Prince at the Post - Ezekiel 46

Ezekiel 46:2 "And the prince shall enter by the way of the porch of that gate without, and shall stand by the post of the gate and the priests shall prepare his burnt offering and his peace offerings, and he shall worship at the threshold of the gate; then he shall go forth; but the gate shall not be shut until the evening."

v3 "Likewise, the people of the land shall worship at the door of this gate before the LORD in the sabbaths and in the new moons."

What some have called superstition may have come about from this very chapter of Ezekiel. I have heard during my life that if you go in a door you should leave by the same door. In this chapter, it is commanded to leave by a different door than where they came in. It is a good example of how things get turned around.

v9 "But when the people of the land shall come before the LORD in the solemn feasts, he that entereth in by the way of the north gate to worship shall go out by the way of the south gate; and he that entereth by the way of the south gate shall go forth by the way of the north gate; and he that entereth by way of the south gate shall go forth by the way of the north gate; he shall not return by the way of the gate whereby he came in, but shall go forth over against it.

I think this has to do with organization. If you can picture two lines going and coming from the temple. It would be difficult for everyone to get through if they turned against the traffic and there would be a log jam at the gates.

Remember, all Israel was to go to Jerusalem at certain times of the year.

The prince was different, he was to enter and leave by the same way.

v8 "And when the prince shall enter, he shall go in by the way of the porch of the gate, and he shall go forth by the way thereof."

Now look at the following verse. As sons, Christians have a great inheritance. We join Christ as children of the Father.

v16 "Thus saith 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."

Ephesians 3:6 "That the Gentiles should be fellow heirs, and of the same body and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel;"

But, of course, our passage is concerning the temple activities when it is restored. I do believe that there are parallels with our spiritual worship.

Eastern Gate

Ezekiel 43:4 "And the glory of the LORD came into the house by the way of the gate whose prospect is toward the east."

C10v19 "And the cherubim lifted up their wings, and mounted up from the earth in my sight; when they went out, the wheels also were beside them, and everyone stood at the door of the east gate of the LORD's house; and the glory of the God of Israel was over them above."

So, initially, we see the glory of the Lord departing from the temple. In chapter 43, Ezekiel sees a vision of the glory returning. I believe this to be at a future time. Although, Jesus is said to have entered at the eastern gate because of the route he would have taken from the Mount of Olives.

The eastern gate is also called: Golden Gate, Gate of Mercy, Gate of Eternal Life, Beautiful Gate. As well as, names in other languages.

In the pictures I saw, the gate leads directly into the temple.

v10 "Thou son of man, show the house to the house of Israel, that they may be ashamed of their iniquities; and let them measure the pattern."

The chapter tells further measurements for the altar and the ordinances. Then comes the sanctification of the altar.

V20 "And thou shalt take of the blood thereof, and put it on the four horns of it, and on the four corners of the settle, and upon the border round about; thus shalt thou cleanse and purge it."

Another generation is learning what has already been taught in previous times. It is no less important.

v27 "And when these days are expired, it shall be, that upon the eighth day and so forward, the priests shall make your burnt offerings upon the altar, and your peace offerings, and I will accept you, saith the LORD GOD." See Lev. 9:1

In studying this subject, we would be going into the time lines of prophecy. More learned men are better at that. I think they were going through these procedures during the time of Christ but it had again become a matter of profit.

Jesus offered himself but was rejected by the nation Israel. He did, however, offer Himself as the Lamb of God to take away the sins of the world. The crucifixion of Christ did not stop his mission. His kingdom is, nevertheless, established on a spiritual level which should also be manifest on a physical level as well.