Ezekiel 47:1

Ezekiel 47:1 says, Afterward he brought me again unto the door of the house; and, behold, waters issued out from under the threshold of the house eastward: for the forefront of the house stood toward the east, and the waters came down from under from the right side of the house, at the south side of the altar.  When Ezekiel was brought out again, he began to see water flowing from the threshold of the house toward the east.  The Living Water first flowed from the temple as God sent it to His chosen people first, just as the disciples of Jesus reached out to the Jewish people with the gospel message first. Matthew Henry says these verses referencing the water were likely mystical, or spiritual, since there has never been a time when this happened in Israel, so all he had seen was likely mystical.  I know that we as followers of Christ are called to spiritually drink of the Living Water.  

Verse two adds, Then brought he me out of the way of the gate northward, and led me about the way without unto the utter gate by the way that looketh eastward; and, behold, there ran out waters on the right side.  Ezekiel was then brought to the gate of the north side, and water was flowing from there as well.  Living Water was plentiful for the people then and the Living Water is plentiful for Christians today.  It will be available wherever we are.  

Verse three continues, And when the man that had the line in his hand went forth eastward, he measured a thousand cubits, and he brought me through the waters; the waters were to the ankles. Ezekiel said as the man with the line in his hand went forth eastward that he measured a thousand cubits and then when Ezekiel was led through water was up to his ankles.  Though we are never limited to how deep we can get into the Living Water, when we first accept Jesus Christ, we may not immediately submerge ourselves in it. 

Verse four states, Again he measured a thousand, and brought me through the waters; the waters were to the knees. Again he measured a thousand, and brought me through; the waters were to the loins.  The man measured another thousand cubits, and the water was up to his knees, and then he measured another thousand and it was up to his loins.  Though the Living Water has but one source, it is more than ample for all who would accept it.  

Verse five adds, Afterward he measured a thousand; and it was a river that I could not pass over: for the waters were risen, waters to swim in, a river that could not be passed over.  Ezekiel said the man then measured another thousand cubits, and the water was like a river that a person could not walk through but would have to swim through.  Once more, applying this to the Living Water, there will always be enough for us to submerge ourselves in, if we only will.  

Verse six continues, And he said unto me, Son of man, hast thou seen this? Then he brought me, and caused me to return to the brink of the river.   The man then asked Ezekiel if he had seen this and then brought him back to the brink of the river after he asked him if he had seen it.  We can be on the brink of salvation, but until we see the reality of it, it will do us no good.  

Ezekiel 46:19

Ezekiel 46:19 says, After he brought me through the entry, which was at the side of the gate, into the holy chambers of the priests, which looked toward the north: and, behold, there was a place on the two sides westward.  Ezekiel was next brought into the holy chambers of the priests by the side gate.   This was an area not discussed before, and we should never be surprised to understand things that we never knew about God before as we grow in our Christian life.  

Verse twenty adds, Then said he unto me, This is the place where the priests shall boil the trespass offering and the sin offering, where they shall bake the meat offering; that they bear them not out into the utter court, to sanctify the people.  This we might say was like a kitchen where the priests boiled the trespass and sin offering and baked the meat offering.  This was to be done away from the people.  Matthew Henry said it was a shame that holy ground should be waste ground, which these areas could have become had God not assigned a purpose to them.  If we as followers of Christ are not actively involved in doing His work, then we become like wasted holy ground.  

Verse twenty-one says, Then he brought me forth into the utter 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.  Ezekiel was then brought to the outer court.  God will continue to show us more about what it means to be a Christian if we are faithfully looking to Him for understanding.   

Verse twenty-two states, In the four corners of the court there were courts joined of forty cubits long and thirty broad: these four corners were of one measure.  This verse and the next two give us the size of these courts within the larger court. 

Verse twenty-three adds, And there was a row of building round about in them, round about them four, and it was made with boiling places under the rows round about.  These areas were also to be boiling points for the priests to prepare the sacrifices.  This would not be glamourous work, but it was necessary work.  A lot of what we do when we serve God may not be glamourous work, but if it is what God has called us to do, then we need to do it to the best of our ability even of it is never seen by anyone else.  

Verse twenty-four continues, Then said he unto me, These are the places of them that boil, where the ministers of the house shall boil the sacrifice of the people.  God repeated that these areas were for the ministers of the house to boil the sacrifices.  God will always provide us with everything we need to carry out His purpose in our life.

Ezekiel 46:16

Ezekiel 46:16 says, 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.  God said that if the prince gave any of his sons an inheritance that it would be theirs and their descendants by inheritance forever.  

Verse seventeen adds, But if he give a gift of his inheritance to one of his servants, then it shall be his to the year of liberty; after it shall return to the prince: but his inheritance shall be his sons' for them.  God then said that if a prince gave an inheritance to a servant that it would return to the prince in the year of liberty and to his sons' when he died.  The inheritance was to stay in the family and could not forever stay with those outside the family.  

Verse eighteen continues, Moreover the prince shall not take of the people's inheritance by oppression, to thrust them out of their possession; but he shall give his sons inheritance out of his own possession: that my people be not scattered every man from his possession.  God also said that the prince could not take anyone else’s inheritance and give it to his sons.  Thinking about the last three verses, I believe  I can say that as followers of Christ, we are both servants and children of God through our faith in Jesus Christ, and the inheritance He gives us is everlasting life which can never be taken from us, and we can also never take it from anyone else. Everything He entrusts us with in life is only ours until the Son returns.  

Ezekiel 46:11

Ezekiel 46:11 says, And in the feasts and in the solemnities the meat offering shall be an ephah to a bullock, and an ephah to a ram, and to the lambs as he is able to give, and an hin of oil to an ephah.  I believe this would be other times of sacrifice, when it was specified that a young bull, a ram, and the lambs would be sacrificed according to their ability to give.  We are not required to give anything to God as a sacrifice for sin, but we should willingly give all that we can to help carry out God’s work after we accept forgiveness for our sins that only Jesus Christ can offer. 

Verse twelve adds, Now when the prince shall prepare a voluntary burnt offering or peace offerings voluntarily unto the Lord, one shall then open him the gate that looketh toward the east, and he shall prepare his burnt offering and his peace offerings, as he did on the sabbath day: then he shall go forth; and after his going forth one shall shut the gate.  God said that when the prince offered these voluntary offerings that the east gate was to be opened and when the sacrifice was completed that he was to go out the east gate once more and it was to be closed.  If we offer more to God than what might be expected, we are to give it the same way as any other offering and then are to close the gate and no longer wonder about the gift nor try to control how it will be used.  

Verse thirteen continues, Thou shalt daily prepare a burnt offering unto the Lord of a lamb of the first year without blemish: thou shalt prepare it every morning.  In addition to the sacrifices mentioned before, the people were to daily offer a lamb without blemish as a sacrifice prepared every morning.  We are to daily offer ourselves as a living sacrifice to God, starting from the time we get up in the morning.  

Verse fourteen states, And thou shalt prepare a meat offering for it every morning, the sixth part of an ephah, and the third part of an hin of oil, to temper with the fine flour; a meat offering continually by a perpetual ordinance unto the Lord.  The people were also to offer the things necessary to prepare the sacrifice, which would be flour and oil.  We should want the things that we offer to God to be prepared the best way we can prepare them.  

Verse fifteen adds, Thus shall they prepare the lamb, and the meat offering, and the oil, every morning for a continual burnt offering.  God said this was to be done every morning as a continual burnt offering.  The sacrifice that Jesus Christ offered on the cross is continual, or everlasting, and we as His followers should daily offer our lives as a living sacrifice to Him, starting from when we get up in the morning and continuing all day.