The Millennial Temple

The Temple Will Be Rebuilt

Book of Ezekiel Chapters 43-46

We know that Ezekiel was a prophet of God and a prophet of God had to write the things that Jehovah revealed to him. It was not up to a prophet of Jehovah to question anything Jehovah revealed to them, but to accept whatever Jehovah revealed to them as the truth.

Jehovah spoke to Ezekiel in visions.

It seems that "visions" may have been a higher category of revelation, reserved for the more spiritually mature men of God.

Many of God's prophets frequently received visions, in fact one of the names of God's prophets was seer which comes from the Hebrew word "raah" meaning "to see".

In Ezekiel we see the Hebrew word "mareh" which means the "act of seeing", a supernatural vision.

It is not the same as the visions of some other prophets which would be more like being in a trance.

Abraham:

Gen 15:1 After these things the word of the LORD came unto Abram in a vision, saying, Fear not, Abram: I am thy shield, and thy exceeding great reward.

Nathan:

1Ch 17:15 According to all these words, and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak unto David.

Daniel:

Dan 8:1 In the third year of the reign of king Belshazzar a vision appeared unto me, even unto me Daniel, after that which appeared unto me at the first.

Of course here in the Book of Ezekiel we see that the Lord God Jehovah revealed the future to Ezekiel. Short term future and long term, future things we have not yet seen.

What are some of the things we are most sure of?

1) Our Lord Jesus will return!

2) This will take place after He has received His Church in the clouds!

3) Our Lord will then fulfill the promises He has made to Israel.

We believe that according to the Scriptures that a third Temple will be built before the Lord returns.

We believe that according to the vision of Ezekiel there may even be a fourth Temple built during the one thousand year reign of the Lord, far different from the other Temples. It is this Temple that gives us a better idea about our Heavenly Temple, God's house.

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

Eze 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.

The one thing we know for sure is when we see the Lord, He will be in His awesome glory!

He will not be the meek and loving Savior who first came but He will be seen as the Mighty Awesome Glorious Power of The Lord God and Creator of all things!

His glory will fill this Temple of Ezekiel just as He did Solomon's Temple, just as He did in that first Tabernacle of Moses!

Exo 40:34 Then a cloud covered the tent of the congregation, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.

Exo 40:35 And Moses was not able to enter into the tent of the congregation, because the cloud abode thereon, and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.

1Ki 8:10 And it came to pass, when the priests were come out of the holy place, that the cloud filled the house of the LORD,

1Ki 8:11 So that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of the LORD.

2Ch 5:14 So that the priests could not stand to minister by reason of the cloud: for the glory of the LORD had filled the house of God.

Our Lord is a sight to behold in all His glory!

Psa 18:6 In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried unto my God: he heard my voice out of his temple, and my cry came before him, even into his ears.

Psa 18:7 Then the earth shook and trembled; the foundations also of the hills moved and were shaken, because he was wroth.

Psa 18:8 There went up a smoke out of his nostrils, and fire out of his mouth devoured: coals were kindled by it.

Psa 18:9 He bowed the heavens also, and came down: and darkness was under his feet.

Psa 18:10 And he rode upon a cherub, and did fly: yea, he did fly upon the wings of the wind.

Psa 18:11 He made darkness his secret place; his pavilion round about him were dark waters and thick clouds of the skies.

Psa 18:12 At the brightness that was before him his thick clouds passed, hail stones and coals of fire.

Psa 18:13 The LORD also thundered in the heavens, and the Highest gave his voice; hail stones and coals of fire.

Psa 18:14 Yea, he sent out his arrows, and scattered them; and he shot out lightnings, and discomfited them.

Psa 18:15 Then the channels of waters were seen, and the foundations of the world were discovered at thy rebuke, O LORD, at the blast of the breath of thy nostrils.

Psa 18:16 He sent from above, he took me, he drew me out of many waters.

Psa 18:17 He delivered me from my strong enemy, and from them which hated me: for they were too strong for me.

The Lord will not have to speak a word when He sets His feet back on the Mount of Olives for those who are His enemies will be destroyed just by the sight of His glory!

2 Th 1:6 Seeing it is a righteous thing with God to recompense tribulation to them that trouble you;

2 Th 1:7 And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels,

2 Th 1:8 In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:

2 Th 1:9 Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;

2 Th 1:10 When he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe (because our testimony among you was believed) in that day.

All of His children will be with Him when He returns!

When the glory of our Lord departed, He went "Eastward", when the Lord returns, He will return from the "East" the direction of the rising Sun and the Sun will be like a lantern compared to the "Glory of the Lord".

