Ezekiel chapter 48. I'll read a few verses of our prayer and we'll begin. Reading from verse one. Now these are the names of the tribes from the north end to the coast of the way of Hethlon as one going to Hamath. Hazar-Enan, the border of Damascus northward to the coast of Hamath. For these are his sides, east and west, a portion for Danon. And by the border of Dan, from the east side, under the west side, a portion for Asher. And by the border of Asher, from the east, even onto the west side, a portion for Naphtali. And by the border of Naphtali, from the east side, under the west side, a portion for Manasseh. And by the border of Manasseh, from the east side to the west side, a portion for Ephraim. And by the border of Ephraim, from the east side under the west side, a portion for Reuben. And by the border of Reuben, from the east side under the west side, a portion for Judith. I'd read the first seven verses. We'll refer to those again in a moment, but now let's pray and ask the Lord's blessing on this service. Our Father in heaven, we bow, we know unworthy heads before you and pray that you'd have mercy on us today. Pray, Father, that you would Open our understanding and help us that we might be blessed by considering your word. I pray you'll be honored. I pray, Father, for those that could not be with us today. Bless our sick. Bless those that are away. Restore those that are trying to recover from things help them and strengthen them. Lord, guide us through the message, we pray, in Jesus' name, amen. The very first verse describes the beginning point for measuring the portions of the land on the north of Israel, all the way to the north. We'll read it again. Now these are the names of the tribes from the north end to the coast on the way of Hethlon as one going to Hamath. Hazar, Enam, the border of Damascus northward to the coast of Hamath for these are his sides east and west. Dan is the northernmost tribe, as he was in the first assignment of the land under Jochoa, as you remember. Now let me read verses two through five again. And by the border of Dan from the east side under the west side, a portion for Asher, And by the border of Asher from the east side, even onto the west side, a portion for Naphtali. And by the border of Naphtali from the east side onto the west side, a portion for Manasseh. And by the border of Manasseh from the east side onto the west side, a portion for Ephraim. Here we see Manasseh and Ephraim to gather Joseph's two portions, as it was stated in chapter 47 and verse 13, where it said, thus saith the Lord God, this shall be the border whereby you shall inherit the land according to the 12 tribes of Israel. Joseph shall have two portions. Now, Joseph was given the birthright. And in Israel, the firstborn generally had the birthright, and he got a double portion. And I really think that the patriarchs looked to their eldest to take care of the others in the family. Turn back now to 1 Chronicles, Chapter 5 and verse 2, 1 and 2. And let's read this about Reuben and Joseph. 1 Chronicles 5 verses 1 and 2. Now the son to Reuben, the firstborn of Israel, for he was the firstborn, but for as much as he defiled his father's bed, his birthright was given unto the sons of Joseph, the son of Israel, and the genealogy is not to be reckoned after the birthright, for Judah prevailed above his brethren, and of him came the chief ruler, but the birthright was Joseph's, so he had the double portion. And here Manasseh and Ephraim are together. Verse six and seven, and by the border of Ephraim from the east side, even onto the west side, a portion for Reuben. And by the border of Reuben from the east side onto the west side, a portion for Judah. So these are the names of the tribes for the northern portion of the land of Israel. Seven of the sons of Jacob are given inheritance in the northern part. of the land according to the Lord's assignment as it's written by Ezekiel. Now in verse eight and following, we read about the Lord's portion of the land. Verse eight, and by the border of Judah from the east side unto the west side shall be the offering which you shall offer of five and 20,000 reeds in breadth, and in length, as one of the other parts, from each side unto the west side. And the sanctuary shall be in the midst of it. The oblation, or the offering, that you shall offer unto the Lord shall be of five and 20,000 in length, and of 10,000 in breadth. So, in these two verses, we see that The Lord's portion of the land is just south of Judah's portion. And they're the same length, at least this first part is the same length, and so is the second, and the third one will be half as wide. So the sanctuary is in the midst of this whole thing. Now let's look at verse 10 through 12. And for them, even for the priest, shall be this holy oblation, toward the north five and 20,000 in length, and toward the west 10,000 in breadth, and toward the east 10,000 in breadth, and toward the south five and 20,000 in length. and the sanctuary of the Lord shall be in the midst thereof. It shall be for the priests that are sanctified are the sons of Zadok, which have kept my charge, which went not astray when the children of Israel went astray, as the Levites went astray. And this oblation of the land that is offered shall be unto them a thing most holy by the border of the Levites. So just below the portion for the sanctuary and the priest is another piece of land exactly the same size and it's for the Levites. on big part for the priests who were the sons of Zadok. They have this because Zadok did not go astray when the children of Israel went astray back during the days of Solomon. I'll read this again because it was a fulfillment of the word of the Lord concerning the house of Eli, of whom Abiathar was the priest that was in there in the days of Solomon. Turn back with me, please, to 1 Samuel, chapter three, and verses 11 through 14. I know we've read this once before, but I want to read it again to make sure that we get 1 Samuel chapter 3, verse 11 through 14. And the Lord said to Samuel, behold, I will do a thing in Israel at which both the ears of everyone that hear it shall tingle. In that day I will perform