When you study temples in Jewish history, you recognize there was originally the tabernacle, and then there was Solomon's temple, the first temple. That, of course, was destroyed in 586 BC. It was rebuilt about 70 years later by Zerubbabel. And you remember when it was all done, what did they do? They cried when the foundations were laid the people had seen the first one said this one is just insignificant That's an important point when you study Ezekiel chapter 40 through 43 by the time of the days that we live Of course, the temples are all destroyed right now as you stand in the Mount of Olives and look across the Kidron Valley You can see the temple mount or what they believe was temple mound and there's the walls for the original temple amount Of course, the Muslims have a mosque there now and you can see that's a pretty good-sized Pretty concise thing. When you study a little bit about the temple, you recognize, as I said, the original was a tabernacle in the wilderness. Moses was given the instruction, the children of Israel under Moses. Now tonight we're going to be studying about a temple, and we're found in Ezekiel chapter 40, and it says this in verse 1, In the twenty-fifth year of our captivity, at the beginning of the year, on the tenth day of the month, in the fourteenth year after the city was captured, on the very same day the hand of the Lord was upon me, and He took me there. And so you recognize on a very specific day, April 10, 572 BC, 14 years to the day after the city of Jerusalem, and in particular the temple of Solomon, had been destroyed, 14 years later to the day, God says to Ezekiel, I'm going to take you in vision to the mountain, and I want you to get a glimpse of what's coming down the peak. And so He wants us to see a little bit about this temple. Now, the book of Ezekiel has, first of all, the book of condemnation, but also then the book of consolation. And we've seen that their troubles are removed. All the nations around them are taken care of, verses 29 through 32. Then we've been studying for the last few weeks, the tribes are regathered or restored. There's all these things that take place. There's a genuine repentance. There's a regeneration in the hearts of people. There's a ruler who's called the Prince of David. There is a total transformation of the land and the restoration of the land so it produces so well that last week we saw that it's doing so well that Gog and Magog from the north and they get all cohorts on the sides of them to attack. It's just Israel is doing so well. It's so spectacular that they attack. But now we're in chapter 40 through 47 and it's about the temple rebuilt. It was Merle Unger who said, the final nine chapters of the book of prophecy, while forming a grand climax to the prophet's message, present difficulties which place them in a class of their own. That is to say, Ezekiel chapter 40 through 48, those nine chapters, have caused great difficulty of understanding. And some of the questions that have been raised and are difficult for some people to answer is, what is this temple? And when is this temple? And where is this temple? And why is this temple? And so tonight as we read these chapters, we just want to look at some of that and maybe get a sense of what is going on. Let's just read a couple of verses. In verse 2, it says, In the visions of God, He took me into the land of Israel and set me on a very high mountain. On it toward the south was something like the structure of a city. He took me there, and behold, there was a man whose appearance was like the appearance of bronze. He had a line of flax and a measuring rod in his hand, and he stood in the gateway. And the man said to me, Son of man, look with your eyes and hear with your ears and fix your mind on everything I show you, for you were brought here so that I might show them to you. Declare to the house of Israel everything you see." Now there was a wall all around the outside of the temple, and the man's hand was a measuring rod, six cubits long, each being a cubit and a hand breadth. And he measured the width of the wall structure, one rod, and the height, one rod. And he says, you know, God took me on this high mountain, gave me a vision of this, and there was a man who appeared to me and showed me it, and he has a measuring. And he, first of all, has a measuring tape. Many of you have measured before, and you have rods, maybe, or sticks, or yardsticks, or something like that, and then you have a hundred-foot measuring tape that goes out. He's got a line of flax that he can measure the long distances. He also has a short rod that he can measure the shorter distances. The short rod is six cubits, but these cubits are really Cubit and a hand breath and a cubit of course is from here to here about 18 inches and a hand breath is another 3 inches So the cubit as he describes it is about 21 inches So the rod is about 10 foot 6 inches plus or minus something. So he's going to be measuring everything now I'm just gonna read part of it to you and just just enjoy it. Okay, and just let it sink in and just think of Why did God give this to you? Is this boring stuff or exciting stuff or what impact does it have in your life as you just listen to it? So don't try to be too smart. You just enjoy