Yahweh Alone is God

1 The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, prophesy, and say, Thus says the Lord God:

“Wail, ‘Alas for the day!’
3     For the day is near,
    the day of the Lord is near;
it will be a day of clouds,
    a time of doom for the nations.
4 A sword shall come upon Egypt,
    and anguish shall be in Cush,
when the slain fall in Egypt,
    and her wealth is carried away,
    and her foundations are torn down.

5 Cush, and Put, and Lud, and all Arabia, and Libya, and the people of the land that is in league, shall fall with them by the sword.

6 “Thus says the Lord:
Those who support Egypt shall fall,
    and her proud might shall come down;
from Migdol to Syene
    they shall fall within her by the sword,
declares the Lord God.
7 And they shall be desolated in the midst of desolated countries,
    and their cities shall be in the midst of cities that are laid waste.
8 Then they will know that I am the Lord,
    when I have set fire to Egypt,
    and all her helpers are broken.

9 “On that day messengers shall go out from me in ships to terrify the unsuspecting people of Cush, and anguish shall come upon them on the day of Egypt’s doom; for, behold, it comes!

10 “Thus says the Lord God:

“I will put an end to the wealth of Egypt,
    by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.
11 He and his people with him, the most ruthless of nations,
    shall be brought in to destroy the land,
and they shall draw their swords against Egypt
    and fill the land with the slain.
12 And I will dry up the Nile
    and will sell the land into the hand of evildoers;
I will bring desolation upon the land and everything in it,
    by the hand of foreigners;
I am the Lord; I have spoken.

13 “Thus says the Lord God:

“I will destroy the idols
    and put an end to the images in Memphis;
there shall no longer be a prince from the land of Egypt;
    so I will put fear in the land of Egypt.
14 I will make Pathros a desolation
    and will set fire to Zoan
    and will execute judgments on Thebes.
15 And I will pour out my wrath on Pelusium,
    the stronghold of Egypt,
    and cut off the multitude of Thebes.
16 And I will set fire to Egypt;
    Pelusium shall be in great agony;
Thebes shall be breached,
    and Memphis shall face enemies by day.
17 The young men of On and of Pi-beseth shall fall by the sword,
    and the women shall go into captivity.
18 At Tehaphnehes the day shall be dark,
    when I break there the yoke bars of Egypt,
and her proud might shall come to an end in her;
    she shall be covered by a cloud,
    and her daughters shall go into captivity.
19 Thus I will execute judgments on Egypt.
    Then they will know that I am the Lord.” – Ezekiel 30:1-19 ESV

Here we have yet another oracle pronouncing Egypt’s “death” at the hands of the Babylonians. This divinely ordained prophecy describes it as “the day of Egypt’s doom” (Ezekiel 30:9 ESV), and Ezekiel is to announce that “the day of the Lord is near” (Ezekiel 30:3 ESV). The content of his message is not to be taken as conjecture or a remote possibility but as an undeniable fact. This event will be the sovereign work of God Almighty. Egypt’s doom will be God’s doing.

Four separate times, the oracle states, “Thus says the Lord God…” (vs 2, 6, 10, 13). This repetitive feature is intended to give Ezekiel’s message divine authority. These are not the words of a man but the promises of God. Yahweh is decreeing the fate of Egypt and her allies, making the outcome of the oracle a foregone conclusion. It will all take place just as God has spoken.

God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it? – Numbers 23:19 ESV

This “day of the Lord” will be devastating in its impact and broad in scope. Not only will the Egyptians suffer the judgment of God, but their neighbors and allies will feel the full weight of God’s wrath.

Cush, and Put, and Lud, and all Arabia, and Libya, and the people of the land that is in league, shall fall with them by the sword. – Ezekiel 30:5 ESV

All of these nations had direct ties to Egypt through trade or conquest. They had allied themselves to the Egyptian Empire and, therefore, were considered to be complicit in Egypt’s guilt. Cush refers to the African nation of Ethiopia, which shared Egypt’s southern border. The reference to Arabia has been debated because it can mean the Arabic region but can also be translated as “the mixed multitude.” There are those who believe it refers to the various ethnic groups who settled in the region and who served as mercenaries in the Egyptian army. It may also include the Jews who had fled to Egypt in an effort to escape the Babylonian invasion.

But God announces that any nation or individual who allies themselves with Egypt in any way or for any reason will share Egypt’s fate.

“For this is what the Lord says:
All of Egypt’s allies will fall,
    and the pride of her power will end.” – Ezekiel 30:6 NLT

For many of these nations, Egypt had become their savior. As the Babylonians continued their seemingly unstoppable conquest of the known world, the Egyptians stood as a last-chance hope against Nebuchadnezzar’s dream of global domination. They were the only other superpower capable of stemming the Babylonian tide and preserving the status quo. But God warns that Egypt will prove woefully inept in its role as savior.

“…they will be slaughtered by the sword,
    says the Sovereign Lord.
Egypt will be desolate,
    surrounded by desolate nations,
and its cities will be in ruins,
    surrounded by other ruined cities…” – Ezekiel 30:6-7 NLT

God describes the slow but steady march of the Babylonian troops as they march through the cities of Egypt, leaving a path of destruction in their wake. The mighty Egyptian army will be no match for Nebuchadnezzar’s forces. Ships will sail down the Red Sea carrying news of Egypt’s fall to the people of Ethiopia, and God declares that “Great panic will come upon them on that day of Egypt’s certain destruction” (Ezekiel 30:9 NLT). The nations of the region will fall like dominoes. One after the other, their cities will be invaded, their people captured, and their hopes destroyed by God’s servant, Nebuchadnezzar. 

“For this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
By the power of King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon,
    I will destroy the hordes of Egypt.
He and his armies—the most ruthless of all—
    will be sent to demolish the land.” – Ezekiel 30:10-11 NLT

God makes it clear that Nebuchadnezzar will be acting as His agent of judgment. It will be God who brings about the destruction of the nations. He will be the one who sends the Babylonians to demolish the land and its inhabitants. And God predicts a catastrophic outcome to the Babylonian invasion. Cities will be leveled, the land will be completely destroyed, and the fabled Nile will dry up. The bodies of the victims will be everywhere, polluting the land and the water. It will be a scene of cataclysmic destruction and no part of Egypt will go unscathed from God’s wrath.

Pathros, Zoan, Thebes, Pelusium, Memphis, On, Pi-beseth, and Tehaphnehes – all of these cities would suffer the same fate. From north to south, from Upper Egypt to lower Egypt, the destruction will be widespread and indiscriminate. And not only will the people of Egypt suffer, but their plethora of gods will be humiliated and exposed as frauds.

“This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
I will smash the idols of Egypt
    and the images at Memphis.” – Ezeziel 30:13 NLT

It has been estimated that the Egyptians worshiped as many as 1200 different gods, from Osiris, the god of the underworld, and his wife, Isis, to Ra the sun god. But God announces that He will smash all these false gods and have their idols removed from the land. They will provide no defense against the Babylonian advance and no hope of deflecting God’s judgment.

And even Pharaoh, the god-king, will be of no help against Nebuchadnezzar and his army. When God’s divine judgment is complete, Pharaoh’s dynasty will come to an end, and foreigners will rule over the nation for the foreseeable future. The destruction will be complete. God vows to “break the proud strength of Egypt” (Ezekiel 30:18 NLT). Its cities will fall, its leaders will be replaced, the young men will die in battle, and the women will be taken as slaves. And God assures them that, when the dust settles, they will all know that He is Lord. With their nation destroyed and their gods exposed as frauds, the people of Egypt will have to face the undeniable truth that Yahweh alone is God.