against Eli all things which I have spoken concerning his house. When I begin, I will also make an end. For I have told him that I will judge his house forever for the iniquity which he knoweth, because his sons made themselves vile, and he restrained them not. And therefore, I have sworn unto the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli's house shall not be purged I want to mention this to you because it's right in front of our face. I've been studying this week about fathers. I watched the video Brother Clark was talking about and had a great deal to say about fathers. It's something I've known my whole life. And I've preached about it time and time again. And I believe this. I believe the scripture teaches this with all of my heart and soul. Children are to be controlled by their fathers. Sometimes fathers away. I had to be away from my wife lots of times. But she knew exactly what was expected. And she did the best she could to restrain the children from doing wicked things. So I say this, the mother and father have got to be on the same frequency. They have to do together what God has commanded the father to do. to train up his children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Now Eli watched these two boys who were grown, and they were doing some despicable things. And he would not say a word against it. Well, one time he said, you don't do well, my sons, but talking is not enough. A father has to take action. And if he doesn't take action, he can expect some dire consequences down the road in reaping the harvest from his children. And this is what happened with Eli. Now, you're right, close turn to 1 Kings 2, verse 26 and 27. And unto Abiathar the priest said to the king, get thee to Anathoth unto thine own fields without worthy of death. But I will not at this time put thee to death, because thou bearest the ark of the Lord God before David my father, and because thou hast been afflicted in all wherein my father was afflicted. So Solomon thrust out Abiathar, who was a descendant of Eli, from being priest under the Lord, that he might fulfill the word of the Lord which he spake concerning the house of Eli and Shiloh. So he put Zadok, in verse 35, Zadok the priest that the king put in the room of Abiathar. And that's what this is all about in the millennium. The sons of Zadok, though they were born many, many, many years later, reap the harvest of their father, just as the descendants of Eli did in a bad way. Now, verse 13 and 14 of our text, and over against the border of the priests, the Levites shall have five and 20,000 in length, and 10,000 in breadth, all the length shall be five and 20,000, and the breadth 10,000. And they shall not sell it, neither exchange nor alienate the firstfruits of the land, for it's holy unto the Lord. So God in his mercy provided a place for the Levites to live, to build their houses, and do whatever need to be done for care and then for themselves and to dwell there. Now, we had the 10,000 for the sanctuary and the priest, the 10,000 for the Levites, and now there's 5,000 in verse 15 for the city. Notice in the 5,000 that are left in the breadth over against the 5 and 20,000, shall be a profane place for the city, for dwelling, and for suburbs, and the city shall be in the midst thereof." So, there's 5,000 just below the place for the Levites to the south. The city was built for the Israelites, son of them, to dwell there, and the suburbs was a field around the city where they could plant and harvest crops and food to take care of the city and where they could feed the visitors that came into the city. Now verse 16, and these shall be the measures thereof, the north 4,500 And the south side, 4,500. And the east side, 4,500. And the west side, 4,500. The antecedent of thereof is the city. Talking about the city. So it's 4,500 measures or reads. Remember, it said this in the very beginning, of the book in chapter 40 where it talked about the man with the reed. The reed wasn't just a regular cubit. It was a cubit and a span, which made it at least a full 21 inches per cubit. So this reed that he held in our measurements today was about 10 feet long. So let's consider that this city was 4,500 measures on each side. 4,500 reeds times six cubits is 27,000 cubits. You reduce that down by inches and feet into miles and you come up with almost nine miles, it's just giant, of nine miles on one side. So if you multiply that before, the city is about 36, 37 miles squared. It's very interesting to me as I considered this. This city is on this earth. The new Jerusalem is on the new earth. It will come down from heaven onto the new earth. Just for comparison, a lot of commentators say that this city is a new Jerusalem, which is just a lie. That's all there is to it. It's this city, while it's a wonderful place for the millennium, is nothing in comparison to the city of gold, which is said to be at least 12,000 furlongs, long, wide, and high, being four square. A furlong is an eighth of a mile. And if we applied that to 12,000 furlongs, now this is what I can't be sure about and I just don't know. When they measured the city, it was 12,000 furlongs. I don't know if that was one side or if it went all the way around it. So just for the benefit of the doubt, we'll say that it went all the way around. That's 375 miles long, wide, and high. So we believe that that is interesting as I consider this city. It's pretty close to being one-tenth just in terms of square of the Holy City. 37.5 or about that. New Jerusalem is a city of gold like transparent glass. But neither the temple nor the city of Ezekiel mention gold or silver. As far as we know, there's no gold or silver in either the temple or the city except for their money. The Old Testament tabernacle had both, and so did Solomon's Temple. And I think there's a good reason for that. Gold stands for deity. In the city of gold, well, God is there. But silver stands for redemption. and the redemption for God's people was accomplished once, for all, forever at the cross. Now I think that's significant that it's not mentioned in this Millennial Temple or in the city. Let's read verse 17 through 19. And the suburbs of