19:3 and 4 - The lioness is Judah - protected and fed by the Lord God...the first cub that is raised up out of Judah in this analogy is most likely Jehoahaz. He grew up strong and powerful like a lion should, but eventually allows his nature to be corrupted - he becomes a man-devourer (The kings began to see people as tools at their disposal...in their pride, they corrupted their nations). The rulers of Egypt are alerted to the danger of Jehoahaz in his pride and blood lust and he is captured and carted off to Egypt by Pharaoh Neco.
19:6 and 9 - The imagery stays the same...the next lion cub that grows to become a powerful king is most likely Jehoiachin. He, like Jehoahaz, allows his pride and blood lust to bring the wrath of Babylon to Judah. He is captured and carted off the Babylon (He and Ezekiel were in exile at the same time).
19:10 and 11 - This is the imagery of God planting the nation of Israel in fertile land...giving them water and nutrients to grow...allowing strong branches to rise up out of the vine and become the kings that the people so desperately wanted (Even though as you will recall from I Samuel, that this is not what God wanted for His people...they did not need a human king, they had the Creator of the universe!).
19:12ff - But through their pride and evil leadership, the kings of Israel bring about the wrath of God. The healthy vine is ripped out of the ground. The strong branch of the kings is burned to ash, and no one will rise from that line again. (Though from a more distant part of the Davidic line, Jesus is eventually born into the world as a man, fulfilling the prophecy that someone from David's line will always be on the throne)
20:1 - This is strange because the elders have come to Ezekiel to inquire of the Lord...yet God is angry with them. Why is is bad here for the elders to inquire of God? Isn't that what all God followers are supposed to be doing? Yes it is good to inquire of the Lord...but ONLY to inquire of the Lord. These Israelite elders were simply seeking out God as one of many options. They were following pagan rituals, seeking false gods, and using the one and only God as a last resort. God is not one of many options...He is the only option. Do not fall into the same trap that the elders have fallen into. Many current day Christians rely on self and money and others and cultural values for direction in their lives, as opposed to seeking the will of God from the beginning. Don't be in that camp...as you can seek from Ezekiel, that is not where you want to be!
20:7 - 29 - This is a synopsis of the heartbreaking cycle of rebellion in the relationship between God and the Israelites. When the people were in Egypt they forgot about God and turned to Egyptian idols. God allowed them to become slaves in Egypt. Then God frees the Israelites from slavery, so that they will remember who He is and turn back to Him. He gives them laws and teaches them about the Sabbath (The Sabbath was really important because they offered one day out of seven to the worship and contemplation of God...one day in seven was given to rest...given to trusting that God would take care of them, even if they took a day off. This is important to know because all the pagan religions at the time revolved around the seasons and positions of the moon...the Israelites marched to the beat of their own drum). Yet the people refused to honor the covenant and follow God's statutes. So God allowed an entire generation of people to die in the desert without seeing the Promised Land. When He finally allows them to come into the Promised Land, they immediately start worshipping idols on the high places. So God scatters them amongst the nations of the world. This is the cycle of rejection and perversion God has had to deal with in covenant relationship with His people.
20:30 - He questions the people, "Haven't you seen the twistedness and sinfulness of your ancestors? Yet you still continue to follow in their rebellions? Why?" How about us? Haven't we seen the meaninglessness of money...the corruption of power...the vileness of selfishness...yet we continue on generation after generation, chasing after the same sinful things earlier generations in our culture chased after. When are we gonna learn?
20:37 - Because of His great love for His people...God punishes them, so that they will once again join Him in a covenant relationship. There is no love in freely allowing someone to destroy their lives with no repercussion. God will do whatever it takes to bring His people back to Him.
20:41 - When we allow the holiness of God to permeate our lives, we become a pleasing fragrance to the Lord...a fragrant offering...we become living sacrifices.
21:3 - Both the righteous and the wicked will be punished? That doesn't seem very fair! This phrase is similar to the phrase, "everything from A-Z"...it is meant to represent the righteous the wicked and everything in between. God wants the people to understand that it is too late...all of the people will suffer under God's judgment...the good, the bad...the righteous, the wicked. The wicked have made the nation of Israel an abomination and the righteous have sat off to the side allowing it to happen, so there are really no righteous people.
21:9 and 10 - Over and over in this chapter we see the twin images of a sharpened and polished sword. This imagery represents the total destruction that will come upon the people of Israel. The sharp blade will cut and the polished blade will bring lightning/fire. It is bold imagery of slaughter.
21:14 - I imagine the prophet Ezekiel walking through the town swinging a giant sword from side to side. Slashing wildly...1...2...3 times - a living illustration of the judgment that is to come. If the people will not listen to a wild man brandishing a sword, they won't listen to anything. What kind of message does the way that you live your life send to people?
21:21-22 - God will use a pagan king in Babylon to bring about His judgement of the people of Judah. The rattling of the arrows, the household idols and the examination of the liver of a sacrificial animal, are all pagan methods for divining the "will of the gods." Interestingly enough, though these are pagan rituals that has no power because they are performed for gods that do not even exist...they will inadvertently give the Babylonian king the correct answer because God has chosen to use them. This is just another example of the humiliation that the Israelites have put God through. He uses pagan men who think they are victorious because of non-existent gods to do His will, because His own people refuse Him.
21:25 and 26 - The unnamed price here is Zedekiah. He was raised up to lead God's people, yet he has chosen to lead them astray. And like the cancer he is, he will be removed.
21:31ff - The finality of this judgment is set in stone...there is no going back. God's love has turned into wrath in the face of countless abominations by His people. I look at the strong language here and something is very clear to me...I do not want to be fuel to the fire of God's wrath. I do not want to be an object of God's indignation. I want to be the fragrant offering that was referred to in chapter 20...I want my life to be an offering to God.
No comments:
Post a Comment