problem with that. Because they have forsaken His Word (by not studying and absorbing it) and have substituted Churchianity, i.e. men's traditions, in place of Christianity, they will fall at the feet of the first supernatural entity who comes in power, arrayed in glory, riding on a "white horse" (symbolic of Christianity) claiming to be the Messiah and who deceives the whole world into believing he is God. This is the great apostasy, which means "falling away", spoken of by Paul in 2 Thes. 2. It is called "great" because it will be the MAJORITY of the House of Israel who will FALL, i.e. the Christian nations of the world.
So what will happen when these Christians and their Christian ministers who will have worshipped Satan, the spurious messiah, now go before the King of kings and Lord of lords when He returns at the 7th Trump and try to "cash in" all their wonderful good deeds and works?
These false teachers are the MAJORITY of the Christian ministers of today who are CAUSING the fall of the House of Israel by not building an hedge around the people that they may be able to stand in that day of the deception. The hedge is BUILT by teaching the Word of God line by line, chapter by chapter, and verse by verse, even one "spiritual cubit" at a time. Remember we covered this in depth in Ezekiel 13:4-6, "O Israel, thy prophets are like the foxes in the deserts. [5] Ye have not gone up into the gaps, (live link-)to-Find and Fill the Gaps neither made up the hedge for the house of Israel to stand in the battle in the day of the LORD. [6] They have seen vanity and lying divination, saying, The LORD saith: and the LORD hath not sent them: and they have made others to hope that they would confirm the word.[22] Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
They give false hope and teach a false sense of security by promising that people will be "raptured" away into the clouds when the Satan as the false-christ appears, when there is NO such rapture. Christ returns at the 7th Trump AFTER the reign of Satan who comes as the spurious messiah at the 6th Trump. And so it has already come to pass that MANY are sorely deceived this very day by those they trust as Christian ministers.
It IS a sign of these last days:
It is the great famine for the hearing of the Word of God in these last days spoken of by Amos in chapter 8, vs. 11, of his book. So what will Christ say to these deceived preachers who will have led the multitudes to worship Satan, the abomination of desolation, i.e. the desolator spoken of by Daniel the prophet?Mark 13:6
For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.
He never knew them because they never knew Him, i.e. they never came to Him through the written Word to know Him.Matthew 7:23
And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.
We are now going to see what will befall those ministers who even now are causing the House of Israel, i.e. the Christian nations to stumble and fall.
Ezekiel has just SEEN the measurements of The Altar, i.e. understood its purpose and function during the Millennium, and he will now be taken to the East Gate which looks across the Kidron Valley to the Mount of Olives in the direction of the return of the Glory of God, even Jesus Christ the King and Lord over all.
The CLOSED OUTER EAST GATE and the reason. (vs. 1-3)
It is recorded in Rev. 15:8 that even the Temple in heaven will be shut at the 7th Trump and no man shall enter therein. Why? Well, as it is written in 1 Cor. 15:52, at the 7th (last) Trump we will all be changed into spiritual bodies and so during the Millennium no one is going to "die" and go to heaven! They shall remain here for the 1000 year reign of Christ and His saints. In other words, if you have the eyes to see and the ears to hear, there will be NO salvation (additional granting of eternal life) until after the Millennium when the second resurrection occurs. The spiritually dead must remain that way [spiritually dead] for 1000 years (Rev. 20:5). Will they be able to come into the Inner Court and approach unto Jesus Christ and sit at His feet? No!Ezekiel 44:1
Then he brought me back the way of the gate of the outward sanctuary which looketh toward the east; and it was shut.
When Christ says "depart from me, ye that work iniquity", He will then close the door![2] Then said the LORD unto me; This gate shall be shut, it shall not 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 prince referred to here is the beloved prince David (see chapter 34:24) who must use the vestibule to go in and out.Ezekiel 44:3
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 that gate, and shall go out by the way of the same.
Ezekiel is now brought into the COURT of THE HOUSE by the NORTH (the Sacrificial) GATE (vs. 4) - to receive "THE ORDINANCES of the HOUSE OF YAHVEH" (vs. 5-31).
