Therefore, you Israelites, I will judge each of you according to your own ways, declares the Sovereign Lord. Repent! Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall. Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, people of Israel? For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign Lord. Repent and live! Ezekiel 18:30-32
Day 228 of my chronological study of the Bible with The Daily Bible® - In Chronological Order (NIV®) (available by purchase through Amazon - author F. LaGard Smith)
continues with my study of Ezekiel. My commentary* describes today's scripture reading: "[u]sing three allegories, God foretells Judah’s imminent destruction. The first allegory shows Judah as a useless vine to be burned. The second is a vitriolic attack against Judah’s unfaithfulness, portraying Judah as an adulterous wife, worse than her two sisters, Israel and Edom, and less moral than a prostitute. The third allegory, using two eagles and a vine, calls specific attention to the personal ruin of King Zedekiah."
*Smith, F. LaGard. The Daily Bible® - In Chronological Order (NIV®). Harvest House Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Several verses from this morning's reading convict me, including:
But you trusted in your beauty and used your fame to become a prostitute. You lavished your favors on anyone who passed by and your beauty became his. Ezekiel 16:15
Question for consideration: how have we taken what God has provided for us and used it for worldly gain and favor and not for God's glory?
In all your detestable practices and your prostitution you did not remember the days of your youth, when you were naked and bare, kicking about in your blood. Ezekiel 16:22
Question for consideration: how have we forgotten what God has done for us? We must remember that everything we have and all that we are is from Him alone and not of our own efforts. (See also Ezekiel 16:43)
Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned; they did not help the poor and needy. They were haughty and did detestable things before me. Therefore I did away with them as you have seen. Ezekiel 16:49-50
Question for consideration: where do I demonstrate hypocrisy - espousing love with my words but not with action (see also James 1:22-25).
God is full of grace for Judah just as He is with us as He promises a new covenant based on the blood of Christ:
“‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will deal with you as you deserve, because you have despised my oath by breaking the covenant. Yet I will remember the covenant I made with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish an everlasting covenant with you. Then you will remember your ways and be ashamed when you receive your sisters, both those who are older than you and those who are younger. I will give them to you as daughters, but not on the basis of my covenant with you. So I will establish my covenant with you, and you will know that I am the Lord. Then, when I make atonement for you for all you have done, you will remember and be ashamed and never again open your mouth because of your humiliation, declares the Sovereign Lord.’” Ezekiel 16:59-63 (see also Ezekiel 17:22-24)
Finally, just as God does not allow Judah to exonerate itself claiming God is not just because Judah is being punished for sins of those who came before them, God rightly states that each person is accountable for all of his/her own sin and we ALL sin (Ezekiel 18 and Romans 3:23).
Yet we have a God who, through the shedding of His own blood, atones for our sins and gives us freedom from the sting of sin and death.
My Prayer: Lord Jesus, You are an awesome God who loves me and who sent His Son to the cross so that I would have life - to the full! Thank You Jesus! I am not deserving of such a gift - the greatest gift of all time. I am not deserving because I know my sin continues. Please forgive me Jesus and help me overcome and turn from my towards You. Help me love You with all of my heart, soul, and mind and love others as You love me. Help me grow in my faith. Give Lisa and myself wisdom and strength. Please heal Lisa of her cancer and from the side effects of chemo. Help us lead Zach and Dustin to You Jesus and for them to choose You as their Lord and Savior. Please provide Godly friends and spouses to Zach and Dustin. Help me serve You, my family, my church, and others. Help me understand, be obedient to, and apply Your message for me today and every day.
