CHAPTER 47

1 Afterward he brought me again unto the door of the house; and, behold, waters issued out from under the threshold of the house eastward: for the forefront of the house stood toward the east, and the waters came down from under from the right side of the house, at the south side of the altar. 2 Then brought he me out of the way of the gate northward, and led me about the way without unto the utter gate by the way that looketh eastward; and, behold, there ran out waters on the right side. 3 And when the man that had the line in his hand went forth eastward, he measured a thousand cubits, and he brought me through the waters; the waters were to the ancles. 4 Again he measured a thousand, and brought me through the waters; the waters were to the knees. Again he measured a thousand, and brought me through; the waters were to the loins. 5 Afterward he measured a thousand; and it was a river that I could not pass over: for the waters were risen, waters to swim in, a river that could not be passed over. 6 And he said unto me, Son of man, hast thou seen this? Then he brought me, and caused me to return to the brink of the river. 7 Now when I had returned, behold, at the bank of the river were very many trees on the one side and on the other. 8 Then said he unto me, These waters issue out toward the east country, and go down into the desert, and go into the sea: which being brought forth into the sea, the waters shall be healed. 9 And it shall come to pass, that every thing that liveth, which moveth, whithersoever the rivers shall come, shall live: and there shall be a very great multitude of fish, because these waters shall come thither: for they shall be healed; and every thing shall live whither the river cometh. 10 And it shall come to pass, that the fishers shall stand upon it from En-gedi even unto En-eglaim; they shall be a place to spread forth nets; their fish shall be according to their kinds, as the fish of the great sea, exceeding many.

The song, "There Is A River," comes from these verses. In Ezekiel's vision, there is a river which flows from the temple to the Dead Sea.

Now, the question is: Would this river be in the millenial kingdom, or is it a description of something AFTER the millenial kingdom?

As I have said many times before, the Scriptures in the Bible are always LITERAL and have a SPIRITUAL meaning. Keep in mind that every Scripture of God has an applicable meaning for the Christian TODAY. The description above could be of a literal river which God creates and forms AFTER the tribulation, and will exist all through the millenial kingdom.

In Zechariah 14, the prophet is speaking of the literal day when Christ shall return, at the end of the rapture and to begin the millenial kingdom. That fact is plain in verses 1-7. Then in verses 8-9, Zecharaiah says, "And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward the former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea: in summer and in winter shall it be. And the LORD shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one LORD, and his name one."

However, in Revelation 21, John is quite obviously speaking of a "new heaven and a new earth" (Revelation 21:1). And in Chapter 22, verse 1, John says, "And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb."

The scene of which Zechariah speaks and the scene of which John speaks are different, yet they have <similarity from which we can draw appropriate conclusions.

Ezekiel has been speaking of a literal temple, built during the millenial kingdom, from which Christ Himself shall reign over the earth for 1,000 years. He has given us no indication of a change in that vision which relates to a heavenly kingdom. So let us assume that Ezekiel is STILL speaking of the millenial kingdom, and that this river will flow from the temple in that time.

The river exits from the temple on the "right side" (vs 1), near the gate that "looketh eastward" (vs 2). Then, verse 8, indicates (to me) that this river will cause healing in the Dead Sea. Fishermen will catch fish all along the Dead Sea (verse 10).

Let us draw a conclusion which is applcable to Christian lives TODAY. The "river" issues from the Lordship of Christ and brings healing to the desert of sin. When Christ is enthroned in our hearts, then we are placed in a right relationship with God.

When we are placed in a right relationship with God, then power flows THROUGH us. Remember that Christ told His disciples if they would follow Him, they would become "fishers of men" (Matthew 4:19, Mark 1:17). He also told the woman at the well that the "living water" He would give becomes a "well ... springing up into everlasting life" (John 4:14). And He told his disciples that whoever beleived the Scriptures "...out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water" (John 7:38).

My friends, when we surrender to Christ, He causes power to flow through us that brings other people to know Him! We cannot convince or convict people of sin, but we certainly can introduce them to the Savior by use of our testimony and Scripture. Then God's Holy Spirit convicts of sin and need of the Savior.

