The East Gate

[avoice]

Facing the Mount of Olives on the eastern side of the Old City of Jerusalem is the Eastern Gate, also known as the Golden gate or the Beatiful Gate.

The Bible indicates that Jesus passed through this gate many times while he was in Jerusalem.

Religious tradition teaches that the coming Messiah will enter Jerusalem through this gate.

Ezekiel 44:1-3 Then he brought me back the way of the gate of the outward sanctuary which looketh toward the east; and it was shut. Then said the Lord unto me; This gate shall be shut, it shall not be opened, and no man shall enter in by it; because the Lord, the God of Israel, hath entered in by it, therefore it shall be shut. It is for the prince; the prince!

The shutting of the Eastern Gate of Jerusalem is symbolic of the fact that Israel shut the gate to God by the folly of their pursuit of other gods.
Therefore they knew not the Messiah upon the occasion of his visitation unto them 2000 years ago.
Thus their rejection of the Messiah stands as a historic monument symbolized in concrete by the shut gate to Old Jerusalem. Jesus prophesied to Israel about the desolation of their Temple, and that desolation continues to this very day.

The shut gate also symbolizes the reality of the supernatural battle that is even now waging over the Temple Mount. But the Lord shall return and open the gate, and rebuild the Temple, and Israel shall know the Lord.

Revelation 21:25 And the gates of it shall not be shut at all by day: for there shall be no night there.

The Gates shall be open and the glory and honor of the nations shall pass through to give praise unto the King of Kings!

To prevent this, the Muslims sealed the gate during the rule of Suleiman. And it remains sealed to this day

Ironically, Jesus ascended up into Heaven from the Mount of Olives, which overlooks the Eastern Gate to the west.
From that stony mountain top, Jesus ascended as the chief cornerstone for the up-building of Mount Zion. It is to the Mount of Olives that Jesus will return in the last days.

 

[Tehilah BaAretz]

Actually, it was the Crusaders who walled the gate shut. Suleiman just prettied it up a little. The Crusaders did it as a defensive measures when fighting against the Berbers. On a related note; Moslems like to be buried just outside the city walls because they believe that it is a gateway to paradise. They believe that Muhammad was on the rock inside the dome, just inside that gate when he ascended into heaven to receive the revelation of the Koran from Allah.

 

[australia]

Either way, "This gate shall be shut" as God stated.

Who cares who's behind it, whether it be Muhammad and his followers or anyone else?

 

[Tehilah BaAretz]

I was at the Eastern Gate today. It's still closed. I care just because I like to get the facts as straight as I can. Christians have looked very silly over the years making incorrect statements about things that can be proven. I just thought I'd mention the facts in case anyone wanted to get the story straight. I wasn't trying to try to change the theology but there have been teachers who have.

 

[Foreigner]

I must say that I agree with you.

When I was a young Christian another Christian who I admired or respected told me something having to do with Christ or the Gospel or history or prophecy, I just believed him or her - no questions asked.

It didn't take long to realize that wasn't always the wisest course of action.

And there is no faster way to ruin your witness to a person (outside of sinning) than give them what they find out to be incorrect information.

You are already asking them to take a leap of faith based on what you are sharing. If they find out that part of it is incorrect, it is even harder for them to be willing to make that leap.

I am now a fan of the Ronald Reagan school of thinking: Trust but verify.

If someone tells you something and it is accurate, it should be easy to find information confirming that. Check for yourself.




.

 

[veteran]

The only references I can find of the eastern gate being walled up was by the Arabs, in the 15th century, which is why there is also an Arab cemetery in front of it. They did it against Jewish belief per Scripture that Messiah would enter through that eastern gate.

 

[Cooter]

May I point out some historical confusion. The gate that Ezekiel spoke of was "his temple" not the temple in Jerusalem. Neither Temples today exist in the physical realm.

 

[veteran]

May I point out some historical confusion. The gate that Ezekiel spoke of was "his temple" not the temple in Jerusalem. Neither Temples today exist in the physical realm.

It is speaking of the future Holy City and thousand years temple which will be in Jerusalem after Christ's return to earth. Read starting at Ezekiel 40. That's going to be a real physical place on this earth, where Jerusalem is today. The heavenly dimension is going to be revealed upon the earth.http://biblia.com/bible/esv/Ezekiel 44.1-3

 

[Cooter]

It is speaking of the future Holy City and thousand years temple which will be in Jerusalem after Christ's return to earth. Read starting at Ezekiel 40. That's going to be a real physical place on this earth, where Jerusalem is today. The heavenly dimension is going to be revealed upon the earth.

