Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Ezekiel 48:35
[It was] round about eighteen thousand [measures]: and the name of the city from that day [shall be], The LORD [is] there.
35. The whole circumference of the city was 18,000 cubits, or some-what under six miles. Josephus ( Bell. Jud. Eze 48:4; Eze 48:3) reckoned the bounds of Jerusalem in his day at 33 stadia, or about four miles. For measures, cubits.
The Lord is there ] Cf. Rev 21:3, “And I heard a great voice out of the throne saying, Behold the tabernacle of God is with men, and he shall dwell with them and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them and be their God.” The prophet beheld the Lord forsake his temple (11), and he beheld him again enter it (43); now he abides in it among his people for ever. The covenant ran that he should be their God and they his people; this is perfectly fulfilled in his presence among them. The end in view from the beginning has been reached.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
The circuit of the city walls, a square of 4500 reeds, was 18,000 reeds, not quite 37 English miles. The circuit of Jerusalem in the time of Josephus was reckoned by him to be about four miles.
The name … – The manner of expressing a spiritual meaning by giving a name to a city, a people, or the like, is familiar to the prophets (see Eze 43:15 note). Jerome explains it: The name of the city shall be no longer Jerusalem (the vision of peace), but Adonai-shama (the Lord is there) (rather, Jehovah-shammah, Jehovah is there), because Yahweh will never again withdraw from it, as He once withdrew, but will hold it as His everlasting possession. The visible presence of Gods glory, once represented in the tabernacle and in the temple, had departed, and should not return in the same form. Yet Ezekiel in visions of God sees a temple reconstructed to receive the glory of the divine presence, a prophetic vision fulfilled in Emmanuel (God with us), who tabernacled among men Joh 1:14. Compare Rom 9:25; Rev 21:2-3.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 35. The name of the city from that day shall be, The Lord is there.] It would have been better to have retained the original words: –
YEHOVAH SHAMMAH.
This is an allusion to the shechinah, or symbol of the Divine Presence, which was in the first, but most certainly was not in the second temple; but Ezekiel tells us that the Divine Presence should be in the city of which he speaks; and should be there so fully and so powerfully, that it should give name to the city itself; and that the very name, Jehovah shammah, should remind all men of the supereminently glorious Being who had condescended to make this city his habitation.
Two points must be considered here: –
1. That the prophet intended that, when they should be restored, they should build the temple, and divide the land as he here directs, if the thing could be found to be practicable.
2. That he had another temple, another holy city, another Promised Land, in view. The land of Immanuel, the city of the New Jerusalem; and his temple, the Christian Church, which is the house of the living God, 1Ti 3:15, in which the presence of Christ shall ever be found; and all its inhabitants, all that believe on his name, shall be temples of the Holy Ghost. Nor can there be any reasonable doubt that the prophet here, by the Spirit of God, not only points out the return of the Israelites from the Babylonish captivity, and what was to befall them previously to the advent of Jesus Christ; but also the glorious spread of the Gospel in the earth, and the final conversion of the tribes of Israel by the preaching of that Gospel.
In conclusion, I think it necessary to state, that there are but few of the prophets of the Old Testament who have left a more valuable treasure to the Church of God than Ezekiel. It is true, he is in several places obscure; but there is a great proportion of the work that is in the highest degree edifying; and several portions that for the depth of the salvation predicted, and the accuracy and minuteness of the description, have nothing equal to them in the Old Testament Scriptures. On such portions, I have felt it my duty to be very particular, that I might be able to point out spiritual beauties and excellencies in this book which are beyond all praise; while I passed slightly over prophecies and symbols which I did not fully understand; but have left to time, by the fulfilment of the events, to prove to successive generations with what heavenly wisdom this much neglected prophet has spoken. And I take this opportunity to recommend this book to the serious perusal of every pious man; and while he wonders at the extent of the wisdom by which Ezekiel has fathomed the depth of so many Divine mysteries, let him give God the glory for this additional testimony to the unsearchable riches of Christ, and that plenary salvation which he has purchased for, and freely offers to, the vilest of the vile, and to the whole of the descendants of Adam.
MASORETIC NOTES
– Number of verses, 1,273.
Middle verse, Eze 26:1.
Masoretic sections, 29.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PLAN OF EZEKIEL’S TEMPLE
As I utterly despair of making the prophet’s description of this temple intelligible without a plan, I have introduced one drawn up with great labour and skill by Dom. August. Calmet, where the measurements, distances, gates chambers, courts, inclosures, c., are all carefully entered as far as they could possibly be ascertained from Ezekiel’s description which, it must be allowed, though wondrously circumstantial, is in several respects obscure. But by referring to the places, both in Kings and Chronicles, as well as in this prophet, where the same things are mentioned, this obscurity will be considerably diminished, if not entirely removed. At the same time, for a description of the temple in general, I beg leave to refer the reader to Ezek 48:1; Ezek 6:38, at the end, where this subject is considered at large.
THE PLAN
[Let it be observed that the Hebrew cubit is]
[about twenty inches and a half.]
AAAA The first inclosure, or wall of six hundred cubits i.e., one thousand and twenty-five royal feet in length on each side, Eze 45:2; and six cubits or ten feet three inches high, and as many in breadth, Eze 40:5.