Hag 2:6 For thus saith the LORD of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land;

Hag 2:7 And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the LORD of hosts.

Hag 2:8 The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the LORD of hosts.

Hag 2:9 The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former, saith the LORD of hosts: and in this place will I give peace, saith the LORD of hosts.

He is the God of Israel and He is the Lord God of the true Church!

Even in this vision of Ezekiel, he could do nothing else but fall upon his face in worship of the Almighty God!

Only the Almighty Jehovah God could cause such a supernatural vision!

*****Eze 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.

Ezekiel in his visions, had previously seen the Lord leave the Temple, in all His glory, the Shekinah Glory, and now he saw in a vision the return of the Lord, in all His glory to the New Temple. The Temple described in what is now called Ezekiel's Temple because it differs so much from the previous temple of Solomon and of Herod.

Since Ezekiel had prophesied of the destruction of city of Jerusalem, then he says, "when I came to destroy the city", because he had spoken the exact words God had given to him to say.

Just as when Ezekiel preached to those dry bones in our previous lesson.

Just as he had followed the directions given to him in the beginning of this book of Ezekiel.

Eze 4:1 Thou also, son of man, take thee a tile, and lay it before thee, and pourtray upon it the city, even Jerusalem:

Eze 4:2 And lay siege against it, and build a fort against it, and cast a mount against it; set the camp also against it, and set battering rams against it round about.

With one stroke Ezekiel had broken the tile that represented the city of Jerusalem!

It was the Chaldean that caused the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple of Solomon, but it was the Lord that had allowed it to happen, just as Ezekiel and Jeremiah had prophesied.

Eze 9:1 He cried also in mine ears with a loud voice, saying, Cause them that have charge over the city to draw near, even every man with his destroying weapon in his hand.

It was because of the sinful leadership of Judah, that had been the true cause of the destruction of Jerusalem.

If we would just learn to do what God says for us to do and honor Him in our worship, we would be much better for it, and the world would be a much better place!

How did the Lord enter this new Temple?

*****Eze 43:4 And the glory of the LORD came into the house by the way of the gate whose prospect is toward the east.

The sun rises from the east.

No one can look at the sun without eye protection for any length of time, because of the glory of the sun.

The glory of the Lord is much greater than the sun we have for light and heat!

Exo_24:17 And the sight of the glory of the LORD was like devouring fire on the top of the mount in the eyes of the children of Israel.

Num_14:21 But as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD.

Isa_40:5 And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.

Isa_60:1 Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee.

What will happen to all those who are part of the Rapture of the Church?

2 Co 3:18 But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.

We can see that it is the Spirit of the Lord that will cause this to happen, because He has never left us and He lives within us!

The Lord will return one day, and He may return from the eastern sky, but remember He will come as a thief so He may come from any direction or in the night!

All these things happened to Ezekiel by the power of the Holy Spirit, because the Lord has not yet left Heaven!

*****Eze 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.

The prophet Ezekiel had remained upon His knees his face to the ground until the Holy Spirit carried him into the Temple as by his vision.

Remember this was a "supernatural" vision!

The Holy Spirit is still to this day the invisible, irresistible power upon this earth!

It is the Holy Spirit that is the power behind every true man of God! False prophets have no power, because they do not have the Holy Spirit!

It is the Holy Spirit who raises every true man of God and allows them communion with our Holy God!

The Shekinah Glory of Jehovah filled this entire Temple, but it resided in the Holy of Holies and even in the power of the Holy Spirit, Ezekiel could not enter into this place set aside for the Lord!

Again one day in the not so distant future, this entire world will be overcome by the "Shekinah Glory" of the Lord!

Isa 6:3 And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory.

And all the family of God will gather into this Temple of the Lord!

Hag 2:6 For thus saith the LORD of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land;

Hag 2:7 And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the LORD of hosts.

There was a voice coming from within the Holy of Holies.

*****Eze 43:6 And I heard him speaking unto me out of the house; and the man stood by me.

Eze 43:7 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.

What is a theophany? We must understand that Jehovah will only reveal Himself in one way and that way is the Lord Jesus Christ. Every “theophany” is then the Lord Jesus Christ!

When Ezekiel says a man stood with Him then that would be the Lord Jesus Christ!

So let's listen to the conversation:

In the Israel of old, the bodies of kings at least 14 in number were buried in Jerusalem adjacent to the Temple complex, separated only by a wall, but here we see that Christ, the man speaking to Ezekiel, considered those graves to be an infringement of upon His holy place and an act of spiritual defilement and that would not be allowed in the New Temple.

Some of those kings had even been buried along with the idols they worshiped.

The prophet Ezekiel was to inform the people that this practice would come to an end!

