Thursday
Evening Bible Study
July 21, 2005
Introduction
Ezekiel lived at the same time as the prophet Jeremiah, though he would
have been a bit younger than Jeremiah. This was the time of the destruction of
the nation of Judah
and the Babylonian captivity.
While Jeremiah stayed in Jerusalem
and ministered to the people there, Ezekiel was one of the captives taken to Babylon.
His ministry was with those in captivity in Babylon.
Last week we looked at the beginnings of Ezekiel’s ministry, at how God
called him to be a prophet.
Ezekiel 3
3:1-15 Eating the scroll
:1 Moreover He said to me, "Son of man, eat what you find; eat this
scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel."
:2 So I opened my mouth, and He caused me to eat that scroll.
Lesson
Godly Ministry
We talked last week about some of the elements involved in godly ministry.
1. Knowing God – having an
encounter with Him (ch. 1)
Ezekiel had this incredible vision of God (ch. 1).
It’s important to know why you’re doing ministry.
If you’re doing ministry solely for the people – to help
people, to be nice to people – you’re going to have difficulty. Why?
Because people aren’t always nice.
People don’t remember to say “thank you”. People will hurt you.
But if you’re serving a God who has revealed Himself to
you instead of the people, it’s easier to hang in there.
You need to keep that “vision” of God before you. He’s the one you’re serving.
2. Being filled with the Spirit (2:2)
Several times we will see Ezekiel having encounters with the Holy Spirit
(Eze. 2:2).
Jesus told the disciples not to do anything until they had been filled with
the Holy Spirit (Acts 1:4-8)
Without the power of the Holy Spirit, nothing we do is worth much at all.
3. Being filled with God’s Word (3:2)
(Ezek 3:2 NKJV) So I opened my mouth, and He caused me to eat
that scroll.
In teaching the Corinthians about communion, Paul wrote,
(1 Cor 11:23 NKJV) For I received from the Lord that which I
also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was
betrayed took bread;
He had been taught by the Lord.
Spending time in God’s Word. Letting
God’s Word touch your life first.
:3 And He said to me, "Son of man, feed your belly, and fill your
stomach with this scroll that I give you." So I ate, and it was in my
mouth like honey in sweetness.
Ezekiel takes in the Word of God.
Even though many of the things God will give Ezekiel to speak are
difficult, God’s Word is still sweet.
(Psa 19:9-10 NKJV)
The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the LORD are
true and righteous altogether. {10} More to be desired are they than gold, Yea,
than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.
(Psa 119:103 NKJV)
How sweet are Your words to my taste, Sweeter than honey to my mouth!
:4 Then He said to me: "Son of man, go to the house of Israel
and speak with My words to them.
He was to go to the exiles in Babylon.
:5 "For you are not sent to a people of unfamiliar speech and of hard
language, but to the house of Israel,
He didn’t have to go to Russia
or Mexico, just
to his own people.
:6 "not to many people of unfamiliar speech and of hard language,
whose words you cannot understand. Surely, had I sent you to them, they would
have listened to you.
:7 "But the house of Israel
will not listen to you, because they will not listen to Me; for all the house
of Israel are
impudent and hard-hearted.
Lesson
Gauging success in ministry
People have different ideas of success when it comes to ministry.
For many, it is how many people come to your church.
For others, they might say it’s not “quantity” but “quality”. They look at how people are growing in their
personal walk with the Lord.
Ezekiel would be considered “unsuccessful” by both groups.
He wouldn’t get a lot of positive response.
Yet his lack of “success” wasn’t because he was doing something wrong or
because he was in the wrong ministry.
His sense of “failure” was solely because of the people he was going to
minister to.
If Ezekiel had been sent to another nation, he would have
been a “success”.
What is God looking for? Jesus told
a story …
(Mt 21:28-31 NKJV)
28 “But what do you think? A man had two sons, and he came to the first and
said, ‘Son, go, work today in my vineyard.’ 29 He answered and said, ‘I will
not,’ but afterward he regretted it and went. 30 Then he came to the second and
said likewise. And he answered and said, ‘I go, sir,’ but he did not go.