BBBB The court of the Gentiles, or first court fifty cubits in breadth, or eighty-five feet five inches, Eze 40:2.
CCCC The outward wall of the court of Israel, or inclosure, five hundred cubits square, i.e. eight hundred and fifty-four feet two inches. This wall might be thirty cubits high, taken from the level of the threshold of the gate.
DDDD The court of Israel, one hundred cubits, or one hundred and seventy feet ten inches broad, Eze 40:19.
EEEE The outer wall, or inclosure of the court of the priests, two hundred cubits, or three hundred and forty-one feet eight inches square, is supposed to be thirty cubits, or fifty-one feet three inches in height.
FFF The court of the priests, one hundred cubits, or one hundred and seventy feet ten inches square, Eze 40:7; Eze 41:14-15.
G The Sanctuary, or Holy of Holies, twenty cubits, or thirty-four feet two inches square, Eze 41:4; 1Kg 6:2.
H The holy place, forty cubits long by twenty broad, or sixty-eight feet two inches long by thirty-four feet two inches broad, Eze 41:2, and 1Kg 6:2.
I The vestibule or porch, twenty cubits in breadth, by ten (or according to Ezekiel, eleven) cubits in length, i.e., thirty-four feet two inches long by seventeen feet one inch broad, Eze 40:48; 1Kg 6:3.
K The altar of burnt-offerings, twelve cubits, or twenty feet six inches square, according to Ezekiel, Eze 43:12-13, c., or ten cubits high by twenty broad, i.e., seventeen feet one inch high, and thirty-four feet two inches broad, according to 2Ch 4:1.
LLL The wall of separation which encompassed the Temple, and the altar of burnt-offerings, of which the Scriptures do not give the dimensions. It was twenty cubits from the buildings in the court of the priests, and five from the Temple, Eze 41:9-10. Josephus makes it three cubits high, Antiq. lib. viii. c. 2.
MMMMMM Gates of the court of Israel, and of the court of the priests, all of the same dimensions, Eze 40:1; Eze 40:22; Eze 40:36. Each of the porches was fifty cubits long, i.e., eighty-five feet five inches (as much as the depth of the aisles, Eze 40:15) and twenty-five cubits, or forty-two feet eight inches and a half in breadth in the opening, and sixty cubits high, i.e., one hundred and two feet six inches, Eze 40:14. On each side of the porches there were three chambers, each six cubits square, Eze 40:6. And the separations between the three chambers were five cubits in thickness, Eze 40:6.
NNNNNNNN Galleries around the court of Israel, Eze 40:5-38. I place there thirty pillars on a line of two hundred cubits in length, which is the same proportion as those given for one hundred cubits long, 1Kg 7:2-4, for the court of the palace of Solomon.
OOOOOOOO Chambers or apartments round the court of Israel there were thirty on both sides of the gate, or fifteen on each side, Eze 40:17.
PPPP The kitchens of the Temple, forty cubits, or sixty-eight feet four inches long by thirty cubits, or fifty-one feet three inches broad, Eze 45:21-24.
Q The north gate of the court of the priests, where the victims were prepared, and where they slew the animals designed for sacrifice, Ezek 40:38; Ezek 40:39.
RRRR Galleries around the court of the priests, Eze 42:3.
SSSSSS Apartments continued round the court of the priests. The aisle, which was to the south of the eastern gate, was for the priests employed as guards of the Temple, Eze 40:45. The aisle on the north side of the said gate was appointed for the singers, Eze 40:44; the aisle that was on the eastern side of the south gate was for the priests employed about the altar, Eze 40:46; the aisles which were to the west of the north gate and of the south gate, contained the halls where the priests ate, Eze 42:13.
TT The kitchens of the court of the priests were those where they dressed the trespass-offering, sin-offering, and the meat-offerings, forty cubits, or sixty-eight feet four inches long, and thirty cubits, or fifty-one feet five inches broad, Eze 46:20. He speaks only of that on the north.
VVVV Flights of steps which led to the court of the people. In each flight there were seven steps, Eze 40:22-26.
XXX Flights of steps which led to the court of the priests; in each there were eighty steps, Eze 40:31; Eze 40:34; Eze 40:37.
YY A flight of steps which led to the porch of the Temple, eight steps in each, Eze 40:49.
aaa Chambers about the Temple, thirty-three in number, Ezekiel makes them four cubits in breadth, Eze 41:5; but in 1Kg 6:5-6, they are stated to be five cubits in the lower stage, six in the second, and seven in the third.
bb Flights of steps opposite to the chambers, which were continued round the temple, Eze 41:7, and 1Kg 6:8.
c The steps of the altar of burnt-offerings turned toward the east, Eze 43:15-16.
dddd Tables of hewn stone, which were in the portico of the north gate of the priests’ court, where they slew, flayed, and cut up the victims. Each table was one and a half cubits square, Eze 40:38; Eze 40:39-41.
The great walls of the temple were all six cubits, or ten feet three inches thick. These walls were: 1. That which formed the first inclosure; 2. The wall of the court of Israel: 3. The wall of the court of the priests; and, 4. The walls of the Temple. But the outward wall of the thirty-three chambers, which were round the holy place and the sanctuary, was only five cubits broad, and fifteen high; i.e., eight feet six inches and a half in thickness, and twenty-five feet seven inches and a half in height, Ezek 41:9; Ezek 41:12.
