Daily Bread for Sep 5, Eze 21-22

Today’s readings are Eze 21-22.

Ezekiel prophesies that judgment will consume Judah like a raging fire. Nebuchadnezzar, the fearsome king of Babylon, is coming and he will be the Lord's "polished sword," flashing like lightning. He will use the occult to determine his path, and the Lord will cause all the signs he seeks to point toward Jerusalem (Eze 21:21-23). There's a point to ponder. God is even sovereign over the occult and can use it to achieve His purposes!

Eze 22 portrays Jerusalem as a city of bloodshed. Its sins are documented and detailed. Leadership has neglected the poor and helpless, the priests have worshiped unholy gods, and the prophets have been telling lies. God knows everything, even those things that appear to occur in secret. Nothing is hidden from Him, nothing escapes His knowledge.

Despite their sin, God will look for someone to stand between Him and His people, someone to absorb His wrath and fury. No one will be found. Judgment will fall directly upon them. Without a mediator, without someone to absorb God's wrath, all who have sinned are doomed.

God is using Jerusalem and the sins of its people to demonstrate something about His character. Sin will not go unpunished. Either the sinners will absorb the punishment, or a suitable substitute must stand in the place of the sinners. None are found in Ezekiel's time because none are righteous enough to be that suitable substitute.

Yet, God promises to redeem His people. Temporarily, He will show grace to His chosen people by preserving a remnant. In this way, God will demonstrate His faithfulness to fulfill He promises to His people. His faithfulness is not dependent upon their behavior, but His word. He will ultimately bring redemption through the substitutionary atonement of Jesus Christ on the cross. Jesus is the only worthy substitute, the only mediator suitable enough to provide an eternal solution to the problem of sin.