31 Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said to Him, “The
first.” Jesus said to them, “Assuredly, I say to you that tax collectors and
harlots enter the kingdom of God
before you.
Paul wrote,
(1 Cor 4:2 NKJV) Moreover it is required in stewards that one
be found faithful.
I think God’s measure of success is based on obedience, on faithfulness.
In the parable of the talents, two of the three servants are rewarded while
the third is not.
The thing the two good servants had in common was their faithfulness, not
the size of their gift to the king.
(Mat 25:21 NKJV) "His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and
faithful servant; you were faithful
over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy
of your lord.'
Are you where you’re supposed to be?
Are you doing what you’re supposed to do?
In this sense, Ezekiel was a definite success.
:8 "Behold, I have made your face strong against their faces, and your
forehead strong against their foreheads.
It sounds like people would be butting heads.
strong – chazaq – strong,
stout, mighty
This is the word found in Ezekiel’s name (“God has strengthened”).
:9 "Like adamant stone, harder than flint, I have made your forehead;
do not be afraid of them, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they are a
rebellious house."
adamant – thought to be corundum, the next hardest mineral next to a
diamond.
A tough as Ezekiel’s audience would be, God would make him tougher.
:10 Moreover He said to me: "Son of man, receive into your heart all
My words that I speak to you, and hear with your ears.
:11 "And go, get to the captives, to the children of your people, and
speak to them and tell them, 'Thus says the Lord GOD,' whether they hear, or
whether they refuse."
Lesson
Ministry isn’t always fun.
Illustration
Putting on boots
Did you hear about the teacher who was helping one of her kindergarten
students put his boots on? He asked for help and she could see why. With her
pulling and him pushing, the boots still didn’t want to go on. When the second
boot was on, she had worked up a sweat. She almost whimpered when the little
boy said, “Teacher, they’re on the wrong feet.” She looked and, sure enough,
they were. It wasn’t any easier pulling the boots off than it was putting them
on. She managed to keep her cool as together they worked to get the boots back
on-this time on the right feet. He then announced, “These aren’t my boots.” She
bit her tongue rather than get right in his face and scream, “Why didn’t you
say so?” like she wanted to. Once again, she struggled to help him pull the
ill-fitting boots off. He then said, “They’re my brother’s boots. My Mom made me
wear them.” She didn’t know if she should laugh or cry. She mustered up the
grace to wrestle the boots on his feet again. She said, “Now, where are your
mittens?” He said, “I stuffed them in the toes of my boots...”
Illustration
It was the new pastor’s first sermon at his new church. Following the
service, he was standing by the door shaking hands when a man came up to him
and said, “That was a very dull and boring sermon, Pastor.” Well, he shook it
off and didn’t think too about it until a couple of minutes later he noticed
the same guy in line again where he said, “I didn’t think you did any
preparation for your message, Pastor.” A bit exasperated, the pastor was
determined to not let it bother him when he looked up and saw the same guy
approaching him the third time: “You really blew it. You didn’t have a thing to
say, Pastor.” This time it really bothered him so he spotted a deacon nearby
and thought he had better ask him about this strange fellow. “Oh, don’t worry
about him, Pastor. He’s a little off. All he does is go around repeating
everything he hears others say.”
If you have the notion that when you step out to serve God and His people
that you will have lots of people hugging you and thanking you, you will be
disappointed.
:12 Then the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard behind me a great thunderous
voice: "Blessed is the glory of the LORD from His place!"
:13 I also heard the noise of the wings of the living creatures that
touched one another, and the noise of the wheels beside them, and a great thunderous
noise.
:14 So the Spirit lifted me up and took me away, and I went in bitterness,
in the heat of my spirit; but the hand of the LORD was strong upon me.
The scroll was sweet to begin with, but now Ezekiel began to realize the
bitterness he would experience in his ministry.
