What does God think about malice, opportunistic greed, and gloating over the downfall of others? Let’s look at an example in Ezekiel 35.
Did God pronounce judgment against Mount Seir in Edom, the descendants of Esau, because of their violence against Israel and Judah during the Babylonian captivity?
Again a message came to me from the Lord: “Son of man, turn and face Mount Seir, and prophesy against its people. Give them this message from the Sovereign Lord: ‘I am your enemy, O Mount Seir, and I will raise my fist against you to destroy you completely. I will demolish your cities and make you desolate. Then you will know that I am the Lord.’ ” (Ezek 35:1-4 NLT)
What does God pronounce upon the people of Edom because of their perpetual hostility?
“Because you have had a perpetual hostility, and have given over the children of Israel to the power of the sword in the time of their calamity, in the time of the iniquity of the end, therefore, as I live,” says the Lord Yahweh, “I will prepare you for blood, and blood will pursue you. Since you have not hated blood, therefore blood will pursue you.
Thus I will make Mount Seir an astonishment and a desolation. I will cut off from it him who passes through and him who returns. I will fill its mountains with its slain. The slain with the sword will fall in your hills and in your valleys and in all your watercourses. I will make you a perpetual desolation, and your cities will not be inhabited. Then you will know that I am Yahweh.” (Ezek 35:5-9 WEB)
What divine oracle of judgment did God pronounce against Edom (Mount Seir) for trying to seize the land of Israel and Judah during their exile while speaking arrogant words against God?
You said, “These two nations and these two territories are mine. We will take possession of them even if the Lord is there.” Therefore, the Lord God proclaims: As surely as I live, I will act according to the anger and zeal you displayed when you dealt with them so hatefully.
When I judge you, I will make myself known to them, and you will know that I am the Lord. I’ve heard the lies and libels that you uttered against Israel’s highlands when you said, “They are laid waste. They’ve been given to us to consume.” With your mouths you exalted yourselves against me and spoke your words against me. I myself heard it! (Ezek 35:10-13 CEB)
Is this a divine prophecy of strict retribution and poetic justice against Edom?
Everyone on earth will celebrate when I destroy you, just as you celebrated when Israel was destroyed. Your nation of Edom will be nothing but a wasteland. Then everyone will know that I am the Lord. (Ezek 35:14-15 CEV)
Did the author of Hebrews warn against becoming a godless person like Esau (Edom)?
See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled; that no one is sexually immoral or unholy like Esau, who sold his birthright for a single meal. For you know that afterward, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no chance to repent, though he sought it with tears. (Heb 12:15–17 ESV)
What does God think about malice, opportunistic greed, and gloating over the downfall of others? You decide!
Good Shepherd (Ezekiel 34)
How does the history of human leadership contrast with that of the Good Shepherd? Let’s begin in Ezekiel 34.
What did God say against corrupt leaders, who exploited Israel for personal gain instead of caring for the people?
The Lord’s word came to me: Human one, prophesy against Israel’s shepherds. Prophesy and say to them, The Lord God proclaims to the shepherds: Doom to Israel’s shepherds who tended themselves! Shouldn’t shepherds tend the flock? You drink the milk, you wear the wool, and you slaughter the fat animals, but you don’t tend the flock. (Ezek 34:1-3 CEB)
Did God sharply condemn Israel’s national leaders as shepherds that cruelly neglect, exploit, and fail to protect the people?
You have never protected the weak ones or healed the sick ones or bandaged those that get hurt. You let them wander off and never look for those that get lost. You are cruel and mean to my sheep. They strayed in every direction, and because there was no shepherd to watch them, they were attacked and eaten by wild animals. So my sheep were scattered across the earth. They roamed on hills and mountains, without anyone even bothering to look for them. (Ezek 34:4-6 CEV)
Did God condemn national leaders for exploiting the people and leaving them neglected, abused, and scattered?
Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: As I live, declares the Lord God, surely because my sheep have become a prey, and my sheep have become food for all the wild beasts, since there was no shepherd, and because my shepherds have not searched for my sheep, but the shepherds have fed themselves, and have not fed my sheep, therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: Thus says the Lord God, Behold, I am against the shepherds, and I will require my sheep at their hand and put a stop to their feeding the sheep. No longer shall the shepherds feed themselves. I will rescue my sheep from their mouths, that they may not be food for them. (Ezek 34:7-10 ESV)
Does God promise as the Good Shepherd to find, gather, and care for His scattered, neglected people?
For this is what the Lord God says: See, I Myself will search for My flock and look for them. As a shepherd looks for his sheep on the day he is among his scattered flock, so I will look for My flock. I will rescue them from all the places where they have been scattered on a cloudy and dark day.
I will bring them out from the peoples, gather them from the countries, and bring them into their own land. I will shepherd them on the mountains of Israel, in the ravines, and in all the inhabited places of the land. I will tend them with good pasture, and their grazing place will be on Israel’s lofty mountains. There they will lie down in a good grazing place; they will feed in rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. (Ezek 34:11-14 HCSB)
Did God promise to step in as the true Shepherd of Israel, remove evil leadership and provide justice, rest, and protection?
I will feed my sheep and give them rest,’ declares the Lord God. ‘I’m going to seek both the lost as well as the scattered, and bring them both back so their broken bones can be set and the sick can be healed. But in righteousness I’ll exterminate the fat and the stiff-necked.’
