17. The river (Ezekiel 47:1-12)

After Ezekiel had seen the glory of God fill the temple, he was taken back to the door of the temple, where he saw a most unusual feature: “Afterward he brought me again unto the door of the house; and, behold, waters issued out from under the threshold of the house eastward: for the forefront of the house stood toward the east, and the waters came down from under from the right side of the house, at the south side of the altar” . 1

Ezekiel was then taken out of the sanctuary through the north gate, and he walked round to the east gate of the outward court (he could not leave the sanctuary through the east gate, because the east gate was kept shut ). There he 2

saw the waters leaving the sanctuary, on the right side of the gate, that is, the south side: “Then brought he me out of the way of the gate northward, and led me about the way without unto the utter gate by the way that looketh eastward; and, behold, there ran out waters on the right side” . 3

The man with the measuring reed then measured four distances of 1,000, 2,000, 3,000 and 4,000 cubits. At each point, Ezekiel tested the depth of the river. At the first thousand cubits, the waters were ankle deep. At the second thousand, they were knee deep. At the third thousand they were loin deep. At the fourth thousand, the waters were so deep that Ezekiel could not pass through them: “Afterward he measured a thousand; and it was a river that I could not pass over: for the waters were risen, waters to swim in, a river that could not be passed over” . 4

Ezekiel 47:11

Ezekiel 44:1,22

Ezekiel 47:23

Ezekiel 47:54

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Literal or figurative? A very similar vision was shown to the apostle John, when he saw the visions of the Apocalypse: “And he shewed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations” . The correspondences between the two 5

visions are most striking, illustrated in the table below:

The Apocalypse is a book of sign and symbol. This raises the question as to whether the river that Ezekiel saw is to be understood literally at all. Could it be that we are intended to understand Ezekiel’s vision symbolically, in much the same way that the book of Revelation is interpreted symbolically? In reality, there is no reason why it cannot be both. There is sufficient information given to us by Ezekiel and the other prophets to enable us to conclude with confidence that there will be a literal river emerging from the sanctuary in the Age to come. But we shall see that there is undoubtedly also a symbolic meaning to Ezekiel’s vision.

Revelation 22:1,25

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The river of water of lifeRevelation 22 Ezekiel 47

“A pure river of water…” (v1) “A river” (v5)

“…of life” (v1) “Whithersoever the river shall come, shall live” (v9)

“Proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb” (v1)

“Waters issued out from under the threshold of the house eastward” (v1)

“On either side of the river” (v2) “By the river upon the bank thereof, on this side and on that side” (v12)

“The tree of life” (v2) “Shall grow all trees for meat” (v12)

“Which bore twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month” (v2)

“It shall bring forth new fruit according to his months” (12)

“And the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations” (v2)

“And the leaf thereof for medicine” (v12)

Geographic features The man with the measuring reed tells Ezekiel exactly where the river goes, once it leaves the sanctuary: “Then said he unto me, These waters issue out toward the east country, and go down into the desert, and go into the sea: which being brought forth into the sea, the waters shall be healed” . 6

1) The east country The word translated “country” means a coast, or a border . The same word is 7

used in Joshua 22:10,11 to denote the river Jordan: “And when they came unto the borders of Jordan, that are in the land of Canaan, the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh built there an altar by Jordan, a great altar to see to. And the children of Israel heard say, Behold, the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh have built an altar over against the land of Canaan, in the borders of Jordan, at the passage of the children of Israel”. 2) The desert

The waters issue forth towards the east border, and then go down “into the desert”. The Hebrew word means a plain. It is used in Deuteronomy 3:17 of the 8

region at the top of the Dead Sea, where the river Jordan flows into the sea: “The plain also, and Jordan, and the coast thereof, from Chinnereth even unto the sea of the plain, even the salt sea, under Ashdoth-pisgah eastward”. We thus conclude that the river will empty into the top of the Dead Sea, where the river Jordan terminates. This is confirmed by Joel and Zechariah, who also mention this new river that is to be formed:

Joel 3:18 “And it shall come to pass in that day, that the mountains shall drop down new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters, and a fountain shall come forth of the house of the LORD, and shall water the valley of Shittim”.