:15 Then I came to the captives at Tel Abib, who dwelt by the River Chebar;
and I sat where they sat, and remained there astonished among them seven days.
Tel Abib – an unknown city in Babylon
where Ezekiel had been living.
Ezekiel is so blown away with his vision that he’s speechless for an entire
week.
Lesson
Compassion
Here’s another key component to ministry.
You need to learn to spend time sitting where they sit.
Some people have this idea that they can just blow into a room, deliver a
“message from God”, and then disappear.
God’s preferred method is to find a person who will take time to sit where
the people sit.
This is what we love about Jesus, that He really understands all we’ve been
through.
(Heb 4:15-16 NKJV) For we do not have a High Priest who cannot
sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet
without sin. {16} Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace, that we
may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
Ezekiel was also a priest, and God had him learn to sit
where the people sat.
People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.
Sometimes the longer we’ve been a Christian, the further isolated we get
from the non-Christian world.
This isn’t all that bad. It’s good
to get away from sin and temptation.
But sometimes we can totally lose sight of what a non-Christian’s life is
all about. It can seem so long ago.
Illustration
I went to visit a fellow in jail last weekend. I’ve never been to a jail before. The first time I went, I stood in line with
about fifty people for 45 minutes. I was
a bit intimidated by the atmosphere. I
didn’t know what to expect. The second time I went, I stood in line for 2 ½
hours with a couple hundred people. I decided
to start talking with the folks in line with me. I simply asked them to tell me their
stories. What a different life some
people lead. What a different sense of
right and wrong.
Jesus sat where the people sat.
When He met the woman at the well in Samaria,
she was totally surprised that this Jewish Rabbi was talking to her.
(John 4:9 NKJV) Then the woman of Samaria said to Him, "How
is it that You, being a Jew, ask a drink from me, a Samaritan woman?" For
Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.
Jesus used the opportunity to tell the woman about her
Messiah.
I think one of the greatest compliments that was paid to Jesus by His
enemies was when they called Him a “friend of sinners” (Mark 2:15-17)
I think this is a key to godly ministry.
Have you sat where they sit? Can you
sympathize with the people you minister to?
3:16-27 Watchman
:16 Now it came to pass at the end of seven days that the word of the LORD
came to me, saying,
:17 "Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel;
therefore hear a word from My mouth, and give them warning from Me:
The job of a watchman was to look out for the approach of the enemy. If a
foreign army was marching on your city, the watchman’s job was to warn the city
that trouble was on the way.
For people outside the city walls, it gave them a chance to get to safety
within the city.
For those inside the city walls, it gave them a chance to close the gates
and get the city’s defenses ready.
Ezekiel’s ministry was to warn the Israelites of the trouble ahead.
:18 "When I say to the wicked, 'You shall surely die,' and you give
him no warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his
life, that same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood I will
require at your hand.
:19 "Yet, if you warn the wicked, and he does not turn from his
wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but you have
delivered your soul.
God has warnings He wants to give to people.
It’s the watchman’s job to pass the warnings on. It’s not the watchman’s
job to make the people pay attention and repent.
But if the watchman never passes the message on, then God will get serious
with the watchman. The watchman carries
a sense of responsibility for the people he’s to warn.
:20 "Again, when a righteous man turns from his righteousness and
commits iniquity, and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die; because
you did not give him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteousness
which he has done shall not be remembered; but his blood I will require at your
hand.
:21 "Nevertheless if you warn the righteous man that the righteous
should not sin, and he does not sin, he shall surely live because he took
warning; also you will have delivered your soul."
Wicked people aren’t the only ones who need to be warned. Righteous people need to be warned or
reminded to stay close to the Lord.
3:22-27 Speaking and
not speaking
:22 Then the hand of the LORD was upon me there, and He said to me,
"Arise, go out into the plain, and there I shall talk with you."
:23 So I arose and went out into the plain, and behold, the glory of the
LORD stood there, like the glory which I saw by the River Chebar; and I fell on
my face.
