Ezekiel 7
The End is Here
“The
word of the Lord came to me:
“Son of man, this is what the Sovereign Lord says to the land of Israel: ‘The end! The end has come upon
the four corners of the land!
The end is now upon you, and I will unleash my anger against
you. I will judge you according to your conduct
and
repay you for all your detestable practices’ ” (Ezekiel 7:1-3).
The term word in Hebrew is דָּבָר (davar). It means speech, discourse, saying, or sum of what has been spoken.[1] Ezekiel begins the seventh chapter with stating that the Word of the Lord had come to him. By this time, Ezekiel had become accustomed to the Lord’s voice and instructions pertaining to rebukes, enactments, and other messages for Judah. Therefore, the Lord continued his discourse with Ezekiel regarding the judgments that finally arrived upon Israel's entire land. His patience had worn out with Judah, and His judgments would no longer be withheld. The Lord’s mercy and grace had been ignored, and now, His judgments would be poured out over the entire land by allowing Nebuchadnezzar free reign to do as he pleased with the defeat of His people. The Lord’s hands had lifted from the nation, and Judah’s enemies had been given the green light to be God’s instrument of judgment against His people.
Remember, during Moses’ day, the Lord promised to be with them when they went to war. The Bible says: “When you go to war against your enemies and see horses and chariots and an army greater than yours, do not be afraid of them, because the Lord your God, who brought you up out of Egypt, will be with you” (Deuteronomy 20:1). However, this promise was conditional, and would not be in effect when the nation turned its back to the Lord. God was not obligated to protect them from their enemies when they strayed away from Him. On the contrary, the Lord would allow their enemies to overtake them as he did in times past with the Midianites, Philistines, and other nations, only this time, it would be much worse with total destruction. The Lord’s revenge was great and He had had enough of Judah’s blatant disregard and disrespect for who He was.
Similarly, America acts as if it does not know the Lord, so He is lifting His hands of protection from this nation. The United States thinks it can go to war with other nations and win without God, but one day, it will discover that it is nothing without the Lord, for this nation will collapse, as did Babylon, Medeo-Persia, Greece, Rome, and others before it. Many nations are seeing the weaknesses of the United States, and God will one day allow them to overthrow this once mighty nation as He did with Israel and Judah. For example, Russian President Vladimir Putin has denounced the U.S. as a fading power, according to the New York Times, and he mocked what he labeled the nation’s belief of itself as “the messenger of the Lord on Earth.”[2] China recently accused the United States of bullying and using national security as a guse after it passed a bill in the House that could ban the popular Chinese-owned app TikTok.[3]
Nations are also banning together to avert the U.S. dollar where it will no longer be the dominant form of currency. Hypertext news reported that the BRICS economic alliance of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa invited six new countries last year to an unprecedented expansion to include Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, thus looking for unified trading currencies to move away from the US Dollar. This move is gaining more steam as the nations look away from the U.S. and align themselves with rising world powers such as China, which is happy to trade with them to avoid the adverse effects of U.S. sanctions. North Korea’s president, Kim Jong-un has reported test drove a new military tank in his preparations for war, according to CBS News.[4] Allies' trust in the United States is not what it used to be as they have watched the blunders of the U.S., such as the actions that led to 100 Afghanistan and 13 U.S. service members’ deaths due to an abrupt departure and lack of planning.[5] The U.S, is like the frog in a pot of water, not realizing that he is about to get cooked until the lid is on and the fire underneath is a full blaze.
“ I will not look on you with pity; I will not spare you. I will surely repay you for your conduct and for the detestable practices among you. Then you will know that I am the Lord’ (Ezekiel 7:4).
The Lord is merciful, gracious, loving, and compassionate. Yet, the Lord is holy, righteous, just, and jealous. The Bible says: “ You shall tear down their altars and break their pillars and cut down their Asherim (for you shall worship no other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God)” (Exodus 34:13-14). The Lord desires that we serve no one but Him, for He is jealous for us and not of us. Therefore, when Judah defied the Lord by not living according to His commands by worshiping other gods, they brought down the jealousy of the Lord, resulting in their demise. Where He once had mercy, He would allow their enemies to be ruthless. Where the Lord had shown grace, He would enable Judah’s enemies to throw obstacles in their path. Where the Lord had been loving, He would reward them with the same contempt they had shown Him. Where the Lord once had compassion, He would be indifferent to them as they wasted away through famine, plagues, and the sword. Only then would they know that only one God was above all other gods. Even with all of this, the Lord was fair and just, and nothing was arbitrary about His judgments, for Judah would reap what they had sewn.