Now as for you, my flock, this is what the Lord God says: ‘Watch out! I’m going to judge between one sheep and another, and between the rams and the goats. Is it such an insignificant thing to you that you’re feeding in good pastures but trampling down the other pastures with your feet? Or that as you’re drinking from the clear streams you’re muddying the rest with your feet? My flock is grazing on what you’ve been treading down with your feet and they’re drinking what you’ve been making muddy with your feet!’ (Ezek 34:15-19 ISV)
Will God step in to judge self-serving, powerful people within the nation who mistreat and exploit the vulnerable?
Therefore thus saith the Lord God unto them; Behold, I, even I, will judge between the fat cattle and between the lean cattle. Because ye have thrust with side and with shoulder, and pushed all the diseased with your horns, till ye have scattered them abroad; Therefore will I save my flock, and they shall no more be a prey; and I will judge between cattle and cattle. (Ezek 34:20-22 KJV)
Does God promise to replace corrupt, self-serving leaders with a righteous descendant of David to care for His people?
Then I will establish over them one shepherd, My servant David, and he will shepherd them; he will shepherd them himself and be their shepherd. And I, Yahweh, will be their God, and My servant David will be prince among them; I, Yahweh, have spoken. (Ezek 34:23-24 LSB)
Does God promise ultimate peace, safety, and abundance after rebuking corrupt, self-serving leaders?
And I will make a covenant of peace with them and eliminate harmful animals from the land, so that they may live securely in the wilderness and sleep in the woods. I will make them and the places around My hill a blessing.
And I will make showers fall in their season; they will be showers of blessing. Also the tree of the field will yield its fruit and the earth will yield its produce, and they will be secure on their land. Then they will know that I am the Lord, when I have broken the bars of their yoke and have saved them from the hand of those who enslaved them. (Ezek 34:25-27 NASB)
Does God contrast abusive human leadership with His own tender care of His people as the Good Shepherd?
They will no longer be plundered by the nations, nor will wild animals devour them. They will live in safety, and no one will make them afraid. I will provide for them a land renowned for its crops, and they will no longer be victims of famine in the land or bear the scorn of the nations. Then they will know that I, the Lord their God, am with them and that they, the Israelites, are my people, declares the Sovereign Lord. You are my sheep, the sheep of my pasture, and I am your God, declares the Sovereign Lord. (Ezek 34:28-31 NIV)
What makes Jesus stand apart from any human leadership?
I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them. The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep. I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own. As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. (John 10:11-15 NKJV)
How does the history of human leadership contrast with that of the Good Shepherd? You decide!
What did God say against corrupt leaders, who exploited Israel for personal gain instead of caring for the people?
The Lord’s word came to me: Human one, prophesy against Israel’s shepherds. Prophesy and say to them, The Lord God proclaims to the shepherds: Doom to Israel’s shepherds who tended themselves! Shouldn’t shepherds tend the flock? You drink the milk, you wear the wool, and you slaughter the fat animals, but you don’t tend the flock. (Ezek 34:1-3 CEB)
Did God sharply condemn Israel’s national leaders as shepherds that cruelly neglect, exploit, and fail to protect the people?
You have never protected the weak ones or healed the sick ones or bandaged those that get hurt. You let them wander off and never look for those that get lost. You are cruel and mean to my sheep. They strayed in every direction, and because there was no shepherd to watch them, they were attacked and eaten by wild animals. So my sheep were scattered across the earth. They roamed on hills and mountains, without anyone even bothering to look for them. (Ezek 34:4-6 CEV)
Did God condemn national leaders for exploiting the people and leaving them neglected, abused, and scattered?
Therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: As I live, declares the Lord God, surely because my sheep have become a prey, and my sheep have become food for all the wild beasts, since there was no shepherd, and because my shepherds have not searched for my sheep, but the shepherds have fed themselves, and have not fed my sheep, therefore, you shepherds, hear the word of the Lord: Thus says the Lord God, Behold, I am against the shepherds, and I will require my sheep at their hand and put a stop to their feeding the sheep. No longer shall the shepherds feed themselves. I will rescue my sheep from their mouths, that they may not be food for them. (Ezek 34:7-10 ESV)
Does God promise as the Good Shepherd to find, gather, and care for His scattered, neglected people?
For this is what the Lord God says: See, I Myself will search for My flock and look for them. As a shepherd looks for his sheep on the day he is among his scattered flock, so I will look for My flock. I will rescue them from all the places where they have been scattered on a cloudy and dark day.
I will bring them out from the peoples, gather them from the countries, and bring them into their own land. I will shepherd them on the mountains of Israel, in the ravines, and in all the inhabited places of the land. I will tend them with good pasture, and their grazing place will be on Israel’s lofty mountains. There they will lie down in a good grazing place; they will feed in rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. (Ezek 34:11-14 HCSB)
Did God promise to step in as the true Shepherd of Israel, remove evil leadership and provide justice, rest, and protection?
I will feed my sheep and give them rest,’ declares the Lord God. ‘I’m going to seek both the lost as well as the scattered, and bring them both back so their broken bones can be set and the sick can be healed. But in righteousness I’ll exterminate the fat and the stiff-necked.’
