The American Wisdom Series

Presents

Within The Millennial Temple:
Ezekiel Chapters 40-44

Do you remember in the closing verses of Ezekiel chapter 37 just before we saw the final battle of Hamon-gog in chapters 38 and 39, that God promised the Millennial sanctuary?

Here it is:

Ezekiel 37:26
Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them: and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore.

[27] My tabernacle also shall be with them: yea, I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

[28] And the heathen shall know that I the LORD do sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary shall be in the midst of them for evermore.

Just as the Book of Ezekiel begins with visions, it also ends with visions, all of which are visions that the sons and daughters of God's servants in the last days would come to understand (Acts 2:17). We are about to see Ezekiel carried "in vision" to the land of Israel and shown that glorious sanctuary of the Millennium.

It is worth remembering that eventually, in the 3rd Earth Age, i.e. throughout eternity, there will be no temple, for the Lord GOD Almighty and the Lamb ARE the temple, even as Christ is that temple now if you have understanding.

Rev. 21:22
And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.

Here it is:

Rev. 21:27
And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life.

Ezekiel 40:1
In the five and twentieth year of our captivity, in the beginning of the year, in the tenth day of the month, in the fourteenth year after that the city was smitten, in the selfsame day the hand of the LORD was upon me, and brought me thither.

[2] In the visions of God brought he me into the land of Israel, and set me upon a very high mountain, by which was as the frame of a city on the south.

[3] 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 a measuring reed; and he stood in the gate.

Daniel 10:5
Then I lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and behold a certain man clothed in linen, whose loins were girded with fine gold of Uphaz:

[6] His body also was like the beryl, and his face as the appearance of lightning, and his eyes as lamps of fire, and his arms and his feet like in colour to polished brass, and the voice of his words like the voice of a multitude.

[7] And I Daniel alone saw the vision: for the men that were with me saw not the vision; but a great quaking fell upon them, so that they fled to hide themselves.

However, before we move on, did you notice that the man of brass appeared with two measuring tools, a line of flax (linen) and a measuring reed, kind of like a tape measure, for longer measurements and a yardstick for shorter ones? Our Father has unique ways of revealing His truth to us even as we have seen the "line" and the "reed" used elsewhere when He wanted to "size things up" for us!

The measuring line:

Zech. 2:1-2
I lifted up mine eyes again, and looked, and behold a man with a measuring line in his hand. [2] Then said I, Whither goest thou? And he said unto me, To measure Jerusalem, to see what is the breadth thereof, and what is the length thereof.

Rev. 21:15
And he that talked with me had a golden reed to measure the city, and the gates thereof, and the wall thereof.

Ezekiel, use your spiritual eyes to see, and your spiritual ears to hear, and understand with your spiritual mind to discern what I am about to show you!

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[4... continued] for to the intent that I might shew them unto thee art thou brought hither: declare all that thou seest to the house of Israel

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[5] And behold a wall on the outside of the house round about,...

Right now, during this dispensation of grace, when many do not even believe that God exists, all who WILL can approach Christ and enter the Holy of Holies, but during the Millennium that will not be the case. For everyone SHALL KNOW that He is Lord, for they shall see His Glory, but they must "learn" and "want" of their own free will to follow Him and His ways and not Satan and his ways. They will have NO CHOICE but to learn and follow His ways during the Millennium. (That's where we will see the Zadok and the saints of the 1st Resurrection come in.) After that, Satan will be released for a short season when they can PROVE on their own whether they still want to or not! THEN... the judgment!

Let's complete verse 5.

[5... continued] and in the man's hand a measuring reed of six cubits long by the cubit and an hand breadth: so he measured the breadth of the building, one reed; and the height, one reed.

Let's recap what we have learned so far from the first five verses which, if you noticed, ALL contain something spiritual, or "supernatural", to set the stage from the beginning that what we are going to read in the closing Millennial Chapters of the Book of Ezekiel is spiritual not physical.

1. The hand of God came upon Ezekiel and took him in "visions" to "eretz Israel", the land of Israel, and set him upon the "north side" of the highest mountain where he was looking south.

2. He was then taken to the temple where a celestial being was waiting with measuring tools to be his spiritual instructor and SIZE-UP the temple for his understanding.

3. The angel then told Ezekiel to get his eyes and ears open and discern what he is about to be shown, then teach it to the house of Israel.

4. Then, the first thing Ezekiel was shown was a WALL outside the temple.

5. Ezekiel, now with his eyes open, saw that the measuring reed used by the angel was one seventh larger than usual and the wall was one reed by one reed.

Ezekiel 40:6
Then came he unto the gate which looketh toward the east, and went up the stairs thereof, and measured the threshold of the gate, which was one reed broad; and the other threshold of the gate, which was one reed broad.

What a privilege it is that our Father allows us to be able to see into the future.

These last nine chapters in Ezekiel, the book written to the appointed watchmen in this final generation, are truly exciting, for amidst the measurements, much delicious "hidden manna" is found which tells us precisely what the Millennium will be like and what the various peoples will be doing during those 1000 years, i.e. both those people who were part of the First Resurrection and those who didn't make it and so must prepare themselves in order to be part of the Second Resurrection or else be sentenced to perish with the son of perdition in the lake of fire.

We must remember as we read these final chapters that the 7th Trump has already sounded and ALL mankind including the good, the bad, and the ugly, have been changed into spiritual, incorruptible bodies, some having received immortality along with the change of body and the rest remaining "liable to die", i.e. retaining the mortal status of their souls (See 1 Cor. 15:50-55).

One of the precious truths we will uncover in chapter 43 is that the very Throne of God along with that beautiful sparkling rainbow prism called the Shekinah Glory which surrounds the Lord GOD, yes, that VERY THRONE that Ezekiel saw and described in chapter one, is going to return in the same manner as it appeared to Ezekiel along the River Chebar and enter into the east gate. Do you remember what that throne was aboard? It was aboard the Chariot of Israel (2 Kings 2:12), the highly polished spectrum metal circular flying vehicle bearing the standards of the tribes of Israel, i.e. the Lion, the Ox, the Man, and the Eagle (See Num. 2).