it. Here we go. Then he went to the gateway, which faced east. He went up its stairs and measured the threshold of the gateway, which was one rod wide, and the other threshold was one rod wide. Each gate chamber was one rod long and one rod wide. Between the gate chambers was a space of five cubits, and the threshold of the gateway by the vestibule of the inside gate was one rod. He also measured the vestibule of the inside gate, one rod, and then he measured the vestibule of the gateway, eight cubits in the gate post, two cubits. The vestibule of the gate was on the inside. In the eastern gateway were three gate chambers on one side and three on the other. The three were all the same size. Also, the gate posts were of the same size on this side and on that side. He measured the width of the entrance to the gateway, 10 cubits, and the length of the gate, 13 cubits. There was a space in front of the gate chambers, one cubit on this side and one cubit on that side. The gate chambers were six cubits on this side and six cubits on that side. And he measured the gateway from the roof of one gate chamber to the roof of the other. The width was 25 cubits as door faces door. He measured the gate post, 60 cubits high, and the court all around the gateway extending to the gate post. From the front of the entrance gate to the front of the vestibule of the inner gate was 50 cubits. There were beveled window frames in the gate chambers and in their intervening archways on the inside of the gateway all around and likewise in the vestibules. There were windows all around on the inside and On each gatepost were palm trees. Then he brought me into the outer court. And there were chambers and a pavement made all around the court. Thirty chambers faced the pavement. The pavement was by the side of the gateways, corresponding to the length of the gateways. This was the lower pavement. Then he measured the width from the front of the lower gateway to the front of the inner court exterior, 100 cubits toward the east and the north. Now on the outer court was also a gateway facing north, and he measured its length and its width. Its gate chambers, three on this side and three on that side, its gateposts and its archways had the same measurements as the first gate. Its length was 50 cubits, its width 25 cubits, its windows and those of its archways and also its palm trees had the same measurement as the gateway facing east. It was ascended by seven steps, and its archway was in front of it. A gate of the inner court was opposite the northern gateway, just as in the eastern gateway, and he measured from gateway to gateway 100 cubits. After that, he brought me toward the south, and there was a gateway, which was facing south. He measured its gates, posts, and archways according to these same measurements. There were windows in it, and in its archways, all around like those windows, Its length was 50 cubits, and its width 25 cubits. Seven steps led up to it, and its archway was in front of them, and it had palm trees on its gateposts, one on this side and one on that side. There was also a gateway on the inner court facing south, and he measured from gateway to gateway toward the south 100 cubits. Then he brought me to the inner court through the southern gateway and he measured this southern gateway according to these same measurements Also, it's gate chambers. It's gate post its archways were according to these same measurements There were windows in it and its archways were all around. It was 50 cubits long and 25 cubits wide There were archways all around 25 cubits long and 5 cubits wide its archways face the outer court palm trees were on its gate post and going up to it were eight steps and And he brought me into the inner court facing east. He measured the gateway according to these same measurements. Also its gate chambers, its gate posts, its archways were according to these same measurements and there were windows in it. It was 50 cubits long and 25 cubits wide. Its archways faced the outer court and palm trees were on its gate posts on this side and on that side and going up to it were eight steps. Then he brought me to the north gateway, and measured it according to these same measurements. Also its gate chambers, its gateposts, its archways, its windows, all around, its length was fifty cubits, its width twenty-five cubits. Its gateposts faced outer court. Palm trees were on its gateposts, on this side and on that side, and going up to it were eight steps. There was a chamber in its entrance by the gateposts of the gateway, where they washed the burnt offering. In the vestibule of the gateway were two tables on this side, and two tables on that side, on which to slay the burnt offering, the sin offering, the trespass offering. At the outer side of the vestibule, as one goes up to the entrance of the northern gateway, were two tables. And on the other side of the vestibule of the gateway were two tables. Four tables were on this side, and four tables were on that side, by the side of the gateway. Eight tables on which they slaughtered the sacrifices. There were also four tables of hewn stone for the burnt offering. One cubit and a half long, one cubit and a half wide, one cubit high. On these they laid the instruments with which