Now as for you, my flock, this is what the Lord God says: ‘Watch out! I’m going to judge between one sheep and another, and between the rams and the goats. Is it such an insignificant thing to you that you’re feeding in good pastures but trampling down the other pastures with your feet? Or that as you’re drinking from the clear streams you’re muddying the rest with your feet? My flock is grazing on what you’ve been treading down with your feet and they’re drinking what you’ve been making muddy with your feet!’ (Ezek 34:15-19 ISV)
Will God step in to judge self-serving, powerful people within the nation who mistreat and exploit the vulnerable?
Therefore thus saith the Lord God unto them; Behold, I, even I, will judge between the fat cattle and between the lean cattle. Because ye have thrust with side and with shoulder, and pushed all the diseased with your horns, till ye have scattered them abroad; Therefore will I save my flock, and they shall no more be a prey; and I will judge between cattle and cattle. (Ezek 34:20-22 KJV)
Does God promise to replace corrupt, self-serving leaders with a righteous descendant of David to care for His people?
Then I will establish over them one shepherd, My servant David, and he will shepherd them; he will shepherd them himself and be their shepherd. And I, Yahweh, will be their God, and My servant David will be prince among them; I, Yahweh, have spoken. (Ezek 34:23-24 LSB)
Does God promise ultimate peace, safety, and abundance after rebuking corrupt, self-serving leaders?
And I will make a covenant of peace with them and eliminate harmful animals from the land, so that they may live securely in the wilderness and sleep in the woods. I will make them and the places around My hill a blessing.
And I will make showers fall in their season; they will be showers of blessing. Also the tree of the field will yield its fruit and the earth will yield its produce, and they will be secure on their land. Then they will know that I am the Lord, when I have broken the bars of their yoke and have saved them from the hand of those who enslaved them. (Ezek 34:25-27 NASB)
Does God contrast abusive human leadership with His own tender care of His people as the Good Shepherd?
They will no longer be plundered by the nations, nor will wild animals devour them. They will live in safety, and no one will make them afraid. I will provide for them a land renowned for its crops, and they will no longer be victims of famine in the land or bear the scorn of the nations. Then they will know that I, the Lord their God, am with them and that they, the Israelites, are my people, declares the Sovereign Lord. You are my sheep, the sheep of my pasture, and I am your God, declares the Sovereign Lord. (Ezek 34:28-31 NIV)
What makes Jesus stand apart from any human leadership?
I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them. The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep. I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own. As the Father knows Me, even so I know the Father; and I lay down My life for the sheep. (John 10:11-15 NKJV)
How does the history of human leadership contrast with that of the Good Shepherd? You decide!
Warning Alarm (Ezekiel 33)
Is one job of a preacher to warn people about the consequences of sin? Let’s begin in Ezekiel 33.
What did God say to Ezekiel about a man standing watch?
The Lord said: Ezekiel, son of man, warn your people by saying: Someday, I, the Lord, may send an enemy to invade a country. And suppose its people choose someone to stand watch and to sound a warning signal when the enemy is seen coming. (Ezek 33:1-3 CEV)
What would happen if the people ignored the watchman’s alarm or he failed to blow the warning trumpet?
then if anyone who hears the sound of the trumpet does not take warning, and the sword comes and takes him away, his blood shall be upon his own head. He heard the sound of the trumpet and did not take warning; his blood shall be upon himself.
But if he had taken warning, he would have saved his life. But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, so that the people are not warned, and the sword comes and takes any one of them, that person is taken away in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at the watchman's hand. (Ezek 33:4-6 ESV)
How is preaching a warning against sin like being a watchman?
As for you, son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. When you hear a word from My mouth, give them a warning from Me. If I say to the wicked, ‘Wicked one, you will surely die,’ but you do not speak out to warn him about his way, that wicked person will die for his iniquity, yet I will hold you responsible for his blood. But if you warn a wicked person to turn from his way and he doesn’t turn from it, he will die for his iniquity, but you will have saved your life. (Ezek 33:7-9 HCSB)
What does God really want from the wicked in terms of behavior?
Now, Son of Man, tell this to the house of Israel: ‘You keep saying, “Our crimes and sins burden us so much that we’re rotting away, so how can we keep on living?”’ Tell them, ‘As certainly as I’m alive and living,’ declares the Lord God, ‘I receive no pleasure in the death of the wicked. Instead, my pleasure is that the wicked repent from their behavior and live. Turn back! Turn back, all of you, from your wicked behavior! Why do you have to die, you house of Israel?’” (Ezek 33:10-11 ISV)
If a righteous person turns away from God and commits evil, can their past good deeds save them from judgment?
Therefore, thou son of man, say unto the children of thy people, The righteousness of the righteous shall not deliver him in the day of his transgression: as for the wickedness of the wicked, he shall not fall thereby in the day that he turneth from his wickedness; neither shall the righteous be able to live for his righteousness in the day that he sinneth.
When I shall say to the righteous, that he shall surely live; if he trust to his own righteousness, and commit iniquity, all his righteousnesses shall not be remembered; but for his iniquity that he hath committed, he shall die for it. (Ezek 33:12-13 KJV)
If a bad person turns away from evil, makes restitution for thefts and turns to justice and righteousness, will God forgive them?
