Good News and Bad News

18 The word of the Lord came to me again: 19 “As for you, son of man, mark two ways for the sword of the king of Babylon to come. Both of them shall come from the same land. And make a signpost; make it at the head of the way to a city. 20 Mark a way for the sword to come to Rabbah of the Ammonites and to Judah, into Jerusalem the fortified. 21 For the king of Babylon stands at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination. He shakes the arrows; he consults the teraphim; he looks at the liver. 22 Into his right hand comes the divination for Jerusalem, to set battering rams, to open the mouth with murder, to lift up the voice with shouting, to set battering rams against the gates, to cast up mounds, to build siege towers. 23 But to them it will seem like a false divination. They have sworn solemn oaths, but he brings their guilt to remembrance, that they may be taken.

24 “Therefore thus says the Lord God: Because you have made your guilt to be remembered, in that your transgressions are uncovered, so that in all your deeds your sins appear—because you have come to remembrance, you shall be taken in hand. 25 And you, O profane wicked one, prince of Israel, whose day has come, the time of your final punishment, 26 thus says the Lord God: Remove the turban and take off the crown. Things shall not remain as they are. Exalt that which is low, and bring low that which is exalted. 27 A ruin, ruin, ruin I will make it. This also shall not be, until he comes, the one to whom judgment belongs, and I will give it to him.

28 “And you, son of man, prophesy, and say, Thus says the Lord God concerning the Ammonites and concerning their reproach; say, A sword, a sword is drawn for the slaughter. It is polished to consume and to flash like lightning— 29 while they see for you false visions, while they divine lies for you—to place you on the necks of the profane wicked, whose day has come, the time of their final punishment. 30 Return it to its sheath. In the place where you were created, in the land of your origin, I will judge you. 31 And I will pour out my indignation upon you; I will blow upon you with the fire of my wrath, and I will deliver you into the hands of brutish men, skillful to destroy. 32 You shall be fuel for the fire. Your blood shall be in the midst of the land. You shall be no more remembered, for I the Lord have spoken.” – Ezekiel 21:18-32 ESV

Once again, God orders Ezekiel to illustrate His message through the use of performance art. To better illustrate the coming Babylonian invasion, Ezekiel must produce a two-dimensional map for the people to see. Perhaps he used the model of the city of Jerusalem that he created earlier and simply added a few pertinent details. But the goal was to show that the Babylonians would enter the land of Palestine somewhere in the north, near the city of Damascus. At that point, Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, will use divination in order to determine whether to attack Jerusalem, the capital city of Judah or send his troops to Rabbah, the capital city of Ammon.

The king of Babylon now stands at the fork, uncertain whether to attack Jerusalem or Rabbah. He calls his magicians to look for omens. They cast lots by shaking arrows from the quiver. They inspect the livers of animal sacrifices. – Ezekiel 21:21 NLT

This pagan king will utilize belomancy to determine his military strategy. This involved inscribing different names on the shafts of arrows and then placing the arrows in a quiver. Then an arrow was drawn out at random and whichever name was on that arrow indicated the god’s decision. In this case, the name on the arrow will be “Jerusalem.” But this will not be the work of a false god, but the sovereign will of Yahweh. He will determine the destination of the Babylonians.

The omen in his right hand says, ‘Jerusalem!’ With battering rams his soldiers will go against the gates, shouting for the kill. They will put up siege towers and build ramps against the walls. – Ezekiel 21:22 NLT

As the book of Proverbs states, “The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the LORD” (Proverbs 16:33 BSB). Despite the efforts of the Babylonian magicians, it will be God Almighty who determines Nebuchadnezzar’s actions.

But when the people living in Jerusalem hear that the Babylonians are headed their way, they will view this as a false omen. Nebuchadnezzar must have chosen the wrong arrow. Surely God would have preferred Ammon as the target of the Babylonian hordes. Not only had the Ammonites rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar’s rule just as the Judahites had, but they were godless and wicked. They deserved to be destroyed. The leaders of Jerusalem still believed that they were somehow immune from God’s wrath because they were His chosen people. But they were wrong, and God was about to give them a not-so-gentle wake-up call. 

…the king of Babylon will remind the people of their rebellion. Then he will attack and capture them. – Ezekiel 21:23 NLT

And God gave King Zedekiah a foreboding message concerning his fate.

