Ezekiel 47:21-23

content/bible_journal/ezekiel_47:21-23.md

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+title = "Ezekiel 47:21–23"
+date = "2023-07-26"
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+
+### [Read the passage.](https://biblia.com/bible/esv/Ezekiel47.21-23)
+
+I know I'm going over verses that were supposed to be covered by the last post,
+but I realized I left out the most amazing part, and I think it's worth digging
+into.
+
+This time, when the land is alotted, those who have immigrated to the land of
+Israel, settled there, and had children there will be given a share of the
+land. They are to be treated the same as the native-born, blood-descendants of
+Abraham. At this point in redemptive history, when Ezekiel is telling all of
+these things to the people, _this is unprecedented_. There had always been
+provisions in the Law to treat aliens and sojourners well, but they were
+usually grouped with the orphans and widows. That is, they were in need of
+special care because they had less financial and social support than those
+around them because they did not have any land inheritance. In an agrarian
+society like those of the time, land was basically equal to wealth, because
+that's how you made food to survive.
+
+When the land of Israel is divided up among the twelve tribes again, those
+seeking to live near the Lord will be allowed to, and they will be given a
+portion of the inheritance to be established in the land. I'm not sure I can
+express how big a deal this is. Over and over again in the Law of Moses, God
+expresses how important it was to the Israelites that the land must be kept
+within the family. To the extent that if a man dies without any heirs, his
+brother is to marry the widow and beget children with her who will inherit the
+dead man's land. It was allowed to sell land if cash was needed in dire
+straits, but only to a fellow Israelite, not a foreigner. Furthermore, it
+should be sold back at the same price at any time, or even just given back for
+free in the Year of Jubilee.
+
+Now that we have the story of Peter and Cornelius and understand how God is
+grafting the Jews and Gentiles together into one people in His kingdom, these
+verses make a lot of sense. But I expect there was a lot of confusion over
+these verses with anyone who paid attention to them before Jesus came.
+
+* * *
+
+You never change and Your plans have been perfect from the beginning.