Ezekiel 44: 1 – 31
The Prince
1 Then He brought me back to the outer gate of the sanctuary which faces toward the east, but it was shut. 2 And the LORD said to me, “This gate shall be shut; it shall not be opened, and no man shall enter by it, because the LORD God of Israel has entered by it; therefore it shall be shut. 3 As for the prince, because he is the prince, he may sit in it to eat bread before the LORD; he shall enter by way of the vestibule of the gateway, and go out the same way.” 4 Also He brought me by way of the north gate to the front of the temple; so I looked, and behold, the glory of the LORD filled the house of the LORD; and I fell on my face. 5 And the LORD said to me, “Son of man, mark well, see with your eyes and hear with your ears, all that I say to you concerning all the ordinances of the house of the LORD and all its laws. Mark well who may enter the house and all who go out from the sanctuary. 6 “Now say to the rebellious, to the house of Israel, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “O house of Israel, let Us have no more of all your abominations. 7 When you brought in foreigners, uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, to be in My sanctuary to defile it—My house—and when you offered My food, the fat and the blood, then they broke My covenant because of all your abominations. 8 And you have not kept charge of My holy things, but you have set others to keep charge of My sanctuary for you.” 9 Thus says the Lord GOD: “No foreigner, uncircumcised in heart or uncircumcised in flesh, shall enter My sanctuary, including any foreigner who is among the children of Israel. 10 “And the Levites who went far from Me, when Israel went astray, who strayed away from Me after their idols, they shall bear their iniquity. 11 Yet they shall be ministers in My sanctuary, as gatekeepers of the house and ministers of the house; they shall slay the burnt offering and the sacrifice for the people, and they shall stand before them to minister to them. 12 Because they ministered to them before their idols and caused the house of Israel to fall into iniquity, therefore I have raised My hand in an oath against them,” says the Lord GOD, “that they shall bear their iniquity. 13 And they shall not come near Me to minister to Me as priest, nor come near any of My holy things, nor into the Most Holy Place; but they shall bear their shame and their abominations which they have committed. 14 Nevertheless I will make them keep charge of the temple, for all its work, and for all that has to be done in it. 15 “But the priests, the Levites, the sons of Zadok, who kept charge of My sanctuary when the children of Israel went astray from Me, they shall come near Me to minister to Me; and they shall stand before Me to offer to Me the fat and the blood,” says the Lord GOD. 16 “They shall enter My sanctuary, and they shall come near My table to minister to Me, and they shall keep My charge. 17 And it shall be, whenever they enter the gates of the inner court, that they shall put on linen garments; no wool shall come upon them while they minister within the gates of the inner court or within the house. 18 They shall have linen turbans on their heads and linen trousers on their bodies; they shall not clothe themselves with anything that causes sweat. 19 When they go out to the outer court, to the outer court to the people, they shall take off their garments in which they have ministered, leave them in the holy chambers, and put on other garments; and in their holy garments they shall not sanctify the people. 20 “They shall neither shave their heads, nor let their hair grow long, but they shall keep their hair well trimmed. 21 No priest shall drink wine when he enters the inner court. 22 They shall not take as wife a widow or a divorced woman, but take virgins of the descendants of the house of Israel, or widows of priests. 23 “And they shall teach My people the difference between the holy and the unholy, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean. 24 In controversy they shall stand as judges, and judge it according to My judgments. They shall keep My laws and My statutes in all My appointed meetings, and they shall hallow My Sabbaths. 25 “They shall not defile themselves by coming near a dead person. Only for father or mother, for son or daughter, for brother or unmarried sister may they defile themselves. 26 After he is cleansed, they shall count seven days for him. 27 And on the day that he goes to the sanctuary to minister in the sanctuary, he must offer his sin offering in the inner court,” says the Lord GOD. 28 “It shall be, in regard to their inheritance, that I am their inheritance. You shall give them no possession in Israel, for I am their possession. 29 They shall eat the grain offering, the sin offering, and the trespass offering; every dedicated thing in Israel shall be theirs. 30 The best of all firstfruits of any kind, and every sacrifice of any kind from all your sacrifices, shall be the priest’s; also you shall give to the priest the first of your ground meal, to cause a blessing to rest on your house. 31 The priests shall not eat anything, bird or beast, that died naturally or was torn by wild beasts.”