All the gates of the two courts, that of Israel and that of the priests, are of the same dimensions. The wall where was the opening was six cubits, or ten feet three inches in thickness. The gate was eight cubits, or thirteen feet eight inches wide; and the opening of the gate was one cubit, and the gate was thirteen cubits, or twenty-two feet two inches and a half high, Eze 40:9; Eze 40:11.
The western gate of the Temple is not mentioned by Ezekiel, because, according to his plan, the king’s palace was not to be near the temple; and consequently this gate, which was the gate of the king, did not exist. But this was not followed, as we find that, after the return from Babylon, there were gates on the western side of the Temple, according to Josephus; and before the captivity the western gate did most certainly exist, see Eze 43:8; 2Kg 11:6; 2Kg 16:18; 1Ch 9:24; 1Ch 26:16; 1Ch 26:18.
1. The gate of the porch of the holy place was fourteen cubits wide, i.e., twenty-three feet eleven inches, Eze 40:48; 1Kg 6:3.
2. The gate of the holy place was ten cubits, or seventeen feet one inch wide, Eze 41:1-2.
3. The gate of the sanctuary was six cubits or ten feet three inches wide. The wall of the separation was only two cubits, Eze 41:1; Eze 41:3.
4. The east gate of the court of the priests was shut all the week, and was not opened but on the Sabbath and new moons, according to Ezekiel. It was there that the king had his seat, a sort of tribunal, Eze 44:2-4; Eze 46:1-2, c.
Calmet observes, with respect to his plan, that he assigns only two galleries to the apartments which were around the court of Israel but those which were around the court of the priests had three, Eze 42:3; Eze 42:5-6. There is another difference between the palace (atrium) of the court of the priests, and that of the court of Israel. The walls of the first were built with three rows of hewn stones and one of cedar alternately, 1Kg 6:36; but this is not said to be the same in the structure of the outward court, or that of the people.
In the Old Testament we find no mention of the court of the Gentiles. Only two courts are mentioned there, one of the priests, the other of the people; one the inner, the other the outer court; but it is certain that such a court did exist, and is here marked BBBB.
The height of the aisles, or apartments that were around the two courts, is not mentioned any where in the Scriptures; but they are here fixed at thirty cubits; for the temple was not higher, neither was Solomon’s palace. See 1Kg 7:2.
EXPLANATION OF THE PLAN FOR THE DIVISION OF THE LAND OF CANAAN,
ACCORDING TO EZEKIEL’S VISION, Eze 48:1-35
A The Temple of the Lord, five hundred cubits square, Eze 45:2.
BB The city of the Levites, four thousand five hundred cubits square, and eighteen thousand in compass, Eze 48:16.
cccc Suburbs of the city of the Levites, two hundred and fifty cubits in breadth, Eze 48:17.
dddd The twelve gates of the Levitical city, four on each side, Eze 48:31-34.
EE City of the lay persons or workmen employed in the service of the priests and of the Levites, five thousand broad by twenty-five thousand cubits long, Eze 45:6.
FF Cultivated ground for the maintenance of the lay artisans, Eze 48:15.
GG Portion of the prince of Israel, twenty-five thousand cubits long by twelve thousand five hundred broad, Eze 48:21.
The whole extent of the land from Kadesh-barnea south to Hethlon or Hamath north, was about two hundred and twenty miles, its mean breadth about one hundred.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Round measuring all four squares.
Eighteen thousand measures, or cubits, at which proportioned measures it was about five miles in compass; if the measures were reeds, it would be thirty miles and three hundred and twenty-five yards in compass of the walls, which cannot be conceived credible; whereas the other is the proportion the city might have been built to, if the sins of the Jews had not prevented.
