| Social Justice
God's commandments make it abundantly clear that social justice is as important and binding upon His people as laws regarding worship or personal moral behavior. God's method that provides each person with an equal amount of land would obviously be considered out of the question by most people today. That this provision would be made equally available to foreigners would make it even more difficult for many people to accept. In today's world, there is not enough useable land to divide it equally. God's primary concern, however, that every person is given equal opportunity and access to be able to take care of themselves and their family financially is still possible. In our own time, this basic beginning point of equality for all was used in a deceptive way by communism. It seems the devil himself is well aware of the feeling of hopelessness that builds in nations where a few wealthy people can take advantage of the masses. Between the late 1840s until the end of the 20th century, millions and millions of people were killed in a zealous effort to rid the world of anyone who seemed to stand in the way of making all things equal. Obviously, it failed. It failed first and foremost because it was built upon atheism. Atheism provided no moral basis to enforce what would be right for the poor once the ruling class of communism rose to the top. They became more oppressive than any dictator or king. At the collapse of communism, the hope next became "free market" or capitalism. But without a godly moral base, it will in the end create many of the inequalities that are as old as human civilization. The sad reality is during Ezekiel's time the Jews did not obey these regulations that God gave on equality, and the entire nation suffered as a result. God Himself judged Israel for their greed that showed no compassion for those their greed oppressed. In our own time, if any sincere believer would have moral courage to be just, fair, and honest within our current form of capitalism, he or she will be surprised at how much God will prosper them. Give every person a fair beginning point with education, opportunities, and a livable wage and see what will happen. Yes, some will certainly take greater advantage of opportunities than others and work harder than others, resulting in greater financial success. But if we also work toward a legitimate livable wage for all people, there would be a lot less poverty that ultimately leads to social upheaval. God's word is all God's word. May its truth directed toward social justice be one of the guiding principles of all who claim to follow Him and His ideals. But regardless, let our conscience before God be our guide as we seek to honor Him in our response to social justice. | |||
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| Ezekiel 47:13-48:35 13 Thus says the Lord GOD: "These are the borders by which you shall divide the land as an inheritance among the twelve tribes of Israel. Joseph shall have two portions. 14 You shall inherit it equally with one another; for I raised My hand in an oath to give it to your fathers, and this land shall fall to you as your inheritance. 15 "This shall be the border of the land on the north: from the Great Sea, by the road to Hethlon, as one goes to Zedad, 16 Hamath, Berothah, Sibraim (which is between the border of Damascus and the border of Hamath), to Hazar Hatticon (which is on the border of Hauran). 17 Thus the boundary shall be from the Sea to Hazar Enan, the border of Damascus; and as for the north, northward, it is the border of Hamath. This is the north side. 18 "On the east side you shall mark out the border from between Hauran and Damascus, and between Gilead and the land of Israel, along the Jordan, and along the eastern side of the sea. This is the east side. 19 "The south side, toward the South,shall be from Tamar to the waters of Meribah by Kadesh, along the brook to the Great Sea. This is the south side, toward the South. 20 "The west side shall be the Great Sea, from the southern boundary until one comes to a point opposite Hamath. This is the west side. 21 "Thus you shall divide this land among yourselves according to the tribes of Israel. 22 It shall be that you will divide it by lot as an inheritance for yourselves, and for the strangers who dwell among you and who bear children among you. They shall be to you as native-born among the children of Israel; they shall have an inheritance with you among the tribes of Israel. 23 And it shall be that in whatever tribe the stranger dwells, there you shall give him his inheritance," says the Lord GOD. Ezekiel 48 Division of the Land 1 "Now these are the names of the tribes: From the northern border along the road to Hethlon at the entrance of Hamath, to Hazar Enan, the border of Damascus northward, in the direction of Hamath, there shall be one section for Dan from its east to its west side; 2 by the border of Dan, from the east side to the west, one section for Asher; 3 by the border of Asher, from the east side to the west, one section for Naphtali; 4 by the border of Naphtali, from the east side to the west, one section for Manasseh; 5 by the border of Manasseh, from the east side to the west, one section for Ephraim; 6 by the border of Ephraim, from the east side to the west, one section for Reuben; 7 by the border of Reuben, from the east side to the west, one section for Judah; 8 by the border of Judah, from the east side to the west, shall be the district which you shall set apart, twenty-five thousand cubits in width, and in length the same as one of the other portions, from the east side to the west, with the sanctuary in the center. 