But when I say to the wicked, ‘You will surely die,’ and he turns from his sin and does justice and righteousness, if a wicked man restores a pledge, pays back what he has taken by robbery, walks by the statutes of life without committing iniquity, he shall surely live; he shall not die. None of his sins that he has done will be remembered against him. He has done justice and righteousness; he shall surely live. (Ezek 33:14-16 LSB)
Do people still have bad judgment, saying that God’s way is not right?
Yet your fellow citizens say, ‘The way of the Lord is not right,’ when it is their own way that is not right. When the righteous turns from his righteousness and commits injustice, then he shall die in it. But when the wicked turns from his wickedness and practices justice and righteousness, he will live by them. Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not right.’ I will judge each of you according to his ways, house of Israel. (Ezek 33:17-20 NASB)
What did God have to say to the people who believed that they deserved the land but kept on sinning?
In the twelfth year of our exile, in the tenth month on the fifth day, a man who had escaped from Jerusalem came to me and said, “The city has fallen!” Now the evening before the man arrived, the hand of the Lord was on me, and he opened my mouth before the man came to me in the morning. So my mouth was opened and I was no longer silent.
Then the word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, the people living in those ruins in the land of Israel are saying, ‘Abraham was only one man, yet he possessed the land. But we are many; surely the land has been given to us as our possession.’ Therefore say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Since you eat meat with the blood still in it and look to your idols and shed blood, should you then possess the land? You rely on your sword, you do detestable things, and each of you defiles his neighbor’s wife. Should you then possess the land?’ (Ezek 33:21-26 NIV)
Was God's judgment inescapable for the unrepentant survivors of Judah?
Say thus to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “As I live, surely those who are in the ruins shall fall by the sword, and the one who is in the open field I will give to the beasts to be devoured, and those who are in the strongholds and caves shall die of the pestilence.
For I will make the land most desolate, her arrogant strength shall cease, and the mountains of Israel shall be so desolate that no one will pass through. Then they shall know that I am the Lord, when I have made the land most desolate because of all their abominations which they have committed.” ’ (Ezek 33:27-29 NKJV)
Did the people treat God's prophetic warning as mere entertainment rather than a call to genuine repentance and obedience? Is that how many treat modern preaching?
Son of man, your people talk about you in their houses and whisper about you at the doors. They say to each other, ‘Come on, let’s go hear the prophet tell us what the Lord is saying!’ So my people come pretending to be sincere and sit before you. They listen to your words, but they have no intention of doing what you say. Their mouths are full of lustful words, and their hearts seek only after money.
You are very entertaining to them, like someone who sings love songs with a beautiful voice or plays fine music on an instrument. They hear what you say, but they don’t act on it! But when all these terrible things happen to them—as they certainly will—then they will know a prophet has been among them. (Ezek 33:30-33 NLT)
Is it still God’s desire that we learn truth, repent and live?
For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and come to full knowledge of the truth. (1 Tim 2:3–4 WEB)
Is one job of a preacher to warn people about the consequences of sin? You decide!
What did God say to Ezekiel about a man standing watch?
The Lord said: Ezekiel, son of man, warn your people by saying: Someday, I, the Lord, may send an enemy to invade a country. And suppose its people choose someone to stand watch and to sound a warning signal when the enemy is seen coming. (Ezek 33:1-3 CEV)
What would happen if the people ignored the watchman’s alarm or he failed to blow the warning trumpet?
then if anyone who hears the sound of the trumpet does not take warning, and the sword comes and takes him away, his blood shall be upon his own head. He heard the sound of the trumpet and did not take warning; his blood shall be upon himself.
But if he had taken warning, he would have saved his life. But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, so that the people are not warned, and the sword comes and takes any one of them, that person is taken away in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at the watchman's hand. (Ezek 33:4-6 ESV)
How is preaching a warning against sin like being a watchman?
As for you, son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. When you hear a word from My mouth, give them a warning from Me. If I say to the wicked, ‘Wicked one, you will surely die,’ but you do not speak out to warn him about his way, that wicked person will die for his iniquity, yet I will hold you responsible for his blood. But if you warn a wicked person to turn from his way and he doesn’t turn from it, he will die for his iniquity, but you will have saved your life. (Ezek 33:7-9 HCSB)
What does God really want from the wicked in terms of behavior?
Now, Son of Man, tell this to the house of Israel: ‘You keep saying, “Our crimes and sins burden us so much that we’re rotting away, so how can we keep on living?”’ Tell them, ‘As certainly as I’m alive and living,’ declares the Lord God, ‘I receive no pleasure in the death of the wicked. Instead, my pleasure is that the wicked repent from their behavior and live. Turn back! Turn back, all of you, from your wicked behavior! Why do you have to die, you house of Israel?’” (Ezek 33:10-11 ISV)
If a righteous person turns away from God and commits evil, can their past good deeds save them from judgment?
Therefore, thou son of man, say unto the children of thy people, The righteousness of the righteous shall not deliver him in the day of his transgression: as for the wickedness of the wicked, he shall not fall thereby in the day that he turneth from his wickedness; neither shall the righteous be able to live for his righteousness in the day that he sinneth.
When I shall say to the righteous, that he shall surely live; if he trust to his own righteousness, and commit iniquity, all his righteousnesses shall not be remembered; but for his iniquity that he hath committed, he shall die for it. (Ezek 33:12-13 KJV)
If a bad person turns away from evil, makes restitution for thefts and turns to justice and righteousness, will God forgive them?
