Ezekiel 22:1-22; 23

If reading Ezekiel 23 feels a bit like déjà vu, that may be because it sounds a lot like Ezekiel 16, which we read just a few days ago. We again see Jerusalem (and Judah) “looking for love in all the wrong places” and doing so despite having observed the LORD’s judgment upon her sister, Samaria (Israel), making the Southern Kingdom’s sin that much worse than that of the Northern Kingdom. (Ez. 23:11) Lest we think that the use of the terms “harlotry” and “adultery” is merely metaphorical, just a graphic way of describing Jerusalem’s (and Samaria’s) unfaithfulness to the LORD, Ezekiel 22:9-11 declares quite plainly that there is quite a lot of very real sexual immorality going on. But Jerusalem’s sin goes well beyond sexual immorality. There is the shedding of blood, idolatry, extortion, mistreatment of orphans and widows, bribery, fraud, slander, dishonoring of parents, profaning the Sabbath, child sacrifice — you name it! (Ez. 22:6-12; 23:37-39) The LORD’s sentence against Oholah and Oholibah (Samaria and Jerusalem, Israel and Judah) is more than justified.

Before we start congratulating ourselves on being so much more civilized than ancient Jerusalem, think again. It should be fairly plain that our society as a whole is guilty of every single one of these sins, including child sacrifice. We might think of all that as “out there” in our messed-up society, but what about we ourselves, here in the Church, here in our little RTB group? Can any of us really claim any degree of innocence? Sure, I may not have physically murdered anyone (yet!), but I can’t say I haven’t wished some folks didn’t exist. No, I’ve never actually blackmailed anyone for money, but I’ve certainly “manipulated” a few people to get my way. And how many of us can say that we’ve never treated our parents with contempt, even a little bit? Or how many of us truly observe the Sabbath?

With plenty of planks in my own eye, I’m not here to point out the speck or two in yours. (Mt. 7:3-5) But I hope that we would each take an honest look at ourselves and let the Holy Spirit convict us of our sin. It is only when we can see and acknowledge (i.e., confess) our sin that we can begin to repent and turn to be healed and forgiven.

Ezekiel 20:1-21:17

But I acted for the sake of My name, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the nations…

Ezekiel 20:9a

But I acted for the sake of My name, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the nations…

Ezekiel 20:14a

But I withheld My hand and acted for the sake of My name, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the nations…

Ezekiel 20:22a

…but My holy name you shall no more profane…

Ezekiel 20:39b

And you shall know that I am the LORD, when I deal with you for My name’s sake, not according to your evil ways, nor according to your corrupt deeds, O house of Israel, declares the Lord GOD.

Ezekiel 20:44

The LORD deals with Israel — and us — for His name’s sake. So the next time I act like I think it’s all about me, please just kick me! It should be clear to all that it is not about me, nor about you, nor even about the whole human race. The entire history of the world is about the LORD, His name, His glory. The sooner we get that through our heads — and live accordingly — the better.

Ezekiel 17-18

Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, declares the Lord GOD. Repent and turn from all your transgressions, lest iniquity be your ruin. Cast away from you all the transgressions that you have committed, and make yourselves a new heart and a new spirit! Why will you die, O house of Israel? For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord GOD; so turn, and live.

Ezekiel 18:30-32

If all we hear from the prophets is “doom and gloom”, if all we see is an angry, vengeful God, if all we come away with is condemnation, then we are missing the point completely. Yes, it is true that the prophets speak a lot about God’s wrath. Yes, it is true that the prophets proclaim a tremendous amount of unpleasantness to the unrepentant. But no, God does not delight in these things. His desire is for His people to live, to escape His wrath; otherwise, He would not bother sending prophet after prophet to warn them time and again, pleading with them to repent. It is sin that destroys us, and that is what God hates. The trouble is not that God “has it out for” people. It is that He has it out for sin, but people cling to sin.

For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord GOD; so turn, and live!

Ezekiel 16

With the LORD’s likening of Jerusalem’s behavior to harlotry, our reading today sounds a lot like Hosea. (By way of refresher, feel free to look back at the posts for June 6, June 7, and June 8.) The LORD sent Hosea to prophesy primarily to the Northern Kingdom of Israel (aka Samaria), who failed to heed the message, resulting in the destruction of Samaria by the Assyrians. Judah, represented by Jerusalem, has had plenty of time — well over a century — to consider Hosea’s message and the consequences of rejecting the LORD, yet Judah has continued to turn away from the LORD, going beyond the sin of Samaria, even beyond that of Sodom.

