Ezekiel 9
Seven men of judgment were at the brazen altar verse 1- 2
HE cried also in mine ears with a loud voice – saying
Cause them that have charge over the city to draw near
even every man with his destroying weapon in his hand
And – BEHOLD – six men came from the way of the higher gate
which lies toward the north
and every man a slaughter weapon in his hand
And one man among them was clothed with linen
with a writer’s inkhorn by his side
and they went in – and stood beside the brazen altar
Glory of the LORD leaves Temple verse 3
AND the glory of the God of Israel was gone up from the cherub
whereupon he was – to the threshold of the house
AND HE called to the man clothed with linen
which had the writer’s inkhorn by his side
Man clothed in linen to mark the faithful verse 4
AND the LORD said unto him
Go through the midst of the city – through the midst of Jerusalem
and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men
that sigh and that cry for all the abominations
that be done in the midst thereof
Six other men to kill all without mark verse 5- 6
AND to the others HE said in mine hearing
Go you after him through the city – and smite
let not your eye spare – neither have you pity
slay utterly old and young
both maids – little children – women
BUT come not near any man upon whom is the MARK
AND BEGIN at MY sanctuary
THEN they began at the ancient men which were before the house
Dead bodies in the Temple area defiled the Temple verse 7
AND HE said unto them
Defile the house – and fill the courts with the slain
go you forth
AND they went forth – and slew in the city
Ezekiel’s prayer verse 8
And it came to pass – while they were slaying them – and I was left
that I fell upon my face – and cried – and said
Ah Lord GOD
Will YOU destroy all the residue of Israel
in YOUR pouring out of YOUR fury
upon Jerusalem?
LORD replies to Ezekiel’s prayer verse 9- 10
THEN said HE unto me
The iniquity of the house of Israel and Judah is exceeding great
and the land is full of blood
and the city full of perverseness – for they say
The LORD has forsaken the earth
and the LORD sees not
AND as for ME also – MINE eye shall not spare
neither will I have pity
BUT I will recompense their way upon their head
Man clothed in linen reports to the LORD verse 11
AND – BEHOLD – the man clothed with linen
which had the inkhorn by his side – reported the matter – saying
I have done as YOU have commanded me
COMMENTARY:
DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers
: 6 Slay utterly old and young, both maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man upon whom is the mark; and begin at my sanctuary. Then they began at the ancient men which were before the house. (8420 “mark” [tav] means desire, stamp, sign, signature or non-verbal communication of a relation to another.)
DEVOTION: LORD gathers those who will perform HIS judgment on Judah. Six men come with instruments of slaughter in their hands. One man clothed in linen comes forward also. They watched the glory of the LORD depart from the mercy seat and come to rest on the threshold of the house of the LORD.
The LORD sent the man clothed in linen to stamp the forehead of all those who regretted how his fellow countrymen were not worshipping the LORD. All those who received the stamp were to be exempt from judgment.
The six men were to follow the man dressed in linen and slay all those who didn’t have the signature of God on their foreheads. This included all those who were young and old. They were to slay all who were maids, little children, and women.
This judgment was to begin at the house of the LORD. Those ancient men who were worshiping the sun were first. Then the rest of the city was going to be slain.
Ezekiel cries in prayer to the LORD and asks HIM if HE is going to destroy all those in Jerusalem. The LORD replies that the iniquity of the house of Israel and Judah is EXCEEDING GREAT. HE is not going to spare any. They are all going to pay for their sin of rejecting HIM.
The man in linen gives his final report.
We see that the sin of the people had affected even the children in the cities of Judah. Do the sins of the parents and society affect our children? YES! The world wants to raise our children to fit into their mold. They are passing laws to restrict what Christians can do in the local public schools. They are passing laws that restrict our saying anything regarding the reading material in our libraries. One of the purposes of the laws of our land seems to be to tell all those who worship the LORD that they can’t raise their children to honor the LORD.
This verse says that the judgment must begin at the house of the LORD. In the New Testament the same statement is made in I Peter 4: 17. We are responsible for our children and how they live for the LORD. If we had to receive a stamp today from the LORD, would we receive one? HIS Holy Spirit is indwelling us to help us with our battle with our world. PTL.