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

How the Mighty Have Fallen

1 In the eleventh year, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, because Tyre said concerning Jerusalem, ‘Aha, the gate of the peoples is broken; it has swung open to me. I shall be replenished, now that she is laid waste,’ 3 therefore thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against you, O Tyre, and will bring up many nations against you, as the sea brings up its waves. 4 They shall destroy the walls of Tyre and break down her towers, and I will scrape her soil from her and make her a bare rock. 5 She shall be in the midst of the sea a place for the spreading of nets, for I have spoken, declares the Lord God. And she shall become plunder for the nations, 6 and her daughters on the mainland shall be killed by the sword. Then they will know that I am the Lord.

7 “For thus says the Lord God: Behold, I will bring against Tyre from the north Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, king of kings, with horses and chariots, and with horsemen and a host of many soldiers. 8 He will kill with the sword your daughters on the mainland. He will set up a siege wall against you and throw up a mound against you, and raise a roof of shields against you. 9 He will direct the shock of his battering rams against your walls, and with his axes he will break down your towers. 10 His horses will be so many that their dust will cover you. Your walls will shake at the noise of the horsemen and wagons and chariots, when he enters your gates as men enter a city that has been breached. 11 With the hoofs of his horses he will trample all your streets. He will kill your people with the sword, and your mighty pillars will fall to the ground. 12 They will plunder your riches and loot your merchandise. They will break down your walls and destroy your pleasant houses. Your stones and timber and soil they will cast into the midst of the waters. 13 And I will stop the music of your songs, and the sound of your lyres shall be heard no more. 14 I will make you a bare rock. You shall be a place for the spreading of nets. You shall never be rebuilt, for I am the Lord; I have spoken, declares the Lord God.  – Ezekiel 26:1-14 ESV

In this prophecy, God turns His attention north, focusing on the Phoenician city of Tyre, located on the northwestern coast of the Mediterranean Sea. Tyre was one of the oldest cities in the near east and was a profitable trading port, using its fleet of ships to transport goods from distant ports. The prophet, Isaiah, referred to Tyre as an “exultant city whose origin is from days of old” (Isaiah 23:7 ESV).

“Tyre became an important maritime city of the ancient Near East, being involved in great commercial and colonial enterprises throughout the Mediterranean area, the Red Sea, and the Indian Ocean. With the rise of Assyria to power, Tyre periodically submitted to Assyria’s lordship, paying tribute out of the abundance of her wealth (as in the cases of Esarhaddon and Ashurbanipal). Whenever possible, however, Tyre rebelled against the Assyrian power and withstood the Assyrian retribution in the security of its island fortress (as in the case of Sennacherib). As Assyria began to decline in strength, Tyre exerted her complete independence. Tyre was in this latter condition when these oracles were delivered.” – Ralph H. Alexander, Ezekiel

God delivers this divine oracle concerning Tyre “In the eleventh year, on the first day of the month” (Ezekiel 26:1 ESV). While there is much debate as to the exact timing of this message, it would seem that it refers to a date after the fall of Jerusalem. In the New Living Translation, verse one reads: “On February 3, during the twelfth year of King Jehoiachin’s captivity, this message came to me from the Lord.” 

This dating places the oracle at the time when Nebuchadnezzar first entered Jerusalem and took control of the city and the nation of Judah.

Then King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon came to Jerusalem and captured it, and he bound Jehoiakim in bronze chains and led him away to Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar also took some of the treasures from the Temple of the Lord, and he placed them in his palace in Babylon. – 2 Chronicles  36:6-7 NLT

Nebuchadnezzar replaced the deposed Jehoiakim with his son, Jehoiachin, but his reign would only last three months.

In the spring of the year King Nebuchadnezzar took Jehoiachin to Babylon. Many treasures from the Temple of the Lord were also taken to Babylon at that time. And Nebuchadnezzar installed Jehoiachin’s uncle, Zedekiah, as the next king in Judah and Jerusalem. – 2 Chronicles 36:10 NLT

The Phoenicians rejoiced over the Babylonian seizure of Jerusalem because they viewed Judah as a threat to their trading business. While they controlled the sea routes, the Judahites controlled the lucrative land routes to the east. With Jerusalem’s fall, they hoped to profit from Babylon’s presence in the region. And there had been no love lost between Phoenicia and Judah over the years. The prophet, Joel, accuses them of plundering Judean cities and selling off citizens of Judah as slaves.

“What do you have against me, Tyre and Sidon and you cities of Philistia? Are you trying to take revenge on me? If you are, then watch out! I will strike swiftly and pay you back for everything you have done. You have taken my silver and gold and all my precious treasures, and have carried them off to your pagan temples. You have sold the people of Judah and Jerusalem to the Greeks, so they could take them far from their homeland.” – Joel 3:4-6 NLT

This love-hate relationship between Tyre and Jerusalem was not going to end well for either city. Jerusalem was already under the threat of complete annihilation by the Babylonians, but Tyre believed itself to be immune from destruction. They had weathered the earlier Assyrian onslaught that brought an end to the northern kingdom of Israel, so they assumed they would enjoy a similar fate with the Babylonian invasion. But God had other plans for the Phoenicians and their well-fortified city.

“I will bring many nations against you, like the waves of the sea crashing against your shoreline. They will destroy the walls of Tyre and tear down its towers. I will scrape away its soil and make it a bare rock!” – Ezekiel 26:3-4 NLT

God promised to completely eradicate this island fortress, bringing successive waves of enemies against them, all in retaliation for their unjust treatment of His chosen people.

“The siege of Tyre by Nebuchadnezzar lasted for thirteen years (ca. 586-573 B.C.). Under King Ba’ali II, Tyre accepted Babylonian suzerainty and was ruled by ‘judges.’ However, when Babylonia declined in power, Tyre regained her independence once again. This brief freedom lasted till the second ‘wave’ of destruction brought her into submission to the Persians around 525 B.C. Tyre’s remaining history demonstrated the continuing ‘waves’ of conquerors: the resistance to Alexander the Great, eventuating in her collapse; her initial resistance to the Seleucid kingdom of Antiochus III, terminating in her becoming part of that kingdom; her submission to Rome; and her fall to the Saracens in the fourteenth century A.D., after which she never again regained any importance. God was faithful to bring the ‘many nations’ against Tyre in successive ‘waves’ of conquest.” – Ralph H. Alexander, Ezekiel

The prophet, Isaiah, pronounced another divine oracle against them, predicting their eventual fall from power and prominence.

Wail, you trading ships of Tarshish,
    for the harbor and houses of Tyre are gone!
The rumors you heard in Cyprus
    are all true.
Mourn in silence, you people of the coast
    and you merchants of Sidon.
Your traders crossed the sea,
   sailing over deep waters.
They brought you grain from Egypt
    and harvests from along the Nile.
You were the marketplace of the world.

But now you are put to shame, city of Sidon,
    for Tyre, the fortress of the sea, says,
“Now I am childless;
    I have no sons or daughters.”– Isaiah 23:1-4 NLT

God warns the prideful Phoenicians that their coastal fortress will suffer a similar fate as that of Jerusalem. It too will come under the relentless attack of King Nebuchadnezzar’s forces as they lay siege to its seemingly impenetrable walls.

From the north I will bring King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon against Tyre. He is king of kings and brings his horses, chariots, charioteers, and great army. First he will destroy your mainland villages. Then he will attack you by building a siege wall, constructing a ramp, and raising a roof of shields against you. He will pound your walls with battering rams and demolish your towers with sledgehammers. The hooves of his horses will choke the city with dust, and the noise of the charioteers and chariot wheels will shake your walls as they storm through your broken gates. His horsemen will trample through every street in the city. They will butcher your people, and your strong pillars will topple. – Ezekiel 26:7-11 NLT

At this point in history, Tyre consisted of two sister cities. One was on the mainland and was connected to a second city located on an island in the Mediterranean Sea. They were connected by a narrow isthmus. The Babylonian forces would destroy the mainland city,  forcing the eventual surrender of the fortified city on the island.

