Teachers: The lessons in the manual contain more information than you will probably be able to teach in one class period. Seek the Spirit of the Lord in selecting the scripture accounts, questions, and other lesson materials that best meet the needs of class members.

Basic Resources

• Do you want to see this week's Gospel Doctrine lesson? Lesson 44

• Would you like to see the class member study guide for this week? Lesson 44

• You can read the assigned scriptures for this week online: Ezekiel 43–44; 47.

• Do you have an MP3 player? Try downloading Ezekiel 47, which is in this week's reading. For more Old Testament audio, click here.

Art

You may wish to show a picture of one or more temples during class. The picture in the upper-right corner of this page shows the Mexico City Mexico Temple. This picture, as well as pictures of other temples, can be found online in the Temples section of LDS.org. Pictures of temples can also be found in your meetinghouse library or the Gospel Art Picture Kit.

Recent Talks and Articles in Church Magazines

Would you like to see what a Church leader recently said about topics in this week's lesson? Click on the photograph or talk title below to read the complete talk.

What are some ways you can get yourself spiritually in tune as you walk onto the temple grounds? Elder L. Lionel Kendrick of the Seventy taught: "As we enter the temple grounds, we should leave our worldly thoughts behind and focus on the sacred responsibilities that are ours as we serve in the house of the Lord. "Our thoughts should be spiritual in nature. We must remember that the Lord is aware of our thoughts. He spoke to Ezekiel and said, 'I know the things that come into your mind, every one of them' (Ezekiel 11:5)" ("Enhancing Our Temple Experience," Ensign, May 2001, 79).

Music

Below are a few Church hymns that relate to this week's lesson. You could read words from a hymn in class or have your class sing a hymn together. Click on a hymn title below to go to the Church Music site, where you can read or listen to the hymn online. Or, search for other hymns that relate to the lesson.

• "The Spirit of God," Hymns, no. 2
• "High on the Mountain Top," Hymns, no. 5

Additional Helps

• What blessings can worthy youth in the Church anticipate receiving when they attend the temple? Read "Blessings from Attending the Temple," found in True to the Faith: A Gospel Reference, pages 173–74.

• To emphasize the consistent nature of the Lord's teachings through the ages regarding His temples, you could compare Ezekiel 43:2–7, 11–12; 44:6–9; and 44:23 with Doctrine and Covenants 97:15–17 and 124:27–28, 42–46.

• It is significant that one of the greatest manifestations of God's promise to restore exiled or scattered Israel, one of the greatest symbols of hope from Ezekiel's prophetic perspective, was the restoration of the temple.

Historical Context

• In the 25th year of Ezekiel's exile in Babylon, 14 years after the destruction of Jerusalem with its temple, on the anniversary of the very day it was destroyed, the Lord took Ezekiel in vision to a high mountain in the land of Israel and showed him a future (millennial) temple. The Lord then commanded the prophet to tell Israel all he saw (Ezekiel 40:1–4). At the high point of the vision of the future temple, Ezekiel foresaw the glory of the Lord coming from the east. Compare Ezekiel 43:2–4 with the Prophet Joseph Smith's revelation of the Lord's Second Coming in Joseph Smith—Matthew 1:26. Also compare Ezekiel's discussion of divine glory in the temple with other descriptions, especially Doctrine and Covenants 110:1–5 (see also Ezekiel 1:27).

• Just as Ezekiel saw healing waters begin to flow from the new temple (Ezekiel 47:1–12), so the Prophet Joseph Smith proclaimed, "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, &c; and all this must be done before the Son of Man will make His appearance" (History of the Church, 5:337).

• "Orson Pratt has described another distinguishing feature concerning the temple that will be built in Jerusalem in the last days: 'The Temple at Jerusalem will undoubtedly be built by those who believe in the true Messiah. Its construction will be, in some respects, different from the Temples now being built. It will contain the throne of the Lord, upon which he will, at times, personally sit, and will reign over the house of Israel for ever.' ([Journal of Discourses], vol. 19, p. 20. Italics added.)" (Daniel H. Ludlow, "The Future of the Holy Land," Ensign, May 1972, 101).