Let's jump ahead and read Ezekiel's vision of the glory of God and His throne coming to the temple where the God of Israel will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel for ever.

Ezekiel 43:2
And, behold, the glory of the God of Israel came from the way of the east: and his voice was like a noise of many waters: and the earth shined with his glory.

[3] And it was according to the appearance of the vision which I saw, even according to the vision that I saw when I came to destroy the city: and the visions were like the vision that I saw by the river Chebar; and I fell upon my face.

Ezekiel 43:5
So the spirit took me up, and brought me into the inner court; and, behold, the glory of the LORD filled the house.

[6] And I heard him speaking unto me out of the house; and the man stood by me.

[7] 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 for ever, and my holy name, shall the house of Israel no more defile, neither they, nor their kings, by their whoredom, nor by the carcases of their kings in their high places.

It should also be pointed out before we continue with the measurements of the temple and the city that the Great City will lie parallel with "the very great valley" cloven by Jesus Christ through the Mount of Olives and running east and west. Therefore the 'City of the Great King' will be situated in a magnificent elevated position on the north side of this great valley through which the cleansing waters will flow from the House of God. (See appendix 88, pg. 126, in the Companion Bible.) Here is the creation of the very great valley by our LORD:

Zech. 14:4
And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.

Zech. 14:8
And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward the former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea: in summer and in winter shall it be.

[9] And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one.

Is that good news, or what? Aren't these "visions" created in your mind's eye very comforting and strengthening? You know, the prophet Joel said, and Peter repeated him in Acts 2, that the children of the prophets in the last days would SEE, i.e. understand the visions. Do you?

Now back to the measurements of the house of God in Ezekiel chapter 40. Again, the reason that we are given the dimensions and positionings of the temple and the city and their components is so that we can gain a clear PICTURE and understanding of the positions and relationships during the Final Day, the 7th Day, the 7th Dispensation in the salvation plan of God. You see, in understanding the layout of the whole sanctuary including the temple we learn that not everyone will be able to approach Jesus Christ during the Millennium. Only the priests of the Zadok will be able to minister directly unto Him, and we will learn what everyone else will be doing too! Remember, the reason Ezekiel is being shown this vision is so he/we could tell our people what the kingdom of God will be like in the Millennium. If you are a "watchman" then this information is for you to be able to SEE and to PROPHESY, i.e. teach our people the spiritual truths our Lord intends for us to understand by His use of these physical examples and descriptions of a temple.

So the measurements of the different parts and layout of the sanctuary and the temple itself are given to show us what will be happening spiritually during the Millennium.

There is also much significance in the "fine details" of the measurements that are given and those who are knowledgeable concerning Biblical numerics will be able to discern an even deeper level of understanding. For those who are not familiar with the significance of numbers in scripture, but would like to be, we can recommend several good resource materials. First, there is an appendix (#10) in the back of the Companion Bible which will get you started. Should you wish to study deeper, then obtain the book "Number in Scripture, Its Supernatural Design and Spiritual Significance", by E.W. Bullinger, Kregel Publishers, and/or "Biblical Mathematics", by Ed. F. Vallowe, Faith Printing Company, Taylors, SC.

As a final word of introduction, the saying is so true that "a picture is worth a thousand words", and our job in constructing the picture of the Millennial Temple has been made easy by great scholars who have gone before us. To that end it would be helpful to refer to the pictorial diagram of the temple shown in appendix 88 of your Companion Bible as you read these measurements, the first set of which are of THE HOUSE ITSELF. Also, there is an overall outline of these next few chapters noted in the Companion Bible and is as follows:

40:5-43  The Inclosures.
40:44-46  The Priests' rooms.
40:47  The Court. Its size and shape.
40:48-41:26  The Inner House, or Temple.
42:1-14  The Priests' rooms.
42:15-20  The Outer Place. Its size and shape.

Ezekiel 40:6
Then came he unto the gate which looketh toward the east, and went up the stairs thereof, and measured the threshold of the gate, which was one reed broad; and the other threshold of the gate, which was one reed broad.

Things will be quite different during the Millennium for those who did not make the First Resurrection! The "east gate" will be shut to the dead (spiritually) and the law and all the ordinances are going to be laid down and enforced with a rod of iron by Jesus Christ and His Zadok, even "the law of house", which we will cover when get to Ezek. 43:11-12.

There were also chambers or rooms every five cubits (again, see diagram).

[7] And every little chamber was one reed long, and one reed broad; and between the little chambers were five cubits; and the threshold of the gate by the porch of the gate within was one reed.

[8] He measured also the porch of the gate within, one reed.

[9] Then measured he the porch of the gate, eight cubits; and the posts thereof, two cubits; and the porch of the gate was inward.

[10] And the little chambers of the gate eastward were three on this side, and three on that side; they three were of one measure: and the posts had one measure on this side and on that side.

[11] And he measured the breadth of the entry of the gate, ten cubits; and the length of the gate, thirteen cubits.

[12] The space also before the little chambers was one cubit on this side, and the space was one cubit on that side: and the little chambers were six cubits on this side, and six cubits on that side.

[13] He measured then the gate from the roof of one little chamber to the roof of another: the breadth was five and twenty cubits, door against door.

[14] He made also posts of threescore cubits, even unto the post of the court round about the gate.

[15] And from the face of the gate of the entrance unto the face of the porch of the inner gate were fifty cubits.

[16] And there were narrow windows to the little chambers, and to their posts within the gate round about, and likewise to the arches: and windows were round about inward: and upon each post were palm trees.

THE OUTER GATE (vs. 17-19)

Ezekiel 40:17
Then brought he me into the outward court, and, lo, there were chambers, and a pavement made for the court round about: thirty chambers were upon the pavement.

