Day 225, Chronological Bible Study Timeline. Map. Go to today’s Bible reading (use your browser arrow to return): Ezekiel 1–5
Chronological Note: The prophet Ezekiel dates his call to the ministry when he is thirty years old, five years after the deportation of King Jehoiachin. This is the fifth year of King Zedekiah in Judah (Ezekiel 1:1-3)
God Shows Up!
Have you suffered some injustice in your life or has someone persecuted you for your beliefs? Are you sick of the evil in our nation and the world? When will God show up and do something about this? Is he with us or not? We don’t know when God will show up, but this one thing we know—he will show up and do something about it.
In today’s Bible reading, Ezekiel is a priest and prophet of the LORD. Nebuchadnezzar, the Babylonian general, captured him in the second raid of Jerusalem in 597 B.C. Ezekiel now ministers among the Jewish exiles in Babylon, close to the Euphrates River in Kebar. Meanwhile, Jeremiah remains as a prophet in Jerusalem.
One day, Ezekiel sees a vision of God with four strange looking creatures. The LORD identifies these as “Cherubim” in Ezekiel 10:2). and they are attending the throne of the Almighty God. When Ezekiel sees God’s glory, he awestruck at his majesty! In Ezekiel 1-2 and 10, the prophet describes, in the best way he can, God’s presence in all his glory, majesty, holiness, and power. John8thirtytwo publishing company created a video of it, trying to capture what Ezekiel saw. You can view it here. If you want to know what the symbolism might mean, you can view my teacher notes.There are a couple of things we can observe in Ezekiel 1-3. First, God had not deserted the exiles; he was with them in their trials. Second, the LORD cared enough to do something; he assigned Ezekiel to be a watchman over the people.
Ezekiel, God’s Watchman
What is a watchman? In Bible times, these were men perched in towers above the city walls. From that vantage point, they could see the whole countryside and warn the city of approaching invaders.
In today's Bible reading, The LORD gives Ezekiel his Commission. God assigns Ezekiel to watch over the Israelites, a people who wouldn’t listen to him. This is not a desirable task, but we can sympathize with him.
Many of us are also called to teach or help rebellious children, youth, or adults who won’t listen. What should we do? Sometimes, God calls us to stay with the task. The Scriptures say, “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up” (Galatians 6:9, NIV).
The Message
God gives Ezekiel instructions to eat the Word of God (spiritually speaking) and to proclaim it to the exiles. When the Spirit of the LORD comes on Ezekiel, he is angry over the sins of Israel. His word from the LORD is judgment for the exiles’ extreme wickedness. The Word of God is powerful and convicting to people who will listen. “Is not my word like fire,” declares the LORD, “and like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces?” (Jeremiah 23:29, NIV).
Hard hearts need the hammer of God to break their rock-like will to pieces.
As a Watchman, Ezekiel is only responsible for warning the people to turn away from their evil back to God; he is not responsible for the results. The same is true for us.
Object Lessons
What if we consistently present God’s word and persevere, and it still doesn’t work? God may lead us, like Ezekiel, to try object lessons to get their attention. We may recall that the LORD also did this with Jeremiah (Jeremiah 13, 24).
Sometimes, God instructed prophets to do some strange things. Ezekiel is told to draw the city of Jerusalem on a slate and then build siege-works against it (this is a picture of the current Babylonian siege). Afterward, he is to set up an iron pan between himself and the slate. The iron pan may refer to the Babylonian siege which Jerusalem couldn’t break, or it could refer to the desperate prayers of Ezekiel. The LORD will not answer them because of Israel’s sins (Isaiah 59:2; Lamentations 3:44, The Bible Knowledge Commentary of the O.T., by Walvoord and Zuck, © 1985, p.1235).After Ezekiel makes a model of the siege, he is told to lie on his left side for 390 days, one day for each year of Israel’s sins. Afterward, he is to lie forty days on his other side, one day for each year of Judah’s sins. Scholars aren’t sure of when God began counting these years. Before lying on his side, each day, Ezekiel makes preparations for scanty meals to eat, symbolizing the famine Jerusalem endures (Ezekiel 4:16-17).
Next, God instructs Ezekiel (interpretive comments are in brackets),
Now, son of man, take a sharp sword and use it as a barber's razor to shave your head and your beard [a sign of humility and mourning]. Then take a set of scales and divide up the hair.
When the days of your siege come to an end [the siege he illustrated by laying on his side, eating poor, scanty meals], burn a third of the hair with fire inside the city [symbolizing death by famine and plague]. Take a third and strike it with the sword all around the city [symbolizing death by the sword for all those who fled the city]. And scatter a third to the wind [symbolizing exile of a third of the people]. For I will pursue them with drawn sword. But take a few strands of hair and tuck them away in the folds of your garment [God will preserve a remnant of the people]. Again, take a few of these and throw them into the fire and burn them up [yet even some of these will not escape death in exile, Ezekiel 6:6-12, 7:15]. A fire will spread from there to the whole house of Israel [persecution will affect both those in Jerusalem and those exiled elsewhere (Ezekiel 5:1-4, NIV; The Bible Knowledge Commentary of the O.T., pp.1236-7)].
The Purpose of the Object Lessons
In future lessons, Ezekiel would do even more strange things to get the attention of the Jewish exiles. The Israelites wouldn’t listen. Nevertheless, God would still love them and go to great lengths to restore them, if it were possible.
Because of our love for individuals, we also go to great lengths to get their attention. We are watchmen over their souls—we care about them and love them. We should, like Ezekiel, seek to restore their relationship with God (James 5:19-20).
Endnote: there are other times God shows up: God sends His own Son to this earth to die in our place and offer us peace, forgiveness and spiritual life (more..). Jesus also shows up at the end of the age to conquer the world, bring peace, and rule and reign on this earth (see Revelation 19:11-21).
Discussion
Has God shown up in your life or the life of someone you know? Describe the incident(s).
In what ways are we like watchmen?
How is sharing God’s Word helpful?
If people are stubborn and won't not listen, what is another method which might be useful in getting their attention? Why do we want their attention?
Focus Verse
Ezekiel 2:7a (NIV) “You must speak my words to them, whether they listen or fail to listen…”
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Looking Ahead: After sending prophets and using illustrations, God comes to the end of talking. Read more in our next nesson.
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