The River of Healing

 

Scripture: Ezekiel 47:1-5 (NLT)

In my vision, the man brought me back to the entrance of the Temple. There I saw a stream flowing east from beneath the door of the Temple and passing to the right of the altar on its south side. ² The man brought me outside the wall through the north gateway and led me around to the eastern entrance. There I could see the water flowing out through the south side of the east gateway.

³ Measuring as he went, he took me along the stream for 1,750 feet and then led me across. The water was up to my ankles. ⁴ He measured off another 1,750 feet and led me across again. This time the water was up to my knees. After another 1,750 feet, it was up to my waist. ⁵ Then he measured another 1,750 feet, and the river was too deep to walk across. It was deep enough to swim in, but too deep to walk through.

Devotion:

            Ezekiel here is having a vision of the temple with a new river flowing out of it. Since there are no rivers in Jerusalem this river must be symbolic. The river gets deeper but no wider as the angelic messenger measures it off for Ezekiel. At 7,000 feet it is too deep to walk across. One must swim in order to traverse the river.

            What could this mean. Commentators are all over the place suggesting meanings for this passage. I take it that God is leading Ezekiel into deeper and deeper water as a symbol for him entering more deeply into the water of life that God provides for his people. God desires each of us to walk more deeply into the water of healing and salvation he provides. Indeed, God wants to immerse us in his life giving waters. Later in verse 12 of chapter 47 the angel messenger reveals this about the river:

¹² And on the banks, on both sides of the river, there will grow all kinds of trees for food. Their leaves will not wither, nor their fruit fail, but they will bear fresh fruit every month, because the water for them flows from the sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food, and their leaves for healing.”

            God’s ultimate plan for salvation and healing of the world is like a river. Deeper and deeper the life giving water flows. Nothing can stop God’s healing plans for the world. Even though it may appear that the river is only ankle deep where we are standing, we can be assured that it will get deeper and deeper the further on with God we go.

            As we go along the way there will be trees with fruit for eating and leaves for healing our wounds. This scene provides us with hope for the future with God. This river is like the one the Apostle John sees in Revelation 22:1-3(ESV):

Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb ² through the middle of the street of the city; also, on either side of the river, the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit each month. The leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations.

            Behold our salvation has come. Let us eat of the tree of life and drink deeply of the water of life that God himself provides for us. Amen