Now when he had made an end, &c.] When he had thus measured all the particular buildings, he cometh now to measure the circumference of the whole holy place, or the holy mountaine: which lay walled in an equilaterall square, and of such a compasse as was spoken of before on Chap. 40. in the notes there. And now that the structure, fabrick and proportion of the buildings have been thus platformed, measured and viewed, it will not be impertinent, a little to look at the scope and intention of the description, or the substance shadowed under these figures. First, therefore it is to be observed that there was never any Temple built of these dimensions and composure, for the measure of the circumference of the bounding wall or that which separateth betwixt the holy and profane utterly denieth it, being a measure that exceedeth, or at least equalleth the full compasse of all Jerusalem, Temple, and all, as was said before, yea though the cubit be understood of the shortest size; And so the portion of the Levites allotted to them, as the virge of the Temple, amounteth to a space bigger then all the land of Canaan. Chap. 48. These things therefore are spiritually to be understood: and howsoever the description of this house and land were a prophetick assurance of the peoples returne out of Babylon (where Ezekiel wrote these things) yet doe they chiefly aime at Christ, and his coming among them after their return, and gathering the numerous congregation of the Gentiles, and framing the spacious Temple and Citie of the Christian Church under the Gospel. And therefore this can no way countenance a temporall kingdome of the Messias yet to come, as the Jews imagine, nor a new Temple or Citie to be built: since that the Temple here described is bigger then the Citie, and the holy ground of the Temple bigger then all Canaan. Secondly, it is observable that as Ezekiel measureth the Temple and the Citie here, so doth John a new Temple also, Revel. 11. 1, 2. and a new Jerusalem, Revel. 21. Now though these three agreed in this, that they all aimed at the spirituall Temple and Citie, the Church under the Gospel: yet in this they differed, that they had respect to different times: and aimed at times and seasons in succession one after another. This platforme and description of Ezekiel, relateth to the Church under the Gospel, betwixt their returne out of captivitie, and the destruction of Jerusalem, when the Gentiles first came in, and they and the Jewes made one people. That in Revel. 21. pointeth at the new Jerusalem which should be after the old one was destroyed, the Church under the Gospel, after the rejection of the Jewes, and destruction of their Citie, which hath now taken up about one thousand five hundred and seventie yeares: and therefore that Jerusalem is farre larger then this in Ezekiel, that being described to be sixe thousand miles about. In that there is no Temple mentioned, nay there was no Temple at all as the Text expresly, Revelation 21:22. uttereth: for where there is mention of a Temple, there is something to doe with Jewes; but the Church of this space that we are speaking of consisteth onely of Gentiles, the Jews being all the while under obduration. Now the eleventh of the Revelation speaketh of a Temple measured as the case is here, for as this place speaketh of the Church of the Jews when the Gentiles were called in and joyned to them at Christs first coming, so that place speaketh of the Church of the Jews, when they shall be called in and joyned to the Church of the Gentiles, which is yet to be before Christs second coming. And it is observable that in both these places there is no mention of a Court for the Gentiles, as there was in the materiall Temple indeed, but all Jerusalem must be supposed for that. For Ezekiel mentioneth but two Courts properly so called, though the inner Court indeed was subdivided. And these two Courts were, the Court of the Priests, and the Court of the people; but for the Gentiles there is no Court at all, bounded or immured for them because of the boundlesse dilating of the Gospel: and so Revel. 11. there is onely one Court mentioned, the Court of the Priests, or that where the Altar stood; but the outer Court is not measured, but cast out without any bounds, because it is given to the Gentiles to * tread in the worship of God, and to come into with the Jews: for when they shall be called, the Gentiles and they shall joyne together to serve the Lord, and to tread his Court. * It is not 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, to tread under foot in scorn and despite: but 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, to tread as we doe the Churches when we goe to serve the Lord, as Isaiah 1:12.