If you recall in chapter 40 in this Millennial Temple Vision (MTV), Ezekiel was first taken to this North (sacrificial) Gate. He has come "full circle" as we say in SEEING the Temple and he is now going to learn directly from the LORD what it is He wants the watchman to understand and tell the rebellious House of Israel. It is so sad, but because of the "famine" for the hearing of His Word, very few Christians know that when we are admonished in the New Testament by Christ and even Paul to "watch and pray always" that it is this book of Ezekiel, the book of the appointed watchman "whom God strengthens", which contains the details of the duties of that "watch".[4] Then brought he me 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 upon my face.
Also, one can only imagine what an awesome sight it must be to behold the glory of the Lord, that beautiful aura called the "shekinah glory" which surrounds the Lord GOD and which fills the whole House. I once had the privilege while traveling north in the great and beautiful country of Canada to behold the Northern Lights, the Aurora Borealis, which filled the whole sky around us and completely engulfed us in a surreal and awesome display of brilliant, dazzling light. It was breathtaking to say the least. They are certainly appropriately named the Northern Lights, for as it is written He dwells in the sides of the North.
So He brought Ezekiel through the North Gate, the sacrificial gate, and He is now going to show him who is going to be doing the menial service work of the temple during the Millennium.
First, a word of warning for us to pay very close attention to that which He is about to reveal:
Mark well means "set your heart", i.e. pay very close attention because this is extremely important. Open your "eyes to SEE" and "ears to HEAR" about ALL the ordinances and laws of the house! Pay close attention to who can enter in and who is excluded from it![5] And the LORD said unto me, Son of man, mark well, and behold with thine eyes, and hear with thine ears all that I say unto thee concerning all the ordinances of the house of the LORD, and all the laws thereof; and mark well the entering in of the house, with every going forth of the sanctuary.
You tell the people, oh appointed watchman, "Thus saith the Lord GOD", "It is Written". This is the way it is going to be, PERIOD. No matter what preachers tell people and promise them about the Millennium, the door of the East Gate WILL BE SHUT to them because of their abominations, even because they worshipped the abomination of desolation and became spiritually dead!Ezekiel 44:6
And 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,
If you want to know why the Lord has "lifted up his hand" (see vs. 12) against these false preachers, here it is:
The Hebrew word for "strangers" is "nekar", Strong's # 5236; from Hebrew #5234 (nakar); foreign, or (concrete) a foreigner, or (abstract) heathendom :- alien, strange (+ -er).[7] In that ye have brought into my sanctuary strangers, uncircumcised in heart, and uncircumcised in flesh, to be in my sanctuary, to pollute it, even my house, when ye offer my bread, the fat and the blood, and they have broken my covenant because of all your abominations.
This began back in the days of Solomon when the duties of the temple were multitudinous and "Nethinim" were hired to perform those laborious, menial duties involved with carrying wood and cleaning sacrifices and keeping the place clean.
* Note: Ophel was where tower was from under which the water from the Fountain of the Virgin flowed into the pool of Siloam."The word Nethinim occurs only in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, with a solitary passage in 1 Chron. 9:2. They discharged the more menial duties required by the temple worship... The Nethinim seem to have been naturalized foreigners rather than people of true Israelite descent (1 Chron. 9:2, Ezra 2:59, Neh. 7:61.)... Some of them lived on Ophel*, a southern prolongation of the temple hill... They seem to have adopted with some cordiality the covenant made at the instance of Nehemiah to worship Jehovah (Neh. 10:28, 29)." (Davis Bible Dictionary, Baker Publishing, under the heading "Nethinim", pg. 537.)
So while the Nethinim started out doing the "dirty work" of the Temple, by the time Jesus Christ walked the earth, the Nethinim, these non-Israelite foreigners (uncircumcised in the flesh), i.e. the kenites (sons of Cain) had "taken full charge of the sanctuary", i.e. they were now performing the duties of the Levitical Priests, and EVEN the High Priest was not of Abraham, neither in the flesh nor in the spirit. He was a kenite, an offspring of Cain as Christ would document concerning the scribes and Pharisees in John 8:44.
