Ezekiel 43:1-12

content/bible_journal/ezekiel_43:1-12.md

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+title = "Ezekiel 43:1–12"
+date = "2023-07-08"
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+
+### [Read the passage.](https://biblia.com/bible/esv/Ezekiel43.1-12)
+
+Something new happens in Ezekiel's vision. The Lord in His glory again appears
+before Ezekiel's eyes, just as He had at the Chebar canal, when He commissioned
+Ezekiel to be His prophet, and when He showed Ezekiel the abominations
+happening in the temple and the city before He left it to its destruction. This
+time, the Lord returns from the east to fill the temple with His glory again.
+The God of Israel passes through the eastern gate, which is something of
+significance that will be explained in a little while. Ezekiel either hides his
+face in the ground so that he will not see the Lord with his unworthy eyes, or
+he faints from the sheer awesomeness. When he says, "the Spirit lifted me up"
+(_v. 5_), he is saying that he is made to stand on his feet again, not that he
+was picked up and moved around.
+
+Then the Lord speaks from within the temple to Ezekiel, declaring that this
+house is His dwelling place on the earth. Though the Lord is present
+everywhere, all the time, this place gets the special designation of being
+where God is said to live. Though He created every family on earth, He has
+chosen Israel's family to be His special people to dwell in their midst. This
+was not a choice made based on any merit they had, or any distinguishing
+characteristic, but simply because He chose them. We who follow Christ do well
+to remember that we were chosen in the same way for the same reasons: simply
+because God decided to show His mercy and grace to us in this way. We wouldn't
+even be considering what God would want us to do without that.
+
+Because God is holy, His neighbors, as it were, will be holy too. In the past
+Israel sinned grievously, just as we all have, but in the future, when God's
+glory fills the temple, there will be no more abominations or defiling
+practices. It looks like there is some ambiguity around what was meant by the
+"dead bodies of their kings" as that may refer to monuments set up for them.
+Whatever had happened, it won't happen any more because only the Lord will be
+worshipped when all is said and done.
+
+Ezekiel is given instructions to make known to Israel the plans and laws for
+this new temple. In all of Scripture, this is the only place where anyone
+besides Moses was given ritual laws for Israel to uphold, The purpose of the
+temple's blueprints and operations manual were to bring shame on the readers
+for the things they have committed against the Lord. If their hearts are
+pricked with shame, they will be moved to construct a proper dwelling for the
+Lord.
+
+* * *
+
+Your holiness is infinite, and we can only approach it because of Your power
+and goodness to us.