Meditations on Ezekiel 16
The prophecy in Ezekiel 16 is given by God in order to show Jerusalem her abominations (verse 2). God explains the situation that Jerusalem was born into, what God did for her, how she responded, how God then responded, and what God planned for them in the future. These notes are scattered, as my brain is feeling tired and scattered.
v 3: "Your birth and your nativity are from the land of Canaan" - reminds me of what John the Baptist said to the people: "Do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father'" Luke 3:8 because all people are sinful, the seed of Adam.
v. 6 "in your blood" - blood here as a picture of our unclean, sinful nature? As the baby is helpless, so all people are helpless to save themselves from the curse of sin and death. In this same verse, God speaks and saves, giving 'life.'
v. 7 "and you grew...but you were naked" - naked due to sin? Their nakedness is covered by God's covenant in verse 10. The old covenant sacrifices covered sin, but did not have the power to change the heart.
v. 8 "I spread My wing over you...swore an oath to you" - The covenant that God made with Israel at Mt. Sinai was beautiful, as was the Torah that He gave - the book of the covenant. He made them His people and became their God.
v. 9 "I washed you in water" - cleansing through sacrifices for sin?
v. 9 "I anointed you with oil" - a picture or referring to the priests and kings anointed by God as representatives for the people? ditto with v. 10 - "I clothed you in embroidered cloth...fine linen...silk"
v. 10 "gave you sandals of badger skin" - badger skins were used to cover the tabernacle. I wonder if they were also used to make sandals? The Israelites' sandals did not wear out during their wanderings, even after so many decades! (Deuteronomy 29:5)
v. 11 "I adorned you with ornaments" - a picture or referring to the plundering of the Egyptians during the Exodus? (Gold which was later used to make the golden calf??)
v 14 "Your fame went out among the nations because of your beauty..." - I'm thinking especially of the period of King Solomon's reign, how the Queen of Sheba came from a distant land to see, and how Jerusalem was a place of peace and the temple of God's presence stood in glory.
v. 15 "But you trusted in your own beauty... your fame" - pride comes before a fall? (Proverbs 16:18) How does this compare to the cause of Sodom's downfall later in the chapter in verses 49-50? "49 Look, this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom: She and her daughter had pride, fullness of food, and abundance of idleness; neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. 50 And they were haughty and committed abomination before Me; therefore I took them away as I saw fit."
v. 16 "You took some of your garments and adorned multicolored high places for yourself, and played the harlot on them." - verses 16-19 show how Jerusalem used God's blessings for evil, worshipping the creation rather than the Creator, gifts rather than the Giver (Romans 1-2).
v. 21 "you have slain My children" - Their sins have led as far as murder (Genesis 3-4). Not just any murder, but killing innocent babies.
v. 21 "you did not remember the days of your youth" - They fell into sin because they did not remember how God saved them. The Torah over and over again refers to their God as the one who brought them out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. They are to remember where they came from and what God has done for them.
v. 27 "therefore, I stretched out My hand against you, diminished your allotment, and gave you up to the will of those who hate you" - this is what God did in response.
v. 30 "How degenerate is your heart!" - this is the problem. Out of the heart comes sin of all sorts (Matthew 15:19). God needs to save us from sin and from our sinful hearts. He needs to change our hearts and put a new one inside us (He gives us a new spirit - His Spirit - Ezekiel 36:26, Acts 1-3).
v. 33 "but you made your payments to all your lovers, and hired them to come to you" - God is showing how they are even worse than a harlot. Reminds me of Jeremiah 2:13 where it says that they turned away from God and then spent energy to dig broken cisterns to try and satisfy themselves.
v. 41-42 "I will make you cease playing the harlot...I will lay to rest My fury toward you" - this is why God punished them through exile in Babylon. The tragic result of the broken covenant.
v. 46 "Your elder sister is Samaria...your younger sister...is Sodom..." - Jerusalem is declared to be a sibling to wicked nations - even Sodom which was not included in the covenant and destroyed hundreds of years earlier! What do these three have in common? All are children of Adam. All are under the curse of sin and death, having degenerate hearts in need of healing.
v. 59 "I will deal with you as you have done, who despised the oath by breaking the covenant." - the glorious, beautiful covenant made between between God and Israel at Mt. Sinai has been broken. But God is not finished with Israel yet. He promises to make a new covenant. But He surprises them because it will be different than the first - it will be better! :)
v. 60 "I will remember My covenant with you" - though Jerusalem forgot, God did not forget and will not!
v. 60 "I will establish an everlasting covenant with you" - though the first covenant was broken, God will make a new one!
v. 61 "when you receive your older and your younger sisters; for I will give them to you for daughters" - under the new covenant, Jerusalem will be given new siblings. In Christ, Jew and Gentile are finally united in righteousness as God's children. The mystery of salvation - that salvation came to both Jew and Gentile!
