1 Samuel Chapters 1, 2, and 3

I hope you all are ready to start a new book and a new journey! 1 Samuel is more like a story than poetry or prophecies that I have been blogging about recently! This book contains many of the occurrences that we learn about in Sunday school or Vacation Bible School growing up. I have enjoyed rereading these stories, because you get more or at least a new perspective out of this book than you did when you were younger. Hope you all enjoy as we get introduced to Samuel in this post!

There was a man from a city north of Jerusalem (in Ephraim) and his name was Elkanah. Elkanah had two wives – Penninah with whom he had two children, and Hannah who had no children. Every year Elkanah would go to Shiloh and worship and honor God, and he would portion out the animal that he sacrificed, always giving Hannah the larger portion for he loved her even though she was labeled as unable to have children. Hannah was so sad about not being able to have children. One year at Shiloh, Hannah left sad and ran into Eli, the priest. She begged God, and Eli knew it was all heartfelt, to give her a child. She would dedicate this child to God, and raise the child as pure as possible (not even shaving hair – remember Samson). Eli told Hannah that her wish to conceive would be granted. She bore a son and named him Samuel. Once she was able to wean Samuel, she returned to Shiloh and to Eli the priest and gave Samuel to him. She had promised that her son would be there to honor and worship the Lord and she was keeping her promise. Imagine how hard it would be to give up the child you have been wanting to have for so long? Her faith was so strong. She left Samuel in Shiloh after she worshipped and honored God, so he could live his life honoring God!

Hannah then shares a beautiful prayer honoring God and how He fulfills His promises. One verse from the prayer that I felt was interesting was, “The LORD makes poor and makes rich; he brings low and he exalts,” 1 Samuel 2:7. God brings all kinds of circumstances for His people, but either way it is His plan and His glory being represented. God’s will overcome all and He is the strongest of all. Samuel then stayed with Eli and learned how to minister. The Word then flips to focusing on Eli, and how his sons were worthless. They were corrupt priests that wanted all things for themselves. They would take any part of the sacrifice for themselves, in spite of the rules laid out in Leviticus that said to do otherwise. Then they are compared to Samuel, who would meet with his mother yearly when they made their annual trip to Shiloh. She would bring him a robe, and Eli would bless them. God honored His relationship with Hannah and her faithfulness by having her conceive 3 sons and 2 daughters, when she had previously been labeled as barren. We then return to Eli who addresses his corrupt sons, for he shares that God would punish them. It was God’s will that they would be put to death – and in comparison, Samuel continued to grow righteously. Eli continued to warn his sons but never rebuked them, so God gives a sign to Eli that two of his sons would die on the same day, and then a faithful priest would rise and replace Eli, which you can probably guess that it will be Samuel.

Although visions from God were few at the time (1 Samuel 3:1), Samuel received a vision. There were not a lot of visions from God at this time because of the unrighteous and wicked set up of the people of Israel at this time. God kept calling out to Samuel one night, and every time Samuel heard his name he had assumed that it was Eli calling him from the room next door, and this happens a few times. God shared with Samuel, that the prophecy that had been against Eli and his sons would be taking place. After it was obvious and known throughout all the tribes of Israel that Samuel was the established prophet from God (1 Samuel 3:20). Samuel was in Shiloh where God continues to speak with and through him! Samuel will be very important for the rise of the kings of Israel, and we will see why in the coming posts!

Ezekiel Chapters 46, 47, and 48

This is the end of the book of Ezekiel! There are a lot of details that I will try to explain to the best of my ability! Be sure to look at my post about chapters 40-42, because it has an image of what the temple should look like! I hope you guys have enjoyed the book of Ezekiel as much as I have! I was getting a little run down on this book, but now it will be onto the next book. The next book is fascinating, and my pastor actually just did a series on it! Cannot wait to share!

