How 2 Chronicles 29 is the key to understanding Ezekiel 40-48: A Challenge to Dispensationalism Theology


How 2 Chronicles 29 is the key to understanding Ezekiel 40-48: A Challenge to Dispensational Theology

One of the most controversial passages in scripture is Ezekiel 40-48. These passages talk about an unknown prince that makes a sacrifice for Israel in a new temple. From my previous posts, I explained that Jesus is this new Temple as well as the Prince performing the sacrificial rights during this new Temple Dedication. In order to understand Ezekiel 45-46 and how I came to this conclusion, we need to look at 2 Chronicles 29 (specifically 29:20-36).
20 Then Hezekiah the king rose early and gathered the officials of the city and went up to the house of the Lord. 21 And they brought seven bulls, seven rams, seven lambs, and seven male goats for a sin offering for the kingdom and for the sanctuary and for Judah. And he commanded the priests, the sons of Aaron, to offer them on the altar of the Lord. 22 So they slaughtered the bulls, and the priests received the blood and threw it against the altar. And they slaughtered the rams, and their blood was thrown against the altar. And they slaughtered the lambs, and their blood was thrown against the altar. 23 Then the goats for the sin offering were brought to the king and the assembly, and they laid their hands on them, 24 and the priests slaughtered them and made a sin offering with their blood on the altar, to make atonement for all Israel. For the king commanded that the burnt offering and the sin offering should be made for all Israel. 25 And he stationed the Levites in the house of the Lord with cymbals, harps, and lyres, according to the commandment of David and of Gad the king's seer and of Nathan the prophet, for the commandment was from the Lord through his prophets. 26 The Levites stood with the instruments of David, and the priests with the trumpets. 27 Then Hezekiah commanded that the burnt offering be offered on the altar. And when the burnt offering began, the song to the Lord began also, and the trumpets, accompanied by the instruments of David king of Israel. 28 The whole assembly worshiped, and the singers sang, and the trumpeters sounded. All this continued until the burnt offering was finished. 29 When the offering was finished, the king and all who were present with him bowed themselves and worshiped. 30 And Hezekiah the king and the officials commanded the Levites to sing praises to the Lord with the words of David and of Asaph the seer. And they sang praises with gladness, and they bowed down and worshiped. 31 Then Hezekiah said, “You have now consecrated yourselves to[c] the Lord. Come near; bring sacrifices and thank offerings to the house of the Lord.” And the assembly brought sacrifices and thank offerings, and all who were of a willing heart brought burnt offerings. 32 The number of the burnt offerings that the assembly brought was 70 bulls, 100 rams, and 200 lambs; all these were for a burnt offering to the Lord. 33 And the consecrated offerings were 600 bulls and 3,000 sheep. 34 But the priests were too few and could not flay all the burnt offerings, so until other priests had consecrated themselves, their brothers the Levites helped them, until the work was finished—for the Levites were more upright in heart than the priests in consecrating themselves. 35 Besides the great number of burnt offerings, there was the fat of the peace offerings, and there were the drink offerings for the burnt offerings. Thus the service of the house of the Lord was restored. 36 And Hezekiah and all the people rejoiced because God had provided for the people, for the thing came about suddenly.
As we can see in this passage, the King participated in the Temple cleaning, dedication, and the national sacrifice/intercession for the people. In verse 21, we see that these sacrifices use the number 7, which have symbolic/figurative properties in apocalyptic literature as we see in Ezekiel 40-48. We see the number 7 in reference to national sacrifices/intercession in other passages such as Job 42:7-9 and Numbers 23.
7 After the Lord had spoken these words to Job, the Lord said to Eliphaz the Temanite: “My anger burns against you and against your two friends, for you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has. 8 Now therefore take seven bulls and seven rams and go to my servant Job and offer up a burnt offering for yourselves. And my servant Job shall pray for you, for I will accept his prayer not to deal with you according to your folly. For you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has.” 9 So Eliphaz the Temanite and Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite went and did what the Lord had told them, and the Lord accepted Job's prayer.

In conclusion, the book of Ezekiel 40-48 as we can see from the supporting verses above shows that Prince/King Jesus was recreating Israel/Judah’s Temple Dedication by cleansing and sacrificing for his own Temple just like the previous kings.  Jesus’ Temple is the Church consisting of the Jews and Gentiles, not a literal stone structure. Ezekiel 40-48 uses word pictures/ parable-like descriptions to explain spiritual realities. We must be careful how we interpret the Bible. Dispensationalism teaches that Ezekiel 40-48 involves the design of a literal new Temple and memorial sacrifices conducted during an earthly millennium period. Again, the above passages greatly challenge the Dispensational interpretation of scripture.


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