#1191 Ezekiel 43 Part 2 Hindsight Is In Retrospect

 

13 “These are the measurements of the altar by cubits (the cubit being a cubit and a handbreadth): its base shall be one cubit high and one cubit broad, with a rim of one span around its edge. And this shall be the height of the altar: 14 from the base on the ground to the lower ledge, two cubits, with a breadth of one cubit; and from the smaller ledge to the larger ledge, four cubits, with a breadth of one cubit; 15 and the altar hearth, four cubits; and from the altar hearth projecting upward, four horns. 16 The altar hearth shall be square, twelve cubits long by twelve broad. 17 The ledge also shall be square, fourteen cubits long by fourteen broad, with a rim around it half a cubit broad, and its base one cubit all around. The steps of the altar shall face east.”

18 And he said to me, “Son of man, thus says the Lord God: These are the ordinances for the altar: On the day when it is erected for offering burnt offerings upon it and for throwing blood against it, 19 you shall give to the Levitical priests of the family of Zadok, who draw near to me to minister to me, declares the Lord God, a bull from the herd for a sin offering. 20 And you shall take some of its blood and put it on the four horns of the altar and on the four corners of the ledge and upon the rim all around. Thus you shall purify the altar and make atonement for it. 21 You shall also take the bull of the sin offering, and it shall be burned in the appointed place belonging to the temple, outside the sacred area. 22 And on the second day you shall offer a male goat without blemish for a sin offering; and the altar shall be purified, as it was purified with the bull. 23 When you have finished purifying it, you shall offer a bull from the herd without blemish and a ram from the flock without blemish. 24 You shall present them before the Lord, and the priests shall sprinkle salt on them and offer them up as a burnt offering to the Lord. 25 For seven days you shall provide daily a male goat for a sin offering; also, a bull from the herd and a ram from the flock, without blemish, shall be provided. 26 Seven days shall they make atonement for the altar and cleanse it, and so consecrate it.   27 And when they have completed these days, then from the eighth day onward the priests shall offer on the altar your burnt offerings and your peace offerings, and I will accept you, declares the Lord God.” Ezekiel 43: 13-27 ESV

Ezekiel 43: 13-27 The Altar

By cubits - This being the longer cubit brought up before, a cubit and a handbreadth, which many think to be approximately 20 to 20.5 inches. 

Four horns - These are sacred, and men had laid hold of them in the early days of the kings of Israel. It was to them a place of refuge. There is nothing efficacious in the altar itself, and men cannot offer so excellent a sacrifice of themselves or their beast, yet there is a striking resemblance to the sacrifice for which it points to. 

…11And you shall slaughter the bull before the LORD at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. 12Take some of the blood of the bull and put it on the horns of the altar with your finger; then pour out the rest of the blood at the base of the altar. 13Take all the fat that covers the entrails and the lobe of the liver, and both kidneys with the fat on them, and burn them on the altar.… Exodus 29: 11-13

…48saying, ‘Blessed be the LORD, the God of Israel! Today He has provided one to sit on my throne, and my eyes have seen it.’ ” 49At this, all the guests of Adonijah arose in terror and scattered. 50But Adonijah, in fear of Solomon, got up and went to take hold of the horns of the altar.… 1 Kings 1: 48-50

…4because it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. 5Therefore, when Christ came into the world, He said: “Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, but a body You prepared for Me. 6In burnt offerings and sin offerings You took no delight.… Hebrews 10: 4-6

The steps of the altar face east - This is different than the arrangement of Solomon's temple.

Its steps face toward the east: This was a hint that Ezekiel understood that when Israel was finally and fully restored to the land, and Yahweh’s covenant promises to them fulfilled in their Messiah, the Mosaic law would in some sense be set aside. In the law of Moses, it was specifically commanded that there be no steps leading to the altar (Exodus 20:26). - E Word

i. Toward the east: “As in the tabernacle and the temple of Solomon, the priests would always face west in their ministering (unlike the idolaters who faced the sun and worshiped it, Ezekiel 8:16).” (Feinberg)

On the day when it is made - This describes a coming altar, in a place and time when Israel is without walls, and it describes how they will consecrate it in that day. It is interesting to note that some do not believe in a Millennial Kingdom in which Christ rules from His temple for a thousand years. Now some of these teachers I highly respect, love and have learned much from, but they are the first to cry out "disingenuous", which I looked up and it means that their opponent is "not being candid or sincere, underhanded", especially when the topic or charge of "replacement theology" is being levied against their particular brand of eschatology. Now these same men would not argue that Ezekiel, Jeremiah and Isaiah rightly predicted the Babylonian captivity, and one can get that from a very plain exegesis of these books, but much else seems to be spiritualized to the point that it is no longer spiritual, but more like algebra, and the study looks more like a meth lab (a little of my own flare for the dramatic) than a simple and literal explanation of the text. So now, these same men that will use the D word, will make a great drama of those who talk about an altar in the Millennial Kingdom, but let's look at it from the perspective of one more studied in this than me. 

Exact offerings, in language just as definitive as the literal descriptions in Moses' day, are also just as literal here. They are of a memorial nature; they are not efficacious any more than OT sacrifices were. As OT sacrifices pointed forward to Christ's death, so these are tangible expressions, not competing with, but pointing back to the value of Christ's completely effective sacrifice, once for all. God at that time endorsed OT offerings as tokens of forgiving and cleansing worshipers on the basis and credit of the great Lamb they pointed to, who alone could take away sins. The tangible expressions of worship, which the Israelites for so long failed to offer validly, will at last be offered acceptably, then with full understanding about the Lamb of God to whom they point. The bread and and the cup, which believers today find meaningful, do not compete with Christ's cross but are tangible memorials of its glory. So will these sacrifices be. - J Mac Study Bible Notes

…27Just as man is appointed to die once, and after that to face judgment, 28so also Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many; and He will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who eagerly await Him. Hebrews 9: 27-28

Of the family of Zadok - 

“Non-Zadokites were debarred from priestly office on account of their past idolatrous associations with rural shrines (44:10) and were allowed only to act as temple servants.” (Alexander)

Salt - Probably noted because of it's use as a preserving agent.

Without blemish - In reflection of Christ's sinless perfection, set apart, without any impurity.

“The offerings presented thereon were meant to be memorials, much as the Lord’s Supper is no efficacious sacrifice but a memorial of a blessedly adequate and all-sufficient sacrifice for all time. Thus, whereas the sacrifices of the Old Testament economy were prospective, these are retrospective.” (Feinberg)

28All this happened at Bethany beyond the Jordan, where John was baptizing. 29The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! 30This is He of whom I said, ‘A man who comes after me has surpassed me because He was before me.’… John 1: 28-30