God’s Glory fills the Temple

November 2, 2014 Background Scripture: Ezekiel 40:1 – 43:12 Lesson Passage: Ezekiel 43:1 – 12 How does one describe God’s glory? God’s glory is an expression of God’s absolute holiness, purity, and shiny greatness. Different accounts in the bible describe it as a radiance whose brightness exceeds the sun. Medical professionals warn that if a person stares at the sun, the radiance from it will damage their eyes and it could eventually lead to blindness. However, God warns us in the bible that no one can look upon His glory and live. The radiance of God’s glory is so brilliant that looking at it is lethal. Therefore, when God prepared to express His presence around people, he would enclose His glory inside of a cloud and smoke to protect gazers from death. Before Israel had the first temple, they used the tabernacle which was a tent and curtain arrangement constructed under Moses’ leadership in the wilderness. The Ark of the Covenant was placed inside of it in the Most Holy Place. Whenever the cloud that indicated God’s presence was upon the tabernacle, no one was allowed to approach the tabernacle unless God summoned them. Even then, their approach had to be with the utmost reverence and they were not allowed to go inside. From the beginning Israel was taught that the tabernacle was a holy place and whenever God’s presence was upon it, they were to stay away from it. They were taught to respect the tabernacle and its surrounding area as holy ground. After Israel was settled in Canaan, King David desired to construct a more permanent location for the Ark of the Covenant. God would not allow it but chose instead to allow David’s son, Solomon, to construct it after he became king and David had died. That temple was eventually destroyed by the Babylonians. A second temple was constructed by Zerubbabel after he returned from the captivity and it was later destroyed. Israel’s last temple was constructed by Herod and it was also destroyed. At some point in Israel’s history, they forgot that the surrounding area of the temple, like the tabernacle, was considered holy ground. They sought to honor some of their kings by burying them in tombs close to the temple. Many of Judah’s kings—some say as many as fourteen—were buried in Jerusalem. This was in the same city as the three temples which had been separately dedicated to God as an earthly dwelling place for His glory. The presence of the tombs of the kings, although they housed the remains of Israel’s rulers, desecrated the holy city of Jerusalem because of their proximity to the temple of God. In today’s lesson, the Holy Spirit gave Ezekiel a vision of a temple. We know this temple was never constructed in Zion because its details do not match any of Israel’s three temples: Solomon’s, Zerubbabel’s, or Herod’s. The temple in Ezekiel’s vision was a temple where God allowed His glory to be expressed in the Holy Place. The Spirit brought Ezekiel inside the temple’s court. However, Ezekiel could only view the temple from within the inner court because the glory of God filled the Holy Place. God showed Ezekiel that the time would come when the true temple will stand on holy ground in the New Jerusalem. At that time, God’s glory will again fill the temple. Robert C. Hudson October 25, 2014