they slaughtered the burnt offering and the sacrifice. Inside were hooks, a hand with breath wide fastened all around in the flesh of the sacrifices were on the table outside the inner gate were the chambers for the singers in the inner court one facing south at the side of the northern gateway and the other facing north at the side of the southern gateway and he said to me this chamber which faces south is for the priest who have charge of the temple the chamber which faces north is for the priest who have charge of the altar these are the sons of Zadok from the Sons of Levi who come near the Lord to minister to him and he measured the court 100 cubits long 100 cubits wide 4 square the altar was in front of the temple Then he brought me to the vestibule of the temple and measured the doorposts of the vestibule 5 cubits on this side 5 cubits on that side and the width of the gateway was 3 cubits on this side and 3 cubits on that side the length of the vestibule was 20 cubits and the width 7 cubits and by the steps which led up to it there were pillars by the doorposts one on this side and another on that And we could keep reading, but I want to you to think as you read that or heard it read for you. What were you thinking? Were you thinking that's gobbledygook? That's nonsense. That doesn't make a lick of sense. Or were you saying, I maybe can't picture it, but I'll tell you, it's all measured out and detailed, functional, very real descriptions of a very real place, which came to your mind as you read it. Gobbledygook were detailed instruction about a very specific building with very specific dimensions, very specific purpose, very specific directions, very specific everything. I suspect that although you couldn't picture it in your mind as we were reading it because it was going too fast and north and south and 25 cubits and 50 and you're trying to measure it all up. You had to conclude this is a description that is very detailed, more detailed than I need. Just tell me it's a temple. That's good enough for me, Lord. You didn't have to tell me how many cubits it was and how wide it was and how big it was and all that stuff. I just trust you. So the question is, why go into all this detail about a temple? And what is he talking about? Well, as you read chapter 40, you recognize that he's talking about the temple complex. the outer court, then he has the inner court. If you take the time to read chapter 40, you would find that it is a description of the temple complex. It tells you exactly how big it is, how wide it is, it's four square, how tall the walls are, how thick they are, where the gates are, where the steps are, where the chambers are, the priest chambers are, where the outer court is, where the inner court is, and all the details of it. And we could just read through it if you'd like tonight, and we could just show you how everything fits. And if you add up all the dimensions, if you're an architect or an engineer and you've got to figure all this stuff out, you realize everything fits perfectly. And it looks just like that. In fact, if you read Ezekiel chapter 40, you can draw the blueprint. You could build that building. You could put it together. Well, chapter 40 talks about this temple complex, the outer courts. When you go to chapter 41, by the way, as you read it, did it sound familiar to anything you've ever read before? You know, it kind of sounded familiar, kind of sounded like temples you've heard about before. And yet, if you take the time to add up all those numbers, you realize there's something missing that was in the early temples. And you find that the dimensions are all different. So whatever he is describing has different objects in it, has different dimensions in it. And although there is a similarity to previous temples, something about it is unique and different. So chapter 40 is the temple complex or the temple court. But in chapter 41, which we won't read, you move into the temple sanctuary. And if you took the time to read it all, you would find that you could draw it. And if you had the right materials, you could go out and build this thing. Now here's just a few things that you would find as you read chapter 41. Then he brought me into the sanctuary and measured the doorposts, six cubits and six cubits on the other side and etc. In verse 2 it talks about 40 cubits by 20 cubits and he says that's the holy place. There's a holy place that's 40 by 20. Then he will say in verse 3 there's the holy of holies or the most holy place and that's 20 by 20 cubits. If you'd read through it, you'd recognize that it's very detailed, very specific. There is an entrance into this, up some steps. You have to come up some steps. There's a porch out here. The walls are very, very thick. There's a holy place, a holy of holy place. And you'd recognize that all around it are some side chambers, and he tells you exactly what they're supposed to be used for. And he tells you all about the pillars out front. And you can draw it. You can build it. It's called the sanctuary one of the things that's interesting about it these side chambers There are 30 of them. It tells us around there very specific and they are three stories high So this is a tall building And what is really interesting about it is that as