God warns that Tyre will experience a devastating defeat that will leave the city destroyed and demoralized, never to rise to its former prominence again. When God states, “You shall never be rebuilt” (Ezekiel 26:14 ESV), He is not predicting that Tyre will no longer exist as a city but that it will never enjoy its former glory as an influential and powerful force in the region.

This city that had once gloated over its wealth would be plundered by the Babylonians. Its riches would be hauled away in carts, never to be seen again. Its fortified walls would be torn down, with the stones thrown into the sea. The lovely homes that lined its cobbled streets would become rubble and its former inhabitants would become lifeless corpses. Their fate is sealed because the sovereign Lord has declared it.

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Divine Payback

1 The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, set your face toward the Ammonites and prophesy against them. 3 Say to the Ammonites, Hear the word of the Lord God: Thus says the Lord God, Because you said, ‘Aha!’ over my sanctuary when it was profaned, and over the land of Israel when it was made desolate, and over the house of Judah when they went into exile, 4 therefore behold, I am handing you over to the people of the East for a possession, and they shall set their encampments among you and make their dwellings in your midst. They shall eat your fruit, and they shall drink your milk. 5 I will make Rabbah a pasture for camels and Ammon a fold for flocks. Then you will know that I am the Lord. 6 For thus says the Lord God: Because you have clapped your hands and stamped your feet and rejoiced with all the malice within your soul against the land of Israel, 7 therefore, behold, I have stretched out my hand against you, and will hand you over as plunder to the nations. And I will cut you off from the peoples and will make you perish out of the countries; I will destroy you. Then you will know that I am the Lord.

8 “Thus says the Lord God: Because Moab and Seir said, ‘Behold, the house of Judah is like all the other nations,’ 9 therefore I will lay open the flank of Moab from the cities, from its cities on its frontier, the glory of the country, Beth-jeshimoth, Baal-meon, and Kiriathaim. 10 I will give it along with the Ammonites to the people of the East as a possession, that the Ammonites may be remembered no more among the nations, 11 and I will execute judgments upon Moab. Then they will know that I am the Lord.

12 “Thus says the Lord God: Because Edom acted revengefully against the house of Judah and has grievously offended in taking vengeance on them, 13 therefore thus says the Lord God, I will stretch out my hand against Edom and cut off from it man and beast. And I will make it desolate; from Teman even to Dedan they shall fall by the sword. 14 And I will lay my vengeance upon Edom by the hand of my people Israel, and they shall do in Edom according to my anger and according to my wrath, and they shall know my vengeance, declares the Lord God.

15 “Thus says the Lord God: Because the Philistines acted revengefully and took vengeance with malice of soul to destroy in never-ending enmity, 16 therefore thus says the Lord God, Behold, I will stretch out my hand against the Philistines, and I will cut off the Cherethites and destroy the rest of the seacoast. 17 I will execute great vengeance on them with wrathful rebukes. Then they will know that I am the Lord, when I lay my vengeance upon them.” – Ezekiel 25:1-17 ESV

From the moment the Israelites entered the land of Canaan, they found themselves surrounded by a host of hostile enemies. When they showed up on the scene after their 40-year trek through the wilderness, they were greeted with less-than-open arms by the land’s current occupants. The Israelites numbered in the millions by the time they entered the land, and they were viewed as a threat by the various people groups who lived in the region. But God had granted them a particular portion of the land as their inheritance. Centuries earlier, God had promised Abraham that the land of Canaan would be the possession of his offspring.

“I will always be your God and the God of your descendants after you. And I will give the entire land of Canaan, where you now live as a foreigner, to you and your descendants. It will be their possession forever, and I will be their God.” – Genesis 17:7-8 NLT

But during the more than 500-year delay between the time when that promise was given and when the people of Israel entered Canaan, the land had not set empty or unoccupied. Its fertile soil and central location made it an attractive piece of real estate. And while the Israelites had been languishing as slaves in Egypt, a host of nations had taken up residence in and around Canaan. This included the nations listed in the chapter: Ammon, Moab, Seir, Edom, and Philistia. These particular groups occupied territory on the edges of the land of Canaan, and God had given Moses instructions about how to deal with them. In order to enter Canaan, the people of Israel would need to pass through some of these outlying territories. Their goal was to do so as peacefully as possible but, if necessary, they were ordered to use force.

“As you approach a town to attack it, you must first offer its people terms for peace. If they accept your terms and open the gates to you, then all the people inside will serve you in forced labor. But if they refuse to make peace and prepare to fight, you must attack the town. When the Lord your God hands the town over to you, use your swords to kill every man in the town. But you may keep for yourselves all the women, children, livestock, and other plunder. You may enjoy the plunder from your enemies that the Lord your God has given you.” – Deuteronomy 20:10-14 NLT

Some of the nations listed in this chapter had an interesting relationship with the people of Israel. They were actually blood relations. In the case of the Ammonites and Moabites, they were the descendants of Abraham’s nephew, Lot. The record of their rather sordid history is found in the book of Genesis. Lot had made the unwise decision to settle his family in Sodom, a city infamous for its immorality. But God graciously rescued Lot and his two daughters before destroying the entire city and all its occupants.

In the immediate aftermath of Lot’s rescue, his daughters took it upon themselves to continue their family line by getting their father drunk and having sexual relations with him. And their depraved plan worked.

…both of Lot’s daughters became pregnant by their own father.  When the older daughter gave birth to a son, she named him Moab. He became the ancestor of the nation now known as the Moabites. When the younger daughter gave birth to a son, she named him Ben-ammi. He became the ancestor of the nation now known as the Ammonites. – Genesis 19:36-38 NLT

So, the Ammonites and Moabites were actually distant relatives of the Israelites. They had settled in the eastern portion of the land of Palestine long before the nation of Israel had been released from its captivity in Egypt. And they both proved to be less-than-accommodating to the Israelites as they attempted to enter the land of Canaan.

But God’s warnings recorded in Ezekiel 25 have to do with their response to the much-later fall of the northern kingdom of Israel, and what will be their gloating response to the fall of Judah and Jerusalem. When the Babylonian finally defeated the southern kingdom of Judah, the Ammonites and Moabites would rejoice. But God warns that they will suffer a similar fate at the hands of “the people of the East” (Ezekiel 25:10 ESV).

And the same thing will happen to the Edomites. This nation enjoyed a close relationship with the Israelites as well. They were the descendants of Esau, the twin brother of Jacob. And while both brothers were in their mother’s womb, God had warned Rebekah, “The sons in your womb will become two nations. From the very beginning, the two nations will be rivals. One nation will be stronger than the other; and your older son will serve your younger son” (Genesis 25:23 NLT).

The Edomites and Israelites never got along. In fact, their history was marked by constant conflict. Despite their blood ties, there was no love lost between these two nations. And because the Edomites would also rejoice at Judah’s demise, God would bring judgment upon them as well.

“I will raise my fist of judgment against Edom. I will wipe out its people and animals with the sword. I will make a wasteland of everything from Teman to Dedan.” – Ezekiel 25:13 NLT

The final nation addressed in God’s message to Ezekiel is Philistia. The Philistines occupied the land along the shore of the Mediterranean Sea, just west of Canaan. They are first listed in the book of Genesis as the descendants of Mizraim, the grandson of Noah.

Mizraim was the ancestor of the Ludites, Anamites, Lehabites, Naphtuhites, Pathrusites, Casluhites, and the Caphtorites, from whom the Philistines came… – Genesis 10:13-14 NLT

So, they too were distant relatives of the Israelites. They were a warring people who posed a perennial problem for the Israelites throughout their history. When God released the Israelites from their captivity in Egypt, He had chosen to send them via a route that would avoid any conflict with the Philistines.

