Ezekiel 12
The Exile Symbolized
“The word of the Lord came to me: ‘Son of man, you are living among a rebellious people. They have eyes to see but do not see and ears to hear but do not hear, for they are a rebellious people’” (Ezekiel 12:1-2).
In the previous chapter, Ezekiel had been in a vision taken to the temple, where he saw all of the atrocities that the people were doing to dishonor the Lord, especially the leaders. Now, the Lord was giving Ezekiel a straight Word from His mouth regarding the rebellion of His people in exile. The exiles’ hearts had not returned to the Lord even though they were in captivity. They had not learned their lesson and had idolized the idea of returning to Judah despite the Lord telling them that they would serve out their entire sentence of seventy years of captivity. They had not accepted the prophecy that Judah would be destroyed and there would be no return to life as normal until after the appropriate time had passed. The Bible says: “Therefore the Lord Almighty says this: ‘Because you have not listened to my words, I will summon all the peoples of the north and my servant Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon,’ declares the Lord, ‘and I will bring them against this land and its inhabitants and against all the surrounding nations. I will completely destroy them and make them an object of horror and scorn, and an everlasting ruin. I will banish from them the sounds of joy and gladness, the voices of bride and bridegroom, the sound of millstones and the light of the lamp. This whole country will become a desolate wasteland, and these nations will serve the king of Babylon seventy years’ ” (Jeremiah 25:8-11). It was time for the exiles to accept God's judgment over Judah. Even then, and after they had fulfilled their designated time, God was not having them return to their norm of rebellion, idolatry, debauchery, and participating in all things against Him. They had to serve out their judgment to learn their lesson and appreciate the Lord for His goodness, but not a minute or day ahead of schedule would be cut short of their judgment. The Bible says: “But when the seventy years are fulfilled, I will punish the king of Babylon and his nation, the land of the Babylonians, for their guilt,” declares the Lord, “and will make it desolate forever” (Jeremiah 25:12).
The leaders and people had sinned against the Lord. They had rebelled against His authority and rejected His true prophets’ messages of warning. Even though the exiles heard the Word Ezekiel brought them from the Lord, their ears were not intuned with God’s voice because they did not want to receive the rebuke and correction, which would result in humility and acknowledgment of their sins. The Prophet Isaiah had prophesied years ago about such people. The Bible says: “He said, “Go and tell this people: ‘Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.’ Make the heart of this people calloused; make their ears dull and close their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed” (Isaiah 6:9-10). The exiles could see their situation of being taken from their land, and still, they failed to realize that it was a punishment from God due to their rebellion. Their hearts and minds had become so reprobate that even during God’s judgments, they refused to acknowledge Him as being a Rewarder for both good and evil. The Prophet Samuel had this to say about rebellion towards God: “For rebellion is like the sin of divination, and arrogance like the evil of idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, he has rejected you as king” (1 Samuel 15:23). This was the Word given to King Saul after he had defied the Lord.
Pack Up
“Therefore, son of man, pack your belongings for exile and in the daytime, as they watch, set out and go from where you are to another place. Perhaps they will understand, though they are a rebellious people. During the daytime, while they watch, bring out your belongings packed for exile. Then in the evening, while they are watching, go out like those who go into exile. While they watch, dig through the wall and take your belongings out through it. Put them on your shoulder as they are watching and carry them out at dusk. Cover your face so that you cannot see the land, for I have made you a sign to the Israelites” (Ezekiel 12:3-6).
The Lord does everything He can to restore the lost back to Himself. Therefore, the Lord instructed Ezekiel to do an enactment of Judah’s present and future. Babylon had already taken the exiles that Ezekiel was around into captivity, but the day was near for a second siege to begin of Judah. Therefore, Ezekiel was told to prepare baggage to symbolize Judah’s inhabitants leaving the city and going into exile. He was then to carry the baggage through a hole in a wall. However, the baggage going through the hole signified King Zedekiah’s unsuccessful attempt to escape from Babylon through Jerusalem’s walls. Nevertheless, there would be no escape for Him, as the Word of the Lord that came through the Prophet Jeremiah would be fulfilled. The Bible says: “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Go to Zedekiah king of Judah and tell him, ‘This is what the Lord says: I am about to give this city into the hands of the king of Babylon, and he will burn it down. You will not escape from his grasp but will surely be captured and given into his hands. You will see the king of Babylon with your own eyes, and he will speak with you face to face. And you will go to Babylon” (Jeremiah 34:2-3). The Lord had given a Word of warning through Jeremiah that Zedekiah’s escape attempt would be unsuccessful. Nevertheless, if he would submit to the king of Babylon, the Lord would allow him to stay in the land. Unfortunately, Zedekiah’s pride got in the way, and the Word of the Lord regarding his demise was fulfilled. His sons were killed before him, and then his sight was taken as Nebuchadnezzar had his eyes gouged out and imprisoned him until his death (Jeremiah 52). In 586 B.C. the Word of the Lord came to pass.
Words from the Lord seemed unsuccessful with the people, so He had Ezekiel do a motion picture in front of their eyes at dawn and dusk. They would see themselves going into captivity and their desperate desire to escape through Jerusalem’s city walls. Ezekiel had to cover his face, symbolizing the people trying to escape where no one would see them, which was also a sign of shame. Isn’t it amazing how Satan will have you parade your sin in front of others to see, but when judgment comes, he will have you fleeing like roaches in disgrace and shame?
“So I did as I was commanded. During the day I brought out my things packed for exile. Then in the evening I dug through the wall with my hands. I took my belongings out at dusk, carrying them on my shoulders while they watched” (Ezekiel 12:7).
Ezekiel obediently did as the Lord commanded. Once again, the attempted escape at night was King Zedekiah’s attempt to flee from the city but was blinded by utter darkness. Unfortunately, Zedekiah had been blind long before King Nebuchadnezzar made it official because he had refused to obey the Word from the Lord that came through the mouth of Jeremiah, the Lord’s servant.
*It’s important to remember that Israel and Judah were not foreign to the Lord’s warnings. Isaiah had warned Israel concerning her wicked ways long before Judah’s demise, but the people ignored the true prophets of God and continued in sin.
The Question
“In the morning the word of the Lord came to me: ‘Son of man, did not the Israelites, that rebellious people, ask you, ‘What are you doing?’ ” (Ezekiel 12:8-9).
Nothing, including the most minor or insignificant details, escapes the Lord’s notice. The Lord had seen everything that pertained to His people, so when He posed the question of the people’s inquiry to Ezekiel, He was not asking a question He did not already have the answer to. The Lord had seen His people’s even deeds, their conversations, their secret plans, and took notice of their disregard for Him and His decrees and messengers. Therefore, His label for them was often preceded by or detailed a description of their characteristics, such as rebellious or stiffnecked. Even so, the Lord posed a question to Ezekiel, after he completed the enactment as directed to see if the people actually paid attention to what Ezekiel was doing and the message his actions relayed. Unfortunately, despite seeing and hearing what the Lord had to say through the prophet, the exiles were still in a state of rebellion.
TO BE CONTINUED...
No comments:
Post a Comment