The Gospel According to Ezekiel, Chapters 47-48 (Part 1 of 2)

The River from the Temple

Then he brought me back to the door of the temple, and behold, water was issuing from below the threshold of the temple toward the east, for the temple faced east. The water was flowing down from below the south end of the threshold of the temple, south of the altar. Then he brought me out by way of the north gate and led me around on the outside to the outer gate that faces toward the east; and behold, the water was trickling out on the south side.

Going on eastward with a measuring line in his hand, the man measured a thousand cubits, and then led me through the water, and it was ankle-deep. Again he measured a thousand, and led me through the water, and it was knee-deep. Again he measured a thousand, and led me through the water, and it was waist-deep. Again he measured a thousand, and it was a river that I could not pass through, for the water had risen. It was deep enough to swim in, a river that could not be passed through. And he said to me, “Son of man, have you seen this?”

Then he led me back to the bank of the river. As I went back, I saw on the bank of the river very many trees on the one side and on the other. And he said to me, “This water flows toward the eastern region and goes down into the Arabah, and enters the sea; when the water flows into the sea, the water will become fresh. And wherever the river goes, every living creature that swarms will live, and there will be very many fish. For this water goes there, that the waters of the sea may become fresh; so everything will live where the river goes. Fishermen will stand beside the sea. From Engedi to Eneglaim it will be a place for the spreading of nets. Its fish will be of very many kinds, like the fish of the Great Sea. But its swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they are to be left for salt. And on the banks, on both sides of the river, there will grow all kinds of trees for food. Their leaves will not wither, nor their fruit fail, but they will bear fresh fruit every month, because the water for them flows from the sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food, and their leaves for healing.”

This river proceeds from the temple, the place where God dwells. At first, it is shallow and narrow, trickling out from the south side of the altar, under the inner courtyard wall, through the outer courtyard, and then downward toward the Arabah, the Dead Sea. Every 1,000 cubits—about 1,500 feet—the river widens and deepens. There is no external source feeding it—no tributaries, no rainwater, no other rivers. The extraordinary source, the sanctuary of God, produces these extraordinary effects.

As the river flows, trees spring up along its banks—extraordinary trees supplied by this permanent source. Every swarming creature, every fish, thrives. It enters the Dead Sea, cleansing its saltwater, making it teem with life. Fishermen will have an endless supply of fish. The trees produce endless fruit every month, with leaves for healing. There is no dry season; every month brings fresh supply.

The Symbolic Depth of the River

This river is a treasurable, supernatural concept, pointing beyond the physical to spiritual realities. God condescends to our understanding through this image.

On the last day of the feast, the great day, Jesus stood up and cried out, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’” Now this he said about the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were to receive, for as yet the Spirit had not been given, because Jesus was not yet glorified. (John 7:37-39)

Out of the believer’s innermost being, with the Holy Spirit’s presence, flows spiritual nourishment and satisfaction—a never-ending supply.

Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. (Revelation 22:1-2)

Wherever God rests, a river flows—bringing rest, sustenance, abundance, and spiritual healing from sin’s scars. As in the Garden of Eden, so here.

They feast on the abundance of your house, and you give them drink from the river of your delights. (Psalm 36:8)

There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High. (Psalm 46:4)

This river represents how God’s people dwell with Him and are glad. The deeper it gets, the wider it becomes—impossible to pass through. There is no exhausting God’s blessings or depths. Go deeper into Him.

The river flows into the Dead Sea, cleansing and giving life, purifying God’s people, granting sustenance and satisfaction.

The Division of the Land

Thus says the Lord God: “This is the boundary by which you shall divide the land for inheritance among the twelve tribes of Israel. Joseph shall have two portions. And you shall divide equally what I swore to give to your fathers. This land shall fall to you as your inheritance.”

The boundaries are described: north from the Great Sea by way of Hethlon to Lebo-hamath; east between Hauran and Damascus; south from Tamar to Meribah-kadesh; west the Great Sea. The sojourners who reside among you and have had children among you—they shall be to you as native-born children of Israel. With you they shall be allotted an inheritance among the tribes of Israel.

