Ezekiel · chapter 48 of 48
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Ezekiel 48 closes the book with the division of the land among the twelve tribes, in strips running east to west, with the holy portion of the sanctuary and the city in the center. It describes the gates of the city, three on each side, bearing the names of the tribes. The book ends with the name of the city from that day on: The Lord Is There.
The last chapter of Ezekiel completes the temple vision with the division of the land. After a book that began with God's glory over the Chebar River, in exile, and announced judgment, destruction and restoration, it ends with an ordered land and a people with a place. The final phrase sums up the message of the whole book: God dwells with his people.
The chapter lists the portions of the tribes, which are parallel strips from east to west. Starting from the far north, they are assigned to Dan, Asher, Naphtali, Manasseh, Ephraim, Reuben and Judah, each of the same width. Next to Judah's portion is the holy offering, a square of twenty-five thousand cubits on a side, with the sanctuary in its center.
The holy portion is divided into three parts. The first is for the priests of the family of Zadok, who stayed faithful when Israel went astray, with the sanctuary of the Lord in its midst. The Levites, who strayed, receive an equal share, and that land may not be sold or exchanged, for it is holy to the Lord. The third part, narrower, is for the city, with its residential areas and its fields, which serve those who work in it, drawn from all the tribes. What is left on both sides of the holy portion and the city belongs to the prince.
South of the holy portion the remaining tribes are assigned: Benjamin, Simeon, Issachar, Zebulun and Gad. Then the chapter describes the exits of the city, with three gates on each side: those on the north are named for Reuben, Judah and Levi, those on the east for Joseph, Benjamin and Dan, those on the south for Simeon, Issachar and Zebulun, and those on the west for Gad, Asher and Naphtali. The city measures eighteen thousand cubits around. And the name of the city from that day on will be The Lord Is There.
References follow ESV book names and verse numbers. Read each verse in your Bible before the explanation.
The holy offering is set apart in the middle of the territory, with the sanctuary at its center. The heart of the divided land is the place of God's presence.
The holy portion is for the priests of the family of Zadok, who kept their charge and did not stray when the people of Israel went astray. Faithfulness is remembered and honored in the restoration.
The gates of the city bear the names of the tribes of Israel, three on each side. The city is open to all the tribes equally, without privilege, as a picture of a restored and reunited people.
The name of the city from that day on will be The Lord Is There. It is the phrase that ends the book and sums up its message: after judgment and exile, God dwells with his people again, and that changes everything.
6 questions with answers and references, ready for Sunday school, small group or a Bible quiz night.
Answer: The tribe of Dan, at the far north. — Ezekiel 48:1
Answer: The sanctuary of the Lord. — Ezekiel 48:8-10
Answer: Because they kept their charge and did not stray when Israel went astray. — Ezekiel 48:11
Answer: It may not be sold or exchanged, because it is holy to the Lord. — Ezekiel 48:14
Answer: Twelve, three on each side, named for the tribes of Israel. — Ezekiel 48:31-34
Answer: The Lord Is There. — Ezekiel 48:35
The book of Ezekiel, which began with a vision of God's glory in exile and passed through judgment, lament and hope, ends with a name: The Lord Is There. For the Christian that is the central hope: not a land or a building but God's presence with his people, which the New Testament sees fulfilled in Christ and the Spirit and which will culminate in the new creation. In a small group you can talk about what changes in our daily life if we truly believe that the Lord is with us.
It also teaches that God cares for every family and every tribe, and leaves no one out of the division. The reunited people has a place for all, and that is a model for the church.
Ezekiel 48 closes the book with the land divided, the city of twelve gates and the name The Lord Is There. After the prophets of the exile, the book of Daniel shows another exile in Babylon, who serves God faithfully before foreign kings and receives visions of the future.
Many readers notice parallels: a city with twelve gates named for the tribes, God's presence in the midst, a river of life. However, Revelation 21 says that John saw no temple in the city, because the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. Interpreters explain this relation in different ways, but agree that both visions point to the full presence of God with his people.
Interpreters disagree. Some expect a literal future fulfillment; others see in the division an ideal picture, orderly and symmetrical, of a restored people, never applied exactly in history. Others see its spiritual fulfillment in the church. What all recognize is the message: God restores his people and lives with them.