The tour of the Millennium Temple complex is just about finished. Ezekiel is brought back to where he started at, that is, at the East gate.
1 Then He brought me back to the outer gate of the sanctuary which faces toward the east, but it was shut. 2 And the LORD said to me, “This gate shall be shut; it shall not be opened, and no man shall enter by it, because the LORD God of Israel has entered by it; therefore it shall be shut.
The first thing to catch our attention is that the gate was closed. How come? Our Lord Jesus Christ tells us, .’ 2 And the LORD said to me, “This gate shall be shut; it shall not be opened, and no man shall enter by it, because the LORD God of Israel has entered by it; therefore it shall be shut.’ When you wanted to honor a ruler, you provided a pathway or entrance that only he could use. This kind of restriction was also known among earthly monarchs. When a king had entered a city, the gate through which he entered would be closed to everyone because the king had passed through it. This was done to give recognition to the king’s status and greatness. Who Is greater than our King of Kings and Lord of lords?
We need to be reminded that our God is Holy, Perfect and Blameless. Once His Glory had been in contact with something it was set aside as being respectively holy. Man cannot touch it. This also applied to the gate in which our Lord passed through.
What I think is also wonderful by this statement by our Lord is that our Lord Is sending us all a message – He will never again leave the Temple. He will remain with us all forever. Thank you Holy Father.
We now come upon a very unique scripture passage that has puzzled many a bible scholar and this is in regards to a ‘Prince’
3 As for the prince, because he is the prince, he may sit in it to eat bread before the LORD; he shall enter by way of the vestibule of the gateway, and go out the same way.”
Who Is this prince? We know that our Holy God does not want us to be out in the dark as to understanding His Holy Word, so can we identify this Prince from other scripture passages? Let’s check this out.
First of all we know that this Prince can also enter the Temple from the East Gate. However, The Prince enters through the outer east gateway [the vestibule] Remember, this has been set-aside as a holy spot.
In this area we see another unique privilege. The Prince Is allowed to eat the Holy Sacrifices. The Hebrew word for bread is ‘lehem’. It is similar language for food from the sacrificial offerings
In chapter 45 we read this additional discovery regarding the ‘Prince’. 7 “The prince shall have a section on one side and the other of the holy district and the city’s property; and bordering on the holy district and the city’s property, extending westward on the west side and eastward on the east side, the length shall be side by side with one of the tribal portions, from the west border to the east border.”
In addition chapter 48 also deals with land being apportioned to the Prince, “21 “The rest shall belong to the prince, on one side and on the other of the holy district and of the city’s property, next to the twenty-five thousand cubits of the holy district as far as the eastern border, and westward next to the twenty-five thousand as far as the western border, adjacent to the tribal portions; it shall belong to the prince. It shall be the holy district, and the sanctuary of the temple shall be in the center. 22 Moreover, apart from the possession of the Levites and the possession of the city which are in the midst of what belongs to the prince, the area between the border of Judah and the border of Benjamin shall belong to the prince.”
The portion of land allocated to the Prince equal the same amount given to each tribe [each tribe is comprised of thousands of people] Now that’s a good piece of property. . Notice that the area is called ‘Holy’
Another unique description is that this royal Person has priest activities;
Ezekiel 45, 16 “All the people of the land shall give this offering for the prince in Israel. 17 Then it shall be the prince’s part to give burnt offerings, grain offerings, and drink offerings, at the feasts, the New Moons, the Sabbaths, and at all the appointed seasons of the house of Israel. He shall prepare the sin offering, the grain offering, the burnt offering, and the peace offerings to make atonement for the house of Israel.”…. 22 And on that day the prince shall prepare for himself and for all the people of the land a bull for a sin offering.”