CHALLENGE: Do everything in your power to see that your children receive the instructions necessary to offset anything that is taught in their schools. The primary responsibility of Christian parents is to raise their children to honor the LORD.
DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional Believers
: 8 And it came to pass, while they were slaying them, and I was left, that I fell upon my face, and cried, and said, Ah Lord GOD! wilt YOU destroy all the residue of Israel in YOUR pouring out of YOUR fury upon Jerusalem? (7843 “destroy” [shachath] means to ruin, annihilate, cause trouble, to destroy completely, damage irreparably, blemish, or spoil)
DEVOTION: Here is Ezekiel asking the LORD a question. He sees what the LORD is doing in Jerusalem and wonders how far the LORD will go to end the corruption that was going on in the city by HIS people.
Ezekiel is feeling sorry for what was happening in Jerusalem. He would have liked it to end but he also knew that the LORD was judging HIS people for their lack of obedience to HIM.
When we see someone, we know, that claims to know the LORD going through a hard time we would think the same thoughts as Ezekiel as we would like the LORD to go easy on someone we know and care about.
However, if the LORD didn’t judge correctly the individual would not repent and turn from their sins and follow the LORD again.
The LORD had warned the people of Jerusalem many times through many prophets and priests and still they would worship false gods and claim that they were following the LORD most of the time.
Sometimes there are people who attend our Bible believing churches and leave the church and sin greatly because they think that because they were in church the LORD would not discipline them. This is a lie.
God wants us to be living a life that is pleasing to HIM while HE knows that we are sinner from the day we are born until the day we die. HE still wants us to live a life that is pleasing to HIM with times of confession and service.
None of us is sinless but we can sin less. Our goal should be to please the LORD each day with confession when we sin. The children of Israel were trying to be religious but not obedient to the LORD.
CHALLENGE: Are we trying to sin less each day with our lives? Are we keeping short accounts with the LORD? HE is willing to work with those who are genuine in their relationship with HIM.
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: 9 Then said he unto me, The iniquity of the house of Israel and Judah is exceeding great, and the land is full of blood, and the city full of perverseness: for they say, The LORD has forsaken the earth, and the LORD sees not. (4297 “perverseness” [mutteh] means perverted or warped, bending, twisted, injustice, or practice of being unjust or unfair.)
DEVOTION: The New Testament states that judgment is going to begin with those who are in the house of the LORD. The LORD has not changed HIS standard. HE is looking at those who claim to be HIS followers first to show that HE does not want those who claim to be HIS follower to think that they cannot be judged for their sin.
In the Old Testament HE is working with the children of Israel who at the present time of the nation were divided with the ten tribes already in captivity because of their sin and now the two tribes of Benjamin and Judah were going to be judged for their actions.
The LORD wants HIS people to understand that HIS standard is obedience. The people who were in the Temple were worshiping false gods right in the place that was built to worship the ONLY TRUE GOD of the universe.
HE used HIS servant who was a created being called an angel to bring the judgment to pass. HE will do the same in the future. Each nation that has chosen to worship false gods will have to face the ONE TRUE GOD one day.
The nation that I am presently living in has to face the consequences of their sins. Our cities are full of the shedding of innocent blood on a regular basis. Our cities are full of injustice and warped thinking.
Many people think that there is not a ONE TRUE GOD that created our world and the human race. They think that we just happened by chance and that there is no real creator. They think that there is no real Creator who will judge the world because HE is not watching over what is happening.
We have to understand that the Bible is true and that there is a God who is watching what is happening and HE sees all that the human race is doing each day. HE is not a God that has forsaken the earth but one who is longsuffering but will one day judge every human being regarding what they have done with the salvation HIS SON Jesus Christ has provided.
CHALLENGE: Judgment day is coming. We need to be prepared to face the LORD with what we have done for HIM since the day of our salvation. Salvation is a gift that should cause us to serve HIM because we want to with our worship and service.
DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers
: 11 And, behold, the man clothed with linen, which had the inkhorn by his side, reported the matter, saying, I have done as thou hast commanded me. (7725 “reported” [shuwb] means to bring back, restore, relinquish, refresh, or take to heart.)
DEVOTION: Here we find an angel used of the LORD to mark the foreheads of those who were righteous because they were sighing and crying over the abominations that were being done in the Temple against the LORD.
Those who had the seal on their forehead would be spared the judgment of the LORD. The six men were probably angels who were going to execute the judgment of the LORD.
They were not to spare or pity those who were going to be executed because of their willingness to act in a manner that was opposite of the commands of the LORD.
This can remind us of the 144, 000 witnesses that will be sealed by the LORD before the Tribulation begins. These witnesses were to be spared the punishment that was to fall on the world during this time period. All of them seem to be killed before the Tribulations ends by those who are worshipers of the devil and his false image.
However, many individuals became believers because of their witness. There is rejoicing in heaven over those who become followers of the LORD during any time period in the history of the world.
The group that made up the remnant of the children of Israel that were the righteous ones that were spared. They could give a testimony to what was going on in Jerusalem at the time of the destruction. They can tell others why it all happened as well.
Everything that is happening on this earth is recorded in the minds of those who are alive. One day they will be played back to show why the people were judged and why we are judged.
Our obedience to the LORD is necessary. This obedience starts and finishes with our relationship to the LORD Jesus Christ. Once we repent of our sins and realize that we have been called of God to service we will serve until HE takes us home to be with HIM.
Disobedience brings judgment on all those who refuse to confess Jesus Christ came in the flesh to die for their sins. The Israelites look forward to the coming of Jesus and we look back. Salvation is only through HIS atonement for our sins.
The angels rejoice over one sinner that repents. They are looking into all that is happening on this earth. The one angel in this chapter that is recording all that is taking place will show his work when those who stand before the Great White Throne are judged.
CHALLENGE: What is our brain recording now regarding our actions? Do we want to see the playback of this recording? Everything done in secret will be revealed.
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DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:
BODY
Chastity (Purity in living)
Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)
Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)
Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)
Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)
SOUL
Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)
Frugality (wise use of resources)
Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)
Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)
Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)
SPIRIT
Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)
Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)
Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)
Ezekiel’s prayer to the LORD verse 8
Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)
Brazen altar verse 2
Threshold of the house verse 3
Sanctuary verse 6
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DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:
Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
God – Elohim (Creator, Sovereign, Plural name) verse 3
God of Israel verse 3
Glory of the God of Israel verse 3
LORD – Jehovah (Covenant keeping, Personal) verse 4, 9
Lord – Adonai (Master, Owner) verse 8
GOD – Jehovah verse 8
Lord GOD verse 8
Anger of the LORD (fury) verse 8
God the Son (Second person of the Godhead –God/man, Messiah)
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
Man in linen cloth verse 2- 4, 10, 11
Mine eye shall not spare
I will not have pity
I will recompense their way
on their head
Had inkhorn by his side
Said – I have done as YOU
have commanded me
Six men verse 2
Cherub verse 3
Obedience to the LORD verse 11
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
Abominations verse 4
Iniquity – exceeding great verse 9
Full of blood verse 9
Full of perverseness verse 9
Lying about the LORD forsaken the earth
sees not verse 9
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
Israel verse 3, 8, 9
Jerusalem verse 4, 8
Mark on forehead verse 4, 6
House of Israel verse 9
House of Judah verse 9
Church (New Testament people of God)
Last Things (Future Events)
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QUOTES regarding passage
9:7–11 Normally a corpse was not allowed in the sanctuary because a dead body was considered unclean. Since the temple already had been defiled by the worshipers seen in Ezek 8, the angel-executioners were told to “defile the temple” and to “fill the courts with the slain” (v. 7). Justice was more important than ritual purity.
From the sanctuary the executions spread throughout the remainder of the city (Ezek 9:7) so that Ezekiel was the only one left in the temple. His plea for mercy (v. 8) showed how deeply he felt the needs of the people. Although he was tough and outspoken (3:9), he had a compassionate heart (9:8). This vision of judgment and death aroused the pathos of the prophet.
