EZEKIEL- CHAPTERS 47-48 The River From The Sanctuary
The River From The Sanctuary
(Ezekiel 47 & 48)
Taught by: Carolyn Sissom
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
It is interesting that all most all commentaries agree that The River of Ezekiel 47 is spiritual. They may not all agree Ezekiel’s Temple is spiritual, but all agree on the River. There is no other way to interpret it.
This River speaks of the Life-Giving flow of the Holy Ghost from the Church. (John 7: 37-39( “In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believes on me, as the scriptures has said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But this spoke he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive.”
This river is not peculiar to Ezekiel. Joel tells how “a fountain will flow out of the Lord’s house and will water the valley of acacias” (Jl. 3:18). In Zech. 14:8, there is a description of “living water” flowing out from Jerusalem on the day of the Lord, and on branch entering the Mediterranean and another Dead Sea. In John’s vision of the “river of the water of life’ which flows from the throne of God and of the Lamb’ through the midst of the New Jerusalem, providing sustenance for the tree of life whose leaves are for the healing of the nations. (Rev. 22:1)
The concept of the Tree of Life speaks of the appropriation of His Life, but the concept of the River of Life speaks of the dispensing of His Life.
Bro. Bill Britton shares his thought about this river of life:
- The river flows from the Temple which we are.
- The river heals as it flows.
- The water to the ankles deals with our walk on earth among men. Our relationship with others.
- The water to the knees deals with our walk before the Lord, our relationship with God.
- The water to the loins speaks of our new life in Christ. It takes two to produce, so we need one another. We must gird up the loins of our mind and receive only the life and the thoughts of God.
- The waters to swim in speak of a realm of no limitation, which cannot be passed over. We are cut loose from the earth and cannot touch bottom. There is no longer the support of earthly things, and we will be totally dependent upon the Holy Spirit.
Note The Pattern:
- The River out of the Belly – The prophet (Jn. 7: 37-39)
- The River out of the Temple – The Priest (Ezekiel 47)
- The River out of the throne – the King (Rev. 22)
It is also interesting that there was a total measuring of 4000 cubits or 6000 feet. And 6000 years from Adam, the Church began to flow in the River to swim in. The water to the ankles speaks of waters to splash in as a child. The water to the knees will affect our prayer life and our devotion and loyalty to the Lord. The water to the loins will then affect everything that we produce. In the waters to swim in, we will lose control of our lives and let Him be Lord!
Many years ago, I had a vision that I was swimming in this golden river. I was holding on to one small twig on the river bank. When I let go, I was free from everything that was holding me back.
Sue Baird’s outline of this chapter is as follows:
- 1-12 – River that Heals.
- 13-23 – Restoration of the Land.
( Isa. 12:3) “Therefore with joy shall you draw water out of the wells of salvation.” The waters came down from the right side of the Temple, just as water flowed from Jesus’ side. The right side was the south side, the side of blessings. In Verse 2, the prophet was led by the gate northward, for these waters will minister righteous judgment in the land. Next we meet the man with the Line (“thread, cord, line”) in His Hand. (Verse 3) He brought the prophet to ankle-deep water. Verse 4 brings him deeper to the knees and then to the loins. By verse 5, waters were risen ( a great outpouring in the Feast of Tabernacles), waters to swim in. Then the prophet returned to the brink of the river, just the edges of his ways. At the bank of the river were many trees on the one side and the other. (V. 7) rev. 22:2 reads that “on either side of the river was there the Tree of Life.
Jesus the Tree becomes a timber or a forest of life, confirming the sight that Ezekiel saw in the many trees ( many sons). This inheritance is mentioned in Chapter 46:16-18) “Thus says 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. 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’ fro them. 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.”
(V. 7) “There were many trees on the one side and on the other”. (Rev. 22:1-2) “And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb, in the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life”
In Christian sense, Ezekiel’s river thus serves as an apt symbol of that life in the Spirit which the gospel holds forth as God’s free gift to all believers.
This river will heal the desert and the dead sea. (8) The sea speaks of the turbulent masses of unregenerate humanity. This healing is a restoration. Verse 9 reveals a great multitude of fish (evangelization of the nations) brought to life by this river. It brings life ( a quickening spirit) to everything it touches. This is the power of an endless life (Heb. 7:16) “Who is made, not after the law of a carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless life.” Everything that moves (“swarms”) shall live. The fishers of Verse 10 are Kingdom evangelists. “Engedi” means “fount of the kid, fountain of God, fountain of fortune” and eneglim” means “Fountain of two calves, well of two calves, fountain of two pools” – the very thing that destroyed Israel (the two calves of idolatry) shall be swallowed up and immersed by this river! The only place that the river is not able to heal are the miry places (“swamps” and the marishes (“marshes”) – water flows in but nothing flows out. (11). Like Lot’s wife who looked back, these places will be given to salt. Verse 12 reveals the principle of immortality and resurrection life. Neither will the fruit be consumed (“fail”), but
will bring forth constantly new fruit for meat, then verse 13 shows that Joseph (Geneses 37-50) shall have a double portion. “Thus says the Lord God; This shall be the border, whereby you shall inherit the land according to the twelve tribes of Israel; Joseph shall have two portions.”
The remainder of the chapter and most of chapter 48, deals with the inheritance and the apportionment of the land.
The final chapter of Ezekiel concerns the distribution of the land and the permanence of the City of the Lord’s Presence. Thus we see the permanence of the Glory!
The location of the city was given in Chapter 45, now its dimensions are given, together with an account of its gates –three gates on each side, twelve gates in all each named after one of the tribes of Israel. I covered the spiritual meaning of the gates in the teaching on Nehemiah, and The Gates of New Jerusalem as well as the teaching on The Blessings of the House of Jacob.
The portion of the Zadok Priesthood is a thing Most holy (12). The goings out of the city (30) are its ministries.
Ezekiel perhaps deliberately, refrains from calling the new city Jerusalem. The name of the city from that time on will be Yahweh-Shammah, The Lord is There. (35)—and that is adequate reason for calling it the holy city.
Jehovah founded it in blood.
The blood of his incarnate Son;
There dwell the saints, once foes to God,
The sinners whom he calls his own.
There though besieged on every side,
\yet much beloved and guarded well,
From age to age they have denied
The utmost force of earth and hell.
Let earth repent and hell despair,
This city has a sure defense;
Her name is called ‘The Lord is there’,
And who has power to drive him thence?
William Cowper.
W.C. acknowledged in these lines, Ezekiel’s prophecy is part of the Christian bible, and as such bears witness to Jesus Christ. The Christian lessons of Ezekiel’s new common wealth are plainly drawn out in the apocalypse. John depicts the Holy City, New Jerusalem, which is the glorified community of the people of God. Because this community as such is God’s dwelling place among men (Rev. 21:2), there is no need of a separate temple. If as Ezekiel says, ‘The Lord is there’, then in John’s eyes’ the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple’ (Rev. 21:22) which anticipates the accomplishment of the eternal purpose when, in the fullness of time, all things are united under Christ as their true Head. (Eph. 3:9) “And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world has been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ.”
Blessing, Peace, Security and Glory!!!!
This completes our present study of Ezekiel. We will be experiencing the Glory of God through eternity.
Blessed Be The Lord God Almighty.
Carolyn Sissom, Pastor
Eastgate Ministries, Inc.
Scripture quotes from King James Version, text from F.F. Bruce Bible Commentary, Bill Britton, Principles of Present Truth, and Matthew Henry. The vision and comments were given to me by the Lord.