Ezekiel 47:2Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

The waters flowed on the right side, with the man, while holding the measuring cord, journeying eastward once more. What does this measure signify? It denotes grace, the extent of the divine gift. In his measurement, he encountered “a thousand.” The choice of the term “a thousand” is intriguing as it does not specify cubits or fathoms but instead universally signifies completeness. This speaks to deeper truths that lie beneath the surface. The man traversed through the waters of desolation. Baptism encompasses both physical and spiritual waters; he navigated through the physical waters to reach the living waters of forgiveness, symbolizing the passage through the sensory realm to the Spirit, who offers absolution of sins. He advanced through the waters, signifying the forgiveness afforded by the Spirit, just as the Savior declared while breathing upon them: “Receive ye the Holy Ghost. Whosoever sins ye remit, they are remitted” (John 20:22, 23).

One thousand more was measured, leading me to a stream that was impassable due to its depth, where the waters surged and could not be crossed. The waters flowed from under the temple’s threshold, moving not toward the north or west, but eastward, from the right side of the temple on the south side, specifically from by the altar. This indicates that these are holy waters, representing the teachings of our Savior, as is written: "From Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem" (Isaiah 2:3). Additionally, it is said: "All shall be filled with the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea" (Isaiah 11:9). The prophet Zechariah also spoke of these waters, declaring: "In that day living waters shall go out from Jerusalem, half of them toward the east sea and half of them toward the hinder sea" (Zechariah 14:8). Regarding these waters and the Samaritan woman, the Lord proclaimed: "If you had known who it is that says to you, ‘Give me to drink,’ you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water" (John 4:10). He continued: "Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst" (John 4:13). In the temple, He cried out, saying, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. Whoever believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.’ But this He spoke of the Spirit, whom those who believe in Him would receive" (John 7:37-39). These are the waters mentioned by the psalmist: "Bring me up from the waters of rest" (Psalm 22:2). Moreover, Ezekiel wrote: "I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and you shall be cleaned from all your filthiness" (Ezekiel 36:24-25). Indeed, springs of water have emerged (Psalms 17:16). The ninety-second psalm states, "You have raised up rivers, O Lord; you have raised up rivers with their voices from the voices of many waters. Wonderful are the heights of the sea" (Psalm 92:3-4). These are the waters of Siloam, flowing gently, of which Isaiah says: "With joy shall ye draw water out of the wells of salvation" (Isaiah 12:3). The psalmist exclaims: "Bless the Lord from the fountain of Israel" (Psalm 67:27). In addition, Isaiah speaks of the Lord, saying: "He shall dwell in the high cave of the rock of strength; bread shall be given him and his water shall be sure" (Isaiah 33:16). Regarding the water in the wilderness and the woods in the thirsty land (Isaiah 35:6), the faithful are reassured: "Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you" (Isaiah 43:1-2). The invitation comes: "Ho, everyone that thirsts, come ye to the waters" (Isaiah 55:1). Jeremiah laments, "My people have committed two evils: they have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, and hewn them out cisterns, broken cisterns that can hold no water" (Jeremiah 2:13). As we contemplate the waters from the temple, linked to the doctrine of the Church, we see the contrast with bitter waters and foul waters, from which the prophet Jeremiah warns us: "What do you have to do with the way of Egypt, to drink the waters of Geon?" (Jeremiah 2:18), which in Hebrew means "turbid and muddy." Consequently, in divine displeasure towards the heretics, God declares, "Behold, I will feed them with bitterness, and give them gall to drink" (Jeremiah 9:15), wherein thrives the dragon of Egypt, who boasts, "My rivers are my own, and I have made them" (Ezekiel 29:3). He arrogantly surveys everything, reigning as king over those on the waters. Therefore, the man of the Church calls out to the Lord: "Save me, O Lord; for the waters have come up to my soul. I am sinking in deep mire, where there is no footing; I have come into the depths of the sea, and the flood overwhelms me" (Psalm 68:1-3). Again, "Save me from those who hate me, and from the deep waters, lest the flood overwhelm me, lest the pit swallow me up" (Psalm 68:15-16). In another psalm, it is said, "If it had not been the Lord who was with us, let Israel now say: If it had not been the Lord who was with us, when men rose up against us, then they would have swallowed us alive, when their anger was kindled against us; then the waters would have overwhelmed us" (Psalm 123:1-3). The bride in the Song of Songs affirms, "Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it" (Song of Songs 8:7). This water is referred to by Hosea, who denounces Gilead: "The city is full of wickedness; it is troubled by the waters, and strong is the wickedness of its inhabitants" (Hosea 6:7-9). This water, called Marah, signifies bitterness, into which the tree of the cross is immersed, turning the bitter into sweet. Reflect on the law of Moses; it is bitter when interpreted in a literal, carnal sense, as illustrated by "eye for eye, tooth for tooth" (Ex. 21), the incest with Tamar (2 Samuel 13), Hosea's union with a harlot (Hosea 1), the waistband of Jeremiah (Jeremiah 13), Moses' Ethiopian wife, and the slaying of the Egyptian (Ex. 2), among numerous other instances. If these narratives are understood through the dead letter instead of the life-giving Spirit, they yield bitterness rather than edification. These are the waters flowing from the Lord’s temple, advancing eastward, descending at the right side of the altar, where the bridegroom nourishes his servants