Reading:  Ezekiel 42-43
Posted:  September 17, 2014


Uh oh,  the temple that seemed to be for the new millennium in chapters 40 and 41 now has a problem....  God is describing the sacrifices that will be offered in it.   Specifically, the sacrifice for sin. (43:22).   That's a problem....after the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ there is no other sacrifice for sin.   Sin has been dealt with, and can no longer be atoned by any other means.    Also, it would mean that people are sinning during the millenium.   I hadn't considered that they would, since satan is locked up for the thousand years.  
For those reasons, it doesn't seem likely to me that this temple is going to be in the new millenium.  For instance, in this temple are rooms for priests.  Priests who offer sacrifices and minister before the Lord.    I suppose that we could have priests, but what would they do?    In the New Testament we are all called a "holy priesthood".  (1 Peter 2).   It looks like there aren't rooms for everyone, so this must be an earthly temple.     And, since the temple designed on earth is a reflection of the real temple in heaven there must be an altar in heaven as well.  In Revelation the saints of God are crying out from underneath the altar...that's a pretty big clue.     The altar is a place for offering sacrifices, such as praise offerings, thank offerings, fellowship offerings.    But not sin offerings.  To ask God to forgive a sin NOW using the blood of a bull or goat is to say that "the blood of Jesus Christ is not enough" and the blood of an animal must also be offered.    That is blatantly incorrect.

So if this isn't the temple that arrives during the reign of Christ on earth, what  temple is it?    I'm going to try and find out.    What if the Jews were supposed to build this temple when they came back from exile?    The glory of God is shown to inhabit the temple, coming from the east....just as the presence of God left and went east before Judah was overrun and destroyed.   Now I find myself wondering if the temple that Ezra built was the right one.

It brings up a lot of questions.     I'll add more to this post at a later date.


PR