the city shall be toward the north, 250, toward the south, 250, toward the east, 250, and toward the west, 250. And the residue in length over against the oblation of the holy portion shall be 10,000 eastward, 10,000 westward, and it shall be over against the oblation of the holy portion. And the increase thereof shall be for food unto them that serve the city. and they that serve the city shall serve it out to all the tribes of Israel. I think this will be a grand time. Fresh food made up and served by the city to its visitors. I'm sure they're not gonna have McDonald's and Carly Jr. there, but they're gonna have a wonderful way to feed the folks that come into the city from that fresh produce that grows on the outside. Remember what we read about Israel's land producing that? Wow. The plow will overtake the reaper. The stuff will just grow and grow in a way probably that hasn't been since the Garden of Eden. What a marvelous thing. In verse 20, this clarifies any doubt that should have come to us about the total measurement of the Lord's oblation. All the oblation shall be five and 20,000 by five and 20,000. You shall offer the holy oblation four square with the possession of the city. So right in the middle of this drive, is that land for the priests, for the Levites, for the city, and for the sanctuary. 25,000 square. That's a lot of land. Verse 23, as for the rest of the tribes from the east side unto the west side, Benjamin shall have a portion And by the border of Benjamin from the east side under the west side, Simeon shall have a portion. And by the border of Simeon from the east side under the west side, Issachar a portion. And by the border of Issachar from the east side under the west side, Zebulon a portion. And by the border of Zebulon from the east side under the west side, So in these verses, we're given the names of the remaining tribes of Israel, which are five in all on the south side, seven above the portion for the Lord, five below. Benjamin, Simeon, Itzikar, Zebulun, and Gad. Verse 28, and by the border of Gad at the south side, southward, the border shall be even from Tamar under the rivers, waters of Strife and Kadesh, and to the river toward the great sea. This is the land which you shall divide by lot under the tribes of Israel for inheritance, and these are their portions, saith the Lord. This clarifies for us the southern border of Israel that goes out to the Mediterranean Sea. Now in verses 30 through 34, we read about the gates to the city. And these are the goings out of the city on the north side, 4,500 measures. And the gates of the city shall be after the names of the tribe of Israel. Three gates northward, one gate of Reuben, one gate of Judah, one gate of Levi. And at the east side, 4,500, three gates, one gate of Joseph, one gate of Benjamin, and one gate of Dan. And at the south side, 4,500 measures, Three gates, one gate of Simeon, one gate of Issachar, and one gate of Zebulun. And at the west side, 4,500, which are three gates, one gate of Gad, one gate of Asher, and one gate of Naphtali. Now, these are different from the land assignments, and I note that Reuben has a gate on the north, while he didn't have the birthright, he still was honored. I didn't compare these to the Holy City, and I don't remember exactly how they were, but it's the same way in the City of Gold. Three gates of a single pearl. on every side of that city. And they're named after the children of Israel. Verse 35 said it was round about 18,000 meters and the name of the city from that day shall be So in closing this chapter, we see the city is 18,000 reeds roundabout, or about nine miles in each direction. The name shall be the Lord is there. I think this is it. Very majestic ending to this study. The name of the Lord from that day shall be Jehovah Shammah. The Lord is there, which is a symbolic name for Jerusalem. It's a fitting finale for this book. In the beginning, we saw the glory of the Lord leave Israel. And through the pages of this book, we read about their rebellion, their judgments, the nation's disobedience and rejection. Then follow the messages of hope. What a great message of hope, beginning in chapter 34 and extending all the way to the end. It talks about Israel's conversion, the regathering of the 12 tribes, the final conflict, the returning glory of the Lord, and the city, being the Lord is there. God has manifested a will his gracious presence in the middle of his people. What a glory it'll be for him when his people live and do like they should have done all of that time Brother Clark read about this morning. Brothers and sisters, I get into tangles almost every single day with people that profess to know the Lord that deny any of this. But I can tell you just as sure as Mr. Nathan Yehu is standing and defending his people there that the Lord Jesus Christ is coming back to that very place And God himself was set in a temple, the soles of his feet being there. It'll be the grandest and glorious thousand years the earth has ever known. The whole earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. Nothing will hurt or destroy in all his holy mountain, nothing. No one will die under 100 years of age. The beast will be tamed. And you can actually play with a serpent without the thing gonna bite ya. I've often seen little kids in my mind with their arms around a big grizzly bear. It's gonna be a great time. I wonder if you're going to be there. We're not talking about heaven yet. This is getting us ready for heaven. This is getting us ready to live on the new earth forever. And the key to that today is that you must believe that Jesus is the Christ. To have the forgiveness for your sins. Oh my. I want to cry to think about it. If you don't, you're going to die in your sin, and you'll never see that. You'll never realize any of it. How tragic to sit and listen and push it away. But I'll say this. If you're one of God's elect people, you're going to come. You're going to believe. You're going to believe that Jesus died for you, and you're going to say it out loud. and you're going to follow him in baptism and you're going to get in the church and live for him the rest of your life.