Chapter III: Part 3

And he brought me to the door of the court; and when I looked,
behold, a hole in the wall. Then said he unto me, Son of man, dig
now in the wall: and when I had digged in the wall, behold, a door.
And he said unto me, Go in, and behold the wicked abominations that
they do here. So I went in and saw; and, behold, every form of
creeping things, and abominable beasts, and all the idols of the
house of Israel, portrayed upon the wall round about. And there
stood before them seventy men of the ancients of the house of
Israel, and in the midst of them stood Jaazaniah the son of
Shaphan, with every man his censer in his hand; and a thick cloud of
incense went up. Then said he unto me, Son of man, hast thou seen
what the ancients of the house of Israel do in the dark, every man
in the chambers of his imagery? for they say, The Lord seeth us not;
the Lord hath forsaken the earth" (verses 7-12).

The prophet saw next a hole in the wall, and being commanded to dig into it he found a secret door through which he entered. In the chamber, upon the wall round about, were pictured creeping things and abominable things. A worship of these creeping things and beasts was in progress, for the seventy ancients of Israel were swinging censers full of incense, so that a thick cloud went up. They were practising idolatry after the order of Egypt and of the most degrading kind. The people of God had sunk as deep, yea deeper, than the heathen round about them (Romans i:23). And the leaders of the nation, the seventy elders, were there leading in this worship of abominations. Jaazaniah, the son of Shaphan, is especially mentioned. Shaphan was the scribe, who received from the high-priest, Hilkiah, the book of the law, and who read it before King Josiah (2 Kings xxii:8-11; Jere. xxxix:14). The son of this illustrious and God-fearing scribe was the leader among the animal-worshippers. It was an evidence of the great apostasy which had engulfed the nation. And these idol-worshippers, each in his chamber of imagery (probably individual cells) said: "The Lord seeth us not; the Lord hath forsaken the earth." They denied His omniscience and omnipresence. The apostasy in Christendom is going the same road.

III. The Women Weeping for Tammuz.

He said also unto me, Turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see
greater abominations that they do. Then he brought me to the door of
the gate of the Lord's house which was toward the north; and,
behold, there sat women weeping for Tammuz. Then said he unto me,
Hast thou seen this, O son of man? Turn thee yet again, and thou
shalt see greater abominations than these (verses 13-15).

Tammuz, the Babylonian "Dumuzi," was the god of spring vegetation, who dies, going down to Hades, and revives again with each returning summer. The worship of this god became identified with Phoenicia, and from there this wicked cult came to Greece, where Tammuz was known under the name of Adonis. The weeping woman celebrated the death of the god, an emblem of the decay of earth's productive powers. With it were connected some of the vilest, immoral ceremonies and licentious habits. Thus we see how false worship and immorality are closely, yea, inseparably, linked together. In our days the increase of licentiousness is but the result of having rejected the Truth of God.

IV. The Greatest of all Abominations: Sun-Worship.

And he brought me into the inner court of the Lord's house; and,
behold at the door of the temple of the Lord, between the porch and
the altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward
the temple of the Lord, and their faces toward the east; and they
worshipped the sun toward the east. Then he said unto me, Hast thou
seen this, O son of man? Is it a light thing to the house of Judah
that they commit the abominations which they commit here? for they
have filled the land with violence, and have returned to provoke me
to anger: and, lo, they put the branch to their nose. Therefore,
will I also deal in fury; mine eye shall not spare, neither will I
have pity; and though they cry in mine ears with a loud voice, yet
will I not hear them" (verses 16-18).

The twenty-five men, who stood between the porch and the altar with their backs to the house of the Lord and their faces towards the sun, worshipping the sun, were the twenty-four priests, who constituted the appointed courses. Their attitude was one of defiance. They practiced the abominable cult, openly showing by the turned backs against the temple that they had wilfully rejected Jehovah and His worship. What else was connected with sun-worship? One mysterious sentence appears at the close of verse 17. "And, lo, they put the branch to their nose." This phrase is very obscure. Jewish commentators claim that the words conceal some shocking and wicked rite; and this may be the correct meaning. Sun-worship and its attending lusts of the flesh are not unknown in our own times. A few months ago a great sun-festival was held in Paris.[10] Thousands participated in it. Hymns to the sun were sung and sun-dances held, while the nights were given over to all kinds of immoralities. Bahaism, whose deceitful leader is a sun-worshipper, has hundreds of thousands of followers in the English speaking world. They turned their ears from the Truth and have been turned to fables.

[10] This was three months before the war.

Elders, women and priests had turned from Jehovah and His worship. And now Jehovah speaks and pronounces judgment upon them. "Therefore will I also deal in fury; mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity; and though they cry in mine ears with a loud voice, yet will I not hear them." Jehovah did according to His word. He did not spare; there was no pity. Jerusalem and the temple were destroyed and the people had to feel Jehovah's fury. And judgment greater than Jerusalem's will surely overtake this present evil age with its idolatries, its abominations, its rejection of God's Gospel and defiance of God.