Ezekiel 47:86

Heb. hlylg - gelilah7

Heb. hbre - arabah8

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Zechariah 14:8

“And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; half of them toward the former sea, and half of them toward the hinder sea: in summer and in winter shall it be”.

Zechariah gives us the additional information that at some point in its course the river will divide into two. One part will empty into the Dead Sea, and the other part will empty into the Mediterranean Sea. This is also implied in Ezekiel 47:9:

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The fountain that will issue from the house

“And it shall come to pass, that every thing that liveth, which moveth, whithersoever the rivers (AV margin ‘two rivers’) shall come, shall live: and there shall be a very great multitude of fish, because these waters shall come thither: for they shall be healed; and every thing shall live whither the river cometh”.

The great earthquake Clearly the whole topography of the land will be changed in the Age to come. This will come about as a result of the great earthquake that will split the Mount of Olives in two. Zechariah tells us that “the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south” . There will thus be formed a great rift valley, running 9

east to west, through which the river will flow to reach the valley of Shittim, and to heal the waters of the Dead Sea. Not all the Dead Sea is to be healed, as the prophet was told by the angel with the measuring reed: “And it shall come to pass, that the fishers shall stand upon it from En-gedi even unto En-eglaim; they shall be a place to spread forth nets; their fish shall be according to their kinds, as the fish of the great sea, exceeding many. But the miry places thereof and the marishes thereof shall not be healed; they shall be given to salt” . En-gedi is situated on the west coast of the Dead 10

Sea, about half way up. We cannot be certain where En-eglaim is, but Keil & Delitzsch suggest that it corresponds to modern Ain-el-feshkah, which is situated near the mouth of the Dead Sea, on the north . If this is the case, then we can 11

conclude that the waters of the Dead Sea from En-gedi northwards will be healed, whereas the area south of En-gedi will be “given to salt”.

The Trees Concerning the trees on the banks of the river, Ezekiel was told: “And by the river upon the bank thereof, on this side and on that side, shall grow all trees for

Zechariah 14:49

Ezekiel 47:10,1110

“From the statement of Jerome, ‘Engallim is at the beginning of the Dead Sea, where the 11

Jordan enters it’, it has been conjectured that it is to be found in Ain el-Feshkhah, a spring at the northern end of the west coast, where there are also ruins of a small square tower and other buildings to be seen… as none of the other springs on the west coast, of which there are but few, answer so well as this”. Commentary on the Old Testament, C F Keil & F Delitzsch, Volume 9, page 356,357

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meat, whose leaf shall not fade, neither shall the fruit thereof be consumed: it shall bring forth new fruit according to his months, because their waters they issued out of the sanctuary: and the fruit thereof shall be for meat, and the leaf thereof for medicine” . There is a striking similarity between this and the 12

description of Eden in Genesis chapter 2: “And out of the ground made the LORD God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil. And a river went out of Eden to water the garden; and from thence it was parted, and became into four heads” . In the Age to come, the land of Israel - 13

the land of the Kingdom of God - is going to become like the garden of Eden for beauty. Ezekiel himself tells us so: “And the desolate land shall be tilled, whereas it lay desolate in the sight of all that passed by. And they shall say, This land that was desolate is become like the garden of Eden; and the waste and desolate and ruined cities are become fenced, and are inhabited” . 14

Symbolic meaning It is clear that the vision of the river also has a symbolic meaning, not only because of its use in the Apocalypse, but also because the waters that Ezekiel saw issuing out of the sanctuary had healing properties. They brought life into the Dead Sea. Hence Zechariah describes them as “living waters”. 1) The living waters

Jesus himself provides the interpretation of these “living waters” in John 7: “In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe on him should receive: for the Holy Spirit was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)” . The Spirit was poured out 15

upon the apostles on the day of Pentecost, and by it men and women received wisdom and knowledge in the things concerning the Kingdom of God. Since the withdrawal of the gifts, the work of the Spirit has continued through the written Word.