One the Sabbath the inner court will be open where the prince will follow specific directions on how to worship. Last post I mentioned how I am not sure who the prince is, it could be Jesus but I am not certain! There is a special way God wants His people to enter and leave the temple, to keep as much order as possible. God now wants His people to give a burnt offering daily of a blemish free lamb, which is different than the rules laid out in Numbers 28:3-8 and 2 Kings 16:15, which entailed the sacrifice happening less often. The process of burning this offering daily will be taken care of by the Levite priests that reside in the temple.

Ezekiel was then given the image of walking through a river leaving the temple to the east that got deeper and deeper as he continued to walk in it. God tells that this river is full of healing and helps to bring life. It reaches the Dead Sea where it becomes fresh so that fishing can happen and provide food. This image represents how prosperity and healing flow from God and His home. People can be taken care of by God and His laws (as displayed by the temple) if they choose to be! God then goes into detail about breaking up the territory amongst the tribes once again, following captivity. The Levites, like I have mentioned, don’t get territory because they reside in the temple and are the priests. So to keep the land split 12 ways, the tribe of Joseph is split. God now has it that anyone that marries an Israelite, is an Israelite. Before it was exclusive, now God is expanding His people. He will eventually expand His people to everyone! For Jesus died for us all, not just the Israelites but the Gentiles (non-Jewish people) as well.

The land is divided in this order from the Northern districts to the Southern districts: Dan, Asher, Naphtali, Manasseh, Ephraim, Reuben, and Judah. Judah got the most prosperous land as a result of its’ lineage. David was from the tribe of Judah, and Jesus came out of the lineage of David. The holy city with farmland in the center is for all of the people. It is the capital of the Israelites.  Continuing southward from Judah are the following separation of territories: Benjamin, Simeon, Issachar, Zebulun, and Gad (the farthest South). According to Genesis 35:24 Benjamin is also favored, and it is shown by what is in its’ territory.

The gates of the city are named after the 12 tribes, and they are grouped uniquely. The Northern Gate is for Reuben (the first born), Judah (David and Jesus’ lineage), and Levi (priests). The Eastern Gate is for Joseph (Manasseh and Ephraim), Benjamin (along with Joseph, they are Jacob and Rachel’s sons), and Dan (son of Jacob and Bilhah). The Southern Gate represents Jacob and Leah’s sons which are Simeon, Issachar, and Zebulun. The Western Gate represents Asher and Gad (Jacob and Zitpah’s sons), and Naphtali (Jacob and Bilhah’s son). The new name of the city means “The LORD is there.” God has officially returned to His people at this point and He will never leave them!

Ezekiel Chapters 43, 44, and 45

            There will only be one more post following this one for the book of Ezekiel! Once again these posts won’t be as long as most, because of all of the details about the temple and by the time I summarize all the details, you should just read the Word directly! J

Now think back to chapter 11 of the book of Ezekiel [ https://nystime.wordpress.com/2016/05/11/ezekiel-chapters-11-12-and-13/ ]. God had sent out His Spirit to destroy Jerusalem, and this same image of the Spirit that Ezekiel saw in chapter 11 returns! God promises that He, “will dwell in their midst forever,” Ezekiel 43:9. No abominations against Him will bring Him down or take Him away from His people – He promises to stand by His people. He will not leave them like He did with the Babylonian captivity. God also shares with Ezekiel that all of these details of the temple must be written down and completed, for it is as if it’s a law. God demands it be completed to how He wants it, just like the first temple had been. God then gives details of the altars, which are where all the sacrifices for atonement take place. Of course we know that Jesus will end up being the ultimate sacrifice!

The outer gate facing the east must be kept at all times, because this is where the Spirit had entered the temple. Ezekiel once again got to experience and see the Spirit of God working. No foreigners are allowed to enter the temple – only God’s people can enter and at this point that meant the Hebrews or the Israelites. Levites are the ministers, but the Levites that come from Zadok are the priests, and that is all. The sons of Zadok are the only actual priests and they are the only ones allowed to enter the most Holy Place to take care of it, but no one else is allowed to enter. The Levites did not receive any land when God was dispersing it, but they did receive these priestly duties. They have the ultimate inheritance and possession of working with God directly in the temple.

