I Will Be Their God; They Shall Be My People

 

Ezekiel 37:15-28

 

February 2, 2024

 

I Will Be Their God; They Shall Be My People

The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, take a stick and write on it, ‘For Judah, and the people of Israel associated with him’; then take another stick and write on it, ‘For Joseph (the stick of Ephraim) and all the house of Israel associated with him.’  And join them one to another into one stick, that they may become one in your hand.  And when your people say to you, ‘Will you not tell us what you mean by these?’  say to them, Thus, says the Lord God: Behold, I am about to take the stick of Joseph (that is in the hand of Ephraim) and the tribes of Israel associated with him. And I will join with it the stick of Judah^] and make them one stick, that they may be one in my hand.  When the sticks on which you write are in your hand before their eyes, then say to them, Thus, says the Lord God: Behold, I will take the people of Israel from the nations among which they have gone, and will gather them from all around, and bring them to their own land.  And I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel. And one king shall be king over them all, and they shall be no longer two nations, and no longer divided into two kingdoms.  They shall not defile themselves anymore with their idols and their detestable things, or with any of their transgressions. But I will save them from all the backslidings in which they have sinned, and will cleanse them, and they shall be my people, and I will be their God.

“My servant David shall be king over them, and they shall all have one shepherd. They shall walk in my rules and be careful to obey my statutes.  They shall dwell in the land that I gave to my servant Jacob, where your fathers lived. They and their children and their children's children shall dwell there forever, and David my servant shall be their prince forever.  I will make a covenant of peace with them. It shall be an everlasting covenant with them. And I will set them in their land and multiply them and will set my sanctuary in their midst forevermore.  My dwelling place shall be with them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.  Then the nations will know that I am the Lord who sanctifies Israel when my sanctuary is in their midst forevermore.”

 

It might be helpful to begin with a reminder, found in John’s gospel chapter 1:1-3,” In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was in the beginning with God.  All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made.”

 

With that established, why did God use Ezekiel, and not just put a big screen in the heavens so that all could see His plan for Israel and Judah?  The answer might be found in Hebrews 11:6, “And without faith, it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.”  

 

God often used word pictures, like the two sticks joined together, to tell His people about His plan. We find word pictures all through the Bible, Psalms, Isaiah, and John, all used them Jesus used them in His sermon on the Mount.  Some that were used to depict God, Jehovah is depicted as a King, a Lawmaker, a Judge, and a Warrior​—someone you should respect. He is also portrayed as a Shepherd, a Counselor, a Teacher, a Father, a Healer, and a Savior​—someone you can love. (Taken from the internet).

 

When the why, did He do that comes into my very small mind, these verses come to mind; “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:8-9)

 

From the Back Porch,

 

Bob Rice