[18] And the pavement by the side of the gates over against the length of the gates was the lower pavement.

[19] Then he measured the breadth from the forefront of the lower gate unto the forefront of the inner court without, an hundred cubits eastward and northward.

There's more to measure and SEE in this great House of God. We will see who the keepers are of "the charge of the house" and who the keepers are of "the charge of the altar". Keepers? That sounds like work!

You didn't think there wasn't work to do in the Kingdom of God, did you?

Now we will continue to see the various sections of the House of God during the Millennium. There is so much to SEE so let's be about doing it!

THE NORTH OUTER GATE (vs. 20-22)

Ezekiel 40:20
And the gate of the outward court that looked toward the north, he measured the length thereof, and the breadth thereof.

[21] And the little chambers thereof were three on this side and three on that side; and the posts thereof and the arches thereof were after the measure of the first gate: the length thereof was fifty cubits, and the breadth five and twenty cubits.

[22] And their windows, and their arches, and their palm trees, were after the measure of the gate that looketh toward the east; and they went up unto it by seven steps; and the arches thereof were before them.

Ezekiel 40:23
And the gate of the inner court was over against the gate toward the north, and toward the east; and he measured from gate to gate an hundred cubits.

THE SOUTH OUTER GATE (vs. 24-26)

Ezekiel 40:24
After that he brought me toward the south, and behold a gate toward the south: and he measured the posts thereof and the arches thereof according to these measures.

[25] And there were windows in it and in the arches thereof round about, like those windows: the length was fifty cubits, and the breadth five and twenty cubits.

[26] And there were seven steps to go up to it, and the arches thereof were before them: and it had palm trees, one on this side, and another on that side, upon the posts thereof.

Meanwhile it will be those of the first resurrection, those who will have received eternal life, who will be the priests in the temple during the Millennium.

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.

Ezekiel 40:27
And there was a gate in the inner court toward the south: and he measured from gate to gate toward the south an hundred cubits.

THE INNER COURT. SOUTH GATE. (vs. 28-31)

Ezekiel 40:28
And he brought me to the inner court by the south gate: and he measured the south gate according to these measures;

[29] And the little chambers thereof, and the posts thereof, and the arches thereof, according to these measures: and there were windows in it and in the arches thereof round about: it was fifty cubits long, and five and twenty cubits broad.

[30] And the arches round about were five and twenty cubits long, and five cubits broad.

[31] And the arches thereof were toward the utter court; and palm trees were upon the posts thereof: and the going up to it had eight steps.

THE INNER COURT. EAST GATE. (vs. 32-34)

Ezekiel 40:32
And he brought me into the inner court toward the east: and he measured the gate according to these measures.

[33] And the little chambers thereof, and the posts thereof, and the arches thereof, were according to these measures: and there were windows therein and in the arches thereof round about: it was fifty cubits long, and five and twenty cubits broad.

[34] And the arches thereof were toward the outward court; and palm trees were upon the posts thereof, on this side, and on that side: and the going up to it had eight steps.

Here is a quote concerning the palm from Davis' Bible Dictionary, Baker Publishing, pg. 567:

"The palm tree in Scripture almost always means the date palm (Phoenix dactylifera), which grows about 60 to 80 feet high, having a single upright stem of uniform thickness through its entire length and marked by the scars of fallen leaves. The stem terminates above in a circle of great feathery leaves, perennially green. It is believed to attain a great age, from a hundred to two hundred years."

And those overcomers who come out of great tribulation and are part of that First Resurrection will be clothed in white linen (righteousness) with palms in their hands.

Rev. 7:9
After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;

Psalm 92:12
The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon.

Ezekiel 40:35
And he brought me to the north gate, and measured it according to these measures;

[36] The little chambers thereof, the posts thereof, and the arches thereof, and the windows to it round about: the length was fifty cubits, and the breadth five and twenty cubits.

[37] And the posts thereof were toward the utter court; and palm trees were upon the posts thereof, on this side, and on that side: and the going up to it had eight steps.

[38] And the chambers and the entries thereof were by the posts of the gates, where they washed the burnt offering.

[39] And in the porch of the gate were two tables on this side, and two tables on that side, to slay thereon the burnt offering and the sin offering and the trespass offering.

When this flesh age is over and Jesus Christ returns, the dispensation of grace also ends. You see, you won't need to have "faith" to believe that Jesus Christ is REAL and that He is the Lord GOD, the Lamb who was slain for the remission of our sins. He will be HERE and EVERY KNEE will have bowed and as the scriptures have so often declared, ALL shall KNOW that He is the Lord GOD. We will also no longer be in corruptible, sinful, flesh bodies.

The Millennium will be a great time of teaching (not so much of knowledge but of how to "discern") and of discipline (rod of iron) in following the perfect laws of liberty. There will be no dictators, no communist regimes, etc. But it is also documented in these Millennial chapters that the ONLY ONES who can approach directly unto Jesus Christ will be the priests of the Zadok.

Those who do not "make it" in the First of the TWO Resurrections, which means the "raising" to the status of eternal life, are referred to as "the dead" throughout the Millennium. Why? Because they are "spiritually dead", i.e. unsaved, and although they are in their incorruptible spiritual bodies they still possess mortal souls which are liable to die, and they must remain that way until the 1000 years is over and Satan is released for a short season to test them. So the "way" to eternal life at the second resurrection is somewhat different than that of the first, isn't it? That is why they are judged according to their "works" which they do during the Millennium and the short season just after it!

Here is your documentation:

Rev. 20:12
And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead (the unsaved from this age of salvation by grace) were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

Those who are part of the First Resurrection will not be subject to the Great White Throne Judgment for they already have eternal life (granted at the 1st resurrection when Christ returned) and so the second death, the death of the soul, has no power over them. They will be the ones with the white robes and with the palms in their hands during the Millennium who will be teaching and helping their loved ones to willing want to follow our Father and His ways.