The name, by which it shall be called, known, and which shall be the honour of it and its glory. From that day; from the day of the Lords restoring this people, and rebuilding their city, and re-establishing his worship, and their thankful, holy, and pure worshipping of God there, from the day that such unmatched mercy produceth a suitable return unto God, from that day it shall be said of Jerusalem,
The Lord is there; the Lord, who, as his name alone is Jehovah, so is the only true God, faithful to promise, rich in mercy, glorious in majesty, righteous in his judgments, wise and holy in his government, whose presence makes us happy, whose withdrawing from us leaves us to misery. This God will, by his favour and presence, repel enemies and protect his people, bring with him the confluence of all good to persons, families, and cities; this God will be there to dwell, govern, defend, prosper, and crown. The people is blessed that is in such case, for their God is the Lord, Psa 144:15. Such was the case of typical, earthly Jerusalem, though not long; such is and shall be for ever the case of the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of God, the true church and temple of God. Such is the case of every true sincere believer, who may, wherever he is in his way of duty, still write, Jehovah-shammah, My God is here; and it is best to be where he is, till he bring me within the gates of the glorious city, where inconceivable light and love from the immediate presence of God give every one an eternal demonstration that To him be glory for ever.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
35. Lord is thereJehovah-Shammah.Not that the city will be called so in mere name, but that thereality will be best expressed by this descriptive title (Jer 3:17;Jer 33:16; Zec 2:10;Rev 21:3; Rev 22:3).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
It was round about eighteen thousand measures,…. Putting the numbers together which each side made, the circumference of the city was eighteen thousand measures; which, according to Cornelius a Lapide, were thirty two thousand miles; which shows that no city literally taken can be here meant, but mystically and spiritually the church of Christ, which will be of great extent in the latter day; and a large one it had need to be, to hold all nations that will flow into it; it will be spread all over the world; the world will become the church; the kingdoms of it will become Christ’s; the little stone will become a great mountain, and fill the whole earth; the kingdom and interest of Christ, which is his church, will be from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth; even from the rising of the sun to the setting of the same. Some Jewish writers a, not knowing what to make of these large measures, say that they have respect to the eighteen thousand worlds God is said b to make, which these were a similitude, figure, or exemplar of; but those Jews are nearer the true sense of them, who say c that this is to be understood of Jerusalem above, or as it will be in future time, in the world to come, the dispensation of the Messiah, Ga 4:26:
and the name of the city from that day shall be, the Lord is there; the Gospel church has other names, as Jerusalem, Mount Zion, the Lord our righteousness, Hephzibah and Beulah, a city not forsaken, Heb 12:22, but here it is called “Jehovah Shammah”, the Lord is there, or dwells there; which is to be understood of his presence in it; not in a general way, as he is in all places, and with all his creatures, continually, constantly, and everywhere working in a providential manner; but of his gracious presence in a special way and manner: in this sense Jehovah, Father, Son, and Spirit, are in the Gospel church, and will be more manifestly in the latter day; Jehovah the Father, as the Father of Christ, blessing them with all spiritual blessings in him; granting them his presence in him, and communion with him, through him; as their Father providing all good things for them, and as the God of all grace unto them: Jehovah the Son, as the master of the family taking care of it, as a son in his own house, and the first born among his brethren; as the prophet in the midst of his church, teaching and instructing; as the high priest in the midst of the golden candlesticks, lighting and trimming them; as the King in Zion, to rule and govern, protect and defend it; showing himself in all the glories of his person, and the riches of his grace, according to his promise,
Mt 28:20. Jehovah the Spirit is here to qualify men with gifts for the ministry, to apply the word, and make it useful; as a Spirit of grace and supplication, and to help the Lord’s people in the exercise of grace, and discharge of duty; and to be their comforter and remembrancer. Jehovah here does and will display his glorious perfections; his power in the preservation of his saints; his wisdom in the guidance and direction of them; his truth and faithfulness in the performance of promises to them; his purity and holiness in the sanctification of them; his love, grace, and mercy, in the large discoveries made unto them; in short, he will appear all glorious to them, and will be the glory in the midst of them, Ps 46:5 Zec 2:5 the date from whence this will commence is “that day”; either from the beginning of the Gospel dispensation, that famous day made by the rising of the sun of righteousness; or from the day and date of Christ’s promise of his presence, Mt 28:20 or from the time the Gospel church state was set up; or from the day this city will be rebuilt and restored, the Lord will more visibly and manifestly grant his presence to the inhabitants of it, and never more depart from them; see
Isa 42:12, The Targum is,
“the name of the city which is separated from the day, the Lord will cause his Shechaniah to dwell there.”
The Jews d produce this place to show that Jerusalem is called Jehovah, and say, do not read Shammah, “there”, but Shemah, “its name”; and the Socinians from hence would disprove the incommunicableness of the name Jehovah to a creature, but without effect; since this city is not called simply Jehovah, but with an additional epithet; and this is to be understood, not in a divided, but compound sense, as the altar in
Ex 17:15, and the mount in Ge 22:14.
a Lipman. Tzurath Beth Hamikdash, sect. 79. b T. Bab. Avoda Zara, fol. 3. 2. c Gloss. in T. Bab. Sanhedrin, fol. 97. 2. & Succah, fol, 45. 8. d T. Bab. Bava Bathra, fol. 75. 2.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
(35) Round about eighteen thousand.The circuit of the city, not including its suburbs, or open space, was 4 x 4,500 = 18,000 reeds, or something over thirty-four miles. Josephus reckoned the circuit of Jerusalem in his day at four miles.
Measures.This word is rightly supplied from Eze. 48:30; Eze. 48:33. On the symmetry of the city and its gates and the names of the gates, comp. Rev. 21:12; Rev. 13:16.
The Lord is there.With this name of the city Ezekiel closes his vision and his book. It is a most fitting close; for the object has been to depict, under the figures of the Jewish dispensation, the glories of the Church of the future. The culmination of this glory must ever be that the Lord, according to His promise (Joh. 6:56), will dwell in the believer, and the believer in Him. Imperfectly as this may be carried out here on earth, the effect of the Gospel is to bring about ever more and more fully its realisation; and the closing book of the volume of Revelation, catching the echoes of Ezekiels prophecy, looks forward to the Holy City, the New Jerusalem coming down from God out of heaven, and declares, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be with them and be their God (Rev. 21:2-3).
