Eze.12:1-28, Trust and wait with patience

Eze.12:1-28, Trust and wait with patience
 1-28, 1.The word of the LORD came to me: 2."Son of man, you are living among a rebellious people. They have eyes to see but do not see and ears to hear but do not hear, for they are a rebellious people. 3."Therefore, son of man, pack your belongings for exile and in the daytime, as they watch, set out and go from where you are to another place. Perhaps they will understand, though they are a rebellious house. 4.During the daytime, while they watch, bring out your belongings packed for exile. Then in the evening, while they are watching, go out like those who go into exile. 5.While they watch, dig through the wall and take your belongings out through it. 6.Put them on your shoulder as they are watching and carry them out at dusk. Cover your face so that you cannot see the land, for I have made you a sign to the house of Israel." 7.So I did as I was commanded. During the day I brought out my things packed for exile. Then in the evening I dug through the wall with my hands. I took my belongings out at  dusk, carrying them on my shoulders while they watched. 8.In the morning the word of the LORD came to me: 9."Son of man, did not that rebellious house of Israel ask you, `What are you doing?' 10."Say to them, `This is what the Sovereign LORD says: This oracle concerns the prince in Jerusalem and the whole house of Israel who are there.' 11.Say to them, `I am a sign to you.' "As I have done, so it will be done to them. They will go into exile as captives. 12."The prince among them will put his things on his shoulder at dusk and leave, and a hole will be dug in the wall for him to go through. He will cover his face so that he cannot see the land. 13.I will spread my net for him, and he will be caught in my snare; I will bring him to Babylonia, the land of the Chaldeans, but he will not see it, and there he will die. 14.I will scatter to the winds all those around him -- his staff and all his troops -- and I will pursue them with drawn sword. 15."They will know that I am the LORD, when I disperse them among the nations and scatter them through the countries. 16.But I will spare a few of them from the sword, famine and plague, so that in the nations where they go they may acknowledge all their detestable practices. Then they will know that I am the LORD." 17.The word of the LORD came to me: 18."Son of man, tremble as you eat your food, and shudder in fear as you drink your water. 19.Say to the people of the land: `This is what the Sovereign LORD says about those living in Jerusalem and in the land of Israel: They will eat their food in anxiety and drink their water in despair, for their land will be stripped of everything in it because of the violence of all who live there. 20.The inhabited towns will be laid waste and the land will be desolate. Then you will know that I am the LORD.'" 21.The word of the LORD came to me: 22."Son of man, what is this proverb you have in the land of Israel: `The days go by and every vision comes to nothing'? 23.Say to them, `This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I am going to put an end to this proverb, and they will no longer quote it in Israel.' Say to them, `The days are near when every vision will be fulfilled. 24.For there will be no more false visions or flattering divinations among the people of Israel. 25.But I the LORD will speak what I will, and it shall be fulfilled without delay. For in your days, you rebellious house, I will fulfill whatever I say, declares the Sovereign LORD.'" 26.The word of the LORD came to me: 27."Son of man, the house of Israel is saying, `The vision he sees is for many years from now, and he prophesies about the distant future.' 28."Therefore say to them, `This is what the Sovereign LORD says: None of my words will be delayed any longer; whatever I say will be fulfilled, declares the Sovereign LORD.'

