Major Prophets · Chapter 48 of 48

Ezekiel 48

The final chapter apportions the restored land among the twelve tribes in parallel strips from north to south, with the holy portion for the sanctuary, priests, Levites, and prince at the center. It describes the city with its twelve gates named for the tribes of Israel, three on each side, open to all. The book ends with a single, resounding name for the city: The LORD is there.

What happens in Ezekiel 48

God assigns each tribe a horizontal portion of land stretching from the eastern border to the western sea, seven tribes to the north of the sacred district and five to the south. At the center lies the holy oblation containing the sanctuary and the portions for the priests, the faithful sons of Zadok, the Levites, the city, and the prince on either side, all arranged so the sanctuary stands in the midst. The description turns to the city, foursquare, with three gates on each of its four sides, twelve in all, named for the twelve tribes of Israel: Reuben, Judah, and Levi on the north; Joseph, Benjamin, and Dan on the east; Simeon, Issachar, and Zebulun on the south; Gad, Asher, and Naphtali on the west.

The whole vast vision, begun with the return of the glory, closes on a single triumphant declaration: the name of the city from that day shall be, The LORD is there.

Ezekiel 48 in context

This closing chapter completes the temple vision of chapters forty through forty-eight, given to exiles about 573 BC. Whereas the historic tribal boundaries were uneven and tangled, this idealized division gives each tribe an equal strip with God's dwelling at the exact center. The arrangement is theological before it is geographic: everything is organized around the presence of God.

The final name, in Hebrew Yahweh Shammah, answers the whole tragedy of Ezekiel, in which the glory had departed. Now the city is defined forever by God's presence within it.

Main themes of Ezekiel 48

God at the centerThe tribes are arranged in equal strips around a central holy district where the sanctuary stands. The geography preaches a truth: God's presence is the organizing center of his people's life. Everything finds its place in relation to him, and no tribe is nearer or farther by privilege, only ordered around the dwelling of God.

A city open on every sideThe city has twelve gates, three on each side, named for all the tribes. Access is generous and comprehensive, none of the tribes shut out. The design pictures a community fully gathered around God, its gates flung open on every side to receive his people from every direction into his presence.

The LORD is thereThe book ends with the city's new name: The LORD is there. This single phrase is the goal of the entire vision and the answer to the departed glory. The deepest identity of God's restored people is not their strength or land but the abiding presence of God dwelling in their midst forever.

This is prophecy, God's word to a people who had wandered, full of warning and astonishing hope. As you read, hear both His grief over sin and His promise to restore.

Ezekiel 48 (KJV)

1Now these are the names of the tribes. From the north end to the coast of the way of Hethlon, as one goeth to Hamath, Hazarenan, the border of Damascus northward, to the coast of Hamath; for these are his sides east and west; a portion for Dan. 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. 8And by the border of Judah, from the east side unto the west side, shall be the offering which ye 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. 9The oblation that ye 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. 11It shall be for the priests that 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. 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. 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. 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. 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. 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 that serve the city. 19And they that serve the city shall serve it out of all the tribes of Israel. 20All the oblation shall be five and twenty thousand by five and twenty thousand: ye shall offer the holy oblation foursquare, with the possession of the city. 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. 22Moreover from the possession of the Levites, and from the possession of the city, being in the midst of that which is the prince’s, between the border of Judah and the border of Benjamin, shall be for the prince. 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 ye shall divide by lot unto the tribes of Israel for inheritance, and these are their portions, saith the Lord GOD. 30And these are the goings out of the city on the north side, four thousand and five hundred measures. 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. 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.

Verses to carry from Ezekiel 48

“The oblation that ye shall offer unto the LORD shall be of five and twenty thousand in length, and of ten thousand in breadth.”Ezekiel 48:9

“And 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.”Ezekiel 48:31

“It was round about eighteen thousand measures: and the name of the city from that day shall be, The LORD is there.”Ezekiel 48:35

Christian typology

How Ezekiel 48 points to Jesus

This chapter connects to Christ by typology, and Revelation draws on it directly. John's vision of the new Jerusalem shows a foursquare city with twelve gates inscribed with the names of the twelve tribes of Israel, unmistakably echoing Ezekiel's city. There the dwelling of God is with humanity, and God himself is with them, the fulfillment of the name The LORD is there. That final name, Yahweh Shammah, is answered in Immanuel, God with us, the name given to Jesus, in whom God came to dwell among his people.

The whole longing of Ezekiel, from the departed glory to the returned glory to the city defined by God's presence, reaches its end in Christ, through whom God dwells with his people now by the Spirit and forever in the new creation where the Lamb is the temple and the light.

Questions about Ezekiel 48

Why is the land divided so evenly and symmetrically?

Unlike the tangled historic boundaries, this vision gives each tribe an equal horizontal strip with the sanctuary at the exact center. The idealized symmetry is theological. It portrays a people perfectly ordered around God's presence, no tribe privileged by better land, all defined by their relation to the dwelling of God. The arrangement teaches that in God's restored order, his presence, not territory or status, is the true center of his people's shared life.

What does the name The LORD is there mean for the whole book?

Ezekiel had opened with visions of God's glory and then the heartbreak of that glory departing from a doomed temple. The whole book moves under the shadow of that loss. The final words answer it completely: the city's everlasting name is The LORD is there. God's presence has returned to stay. This is the destination of the whole prophecy and the hope of the gospel, fulfilled in Immanuel, God with us, forever.

Reflection

Everything in this final vision is arranged around one center: the presence of God, and the city's very name becomes The LORD is there. Ask what sits at the center of your own life, ordering everything else around it.

The whole hope of Scripture is God dwelling with his people, a hope fulfilled in Immanuel. Let his presence, not your circumstances, define you.

A prayer from Ezekiel 48

Lord, the goal of your promises is your presence, the city named The LORD is there. Thank you that in Christ, Immanuel, you have come to dwell forever. Be the center of my life, and bring me to the city where you dwell. Amen.

Continue the thread← Ezekiel 47 All of Ezekiel Who is Jesus?The Kingdom of God Begin with Jesus

← Ezekiel 47

Read the whole Bible with the family

Open it in the app, study it live with someone, and let it lead you to Christ.

Open the Bible Read it together See what God is doing

When you need a wordVerses for joy Verses for anxiety Verses for fear All of Ezekiel