diff --git a/content/bible_journal/ezekiel_7:1-13.md b/content/bible_journal/ezekiel_7:1-13.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..11e87e2 --- /dev/null +++ b/content/bible_journal/ezekiel_7:1-13.md @@ -0,0 +1,33 @@ ++++ +title = "Ezekiel 7:1–13" +date = "2023-03-15" ++++ + +### [Read the passage.](https://biblia.com/bible/esv/Ezekiel7.1-13) + +In case you haven't gotten the message by now (and I'm sure there were some +Ezekiel spoke to who needed these reminders), God punishes sin. He doesn't play +around; when it's time for judgement to be brought to bear, it is done fully +and completely. There are some who say they follow a "God of love" who doesn't +want to punish anyone. They aren't following the God of the Bible. No one +actually wants to live in total anarchy where everybody does whatever they like +with no rules to stop them. Read the last couple chapters of Judges for a +glimpse of what that is like. Perhaps they think that wicked people should be +"corrected" instead of "punished", but the fact remains that evil deeds incur +consequences. + +There are also those who say that prophecy is confusing and not worth reading. +I would argue that anyone could read this chapter and figure out what God is +saying, even if they didn't know any of Israel's history. They would probably +need to study more of the Bible to learn _why_ God is saying all this, but what +He says is pretty clear. Fictional prophecies are always vague and easy to +misinterpret for narrative purposes. Biblical prophecy will either have +straightforward meanings, or the symbolism used is explained in the text +itself. God's purpose for giving prophecies is never to be a "Gotcha!" or a +puzzle to figure out. Instead they are clear warnings, calls to repentence, or +sources of comfort to believers because they show that God has had everything +planned out from the very beginning and nothing can thwart Him. + +* * * + +Change our hearts to want what You want, and not our own evil desires.