THE VISION OF THE MAN WITH THE INKHORN.

Chapter ix.

The vision which follows is closely connected with the previous visions in which Ezekiel had seen the worship of idols, and of beasts, and of the sun. Divine judgment must follow. It is a judgment vision the Prophet now beholds. The judgment, however, is of a discriminating character. The messengers are commissioned to mark the sorrowing, faithful remnant. For the rest of the sinners in Jerusalem there is no mercy. They had defiled the temple and now the temple was to be defiled by their slain bodies.

I. The Judgment Command Given.

He cried also in mine ears with a loud voice, saying, Cause them
that have charge over the city to draw near, even every man with his
destroying weapon in his hand. And, behold, six men came from the
way of the higher gate, which lieth toward the north, and every man
a slaughter weapon in his hand; and one man among them was clothed
with linen, with a writer's inkhorn by his side: and they went in,
and stood beside the brazen altar. And the glory of the God of
Israel was gone up from the cherub, whereupon he was, to the
threshold of the house. And he called to the man clothed with linen,
which had the writer's inkhorn by his side; and the Lord said unto
him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of
Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh
and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst
thereof. And to the others he said in mine hearing, Go ye after him
through the city, and smite: let not your eye spare, neither have ye
pity. Slay utterly old and young, both maids, and little children,
and women: but come not near any man upon whom is the mark; and
begin at my sanctuary (verses 1-6).

Who are they who are called to execute the judgment? Six men came from the way of the higher gate, one of them clothed in linen had a writer's inkhorn by his side, while the others had slaughter weapons in their hands. They were not human beings but angels. The city was given over into their hands. Angels were therefore used in God's judgments of the past. They will be used in the coming judgments. "The Son of Man shall send forth His angels, and they shall gather out of His Kingdom all things that offend and them which do iniquity" (Matt. xiii:41). "For the Son of Man shall come in the glory of His Father with His angels" (Matt. xvi:27). "When the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire, taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ" (2 Thess. i:7-8). Throughout the book of Revelation angels are seen carrying out the judgments of God. Especially are we reminded here of the seventh chapter of the last book of the Bible. Four angels are seen there holding the four winds of the earth. Then there appeared a fifth angel having the seal of the living God. He cried with a loud voice to the four angels: "Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads" (Rev. vii:1-3). One hundred and forty-four thousand were then sealed. The sealed ones in Revelation with the mark on the forehead constitute the faithful remnant of Israel who witness during the tribulation. Those who die the martyr's death will have part in the first resurrection, because they did not worship the beast nor received his mark on their foreheads (Rev. xx:4). Those who will be kept through the tribulation will be the nucleus of the Kingdom on earth. We notice a striking correspondency with this vision of Ezekiel. Judgment is to fall upon all the apostates in Jerusalem, but the men that sigh and cry on account of the abominations were to be marked by the angel with the inkhorn and escape the impending judgment. Their sighing and weeping was the evidence that they did not share the abominations of idolatry but were true to Jehovah and His worship. And may we not forget that now in Christendom, in the midst of the dark days of apostasy and the soon coming tribulation and judgment, there is a faithful remnant, who sigh and cry and to whom the Lord has given a special promise: "Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of trial, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell on the earth" (Rom. iii:10).

The word "mark" in the Hebrew is "Tav," the last letter in the Hebrew alphabet. Its literal meaning is "cross." This letter "T" was a cross in the older Hebrew script as well as in the Phoenician and Samaritan. The Egyptians also used a cross in their language; with them it was a sign of life. Ancient Jewish tradition gives the information that the blood sprinkled in Egypt on the doorpost (Exodus xii:23) was in the form of a cross. All this is interesting. To this we may add that in Genesis iv:15, the mark set upon Cain, an entirely different word is used.

"Begin at my sanctuary" was the command. There the responsibility rested and there the judgment had to begin. 1 Peter iv:17 may here be considered. "For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God; and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the Gospel of God."

II. The Command Executed.

Then they began at the ancient men which were before the house. And
he said unto them, Defile the house, and fill the courts with the
slain: go ye forth. And they went forth, and slew in the city. And
it came to pass, while they were slaying them, and I was left, that
I fell upon my face, and cried, and said, Ah, Lord God! wilt thou
destroy all the residue of Israel in thy pouring out of thy fury
upon Jerusalem? Then said he unto me, The iniquity of the house of
Israel and Judah is exceeding great, and the land is full of blood,
and the city full of perverseness: for they say, The Lord hath
forsaken the earth, and the Lord seeth not. And as for me also,
mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity, but I will
recompense their way upon their head. And, behold, the man clothed
with linen, which had the inkhorn by his side, reported the matter,
saying, I have done as thou hast commanded me (verses 7-11).