you go up, they go out. He tells you all about the furnishings in chapter 41. And chapter 41 is just a record of the temple sanctuary. Now go to chapter 42. In chapter 42, you move on to another aspect of the temple. In chapter 42, then he brought me out into the outer court by the way. Toward the broth and he brought me into the chamber which was opposite the separating court and which was opposite the building toward the north Facing the length which was 100 cubits. The width was 50 cubits was the north door. Oh, by the way Did anything jump out at you as you read about these things as far as directions? Everything is facing east The Jewish people are an easterly-oriented people. You and I are northerly-oriented people, but every Jewish map that you will ever see, east is up. In fact, the word east means in front of you. The word west for a Jew is just the word behind you, and the word south is the same as your right hand, and the word north is the same as your left hand, because everything they do is easterly-oriented. Well, that's just a sidelight. Let's read chapter 42. You recognize that as you go through that, he's going to describe the separating courtyard. And if you took the time to read through down through verse 14, let's just pick up verse 13. Then he said to me, the north chambers and the south chambers opposite the separating courtyard of the holy chambers where the priest who approached the Lord shall eat the most holy offerings. There they shall lay the most holy offerings, the grain offering, the sin offering, and the trespass offering, for the place is holy. When the priests enter them, they shall not go out of the holy chamber into the outer courts, but there they shall leave their garments in which they minister, for they are holy. They shall put on other garments, then they may approach that which is for the people." So you recognize one of the things that's going on in this whole description of the temple is not only you could draw this building and you actually could build this building, you know how high, wide, and whatever, you also know it has a very real purpose. And all the steps keep coming up. The outer court is this big and then the inner court is this big. Everything's moving in and everything's moving you toward the holy place. And there is these separating courts that separate the priest when they just come in and they got to take off their clothes and change their clothes and get ready. When they go meet the Lord, when they go do what they're supposed to do for the Lord, they better be prepared and ready and not just cruise in with their old clothes on. And so you have these separating courts. And in chapter 42, you have the temple approach, how they would approach. God as priest that's verse 1 through 14 and verse 15 down to verse 20 20 of chapter 42 how the people approach The temple and you could read about it verse 15 now when he had finished measuring the inner temple He brought me out to the gateway that faces toward the east and measured it all around and he measured the east side with the measuring and it was 500 rods By the measuring rod all around now if a rod is 10 foot 6 inches and you have 500 of them How big is that? One mile, about. That's a big area. And this temple, in the middle of it, has not only a separating court for the priests. When they come, they go into their outer chambers, and they get all ready and do all the right things, and then they go through this separating courtyard to do what they're supposed to do in the holy place. But the people who would come to the temple have this big courtyard all around their court. It's a mile by a mile. And you will notice it says in verse 20, he measured it in the four sides. It had a wall all around 500 cubits long and 500 wides to separate the holy areas from the common. And everything tells you this is a very special place of God. It is very holy. And when you approach it, there's this whole area you got to walk through, which separates common from holy to prepare yourself. There will be an altar at the door, tells you about sin and sacrifice, and then you can move in. So chapter 42 just talks about the temple approach, and you can read all about it. Now when you go to chapter 43, you see that he's going to move into the temple purpose. We'll just read a little bit about it. The glory of the God of Israel came from the way of the East. His voice was like the sound of many waters, and the earth shone with His glory. It was like the appearance of the vision which I saw, like the vision which I saw when I came to destroy the city. The visions were like the vision which I saw by the river Shabar, and I fell on my face, and the glory of the Lord came into the temple by way of the gate which faces toward the East. The Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court. And behold, the glory of the Lord filled the temple. And then I heard Him speaking to me from the temple, while a man stood beside me. And he said to me, Son of man, this is the place of my throne, the place of the soles of my feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the people, or the children of Israel, forever. No more shall the house of Israel defile my holy name. They nor their kings by their harlotry or with the carcasses of