Immerse: Prophets - Flipbook - Page 405
46:19–47:12
E ze k iel
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gives property to his sons, it must be from his own land, for I do not want
any of my people unjustly evicted from their property.”
In my vision, the man brought me through the entrance beside the gate
way and led me to the sacred rooms assigned to the priests, which faced
toward the north. He showed me a place at the extreme west end of these
rooms. He explained, “This is where the priests will cook the meat from
the guilt offerings and sin offerings and bake the flour from the grain offer
ings into bread. They will do it here to avoid carrying the sacrifices through
the outer courtyard and endangering the people by transmitting holiness
to them.”
Then he brought me back to the outer courtyard and led me to each of
its four corners. In each corner I saw an enclosure. Each of these enclosures
was 70 feet long and 521/2 feet wide, surrounded by walls. Along the inside
of these walls was a ledge of stone with fireplaces under the ledge all the
way around. The man said to me, “These are the kitchens to be used by the
Temple assistants to boil the sacrifices offered by the people.”
In my vision, the man brought me back to the entrance of the Temple.
There I saw a stream flowing east from beneath the door of the Temple
and passing to the right of the altar on its south side. The man brought me
outside the wall through the north gateway and led me around to the east
ern entrance. There I could see the water flowing out through the south
side of the east gateway.
Measuring as he went, he took me along the stream for 1,750 feet and
then led me across. The water was up to my ankles. He measured off an
other 1,750 feet and led me across again. This time the water was up to my
knees. After another 1,750 feet, it was up to my waist. Then he measured
another 1,750 feet, and the river was too deep to walk across. It was deep
enough to swim in, but too deep to walk through.
He asked me, “Have you been watching, son of man?” Then he led me
back along the riverbank. When I returned, I was surprised by the sight of
many trees growing on both sides of the river. Then he said to me, “This
river flows east through the desert into the valley of the Dead Sea. The
waters of this stream will make the salty waters of the Dead Sea fresh and
pure. There will be swarms of living things wherever the water of this river
flows. Fish will abound in the Dead Sea, for its waters will become fresh.
Life will flourish wherever this water flows. Fishermen will stand along
the shores of the Dead Sea. All the way from En-gedi to En-eglaim, the
shores will be covered with nets drying in the sun. Fish of every kind will
fill the Dead Sea, just as they fill the Mediterranean. But the marshes and
swamps will not be purified; they will still be salty. Fruit trees of all kinds
