The Stream Flowing from the Temple

47 ^(A) The man took me back to the temple, where I saw a stream flowing from under the entrance. It began in the south part of the temple, where it ran past the altar and continued east through the courtyard.

² We walked out of the temple area through the north gate and went around to the east gate. I saw the small stream of water flowing east from the south side of the gate.

³ The man walked east, then took out his measuring stick and measured 500 meters downstream. He told me to wade through the stream there, and the water came up to my ankles. ⁴ Then he measured another 500 meters downstream, and told me to wade through it there. The water came up to my knees. Another 500 meters downstream the water came up to my waist. ⁵ Another 500 meters downstream, the stream had become a river that could be crossed only by swimming. ⁶ The man said, “Ezekiel, son of man, pay attention to what you've seen.”

We walked to the riverbank, ⁷ where I saw dozens of trees on each side. ⁸ The man said:

This water flows eastward to the Jordan River valley and empties into the Dead Sea, where it turns the salt water into fresh water. ⁹ Wherever this water flows, there will be all kinds of animals and fish, because it will bring life and fresh water to the Dead Sea. ¹⁰ From En-Gedi to Eneglaim, people will fish in the sea and dry their nets along the coast. There will be as many kinds of fish in the Dead Sea as there are in the Mediterranean Sea. ¹¹ But the marshes along the shore will remain salty, so that people can use the salt from them.

^12 (B) Fruit trees will grow all along this river and produce fresh fruit every month. The leaves will never dry out, because they will always have water from the stream that flows from the temple, and they will be used for healing people.

The Borders of the Land

^13-14 The Lord God said to the people of Israel:

When the land is divided among the twelve tribes of Israel, the Joseph tribe^[a] will receive two shares. Divide the land equally, because I promised your ancestors that this land would someday belong to their descendants. These are the borders of the land:

¹⁵ The northern border will begin at the Mediterranean Sea, then continue eastward to Hethlon, to Lebo-Hamath, then across to Zedad, ¹⁶ Berothah,^[b] and Sibraim, which is on the border between the two kingdoms of Damascus and Hamath. The border will end at Hazer-Hatticon, which is on the border of Hauran. ¹⁷ So the northern border will run between the Mediterranean Sea and Hazar-Enon, which is on the border between Damascus and Hamath.^[c]

¹⁸ The eastern border will begin on the border between the two kingdoms of Hauran and Damascus. It will run south along the Jordan River, which separates the territories of Gilead and Israel, and it will end at the Dead Sea near the town of Tamar.^[d]

¹⁹ The southern border will begin at Tamar, then run southwest to the springs near Meribath-Kadesh. It will continue along the Egyptian Gorge and will end at the Mediterranean Sea.

²⁰ The western border will run north along the Mediterranean Sea to a point just west of Lebo-Hamath.

²¹ That is the land to be divided among the tribes of Israel. ²² It will belong to the Israelites and to any foreigners living among them whose children were born in Israel. These foreigners must be treated like any other Israelite citizen, and they will receive ²³ a share of the land given to the tribe where they live. I, the Lord God, have spoken.

The Division of Land among Tribes in the North

The Lord said:

48 ^1-7 Each tribe will receive a section of land that runs from the eastern border of Israel west to the Mediterranean Sea. The northern border of Israel will run along the towns of Hethlon and Lebo-Hamath, and will end at Hazar-Enon, which is on the border between the kingdoms of Damascus and Hamath. The tribes will receive their share of land in the following order, from north to south: Dan, Asher, Naphtali, Manasseh, Ephraim, Reuben, and Judah.

The Special Section of Land

The Lord said:

⁸ South of Judah's territory will be a special section of land. Its length will be twelve and a half kilometers, and its width will run from the eastern border of Israel west to the Mediterranean Sea. My temple will be located in this section of land.

⁹ An area in the center of this land will belong to me. It will be twelve and a half kilometers long and ten kilometers^[e] wide.

¹⁰ I, the Lord, will give half of my sacred land to the priests. Their share will be twelve and a half kilometers long and five kilometers wide, and my temple will be right in the middle. ¹¹ Only priests who are descendants of Zadok will receive a share of this sacred land, because they remained faithful to me when the Levites and the rest of the Israelites started sinning. ¹² The land belonging to the priests will be the most sacred area and will lie south of the area that belongs to the Levites.

¹³ I will give the other half of my sacred land to the Levites. Their share will also be twelve and a half kilometers long and five kilometers wide, ¹⁴ and they must never sell or trade any of this land—it is the best land and belongs to me.