Ezekiel 46, “4 The burnt offering that the prince offers to the LORD on the Sabbath day shall be six lambs without blemish, and a ram without blemish…12 “Now when the prince makes a voluntary burnt offering or voluntary peace offering to the LORD, the gate that faces toward the east shall then be opened for him; and he shall prepare his burnt offering and his peace offerings as he did on the Sabbath day. Then he shall go out, and after he goes out the gate shall be shut.”
Now all this information is nice but it hasn’t answered the question, ‘who is this Prince?’ Let me give you a few scriptures;
Isaiah 9, “Unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. and His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
Ezekiel 37, 24 “David My servant shall be king over them, and they shall all have one shepherd; they shall also walk in My judgments and observe My statutes, and do them. 25 Then they shall dwell in the land that I have given to Jacob My servant, where your fathers dwelt; and they shall dwell there, they, their children, and their children’s children, forever; and My servant David shall be their prince forever. 26 Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them, and it shall be an everlasting covenant with them; I will establish them and multiply them, and I will set My sanctuary in their midst forevermore. 27 My tabernacle also shall be with them; indeed I will be their God, and they shall be My people. 28 The nations also will know that I, the LORD, sanctify Israel, when My sanctuary is in their midst forevermore.”
The Prince is the Greater Son of David, the Messiah Himself – our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Now I know there are some of you that will say, ‘now wait a minute’ there are some passages here that indicate that it cannot be our Lord Jesus Christ. So, I will give you my interpretation of these difficult passages. For one this passage in chapter 45 proves that it cannot be the Lord Jesus because it looks as though the Prince is to offer a sin offering for himself. Thus, he has to be a sinner. ‘22 And on that day the prince shall prepare for himself and for all the people of the land a bull for a sin offering’
You and I both know that our Holy Lord and Savior does not need to prepare a sin offering for Himself. He doesn’t and this verse does not say that He Is preparing a sin offering because of Him having sin. In the book of Hebrews chapter 5 we read, “1 For every high priest taken from among men is appointed for men in things pertaining to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins. 2 He can have compassion on those who are ignorant and going astray, since he himself is also subject to weakness. 3 Because of this he is required as for the people, so also for himself, to offer sacrifices for sins. [Don’t forget that this is the Millennium and our Lord Jesus is a different High Priest – that is – after the order of Melchizedek] 4 And no man takes this honor to himself, but he who is called by God, just as Aaron was. 5 So also Christ did not glorify Himself to become High Priest, but it was He who said to Him: “You are My Son, today I have begotten You.”6 As He also says in another place: “ You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek”; 7 who, in the days of His flesh, when He had offered up prayers and supplications, with vehement cries and tears to Him who was able to save Him from death, and was heard because of His godly fear, 8 though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered. 9 And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him, 10 called by God as High Priest “according to the order of Melchizedek,” 11 of whom we have much to say, and hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing. 12 For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. 13 For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. 14 But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.”
Now in Hebrews chapter 7 we see our point brought out, “22 by so much more Jesus has become a surety of a better covenant. 23 Also there were many priests, because they were prevented by death from continuing. 24 But He, because He continues forever, has an unchangeable priesthood. 25 Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.26 For such a High Priest was fitting for us, who Is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and has become higher than the heavens; 27 who does not need daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the people’s, for this He did once for all when He offered up Himself. 28 For the law appoints as high priests men who have weakness, but the word of the oath, which came after the law, appoints the Son who has been perfected forever.”
In Hebrews 9 we see His sacrifice of blood, 23 Therefore it was necessary that the copies of the things in the heavens should be purified with these, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. 24 For Christ has not entered the holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us; 25 not that He should offer Himself often, as the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood of another— 26 He then would have had to suffer often since the foundation of the world; but now, once at the end of the ages, He has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. 27 And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment, 28 so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation.
You see He did offer up Himself for the sin of the world. There are two things. First He can just present Himself and secondly He can as the Prince authorize Zadok who brings the blood into the new Temple of those sinners who have offered up animal sacrifices as indicated in verse 15 of this chapter in Ezekiel, 15 “But the priests, the Levites, the sons of Zadok, who kept charge of My sanctuary when the children of Israel went astray from Me, they shall come near Me to minister to Me; and they shall stand before Me to offer to Me the fat and the blood,” says the Lord GOD.”