1. Symbolic acts indicating captivity(1-16, Captive’s belongings actions prophecy) 1-7: Action, 8-16: Description.  Today’s text is about Ezekiel’s performance among the Babylonian captives. God’s work is like a comprehensive art. We must show God’s will even through this kind of performance. Ezekiel acts like a clown for God. He has already shown God’s will through various performances in chs.4&5. In today’s text, he acts out a moving scene and a scene of escaping secretly at night by making a hole in the wall. He packs up and sets off on a journey like a captive in a place where people can see him in the daytime(3). This shows that there will be an irreversible judgment, the destruction of his homeland, the Judah kingdom. ​​However, there is still the possibility of personal forgiveness(e.g.,Abraham’s intercessory prayer for the salvation of Lot’s family after the declaration of judgment on the destruction of Sodom&Gomorrah). He acts out the act of making a hole in the wall in front of them in the evening, carrying the refugee’s luggage, and setting off on a journey. Here, from morning to evening, God waits. However, they neither see nor hear. They have both eyes that see and ears that hear, created by Jehovah(27, Prov.20:12). But they are a rebellious people (emphasized three times in verses 2&3; 9,25). They are arrogant and haughty, and they deliberately do not listen to the word at all. Those with spiritual eyes should see the Lord’s providence, and those with ears should hear the Lord’s voice. However, they are indifferent to the word, and their eyes and ears are closed. In the end, all those who remain in Jerusalem will die or be taken to foreign countries. And God tells them to bear the burden, cover their faces with both hands, and leave(6). This signifies sorrow and shame. It means that they cannot bear to see how sad and difficult it is. This is the story of not only the people, but also King Zedekiah in particular. He was captured and taken to Babylon while trying to escape the city that was surrounded by the Babylonian army at night and died(13, 2 K.25:4-7, Jer.39:4-7). Zedekiah is a weak human being who was arrogant and suffered defeat. V.15,  Mankind is truly foolish. God said that even though they did not listen to the prophets, they would know the Lord after they had all perished, died, and been taken captive. Only then would they believe in the word of God. Why did they realize it so late? Because greed and ambition blinded their eyes so that they could not see ahead. Because they covered their ears so that they could not hear the word of God.

 Fortunately, not all the people died, but God left behind those who would receive shameful salvation(16). This is God’s grace. Through this, a small number of people will come to know the Lord God(15,16). They or we will come to know God and acknowledge His sovereignty only when we face a great disaster. Israel, which received the most grace from God, or we today, must not be spiritually careless or lazy, but must wake up and pray. Even if people long for and wait for vain things, people of faith must listen to and obey the word of God. We must wait for the word of God and pray that the church will become one in which the word is fulfilled.

2. The signs of eating and drinking while trembling(17-20, prophecy of eating act in fear)
 God commands Ezekiel to eat food and drink water while trembling in front of the people(17, see 4:9-17). The people of Jerusalem will be surrounded by Babylon and will eat food in fear and trembling. They will experience the shock and horror. The reason for this fate is their sin of violence(19). The purpose of this judgment is to make them know Jehovah(20,12,15). The purpose of parents disciplining their children with a painful heart is to make them become good people and live righteously. However, the people did not fear God. This is a sin of disbelief. They were still confident that they could fight the enemy. However, if God does not help, all human works are in vain. God must help. Who receives help from God? He helps those who hold on to God’s word, live by faith, and fear the Lord. Let’s live as such people.

3. Two proverbs(Revelation, 21-28) 1) Prophecies that will not be fulfilled(21-25) 2) Things that will not happen in this age(26-28).  1) The people of Judah used a proverb that said, "The days go by and every vision comes tonothing"(22). This is a mockery that the prophecy of Ezekiel's vision will not be fulfilled(see Is.5:19, Jer.17:15). Such indifference slanders God and His servants. Are there any of us who distrust and slander the words of God or His servants? The people laughed at or rejected the prophets' prophecies of judgment and held on to false peace and false hope (chs.12,13,14, 15-16,17,18,19). False prophets delivered false visions through divination and sorcery(24). In Jer.28, we see the false prophet Hananiah who slandered Jeremiah. He lied that Jerusalem would not be destroyed, and was eventually killed. Dt.18:22 says that the words of a true prophet will surely come true. God’s patience is a grace. God will now quickly fulfill the prophecy(23,25,28).

2) They say the proverb, “The vision is for many days.”(27) In other words, they thought that the vision would not be fulfilled in this era. King Hezekiah did the same(Is.39). However, the day when the prophecy seen in the vision will be fulfilled will soon come. Therefore, let go of your complacent thoughts. God guarantees that true prophecy will be fulfilled. “None of my words will be delayed any longer; the word that I have spoken will be fulfilled, declares the Lord God.” Yes, God’s word is never delayed. It will surely come true in due time. We should not be too ashamed of holding on to God and His word without any results. There are times when the expectations or disappointments of those around us make us very ashamed. However, if we cannot overcome them, we will eventually lose true blessings. How does God feel when His long-suffering becomes the laughing stock of the world in our lives today? However, the important thing we must realize is not what people think or say, but what God’s word is. Because only God’s word is the true truth.
 Dear Saints, I hope that in the new year, we all will live as saints who believe in the word until the end, wait patiently, fear the word, and obey it, even if we are put to shame in the world, and regain the glory, power, and authority of God. I pray that the Jesus of life will do it. Amen.