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.

Ezekiel 40:40
And at the side without, as one goeth up to the entry of the north gate, were two tables; and on the other side, which was at the porch of the gate, were two tables.

[41] Four tables were on this side, and four tables on that side, by the side of the gate; eight tables, whereupon they slew their sacrifices.

[42] And the four tables were of hewn stone for the burnt offering, of a cubit and an half long, and a cubit and an half broad, and one cubit high: whereupon also they laid the instruments wherewith they slew the burnt offering and the sacrifice.

[43] And within were hooks, an hand broad, fastened round about: and upon the tables was the flesh of the offering.

CHAMBERS FOR THE "SINGERS".  (vs. 44)

Ezekiel 40:44
And without the inner gate were the chambers of the singers in the inner court, which was at the side of the north gate; and their prospect was toward the south: one at the side of the east gate having the prospect toward the north.

2 Chron. 5:12
Also the Levites which were the singers, all of them of Asaph, of Heman, of Jeduthun, with their sons and their brethren, being arrayed in white linen, having cymbals and psalteries and harps, stood at the east end of the altar, and with them an hundred and twenty priests sounding with trumpets:)

And speaking of "singers", how about those 144,000? They are standing WITH Jesus Christ when He returns and they sing the Song of Moses (Rev. 15:3). They will certainly be singers in the temple!

Rev. 14:1-3
And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father's name written in their foreheads.

[3] And they sung as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four beasts, and the elders: and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth.

CHAMBERS for the Priests in charge of the House. (vs. 45)

Ezekiel 40:45
And he said unto me, This chamber, whose prospect is toward the south, is for the priests, the keepers of the charge of the house.

Then there are God's very elect, the priests of Zadok who did NOT go astray nor bow a knee unto Satan.

CHAMBERS for the Priests in charge of the Altar. (vs. 46)

Ezekiel 40:46
And the chamber whose prospect is toward the north is for the priests, the keepers of the charge of the altar: these are the sons of Zadok among the sons of Levi, which come near to the LORD to minister unto him.

Again, only the priests of the Zadok will be able to approach Jesus Christ during the Millennium. And when Christ gives a directive, they will carry it out without question and without fail!

The ALTAR COURT and the ALTAR that was before the House. (vs. 47)

Ezekiel 40:47
So he measured the court, an hundred cubits long, and an hundred cubits broad, foursquare; and the altar that was before the house.

The PORCH of the HOUSE. (vs. 48-49)

Ezekiel 40:48
And he brought me to the porch of the house, and measured each post of the porch, five cubits on this side, and five cubits on that side: and the breadth of the gate was three cubits on this side, and three cubits on that side.

[49] The length of the porch was twenty cubits, and the breadth eleven cubits; and he brought me by the steps whereby they went up to it: and there were pillars by the posts, one on this side, and another on that side.

1 Kings 7:21
And he set up the pillars in the porch of the temple: and he set up the right pillar, and called the name thereof Jachin: and he set up the left pillar, and he called the name thereof Boaz.

Amazing!

When we last left God's appointed watchman, Ezekiel had just seen the Altar in the midst of the court and was then taken to the Porch in front of the Temple proper where the angel showed him the measurements of this vestibule, which were 20 cubits in length by 11 cubits in width. He also showed him the two pillars by the posts on either side of it.

It should be pointed out that there is much significance to that area between the Porch and the Altar, called the Separate Place, where we noted earlier is the place where the kenites killed Zacharias (Yah has remembered) son of Barachias (blessing of Yah) recorded in Mat. 23:35. You see, it is between the Porch and the Altar where the ministers of the LORD stand with their backs toward the Altar and face the Shekinah Glory to "weep" for the people.

Joel 2:17
Let the priests, the ministers of the LORD, weep between the porch and the altar, and let them say, Spare thy people, O LORD, and give not thine heritage to reproach, that the heathen should rule over them: wherefore should they say among the people, Where is their God?

Ezekiel is taken to the very entrance of the temple itself as the angel brings him closer to the Inner Temple, which is the Holy of Holies, which is where the Glory of the Lord will reside throughout the Millennium and so shall He be with His people forever more.

THE TEMPLE (sometimes translated Palace, from the Hebrew word "Hekal") (vs. 1-11)

Ezekiel 41:1
Afterward he brought me to the temple, and measured the posts, six cubits broad on the one side, and six cubits broad on the other side, which was the breadth of the tabernacle.

[2] And the breadth of the door was ten cubits; and the sides of the door were five cubits on the one side, and five cubits on the other side: and he measured the length thereof, forty cubits: and the breadth, twenty cubits.

[3] Then went he inward, and measured the post of the door, two cubits; and the door, six cubits; and the breadth of the door, seven cubits.

Note: If you would like to learn all about King Solomon's Temple and the meaning of its symbols, then contact Artisan Publishers PO Box 1529, 1409 West Shawnee, Muskogee, OK www.artisanpubhishers.com to purchase a copy of the booklet "King Solomon's Temple", by E. Raymond Capt. You'll be glad you did.

Ezekiel 41:4
So he measured the length thereof, twenty cubits; and the breadth, twenty cubits, before the temple: and he said unto me, This is the most holy place.

It is important to note that in both the Wilderness Tabernacle and Solomon's Temple the Holy of Holies were CUBES. In Rev. 21:16 the New Jerusalem which comes down out of heaven is also described a CUBE. Let's peek into the Fourth Dimension, the Eighth Dispensation, that Third Earth Age which follows the Great White Throne Judgment, and take a look at the New City of Jerusalem.

Rev. 21:16
And the city lieth foursquare, and the length is as large as the breadth: and he measured the city with the reed, twelve thousand furlongs. The length and the breadth and the height of it are equal.

[17] And he measured the wall thereof, an hundred and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of the angel.

[18] And the building of the wall of it was of jasper: and the city was pure gold, like unto clear glass.

