The Inspection Gate
"After him Malchijah, one of the goldsmiths, made repairs as far as the house of the Nethinim and of the merchants, in front of the Miphkad Gate, and as far as the upper room at the corner. And between the upper room at the corner, as far as the Sheep Gate, the goldsmiths and the merchants made repairs."
Nehemiah 3:31-32 (NKJ)
The final gate is the inspection gate, also called The Prison Gate, Miphkad Gate, Muster Gate and Gate of the Gathering.
The words "appointed place" in the Hebrew is the word "miphqad." Miphqad comes from the verb 'paqad' which means 'to number'. The gate of the city that led to the "appointed place" was called the Miphkad Gate.
The Miphkad Gate (referred to in Nehemiah 3:31) was located on the east wall just north of the east gate leading to the Temple. The Miphkad Gate opened onto the road leading up the Mount of Olives just north of the place where the bodies were burned.
This road led to the Miphkad, or "appointed place," where people registered for the Temple tax. Each person [head count] was taxed at this location. The word "Golgotha," used in the Gospels to describe the place of the crucifixion, is an Aramaic word which suggests this area of registry known as Miphkad. The related Hebrew word bears the same meaning. It is 'gulgoleth', which means "skull, head, or poll." It is a head count.
'And the silver of them that were numbered [paqad, to appoint or number] of the congregation was an hundred talents, and a thousand seven hundred and threescore and fifteen shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary: A bekah for every man [gulgoleth, head], that is half a shekel, after the shekel of the sanctuary, for every one that went to be numbered [paqad]...'
Exodus 38:25-26
In the time of Jesus Christ, this place of numbering, or registration, for the Temple tax was called Golgotha. This was the Miphkad area on the Mount of Olives east of the Temple and near the place outside the city where the bodies of sacrifices were burned.
This gate speaks to us of the bema seat of Christ where our lives are inspected and rewarded appropriately. Scripture teaches that at the Second Coming of Christ, angels will gather God's elect:
"Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken."Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
"And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
Matt 24:29-31(NKJ)
At this gathering, the saints will be rewarded according to their faithfulness in doing God's will for them:
"Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his master made ruler over his household, to give them food in due season? Blessed is that servant whom his master, when he comes, will find so doing. Assuredly, I say to you that he will make him ruler over all his goods. But if that evil servant says in his heart, 'My master is delaying his coming,' and begins to beat his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunkards, the master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him and at an hour that he is not aware of, and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth."
Matt 24:45-51(NKJ)
In our Christian experience we should be living with this in mind. We are called to live our lives with eternity in view, caring more for the things of eternity than the temporal that we see around us. We need to hear God's marching orders for us at the Water Gate, ride through the Horse Gate to carry out these orders in His strength, looking always to His return through the East Gate.
Prophetically this gate also speaks of the judgement of the nations that takes place when Jesus returns. This is recorded in the sheep and the goats judgement in Mathew 25:31-46.
Conclusion:
This last gate, the Miphkad Gate, is a culmination of all the gates. If we have all the Priority, Purity and Power Gates in place and we are actively seeking the Second Coming of Jesus, we will be rewarded for our faithfulness at the Miphkad Gate. We will receive an incorruptable inheritance and will rule and reign with Christ for a thousand years on earth (Revelation 20:4).
After this gate, we come full circle back to the first gate, the Sheep Gate.