47:1ff - The visionary temple that Ezekiel has been describing in the past few chapters becomes the source of river that goes against the laws of nature and grows deeper and deeper as it meanders through the world. The trickle of water eventually swells to become a torrent that Ezekiel cannot cross. The river becomes a great source of sustenance - abundant with fish and fruit and offer life to all who come to its shores. This reminds me of the picture of the river in Revelation chapter 22, that flows from the throne of God and gives sustains the tree of life. Ezekiel's river flows out of the temple, because it comes from God...it clearly paints the picture of God's salvation plan. From out of the worship of the chosen people of God, the Israelites, the sacrificial system was set up...from out of the tribes of Israel will come Jesus Christ - the ultimate sacrifice...and from the sacrifice of Jesus comes the hope and salvation for everyone, if they are willing to come to him - they will have life.
47:21ff - No longer are the human kings in charge of divvying up the land for their people, they have too often dealt out only corruption. A great example of this is Jezebel having Naboth murdered so that she could acquire his vineyard for the king. When human beings are given great authority it is almost always corruptible. Now, the divine king, God, will tell them exactly what the land portion is for each of the tribes of Israel. We also once again see God's love for the entire world because He opens up the inheritance of the land to non-Israelite people who are living in those areas. God's plan has always involved ALL the people of the world!
48:8ff - If you notice, each reference to the division of the land is described as going from east to west. I find it interesting, and important, that the north and south dimensions of the land are not mentioned. What does this mean? Well it most likely stands as a powerful symbol about what is supposed to be the motivation of the Israelite people. There is no vertical dimension according to the map, because what really matters is their vertical relationship with God. Being the chosen people of God is not about acquiring as much land as possible...it is really all about looking "up" and seeking out a right relationship with God. It is not about human effort - God will give them what they need and what really matters is that God is their inheritance. They are not successful as a people because of human effort - their success is based solely around the blessings of God. Jesus in the NT said that the meek shall inherit the earth...the meek do not take it over...they do not buy the earth...they do not fight for it - they inherit it from God. Never forget that your portion is an inheritance from God.
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