We might sit here now, 2,600 years later, and shake our heads at Judah’s foolishness and wickedness. We might be appalled at her descent into child sacrifice. (Ez. 16:20-21) What is she thinking?! How can she reject the obvious goodness and steadfast love of the LORD and actively seek out all these other “lovers” who know nothing of love and goodness? And yet, look around. This is not just ancient history. Can we not recognize that our nation is on a similar path? Or worse, how about the Church — or what purports to be the Church? For years, whole denominations have moved away from orthodoxy so that they now wholeheartedly embrace heresy. They may bear the name of Christ on the door, but there is little evidence of Truth within. Our own Saint Andrew’s Anglican Church was formed to remain faithful against such degeneracy. But what about within ourselves individually and personally? Do we yet turn to idols? Do we seek out other “lovers”? Do we refuse to relinquish secret sins? Do we say, “No!” to the Lord?

It’s time to give up the resistance campaign! Turn away all those other “lovers” and come back to the one true Lover of your soul. Surrender it all to the Lord, lay it all down at the foot of the Cross, and let Him make atonement.

Ezekiel 13-15

Like Jeremiah, Ezekiel must contend against false prophets. One might think that with all the success Nebuchadnezzar has had against Judah (and everyone else), and with thousands already in exile, the false prophets would be out of business, their message of peace and security seen as an obvious sham. But such is the human heart: quick to believe lies and slow to accept Truth. And so the false prophets remain popular as they tell the people what they want to hear.

Is it really any different today? Just look around. Everyone sits in their own echo chamber, happy to chat with folks with whom they agree, and rarely even hearing other voices, let alone the truth.

And so I ask again: To whom do you listen?

II Chronicles 36:13-16; Ezekiel 8-11

We’re back to Ezekiel, who lives as an exile in Babylonia. There in Babylonia Ezekiel sees a vision of what the LORD is doing back in Jerusalem, and it is not pretty. It is enough to make any faithful follower of God weep, as the glory of the LORD lifts from the LORD’s dwelling place and departs, first from the Temple, and then from Jerusalem.

Recall the “good ol’ days” when Solomon first built the Temple. At its dedication, the glory of the LORD filled the Temple, and all the people of Israel worshipped. (II Chronicles 7:1-3) Ah, those were the days! Yet even then, the seeds of abomination were sown, with Solomon himself among the sowers. (I Kings 11) Now, God’s people are reaping the fruit of what they have so persistently sown, and the glory of the LORD departs.

Does the LORD rejoice over this departure? Not at all! He is as reluctant to depart as can be. All along, the LORD has been exceedingly patient and merciful with Israel. The Temple has stood for centuries while the LORD has sent His prophets, calling the people to Himself. The LORD has shown Himself faithful and good and kind. But He is no cosmic chump, who can be fooled by a charade of worship, so now He says, “Enough is enough!” Yet even as the glory of the LORD departs Jerusalem, and judgment falls, God proclaims salvation to the remnant of Israel. He reiterates that He will return the exiles from wherever they might be scattered back to the land of Israel, and that He will yet be their God:

And I will give them one heart, and a new spirit I will put within them. I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in My statutes and keep My rules and obey them. And they shall be My people, and I will be their God.

Ezekiel 11:19-20

The LORD desires life for His people. He desires life for us. Are we taking Him up on His offer, a beating heart of flesh in place of stone? Are we pursuing Him with all we’ve got, looking for the radiance of His glory? Or is there still some place of darkness in which we try to hide?

Jeremiah 23:1-8; 38

Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and He shall reign as King and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. In His days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely. And this is the name by which He will be called: “The LORD is our righteousness.”

Jeremiah 23:5-6

Sound familiar? These verses are nearly the same as Jeremiah 33:14-16, which we looked at yesterday. The words are not identical, and you may well want to spend some time looking into the differences, but the core truth is the same, that someday this Branch from David’s line will reign, executing justice and righteousness. With such repetition, we should all pay attention…

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I find King Zedekiah to be one of the most pathetic figures in the Bible. A little fear of the LORD — yes, fear, even terror, not just mild “respect” — would serve him well. Instead, he fears everyone else. He tells his officials, “Behold, [Jeremiah] is in your hands, for the king can do nothing against you.” Right. It is a pointed irony that Ebed-melech, a eunuch, displays more courage than Zedekiah in urging (and implementing) Jeremiah’s rescue from the miry pit. Zedekiah meets with Jeremiah in secret, too scared of his officials to be seen publicly with this “traitor”. He says some positive things in the presence of this prophet of God, but actions speak louder than words, and Zedekiah fails to obey the word of the LORD and continues the fight against Nebuchadnezzar.

