Reflections on Ezekiel 20

Ezekiel 20 (Contemporary English Version)
1. Seven years after King Jehoiachin and the rest of us had been led away as prisoners to Babylonia, some of Israel's leaders came to me on the tenth day of the fifth month. They sat down and asked for a message from the LORD.
   
2. Just then, the LORD God said:
   
3. Ezekiel, son of man, these leaders have come to find out what I want them to do. As surely as I live, I will not give them an answer of any kind.
   
4. Are you willing to warn them, Ezekiel? Then remind them of the disgusting sins of their ancestors.
   
5. Tell them that long ago I, the LORD God, chose Israel to be my own. I appeared to their ancestors in Egypt and made a solemn promise that I would be their God and the God of their descendants.
   
6. I swore that I would rescue them from Egypt and lead them to a land I had already chosen. This land was rich with milk and honey and was the most splendid land of all.
   
7. I told them to get rid of their disgusting idols and not to sin by worshiping the gods of Egypt. I reminded them that I was the LORD their God,
   
8. but they still rebelled against me. They refused to listen and kept on worshiping their idols and foreign gods. In my anger, I decided to punish the Israelites in Egypt.
   
9. But that would have made me look like a liar, because I had already promised in front of everyone that I would lead them out of Egypt.
   
10. So I brought them out and led them into the desert.
    
11. I gave them my laws and teachings, so they would know how to live right.
    
12. And I commanded them to respect the Sabbath as a way of showing that they were holy and belonged to me.
    
13. But the Israelites rebelled against me in the desert. They refused to obey my laws and teachings, and they treated the Sabbath like any other day. Then in my anger, I decided to destroy the Israelites in the desert once and for all.
    
14. But that would have disgraced me, because many other nations had seen me bring the Israelites out of Egypt.
    
15. Instead, I told them in the desert that I would not lead them into the beautiful, fertile land I had promised.
    
16. I said this because they had not only ignored my laws and teachings, but had disgraced my Sabbath and worshiped idols.
    
17. Yet, I felt sorry for them and could not let them die in the desert.
    
18. So I warned the children not to act like their parents or follow their evil ways or worship their idols.
    
19. I reminded them that I was the LORD their God and that they should obey my laws and teachings.
    
20. I told them to respect my Sabbath to show that they were my people and that I was the LORD their God.
    
21. But the children also rebelled against me. They refused to obey my laws and teachings, and they treated the Sabbath as any other day. I became angry and decided to punish them in the desert.
    
22. But I did not. That would have disgraced me in front of the nations that had seen me bring the Israelites out of Egypt.
    
23. So I solemnly swore that I would scatter the people of Israel across the nations,
    
24. because they had disobeyed my laws and ignored my teachings; they had disgraced my Sabbath and worshiped the idols their ancestors had made.
    
25. I gave them laws that bring punishment instead of life,
    
26. and I let them offer me unacceptable sacrifices, including their first-born sons. I did this to horrify them and to let them know that I, the LORD, was punishing them.
    
27. Ezekiel, tell the people of Israel that their ancestors also rejected and insulted me
    
28. by offering sacrifices, incense, and wine to gods on every hill and under every large tree. I was very angry, because they did these things in the land I had given them!
    
29. I asked them where they went to worship those gods, and they answered, "At the local shrines." And those places of worship are still called shrines.
    
30. Then ask the Israelites why they are following the example of their wicked ancestors
    
31. by worshiping idols and by sacrificing their own children as offerings. They commit these sins and still think they can ask me for a message. As surely as I am the living LORD God, I will give them no answer.
    
32. They may think they can be like other nations and get away with worshiping idols made of wood and stone. But that will never happen!
    
33. As surely as I am the living LORD God, I will rule over you with my powerful arm. You will feel my fierce anger
    
34. and my power, when I gather you from the places where you are scattered
    
35. and lead you into a desert surrounded by nations. I will meet you there face to face. Then I will pass judgment on you
    
36. and punish you, just as I punished your ancestors in the desert near Egypt.
    
