Ezekiel 47 - Bible Study, Explanation, and Application
Ezekiel 47 Bible Study
TIMELINE:
Ezekiel gives an exact date for the vision he recorded in chapters 40-48 (40:1), the 25th year of his exile, 14 years after the city of Jerusalem was destroyed, 573 or 572 BC.
Below is a list of kings of Judah and dates for their reign:
Amon (642-640 BC)
Josiah (640-609 BC)
Jehoahaz (also known as Shallum, 609 BC)
Jehoiakim (initially known as Eliakim, 609-598 BC)
Jehoiachin (also known as Jeconiah or Coniah, 598-597 BC)
Zedekiah (His reign ended when Babylon conquered Judah, (597-586 BC)
WHAT WE STUDIED PREVIOUSLY
Ezekiel 1 – Ezekiel had a vision of 4 living creatures, 4 wheels, and God’s throne.
Ezekiel 2 – God commissioned Ezekiel to be a prophet to his rebellious countrymen.
Ezekiel 3 – The end of the heavenly vision. Ezekiel ate a scroll of God’s words, and God called him to be a watchman over the people of Judah.
Ezekiel 4 – Ezekiel prophesies with an object lesson in the street by laying on his side for 430 days, eating rations of bread, and creating a siege scene with a brick that represents Jerusalem.
Ezekiel 5 – After the 430 days, Ezekiel cut off his hair divided it up into 3 parts and used it as a symbol for what would happen to the people of Jerusalem.
Ezekiel 6 – Ezekiel prophesies against the idol worshipers in Judah, telling them their bodies will be thrown at the feet of their powerless gods.
Ezekiel 7 – God spoke to Ezekiel about the day of His judgement. The end was near for the citizens of Jerusalem, and their doom was on the horizon.
Ezekiel 8 – Ezekiel saw a vision of the Temple in Jerusalem. God guided him through the courts and gates of the Temple and showed him the secret idolatries that filled God’s house.
Ezekiel 9 – God sends a man with a writing case to mark the foreheads of those who hated the idolatries of Judah. Afterwards, God sends 6 executioners to kill everyone in Jerusalem who didn’t have the mark.
Ezekiel 10 – God’s glory departed the inner sanctuary of the Temple and ascended to His throne carried by the 4 living creatures.
Ezekiel 11 – God announced judgement on the wicked rulers of Judah. They thought they were safe in Jerusalem, like meat in a cauldron, but God promised to bring them out for death and captivity. At the end of the chapter, God spoke of a future day, when He would regather a remnant of His people and give them a new heart and new spirit.
Ezekiel 12 – Ezekiel prophesied about the downfall of King Zedekiah by carrying his possessions out of his house as if he were going into exile. God promised that His judgement was near, and anyone who suggested otherwise would be put to shame.
Ezekiel 13 – God confronted the false prophets and sorceresses amongst the people of Judah. The false prophets falsely claimed to speak with the authority of God, and the sorceresses hunted the souls of God’s people through witchcraft and divination.
Ezekiel 14 – God condemned the elders of Judah who harbored love for idols in their hearts. He told Ezekiel Jerusalem would not be spared even if righteous men like Noah, Daniel, and Job lived there.
Ezekiel 15 – God compared the citizens of Jerusalem to useless vine wood that was good for nothing except to burn.
Ezekiel 16 – God compared his people to a young woman who he had raised and cared for. When she grew up, she turned her back on God and prostituted herself with foreign nations and idols.
Ezekiel 17 – Ezekiel spoke a parable to the people of Judah about two great eagles. The parable indicated that the King of Judah would betray Babylon and be uprooted by them.
Ezekiel 18 – The people of Judah were accusing God of punishing them for the sins of their ancestors. God clarified that each man was responsible and would be held accountable only for his own sins.
Ezekiel 19 – God lamented the unfaithfulness of His people through two laments, the lament of the lion cubs and the lament of the vine.
Ezekiel 20 - The elders of Israel wanted to consult with God, but God refused them based on their continual and cyclical rebellion against His laws. God spoke of His future judgement on Judah and His future grace that would restore the nation.