Many believers think the Lord does not render judgments as He did in the Old Testament. However, they are sadly mistaken. For example, the New Testament tells the story of Ananias and Sapphira, who were struck dead for lying to the Holy Spirit in Acts 5. Also, the book of Revelation speaks of various judgments resulting from God’s wrath upon mankind because of wickedness and rebellion. Revelation 16 details seven bowls of God’s wrath being poured out in the form of sores, the sea turning into blood and its creatures dying, other bodies of water turning into blood, people being sunburned, darkness, Euphrates River drying up, lightening, hail, and earthquakes manifesting on the earth. So, is God the same God as He was in the OT. Of course He is! God isn’t playing with mankind. The Bible says: “ I shall give great wonders in heaven, and in earth, blood, and fire, and the heat of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darknesses, and the moon into blood, before that the great day and horrible of the Lord come” (Joel 2:30-31).
“This is what the Sovereign Lord says:‘Disaster! Unheard-of
disaster! See, it comes! The end has come! The end has come! It has
roused itself against you. See, it comes! Doom has come upon you, upon
you who dwell in the land. The time has come! The day is near! There is panic,
not joy, on the mountains. I am about to pour out my wrath on you and
spend my anger against you.
I will judge you according to your conduct
and
repay you for all your detestable practices. I will not look on you with
pity; I will not spare you. I will repay you for your conduct
and
for the detestable practices among you. Then you will know that it is I the Lord who strikes you” (Ezekiel 7:5-9).
The Lord warned that an unimaginable disaster was about to come upon Judah. It would be something they had never heard of or could possibly imagine. The Lord had repeatedly warned them, and now, the disaster was at hand and had already begun. The sound of war, as they had never heard before, was not coming, but it had arrived. This was a new day where everything they had known was about to change. What Judah had sewn in rebellion, the Lord would allow them to be repaid a hundred times over. There was nowhere to run or anywhere for them to hide, for the Lord would get the justice His righteousness required. No one would leave unscathed whose abominations required a righteous response.
“‘See, the day! See, it comes! Doom has burst forth, the
rod has budded, arrogance has blossomed! Violence has arisen, a rod to punish the wicked. None
of the people will be left,
none
of that crowd—none of their wealth,
nothing
of value. The time has come! The day has arrived! Let not the buyer
rejoice nor the seller grieve, for my wrath is on the whole crowd.
The seller will not recover the property that was sold—as long as both buyer and seller live.
For the vision concerning the whole crowd
will
not be reversed. Because of their sins, not one of them will preserve their
life” (Ezekiel 7:10-13).
The day had come when the Lord’s rod of discipline was going to be rendered upon Judah. They had acted like spoiled, undisciplined children, and His punishment was their reward. The Bible says: “My son, do not despise the Lord's discipline or be weary of his reproof, for the Lord reproves him whom he loves, as a father the son in whom he delights” (Proverbs 3:11-12). Judah’s arrogance and pride prevented them from reforming their ways and repenting. Despite having seen the Lord judge Israel, they were of a reprobate mind and had somehow convinced themselves that the Lord would not do the same to them. The Lord was taking away their economy, and everyone who thought they were well off was going to know what it was like to be without, and those who were not financially well off would deem themselves as having been rich compared to what was about to happen. The lenders would need to borrow, but no loans would be available. The borrowers would need financing, but there would be no one to lend. Judah’s whole financial system was coming to an extreme halt, from the king down to the peasant.
“They have blown the trumpet, they have made all
things ready, but no one will go into battle,
for
my wrath is on the whole crowd. Outside is the sword; inside are plague and
famine.
Those in the country will die by the sword;
those in the city will be devoured by famine and plague. The
fugitives who escape will flee to the mountains. Like doves of the valleys, they
will all moan, each for their own sins. Every hand will go limp; every leg will
be wet with urine.
They will put on sackcloth and be clothed with terror. Every
face will be covered with shame,
and
every head will be shaved.” (Ezekiel 7:14-18).