God then shares with Ezekiel the measurements of the most Holy place, or God’s space. The eastern and western portions along the sides of the holy district belong to the prince. This prince figure has been debated by many theologians and studiers of the Word. I imagine it to mean God, the King’s Son, but at the same time we know that God and Jesus are one in the same…so I am not positive. Either way, this is an important marker within the temple as well. God wants Passover and Tabernacle and more feasts to continue (for they had been put aside by many by the time of exile). God must be honored for His faithfulness and these feasts do just that! God wants His people to change their ways for the best when they return to Jerusalem and have the new covenant with Him, that He will never leave them alone again.

Ezekiel Chapters 35 and 36

Before we know it, the book of Ezekiel will be finished! A little over 10 chapters to go and 4 blog posts. A lot of the remaining chapters (but not this post) will revolve around a lot of details, that I will probably skim over a bit, because I have a hard time paying attention to all of the details! Anyway, on with these two chapters!

Whenever God tells Ezekiel to set his face against a population or nation – if I was that nation or group of people I would be scared to death. This time it is Mount Seir’s turn. Mt. Seir is in Edom (I posted a map a few weeks ago, that shows its’ location) and Edom is the population that did not help. Edom went against Judah during and after captivity, when they were already falling or fallen apart. God promises that Mount Seir will be taken down by death and destruction…and if God promises anything, it is going to happen! What is important to focus on, is that the nation that would bring ruin to Mt. Seir would be a UNITED House of Israel. Remember Israel had been split into Judah and Israel for a long time at this point. The Israelites were facing ruin from Babylon as separate entities, but they would return in full strength united. I find what God tells Ezekiel to be so blunt and shows His anger so greatly. He told Ezekiel, “’As you rejoiced over the inheritance of the house of Israel, because it was desolate, so I will deal with you; you shall be desolate, Mount Seir, and all Edom, all of it. Then they will know that I am the LORD,’” Ezekiel 35:15. God will protect His people, when they return from exile.

God then provides a prophecy to the mountains of Israel. These mountains represent the ultimate, united Israel, because the strength of Israel was so great, that nations wanted to conquer it. God promises that all of the nations surrounding Israel will fall, as a result of God’s jealousy. God promises, “’But you, O mountains of Israel, shall shoot forth your branches and yield your fruit to my people Israel, for they will soon come home,’” Ezekiel 36:8. They will prosper, because God wants them to. The “’whole house of Israel, all of it,’” (Ezekiel 36:10) will multiply in power. God uses the word for “multiply” repeatedly, for God promises all of these events to happen to the generations to come – prosperity will be there for a united Israel. God will protect Israel from those that try to take them down.

Even after this promise to Israel, God still addresses how the people of Israel have hurt Him. They defiled His name. Other nations kept questioning, “How could God kick His own people out?” The answer is that God felt that defamed by His own people, and He needed to provide justice for His namesake. God is protecting His name that is written all over creation! He promises that He will cleanse the people of Israel (v. 36:25). A heart of stone from the people will be replaced with flesh. His Spirit will watch over their hearts. God wants His people to feel ashamed of how they have treated Him, but He still wants what is best for them overall. God will restore His name, because of the desolate house of Israel that faced exile will be back in full steam power again! Flocks of people will return, and power will remain with His people! Remember from my previous post, that God is a shepherd…the reference to “flock of people” returning to the city of God is no accident. God will shepherd them back to His city and into power. All is in God’s Will!

Ezekiel Chapters 24, 25, and 26

I hope everyone has been doing well! These next few chapters will provide multiple prophecies against the nations surrounding the House of Israel. I highly recommend looking at my last post, for all of the nations/kingdoms are laid out well, and in more detail than the original map I posted at the beginning of writing about the book of Ezekiel. The maps will come into handy once we get to chapter 25 and through chapter 28!

