Verse 2a says, “And, behold, the glory of the God of Israel came from the way of the east.” The glory returned from the east, that is, from the direction of the sunrise. The direction of the sunrise signifies glory (Num. 2:3). The Lord came back from the glory. He left toward the east, and He came back from the east.
Ezekiel 43:2 also says, “And his voice was like a noise of many waters.” The Lord returned not only with glory but also with a great noise, for His voice was as the noise of many waters. This indicates that whenever the Lord’s glory comes back to the church, there will be a great deal of noise. When the Lord’s glory leaves, we should be quiet. Quietness indicates that the glory is gone, but noise is a sign that glory has returned. In Acts 2, on the day of Pentecost, it was not quiet. “There was a sound out of heaven, as of a rushing violent wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting” (v. 2). Whenever the church is revived, there will be a loud sound and a great noise.
According to Ezekiel 43:2, “The earth shined with his glory.” The earth was under the light, the shining of the Lord’s glory. There was no darkness. On the day of Pentecost, the city of Jerusalem was under the shining of such a light. Whenever the church has a revival, God’s glory is expressed, the voice of God is heard, and God’s glory shines forth. However, without the manifestation of God and the voice of God, there is darkness.
Ezekiel 43:3 says that the appearance of the Lord was the same when He returned as when He came with the prophet to destroy the city. This comforting word reveals how merciful the Lord is. Even while Ezekiel was in captivity, the vision of the Lord was there. The vision of the Lord came not only to the holy land but also to the place of captivity.
In Zechariah 1:8 the Lord was riding on a red horse among the myrtle trees in the bottom. At that time the Lord’s people were in a low place, in the bottom, but the Lord was riding among them to bring them out. This indicates that He was with those in captivity. The Lord was still with His people but not in a normal way.
Ezekiel 43:4 says, “The glory of the Lord came into the house by the way of the gate whose prospect is toward the east.” The Lord came back by the east gate.
The temple has three gates: one toward the east, one toward the south, and one toward the north. The gates on the south and the north are for the convenience of the people, but the gate toward the east is not only for the convenience of the people but also for the glory of the Lord. In the church life we need several gates, but the most important one is the east gate—the gate that is open to the glory of the Lord. This means that in the church life we need a gate which is open to the glory of the Lord. We should not only care for convenience; we should care especially for the glory of the Lord. In the church life the first consideration we should have is the Lord’s glory. The decisions in the church life must be made primarily according to the Lord’s glory. Even in making decisions concerning the day and time of the meetings, we should care for the Lord’s glory and not simply for people’s convenience. The church must be open to the Lord’s glory so that His glory may come into the church.
The glory of the Lord came into the house, and “Behold, the glory of the Lord filled the house” (v. 5). Eventually, the house and the inner temple were filled with the glory of the Lord.
Here we see that the Lord has returned to the earth. Because He had lost His standing on earth, He went back to the heavens. The Lord’s standing on earth is the building up of His house. In order for the Lord to come back to the earth, He needs a built up church as His standing on the earth. The Lord will not simply come back to the earth; the Lord will come back to the church.
At the time Ezekiel saw the glory of the Lord, he also saw a man standing by him. He saw both the glory of the Lord and the Lord as a man. The man who stood by him said, “Son of man, the place of my throne, and the place of the soles of my feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the children of Israel for ever” (v. 7a). The words the place of my throne prove that the man who stood by Ezekiel was the Lord Himself. According to the grammatical construction, “The place of my throne, and the place of the soles of my feet, where I will dwell,” does not seem to be a good composition. It may be that because His desire and joy were with His house, the Lord neglected the matter of grammar. He was fully occupied with His house.
The Lord was so happy with His house that seemingly He did not care about grammar. Upon His return to the temple, the Lord was very happy. The house had been recovered, and once again He had a place for the soles of His feet. Therefore, He said, “Son of man, the place of my throne, and the place of the soles of my feet.”
Here we see the Lord’s desire for His house, for the church. The Lord cares for the recovery of the church life. He has been desiring and waiting to come back to the church. This is why we have so much joy in the meetings. We are joyful and happy because the Lord within us is joyful and happy. He is happy because in the church He has a place—a place for His throne, a place for the soles of His feet. For centuries the Lord did not have on earth a place for the soles of His feet. How happy He is that, having been kept away from the earth for so long, He now has the local churches as the place of His throne and the place of the soles of His feet! It is marvelous that the Lord, the almighty God, could utter the word recorded in verse 7: “The place of my throne, and the place of the soles of my feet.”
If I had been Ezekiel, I might have asked, “Since You are the almighty God, why do You care about such a small place? Why does this place make You so happy?” If Ezekiel had asked this question, the Lord might have answered, “I love this particular place on earth because it is the place of My throne and the place of the soles of My feet.”
The place of the soles of the Lord’s feet is the place of His throne. The throne is for God’s government, administration, and kingdom; it is the place from which He can administrate. The soles of the Lord’s feet are for His move on earth. Apart from the temple as the place of His throne and the place of the soles of His feet, the Lord has no base for His administration and move on the earth. Unless the church is built up, the Lord has no standing to administrate His government and to move on the earth. Furthermore, the church is the place where the Lord can dwell for His rest and satisfaction.