Ezekiel 40 - 41 (9th September) - Vivien

There is a transition of the book Ezekiel. Recalling from the beginning of this book, it started with God’s calling for Ezekiel, and God’s preparation for him, then Ezekiel’s warning to the Israelites. After dealing with God’s people, Ezekiel prophesied against Israel’s enemies. Now, in these 2 chapters, God showed Ezekiel the new temple area. Ultimately, God’s desire is still to dwell among His people. So it was God’s initiation to start a fresh in building His relationship with His chosen people. How sweet!

The rest of these 2 chapters are detailed descriptions of what Ezekiel saw. The temple area was seemed very organised. It talked about gates and rooms for different purpose. The he proceeded to the temple itself.

I really wonder how the temple looked like… Just reading the descriptions so far, it seemed majestic and arty, with palm trees and cherubim carved on walls. Of course, that temple would be as glamourous as the one Solomon had built. But it did not matter to God what materials were used to build His temple. At that point of time when Ezekiel saw this vision, the Israelites were already exiled for quite long. The comparison should be relatively. Because Solomon had the resources so it was expected of him more.

When more is given, more is expected. Relative value is more important than absolute value, so don’t despise and compare with others the things that you have accomplished for God.