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
35. “It shall be eighteen thousand round about: and the name of the city from that day shall be Jehovah-shammah.” If the city were eighteen thousand reeds in circumference, it would measure nearly thirty-six miles; if we should supply “cubits” instead of “reeds,” as we believe should be done (see notes Eze 45:1-5; Eze 48:8-9), its circuit would be nearly six miles. At the beginning of the Christian era its circumference was calculated by Josephus to be about four miles (Bell. Jud., v, Eze 5:4). At the present time its circuit is about two and a half miles.
The Lord is there For the meaning of Jehovah see notes Eze 6:7; Eze 6:14; Eze 12:16; Eze 12:20; Eze 13:9; Eze 13:21; Eze 13:23; Eze 28:26; Eze 34:27; Eze 34:30, etc. The new city receives a new name in accordance with its new character. (Compare Jer 23:6; Rev 21:3; Rev 21:10-21.) It is now in truth a holy city, worthy to be called by the holy name of its holy God. Nevermore will Jehovah depart (11). He has returned to abide with his own forever (Eze 37:26; Eze 37:28; Eze 43:4; Eze 43:7). The Lord is there “to dwell, govern, defend, prosper, and crown.” “Such is the case of every true believer, who may, whenever he is in the way of duty, still write ‘Jehovah-shammah,’ My God is here.” Wesley.
As he pens the closing words of these comments the writer is oppressed with the sense of their inadequacy. The study of Ezekiel resembles the prophet’s vision of the divine stream the farther one goes the deeper he wades. Yet we may say, with Duhm, “One need not be ashamed of his own weakness, even if these prophecies always remain greater than their interpreter” ( Die Theologie der Propheten).
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
. And the name of the city from that day shall be, ‘Yahweh is there.’ ”
This finalises the whole message of the book. It began with the arrival of the heavenly temple and finishes with the city, finally restored. It has become the place of the presence of Yahweh with His people. It is now the new earth. It is the end to which all was moving from the moment that the heavenly temple descended on the anonymous high mountain. All is due to the arrival of the heavenly temple well outside the city and its being filled with the glory of God. ‘Jerusalem’ could not be restored from within, it required the divine power acting continually upon it from without.
Did John have this picture in mind when he wrote, “and the word was made flesh and tabernacled among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth” (Joh 1:14)?
It is John also who firmly places this city in the new heaven and earth, combining the gates of the city representing the elect of Israel (21-12-13), with the twelve foundation stones of the Apostles (Eze 21:14), the representatives of the elect Israel and the new Israel. The city had now been prepared by God and was ready for her marriage with her husband. She will be united with the heavenly Lamb, and God and the Lamb (Jesus Christ, crucified, risen and enthroned) will be its temple (Eze 21:22). And all the redeemed of all the nations will be there, those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life (Eze 21:24-27).
May God grant that many who read these words be among that number.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Eze 48:35. The name of the city, &c. The Lord is there The Lord is its name. Houbigant. Jerusalem never bore this name; and when it shall be established, according to the idea of Ezekiel, we are not assured that it shall be so named. It is very frequently said in Scripture, that a person or thing shall be called by a certain name, when it is to be invested with qualities which may intitle it to that denomination. Isaiah, foretelling the coming of the Messiah, says, that he shall be called Emmanuel, Wonderful, Counsellor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace, because he was to possess the qualities which should serve as a foundation for all those titles. In like manner, 2Sa 12:25 it is said, that Solomon shall be called Jedidiah, or the Beloved of God; and that Jerusalem shall be called, The city of righteousness, the faithful city, the Lord’s delight,Sought out,A city not forsaken. Isa 1:26; Isa 4:6. The Throne of the Lord, &c. Jer 3:17. Not that it was to quit its ancient name, and assume all these; but it was to be crowned with the fa-vours of heaven in such a manner, as to draw upon itself all these honourable titles. Thus the Christian church was to succeed to the honours of Jerusalem, and possess in reality Him who truly causes it to bear the name of The city of the Lord; The Lord is there; since Jesus Christ hath promised to be with it alway, even unto the end of the world. Mat 28:20. JEHOVAH occasionally protected Jerusalem; he filled it with glory when the Messiah was manifested there; and he will again gloriously manifest himself in this city at its restoration.
The reader, desirous to enter more fully into the description of this temple given in the last chapters of Ezekiel, will find much satisfaction in Scheuchzer’s Physique Sacree, tom. 7: where that writer has given several fine delineations of the whole structure. We shall now lay before our readers the following remarks on this part of Ezekiel’s prophesy, made by the Rector of Newhaven College in New England. “I suppose (says he) that this vision is a representation of the happy state of the church in the millenium, wherein Christ shall reign; and then all men shall be regenerated and sanctified, when they are very young, and be as good or better than the very best of men are now: that there shall be no wars, vices, or disorders; and men shall spend their whole time in procuring the natural conveniences of life, and in public and private devotion. I suppose that the generality of the Jews, for whom this vision was primarily designed, could not easily conceive of spiritual things, but only by external and visible representations; nor of a happy state of the church, but only by a perfect regulation of their civil government, religion, and worship. They are therefore represented to be under the government of a most just and religious king: their country to be divided to the twelve tribes, in lots of a regular and mathematical form; and not confusedly intermixed, as in Joshua’s time: their city laid out larger than before, and exactly four-square, with regular suburbs: the temple and appendages much more commodious for their sacrifices, and the habitations of the priests and Levites regularly formed near round about the temple. So that this whole plan of the division of the country, the laying out of city, temple, and all the appendages, appears to be perfectly regular and uniform, as if it was drawn all at one time, and by one hand, who had power to effect it; and therefore conveyed to the Jews the most complete idea they were capable of conceiving of the most perfect Church, commonwealth, city, temple, and conveniences for divine worship. I. The Holy Land, as described chap. 47: and 48: according to the original grant, being about two hundred and fifty miles long, north and south, and about, one hundred and fifty miles wide, is divided by parallel lines, east and west, to the twelve tribes; each of them having a portion about twenty miles wide. Only between Judah and Benjamin there is a holy portion near ten miles wide, in the middle of which is the holy oblation, twenty-five thousand cubits; that is, about ten miles square, for the priests, Levites, city, and temple, ch. Eze 45:1 xlviiii. 8. The two ends are for the prince, chap. Eze 45:7, &c. II. The holy oblation, lying in the middle of the holy portion, is twenty-five thousand cubits square, which is near ten miles; of which ten thousand cubits, or four miles, are taken off from the north side for an habitation for the priests, and as much for the Levites on the south side, chap. Eze 45:4-5 and Eze 48:20 and five thousand cubits in the middle for the city portion, chap. Eze 45:6. In the middle of which is the city, four thousand five hundred cubits square, which is near two miles, chap. Eze 48:15-16. Round about this are left two hundred and fifty cubits, near thirty rods, for suburbs, Eze 48:17. The remaining ten thousand cubits on the east side, and the ten thousand cubits on the west side, are for the profit of those who serve the city out of all the tribes, Eze 48:18-19. The sanctuary is in the midst of the city, chap. Eze 48:8. III. The sanctuary or temple, with its appendages, was entirely surrounded with a wall six cubits high, and six cubits thick, chap. Eze 40:5 and five hundred cubits long on each side, chap. Eze 42:15, &c. and Eze 45:2. In the middle square stands the temple, which was surrounded by a wall one hundred cubits long on each side. chap. Eze 41:13 and six cubits thick, chap. Eze 41:6. The side chambers on the outside four cubits, Eze 48:6. The holy of holies, at the west end, was twenty cubits square on the inside, Eze 48:4. The holy place, or outer court, at the east end, was forty cubits, Eze 48:12.; the length of the porch on the north side was twenty cubits, the breath eleven cubits, chap. Eze 40:49 and the width of the separate place on the south side, twenty cubits. On each side of the temple, towards the four gates, on the outer wall, stood two courts, eight in the whole, each one hundred cubits square, chap. Eze 40:19; Eze 40:23; Eze 40:27. In each of there were thirty-six little chambers or buildings about six cubits square, viz. six at the entrance of the gate, chap. Eze 40:7; Eze 40:17; Eze 40:20, &c. and thirty on the pavement, Eze 48:17, &c. which were for lodgings for the priests, for hanging up their garments, and their part of the sacrifices, chap. Eze 42:13. The places at the four corners were for boiling; chap. Eze 46:20-24.”
REFLECTIONS.1st, The division of the land, and the position of the several tribes, are very different from what had ever been the case, either under Joshua, or after the Babylonish captivity.
1. Dan, the last provided for, Jos 19:40 is here the first; for under the Gospel so it often happens, Mat 19:30 and the chief of sinners become the chief of saints.
2. The tribes lay contiguous in a row, mutual supports to each other; signifying the union maintained in the church of Christ between the members, and the mutual assistance which each communicates and receives, for the strengthening and comfort of the whole body.
3. The sanctuary with the Levites lay in the midst; seven tribes were to the north, five to the south of it; thus they might more conveniently meet together, and maintain communion with each other.
4. The portion of the priests was around the temple, that they might be at hand continually; and as they were liberally provided for by the oblations, they were the more obliged to attend at the altar. Note; It is the worst of sacrilege, when priests fatten on the spoils of that altar at which they never serve.
5. The lands of the priests were unalienable, and might neither be sold nor exchanged. What is dedicated to God’s service must no more be diverted to other purposes.
6. The city is four-square, and the suburbs equally extending on every side, called the profane place, being, in comparison with the sanctuary, common for all the people of the several tribes. This city represents the Gospel-church, in which the faithful are joined together under the government of their great king Jesus.
7. There shall be a number selected out of all the tribes to serve the city; intimating the duty of those who are magistrates, or ministers, or private Christians, to lay out themselves for the advancement of Christ’s church and kingdom in the world.
8. The prince’s lot is suited to his high dignity, near the sanctuary; as he is designed to be the protector of religion, and the example of true godliness to his subjects. Christ is the church’s Prince, her defence, and glory.
9. Judah anal Benjamin lay on each side the sanctuary, in the most honourable place. They who kept their integrity, and stood faithful, when others apostatized, shall receive the reward of their fidelity.