When Pharaoh finally let the people go, God did not lead them along the main road that runs through Philistine territory, even though that was the shortest route to the Promised Land. God said, “If the people are faced with a battle, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.” – Exodus 13:17 NLT

God knew that an encounter with the Philistines might dissuade His people from attempting to enter the land He had promised them, so He sent them on a lengthier and more circuitous way.

As they had done throughout their hostile history with Israel, the Philistines would take advantage of the northern kingdom’s fall to the Assyrians, confiscating their land and plundering their cities. And when Jerusalem came under siege by the Babylonians, the Philistines would use Judah’s suffering as an opportunity to extend their own borders and enrich their coffers. But they would pay dearly for their efforts.

“I will raise my fist of judgment against the land of the Philistines. I will wipe out the Kerethites and utterly destroy the people who live by the sea. I will execute terrible vengeance against them to punish them for what they have done.” – Ezekiel 25:16-17 NLT

Each of these nations had direct ties to the people of God. Yet they had chosen to rejoice at Israel’s suffering and profit from their loss. But when God was done punishing His disobedient people, He would turn His wrath upon their enemies. When the dust settled and the judgment of God had run its course, everyone would know that He alone was God. He warns the Ammonites, Moabites, Edomites, and Philistines, “when I have inflicted my revenge, they will know that I am the Lord” (Ezekiel 25:17 NLT). 

And the prophet, Isaiah, predicts a future day when the once-divided nations of Israel and Judah will be reunited and they will wreak vengeance upon all their former enemies.

Then at last the jealousy between Israel and Judah will end.
    They will not be rivals anymore.
They will join forces to swoop down on Philistia to the west.
    Together they will attack and plunder the nations to the east.
They will occupy the lands of Edom and Moab,
    and Ammon will obey them. – Isaiah 11:13-14 NLT

God was going to judge His rebellious people, but He was not done with them. He would not renege on His commitment to them. And while the surrounding nations might see the fall of Israel and Judah as a godsend, they would one day experience the miracle of their complete revitalization and restoration as God’s chosen people. As God told Isaiah, the day was coming when all His promises to His people will be fulfilled and their fortunes will be restored.

In that day the Lord will reach out his hand a second time
    to bring back the remnant of his people—
those who remain in Assyria and northern Egypt;
    in southern Egypt, Ethiopia, and Elam;
    in Babylonia, Hamath, and all the distant coastlands.
He will raise a flag among the nations
    and assemble the exiles of Israel.
He will gather the scattered people of Judah
    from the ends of the earth. – Isaiah 11:11-12 NLT

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Faithful to the End

53 “I will restore their fortunes, both the fortunes of Sodom and her daughters, and the fortunes of Samaria and her daughters, and I will restore your own fortunes in their midst, 54 that you may bear your disgrace and be ashamed of all that you have done, becoming a consolation to them. 55 As for your sisters, Sodom and her daughters shall return to their former state, and Samaria and her daughters shall return to their former state, and you and your daughters shall return to your former state. 56 Was not your sister Sodom a byword in your mouth in the day of your pride, 57 before your wickedness was uncovered? Now you have become an object of reproach for the daughters of Syria and all those around her, and for the daughters of the Philistines, those all around who despise you. 58 You bear the penalty of your lewdness and your abominations, declares the Lord.

59 “For thus says the Lord God: I will deal with you as you have done, you who have despised the oath in breaking the covenant, 60 yet I will remember my covenant with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish for you an everlasting covenant. 61 Then you will remember your ways and be ashamed when you take your sisters, both your elder and your younger, and I give them to you as daughters, but not on account of the covenant with you. 62 I will establish my covenant with you, and you shall know that I am the Lord, 63 that you may remember and be confounded, and never open your mouth again because of your shame, when I atone for you for all that you have done, declares the Lord God.” – Ezekiel 16:53-63 ESV

Sodom, Samaria, and Jerusalem are each accused of wickedness. Sodom is intended to represent the pagan nations with its blatant immorality and subsequent judgment and annihilation by God. Sodom and its sister city, Gomorrah, were the two poster cities for moral decadence and excess, and God destroyed them both. Samaria was the capital city of the northern kingdom of Israel. It was comprised of the ten northern tribes that God had split apart from Solomon’s kingdom as a result of his wicked behavior in the latter part of his reign. This son of David had chosen to erect idols to false gods all across his kingdom and, as a result, God divided his kingdom in half.

Jeroboam, who became the first king of the northern kingdom of Israel, proved to be a less-than-ideal leader. In an attempt to eliminate any allegiance the people might have to their former kingdom and to prevent them from returning to Jerusalem to worship at the temple, Jeroboam created his own capital in Shechem and then created two alternative worship centers dedicated to false gods.

…on the advice of his counselors, the king made two gold calves. He said to the people, “It is too much trouble for you to worship in Jerusalem. Look, Israel, these are the gods who brought you out of Egypt!”

He placed these calf idols in Bethel and in Dan—at either end of his kingdom. But this became a great sin, for the people worshiped the idols, traveling as far north as Dan to worship the one there.

Jeroboam also erected buildings at the pagan shrines and ordained priests from the common people—those who were not from the priestly tribe of Levi. And Jeroboam instituted a religious festival in Bethel, held on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, in imitation of the annual Festival of Shelters in Judah. There at Bethel he himself offered sacrifices to the calves he had made, and he appointed priests for the pagan shrines he had made. – 1 Kings 12:28-32 NLT

Decades later, Omri would ascend to the throne of the northern kingdom of Israel, and he would relocate the capital city to Samaria.

Omri bought the hill now known as Samaria from its owner, Shemer, for 150 pounds of silver. He built a city on it and called the city Samaria in honor of Shemer.

But Omri did what was evil in the Lord’s sight, even more than any of the kings before him. He followed the example of Jeroboam son of Nebat in all the sins he had committed and led Israel to commit. The people provoked the anger of the Lord, the God of Israel, with their worthless idols. – 1 Kings 16:24-26 NLT

Omri was succeeded by his son, Ahab, who managed to exceed his father in terms of wickedness. Early on his reign, Ahab “built a temple and an altar for Baal in Samaria. Then he set up an Asherah pole. He did more to provoke the anger of the Lord, the God of Israel, than any of the other kings of Israel before him” (1 Kings 16:32-33 NLT).

Yet as morally decadent and spiritually vacuous as Sodom and Samaria may have been, God declares that their wickedness paled in comparison to that of the city of Jerusalem. The capital city of the southern kingdom had become so evil that it made the deeds committed in Sodom and Samaria appear righteous in contrast. But despite this stark assessment, God declares that He will one day restore the fortunes of all three cities.

“But someday I will restore the fortunes of Sodom and Samaria, and I will restore you, too. Then you will be truly ashamed of everything you have done, for your sins make them feel good in comparison.” – Ezekiel 16:53-54 NLT

This astounding statement ties directly back to a promise given to the people of Israel long before they entered the land of Canaan. God had given the people of Israel His commands and ordered them to obey them. He even outlined the blessings they could expect if they obeyed and the curses that would befall them if they disobeyed. And then, Moses assured them that even if they failed to obey, they could experience God’s forgiveness and restoration if they returned to Him in humility and contrition.

…then the Lord your God will restore your fortunes. He will have mercy on you and gather you back from all the nations where he has scattered you. Even though you are banished to the ends of the earth, the Lord your God will gather you from there and bring you back again. The Lord your God will return you to the land that belonged to your ancestors, and you will possess that land again. Then he will make you even more prosperous and numerous than your ancestors! – Deuteronomy 30:3-5 NLT

God was informing Ezekiel that the judgment for the sins of Jerusalem was about to come upon them. The Babylonians would soon arrive and bring devastation and destruction to the land of Judah. The capital of Jerusalem would fall and the temple would be destroyed. Then the exiles living in Babylon would see their ranks swell as the tens of thousands of captives began to arrive after their long march from Jerusalem. 

