CHAPTER 48

(574 B.C.)

THE DIVISION OF THE LAND

¹Now these are the names of the Tribes. From the north end to the coast of the way of Hethlon, as one goes to Hamath, Hazar-enan, the border of Damascus northward, to the coast of Hamath; for these are his sides east and west; a portion for Dan. (A portion for Dan, portrays this Tribe mentioned first. As is obvious, it is the Holy Spirit Who draws off the portions. None are decided by men, all by the Lord.)

²And by the border of Dan, from the east side unto the west side, a portion for Asher.

³And by the border of Asher, from the east side even unto the west side, a portion for Naphtali.

⁴And by the border of Naphtali, from the east side unto the west side, a portion for Manasseh.

⁵And by the border of Manasseh, from the east side unto the west side, a portion for Ephraim.

⁶And by the border of Ephraim, from the east side even unto the west side, a portion for Reuben.

⁷And by the border of Reuben, from the east side unto the west side, a portion for Judah. (Seven Tribes will have their possession north of the Oblation, and five Tribes, south of the Oblation, i.e., Sacrifices.)

THE LAND FOR THE PRIESTS AND LEVITES

⁸And by the border of Judah, from the east side unto the west side, shall be the Offering which you shall offer of five and twenty thousand reeds in breadth, and in length as one of the other parts, from the east side unto the west side: and the Sanctuary shall be in the midst of it. (This portion is approximately 42 miles long and 42 miles wide. It seems to be out of proportion compared to the allotment to the other Tribes. However, it is thought by some that quite possibly the portions concerning the Priests, Levites, and the City are included in this portion.

This much is clear: The totality of the Promised Land in the coming Kingdom Age will be approximately 100 times larger than it is presently.)

⁹The oblation that you shall offer unto the LORD shall be of five and twenty thousand in length, and of ten thousand in breadth.

¹⁰And for them, even for the Priests, shall be this holy oblation; toward the north five and twenty thousand in length, and toward the west ten thousand in breadth, and toward the east ten thousand in breadth, and toward the south five and twenty thousand in length: and the Sanctuary of the LORD shall be in the midst thereof. (As all the Tribes were proportioned around the Tabernacle in the wilderness [Num., Chpts. 1-3], they are likewise proportioned here, although not in the same order. And yet, as everything was in proportion to the Tabernacle then, everything is in proportion to the Sanctuary now!

The reason is simple, it is where the Lord dwells! This is the crowning Truth portrayed by the Holy Spirit in these directions and instructions.)

¹¹It shall be for the Priests who are sanctified of the sons of Zadok; which have kept My Charge, which went not astray when the Children of Israel went astray, as the Levites went astray.

¹²And this oblation of the land that is offered shall be unto them a thing most holy by the border of the Levites. (The faithfulness of Zadok [I Ki. 1:8] is ever called to account, as faithfulness will ever be remembered!

The area in Verse 12 called most holy is the area of the Sanctuary.)

¹³And over against the border of the Priests the Levites shall have five and twenty thousand in length, and ten thousand in breadth: all the length shall be five and twenty thousand, and the breadth ten thousand.

¹⁴And they shall not sell of it, neither exchange, nor alienate the firstfruits of the land: for it is holy unto the LORD. (The portion here described is that reserved for the Levites, who will have a part in Sanctuary duties, but not the Sacrifices. That will be attended to solely by the sons of Zadok. Their portion will be about 42 miles long and 17 miles wide. They will not be able to sell, neither exchange, nor alienate this portion. It is holy.

The firstfruits of the land, i.e., the first crop the land produces, is not to be sold, but instead given to the Lord as an offering. This typifies our inheritance in Christ!)

A PORTION FOR THE CITY FOR GENERAL USE

¹⁵And the five thousand, that are left in the breadth over against the five and twenty thousand, shall be a profane place for the city, for dwelling, and for suburbs: and the city shall be in the midst thereof. (The term, profane place, simply means that it is not dedicated to sacred use in the same sense as the Sanctuary. The area will be about 42 miles long and 8 miles wide.

The city shall be in the midst thereof, concerns a city unlike any the world has ever seen or known. It will be a city totally free from crime, poverty, hunger, hate, war, greed, etc. Even though every other city in the world at that time will fall into the same category, still, none will have the Glory of God as this city [Isa. 62:2-3].)

¹⁶And these shall be the measures thereof; the north side four thousand and five hundred, and the south side four thousand and five hundred, and on the east side four thousand and five hundred, and the west side four thousand and five hundred. (These dimensions speak of the city proper, pertaining to business, etc. It will be about five miles square. The measurement is given for each side of the city in repetition in order that it may be known that this city is just as grand on one side as on the other.)

¹⁷And the suburbs of the city shall be toward the north two hundred and fifty, and toward the south two hundred and fifty, and toward the east two hundred and fifty, and toward the west two hundred and fifty. (There will be about a half mile laid out on each side of the city called the suburbs, which will probably be left as a garden or park.)

¹⁸And the residue in length over against the oblation of the holy portion shall be ten thousand eastward, and ten thousand westward: and it shall be over against the oblation of the holy portion; and the increase thereof shall be for food unto them who serve the city.

