From 27030f677a770a44e1368933fee6f53bda36815d Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Lyle Mantooth Date: Wed, 5 Apr 2023 10:39:04 -0400 Subject: [PATCH] Ezekiel 14:12-23 --- content/bible_journal/ezekiel_14:12-23.md | 46 +++++++++++++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 46 insertions(+) create mode 100644 content/bible_journal/ezekiel_14:12-23.md diff --git a/content/bible_journal/ezekiel_14:12-23.md b/content/bible_journal/ezekiel_14:12-23.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..9318f28 --- /dev/null +++ b/content/bible_journal/ezekiel_14:12-23.md @@ -0,0 +1,46 @@ ++++ +title = "Ezekiel 14:12–23" +date = "2023-04-05" ++++ + +### [Read the passage.](https://biblia.com/bible/esv/Ezekiel14.12-23) + +The message from the Lord turns back to the fate of Jerusalem, and the surety +of its destruction. He declares that if the three righteous men Noah, Daniel, +and Job had been living in it, their presence would not have kept the Lord from +wiping out the city, though their own lives would have been spared. Not even +their sons or daughters would be saved, presumably because they would not have +been righteous in Jerusalem like their fathers. + +These three names should be instantly recognizable to anyone familiar with the +Bible, and each of them was famously righteous in the midst of God's judgement. +However, the one who studies the history of the Bible will see a problem. +Daniel the prophet is one of the few individuals in a Biblical narrative with +no sins or shortcomings recorded in it, so he qualifies for this list in that +respect. But he wasn't famous yet. He was exiled in the first deportation like +Ezekiel was, but after six years Nebuchadnezzar may or may not have had the +dream recorded in Daniel 2, and Daniel may or may not have been second in the +kingdom. Even if he had, most of the empire would only have known him as +Belteshazzar, and he would not have been famous for being righteous, _per se_. +Also, the spelling is different in Hebrew. A better transliteration might be +Danel. + +So who is this Danel mentioned by the Lord? He is mentioned again in Ezekiel 28 +when the prince of Tyre is compared to him because of his wisdom. Modern +scholarship believes Danel to be an Ugaritic king famed for his wisdom and +righteousness, though the tablet fragments mention him in connection with +Caananite gods. It's not conclusive, but it is the best lead we have. If this +is the same person, all three righteous men in our passage are non-Israelites +who were righteous in the midst of destruction. + +The point God is making is the same one He made with Sodom and Gomorrah: a few +righteous people are not enough to spare the entire wicked community. Sword, +famine, wild beasts, and pestilence are all coming to ravage the city of +Jerusalem. However, a few people will be saved from these disasters, and these +few will become a consolation to the exiles, because they will be the righteous +remnant who did not follow in the ways of their peers. Thus will everyone know +that God has dealt righteously with Jerusalem. + +* * * + +Again and again You have shown Yourself to be just and righteous.