<< Ezekiel XLIII >>

 1 Afterward he brought me to the gate, even the gate that looketh toward the east.
 2 And, behold, the glory of the God of Israel came from the way of the east: and his voice was like the sound of many waters; and the earth shined with his glory.
 3 And it was according to the appearance of the vision which I saw, even according to the vision that I saw when I came to destroy the city; and the visions were like the vision that I saw by the river Chebar; and I fell upon my face.
 4 And the glory of Jehovah came into the house by the way of the gate whose prospect is toward the east.
 5 And the Spirit took me up, and brought me into the inner court; and, behold, the glory of Jehovah filled the house.
 6 And I heard one speaking unto me out of the house; and a man stood by me.
 7 And he said unto me, Son of man, this is the place of my throne, and the place of the soles of my feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel for ever. And the house of Israel shall no more defile my holy name, neither they, nor their kings, by their whoredom, and by the dead bodies of their kings in their high places;
 8 in their setting of their threshold by my threshold, and their door-post beside my door-post, and there was but the wall between me and them; and they have defiled my holy name by their abominations which they have committed: wherefore I have consumed them in mine anger.
 9 Now let them put away their whoredom, and the dead bodies of their kings, far from me; and I will dwell in the midst of them for ever.
 10 Thou, son of man, show the house to the house of Israel, that they may be ashamed of their iniquities; and let them measure the pattern.
 11 And if they be ashamed of all that they have done, make known unto them the form of the house, and the fashion thereof, and the egresses thereof, and the entrances thereof, and all the forms thereof, and all the ordinances thereof, and all the forms thereof, and all the laws thereof; and write it in their sight; that they may keep the whole form thereof, and all the ordinances thereof, and do them.
 12 This is the law of the house: upon the top of the mountain the whole limit thereof round about shall be most holy. Behold, this is the law of the house.
 13 And these are the measures of the altar by cubits (the cubit is a cubit and a handbreadth): the bottom shall be a cubit, and the breadth a cubit, and the border thereof by the edge thereof round about a span; and this shall be the base of the altar.
 14 And from the bottom upon the ground to the lower ledge shall be two cubits, and the breadth one cubit; and from the lesser ledge to the greater ledge shall be four cubits, and the breadth a cubit.
 15 And the upper altar shall be four cubits; and from the altar hearth and upward there shall be four horns.
 16 And the altar hearth shall be twelve cubits long by twelve broad, square in the four sides thereof.
 17 And the ledge shall be fourteen cubits long by fourteen broad in the four sides thereof; and the border about it shall be half a cubit; and the bottom thereof shall be a cubit round about; and the steps thereof shall look toward the east.
 18 And he said unto me, Son of man, thus saith the Lord Jehovah: These are the ordinances of the altar in the day when they shall make it, to offer burnt-offerings thereon, and to sprinkle blood thereon.
 19 Thou shalt give to the priests the Levites that are of the seed of Zadok, who are near unto me, to minister unto me, saith the Lord Jehovah, a young bullock for a sin-offering.
 20 And thou shalt take of the blood thereof, and put it on the four horns of it, and on the four corners of the ledge, and upon the border round about: thus shalt thou cleanse it and make atonement for it.
 21 Thou shalt also take the bullock of the sin-offering, and it shall be burnt in the appointed place of the house, without the sanctuary.
 22 And on the second day thou shalt offer a he-goat without blemish for a sin-offering; and they shall cleanse the altar, as they did cleanse it with the bullock.
 23 When thou hast made an end of cleansing it, thou shalt offer a young bullock without blemish, and a ram out of the flock without blemish.
 24 And thou shalt bring them near before Jehovah, and the priests shall cast salt upon them, and they shall offer them up for a burnt-offering unto Jehovah.
 25 Seven days shalt thou prepare every day a goat for a sin-offering: they shall also prepare a young bullock, and a ram out of the flock, without blemish.
 26 Seven days shall they make atonement for the altar and purify it; so shall they consecrate it.
 27 And when they have accomplished the days, it shall be that upon the eighth day, and forward, the priests shall make your burnt-offerings upon the altar, and your peace-offerings; and I will accept you, saith the Lord Jehovah.