But first, chapter 24 shares a parable of the siege of Jerusalem. The main symbol used is that of a cooking pot. All of the “good” pieces of meat are within that pot, and they are cooking away. The whole city is slowly but surely coming to ruin. Even as items are removed from the pot (symbolic of the exiles) there is still a buildup of rust or corrosion at the bottom of the pot. This rust is the guilt and injustice of the city – so when all of the people are taken out there is still justice that must be taken out on the city. God promises to avenge all of the blood that flooded the city because of His people. The imagery of blood returns once again, for blood running at the hands of humans is unclean and unjust, and God will bring righteousness. Once this pot (Jerusalem) is empty, the city will still not be clean. Even when there are strong cleaning processes, it is not good enough. God says He will not allow their actions to be cleaned until, “I have satisfied my fury upon you,” Ezekiel 24:13. After this parable comes a sadder story. Ezekiel’s wife died and there is even symbolism about her death. Ezekiel was told by God not to mourn her death, just like He cannot mourn the death of His wife (Jerusalem). Once God gave this prophecy to Ezekiel, Ezekiel woke up to the death of his wife. God also promises that those that question Ezekiel’s lack of mourning would lost their loved ones during the siege, just like how those that did not accept God’s justice would face destruction as well. God then brings back the covenant He made with Ezekiel previously at the beginning of the book, which was that Ezekiel would be mute unless God was speaking through him. God promised that a messenger would be arriving with the news, and as soon as that news is given Ezekiel would be able to speak once again. This would be even more proof to the people of Israel that God was speaking through Ezekiel, for Ezekiel share this news of the messenger and being mute with the people, for God was speaking through him so he was sharing the message from God.

Now begins all of the prophecies against the nations surrounding Israel. The first nation up is Ammon, which is east of Jericho. God will hand Ammon over to the people of the east. Ammon was excited and happy to hear of the destruction of the House of Israel, and provided no help, so they will be put to an end from God. Next is Moab and Seir which ware south of Ammon. They will face the same fate as Ammon – a nation from the east will take them down. Edom which is south of Judah, was going against Judah and Israel for so long, even when Jerusalem was being sacked. Edom continued to hurt Judah during that sacking, and made the destruction even worse. This anger Edom had for Judah goes all the way back to the time of Jacob and Esau (Genesis 25:23, 30). God promises that the Israelites will eventually come back and bring them down, and avenge for themselves through God’s help of course. Philistia was west of Judah and south of Israel and was one of the prominent enemies from the time of Saul, David, and Solomon. God promises that the sea coast that Philistia had control over would be brought to an end, and God will ensure it.

Chapter 26 is a prophecy against Tyre, which is on the northern coast and is what we would label a Phoenician society – think back to world history in junior high or high school, because they are the ones that were well-known for their boats and trade. Not only were they known for their boats, but also for their pagan gods. They were the head nation of the supporters of Baal (think back to 1 and 2 Kings, these were the false gods that existed throughout – especially think of Jezebel and Ahab). God promises that they will be destroyed from the North, which would be Babylon. They’ll be like a “bare rock,” Ezekiel 26:14. Meaning that they will have nothing to build upon again, for all vegetation and forms of prosperity would be gone. They will waste away in ruin, which is supposed to depict that they will be judged harshly against and reside in hell, for they will face the most dreadful end. In the next chapter (my next post), God will have more to say against Tyre!

Map for Ezekiel Chapters 25 through 28

Ezekiel has prophecies from God against various nations surrounding Israel and Judah. I am including a  map that shows their various kingdoms, so you all will know specifically where each kingdom is located…their location explains their wicked actions against God’s people primarily. Location is always key! There will be prophecies against Ammon, Moab and Seir, Edom, Philistine, and Tyre and Sidon (Phoenician States). This map shows all of the various locations and I will write in my next blog post details.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edom

Ezekiel Chapters 22 and 23

We are coming toward the end of the portion of the book of Ezekiel that focuses on the abominations of the people of Israel and Judah. Chapter 23 will give an interesting analogy… Ezekiel seems to be filled with some great analogies from God and they are interesting to study! First we have to focus on chapter 22 that will focus on the blood spilt in the city!