As the Lord says, this Temple would be a place where He would walk among His people!

This New Temple would no more be defiled!

When we get to the Lord's Heavenly Temple, there will be nothing dead at all. Life, Life, Life, and Life eternal is the theme in God's Heavenly Home!

There will be nothing that will be allowed to defile the Temple that the Lord will build!

Remember our mansion will be inside the Lord's house, much like the priests had houses inside the Temple!

Rev 21:3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.

Rev 21:4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

Rev 21:5 And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.

What is happening in our places of worship today?

We have forgotten that the places where we worship are to be Holy, Sanctified for the work God has given us to do!

*****Eze 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.

Eze 44:2 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.

We must clearly understand there is only One who is to be worshiped and that One is the Lord Jesus Christ.

There is "NO ONE" higher than the Lord Jesus Christ! Lord of lords and King of kings!

Once the glory of the Lord has been seen, there is no room for those who would seek their own glory because they have none.

The nation of Israel has always trusted in their own good works, holding to the Laws of Moses which is nothing more than guide for righteous living.

Our true measurement in life, is the Lord Jesus Christ and we have no goodness in us at all to compare to the Lord!

When we walk into the House of God, we are walking on Holy Ground and if we cannot be holy in our own life after we know the Lord, then we will defile His Temple!

Not everyone will be allowed in the Messiah's Temple!

Those that are allowed must worship the Lord in the correct manner!

Joh 4:21 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father.

Joh 4:22 Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews.

Joh 4:23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.

Joh 4:24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

Psa 50:23 Whoso offereth praise glorifieth me: and to him that ordereth his conversation aright will I shew the salvation of God.

Psa 86:12 I will praise thee, O Lord my God, with all my heart: and I will glorify thy name for evermore.

Psa 86:13 For great is thy mercy toward me: and thou hast delivered my soul from the lowest hell.

Rom 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

Rom 12:2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

Not one unbeliever will be allowed in the Temple of the Messiah!

Not one person who rejects any portion of the Word of God will be allowed in this Temple of the Messiah!

We must understand that once the glory of the Messiah enters into His Temple through that Eastern Gate, then that gate will be closed for He will never leave His Temple ever again.

There will be a passageway.

*****Eze 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.

There are so many things written about this prince that the only one that makes sense to me is what is written in the Book of Hebrews.

Heb 9:11 But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building;

Heb 9:12 Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.

Heb 9:13 For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh:

Heb 9:14 How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

But these words do not refer to this prince in the Book of Ezekiel

Also in Chapter 45:22 we see these words:

Eze 45:22 And upon that day shall the prince prepare for himself and for all the people of the land a bullock for a sin offering.

The reality is that Lord Jesus Christ has no sin, so He needs no sin offering for Himself.

This prince is a father with sons and Jesus has no sons, but He does have children and brothers and sisters and friends!

Eze 46:16 Thus saith the Lord GOD; If the prince give a gift unto any of his sons, the inheritance thereof shall be his sons'; it shall be their possession by inheritance.

Eze 46:17 But if he give a gift of his inheritance to one of his servants, then it shall be his to the year of liberty; after it shall return to the prince: but his inheritance shall be his sons' for them.

Eze 46:18 Moreover the prince shall not take of the people's inheritance by oppression, to thrust them out of their possession; but he shall give his sons inheritance out of his own possession: that my people be not scattered every man from his possession.

This prince could not enter in by the Eastern Gate!

He is a prince, possibly a prince of the 12 tribes or possibly a prince in the civil government of Israel.

What we know for sure is that the Lord Jesus Christ is the only way to get to Heaven!

Joh 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

Joh 14:7 If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him.

This prince maybe just someone who will lead the worship service. Remember Lucifer had failed to do this job and he exalted himself and lost!

Maybe this prince is the Born Again child of God.

Rev_1:6  And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

Rev_5:10  And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.

All these are guesses so we must just trust the Word of God.

*****Eze 44:4 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.

In his vision Ezekiel is now on the outside of this new Temple, the Easter Gate is closed, and he walks north until he comes to the Northern Gate.

Twelve times in his writing, Ezekiel mentions a view from the gate to the North in this Temple.

With the Easter Gate closed, the best entrances into the Temple complex will be the Northern and the Southern gates.

What we notice is, that no matter where Ezekiel entered, he was overcome by the Shekinah Glory of the Lord.

How did the Shekinah Glory of the Lord affect Daniel?

Dan 10:8 Therefore I was left alone, and saw this great vision, and there remained no strength in me: for my comeliness was turned in me into corruption, and I retained no strength.

In this passage from the book of Daniel, he also has a supernatural vision of the Shekinah glory of the Lord!