But when I say to the wicked, ‘You will surely die,’ and he turns from his sin and does justice and righteousness, if a wicked man restores a pledge, pays back what he has taken by robbery, walks by the statutes of life without committing iniquity, he shall surely live; he shall not die. None of his sins that he has done will be remembered against him. He has done justice and righteousness; he shall surely live. (Ezek 33:14-16 LSB)
Do people still have bad judgment, saying that God’s way is not right?
Yet your fellow citizens say, ‘The way of the Lord is not right,’ when it is their own way that is not right. When the righteous turns from his righteousness and commits injustice, then he shall die in it. But when the wicked turns from his wickedness and practices justice and righteousness, he will live by them. Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not right.’ I will judge each of you according to his ways, house of Israel. (Ezek 33:17-20 NASB)
What did God have to say to the people who believed that they deserved the land but kept on sinning?
In the twelfth year of our exile, in the tenth month on the fifth day, a man who had escaped from Jerusalem came to me and said, “The city has fallen!” Now the evening before the man arrived, the hand of the Lord was on me, and he opened my mouth before the man came to me in the morning. So my mouth was opened and I was no longer silent.
Then the word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, the people living in those ruins in the land of Israel are saying, ‘Abraham was only one man, yet he possessed the land. But we are many; surely the land has been given to us as our possession.’ Therefore say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Since you eat meat with the blood still in it and look to your idols and shed blood, should you then possess the land? You rely on your sword, you do detestable things, and each of you defiles his neighbor’s wife. Should you then possess the land?’ (Ezek 33:21-26 NIV)
Was God's judgment inescapable for the unrepentant survivors of Judah?
Say thus to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “As I live, surely those who are in the ruins shall fall by the sword, and the one who is in the open field I will give to the beasts to be devoured, and those who are in the strongholds and caves shall die of the pestilence.
For I will make the land most desolate, her arrogant strength shall cease, and the mountains of Israel shall be so desolate that no one will pass through. Then they shall know that I am the Lord, when I have made the land most desolate because of all their abominations which they have committed.” ’ (Ezek 33:27-29 NKJV)
Did the people treat God's prophetic warning as mere entertainment rather than a call to genuine repentance and obedience? Is that how many treat modern preaching?
Son of man, your people talk about you in their houses and whisper about you at the doors. They say to each other, ‘Come on, let’s go hear the prophet tell us what the Lord is saying!’ So my people come pretending to be sincere and sit before you. They listen to your words, but they have no intention of doing what you say. Their mouths are full of lustful words, and their hearts seek only after money.
You are very entertaining to them, like someone who sings love songs with a beautiful voice or plays fine music on an instrument. They hear what you say, but they don’t act on it! But when all these terrible things happen to them—as they certainly will—then they will know a prophet has been among them. (Ezek 33:30-33 NLT)
Is it still God’s desire that we learn truth, repent and live?
For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all people to be saved and come to full knowledge of the truth. (1 Tim 2:3–4 WEB)
Is one job of a preacher to warn people about the consequences of sin? You decide!
Violence & Shame (Ezekiel 32)
Will God deal with the violence and shame of this world’s regimes? Let’s look at Ezekiel 32.
What kind of song did God tell Ezekiel to sing about Pharaoh, king of Egypt?
On the first day of the twelfth month of the twelfth year of our captivity, a message came to me from the Lord, who had this to say: “Son of Man, start singing this lamentation about Pharaoh, king of Egypt. Tell him, ‘You may have called yourself a lion among nations, but you’re a monster at sea. You thrash about in your rivers, muddy the water with your feet, and relieve yourself in the rivers.’ (Ezek 32:1-2 ISV)
What was God going to do with the dead sea monster picturing Pharaoh?
Thus saith the Lord God; I will therefore spread out my net over thee with a company of many people; and they shall bring thee up in my net. Then will I leave thee upon the land, I will cast thee forth upon the open field, and will cause all the fowls of the heaven to remain upon thee, and I will fill the beasts of the whole earth with thee. And I will lay thy flesh upon the mountains, and fill the valleys with thy height. I will also water with thy blood the land wherein thou swimmest, even to the mountains; and the rivers shall be full of thee. (Ezek 32:3-6 ESV)
Do we see any of the ten Exodus plagues in this description regarding Egypt?
And when I extinguish you, I will cover the heavens and darken their stars; I will cover the sun with a cloud, And the moon will not give its light. All the shining lights in the heavens I will darken over you And will give darkness on your land,” Declares Lord Yahweh. (Ezek 32:7-8 LSB)
Will Egypt’s troubles affect many surrounding nations?
I will also trouble the hearts of many peoples when I bring your destruction among the nations, into lands which you have not known. And I will make many peoples appalled at you, and their kings will be horribly afraid of you when I brandish My sword before them; and they will tremble again and again, every person for his own life, on the day of your fall. (Ezek 32:9-10 NASB)
Who will attack Egypt? Then will they know that God is the Lord?
For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: ‘The sword of the king of Babylon will come against you. I will cause your hordes to fall by the swords of mighty men—the most ruthless of all nations. They will shatter the pride of Egypt, and all her hordes will be overthrown. I will destroy all her cattle from beside abundant waters no longer to be stirred by the foot of man or muddied by the hooves of cattle.
