Ezekiel 40-42
In the twenty-fifth year of our exile, at the beginning of the year, on the tenth day of the month, in the fourteenth year after the city was struck down, on that very day, the hand of the LORD was upon me, and He brought me to the city.
Ezekiel 40:1
Thus begins the final section of the Book of Ezekiel, which presents one long vision covering the last nine chapters of the book. (Chronologically, though, there is yet one more vision after this.) This vision occurs 14 years after the Fall of Jerusalem, and it stands in marked contrast to Ezekiel’s prior vision of the departure of the glory of the LORD from the Temple.
Today we get three chapters describing a new, pristine Temple. Ezekiel is careful to give us all the detailed dimensions. (For help visualizing this blueprint and Ezekiel’s guided tour, see this illustration.) As for the significance of all the different dimensions, and what they may mean spiritually, that has been the subject of debate for over two millennia and is well beyond my ken. We should note, though, that this new Temple does not correspond with any historical earthly Temple — not yet, at least. Given that so much of what Ezekiel prophesies points toward that future period when Israel will dwell securely in the Promised Land under the Kingship of the Messiah, I’d say that is when this Temple will be realized, but that is also a subject of ongoing debate.
Though we may not understand (or appreciate) the mysteries behind all this dimensional data, it would be a mistake to then just breeze by it as unimportant or irrelevant. It clearly matters to the LORD! Think about it. How many chapters of the Torah are devoted to first specifying and then describing the construction of the original Tabernacle? How many chapters are similarly devoted to describing Solomon’s Temple? And now we have three full chapters today for this new Temple, let alone tomorrow’s reading. How can we possibly then conclude that these things do not matter? At the very least we should recognize that the LORD is again emphasizing His holiness and that He is the One Who decides how we are to relate to Him.
Are we so quick to accept God’s lovingkindness that we consider Him our Buddy but forget that He is the King of the Universe? Do we take God’s grace so for granted that we forget His holiness? Within our church buildings, do we make any real effort to regard the sanctuary as just that — a place that is “set apart”? Or is the sanctuary just yet another usable space? Within our lives, do we actually hallow one day per week as a Sabbath? Or does every day look just like all the rest?
Ultimately, is it the LORD Who is calling the shots? Or are we still the ones designing our own temples?