Ezekiel 41

Ezekiel 41:13-25

reconciliation for the house of Israel. 18. Thus faith the Lord GOD, In the first month, in the first day of the month, that shall take a young bullock without blemish, and cleanse the sanctuary. 19. And the priest shall take of the blood of the sin-offering, and put it upon the posts of the house, and upon the four corners of the state of the altar, and upon the posts of the gate of the inner-court. 20. And so thou shalt do the seventh day of the month, for every one that ereth, and for him that it simple: so shall ye reconcile the house. 21. “In the first month, in the fourteenth day of the month, ye shall have the passover, a feast of seven days, unleavened bread shall be eaten. 22. And upon that day shall the prince prepare for himself, and for all the people of the land, a bullock for a sin-offering. 23. And seven days of the feast he shall prepare a burnt-offering to the LORD, seven bullocks, and seven rams without blemish, daily the seven days, and a kid of the goats daily for a sin-offering. 24. And he shall prepare a meat-offering of an ephah for a bullock, and an ephah for a ram, and an hin of oil for an ephah. 25. In the seventh month, in the fifteenth day of the month shall he do the like in the feast of the seven days, according to the sin-offering, according to the burnt-offering, and according to the meat-offering, and according to the oil.

Particular directions are laid down for the service of God.

1. Repealing the oblations to be offered by all the people of the land: of their corn a fastish part; of their wine the handwith; of their lambs one in two hundred, but from the latter pastures, must be offered, for the prince in Israel, or to the prince in Israel, the Lord Jesus, to which honour these were devoted for the maintenance of his ministers, and for the more immediate service of his church, and for whose sake they are accepted, v. 17. Note, (1.) They who enjoy the blessings of God’s providence, are bound to honour him with a part of their abundance. (2.) Our oblations, prayers, and praises are then accepted, when the atoning blood of the lamb hath made the reconciliation, and opened us a way to the throne of God.

2. Repealing their solemnities, which differed exceedingly from the Mosical institutions, and intimated a change in that differentiation:

(1.) On the first day of the year the sanctuary was to be cleaned by the blood of a sin-offering, and the same ceremony was repeated on the seventh day for him that had served and was simple. Even sanctuaries on earth have need of cleansing continually; the purest societies of christians must ever apply to the atoning blood, and we are bound every year, yea every day, to beg the forgiveness of our negligence and ignorance, which, without the all-powerful intercession and oblation of the great high priest of our profession, Jesus Christ, must eternally destroy us.

(2.) On the fourteenth of Nifan the passover is to be kept, with the seven days of unleavened bread, and a bullock each day, offered for a sin-offering, v. 22. prepared by the prince, with its meat and drink-offering; besides a kid of the goats each day for a sin-offering, and seven bullocks and ram for a burnt-offering. All which are typical of the Lord Jesus, who hath prepared himself a sacrifice for us, and is our passover, by whose blood we have received the atonement, to whom we must have an eye in all our approaches to God, and on whom ye faith we must feast to the strengthening and refreshing of our souls.

(3.) On the seventh month, the fifteenth day, the feast of tabernacles is ordered to be observed seven days, with the same sacrifices as before. All pointing to the great Redeemer, and directing us to him, in and through whom alone all our services are accepted of God.