God Initiates Sacrifices, Festivals & Practices in the Messianic Kingdom

God Initiates The Ordinances of the Offerings

Ezekiel 43:18-27

¹⁸And he said unto me, Son of man, thus saith the Lord Jehovah: These are the ordinances of the altar in the day when they shall make it, to offer burnt-offerings thereon, and to sprinkle blood thereon. ¹⁹Thou shalt give to the priests the Levites that are of the seed of Zadok, who are near unto me, to minister unto me, saith the Lord Jehovah, a young bullock for a sin-offering (ASV, 1901).

This first set of ordinance offerings initiate the operation of the Messianic Temple. This is God’s first official act to consecrate the Temple and inaugurate its nearly full thousand year operation following its construction and operation. These very specific sacrificial offerings will be made upon the altar described in the previous verses in full sight of the Messiah as He sits in the inner Holy of Holies and looks out on the inner court as they are made in loving obedience to the Savior. The altar will be cleansed by the shedding of blood and used for offering whole burnt and peace offerings. Blood which the Bible regards as containing the life of the offering will be placed in the prominent place on the altar to communicate holiness. It imparts holiness and removes sin. This is a direct reference to the Lord Jesus whose blood imparted holiness to us and removed our sins. Now He is celebrating the fact that these two factors of the Messianic Kingdom have been achieved by Him. This is very similar to what Moses was commanded to do in the wilderness to inaugurate the Tabernacle over a seven day period. Details are important because similarity does not mean sameness.

 

Leviticus 8:14-15

¹⁴And he brought the bullock of the sin-offering: and Aaron and his sons laid their hands upon the head of the bullock of the sin-offering. ¹⁵And he slew it; and Moses took the blood, and put it upon the horns of the altar round about with his finger, and purified the altar, and poured out the blood at the base of the altar, and sanctified it, to make atonement for it (ASV, 1901)

Since Ezekiel has been promised to be resurrected he will be able to actually give to the priests, the Levites that are of the seed of Zadok, who are near unto me, to minister unto me, saith the Lord Jehovah, a young bullock for a sin-offering. This is promised to the faithful Old Testament saints in at lease two places. This is God’s Promise.

Isaiah 26:19:

¹⁹ Your dead shall live; my dead bodies shall arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in the dust; for your dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast forth the dead (ASV, 1901).

While this passage promises that a resurrection will some day take place a more specific promise regarding timing is found in the second passage found in the book of Daniel.

Daniel 12:2:

¹ And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince who standeth for the children of thy people; and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book. ² And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt (ASV, 1901).

This passage  is making a clear distinction between the resurrection of the righteous and the resurrection of the unrighteous. Only the righteous saints will be resurrected at this time in order to partake of the blessings of the Millennial Kingdom. These are the friends of the bridegroom (John. 3:29) who will be invited to the wedding feast with which the Messianic Kingdom will begin. The rest of humanity will be resurrected to everlasting destruction at the Great White Throne judgment after the Messianic Kingdom. Since Daniel chapter twelve begins with a discussion of Michael the Archangel prevailing at a time of trouble greater than any ever, it clearly points to the time of the end of the Tribulation. Therefore Ezekiel will be resurrected and provide the necessary first sacrifice to the Sons of Zadok of the priestly line to inaugurate the Messianic Temple. He may be the High Priest or at least have a significant role in the High Priest’s activities.

The Sons of Zadok are a very special group of which Ezekiel belongs and as God says, “are near unto me, to minister unto me.” All Hebrew names have meaning. The  Sons of Zadok have a unique name meaning “righteous.” As such Zadok was a type or model of the Lord Jesus. Zadok was a priest, who descended from Eleazar the son of Aaron  the first High Priest (I Chronicles 6:4-8). He aided King David during the revolt of his son Absalom and was subsequently instrumental in bringing King Solomon to the throne. After Solomon’s building of The First Temple in Jerusalem, Zadok was the first High Priest to serve there. The Sons of Zadok have always been faithful to the Lord and His chosen elect.

