When Israel’s temple was in ruins Ezekiel was shown a spiritual temple, perfect to a detail. It is a hint, and it is something more than a hint. In the day when the temple was broken down the word of the Lord by Haggai was: “Who is left among you that saw this house in her first glory? ...is it not in your eyes as nothing? ...The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former...”. It is a prophetic hint. That house has never yet been in greater glory than Solomon’s, and whether there has to be a literal temple of this earth with glory greater than that of Solomon’s temple will not concern us very much, we have looked higher and we have seen the veil drawn away and the temple or tabernacle in heaven appearing and then coming down from heaven—“The tabernacle of God is with men.” Solomon’s temple is not going to drop out of heaven, or anything like that. It is a spiritual temple that comes out of heaven. The latter state is greater than the former. There are many of these prophetic hints.
In connection with what do they hint? Christ! They look on to Christ. Only Christ can transcend all that has been, and He does, because He fulfills all types. The last Adam is greater than the first, the last temple is greater than the former. All prophecy leads on to Him. So Christ comes into view when the temple is in ruins. Christ is presented as God’s eternal reality, not a type, nor a pattern, but a reality, of which these others were but patterns and types.