1 Afterward he brought me to the gate, even the gate that looketh toward the east.

1, 2. The east stands for what is celestial, which is of love.
See also Chapter XL, 22, 23. A. 1250.
1-4. Outer doors, inner doors, and gates correspond to entrance and admission. Introductory truths as to their quality are described in Exodus XXVI., 13, by the covering of the door of the tent, and the door of the tabernacle in Exodus LXVI., 36, 37. See also Chapter XL., 6, 8-11, 13-15, 19, 20, 24, 27, 28, 32, 35, 36. E. 208.
1-6. The entrance was to the eastern quarter, because the Lord enters into heaven through the good of love. This is evident in Ezekiel, where the new temple is described. The good of love from the Lord fills heaven and makes it. A. 9668.
1-11.. The Word in that church, in respect to the sense of the letter. P. P.
1,2, 4. That the Lord is the east is evident from the Word. It was therefore a holy representative in the Jewish church, before the temple was built, to turn the face to the east when they prayed. A. 101.
    See Chapter XL.,6-49. A. 2851.
    See Chapter XL., 2, 6, 19, 20-46. A.3708.
    In the internal sense is described the influx of the Lord into those who are in His kingdom and church. The God of Israel is the Lord as to His Divine Human, and the Divine truth thence proceeding. The house of God is His kingdom and church, glory is the Divine truth, such as it is in heaven. To come by the way of the east into the house means from the sun, where it is continually morning. E. 179.
1, 2, 4, 5. The building of the new temple, by which is signified the new church to be established by the Lord; and introduction into it by the good of love to the Lord, and by truth from that good. Therefore the gate was seen which looks toward the east, and the God of Israel was seen corning from the way of the east. E. 422.

2 And, behold, the glory of the God of Israel came from the way of the east: and his voice was like the sound of many waters; and the earth shined with his glory.
3 And it was according to the appearance of the vision which I saw, even according to the vision that I saw when I came to destroy the city; and the visions were like the vision that I saw by the river Chebar; and I fell upon my face.

2. See Chapter I., 26-28. A. 7091.
It is manifest that the Lord is called the God of IsraeL L. 39.
    By the voice of many waters is meant the Lord's Divine truth in the Word. R. 50.
    The Lord speaking through heaven from Divine truths is spoken of as the voice of many waters. R. 614.
    See Chapter VIII., 4. T. 93.
    By His voice as the voice of many waters Divine truth is understood. E. 71 .

4 And the glory of Jehovah came into the house by the way of the gate whose prospect is toward the east.

4-7. Here the temple with the court is called the place of the throne of Jehovah, and the place of the soles of His feet, because the temple with the court represented heaven. The throne of Jehovah is the spiritual heaven, and the place of the soles of His feet is the lowest or outmost heaven. A. 9741.
    See Chapter XL., 17, 31- 44 et seq. R. 487.
    By these courts is meant the ultimate heaven or the external of the church. The glory of Jehovah'stands for the Divine truth, which constitutes heaven and the church. By the throne of Jehovah is understood heaven, by the place of the sales of the feet of Jehovah the church, by the sons of Israel all who are of the church of the Lord, to dwell with them for ever means the perpetual presence of the Lord with them. E. 630.
4, 7. Since all judgment is effected from truths and judgment in the heavens from Divine truths, therefore a throne is also mentioned where the Lord is treated of as to judgment. E. 253.

5 And the Spirit took me up, and brought me into the inner court; and, behold, the glory of Jehovah filled the house.
6 And I heard one speaking unto me out of the house; and a man stood by me.

5. See Chapter XL., 17, 31 , 34 et seq. A. 9741.
See Chapter XL., 2. L. 52.
    When in the spirit, or in a state of vision, the eyes of their spirit were opened, and the eyes of their body shut. R. 36.
    The spirit lifted him up. No one can come into the state of vision except through angels who are closely adjoined to the man, who impart their spiritual state to the interiors of his mind, for so the man is elevated into the light of heaven, and in it sees the things which are in heaven. R. 945.
See Chapter XL., 2. T. 157.

7 And he said unto me, Son of man, this is the place of my throne, and the place of the soles of my feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel for ever. And the house of Israel shall no more defile my holy name, neither they, nor their kings, by their whoredom, and by the dead bodies of their kings in their high places;
8 in their setting of their threshold by my threshold, and their door-post beside my door-post, and there was but the wall between me and them; and they have defiled my holy name by their abominations which they have committed: wherefore I have consumed them in mine anger.
9 Now let them put away their whoredom, and the dead bodies of their kings, far from me; and I will dwell in the midst of them for ever.