In their rebellion Israelite priests had violated the Lord’s covenant by allowing foreigners to bring their detestable practices into the temple. Because the Levites had been unfaithful to the Lord, they will be demoted in the Messianic Temple. They will tend the temple gates, slaughter sacrificial animals, and assist the people, but they will not be allowed to handle the holy objects or offerings of the Lord. As a reward for their faithfulness the Zadokite line of the Levitical family would function as the Lord’s priests. Zadok was a descendant of Aaron through Eleazar and Phinehas (I Chronicles 6:3–8, 50–53). They will be the priests selected for service of the altar called in Hebrew the Mizbeyach in the Messianic Temple. The sacrifices while memorializing the atonement that Jesus provided for the world will also emphasize the divine election of the nation Israel. They will have been chosen to perform the very sacrifices that will impress upon the whole world the blessings of salvation and peace that have been provided by the Messiah Jesus. The very first sacrifice will be a young bull as a sin offering. The Hebrew word for sin is chatat.  Since Hebrew words are built on a root of three letters this word’s root is chat which means cleanse. It is actually more accurate therefore to describe this as a cleansing offering.

Administration of the Cleansing

 

Ezekiel 43:20-21

²⁰And thou shalt take of the blood thereof, and put it on the four horns of it, and on the four corners of the ledge, and upon the border round about: thus shalt thou cleanse it and make atonement for it. ²¹Thou shalt also take the bullock of the sin-offering, and it shall be burnt in the appointed place of the house, without the sanctuary (ASV, 1901).

Similarly was the case in the Mosaic Law when the blood was applied to the four horns of the altar with the priest’s finger (Exodus 29:12). Actually every sin offering mentioned in the Law was a blood applied on the four horns of the altar. Then in the Mosaic Law the remainder of the blood was poured on the base of the altar. In the Messianic Temple the blood will be sprinkled first on the four horns of the altar and then also sprinkled on the corners of the settle which went round it, for the priests to walk on, and carry out their activities.

This could be either the uppermost, or the lowermost settle, or both (see diagram).  Some will also probably be applied on the border or ledge that enclosed the settle. Here is another distinction between the Messianic Temple sacrifice and that of the Mosaic Law found in the book of Exodus.

Exodus 29:13-14

¹³And thou shalt take all the fat that covereth the inwards, and the caul upon the liver, and the two kidneys, and the fat that is upon them, and burn them upon the altar. ¹⁴But the flesh of the bullock, and its skin, and its dung, shalt thou burn with fire without the camp: it is a sin-offering (ASV, 1901).

In the Mosaic Law the inner parts of the bullock were burned on the altar. Here the command is to burn all the bullock outside the Temple. There is no mention of the Mosaic practice of allowing the priests to eat the flesh of the private sin or peace offerings here in the memorial sacrifices.

The Second Day’s Offerings

Ezekiel 43:22-25

 ²²And on the second day thou shalt offer a he-goat without blemish for a sin-offering; and they shall cleanse the altar, as they did cleanse it with the bullock. ²³When thou hast made an end of cleansing it, thou shalt offer a young bullock without blemish, and a ram out of the flock without blemish. ²⁴And thou shalt bring them near before Jehovah, and the priests shall cast salt upon them, and they shall offer them up for a burnt-offering unto Jehovah.

The Lord changes the offering for the second day from a bullock to a he-goat. This did not occur in the Mosaic Law at the Tabernacle’s inauguration. The bullock was used for the full seven days of that inauguration. The object of the offering of the “he-goat” was the same as that of the offering of the bullock is to continue the cleansing of the altar. Simmarily to the scapegoat in the Mosaic Law, the scapegoat took on the sins of the Israelites and removed them (Leviticus  16:10). This is again a memorial to what Christ has done for the world. After which on the same day a bullock and finally a ram all without any blemishes or flaws shall be offered. The use of salt with an offering is associated with the idea of covenant (Numbers 18:19; II Chronicles 13:5).  Salt was used as part of sacrificial communal meals and was a sign of purification and preservation. Therefore salt is a symbol of preservation of the promises of God and a sign of the purity of the  New Covenant, which promises no possibility of failure of God or His people in the Messianic Kingdom who will be under it

Jeremiah 31:33-34

³³But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith Jehovah: I will put my law in their inward parts, and in their heart will I write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. ³⁴And they shall teach no more every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know Jehovah; for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith Jehovah: for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin will I remember no more (ASV, 1901).