“Take off your jeweled crown,
    for the old order changes.
Now the lowly will be exalted,
    and the mighty will be brought down.
Destruction! Destruction!
    I will surely destroy the kingdom.
And it will not be restored until the one appears
    who has the right to judge it.
Then I will hand it over to him.” – Ezekiel 21:26-27 NLT

And once Nebuchadnezzar has completed God’s plans for Judah and Jerusalem, he will be free to turn his attention to the Ammonites.

“And now, son of man, prophesy concerning the Ammonites and their mockery. Give them this message from the Sovereign Lord:

“A sword, a sword
    is drawn for your slaughter.” – Ezekiel 21:28 NLT

But even in the midst of all the doom and gloom, there is a message of hope for the future. God hints about the future restoration of Judah. Look closely at verse 27:

“I will surely destroy the kingdom.
And it will not be restored until the one appears
    who has the right to judge it.” – Ezekiel 21:27 NLT

Over and over again the prophet delivers messages from God regarding the sins of the people and the coming destruction. But occasionally God gives a glimpse of future hope. He lets them in on the secret that there is good news ahead. There is a brighter future on the horizon. He will not remain angry forever. And His destruction will not be complete or permanent. He will keep His covenant promise. In verse 27 we get a glimmer of light in the midst of all the darkness and gloom. Yes, destruction is coming. God is going to destroy the kingdom of Judah. And it will remain in a state of destruction and devastation for many years. But there is a day coming when He will restore the nation of Judah and the people of God. With the death of Zedekiah, the reign of the kings of Judah comes to an end. There would be no more kings sitting on the throne of David. Even now, there is no king in Israel. But God is not done. His plan is not yet complete. God tells Ezekiel that there is a day coming when He will turn over the kingdom to one "who has the right to judge it."

We are told of this coming king in the book of Isaiah.

For a child is born to us,
    a son is given to us.
The government will rest on his shoulders.
    And he will be called:
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
    Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
His government and its peace
    will never end.
He will rule with fairness and justice from the throne of his ancestor David
    for all eternity.
The passionate commitment of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies
    will make this happen! – Isaiah 9:6-7 NLT

The prophet Jeremiah was told about this coming king as well.

“For the time is coming,”
    says the Lord,
“when I will raise up a righteous descendant
    from King David’s line.
He will be a King who rules with wisdom.
    He will do what is just and right throughout the land.
And this will be his name:
    ‘The Lord Is Our Righteousness.’
In that day Judah will be saved,
    and Israel will live in safety.” – Jeremiah 23:5-6 NLT

The bad news came with some very good news. God had a plan for His people. He was not done with Israel. Even now, God’s future plan remains unfulfilled but fully in place. They are a nation, but they do not have a king. They have no temple. There is no sacrificial system to atone for their sins. They have no priesthood. But there is a day coming when God will provide them with a ruler who will serve as their priest and king. He will rule and reign in righteousness. He will reestablish the throne of David and rule in Jerusalem with total power and complete righteousness. He is the King of kings and the Lord of lords, the Messiah, Jesus the Son of God.

But long before the true King of Israel appears, the nation would have to face the righteous judgment of God. Their guilt would have to be condemned and their sins atoned for – until the Son of Righteousness appears.

“Therefore, this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Again and again you remind me of your sin and your guilt. You don’t even try to hide it! In everything you do, your sins are obvious for all to see. So now the time of your punishment has come!” – Ezekiel 21:24 NLT

But the good news is that their time of restoration is still yet to come. God is not done. His promises concerning Israel are yet to be fulfilled. But they will be.

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

From Retribution to Restoration

27 “Therefore, son of man, speak to the house of Israel and say to them, Thus says the Lord God: In this also your fathers blasphemed me, by dealing treacherously with me. 28 For when I had brought them into the land that I swore to give them, then wherever they saw any high hill or any leafy tree, there they offered their sacrifices and there they presented the provocation of their offering; there they sent up their pleasing aromas, and there they poured out their drink offerings. 29 (I said to them, ‘What is the high place to which you go?’ So its name is called Bamah to this day.)

30 “Therefore say to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord God: Will you defile yourselves after the manner of your fathers and go whoring after their detestable things? 31 When you present your gifts and offer up your children in fire, you defile yourselves with all your idols to this day. And shall I be inquired of by you, O house of Israel? As I live, declares the Lord God, I will not be inquired of by you.

