In the New Testament, all of God’s people are priests (1 Peter 2:5). All God’s people are to serve him, and we all have an important ministry to fulfill. Being a priest of God is one of the most important things we can do with our lives.
In the Old Testament, some priests were faithful to God, but most were not. This represents how today, some Christians are faithful to serve God, but many Christians are not faithful. Ezekiel describes this difference between faithful and unfaithful priests by distinguishing between regular priests and the sons of Zadok.
While most Old Testament priests went away from God, ministering to idols and causing God’s people to fall into sin (Ezekiel 44:12), the sons of Zadok remained faithful. In a similar way, today many Christians have deviated from God’s word, following false teachings and traditions of men, and only a remnant remains faithful to God. This faithful remnant is represented by the sons of Zadok.
Today, there are evil spirits in the church, just as it was among ancient Israel. In ancient Israel, evil spirits often operated through idols. Today, we don’t usually have actual idols in the church, but evil spirits operate through false teachings and vain worship practices. When Christians promote or follow these things, they engage in demonic activity and become like the corrupt priests of the Old Testament.
Zadok means righteous. The sons of Zadok live righteous lives, trusting in Christ. Their ministry comes out from righteousness and is based on righteousness, which is why they are called sons of Righteousness.
There are several unique characteristics of the sons of Zadok that separate them from regular, corrupt priests. The faithful remnant today can learn from these characteristics.
God said the sons of Zadok would have access to his presence in the Most Holy Place (Ezekiel 44:15-16). They would serve at his table and minister directly to God. This represents that God’s faithful people at the end of the age will stand before his throne, hearing his words and doing his works. They won’t do their own thing. They will partake of Christ and live in his presence. They will be at the wedding supper of the Lamb.
The sons of Zadok were to wear linen when ministering (Ezekiel 44:17). Linen represents the righteousness of Christ. We must minister in the righteousness and power of Christ. The sons of Zadok were not allowed to wear wool while ministering, because wool causes sweat (Ezek. 44:18). This represents that we are not to work for God using our own strength. We must serve God in his power, not the power of the flesh.
The sons of Zadok are not to drink wine when they enter into God’s presence. Throughout the Bible, wine represents spirits, and it can represent evil spirits (Rev. 14:8). In order to minister effectively, God’s people need to be free from the influence of evil spirits.
The sons of Zadok are not to take as a wife a widow or a divorced woman, but they are to marry virgins. This is symbolic. In the New Testament, the church is compared to a virgin (2 Corinthians 11:2). False churches, as well as Babylon, are compared to impure women (Revelation 17:1). The sons of Zadok will not defile themselves with false church systems or with the Babylonian world system.
The sons of Zadok will minister the word of God clearly, delineating the difference between what is holy and what is unholy. We live in a time of mixture, and people call evil good and good evil. The sons of Zadok will clearly understand what is from God and what is not from God, and they will not call light darkness or call darkness light. They will reject false, man-made religion, and only follow God’s word.
The sons of Zadok will not defile themselves by coming near a dead body. All who do not believe in Jesus are spiritually dead. The sons of Zadok understand that there is a difference between spiritual life and spiritual death, between those who are alive in God with the Holy Spirit inside them, and those who have an evil spirit inside them (Eph. 2:2). They will not be wrongfully close to unbelievers, recognizing that this can defile them (2 Corinthians 6:17). They will share the love and word of God, but they will not become corrupt and compromise.
The sons of Zadok will judge rightly, according to the Holy Spirit. They will not judge things according to their own minds, but according to God. Therefore, at the end of the age, they will judge the world (1 Corinthians 6:2).
The inheritance of the sons of Zadok is God himself (Ezekiel 44:28). God is all they need. He provides everything for them. They know the truth that if they seek first God’s kingdom, he will provide them with the things of this life. They labor not for the food that perishes, but to obey God.
At the end of the age, when most of God’s people are deceived— following evil spirits, vain worship, and man-made religious practices— a faithful remnant will follow God. This faithful remnant is represented by the sons of Zadok.
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