their kings on their high places." And as you read through that, you recognize he's going to say again and again and again, there's a purpose for all of this. The purpose is not just for the people. It's where the Lord's going to reside. He's going to say, that's where I'm going to dwell. That's where I'm going to live. And you and I have studied this before from Genesis to Revelation. God has just had one great desire of his heart and that's to live with his people. He's just always wanted to live with his people. He always wants to live in the middle of his people. He always wants to be the focus of people's lives. And God says, you know, when this is done, the glory of the Lord is going to move in. The Shekinah glory is going to move in and I'm going to live there. He said, I will reside there. And He said, this is where my throne is going to be. This is where I'm going to reign. And so as you read through the first 12 verses, chapter 43, the purpose is this, that the Lord will reside there and He will reign there. And then you go to chapter 43 in verse 13, and he gives some more measurements and whatever. And finally, he talks about the altar. And he says, finally, in verse 15, the altar hearth is four cubits high with four horns extending upward. And the altar hearth is 12 cubits long, verse 16, et cetera, et cetera. And he said to me, verse 18, Son of man, thus is the Lord God. These are the ordinances for the altar on the day when it is made for sacrificing burnt offerings on it and for the sprinkling of blood. It you shall give a young bull for a sin offering to the priest and the Levites who are of the seed of Zadok who approached me to minister to me says the Lord and you can read down through it and he gives very specific instructions on about an altar about Sacrifices how they're supposed to do it when they're supposed to do who's supposed to do it all those kinds of things And he says, you know, the purpose of this temple is for the Lord's residence is for the Lord's reign and is for the Lord's remembrance and So when you put that all together And you read chapter 40 through chapter 43. What's it all about? What is this temple? And when is this temple? And why is this temple? And why all the detail? Well, I'll just give you some of the options. Some people have read this and said, well, Ezekiel, he was ministering this 14 years after Solomon's temple was destroyed. He's ministering to exile people. They're very discouraged. They want to give up on God's program. So what Ezekiel is doing is he is describing Solomon's temple. And he is saying people remember what God built under Solomon. You are not a defeated people, even though the temple is gone. This is what the temple of God looked like under Solomon. Now that makes a lot of logical sense. There's a few problems with that. What would they be? Well, it's the wrong size. It's the wrong shape. It doesn't have some of the articles in it that Solomon's temple had in it. It has some articles in it that Solomon's temple did not have in it. Although there are similarities, there's a holy place and a holy holies, and there are courts and labors and some of those things, it is so much missing. It is so different in size. It is so different in height and width and everything else. Why would he be so detailed in describing Solomon's temple and then get it all wrong? especially when he's writing under the inspiration of God. So it's tough to understand, at least from my perspective, that he's just describing Solomon's temple. Others have said, no, he's not describing Solomon's temple. You remember in 586, Solomon's temple was totally destroyed. But God said 70 years are determined for Israel in exile, and then they will return. And you remember that under Zerubbabel, they went back and rebuilt the temple of God. This was future for Ezekiel at this point, because this is only 14 years after the destruction of the temple. But some have said, you know, he's not describing Solomon's temple. He's describing Zerubbabel's temple. He is giving the dimensions of the temple that the exiles are supposed to build when they go back in about 56 years. The problem with that is, again, the size, the shape, and everything about it. If this is what they were supposed to build, they didn't do it. If this is what God says through Ezekiel, when you guys go back, you build this temple, this big, this wide, this tall, whatever, then under Zerubbabel, they disobeyed God and they did not do it because it does not match this at all. In fact, in Ezra chapter four, you remember that when they had laid out the foundations for this Zerubbabel's temple, the people who were older, who had seen Solomon's temple, did what? They just cried their eyes out. They said, this is a great temple, but it's nothing compared to Solomon's. It doesn't hold a candle to what Solomon had. And so, some have said it's Solomon's temple, and some have said it's Zerubbabel's temple. There's another option. There are those who say, well, it doesn't fit anything. And when it doesn't fit anything, then what do you do? Well, you punt. You know, you just go into allegorical. And so they just said it's just allegorical. It's a nice story. It makes you feel nice. And Ezekiel was trying to encourage his people. And when