:24 Then the Spirit entered me and set me on my feet, and spoke with me and
said to me: "Go, shut yourself inside your house.
:25 "And you, O son of man, surely they will put ropes on you and bind
you with them, so that you cannot go out among them.
Ezekiel would have times when he would be under house arrest. Very similar
to what Jeremiah faced. People don’t like hearing the truth.
: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.
:27 "But when I speak with you, I will open your mouth, and you shall
say to them, 'Thus says the Lord GOD.' He who hears, let him hear; and he who
refuses, let him refuse; for they are a rebellious house.
Lesson
Choice words
God isn’t going to let Ezekiel rebuke them with Ezekiel’s own words.
Ezekiel would only be speaking when God has given him something to say.
It would make life a lot easier if you could find someone who only spoke
what God spoke. But the truth is that when God uses a person to speak, often
that person will have plenty of their own things to share as well.
We need to learn to discern, to learn to recognize when God is speaking and
when it’s simply the donkey speaking.
(Prov 10:19 NKJV) In the multitude of words sin is not lacking,
But he who restrains his lips is wise.
Illustration
There’s a commercial on TV where a husband is sitting at the kitchen
counter reading his newspaper. The wife
walks in behind him and asks, “Does this dress make me look fat?” Without turning around or even paying
attention to what his wife has just asked, the man says, “Absolutely!”
Oops.
I wish sometimes God would shut my mouth so I wouldn’t say some of the
stupid things I say to hurt others.
Ezekiel 4 -
Ezekiel reports on the siege of Jerusalem
:1-3 Modeling the siege
:1 "You also, son of man, take a clay tablet and lay it before you,
and portray on it a city, Jerusalem.
clay tablet – the Hebrew word could refer to a tile of soft clay
that you could write on, or to a large sun-baked brick, the kind used in
building the city of Babylon.
Ezekiel was to draw a picture of Jerusalem
on the tablet.
Ezekiel is going to give a sort of “report” of the things that would soon
be going on in Jerusalem (Jer.
52:4-11)
:2 "Lay siege against it, build a siege wall against it, and heap up a
mound against it; set camps against it also, and place battering rams against
it all around.
siege wall – KJV
says “fort”, it’s a siege tower, used to breach the walls of a city.
mound – an earthen ramp up to the top of the city walls
Did you ever play with those little green army men when you were a kid? That’s the idea here. Ezekiel is building a
model of what is happening in Jerusalem.
:3 "Moreover take for yourself an iron plate, and set it as an iron
wall between you and the city. Set your face against it, and it shall be besieged,
and you shall lay siege against it. This will be a sign to the house of Israel.
iron plate – Ezekiel was to put this iron plate or pan between
himself and his model city. If this
brick was the model of the city, Ezekiel was the model for God. The idea would be that God’s face was set
against the city and any of their cries for help would fall on deaf ears
because they wouldn’t make it past the iron wall.
Some people use the phrase, “the heavens were brass” to refer to God not
hearing our prayers.
(Isa 59:1-2 NKJV) Behold, the Lord's hand is not shortened,
That it cannot save; Nor His ear heavy, That it cannot hear. {2} But your
iniquities have separated you from your God; And your sins have hidden His face
from you, So that He will not hear.
:4-8 The duration of the siege
:4 "Lie also on your left side, and lay the iniquity of the house of Israel
upon it. According to the number of the days that you lie on it, you shall bear
their iniquity.
During the daytime while he was prophesying, Ezekiel was to lay on his left
side for this period of time. He didn’t
stay on his side 24 hours a day because God would be asking him to do other
things as well.
:5 "For I have laid on you the years of their iniquity, according to
the number of the days, three hundred and ninety days; so you shall bear the
iniquity of the house of Israel.
Laying on the left side was the time when focus was drawn to the northern
kingdom of Israel.
390 days – this meant that for over a year Ezekiel lay on his left
side, representing 390 years of sin for the northern kingdom.
What did the 390 years mean?
It’s difficult to see what this refers to.