Ezekiel 21 – Ezekiel spoke of the sword of the Lord that God had sharpened to punish Judah. The king of Babylon stood at a fork in the road, and God was going to direct him and his army to Jerusalem.
Ezekiel 22 – God condemned Judah for a litany of sins and their total neglect of any attempt to keep His commands. He told them He would melt them down like metal within the furnace of Jerusalem.
Ezekiel 23 – God illustrated the unfaithfulness of Israel and Judah with a story about two sisters, Oholah and Oholibah.
Ezekiel 24 – God compared Jerusalem to a corroded pot that would be emptied and melted down. In the second half of the chapter, Ezekiel’s wife died, and God instructed him not to mourn for her publicly as a sign of the fate of the citizens of Jerusalem and their beloved city.
Ezekiel 25 – God prophesied against Ammon, Edom, Seir, Moab, and the Philistines.
Ezekiel 26 - God prophesied against the city of Tyre. God was going to judge them by bringing the nations against them and destroying them. Babylon would attack first, followed by the Greeks under the command of Alexander the Great (332 BC).
Ezekiel 27 – God described the downfall of the city of Tyre. His judgement on them was going to take them from the mountain of wealth, power, and influence, down to obscurity in the depth of the sea, never to rise again.
Ezekiel 28 - God rebuked the king of Tyre, because in his pride, he elevated himself to the status of a God. Some believe the language is comparing the downfall of Tyre’s king to the fall of Satan. God promised to restore Judah, but Tyre would never be restored.
Ezekiel 29 - A prophecy against Egypt and the pride of Pharaoh. Pharaoh was like a dragon in the Nile, but God would draw him out with a hook and cast him into the desert. God would humble Egypt to a lowly nation and give them over to the Babylonians.
Ezekiel 30 - A prophecy against Egypt. The day of the Lord’s judgement would be a day of doom for Egypt. God would bring the nations against Egypt to crush their pride, throw down their idols, take their wealth, and diminish their nation. God said He had broken pharaoh’s arm so he could not take up a sword to defend his nation.
Ezekiel 31 - God warned Egypt by reminding them of the fate of the Assyrian Empire. Assyria was like a mighty ceder, tall and formidable. But when they grew proud, God chopped them down. God told Pharaoh He would do the same to Egypt.
Ezekiel 32 - Pharaoh, like a dragon in the sea, would be caught in God’s net and thrown into the desert to die. The inhabitants of Egypt would be sent down to Sheol with the Assyrians and all the evil nations who went before her.
Ezekiel 33 - Ezekiel was reminded of his role as a watchman. God invited the people of Judah to choose life, because He had no pleasure in the death of the wicked. The people accused God of being unjust. God said He would judge each according to their deeds. A fugitive from Jerusalem came to Ezekiel and informed him of the fall of Jerusalem.
Ezekiel 34 – God rebuked the bad shepherds of Israel for neglecting his flock and scattering them among the nations. The Lord promised to send His “servant David” as a better shepherd.
Ezekiel 35 - A prophecy against Mount Seir (Edom). God was going to judge Seir because they encouraged and relished in the slaughter of the people of Judah. God’s anger was going to make Sier a desolate and uninhabited place.
Ezekiel 36 - God promised a future restoration for the land and people of Judah. He would restore them, not because they were righteous, but in order to vindicate His great name in the eyes of the nations. God would give His people a new heart and spirit to follow His commands.
Ezekiel 37 - Ezekiel saw a vision of a valley of dry bones. God’s Spirit put flesh on the bones and brought them back to life. It was a symbol of the new life God would give to Judah when He restored them. God revealed to Ezekiel that one day He planned to unify the nations of Israel and Judah again under the reign of His servant David (Jesus).
Ezekiel 38 - Prophecy against Gog, the king of Meshech and Tubal (in the far north). In the latter years, Gog would fight with the people of God, but God would destroy his army with an earthquake, a sword, pestilence, torrential rains, fire, hailstones, and sulfur.