Then I will let her waters settle and make her streams flow like oil, declares the Sovereign Lord. When I make Egypt desolate and strip the land of everything in it, when I strike down all who live there, then they will know that I am the Lord.’ This is the lament they will chant for her. The daughters of the nations will chant it; for Egypt and all her hordes they will chant it, declares the Sovereign Lord. (Ezek 32:11-16 NIV)
Do we now have a funeral dirge and prophecy given by the prophet Ezekiel against Pharaoh and the multitudes of Egypt?
It came to pass also in the twelfth year, on the fifteenth day of the month, that the word of the Lord came to me, saying: “Son of man, wail over the multitude of Egypt, And cast them down to the depths of the earth, Her and the daughters of the famous nations, With those who go down to the Pit:
‘Whom do you surpass in beauty? Go down, be placed with the uncircumcised.’ They shall fall in the midst of those slain by the sword; She is delivered to the sword, Drawing her and all her multitudes. The strong among the mighty Shall speak to him out of the midst of hell With those who help him: ‘They have gone down, They lie with the uncircumcised, slain by the sword.’ (Ezek 32:17-21 NKJV)
What other once violent nations, do Pharaoh and Egypt join by descending into the realm of the dead, the pit?
Assyria lies there surrounded by the graves of its army, those who were slaughtered by the sword. Their graves are in the depths of the pit, and they are surrounded by their allies. They struck terror in the hearts of people everywhere, but now they have been slaughtered by the sword.
Elam lies there surrounded by the graves of all its hordes, those who were slaughtered by the sword. They struck terror in the hearts of people everywhere, but now they have descended as outcasts to the world below. Now they lie in the pit and share the shame of those who have gone before them. They have a resting place among the slaughtered, surrounded by the graves of all their hordes. Yes, they terrorized the nations while they lived, but now they lie in shame with others in the pit, all of them outcasts, slaughtered by the sword.
Meshech and Tubal are there, surrounded by the graves of all their hordes. They once struck terror in the hearts of people everywhere. But now they are outcasts, all slaughtered by the sword. They are not buried in honor like their fallen heroes, who went down to the grave with their weapons—their shields covering their bodies and their swords beneath their heads. Their guilt rests upon them because they brought terror to everyone while they were still alive.
You too, Egypt, will lie crushed and broken among the outcasts, all slaughtered by the sword.
Edom is there with its kings and princes. Mighty as they were, they also lie among those slaughtered by the sword, with the outcasts who have gone down to the pit.
All the princes of the north and the Sidonians are there with others who have died. Once a terror, they have been put to shame. They lie there as outcasts with others who were slaughtered by the sword. They share the shame of all who have descended to the pit. (Ezek 32:22-30 NLT)
Will Pharaoh find a grim, ironic comfort in seeing his slain army and fellow terrorist rulers in the grave?
Pharaoh will see them and will be comforted over all his multitude, even Pharaoh and all his army, slain by the sword,” says the Lord Yahweh. “For I have put his terror in the land of the living. He will be laid among the uncircumcised, with those who are slain by the sword, even Pharaoh and all his multitude,” says the Lord Yahweh. (Ezek 32:31-32 WEB)
Did Jesus mention a similar time of darkening the sun, moon and stars?
Now immediately after the suffering of that time the sun will become dark, and the moon won’t give its light. The stars will fall from the sky and the planets and other heavenly bodies will be shaken. (Mat 24:29 CEB)
Will God deal with the violence and shame of this world’s regimes? You decide!
What kind of song did God tell Ezekiel to sing about Pharaoh, king of Egypt?
On the first day of the twelfth month of the twelfth year of our captivity, a message came to me from the Lord, who had this to say: “Son of Man, start singing this lamentation about Pharaoh, king of Egypt. Tell him, ‘You may have called yourself a lion among nations, but you’re a monster at sea. You thrash about in your rivers, muddy the water with your feet, and relieve yourself in the rivers.’ (Ezek 32:1-2 ISV)
What was God going to do with the dead sea monster picturing Pharaoh?
Thus saith the Lord God; I will therefore spread out my net over thee with a company of many people; and they shall bring thee up in my net. Then will I leave thee upon the land, I will cast thee forth upon the open field, and will cause all the fowls of the heaven to remain upon thee, and I will fill the beasts of the whole earth with thee. And I will lay thy flesh upon the mountains, and fill the valleys with thy height. I will also water with thy blood the land wherein thou swimmest, even to the mountains; and the rivers shall be full of thee. (Ezek 32:3-6 ESV)
Do we see any of the ten Exodus plagues in this description regarding Egypt?
And when I extinguish you, I will cover the heavens and darken their stars; I will cover the sun with a cloud, And the moon will not give its light. All the shining lights in the heavens I will darken over you And will give darkness on your land,” Declares Lord Yahweh. (Ezek 32:7-8 LSB)
Will Egypt’s troubles affect many surrounding nations?
I will also trouble the hearts of many peoples when I bring your destruction among the nations, into lands which you have not known. And I will make many peoples appalled at you, and their kings will be horribly afraid of you when I brandish My sword before them; and they will tremble again and again, every person for his own life, on the day of your fall. (Ezek 32:9-10 NASB)
Who will attack Egypt? Then will they know that God is the Lord?
For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: ‘The sword of the king of Babylon will come against you. I will cause your hordes to fall by the swords of mighty men—the most ruthless of all nations. They will shatter the pride of Egypt, and all her hordes will be overthrown. I will destroy all her cattle from beside abundant waters no longer to be stirred by the foot of man or muddied by the hooves of cattle.
