QT 8/7/2023 Ezek 25:1-7, Judgment is coming for all peoples

Ezekiel 25:1–7 (ESV) —

1 The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, set your face toward the Ammonites and prophesy against them. 3 Say to the Ammonites, Hear the word of the Lord God: Thus says the Lord God, Because you said, ‘Aha!’ over my sanctuary when it was profaned, and over the land of Israel when it was made desolate, and over the house of Judah when they went into exile, 4 therefore behold, I am handing you over to the people of the East for a possession, and they shall set their encampments among you and make their dwellings in your midst. They shall eat your fruit, and they shall drink your milk. 5 I will make Rabbah a pasture for camels and Ammon a fold for flocks. Then you will know that I am the Lord. 6 For thus says the Lord God: Because you have clapped your hands and stamped your feet and rejoiced with all the malice within your soul against the land of Israel, 7 therefore, behold, I have stretched out my hand against you, and will hand you over as plunder to the nations. And I will cut you off from the peoples and will make you perish out of the countries; I will destroy you. Then you will know that I am the Lord.

 

NOTE: So begins the prophecies against Israel's neighbors. The first is against Ammon. All the nations were guilty of much of the same sins as Israel, since Israel was copying the culture of the time. The difference is that Israel had the truth and should have known better. I think these passages are a reminder to the world that we too will be judged for our sins. And while the church is not Israel, we too know better. We must evaluate the cultural norms against scripture. There is no wiggle room in most areas, especially sexual and marital. God's word is very clear where it needs to be. My job is to communicate truth in a gentle and respectful manner. I must not shrink back on truth. The goal is NOT that people change their views, although that would be nice, but that people hear the truth. My job is to scatter seed and to prepare the ground (to a degree) -- it is God who causes the seed to germinate through the work of the Holy Spirit.

 

PONDER:

1. What am I doing to scatter truth, to share the word?

 

PRAYER: Lord, I know my new job (retirement) and it is taking a while to settle in. There are so many new routines. I feel very busy but not overwhelmed. For my application, I want to set up a day to volunteer at the shelter. I need to be about your business.