“And yet God reveals His attributes through his judgments, just as much as He does through his blessings. And sometimes his judgments get our attention much more quickly.” Warren Wiersbe

I have finally made the way to chapters 29-30 in my study of Ezekiel. Once again these two chapters paint a serious picture of what God has to say about sin. Ezekiel 29-30 focuses specifically on God's judgments against Egypt because of their sin (pride.) The Pharaoh of Egypt had taken credit for all the good that had happened (the success of their country) and all he had done. He attributed all of these blessing as results of his own doing. The Lord’s response to that? The Lord promised to bring him to a place of complete humiliation. Ezekiel uses words such as: destroy, make desolate, set fire, pour fury, cut off, etc. to describe what would take place to Egypt because of their sin.

These chapters create a sobering reminder that sin has a price that must be paid. A hard truth that God hates sin. Like flashing warning signs of danger that lies ahead, these chapters give us insight of the progress of sin and its results. Once it has conceived and given birth, it grows and eventually leads to death. Sin causes destruction and devastation and damage far beyond our ability to understand. This sin goes against everything in the nature of a holy and perfect God who stands over all of creation. And God has a strong message to say about sin and what he thinks about proud people.

I got to thinking about these chapters and was feeling overwhelmed with it all...with sin. my own sin. my own cycles. What God says about my pride. And I was asking the question- so where is the gospel in Ezekiel 29 and 30? Where is the hope? Is this it? Are we all to be smoten and left to die on rocks? Is it over? Are the cycles undefeatable and the sin too much? Am I just left here to weep and weep because no one could open the scrolls? Because left to me- there is NO HOPE for ever fixing any of this.

In all of these emotions of reading about the Lord’s judgments to Egypt being likened to a terrible storm that is coming on the people, my thoughts are brought back to Ezekiel chapter 1. Ezekiel has just had his first vision of the glory of the Lord and is about to receive his calling that would change his life and cost him everything. And in the middle of this vision- a rainbow appears. A rainbow? Yes. Noah saw a rainbow after the storm (Genesis), John sees a rainbow before the storm (Revelation), and Ezekiel sees a rainbow in the middle of the storm. A stunning reminder of hope that God’s promises never fail. His promises hold fast before life’s storms hit, in the middle of the wind and rain pounding, and when we are walking out of them. This rainbow reminded me of the greatest promise God made- a promise of a Messiah that would come and put all things back together. A Messiah greater than the cycles of sin and defeat. Someone who could look at even all of this sin in Ezekiel 29 and 20 and say “It is finished. It is paid in full.”

The Messiah represented in 1 Peter 3 and Romans 6.
1 Peter 3:18- For Christ also suffered once for sin, the righteous for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit...
Romans 6:10 (message version)- When Jesus died, he took sin down with him, but alive he brings God down to us.

Yes. Once again the gospel is found in Ezekiel. Once again Christ is more than enough. Once again Christ stands as the Lion who has conquered. And this Lamb who was slain- once for all, that we might have communion with the Father because of his atonement for our sins- this Lamb can conquer any cycle of pride and defeat and sin. Yes- a price must be paid. May Ezekiel 29 and 30 once again lead us to worship because of the work on the Cross. May it cause us to repent often, pursue holiness, hate sin, and trust only in the Cross of Christ.

Everything we are not

“When you read secular or sacred history, you soon discover that people become like their leaders. The same people who applauded Solomon when he built the temple also applauded Jeroboam when he set up the golden calves and instituted a new religion.” Warren Wiersbe

I have been reading through the book of Ezekiel- a heart breaking, heavy, beautiful, book of the Old Testament. I’ll admit- I had my doubts about what Ezekiel would teach me when I started making my way through it a few weeks ago. Today- I arrived at chapter 19- and amidst chapters of judgment and doom I have found myself surprisingly overwhelmed in unexpected places by the immensity of the gospel message in this “hidden treasure” of a story we so easily pass by.

In chapter 19, you find Ezekiel once again painting a picture for the leaders of Jerusalem by using imagery to make a point. Much like the way Jesus used parables in the gospels, Ezekiel began comparing the nation to two things: a lioness and a wine.The people’s rebellion- their hands clinging to idolatry and rebellion, their faces turned away from the Lord, had turned to other people, other nations to save them. Chapter after chapter of Ezekiel paints this heartbreaking picture of the people’s rebellion against the covenant they had made in Deuteronomy with the Lord.

In their rebellion Israel was like “a fruitful vine which had produced many kings who rebelled against God and was now being punished by being transplanted to Babylon….from ‘many waters’ to a ‘desert’.”

Had the nation of Israel obeyed the Lord, it would have become and remained a mighty lion and a fruitful vine that would have brought glory to the name of the Lord. And while they refused to keep their end of the covenant, the Lord kept his---which meant He loved them enough to chasten and discipline them and allow them to be scattered.I was reading this chapter thinking about how much Israel had failed the Lord. And to be honest, it was getting a little frustrating reading chapter after chapter of their rebellion (maybe it just sounded so much like me?) And then I got to the end of chapter 19----and the gospel completely blew me away.

The people- a failure of a lion.

Jesus Christ- the Lion of the Tribe of Judah

“ And one of the elders said to me, "Weep no more; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the scroll and its seven seals." (Revelation 5:5)

The people- a worthless vine.

Jesus Christ- the true vine

"I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser." (John 15)

The people- a failure at being a witness to the Gentiles.

Jesus Christ- a light to bring revelation to the Gentiles (Luke 2:32)

Everything the people were not and could not be- Jesus Christ was perfectly.

To me Ezekiel 19 was another reminder of the utter depravity of man and the greatness of the gospel.Romans 5:20 says that where sin abounds, grace abounds MUCH MORE.As I read the pages of this book, I am blown away by how big our God is, how great His grace is, how loving He is, how holy and awesome and just He is- how PERFECT and SOVEREIGN and GOOD this majestic Lord who sits on the throne of Heaven is. And when people come into contact with His glory and goodness the response to this is always the same- worship.

Yes. Yes. Yes. May Ezekiel 19 lead us to worship this King of Kings. The Lion of the Tribe of Judah has conquered. To Him be glory forever! Amen.