Ezekiel 24:15-27

 

December 23, 2023

 

Ezekiel's Wife Dies

The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, behold, I am about to take the delight of your eyes away from you at a stroke, yet you shall not mourn or weep, nor shall your tears run down.  Sigh, but not aloud; make no mourning for the dead. Bind on your turban, and put your shoes on your feet; do not cover your lips, nor eat the bread of men.” 

 And the people said to me, “Will you not tell us what these things mean for us, that you are acting thus?”  Then I said to them, “The word of the Lord came to me: ‘Say to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will profane my sanctuary, the pride of your power, the delight of your eyes, and the yearning of your soul, and your sons and your daughters whom you left behind shall fall by the sword.  And you shall do as I have done; you shall not cover your lips, nor eat the bread of men.  Your turbans shall be on your heads and your shoes on your feet; you shall not mourn or weep, but you shall rot away in your iniquities and groan to one another.  Thus, shall Ezekiel be to you a sign; according to all that he has done you shall do. When this comes, then you will know that I am the Lord God.’

“As for you, son of man, surely on the day when I take from them their stronghold, their joy and glory, the delight of their eyes and their soul's desire, and also their sons and daughters, on that day a fugitive will come to you to report to you the news.  On that day your mouth will be opened to the fugitive, and you shall speak and be no longer mute. So, you will be a sign to them, and they will know that I am the Lord.”

 

Jan, my wife is the delight of my life, and we have witnessed many of our friends and acquaintances that have lost the delight of their hearts.  It is not an easy task, some had knowledge it was coming and others did not, but to my knowledge none were told by God not to weep or mourn.

 

That is not where Ezekiel finds himself, and I want each of us to understand, if 
God said she was the delight of his eyes, she was.  Ezekiel, obey God, shall we reread this; “So I spoke to the people in the morning, and at evening my wife died. And on the next morning, I did as I was commanded.”

 

God is jealous for His people to know that He is God, and they have made the Temple their delight, and not obey or fear Him, and have chased after the little gods, that cannot bring peace to their souls.

 

As a follower of Christ, what are you delighting in?   Do not blame others, or the culture, for society is not the plumbline for a follower of Christ.  Our world has always put self above all others, it is not a new thing, but as a follower of Christ, we are called to be a light in a very dark world.  So, as you go today be that light, and let God be glorified in you.

 

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice