September 10, 2012 … A Glimpse of Glory

Chronological Bible Reading Plan - Day 254

Passage of the Day: Reference of Today’s Chronological Bible Study: Ezekiel 46-48 To study these chapters, go to this link -
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Highlight Passage: Ezekiel 46: 1-3 : [NLT] … 1 “This is what the Sovereign LORD says: The east gateway of the inner wall will be closed during the six workdays each week, but it will be open on Sabbath days and the days of new moon celebrations. 2 The prince will enter the foyer of the gateway from the outside. Then he will stand by the gatepost while the priest offers his burnt offering and peace offering. He will worship inside the gateway passage and then go back out the way he came. The gateway will not be closed until evening. 3 The common people will worship the LORD in front of this gateway on Sabbath days and the days of new moon celebrations.  
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Highlight Passage: Ezekiel 47: 1-2; 8-10; 21-23 : [NLT] … 1 Then the man brought me back to the entrance of the Temple. There I saw a stream flowing eastward from beneath the Temple threshold. This stream then passed to the right of the altar on its south side. 2 The man brought me outside the wall through the north gateway and led me around to the eastern entrance. There I could see the stream flowing out through the south side of the east gateway. … 
8 Then he said to me, “This river flows east through the desert into the Jordan Valley, where it enters the Dead Sea. The waters of this stream will heal the salty waters of the Dead Sea and make them fresh and pure. 9 Everything that touches the water of this river will live. Fish will abound in the Dead Sea, for its waters will be healed. Wherever this water flows, everything will live. 10 Fishermen will stand along the shores of the Dead Sea, fishing all the way from En-gedi to En-eglaim. The shores will be covered with nets drying in the sun. Fish of every kind will fill the Dead Sea, just as they fill the Mediterranean! … 
21 “Divide the land within these boundaries among the tribes of Israel. 22 Distribute the land as an inheritance for yourselves and for the foreigners who have joined you and are raising their families among you. They will be just like native-born Israelites to you, and they will receive an inheritance among the tribes. 23 All these immigrants are to be given land within the territory of the tribe with whom they now live. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken!  
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Highlight Passage: Ezekiel 48: 1; 35 : [NLT] … 1 “Here is the list of the tribes of Israel and the territory each is to receive. … 35 “The distance around the entire city will be six miles. And from that day the name of the city will be ‘the LORD Is There.’” [i.e., "Yahweh Shammah" in Hebrew] ============

Cross Reference Passage: Isaiah 14: 1 : [NLT] … 1 But the LORD will have mercy on the descendants of Jacob. Israel will be his special people once again. He will bring them back to settle once again in their own land. And people from many different nations will come and join them there and become a part of the people of Israel.  
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Cross Reference Passage: Colossians 3: 11 : [NLT] … 11 In this new life, it doesn’t matter if you are a Jew or a Gentile, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbaric, uncivilized, slave, or free. Christ is all that matters, and He lives in all of us. 

My Journal for Today: Today we close out the writings and reflections of the Prophet, Ezekiel with his “glimpse of glory,” which is my way of labeling these last three chapters in the journal of Ezekiel to describe the “New Jerusalem,” where ALL who have declared faith in the Messiah will reside for eternity. And for those who want to get a glimpse of the glory of heaven, these three chapters capture, as much one human can see, a picture of just how glorious will be that restored place where God will reside with His transformed Bride.

And I was taken today, in my study of the end of Ezekiel’s journal by is description of the river of life, running through what was once the area of the Dead Sea (see Chapter 47 highlighted above). And as I read about this life-giving, life-restoring river, Who is, of course, The Messiah, I was impressed how death came to life in this area of what is referred to as “the wilderness” in Scripture. That life-giving river, representing God’s grace, was pictured as running through what now could be called “the valley of the shadow of death,” i.e., where the Dead Sea is in the middle of the desert valley, currently the lowest point, below sea level, on the planet. I’ve been there; and I was struck with how Ezekiel’s vision revealed how this area was brought to life by this new river of life, Who is, of course, Jesus, .

I’ve been to the Dead Sea; and I’ve seen how barren that place is. Nothing can live in the “Dead Sea;” not even viruses. And when I was there I couldn’t help but think of Psalm 23, which describes “the valley of the shadow of death.” But David’s psalm also points to the reality upon which Ezekiel was reflecting, … and that is that no faithful believer in the One, True God and His Messiah need fear walking through the evil or death producing circumstances of life – i.e., that “valley of the shadow of death” – because God, our Messiah, our Good Shepherd, will lead those faithful and obedient followers of His through the Dead Sea to experience the eternal river of life, which is found in that glorious place Ezekiel describes in these three chapters of his journal which I read today.

And how glorious it will be in that eternal place of Yahweh Shammah, the place where our God resides. And even when I was present in that desolate place where I experienced the “valley of the shadow of death,” near the Dead Sea, I actually had a peace which surpasses human understanding, because I knew that one day I would be in that green pasture forever, also described in Psalm 23, with my Good Shepherd, Who will have graciously led me through the valley of death into the that eternal pastureland fed by the river of life, Who is our Lord, and Savior, Yeshua Ha’Mashiach.

I thank Ezekiel for his faithful prophesy of life which is only found in the true Messiah, … Jesus!

My Prayer Today: … Lord, You are the river of life! Amen