Ezekiel 47:1212

Genesis 2:9,1013

Ezekiel 36:34,3514

John 7:37-3915

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In the Kingdom of God the Spirit gifts will again be poured out upon the followers of Jesus in even greater measure than they were before - the gifts of the Spirit are in fact called “the powers of the world to come” . They will then be 16

used once more to teach and to instruct all nations in the ways of God. By means of the Spirit, the law will go forth from Zion, “and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem” . 17

This is what is represented by the river that goes forth from the sanctuary. Just as the river that Ezekiel saw will literally bring life to the Dead Sea, so the work of the Spirit in the Kingdom will result in bringing to life those who at present are wicked, “like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt” ; “dead in trespasses and sins” . 18 19

The Spirit worked in the first century through the agency of the apostles. During the Millennium it will be mediated through Christ and the saints. The words of their mouth will be “as deep waters, and the wellspring of wisdom as a flowing brook” ; and through the refreshing truth of the Gospel that they 20

preach, the mortal inhabitants of the Kingdom of God will be invited to “come to the waters” , and enter into covenant relationship with the God of heaven 21

and earth, who is Himself described by the prophet Jeremiah as “the fountain of living waters” . 22

The waters that Ezekiel saw had life-giving properties, because those that partake of them will ultimately be healed of their mortality at the end of the Millennium. The waters of saving truth will indeed be in them “a well of water springing up into everlasting life” . 23

The saints, then, will be instrumental in teaching the mortal population of the Kingdom God’s laws. The mortal population will have to respond to that teaching, in order to be saved. They will have to believe and be baptized for the remission of their sins, and walk in newness of life. This lesson will be impressed

Hebrews 6:516

Isaiah 2:317

Isaiah 57:2018

Ephesians 2:119

Proverbs 18:420

Isaiah 55:121

Jeremiah 17:1322

John 4:1423

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upon them every time they go up to the temple to worship, because when they enter the sanctuary, they will have to go through the river before they leave. This is clear from Ezekiel 46:9: “But when the people of the land shall come before the LORD in the solemn feasts, he that entereth in by the way of the north gate to worship shall go out by the way of the south gate; and he that entereth by the way of the south gate shall go forth by the way of the north gate: he shall not return by the way of the gate whereby he came in, but shall go forth over against it”. The only way this will be done is by passing through the waters of the river, as illustrated by the diagram below. The people will thus be taught the importance of baptism, to wash away their sins, and also the importance of the continual, daily “washing of water by the word” , which must take place if a man is to be saved. 24

Ephesians 5:2624

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The river

2) The trees

In the Kingdom, the work of the Spirit will be mediated through Christ and the saints, and they are represented in the vision by the trees, which bring forth fruit every month, and whose leaves provide healing medicine. Observe the similarity between the trees that Ezekiel saw, and the description of the righteous in Psalm 1: “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful… he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bright forth his fruit in his season: his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper” . Whilst in the first 25

instance the Psalm speaks about “the man Christ Jesus”, by extension it also has application to the corporate body of Christ. Jeremiah had similar words to say concerning “the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit” . 26

3) Whose leaf shall not fade

The leaves of the tree are singled out for special comment: “Whose leaf shall not fade ”. Concerning those whose trust is placed in God, Jeremiah remarked that 27

“her leaf shall be green”, and the Psalmist that “his leaf also shall not wither (lbn)”. By this we understand the Spirit to mean that those represented by the leaves never die. They are evergreen. They have been made “partakers of the divine nature” , and their “vile bodies” have been changed, and “fashioned like 28

unto his glorious body” . Whilst at one time they were mortal, they are now no 29

longer, but have “put on immortality” , and they are able to offer this hope of 30

immortality to those of the nations who will respond to their teaching. They stand in stark contrast to the wicked, who are portrayed by the prophet Isaiah as “an oak whose leaf fadeth (lbn), and as a garden that hath no water” . 31

