Ezekiel 47-48
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 47[a]
The Temple Stream. 1 Then he brought me back to the entrance of the temple, and I beheld water flowing out eastward from under the threshold of the temple, for the temple faced east. The water was flowing down from the southern end of the temple, south of the altar. 2 He took me out through the north gate and led me around on the outside to the outer gate that faces the east, where I saw that the water was trickling forth from the south side.
3 The man walked off to the east with a measuring line in his hand, and he measured off a thousand cubits. Then he led me through the water, which was ankle-deep. 4 Again, he measured off a thousand cubits and made me wade across the stream again. This time the water reached my knees. Again, he measured off a thousand cubits and made me wade across the stream again. This time the water reached my waist.
5 Once again, he measured off a thousand cubits, but now I beheld a river that I could not cross, for the water had risen, and it was deep enough to swim in, a river that could not be crossed except by swimming. 6 He asked me, “Have you seen this, son of man?” Then he brought me back to the bank of the river.
7 When I arrived there, I saw a great number of trees on each side of the river. 8 He said to me, “This water flows east and goes down into the Arabah and empties into the sea, whose salt waters it makes fresh.
9 “Wherever the river flows, swarms of living creatures will live there and multiply. There will be an abundance of fish, for this water flows there and makes the salt water fresh. 10 Also, fishermen will gather along its banks from En-gedi to Englaim, spreading their nets. All kinds of fish will be found there, like the fish of the Great Sea.
11 “However, its swamps and marshes will not become fresh; they will be left for salt. 12 Along the river, on both banks, fruit trees of every kind will grow, with leaves that never wither and with fruit that never fails. They will bear fresh fruit every month, because they will be watered by the flow from the sanctuary. Their fruit will serve as food, and their leaves will serve for healing.”
The New Israel
13 Boundaries of the Land. Thus says the Lord God: These are the boundaries by which you are to divide the land as an inheritance for the twelve tribes of Israel, with two portions allotted to Joseph. 14 You are to divide it equally among them. Because I swore to your fathers that I would give it to your forefathers, this land will be given to you as your inheritance.
15 These will be the boundaries of the land: On the north side, from the Great Sea by the road from Hethlon, past Lebo-hamath, and on to Zedad, 16 Berothah, and Sibraim, between the border of Damascus and the border of Hamath, as far as Hazar-enon, which is on the border of Hauran. 17 Thus, the border will extend from the sea to Hazar-enon, with the frontier of Hamath and Damascus to the north. This was the northern boundary.
18 On the east side, between Hauran and Damascus, along the Jordan between Gilead and the land of Israel, to the eastern sea and as far as Tamar. This is the eastern boundary.
19 On the south side, from Tamar to the waters of Meribath-kadesh, and from there along the Wadi of Egypt to the Great Sea. This is the southern boundary.
20 On the west side is the Great Sea, which forms the boundary as far as a point parallel to and opposite Lebo-hamath. This is the western boundary.
21 The Northern Allotment. You are to distribute this land yourselves among the tribes of Israel 22 and allot it as an inheritance for yourselves and for the aliens who reside in your midst and have begotten children among you. You are to treat them as children of Israel. With you, they shall be allotted as an inheritance among the tribes of Israel.[b] 23 In whatever tribe an alien settles, there you shall assign him his inheritance. This is the word of the Lord God.
Chapter 48
1 What follows is the list of the tribes:
At the northernmost border, Dan will have one portion, in the direction of Hethlon, through Lebo of Hamath to Hazar-enon, on the border of Damascus to the north, next to Hamath, his portion extending from the eastern to the western boundary.
2 Asher will have one portion, bordering Dan, from the eastern to the western boundary.
3 Naphtali will have one portion, bordering Asher, from the eastern to the western boundary.
4 Manasseh will have one portion, bordering Naphtali, from the eastern to the western boundary.
5 Ephraim will have one portion, bordering Manasseh, from the eastern to the western boundary.
6 Reuben will have one portion, bordering Ephraim, from the eastern to the western boundary.
7 Judah will have one portion, bordering Reuben, from the eastern to the western boundary.
The Sacred Allotment. 8 Adjoining the territory of Judah from the eastern to the western boundary shall be the portion that you are to set apart—twenty-five thousand cubits wide, and its length the same as each of the other tribal portions from the eastern to the western boundary. The sanctuary of the Lord shall be located in the center of it.