The command is literally carried out. God's judgments are always carried out to the letter; there is no such thing as a "spiritual" fulfillment of a judgment of God. The world some day will find out the solemn truth of this fact. The temple where they had practised all the vileness of idolatry, where they worshipped creeping things, is now defiled by their dead bodies. To touch a dead body anywhere meant defilement for seven days (Num. xix:11), but now the very place which they considered holy is made a defiled place. The Priest-Prophet is shocked. He fell on his face and a cry of horror escaped his lips. "Ah, Lord God! wilt Thou destroy all the residue of Israel in Thy pouring out of Thy fury upon Jerusalem?" Was it not contrary to God's holiness to defile the place dedicated to Himself? And would He not show mercy and destroy the residue of His people? The despairing cry is answered at once. The iniquity of the house of Israel and the house of Judah was filled up. God could no longer pity nor spare. This is but a repetition of what Jehovah had announced before. (See chapter v:11; vii:4; viii:18.)

"And behold, the man clothed in linen, which had the inkhorn by his side, reported the matter, saying, I have done as Thou hast commanded me."

THE VISION OF THE COALS OF FIRE AND THE VISION OF THE DEPARTING GLORY.

Chapter x.

After the Prophet had seen the marking of the faithful ones in the doomed city, two other visions follow. They also relate to the impending judgment of the doomed city. The first vision indicates the fire by which the city would be consumed, and the second, another vision of the glory, shows how that glory was gradually departing from Jerusalem. The complete departure is recorded in the eleventh chapter.

I. The Vision of the Coals of Fire.

Then I looked, and, behold, in the firmament of the cherubim there
appeared over them as it were a sapphire stone, as the appearance of
the likeness of a throne. And he spake unto the man clothed with
linen, and said, Go in between the wheels, even the under cherub,
and fill thine hand with coals of fire from between the cherubim,
and scatter them over the city. And he went in my sight. Now the
cherubim stood on the right side of the house, when the man went in;
and the cloud filled the inner court. Then the glory of the Lord
went up from the cherub, and stood over the threshold of the house;
and the house was filled with the cloud, and the court was full of
the brightness of the Lord's glory. And the sound of the cherubims'
wings was heard even to the outer court, as the voice of the
Almighty God when he speaketh. And it came to pass, that when he had
commanded the man clothed with linen, saying, Take fire from between
the wheels, from between the cherubims; then he went in, and stood
beside the wheels. And one cherub stretched forth his hand from
between the cherubim unto the fire that was between the cherubim,
and took thereof, and put it into the hands of him that was clothed
with linen; who took it, and went out (verses 1-7).

Once more the Prophet beholds in the firmament above the cherubim the likeness of a throne. It is the throne of the Lord. However, the occupant of the throne is not seen; His voice only is heard. The man clothed with linen is commanded to go in between the wheels, under the cherub, to fill his hands with coals of fire and then to scatter them over the city. Who is this man clothed in linen? He appeared for the first time in the preceding chapter. With the inkhorn at his side, he set the mark upon the foreheads of the faithful ones. Here we see him again executing the judgment upon Jerusalem. Judgment is given into his hands. That he is a supernatural being is clear. And he is more than an angel. He held the place of pre-eminence among the other angels (chapter ix:2-4). This angel is the Angel of the Lord, the same who appeared to the Patriarchs, to Moses, Joshua, Gideon, Manoah and to others. It is the Son of God in the garb of an angel. In the same form he also appeared to Daniel on the banks of the river Hiddekel. "Then I lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and behold a certain man clothed in linen, whose loins were girded with fine gold of Uphaz. His body also was like the beryl, and his face as the appearance of lightning, and his eyes as lamps of fire, and his arms and his feet like in color to polished brass, and the voice of his words like the voice of a multitude" (Dan. x:5-6). Here we have a complete description of the same person whom Ezekiel saw taking the coals of fire and scattering them over Jerusalem. Judgment upon the guilty city came from his hands.

When we turn to the Book of Revelation, we find a similar scene which has not yet been enacted. "And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given to him much incense that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel's hand. And the Angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast it into the earth; and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings and an earthquake" (Rev. viii:3-5). This angel who presents the prayers before the throne and who casts the judgment fire into the earth is the One who received from God's hands the seven sealed book (Rev. v:1), the Lamb of God, the Lion of the tribe of Judah. This Angel-Priest, into whose hands also judgment is committed, is the Son of God. John saw Him dealing in judgment with the earth, a judgment which has not yet come, and Ezekiel beheld Him as the executor of the judgment upon Jerusalem, which was carried out through Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon.

Ezekiel saw the man clothed in linen enter in between the wheels. As he went in the cherubim, these majestic creatures of God, stood at the right side of the house, while the cloud filled the inner court. This cloud is the visible sign of Jehovah's presence (Exod. xix:9; xxiv:15-18; Numbers ix:19; xii:10; 1 Kings viii:10). Then the glory of the Lord went up; the withdrawing from the city began. It stood over the threshold of the house which was filled with the cloud and the whole court was full of the brightness of the Lord's glory. From the hand of the cherub, the man in linen cloth received the fire that was between the cherubim. And he took it and went out.