It doesn’t fit squarely into history in any obvious manner.
If it refers solely to the northern kingdom, the northern kingdom was only
in existence for 209 years (931-722 BC).
Perhaps it is referring to some sort of accounting that God had on the
nation as a whole in 390 years of sin.
:6 "And when you have completed them, lie again on your right side;
then you shall bear the iniquity of the house of Judah
forty days. I have laid on you a day for each year.
Laying on the right side was for the time to focus on the sins of the
southern kingdom of Judah.
Their iniquity was forty years.
Again, it is not clear just what this is referring to.
:7 "Therefore you shall set your face toward the siege of Jerusalem;
your arm shall be uncovered, and you shall prophesy against it.
:8 "And surely I will restrain you so that you cannot turn from one
side to another till you have ended the days of your siege.
restrain – literally “put ropes on”
4:9-17 Food for the siege
:9 "Also take for yourself wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and
spelt; put them into one vessel, and make bread of them for yourself. During
the number of days that you lie on your side, three hundred and ninety days,
you shall eat it.
Ezekiel was to make bread using these ingredients. There is nothing unusual about these
ingredients. They were a common part of
the Israeli diet. It’s the amount of
food that is unusual.
:10 "And your food which you eat shall be by weight, twenty shekels a
day; from time to time you shall eat it.
twenty shekels – a little less than half a pound of food. This is not the amount of the burger Ezekiel
would eat for lunch, but the total amount of food he would eat all day.
That’s one way to lose weight.
:11 "You shall also drink water by measure, one-sixth of a hin; from
time to time you shall drink.
1/6 of a hin – about 2/3 of a quart.
Ezekiel was going to learn what the people in Jerusalem
were going through with very little food and water.
:12 "And you shall eat it as barley cakes; and bake it using fuel of
human waste in their sight."
Initially God asks Ezekiel to bake his bread in an oven fueled by dried
human dung. This is the kind of thing
the people in Jerusalem would be
doing.
:13 Then the LORD said, "So shall the children of Israel
eat their defiled bread among the Gentiles, where I will drive them."
:14 So I said, "Ah, Lord GOD! Indeed I have never defiled myself from
my youth till now; I have never eaten what died of itself or was torn by
beasts, nor has abominable flesh ever come into my mouth."
Ezekiel is grossed out.
:15 Then He said to me, "See, I am giving you cow dung instead of
human waste, and you shall prepare your bread over it."
We were watching the “Into the West” miniseries and they showed the
settlers coming across the plains in covered wagons. They would pick up buffalo patties to fuel
their fires as they crossed the plains.
Burning dung mixed with straw was a common thing in the Middle
East. The fuel would burn
slowly, but it wasn’t very nice to the nose.
:16 Moreover He said to me, "Son of man, surely I will cut off the
supply of bread in Jerusalem; they
shall eat bread by weight and with anxiety, and shall drink water by measure
and with dread,
:17 "that they may lack bread and water, and be dismayed with one
another, and waste away because of their iniquity.
Lesson
Making a point
Ezekiel was teaching a lesson by his actions.
What was the lesson?
Sin is costly
Note the last phrase:
“because of their iniquity”
We may not always see it every time we sin.
God is gracious and does not always punish us immediately for our sins.
(Psa 103:10 NKJV) He has not dealt with us according to our
sins, Nor punished us according to our iniquities.
Instead, God is gracious and kind, hoping that we will turn willingly from
our sins.
(Rom 2:4 NKJV) Or do you despise the riches of His goodness,
forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you
to repentance?
(2 Pet 3:9 NKJV) 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.
God could judge the world and get it all done and over
with. But instead He chooses to wait to
give people a chance to repent.
But that doesn’t change the fact that sin is very costly.
It ruins our lives.
It ruins our families.
It affects the world we live in.
No one knows more about the cost of sin than Jesus.
He died for our sins.
(Isa 53:5 NKJV) But He was wounded for our transgressions, He
was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,
And by His stripes we are healed.