Eze 45 | MHM | STEP | The Division of the Holy Land This section explains how the land should be divided when the people return from exile. God tells them to plan the division by faith, even before they have the land. This promise would give hope to the people in captivity, showing that not only would they return, but they would grow and fill the land again. The way the land is divided is new and different from the time of Joshua. It points to the future growth of God’s people, including people from all nations, and is also a symbol of the heavenly kingdom. The plan starts with setting apart land for the sanctuary, then for the city, then for the prince, and finally for the rest of the tribes. v. 1–5 : The first portion of land is for the sanctuary and the priests (Ezekiel 45:1 ). This holy land is called an oblation to the Lord . It is a special offering for God, supporting worship and religion. The size is carefully measured so the sanctuary does not take too much land. The priests and Levites live close to the temple so they can serve easily. This shows that ministers should live near where they work.

‏ Ezekiel 45

The Division of the Holy Land

This section explains how the land should be divided when the people return from exile. God tells them to plan the division by faith, even before they have the land. This promise would give hope to the people in captivity, showing that not only would they return, but they would grow and fill the land again. The way the land is divided is new and different from the time of Joshua. It points to the future growth of God’s people, including people from all nations, and is also a symbol of the heavenly kingdom. The plan starts with setting apart land for the sanctuary, then for the city, then for the prince, and finally for the rest of the tribes.

v. 1–5: The first portion of land is for the sanctuary and the priests (Ezekiel 45:1 ^a). This holy land is called an oblation to the Lord. It is a special offering for God, supporting worship and religion. The size is carefully measured so the sanctuary does not take too much land. The priests and Levites live close to the temple so they can serve easily. This shows that ministers should live near where they work.

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v. 6: Next to the sanctuary land is the area for the city . This land is for all the people of Israel, not just one or two tribes. People from every tribe can live in the city, as happened later (Nehemiah 11:1-2 ^b). The city’s land is as long as the sanctuary’s, but only half as wide. Because the city benefits from trade, it needs less farmland.

v. 7–8: The next part is for the prince (Ezekiel 45:7-8 ^c). The prince’s land is on both sides of the sanctuary and city. This shows the prince’s job is to protect both church and people. The prince is given enough land to support his position and so he will not be tempted to take from the people unfairly. God promises, My princes shall no more oppress my people. Good leaders should care for the people and act with justice (Nehemiah 5:15,18 ^d).

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Rules of Justice

This section gives important rules about justice for everyone—leaders and ordinary people. God wants both rulers and their people to act honestly in all areas of life. Being religious is not enough if people are not fair and honest. These rules are for a good society where everyone treats others as they should, and leaders act with integrity.

The rest of the land is divided among the tribes of Israel. With the temple and the leader’s throne nearby, the people can feel secure and know God is with them.

v. 9: God tells the princes of Israel to stop oppressing the people and to rule fairly . He says, Let it suffice you, O princes of Israel! They must end violence, take away unfair demands, and remove those who do wrong from their jobs. Instead of taking advantage, they must do what is right and just. God reminds them that the people belong to Him, so leaders must rule with justice for God’s sake.

v. 10: God commands everyone to use just balances and honest measurements in trade . People must not cheat their neighbors with false weights or measures. In every business deal, both money and goods must be measured fairly.

v. 11: The ephah for dry goods and the bath for liquids must be the same measure, each being one-tenth of a chomer or cor . This keeps everything equal and honest for everyone.

v. 12: The shekel is defined clearly: it is worth twenty jerahs. This makes trading and business fair, because everyone knows what these weights and coins mean. The maneh (or pound) is made up of sixty shekels, using coins of twenty, twenty-five, and fifteen shekels to add up to one maneh (Ezekiel 45:13; 1 Kings 10:17 ^e; 2 Chronicles 9:16 ^f). This careful system prevents cheating or mistakes.

Oblations Enjoined: After giving rules for justice between people, this section now explains how the people should honor God with offerings. True religion means being right with both other people and with God. God asks His people to give back to Him as a sign of thankfulness and dependence.

v. 13–14: These verses show how important it is for God’s people to be honest and exact in business. If they are not honest, they damage how others see their faith, and they cannot please God. God wants His people to be trustworthy in all they do. This reflects God’s nature as a God of order and justice, and it emphasizes that fairness and integrity are essential in any community (Ezekiel 45:13-14 ^g).

v. 13–15: God commands everyone in the land to give an oblation to the Lord from what they own. This is like paying rent to God, who is the true owner of everything. Earlier, they gave God a portion of the land (Ezekiel 45:1 ^h), but now God asks for offerings from their goods and animals too. From every homer of wheat or barley, they must give one-sixtieth. From every cor of oil, they give one-hundredth. From their flocks, one lamb out of 200 must be given, and it should be from the best animals. These offerings are used for burnt-offerings and peace-offerings, which show both thanks to God and a desire for His mercy and peace. These sacrifices remind us that Christ is our true sacrifice, bringing reconciliation with God (Ezekiel 45:13-15 ⁱ).

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v. 16–17: The people must bring their offerings to the prince, who then offers them to God on behalf of everyone. The prince is responsible to make sure all offerings are given and nothing is missing. This teaches that leaders should take care of true worship and set a good example by leading in service to God (Ezekiel 45:16-17 ^j).

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v. 18–19: At the start of each year, there is a special ceremony to cleanse the sanctuary (Ezekiel 45:18 ^k). On the first day of the first month, a sacrifice is made to remove the sins of the past year and to ask for God’s help in the new year. The blood of the sin-offering is put on the posts of the inner court gate (Ezekiel 45:19 ^l). This is a way to ask for forgiveness for everyone who serves in the temple. It is important to regularly ask God to forgive our mistakes and to start each year with a clean heart, just like King Hezekiah did (2 Chronicles 29:17 ^m).

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v. 20: A second cleansing sacrifice is made on the seventh day of the first month . This is for anyone who sinned by mistake or out of ignorance. The sacrifice helps bring forgiveness and keeps everyone close to God. But for sins done on purpose, there is no sacrifice (Numbers 15:30 ⁿ).

v. 21–24: The Passover feast must be celebrated at the right time (Ezekiel 45:21 ^o). Passover reminds us that Christ is our passover, sacrificed to save us (1 Corinthians 5:7 ^p). The prince prepares a sin-offering for himself and the people, starting with a bull on the first day and a goat for each of the other days (Ezekiel 45:22; Ezekiel 45:23 ^q). Each day, seven bulls and seven rams are also offered as burnt offerings to honor God (Ezekiel 45:23–24 ^r).

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v. 25: During the Feast of Tabernacles, the same sacrifices are offered for seven days (Ezekiel 45:25 ^s). There is no mention of the Feast of Pentecost here. The many sacrifices show that the old sacrifices could not make people perfect, so they had to be repeated often (Hebrews 10:1,3 ^t). Today, we remember that Christ’s sacrifice is enough, but we should also offer daily thanks and praise as spiritual sacrifices to God.