Like I mentioned in the previous post, blood is an important image within the book of Ezekiel and any time there is really a focus on blood and uncleanliness. Having blood on items can make things labeled unclean, especially if it is of blood of a murdered person, like was happening in Jerusalem. Blood was used in sacrifices to God, but it was always of the best lamb, or other animal being sacrificed. In Numbers there is a lot of detail on what is considered clean or unclean, but trust me when I say that Jerusalem during the time of Ezekiel was as unclean as possible. There were moral and ritual crimes that were a result of these false sacrifices, and as a result all of the transgressions went against Jerusalem as a whole. There was abuse to the weakest (think widows and children) and too many sexual abominations, and the people of Jerusalem take part in these unrighteous activities, when they could turn to God completely. They outwardly reject Him. God tells Ezekiel, “’Can your courage endure, or can your hands be strong, in the days that I shall deal with you,’” Ezekiel 22:14. The people of Israel act brave, as if they could take on the Almighty God, but we all know that this is not possible and idiotic to believe so! Once again, we use ourselves as gods sometimes, altering God’s Word to be how we want it to approve of our lives, or thinking one rule from God is not important. Who are we to think that we know more than God?! How idiotic! Yet we have all done it. God points out that even the leaders of Jerusalem have turned away from Him (priests, princes, and prophets).

Chapter 23 revolves around God addressing both Samaria and Jerusalem. The eldest daughter mentioned represents Samaria and her name is Oholah, and the younger sister represents Jerusalem and her name is Oholibah. Both were loved and cared for by their mothers, yet they chose to whore in their youth with Egypt, and they bore children from God (Israelites). They had a covenant with God. Oholah was the first one to give herself to the Assyrians and decorated herself with idols. So God allowed the Assyrians to take control of her. She was stripped and humiliated by the Assyrians, yet Oholah had chosen to take part with the Assyrians. The Assyrians eventually brought horror to her and had her killed by the sword, and this can be read about in 2 Kings 17 – I blogged about it months ago when I was blogging about 2 Kings, if you want a quick recap. (https://nystime.wordpress.com/2014/06/17/2-kings-chapters-17-and-18/ )

Oholibah saw what happened to her eldest sister, but still chose to whore around with Assyria. Oholibah was more corrupt and full of lust than her sister Oholah. Oholibah chose to not just whore around with Assyria, but also with Babylon and Egypt (23:14). She did not hide her indecency and abominations, but rather showed them off with pride for all to see. It reminds of the stories of the concubines that resided in a home together within the Ottoman Empire, but they held themselves with honor and were open about their role as the emperor’s sexual partners. Oholibah felt no shame in her actions, even if the nations she slept with disgusted her. She was proud. God has all of Oholibah’s lovers come against her (Assyria, Babylon, and Egypt). The cup of wrath that the eldest sister, Oholah, experiences will be returned to Oholibah. Oholibah will die by the sword, for God is putting an end to her lewdness and abominations. God is making them pay for their idolatry.

The close-knit relationship of Israel and Judah cannot be denied, and they seemed to work together to be made into the worse nations as possible in God’s eyes. Just a great analogy!

Ezekiel Chapters 18 and 19

As we progress through the book of Ezekiel, there are a few things I want to point out. There are three main sections to the book of Ezekiel. These include: the first four chapters of Ezekiel encountering God face to face. The section section is up to chapter 24 and focuses on the judgment of Judah and chapters 25 through 35 focus on the judgment on His people’s enemies. So I just want to give encouragement that if it seems repetitive at this point, the subject will be changing shortly! I hope you are still finding it interesting at this point, which I am!

