42 lines
2.2 KiB
Markdown
42 lines
2.2 KiB
Markdown
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title = "Ezekiel 11:13–25"
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date = "2023-03-27"
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### [Read the passage.](https://biblia.com/bible/esv/Ezekiel11.13-25)
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While Ezekiel was prophesying against the wicked princes of the people, one of
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them fell down dead. This is dramatic and causes Ezekiel to plead again for the
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remnant of Israel. It also raises some questions. For the most part, we have
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assumed these prophetic visions are like dreams while the prophet is awake.
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Everything happens in their mind's eye, and the Lord shows him things that are
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yet to happen, or symbolic imagery as a metaphor for the message He wishes to
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convey to the people. So then, is the death of Pelatiah also a vision, or did
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these twenty-five men really get a visitation from the prophet Ezekiel at the
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gate to the temple and one of them died while he was speaking? The name
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Pelatiah means "Yahweh provides escape", so it is a terrible omen that he dies
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while the prophet speaks of the judgements that are going to happen to his
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compatriots. Ultimately, while the question of the mechanics of this vision are
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interesting, they are not actually important. God did what He said He would do
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to the wicked people of Jerusalem, and His message was delivered to its
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intended recipients: the exiles in Chaldea.
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This time, when Ezekiel asks about the remnant, the Lord answers with hope and
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assurance. The people left in Jerusalem had boasted to the exiles that they
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were the possessors of the Promised Land, but the Lord would restore the exiles
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to the land in due time. Though they were scattered among many nations, He has
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protected them there and He will bring them back together again. Their hearts
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will be renewed with a softness for the Lord, energizing them to follow His
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commands and remove the "detestable things" and "abominations" (_v. 18_) that
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are in the land.
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With the message complete, the Lord on His throne departs from the city and
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travels to the mountain east of the city. (The Mount of Olives, maybe?) Ezekiel
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in his turn is transported back to where he had been when the vision started.
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He then tells the exiles all the things he had seen and heard from the Lord.
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* * *
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You punish the wicked and spare the righteous, according to Your justice and
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mercy.
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