That is what Jesus meant when He said:
The Nethinim eventually became scribes and Pharisees themselves and they were now sitting in the seat of "authority", i.e. Moses' seat.Matthew 23:2
Saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat:
Well, there is nothing new under the sun. The lazy preachers of Christianity today do not perform their appointed duties concerning the Word of God. Most are far from scholars and rarely research the scriptures or teach the people line by line. They have relied completely on the traditions of men to suffice and so they commit grave abominations and lead their congregations straight to the false-christ.
The irony in what we are about to read is that whereas the Nethinim did all the menial labor while the fat cat preachers gloried in their exalted positions, these preachers shall be reduced to temple servants for 1000 years and bear their shame as they are humbled before the nation.
Again, they broke His covenant because they PERMITTED STRANGERS, uncircumcised in their flesh and in their hearts, to take over the SANCTUARY for their [the preachers] own pleasure and convenience! "For yourselves" means "for your own pleasure".Ezekiel 44:8
And ye have not kept the charge of mine holy things: but ye have set keepers of my charge in my sanctuary for yourselves.
"Thus saith the Lord GOD", He will put a STOP to this abomination during the Millennium and for evermore.
The Rules of House shall prevail all through the 1000 years.[9] Thus saith the Lord GOD; No stranger, uncircumcised in heart, nor uncircumcised in flesh, shall enter into my sanctuary, of any stranger that is among the children of Israel.
These are preachers who have gone astray and who teach Ishtar (Easter) instead of Passover, and hideous eternal torture doctrines like Dante's Inferno, instead of the second death, i.e. perishing (Jn. 3:16), and "fly away" theories designed to avoid tribulation, instead of instructing their congregations to put on the Gospel Armor line by line and verse by verse and be prepared to take a stand. They have not built an hedge for God's people against the Day of Battle by teaching God's Word. Instead they teach just have love in your heart and be kind and do good deeds and God will rapture them away when the enemy shows up.[10] And the Levites that are gone away far from me, when Israel went astray, which went astray away from me after their idols; they shall even bear their iniquity.
Sorry! Try reading what God has to say for "Thus saith the Lord GOD" is how it is going to be.
They are going to be "lowly" servants, NOT priests unto Christ (see vs. 13). They are going to do, as we say, the "dirty work" of keeping and cleaning house (not that there is not honor in a job well done). As verse eleven declares, they may be guards or gatemen, or they shall slay the animals brought for burnt offerings, and they shall be present to help the people with whatever they need! In other words they will get all the "minimum wage jobs" in the Temple during the Millennium. They shall bear the shame of their iniquity for 1000 years and hopefully they will learn to be glad and appreciative that our Father even gives them an opportunity to still serve at all!Ezekiel 44:11
Yet they shall be ministers in my sanctuary, having charge at the gates of the house, and ministering to the house: they shall slay the burnt offering and the sacrifice for the people, and they shall stand before them to minister unto them.
And they too, at the disciplined direction of the Zadok (God's elect), shall "Learn to Discern" between the holy and the profane, the true Christ and the false Christ, something which they are obviously unable to do at this present time.
God is going to "lift up His hand AGAINST them". They are going to pay dearly for leading the people astray and CAUSING the house of Israel to FALL INTO INIQUITY, to worship the profane (Satan) as holy, i.e. as if he were Jesus Christ. They couldn't discern the difference nor did they exercise their charged duties as watchmen and take the time to search the scriptures (eat the whole scroll) to FIND OUT. You think that is not serious? You may be one who thinks this teacher is hard on other Christian ministers. It doesn't matter one bit what I think for "Thus saith the Lord GOD", what He says in His Word, prevails over ALL and He has declared through His watchman that these false preachers shall NOT COME NEAR HIM for 1000 years. They shall perform menial service in the Temple. Here are His Words, not mine:[12] Because they ministered unto them before their idols, and caused the house of Israel to fall into iniquity; therefore have I lifted up mine hand against them, saith the Lord GOD, and they shall bear their iniquity.