God points out in His message to Ezekiel that what is occurring to Israel and Judah is not the result of only one generation, but of all of the generations. It is like how the elderly always say, “This generation is falling apart…” when in fact they were the ones to raise us. It is all a cycle of generations. It is not like this generation within Israel at the time of the 500 BC are the reason that God is exiling all of them…. they are part of the reason, but the Israelites from the time of the Judges, to the Israelites in the wilderness, are all part of why God is punishing His people. God wants the people to know that they are guilty, in spite of a popular proverb at the time that said only the most recent generations are to blame. God explicitly tells Ezekiel what are considered righteous actions, while the actions of the wicked are listed as well. After he lists out all abominations that people can do against Him, He shares how they will be laying in their own blood by the end. Blood is a very common theme throughout the book of Ezekiel, and it represents all of the destruction that the people of Israel experience with the downfall of Jerusalem (many died by the sword, famine, or pestilence) and the others experienced pain in exile. God lets it be known as well that each person is responsible for their own actions, so if someone’s father was unrighteous, and they are righteous. God will not hold their father’s actions against him. This was obviously something that they were all concerned about at the time, because it is just really driven home in this book how the people cannot only blame one generation, and how His justice is in fact just!

God also reiterates something that is such a problem and acknowledged by many to be true, but it is not. God tells Ezekiel how the people that have lived righteous lifestyles and are good, but then turns away from God, all of their good actions mean nothing. All that matters is there intention and relationship with God…works righteousness is not a thing. Being a “good person,” means nothing to being a Christian and following Christ, unless you give your all to Christ. It bothers me when people constantly speak of how someone is so good, there is no way they would end up in hell. My thing is, the Word says that it is all about your relationship with Christ and God…not based on how much money you have donated. If you have no relationship then what you are doing is probably for yourself, not Him. Sorry, rant is over. God just wants us to acknowledge our need for Him, and how we must repent. He knows we are not perfect, but He still wants us to acknowledge His glory and amazingness!

In chapter 19, Ezekiel shares a lamenting poem. This poem had a common structure and style that was known amongst the Israelites at the time. There is a lot of symbolism so let me breakdown some of it. The lioness mentioned represents the nation of Israel or the city of Jerusalem. The cubs are the kings. The lioness raised cubs, and the cubs grew into lions that were aggressive. Verse 4 mentions the now grown cub being taken to Egypt, which represents Jehoahaz (2 Kings 23:31-34). The following verses discuss with symbolism Jehoiachin becoming king and then being taken into captivity. This lion (Jehoiachin) lived wickedly and caused havoc amongst the kingdom and then all went up against him. Verse 9 tells, “With hooks they put him in a cage and brought him to the king of Babylon,” Ezekiel 19:9. The city was once so powerful, but God (His Will) took away their power because of their exploitation of power. The city has now become like a vine with no power at all. It has no one to help, nor can it help anyone. All power is completely gone. Jerusalem is nothing now because of God’s Will just like they use to be so powerful because of His Will.

Ezekiel Chapters 16 and 17

Are you ready for some more analogies and imagery? There sure is a lot in the book of Ezekiel and we aren’t even half way through yet! J I hope y’all have been enjoying it much as I have been!

