Ezekiel 44:2

Then said the LORD unto me; This gate shall be shut, it shall not be opened, and no man shall enter in by it; because the LORD, the God of Israel, hath entered in by it, therefore it shall be shut. This gate shall be shut, it shall not be opened - ( ; , "The key of the house of David will I lay upon His shoulder (the antitypical Eliakim); so He shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open;" ). "Shut" to the people (), but open to "the prince" ( ), he holding the place of God in political concerns as the priests do in spiritual. As a ma...

Verse Ezekiel 44:2. _THIS GATE SHALL BE SHUT_] It was not to be opened on _ordinary occasions_, nor at all on the _week days_: but only on the _Sabbaths_ and the _new moons_. See the account of the _gates_ (4) in the explanation of the plan. Ezekiel 48:35. This verse has been adduced by the Roman Catholics to prove the _perpetual virginity_ of the mother of our Lord; and it may be allowed to be as much to the purpose as any other that has been brought to prove this very precarious point, on which no stress should ever be laid by any man. Mary was a virgin when she brought forth Jesus....

THE LORD HATH ENTERED IN - See Ezekiel 43:2....

EXPOSITION The prophet, having finished his account of the temple, or place of worship, proceeds, in the second section of his vision (Ezekiel 44-46.), to set forth the culture, or ritual, to be performed in the temple; treating first of the several classes in the new community, and of their relation to the sanctuary (Ezekiel 44:1.); next of the regulations to be observed in the maintenance of worship (Ezekiel 45:1.); and, thirdly, of certain supplementary orders for the prince, the people, and the priests, when engaged in the solemnities of their religion (Ezekiel 46:1.). In particular, the present chapter deals (1) with the relation of the prince to the sanctuary ...

THEN SAID THE LORD UNTO ME, THIS GATE SHALL BE SHUT,.... In time to come, as Jarchi interprets it, in the latter day; it was shut, and it should continue to be shut: IT SHALL NOT BE OPENED; any more; though it has been, yet hereafter no more: AND NO MAN SHALL ENTER IN BY IT, into the house of the Lord, BECAUSE THE LORD THE GOD OF ISRAEL HATH ENTERED IN BY IT; the same with the glory of the God of Israel, Ezekiel 43:2: THEREFORE IT SHALL BE SHUT; no one being to enter after him. Various are the sentiments of expositors concerning this gate. Some of the ancients have interpreted it of the Virgin Mary, by whom Christ came into this world in human nature, being born of her, a virgin, who had never known man, and as is thought never did after the birth of Christ; nor were any afterwards born of her; no man might come i

CHAPTER 44 _ 1. The outward eastern gate for the prince (Ezekiel 44:1) _ 2. The charge concerning the strangers and the rebellious tribes (Ezekiel 44:4) 3. The charge concerning the priests, the sons of Zadok (Ezekiel 44:15) 4. The inheritance of the priests (Ezekiel 44:28)...

EZEKIEL 44-46. THE TEMPLE OFFICERS AND FESTIVALS. Ezekiel 44:1. From the inner court where he had seen the Divine glory and heard the mysterious voice (435f.) the prophet was led back to the outer eastern gate; but as Yahweh had crossed its threshold on re-entering the Temple (_cf._ 1 Samuel 5:5) it was for ever after to remain shut. Only the prince_ i.e._ the king of the Messianic days was privileged to eat bread before Yahweh, _i.e._ to partake of the festal meal, in the vestibule....

THE LORD. Hebrew. _Jehovah_. App-4. MAN. Hebrew. _ish_. App-14. Therefore the prince of Ezekiel 44:3 is more than man: either the risen David, or the Messiah Himself'. THE GOD OF ISRAEL. See note on Isaiah 29:23, GOD. Hebrew. _Elohim_, App-4....

Ordinances regarding the Temple These ordinances define who shall minister in it, priests and Levites (ch. 44); the revenue of the priests, the Levites and the prince, with the duties devolving on the prince in upholding the ritual (Ezekiel 45:1-17); the special and daily services in the temple, and the special offerings of the prince (Ezekiel 45:18-25). Ch. 44 Those who shall minister in the Temple The passage contains these parts: (1) Ezekiel 44:1. An ordinance regarding the eastern gate: it shall be kept shut because by it the Lord entered into the house. (2) Ezekiel 44:4. Precepts regarding

THEREFORE IT ALL BE SHUT— This is very ill pointed, and improperly separated from the third verse. It should be read thus, _Therefore it shall be shut for the prince._ Ezekiel 44:3. _The same prince shall fit in it,_ &c. See chap. Ezekiel 46:1 and Houbigant. The kings of Judah had a distinguished place in the temple; a kind of tribunal, placed opposite the eastern gate. See ch. Ezekiel 46:12. 2 Chronicles 6:12....