32 “What is in your mind shall never happen—the thought, ‘Let us be like the nations, like the tribes of the countries, and worship wood and stone.’

33 “As I live, declares the Lord God, surely with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm and with wrath poured out I will be king over you. 34 I will bring you out from the peoples and gather you out of the countries where you are scattered, with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, and with wrath poured out. 35 And I will bring you into the wilderness of the peoples, and there I will enter into judgment with you face to face. 36 As I entered into judgment with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so I will enter into judgment with you, declares the Lord God. 37 I will make you pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant. 38 I will purge out the rebels from among you, and those who transgress against me. I will bring them out of the land where they sojourn, but they shall not enter the land of Israel. Then you will know that I am the Lord.

39 “As for you, O house of Israel, thus says the Lord God: Go serve every one of you his idols, now and hereafter, if you will not listen to me; but my holy name you shall no more profane with your gifts and your idols.

40 “For on my holy mountain, the mountain height of Israel, declares the Lord God, there all the house of Israel, all of them, shall serve me in the land. There I will accept them, and there I will require your contributions and the choicest of your gifts, with all your sacred offerings. 41 As a pleasing aroma I will accept you, when I bring you out from the peoples and gather you out of the countries where you have been scattered. And I will manifest my holiness among you in the sight of the nations. 42 And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I bring you into the land of Israel, the country that I swore to give to your fathers. 43 And there you shall remember your ways and all your deeds with which you have defiled yourselves, and you shall loathe yourselves for all the evils that you have committed. 44 And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I deal with you for my name's sake, not according to your evil ways, nor according to your corrupt deeds, O house of Israel, declares the Lord God.” – Ezekiel 20:27-44 NLT

God goes on to reveal that, even after the second generation of Israelites successfully conquered the land of Canaan and established it as their homeland, their apostasy continued. He helped them to defeat their enemies and provided them with cities and homes to live in that they didn’t have to build. He blessed them with vineyards and fields they neither tilled nor planted. And yet, despite God’s gracious provision of their promised inheritance, they continued to blaspheme and betray Him.

“…for when I brought them into the land I had promised them, they offered sacrifices on every high hill and under every green tree they saw! They roused my fury as they offered up sacrifices to their gods. They brought their perfumes and incense and poured out their liquid offerings to them.” – Ezekiel 20:18 NLT

The delegation of Jewish dignitaries who had come to Ezekiel’s home had been hoping that the prophet would provide them with a positive message from Yahweh. They were of the mistaken opinion that God’s intentions to punish Judah was undeserved and, therefore, unjust. In their minds, God was punishing the wrong people. They truly believed that God was acting unfairly by visiting the sins of the fathers upon the children, and they were hoping Ezekiel would intercede on their behalf and get God to change His mind. But God was adamant in declaring their culpability and guilt.

“Do you intend to keep prostituting yourselves by worshiping vile images? For when you offer gifts to them and give your little children to be burned as sacrifices, you continue to pollute yourselves with idols to this day. Should I allow you to ask for a message from me, O people of Israel? As surely as I live, says the Sovereign Lord, I will tell you nothing.” – Ezekiel 20:30-31 NLT

They were far from innocent. In fact, their sins were actually worse than those of their forefathers. Their idolatrous behavior had degraded to the point that they were actually offering up their own children as blood sacrifices to their false gods. The prophet, Jeremiah, a contemporary of Ezekiel, had declared God’s disdain for this pagan and perverse practice.

“The people of Judah have sinned before my very eyes,” says the Lord. “They have set up their abominable idols right in the Temple that bears my name, defiling it. They have built pagan shrines at Topheth, the garbage dump in the valley of Ben-Hinnom, and there they burn their sons and daughters in the fire. I have never commanded such a horrible deed; it never even crossed my mind to command such a thing!” – Jeremiah 7:30-31 NLT

Just like the northern kingdom of Israel, the southern kingdom of Judah was guilty of embracing the false gods of the nations who surrounded them. And, according to God, this was a premeditated and calculated plan on their part. They willingly and wholeheartedly embrace the gods of their enemies in the hopes that they could provide them with an added measure of protection and provision.

