Congregation Bible study (30 min.): rr section 5, chap. 19 paras. 1-6, video and Box 19A.
1, 2. According to Ezekiel 47:1-12, what did Ezekiel see and what did he discover? (See the drawing at the beginning).
Let us return to the vision of the temple. There Ezequiel sees something surprising: there is water coming out of the sacred building! Imagine the prophet following the flow of clear water (read Ezekiel 47:1-12). It flows from the entrance to the sanctuary, through the temple complex, and then exits from there at a point near the gate to the east. The angel that accompanies Ezequiel takes him out of the temple and measures the distance as they go. The angel asks Ezekiel several times to cross the water, and the prophet realizes that in a short time it becomes deeper, until it becomes a river that can only be crossed by swimming.
Ezequiel discovers that the river empties into the Dead Sea and that, where the river passes, the salty and lifeless water of the sea is healed or cleaned, and filled with fish. You also see many trees of all kinds growing on the banks of the river. Every month the trees produce a new crop of nutritious fruit and their leaves have healing powers. Surely seeing all this gives Ezequiel peace and hope. But what did this part of the vision of the temple mean for him and for the other exiles? And what does it mean for us today?
What did the river of vision mean for the exiles?
3. Why couldn't the Jews of Ezekiel's day think that the river in the vision was literal?
It is obvious that the Jews of that time did not think that the river of the vision was literal. For Ezekiel 's words may have reminded them of another prophecy of restoration, a promise that the prophet Joel had written by inspiration perhaps more than two centuries earlier (read Joel 3:18). Joel wrote: “The mountains will drip sweet wine, on the hills milk will flow…. A spring will flow from the house of Jehovah.” But, reading Joel's prophecy, the exiled Jews did not expect those words to be literally fulfilled. Likewise, it is likely that those Jews understood that Ezekiel's vision did not refer to a literal river.* So, what message did Jehovah want to communicate to them? The Bible itself tells us the meaning of some parts of this scene. Next we will focus on three clear guarantees that we find in this prophetic account and that demonstrate the love of Jehovah.
TOOLBOX 19A: Rivers of Blessings from Jehovah
Let's look at some Bible passages that use the words river and water to represent the blessings that come from Jehovah. Taken together, these verses give us some very encouraging information about the means that Jehovah uses to bless us. What do we mean?
JOHEL 3:18. This prophecy tells us of a spring that rises in the sanctuary of the temple and irrigates the parched "valley of the Acacias". So both Joel and Ezekiel saw a river that filled a barren area with life. In both cases, the river flows from Jehovah's house, that is, the temple.
ZECHARIAH 14:8. The prophet Zechariah sees "living waters" flowing from the city of Jerusalem. Half of the water flows into the “East Sea” or the Dead Sea and the other half into the “Western Sea” or the Mediterranean. Jerusalem was “the city of the great King,” Jehovah (Matt. 5:35). Seeing the name of that city in Zechariah's prophecy makes us think of the future, when Jehovah rules all the earth. We have understood for years that the waters of this prophecy indicate that Jehovah will bless two groups of faithful humans in Paradise: those who survive the great tribulation and those who are resurrected afterwards.
REVELATION 22:1, 2. The apostle John sees a symbolic river much like the one Ezekiel saw. But there is a small difference: the river that John sees does not flow from the temple, but from the throne of Jehovah. So this vision, like Zechariah's, seems to focus on the blessings that God's rule will bring during the Millennium.
Putting that difference aside, both the blessings that flow from Jehovah's throne and those represented by the river that Ezekiel saw come from Jehovah and reach all faithful people.
PSALM 46:4. Apparently this same verse covers two aspects: worship and government. Here we see a river that brings joy to "the city of God," which suggests government and kingship, and also brings joy to the "holy and great tabernacle of the Most High," which conveys the idea of pure worship.
Taken together, these passages assure us that Jehovah will bless faithful mankind in two ways. First of all, we will benefit from your government. Second, we will benefit from his system of pure worship. And both benefits will be eternal. So we want to continue looking for the “living water” that comes from Jehovah God and his Son, that is, the means that they offer us with so much love so that we have eternal life (Jer. 2:13; John 4:10).
4. (a) What blessings might the Jews expect to receive when they heard about the river in Ezekiel's vision? b) What use do some biblical passages give to the words river and water, and what security does that give us? (See the box “Rivers of Blessings from Jehovah.”)
A river of blessings. The Bible uses water and rivers many times to represent the blessings that Jehovah pours out. Ezekiel saw that such a river flowed from the temple. So the vision must have led God's people to the conclusion that Jehovah would pour out spiritual blessings on them, as long as they continued to support pure worship. What would those blessings be? The priests would again give them spiritual guidance. And, since sacrifices would also be offered again in the temple, the people would again have the assurance that their sins would be forgiven (Ezek. 44:15, 23; 45:17). So they would be clean again, as if they had been washed with the pure water that came from the temple.
5. How did this vision confirm that there would always be enough blessings for everyone?
Would there always be enough blessings for everyone? The vision dispels any concern about it: the flow miraculously increases. In just a couple of kilometers, a trickle of water becomes a whole torrent! (Ezek. 47:3-5). The Jewish population would probably increase after returning to their land; in that case, Jehovah's blessings would also increase to meet the needs of his people. That river was a true picture of abundance and prosperity!
6. (a) What comforting promise was conveyed by this prophetic image? b) What warning did the vision throw? (See note).
Life-giving water. In Ezekiel's vision, the river empties into the Dead Sea and fills much of its waters with life. Note that the river water produced a large number of fish; there were as many types as in the Great Sea, that is, the Mediterranean. In fact, along the Dead Sea coast, there was a thriving fishing industry between two towns that seemed to be far apart. The angel affirmed: “Wherever the river passes, everything will live”. Does this mean that the water that came from the house of Jehovah would cover the entire Dead Sea? The answer is no. The angel explained that the life-giving waters would not reach some muddy areas. Speaking of those places, he said, “They will continue to be salty” (Ezek. 47:8-11). *So this prophetic image conveyed a comforting promise: pure worship would bring life and prosperity to the people. But this same image also served as a warning: not everyone would accept Jehovah's blessings, and therefore not everyone would be healed.
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