The Meaning of Ezekiel 43:18 Explained

Ezekiel 43:18

KJV: And he said unto me, Son of man, thus saith the Lord GOD; These are the ordinances of the altar in the day when they shall make it, to offer burnt offerings thereon, and to sprinkle blood thereon.

YLT: And He saith unto me, 'Son of man, Thus said the Lord Jehovah: These are statutes of the altar in the day of its being made to cause burnt-offering to go up on it, and to sprinkle on it blood.

Darby: And he said unto me, Son of man, thus saith the Lord Jehovah: These are the ordinances of the altar in the day when they shall make it, to offer up burnt-offerings thereon, and to sprinkle blood thereon.

ASV: And he said unto me, Son of man, thus saith the Lord Jehovah: These are the ordinances of the altar in the day when they shall make it, to offer burnt-offerings thereon, and to sprinkle blood thereon.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And he said  unto me, Son  of man,  thus saith  the Lord  GOD;  These [are] the ordinances  of the altar  in the day  when they shall make  it, to offer  burnt offerings  thereon, and to sprinkle  blood  thereon. 

What does Ezekiel 43:18 Mean?

Verse Meaning

The Lord told Ezekiel what to do when the construction of the altar was complete. The purpose of this altar was to receive the burnt offerings that people would bring to the Lord and to receive the blood of those animal sacrifices.
"The offerings presented thereon were meant to be memorials, much as the Lord"s Supper is no efficacious sacrifice but a memorial of a blessedly adequate and all-sufficient sacrifice for all time. Thus, whereas the sacrifices of the Old Testament economy were prospective, these are retrospective." [1]
Since Old Testament saints will experience resurrection at Christ"s second coming ( Isaiah 26:19; Daniel 12:2-3; Daniel 12:13), perhaps Ezekiel himself will lead this purification ceremony at the beginning of the Millennium. Alternatively the Lord may have dealt with him in the vision as He will deal with the person in charge of the real purification ceremony when it occurs.

Chapter Summary: Ezekiel 43

1  The returning of the glory of God into the temple
7  The sin of Israel hindered God's presence
10  The prophet exhorts them to repentance and observation of the law of the house
13  The measures
18  and ordinances of the altar

What do the individual words in Ezekiel 43:18 mean?

And He said to me Son of man thus says the Lord GOD these [are] the ordinances for the altar on the day when it is made for sacrificing on it burnt offerings and for sprinkling on it blood
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֵלַ֗י בֶּן־ אָדָם֙ כֹּ֤ה אָמַר֙ אֲדֹנָ֣י יְהוִ֔ה אֵ֚לֶּה חֻקּ֣וֹת הַמִּזְבֵּ֔חַ בְּי֖וֹם הֵעָֽשׂוֹת֑וֹ לְהַעֲל֤וֹת עָלָיו֙ עוֹלָ֔ה וְלִזְרֹ֥ק עָלָ֖יו דָּֽם

וַיֹּ֣אמֶר  And  He  said 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
אֵלַ֗י  to  me 
Parse: Preposition, first person common singular
Root: אֶל  
Sense: to, toward, unto (of motion).
בֶּן־  Son 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: בֵּן 
Sense: son, grandson, child, member of a group.
אָדָם֙  of  man 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: אָדָם 
Sense: man, mankind.
כֹּ֤ה  thus 
Parse: Adverb
Root: כֹּה  
Sense: thus, here, in this manner.
אָמַר֙  says 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: אָמַר 
Sense: to say, speak, utter.
אֲדֹנָ֣י  the  Lord 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: אֲדֹנָי  
Sense: my lord, lord.
יְהוִ֔ה  GOD 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: Jehovah—used primarily in the combination ‘Lord Jehovah’.
אֵ֚לֶּה  these  [are] 
Parse: Pronoun, common plural
Root: אֵהֶל 
Sense: these.
חֻקּ֣וֹת  the  ordinances  for 
Parse: Noun, feminine plural construct
Root: חֻקָּה  
Sense: statute, ordinance, limit, enactment, something prescribed.
הַמִּזְבֵּ֔חַ  the  altar 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: מִזְבֵּחַ  
Sense: altar.
בְּי֖וֹם  on  the  day 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: יׄום 
Sense: day, time, year.
הֵעָֽשׂוֹת֑וֹ  when  it  is  made 
Parse: Verb, Nifal, Infinitive construct, third person masculine singular
Root: עָשָׂה 
Sense: to do, fashion, accomplish, make.
לְהַעֲל֤וֹת  for  sacrificing 
Parse: Preposition-l, Verb, Hifil, Infinitive construct
Root: סָלַק 
Sense: to go up, ascend, climb.
עָלָיו֙  on  it 
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine singular
Root: עַל 
Sense: upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against.
עוֹלָ֔ה  burnt  offerings 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular
Root: עֹלָה  
Sense: whole burnt offering.
וְלִזְרֹ֥ק  and  for  sprinkling 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Preposition-l, Verb, Qal, Infinitive construct
Root: זָרַק 
Sense: to scatter, sprinkle, toss, throw, scatter abundantly, strew.
עָלָ֖יו  on  it 
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine singular
Root: עַל 
Sense: upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against.
דָּֽם  blood 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: דָּם  
Sense: blood.