The trouble for us is that we can probably all relate to Zedekiah in one way or another. How easy it is to fear people more than God! But unlike Zedekiah, we may not be under threat of physical harm. We probably do not feel that our lives are in danger. Yet we fear people nonetheless. We want to be liked. We do not want to offend. We certainly do not want to be canceled. Meanwhile, we know God is merciful, so we presume upon the Lord’s grace and continue to seek to please men rather than God.

We convince ourselves that our “little” disobediences of God are not nearly as consequential as Zedekiah’s. After all, we do not hold the fate of Jerusalem in our hands. But once upon a time, neither did Zedekiah. He did not come to this point of crisis suddenly. Rather, he has disregarded the LORD in deference to others for years. So now that he requires real courage to defy those men and faith to obey the LORD, he has no experience upon which to draw. We should take note: faithfulness in big things follows faithfulness in little things. (Luke 16:10)

So let’s examine ourselves. How might we be more concerned with others than with God? Do we go along with the crowd when we know better? Do we value the praise of people more than the silent approval of the Lord? Do we simply like being liked, maybe a bit too much?

Jeremiah 32-33

Using Jeremiah and a deeded land transaction as visual aids, the LORD makes it clear that He will bring His people back to their land, that they will again dwell there and carry on business — despite the utter ruin that is befalling Judah and Jerusalem because of their sin. The LORD reiterates the promise of the land multiple times, but He also makes it clear that His intentions for Israel and Judah run well beyond just concentrating Jacob’s descendants within a particular geographic region.

Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will fulfill the promise I made to the house of Israel and the house of Judah. In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous Branch to spring up for David, and He shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. In those days Judah will be saved, and Jerusalem will dwell securely. And this is the name by which it will be called: “The LORD is our righteousness.”

Jeremiah 33:14-16

As with yesterday’s promise of the New Covenant (Jer. 31:31-34), here Jeremiah points us forward, beyond the return from Babylonian captivity to the coming Branch, the Messiah — that Anointed Descendant of David. He is the One in Whom the hope of Israel lies. He is the One in Whom all the promises of God find their fulfillment. He is the One through Whom grace and mercy come. He is the One Who initiates that New Covenant in His own blood.

Jeremiah 37; 30-31

Then fear not, O Jacob my servant, declares the LORD,
nor be dismayed, O Israel;
for behold, I will save you from far away,
and your offspring from the land of their captivity.
Jacob shall return and have quiet and ease,
and none shall make him afraid.
For I am with you to save you,
declares the LORD;
I will make a full end of all the nations
among whom I scattered you,
but of you I will not make a full end.
I will discipline you in just measure,
and I will by no means leave you unpunished.

Jeremiah 30:10-11

The LORD reassures His people that He is not utterly abandoning them, that He will yet save them. Amidst all the words of woe and certain destruction, this message may seem surprising. But this is not the first time we have heard such a thing from Jeremiah. In fact, we read nearly the exact same words at the end of yesterday’s passage in Jeremiah 46:27-28. And we’ve had similar words of comfort and restoration elsewhere in Jeremiah. Just consider the following that we’ve already read:

• Jeremiah 3:12-4:2
• Jeremiah 4:27; 5:18
• Jeremiah 16:14-21
• Jeremiah 24:4-7
• Jeremiah 29:10-14
• Jeremiah 50:4-5,20,33-34

Now in Jeremiah 30-31 the LORD opens the floodgates of consolation, proclaiming that Israel’s current chastisement will come to an end and they will be restored to their land. But what Jeremiah describes is not merely an eventual release from captivity and a return to the land, but a restoration of relationship with the LORD. Further, this restoration applies not only to Judah, but to the whole house of Israel:

At that time, declares the LORD, I will be the God of all the clans of Israel, and they shall be my people.

Jeremiah 31:1

As we shall see, the exiles in Babylon are eventually released from their captivity and return to the land. But that return only hints at the fulfillment of the LORD’s promises here. The LORD has something much bigger and better in mind:

Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant that I made with their fathers on the day when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, declares the LORD. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put My law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be My people. And no longer shall each one teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, “Know the LORD,” for they shall all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.

Jeremiah 31:31-34

Stay tuned.