[19] And the foundations of the wall of the city were garnished with all manner of precious stones.

Here they are:

[19 ...continued] The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald;

[20] The fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst.

[21] And the twelve gates were twelve pearls; every several gate was of one pearl: and the street of the city was pure gold, as it were transparent glass.

[22] And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.

Rev. 3:12
Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name.

THE SIDE CHAMBERS

Ezekiel 41:5
After he measured the wall of the house, six cubits; and the breadth of every side chamber, four cubits, round about the house on every side.

[6] And the side chambers were three, one over another, and thirty in order; and they entered into the wall which was of the house for the side chambers round about, that they might have hold, but they had not hold in the wall of the house.

Ezekiel 41:7
And there was an enlarging, and a winding about still upward to the side chambers: for the winding about of the house went still upward round about the house: therefore the breadth of the house was still upward, and so increased from the lowest chamber to the highest by the midst.

[8] I saw also the height of the house round about: the foundations of the side chambers were a full reed of six great cubits.

Ezekiel 41:9
The thickness of the wall, which was for the side chamber without, was five cubits: and that which was left was the place of the side chambers that were within.

[10] And between the chambers was the wideness of twenty cubits round about the house on every side.

[11] And the doors of the side chambers were toward the place that was left, one door toward the north, and another door toward the south: and the breadth of the place that was left was five cubits round about.

THE BUILDING (that was before the SEPARATE PLACE or THE COURT OF THE HOUSE)

These next few verses have been misinterpreted by some scholars who have erroneously thought there to be a separate building to the west of the temple. However, what is being measured here is the smaller "inner building" of the temple itself, which is "housed" by the 100 cubit square "outer building" as shown in the diagram. Coming through the east entrance, the inner building is thus west of the Separate Place, which is that entire court area which surrounds the Altar.

Ezekiel 41:12
Now the building that was before the separate place at the end toward the west was seventy cubits broad; and the wall of the building was five cubits thick round about, and the length thereof ninety cubits.

[13] So he measured the house, an hundred cubits long; and the separate place, and the building, with the walls thereof, an hundred cubits long;

[14] Also the breadth of the face of the house, and of the separate place toward the east, an hundred cubits.

Ezekiel 41:15
And he measured the length of the building over against the separate place which was behind it, and the galleries thereof on the one side and on the other side, an hundred cubits, with the inner temple, and the porches of the court;

Ezekiel 41:16
The door posts, and the narrow windows, and the galleries round about on their three stories, over against the door, cieled with wood round about, and from the ground up to the windows, and the windows were covered;

[17] To that above the door, even unto the inner house, and without, and by all the wall round about within and without, by measure.

[18] And it was made with cherubims and palm trees, so that a palm tree was between a cherub and a cherub; and every cherub had two faces;

1 Kings 6:29
And he carved all the walls of the house round about with carved figures of cherubims and palm trees and open flowers, within and without.

Ezekiel 41:19
So that the face of a man was toward the palm tree on the one side, and the face of a young lion toward the palm tree on the other side: it was made through all the house round about.

[20] From the ground unto above the door were cherubims and palm trees made, and on the wall of the temple.

[21] The posts of the temple were squared, and the face of the sanctuary; the appearance of the one as the appearance of the other.

Ezekiel 41:22
The altar of wood was three cubits high, and the length thereof two cubits; and the corners thereof, and the length thereof, and the walls thereof, were of wood: and he said unto me, This is the table that is before the LORD.

THE TWO DOORS (entrances) of the SANCTUARY (vs. 23-26)

Ezekiel 41:23
And the temple and the sanctuary had two doors.

[24] And the doors had two leaves apiece, two turning leaves; two leaves for the one door, and two leaves for the other door.

[25] And there were made on them, on the doors of the temple, cherubims and palm trees, like as were made upon the walls; and there were thick planks upon the face of the porch without.

[26] And there were narrow windows and palm trees on the one side and on the other side, on the sides of the porch, and upon the side chambers of the house, and thick planks.

That's because it is!

Unfortunately there are many traditions of men which espouse man's ideas and theories of what it will be like during the Millennium when all along this incredible Book of Ezekiel has been here to let them know with certitude, without guesswork, the way things will be. And as it is written, so shall it be.

So verse by verse, cubit by cubit, each step along the way as we follow Ezekiel and his angelic guide, whose appearance is as that of brilliant brass (vs. 40:3), around and throughout the Sanctuary and the Temple, we learn more and more about the future following the 7th Trump and the return of Jesus Christ. These beautiful truths are like gathering manna from heaven which is lightly hidden between and among the verses of the measurements, which measurements themselves are shown to be 1/7th larger than that of Solomon's Temple for the reason we discussed in chapter 40, verses 1-5.

The question often asked is, "Why are these precious truths slightly hidden?" The answer is so that when you have the desire, the hunger and thirst, to want to know His Word (Him), i.e. to "seek", then you SHALL FIND that which you are looking for, and He promises you won't come up empty handed! That's right, "Seek and ye SHALL find"! However, No Seeky, No Findy! It is really quite elementary my dear Watson. Is gold found lying in big nuggets out in an open field where even the lazy can gather them up, or must one search for the precious gold veins and dig deep for it? Are diamonds easily found without effort, or must your bore in the earth and seek them out? You see, that which is common lies in the open and is readily seen by all, but that which is precious must be sought after.

So let's continue in our labor seeking that which is much more precious than gold. In chapter 42, verses 1-12 we are going to be shown the location and the measurements of the Priests' Rooms, the north and south chambers, and then in verses 13 & 14 we will learn of their purpose and be given more insight into the role of the priests, who we know were part of the First Resurrection and therefore already have received the gift of eternal life. Then in verses 15-20 we will be shown the measurement of the great outer surround and its significance too!