II. The Vision of the Departing Glory.

And there appeared in the cherubim the form of a man's hand under
their wings. And when I looked, behold the four wheels by the
cherubim, one wheel by one cherub, and another wheel by another
cherub: and the appearance of the wheels was as the color of a
chrysolite stone. And as for their appearances, they four had one
likeness, as if a wheel had been in the midst of a wheel. When they
went, they went upon their four sides; they turned not as they went,
but to the place whither the head looked they followed it; they
turned not as they went. And their whole body, and their backs and
their hands and their wings and the wheels, were full of eyes round
about, even the wheels that the four had. As for the wheels, it was
cried unto them in my hearing, O wheel. And every one had four
faces: the first face was the face of a cherub, and the second face
was the face of a man, and the third the face of a lion, and the
fourth the face of an eagle. And the cherubim were lifted up. This
is the living creature that I saw by the river of Chebar. And when
the cherubim went, the wheels went by them: and when the cherubim
lifted up their wings to mount up from the earth, the same wheels
also turned not from beside them. When they stood, these stood; and
when they were lifted up, these lifted up themselves also: for the
spirit of the living creature was in them. Then the glory of the
Lord departed from off the threshold of the house, and stood over
the cherubim. And the cherubim lifted up their wings, and mounted up
from the earth in my sight: when they went out, the wheels also were
beside them, and every one stood at the door of the east gate of the
Lord's house; and the glory of the God of Israel was over them
above. This is the living creature that I saw under the God of
Israel by the river of Chebar; and I knew that they were the
cherubim. Every one had four faces a piece, and every one four
wings; and the likeness of the hands of a man was under their wings.
And the likeness of their faces was the same faces which I saw by
the river of Chebar, their appearances and themselves; they went
every one straight forward (verses 8-22).

One would naturally expect after the man clothed in linen had taken the coals of fire and gone out to scatter them over Jerusalem, that the next vision the Prophet had, would be the burning of the city itself. Instead of receiving a vision of the judgment work he beholds once more the glory of the Lord. The similarity with the great vision in the first chapter needs hardly to be pointed out. However, the order of the description differs from that of the opening vision of this book. Critics have seen in this fact the evidence of some other writer who interpolated the repetition of the vision of the glory of the Lord. But if such were the case the person who did it would have not dared to make these changes. The differences in the vision demonstrates that Ezekiel is the writer and not some other person. He beheld the same vision as in the beginning by the river Chebar only from another viewpoint. Wheels and cherubim are seen first ready for the departure from the city. The eyes are made more prominent than in the first vision. "Full of eyes" we read in chapter i:18. Here in this vision eyes are everywhere. "And their whole body, and their backs, and their hands, and their wings, and the wheels, were full of eyes round about, even the wheels that the four had." This symbolizes the omniscience of God. After the description of the cherubim and the wheels, the solemn command is given for the start. Verse 13 may be rendered: "In my hearing, unto the wheels, even unto them, it was proclaimed: Whirl wheels." Once more the prophet beholds the faces of the cherubim. And here is a striking change. In the opening vision Ezekiel saw their faces in the following order: The face of a man; the face of a lion; these were on the right side. The four had the face of an ox on the left side; these four also had the face of an eagle (chapter i:10). But now Ezekiel sees the face of the cherub first of all, then the face of a man, a lion and an eagle. The cherubim were beheld by the prophet from a different angle and the face of the cherub[11] appears as identified with that of the ox. That the vision did not differ at all from the first great vision Ezekiel expressly affirms at the close. "And the likeness of their faces was the same faces which I saw by the river Chebar, their appearances and themselves: They went every one straight forward" (verse 22).

[11] The cherub who handed to the man clothed in linen the fire from between the cherubim.

Then when the command had been given, "Whirl wheels!" everything is set in motion. The cherubim went, the wheels went beside them. The mighty wings of the cherubim were lifted up to mount up from the earth; the wheels never swerved from their side. When the cherubim stood, the wheels stood. The energizing Spirit was in all. The Glory of the Lord departed from the threshold of the temple; over its portals "Ichabod" (the glory is departed) was now to be written. Then in Ezekiel's sight the cherubim mounted up from the earth. They halted at the door of the east gate of the Temple. Above it was the Glory of the Lord. Thus, gradually, in solemn majesty, the Glory of the Lord, which had dwelt visibly in the Temple in the midst of His people, was departing. Verse 22 of chapter xi connects with verse 19 of chapter x. The complete departure of the Glory of the Lord from the midst of the city we find recorded there. Here in our chapter the cherubim with the Glory of the Lord above them stood at the east gate of the Lord's house. From there its final departure took place. But the visions Ezekiel had seen were beheld once more in his great vision of that temple which will yet be erected in Jerusalem. That departed glory will then return. "And the Glory of the Lord came into the house by the way of the gate whose front was toward the east" (chapter xliii:4). It will return in the same way as it departed. And that will be when the King, our Lord, comes back to earth again. Then the Glory will cover Israel and Jerusalem (Is. iv:5; lx:1) and the knowledge of it covers the earth as the waters the deep.