v. 62 "when I provide you an atonement for all you have done" - an effective, eternal atonement will be made for their sins under the new covenant.
v 3: "Your birth and your nativity are from the land of Canaan" - reminds me of what John the Baptist said to the people: "Do not begin to say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father'" Luke 3:8 because all people are sinful, the seed of Adam.
v. 6 "in your blood" - blood here as a picture of our unclean, sinful nature? As the baby is helpless, so all people are helpless to save themselves from the curse of sin and death. In this same verse, God speaks and saves, giving 'life.'
v. 7 "and you grew...but you were naked" - naked due to sin? Their nakedness is covered by God's covenant in verse 10. The old covenant sacrifices covered sin, but did not have the power to change the heart.
v. 8 "I spread My wing over you...swore an oath to you" - The covenant that God made with Israel at Mt. Sinai was beautiful, as was the Torah that He gave - the book of the covenant. He made them His people and became their God.
v. 9 "I washed you in water" - cleansing through sacrifices for sin?
v. 9 "I anointed you with oil" - a picture or referring to the priests and kings anointed by God as representatives for the people? ditto with v. 10 - "I clothed you in embroidered cloth...fine linen...silk"
v. 10 "gave you sandals of badger skin" - badger skins were used to cover the tabernacle. I wonder if they were also used to make sandals? The Israelites' sandals did not wear out during their wanderings, even after so many decades! (Deuteronomy 29:5)
v. 11 "I adorned you with ornaments" - a picture or referring to the plundering of the Egyptians during the Exodus? (Gold which was later used to make the golden calf??)
v 14 "Your fame went out among the nations because of your beauty..." - I'm thinking especially of the period of King Solomon's reign, how the Queen of Sheba came from a distant land to see, and how Jerusalem was a place of peace and the temple of God's presence stood in glory.
v. 15 "But you trusted in your own beauty... your fame" - pride comes before a fall? (Proverbs 16:18) How does this compare to the cause of Sodom's downfall later in the chapter in verses 49-50? "49 Look, this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom: She and her daughter had pride, fullness of food, and abundance of idleness; neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. 50 And they were haughty and committed abomination before Me; therefore I took them away as I saw fit."
v. 16 "You took some of your garments and adorned multicolored high places for yourself, and played the harlot on them." - verses 16-19 show how Jerusalem used God's blessings for evil, worshipping the creation rather than the Creator, gifts rather than the Giver (Romans 1-2).
v. 21 "you have slain My children" - Their sins have led as far as murder (Genesis 3-4). Not just any murder, but killing innocent babies.
v. 21 "you did not remember the days of your youth" - They fell into sin because they did not remember how God saved them. The Torah over and over again refers to their God as the one who brought them out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. They are to remember where they came from and what God has done for them.
v. 27 "therefore, I stretched out My hand against you, diminished your allotment, and gave you up to the will of those who hate you" - this is what God did in response.
v. 30 "How degenerate is your heart!" - this is the problem. Out of the heart comes sin of all sorts (Matthew 15:19). God needs to save us from sin and from our sinful hearts. He needs to change our hearts and put a new one inside us (He gives us a new spirit - His Spirit - Ezekiel 36:26, Acts 1-3).
v. 33 "but you made your payments to all your lovers, and hired them to come to you" - God is showing how they are even worse than a harlot. Reminds me of Jeremiah 2:13 where it says that they turned away from God and then spent energy to dig broken cisterns to try and satisfy themselves.
v. 41-42 "I will make you cease playing the harlot...I will lay to rest My fury toward you" - this is why God punished them through exile in Babylon. The tragic result of the broken covenant.
v. 46 "Your elder sister is Samaria...your younger sister...is Sodom..." - Jerusalem is declared to be a sibling to wicked nations - even Sodom which was not included in the covenant and destroyed hundreds of years earlier! What do these three have in common? All are children of Adam. All are under the curse of sin and death, having degenerate hearts in need of healing.
v. 59 "I will deal with you as you have done, who despised the oath by breaking the covenant." - the glorious, beautiful covenant made between between God and Israel at Mt. Sinai has been broken. But God is not finished with Israel yet. He promises to make a new covenant. But He surprises them because it will be different than the first - it will be better! :)
v. 60 "I will remember My covenant with you" - though Jerusalem forgot, God did not forget and will not!
v. 60 "I will establish an everlasting covenant with you" - though the first covenant was broken, God will make a new one!
v. 61 "when you receive your older and your younger sisters; for I will give them to you for daughters" - under the new covenant, Jerusalem will be given new siblings. In Christ, Jew and Gentile are finally united in righteousness as God's children. The mystery of salvation - that salvation came to both Jew and Gentile!
v. 62 "when I provide you an atonement for all you have done" - an effective, eternal atonement will be made for their sins under the new covenant.