We being with THE OUTER COURT, North Entrance.
Width 100 cubits, of which 50 cubits is occupied by the porch of the outer gate. (vs. 1-8)

Ezekiel 42:1
Then he brought me forth into the utter court, the way toward the north: and he brought me into the chamber that was over against the separate place, and which was before the building toward the north.

[2] Before the length of an hundred cubits was the north door, and the breadth was fifty cubits.

[3] Over against the twenty cubits which were for the inner court, and over against the pavement which was for the utter court, was gallery against gallery in three stories.

[4] And before the chambers was a walk of ten cubits breadth inward, a way of one cubit; and their doors toward the north.

[5] Now the upper chambers were shorter: for the galleries were higher than these, than the lower, and than the middlemost of the building.

Ezekiel 42:6
For they were in three stories, but had not pillars as the pillars of the courts: therefore the building was straitened more than the lowest and the middlemost from the ground.

[7] And the wall that was without over against the chambers, toward the utter court on the forepart of the chambers, the length thereof was fifty cubits.

[8] For the length of the chambers that were in the utter court was fifty cubits: and, lo, before the temple were an hundred cubits.

Ezekiel 42:9
And from under these chambers was the entry on the east side, as one goeth into them from the utter court.

[10] The chambers were in the thickness of the wall of the court toward the east, over against the separate place, and over against the building.

[11] And the way before them was like the appearance of the chambers which were toward the north, as long as they, and as broad as they: and all their goings out were both according to their fashions, and according to their doors.

[12] And according to the doors of the chambers that were toward the south was a door in the head of the way, even the way directly before the wall toward the east, as one entereth into them.

Here's the answer:

Ezekiel 42:13
Then said he unto me, The north chambers and the south chambers, which are before the separate place, they be holy chambers, where the priests that approach unto the LORD shall eat the most holy things: there shall they lay the most holy things, and the meat offering, and the sin offering, and the trespass offering; for the place is holy.

However, the sacrifices that will be offered during the Millennium will not be of blood, for we know that Jesus Christ paid that blood sacrifice once and for all time, FOREVER, which includes the time of the Millennium.

Hebrews 10:12
But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;

By the way, the three sacrifices mentioned in verse 13 are the "minchah", the food offering, the "chattath", the sin offering, and the "asham", the guilt offering, all three of which will be offered by the priests for the people. Film at eleven.

Now notice the following statement concerning the priests. Remember as you read this that the priests who reign with Christ during the Millennium are those saints of the First Resurrection and they already have eternal life. Here is your documentation:

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.

Ezekiel 42:14
When the priests enter therein, then shall they not go out of the holy place into the utter court, but there they shall lay their garments wherein they minister; for they are holy; and shall put on other garments, and shall approach to those things which are for the people.

To document this further we next are shown the measurements of the space separating between the Sanctuary and the profane place. This is the greater outer "surround" of the 500 reed square, which is a little more than a square mile, and which is enclosed within a wall of unspecified dimensions. Hmmm, that's interesting. All these detailed measurements and yet no dimensions are given of this particular wall other that its length. Perhaps you'll see why it kind of reminds me of the "invisible fence" they have for pets.

Ezekiel 42:15
Now when he had made an end of measuring the inner house, he brought me forth toward the gate whose prospect is toward the east, and measured it round about.

[16] He measured the east side with the measuring reed, five hundred reeds, with the measuring reed round about.

[17] He measured the north side, five hundred reeds, with the measuring reed round about.

[18] He measured the south side, five hundred reeds, with the measuring reed.

[19] He turned about to the west side, and measured five hundred reeds with the measuring reed.

[20] He measured it by the four sides: it had a wall round about, five hundred reeds long, and five hundred broad, to make a separation between the sanctuary and the profane place.

Remember we spoke earlier of those precious truths which are hidden and must be dug out? Well, there is something of great significance contained in the Hebrew language of these measurements which is not readily seen in English, and that is the fact that the word for "side" and "sides" used in verses 16 -20 is the Hebrew word "ruach" which is most often translated as "wind" or "spirit". You see there is something very "spiritual" that we are to learn from the "ruach" about this wall which surrounds the sanctuary, and it is actually given in the last phrase of verse 20: "to make a separation between the sanctuary and the profane place."

This is the great lesson of chapter 42 of Ezekiel, which is that we might SEE that during the Millennium there is a separation between the sanctuary and the profane place, the holy and the unholy, the "Living" (those who have eternal life) and the "Dead" (those who still have mortal souls) during the Millennium. Only the immortal priests of the Zadok, in their holy robes woven of fine white linen made from their righteous acts (Rev. 19:8), will be able to directly approach unto the LORD during the 1000 years. Now you know. It is written.

Do you remember in chapter eleven when Ezekiel saw the Glory of God depart from the East Gate of the Temple and go over and stand upon the Mount of Olives which is directly across the Kidron Valley opposite the East Gate?

Here is that account:

Ezekiel 11:22
Then did the cherubims lift up their wings, and the wheels beside them; and the glory of the God of Israel was over them above.

[23] And the glory of the LORD went up from the midst of the city, and stood upon the mountain which is on the east side of the city.

Zech. 14:4
And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.

Ezekiel 43:1
Afterward he brought me to the gate, even the gate that looketh toward the east:

[2] And, behold, the glory of the God of Israel came from the way of the east: and his voice was like a noise of many waters: and the earth shined with his glory.

Rev. 14:1
And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father's name written in their foreheads.

[2] And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder: and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps:

Ezekiel 43:3
And it was according to the appearance of the vision which I saw, even according to the vision that I saw when I came to destroy the city: and the visions were like the vision that I saw by the river Chebar; and I fell upon my face.

Note: Ezekiel did not "come to destroy the city". This simply means when Ezekiel came "to prophesy" of the destruction of the city. Of course he had a reputation, didn't he?

[4] And the glory of the LORD came into the house by the way of the gate whose prospect is toward the east.

Ezekiel 43:5
So the spirit took me up, and brought me into the inner court; and, behold, the glory of the LORD filled the house.

