The Third Temple

 The Third Temple

By Richard P. Joseph

In the 10th century Before Christ, Solomon built the first temple.  It was built with elegance and opulence and was considered one of the wonders of the ancient world.  Israel was in its hey-day when riches flowed and silver was as common as stones.  It was the highpoint of Israel’s greatness.  It didn’t last long as you can guess.  Sin and idol worship soon replaced the worship of YHVH.  

Once idol worship became the norm in Israel, God did what he promised to do in Deuteronomy, and punished his people.  He sent in the Babylonian king, Nebuchadnezzar, who completely destroyed the temple, slaughtered the people, and carried many off into captivity.  After 70 years they were brought back and a second temple, though much inferior to the first temple, was built.  When Herod the Great became (vassal to Caesar)king over Israel, he greatly improved the temple and made it a magnificent building once again.  Jesus was born during the time of Herod’s (second) temple.  

The funny thing about all of this, is that during the Babylonian captivity, the prophet Ezekiel was given a vision of a new temple in “the land of Israel”.  Oddly, he never mentions Jerusalem.  And in this city was a marvelous temple built.  The weird thing about all of this is that, when the second temple was built soon after, it was not the temple that Ezekiel described.  Also, nowhere does Ezekiel even tell anyone to build it, he just describes a glorious temple somewhere in the land of Israel but never instructs anyone to build it.  Every detail of the temple and the city and the people are described but nothing like that ever physically happened.  So where is that temple or when will it be built?

Well, if you listen to any futurist pastor who is thoroughly indoctrinated in zionist propaganda, they will tell you that the chosen people (modern day rabbinical Jews living in Israel) will soon build that temple which will usher in the end times scenario.  However, if you ask someone who understands the bible in its true context, they will tell you that this is clearly a spiritual temple.  In fact in Ezekiel 48:35 he says that the name of that new city is  “The Lord Is Here”.  

Revelation 22:3  3 And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him.

That is the same thing that John  said in Revelation when describing that same temple.  John’s vision was the fulfilment of Ezekiel’s vision.  Just read Revelation 21-22 and compare it with Ezekiel 40-47.  

Ezekiel caps his vision off by describing a small stream coming out of the threshold of the temple and flowing eastward.  This stream begins to swell and grow deeper as it goes, eventually becoming a small river, and then a mighty river.  That doesn’t sound like a physical place, it sounds to me like a spiritual movement sort of like when Jesus told his apostles to go and make disciples of all nations starting in Jerusalem then to Samaria and to Galilee and then to the ends of the earth.  It sort of sounds to me like what exactly happened when Jesus came and became the fulfilment of the old law and established the new covenant in his blood, but do take my word for it, let’s see what Jesus himself said.

John 2:19-20

19 Jesus answered and said to them, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.”

20 Then the Jews said, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and will You raise it up in three days?”

Today we hear of mentally deranged people identifying as the opposite sex or as an animal or some other weird thing.  Jesus did something like that too!  Jesus identified as a temple!  He told the Jews that they would destroy that temple and in three days he would raise it up again.  He did raise it up and it became Ezekiel’s third temple complete with a stream flowing out of it and it became a river that I swim in daily.  What goes around comes around and just as the Jewish priests couldn’t understand this metaphor, we still have today most of the pastors of this earth still not getting it.  They are waiting for modern rabbinical Jews to build that third temple.  Nothing has changed for those that are spiritually blind.  Jesus is the Third Temple.  Nothing else needs to be built and we don’t have to wait.  The light of God fills the temple and the Lamb is the Lamp.