Ezekiel 36:25-27

²⁵And I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. ²⁶A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you; and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh. ²⁷And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep mine ordinances, and do them (ASV, 1901).

 

Seven Days Shall be The Inauguration

 

Ezekiel 43:25-27 

²⁵Seven days shalt thou prepare every day a goat for a sin-offering: they shall also prepare a young bullock, and a ram out of the flock, without blemish. ²⁶Seven days shall they make atonement for the altar and purify it; so shall they consecrate it. ²⁷And when they have accomplished the days, it shall be that upon the eighth day, and forward, the priests shall make your burnt-offerings upon the altar, and your peace-offerings; and I will accept you, saith the Lord Jehovah (ASV, 1901). 

The pattern commanded for day two will be carried out for the entire seven days of the inaugural ceremony. That is, a he-goat, a bullock, and a ram all perfect without any blemishes. This also was not a practice of Moses when he inaugurated the Tabernacle. It was also not done by those that returned to Jerusalem under Zerubbabel, Ezra and Nehemiah after captivity in Babylon. This is another major change in the order of sacrifices in time to come, under Messiah. So this ceremony lasting seven days will provide a consecration of the altar to our Messiah. These particular sacrifices in this order will have the specific purpose to inaugurate the Messianic Kingdom’s services in the new Temple. From the eighth day forward the sacrifices will continue every day but they will be burnt offerings and peace offerings all ceremonial for what Jesus our Messiah has done for us. For God says that, “I will accept you, saith the Lord Jehovah.”

Select Concepts to Consider Regarding the Sacrifices on the Altar

 

1. The sacrifices are a gift to our God and in burning them they become irrevocable as in a covenant that cannot be broken. They are promises of the people to God to keep His Law. The salt is a symbol of the preservation of these promises.
2. Fire in the house of God is a type of the Shekinah which provides, power, (Exodus 9:24), wrath (II Kings 1:9–12), approval (Leviticus 9:24), guidance (Exodus 13:21–22), protection (Zechariah 2:5), purity (Isaiah 6:5–7), deliverance (II Kings 2:11), God’s word (Jeremiah 5:14), the Messiah (Malachi 3:2), the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:3), judgment (Matthew 25:41), the return of Christ (II Thessalonians 1:8), and the end of the present age (II Peter 3:10–12).
3. A sign of God’s presence with His people (Ezekiel 43:27).
4. It was associated with holiness, purity, and mercy, especially the horns of the altar (Ezekiel 43:15, 20; 1 Kings 1:50–51; 2:28). The sprinkling of blood on the horns of the altar was a rite of purification (Ezekiel 43:18–21).
5. The altar was a tool of mediation (Ezekiel 40:47; 43:19). Offerings were translated from the physical world by burning and given to God as the smoke rose to heaven.
6. The sacrifice was a means of communication with God and was considered a form of prayer (Psalm 141:2).
7. The act of sacrifice was for a temporary atonement of sins committed knowingly and unintentionally (Ezekiel 43:25–27; Leviticus 4:2, 13, 22, 27; 5:3–4, 15, 18; Numbers15:22–31).

 

At the conclusion of the seven days of cleansing God will completely accept the population of the Messianic Kingdom. The cleansing ritual is passed and from then on the  daily sacrifices are memorial for the world to affirm Christ’s love and sacrifice for us. It will be a reminder of the order, peace ,and promises He provided for this world.

The Second Cleansing  Sacrifice

Ezekiel 45:18

¹⁸Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: In the first month, in the first day of the month, thou shalt take a young bullock without blemish; and thou shalt cleanse the sanctuary (ASV, 1901).

God speaks directly to Ezekiel giving him explicit instruction for the cleansing of the Sanctuary. Earlier in Ezekiel 43:19-20 a young bull was offered to cleanse the Altar.

With the Exodus (cir. 1444 B.C) God inaugurated a religious calendar for the Children of Israel that would replace the civil calendar for ceremonial purposes.