Get away from me, ye that work iniquity. This shall be in effect for 1000 years! The door will be SHUT to them!Ezekiel 44:13
And they shall not come near unto me,
They will NOT be priests like the Zadok! They will serve and minister unto the people, not to Christ. No Inner Court for these guys and gals. Their days of profaning the sanctuary are OVER. They can clean House for 1000 years and bear the shame of their iniquity.to do the office of a priest unto me,
He is not going to let them even touch His holy things anymore. They are finished as priests!nor to come near to any of my holy things, in the most holy place:
Again, hopefully they will be thankful to have this opportunity to bear their shame. You see, God still loves them though they committed the grossest of abominations in leading His children to worship Satan, when he comes to earth as the spurious messiah, causing the house of Israel (people of the Christian nations of the world) to FALL.but they shall bear their shame, and their abominations which they have committed.
So as it is written, they shall be house keepers and do whatever needs to be done in the house.
** Note: If you are not well versed in Hebrew or Greek, or are just beginning to learn the languages, or even if you haven't even thought about it yet, it is a thing good to have other translations, like a Moffat Bible, etc., and read them also. Sometimes the Old English of the King James is not the easiest to understand.[14] But I will make them keepers of the charge of the house, for all the service thereof, and for all that shall be done therein."No, they must suffer the shame of their abominable conduct, and I shall reduce them to taking charge of all the work and of all that goes on in the temple." (Moffat**)
Have you now grasped what has been said so far in this 44th chapter? Can you imagine these once well known popular evangelists and preachers who spoke from high pulpits and fancy stages or high ranking whatever's who gave blessings from lofty balconies, etc., now performing the menial tasks of the temple? Yes, the word humility comes to mind.
This will be in contrast to God's elect, the Zadok (which means the just) who did not go astray and who stood firm with the Gospel Armor on (Eph. 6) and who did not profane His Holy Word with the traditions of men by allowing "foreigners" to write church quarterlies from which they are instructed to teach.
God's elect who did not worship the false Messiah shall present the love offerings and the love sacrifices of the people unto Christ (saith the Lord GOD). Only those who are part of that first resurrection shall be blessed with such an holy position to be a priest of God. It is so written!Ezekiel 44:15
But the priests the Levites, the sons of Zadok, that kept the charge of my sanctuary when the children of Israel went astray from me, they shall come near to me to minister unto me, and they shall stand before me to offer unto me the fat and the blood, saith the Lord GOD:
The Zadok shall be able to enter the sanctuary and serve the King of kings and Lord of lords. What an honor and a privilege and a glorious blessing of happiness.Rev. 20:6
Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.
And it is written, the priests of the Zadok shall execute the commands of the Lord Jesus Christ and hold firm all the ordinances and laws of the house. We will shortly read the details of some of the duties and responsibilities of the priests of the Zadok and what happens when a spiritually "dead" loved one goes astray.Ezekiel 44:16
They shall enter into my sanctuary, and they shall come near to my table, to minister unto me, and they shall keep my charge.
It is too bad that so many Christians have such a weak and uninspiring concept of what heaven and the eternity has in store for those who love and serve God. I mean, who in the world wants to sit around on some fluffy cloud and play a harp anyway? Did you know that Romans chapter eight declares that the whole creation awaits the manifestation of the sons of God? And Rev. 4:11 tells us "Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created.
You see, the entire vast universe, plumb full of awesome fun filled galaxies, was created for God's pleasure, and His pleasure is to give it to His sons, who overcome and love Him, as their INHERITANCE!
All things have been put in subjection (Heb. 2:8) under the Firstborn among many brethren, even our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Did you know we can be joint heirs with Him? Just think about it! It is almost unfathomable.Rev. 21:7
He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.