9 The portion that you set aside for the Lord shall be twenty-five thousand cubits long and ten thousand cubits wide. 10 This will be the sacred portion for the priests. It will measure twenty-five thousand cubits on the north, ten thousand cubits on the east, ten thousand cubits on the west, and twenty-five thousand cubits on the south. The sanctuary of the Lord will be placed in the center of it.
11 This will be for the consecrated priests, the descendants of the tribe of Zadok, who remained faithful in their service to me and did not follow the Israelites in going astray, as the Levites did, 12 it will belong to them as a special gift set aside from the sacred portion of the land, adjoining the territory of the Levites.
13 The territory of the Levites shall correspond to that of the priests, twenty-five thousand cubits long and ten thousand cubits wide. Its total length will be twenty-five thousand cubits, and its total width will be ten thousand cubits. 14 They will not be allowed to sell or exchange any part of it. This is the choice portion of the land, and it cannot be transferred, because it is holy to the Lord.
15 The remaining area, five thousand cubits in width and twenty-five thousand cubits in length, shall be used at the discretion of the city for dwellings and pasture lands. The city shall be located in the middle of it, 16 and these shall be its dimensions: on the north side, four thousand five hundred cubits; on the south side, four thousand five hundred cubits; on the east side, four thousand five hundred cubits; on the west side, four thousand five hundred cubits.
17 The pasture land of the city will be two hundred and fifty cubits to the north, two hundred and fifty cubits to the south, two hundred and fifty cubits to the east, and two hundred and fifty cubits to the west. 18 The remainder of the area, along the sacred tract, will be ten thousand cubits to the east and ten thousand cubits to the west. Its produce will provide food for the workers of the city.
19 The workers of the city who farm this land will come from all the tribes of Israel. 20 The entire tract that you set apart will be a square, twenty-five thousand cubits by twenty-five thousand cubits. As a sacred gift, you must set apart the sacred tract together with the property of the city.
21 What remains on both sides of the sacred portion and of the property of the city shall belong to the prince. Extending eastward along the twenty-five thousand cubits to the eastern border, and extending westward along the twenty-five thousand cubits to the western border, parallel to the tribal portions, it will belong to the prince. The sacred portion and the sanctuary of the temple will be in the center. 22 Therefore, aside from the property of the Levites and the property of the city, which lie in the midst of the prince’s property, everything between the borders of Judah and the borders of Benjamin shall belong to the prince.
23 The Southern Allotment. These are the remaining tribes:
Benjamin will have one portion, from the eastern boundary to the western boundary.
24 Simeon will have one portion, bordering the territory of Benjamin from east to west.
25 Issachar will have one portion, bordering the territory of Simeon from east to west.
26 Zebulun will have one portion, bordering the territory of Issachar from east to west.
27 Gad will have one portion, bordering the territory of Zebulun from east to west.
28 The southern boundary of Gad will extend from Tamar to the waters of Meribath-kadesh, and from there along the Wadi of Egypt to the Great Sea.
29 This is the land that you are to allot as inheritances among the tribes of Israel, and these are their portions, says the Lord God.
30 The City Gates. These are the exits from the city, the gates of which are named after the tribes of Israel.
On the north side, which will measure four thousand five hundred cubits in length, 31 there will be three gates: the gate of Reuben, the gate of Judah, and the gate of Levi.
32 On the east side, which will measure four thousand five hundred cubits in length, there will be three gates: the gate of Joseph, the gate of Benjamin, and the gate of Dan.
33 On the south side, which will measure four thousand five hundred cubits in length, there will be three gates: the gate of Simeon, the gate of Issachar, and the gate of Zebulun.
34 On the west side, which will measure four thousand five hundred cubits in length, there will be three gates: the gate of Gad, the gate of Asher, and the gate of Naphtali.
35 The perimeter of the city will measure eighteen thousand cubits. And the name of the city from that time on will be: “The Lord Is There.”
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 47:1 In the new land of the new people water will gush forth more abundantly than it did from the rock which Moses struck (Ex 17:1-7) and will provide copious irrigation for a Palestine that will have been changed into a new earthly paradise, as in the first days of humanity’s existence (Gen 2:10-14). This stream will more than ever show itself to be a gift of God, who is present in the temple and from there pours out his favors on his purified people. St. John considers this promise to be fulfilled when, on the cross, water flows from the open side of Christ, the new temple, like streams of water leaping up for everlasting life (see Jn 2:21; 4:14; 7:37; 19:34). In the Apocalypse, he will speak of the great river of life that springs from the throne of the Lamb (Rev 22:1).
- Ezekiel 47:22 The old law (Deut 23:2-9) denied aliens the right to inherit property.