9 "The district that you shall set apart for the LORD shall be twenty-five thousand cubits in length and ten thousand in width. 10 To these—to the priests—the holy district shall belong: on the north twenty-five thousand cubits in length, on the west ten thousand in width, on the east ten thousand in width, and on the south twenty-five thousand in length. The sanctuary of the LORD shall be in the center. 11 It shall be for the priests of the sons of Zadok, who are sanctified, who have kept My charge, who did not go astray when the children of Israel went astray, as the Levites went astray. 12 And this district of land that is set apart shall be to them a thing most holy by the border of the Levites. 13 "Opposite the border of the priests, the Levites shall have an area twenty-five thousand cubits in length and ten thousand in width; its entire length shall be twenty-five thousand and its width ten thousand. 14 And they shall not sell or exchange any of it; they may not alienate this best part of the land, for it is holy to the LORD. 15 "The five thousand cubits in width that remain, along the edge of the twenty-five thousand, shall be for general use by the city, for dwellings and common-land; and the city shall be in the center. 16 These shall be its measurements: the north side four thousand five hundred cubits, the south side four thousand five hundred, the east side four thousand five hundred, and the west side four thousand five hundred. 17 The common-land of the city shall be: to the north two hundred and fifty cubits, to the south two hundred and fifty, to the east two hundred and fifty, and to the west two hundred and fifty. 18 The rest of the length, alongside the district of the holy section, shall be ten thousand cubits to the east and ten thousand to the west. It shall be adjacent to the district of the holy section, and its produce shall be food for the workers of the city. 19 The workers of the city, from all the tribes of Israel, shall cultivate it. 20 The entire district shall be twenty-five thousand cubits by twenty-five thousand cubits, foursquare. You shall set apart the holy district with the property of the city. 21 "The rest shall belong to the prince, on one side and on the other of the holy district and of the city's property, next to the twenty-five thousand cubits of the holy district as far as the eastern border, and westward next to the twenty-five thousand as far as the western border, adjacent to the tribal portions; it shall belong to the prince. It shall be the holy district, and the sanctuary of the temple shall be in the center. 22 Moreover, apart from the possession of the Levites and the possession of the city which are in the midst of what belongs to the prince, the area between the border of Judah and the border of Benjamin shall belong to the prince. 23 "As for the rest of the tribes, from the east side to the west, Benjamin shall have one section; 24 by the border of Benjamin, from the east side to the west, Simeon shall have one section; 25 by the border of Simeon, from the east side to the west, Issachar shall have one section; 26 by the border of Issachar, from the east side to the west, Zebulun shall have one section; 27 by the border of Zebulun, from the east side to the west, Gad shall have one section; 28 by the border of Gad, on the south side, toward the South, the border shall be from Tamar to the waters of Meribah by Kadesh, along the brook to the Great Sea. 29 This is the land which you shall divide by lot as an inheritance among the tribes of Israel, and these are their portions," says the Lord GOD. The Gates of the City and Its Name 30 "These are the exits of the city. On the north side, measuring four thousand five hundred cubits 31 (the gates of the city shall be named after the tribes of Israel), the three gates northward: one gate for Reuben, one gate for Judah, and one gate for Levi; 32 on the east side, four thousand five hundred cubits, three gates: one gate for Joseph, one gate for Benjamin, and one gate for Dan; 33 on the south side, measuring four thousand five hundred cubits, three gates: one gate for Simeon, one gate for Issachar, and one gate for Zebulun; 34 on the west side, four thousand five hundred cubits with their three gates: one gate for Gad, one gate for Asher, and one gate for Naphtali. 35 All the way around shall be eighteen thousand cubits; and the name of the city from that day shall be: THE LORD IS THERE." | |||
