1. Sons of Zadok
Ezekiel 44:15 But the priests the Levites, the sons of Zadok, that kept the charge of my
sanctuary when the children of Israel went astray from me, they shall come near to me to
minister unto me, and they shall stand before me to offer unto me the fat and the blood, saith
the Lord GOD:
Ezekiel 48:11 It shall be for the priests that are sanctified of the sons of Zadok; which have kept
my charge, which went not astray when the children of Israel went astray, as the Levites went
astray.
Ezekiel 40-48 deals with the glory of the future kingdom that Israel will enjoy once the nation is
reborn (chapter 37) and her enemies defeated (chapters 38-39) at the second coming of Jesus
Christ. Twice it is repeated that the sons of Zadok will enjoy special blessings and special
privileges in that kingdom because they remained faithful to God despite the apostasy and
idolatry of the nation.
Zadok was a priest who lived and served during the reigns of David and Solomon. He was of the
line of Eleazer, Aaron's son (as opposed to the line of Ithamar; 1 Chronicles 24:3) and became
the fulfillment of God's judgment upon the house of Eli (1 Samuel 2:35) at the outset of
Solomon's reign over Israel (1 Kings 2:27, 35). As a young man, the Bible says that Zadok was
mighty of valor (1 Chronicles 12:28). He remained true to the Lord and the king when others
were carried away by the rebellions under Absalom (2 Samuel 15) and Adonijah (1 Kings 1). His
progeny served faithfully in Judah's great revival under King Hezekiah (2 Chronicles 31).
Because of this steadfast commitment, the Lord will richly reward Zadok and his sons when
Jesus Christ returns to rule and reign on the earth.
There's an important practical lesson for us to learn from this interesting statement in the book
of Ezekiel. Just like Zadok and his sons, we find ourselves in a time when God's people on a
massive scale are going astray. Despite the apostasy and the apathy and the ignorance and the
lukewarm condition of today's church, God calls on us to stand fast, be faithful. And there are
ETERNAL blessings and privileges that await those who will answer the call.
Allow me to correct a common misconception. The Bible clearly teaches us that (1) all saved
people will live forever in heaven (2) and heaven will be a wonderful place (3) where we'll all
have a new, glorified body (Philippians 3:20-21; 1 John 3:1-3) (4) and will be forever delivered
from the very presence of sin.
What the Bible never teaches is that everything will be equal for everybody in heaven. There
are rewards God has promised to those who serve Him faithfully! There are crowns to be won;
there is gold, silver, and precious stones to be gained; there are positions in Christ's kingdom to
be filled. God wouldn't have told us about all those things and held all that out to us if it didn't
2. matter. Fact is, it will matter, and it will matter for all eternity! God will make it worth your
while THERE to obey and stand and serve and give Him all you've got while you're HERE.
Now, for the sake of those who would over correct and swerve off into the ditch on the other
side of the road, the Bible also never says anything to even indicate that if you don't serve God
while you're HERE He'll beat you or send you to purgatory or make you sit in a corner for 1,000
years when you get THERE.
But you might just miss out on some special blessing like the one He has reserved for the sons
of Zadok.
1 Corinthians 3:15 If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be
saved; yet so as by fire