This is probably one of my favorite analogies so far and one that you have probably heard from the New Testament. Paul writes (Ephesians 5:22-33) on our relationships with our spouses should be with the faith and love that we give God, as well as the love God gives to us. As a spouse, you should do anything for your spouse in order to protect and love them, and Paul shows how the greatest example we can strive to be like is the love God has for us. The common scripture of the woman being submissive to the man comes from this passage, for the faith and love one has for their spouse is what we should have in Christ Jesus!  In this analogy, Jerusalem or the people of Israel are the girl and the husband is God. The little girl (Jerusalem) was abandoned in a field, without even being washed after birth. God wanted the little girl to live so she did, and as a result of God taking care of her, she flourished throughout her life. I like to think of how God saved the Israelites from Egypt where they were cast aside as slaves and useless, yet God found value in them, and rescued them to the point of Jerusalem becoming one of the most powerful cities in all the nations. God then made a marriage with the grown up, loveable, and flourishing girl, where He continued to adorn her with jewels and she was being treated like a queen. Although God, her husband, had provided everything for her, she chose to go to other men and whore herself out essentially. The people of Israel had God but they chose to give their focus and love to false gods. Reading this story, it seems utterly irrational. Why would a woman choose to turn away from a man that treats her like a queen and loves her beyond our understanding? So many do this, I know I have at some point. My desire for success and pride have been like me cheating on God. We all do it unfortunately, but luckily we have Jesus’ record, so we must try to keep our attention on God. Sin is irrational, just like this woman cheating on her adoring husband. This girl was willing to sacrifice her own children and ignore her husband (God), so that she can give her attention to her other men (idols, false gods). Eventually her lovers will humiliate and punish her, just like when we put our faith in our idols, it will backlash on us, for we can find no meaning unless it is from God our Almighty Creator! God still promises after this parable or analogy of the faithless wife, by saying God remembers His covenant with us all! He would eventually create a new covenant however, which will be, “an everlasting covenant…. I will establish my covenant with you, and you shall know that I am the LORD,” Ezekiel 16:60-63. What is new covenant God is speaking of? Jesus. Christ’s blood is our new covenant that atones for all that we have done, and shows the ultimate love and sacrifice of God for us! This analogy shows so much about sin and the love that God has for us, and as a result trust me when I say that my Bible is highlighted and starred all over this chapter in the book of Ezekiel.

Image source: http://carbonfiberweddingbands.org/wedding-bands-2/

Are you ready for another parable? I am sure you are! The last one, was not enough for you… so here is one more for this post! God told Ezekiel to share this “riddle,” and it is once again intriguing. Let me just label out all of the players, because there are a lot of them and it was more confusing than the previous analogy. The eagle is Babylon or its’ leader Nebuchadnezzar. The cedar is Judah or the dynasty of David. An eagle comes down and removes the top two twigs, which symbolized the first step against Judah, which was to exile Jehoiachin. The eagle then replaces these top twigs with a vine, representing the low power of this person, for it was not a leader chosen by God but rather a man (Zedekiah) chosen by Nebuchadnezzar. All of a sudden, after this vine has been placed by the first eagle, another eagle arrives. This second eagle represents Egypt. The vine wanted this second eagle to help it, and provide it with sanctuary, just like how Zedekiah went to Egypt for support against Babylon. The irony is that the people of Judah were looking to Egypt, like God had told them to never do, yet they still chose to do so. They are going to wither away by the hands of Judah or Israel. God shares with Ezekiel how Jehoiachin would die in Babylon and Zedekiah would be killed in Babylon, just like 2 Kings 25:4-7 showed us. Remember, Ezekiel was giving this prophecy when Zedekiah was still in power and Jehoiachin was still alive. God does promise however to restore the cedar with a new high branch (a new king)! Who is this king? Jesus. This new cedar with its’ new high branch will act as the haven for all, and we all know that Jesus is the ultimate haven.

These two chapters have so much to say, and it is truly amazing!

Ezekiel Chapters 8, 9, and 10

I hope y’all are hanging on to all of these details! As we will see in the upcoming chapters, all of these details will come full circle. So make sure to pay attention to the specifics, especially in chapter 8. They won’t really show up until my next post, but you will see…. Hope y’all are having a great week so far!

In chapter 8, God comes to Ezekiel again and this time it was when Ezekiel was in his house with elders of Judah. “The hand of the LORD GOD fell upon me there,” Ezekiel 1:1. God always touches or goes into a person that is prophesizing – it is the Holy Spirit. A man figure with fire below his waist and a bright glow above his waist, and he took Ezekiel to Jerusalem to the entrance of the inner court that faced north, and the glory of God was there, like from the previous chapters when Ezekiel saw it in the valley. Now throughout the rest of the chapter, the glory of God shows Ezekiel the four main idols throughout Jerusalem.