You might say, ‘Okay but I am not sold’ but I want to bring up another reason and that is in chapter 46 that this Prince has sons, “16 ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “If the prince gives a gift of some of his inheritance to any of his sons, it shall belong to his sons; it is their possession by inheritance. 17 But if he gives a gift of some of his inheritance to one of his servants, it shall be his until the year of liberty, after which it shall return to the prince. But his inheritance shall belong to his sons; it shall become theirs. 18 Moreover the prince shall not take any of the people’s inheritance by evicting them from their property; he shall provide an inheritance for his sons from his own property, so that none of My people may be scattered from his property.”
‘Aha, got you.’ Let me give my answer by using scripture. Let us look at Romans chapter 8, “1 There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, 4 that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. 5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. 6 For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. 7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. 8 So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.9 But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. 10 And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11 But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you. 12 Therefore, brethren, we are debtors—not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. 13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. 14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.”
How about Galatians 5, “1 Now I say that the heir, as long as he is a child, does not differ at all from a slave, though he is master of all, 2 but is under guardians and stewards until the time appointed by the father. 3 Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world. 4 But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.6 And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!” 7 Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.”
In my lifetime I have seen some great men and women of God. I think that you can name a few off the top of you head also. We have been taught that when we die and go to be with the Lord that we will face Judgment as the book of Hebrews chapter 9 informs us, 27 And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment.” Our judgment will not be one of punishment but of rewards for what we have done in Christ Jesus’ Name. In 1 Corinthians 3 it talks about this, 9 For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, you are God’s building. 10 According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder I have laid the foundation, and another builds on it. But let each one take heed how he builds on it. 11 For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 12 Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, 13 each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is. 14 If anyone’s work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.” I mention these facts because I believe that some of the rewards for being such a great servant will be this closeness with our Prince, our Great and Wonderful Lord Jesus Christ. Perhaps one of you might be selected to live close to our Lord.
4 Also He brought me by way of the north gate to the front of the temple; so I looked, and behold, the glory of the LORD filled the house of the LORD; and I fell on my face. 5 And the LORD said to me, “Son of man, mark well, see with your eyes and hear with your ears, all that I say to you concerning all the ordinances of the house of the LORD and all its laws. Mark well who may enter the house and all who go out from the sanctuary. 6 “Now say to the rebellious, to the house of Israel, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “O house of Israel, let Us have no more of all your abominations. 7 When you brought in foreigners, uncircumcised in heart and uncircumcised in flesh, to be in My sanctuary to defile it—My house—and when you offered My food, the fat and the blood, then they broke My covenant because of all your abominations. 8 And you have not kept charge of My holy things, but you have set others to keep charge of My sanctuary for you.” 9 Thus says the Lord GOD: “No foreigner, uncircumcised in heart or uncircumcised in flesh, shall enter My sanctuary, including any foreigner who is among the children of Israel.
You can see that not all of the words spoken by Ezekiel cover the future Millennium. Ezekiel is brought back to the present with these words from our Lord, 6 “Now say to the rebellious, to the house of Israel, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD.” In exile they still have not learned how our God demands obedience. Remember what He said to king Saul after he did not carry out the Lord’s direction. We see this information in the book of 1 Samuel chapter 15, 22 So Samuel said: “Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, As in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams.”
Wouldn’t you say that it is right for God to demand that His people follow His instructions exactly? I am sure you have heard that an airplane or boat if it is slightly off course by a slight degree will never reach its destination. So also, our Lord’s regulations are for our good that we can travel the right course in this life. When Israel failed to heed God’s warnings they veered of course as a nation. Our Holy and Righteous God established His Rules and Regulations regarding the proper ways of doing worship. Our God Is Holy and Separate from us sinners. If He Is going to abide with us then these rules must be obeyed for our own good. He described who and how someone was allowed to enter His Presence in the Temple. Can you imagine the audacity of the people in that they allowed foreigners to serve in His Sanctuary?
