Ezekiel 44:10-16 “And the Levites who went far from Me, when Israel went astray, who strayed away from Me after their idols, they shall bear their iniquity. (11) Yet they shall be ministers in My sanctuary, as gatekeepers of the house and ministers of the house; they shall slay the burnt offering and the sacrifice for the people, and they shall stand before them to minister to them. (12) Because they ministered to them before their idols and caused the house of Israel to fall into iniquity, therefore I have raised My hand in an oath against them," says the Lord God, "that they shall bear their iniquity. (13) And they shall not come near Me to minister to Me as priest, nor come near any of My holy things, nor into the Most Holy Place; but they shall bear their shame and their abominations which they have committed. (14) Nevertheless I will make them keep charge of the temple, for all its work, and for all that has to be done in it. (15) "But the priests, the Levites, the sons of Zadok, who kept charge of My sanctuary when the children of Israel went astray from Me, they shall come near Me to minister to Me; and they shall stand before Me to offer to Me the fat and the blood," says the Lord God. (16) "They shall enter My sanctuary, and they shall come near My table to minister to Me, and they shall keep My charge.
I will close off this section with a word of caution. The context of the above passage of scripture pertains to the period when the third temple will be rebuilt in Israel. In this passage, God is very specific about the consequences regarding the chosen lifestyles that the Levites led, when Israel was in a backslidden state. God says that those who led consecrated lives to Him will be allowed to draw near to Him to minister before Him, while those who chose to live a backslidden lifestyle would still be allowed to serve as priests, but they would not be allowed to draw near to Him. This passage is prophetic with regards to the Lord’s priests after the order of Melchizedek. In other words, those saints that choose to live in a lifestyle of sin in this life will still be priests of God in the age to come, but they will not be permitted to draw near to Him.
Michael E.B. Maher
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