Last week, in Lessons from Ezekiel’s Temple, Part 10A, we discovered that the priests’ rooms in the inner court yard remind us that in order to enter into the presence of the Lord, we must be pure and holy. We need to confess our sins and repent of our transgressions, and we need to don anew Jesus’ white robe of righteousness. It also reminds us of the importance of spending quiet time with our Lord, building that ever important relationship with Him! Today’s lesson takes a look at the meaning and importance of the sacrificial chambers:
“A room with a doorway was by the portico in each of the inner gateways, where the burnt offerings were washed. In the portico of the gateway were two tables on each side, on which the burnt offerings, sin offerings and guilt offerings were slaughtered. By the outside wall of the portico of the gateway, near the steps at the entrance to the north gateway were … eight tables in all – on which the sacrifices were slaughtered. There were also four tables of dressed stone for the burnt offerings…On them were placed the utensils for slaughtering the burnt offerings and the other sacrifices. And double-pronged hooks, each a handbreadth long, were attached to the wall all around. The tables were for the flesh of the offerings.” (Ezek 40:38-43 NIV)
It is very understandable why the ancient temples would have had rooms for sacrifices, along with the utensils used for slaughtering animals. The animal and grain sacrifices were brought to the temple by the people, and there needed to be a place to keep and process them. Tables and tools were present for slaughtering the animals, and hooks were attached to the walls for the purpose of hanging the butchered carcasses.
We don’t slaughter animals and offer them to God anymore, so what possible connotation can the sacrificial rooms have for us today?
First and foremost, the presence of these chambers is to remind us that sacrifices are just as important today as they were in Ezekiel’s day. A life in Christ will include sacrifice. Christ gave us the ultimate sacrifice, and we, in return, are required to sacrifice as well: “…because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.“ (1 Peter 2:21 NIV)
(Further discussion of the importance of sacrifices and what our sacrifices look like will be the topic of later lessons from Ezekiel’s temple, and we ask you to join us in a few weeks, for Lessons From Ezekiel’s Temple, Part 12).
Notice that the tables for the sacrificial offerings are just inside the gates, and you cannot enter or exit the sacrificial rooms without passing them. These tables serve to remind us of Jesus’ ultimate sacrifice for us. Until we partake of the table of the Lord, until we accept Jesus’ sacrifice for us, we have no right entering into God’s presence!
Interestingly, tables are not mentioned in the descriptions of previous temples. Only in Ezekiel’s temple. And here there is not one or two, but many of them. This can serve to remind us that the multitude of sacrifices should be brought to God’s house.
Remember, giving out of our abundance isn’t a sacrifice. A sacrifice intimates that we give out of what we could have used for ourselves. Jesus speaks of this when He notices the widow in the temple who walks by the temple box and drops in two pennies – All she had! (See Mark 12:42-44) But have no fear. God will always reward our sacrifices: “And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed …“ (2 Cor 9:8 NASU)
And what about the utensils for slaughtering the sacrifices, and the hooks for hanging the carcasses?
I believe that this is to remind us that when God asks us to give a sacrifice, He doesn’t always use it in its expected form. Sometimes he uses our gifts in a very different way, but always to His purpose. For example, you may offer to donate your musical talents to your church. But instead of having you lead worship as you had anticipated, you are assigned as a member of the general choir. Don’t be put off. Don’t feel like your gift was unappreciated. Remember: The people of Israel brought cows and doves, but God only received certain parts. The rest was processed with the utensils and hung from hooks. Nonetheless, the cows and doves were considered to be a “fragrant aroma, an acceptable sacrifice”.
Enough to ponder, but do ponder this: The presence of the sacrificial rooms in Ezekiel’s temple, along with their tables, utensils and hooks, are to remind us of Jesus’ sacrifice for us. They also serve to remind us that a Godly life will demonstrate an abundance of sacrifice, and that sacrifice will come not from our overflow, but from what we think we need for ourselves. Finally, when God receives our sacrifices, He may not use them the way we intended for them to be used. Instead, they are often processed and changed so that they can be used, in His utmost wisdom, to the maximum of His glory.
For now, join us next week for another important lesson from the rooms in Ezekiel’s temple: Lessons from Ezekiel’s Temple, Part 10C: The People’s Chambers.
God bless each of you as you seek to draw closer to Him!
In His love,
Lyn
Lyn Chaffart, Mother of two teens, Author and Moderator for The Nugget, a tri-weekly internet newsletter, and Scriptural Nuggets, a website devoted to Christian devotionals and inspirational poems, www.scripturalnuggets.org , with Answers2Prayer Ministries, www.Answers2Prayer.org .
(To access the entire “Lessons From Ezekiel’s Temple” mini-series, please click here.)