That is a popular viewpoint these days - the literal approach. There is also a figurative approach. I favor this viewpoint since most of Ezekiel is written in apocalyptic or symbolic language. When the Jews returned from captivity after the 70 years they were in a quandary about Ezekiel's temple. By that time the writings of Ezekiel were very well known. Since there was no command to build this temple they decided to rebuild the temple of Solomon instead. They used a couple items from Ezekiel in the rebuilding process. They developed several viewpoints as to the future physical building of this temple.

The temple of Ezekiel is so huge it will not fit where the original temples stood. The "Prince" is of course Jesus. When he came back from the dead he came into his Temple forever - this is why the door is sealed. He will dwell with his people forever. Note that when animals are sacrificed on the day of Atonement - it is the Prince that provides all of the sacrifices. Also there is only one Tamid lamb sacrificed every day - one sacrifice - symbolic of Jesus of course. There is no wall of partition in this temple because in the New Covenant the Jews are no longer separate from the gentiles. There is no court of women because there is no male or female in the New Covenant. There is no table of showbread - why is that? There is no Menorah. There is no alter of incense. There is no laver. No ark of the covenant. There is no veil because the veil has always been symbolic of the body of Jesus. The top of the alter is now called Ariel - the Lion of God. And then there is the river of Ezekiel - same as Zechariah - it is a picture of the life giving water of God and so on.

 

[veteran]

That is a popular viewpoint these days - the literal approach. There is also a figurative approach. I favor this viewpoint since most of Ezekiel is written in apocalyptic or symbolic language. When the Jews returned from captivity after the 70 years they were in a quandary about Ezekiel's temple. By that time the writings of Ezekiel were very well known. Since there was no command to build this temple they decided to rebuild the temple of Solomon instead. They used a couple items from Ezekiel in the rebuilding process. They developed several viewpoints as to the future physical building of this temple.

The literal approach is not really the popular approach for many's Bible study today. Many instead treat God's Word like some mystical book where Its true meanings are always hidden within Scripture and never revealed in simplicity.

The temple of Ezekiel is so huge it will not fit where the original temples stood. The "Prince" is of course Jesus. When he came back from the dead he came into his Temple forever - this is why the door is sealed. He will dwell with his people forever. Note that when animals are sacrificed on the day of Atonement - it is the Prince that provides all of the sacrifices. Also there is only one Tamid lamb sacrificed every day - one sacrifice - symbolic of Jesus of course. There is no wall of partition in this temple because in the New Covenant the Jews are no longer separate from the gentiles. There is no court of women because

there is no male or female in the New Covenant. There is no table of showbread - why is that? There is no Menorah. There is no alter of incense. There is no laver. No ark of the covenant. There is no veil because the veil has always been symbolic of the body of Jesus. The top of the alter is now called Ariel - the Lion of God. And then there is the river of Ezekiel - same as Zechariah - it is a picture of the life giving water of God and so on.

I suggest you re-read Genesis 2 about God's River that flowed out of Eden to feed four other rivers upon the earth. That was a literal River then, and it will also be a literal River in Christ's Millennial reign, as Ezekiel was shown. Same with the many trees on either side of that River.

The fact that the layout of Ezekiel's temple reaches outward farther than any other previous temple and city layout of Jerusalem is because it's to show how there's going to be some changes here on earth when Christ returns, and especially for the future new heavens and a new earth time. Just because the layout doesn't fit that area in the middleast today does not mean God won't make it fit when it is time. The LORD even gave Ezekiel places on earth where His River is going to flow and manifest in that area. More detail about that River on earth is given in the Book of Isaiah also.

 

[HeRoseFromTheDead]

Christians have looked very silly over the years making incorrect statements about things that can be proven.

Yes they have and do. I believe it's actually taught by tour guides in Israel and by others that a geologic fault runs underneath this gate to the Mount of Olives, which will split apart when the lord returns creating a great valley for people to flee through. None of it is true. That fault doesn't appear on a geologic map of Jerusalem, and this study - Deciphering Zechariah 14:5 (http://zechariahfourteenfive.wordpress.com) - proves the fleeing part is also bogus.

Tehilah,
Are you familiar with Nahal Azal (נחל אצל) over by the Jerusalem Peace Forest and Abu Tor? The Arabs call it Wady Yasul.