And yet, God declares that He will one day restore the fortunes of all those living in the land of Canaan, including Sodom, Samaria, and Jerusalem.

“Yes, your sisters, Sodom and Samaria, and all their people will be restored, and at that time you also will be restored.” – Ezekiel 16:55 NLT

This prophetic statement has yet to be fulfilled. While Ezra and Nehemiah eventually led the people of Israel out of their captivity in Babylon and back to the land of Judah, their fortunes were not completely restored. They did rebuild the city of Jerusalem and restored the temple to a semblance of its former glory, but Israel would never rise to its former state of power and prominence in the region. They would never have a king who would reign over them as David or Solomon had. In fact, their lowly status as a nation would be a constant reminder of just how egregious their sin had been.

“…now your greater wickedness has been exposed to all the world, and you are the one who is scorned—by Edom and all her neighbors and by Philistia. This is your punishment for all your lewdness and detestable sins, says the Lord.” – Ezekiel 16:57-58 NLT

They would be back in the land, but their fortunes would be far from fully restored. God warns them, “I will give you what you deserve, for you have taken your solemn vows lightly by breaking your covenant” (Ezekiel 16:59 NLT). They will reap the consequences of their sin. He will graciously restore them to the land but they will have to suffer the constant reminder of their unfaithfulness in the form of their diminished status as a nation. No longer would they reflect their former lofty position as God’s chosen people. And they will remain in that state for centuries.

But God points to a future time when He will fully restore His wayward people. He will do for them what they were incapable of doing for themselves. He will heal their sick and sinful hearts and restore them to a right relationship with Himself.

“Then I will pour out a spirit of grace and prayer on the family of David and on the people of Jerusalem. They will look on me whom they have pierced and mourn for him as for an only son. They will grieve bitterly for him as for a firstborn son who has died.” – Ezekiel 16:62-63 NLT

They will grieve, but only for a little while. God’s faithful adherence to His covenant commitments will cause the people of Israel to mourn their past behavior. They will regret their long history of rebellion against God, but God promises full restoration and a complete renewal of their relationship with Him. God will later provide Ezekiel with further details concerning this amazing transformation.

“Therefore, give the people of Israel this message from the Sovereign LORD: I am bringing you back, but not because you deserve it. I am doing it to protect my holy name, on which you brought shame while you were scattered among the nations. I will show how holy my great name is—the name on which you brought shame among the nations. And when I reveal my holiness through you before their very eyes, says the Sovereign LORD, then the nations will know that I am the LORD. For I will gather you up from all the nations and bring you home again to your land.

“Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. Your filth will be washed away, and you will no longer worship idols. And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart. And I will put my Spirit in you so that you will follow my decrees and be careful to obey my regulations.

“And you will live in Israel, the land I gave your ancestors long ago. You will be my people, and I will be your God.” – Ezekiel 36:22-28 NLT

Despite the unfaithfulness of His people, God will remain fully committed to His covenant promises. He will do all that He has promised to do, down to the smallest detail. While He had been forced to punish them for their sins, He had never stopped being their God, and He would never fail to fulfill each and every promise He had made.

God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it? – Numbers 23:19 ESV

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Disobedience Always Brings Discipline

1 The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, you dwell in the midst of a rebellious house, who have eyes to see, but see not, who have ears to hear, but hear not, for they are a rebellious house. 3 As for you, son of man, prepare for yourself an exile’s baggage, and go into exile by day in their sight. You shall go like an exile from your place to another place in their sight. Perhaps they will understand, though they are a rebellious house. 4 You shall bring out your baggage by day in their sight, as baggage for exile, and you shall go out yourself at evening in their sight, as those do who must go into exile. 5 In their sight dig through the wall, and bring your baggage out through it. 6 In their sight you shall lift the baggage upon your shoulder and carry it out at dusk. You shall cover your face that you may not see the land, for I have made you a sign for the house of Israel.”

7 And I did as I was commanded. I brought out my baggage by day, as baggage for exile, and in the evening I dug through the wall with my own hands. I brought out my baggage at dusk, carrying it on my shoulder in their sight.

8 In the morning the word of the Lord came to me: 9 “Son of man, has not the house of Israel, the rebellious house, said to you, ‘What are you doing?’ 10 Say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God: This oracle concerns the prince in Jerusalem and all the house of Israel who are in it.’ 11 Say, ‘I am a sign for you: as I have done, so shall it be done to them. They shall go into exile, into captivity.’ 12 And the prince who is among them shall lift his baggage upon his shoulder at dusk, and shall go out. They shall dig through the wall to bring him out through it. He shall cover his face, that he may not see the land with his eyes. 13 And I will spread my net over him, and he shall be taken in my snare. And I will bring him to Babylon, the land of the Chaldeans, yet he shall not see it, and he shall die there. 14 And I will scatter toward every wind all who are around him, his helpers and all his troops, and I will unsheathe the sword after them. 15 And they shall know that I am the Lord, when I disperse them among the nations and scatter them among the countries. 16 But I will let a few of them escape from the sword, from famine and pestilence, that they may declare all their abominations among the nations where they go, and may know that I am the Lord.”

17 And the word of the Lord came to me: 18 “Son of man, eat your bread with quaking, and drink water with trembling and with anxiety. 19 And say to the people of the land, Thus says the Lord God concerning the inhabitants of Jerusalem in the land of Israel: They shall eat their bread with anxiety, and drink water in dismay. In this way her land will be stripped of all it contains, on account of the violence of all those who dwell in it. 20 And the inhabited cities shall be laid waste, and the land shall become a desolation; and you shall know that I am the Lord.” – Ezekiel 12:1-20 ESV

While God had given Ezekiel assurances that a remnant of the people would one day return to the land of Judah, He was not overly optimistic about the spiritual condition of the prophet’s fellow exiles. The Lord described them as “a rebellious house, who have eyes to see, but see not, who have ears to hear, but hear not” (Ezekiel 12:2 ESV). Even though they had experienced God’s judgment and were living as prisoners in the land of Babylon, their less-than-ideal circumstances had failed to cause their repentance. They remained stubbornly committed to their idolatrous ways. And they maintained their misguided belief in Jerusalem’s invincibility because of the presence of the temple. They firmly believed that God would never allow His house to fall into the hands of pagan hordes. Their deportation was a fluke; nothing more than an aberration that would never happen again – or so they thought.

To expose the error behind their thinking, God gave Ezekiel yet another parable-in-a-play to enact. This time he was to dramatize the next siege of Jerusalem and the subsequent events that were to follow. God instructed Ezekiel to hastily pack a bag as if he were attempting to escape for his life. Then he was to dig a hole in the wall of his house or the surrounding garden wall and carry his belongings to the other side. And he was to do all of this in broad daylight, in full view of his fellow exiles.

“Do this right in front of the people so they can see you. For perhaps they will pay attention to this, even though they are such rebels.” – Ezekiel 12:3 NLT

This little demonstration was intended as a wake-up call to the Jews living in Babylon. It was God’s way of informing them about the devastating future in store for their beloved city and its inhabitants. Each day, Ezekiel would stage a small drama intended to dispel any hopes that Jerusalem would be spared. God’s instructions to Ezekiel were quite clear.

“Dig a hole through the wall while they are watching and go out through it. As they watch, lift your pack to your shoulders and walk away into the night. Cover your face so you cannot see the land you are leaving. For I have made you a sign for the people of Israel.” – Ezekiel 12:5-6 NLT

Ezekiel was assigned the role of the rebellious Israelite, suffering within the walls of the besieged city of Jerusalem. His daily dramatic performances were intended to bring to life God’s words of warning. And his actions would have served as a painful reminder to his audience of their own hasty departure from Jerusalem years earlier.