In fact, it IS unfathomable, and the scriptures even declare that our limited flesh minds cannot even begin to imagine the wonderful things our Father hath prepared for them that love Him! That makes sense because obviously many cannot SEE the incredible loving things He has already done for us!Romans 8:17
And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.
It is so important to know the positive side of what the future holds in store for us. Sure, you can preach "hell fire" and "damnation" and get people to come to church and "tow the line" out of fear of frying! But fear is NOT love! Reverence is love and our Father is to be revered with glory and honor and praise for all the wonderful things He has already done for us, His children. He wants us to love Him and do what is right because we WANT TO, because of what He has done for us, and not because we HAVE TO out of fear or some other reason.1 Cor. 2:9
But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.
Our Father wants His appointed watchmen of this final generation to know what the future holds, especially the near future just ahead of us when the 7th Trump sounds and the flesh age ends (1 Cor.1 5:50) and all who have not died in the flesh are changed into their spiritual bodies. To that end, He has devoted NINE whole chapters in the book written to the watchmen, Ezekiel, in order to "strengthen" their faith and their knowledge in His wonderful plan of salvation so that they can declare His will to the house of Israel.
We have learned so far in chapters 40 - 44 that for those who are NOT part of the First Resurrection, the Millennium will be a time of discipline and sacrifice in learning how to discern between the holy and the profane, and exercising it, i.e. DOING IT! After the 1000 years they will be "tested", even by the son of perdition who will be loosed for a short season, and then the final Great White Throne judgment will be held which ENDS the Plan of Salvation and ushers in the Third World Age when the New Jerusalem comes down out of heaven (Rev. 21).
We also learned that ONLY the priests of Zadok, the "just" ones, i.e. God's elect, will be able to approach Jesus Christ and minister unto Him during the Millennium. That is not what is commonly taught among the churches today who teach that everyone who makes it into the kingdom will be able to sit at the feet of Jesus. Who are you going to believe, them or His Word? He told us in verse two of this 44th chapter that once the Glory of the Lord enters into the Temple, the East Gate will be shut! So you can count on it being shut!
Earlier we read that the ministers and priests and preachers who failed to adhere to the Word of God and thus led their entire congregations to worship the false-christ, i.e. they caused the house of Israel to FALL, will not be allowed to approach Jesus Christ, period! They will minister only unto the people, as keepers of the house for the 1000 years, while the priests of the Zadok will have charge of His sanctuary and will be in total control of the "comings and goings" of the temple!
What a blessing it will be indeed for those who are part of the First Resurrection. Let's read some more about the privileges and duties of God's elect, the priests of the Zadok, the wife of Christ.
God's elect will see that all the laws and ordinances of the house are executed as per Yeshua's commands. You might say that they are even His "rod", or at least they carry it forth, with which He rules and maintains discipline in the temple and among the nations during the Millennium, for they SHALL keep His charge.Ezekiel 44:16
They shall enter into my sanctuary, and they shall come near to my table, to minister unto me, and they shall keep my charge.
Verse 18 explains that the priests of the Zadok are not to wear anything that makes them sweaty (unclean), like wool, which is therefore not "righteous" material. We will learn that the Zadok can actually become unclean, i.e. defiled, when they leave the inner court and so before they return they will need to go through a cleansing and purification process of seven days. So all of their clothing while they are in the Inner Court shall be of nothing but fine linen, i.e. they shall have on pure "righteousness" when they are in His presence.[17] And it shall come to pass, that when they enter in at the gates of the inner court, they shall be clothed with linen garments; and no wool shall come upon them, whiles they minister in the gates of the inner court, and within.
That is what fine "linen" represents as documented in Rev. 19.
The bride dresses in her fine white linen wedding dress on her wedding day, at her marriage, doesn't she? This is symbolic of God's elect gathering unto Christ, the Bridegroom.Rev. 19:7
Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.
The clean white linen wedding gown represents the "righteousness", even the virginity of the saints.[8] And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.
Again, what a BLESSING it will be to be His wife. Just imagine what that means! Hey, come to think of it, wives are joint-heirs with their husbands, aren't they?[9] And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God.