Exodus 12:1-3

¹ And Jehovah spake unto Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, ²This month shall be unto you the beginning of months: it shall be the first month of the year to you. ³Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to their fathers’ houses, a lamb for a household (ASV, 1901)

The events of the Exodus 12 passage took place in the seventh month according to the civil calendar which began in September with the new harvest. The passover & deliverance from their slavery was such a significant event that God would change the basis point from which they reckon time. A new year would signify a new beginning apart from the Egyptian solar calendar to a new lunar calendar.  So God then changed the religious calendar to the first month of the year which then He called Abib to commemorate a new start. This name was change to Nisan during the Babylonian captivity. God wanted this new start to be so significant to the Nation Israel that even the calendar was going to reflect it. The Antichrist as a false Messiah will try and do the same (Daniel 7:25). The rest of Israel’s law is given at Sinai, but this memorial of redemption was established in the land of Egypt. The religious calendar would begin in the time period of March-April.

This new Messianic cleansing will take place in Nisan but on the first day of the month not the 10^th day as specified in Exodus 12:3 for the new beginning. The significance of this is that the 10^th of Nisan was the month of Israel’s redemption from the persecution in Egypt. The final redemption of Israel’s persecution from this present age will also end on Nisan but on the first day of the month.

Ezekiel 45:19-20

¹⁹And the priest shall take of the blood of the sin-offering, and put it upon the door-posts of the house, and upon the four corners of the ledge of the altar, and upon the posts of the gate of the inner court. ²⁰And so thou shalt do on the seventh day of the month for every one that erreth, and for him that is simple: so shall ye make atonement for the house (ASV, 1901).

Once the bull has been sacrificed by the Levites they will put it on the door-posts of the Temple Doorway and the base of the four corners of the upper platform of the Altar and on the doorpost of the gate of the Inner Courtyard. Presumably this is the inner eastern gate.

This will be for any Gentile who unintentionally sins because intentional sin will not be possible for the Jew due to the New Covenant’s provisions. The simple person is also known as one who was foolish. It is generally seen as those who when the Babylonian captivity had ended decided to stay in Babylon instead of going back to Jerusalem. This procedure will be repeated on the seventh day of the month.

The Messianic Passover Celebration

Ezekiel 45:21-25

²¹In the first month, in the fourteenth day of the month, ye shall have the passover, a feast of seven days; unleavened bread shall be eaten. ²²And upon that day shall the prince prepare for himself and for all the people of the land a bullock for a sin-offering. ²³And the seven days of the feast he shall prepare a burnt-offering to Jehovah, seven bullocks and seven rams without blemish daily the seven days; and a he-goat daily for a sin-offering. ²⁴And he shall prepare a meal-offering, an ephah for a bullock, and an ephah for a ram, and a hin of oil to an ephah. ²⁵In the seventh month, in the fifteenth day of the month, in the feast, shall he do the like the seven days; according to the sin-offering, according to the burnt-offering, and according to the meal-offering, and according to the oil (ASV, 1901).

Passover will be celebrated on the fourteenth of Nisan as it has been since the Exodus. In keeping with the celebration of what the Messiah did for us by sacrificing Himself on the fourteenth of Nisan, the Passover will continue to occur on the same day. The actual festival of Passover (Pesach) begins the nightfall on the fifteenth day of Nisan. But on the fourteenth day, after the sixth hour of the day. Chometz, unleavened bread,  or any food that contains leaven (yeast) will be forbidden. Yeast is represented as sin in the Bible because it puffs up as in pride like the first sin of the anointed Cherub Hallal who became Satan the adversary of God and then mankind’s adversary. Then in the afternoon the Korban Pesach (Pascal lamb) is offered. Interestingly Jesus was sacrificed on the Passover, went into the tomb on Unleavened Bread and rose from the dead on First Fruits the third holiday of the Jewish agrarian year.

The Prince David will be the director of the services first for himself then for the people of the land with a bullock for a sin-offering. in the Mosaic system, the Passover was held within individual families with the head of the household performing the ceremony. In the Messianic Kingdom the Prince David will perform the ritual on behalf of the nation. In the Mosaic Law, the Passover was a one day festival, while in the Ezekiel, it will last for seven days. The Mosaic offered an unblemished lamb, while in the Kingdom a bullock will be offered.

David will offer a flour offering on the first Passover in order to consecrate the newly operational Temple. This and the timing of the seventh month in the fifteenth day will signify the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot) which will have a significant attendance including all the Gentiles in the world.

Zechariah 14:16

¹⁶And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the (Gentile) nations that came against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the King, Jehovah of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles (ASV, 1901).

