When the glory left, it left to the east. When it comes back, we see in this chapter it is coming back from the east. And the glory of the LORD was everything.
The temple of God without the glory is like man without a spirit. It is a lifeless shell. It’s the glory that makes it different from the other buildings. Not just the adornment.
Just like the man or woman who goes to church or does religious practices but does not have the spirit of God. It too is a shell. It is the spirit and presence and glory of God within us that makes it different. Not just the location.
The glory had departed the Israelites because of their many, many sins. God had warned them ad nauseum to no avail. So the glory left the city and the people and the people left the city and their land, taken into captivity to Babylon.
Then the LORD says something interesting. He tells Ezekiel to make sure that the Israelites know the measurements so that they may be “ashamed of their sins. Let them consider its perfection, and if they are ashamed of all they have done, make known to them the design of the temple…”
Wait… what? Tell them the design of the temple measurements so that they can consider its perfection and be ashamed of their sins?
That’s the last thing I think when I go through chapter after chapter of these measurements. In fact, it is taking me forever to get through these last chapters of Ezekiel. It’s sheer discipline at this point.
But something about the perfect of the temple is a reflection of the perfection of God. And when we consider the perfection of God, we realize how terribly imperfect we are. How horrifically we have fallen short. And how much we need God. That was the purpose of all this stuff. All these measurements.