Then I will let her waters settle and make her streams flow like oil, declares the Sovereign Lord. When I make Egypt desolate and strip the land of everything in it, when I strike down all who live there, then they will know that I am the Lord.’ This is the lament they will chant for her. The daughters of the nations will chant it; for Egypt and all her hordes they will chant it, declares the Sovereign Lord. (Ezek 32:11-16 NIV)
Do we now have a funeral dirge and prophecy given by the prophet Ezekiel against Pharaoh and the multitudes of Egypt?
It came to pass also in the twelfth year, on the fifteenth day of the month, that the word of the Lord came to me, saying: “Son of man, wail over the multitude of Egypt, And cast them down to the depths of the earth, Her and the daughters of the famous nations, With those who go down to the Pit:
‘Whom do you surpass in beauty? Go down, be placed with the uncircumcised.’ They shall fall in the midst of those slain by the sword; She is delivered to the sword, Drawing her and all her multitudes. The strong among the mighty Shall speak to him out of the midst of hell With those who help him: ‘They have gone down, They lie with the uncircumcised, slain by the sword.’ (Ezek 32:17-21 NKJV)
What other once violent nations, do Pharaoh and Egypt join by descending into the realm of the dead, the pit?
Assyria lies there surrounded by the graves of its army, those who were slaughtered by the sword. Their graves are in the depths of the pit, and they are surrounded by their allies. They struck terror in the hearts of people everywhere, but now they have been slaughtered by the sword.
Elam lies there surrounded by the graves of all its hordes, those who were slaughtered by the sword. They struck terror in the hearts of people everywhere, but now they have descended as outcasts to the world below. Now they lie in the pit and share the shame of those who have gone before them. They have a resting place among the slaughtered, surrounded by the graves of all their hordes. Yes, they terrorized the nations while they lived, but now they lie in shame with others in the pit, all of them outcasts, slaughtered by the sword.
Meshech and Tubal are there, surrounded by the graves of all their hordes. They once struck terror in the hearts of people everywhere. But now they are outcasts, all slaughtered by the sword. They are not buried in honor like their fallen heroes, who went down to the grave with their weapons—their shields covering their bodies and their swords beneath their heads. Their guilt rests upon them because they brought terror to everyone while they were still alive.
You too, Egypt, will lie crushed and broken among the outcasts, all slaughtered by the sword.
Edom is there with its kings and princes. Mighty as they were, they also lie among those slaughtered by the sword, with the outcasts who have gone down to the pit.
All the princes of the north and the Sidonians are there with others who have died. Once a terror, they have been put to shame. They lie there as outcasts with others who were slaughtered by the sword. They share the shame of all who have descended to the pit. (Ezek 32:22-30 NLT)
Will Pharaoh find a grim, ironic comfort in seeing his slain army and fellow terrorist rulers in the grave?
Pharaoh will see them and will be comforted over all his multitude, even Pharaoh and all his army, slain by the sword,” says the Lord Yahweh. “For I have put his terror in the land of the living. He will be laid among the uncircumcised, with those who are slain by the sword, even Pharaoh and all his multitude,” says the Lord Yahweh. (Ezek 32:31-32 WEB)
Did Jesus mention a similar time of darkening the sun, moon and stars?
Now immediately after the suffering of that time the sun will become dark, and the moon won’t give its light. The stars will fall from the sky and the planets and other heavenly bodies will be shaken. (Mat 24:29 CEB)
Will God deal with the violence and shame of this world’s regimes? You decide!
Cedar Tree (Ezekiel 31)
Was Egypt like a tall and arrogant cedar tree cut down to size? Is the kingdom of heaven like a small and humble seed growing into a large tree? Let’s begin in Ezekiel 31.
Did God compare Egypt to an enormous cedar tree in the forest?
Now it came to pass in the eleventh year, in the third month, on the first day of the month, that the word of the Lord came to me, saying, (Ezek 31:1 NKJV)
“Son of man, give this message to Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and all his hordes: To whom would you compare your greatness? You are like mighty Assyria, which was once like a cedar of Lebanon, with beautiful branches that cast deep forest shade and with its top high among the clouds. Deep springs watered it and helped it to grow tall and luxuriant. The water flowed around it like a river, streaming to all the trees nearby.” (Ezek 31:2-4 NLT)
How impressive was Egypt, using the analogy of a large cedar tree?
Therefore its stature was exalted above all the trees of the field; and its boughs were multiplied. Its branches became long by reason of many waters, when it spread them out. All the birds of the sky made their nests in its boughs. Under its branches, all the animals of the field gave birth to their young. All great nations lived under its shadow. (Ezek 31:5-6 WEB)
How beautiful was Egypt, using the analogy of a large cedar tree?
It became beautiful in its greatness and in its lush foliage, because it took root in plentiful water. No cedar was its equal in God’s garden. The fir trees didn’t have anything like its branches, and the plane trees had nothing like its boughs. None of the trees in God’s garden could compare to it in its beauty. As for its beauty—I made it so, with its abundant foliage. All the trees of Eden envied it, all that were in God’s garden. (Ezek 31:7-9 CEB)
What weak human character traits did the king of Egypt possess? How would God deal with him?
