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Ezekiel 43: The Glory Returns

The glory of the LORD comes from the east and fills the temple, and God declares this the place of his throne where he will dwell forever.

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Ezekiel 43 (WEB)

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

2 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 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 on my face.

4 Yahweh’s glory came into the house by the way of the gate whose prospect is toward the east.

5 The Spirit took me up, and brought me into the inner court; and behold, Yahweh’s glory filled the house.

6 I heard one speaking to me out of the house; and a man stood by me.

7 He said to 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 forever. The house of Israel shall no more defile my holy name, neither they, nor their kings, by their prostitution, 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 a wall between me and them; and they have defiled my holy name by their abominations which they have committed: therefore I have consumed them in my anger.

9 Now let them put away their prostitution, and the dead bodies of their kings, far from me; and I will dwell in their midst forever.

10 You, 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 If they be ashamed of all that they have done, make known to them the form of the house, and its fashion, and its exits, and its entrances, and all its forms, and all its ordinances, and all its forms, and all its laws; and write it in their sight; that they may keep the whole form of it, and all its ordinances, and do them.

12 This is the law of the house: on the top of the mountain the whole limit around it shall be most holy. Behold, this is the law of the house.

13 These are the measures of the altar by cubits (the cubit is a cubit and a hand breadth): the bottom shall be a cubit, and the breadth a cubit, and its border around its edge a span; and this shall be the base of the altar.

14 From the bottom on 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 The upper altar shall be four cubits; and from the altar hearth and upward there shall be four horns.

16 The altar hearth shall be twelve cubits long by twelve broad, square in the four sides of it.

17 The ledge shall be fourteen cubits long by fourteen broad in the four sides of it; and the border about it shall be half a cubit; and its bottom shall be a cubit around; and its steps shall look toward the east.

18 He said to me, Son of man, thus says the Lord Yahweh: These are the ordinances of the altar in the day when they shall make it, to offer burnt offerings on it, and to sprinkle blood on it.

19 You shall give to the priests the Levites who are of the seed of Zadok, who are near to me, to minister to me, says the Lord Yahweh, a young bull for a sin offering.

20 You shall take of its blood, and put it on the four horns of it, and on the four corners of the ledge, and on the border all around: thus you shall cleanse it and make atonement for it.

21 You shall also take the bull of the sin offering, and it shall be burnt in the appointed place of the house, outside of the sanctuary.

22 On the second day you shall offer a male goat without defect for a sin offering; and they shall cleanse the altar, as they cleansed it with the bull.

23 When you have finished cleansing it, you shall offer a young bull without defect, and a ram out of the flock without defect.

24 You shall bring them near to Yahweh, and the priests shall cast salt on them, and they shall offer them up for a burnt offering to Yahweh.

25 Seven days you shall prepare every day a goat for a sin offering: they shall also prepare a young bull, and a ram out of the flock, without defect.

26 Seven days shall they make atonement for the altar and purify it; so shall they consecrate it.

27 When they have accomplished the days, it shall be that on the eighth day, and forward, the priests shall make your burnt offerings on the altar, and your peace offerings; and I will accept you, says the Lord Yahweh.

Summary

The guide brings Ezekiel to the east gate, and there the glory of the God of Israel comes from the way of the east, his voice like the sound of many waters, and the earth shines with his glory. It is the same glory Ezekiel had seen by the river Chebar and when he watched it depart from the doomed city, and he falls on his face. The Spirit lifts him and brings him into the inner court, where Yahweh's glory fills the house. From within, God speaks: this is the place of his throne and the place of the soles of his feet, where he will dwell among the children of Israel forever. No longer will the house of Israel defile his holy name by their unfaithfulness and the dead bodies of their kings; now they must put away their sin so that he may dwell in their midst forever. God tells Ezekiel to describe the house to Israel so they will be ashamed of their iniquities and keep its pattern and ordinances. The whole mountaintop is declared most holy. Then God gives the measurements and ordinances of the altar, with its ledges and horns, and the seven-day rite for cleansing and consecrating it. When the days are completed, the priests are to offer the people's burnt and peace offerings, and God promises, “I will accept you.” The glory that once departed has returned to stay.

Main Characters

  • Ezekiel — The prophet who sees the glory return, falls on his face, is lifted by the Spirit, and is charged to describe the house so Israel will turn from sin.
  • The glory of the LORD — The radiant presence of the God of Israel, returning from the east with a voice like many waters to fill the temple and dwell forever.
  • Yahweh, enthroned in the house — God who declares the temple the place of his throne and the soles of his feet, dwelling among his people and accepting their offerings.
  • The priests and the altar — Those who cleanse and consecrate the altar over seven days and then offer the people’s offerings, that God may accept his people.

Key Verse

Ezekiel 43:5 (WEB)

The Spirit took me up, and brought me into the inner court; and behold, Yahweh’s glory filled the house.

Lessons Learned

  • The glory of God that once departed in judgment now returns to fill his house and dwell with his people forever.
  • God's presence is the true purpose of the temple; without his glory the structure is empty.
  • Seeing God's holiness and presence should lead his people to be ashamed of sin and to put it away.
  • God's gracious promise, “I will accept you,” assures his people of welcome through appointed sacrifice.
  • God returns to dwell with his people. The glory comes from the east and “Yahweh’s glory filled the house” (Ezekiel 43:5, WEB), reversing the departure Ezekiel had earlier mourned.
  • God’s presence makes a place holy. God names it “the place of my throne…where I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel forever” (Ezekiel 43:7, WEB); his presence, not the building, is the glory.
  • God’s holiness calls for repentance. He shows the house “that they may be ashamed of their iniquities” (Ezekiel 43:10, WEB); encountering his glory exposes and removes sin.
  • God promises gracious acceptance. When the altar is consecrated, he says, “I will accept you” (Ezekiel 43:27, WEB), pointing toward the perfect acceptance secured in Christ’s sacrifice.
  1. Ezekiel had earlier seen the glory depart from Jerusalem; now it returns from the east (43:2-4). Why is this return such good news?
  2. God calls the temple “the place of my throne…where I will dwell…forever” (43:7). What makes the temple truly the temple?
  3. Why does God want Israel to be “ashamed of their iniquities” (43:10) when they see the house?
  4. The chapter ends with God's promise, “I will accept you” (43:27). How does this anticipate the acceptance we have through Christ's sacrifice?
  5. When has an encounter with God's holiness and presence led you both to humility over sin and to deeper assurance of his acceptance?
  1. The earlier departure of the glory meant judgment and abandonment; its return means God has not forsaken his people forever. Help the group feel the joy of a God who comes back to dwell with those he had disciplined.
  2. A temple without God's presence is just a building; it is the indwelling glory that makes it holy. This points us to Christ, in whom the fullness of God dwelt, and to the church as God's living temple.
  3. Beholding God's holy presence exposes sin for what it is and moves the heart to genuine shame and repentance. God's aim is not to crush but to cleanse, so he can dwell among a renewed people.
  4. The promise “I will accept you” rests on sacrifice and consecration, foreshadowing the once-for-all sacrifice of Christ by which we are accepted in the Beloved (Ephesians 1:6). God's welcome is grounded in atonement.
  5. This is a personal-application question. Invite members to recall moments when God's presence both humbled them and reassured them. As leader, hold together the two notes of conviction and acceptance without losing either.

Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible (WEB), the King James Version (KJV), and the American Standard Version (ASV), all of which are in the public domain.