CONCERNING THE LEADERS. PROMISE OF RESTORATION. THE GLORY DEPARTS.

Chapter xi.

This chapter concludes the visions concerning the doom of Jerusalem. At the close of the previous chapter we saw the Glory of the Lord getting ready to leave the doomed city. The complete withdrawal is recorded now. However, before we reach this we find a prophecy uttered against the leaders of the people. Then the Prophet received a comforting message about the future restoration and blessing of the nation. This is the first restoration promise in this book. It is repeated and enlarged in the great predictions after the fall of Jerusalem.

I. The Prophecy against the Leaders.

Moreover the spirit lifted me up, and brought me unto the east gate
of the Lord's house, which looketh eastward: and behold at the door
of the gate five and twenty men; among whom I saw Jaazaniah, the son
of Azur, and Pelatiah the son of Benaiah, princes of the people.
Then said he unto me, Son of man, these are the men that devise
mischief, and give wicked counsel in this city; which say, It is not
near; let us build houses; this city is the cauldron, and we be the
flesh.

Therefore prophesy against them, prophesy, O son of man. And the
Spirit of the Lord fell upon men, and said unto me, Speak; Thus
saith the Lord, Thus have ye said, O house of Israel: for I know the
things that come into your mind, every one of them. Ye have
multiplied your slain in this city, and ye have filled the streets
thereof with the slain. Therefore thus saith the Lord God, Your
slain, whom ye have laid in the midst of it, they are the flesh, and
this city is the cauldron: but I will bring you forth out of the
midst of it. Ye have feared the sword; and I will bring a sword upon
you, saith the Lord God. And I will bring you out of the midst
thereof, and deliver you into the hands of strangers, and will
execute judgments among you. Ye shall fall by the sword: I will
judge you in the border of Israel; and ye shall know that I am the
Lord. This city shall not be your cauldron, neither shall ye be the
flesh in the midst thereof; but I will judge you in the border of
Israel. And ye shall know that I am the Lord: for ye have not walked
in my statutes, neither executed my judgements, but have done after
the manners of the heathen that are round about you.

And it came to pass, when I prophesied, that Pelatiah the son of
Benaiah died. Then fell I down upon my face, and cried with a loud
voice, and said, Ah, Lord God! wilt thou make a full end of the
remnant of Israel? (verses 1-13).

The Prophet had watched the movements of the cherubim and the glory of the Lord, and now he is again suddenly transported to the east gate of the Lord's house. At the door of the gate he beholds twenty-five men. He recognized among them Jaazaniah the son of Azur, and Pelatiah the son of Benaiah, princes of the people. In the eighth chapter he had also seen, between the porch and the altar, twenty-five men with their backs towards the temple (viii:16). In that chapter Jaazaniah is mentioned. The question then arises, is this the same company Ezekiel sees once more and against which he utters his denunciatory message? They cannot be identical with the men in the previous chapter, for they belonged evidently to the priestly class, while the twenty-five men in this chapter are leaders, or princes, of the people. Nor is the Jaazaniah the same as in the eighth chapter. Here is a Jaazaniah who was the son of Azur, while the other Jaazaniah was the son of Shaphan. These princes here may be the same of whom we read in Jeremiah xxxviii:4.

It shows the complete corruption of Jerusalem. The priesthood and the leaders of the nation were steeped in wickedness and defied God and the judgment He had announced through Jeremiah, and now also through Ezekiel. Interesting are the names of those mentioned, Jaazaniah ("He will be heard of the Lord"); Azur ("Helper"); Pelatiah ("Delivered of the Lord"); Benaiah ("Built up of the Lord"). Their names indicate that they knew the Lord and His truth and yet they had turned deliberately from Him and from His Word. They devised mischief (or iniquity) and gave wicked counsel. Their wicked counsel consisted in disobedience against Jehovah and His Word. In regard to the judgment they said, "It is not the time to build houses; this is the cauldron and we are the flesh." They knew of Jeremiah's letter which he had sent to the elders which were carried away captives. In that letter, Jeremiah, believing God's Word concerning the long duration of the captivity, gave the advice, "Build ye houses and dwell in them" (Jere. xxix). They ridiculed that divinely given advice. They still thought themselves safe in Jerusalem. The phrase "this is the cauldron" means the city of Jerusalem; and we are the "flesh" themselves. As the flesh in the cauldron is preserved from the fire by the cauldron itself, so they felt themselves secure in the doomed city. That these wicked leaders were still in the city shows that the judgment in chapter ix was not a complete judgment. It began at the sanctuary, and the wicked worshippers Ezekiel saw in his vision were smitten first of all, while the man with the inkhorn marked the entire remnant for preservation. Then the Spirit fell upon Ezekiel and he uttered Jehovah's message. Their proverb about the cauldron and the flesh is used to announce their own doom. Those whom they had slain were the flesh, not they the living ones; the slain ones had the city for a cauldron. But the defiant leaders, who cast the judgment predictions to the winds, would be brought forth out of the city, the place of their supposed security. They feared the sword and it would come upon them. Solemnly the Lord declared, "This city shall not be your cauldron, neither shall ye be the flesh in the midst thereof; I will judge you in the border of Israel." And thus it came true. Nebuchadnezzar received his prisoners on the borders, the territory of the kingdom of Israel, at Riblah (2 Kings xxv:18-21; Jer. lii:24-27).