Now Jesus is going to speak directly to Ezekiel from the Inner Court as the angel stands by him.

YAHVEH'S COMMAND from "THE HOUSE" giving the "LAW OF THE HOUSE". (vs. 6-12)

[6] And I heard him speaking unto me out of the house; and the man stood by me.

[7] 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 for ever, and my holy name, shall the house of Israel no more defile, neither they, nor their kings, by their whoredom, nor by the carcases of their kings in their high places.

Hebrews 10:12
But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;

[13] From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool.

*Note: Some would interpret this to merely mean His "seat of authority" and while it truly is His seat of authority, it is also His literal throne "according to the vision he [Ezekiel] saw by the river Chebar" in Ezekiel 1:26 "And above the firmament that was over their heads was the likeness of a throne, as the appearance of a sapphire stone: and upon the likeness of the throne was the likeness as the appearance of a man above upon it."

Notice also in Ezek. 43:7 that there will be no more defiling of God's House, nor idolatrous religious practices, nor worshipping of earthly kings, especially that abominable one! Jesus Christ shall RULE with a rod of iron as it is written in Rev. 12:5 & 19:15.

Here's what they did before:

Ezekiel 43:8
In their setting of their threshold by my thresholds, and their post by my posts, and the wall between me and them, they have even defiled my holy name by their abominations that they have committed: wherefore I have consumed them in mine anger.

[9] Now let them put away their whoredom, and the carcases of their kings, far from me, and I will dwell in the midst of them for ever.

Rev. 6:15
And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains;

[16] And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb:

[17] For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?

Let's continue in Ezekiel 43 with verse 10.

Ezekiel 43:10
Thou son of man, shew the house to the house of Israel, that they may be ashamed of their iniquities: and let them measure the pattern.

But now notice why Ezekiel is to show it to them, "that they may be ashamed of their iniquities". They SHALL KNOW that the Word of God was true all along and that which was promised by Him and written of in Ezekiel, which they never studied nor were ever taught by their Biblically illiterate preachers, is present before them. It is a reality.  So Ezekiel is to show them the measurements of the pattern, which means show them THE PLAN of GOD and how it is going to be during the Millennium!

Note: We are going to breakdown this next verse phrase by phrase, for contained therein is what the spiritually "dead" people will be doing in the Millennium IF they wish to obtain salvation and be given "life" at the second resurrection (which is the second "raising" to the status of immortality, i.e. eternal life).

[11] And if they be ashamed of all that they have done,

shew them the form of the house,

and the fashion thereof,

and the goings out thereof, and the comings in thereof, and all the forms thereof,

and all the ordinances thereof,

and all the forms thereof,

and all the laws thereof:

and write it in their sight, that they may keep the whole form thereof, and all the ordinances thereof, and do them.

Remember, these are the words that the Lord is speaking directly to Ezekiel from within the Inner Court on His throne!

Ezekiel 43:12
This is[will be]the law of the house; Upon the top of the mountain the whole limit thereof round about shall be most holy. Behold, this is the law of the house.

Next the angel will "size up" the Altar for us during the Millennium and we will be shown the details of some of the ordinances pertaining to it!

The Glory of the Lord has just returned to the Inner Court of the Temple and Jesus Christ has now laid down the Law of the House to be in effect for all of the Millennium. And because we will be in the spiritual dimension He has given specific instructions to the watchmen to "mark well" and BEHOLD with our eyes "to see" and HEAR with our ears "to hear" concerning the ordinances of the house of the LORD, and ALL the laws thereof. Pay real close attention to, i.e. mark well, the "entering in of the house" with "every going forth" of the sanctuary. Why? Because they tell us the duties of the Firstborn and the requirements of the salvation plan for the rest of the "dead" (spiritually) during the Millennium.

Ezekiel 44:5
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.

In the next chapter we are going to read the following concerning the Priests of the Zadok:

Ezekiel 44:17
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.

Here is what the linen garments actually are:

Rev. 19:8
And to her [the wife of Christ] was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.

Likewise, if the righteous acts of the saints can and will be taken with them, so can the unrighteous acts of the unrepentant be taken with them! They will not have white linen garments on, will they? "I'm sorry, you cannot see the King smelling like that with those filthy rags on." They are going to need to be "spiritually" CLEANED UP and PURIFIED and through much SACRIFICE, EARN some linen, for there shall be nothing unclean that shall enter the eternity, the Third Earth Age! Perhaps then we can begin to understand the following measurements of The Altar and the ordinances concerning the sacrifices which will be described in flesh and blood terminology.

The point is that even as the physical "linen garments" represent that which is spiritual so do the animal "sacrifices" described in the rest of this book represent that which spiritual!

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.

Also as a reminder of that which we read earlier, during the Millennium we will be under the Law of the House, NOT the Levitical Law and sacrificial laws of blood sacrifice. Whereas the animal sacrifices that were under the old law were foreshadowings of the blood to be shed on Calvary, which eliminated blood sacrifices forever, the animal sacrifices described in these chapters of Ezekiel are foreshadowings of the spiritual sacrifices (of love) that will be made in the Millennium.

We are now going to be shown the measurements of The Altar in verses 13-17 and then the ordinances of The Altar in vs. 14-27.

THE ALTAR. 12 cubits square (25 ft. x 25 ft.) on its base (settle) of 14 cubits square. (vs. 13-17)

Ezekiel 43:13
And these are the measures of the altar after the cubits: The cubit is a cubit and an hand breadth; even the bottom shall be a cubit, and the breadth a cubit, and the border thereof by the edge thereof round about shall be a span: and this shall be the higher place of the altar.

So there will definitely be sacrifice during the Millennium, because you know why? Well, we already noted that there will be a lot of people who didn't make the First Resurrection who committed a lot of sins that haven't been forgiven. Faith and belief in Jesus Christ won't cut it at that time because He will be there and EVERY knee shall bow and ALL SHALL KNOW that He is the Lord. You see, faith is the substance and hope of that which you cannot see. That which you see does not require faith.

