Ezekiel 24: 15 Also the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 16 “Son of man, behold, I take away from you the desire of your eyes with one stroke; yet you shall neither mourn nor weep, nor shall your tears run down. 17 Sigh in silence, make no mourning for the dead; bind your turban on your head, and put your sandals on your feet; do not cover your lips, and do not eat man’s bread of sorrow.”
18 So I spoke to the people in the morning, and at evening my wife died; and the next morning I did as I was commanded.
19 And the people said to me, “Will you not tell us what these things signify to us, that you behave so?”
20 Then I answered them, “The word of the LORD came to me, saying, 21 ‘Speak to the house of Israel, “Thus says the Lord GOD: ‘Behold, I will profane My sanctuary, your arrogant boast, the desire of your eyes, the delight of your soul; and your sons and daughters whom you left behind shall fall by the sword. 22 And you shall do as I have done; you shall not cover your lips nor eat man’s bread of sorrow. 23 Your turbans shall be on your heads and your sandals on your feet; you shall neither mourn nor weep, but you shall pine away in your iniquities and mourn with one another. 24 Thus Ezekiel is a sign to you; according to all that he has done you shall do; and when this comes, you shall know that I am the Lord GOD.’”
I hesitate to add this, but it doesn’t sound quite fair to poor Ezekiel, that he should behave in such a contrary manner to human nature. For Ezekiel to go on in obedience without normal mourning behaviors must have been difficult, to put it mildly. I sometimes perceive these prophets as if they were super heroes, and not mere mortal men. But the truth is they were “normal” in terms of human frailty; but they were “super” in terms of being the instrument of an all powerful God.
But is it fair of God to expect a man to lose his wife and go on normally to make a point? I was in a car accident and physically disabled by it, but only God and I know that this wasn’t fair, but actually worked in my favor. God was able to do what I wouldn’t allow Him to do in normal circumstances. Lying in bed for two years made me a ‘captive audience’ and He did something beautiful in that time. It was grace that brought me to that trial and that brought me out of it.
My point is twofold; God’s ways are so far above our ways that we shouldn’t presume we really understand most of what God is fully doing here, in time.
Isaiah 55: 6 Seek the LORD while He may be found,
Call upon Him while He is near.
7 Let the wicked forsake his way,
And the unrighteous man his thoughts;
Let him return to the LORD,
And He will have mercy on him;
And to our God,
For He will abundantly pardon.
8 “ For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways My ways,” says the LORD.
9 “ For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
So are My ways higher than your ways,
The other point is to see God as unfair shows we really don’t know God at all.
Proverbs 14:14 The backslider in heart will be filled with his own ways,
But a good man will be satisfied from above.
God has given us His own life, what could He ask us for in exchange that could seem unreasonable?
Luke 17: 5 And the apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.”
6 So the Lord said, “If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you. 7 And which of you, having a servant plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down to eat’? 8 But will he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare something for my supper, and gird yourself and serve me till I have eaten and drunk, and afterward you will eat and drink’? 9 Does he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I think not. 10 So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do.’”
It’s a duty bound by love, achieved by grace and an understanding enlightened by the inhabitance of an omniscient Spirit within. Faith, love and service; all action words that lead to knowing our God!!
18 So I spoke to the people in the morning, and at evening my wife died; and the next morning I did as I was commanded.
19 And the people said to me, “Will you not tell us what these things signify to us, that you behave so?”
20 Then I answered them, “The word of the LORD came to me, saying, 21 ‘Speak to the house of Israel, “Thus says the Lord GOD: ‘Behold, I will profane My sanctuary, your arrogant boast, the desire of your eyes, the delight of your soul; and your sons and daughters whom you left behind shall fall by the sword. 22 And you shall do as I have done; you shall not cover your lips nor eat man’s bread of sorrow. 23 Your turbans shall be on your heads and your sandals on your feet; you shall neither mourn nor weep, but you shall pine away in your iniquities and mourn with one another. 24 Thus Ezekiel is a sign to you; according to all that he has done you shall do; and when this comes, you shall know that I am the Lord GOD.’”
I hesitate to add this, but it doesn’t sound quite fair to poor Ezekiel, that he should behave in such a contrary manner to human nature. For Ezekiel to go on in obedience without normal mourning behaviors must have been difficult, to put it mildly. I sometimes perceive these prophets as if they were super heroes, and not mere mortal men. But the truth is they were “normal” in terms of human frailty; but they were “super” in terms of being the instrument of an all powerful God.
But is it fair of God to expect a man to lose his wife and go on normally to make a point? I was in a car accident and physically disabled by it, but only God and I know that this wasn’t fair, but actually worked in my favor. God was able to do what I wouldn’t allow Him to do in normal circumstances. Lying in bed for two years made me a ‘captive audience’ and He did something beautiful in that time. It was grace that brought me to that trial and that brought me out of it.
My point is twofold; God’s ways are so far above our ways that we shouldn’t presume we really understand most of what God is fully doing here, in time.
Isaiah 55: 6 Seek the LORD while He may be found,
Call upon Him while He is near.
7 Let the wicked forsake his way,
And the unrighteous man his thoughts;
Let him return to the LORD,
And He will have mercy on him;
And to our God,
For He will abundantly pardon.
8 “ For My thoughts are not your thoughts,
Nor are your ways My ways,” says the LORD.
9 “ For as the heavens are higher than the earth,
So are My ways higher than your ways,
The other point is to see God as unfair shows we really don’t know God at all.
Proverbs 14:14 The backslider in heart will be filled with his own ways,
But a good man will be satisfied from above.
God has given us His own life, what could He ask us for in exchange that could seem unreasonable?
Luke 17: 5 And the apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.”
6 So the Lord said, “If you have faith as a mustard seed, you can say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be pulled up by the roots and be planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you. 7 And which of you, having a servant plowing or tending sheep, will say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down to eat’? 8 But will he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare something for my supper, and gird yourself and serve me till I have eaten and drunk, and afterward you will eat and drink’? 9 Does he thank that servant because he did the things that were commanded him? I think not. 10 So likewise you, when you have done all those things which you are commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done what was our duty to do.’”
It’s a duty bound by love, achieved by grace and an understanding enlightened by the inhabitance of an omniscient Spirit within. Faith, love and service; all action words that lead to knowing our God!!
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