This action was an insult to the Pure and Majestic Supreme Ruler. They had foreigners do the mundane tasks. Unfortunately we have not learned the same lesson. As a nation we have a problem with illegal aliens. Why? Because we have gotten above ourselves and have become proud, thus needing people to take on the low paying jobs. Also, in church’s we do the same things. When have you seen any church leaders picking up trash or vacuuming the carpets or even taking out their own trash?
Their laziness had opened the door for people who were uncircumcised of flesh and heart to perform holy tasks. Their hearts were not right toward the God Who loved them and deserved all their respect.
Compromise is a bad thing. It will seem innocent at first then it will cause problems in the future. Here is an example from the book of Joshua. Our Lord had instructed Joshua to seek Him for advice just as He does to us when He instructs us to pray always. The Lord had said to Joshua not to make peace with any of the nations of Canaan. The Gibeonites had heard of how powerful the Israelites were so they sent some of their people to trick them. Let’s pick up the story in chapter 9, 3 But when the inhabitants of Gibeon heard what Joshua had done to Jericho and Ai, 4 they worked craftily, and went and pretended to be ambassadors. And they took old sacks on their donkeys, old wineskins torn and mended, 5 old and patched sandals on their feet, and old garments on themselves; and all the bread of their provision was dry and moldy. 6 And they went to Joshua, to the camp at Gilgal, and said to him and to the men of Israel, “We have come from a far country; now therefore, make a covenant with us.” 7 Then the men of Israel said to the Hivites, “Perhaps you dwell among us; so how can we make a covenant with you?” 8 But they said to Joshua, “We are your servants.” And Joshua said to them, “Who are you, and where do you come from?” 9 So they said to him: “From a very far country your servants have come, because of the name of the LORD your God; for we have heard of His fame, and all that He did in Egypt, 10 and all that He did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan—to Sihon king of Heshbon, and Og king of Bashan, who was at Ashtaroth. 11 Therefore our elders and all the inhabitants of our country spoke to us, saying, ‘Take provisions with you for the journey, and go to meet them, and say to them, “We are your servants; now therefore, make a covenant with us.”’ 12 This bread of ours we took hot for our provision from our houses on the day we departed to come to you. But now look, it is dry and moldy. 13 And these wineskins which we filled were new, and see, they are torn; and these our garments and our sandals have become old because of the very long journey.” 14 Then the men of Israel took some of their provisions; but they did not ask counsel of the LORD. 15 So Joshua made peace with them, and made a covenant with them to let them live; and the rulers of the congregation swore to them. 16 And it happened at the end of three days, after they had made a covenant with them, that they heard that they were their neighbors who dwelt near them. 17 Then the children of Israel journeyed and came to their cities on the third day. Now their cities were Gibeon, Chephirah, Beeroth, and Kirjath Jearim. 18 But the children of Israel did not attack them, because the rulers of the congregation had sworn to them by the LORD God of Israel. And all the congregation complained against the rulers. 19 Then all the rulers said to all the congregation, “We have sworn to them by the LORD God of Israel; now therefore, we may not touch them. 20 This we will do to them: We will let them live, lest wrath be upon us because of the oath which we swore to them.” 21 And the rulers said to them, “Let them live, but let them be woodcutters and water carriers for all the congregation, as the rulers had promised them.” 22 Then Joshua called for them, and he spoke to them, saying, “Why have you deceived us, saying, ‘We are very far from you,’ when you dwell near us? 23 Now therefore, you are cursed, and none of you shall be freed from being slaves—woodcutters and water carriers for the house of my God.” 24 So they answered Joshua and said, “Because your servants were clearly told that the LORD your God commanded His servant Moses to give you all the land, and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land from before you; therefore we were very much afraid for our lives because of you, and have done this thing. 25 And now, here we are, in your hands; do with us as it seems good and right to do to us.” 26 So he did to them, and delivered them out of the hand of the children of Israel, so that they did not kill them. 27 And that day Joshua made them woodcutters and water carriers for the congregation and for the altar of the LORD, in the place which He would choose, even to this day.”