King of Egypt, now listen to what I, the Lord God, am saying about that tree: The tree grew so tall that it reached the sky and became very proud and arrogant. So I, the Lord God, will reject the tree and hand it over to a foreign ruler, who will punish it for its wickedness. Cruel foreigners will chop it down and leave it wherever it falls.
Branches and broken limbs will be scattered over the mountains and in the valleys. The people living in the shade of those branches will go somewhere else. Birds will then nest on the stump of the fallen tree, and wild animals will trample its branches. Never again will any tree dare to grow as tall as this tree, no matter how much water it has. Every tree must die, just as humans die and go down to the world of the dead. (Ezek 31:10-14 CEV)
As Egypt went down to the grave was there mourning among the nations?
Thus says the Lord God: On the day the cedar went down to Sheol I caused mourning; I closed the deep over it, and restrained its rivers, and many waters were stopped. I clothed Lebanon in gloom for it, and all the trees of the field fainted because of it. I made the nations quake at the sound of its fall, when I cast it down to Sheol with those who go down to the pit.
And all the trees of Eden, the choice and best of Lebanon, all that drink water, were comforted in the world below. They also went down to Sheol with it, to those who are slain by the sword; yes, those who were its arm, who lived under its shadow among the nations.
Whom are you thus like in glory and in greatness among the trees of Eden? You shall be brought down with the trees of Eden to the world below. You shall lie among the uncircumcised, with those who are slain by the sword. This is Pharaoh and all his multitude, declares the Lord God. (Ezek 31:15-18 ESV)
Did Jesus also describe the kingdom of heaven as like a tree?
He presented another parable to them: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. It’s the smallest of all the seeds, but when grown, it’s taller than the vegetables and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the sky come and nest in its branches.” (Mat 13:31-32 HCSB)
Was Egypt like a tall and arrogant cedar tree cut down to size? Is the kingdom of heaven like a small and humble seed growing into a large tree? You decide!
Did God compare Egypt to an enormous cedar tree in the forest?
Now it came to pass in the eleventh year, in the third month, on the first day of the month, that the word of the Lord came to me, saying, (Ezek 31:1 NKJV)
“Son of man, give this message to Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and all his hordes: To whom would you compare your greatness? You are like mighty Assyria, which was once like a cedar of Lebanon, with beautiful branches that cast deep forest shade and with its top high among the clouds. Deep springs watered it and helped it to grow tall and luxuriant. The water flowed around it like a river, streaming to all the trees nearby.” (Ezek 31:2-4 NLT)
How impressive was Egypt, using the analogy of a large cedar tree?
Therefore its stature was exalted above all the trees of the field; and its boughs were multiplied. Its branches became long by reason of many waters, when it spread them out. All the birds of the sky made their nests in its boughs. Under its branches, all the animals of the field gave birth to their young. All great nations lived under its shadow. (Ezek 31:5-6 WEB)
How beautiful was Egypt, using the analogy of a large cedar tree?
It became beautiful in its greatness and in its lush foliage, because it took root in plentiful water. No cedar was its equal in God’s garden. The fir trees didn’t have anything like its branches, and the plane trees had nothing like its boughs. None of the trees in God’s garden could compare to it in its beauty. As for its beauty—I made it so, with its abundant foliage. All the trees of Eden envied it, all that were in God’s garden. (Ezek 31:7-9 CEB)
What weak human character traits did the king of Egypt possess? How would God deal with him?
King of Egypt, now listen to what I, the Lord God, am saying about that tree: The tree grew so tall that it reached the sky and became very proud and arrogant. So I, the Lord God, will reject the tree and hand it over to a foreign ruler, who will punish it for its wickedness. Cruel foreigners will chop it down and leave it wherever it falls.
Branches and broken limbs will be scattered over the mountains and in the valleys. The people living in the shade of those branches will go somewhere else. Birds will then nest on the stump of the fallen tree, and wild animals will trample its branches. Never again will any tree dare to grow as tall as this tree, no matter how much water it has. Every tree must die, just as humans die and go down to the world of the dead. (Ezek 31:10-14 CEV)
As Egypt went down to the grave was there mourning among the nations?
Thus says the Lord God: On the day the cedar went down to Sheol I caused mourning; I closed the deep over it, and restrained its rivers, and many waters were stopped. I clothed Lebanon in gloom for it, and all the trees of the field fainted because of it. I made the nations quake at the sound of its fall, when I cast it down to Sheol with those who go down to the pit.
And all the trees of Eden, the choice and best of Lebanon, all that drink water, were comforted in the world below. They also went down to Sheol with it, to those who are slain by the sword; yes, those who were its arm, who lived under its shadow among the nations.
Whom are you thus like in glory and in greatness among the trees of Eden? You shall be brought down with the trees of Eden to the world below. You shall lie among the uncircumcised, with those who are slain by the sword. This is Pharaoh and all his multitude, declares the Lord God. (Ezek 31:15-18 ESV)
Did Jesus also describe the kingdom of heaven as like a tree?
He presented another parable to them: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. It’s the smallest of all the seeds, but when grown, it’s taller than the vegetables and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the sky come and nest in its branches.” (Mat 13:31-32 HCSB)
Was Egypt like a tall and arrogant cedar tree cut down to size? Is the kingdom of heaven like a small and humble seed growing into a large tree? You decide!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)