It’s around 588 BC. Ezekiel is around 35 years old. He’s still captive in Babylon 400 miles east of his home in Jerusalem. And we’re about to hear for the first time that he’s married...soon to be widowed.
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...
Can you imagine the
Lord saying to you, “Tonight I’m going to suddenly take your spouse, and I don’t
want you to show any grieving. Sigh in silence...
This foreshadows Christ
as reflected in Isaiah 53:7: He was oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He
opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep
before its shearers is silent, so He opened not His mouth.
In Matthew we see how
Jesus silenced the mourners at the funeral for Jairus's twelve year old
daughter. Jesus told them not to weep, for she was not dead only asleep.
Those mourners
laughed and ridiculed Him, knowing she was dead.
Then, with just a few
of His disciples and the parents in the room, He took the little girl by the
hand, said, " “Talitha, cumi,” which is translated, “Little
girl, I say to you, arise.”
And she did!
Then, Jesus could've waltzed
the young girl out in front of those who ridiculed Him and mocked those mockers,
but instead, He simply told the girl's parents not to tell anyone. Oh, and give
her something to eat.
Then, knowing Jesus, He probably, silently, slipped out the back door. Matthew 9:18-26, Mark 5:21-43
, Luke 8:41-56.
17... 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.”
Do not go through the
customary mourning rituals.
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.
WOW!
Could you do that?
What a picture of the
cost of discipleship.
Matthew 16:24, Mark 8:34, Luke 9:23.
Whoever wants to come after Me, must deny
self, take up cross and follow Me.
19 And the
people said to me, “Will you not tell us what these things
signify to us, that you behave so?”
Now, finally, they
were listening.
How we handle loss
speaks louder than words.
In Christ, even in
death we still have hope.
1 Thess. 4:13-18
For in Christ we do not sorrow as those who have no hope. 14 For if
we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with
Him those who sleep in Jesus. 15 For this we say to
you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain
until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep. 16 For the
Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an
archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ
will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain
shall be caught up (rapture) together with them in the clouds to
meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore
comfort one another with these words.
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.
Do not mourn for what
God has rebuked.
Jeremiah 16:4-5
They shall die gruesome deaths; they shall not be lamented nor
shall they be buried, but they shall be like refuse on the
face of the earth. They shall be consumed by the sword and
by famine, and their corpses shall be meat for
the birds of heaven and for the beasts of the earth.” (Foreshadow of Revelation 19:17-21).
5 For thus says the Lord: “Do
not enter the house of mourning, nor go
to lament or bemoan them; for I have taken away
My peace from this people,” says the Lord, “lovingkindness and
mercies.
24 Thus Ezekiel is a sign to
you; according to all that he has done you shall do;
You are a sign. You
are the only Bible some people read.
24...and when
this comes, you shall know that I am the Lord God.’ ”
25 ‘And you,
son of man—will it not be in the day when I take from
them their stronghold, their joy and their glory, the desire of their
eyes, and that on which they set their minds, their sons and their
daughters: 26 that on that day one who escapes
will come to you to
let you hear it with your ears? 27 On
that day your mouth will be opened to him who has escaped; you shall speak and
no longer be mute. Thus you will be a sign to them, and they shall know that
I am the Lord.’ ”
Prophecy is HIStory
told in advance.
For a time, Ezekiel could only speak the Word of the
Lord, otherwise he was mute.
Ezekiel 3:26. I
will make your tongue cling to the roof of your mouth, so that you shall be
mute and not be one to rebuke them, for they are a
rebellious house.
Ezekiel 33:21-22. And
it came to pass in the twelfth year of our captivity, in the tenth month, on
the fifth day of the month, that one who had escaped from
Jerusalem came to me and said, “The city has been captured!”
22 Now the
hand of the Lord had been upon me the evening before the man came who
had escaped. And He had opened my mouth; so when he came to me in the
morning, my mouth was opened, and I was no longer mute.
So, there you have it. As a Divine object lesson about what was about to happen to the temple and Judah, God took Ezekiel’s wife and told him not to mourn.
Now let’s address the elephant in the room.
Would God do that? Kill Ezekiel’s wife for an object
lesson?
Does God kill people?
