Read: Ezekiel 10:1-11:25; Hebrews 6:1-20; Psalm 105:16-36; Proverbs 27:1-2
God’s priest, the man in linen, was told to take the coals from the altar and scatter them over the city. This was just what Aaron was told to do in Leviticus 16:12. He was to put incense on the coals and bring them into the Holy of Holies and put them on the mercy seat so that he would not die. Ezekiel was seeing this same ritual happening in heaven.
Ezekiel saw the four living creatures which are before the throne in heaven which watch over the kingdoms of the earth.
The face of the eagle stands for the Roman Empire, and the Apostle John who wrote to the Church and revealed Jesus as the Son of God. The lion stands for the Assyrian Empire, and the Apostle Matthew who wrote to the Jews and revealed Jesus as the King. The cherub which is also the ox, stands for the Persian Empire and the Apostle Mark who wrote to the Romans and revealed Jesus as the Servant. The face of the man represents the Greek Empire and the Apostle Luke who wrote to the Greeks revealing Jesus as the Son of Man.
In Chapter 11, Ezekiel was taken to the temple and shown the 25 priests who he was shown in yesterday’s reading bowing down toward the east. The leaders were Jaazaniah and Pelatiah and they were responsible for the false counsel and lies they were telling the people on God’s behalf. They told the people to build houses and that the end was not near.
Ezekiel was to warn the people that everything they feared was about to happen. Judgement was coming and they would not escape. When he said this, Pelatiah died. His name means “Jehovah’s way of escape.” This was a picture that there was no hope in Jehovah saving them or giving them a way of escape.
Ezekiel fell on his face and cried out for God to save a remnant. God gave Ezekiel the promise that he would save a remnant and bring them back to their land. He would give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them. They would follow his decrees and keep his laws. Ezekiel then awoke from his vision and was brought back to the exiles in Babylon where he shared what he had seen.
In Hebrews we see that it is impossible for someone who has come to the light, eaten of the heavenly gift, and participated in the acts of the Holy Spirit, who have experienced the fruit of God’s Word and seen his miraculous powers and then fallen away, to repent. I’m not sure if this person saw all this from an unsaved position or not but it is a perfect picture of what Satan did. He was once Lucifer who had tasted all of God’s goodness in heaven and was a believer and still is a believer in God. He is just not a worshipper of God. He will never be able to repent.
He gives us a practical picture to understand this concept. Ground that often drinks in the rain will produce fruit that is useful. A heart that feeds on the Word of God and the Holy Spirit will continually produce fruit. Land that produces thorns and thistles is worthless and in danger of being cursed. A heart that produces curses and hatred will be cursed in the end and burned in the lake of fire.
In the same way, all our righteous acts and deeds will be remembered.
Lord, help us to remember that we are living for eternity.
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