Psalm 1:1-325

Jeremiah 17:826

Heb. lbn - nabel. To fade, wear away, wither, fall off. See Psalm 18:45; 37:2; Isaiah 28:1,4; 27

34:4; 40:7,8; 64:6

2 Peter 1:428

Philippians 3:2129

1 Corinthians 15:5330

Isaiah 1:3031

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4) New fruit according to his months

The fruit-providing nature of the trees is emphasized in the vision that Ezekiel saw. In fact, Ezekiel observed a peculiarity about the trees in that they brought forth “new fruit according to his months” . The implication of this is that the 32

trees bring forth fruit every month of the year, and this is confirmed by the apocalyptic vision that John saw: “In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life, which bare twelve manner of fruits, and yielded her fruit every month: and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations” . By this means, the Israelitish nature of the symbolic trees is 33

highlighted. The trees represent the aggregate of the saints who, whilst coming out of “every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation”, are all “of Israel” by virtue of their being Jews “inwardly” , having embraced “the hope of 34

Israel” , and having been circumcised with “the circumcision of Christ” . 35 36

The fruit provided by this glorious multitude is “the fruit of the Spirit”, which is “love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance” . By displaying such attributes the saints will encourage the mortal 37

population of the Kingdom to do the same.

5) The leaf thereof for medicine Not only do the leaves of the trees “not fade”, they also have medicinal properties: “And the leaf thereof for medicine” . The Hebrew word is hpwrt - 38

teruphah, derived from hpr - raphah, meaning to heal, or cure. Having themselves received the healing of immortality, the saints will have the privilege of preaching the word of salvation firstly to the nation of Israel, and then by extension to all nations of the earth. When God first delivered Israel out of Egypt, He said to them, “If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon

Ezekiel 47:1232

Revelation 22:233

Romans 2:2934

Acts 28:2035

Colossians 2:1136

Galatians 5:22,2337

Ezekiel 47:1238

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the Egyptians: for I am the LORD that healeth thee” . Because of their rebellion, 39 40

the carcases of the children of Israel fell in the wilderness, and they were not permitted to enter into the promised land. But in the Age to come Israel will be encouraged to turn to God in faith. They will come to accept that healing is available to them through the Messiah whom they crucified: “But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed (hpr)” . They will embark upon a period of great national repentance, when 41

they will say, “Come, and let us return unto the LORD: for he hath torn, and he will heal (hpr) us: he hath smitten, and he will bind us up” . Having repented of 42

all their sins, God will extend His salvation to them: “For I will restore health unto thee, and I will heal thee (hpr) of thy wounds, saith the LORD; because they call thee an Outcast, saying, This is Zion, whom no man seeketh after” . Isaiah 43

speaks of this wonderful time to come when the nation of Israel will be healed of its spiritual sickness: “Strengthen ye the weak hands, and confirm the feeble knees. Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not: behold, your God will come with vengeance, even God with a recompence; he will come and save you. Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing: for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert” . 44

The healing balm of the Gospel of salvation will extend beyond the boundaries of the nation of Israel, and it will ultimately reach all nations of the earth. The law will go forth from Zion, and the word of God from Jerusalem, and eventually all nations of the earth will come to bow down before the feet of the King in Zion, knowing that in him is salvation from sin and death. All nations of the earth will declare, with the Psalmist, “Bless the LORD, O my soul: and all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits: who forgiveth all thine iniquities; who healeth (hpr) all thy diseases; who

Heb. hpr - raphah39

Exodus 15:2640

Isaiah 53:541

Hosea 6:142

Jeremiah 30:1743

Isaiah 35:3-644

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redeemeth thy life from destruction; who crowneth thee with lovingkindness and tender mercies” . 45

Psalm 103:1-445

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En-gedi - an oasis in the desert