What is the meaning of Ezekiel 43:26? For seven days • The number seven in Scripture signals completeness and divine order (Genesis 2:2-3; Revelation 1:4). • Exodus 29:35-37 recounts that Moses was to perform a seven-day consecration of the original altar, showing that Ezekiel’s vision repeats God’s timeless pattern. • A full week guarantees that nothing is rushed; every sacrifice, cleansing act, and prayer is carried out until the work is wholly finished. the priests • God appoints Aaron’s sons—and, in Ezekiel’s millennial temple vision, Zadok’s line (Ezekiel 44:15)—to serve as mediators (Exodus 28:1). • Their hands, not the people’s, must prepare the altar, just as only priests could handle the holy things in Numbers 18:1-7. • Hebrews 5:1 notes that every high priest is “appointed to act on behalf of men in matters relating to God,” highlighting the sacred responsibility pictured here. are to make atonement • Leviticus 17:11 teaches, “the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you…to make atonement.” The priests apply sacrificial blood so God’s wrath is satisfied. • This atonement foreshadows Christ’s once-for-all sacrifice (Hebrews 9:22-28), yet Ezekiel’s temple sacrifices visibly remind future generations of what the cross accomplished. • Atonement precedes all else; without it, nothing further—cleansing, consecration, worship—can stand. for the altar • Even the altar, built of stone and bronze (Ezekiel 43:13-17), must be covered by blood (Exodus 29:36-37) because creation itself was defiled by sin (Romans 8:20-22). • By purifying the place of sacrifice, God underscores that holiness begins at the point of substitution. • Once the altar is atoned for, it becomes a safe meeting place between a holy God and sinful people. and cleanse it • Cleansing removes every defilement (2 Chronicles 29:16). Blood both atones and purifies, so the same act has a double effect (Hebrews 9:13-14). • Isaiah’s vision echoes this: a coal from the altar touched his lips and declared, “your iniquity is removed” (Isaiah 6:6-7). • The priestly washing in Exodus 40:30-32 parallels this altar cleansing, stressing that holy service demands purity. so they shall consecrate it • Consecration means setting apart exclusively for God (Exodus 30:29). • When the week concludes, the altar moves from “common” to “most holy” status, ready for continual burnt offerings (Ezekiel 43:27; 44:15). • This progression—atonement, cleansing, consecration—mirrors the believer’s journey: justified by Christ’s blood, renewed daily, and dedicated to God’s service (Romans 12:1; 1 Peter 2:5). summary Ezekiel 43:26 reveals a deliberate, week-long ritual in which God’s chosen priests apply sacrificial blood to the new altar. Seven days emphasize completeness; priests act as mediators; atonement removes guilt; cleansing purges impurity; consecration permanently sets the altar apart. The passage affirms that every approach to God rests on substitutionary blood, followed by purification and wholehearted dedication, pointing ultimately to the finished work of Jesus Christ and to the worship that will fill His future kingdom. |
    |