There were special occasions when Israel was supposed to blow their horns. One of them was during times of worship. The Bible says: “Speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall have a sabbath-rest, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, a holy convocation’ ” (Leviticus 23:24). Another occasion when Israel was to blow the trumpet was as a prelude to war. The Bible says: “And if ye go to war in your land against the enemy that oppresseth you, then ye shall blow an alarm with the trumpets; and ye shall be remembered before the LORD your God, and ye shall be saved from your enemies” (Numbers 10:9). Israel was told to blow an alarm for war during Moses’ day, and God would help them defeat their enemies. However, this was a conditional promise based upon their obedience to Him. Unfortunately, in this text, despite their blowing of the trumpet, God would not be with them in battle. To blow the trumpet at this point was deemed pointless because the Commander of Heaven’s Armies would not be with them in battle.
The Babylonians were breaching the walls, and fighting was pointless. God had already given Judah into the hands of their enemies, for it was His judgment against them. Anyone who attempted to fight against God’s tools of judgment would die by the sword. Those who did not fight but were within the city walls would die from famine, pestilence, and disease. Anyone who escaped would not fare any better, for they would be left lost and destitute. The Bible says: “For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil” (Ecclesiastes 12:14). Their worldly possessions and the relationships they had built would be a thing of the past. Their sins would finally be acknowledged, but it would be at a tremendous cost, for there would be nothing they could do to turn things around other than to repent from that point forward.
Nothing could be done to change their dire situation because the Lord had sent warnings through His prophets over the years, and Judah refused to repent and turn from its evil ways. Therefore, the fear they were about to experience was beyond anything horror they could have possibly imagined despite God’s many warnings sent through His prophets. Their fear would be such that they would become incontinent and unable to move. They had committed spiritual adultery against the Lord, thus the shaving of their heads embodied their unfaithfulness as a woman who had been unfaithful to her husband. Their attire would change to sackcloth, representing a time of mourning, but would they truly repent for what they had done to the Lord even at this point, or would it be just an outward display lacking true repentance? The Lord had turned His face against these people, which resulted in their physical, spiritual, and emotional state of despair brought about by their own doing. The Bible says: “Do not pray for this people or offer any plea or petition for them, because I will not listen when they call to me in the time of their distress” (Jeremiah 11:14).
“They will throw their silver into the streets, and their gold will be treated as a thing unclean. Their silver and gold will not be able to deliver them in the day of the Lord’s wrath. It will not satisfy their hunger or fill their stomachs, for it has caused them to stumble into sin. They took pride in their beautiful jewelry and used it to make their detestable idols. They made it into vile images; therefore I will make it a thing unclean for them. I will give their wealth as plunder to foreigners and as loot to the wicked of the earth, who will defile it. I will turn my face away from the people, and robbers will desecrate the place I treasure. They will enter it and will defile it” (Ezekiel 7:19-22).
The gold and silver belonged to the Lord, but Judah thought that it was theirs and that there was no spiritual function or accountability to the Lord for it. Unfortunately, they found out they could not buy nor bargain their way out of God’s judgments. The Bible says: “The silver is mine and the gold is mine,’ declares the LORD Almighty” (Haggai 2:8). Nothing belongs to man, but everything is the Lord’s, for the whole earth is His. He created the world in six days, and on the seventh, He rested from His work, not because He was tired, but as an example to all mankind that we were to honor and worship Him. Man is just the steward of what already belongs to the Lord. The Bible says: “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; for he founded it on the seas and established it on the waters” (Psalm 24:1-2). Therefore, anyone claiming what is God’s is blinded by their own greed and pride, for nothing belongs to man in and of himself.
The Bible speaks about the lust and love of money, which has ensnared many people into the enemy’s trap. The Word of God says: “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs” (1 Timothy 6:10). Judah’s silver and gold were useless and meant absolutely nothing when there was no food that could be bought or protection that could be paid to fortify them from their enemies. Furthermore, the Lord could not be purchased with a bribe or kickback with what was already His. Unfortunately, Judah’s wealth had become a stumbling block for them because they had not purified their hearts with the love of God.
Judah misused that which was the Lord’s, such as gold, silver, and precious jewelry, to make idols. Therefore, the Lord was about to allow the Babylonians to take all He had entrusted Judah with. Just as the Lord had permitted Israel to plunder various nations and receive land as their inheritance from the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Jebusites, and other nations (Joshua 12:6-8), similarly, the Lord would turn His face away from even His own temple and allow the heathens to ransack it, for their personal pleasure as a lesson to Judah. Foreigners were about to loot them for everything they had, and there would be nothing Judah could do about it. The Bible says: “Wealth is worthless in the day of wrath, but righteousness delivers from death” (Proverbs 11:4).