2nd, The immense extent of this city, computed by some at 32,000 miles, is supposed by many to be an indubitable evidence that the whole vision is to be considered mystically, as representing that glorious church into which all nations should flow together. The twelve gates bearing the names of the twelve tribes, intimate the freedom of access which all believers have through Jesus, the door into the city of God: none are excluded, who do not exclude themselves. The name which the city bears is Jehovah Shammah, God in a peculiar manner manifesting his presence in the midst of his church and people here below, preserving them from all their foes: he is near to hear and grant all their petitions; comforting them with a sense of his love, and dwelling in their hearts, now become the habitation of God through the Spirit. And this also will be the consummation of the eternal bliss and glory of the faithfulthat the Lord is there, shining on his glorified saints with the unclouded beams of everlasting consolation. Blessed and happy they, who enter by the gates into the city, and enjoy that unutterable felicity of being for ever with the Lord.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
REFLECTIONS
AND now, Reader! before closing the book of this prophecy, say, what hath the Lord taught thee of its blissful contents? Taken in one great whole, it seems evident, amidst all the obscurity upon those writings of Ezekiel, that it is the Gospel Church, and not the Temple of the Jews, after their return from Babylon, the Prophet was taught to contemplate by this vision. The immense city here described in the last nine Chapters of Ezekiel’s vision, not the whole territories of Israel; no, nor the whole world could contain! According to the smallest calculation, one hundred thousand miles is the dimensions! Hence we must behold therefore, somewhat beyond anything material in the building. It is, it must be, spiritual. And as the Lord Jesus Christ, by his entrance into the second temple, gave a greater glory to it than all the splendour of the first; and as both these are done away, why may we not, as the Apostle saith we do, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness. Reader! what saith your heart’s expectation to those things? Oh! for both Writer and Reader, to be as the Apostle describes the Church, looking for, and hasting to, the coming of this great day of God! Jesus will come, to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe. His feet (the Prophet saith) shall stand in that day upon the Mount of Olives. He, whom the wondering disciples saw ascending, shall so come in like manner, as they saw him go into heaven! Reader! here let you and I rest, in full assurance of faith. The Church, both militant and triumphant; in grace and glory; shall know his name, for from that day the name of the City shall be called, the Lord is there.
And now adieu, Ezekiel, faithful servant of thy God! Thou hast indeed shown, that thou wert rightly named Ezekiel, which is, the strength of God. For thou hast shown the strength of the Lord to have been in thee. Highly favoured Messenger! What though the river Chebar witnessed thy captivity; yet made free in Jesus, thou wert free indeed. And blest with such visions of thy God, how peculiarly set apart wert thou for thy Lord’s service. Through every generation thy inspired records have been commissioned to thy Lord’s glory. I thank thee, as my Lord’s servant, for what He hath taught me by thee. I thank my God for raising up such a servant in his Church. And now, thou hast long seen all the grand events here taught thee in vision, assuredly to be realized in their due season; thou hast sat down among the goodly fellowship of Prophets in heaven, waiting under the golden altar their final accomplishment! Farewell for a little space, Ezekiel, until the whole Church meet in this blessed city thou has so divinely described, and every tribe have each their separate and distinct mansion in Jesus, and Jesus the one portion of each and of all. In that blessed hour, may it be the felicity, both of him that writes and him that reads, (if consistent with the Lord’s will,) to join Ezekiel with all the ransomed which are there returned to Zion, with songs of everlasting joy upon their heads. There in one vast assembly, all to shout aloud, and all to enter into the full and everlasting enjoyment of their Lord. Each for himself, and altogether equally blessed, in the unspeakable and never ending happiness of His presence. Jehovah Shammah! Then will it be indeed known and indeed felt; the Lord IS THERE. Amen, and Amen.
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Eze 48:35 [It was] round about eighteen thousand [measures]: and the name of the city from [that] day [shall be], The LORD [is] there.
Ver. 35. It was round about eighteen thousand measures. ] See on Eze 48:32 Rev 21:16 .
The Lord is there.
Soli Deo Gloria
The Jews, having finished a book, add – Benedictus qui dat fatigato robur.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
The LORD [is] there: denoting the fact that Jehovah has gone thither and rests There, with all the blessing, peace, security, and glory of His abiding presence. Hebrew. Jehovah Shammah. See App-4.
Those who read this book, and believe what God has here written for our learning, will not be troubled with all the puerile guesses and trifling comments of the natural man, but understand something of the grand revelations which can be only spiritually discerned (1Co 2:14).
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
and the name
Heb. Jehovah-shammah. See Exo 17:15; Jdg 6:24.