Chapter 48 details the tribal portions: Dan, Asher, Naphtali, Manasseh, Ephraim, Reuben, Judah—then the holy portion for the sanctuary, priests (sons of Zadok), Levites, city, and prince. Benjamin, Simeon, Issachar, Zebulun, Gad follow. The city gates are named after the tribes, and its circumference is 18,000 cubits. The name of the city from that time on shall be: The Lord Is There.

This land is essentially the Levant—more than modern Israel, from Egypt to the Euphrates, Mediterranean to the Dead Sea.

Life, Land, and the Lord

Ezekiel 47-48 presents life from the river, land for God’s people, and the Lord who is there. Largely symbolic, it points to New Testament fulfillment in Christ and God’s people dwelling with Him.

No command is given to build this temple. It summarizes the Bible’s great promise: God will glorify Himself in the salvation of His people, who live with Him forever. To exiles in wretchedness, it promises restoration to permanent worship with God.

New Testament teaching unites Israel and the church as one people of God. The promises to Israel’s tribes include you—the spiritual children of Abraham by faith. You have a place in God’s dwelling, prepared by Christ.

Ezekiel’s message: God punishes sin, preserves His people, purchases a dwelling place, provides satisfaction, places them to praise His presence—Yahweh Shammah, the Lord is there.

The Core Message of Ezekiel: From Absence to Presence

To simplify the message of Ezekiel, recognize its two portions: judgment and restoration. The judgment portion declares, "The Lord is not there," amid the absence of His presence among His people. The restoration portion culminates in, "The Lord is there."

This structure provides a guide to avoid the pitfalls of the beginning. Creation intended people who desired God and were content with Him. Original sin began with discontent—pride arising from dissatisfaction with God. Jude describes angels who abandoned their proper dwelling, pursuing something else because they were dissatisfied with living with God. Eve's sin started internally, envisioning a life without God, where she would be god of her own life.

Sin repeatedly arises from discontent with God, bringing ruin and misery. In Israel's 400 years of idolatry, they sought other gods until judgment removed God's presence from the temple. People glorified themselves, ruled their own lives, and mastered their own destinies. Where sin reigns unchecked, you find judgment, unfairness, injustice, lack of equity—not the equality God intended.

Of course, God is omnipresent, but His manifest presence with His people restrains evil. Without it, deception, unrighteousness, and exploitation prevail. We see this today: not equality of rights, but superiority for those most in love with sin.

Yet, as Spurgeon said, a diamond shines brightest against a black surface. This is no time for despair but the greatest opportunity to preach the gospel, shedding light into darkness. Preach Ezekiel's message: a sin-filled land brings judgment by lifting God's restraints. Preach the message of a city, a kingdom—like Abraham in Hebrews 11, who dwelt in a physical land as a foretaste of the heavenly city, where the Lord is.

Living in the City Called "The Lord Is There"

Scattered elect across the globe, we now experience spiritual unity with believers of all time, awaiting gathering into one place where Yahweh Shammah—the Lord is there. Lands without Him are peoples' own doing, striving for self-made utopias, amassing idols, demanding others affirm their pleasures to ease consciences, glorifying themselves.

But this city is God's doing, where obedience to His name claims no prosperity for themselves. All glory goes to God for the land's prosperity and permanency. The city's name is not "Jeremy is there"—that would be disappointment. It is "The Lord is there."

He redeems creation so He is the central source of the river of life, blessings, salvation, and goodness. He takes preeminence as His people dwell where He is preeminent, the sole source of all good, the sole object of praise. Revelation shows no temple, but God, the Lamb, and the Spirit proceeding from Father and Son, satisfying His people for His glory.

Ezekiel 39 foreshadows the Spirit's outpouring at Pentecost—a temporary start. Now, live the New Jerusalem life, the "Lord is there" life, with hope of full future joy in God.

Some find eternal worship boring, and many services today are dull. But freed from sin's weight, perfected by the Spirit, supplied by God's eternal water in this city—you need full redemption to contain such joy without destruction.

The Lord is there. He grants grace and promises to take us there. Believe, trust, and be satisfied—that is Ezekiel's message.