Study notes

Ezekiel 47

Introducing EzekielWho wrote it, when, why, and what to look for as you read

40:1–48:35 Section

Ezekiel’s last vision took place after he had been in Babylon for almost 25 years. This vision included everything that Ezekiel recorded through to the end of chapter 48.

Jerusalem had already been destroyed and the temple had been burnt down. The vision was about the city and the temple being made new again. Then the world around them would be made new. In this way the vision was like the story of the dry bones in chapter 37. In that story God’s people were dead. He gave them new life by putting his Spirit in them. In this vision God gave new life to Jerusalem and the temple. Then new life spread to the world from there. New life came because God’s glory returned to the temple. This meant that God ruled from there as the only God and King. God called the temple his throne and promised to live there for ever.

Ezekiel carefully recorded how long, wide and high many parts of the temple were. He described the nation’s borders. He described how much land went to each of the 12 tribes of Israel. He carefully recorded rules for sacrifices and feasts and taking care of the temple. He described the rules for priests and princes.

These careful records didn’t describe the temple rebuilt by Joshua and Zerubbabel. They didn’t describe the temple built by Herod the Great. They didn’t describe the land and people after the exile. These careful records were signs. They were signs of what God expected from his people. God expected his people to treat his name as holy. This meant that they would worship only him and obey him completely. This would allow them to fully be his people. It would allow him to fully be their God. This is what God had always wanted and why he made covenants with them.

Ezekiel’s careful records were also signs of what God planned to do on earth. He planned to do what he had promised to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. He would use their family line to bless all nations on earth.

In the vision, all 12 tribes of Israel received land. So did outsiders who had joined them. All together they were a sign of all people who were committed to God. In the vision a river flowed from the temple down to the Dead Sea. Ezekiel knew that this area was a desert and no creatures lived in the Dead Sea. But the river turned it into an area like a garden. There were many fish and creatures and many fruit trees. The trees provided fruit for food and leaves for healing people’s bodies. They brought life and were like the tree of life. The river flowed out from Jerusalem. The water of this river brought life. It was living water.

The flowing river was like something that Isaiah described. Isaiah said that God’s message would go out from Jerusalem (Isaiah 2:3). This message was knowledge about who God is and how he wants people to live. It went out from Jerusalem as God’s people spread the message. They spread it by living as a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. Isaiah’s prophecies talked about people from all nations learning this message. The river in Ezekiel’s vision was a sign of this message. It was a sign of the blessing and life that come from knowing God. The blessing and life were for all nations. Blessing and life flowed out from Jerusalem because God was present there.

The Lord is there was the name for the new city of Jerusalem in Ezekiel’s vision. Hundreds of years later John’s visions recorded in Revelation 21–22 were like Ezekiel’s vision. They showed when Ezekiel’s vision would come true. This would be when God created a new heaven and new earth in the new creation.

47:1

The stream's source was inside the temple.
from under the south side of the temple, south of the altar: In Solomon's Temple, this spot held the Sea, a large bronze pool for cleansing water (1 Kings 7:23, 39). The Sea also had symbolic meaning. In the ancient world, the sea often represented chaos (disorder and danger). By placing the Sea in the temple, it showed that God had power over chaos within his ordered world.
In Ezekiel’s vision, the Sea is no longer a still pool. Instead, it becomes a flowing river that gives life. This image recalls the river in Eden (see Genesis 2:10–14; Psalm 46).

47:1–12

Once the temple was restored to its central place among God’s people, its life-giving influence would flow outward.

Ezekiel pictures this influence as a river. As the river moves away from the temple, it brings change. It turns places of death into places of life.

47:3–5

At first, the stream was only a small trickle flowing from the temple gate. As it moved farther away, it grew deeper and deeper. Soon it became too deep to walk through.

The exiles needed this reminder. God often begins his work in small and quiet ways. Over time, what seems small can grow into something full and powerful by God’s action.

47:6–9

As the river flowed, it became deeper and wider. It brought life wherever it went. Even the salty waters of the Dead Sea became fresh and full of life.

47:10

From En-gedi on the west side of the Dead Sea to En-eglaim on the east side, the Dead Sea would change from death to life.

The Dead Sea is filled with salt and other minerals. Because of this, nothing can live in it. In Ezekiel’s vision, the river would make its waters fresh. The sea would be filled with many kinds of fish. There would be enough fish to support a large fishing industry.

47:11

The valuable salt deposits from the Dead Sea area would remain intact. The marshes and swamps would still contain salt.

47:12

Along both sides of this river of life, fruit trees of every kind will grow. Like the righteous person described in Psalm 1, their leaves will not wither. They will produce fruit at the right time.

These trees will be so full of life that they will bear a new crop every month. Their leaves will have healing power. The river will bring real and visible blessings to all of God’s people.

Wherever this river flows, life will appear.

47:13–48:35

The final section of the book of Ezekiel describes the boundaries of the land and how it will be divided among the tribes.

In this section, theology (teaching about God) is shown through geography (the arrangement of the land). The way the land is organized has meaning. Matters such as space, access, and position in relation to the temple are very important.

Where a tribe lives, and how close it is to the temple, shows something about order and holiness among God’s people.

47:15–20

The new promised land's boundaries were similar to those in Numbers 34:1–12. The boundaries stretched from Lebo-hamath in the north to the Brook of Egypt in the south, and from the Mediterranean Sea in the west to the Jordan River in the east.

The people would now fully possess this promised land, which they had never done before. Transjordan, the area east of the Jordan River, was not included. This area was the historic home of Reuben, Gad, and half of the tribe of Manasseh. It was outside the boundaries promised to Moses and was not part of the original promise. But many Israelites had lived there in the past.

47:21–23

The land within these borders was to be divided among the tribes of Israel.

In the past, before the exile, the nation was divided into two kingdoms. In the future, there would be one united kingdom. The twelve tribes would live together as one people.

This new arrangement would also include resident foreigners. If these foreigners had joined Israel as converts (people who had turned to worship the Lord), they were to receive a share of the land. They would receive an allotment just like native-born Israelites. They could also pass this land on to their children.

For Ezekiel, the land had deep meaning. It was a sign of God’s promise and blessing. Because of this, receiving a share of the land was a great privilege.

Verse notes: Adapted by Mission Mutual (Aquifer Open Study Notes) from Tyndale Open Study Notes © 2023 Tyndale House Publishers. CC BY-SA 4.0. Section notes: Biblica Study Notes © 2023 Biblica, Inc. CC BY-SA 4.0, via BibleAquifer. About the sources