Ezekiel 2-3 I’m Sending You
Ezekiel has just had an AMAZING vision. He is on his face before the Lord. God’s Spirit lifts him up. “I’m sending you to the exiles” says the Lord.
God sets out the parameters of Ezekiel’s role. First, he is going to his own people. Second, they probably won’t listen or like what he has to say. And, third, it is NOT going to be an easy task.
But if Ezekiel doesn’t speak as God tells him to, those that die in their sin, never hearing His rebuke, Ezekiel will have to answer for before the Lord. There is no easy way out. No arguing with God to ‘send another’ in his place.
This says a lot about Ezekiel himself too. God knew, before He even called Ezekiel, that he was a faithful man. That faithfulness is now being put to the test, and God’s own Spirit will provide the strength needed to pass this test. Let’s join Ezekiel as he begins his new life with the Lord.
Holy Spirit, guide this journey today. Show me what You would have me take from this story. Open my heart to hear Your voice, and my imagination to see Your story unfold. And my hands to tell that story You show me.
♥ ♦ ♥
Ezekiel is lying on the ground, face first, in awe of what he is seeing. Those around him watch in fear. They cling to one another, uncertain of their next move.
Ezekiel is in a quiet place with God. He is unaware of the others who are looking on. All he sees, and all he knows is this awesome overwhelming presence of the Lord. As he lays, face first, on the ground, he hears a voice.
“Son of man, stand on your feet, and I will speak with you.” (Ezekiel 2:1).
“Stand up? How?! There is NO strength in me” thinks Ezekiel in an instant.
Even as those thoughts form and pass through Ezekiel’s mind, his body is filled with a strength beyond measure and he is lifted from the ground and placed on his own two feet. He knows, without understanding even how he knows, that this is the Spirit of the Lord giving him this strength, and bringing him into the position the Lord called him to.
Those watching Ezekiel quake with an even greater fear as Ezekiel is lifted from the ground and placed into a standing position by an unseen force. When he is fully standing, they are terrified beyond measure and flee from the presence of whatever is surrounding Ezekiel. Ezekiel is now alone with the Lord.
Ezekiel is aware that his body has shifted positions, but it matters not to him. His whole mind is focused on the voice and the vision. He listens as the voice of the Lord continues to speak to him.
“Son of man, I send you to the people of Israel, to nations of rebels, who have rebelled against me. They and their fathers have transgressed against me to this very day. The descendants also are impudent and stubborn: I send you to them, and you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God.’ And whether they hear or refuse to hear (for they are a rebellious house) they will know that a prophet has been among them. And you, son of man, be not afraid of them, nor be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns are with you and you sit on scorpions. Be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, for they are a rebellious house. And you shall speak my words to them, whether they hear or refuse to hear, for they are a rebellious house” (Ezekiel 2:3-7).
Ezekiel wonders about God’s words; His warning. “This is going to be a difficult mission” Ezekiel thinks to himself. He KNOWS that he will need more of this strength he is currently feeling to make it through what lies ahead. Before he can even begin to pray for continued strength, the Lord continues in His message.
“But you, son of man, hear what I say to you. Be not rebellious like that rebellious house; open your mouth and eat what I give you” (Ezekiel 2:8).
Ezekiel straightens his shoulders. He will NOT be rebellious. He will do exactly as God commands. While he is still committing himself to the Lord’s command, he sees a hand stretch out in front of him. There is no arm connected to this hand, only the hand and an article that it holds. In the hand is a scroll of considerable size; the size of a book.
The scroll begins unrolling, allowing Ezekiel to read much of what is written on it, as well as see that the back is also filled with writing. Ezekiel reads words filled with sorrow and mourning. Words that pierce his heart. Words that speak also of more sorrow to come.
After allowing Ezekiel to read a portion of the words written on the scroll, it is returns to its unrolled state within the hand holding it.
“Son of man, eat whatever you find here. Eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel” (Ezekiel 3:1).
Ezekiel opens his mouth to receive the scroll into it, as a baby bird does for its mother. Instead of the hand placing the scroll into Ezekiel’s mouth, the scroll is placed into his hands. He will have to make the decision to eat it. He will have to do the work required.
As Ezekiel holds the scroll in his hands, the voice of the Lord speaks again. “Son of man, feed your belly with this scroll that I give you and fill your stomach with it” (Ezekiel 3:3).
That encouragement is all it takes. Ezekiel brings the scroll to his lips and takes the first bite. As the piece he has bitten off hits his tongue, Ezekiel’s eyes widen in surprise. He has never eaten parchment before, but he is certain that it shouldn’t taste like this. The scroll melts on his tongue and is as sweet as honey. Ezekiel is surprised that the words of woe contained on the scroll are not bitter in his mouth.