Nadab and Abihu (Leviticus 10:1–2)
Aaron’s two sons offered "unlawful fire" (strange
fire), contrary to what the Lord had commanded. Resulting in fire from the
Lord consuming them.
NOTE: Moses warned Aaron and his surviving sons not to
rebel against God’s Divine judgement by mourning. Doing so would risk God’s
wrath on all of them.
Uzzah (2 Samuel 6:6–7)
While the Ark of the Covenant was being transported,
the oxen stumbled. Uzzah grabbed the Ark to steady it, violating God's command.
God struck Uzzah dead on the spot.
Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1–10)
In the early church, this married couple sold a piece
of property, secretly kept a portion of the money, and then lied by saying they
gave the full amount. They both dropped dead after being caught in their lies.
Herod Agrippa (Acts 12:21–23)
King Herod gave a speech and the crowd shouted that
his voice was that of a god. Herod accepted their praise and an angel of the
Lord stuck him dead, and he was eaten by worms.
These all suffered the consequences of sin.
But what about the innocent?
Does God kill innocent people, (like Ezekiel’s wife)?
Israel during David's Census (2 Samuel 24:10–15).
King David sinned by ordering a census, showing his trust
in human strength rather than God, resulting in a plague that killed 70,000. They
were not guilty of David’s sin.
The Firstborn of Egypt (Exodus 12:29).
During the final plague, the Lord struck the firstborn
in Egypt, from Pharaoh's heir to the livestock.
David and Bathsheba’s baby (2 Samuel 12:14–18).
King David committed adultery with Bathsheba and then
had her husband killed. The prophet Nathan announced that due to his sin,
the innocent baby would die.
God's Sovereignty.
God has and does and will Sovereignly, sinlessly, taken people's lives.
Matthew 10:28, Luke 12:4-5. And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
God's Character
So, it's vitally important to remember, God's Character.
John 10:10.
The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have
come that they may have life, and that they may have it more
abundantly.
Deuteronomy 30:19.
I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have
set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore
choose life, that both you and your descendants may live.
Ezekiel 18:23 Do
I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked? declares the Lord GOD.
Wouldn’t I prefer that he turn from his ways and live?
Ezekiel 18:32.
For I take no pleasure in anyone’s death, declares the Lord GOD. So
repent and live!
Ezekiel 33:11. As I
live,’ says the Lord God, ‘I have no pleasure in the death of the
wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn, turn from
your evil ways! For why should you die, O house of Israel?’
John 3:16-17. For God so love the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him, will not perish but have everlasting Life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.
God gave His beloved Son. Ezekiel gave his
beloved wife.
2 Peter 3:9.
The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count
slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any
should perish but that all should come to repentance.
So, remember what Bever said in CS Lewis' Chronicles of Narnia, when asked if He (Aslan) is safe: "Course he isn't safe. But he's good. He's the King, I tell you."
God is Good. He is NOT the cause of all death. Does
not take every cancer victim or cause every fatal car accident.
The world is broken, corrupt, because of sin. Our sin
that we started...not God.
MANY die BEFORE their time, BECAUSE OF SIN. NOT GOD.
God's character is good. God's character is Life. God
is Love.
Ezekiel’s wife was not bad, God calls her a beautiful
favorable name, "the desire of your eyes". Which means
desired, precious, beloved, longed for, cherished.
Knowing God, He might've sent Gabriel to ask Ezekiel’s
wife if she wanted to be a Divine object lesson.
Perhaps she said, “Behold the handmaid of the Lord
be it unto me according to your word.”
Then, instead of flashing her name and deed on pages of
Scripture for all to see... and make a mockery of her memory by turning her
into an idol. Perhaps, she just silently smiled and nodded, then softly whispered,
"Don't tell anyone" as she slipped out the back door, with Jesus.
Remind me to ask her when we get to heaven.
Let's pray.
Lord Jesus, thank You for meeting us where
we are, in joy, in sorrow, in life, in death. All, of this world is soon to
fade, but You remain. And that is enough. Help us to know this with more than
our head.
Thank You.
We love You, forever.
Amen.
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Wife, Ezekiel 24:15-27
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Wife, Ezekiel 24:15-27
This was feed for you to read. Now it’s
Seed for you to sow.
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