Ezekiel 47

The Healing Waters of the Temple

Ezekiel 47 gives Ezekiel’s vision of how water will yet flow from underneath the temple in Jerusalem and flow to the east, becoming larger and larger until it becomes a river of water. The river will flow into the Dead Sea and make it “alive” again with fish and vegetation. The Prophet Joseph Smith said: “Judah must return, Jerusalem must be rebuilt, and the temple, and water come out from under the temple, and the waters of the Dead Sea be healed. It will take some time to rebuild the walls of the city and the temple, … and all this must be done before the Son of Man will make His appearance” (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, 286).

This event is also symbolic of the spiritual renewal and rebirth that comes to individuals and families as they participate in the sacred, uplifting, and empowering ordinances of the temple that come from the source of “living waters,” even Jesus Christ.