"As for the prince, he shall sit in it [the Eastern Outer Gate] as prince to eat bread before the Lord; he shall enter by way of the porch of the gate and shall go out by the same way." Ezekiel 44:3

The Identity of the Prince
in Ezekiel 44-48

Ezek. 44:3 - As for the prince: This “prince” [nâśîy' (5387), “one lifted up, i.e. a chief prince”] is nowhere in Ezek. 44-48 identified by name. Who will he be? Before we decide that we must examine what is said about this “prince.” A number of things are stated about him.
    (1) The prince is allowed to enter through and sit in the east gate (which is otherwise always shut because Adonai Yahweh entered through that gate, and no one but the prince shall enter it) as prince and is to eat bread before Yahweh (Ezek. 44:1-3).
    (2) The prince is the only one allowed to enter and exit the Temple through the same gate (Ezek. 44:3; 46:8, cf. Ezek. 46:9).
    (3) The prince will own land on the east and west sides of the holy allotment of land reserved for the Levites, the Temple and the City proper (Ezek. 45:7).
    (4) The prince is to offer for himself and the people a bull for a sin offering (Ezek. 45:22).
    (5) Moreover, he is to make adequate provisions for offerings to Yahweh (Ezek. 45:23-25).
    (6) There are specific laws governing the prince’s participation in worship and provisions for offerings for worship (Ezek. 46:1-15).
    (7) There are strict laws governing the prince’s distribution of his land to his sons (bên, 1121) and his slaves / servants (‛ebed, 5650) (Ezek. 46:16-18). He is not to seize any of the land belonging to the people of Israel (Ezek. 45:8; 46:18).

    The ruler identified by name four times in prophetic portions of Ezekiel is David.
    (1) He is identified as the “one shepherd” whom Yahweh will set over restored Israel – “My servant David” (Ezek. 34:23).
    (2) Yahweh predicts “My servant David will be prince among them” (Ezek. 34:24).
    (3) Again, He states, “My servant David will be king over them, and they will have one shepherd” (Ezek. 37:24).
    (4) And finally, He predicts, “...and David My servant will be their prince forever” (Ezek. 37:25).

    So who is this “prince”? It is possible that he is David, the only prince identified by name in the latter half of Ezekiel. This is certainly possible. Some factors weighing against David being this prince are (1) references to his sons and (2) having to provide burnt offerings for himself. David and all of his sons who are righteous would appear in the Millennium in their glorified bodies. Would they need land? Would a glorified David need to offer sacrifices for himself? He would be sinless.

    So it may be true that this unnamed prince is a ruler of Israel underneath both the Messiah and the resurrected David, who is to be identified as the Vice Regent of King Jesus. Alternatively, this prince is to be identified as David. The sacrifices he brings are memorial, just as communion today is memorial for the Church. And David’s sons are either his sons in their glorified bodies or his more distant descendants in their natural bodies. It is difficult to be dogmatic on either option.

(Scripture quotation taken from the NASB 1995)