So everything from their headdresses [bonnets] to their underwear [breeches - look it up] shall be of pure white linen. You know, we often don't think about it this way, but imagine what a beautiful sight God's elect, all adorned in their beautiful white linen flowing gowns, will be to Jesus Christ!Ezekiel 44:18
They shall have linen bonnets upon their heads, and shall have linen breeches upon their loins; they shall not gird themselves with any thing that causeth sweat.
This is real simple. They cannot wear their beautiful white linen wedding dresses out in public! They must take them off and put on street clothes first![19] And when they go forth into the utter court, even into the utter court to the people, they shall put off their garments wherein they ministered, and lay them in the holy chambers, and they shall put on other garments; and they shall not sanctify the people with their garments.
We would say they will be "clean cut" and very neat.Ezekiel 44:20
Neither shall they shave their heads, nor suffer their locks to grow long; they shall only poll their heads.
Nothing outward or inward shall alter the purity of His wife in the Inner Court.[21] Neither shall any priest drink wine, when they enter into the inner court.
Don't let this be difficult. We have just read about the wife of Christ and yet it is written that "marriage", as we know it, is a thing of the flesh. There is NO giving in marriage, as we know it, in the Millennium. Why? Everyone will be in spiritual bodies even as the angels who are all "sons" of God. That is why all the angels who appear in the Bible are as young men.[22] Neither shall they take for their wives a widow, nor her that is put away: but they shall take maidens of the seed of the house of Israel, or a widow that had a priest before.
Ok, we know this to be true. Now notice the big "But" concerning the Millennium. (Did that sound right?)Luke 20:34
And Jesus answering said unto them, The children of this world marry, and are given in marriage:
Not only isn't there any marrying, there is no "giving" either. (This really upsets some, especially those [mostly men] who think they will surely miss the "get", which really is nothing in comparison to what the spiritual bodies have to offer. I mean, it is like comparing riding a bike to flying a highly polished spectrum bronze interstellar spacecraft!)[35] But they which shall be accounted worthy to obtain that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage:
Seriously though, we are to SEE, i.e. understand, that which is "spiritual", those things which are invisible to the flesh eye, from that which we SEE in the flesh, even His eternal power and Godhead.
Here's Paul with the scoop on how it works:
Physical, fleshly marriage helps us understand our spiritual relationship with Christ. Let's read again verse 22.Romans 1:20
For the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:
Since we have already documented there is no "marrying" in the Millennium, we know that this is spiritual. The purpose of the exercise during the Millennium is to prepare those who didn't make the wedding at Christ's return for the final wedding at the end of the Millennium. God's elect, the wife of Christ, are not going to be running all over the world to other peoples and nations, preparing wives for that wedding. They will work, partner so to speak, with the spiritual virgins [maidens] of the house of Israel. And aside from ministering unto Christ, these next two verses contain some of their other duties.Ezekiel 44:22
Neither shall they take for their wives a widow, nor her that is put away: but they shall take maidens of the seed of the house of Israel, or a widow that had a priest before.
As we noted previously, when you look out across the land of the free and the home of the brave today, you can't help but notice the lack of wisdom and understanding and spiritual discernment among this final generation. I mean, how in the world have we allowed such liberal politicians, teachers and preachers to prevail in our land? It is staggering how many people can't tell the difference between a fetus and an unborn child, between living together and fornication, between alternate lifestyle and sexual perversion, between the United States form of Government and Cuba's, between right and wrong, between good and evil, between the holy and the profane, between Jesus Christ and false-Jesus Christ.Ezekiel 44:23
And they shall teach my people the difference between the holy and profane, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean.
So for the next 1000 years, they will "Learn to Discern" and the Zadok will see to it that they do!
And when controversy arises, the Zadok shall settle it in righteous judgment according to God's Word.
Won't that just frost the former members of the defunct ACLU who shall learn there is no such thing as separating God from anything, especially the Kingdom of God, the Government of God! And perhaps former members of our "They Thought They Were Supreme Court" can lead the opening prayers at football games.Ezekiel 44:24
And in controversy they shall stand in judgment; and they shall judge it according to my judgments: and they shall keep my laws and my statutes in all mine assemblies; and they shall hallow my sabbaths.