and finds rest. When he led me out through the north gate and guided me around to the outer gate facing east, it clearly indicates that we cannot come directly to the eastern gate without taking a longer path through the northern gate. Unless we conquer the cold winds with the warmth of faith, trampling upon their territory, fulfilling the Apostle's words: "And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly" (Romans 16:20), we will not be able to enter into the gate through which the waters flow, located on the right side. Notice that the waters flowing from the eastern gate are distant from the left side, depicted as flowing from the right side of the altar towards the south. The man who held the cord led me through the north gate, directing me toward the east as he was also present there, measuring out a thousand cubits of the same water, bringing me through the water to my ankles. Aquila, Symmachus, and Theodotion translated this as "ankles," while the Septuagint used "passed through the water by the water of remission," which may refer to the initial sins of humanity that are forgiven upon entering the waters of the Lord. These waters symbolize the saving grace of baptism and represent a significant beginning. They rise to the ankle, close to the foot and heel, exposed to the serpent's strikes, according to the Lord’s declaration: "You shall strike his head, and he shall strike your heel" (Genesis 3:15). In the psalms, it is recorded concerning Judas the betrayer: "He who ate my bread has lifted his heel against me" (Psalms 40:10), indicating a betrayal. After measuring the first thousand cubits to the ankle, he measured another thousand in the water and brought me to my knees. Following the forgiveness of sins and striving for a higher path, we bow our knees before the Lord, as the Apostle teaches: "Let every knee bow, of those in heaven, those on the earth, and those under the earth, and let every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father" (Ephesians 2:10). For the third time, he measured another thousand cubits in the water, leading me through to my waist. With each ascending step, we attain greater heights; yet this height reaches the loins, where all shameful desires must be put to death, allowing for the sanctification of the body, without which no one can see God. Therefore, this prophet (Ezekiel 8) saw God as fire from the feet to the loins. The loins require purifying fire, as articulated by the righteous: "My loins are filled with sorrow" (Psalm 37:8), through which the enemy mocks us day and night. From the loins to the head, pure radiance shines, so nothing here is contemptible. Consequently, it is stated for the fourth time: he measured a thousand cubits to the stream (the Septuagint omits this), which I could not cross. This is more precise than what the Septuagint suggests: that he could not cross over. The prophet, and every human being above the loins, cannot navigate through the flood of thoughts and vices that surge from the heart. Nevertheless, undoubtedly, the man adorned in fine linen who guided the prophet crossed it—he who committed no iniquity, to whom flattery is foreign, as it is written: "Those who are far from Me shall perish" (Isaiah 43:9). The prophet explains why he could not cross the fourth thousand cubits: he states that the deep waters of the stream had risen to an unpassable level. Yet, how did the prophet proclaim with praise: "The stream shall pass over our souls" (Psalms 123:5)? This dilemma is easily resolved when recognizing that the Hebrew text implies: "the stream has passed over our soul." Concerning this surge, Isaiah declares: "Behold, I will pour out peace upon him like a river, and the glory shall be like a flooding stream" (Isaiah 66:12). The thirty-fifth psalm acknowledges the hope of the saints: "In the shadow of Thy wings shall they trust; they shall be abundantly satisfied with the fatness of Thy house, and Thou shalt make them drink of the river of Thy pleasures" (Psalm 36:8-10). In the hundred and twenty-fifth, it is said: "Turn again, O Lord, our captivity, as the streams in the south" (Psalm 125:4). Of the Savior it is written: "He shall drink of the brook in the way" (Psalm 109:7). Who among men can declare that they possess a clean heart (Proverbs 20), or whose soul has not been tainted by lust, or to phrase it more gently, by spiritual distractions (Jeremiah 9)? For the world lies in wickedness (John 5:19), and from childhood, the heart of man has been inclined toward evil, so that from birth, no day passes without sin (Job 14). Thus, David confesses in the psalm: "Behold, I was conceived in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me" (Psalm 50:7). Not in the iniquities of my mother or mine, but in the inherent sins of humanity. Therefore, the apostle also states: "Death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of Adam's transgression" (Romans 5:14). I have previously mentioned why we refer to elbows in the masculine form—"cubitus" rather than the neuter—"cubita," not from ignorance, but to elucidate for the many simple and uneducated congregants who make up the majority of the Church.

Likewise, the revered Zechariah anticipated the redemptive suffering and the associated darkness, stating, “It is neither day nor night, and that day we know the Lord” (Zech. 14:7), indicating a time when neither full day nor full night exists, as darkness enveloped the earth at midday. He also proclaimed, “In that day shall come forth living water out of Jerusalem, its floor into the last sea, and its floor into the first sea” (Zech. 14:8). Through these words, he signifies both the east and the west, representing the entirety of creation. He also describes the timing of this flow: it shall occur in harvest and spring (Zech. 14:8). The Lord further reiterates this message to the Samaritans, saying that anyone who drinks from the water He provides will never thirst again, for the water He offers becomes a spring of living water leading to eternal life (John 4:14). In another instance, He invites, “If any man thirst, let him come to Me and drink. He that believeth in Me, as the Scripture saith, rivers of living water shall flow from his belly” (John 7:37-38).