1. The first idol is the image of jealousy (verses 5-6) and this image of jealousy represents everything that we put before God. These things that we worship above God, gives God a sense of jealousy because He deserves all of the honor and glory, not these other items or relationships. God’s glory should be in place of these images of jealousy, but He wasn’t. His own people were taking His glory out of His own temple!
2. The second idol is the worship of beasts (verses 7 through 13). This is once again representation of the people of Israel worshipping everything but God. Within this image given to Ezekiel, God shows specifically the elders and leaders of the church taking part in this worship of the beast. Imagine the contamination of the church that can exist if its’ own leaders are worshipping beasts and not God. No wonder why God felt pushed out by His own people.
3. The cult of Tammuz is the third idol listed in verses 14-15. Tammuz was a god of fertility and lord of the underworld to pagans, and many of the Israelites were worshipping false gods like Tammuz, and many others. They were putting their trust in false gods rather than the almighty, all powerful GOD!
4. The final idol is an image of a group of 25 men worshipping the sun (verse 16). The group of men were completely turn toward the east away from the temple. They were in the temple, yet they were turn completely away from God, both literally and figuratively. The worldly things were more important to these men than God! God’s creation is being examined in this image, but it is the fact that the men are viewing the sun as a worldly item to worship versus worshipping it as a creation of God.

God makes it clear following these images that He will turn His eyes away from His people and show no pity for them. All of the people are represented throughout these four images (elders, leaders, men, and women) showing how all of society were taking part in these idols.

Chapter 9 focuses on what is to come to these idolaters that are throughout all of Jerusalem. An executioner is sent for by God and then six men came from the upper gate along with a man in linen carrying a writing case, and they waited next to the bronze altar to speak with God. The writing case contained all of the records or those throughout the city, and whether or not they were righteous or not. The man with the briefcase put a mark on all of the people throughout Jerusalem that were labeled as righteous so that when the six angels went around killing idolaters, the righteous will not be touched. It is like how as Christians that when we choose to given our lives to Christ, we are marked with Christ’s record and are seen as having no blemishes in God’s eyes. Jesus took our record and did not have the mark of righteousness. The six angels were told by God to follow the man with the writing case and kill all that are not marked, and show no pity. All men, women, and children not marked are to be killed. Ezekiel cries out in lament and fear, that God will get rid of everyone and there will no longer be a “remnant of Israel,” aka Israelites to continue on the population. Throughout the rest of the book of Ezekiel, he will mention “remnant” and his fear that it will disappear…this is what he is talking about. Chapter 9 ends with the man with the writing case returning saying that he had completed what had been commanded of him to do – all that were righteous had been marked.

One of the major details from chapter 1 reappears in this chapter. Remember the six angels with faces of different creatures that had the wheels underneath them? Well they return and are referred to as cherubim for the rest of the book of Ezekiel. If you need a reminder look at my post on chapters 1 and 2 – there is even a picture that depicts the descriptions Ezekiel gives. So God tells the man in linen with the writing case to grab coal from under one of the wheels of the cherubim and scatter the coals throughout the city. God’s glory then filled the room as a bright cloud, and the cherub gives the fire over that will consume the city of Jerusalem. There are a lot of great details about these wheels under the cherubim in chapter 10, but I won’t go into too many details. One of the most interesting aspects was however that the wheels had eyes all over them and spread throughout the city, because God is always watching (Proverbs 15:3).  The glory of God surrounded these angels and the Spirit was throughout them.

Here is another picture of Ezekiel with the cherubim, but within the valley from a previous chapter. I just like how the wheels are depicted…it is a sci-fi artistic drawing but it shows the surrealness Ezekiel must have felt. Source: https://sewayoleme.wordpress.com/2007/01/24/ezekiels-wheels/