Because the Israelites messed up by not seeking the advice of the Lord, they were tricked. Now to get out of it, instead of seeking God’s advice again, they made a decision and gave the Gibeonites menial tasks. If you continue to read on you will find that other Canaanite cities attacked the Gibeonites and now the Israelites have to go and defend these people since they have made a treaty with them. More and more problems arise when we do not stay true to the course our Lord has laid out for us.
10 “And the Levites who went far from Me, when Israel went astray, who strayed away from Me after their idols, they shall bear their iniquity. 11 Yet they shall be ministers in My sanctuary, as gatekeepers of the house and ministers of the house; they shall slay the burnt offering and the sacrifice for the people, and they shall stand before them to minister to them. 12 Because they ministered to them before their idols and caused the house of Israel to fall into iniquity, therefore I have raised My hand in an oath against them,” says the Lord GOD, “that they shall bear their iniquity. 13 And they shall not come near Me to minister to Me as priest, nor come near any of My holy things, nor into the Most Holy Place; but they shall bear their shame and their abominations which they have committed. 14 Nevertheless I will make them keep charge of the temple, for all its work, and for all that has to be done in it.
It is interesting that the menial work that was dished off to foreigners to do is the assignments that the Levites will do in the Millennium. David was the greatest in Israel because he had a heart after God. Look at His attitude about serving the Lord in chapter 84 of the Psalms, “For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness.” That is the right attitude to take. Just being in the Lord’s presence is worth any detail.
In the book of 2 kings chapter 23 we derive a picture of this abomination committed by the Levites, 3 Then the king stood by a pillar and made a covenant before the LORD, to follow the LORD and to keep His commandments and His testimonies and His statutes, with all his heart and all his soul, to perform the words of this covenant that were written in this book. And all the people took a stand for the covenant. 4 And the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest, the priests of the second order, and the doorkeepers, to bring out of the temple of the LORD all the articles that were made for Baal, for Asherah, and for all the host of heaven; and he burned them outside Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron, and carried their ashes to Bethel. 5 Then he removed the idolatrous priests whom the kings of Judah had ordained to burn incense on the high places in the cities of Judah and in the places all around Jerusalem, and those who burned incense to Baal, to the sun, to the moon, to the constellations, and to all the host of heaven. 6 And he brought out the wooden image from the house of the LORD, to the Brook Kidron outside Jerusalem, burned it at the Brook Kidron and ground it to ashes, and threw its ashes on the graves of the common people. 7 Then he tore down the ritual booths of the perverted persons[d] that were in the house of the LORD, where the women wove hangings for the wooden image. 8 And he brought all the priests from the cities of Judah, and defiled the high places where the priests had burned incense, from Geba to Beersheba; also he broke down the high places at the gates which were at the entrance of the Gate of Joshua the governor of the city, which were to the left of the city gate. 9 Nevertheless the priests of the high places did not come up to the altar of the LORD in Jerusalem, but they ate unleavened bread among their brethren.”
15 “But the priests, the Levites, the sons of Zadok, who kept charge of My sanctuary when the children of Israel went astray from Me, they shall come near Me to minister to Me; and they shall stand before Me to offer to Me the fat and the blood,” says the Lord GOD. 16 “They shall enter My sanctuary, and they shall come near My table to minister to Me, and they shall keep My charge.
The bible teaches us to understand that salvation is never earned. However, our Holy Ruler does reward faithfulness and righteousness. In the book of 1 Kings we read that Zadok had remained faithful to God,”32 And King David said, “Call to me Zadok the priest, Nathan the prophet, and Benaiah the son of Jehoiada.” So they came before the king. 33 The king also said to them, “Take with you the servants of your lord, and have Solomon my son ride on my own mule, and take him down to Gihon. 34 There let Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet anoint him king over Israel; and blow the horn, and say, ‘Long live King Solomon!’ 35 Then you shall come up after him, and he shall come and sit on my throne, and he shall be king in my place. For I have appointed him to be ruler over Israel and Judah.” Because of his faithfulness the Lord chose him to the honor of serving Him in the Millennium.