“You say, ‘We want to be like the nations all around us, who serve idols of wood and stone.’ But what you have in mind will never happen. As surely as I live, says the Sovereign Lord, I will rule over you with an iron fist in great anger and with awesome power.” – Ezekiel 20:32-33 NLT

But God was not going to allow them to continue their pattern of spiritual adultery. He was no longer willing to tolerate their wandering eyes and unfaithful hearts. So, He had Ezekiel tell them the devastating news of a coming judgment that would include the exiles living in the land of Babylon.

“I will judge you there just as I did your ancestors in the wilderness after bringing them out of Egypt, says the Sovereign Lord. I will examine you carefully and hold you to the terms of the covenant. I will purge you of all those who rebel and revolt against me. I will bring them out of the countries where they are in exile, but they will never enter the land of Israel. Then you will know that I am the Lord.” – Ezekiel 20:36-38 NLT

Even those living in captivity in Babylon would have to face the music because they were no less guilty of apostasy. In an attempt to acclimate to their new surroundings, many of them had chosen to embrace the gods of Babylon. Believing that Yahweh had abandoned them, the exiles decided to try their luck with the gods of their captors, and there was no shortage of options. The Babylonians worshiped a veritable pantheon of deities that included Ishtar, Nabu, Apshu, Shamash, Ea, Tiamat, Nergal, Marduk, and Adad. To the exiled Jews, it appeared as if these pagan gods had provided Babylon with unprecedented success over their enemies, so it only made sense to test their effectiveness. But like their counterparts in Judah, they were going to discover the painful lesson that their false gods were powerless to deliver them from the coming judgment of Yahweh.

“Go right ahead and worship your idols, but sooner or later you will obey me and will stop bringing shame on my holy name by worshiping idols.” – Ezekiel 20:39 NLT

God reveals His plan for the future restoration of the nation of Israel. He predicts a day when their idolatry will come to an end, but it will only take place after their judgment and with the advent of a new covenant.

“The day is coming,” says the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah. This covenant will not be like the one I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand and brought them out of the land of Egypt. They broke that covenant, though I loved them as a husband loves his wife,” says the Lord. – Jeremiah 31:31-32 NLT

And later in the book of Ezekiel, God describes what He will do to make this new covenant possible.

“Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. Your filth will be washed away, and you will no longer worship idols. And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart. And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations.” – Ezekiel 36:25-27 NLT

God makes it painfully clear that there will be retribution for their idolatry, but He also promised a time of restoration and renewal.

“For on my holy mountain, the great mountain of Israel, says the Sovereign Lord, the people of Israel will someday worship me, and I will accept them. There I will require that you bring me all your offerings and choice gifts and sacrifices.” – Ezekiel 20:40 NLT

The fulfillment of this prophecy has not yet been fully realized. While Israel has been restored as a nation, it does not enjoy unbroken fellowship with Yahweh. There is no temple in Jerusalem, so there is no means for offering sacrifices to God. There is no king sitting on the throne of David, ruling in righteousness over God’s redeemed and restored people. But the day is coming when all those things will come about. And when they do, God says, “You will look back on all the ways you defiled yourselves and will hate yourselves because of the evil you have done. You will know that I am the Lord, O people of Israel, when I have honored my name by treating you mercifully in spite of your wickedness. I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken” (Ezekiel 20:43-44 NLT).

God will do for them what they were unwilling and incapable of doing for themselves. He will restore and reestablish them as His chosen people and revitalize their affection for Him. Centuries will pass and their apostasy will continue. But God will be faithful to keep His covenant promises and restore His people to their rightful place as His sons and daughters. 

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Faithful God of Israel.

Romans 11:1-24

You, by nature, were a branch cut from a wild olive tree. So if God was willing to do something contrary to nature by grafting you into his cultivated tree, he will be far more eager to graft the original branches back into the tree where they belong. – Romans 11:24 NLT