Closing of the Inner Court East Gate

Ezekiel 46:1-2

 ¹ Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: The gate of the inner court that looketh toward the east shall be shut the six working days; but on the sabbath day it shall be opened, and on the day of the new moon it shall be opened. ²And the prince shall enter by the way of the porch of the 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 (ASV, 1901).

The Sabbath of the Old Testament will be reinstituted. The Sabbath will be in force as soon as the Church is Raptured from the earth. This will continue for the entire reign of our Messiah during His one-thousand year Kingdom. The glory of our Messiah and in His honor the east gate to the inner court will be opened only on the Sabbath and the first day of the month (Hebrew Rosh Chodesh). The Prince will lead the worship and it will last until the evening at which time the east inner court gate will be shut again. It is by this gate that the Prince will enter into the sanctuary to preside over the worship services as the Levites prepare the designated offerings to our Messiah. The Hebrew text says the Prince will prostrate himself before the Lord not worship as our translation says. This is the appropriate level of obedience and honor one gives the king of the earth who gave us His life for our salvation.

People Worship at the Inner Court East Gate

 

 

Ezekiel 46:3-5

³And the people of the land shall worship at the door of that gate before Jehovah on the sabbaths and on the new moons. ⁴And the burnt-offering that the prince shall offer unto Jehovah shall be on the sabbath day six lambs without blemish and a ram without blemish; ⁵and the meal-offering shall be an ephah for the ram, and the meal-offering for the lambs as he is able to give, and a hin of oil to an ephah (ASV, 1901).

 

All people will come to worship at the Messianic Temple at the sabbath and the new moons.

In the Mosaic Law, the observance of the Feast of Tabernacles was required for Jews only. But this will change under the Kingdom Law, it will be mandatory for both Jews and Gentiles (Zechariah 14:16–21). Under the Law of Moses, only Jews could be priests, but under Kingdom Law, Gentiles will also serve as priests (Isaiah 66:18–21). This is not at all a return to the Mosaic Law, but it is a brand new Kingdom Law. It does not conflict with the  New Testament teaching that the Mosaic Law ended with Messiah’s death. Isaiah made it quite clear that these observances would occur when God gave him these prophecies nearly seven-hundred years before Jesus was born.

Isaiah 66:23-24

²³And it shall come to pass, that from one new moon to another, and from one sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me, saith Jehovah. ²⁴And they shall go forth, and look upon the dead bodies of the men that have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorring unto all flesh (ASV, 1901).

God makes it quite clear through His prophet Isaiah that the people coming to Jerusalem shall see the multitude of people who perished in the last siege of Jerusalem during the Great Tribulation. These nations that came against Christ will find themselves being trodden down by the King of the Jews. The city is Jerusalem and the winepress metaphor is the battle in the Valley of Jehoshaphat which today is called the Kidron Valley. It lies between the Temple Mount and the Mount of Olives.

Revelation 14: 19-20:

And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. And the winepress was trodden without the city, and blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse bridles, by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs (KJV).

From here the armies leave for Bozrah and then return ending the conflict. The blood stretches for 1,600 furlongs or 200 miles. Jeremiah best describes this:

Jeremiah 49:20-22:

²⁰Therefore hear ye the counsel of Jehovah, that he hath taken against Edom; and his purposes, that he hath purposed against the inhabitants of Teman: Surely they shall drag them away, even the little ones of the flock; surely he shall make their habitation desolate over them. ²¹The earth trembleth at the noise of their fall; there is a cry, the noise whereof is heard in the Red Sea. ²²Behold, he shall come up and fly as the eagle, and spread out his wings against Bozrah: and the heart of the mighty men of Edom at that day shall be as the heart of a woman in her pangs (ASV, 1901).

The massive blood letting that began at Bozrah moves to the south down the Arabah until it empties into the Red Sea at the present-day cities of Eilat and Akaba. The distance to Jerusalem is about 200 miles. The level of the blood is about four feet high. The battle finally comes to an end in the Valley of Jehoshaphat ending the seventh stage of the campaign of Armageddon.