All this finds a repetition in the present age. God has spoken. Long ago He has in His Word announced the judgment upon this present age. Men, religious men, leaders among the people, like these twenty-five, reject His Word and do not believe in the threatened judgments. "Peace and safety" is their false hope. But the day is coming and not far off when all who reject the Word of God will find out, to their eternal shame and loss, that His Word is true.

And while the Prophet delivered faithfully his message, the Lord touched one of the men; Pelatiah suddenly died. He may have stood there with sneering lips, defying the Lord's mouthpiece, when sudden death was meted out to him. It was a divine seal upon the words they had heard. This act of judgment greatly impressed the Prophet and he prayed for the preservation of the remnant of Israel. Knowing the sad condition of the people he loved so well, he feared that they all would be taken away. May we also, in the days of impending judgments make use of the prayer of intercession. The next paragraph contains the answer Ezekiel received.

II. The Message of Restoration and Blessing.

Again the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Son of man, thy
brethren, even thy brethren, the men of thy kindred, and all the
house of Israel, wholly, are they unto whom the inhabitants of
Jerusalem have said, Get you far from the Lord: unto us is this land
given in possession. Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord God:
Although I have cast them far off among the heathen, and although I
have scattered them among the countries, yet will I be to them as a
little sanctuary in the countries where they shall come. Therefore
say, Thus saith the Lord God; I will even gather you from the
people, and assemble you out of the countries where ye have been
scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel. And they shall
come thither, and they shall take away all the detestable things
thereof and all the abominations thereof from thence. And I will
give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I
will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an
heart of flesh: That they may walk in my statutes, and keep mine
ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my people, and I will be
their God. But as for them whose heart walketh after the heart of
their detestable things and their abominations, I will recompense
their way upon their own heads, saith the Lord God (verses 14-21).

It is the first message of comfort Ezekiel received. They were to be scattered among the nations, yet Jehovah promises, "I will be to them a little[12] sanctuary in the countries where they shall come." This refers to the remnant who still clings to Him and hopes in the fulfilment of His promises. Then follows the great outlook into their future. Blessed promises! They are the hope of Israel. Their regathering, their return from exile is here definitely predicted by Ezekiel. Moses before had announced the same future restoration. So did Isaiah and Jeremiah as well as the earlier prophets. The denial of the literal regathering of Israel means the denial of the Word of the Lord. They will receive the land of Israel. But greater things are promised to the people. The stony heart is to be taken away; they are to receive a heart of flesh. This is the result of the new Spirit, His Spirit, which they will receive. It means the new birth of that nation to enter into the promised kingdom. Then the result will be an obedient people. "They shall be my people and I will be their God." Has this been fulfilled in the return of the feeble remnant from Babylon? Many believe that Ezekiel's message found then its accomplishment. It is not so. The nation was not put into possession of the great blessings which are everywhere linked with their literal restoration and possession of the land. Ezekiel's great visions of the national restoration of Israel and the greater spiritual blessings are still unfulfilled. They will be fulfilled when the Glory of the Lord, that is the Lord of Glory, their rejected King, the Son of David, the King of Israel, returns.

[12] Or, "for a little while."

III. The Glory Departs.

Then did the cherubim lift up their wings, and the wheels beside
them; and the glory of the God of Israel was over them above. And
the glory of the Lord went up from the midst of the city and stood
upon the mountain which is on the east side of the city.

Afterwards the Spirit took me up, and brought me in a vision by the
Spirit of God into Chaldea, to them of the captivity. So the vision
that I had seen went up from me. Then I spake unto them of the
captivity all the things that the Lord had shewed me (verses 22-25).

After this comforting message of future blessing for the nation and restoration to the land, the Glory of the Lord holds its departure. We saw how it gradually withdrew from the temple, where it had dwelt. Now the complete departure from the city has come. But it is a blessed thought, before that takes place, Jehovah gave His Word that He would return and be again with His people. "The Glory of the Lord went up from the midst of the city and stood upon the mountain which is on the east side of the city." That mountain is the Mount of Olives. Significant place where the Shekinah, the Glory of the Lord with its cherubim and wheels was seen for the last time. Upon that mountain He stood, who is the Glory Himself, our Lord Jesus Christ. From there He went back to the Father. And in a coming day "His feet will stand upon the Mount of Olives." And when He comes back in visible glory, Israel and Jerusalem will behold the return of the Glory of the Lord, Ezekiel saw departing from temple and city. Then that will happen what has never been in Israel's past history: "All the earth will be filled with His Glory."

MESSAGES AND PARABLES.