When reading the book of Romans, especially chapters nine through 11, it is easy to make it all about Jew and Gentile. God, it appears, has rejected one and received the other. But while Paul talks a great deal about these two specific people groups, the real hero of the story is God Himself. Paul has emphasized over and over again the sovereignty and grace of God. He has highlighted God's undeserved grace and mercy, and made clear the fact that no one, either Jew or Gentile, can earn a right relationship with God. Whether speaking of the nation of Israel or the Gentile nations, it is God who calls, chooses, redeems, restores, and even rejects. But Paul makes it clear that God has NOT rejected the people of Israel. "I ask, then, has God rejected his own people, the nation of Israel? Of course not! I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham and a member of the tribe of Benjamin" (Romans 11:1 NLT). Paul himself was a Jew and he most certainly had not been rejected by God. He had been chosen by God and had had a life-transforming encounter with Jesus Christ. He was a living example of the fact that God had not completely rejected the people of Israel. Paul reminds his readers that God has been carefully and faithfully sparing a remnant of His chosen people for generations. "…a few of the people of Israel have remained faithful because of God’s grace — his undeserved kindness in choosing them. And since it is through God’s kindness, then it is not by their good works. For in that case, God’s grace would not be what it really is — free and undeserved" (Romans 11:5-6 NLT). As it was with the Gentiles, so it would be with the Jews. A right relationship with God was to be solely based on grace, not works or effort. No one was going to earn their way into good favor with God, not even the people of God, the Jews.

As a result, a majority of the Jews had failed to be restored to God. Unwilling to believe that salvation was available through the death of a single man, they continued to pursue a right relationship with God through attempting to keep the law – a pursuit that Paul considered foolish and impossible. But Paul explains that the rebellion of the people of Israel and their rejection of God had a divine purpose. "Most of the people of Israel have not found the favor of God they are looking for so earnestly. A few have — the ones God has chosen — but the hearts of the rest were hardened. As the Scriptures say, 'God has put them into a deep sleep. To this day he has shut their eyes so they do not see, and closed their ears so they do not hear'" (Romans 11:7-8 NLT). According to Paul, this was all God's doing. But why? What was His purpose in hardening their hearts, shutting their eyes, and closing their ears? "God made salvation available to the Gentiles" (Romans 11:11 NLT). That was the purpose. Their rejection of Jesus as their Messiah and Savior opened the doors to the Gentiles. This had always been part of God's plan. Even long before the moment God made His promise to Abraham to bless all the nations of the earth through him, He had planned make His grace and the gift of His Son available to all nations. And He would use the rejection of Jesus by the Jews as a springboard to for spreading the Good News of Jesus Christ to all the nations. Jesus, a Jew, would be the Savior of all the nations, not just His own people. And yet, God did not completely abandon the people of Israel. As Paul writes, they had not fallen beyond recovery. Their disobedience made salvation available to the Gentiles. But the day is coming when many of Paul's Jewish brothers and sisters will turn to Christ. "For since their rejection meant that God offered salvation to the rest of the world, their acceptance will be even more wonderful. It will be life for those who were dead!" (Romans 11:15 NLT). Why? Because of the faithfulness and mercy of God. He is not done with the people of Israel. He will spare and restore a remnant of the Jewish people, using the Gentiles as a means to create jealousy among them. In all of this, Paul can see the divine hand of God, working behind the scenes in ways we can't understand. God chose to make the Israelites a special people in His eyes. He raised up the Savior from among them, but they ended up rejecting Him. But their rejection of the Messiah made possible the spread of the Gospel to the Gentiles. And the blessings of God upon the Gentiles who received Christ as their Savior would be the impetus behind the future salvation of many Jews. And the day is coming when the salvation of the Jews will lead to even more Gentiles coming to faith in Christ. This whole section is really about the faithfulness and sovereignty of God. It is about His divine plan for mankind and how He intends to fulfill that plan and keep His promises to both the Jews and the Gentiles.

We cannot fully understand the ways of God. But it is dangerous for us to question His methods or means. We may not understand what God is doing, but we have no right to doubt His plan or purposes. He knows what He is doing. We can trust that He will do what He has promised and complete what He has begun. We have a limited, short-term perspective. He is eternal and has a long-term view that knows how all this works out in the end. There is a method to God's seeming madness. He is purposeful and faithful. He is righteous and just. His ways are not our ways. His wisdom is beyond our understanding. But we can rest in the fact that God has everything under control and nothing can prevent His sovereign plan from one day coming to complete and perfect fruition.

Father, You are in control. You are sovereign and have all things held firmly in Your hands. That includes my future and the future of the people of Israel. You are faithful and always keep Your promises. You never go back on Your word or fail to do what You have said You will do. Thank You for allowing me to be a part of Your plan. Not because I deserved it, but because of Your grace and mercy. Thank You that You are going to one day restore the people of Israel. You are not done yet. Your work is not complete. But one day it will be. And I rest in the assurance that You are in complete control, whether I can see it or sense it. Amen.