¹⁹And they who serve the city shall serve it out of all the Tribes of Israel. (These Scriptures portray the fact that two sections of land will be set aside, reserved for farming, on either side of the city. Each side will measure approximately 17 miles long and 8 miles wide. This will be ample land to support the city with food, plus the Sanctuary area. Inasmuch as the curse will be lifted, the abundance produced will be more than enough.

The phrase, They who serve the city, will probably be representatives from all the Tribes of Israel; therefore, there will be no partiality shown, nor favoritism.)

²⁰All the oblation shall be five and twenty thousand by five and twenty thousand: you shall offer the holy oblation foursquare, with the possession of the city. (The entirety of the area, including city, suburbs, farming land, and the place of the Sanctuary, will measure about 42 miles long and 42 miles wide. It will be, as stated, foursquare, thereby, signifying the totality of the Gospel of Jesus Christ as the whole Gospel for the whole man.

Of all the world, this area will be the most important on Earth, because Christ is there.)

A LAND FOR THE PRINCE

²¹And the residue shall be for the Prince, on the one side and on the other of the holy oblation, and of the possession of the city, over against the five and twenty thousand of the oblation toward the east border, and westward over against the five and twenty thousand toward the west border, over against the portions for the Prince: and it shall be the holy oblation; and the Sanctuary of the House shall be in the midst thereof. (The land East and West of the Holy Oblation will be for the Prince of Israel. This area on both sides is called the residue. It seems these portions given to him will be about 8 miles long and 8 miles wide. They will be on the East and West corners, respectively. Therefore, he will have access to whatever he needs from either side.

Once again, the Holy Spirit by design repeats the phrase, And the Sanctuary of the House shall be in the midst thereof. It is meant to impress upon the Believer that all Blessing flows from this Sanctuary and, therefore, from Christ.)

²²Moreover from the possession of the Levites, and from the possession of the city, being in the midst of that which is the Princes, between the border of Judah and the border of Benjamin, shall be for the Prince. (One portion for the Prince [High Priest] will border the Tribe of Judah, while the other portion will border the Tribe of Benjamin. These were the two Tribes that remained true to the Temple and the Worship of God when the nation of Israel was divided upon the death of Solomon. Therefore, their faithfulness is not forgotten, but will ever portray their allegiance to the Lord of Glory and His Word.)

PORTIONS FOR OTHER TRIBES

²³As for the rest of the Tribes, from the east side unto the west side, Benjamin shall have a portion.

²⁴And by the border of Benjamin, from the east side unto the west side, Simeon shall have a portion.

²⁵And by the border of Simeon, from the east side unto the west side, Issachar a portion.

²⁶And by the border of Issachar, from the east side unto the west side, Zebulun a portion.

²⁷And by the border of Zebulun, from the east side unto the west side, Gad a portion.

²⁸And by the border of Gad, at the south side southward, the border shall be even from Tamar unto the waters of strife in Kadesh, and to the river toward the great sea.

²⁹This is the land which you shall divide by lot unto the Tribes of Israel for inheritance, and these are their portions, says the Lord GOD. (Divide by lot, originally referred to the Urim and the Thummim, which were held by the High Priest and used to discern the Mind of God [Josh. 13:7; 15:1; 16:1; 17:1]. Therefore, the statement, as recorded here, simply means that each possession and its boundaries have been decided by the Holy Spirit.

The phrase, These are their portions, says the Lord GOD, proclaims the fact that the portions will never again be changed or taken by an enemy.)

THE CITY OF JERUSALEM TO BE FOURSQUARE, PATTERNED AFTER THE HEAVENLY JERUSALEM

³⁰And these are the goings out of the city on the north side, four thousand and five hundred measures. (This final portion is dedicated to the gates, dimensions, and name of the city. And these are the goings out of the city, refers to the walls around the city and its measurement, which will be about 7 miles on each side.)

³¹And the Gates of the city shall be after the names of the Tribes of Israel: three Gates northward; one Gate of Reuben, one Gate of Judah, one Gate of Levi. (This city will be foursquare, with three Gates to each side, totaling twelve Gates; the names of the Tribes of Israel will be on the twelve Gates.)

³²And at the east side four thousand and five hundred: and three Gates; and one Gate of Joseph, one Gate of Benjamin, one Gate of Dan.

³³And at the south side four thousand and five hundred measures: and three Gates; one Gate of Simeon, one Gate of Issachar, one Gate of Zebulun.

³⁴At the west side four thousand and five hundred, with their three Gates; one Gate of Gad, one Gate of Asher, one Gate of Naphtali.

³⁵It was round about eighteen thousand measures: and the name of the city from that day shall be, The LORD is there. (The city will be about 30 miles in circumference at its perimeter. Even though this Glorious Name, The LORD is there, is given here, this is only one of a number of new names for the Earthly Jerusalem.

The phrase, The LORD is there, means in Hebrew, Adonai-Shammah or Jehovah-Shammah, meaning literally what it says. For the Messiah will be there reigning visibly and eternally in Israel [Isa. 9:6-7; Lk. 1:32-33; Rev. 11:15; 20:4-10].)