Old Testament - Ezekiel 1-3 - October 24, 2022

10/24/2022 – Ezekiel 1-3

Ezekiel was a prophet with the Israelites in their captivity in Babylon—he “sat where they sat”. He was with them to remind them that most all the warnings that the Lord gave them in Jerusalem had gone unheeded. But Ezekiel is now with them to let them know that there is a way back.

In Jerusalem, Ezekiel had been a priest serving in the temple. It is interesting to me that Ezekiel’s first vision in Babylon came to him in the 30th year of their captivity there, that “the word of the Lord came expressly unto Ezekiel the priest…” (1:3) His vision was of four heavenly creatures, and Ezekiel saw that each of the four followed the Lord’s promptings promptly, and they didn’t get distracted. “Whithersoever the spirit was to go, they went” (1:20)

It was when he saw “the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the Lord” (1:28), that he heard a voice. “And the spirit entered into me when he spake unto me…” (2:2) The Lord tells him that the children of Israel have been “a rebellious nation that hath rebelled against me…for they are impudent children and stiffhearted. I do send thee unto them” (2:3-4) He tells Ezekiel to “be not afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words….nor dismayed at their looks” (2:6)

And then the Lord tells Ezekiel what he is to do: “And thou shalt speak my words unto them, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear: for they are most rebellious. But thou, son of man, hear what I say unto thee: Be not thou rebellious like that rebellious house: open thy mouth, and eat that I give thee.” (2:8) The Lord wants us to listen to His words, and to truly take them into ourselves and digest them and “feast upon them” for they will fill our souls and our bodies with sweetness. (3:3)

In chapter 3, the Lord makes Ezekiel a watchman unto the house of Israel. The Lord knows that the Israelites are “impudent and hard hearted.” (3:7) And then the Lord reminds him that He has helped him many times: “Behold, I have made thy face strong against their faces, and thy forehead strong against their foreheads.” (3:9) And then the Lord tells him what will help him: “Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, all my words that I shall speak unto thee receive in thine heart, and hear with thine ears.” (3:10) As we study the scriptures, and read the things the Lord has spoken to His children throughout the ages, we must let His words into our minds and our hearts. 

After this amazing vision, Ezekiel went to visit with a group of captive Israelites who “dwelt by the river of Chebar, and I sat where they sat, and remained there astonished among them seven days.” (3:15) Ezekiel as nervous and fearful, but “at the end of seven days…the word of the Lord came unto me”  (3:16) The Lord told Ezekiel that He had made him “a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me.” Then what really got Ezekiel going: “Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity, but thou hast delivered thy soul.”  When the Lord asks us to do hard things, and we do our best – no matter what the outcome, we will be blessed for our efforts.

In v 20 the Lord tells us what He does when one of His children “turn from his righteousness and commit iniquity”, then He will “lay a stumblingblock before him”—hoping that His child will return to Him.

V’s 21-27 are the Lord’s instructions to being a missionary, or how we can fulfill any calling we receive. Basically, if we go forward, doing our best, He will lift us and give us the things we need at the time we need them. Our part of this is to be aware of His promptings and then follow them. I find it interesting that the word prompt is within the word promptings. When we receive a prompting, we should not just think about it, we should DO, and then take note of what happens next.

The student manual had a wonderful paragraph in it: “The Lord promised Ezekiel power, courage, and firmness, since his mission was to a very rebellious and stubborn people (1:17-19). The Lord always gives His humble servants sufficient strength to withstand the world’s opposition as they seek to do His will.”