Post 54-Ezekiel’s Temple Vision

On Tue, Sep 5, 2017 at 6:57 AM, John asked

Hey Dana,

            I just finished the book of Ezekiel. Why did God spend so much time on the vision of the second temple, and all that accompanies it? As you know, I’m not big on prophecy, and I’ll admit I read through those chapters fairly quickly. But there’s got to be a good reason

            Are you still working killer hours?  I know it’s the harvest, but if you have any time, can you try to clue me in?

John

PS  Sorry about the temple photo—my feeble attempt at envisioning the temple God gave to Ezekiel.

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From Dana on Tue, Sep 5, 2017 at 9:24 AM

John

Let me get back to you on that.  Long days.  14 hrs yesterday.  More today.  But I will get back. 

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Dana replied on Fri, Sep 8, 2017 at 8:43 AM

Hi John

     The vision of the Temple that Ezekiel had in the last chapters of his book was not regarding what we’ve come to know as the 2nd Temple, or Herod’s Temple, or the Temple standing when Jesus was on earth, or the Temple that was destroyed in 70 AD. Neither is it any futuristic “millennial” Temple.  It is way bigger than all of those.

     The first thing we must keep in mind that it was a vision—something mystical that Ezekiel was being “shown.”  Visions are seldom literal.  They are more conceptual in nature.  Now to say something is not literal doesn’t mean that it is not real—it just means that there is no one to one or word for word pairing up of the ideas.  To read the Ezekiel Temple passages literally only will lead to a dismal swamp of senselessness.  But to read them non-literally doesn’t diminish the “reality” of them in the least.  It’s just an alternative reality that’s being presented.  But real nonetheless.

      There are many problems with trying to compare Ezekiel’s vision of the Temple with any brick and mortar “building” either in Israel’s history or allegedly in the future.  Importantly, most height dimensions are lacking. Only a couple of height dimensions are given at all, one for the altar and another for a wall or something.  It’s almost like a floor plan instead of actual building dimensions. In other words, you couldn’t take Ezekiel’s dimensions and build a building from it.

      Also, quite importantly, many items of priestly ritual furniture present in both the 1st and (the actual) 2nd Temples are missing.

      Very importantly, this “structure” vision includes no provision for a roof. Also important rooms are smaller in dimension than lesser important rooms.  It’s all messed up; a construction nightmare.

      Finally, there is no instruction given to Ezekiel to build this structure, or command to instruct others present or future to build it.

      Something else is going on. To begin to get a glimpse of what Ezekiel is pointing towards, we need to look at some New Testament Temple talk. 

     Note: almost all of this I got from Dr. Michael Heiser’s podcast lectures on Ezekiel.  It’s really amazing stuff.

All Scripture References are English Standard Version

 

John 2:18-22

¹⁸ So the Jews said to him, “What sign do you show us for doing these things?” ¹⁹ Jesus answered them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” ²⁰ The Jews then said, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will you raise it up in three days?” ²¹ But he was speaking about the temple of his body. ²² When therefore he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the Scripture and the word that Jesus had spoken.

 

     Here we see Jesus directly referring to His body as being the temple—a concept that His detractors clearly didn’t get, but His disciples did eventually remember.  This is important!

 

1 Peter 2:1-8

So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. ² Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation— ³ if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.

[Now get this—this is important]

⁴ As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, ⁵ you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. ⁶ For it stands in Scripture:

“Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone,  a cornerstone chosen and precious,
and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.”

⁷ So the honor is for you who believe, but for those who do not believe,

“The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,”

⁸ and“A stone of stumbling,    and a rock of offense.”

 

     Did you catch that?  We, the Church, are also part of that Temple—we are the priests who are offering the sacrifices in that Temple, as well as being the “living” stones from which it is built, with Christ as the Cornerstone.

And…

 

1 Corinthians 3:16-17

“Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you? ¹⁷ If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him. For God's temple is holy, and you are that temple.”

 

1 Corinthians 6:19-20

¹⁹ Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, ²⁰ for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.

 

      With Jesus and the coming of the Holy Spirit, we no longer need to have or go to a literal building to experience the glory and presence of God.  Since Jesus sacrifice negated all other sacrifices, what purpose does a Temple hold?  The book of Hebrews and these passages pretty much drives the nails in the coffin lid of physical, literal Temple relevance.

 

2 Corinthians 5: 1-5

For we know that if the tent [Tabernacle—the place to meet God which later became the Temple] that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. ² For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling, ³ if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked. ⁴ For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened—not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life. ⁵ He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.

 

     Keep reading…

 

Corinthians 6:14-18

¹⁴ Do not be unequally yoked with unbelievers. For what partnership has righteousness with lawlessness? Or what fellowship has light with darkness? ¹⁵ What accord has Christ with Belial? Or what portion does a believer share with an unbeliever? ¹⁶ What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said,

“I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them,
    and I will be their God,
    and they shall be my people.
¹⁷ Therefore go out from their midst,
    and be separate from them, says the Lord,
and touch no unclean thing;
    then I will welcome you,
¹⁸ and I will be a father to you,
    and you shall be sons and daughters to me,
says the Lord Almighty.”

 

Ephesians 2:18-22

¹⁸ For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. ¹⁹ So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, ²⁰ built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, ²¹ in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. ²² In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.

 

     And finally, John says regarding the new heavens and earth, and the new Jerusalem, in

 

Revelation 21:22

²² And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb.

 

        So long story short, Ezekiel’s vision of the Temple is not about some physical literal building commemorating ancient Jewish religion or tradition.  Ezekiel’s vision is pointing forward to Jesus, the real Temple of God.  Jesus said His body was the Temple, and who makes up the body of Christ?  We do…the Church.  He and we make up the Temple.  That’s what Ezekiel saw.

       The “Temple” chapters of Ezekiel are rich in all kinds of theological symbolism.  I’ve only scratched the surface of all that is there.  But the message of the Temple vision is more important than its description details.  To read it literally will lead to confusion, and the raising of questions that have to be fudged to be answered.

      I am aware that many who hold to a literal 1000 year “millennium” (which I do not) also envision a rebuilt temple occurring in last days scenarios?  There are actually people (Christians and Jews) who are waiting, with baited breath, for something catastrophic to happen to the Dome of the Rock Mosque which sits on the Temple mount, so a new Temple can be built.

      To that, I have to ask:  If, let’s just say for argument sake, Jesus returns and reigns on the earth in a literal 1000 year millennial kingdom, why would a temple be necessary?  Davidic kings didn’t live in the Temple, so it wouldn’t be where Jesus would live.  If one wanted to be in the presence of Jesus physically, a temple wouldn’t be needed since Jesus (the Temple) would be here.  And since Jesus’ sacrificial death and resurrection provide the complete and final atonement for sin, and the book of Hebrews clearly and forcefully says that, then there won’t be a need for sacrifices any longer, so what purpose would a brick and mortar temple serve?

     I’ll go with the bigger picture.  Still praying for Carol (and you too)

Dana