Yes, life in the Millennium under God's laws will be quite a contrast to the last 6,000 years of man placing his unrighteous laws over God's righteous laws.
Again, the priests of the Zadok will not be dealing directly with the spiritually "dead". You see, the "dead" cannot approach unto Christ during the Millennium, neither can they approach unto His wife!Ezekiel 44:25
And they shall come at no dead person to defile themselves: but for father, or for mother, or for son, or for daughter, for brother, or for sister that hath had no husband, they may defile themselves.
However, because of the love and compassion the Zadok have for their loved ones, and because of Christ's love and compassion for His elect, they will be able to hang up their wedding dresses and go past the outer court and help those loved ones (Let's read it again. Ezekiel 44:25 And they shall come at no dead person to defile themselves: but for father, or for mother, or for son, or for daughter, for brother, or for sister that hath had no husband, they may defile themselves.) who are having discernment problems which could jeopardize their salvation and cause them to perish in the lake of fire. In so doing this, they will become defiled, for as it is written, they will be holy: Rev. 20:6 "Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection.." Therefore, they must go through a 7 day cleansing period before reentering the Inner Sanctuary. Seven in Biblical numerics means "spiritual perfection", the state to which they shall return.
One thing we have learned though, and that is that we will certainly be able to recognize each other in our spiritual bodies, won't we? Just wait until we find out that we look like ourselves. What a hoot! After all, we were created in the image of the Elohim, i.e. God and the angels, i.e. God and His sons, i.e. God and you and me and our loved ones! The flesh body is a mirror image of the spiritual body.Ezekiel 44:26
And after he is cleansed, they shall reckon unto him seven days.
This sin offering is simply to offer our love unto Him who is so good to us.[27] And in the day that he goeth into the sanctuary, unto the inner court, to minister in the sanctuary, he shall offer his sin offering, saith the Lord GOD.
In the next chapters we are about to see the division of the land, even among the tribes of Israel. However, the Zadok will get none. Why? We already read it earlier, they are co-inheritors with Christ. We also read that the depth of that statement "I AM their inheritance" is beyond man's Eye to See, so let's just sort of SEE it in the physical and say it will be a family owned universe. Is it any wonder the scripture says in Rev. 20:6 "Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection..?" All things belong to God. Again, how would you like to be an heir to that?[28] And it shall be unto them for an inheritance: I am their inheritance: and ye shall give them no possession in Israel: I am their possession.
The Zadok will receive the offerings of the people and report them to Jesus Christ.Ezekiel 44:29
They shall eat the meat offering, and the sin offering, and the trespass offering; and every dedicated thing in Israel shall be theirs.
Again, as the holy Zadok, the wife of Christ, they will receive the oblations on behalf of Him and they will even administer blessings on His behalf. Well, I can understand that, because my wife sometimes signs my checks with her name and the bank always honors them, because they recognize us as married. Hmmm. Marriage is really a close relationship, isn't it? Married people share everything![30] And the first of all the firstfruits of all things, and every oblation of all, of every sort of your oblations, shall be the priest's: ye shall also give unto the priest the first of your dough, that he may cause the blessing to rest in thine house.
This is simply a figure of speech meaning that the priests of the Zadok shall partake of only the very best! Nothing that is defiled shall they receive, anymore than Christ would receive it. And please do not misunderstand, I am in NO WAY making the Zadok equal to Christ. It's just that He's so good to us and He share's everything with His wife. Oh how glorious and what a blessing that will be!Ezekiel 44:31
The priests shall not eat of any thing that is dead of itself, or torn, whether it be fowl or beast.
Also, just as a reminder, there will be no flesh and blood nor flesh and blood sacrifices in the kingdom of God, for flesh and blood cannot even enter therein. All the worship and sacrifice that shall be given will be spiritual, even love, for as it is written:
John 4:24
God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
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