Chapter xii.

A new section of this book begins with the twelfth chapter and ends with chapter xix. The judgments the Prophet had announced, the great visions he had seen, all showing the impending doom of Jerusalem, were not believed nor heeded by the people. This is announced by a direct communication from the Lord in the beginning of this chapter. After he had seen the departure of the Glory of the Lord, he spoke unto them of the captivity all the things that the Lord had shown unto him (xi:25). Perhaps some time elapsed before the Word of the Lord came unto him revealing the unbelieving, rebellious condition of the people. "Son of man, thou dwellest in the midst of a rebellious house, which have eyes to see, and see not; they have ears to hear, and hear not; for they are a rebellious house" (verse 2). Therefore the speedy judgment is again announced and the Prophet received a series of messages and parables. "The Word of the Lord came," and "Thus saith the Lord," are the oft-repeated phrases in this most interesting chapter. We shall find many solemn truths in this section, truths which have a meaning for our times as well. May we hear His voice in these words which the Prophet-Priest heard from Jehovah. The first chapter of this section has two parts.

I. The Symbolical Sign of the Certainty and Nearness of the Judgment.

The word of the Lord also came unto me, saying, Son of man, thou
dwellest in the midst of a rebellious house, which have eyes to see,
and see not; they have ears to hear, and hear not; for they are a
rebellious house. Therefore, thou son of man, prepare thee stuff for
removing, and remove by day in their sight; and thou shalt remove
from thy place to another place in their sight: it may be they will
consider, though they be a rebellious house. Then shalt thou bring
forth thy stuff by day in their sight, as stuff for removing: and
thou shalt go forth at even in their sight, as they that go forth
into captivity. Dig thou through the wall in their sight, and carry
out thereby. In their sight shalt thou bear it upon thy shoulders,
and carry it forth in the twilight: thou shalt cover thy face, that
thou see not the ground: for I have set thee for a sign, unto the
house of Israel. And I did so as I was commanded; I brought forth my
stuff by day, as stuff for captivity, and in the even I digged
through the wall with mine hand; I brought it forth in the twilight,
and I bare it upon my shoulder in their sight (verses 1-7).

In the commission which the Prophet received (chapter ii) the rebellious condition of the people had been declared by the Lord, and now once more the fact that they were "a rebellious house" is mentioned. They had eyes and did not see, ears and they did not hear. Moses had spoken of that (Deut. xxix:1-4) and their past history up to the days of Ezekiel only confirmed the truth of this statement. Isaiah had heard the same words from the Lord (Is. vi:9-10) and Jeremiah had to repeat them in his great call to a backslidden people (Jere. v:21). Then our Lord used the same words when the nation had rejected His testimony (Matt. xiii:13-15; Mark viii:18; John xii:39-40). The last time we find them applied is in Acts xxviii:26-27. Blindness is now upon Israel, but the day is also coming when that judicial blindness will be removed and they will be no longer the rebellious house. Of this coming great miracle of the Grace of God Ezekiel's later prophecies have much to say.

Here the Prophet is told to act again in a symbolical sign. He was told to prepare stuff for removing. This meant that he should attire himself like one who goes on a journey with sandals on his feet, a staff in his hand, a burden upon his shoulders. Then he was to remove from one place to another. He was also to bring forth his stuff in their sight, and then with the captive's burden upon his back he was commanded to dig through the wall and carry it through the hole. Furthermore he was to cover his face so that he did not see the ground. All this the prophet did in the sight of the people. In all this the Lord in His infinite patience, in making the Prophet a sign unto them, waited still for their repentance; "it may be they will consider, though they be a rebellious house."

We find the meaning of all this explained in the verses which follow:

And in the morning came the word of the Lord unto me, saying, Son of
man, hath not the house of Israel, the rebellious house, said unto
thee, What doest thou? Say thou unto them, Thus saith the Lord God;
This burden concerneth the prince in Jerusalem, and all the house of
Israel that are among them. Say, I am your sign; like as I have
done, so shall it be done unto them: they shall remove and go into
captivity. And the prince that is among them shall bear upon his
shoulder in the twilight, and shall go forth: they shall dig through
the wall to carry out thereby: he shall cover his face, that he see
not the ground with his eyes. My net also will I spread upon him,
and he shall be taken in my snare: and I will bring him to Babylon
to the land of the Chaldeans; yet shall he not see it, though he
shall die there. And I will scatter toward every wind all that are
about him to help him, and all his bands; and I will draw out the
sword after them. And they shall know that I am the Lord, when I
shall scatter them among the nations, and disperse them in the
countries. But I will leave a few men of them from the sword, from
the famine, and from the pestilence; that they may declare all their
abominations among the heathen whither they come; and they shall
know that I am the Lord (verses 8-16).