How will the Shekinah Glory of the Lord affect all of us?

Two things:

1) We will be no different that Daniel or Ezekiel, we will fall upon our faces in total fear until the Lord comforts us with His voice of peace.

2) Then we will be like Him!

1Jn_3:2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.

Ezekiel was told to pay strict attention to the things he was seeing in His vision.

Ezekiel moves on to the gates of the inner courts where the discussion will be about worship.

The inner court would be the place of the altar.

*****Eze 46:1 Thus saith the Lord GOD; The gate of the inner court that looketh toward the east shall be shut the six working days; but on the sabbath it shall be opened, and in the day of the new moon it shall be opened.

Eze 46:2  And the prince shall enter by the way of the porch of that gate without, and shall stand by the post of the gate, and the priests shall prepare his burnt offering and his peace offerings, and he shall worship at the threshold of the gate: then he shall go forth; but the gate shall not be shut until the evening. 

I believe the modern church has forgotten the reason we gather together at the appointed times of the church. We gather to worship!

We gather to worship Jehovah!

We gather to worship the Lord Jesus Christ!

The Lord lays down some specific things for the Jewish people in this Millennial Temple.

We must remember, they have never understood how to relate worship in the Tabernacle nor the Temple, to the Lord Jesus Christ!

The Sabbath signifies "rest"! Jesus Christ is that "rest" because He causes the weary to rest!

Isa 28:12 To whom he said, This is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear.

It is the Sabbath of the soul that is of most importance!

Mat 11:27 All things are delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him.

Mat 11:28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

Mat 11:29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.

Mat 11:30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

Our soul can never rest until it returns to the Lord!

Psa 116:6 The LORD preserveth the simple: I was brought low, and he helped me.

Psa 116:7 Return unto thy rest, O my soul; for the LORD hath dealt bountifully with thee.

Psa 116:8 For thou hast delivered my soul from death, mine eyes from tears, and my feet from falling.

Psa 116:9 I will walk before the LORD in the land of the living.

The moon was created by Jehovah on the fourth day, and approximately every 30 days there is a New Moon, and this is the basis for the Jewish calendar and all the Jewish festivals.

The Sabbaths and the New Moon required a sin offering to the Lord, and we know that our Lord Jesus became that sin offering for the entire world until the day He returns to get His Church!

This prince, which is not the Lord, could not enter into the area of the offerings, but he had to stop at the threshold to worship at that location.

This burnt offering, "in type", represents the consecration of the one who offered the sacrifice, which was this prince at this time.

Rom 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.

The truth is that Jesus Christ gave Himself as the whole burnt offering on the altar of the cross!

Eph 5:1 Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children;

Eph 5:2 And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.

Heb 9:14 How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

We talk a lot about the nail scared hands of Christ Jesus.

We talk a lot about the hole in the side of Christ Jesus.

We need to talk a lot about the back of Christ Jesus and see where His back was laid upon that burning altar and the imprint of my cross and the imprint your cross, and the cross of every believer is scared for ever upon the back of our Savior!

The Jews have never recognized these things, but they soon will!

*****Eze 46:3 Likewise the people of the land shall worship at the door of this gate before the LORD in the sabbaths and in the new moons.

Eze 46:4 And the burnt offering that the prince shall offer unto the LORD in the sabbath day shall be six lambs without blemish, and a ram without blemish.

With the Lord on site, the Jews and this prince will be taught the relationship of all the sacrifices of the Temple.

As we have seen the burnt offering was upon the altar of the cross!

The meal offering represented the crushing of the wheat(the body of our Savior) to become the bread of life.

Joh 12:24 Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.

Joh_6:33 For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world.

Joh_6:35 And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.

Joh_6:48 I am that bread of life.

Joh_6:51 I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.

The peace offering was "in type", being reconciled to God.

Rom 5:1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:

Rom 5:2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

Col 1:20 And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.

The sin offering, 'in type" represents the expiation (pardon). Remember a pardon means all penalty has been erased!

2Co 5:21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

1Pe 2:24 Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.

1Pe 2:25 For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.

The trespass offering "in type", was to make restitution for our sin.

Col 2:13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;

Col 2:14 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;

2Co 5:14 For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead:

2Co 5:15 And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.

Worship at the Tabernacle and at the Temple was designed by the Lord to match the Word of God, so that the Jewish people would not miss the coming of the Messiah, but they missed the most important time of their lives and by the "mercy" and the "grace" of God and because of the promises Jehovah made to Abraham and King David, they will get one more chance to see where they went wrong.

Yes, this Temple of the Book of Ezekiel will be built!

Praise the Lord.

Let's Pray!