But God’s stage directions to Ezekiel contained important details that probably escaped his stunned onlookers. God’s command for Ezekiel to cover his eyes as he crawled through the hole he dug provided a vital hint concerning the fall of Jerusalem. The author of 2 Kings provides a more detailed description of what actually happened when Nebuchadnezzar’s forces broke through the city’s defenses.

By July 18 in the eleventh year of Zedekiah’s reign, the famine in the city had become very severe, and the last of the food was entirely gone. Then a section of the city wall was broken down. Since the city was surrounded by the Babylonians, the soldiers waited for nightfall and escaped through the gate between the two walls behind the king’s garden. Then they headed toward the Jordan Valley.

But the Babylonian troops chased the king and overtook him on the plains of Jericho, for his men had all deserted him and scattered. They captured the king and took him to the king of Babylon at Riblah, where they pronounced judgment upon Zedekiah. They made Zedekiah watch as they slaughtered his sons. Then they gouged out Zedekiah’s eyes, bound him in bronze chains, and led him away to Babylon. – 2 Kings 25:3-7 NLT

Ezekiel’s little dramatic presentation was prophetic in nature. He was revealing the fate of Zedekiah, the king of Judah. After 11 years on the throne, this godless king would be forced to attempt a nocturnal escape through a hole in the wall of the city. But he would be captured and forced to watch the execution of his own sons. Then before he was dragged away to Babylon, his eyes would be gouged out. The last thing he would remember seeing was the gruesome deaths of his boys.

God knew that Ezekiel’s actions would raise questions among the exiles. So, He provided His prophet with a scripted response.

“Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: These actions contain a message for King Zedekiah in Jerusalem and for all the people of Israel.’ Explain that your actions are a sign to show what will soon happen to them, for they will be driven into exile as captives.” – Ezekiel 12:10-11 NLT

Without giving all the gruesome details, God predicts Zedekiah’s fateful end.

“Zedekiah will leave Jerusalem at night through a hole in the wall, taking only what he can carry with him. He will cover his face, and his eyes will not see the land he is leaving. Then I will throw my net over him and capture him in my snare. I will bring him to Babylon, the land of the Babylonians, though he will never see it, and he will die there.” – Ezekiel 12:12-13 NLT

Ezekiel was playing the part of the defeated king trying to flee his fallen city. But rather than escape with his life, Zedekiah would be blinded, bound, and carted off as a prisoner to Babylon, where he would join Ezekiel and the rest of the exiles.

And God predicts that some within the walls of Jerusalem will manage to get away, fleeing to other countries in an attempt to preserve their lives. And the author of 2 Kings records the fulfillment of this prophecy.

Then all the people of Judah, from the least to the greatest, as well as the army commanders, fled in panic to Egypt, for they were afraid of what the Babylonians would do to them. – 2 Kings 25:26 NLT

The fall of Jerusalem was inevitable and unavoidable. God would completely destroy the city and its grand temple. Many of its inhabitants would die from disease and starvation during the lengthy siege. Many more would die by the sword when the Babylonians broke through the walls. Some would escape to other countries, while others would become captives in Babylon. And God told Ezekiel that the few who remained alive would be spared for a reason.

“I will spare a few of them from death by war, famine, or disease, so they can confess all their detestable sins to their captors. Then they will know that I am the Lord.” – Ezekiel 12:16 NLT

When the fall of Jerusalem finally happened, there would be no doubt as to its cause. Its demise would be due to the sins of the people. They would pay dearly for their failure to obey God. And all those living as exiles in Babylon would learn the painful lesson that disobedience always brings God’s discipline.

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Stubbornly Refusing to Repent

8 Jerusalem sinned grievously;
    therefore she became filthy;
all who honored her despise her,
    for they have seen her nakedness;
she herself groans
    and turns her face away.

9 Her uncleanness was in her skirts;
    she took no thought of her future;
therefore her fall is terrible;
    she has no comforter.
“O Lord, behold my affliction,
    for the enemy has triumphed!”

10 The enemy has stretched out his hands
    over all her precious things;
for she has seen the nations
    enter her sanctuary,
those whom you forbade
    to enter your congregation.

11 All her people groan
    as they search for bread;
they trade their treasures for food
    to revive their strength.
“Look, O Lord, and see,
    for I am despised.” – Lamentations 1:8-11 ESV

The city of Jerusalem fell because the kings of Israel failed. They had failed to lead the people in faithful obedience to the revealed will of God. While there had been a handful of godly kings who reigned over Judah, the nation’s latter years had been marked by men like Ahaz.

Ahaz was twenty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned sixteen years in Jerusalem. And he did not do what was right in the eyes of the Lord his God, as his father David had done, but he walked in the way of the kings of Israel. He even burned his son as an offering, according to the despicable practices of the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel. And he sacrificed and made offerings on the high places and on the hills and under every green tree. – 2 Kings 16:2-4 ESV

Virtually every one of the kings who ruled over the northern kingdom of Israel had been wicked and idolatrous, leading their people to turn their backs on Yahweh and worship false gods instead. And, in time, the kings of Judah began to follow the lead of their northern counterparts, walking in the way of the kings of Israel. King Ahaz had even gone so far as to participate in child sacrifice, offering his own son as an offering to a false god. 

At his death, Ahaz was succeeded by Hezekiah, who “did what was right in the eyes of the Lord” (2 Kings 18:3 ESV). He provided Judah with a welcome respite from the sins of his father, instituting a series of reforms that reversed the years of spiritual decline and unfaithfulness fostered by Ahaz. He removed all the idols and pagan shrines his father had erected. 

He removed the high places and broke the pillars and cut down the Asherah. And he broke in pieces the bronze serpent that Moses had made, for until those days the people of Israel had made offerings to it (it was called Nehushtan). He trusted in the Lord, the God of Israel, so that there was none like him among all the kings of Judah after him… – 2 Kings 18:4-5 ESV

But sadly, Hezekiah’s reign eventually came to an end, and he was followed by his 12-year-old son Manasseh, who quickly reversed all his father's reforms.

And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to the despicable practices of the nations whom the Lord drove out before the people of Israel. For he rebuilt the high places that Hezekiah his father had destroyed, and he erected altars for Baal and made an Asherah, as Ahab king of Israel had done, and worshiped all the host of heaven and served them. And he built altars in the house of the Lord, of which the Lord had said, “In Jerusalem will I put my name.” And he built altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the Lord. And he burned his son as an offering and used fortune-telling and omens and dealt with mediums and with necromancers. He did much evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking him to anger. – 2 Kings 21:2-6 ESV

And the pattern continued, with Manasseh’s son, Amon, following in his immoral footsteps.

And he did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, as Manasseh his father had done. He walked in all the way in which his father walked and served the idols that his father served and worshiped them. He abandoned the Lord, the God of his fathers, and did not walk in the way of the Lord. – 2 Kings 21:20-22 ESV

Amazingly, the downward trend was broken once again by Josiah, who “did what was right in the eyes of the Lord and walked in all the way of David his father, and he did not turn aside to the right or to the left” (2 Kings 22:2 ESV). Josiah instituted a series of sweeping reforms intended to restore the nation’s allegiance to God. He repaired the long-neglected temple of God. He reinstituted the observance of the Mosaic law. He “defiled the high places that were east of Jerusalem, to the south of the mount of corruption, which Solomon the king of Israel had built for Ashtoreth the abomination of the Sidonians, and for Chemosh the abomination of Moab, and for Milcom the abomination of the Ammonites. And he broke in pieces the pillars and cut down the Asherim and filled their places with the bones of men” (2 Kings 23:13-14 ESV).