37. I will force each of you to obey the regulations of our solemn agreement.
    
38. I will separate the sinful rebels from the rest of you, and even though I will bring them from the nations where they live in exile, they won't be allowed to return to Israel. Then you will know that I am the LORD.
    
39. Go ahead and worship your idols for now, you Israelites, because soon I will no longer let you dishonor me by offering gifts to them. You will have no choice but to obey me!
    
40. When that day comes, everyone in Israel will worship me on Mount Zion, my holy mountain in Jerusalem. I will once again call you my own, and I will accept your sacred offerings and sacrifices.
    
41. When I bring you home from the places where you are now scattered, I will be pleased with you, just as I am pleased with the smell of the smoke from your sacrifices. Every nation on earth will see that I am holy,
    
42. and you will know that I, the LORD, am the one who brought you back to Israel, the land I promised your ancestors.
    
43. Then you will remember your wicked sins, and you will hate yourselves for doing such horrible things. They have made you unacceptable to me,
    
44. so you deserve to be punished. But I will treat you in a way that will bring honor to my name, and you will know that I am the LORD God.
    
45. The LORD said,
    
46. "Ezekiel, son of man, turn toward the south and warn the forests
    
47. that I, the LORD God, will start a fire that will burn up every tree, whether green or dry. Nothing will be able to put out the blaze of that fire as it spreads to the north and burns everything in its path.
    
48. Everyone will know that I started it, and that it cannot be stopped."
    
49. But I complained, "LORD God, I don't want to do that! People already say I confuse them with my messages."
    
    

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    Again the elders of Israel, who were in exile in Babylon along with Ezekiel, came to Ezekiel's house to consult the Lord. But God would not be consulted by these rebellious people. They had turned to other gods, let them go to those gods for consultation. We are not told what their question was of God but it was evidently related to God's judgment upon them that had brought them into exile and that according to Ezekiel would eventually destroy Jerusalem and the people living there. In response to their inquiry God gave them a review of their history pointing out that the judgment they had entered into was not merely a reactionary response by God to recent sins, but was centuries in coming.
    
    God took them back to their slavery in Egypt when He sovereignly chose them as a nation to be His people. At that time He made Himself known to them and swore to them, saying: "I am the LORD your God. On that day I swore to them that I would bring them out of the land of Egypt into a land I had searched out for them, a land flowing with milk and honey, the most beautiful of all lands." He also said to them, "Each of you must throw away the detestable things that are before your eyes and not defile yourselves with the idols of Egypt. I am the LORD your God." (20:5-7) Even then they were rebellious and unwilling to listen to God. Obviously God had not chosen them as His people because of their goodness. This pattern of not listening to God was repeated in the wilderness as God led them to the land of promise and also once they arrived in the new land. More than once God was inclined to judge them but relented "for the sake of My name, so that it would not be profaned in the eyes of the nations they were living among, in whose sight I had made Myself known to Israel by bringing them out of Egypt." (20:9)
    
    As verses 33 and following of chapter 20 explain, the judgment that was upon Israel in Ezekiel's day was somewhat of a replay of Israel's exodus, only under different conditions. Through her judgment at the hands of Babylon, Israel was being ejected out of her land of promise and returned to the "wilderness," scattering her among various nations. With Israel again in the wilderness God would begin a process of eliminating those who were rebellious. The picture used to describe this process is that of a shepherd holding out his rod and making the sheed pass under it in single file to be counted. Only those sheep that belonged to the fold would be allowed to pass under the rod, and in God's process of elimination, those who had a rebellious heart would be eliminated.
    
    Following God's process of elimination He will form a new covenant with Israel, one based not on bloodline alone but on a commitment to God as Lord. The Israel that returns to the land of promise will be a people who know the Lord and are obedient to His teaching. This time is yet future.