The actions of the Prophet were witnessed by the people and they said to him, What doest thou? The answer to their inquiry is given by the Lord Himself. We have therefore the divine interpretation of what Ezekiel had done in their presence. It is a prophecy and concerns mostly "the prince in Jerusalem"; Zedekiah is meant. His attempt to flee from Jerusalem and his fate when the king of Babylon put out his eyes, his captivity in the land of the Chaldeans and death in that land are here clearly predicted. Jeremiah xxxix:4; lii:10-11 and 2 Kings xxv:1-7 must be read in connection with the sign of Ezekiel and the interpretation as given by the Lord. Thus Ezekiel had enacted a prophecy before their eyes which came literally true. Certain critics have tried to explain that what Ezekiel did must have happened after the fall of Jerusalem and the capture of Zedekiah. However, this attempt to disprove the passage as a real prophecy has failed. Others have tried to explain it in still another way. It has been said: "Since we know that the book was written after the event, it is a perfectly fair question whether in the interpretation of the symbols Ezekiel may not have read into it a fuller meaning than was present to his own mind at the time." This statement sets aside the fact that not Ezekiel gave the interpretation and read something into it, but the whole passage is the Word of the Lord, introduced with "Thus saith the Lord God." Predictions of any kind revealing future events seems to be the unpalatable thing for the destructive criticism, for it proves the fact of divine revelation. We have followed step by step the different judgment messages and visions which the Prophet received and delivered, how Jerusalem was facing its certain doom and now Zedekiah and his fate in trying to escape from Jerusalem is especially mentioned. All these visions are closely connected and were all given before the city fell.

And what the Lord predicted here, not alone about Zedekiah, but also about the people and their dispersion came true. They were scattered among the nations, but a full end of them was not made, a remnant was to be left and to declare their abominations among the nations. Scattered in all countries they witness by their condition as a homeless nation to their own disobedience and shame.

Moreover the word of the Lord came to me, saying, Son of man, eat
thy bread with quaking, and drink thy water with trembling and with
carefulness; And say unto the people of the land, Thus saith the
Lord God of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and of the land of Israel;
They shall eat their bread with carefulness, and drink their water
with astonishment, that her land may be desolate from all that is
therein because of the violence of all them that dwell therein. And
the cities that are inhabited shall be laid waste, and the land
shall be desolate; and ye shall know that I am the Lord (verses
17-20).

An additional message is given. Ezekiel was to eat his bread with quaking and drink his water with dread and anxious care. It was another sign of the affliction which was to come upon them. The land also should become desolate and the cities be laid waste. Thus the Lord continued to warn and plead with His people. Judgment is always his strange work (Is. xxxiii:21). "For He doth not afflict willingly nor grieve the children of men? (Lam. iii:33). The unheeded warnings were repeated over and over again by Ezekiel and the other prophets; He waited in His infinite patience for the return of His people and, as we learn from the Book of Judges, if there is but a cry from the heart of His people, He is ready to respond. But Israel heard not. They made light of all the predictions of the rapidly nearing judgment. When we think of our own times and generation, and remember the deliberate rejection of God's Word, the impenitence and worldliness prevalent in Christendom, and the judgments which are threatened and which must come some day, these opening messages of Ezekiel and their fulfilment in the judgment of Jerusalem and the nation take on an additional meaning. God must needs do His strange work, the work of judgment upon those who reject the best He has given, the Gospel of His Grace. The condition of the people is now more fully seen in the second part of this chapter.

II. The False Hope. The Judgment not to be Delayed.

And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying Son of man, what is
that proverb that ye have in the land of Israel, saying, The days
are prolonged, and every vision faileth? Tell them, therefore, Thus
saith the Lord God; I will make this proverb to cease, and they
shall no more use it as a proverb in Israel; but say unto them, The
days are at hand, and the effect of every vision. For there shall be
no more any vain vision nor flattering divination within the house
of Israel. For I am the Lord: I will speak, and the word that I
shall speak shall come to pass; it shall be no more prolonged: for
in your days, O rebellious house, will I say the word, and will
perform it, saith the Lord God.

Again the word of the Lord came to me, saying, Son of man, behold,
they of the house of Israel say, The vision that he seeth is for
many days to come, and he prophesieth of the times that are far off.
Therefore say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; There shall none
of my words be prolonged any more, but the word which I have spoken
shall be done, saith the Lord God (verses 21-28).

We must again remember in reading these words that in the midst of Israel false prophets deluded the people with their false messages. The rebellious spirit against the Lord was fostered by these men and the threatening judgments announced by Jeremiah and by Ezekiel were not believed by the mass of the people. Of them we read elsewhere: "Thy prophets have seen vain and foolish things for thee, and they have not discovered thine iniquity, to turn away thy captivity, but have seen for thee false burdens and causes of banishment" (Lam. ii:14). Believing the false messages the people said, "The days are prolonged, and every vision faileth." Had they really believed that the days were not to be prolonged and that the vision of judgment upon Jerusalem was about to be accomplished, they would have surely turned to the Lord and cried to Him for mercy. Unbelief was responsible for their condition, and in that unbelief they were sustained by the lying prophets. In the next chapter the Prophet utters his God-given denunciation of these false prophets and prophetesses.