But Josiah, for all his good intentions, was unsuccessful in changing the hearts of his people. And when his sons eventually ascended to the throne, the each “did what was evil in the sight of the Lord” (2 Kings 23:37 ESV). Jehoahaz, Jehoiakim, and Jehoiachin each had their opportunity to rule over Judah, but each failed to restore the hearts of the people to a right relationship with God. The pattern of spiritual adultery continued as the Babylonians stood poised to bring the judgment of God against His unfaithful people. And eventually, just as God had warned, the nation of Judah fell to the king of Babylon.

And Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came to the city while his servants were besieging it, and Jehoiachin the king of Judah gave himself up to the king of Babylon, himself and his mother and his servants and his officials and his palace officials. The king of Babylon took him prisoner in the eighth year of his reign and carried off all the treasures of the house of the Lord and the treasures of the king's house, and cut in pieces all the vessels of gold in the temple of the Lord, which Solomon king of Israel had made, as the Lord had foretold. He carried away all Jerusalem and all the officials and all the mighty men of valor, 10,000 captives, and all the craftsmen and the smiths. None remained, except the poorest people of the land.  – 2 Kings 24:11-14 ESV

Jerusalem had “sinned grievously” (Lamentations 1:8 ESV). And Jeremiah describes in somber tones the consequences of her sin.

The enemy has plundered her completely,
    taking every precious thing she owns.
She has seen foreigners violate her sacred Temple,
    the place the Lord had forbidden them to enter. – Lamentations 1:10 NLT

The very temple that Manasseh had filled with altars “for all the host of heaven” had been filled with Nebuchadnezzar’s troops, who pillaged the sacred site of all its gold, jewels, fabric, and sacred furniture.

The entire city had been left in ruins, its buildings and homes burned, its gates destroyed, and its walls full of gaping holes through which the Babylonians had entered the city. And the few who were not taken into captivity to Babylon were appalled and ashamed at the sorry state of the once-grand capital of their nation.

All who once honored her now despise her,
    for they have seen her stripped naked and humiliated. – Lamentations 1:8 NLT

And Jeremiah pulls no punches when describing the cause of Judah’s downfall.

She defiled herself with immorality
    and gave no thought to her future. – Lamentations 1:9 NLT

In the book that bears his name, Jeremiah records God’s indictment against His chosen people.

“You have played the whore with many lovers; and would you return to me? declares the LORD.” – Jeremiah 3:2 ESV

When the inevitable happened and the judgment of God came, the people had displayed surprise and dismay. They even called out to God, begging Him to rescue them from their predicament.

Now she lies in the gutter
    with no one to lift her out.
“Lord, see my misery,” she cries.
    “The enemy has triumphed.” – Lamentations 1:9 NLT

Her people groan as they search for bread.
    They have sold their treasures for food to stay alive.
“O Lord, look,” she mourns,
    “and see how I am despised.” – Lamentations 1:11 NLT

But it was too little, too late. God had given them ample opportunity to reform their ways. He had given them godly kings like Hezekiah and Josiah, who had attempted to reform the hearts of the people and restore their commitment to Him. But the people had proven to be stubborn and committed to remaining unfaithful to God. Now they were suffering the consequences of their sins. But rather than acknowledge their guilt and humbly confess their sin to God, they remained stubbornly defiant. They were quick to inform God about how bad things were in Judah but unwilling to admit how badly they had sinned against Him.

But all the way back at the dedication of the temple Solomon had built for Him, God had told His people the key to getting HIs attention and to enjoying their restoration to a right relationship with Him.

“…if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land.”  – 2 Chronicles 7:14 NLT

English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Message (MSG)Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson

"I Am Doing A Work."

“Look among the nations, and see;
    wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days
    that you would not believe if told.
For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans,
    that bitter and hasty nation,
who march through the breadth of the earth,
    to seize dwellings not their own.
They are dreaded and fearsome;
    their justice and dignity go forth from themselves.
Their horses are swifter than leopards,
    more fierce than the evening wolves;
    their horsemen press proudly on.
Their horsemen come from afar;
    they fly like an eagle swift to devour.
They all come for violence,
    all their faces forward.
    They gather captives like sand.
At kings they scoff,
    and at rulers they laugh.
They laugh at every fortress,
    for they pile up earth and take it.
Then they sweep by like the wind and go on,
    guilty men, whose own might is their god!” – Habakkuk 1:5-11 ESV

Habakkuk thought God was disinterested in what was going on in his world or had simply decided to do nothing about it. From Habakkuk’s perspective, God was not answering his calls for help or taking seriously his description of just how bad things had gotten in Judah. The place was filled with violence and sins of all kinds. Habakkuk saw himself as this isolated and lonely figure speaking the truth of God, but seeing no response to his message. And he was growing weary waiting for God to do something.

Then God spoke. He finally responded to Habakkuk’s impassioned pleas, but the answer He gave was not exactly what His despondent prophet was expecting. God was going to provide Habakkuk a glimpse into the unseen world of His sovereign plan. He would let Habakkuk in on the hidden and mysterious ways in which He works. And He tells Habakkuk “I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told” (Habakkuk 1:5 ESV). In essence, God tells Habakkuk that if he had heard any of this from anybody else but God, he wouldn’t have believed it. This was going to be jaw-dropping, I-can’t-believe-what=I’m-hearing kind of stuff.

God tells Habakkuk that His answer to the violence and iniquity of Judah is going to be the nation of the Chaldeans, whom God describes as “bitter and nasty.” And God breaks the news to Habakkuk that He will be the one to raise up the Chaldeans and use them as a weapon of judgment in His hands against His own people. Now you would think that this news would not be that shocking or surprising to Habakkuk. He would have known of God’s dealings with the northern kingdom of Israel and their fall at the hands of the Assyrians. He would have been well aware of how God had used foreign nations to inflict judgment on the people of Israel during the period of the judges. And yet, God knew that Habakkuk was not going to believe what he was hearing. The very idea that God would use a pagan nation to punish His people was going to shock Habakkuk. It would sound unreasonable and unjustified. It would come across as unfair and totally unnecessary to Habakkuk, like a massive overreaction on God’s part. Which is why God clarifies that He is doing a work in Habakkuk’s day that was going to be unbelievable. The Hebrew word God uses is 'aman and it means “to stand firm, to trust, to be certain, to believe in” (“H539 - 'aman - Strong's Hebrew Lexicon (KJV).” Blue Letter Bible). God warns His prophet that he is going to have a hard time accepting what God is about to tell him. Habakkuk is going to be tempted to lose trust in God over what he is about to hear. It is not that this news is going to be astonishing, but that it will be unacceptable to Habakkuk. It is not what he wants to hear from God.

The Chaldeans were the last thing Habakkuk would have expected. They were Semites, descendants of Kesed, the son of Nahor, Abraham’s brother. But they were Babylonians, and would be the final dynasty to rule the vast Babylonian empire. Under the reign of Nabopolassar, this nation had already made a name for itself as a ruthless and unstoppable force, inflicting its will throughout the ancient Near East. And now, God was telling Habakkuk that this same nation would be used by Him to inflict judgment on Judah. And as difficult as this was going to be for Habakkuk to accept, it should not have surprised him. God had warned the people of Israel centuries before what would happen if they refused to remain faithful to Him. Deuteronomy 28 contains God’s promise of blessings and curses, and He was very clear in what would happen to them should they disobey His commands and turn their backs on Him.

“Because you did not serve the Lord your God with joyfulness and gladness of heart, because of the abundance of all things, therefore you shall serve your enemies whom the Lord will send against you, in hunger and thirst, in nakedness, and lacking everything. And he will put a yoke of iron on your neck until he has destroyed you. The Lord will bring a nation against you from far away, from the end of the earth, swooping down like the eagle, a nation whose language you do not understand, a hard-faced nation who shall not respect the old or show mercy to the young.” – Deuteronomy 28:47-50 ESV

The problem was that the people of Israel had not believed God. They really didn’t think He would do what He said. Somehow they had believed that they were immune to His judgment, that as His chosen people, they were protected from His wrath. But the people of Judah should have known better. They had watched their brothers and sisters to the north, Israel, fall at the hands of the Assyrians. They had seen God use a foreign power to enact justice and judgment on the people of God and take them into captivity. But they still found it hard to believe that God would do the same to them. The ways of God are unfathomable to us. His sovereign will is not only impossible for us to know, even when He reveals it, we find it hard to accept. The prophet Isaiah provides us with a sobering reminder of God’s divine power and perspective.

