SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 5/20/2015
11:28 AM
My Worship Time Focus: The River of Life
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Ezekiel
47:1-12
Message of the
verses: “1 Then he brought me back
to the door of the house; and behold, water was flowing from under the
threshold of the house toward the east, for the house faced east. And the water
was flowing down from under, from the right side of the house, from south of
the altar. 2 He brought me out by way of the north gate and led me around on
the outside to the outer gate by way of the gate that faces east. And behold,
water was trickling from the south side. 3 When the man went out toward the
east with a line in his hand, he measured a thousand cubits, and he led me
through the water, water reaching the ankles. 4 Again he measured a thousand
and led me through the water, water reaching the knees. Again he measured a
thousand and led me through the water, water reaching the loins. 5 Again he
measured a thousand; and it was a river that I could not ford, for the water
had risen, enough water to swim in, a river that could not be forded. 6 He said
to me, "Son of man, have you seen this?" Then he brought me back to the
bank of the river. 7 Now when I had returned, behold, on the bank of the river
there were very many trees on the one side and on the other. 8 Then he said to
me, "These waters go out toward the eastern region and go down into the
Arabah; then they go toward the sea, being made to flow into the sea, and the
waters of the sea become fresh. 9 “It will come about that every living
creature which swarms in every place where the river goes, will live. And there
will be very many fish, for these waters go there and the others become fresh;
so everything will live where the river goes. 10 “And it will come about that
fishermen will stand beside it; from Engedi to Eneglaim there will be a place
for the spreading of nets. Their fish will be according to their kinds, like
the fish of the Great Sea, very many. 11 “But its swamps and marshes will not
become fresh; they will be left for salt. 12 “By the river on its bank, on one
side and on the other, will grow all kinds of trees for food. Their leaves will not wither and
their fruit will not fail. They will bear every month because their
water flows from the sanctuary, and their fruit will be for food and their
leaves for healing."”
I want to compare the highlighted area from verse 12 to
Psalm 1 “He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, Which
yields its fruit in its season And its leaf does not wither; And in whatever he
does, he prospers.” Next I want to compare
the portion that speaks of the river with a passage in the book of
Revelation: “1 Then he showed me a river
of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of
the Lamb, 2 in the middle of its street.
On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of
fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the
healing of the nations (Rev. 22:1-2).”
Now remember that what Ezekiel is describing will happen
in the Millennial Kingdom and what is described in Revelation chapter
twenty-two is in the eternal state after the Millennial Kingdom is over along
with the battle of Gog and Magog described in chapter 20 of Revelation. Then the earth and the universe will be “burned
up” as described in 2 Peter 3 and then a new heaven and earth and the New Jerusalem
will be seen in chapter twenty-one of Revelation.
Now as we look at these verses in Ezekiel we see that he
saw a trickle of water coming out of the Holy of Holies and so Ezekiel wanted
to see where it went, however the East gate was closed so he had to go around
and that is when he saw the beginnings of this river that goes from a trickle
to ankle deep to deep enough to swim in.
Dr. Wiersbe wants his readers to look at Psalm 36:8 and 46:4 “They drink
their fill of the abundance of Your house; And You give them to drink of the
river of Your delights.” “There is a
river whose streams make glad the city of God, The holy dwelling places of the
Most High.” What we see in these verses
is that the water that comes from the temple will bring healing to the Dead
Sea, a body of water that has so much salt and minerals in it now that one
cannot drown in it, but this water from the temple will bring healing to it so
much so that fish will then be able to live and thrive in it.
Dr. Wiersbe concludes this portion of his commentary with
some interesting facts: “Jerusalem is
the only great city of the ancient world that wasn’t located on a river, and in
the east, a dependable water supply is essential for life and for defense. During the Kingdom Age, Jerusalem shall have
a river such as no other nation ever had.
But is this a literal river or merely a sacred symbol of life-giving
power of the Lord? Perhaps it is both. Joel 3:18 (“And in that day The mountains will
drip with sweet wine, And the hills will flow with milk, And all the brooks of
Judah will flow with water; And
a spring will go out from the house of the LORD To water the valley of Shittim.”)
Zechariah 13:1 (“"In that day a
fountain will be opened for the house of David and for the inhabitants of
Jerusalem, for sin and for impurity.”)” These
verses speak of this river as a literal entity, so the river both illustrates
and accomplishes the life-giving work of God.
Jesus saw such a river as a symbol of the Holy Spirit (John 7:7:37-39),
and the Apostle John saw a similar scene in the heavenly city of God (Rev.
22:1-2). A river played an important
role in the Garden of Eden (Gen. 2:10-14).”
In my opinion as I have stated before is that these
things in Ezekiel 40-48 are literal and will happen. I believe that one of the reasons that people
don’t believe these things are literal is that they first of all don’t have
enough faith in God, and second of all they don’t know God nor take the time to
study His attributes.
5/20/2015 11:55 AM
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