Offerings For The New Moon

Ezekiel 46:6-8

⁶And on the day of the new moon it shall be a young bullock without blemish, and six lambs, and a ram; they shall be without blemish: ⁷and he shall prepare a meal-offering, an ephah for the bullock, and an ephah for the ram, and for the lambs according as he is able, and a hin of oil to an ephah. ⁸And 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 (ASV, 1901).

Israel’s calendar was change by God as they left Egyptian time reckoning from a solar year to a lunar year. God commanded that this change be recognized of the new moon in a significant manner. The feasts were all reckoned in relation to the various phases of the moon.

Today in some of Orthodox Judaism’s followers special prayers are recited at the appearance of the new moon.  This Messianic Kingdom change is a new offering brought by David and it differs from the Mosaic Law as prescribed by the Torah in that there is no mention of a sin offering (Numbers 28:11, 15). This is a brand-new offering unique to the Messianic Kingdom.

David enters by the outer door on the side of the east and he goes out the same way. He has a very prominent role as the representative of the people. He presents his offerings to the Lord God our Messiah, while the people stand as worshippers at the outer side of the inner east gate. The offerings the Prince is to bring on the Sabbath are larger than those commanded in the law. Both the burnt-offering and the meal offering brought by him on the Sabbath are more abundant than those offered under the Mosaic Law. This represents a higher form of worship of the Messiah who will live with us and restored Israel.

The Worship Procession

Ezekiel 46:9

⁹But when the people of the land shall come before Jehovah in the appointed feasts, he that entereth by the way of the north gate to worship shall go forth 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: he shall not return by the way of the gate whereby he came in, but shall go forth straight before him (ASV, 1901).

During the Messianic Kingdom there will be a orderly procession of all the people of the earth coming to Jerusalem to honor the King at the appointed festivals. This is a public display of worship and honor to God. In order to prevent congestion and confusion all the people will be entering the Temple compound through either the north or the south gate. The Temple proper, known as the Heichal, will be passed by as the worshippers stream through the inner court and prostrate themselves before the Messianic King of the universe. Whatever gate they enter by they will proceed straight through to the other side and exit that opposite gate. So if they enter by the north gate they will go out by way of the south and visa-versa. God is very concerned with appropriate decorum in His House as well as worship practices and has stated that in the Mosaic Law as well as the New Testament.

Deuteronomy 16:16

¹⁶Three times in a year shall all thy males appear before Jehovah thy God in the place which he shall choose: in the feast of unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles; and they shall not appear before Jehovah empty (ASV, 1901).

This same concept holds true in the New Testament too. The apostle Paul when giving us rules of order in the proper expression of Spiritual Gifts (Greek Charismata), says that we should “Let all things be done decently and in order” (I Corinthians 14:40). Paul does not limit the proper order to charismata. He says, “All Things,” which focuses on the worship and honor we pay to the Lord. In fact the book of I Corinthians from Chapter 11:2 to 14:40 reveals the proper order of Christian worship leading up to this section’s conclusion of the proper functioning of charismata. It includes the state of women and headship as well as the state of all at the Lord’s Supper. We will all stand before God to give and account. (Romans 14:12; II Corinthians 5:10). God does not want us to follow the culture. He wants us to be obedient to Him in all things.

There will be an unknown number of people in the millions coming to Jerusalem during the Messianic Kingdom so order and decorum must prevail in our public display of worship. What is important for us to realize is that everything is divinely ordered. We may not understand it but God does everything for a reason. He wants our obedience.

David The Prince With His People

Ezekiel 46:10-12

¹⁰And the prince, when they go in, shall go in in the midst of them; and when they go forth, they shall go forth together. ¹¹And in the feasts and in the solemnities the meal-offering shall be an ephah for a bullock, and an ephah for a ram, and for the lambs as he is able to give, and a hin of oil to an ephah. ¹²And when the prince shall prepare a freewill-offering, a burnt-offering or peace-offerings as a freewill-offering unto Jehovah, one shall open for him the gate that looketh toward the east; and he shall prepare his burnt-offering and his peace-offerings, as he doth on the sabbath day: then he shall go forth; and after his going forth one shall shut the gate (ASV, 1901).