Haven’t you heard? Don’t you understand? Are you deaf to the words of God—the words he gave before the world began? Are you so ignorant? God sits above the circle of the earth. The people below seem like grasshoppers to him! He spreads out the heavens like a curtain and makes his tent from them. He judges the great people of the world and brings them all to nothing. They hardly get started, barely taking root, when he blows on them and they wither. The wind carries them off like chaff. – Isaiah 40:21-24 NLT

God went on to tell Habakkuk just how devastating the coming of the Babylonians would be. They were going to come like an unstoppable force, laughing at any attempts made to halt their progress. Fortifications would fail. Armies would fall before them. Kings and princes would become their captives. No one would be able to stop them. But God. He would hold them accountable. He would use them, but He would also judge them. He would allow them to have their way, but He would also make sure that they got what they justly deserved: His judgment.

It is interesting to note that the apostle Paul quoted from this very same passage during a sermon he gave in Antioch in Pisidia. He wrapped up his message with the warning:

Beware, therefore, lest what is said in the Prophets should come about: “‘Look, you scoffers, be astounded and perish; for I am doing a work in your days, a work that you will not believe, even if one tells it to you.’”  – Acts 13:40-41 ESV

Paul delivered this message to Jews in the synagogue on the Sabbath. He was appealing to them to accept Jesus as their Messiah and Savior. He was attempting to get them to not do what their brothers and sisters in Jerusalem had done: reject Jesus as the Son of God.

“Brothers, sons of the family of Abraham, and those among you who fear God, to us has been sent the message of this salvation. For those who live in Jerusalem and their rulers, because they did not recognize him nor understand the utterances of the prophets, which are read every Sabbath, fulfilled them by condemning him.” – Acts 13:26-27 ESV

And Paul warned them that the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus was real. His offer of salvation was legitimate and not to be disbelieved. 

“Let it be known to you therefore, brothers, that through this man forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you, and by him everyone who believes is freed from everything from which you could not be freed by the law of Moses.” – Acts 13:38 ESV

Then he quoted from Habakkuk, telling them that God was doing a work in their midst that they would find hard to believe. He was doing something that would seem improbably and impossible. But God’s ways are not our ways. His methods are not what we would expect. He had used the death of His own Son as the means by whichsinful men and women can be restored to a right relationship with Himself. Unbelievable? Yes. Just as unbelievable as the idea of God using a pagan nation to bring judgment upon the people of God. But Habakkuk was going to have to take God at His word and believe that what He was saying was not only true, but the only way in which salvation and restoration was going to come to the people of Judah. God assured Habakkuk, “I am doing a work!” And God is doing a work in our generation. He is not inactive. He is not distant or disinterested. But His ways will sometimes shock and surprise us. Our job is to trust Him and believe that what He is doing is according to His will and for the best interest of those whom He calls His own.

English Standard Version (ESV)
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT)
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

The Message (MSG)Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson

Remember. Renew. Restore.

But you, O Lord, reign forever; your throne endures to all generations. Why do you forget us forever, why do you forsake us for so many days? Restore us to yourself, O Lord, that we may be restored! Renew our days as of old—unless you have utterly rejected us, and you remain exceedingly angry with us. – Lamentations 5:19-22 ESV Jeremiah was living in what was the ruins of Jerusalem. He is surrounded by a rag-tag remnant of individuals who were left behind by the Babylonians after they took tens of thousands of their fellow Israelites into captivity. In the earlier part of Jeremiah's prayer, recorded in chapter 5, he gave God a vivid description of their circumstances. They were living in disgrace. In keeping with the book's name, Jeremiah laments, “Our inheritance has been turned over to strangers, our homes to foreigners. We have become orphans, fatherless; our mothers are like widows” (Jeremiah 5:2-3 ESV). They were having to pay for clean water to drink and wood to burn. They had resorted to alliances with Egypt and Assyria just to be able to have bread to eat. Crime was on an upswing. It wasn't safe to go into the wilderness. Jeremiah reported, “Women are raped in Zion, young women in the towns of Judah” (Lamentations 5:11 ESV). Everyone was forced to work in order to exist. There was no longer any joy or any reason to celebrate or dance. And Jeremiah knew that their circumstances were the result of their own sin and rebellion against God. While the remnant that remained had escaped captivity, they were trapped in an endless cycle of poverty and despair. They were living in the land of Judah, but without any of the blessings or benefits they had known before.

And in the midst of all the pain and suffering, Jeremiah called out to the only one who could do anything about it. He turned to God, acknowledging His power and sovereignty. “But you, O Lord, reign forever; your throne endures to all generations.” Everything else was unstable and insecure, but not God. The temple may have been destroyed, but the one for whom it had been built was alive and well. The city of Jerusalem may have fallen and the king of Judah taken captive and humiliated, but God remained King of the universe. God remained the one stable factor in Jeremiah's topsy-turvy world. But Jeremiah couldn't help but feel that God had somehow forgotten them. He knew that God had promised to restore the people to the land, in spite of all that they had done. But each day Jeremiah woke up to the same sad circumstances. Poverty, injustice, pain, suffering, and hopelessness. He wondered when God was going to keep His word. When would God step in and do what He had promised to do? Jeremiah pleaded with God to restore them and to renew things back to the way they used to be. He longed for the good old days. But he knew that any hope of restoration was up to God. He would have to do it. As a people, they were completely incapable of saving themselves. Those in captivity were helpless to do anything about their situation. Those left behind in Judah were powerless to change their circumstances. They needed God.

It is amazing how quickly we can become God-focused when we find ourselves in a jam from which we can't escape. Nothing improves our prayer lives like troubles and trials. The feelings of helplessness and hopelessness are great motivators when it comes to our spiritual lives. We seem to operate on the maxim: when all else fails, try God. But Jeremiah wasn't turning to God as a last resort. He was appealing to his one and only hope. Without God, all was lost. There were no other viable options. God alone was capable of doing anything about their predicament. But sadly, many Christians always have another trick up their sleeve or another option to turn to other than God. Whether through pride or a lack of faith, far too many of us make God our desperation destiny. When all is lost, we turn to Him. And amazingly, He is always there. He is the one consistent, unchanging and constantly reliable reality we can count on. Jeremiah ended his prayer and his book with the words, “Restore us to yourself, O Lord, that we may be restored! Renew our days as of old—unless you have utterly rejected us, and you remain exceedingly angry with us.” I don't think Jeremiah believed that was the case. He knew his God all too well to think that He would abandon them forever. He had heard God promise to restore them. He had obeyed when God told him to purchase land in Judah as an investment for the future. He knew in his heart of hearts that God was going to remember, renew and restore. But that did not stop him from wondering when it would all happen. It did not prevent him from asking God to move the timeline up.

And we know that God kept His word. He did eventually restore the people to the land. He brought them back out of captivity and allowed them to rebuild the temple, restore the walls of Jerusalem and repopulate the land. He did exactly what He had promised to do. Catastrophe and captivity were no match for God. The hopelessness and helplessness of men were poor indicators of God's capabilities. To Him, the circumstances were nothing more than an opportunity, not an obstacle. At no point was God worried, concerned, or sitting up in heaven wringing His hands, wondering what He was going to do. He was and is the Lord God, who reigns forever. He is the King of the universe, the all-powerful God for whom nothing is too difficult. He will remember. He will renew. He will restore. We can rely on Him.