Also, there will be those who go astray! Yes, there will even be sin in the Millennium! That comes as a surprise to many folks, but sin and death is not gone from among us until the lake of fire consumes them away. True, there will be no sinful flesh and Satan will be bound and will not be able to influence God's children. But only after the Great White Throne judgment will there be no more sin, when death and the grave are swallowed up in the lake of fire. Until then there's much work to be done.

So let's look at the measurements of The Altar beginning with verse 13. First, the term "span" is "zereth" in Hebrew and means "the spread of the fingers" much like you would span an octave on a piano keyboard. Verse 13 tells us (in almost undecipherable King Jame's language) that there is a "gutter" (see Moffat translation) around the base which is one cubit deep and one cubit wide and has a ledge or a rim around it about one span high. This makes a trench or a "pit", like an ash pit, around the base (see note in Companion Bible on vs. 13 "higher place").

Ezekiel 43:14
And from the bottom upon the ground even to the lower settle shall be two cubits, and the breadth one cubit; and from the lesser settle even to the greater settle shall be four cubits, and the breadth one cubit.

[15] So the altar shall be four cubits; and from the altar and upward shall be four horns.

[16] And the altar shall be twelve cubits long, twelve broad, square in the four squares thereof.

[17] And the settle shall be fourteen cubits long and fourteen broad in the four squares thereof; and the border about it shall be half a cubit; and the bottom thereof shall be a cubit about; and his stairs shall look toward the east.

THE ORDINANCES OF THE ALTAR. (vs. 18-27)

There will be a 7 day cleansing and purification period of the Altar by the Priests of the Zadok before the "eighth day" when Christ will begin accepting the offerings of the people (see vs. 27).

Ezekiel 43:18
And he said unto me, Son of man, thus saith the Lord GOD; These are the ordinances of the altar in the day when they shall make it, to offer burnt offerings thereon, and to sprinkle blood thereon.

[19] And thou shalt give to the priests the Levites that be of the seed of Zadok, which approach unto me, to minister unto me, saith the Lord GOD, a young bullock for a sin offering.

Again what we are seeing here in the sacrifices we are about to read of, is an analogy representing that which is spiritual.

Perhaps this would be a good place for the benefit of those who are not familiar with the ordinances and sacrifices in the Old Testament, to pause and understand a little about the different types of offerings. The following information is taken from appendixes 44 & 45 in the Companion Bible.

The burnt offering is called "Olah", so called from the Hiphil of the verb "'alah", to cause to ascend [as the flame and smoke ascend by burning]. In Greek holocausta, which conveys its meaning as being wholly burnt.

The sin offering is called "Chattath" in Hebrew, which comes from "chat'a", to sin by coming short of, by missing the mark in sins of commission.  "Also of the feet, to stumble and fall (Prov. 19:2). Hence, morally, a coming short, blameworthiness - not necessarily wilful."

The trespass offering is called "Asham" which means to sin through error or ignorance. Cp. Lev. 4:13, 5:2, 3, Num 5:6, 7, Judg. 21:22. Asham is a breach of commandment, done in ignorance, but when the guilt is proved, requiring atonement.

The meat offering is "Minchah" which means a present, as such. Hence a gift offering, not necessarily to secure admittance, but to secure favor. It might be sacrifice by blood, or more generally and later, without blood.

Ezekiel 43:20
And thou shalt take of the blood thereof, and put it on the four horns of it, and on the four corners of the settle, and upon the border round about: thus shalt thou cleanse and purge it.

[21] Thou shalt take the bullock also of the sin offering, and he shall burn it in the appointed place of the house, without the sanctuary.

[22] And on the second day thou shalt offer a kid of the goats without blemish for a sin offering; and they shall cleanse the altar, as they did cleanse it with the bullock.

[23] When thou hast made an end of cleansing it, thou shalt offer a young bullock without blemish, and a ram out of the flock without blemish.

[24] And thou shalt offer them before the LORD, and the priests shall cast salt upon them, and they shall offer them up for a burnt offering unto the LORD.

[25] Seven days shalt thou prepare every day a goat for a sin offering: they shall also prepare a young bullock, and a ram out of the flock, without blemish.

Ezekiel 43:26
Seven days shall they purge the altar and purify it; and they shall consecrate themselves.

[27] And when these days are expired, it shall be, that upon the eighth day, and so forward, the priests shall make your burnt offerings upon the altar, and your peace offerings; and I will accept you, saith the Lord GOD.

Rev. 20:12
And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

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.

Ministering unto Christ and standing before Him to offer unto Him the love offerings and sacrifices.

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:

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.

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.

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.

Matthew 7:23
And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

"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?

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?"

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?

[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. 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:

Mark 13:6
For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many.

Matthew 7:23
And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

The CLOSED OUTER EAST GATE and the reason. (vs. 1-3)

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.

[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.

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).

[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:

[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.

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:

[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.

"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:

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.

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.

[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.

[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.

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.

[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.

Here are His Words, not mine:

Ezekiel 44:13
And they shall not come near unto me,

to do the office of a priest unto me,

nor to come near to any of my holy things, in the most holy place:

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.

[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.

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:

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.

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!

Rev. 21:7
He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son.

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.

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!

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.

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.

[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.

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.

[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.

[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.

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.

[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.

Ezekiel 44:20
Neither shall they shave their heads, nor suffer their locks to grow long; they shall only poll their heads.

[21] Neither shall any priest drink wine, when they enter into the inner court.

[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.

Luke 20:34
And Jesus answering said unto them, The children of this world marry, and are given in marriage:

[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:

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:

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.

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.

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.

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 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.

Ezekiel 44:26
And after he is cleansed, they shall reckon unto him seven days.

[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.

[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.

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.

[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.

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.