Thurs.’s Devo - God’s Warnings

Read: Ezekiel 3:16-6:14; Hebrews 4:1-16; Psalm 104:24-35; Proverbs 26:27 God gave Ezekiel a stern warning. When God gives him a word of warning to the people,, he must give it. If he didn’t, then the consequences of what God meant for them would fall on him. If a righteous person turned away from the Lord and followed the path of unrighteousness, they would die in their sins if Ezekiel didn’t warn them. But if they are warned and turn away from their sins, then Ezekiel not only saved them but he saved himself. As a priest, he stood as a representation of the people. *** God told Ezekiel to go to the valley and he saw the same vision he had seen by the Kebar River. He fell to the ground again and the Spirit had to come and stand him up. He told him to go home and shut the door. He would be tied with ropes and so he couldn’t go out among the people. He would also be made unable to talk until God loosens his tongue. He was to tell the people that this is what God says, “Those who choose to listen will listen, but those who refuse will refuse, for they are rebels.” *** Then he was told to take a large clay brick and draw a map of the city of Jerusalem on it. He was to build a wall around it and set up the enemy camp around the city with siege ramps and battering rams. He was to depict the siege that would happen against Jerusalem. It would be a visual for the people. *** Ezekiel was then to lie on his left did and place the sins of Israel on himself. He would bear their sins for 390 days - one day for every year of Israel’s sins then on his right side 40 days - one day for every year of Judah’s sins. Also, God would tie him with ropes so he wouldn’t be able to turn until the time was complete. *** Before he did all of this, he was to make great out of God’s ingredients and ration them out for the days he would be lying tied up. He was to bake his bread with the dung of humans. Ezekiel asked God to please let not use defiling human dung so he let him use cow dung instead. He was also to measure out water to drink drop by drop. This was to be a picture to the people for what was coming to make them want to repent. *** After all this he was to shave his head and beard and divide the hair into equal parts. After playing out the siege, he was to put a third of the hair in the center of his map of Jerusalem and burn it. He was to scatter the next third across his map and chop it with a sword then he was to scatter the last third to the wind. They represented what would happen to the people. *** God had placed Jerusalem at the center of the nations but she had rebelled and become more wicked than the other nations, refusing to obey his regulations and decrees. This is what would happen to them because they sinned. God would become their enemy. He would punish them with wild animals, disease, war and famine. *** Ezekiel was told to go to the mountains and proclaim to the mountains, hills, ravines, and valleys that war was coming that would bring down all their pagan shrines. He begged them to cry out to the Lord because of their sins,. God’s fury was coning and when it was over they would know that there is a god in heaven. Hebrews reminds us that there is a rest remaining for us to experience. God’s people had refused to enter into it because they had no faith. It takes faith to enter into this rest. The time God set is the seventh day which we have just entered. In this rest, we stop laboring and rest in the Lord. That takes much faith to stop trying to make things happen. God’s word is alive and still working and will bring about God’s plan in his timing. *** Jesus, thank you for being our High Priest. Thank you that you understands all our weaknesses and pray and intercede on our behalf. Help us to faithfully enter into your rest and remain in your peace.