Read Ezekiel 7
The End Has Come
7 The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, this is what the Sovereign Lord says to the land of Israel:
“‘The end! The end has come
upon the four corners of the land!
3 The end is now upon you,
and I will unleash my anger against you.
I will judge you according to your conduct
and repay you for all your detestable practices.
4 I will not look on you with pity;
I will not spare you.
I will surely repay you for your conduct
and for the detestable practices among you.
“‘Then you will know that I am the Lord.’
5 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘Disaster! Unheard-of[a] disaster!
See, it comes!
6 The end has come!
The end has come!
It has roused itself against you.
See, it comes!
7 Doom has come upon you,
upon you who dwell in the land.
The time has come! The day is near!
There is panic, not joy, on the mountains.
8 I am about to pour out my wrath on you
and spend my anger against you.
I will judge you according to your conduct
and repay you for all your detestable practices.
9 I will not look on you with pity;
I will not spare you.
I will repay you for your conduct
and for the detestable practices among you.
“‘Then you will know that it is I the Lord who strikes you.
10 “‘See, the day!
See, it comes!
Doom has burst forth,
the rod has budded,
arrogance has blossomed!
11 Violence has arisen,[b]
a rod to punish the wicked.
None of the people will be left,
none of that crowd—
none of their wealth,
nothing of value.
12 The time has come!
The day has arrived!
Let not the buyer rejoice
nor the seller grieve,
for my wrath is on the whole crowd.
13 The seller will not recover
the property that was sold—
as long as both buyer and seller live.
For the vision concerning the whole crowd
will not be reversed.
Because of their sins, not one of them
will preserve their life.
14 “‘They have blown the trumpet,
they have made all things ready,
but no one will go into battle,
for my wrath is on the whole crowd.
15 Outside is the sword;
inside are plague and famine.
Those in the country
will die by the sword;
those in the city
will be devoured by famine and plague.
16 The fugitives who escape
will flee to the mountains.
Like doves of the valleys,
they will all moan,
each for their own sins.
17 Every hand will go limp;
every leg will be wet with urine.
18 They will put on sackcloth
and be clothed with terror.
Every face will be covered with shame,
and every head will be shaved.
19 “‘They will throw their silver into the streets,
and their gold will be treated as a thing unclean.
Their silver and gold
will not be able to deliver them
in the day of the Lord’s wrath.
It will not satisfy their hunger
or fill their stomachs,
for it has caused them to stumble into sin.
20 They took pride in their beautiful jewelry
and used it to make their detestable idols.
They made it into vile images;
therefore I will make it a thing unclean for them.
21 I will give their wealth as plunder to foreigners
and as loot to the wicked of the earth,
who will defile it.
22 I will turn my face away from the people,
and robbers will desecrate the place I treasure.
They will enter it
and will defile it.
23 “‘Prepare chains!
For the land is full of bloodshed,
and the city is full of violence.
24 I will bring the most wicked of nations
to take possession of their houses.
I will put an end to the pride of the mighty,
and their sanctuaries will be desecrated.
25 When terror comes,
they will seek peace in vain.
26 Calamity upon calamity will come,
and rumor upon rumor.
They will go searching for a vision from the prophet,
priestly instruction in the law will cease,
the counsel of the elders will come to an end.
27 The king will mourn,
the prince will be clothed with despair,
and the hands of the people of the land will tremble.
I will deal with them according to their conduct,
and by their own standards I will judge them.
“‘Then they will know that I am the Lord.’”
Go Deeper
After reading through this chapter, it’s easy to pick up on the dark and heavy tone of it. Ezekiel, who was prophesying to a group of fellow exiles in Babylon, was given another message by God and it was his job to deliver it to the people. Most scholars place the message and events of Ezekiel 7 around 591 B.C., about five years before Jerusalem and everything in it (including the temple) would be destroyed. This vision Ezekiel was given was clear: God’s judgment was coming and it was going to be severe (v. 1-4).
God’s judgment was coming because of the years of unrepentant idolatry. God made it abundantly clear in Deuteronomy 28:36-37 that if His people broke their covenant with God, the consequences would be severe and they would be sent into exile. As the day of destruction grew closer and closer, Ezekiel was able to foretell just how grim it was going to be. While oftentimes in the Old Testament prophetic books we read of God’s invitation for repentance, in this case it is clear that the day of reckoning is coming either way. Even all of their material possessions would be rendered useless (v. 19-22).
So, why did it have to happen this way? Why did the punishment have to be so intense? Ultimately, God’s relationship with His people would be restored. By having their idolatry destroyed and plundered and then spending decades in exile, God was going to do a new work in their hearts and bring them back into relationship with Him. This period of exile was meant to purify Israel and, once it was time to return back to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple, it would be done by a faithful remnant who had held fast to God’s promises.
Reading this today, our hearts should swell with gratitude that, through Jesus, we have a pathway into right standing with God. It’s because of the gift of grace, not our own doing (Ephesians 2:8-9) that we’re able to repent and be saved from the destruction that our sin deserves. As we continue reading through the book of Ezekiel, let’s do so with a hopeful, grateful heart for all that Jesus has done for us!
Questions
- What first stood out to you as you read through this chapter? Why?
- Why were the Israelites’ material possessions useless?
- What does Ezekiel 7 teach you about God? What does it teach you about humanity?
By the Way
To read the story of the destruction of Jerusalem (and the temple) in 2 Kings 25, click here!
3 thoughts on “Ezekiel 7”
2 things initially came to mind after reading this chapter:
•Hebrews 10:31 “It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” Judgement is a sure thing, just as in Ezekiel’s day, so is it for us. Whatever we seek and give our allegiance to other than God will crumble. V25 foretells “Terror and trembling will overcome my people. They will look for peace but will not find it.” What do we treasure most?
•We have the gift of scripture to guide our path. Heeding it leads to life as we see how God’s plans & purposes unfold. Hebrews 3:12-15 exhorts us to learn from the narratives of others, “See to it, brothers, that none of you has a wicked heart of unbelief that turns away from the living God. But exhort one another daily, as long as it is called today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. We have come to share in Christ if we hold firmly to the end the assurance we had at first. As it has been said:
“Today, if you hear His voice,
do not harden your hearts,
as you did in the rebellion.”
Asking God to show me the “sin crouching at my door that seeks to dominate me” knowing I overcome by the blood of the Lamb and the word of my testimony.”
So good! Thank you Jesus for being the WAY…..for grace, repentance and mercy❤️
We are all going to know that He is Lord. This is repeated 3X in this text. These old testament dudes did this for emphasis. That is because Ezekiel (and God) really, really, really wanted them to know that the storm is coming, a BIG one. Thankfully we have Jesus’s atonement but we still will come before God and answer for ALL, completely every single thing we have ever thought, done or spoken.
So be careful little eye what you see, be careful little ear what you hear, be careful little tongue what you say, be careful little hands what you do, be careful little feet where you go, be careful little heart whom you trust, and be careful little mind what you think for the Father up above is looking down in Love.
Sin is a willful choice so you must make the decision of what you want to do. Ask for forgiveness, repent turn away from those things that entangle you and seek God with all your heart soul mind and strength all day, minute by minute.
God thank You for my desire to obey. Thank You for helping me see or realize the wrong before I do it. Thank You for me opening my mouth to speak Your truth, Your Word and Your love to others and for myself. God I give You glory, honor, love and thanksgiving in Jesus name amen.
WOOHOO!!!!