Ezekiel continues to eat the scroll. It is like eating the honeycomb harvested from a pure beehive. It fills him like no other meal has ever done. He feels its strength moving through his body. Filling every part of him.
As soon as Ezekiel takes in the last morsel of the scroll, the voice of the Lord speaks to him again. “Son of man, go to the house of Israel and speak with my words to them. For you are not sent to a people of foreign speech and a hard language, but to the house of Israel— not to many peoples of foreign speech and a hard language, whose words you cannot understand. Surely, if I sent you to such, they would listen to you. But the house of Israel will not be willing to listen to you, for they are not willing to listen to me: because all the house of Israel have a hard forehead and a stubborn heart. Behold, I have made your face as hard as their faces, and your forehead as hard as their foreheads. Like emery harder than flint have I made your forehead. Fear them not, nor be dismayed at their looks, for they are a rebellious house” (Ezekiel 3:4-9).
Ezekiel hears again the Lord’s warning. “This is NOT going to be an easy task” he says to himself again. “But I WILL do as the Lord commands.”
Even as Ezekiel is making this decision within his own heart, he hears the voice of the Lord again. “Son of man, all my words that I shall speak to you receive in your heart, and hear with your ears. And go to the exiles, to your people, and speak to them and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God,’ whether they hear or refuse to hear” (Ezekiel 10-11).
Ezekiel is resolved in his own heart that he WILL do as the Lord commands. As the Spirit of the Lord is strengthening Ezekiel’s own resolve, He lifts Ezekiel from the ground where he is standing. As he is lifted into the air, Ezekiel hears what sounds like an earthquake. He can feel it into the very marrow of his bones. He is turned in time to see the source of the sound. It is originating from the movement of the wings of the four creatures. They have spread their wings and are moving up into the air. Ezekiel is rising with them. The sound becomes words; words of praise to God.
“Blessed be the glory of the Lord from its place!” (Ezekiel 3:12).
Ezekiel is carried by the Spirit of the Lord to Tel-abib. There he is deposited in a place near where the people live. The heaviness of the call of the Lord sinks into Ezekiel’s heart. The bitterness that he knows lies before him weighs on his heart. It sits right beside the strength of his conviction and a burning desire to follow the Lord’s command. Ezekiel sits where he has been deposited by the Spirit for seven days. He does not move from this place.
The exiles living in the area notice Ezekiel soon after he is deposited among them. They know who he is but not his purpose. Some try and approach him. A few even bring food and water to set before him.
Ezekiel sits mute and remote the whole time. He is overwhelmed with the enormity of what the Lord has called him to do. As he sits, occasionally his hand reaches out and brings water to his mouth almost of its own volition, but the food remains untouched.
The people watch and wait. They don’t know what else to do.
(to be continued)
God allowed Ezekiel time to sit with his calling. He doesn’t rush him into action. He knows what He is asking of Ezekiel. He knows what it will cost him, even more than Ezekiel could ever imagine. And He knows that His strength will be required for Ezekiel to complete the work He has called him to.
This reminds me of another time when God’s strength was necessary to complete the work, and time was allowed to process that call. It is the time Jesus spent praying in the garden the night before he was to be crucified. Even being God in the flesh wasn’t enough for what lay ahead. Jesus poured out His Spirit to the Father. Three times He asked for another way. Three times God remained silent as His Son struggled with the reality of what was to come. When Jesus finally said; “Not My will but Yours”, the Father ministered to Him. He sent the angels to strengthen Jesus for what lay ahead. Only by staying connected to the father’s will could Jesus endure what was to come.
Ezekiel would need that same strength in the days ahead as well. I need God’s strength in my life too. I don’t face the same challenges that Ezekiel or Jesus did, but I rely on His hands to keep me walking. To keep me from crumbling beneath the weight. To keep me reaching out for an even closer relationship with Him.
I have had times when I honestly wanted to end my life. Only through HIS strength am I here today. In the darkest times, He sustained me. He brought to my mind reasons for going on. He reminded me that “This too shall pass.” And He held me tight in the nights when all I could do was cry and curl up in His lap. There is where He touched my spirit and gave me strength for just one more day. And He held me there until I too said; “Not my will but Yours.”
THANK YOU Father God for holding me in the night. Thank You for returning to me the joy of my salvation. Thank You for strengthening me and bring music back into my life after surrendering to You. NO. Everything didn’t become perfect. But You gave me YOUR strength to carry on. You hold me up. You STILL do, even though I have walked out of those dark places. Keep me always walking with You and forever be my strength.
THANK YOU Lord Jesus for walking through that night and choosing to follow the Father’s will. You could have said “No.” But You didn’t. Even knowing what waited in the morning. That is Love beyond ALL limits. Thank You seems so inadequate, but it is all I have. That, and my love in return.
