Ezekiel 19:10–14 (ESV) —
10 Your mother was like a vine in a vineyard
planted by the water,
fruitful and full of branches
by reason of abundant water.
11 Its strong stems became
rulers’ scepters;
it towered aloft
among the thick boughs;
it was seen in its height
with the mass of its branches.
12 But the vine was plucked up in fury,
cast down to the ground;
the east wind dried up its fruit;
they were stripped off and withered.
As for its strong stem,
fire consumed it.
13 Now it is planted in the wilderness,
in a dry and thirsty land.
14 And fire has gone out from the stem of its shoots,
has consumed its fruit,
so that there remains in it no strong stem,
no scepter for ruling.
This is a lamentation and has become a lamentation.
NOTE: There are two funeral dirges in Chapter 19. The first one probably refers to the kings, Jehoahaz (1-4), and Zedekiah (5-9), the last kings of Israel. The last dirge (10-14) is for the princes, not the cubs of the lion, but the branches of the vine. This poem laments the end of Kingship itself, and Israel's new position, a transplanted vine in the desert, languishing, with no fruit and no strong branch left. This is Israel living in Babylon.
What is the message? Cooper suggests that Israel was already spiritually dead, so its political life also was allowed to die. I can't help but think of America, which started out as a beacon of light, but now is of no spiritual usefulness. When will America politically die too?
When will God judge the world for its sin? Even now, we are still killing the unborn, we are destroying lives with deadly teaching about sex, marriage, and relationships. We have forgotten what sin is. We don't recognize shame. We glory in what should cause us shame. We have rebelled, and it would seem far worse than Israel.
When will someone sing our funeral dirge? Oh, Lord, awaken us to our sin. Have mercy on some!
PONDER:
- Do we stand up for truth or have we sold out to the culture?
PRAYER: Father, help me to witness to truth. Give me boldness to say what is right and true in a way that is gentle and respectful. I don't want to shrink back.
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