¹⁵ South of my sacred land will be a section twelve and a half kilometers long and three kilometers wide. It will not be sacred, but will belong to the people of Israel and will include the city of Jerusalem, together with its houses and pastureland. ¹⁶ The city will be a square: Each side will be two kilometers long, ¹⁷ and an open area 125 meters wide will surround the city. ¹⁸ The land on the east and west sides of the city limits will be farmland for the people of Jerusalem; both sections will be five kilometers long and three kilometers wide. ¹⁹ People from the city will farm the land, no matter which tribe they belong to.

²⁰ And so the center of this special section of land will be for my sacred land, as well as for the city and its property. The land will be a square, twelve and a half kilometers on each side.

²¹ The regions east and west of this square of land will belong to the ruler of Israel. His property will run east to the Jordan River and west to the Mediterranean Sea. In the very center of his property will be my sacred land, as well as the temple, ²² together with the share belonging to the Levites and the city of Jerusalem. The northern border of the ruler's property will be the land that belongs to Judah, and the southern border will be the land that belongs to Benjamin.

The Division of Land among Tribes in the South

The Lord God said:

^23-27 South of this special section will be the land that belongs to the rest of Israel's tribes. Each tribe will receive a section of land that runs from the eastern border of Israel west to the Mediterranean Sea. The tribes will receive their share of land in the following order, from north to south: Benjamin, Simeon, Issachar, Zebulun, and Gad.

²⁸ Gad's southern border is also the southern border of Israel. It will begin at the town of Tamar, then run southwest to the springs near Meribath-Kadesh. It will continue along the Egyptian Gorge and end at the Mediterranean Sea.

²⁹ That's how the land of Israel will be divided among the twelve tribes. I, the Lord God, have spoken.

The Gates of Jerusalem

The Lord said:

^30-34 (C) The city of Jerusalem will have twelve gates, three on each of the four sides of the city wall. These gates will be named after the twelve tribes of Israel. The gates of Reuben, Judah, and Levi will be in the north; Joseph, Benjamin, and Dan will be in the east; Simeon, Issachar, and Zebulun will be in the south; Gad, Asher, and Naphtali will be in the west. Each side of the city wall will be two kilometers long, ³⁵ and so the total length of the wall will be ten kilometers. The new name of the city will be “The-Lord-Is-Here!”

3 ^(A) Think how much the Father loves us. He loves us so much that he lets us be called his children, as we truly are. But since the people of this world did not know who Christ^[a] is, they don't know who we are. ² My dear friends, we are already God's children, though what we will be hasn't yet been seen. But we do know when Christ returns, we will be like him, because we will see him as he truly is. ³ This hope makes us keep ourselves holy, just as Christ^[b] is holy.

⁴ Everyone who sins breaks God's law, because sin is the same as breaking God's law. ^5 (B) You know Christ came to take away our sins. He isn't sinful, ⁶ and people who stay one in their hearts with him won't keep on sinning. If they do keep on sinning, they don't know Christ, and they have never seen him.

⁷ Children, don't be fooled. Anyone who does right is good, just like Christ himself. ⁸ Anyone who keeps on sinning belongs to the devil. He has sinned from the beginning, but the Son of God came to destroy all that he has done. ⁹ God's children cannot keep on being sinful. His life-giving power^[c] lives in them and makes them his children, so they cannot keep on sinning. ¹⁰ You can tell God's children from the devil's children, because those who belong to the devil refuse to do right or to love each other.

Love Each Other

^11 (C) From the beginning you were told we must love each other. ^12 (D) Don't be like Cain, who belonged to the devil and murdered his own brother. Why did he murder him? He did it because his brother was good, and he was evil. ¹³ My friends, don't be surprised if the people of this world hate you. ^14 (E) Our love for each other proves we have gone from death to life. But if you don't love each other, you are still under the power of death.

¹⁵ If you hate each other, you are murderers, and we know murderers do not have eternal life. ¹⁶ We know what love is because Jesus gave his life for us. This is why we must give our lives for each other. ¹⁷ If we have all we need and see one of our own people in need, we must have pity on that person, or else we cannot say we love God. ¹⁸ Children, you show love for others by truly helping them, and not merely by talking about it.

¹⁹ When we love others, we know we belong to the truth, and we feel at ease in the presence of God. ²⁰ But even if we don't feel at ease, God is greater than our feelings, and he knows everything. ²¹ Dear friends, if we feel at ease in the presence of God, we will have the courage to come near him. ²² He will give us whatever we ask, because we obey him and do what pleases him. ^23 (F) God wants us to have faith in his Son Jesus Christ and to love each other. This is also what Jesus taught us to do. ²⁴ If we obey God's commandments, we will stay one in our hearts with him, and he will stay one with us. The Spirit he has given us is proof that we are one with him.