One of the most precious views of the attitude of David the Prince and why he was chosen for this role is the love for and obedience he had for God. He as the great leader is not pushing the people to properly worship God. He is showing them how to obey by doing it with them. Here he is in the midst of them; and when they go forth, they shall go forth together,  (David’s Lament in I Samuel 26:19; Sons of Korah Psalm 42:4; David’s Godly resolve in Psalm 132:1-5). God says that when David shall prepare a freewill-offering, a burnt-offering or peace-offerings as a freewill-offering unto Jehovah, one shall open for him the gate that looketh toward the east; and he shall prepare his burnt-offering and his peace-offerings, as he doth on the sabbath day: then he shall go forth; and after his going forth one shall shut the gate. So the gate on the east of the inner court will be open for him to make his obeisance to The King of the world. After he came in with the people he will then ceremonially go in  and out of the eastern gate in obedience to God. The gate will be opened for him and closed after he has made his ceremonial offering leading the people in worship with the specified offerings in the volumes required. The outer eastern gate is permanently closed now after Messiah entered the Temple compound. The lesser leader David will obey a model of that with the inner eastern gate. The New Year offerings, the Passover offerings, the offerings for the Feast of Tabernacles, and the Sabbath offerings, will all take place at the inner eastern gate. The inner eastern gate will be shut for six days, but will always be opened on the Sabbath throughout the Kingdom period.

The Lamb of  Sacrifice

Ezekiel 46:13-15

¹³And thou shalt prepare a lamb a year old without blemish for a burnt-offering unto Jehovah daily: morning by morning shalt thou prepare it. ¹⁴And thou shalt prepare a meal-offering with it morning by morning, the sixth part of an ephah, and the third part of a hin of oil, to moisten the fine flour; a meal-offering unto Jehovah continually by a perpetual ordinance. ¹⁵Thus shall they prepare the lamb, and the meal-offering, and the oil, morning by morning, for a continual burnt-offering (ASV, 1901).

During the period of the Mosaic Law the daily offerings consisted of a lamb every morning and of a lamb every evening (Exodus 29:38-42; Numbers 28:1-8). In the Messianic Kingdom services the only burnt-offering mentioned is during the mornings. One more difference  to the Mosaic law is that the  offering volume is increased from one-tenth to one-sixth, and the oil from one-quarter of a hin to one-third.  This difference is intentional even though not clearly explained why. One observation we can make is that as the blessings of grace abound under the Gospel dispensation, and we should abound in our thanksgiving to God. The blessings of the Messianic Kingdom will be greater than at any time before and offerings should represent this greater blessing to us. This then brings an end to the commands for the new order of worship in the Messianic Kingdom.

The Rules of Inheritance of the Prince

Ezekiel 46:16-17

¹⁶Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: If the prince give a gift unto any of his sons, it is his inheritance, it shall belong to his sons; it is their possession by inheritance. ¹⁷But if he give of his inheritance a gift to one of his servants, it shall be his to the year of liberty; then it shall return to the prince; but as for his inheritance, it shall be for his sons. ¹⁸Moreover the prince shall not take of the people’s inheritance, to thrust them out of their possession; he shall give inheritance to his sons out of his own possession, that my people be not scattered every man from his possession (ASV, 1901).

David the Prince will have some special rights or privileges because of his exulted position in the Temple. The fact that the Prince has sons, natural descendants is conclusive that the Prince of these last chapters of Ezekiel is not Christ. Clearly by decree in the Messianic Kingdom whatever gifts he bestows upon them shall be their possession by inheritance. During the one-thousand year Messianic Kingdom there will be twenty Jubilee years. In compliance with one of the laws for the Jubilee property will revert to its original owner as in the Mosaic Law. The Jubilee was celebrated after 7 sabbaths of years or 49 years. Then in the 50th year, counting from Israel’s entry into the Promised Land certain practices were to be set free.  The land was to lie fallow during the Jubilee year, Hebrew slaves were to be set free and, hereditary lands that had been sold were returned. The Jubilee was, in a sense, an entire year of festival, a year of liberty that restored the nation to the state it had enjoyed when God first established it. With the Messianic Kingdom being set free of sin, Satan and the curse on the earth at the Fall it will experience true liberty in Jubilee fashion too. So it is in this requirement of the Prince that when he gives gifts to those outside his family these gifts will revert to the original owner in the year of Jubilee which, is him. God sets limits on this practice referencing the abominable practices of the Jewish leaders in the confiscation of the people’s land in the period leading up to the Babylonian captivity and unfortunately after. David while not guilty of these practices during his reign as Israel’s king is nevertheless charged with providing for his offspring from his own personal property not that of others. The people will be protected as to their own personal property. This Jubilee return of gifts only pertains to that which Prince David gave to others outside his family.

