Date: August 2005 Series: - “I Want to be Left Behind” (X) Title: Ezekiel

       Ezekiel - It seems the more mysterious the symbolism and the less familiar people are with it, the easier it is to weave it into a "prophecy" program somewhere.  Although the New Testament writers made no reference to the book of Ezekiel (probably because they understood the bulk of its "future elements" to have already been fulfilled by their time), Chapters 37-48 have been rich territory for end-time speculators.  Again, remember that this book was written while Judah was in Babylonian exile (probably 590-570 B.C.).  After noting the problem with Israelites that refuse to listen to God (ch. 2-3), Ezekiel saw God's Spirit departing from Solomon's Temple before its destruction (ch. 9-11).  Israel (ca. 600 B.C.) also had "prophecy experts" who claimed that all prophecy pertained to the distant future/end of the world (12:17-28) and plenty of false prophets (ch. 13).  There is plenty of criticism present for how badly Israel had related to God over the centuries (ch. 14-24) and then some warnings of judgment upon surrounding nations (ch. 25-32).  God will someday take over the work of Israel's shepherds, with a shepherd of David's lineage (ch. 34 - see John 10).  Israel will be restored from captivity (ch. 36), even though Israelites thought the nation was dead - like bones in a valley (37:1-23), and will have a shepherd-king of David's line (37:24-28).  After Israel is restored from exile, they will dwell peacefully in their land for awhile and then be suddenly attacked from the north, but the invaders will be defeated (ch. 38-39).  Here is where I really begin to have some problems with the dispensational scenario: (1) post-1948 Israel has NOT been living securely (38:8,11,14) and are far from defenseless (best military in the Middle East), but Israel under Persian rule (536-336 B.C.) fits this well.  (2) I doubt that modern Russian attackers would trade in their AK-47's for the weapons described (39:3,9), although this is what the Syrian Greeks used (170-142 B.C.).  (3) When does this 7-month burial detail (39:12) occur in connection with Jesus' return?  I believe Daniel 11 and Ezekiel 38-39 were long over with by the time Jesus appeared, but this is still where most of the alleged "troop movements" are mined from for popular discussions of the "Battle of Armageddon."  After Israel is restored from Babylonian captivity, and survives the Syrian attack from the north, they would remain in their land until God would pour out His Spirit on them (39:25-29), also predicted by Joel (2:28-32) and interpreted by Peter as finding fulfillment in what occurred on the Pentecost following Jesus' resurrection (Acts 2:16ff).

       Be sure to note that there is a break between Ezekiel 39/40, but you don't have to imagine it like dispensational "gap-inserters" do with Daniel - it's there in the text.  Chapter 40 begins a completely new vision on a different topic.  In chapters 40-42, Ezekiel describes a Temple with lots of minute measurements that soon have most of us who read them today yawning.  What should we do with these details?  My suggestion is that you notice the similarity between Ezekiel 40:1-2 and Revelation 21:10 and consider that Ezekiel 40-42 was written to fulfill the exact same need for Jews exiled to Babylon in Ezekiel's time that John's glorious vision of the future state did for Christians persecuted by Rome and beyond - provide a fantastic picture of the future glory prepared for the faithful in terms we can grasp.  If Paul was reminding us that we can't really imagine what God has prepared (1Corinthians 2:9), then I suspect that Ezekiel 40-42 and Revelation 21:1 - 22:6 were inspired apocalyptic pictures to occupy and satisfy us until the reality comes.

       On the other hand, Premillennialists want to view this as the "millennial temple" to stand in Jerusalem after Jesus returns and, allegedly, begins to rule the earth from Jerusalem.  Ok, let's begin with that assumption and see how far it goes.

       Immediately, I encounter some problems, because 43:1-4 gives us a vision of the glory of the Lord entering the Temple from the East and after He departs the Temple's Eastern Gate is closed and never used again (44:1,2).  In His final week, didn't Jesus approach Jerusalem from the East (Bethany), enter and cleanse the Temple, and then depart?  Yes, and what happened afterwards?  The original walls are now below ground level and the old Eastern Gate is also the site of a Moslem tomb, so archaeologists cannot even touch it.  The new Eastern Gate, above ground, is also closed up (see picture) - I wonder why?  In 44:9 we are told that those uncircumcised in the flesh cannot enter, but NT teaching is clear that fleshly circumcision no longer means anything!^[1]  If we are to take Ezekiel 40-48 as a portrait of a literal temple to stand during Jesus' (alleged) future earthly reign, then are we also to believe that the exalted "once-for all sacrifice" (Hebrews 10:1-18) and "better High Priest" Jesus, as "the prince," will be providing numerous animal/blood offerings at each of Israel's resumed annual/monthly festivals (45:17,22), even standing aside while Levitical priests offer his animal blood sacrifices (46:1-7,13)?  Will Jesus marry and have sons that will inherit His throne (46:16) and will we distinguish two classes during the Millennium - sons and servants (46:17,18)?  If all of this is going to happen after Jesus returns, you can pretty well scrap the book of Hebrews as having any validity!  For dispensationalists, Old Testament Scripture clearly dominates New Testament material.

       Call me an allegorist if you must, but I see Ezekiel 47:1-12 as Ezekiel's typological portrait of the Gospel age, with the water representing the Holy Spirit that proceeds from God's throne (Zechariah 14:8; John 7:37-39), defying natural law by getting deeper with distance, and bringing life everywhere it goes (vv. 1-9).  I see Gospel "fishers of men" on either side (v. 10), and a new kind of nourishment and healing that sounds a lot like Revelation 22:1ff.