SCRIPTURE: EZEKIEL 11
JUDGMENT ON ISTAEL’S LEADERS (vs. 1-15)
The Spirit of God lifted Ezekiel and brought him to the gate of the house of the Lord facing east. At the entrance to the gate were 25 men, among them Jaazaniah and Peiatiah, leaders of the temple. God told Ezekiel that these were evil men who were plotting evil and giving wicked advices in this city. This is what the Lord told Ezekiel to say: “You have killed many people and filled its streets with the dead. The bodies you have thrown there are the meat and this city is the pot, but I will drive you out of it. You fear the sword, and the sword is what I will bring against you. I will drive you out of the city and hand you over to foreigners and inflict punishment on you. You will fall by the sword, and I will execute judgment on you at the borders of Israel. Then you will know that I am the Lord for you have not followed my decrees or kept my laws but have conformed to the standards of the nations around you.” (vs. 5-12)
PROMISED RETURN OF ISRAEL (vs.16-24)
Although the Lord send the Israelites far away among the nations and scattered them among the countries, but the Lord will be their sanctuary in the countries where they have gone. He will gather them from the nation and bring them back from the countries where they have been scattered and give them back the land of Israel again. They will return to it and remove all its vile images and detestable idols. God will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them. He will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. Then they will follow God’s decrees and keep His laws. They will be God’s people and worship the true God.
Then the cherubim with the wheels beside them spread their wings, and the glory of God was above them. It went up from within the city and stopped above the mountain. The Spirit lifted Ezekiel and brought him to the exiles in Babylonia in the vision given by the Spirit of God. Then Ezekiel told the exiles everything the Lord had shown him.
THOUGHTS:
When the Israelites entered the Promised Land, they were warned not to copy the customs and religious practices of other nations. Their disobedience had brought them troubles. Today, believers are tempted to conform to the ways of the world. We must keep the standard of God of what is right and wrong and not follow the popular trends of the society.
The faithful exiles were far from home. But they would be protected by God. Our external circumstances cannot truly indicate our standing with God. Those who appear sure and safe maybe far from God but those living through difficult times will be safe under God’s protection. If we pledge ourselves to God’s care, He will keep us safe.
God will give the remnants an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them. Their hard heart of stone will be transplanted with a tender receptive and responsive heart of flesh. How about you? What kind of heart do you have? Has the Holy Spirit given you a new heart with new motives, new guidelines and new purpose?