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Scripture reading – Ezekiel 44; Ezekiel 45
* Please note that words and phrases in brackets are the author’s amplification.
Ezekiel 44
Restrictions Regarding the Entrance to the Temple (Ezekiel 44:1-3)
Ezekiel’s vision of the Temple continued in Ezekiel 44, where the LORD said about the east gate, “This gate shall be shut, it shall not be opened, and no man shall enter in by it; because the Lord, the God of Israel, hath entered in by it, therefore it shall be shut” (Ezekiel 44:2). What a wonderful message for Israel! When the glory of the LORD entered the Millennial Temple, He promised He would not remove His presence again! Only the prince of Jerusalem was permitted to enter the eastern gate (Ezekiel 44:3).
The Temple Ordinances and A Reproof of Israel (Ezekiel 44:4-9)
The heavenly messenger then brought Ezekiel to gaze upon the Temple from the north gate, and “behold, the glory of the Lord filled the house of the Lord: and [he] fell upon [his] face” (Ezekiel 44:4).
Yet Ezekiel was directed to remind the Jews in Babylon that the sorrows and sufferings that had befallen Jerusalem and Israel were due to their sins and the pollution of the LORD’s temple (Ezekiel 44:6-9).
A Reproof of the Levites and the Promotion of the House of Zadok (Ezekiel 44:10-14)
Notice that the Levites’ role in the Millennial Temple will be limited because they failed the people, tolerated false teachers, and were “gone away far from” the LORD (Ezekiel 44:6-10). They will serve as gatekeepers, assist with offerings, and minister to the people in worship (Ezekiel 44:11). However, they will be forbidden to approach the LORD or “to do the office of a priest” (Ezekiel 44:12-14).
Restrictions Governing the Role of Priests (Ezekiel 44:15-31)
Eleven restrictions were revealed to Ezekiel, beginning with the requirement that “the sons of Zadok” be the only priests qualified to take charge of the sanctuary, offer sacrifices, and minister before the LORD’s table (Ezekiel 44:15-16). We are again reminded that priests’ garments were to be holy and not worn in the Temple’s outer court (Ezekiel 44:17-19). Priests were subject to guidelines for their hairstyles and were forbidden to shave their heads or have long hair (Ezekiel 44:20). (In 1 Corinthians 11:14, the apostle Paul challenged believers in Corinth, saying, “Doth not even nature itself teach you, that, if a man have long hair, it is a shame unto him?”) Priests were prohibited from drinking wine (44:21) and were not to marry a divorced woman or a widow, except a priest’s widow (Ezekiel 44:22).
Priests were to teach the people to be holy (Ezekiel 44:23), to judge controversies that might arise among them (Ezekiel 44:24), and not to defile themselves by touching a dead body (Ezekiel 44:25-27). While others in Israel would have possessions, the priests were to have none, trusting the LORD to meet their every need (Ezekiel 44:28-30). Lastly, priests were prohibited from eating an animal found dead (Ezekiel 44:31).
We are once again reminded that the LORD requires those who serve His people to be holy (set apart).
Copyright © 2026 – Travis D. Smith
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The post The Ministers of the Millennium Temple (Ezekiel 44) appeared first on “From The Heart of A Shepherd” by Pastor Travis D. Smith.
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