Ezekiel 46:11, commentary and pictures

In the feasts and solemnities an ephah of grain is appointed for a bullock and an ephah for a ram, and for the lambs as the giver is able to give, with a hin of oil for every ephah. It belongs to the temple, city and division of the land shown to Israel in Babylonian captivity in Ezekiel 36 to 48 on condition of shame for iniquity and wholehearted return to God, which would have been kept literally then while circumcision, distinctions in meats, offerings of beasts and the Levitical priesthood were in force. The house was never built because Israel did not repent and forfeited its fulfillment, and the house later built by Zerubbabel was only a weak shadow falling far short of the pattern. Its offerings and feast regulations can never be renewed literally in the present or in the future immortal age, for the feasts were nailed to the cross and the priesthood was changed to Christ forever after the order of Melchisedec, and to restore blood offerings would set aside His once-for-all sacrifice and make it void. What failed for old earthly Jerusalem will be more gloriously realized for the true Israel in the New City and new earth at Christ's second coming, not by every local detail but as a spiritual prophecy of greater things through Christ, for the city described is not the New Jerusalem of Revelation with its immortal life but presents a mortal prince offering for himself and provision for marriage and death.

Vision and Its Offerings

The grain offering for the feasts and solemnities is an ephah for a bullock and an ephah for a ram, and for the lambs as the giver is able to give, with a hin of oil to an ephah. These are the set measures for worship in the sanctuary envisioned for the restored nation, belonging to the sacrificial worship and temple offerings associated with Ezekiel's sanctuary and indicating a time when such offerings were practiced. They formed part of a provisional sanctuary plan and promised restoration conditioned on faith and obedience, which would have been fulfilled in much greater measure if the conditions had been met, but only about forty thousand returned and the promises were not realized in their fullness. The city in this vision would have been built if Israel had responded to the calls to leave Babylon, but it was not built because Israel failed to do its part.

These grain and oil offerings are placed within the feasts and solemnities of the sanctuary service, showing that these observances belonged to the Israelite ceremonial system. Within the offer made while the Hebrews were in captivity at Babylon to restore them to their own land and give them again a city and a temple under circumstances of wonderful glory, this is one of several allusions to the festivals of the Hebrews, alongside allusions to the Sabbath of the Lord. The feast observances and their offerings belonged to the Mosaic dispensation and were no longer in force after they were nailed to the cross.

It belongs to the pattern for a sanctuary, temple, city, and division of the land in Ezekiel 36 to 48, and to the sanctuary regulations and worship arrangements in Ezekiel 40 to 48. It was offered to Israel while in Babylonian captivity as what God would have given and established, with the twelve tribes returning and the temple rebuilt as part of the promised glorious restoration, on condition that they be ashamed of their iniquities and sins, put them and wickedness and lewdness away, and return to God wholeheartedly. The promised restoration was conditional and was not fulfilled then because Israel rejected God's conditions and disregarded them, so the offered glory was never inherited by them; it will be fulfilled under greater conditions, with more or less of the former local details left out. What was offered would have been literally fulfilled then in the Mosaic dispensation, when circumcision, divorce, distinction in meats, offerings of beasts, the Jubilee and the Levitical priesthood were in force.

The sanctuary described there, with its sacrifices and offerings, was never built because Israel never complied with that condition, did not repent and put away iniquities, would not yield fully to God so He could not dwell among them, and therefore forfeited its fulfillment. The temple later built after the return from Babylon by Zerubbabel was only a weak shadow falling far short of Ezekiel's pattern, with only a shadow of its greatness and only weakly reflecting the provisional plan. The temple and sanctuary described would have been far greater than the temple built by Zerubbabel, but Israel's failure meant the prophecy was fulfilled only in small part. Its prescribed meal offerings show that sacrifices were to be offered there, so this was not a temple God would ordain again.

The vision beginning in Ezekiel 40 measures the temple and the city of God with a line of flax and a measuring reed by a man with the appearance of brass. That vision covers the same period and represents the same purposes of God toward Jerusalem as the measuring of Jerusalem in Zechariah 2, and the two should be studied together as counterparts. Its center is Jerusalem where Jehovah is there, in a detailed vision of a magnificent and glorious temple ultimately intended as a house of prayer for all nations. Its exact measures show that God is a God of order.

No Future Literal Restoration

The city here is not the New Jerusalem of Revelation, and the vision does not belong to the future glorified age. In that age Christ is Prince and Shepherd over Israel, and marriage and death are unknown, while this vision presents a poor frail mortal prince offering a sin offering for himself and provides for marriages, divorces, widows and death. It would have been fulfilled in the Mosaic dispensation, when circumcision, divorce, distinction in meats, offerings of beasts, the Jubilee and the Levitical priesthood were in force. It was offered on the conditional promise that Israel should be ashamed of iniquities and put away lewdness, Israel never complied, and therefore forfeited its fulfillment so that the temple described in Ezekiel 40-46 and 40-48 never has been built and never will be built. A literal revival of its types afterward is impossible, because types were shadows pointing to a future fact and the figure cannot go before the fact nor the sign before the thing signified, and after the heavenly ministration of Christ closes before His coming and atonement is made in fact with remission granted there can be no typical atonement in figure for sin already atoned for.

Its feast regulations were not meant for the present or immortal dispensation, for the feasts were nailed to the cross. The grain and oil offerings prescribed within the feasts and solemnities belonged to the Mosaic dispensation and to a sanctuary and its services intended for Israel in the past while still in force, and are no longer in force after the cross. The temple and its service in Ezekiel 40-48 is never to be built in any period after the opening of the Christian dispensation. When Christ was crucified and ascended the law of the priesthood changed so Levi is no longer priest and Christ became priest forever after the order of Melchisedec, and Christ continueth ever with an unchangeable priesthood that does not pass from one to another, and when His priesthood ends there is no more probation. That priesthood and the everlasting gospel are contemporary, Christ is the great High Priest and the gospel is His gospel, and though an angel from heaven preach any other gospel let him be accursed.

Its sacrificial offerings can never be renewed or fulfilled literally in the future. To renew them would return to the ordinances of the first covenant and imply need for another sin offering after Christ's once-for-all sacrifice. The offerings of the past were temporary shadows pointing to Christ's effective sacrifice, and to offer sacrifices again would set aside His once-for-all offering, make void His sacrifice, and annul His offering. The figure cannot go before the fact nor go on after remission is granted, and the blood of bulls and goats will no longer be acceptable to God even as a type. These grain and oil regulations with set measures for a bull and a ram and an amount for lambs according to what the worshiper can give formed part of a provisional sanctuary plan conditional on the people being ashamed of sins and turning back to God, the people did not repent, the plan was only weakly reflected in the temple built by Zerubbabel, Jesus Christ's death fulfilled all sacrifices, and its ordinances are incompatible with offering sacrifices now.

The temple vision also serves as a spiritual prophecy of greater things God would do for His people through Christ. What failed for old earthly Jerusalem will be grandly and more gloriously realized for the true Israel in the New City, the new earth, the kingdom of Jesus Christ and at Christ's second coming. The restoration and its details would have been fulfilled then in Israel's restoration from Babylonian captivity if Israel had yielded to God and returned wholeheartedly, but Israel's failure meant fulfillment only in small part and the promised future glory will be fulfilled for the true Israel in a later form. It will be fulfilled under greater conditions, with more or less of the former local details left out and not according to every detail described in the prophecy. Its ordinances are faintly typical of what God will restore by His mighty power in the new heavens and new earth.