Ezekiel 39 - Prophecy against Gog continued. Gog’s army would be a feast for wild animals. The people of Israel would burn Gog’s weapons for 7 years and it would take them 7 months to bury the bodies and cleanse the land. God promised to restore Israel and pour out His Spirit on them.
Ezekiel 40 - Ezekiel was brought to Israel in a vision. He was put on a high mountain overlooking an enormous structure. It was a new Temple, new in size and proportion to Solomon’s Temple, which had been destroyed by the Babylonians. The chapter contains detailed measurements for the new structure.
Ezekiel 41 - The heavenly being that began measuring the Temple in chapter 40 continues, with Ezekiel writing down exact measurements and documenting specifics about the Temple construction and the furniture.
Ezekiel 42 - The measurement of the Temple continues. Chapter 42 focuses mainly on the buildings, chambers, outer court, and length of the outer walls. The outer wall of the new Temple was 500 cubits square (Ezekiel 42:15-20).
Ezekiel 43 - Ezekiel saw God’s glory returning to the Temple to dwell there (contrast with Eze 10). God told the people He would dwell with them forever. Ezekiel was to share the description of the Temple with the people if they showed remorse for their sins. God provided specific designs for the altar of offering.
Ezekiel 44 - God designated a special gate on the east of the Temple. God forbid the priests from defiling the new Temple as they had the old one. He designated the Levites who were the sons of Zadok to minister in the holy things because they had remained faithful to Him. The remainder of the chapter is a list of protocols for the priesthood.
Ezekiel 45 - A holy district was designated and special land for “the prince.” God specified measurements for the offerings of the people. They were to give their offerings to the prince, and he was charged with arranging the sacrifices.
Ezekiel 46 - Ezekiel 46 contains a list of procedures for the prince, priests, and the people pertaining to Sabbath days, feast days, new moons, and daily offerings. The chapter also legislates the location where the offerings of the people were to be boiled.
OUTLINE:
THE RIVER FLOWING FROM THE TEMPLE (47:1-12):
Ezekiel’s heavenly guide brought him to the door of the Temple and showed him a stream of water flowing out of the structure from south of the altar.
After leaving the Temple, the water flowed east.
Ezekiel and his guide walked through the water. It grew progressively deeper. First, it covered their ankles, 1,000 cubits further it was up to their knees, 1,000 cubits later it was up to their waists, and 1,000 cubits further it was a deep river.
The river was a source of life and everything around it flourished.
Ezekiel 47:8-9 - And he said to me, “This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah, and enters the sea; when the water flows into the sea, the water will become fresh. And wherever the river goes, every living creature that swarms will live, and there will be very many fish. For this water goes there, that the waters of the sea may become fresh; so everything will live where the river goes.
The river’s power to give life was so great that it would turn the Dead Sea into a place rich with fish, like the Mediterranean Sea (the Dead Sea has no fish because it is around ten times saltier than the ocean).
The banks of the river would overflow with life. The trees would never wither, their fruit never fail, and they would have new fruit every month. God said, “Their fruit will be for food, and their leaves for healing” (47:12).
THE BOUNDARIES OF THE PROMISED LAND (47:13-23):
When the people of God were permitted to return to the Promised Land, they were to divide the land up amongst the tribes equally.
Ezekiel 47:15-20 contains a detailed outline of the borders of the land *(see map for more details).
The end of the chapter contains an interesting detail that is not to be overlooked. God told the house of Israel to adopt any foreigner (sojourner) who lived amongst them as one of their own. They were to receive a portion of land in the territory of the tribe in which they resided.
God said, “You shall allot it as an inheritance for yourselves and for the sojourners who reside among you and have had children among you. They shall be to you as native-born children of Israel. With you they shall be allotted an inheritance among the tribes of Israel. In whatever tribe the sojourner resides, there you shall assign him his inheritance, declares the Lord GOD” (47:22-23).
BIBLE COMPREHENSION:
The map on the below illustrates the divisions of the Promised Land as detailed by Ezekiel in chapters 40-48.
Some of the details were gathered from previous chapters, while others will not be encountered until chapter 48.