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| Ezekiel 37:1-38:23 v. 13 the twelve tribes of Israel – Abraham's grandson Jacob was the patriarch of the 12 tribes that came from his 12 sons (Gen. 29-30). God changed Jacob's name to Israel. Joseph…two portions – Although Joseph was not the firstborn, he inherited the rights of the firstborn, thus he receiving two portions of land through his sons Ephraim and Manasseh (Gen. 49). Levi did not receive a portion of the land. As priests, their portion was the Lord (Lev. 18:8, 20). v. 14 inherit it – The borders themselves are described beginning on the north. The starting point (by way of Hethlon, v. 15) is somewhere between modern-day Beirut and Lebanese Tripoli on the Mediterranean (the Great Sea) coast. The line circles north of Damascus (v. 16), and somewhere to the east of Damascus it turns south. Many of the place names cannot be identified. The eastern border then follows the line of the Jordan to Tamar, a fort south of the Dead Sea (v. 18). From this point the southern border goes toward to the Mediterranean coast by way of Meribah-kadesh, emerging near modern Arish in Egypt (v. 19). The western boundary is naturally formed by the Mediterranean coast itself (v. 20). You shall inherit it equally with one another; for I raised My hand in an oath to give it to your fathers, and this land shall fall to you as your inheritance. v. 22 shall be that you will inherit – Full provision was made for foreigners as fellow citizens of the land. by lot – Nobody was given preferential treatment; all land was divided up by lots. v. 23 tribe – The foreigner is not to have to move to some special territory for aliens, but to be recognized as a full participant in the land. Ezekiel 48 v. 1 these are the names of the tribes – The equal distribution of this territory among the 12 tribes begins in the north working south toward the central sacred district. Each tribe is allocated a strip running east to west (v. 1). Seven tribes are settled north of the Temple district, with the tribe of Judah allocated just to the north of the City of Jerusalem. v. 8 by the border of Judah – Just to the south of Judah's territory is the land that is set aside for the Temple complex, for the priests and for the prince. This is the only territorial strip that is measured, being 25,000 cubits (about 8.5 miles) north to south. At the center of this strip is a square block of land with three parcels—a northern parcel of land for the Levitical priests, a central parcel for the Zadokite priests with the Temple complex in the middle of that parcel. (On the distinction between Levitical and Zadokites priests, see study note on Eze. 44:10.) Just south is another parcel half the size of the other two set aside for the city. The prince is allocated the land on either side of the Temple district in this strip (Eze. 45:1-8 study notes). v. 11 – Levites went astray – see Eze. 44:10 v. 14 – sell or exchange – Because this parcel of land belongs to the Lord, it is not transferable. v. 21 – the prince – see Eze. 44:3 v. 23 the rest of the tribes – The remaining five tribes are listed. Through verse 29 finishes the allocation of the land, north to south. v. 30 exits of the city – The last part of Ezekiel's vision is the city gates which give access to the city itself. There are 12 very broad gates, each measuring about 1.5 miles, and are named for the 12 sons of Jacob. Levi is included, and Joseph is listed as one tribe, not two, as in Ephraim and Manasseh (See study note 47:13). v. 35 The LORD is there – Yahweh shammah (Heb.) The primary meaning of the Hebrew word "LORD" is the self-existent One, literally He that is who He is, therefore the eternal I AM(Ex. 3:14). This name for God points to His self-existence and eternality; it denotes "I am the One who is/will be," and is usually rendered with all capitals as "LORD" in most English translations. The word in Hebrew is YHWH, or Yahweh. Shammah means "there, thither," thus Yahweh is there. Name – The city's new name is to be Yahweh shammah, for its name indicates its true character. This vision given to Ezekiel is about the actualization of God's presence among His people (Rev. 22:3). Ezekiel begins with a vision of God and proceeds with judgment on Israel because of her sin. In chapters 8-10, Ezekiel is shown a vision of Jerusalem and of the Temple where gross abominations are taking place; so gross, in fact, that the Spirit of God leaves. But, beginning with chapter 33, there is a change in the book. Instead of judgments, God promises to redeem His people. He promises to pour out His Spirit upon the people that they might live to His glory. Ezekiel then sees a glorious Temple in the land which the Spirit of God returns to and blesses His people. And so, it is a fitting conclusion to the book that God's final words are, "The LORD is there." | |||
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| Thus says the Lord GOD: "These are the borders by which you shall divide the land as an inheritance among the twelve tribes of Israel. Joseph shall have two portions. You shall inherit it equally with one another; for I raised My hand in an oath to give it to your fathers, and this land shall fall to you as your inheritance. –Ezekiel 47:13-14 Jesus, we know You are our inheritance. There is nothing that we should have need or want for, as long as we lay our burdens upon You. You have promised, Jesus, that we are more precious than the birds of the air, to whom You provide every need. Thank You, Jesus, for Your provision and care. | |||
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47:13-14 
Borders of the Land
4th-6th Grade Summer Camp