Leviticus 25:23-24

²³And the land shall not be sold in perpetuity; for the land is mine: for ye are strangers and sojourners with me. ²⁴And in all the land of your possession ye shall grant a redemption for the land (ASV, 1901).

The Law of the Boiling of the Sacrifices for The Offerings

 

Ezekiel 46:19-24

¹⁹Then he brought me through the entry, which was at the side of the gate, into the holy chambers for the priests, which looked toward the north: and, behold, there was a place on the hinder part westward. ²⁰And he said unto me, This is the place where the priests shall boil the trespass-offering and the sin-offering, and where they shall bake the meal-offering; that they bring them not forth into the outer court, to sanctify the people. ²¹Then he brought me forth into the outer court, and caused me to pass by the four corners of the court; and, behold, in every corner of the court there was a court. ²²In the four corners of the court there were courts inclosed, forty cubits long and thirty broad: these four in the corners were of one measure. ²³And there was a wall round about in them, round about the four, and boiling-places were made under the walls round about. ²⁴Then said he unto me, These are the boiling-houses, where the ministers of the house shall boil the sacrifice of the people (ASV, 1901).

This is a continuation of the discussion that the Messiah was providing Ezekiel which stopped at chapter 43:17. Starting at the side of the north gate He shows Ezekiel the spot where there is a one cubit gap in the northern wall of the inner wall and the knife depository. This is the place where the priests will boil the trespass-offering and the sin-offering, and where they shall bake the meal-offering; that they bring them not forth into the outer court, to sanctify the people.

The priests will cook the guilt offering and the sin offerings so as to not bring them out into the outer court. Since these sacrifices are of the highest quality and most holy, any transportation to the outer court would disqualify them for use in the services. If they went to the outer court then they would be exposed to non-priestly people wearing unsanctified apparel and this would render them unfit for use. The outer court where the Angel of Jehovah leads Ezekiel is also called the Women’s Court. This is because it completely surrounds the Temple and Inner Courtyard. From Proverbs 12:4 we see that a virtuous women is the crown of her husband. So it is that the women of the Messianic Kingdom are all virtuous and the outer court surrounding the inner court as a crown is known as the women’s court. In Solomon’s Temple the women’s court did not surround the inner court but stood east of it. The text in this section of Scripture ends with a description and location of the cooking chambers. Here the priests will cook portions of the sacrifices of the lesser holiness offerings such as the peace offerings and thanksgiving offerings, which are not disqualified if they are taken out of the inner courtyard.

Messianic Temple will not have the Ark of the Covenant.

Jeremiah 3:16-17

¹⁶And it shall come to pass, when ye are multiplied and increased in the land, in those days, saith Jehovah, they shall say no more, The ark of the covenant of Jehovah; neither shall it come to mind; neither shall they remember it; neither shall they miss it; neither shall it be made any more. ¹⁷At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of Jehovah; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of Jehovah, to Jerusalem: neither shall they walk any more after the stubbornness of their evil heart (ASV, 1901).

Since the Messiah who is God Himself will be dwelling in and reigning from Jerusalem, there will be no need for any Ark of the Covenant. The contents of the Ark of the Covenant were the  tablets of stone that were the embodiment of the Law of Moses, a jar of manna and Aaron’s budded rod. The fact that the Law of Moses is no longer in effect is another reason why the Ark of the Covenant will be missing. Finally the Law of the Messianic Kingdom will be the New Covenant.

Jeremiah 31:31-34

³¹Behold, the days come, saith Jehovah, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: ³²not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was a husband unto them, saith Jehovah. ³³But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith Jehovah: I will put my law in their inward parts, and in their heart will I write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. ³⁴And they shall teach no more every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know Jehovah; for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith Jehovah: for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin will I remember no more (ASV, 1901).

The Ark will not be needed because God says, “I will put my law in their inward parts, and in their heart will I write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.”

 

Daniel E. Woodhead