During Solomon’s reign, the Lord instructed him to build His temple. Gold covered many of the items made, especially in the Holy of Holies. Silver and bronze were also used in the temple’s décor and furnishings. It was a beauty to behold, and no expense was withheld from its design. Unfortunately, the temple would be left dismal due to Judah’s sins, which were far from the beauty of Solomon’s days. Long were the days when the Lord had told Moses to instruct the people to plunder the Egyptians of silver, gold, and fine linen during their deliverance. The Bible says: “The Israelites did as Moses instructed and asked the Egyptians for articles of silver and gold and for clothing. The Lord had made the Egyptians favorably disposed toward the people, and they gave them what they asked for; so they plundered the Egyptians “ Exodus 12:35-36). Israel had been given much, but they did not appreciate the Lord for His goodness. Therefore, the Lord would allow them to see the Babylonians take the riches from their land, including His temple, and defile it in a foreign land, just as they had done before the Lord. An important thing to notice is that when the Lord left the temple, even the Most Holy Place was not off limits to the Babylonians, as they were God’s tools for judgment.
“Prepare chains! For the land is full of bloodshed, and the city is full of violence. I will bring the most wicked of nations to take possession of their houses. I will put an end to the pride of the mighty, and their sanctuaries will be desecrated. When terror comes, they will seek peace in vain” (Ezekiel 7:23-25).
The nation of Judah was about to go into captivity for their sins against the Most High. They had become a depraved nation full of violence and enjoyed shedding innocent blood. Therefore, the Lord’s hand of judgment was on them, and the Babylonians, who did not know nor honor God, would be His tool of execution to punish Judah. Everything they had known would be taken away or destroyed, and peace would be a byword because it would not be found. The Bible says: “There is no peace,” says my God, “for the wicked” (Isaiah 57:21). Judah had indeed become a wicked nation, for righteousness had fleeted the land.
“Calamity upon calamity will come, and rumor upon rumor.
They will go searching for a vision from the prophet, priestly instruction in
the law will cease, the counsel of the elders will come to an end. The
king will mourn, the prince will be clothed with despair, and the hands of the
people of the land will tremble. I will deal with them according to their
conduct, and by their own standards I will judge them. ‘Then they will know
that I am the Lord’ ”
(Ezekiel 7:26-27).
Everything that could go wrong did go wrong with Judah. Those who desired to hear a prophetic word from the prophets and priests would search in vain because no Word from the Lord would be found. Most of their prophets, priests, elders, and kings failed to honor the Lord, nor had they listened to His counsel from His true servants. Therefore, all warnings, messages, and words from the Lord were at an end, and everyone would be judged accordingly. Only then would they take the Lord seriously and know that He is the Lord.
[1] Strong's Editorial Staff, "Strong's Hebrew: 1697. דָּבָר (dabar) -- Speech, Word," Bible Hub: Search, Read, Study the Bible in Many Languages, last modified 2024, https://biblehub.com/hebrew/1697.htm.
[2] Anton Troianovski and Adam Satariano, "Nytimes.com," The New York Times - Breaking News, US News, World News and Videos, last modified June 17, 2022, https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/17/world/europe/putin-us-world-power.html.
[3] Mithil Aggarwal and Rae Wang, "China Accuses U.S. of 'bullying' After House Passes Bill That Could Ban TikTok," News, Politics, Sports, Mail & Latest Headlines - AOL.com, last modified March 14, 2024, https://www.aol.com/news/china-accuses-u-bullying-house-102958951.html.
[4] CBS News Editorial Staff, "North Korea Says Kim Jong Un Test Drove a New Tank, Urged Troops to Complete "preparations for War"," CBS News - Breaking News, 24/7 Live Streaming News & Top Stories, last modified March 14, 2024, https://www.cbsnews.com/news/north-korea-kim-jong-un-drives-tank-tells-troops-complete-preparations-for-war/.
[5] Asma Khalid, "How U.S. Allies View the Country a Year After Its Withdrawal from Afghanistan," NPR, last modified August 29, 2022, https://www.npr.org/2022/08/29/1119973093/how-u-s-allies-view-the-country-a-year-after-its-withdraw-from-afghanistan.
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