7, 10, 18. See Chapter XXXII., 2, 18. L. 28.

10 Thou, son of man, show the house to the house of Israel, that they may be ashamed of their iniquities; and let them measure the pattern.
11 And if they be ashamed of all that they have done, make known unto them the form of the house, and the fashion thereof, and the egresses thereof, and the entrances thereof, and all the forms thereof, and all the ordinances thereof, and all the forms thereof, and all the laws thereof; and write it in their sight; that they may keep the whole form thereof, and all the ordinances thereof, and do them.

10, 11. See Chapter XL., 3-1 7. R.486.
    By measuring the temple or the house is meant to investigate and explore the quality of the church as to truth, and as to good. That they may be ashamed means having departed from the laws and statutes of the church. E. 629.

12 This is the law of the house: upon the top of the mountain the whole limit thereof round about shall be most holy. Behold, this is the law of the house.

12. The house with the border round about is called holy of holies, because by the house of God is signified the celestial kingdom, and in the supreme sense the Lord as to the good of love. Hence also it is said, upon the top of the mountain, for by the top, or head of the mountain the same is meant. A. 10129.
12-27. Worship of the Lord from good of love in that church. P. P.

13 And these are the measures of the altar by cubits (the cubit is a cubit and a handbreadth): the bottom shall be a cubit, and the breadth a cubit, and the border thereof by the edge thereof round about a span; and this shall be the base of the altar.
14 And from the bottom upon the ground to the lower ledge shall be two cubits, and the breadth one cubit; and from the lesser ledge to the greater ledge shall be four cubits, and the breadth a cubit.
15 And the upper altar shall be four cubits; and from the altar hearth and upward there shall be four horns.
16 And the altar hearth shall be twelve cubits long by twelve broad, square in the four sides thereof.
17 And the ledge shall be fourteen cubits long by fourteen broad in the four sides thereof; and the border about it shall be half a cubit; and the bottom thereof shall be a cubit round about; and the steps thereof shall look toward the east.
18 And he said unto me, Son of man, thus saith the Lord Jehovah: These are the ordinances of the altar in the day when they shall make it, to offer burnt-offerings thereon, and to sprinkle blood thereon.

13 et seq. The measures were also designated in numbers, namely, so many reeds, so many cubits. To measure means to designate the quality of the thing spiritually signified by each of the things measured. Building the house and the temple signifies the church, the door and gate introductory truths, porch and court all things without the church, but which still refer to it. All these things belong to the natural man. E. 629.

19 Thou shalt give to the priests the Levites that are of the seed of Zadok, who are near unto me, to minister unto me, saith the Lord Jehovah, a young bullock for a sin-offering.
20 And thou shalt take of the blood thereof, and put it on the four horns of it, and on the four corners of the ledge, and upon the border round about: thus shalt thou cleanse it and make atonement for it.
21 Thou shalt also take the bullock of the sin-offering, and it shall be burnt in the appointed place of the house, without the sanctuary.
22 And on the second day thou shalt offer a he-goat without blemish for a sin-offering; and they shall cleanse the altar, as they did cleanse it with the bullock.

19. See Chapter XL., 46. E.444.
20. See Chapter XLI., 22. E. 417.

23 When thou hast made an end of cleansing it, thou shalt offer a young bullock without blemish, and a ram out of the flock without blemish.
24 And thou shalt bring them near before Jehovah, and the priests shall cast salt upon them, and they shall offer them up for a burnt-offering unto Jehovah.
25 Seven days shalt thou prepare every day a goat for a sin-offering: they shall also prepare a young bullock, and a ram out of the flock, without blemish.
26 Seven days shall they make atonement for the altar and purify it; so shall they consecrate it.
27 And when they have accomplished the days, it shall be that upon the eighth day, and forward, the priests shall make your burnt-offerings upon the altar, and your peace-offerings; and I will accept you, saith the Lord Jehovah.

23-25. Rams signify the Divine spiritual of the Lord's Divine Human, as also the spiritual things with man, therefore where the new temple, and New Jerusalem, that is the Lord's spiritual kingdom, is spoken of, it is said when they had made an end of cleansing the altar there, they were to offer a bullock for a sin-offering, and a ram for a burnt-offering, and were to offer the goat of the sin-offering every day for seven days. A. 2830.

Author: Emanuel Swedenborg (Compiled by Robert S. Fischer 1925)