Now, there will still be those who allow themselves to be "Stuck" in the muck and mire of worldliness. Verse 11 indicates they shall not be healed.

12 And by the river upon the bank thereof, on this side and on that side, shall grow all trees for meat, whose leaf shall not fade, neither shall the fruit thereof be consumed: it shall bring forth new fruit according to his months, because their waters they issued out of the sanctuary: and the fruit thereof shall be for meat, and the leaf thereof for medicine.

In both the millenial kingdom and in the eternal place called heaven, there will be trees on either side of this river. Those trees provide continual healing for those who come to them.

This reminds me of Psalm 1:1-3 which says that the man who makes the Word of God his diligent study will become "like a tree planted by the rivers of water" (Psalm 1:3).

A believer in Christ, who is steeped in the Word of God, can offer God's Word of assurance, comfort, wisdom and direction to others. He is like a tree that has deep roots connected to the "river of life."

Ezek 47:13-21 13 Thus saith the Lord GOD; This shall be the border, whereby ye shall inherit the land according to the twelve tribes of Israel: Joseph shall have two portions. 14 And ye shall inherit it, one as well as another: concerning the which I lifted up mine hand to give it unto your fathers: and this land shall fall unto you for inheritance. 15 And this shall be the border of the land toward the north side, from the great sea, the way of Hethlon, as men go to Zedad; 16 Hamath, Berothah, Sibraim, which is between the border of Damascus and the border of Hamath; Hazar-hatticon, which is by the coast of Hauran. 17 And the border from the sea shall be Hazar-enan, the border of Damascus, and the north northward, and the border of Hamath. And this is the north side. 18 And the east side ye shall measure from Hauran, and from Damascus, and from Gilead, and from the land of Israel by Jordan, from the border unto the east sea. And this is the east side. 19 And the south side southward, from Tamar even to the waters of strife in Kadesh, the river to the great sea. And this is the south side southward. 20 The west side also shall be the great sea from the border, till a man come over against Hamath. This is the west side. 21 So shall ye divide this land unto you according to the tribes of Israel.

In every age, God has a plan for evangelizing the lost, educating the saved and ministry to those in need. In the Old Testament that plan was to use Israel and all the tribes. In the present age it is to use the church.

Just as every tribe in the Old Testament had a designated area, every local church today has a designated area. Some churches may overlap in area, but the idea is to reach the lost and perform the education and ministry functions.

In Caldwell Parish, where I am presently serving as pastor of a local church, there are many other Baptist churches. Each year we cooperate together and coordinate a "Jesus Saves Crusade." We all participate in visitation for the event, and try to get as many unsaved people to come as possible. When people surrender to Christ, we don't argue about which church they are going to attend. Our goal is to get them in CHRIST. He will get them in church!

When a person was born into a tribe in the Old Testament he/she received part of that tribe's land as an inheritance. And when one is born into the family of God today, the church becomes his temporary inheritance. The church becomes his FAMILY.

Now in the millenium, a designated area surrounding the temple will be made available to each tribe of Israel. But, now the prophet is going to tell us about a very interesting difference from the Old Testament age.

22 And it shall come to pass, that ye shall divide it by lot for an inheritance unto you, and to the strangers that sojourn among you, which shall beget children among you: and they shall be unto you as born in the country among the children of Israel; they shall have inheritance with you among the tribes of Israel. 23 And it shall come to pass, that in what tribe the stranger sojourneth, there shall ye give him his inheritance, saith the Lord GOD.

The "inheritance" of land is divided to Israel's tribes, but the "strangers," Gentiles of the New Testament may be "grafted in" (see Romans 11:17).

Those who are born in Christ through the preaching of the Gospel today are "adopted" into the family of God with all rights and privileges! (See John 1:12, Galatians 4:5, Romans 8:15, and Ephesians 1:5-7).

That also means that the church today is responsible for the evangelization of the lost, education of the saved and ministry to the needy! The church today will be held accountable to God (just as Israel) for these parts of God's plan (see Ezekiel 33:8-9).

PLEASE CONTINUE WITH US IN BIBLE STUDY TOMORROW.