Fuente: Scofield Reference Bible Notes
and the name: Gen 22:14, Jer 33:16, Zec 14:21
The Lord: Heb. JEHOVAH shammah, Exo 15:26, Exo 17:15, Jdg 6:24, Psa 46:5, Psa 48:3, Psa 48:14, Psa 68:18, Psa 77:13, Psa 132:14, Isa 12:6, Isa 14:32, Isa 24:23, Jer 3:17, Joe 3:21, Zec 2:10, Rev 21:3, Rev 22:3
Reciprocal: Gen 35:7 – General Exo 31:6 – that they Num 23:21 – the Lord 2Ch 12:13 – to put Psa 87:5 – highest Isa 11:11 – set his hand Isa 25:10 – in this Isa 29:22 – Jacob shall Isa 33:20 – not one Jer 31:40 – shall be Eze 35:10 – whereas Eze 43:7 – where I Eze 48:8 – the sanctuary Joe 3:17 – shall ye Zep 3:5 – is in Zep 3:15 – is in Zec 1:16 – I am Zec 8:3 – dwell Rom 11:26 – all Rev 11:1 – Rise Rev 21:11 – the glory Rev 21:16 – General
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Eze 48:35, Round about means the circumference which was 18,000 measures. The Lord is there. What an appropriate and important phrase by which to close up a great book! The greatest thing that could be said ot any institution or place is that the presence Of (he Lord will bless it which would assure it of everything needed for joy and prosperity. If the Lord is not in the place nothing else wi!l count for good. All through the ages God has provided something by which this presence could be realized and enjoyed by those who loved Him, In the Patriarchal Dispensation it was at the family altar; in the Mosaic era the Lord was present in the temple and tabernacle and it is promised in the present verse that the same Presence would be there to bless the people after returning from the captivity.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Eze 48:35. The name of the city from that day shall be, The Lord is there It is very frequently said in Scripture, that a person or thing should be called by a certain name, when it was to be invested with qualities which might entitle it to that denomination. Thus Isaiah, foretelling the coming of the Messiah, says, His name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace, because he was to possess the qualities which should serve as a foundation for all those titles. In like manner, 2Sa 12:25, it is said, that Solomon should be called Jedidiah, or, the Beloved of the Lord; and, Isa 1:26; Isa 62:4; Isa 62:12, that Jerusalem should be called The City of Righteousness, The Faithful City, Hephzibah, or the Lords Delight, Sought Out, A City not forsaken. Not that it was to quit its ancient name, and assume all these; but it was to be crowned with the favours of heaven in such a manner as to draw upon itself all these honourable titles. Here the prophetic declaration, that the name of the city should be THE LORD IS THERE, might be intended to signify, 1st, That the captives, after their return, should have manifest tokens of Gods presence with them, and of his residence among them, both in his ordinances and in his providences; so that they should have no occasion to ask, as their fathers did, Is the Lord among us or not? for they should see and acknowledge that he was among them of a truth. And then, though their troubles should be many and threatening, they would be like the bush which burned, but was not consumed, because the Lord was there. More especially it was meant to signify, 2d, That the gospel church should have the presence of God in it; though not in the Shechinah, or cloud of glory, as of old, yet in a token no less sure, namely, that of the Holy Spirit in his gifts and graces. Where the gospel is faithfully preached, gospel ordinances duly administered, and God worshipped in the name of Jesus Christ only, it may be truly said, The Lord is there; for, faithful is he that hath promised, and will fulfil his word, Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. The Lord is in his church, to rule and govern it, to protect and defend it, and graciously to own, accept, and bless his sincere worshippers, and to show himself nigh unto them in all that they call upon him for. This should engage us to keep close to the communion of saints, and not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together; for where two or three are met in the name of Jesus, he is there. Nay, the Lord is present with and in every true and genuine Christian: God dwells in him, and he in God. It may be truly said of every one who has a living principle of grace in his soul, The Lord is there. And, as this is the chief privilege, glory, and happiness of the church militant, that the Lord is present with and in her; Song of Solomon , 3 d, It is the principal blessing of the church triumphant. That the pure in heart shall there see God; shall see his face, and his name shall be on their foreheads; that God himself, who sits on the throne, shall be with them, and dwell among them, (Rev 7:2, and Rev 21:3,) is the crowning blessing of the heavenly city, and the consummation of the felicity of all its inhabitants. For in his presence is fulness of joy, and at his right hand are pleasures for evermore. Let us therefore give all diligence to secure to ourselves a place in that city, that we may be for ever with the Lord.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
The circumference of the city proper would be 18,000 cubits, less than six miles. And its name from the day of its establishment would be "The LORD is there" (Heb. Yahweh shammah). The new name would indicate a new character, as always in Scripture, namely, that the Lord would forever reside among His people (cf. Eze 11:20; Eze 37:23; Eze 37:27; Gen 17:8; Isa 7:14; Jer 24:7; Jer 32:38; Zec 8:8). He would never again depart from them or send them out of His land. He would forever dwell among them, and they would forever enjoy the unbroken fellowship with God that He intended since the creation of the world. The Book of Ezekiel ends with a description of a New Jerusalem like Isaiah 65-66 and the Book of Revelation, though the New Jerusalem of Ezekiel is millennial and the New Jerusalem at the end of Revelation is eternal.
Twenty-two years and 48 chapters earlier Ezekiel began his book with a vision of a storm picturing the destruction of Old Jerusalem and, later (chs. 10-11), God’s departure from it. He ended it with another vision of the establishment of New Jerusalem and God’s permanent residence in it. The glory of the Lord is the unifying feature that ties the book together and runs through it from beginning to end.
"Ezekiel begins and ends with God. Between the great vision of God in ch. 1 and these closing words, ’The LORD is there,’ is the unsparing record of man’s failure and sin, judged by God. But His judgment works to His glory, and the book ends with the one thing that makes heaven what it is, the Presence of the LORD." [Note: The New Scofield . . ., p.895.]