you're all done, you think, wow, God's got a temple and that's a nice thing. And you just end up nowhere. There are those who take a fourth view, and they say it is symbolic, it's not allegorical. By the way, there's nothing wrong with allegory, and there's allegory in the Bible, but any allegory that you've ever read in literature has some context by which you understand what the allegory is. And there is no context for Ezekiel 40-43 that says, you know, I think that's trying to picture whatever. So some have taken it allegorically, the others have taken it symbolically, and they say it symbolizes the church of Jesus Christ. Here's a few quotes, if I could read it. It represents the Lord's provision for the dwelling in the midst of his people in the new age called the church. According to his promises already given in the closing chapters of Ezekiel chapter 37, as the old temple was an embodied representation of God's relationship to Israel under the old dispensation. So the new temple of Ezekiel 40 through 43 is a vision of a symbolic representation of God's relationship to the new Israel, which is the church who are redeemed and restored. That's from Nick Nichols Bible survey. And so as you read through chapter 40, 41 and 42, you have a symbolic description of the church of Jesus Christ. You caught that the first time you read that, right? It just made sense. That's the church. I can see it. You know, the 30 cubits makes sense to me, doesn't it, you? And a hundred cubits, I mean, I know exactly what that means. Here's another one. Not that we are to expect any of the details themselves given in Ezekiel to ever really be taking place. But the general truths represented by these details are now already realized in the Church of Jesus Christ. That's F.E. Hamilton in his work entitled The Basis of the Millennial Faith. Ellicott in his great commentary great excellent commentary, but like all people we were not perfect So he wasn't perfect. He wrote this the whole passage differs so much from anything in the past that it cannot possibly Have any historical significance its character must therefore have been prophetic and symbolic as a representation of the church age to come The prophets seem to be looking forward in time to a time when these outward symbols will be forgotten in the higher spiritual presence of the Lord Jesus Christ and His Church. And commentary after commentary would read Ezekiel 40-43, be able to draw it all out and say that's all symbolic of the Church of Jesus Christ. And many, many people, that's probably the majority view of Christianity today, that's what Ezekiel 40-43 is all about. But there's one last view that might be true. That it could just be a literal description of a real place that is future, not only in Ezekiel's day, but still has not been fulfilled. Now the Jews to some extent believe that to this day, and they use Ezekiel, but they don't have a concept of Christ as we do, and so they are going to rebuild it themselves, and they're getting the red heifer and everything else, and they have a great plan as a Jewish people to redo this thing. Unfortunately, as great as their plans may be, and God will ultimately use them, as they are planning it right now, it probably is not going to happen. And their plans are not the same as Ezekiel 40-43. They don't have it that big. One of the great problems of Ezekiel 40-43, it's too big. It does not fit in Jerusalem. If you look at Temple Mount today, there's the Kidron Valley and all these valleys around. There is no place that's a mile by a mile flat. Doesn't fit Jerusalem today at all. So the Jews have a view of it, but the dispensationalists, which I assume you are and I am, would also take it to be a very real description of a very real place that will be built someday in the future. Here's Paul Tan's description. The location of the Millennial Temple is not within the city of Jerusalem, but north of the city in the midst of the Hod Ablation, i.e. a portion of the land dedicated to Jehovah, according to Ezekiel 45, and we'll read that next week. It's really in a little different place. It's a different size. Everything about it is different than the temples that have been built. The temple will be a square lot containing portions for the priests, the Levites, and the city. For the temple proper at the center of this square upon a very high mountain is supernaturally raised for this purpose according to Isaiah chapter 2 and Zechariah chapter 14. It talks about the whole landscape will be changed at the return of Jesus Christ. The world will look up to this place as the heart and hub of the millennial earth. In fact, this is what it says in Ezekiel chapter 43 and verse 11. Remember early on he said, Ezekiel, you write this all down because I want you to declare it to Israel. I want you to tell them all these details, how wide, how tall, how big, how whatever. Ezekiel 43 verse 11, And if they are ashamed of all that they have done, remember he's been talking about Israel who under their kings had played the harlots. And he says, you know, there's coming a day when this land is going to be restored and we're going to build a real temple. I mean our real temple. And we're going to worship God And if they are ashamed of all that they have done, make