17 And it shall be, whenever they enter the gates of the inner court, that they shall put on linen garments; no wool shall come upon them while they minister within the gates of the inner court or within the house. 18 They shall have linen turbans on their heads and linen trousers on their bodies; they shall not clothe themselves with anything that causes sweat. 19 When they go out to the outer court, to the outer court to the people, they shall take off their garments in which they have ministered, leave them in the holy chambers, and put on other garments; and in their holy garments they shall not sanctify the people.
White linen garments were the symbol of purity and also helped prevent sweat. When the Levites came near to minister they had to wash. The water only kept them clean until the evening. The water simply removed the earthiness prior to waiting on our Holy Master. The purpose behind all these regulations was to reveal to the Israelites the separate Holiness of Jehovah Elyon – The Lord Most High – and the peoples unworthiness and sinfulness.
20 “They shall neither shave their heads, nor let their hair grow long, but they shall keep their hair well trimmed. 21 No priest shall drink wine when he enters the inner court. 22 They shall not take as wife a widow or a divorced woman, but take virgins of the descendants of the house of Israel, or widows of priests.
Look at some of these restrictions that are placed on the priests. We see here issues dealing with a priest’s hair, what he could drink, and whom he could marry. What if a priest was bald? The major issue here was on the fact of the head being covered when in service to the Lord. Nothing should hinder the priest in his full concentration and dedication to the Lord. Even the accusation of a priest having a drink of alcohol would bring a reproach to our Holy and Righteous God. We had read previously of foreigners participating in the sacred responsibilities of service. Our Lord prescribed these restrictions on which a priest could marry to make sure that this would not happen again.
23 “And they shall teach My people the difference between the holy and the unholy, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean. 24 In controversy they shall stand as judges, and judge it according to My judgments. They shall keep My laws and My statutes in all My appointed meetings, and they shall hallow My Sabbaths.
Please notice the Lord’s court system. The priests would try the cases. It is interesting that they need to help the people discern between what is unclean and unclean. The people had drifted so far to the left in their moral lives that their conscious were seared. They could not no what was right or wrong. Let me ask you a question, ‘how do you think we are doing as a country relative from knowing what is right or wrong?’
25 “They shall not defile themselves by coming near a dead person. Only for father or mother, for son or daughter, for brother or unmarried sister may they defile themselves. 26 After he is cleansed, they shall count seven days for him. 27 And on the day that he goes to the sanctuary to minister in the sanctuary, he must offer his sin offering in the inner court,” says the Lord GOD.
So much for doing funerals I guess the priests could still do memorial services. The priests basically were to live above any reproach so that they could be a visible example of what God wants in a person’s life. Since the Lord had specified the rule about allowing a priest only to marry a virgin or a widow of a priest you can understand that there would not be anyone outside the priest’s family to assist in the burial of a close relative. If this happened then the priest would be unclean for 7 days and had to offer a sin offering before being allowed to minister again. Remember that people will be living longer. If someone died it was probably associated with some kind of sin. Death is therefore associated with sin so you can see the reason for this requirement.
28 “It shall be, in regard to their inheritance, that I am their inheritance. You shall give them no possession in Israel, for I am their possession.
Let me ask you something, ‘would you think that you would like a job where you work for the President of the United States?’ This job would allow you to work right in the Oval Office. You can witness everything, every conversation, and every decision that happens. What do you think? Would you like that kind of job? Now let me kick it up a notch. Actually, that sentence does not give this point the proper description. Our Lord offers these priests this; ‘It shall be, in regard to their inheritance, that I am their inheritance’ You get to see the Lord more often than most of the people in the world. Sign me up!
29 They shall eat the grain offering, the sin offering, and the trespass offering; every dedicated thing in Israel shall be theirs. 30 The best of all firstfruits of any kind, and every sacrifice of any kind from all your sacrifices, shall be the priest’s; also you shall give to the priest the first of your ground meal, to cause a blessing to rest on your house. 31 The priests shall not eat anything, bird or beast, that died naturally or was torn by wild beasts.”
Besides having the opportunity of seeing and ministering to the Lord, He in turn takes very good care of them. Don’t forget that all the people on the earth will be coming to Jerusalem. The priests will receive enormous amounts of food and gifts. What a Great God we serve. Amen