known to them the design of the temple, its arrangements, its exits, its entrances, its entire design, all of its ordinances, all of its forms and all of its laws. Write it down in their sight so that they may keep its whole design and all of its ordinance and perform them. He says, this is why I want you to write it, Ezekiel, because I want God's people, the day that they realize the sin of their past, the day they repent and turn to me, they will have a detailed plan of exactly what I want built, exactly what I want done, exactly how I want everything performed. Now, why would people not accept the messianic view? Well, there are at least three reasons. There's one that they raise all the time, but let's look at some of the objections that are raised. Number one, it's style. And the basic, as we read there of Ellicott and others, it really doesn't fit anything we have known about temples. And since it doesn't fit anything in the past, It can't be descriptive of anything in the future, and its style is inconsistent with temples in the past, therefore it cannot be literally fulfilled. It must be symbolically fulfilled. So the style doesn't match. In fact, we could quote Ellicott, the whole passage differs so much from anything in the past that it does not allow for a moment that you suppose it would be a historically fulfilled temple. It therefore must be symbolic. It can be nothing else. There's another objection, and that's its size. It just doesn't fit. 500 rods by 500 rods, when a rod is 10 foot 6 inches, it does not fit. And since it does not fit, therefore it cannot fit, therefore it cannot be. And of course, we recognize, you have read Zechariah chapter 14, verse 10, Isaiah chapter 2. When the Lord returns, He's going to kind of radically redo the landscape of what we know of as Jerusalem. And if you take the radically redesigned Jerusalem at the return of Jesus Christ, a temple like this would fit alright. because the mountains will be knocked flat and the valleys will be filled in, we are told in Isaiah. And God can just level it and make it that. But the main reason people say this could not be something in the future is because of the sacrifices. They would say, if you read Hebrews, it says, we are not supposed to sacrifice anymore, are we? The reason God doesn't want you and me to be killing lambs out here every Sunday morning, bringing them in and doing sacrifices, is because Christ, once for all, paid the penalty for sin. And it would be objectionable to God that you and I think that we have to keep killing lambs and keep killing lambs when Christ once for all paid the penalty for sin. And since you and I are toad in the book of Hebrews, he doesn't want us anymore to sacrifice lambs because Christ paid it all once for all, never to be redone. Therefore, the description of the temple cannot be true because the description of the temple contains references to sacrifices. and killing lambs. And we know from Hebrews God does not want us to do that. And what do you say? They gotcha. Right? You know the answer to it is so simple. The author of Hebrews also said this. He said, all the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer never once took care of sin. So every sacrifice that was done in the Old Testament never once really took care of sin. Every sacrifice of the Old Testament was looking forward to the Lamb of God who would take away the sins of the world. So those Old Testament sacrifices, they didn't pay for sin either. Now in the church age, we don't have to do sacrifices because Christ once for all has paid the penalty. We know the Lamb of God. But what would be wrong in the future if God says, you know, I would like you to remember what the Lamb of God did back there. And so I'd like you to sacrifice lambs again. Not because the sacrifice of lambs is going to pay for your sin, but because it will remind you of what Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, did back here. So there's a sense in which you look at it this way. Before Christ came, all the sacrifices looked forward to, reminded the people, there's coming a lamb, he's coming, he's coming, he's coming, he's going to take care of your sins. But in the future, in the millennial age, There will be the renewal of a sacrificial system and as you read it, it is actually different than the sacrificial system That's Old Testament Slightly different same lambs and all that kind of stuff is slightly different and it says you know what in the new millennial age? I want you people to do not communion. That's a church age thing I want you to do sacrifices so that you will remember the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world and The great objections and sacrifices don't fit really doesn't seem to me to be a an objection at all God always has sinned. No sacrifices ever took care of sin except one, Jesus Christ. So when you put that all together, I suspect that there will be various views of Christians throughout the ages, but I have no reason why you just don't say, you know, this is going to happen. This is going to be a great day for Israel when they repent, are ashamed of the sin that they have done. Look to the Lord. God says, here, I want you to worship me again. Build me a temple. What a day that will be.