In response to Ezekiel’s plea for mercy, God reminded him that there was a just and equitable basis for the punishment he had witnessed. Their sin (v. 9), literally “wickedness,” was great, the land was filled with violence and bloodshed, and the city was filled with injustice. Therefore there would be no relaxation of judgment (v. 10).
The final phase of the vision of judgment and departure of God from the temple did include a message of hope that promised a restored remnant (11:13–25). The second vision of the judgment of apostate worshipers also closed with the announcement from the “man” in white, “I have done as you commanded,” that is, a remnant had been preserved. (Cooper, L. E. (1994). Ezekiel (Vol. 17, pp. 128–129). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.)
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9–10 The Lord’s response to Ezekiel’s concern for the nation was to remind him that the iniquity of Judah was extremely great (v.9). Violence and spiritual perversion had filled the land because the people had forgotten God’s character, assuming that he did not see what they were doing because he had deserted them. They denied God’s omniscience, omnipresence, and faithfulness. The Lord had not left, because he presently was judging Judah for her iniquity and would not spare anyone. He did know the wickedness of the people, for he would recompense them for it (v.10; cf. 1 Peter 4:17). (Alexander, R. H. (1986). Ezekiel. In F. E. Gaebelein (Ed.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel (Vol. 6, p. 788). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.)
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9:8–10. Overwhelmed by the magnitude of this judgment Ezekiel cried out, Are You going to destroy the entire remnant of Israel? (cf. 11:13) Ezekiel was a man of compassion who cared for his nation (cf. Abraham’s intercession for Sodom, Gen. 18:20–33; and Amos’ praying for Israel, Amos 7:1–9).
Though Ezekiel’s appeal revealed his concern, the nation’s sin had progressed too far to avert disaster. God had given Israel and Judah ample time to repent of her sin, but the people had used the time to grow more perverse in their ways of bloodshed (cf. “violence,” Ezek. 8:17) and injustice, all the while thinking the Lord no longer cared for them or saw them (cf. 8:12). Without pity (cf. 7:4, 9; 8:18; 24:14) He would give them what they deserved. (Dyer, C. H. (1985). Ezekiel. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 1, p. 1245). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.)
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H. The execution of the idolaters (9:1–11). The guards of the city that Ezekiel sees are really executioners. There are six of them. Together with the man clothed in linen (a heavenly scribe), the group numbers seven, the perfect number. This is the crew God sends against the idolaters in the city of Jerusalem.
What makes their advancement necessary is the first stage of the departure of God’s presence from the temple. He moves from the Holy of Holies to the threshold. The only thing that makes the temple a holy place is the presence of a holy God. When he leaves, the temple becomes like any other building. It surrenders its sanctity.
Not everybody is evil. There were seven thousand in Elijah’s day who did not bow the knee to Baal. And there are those in Ezekiel’s day who grieve and lament over all the detestable things (v. 4). The heavenly scribe is to put a mark on the foreheads of these faithful believers who have not compromised religious convictions. The Hebrew says: “put a tāw on their foreheads.” Tāw is the last letter of the Hebrew alphabet, and in the original Hebrew script it was shaped like an X. We are reminded here of the mark on Cain (Gen. 4) that saved him from the wrath of his fellow man. Or one may think of the blood at the Passover on the doorposts that saved the occupants inside from the divine wrath. This concept is reflected in the seal that is placed on the forehead of the faithful in Revelation (7:3). There is also a wrong kind of a mark (Rev. 13:16–17; 14:11).
Nobody, except the godly remnant, is exempted from divine judgment. Sex makes no difference, and neither does age. The only thing that spares one is character and commitment. (Elwell, W. A. (1995). Evangelical Commentary on the Bible (Vol. 3, Eze 9:1). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House.)
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9:8 Are You destroying … ? Ezekiel is fearfully aroused in prayer because the judgment on Jerusalem and Israel is so vast. God replies that pervasive sin demands thorough judgment (vv. 9, 10), yet comforts him by the report that the faithful had been marked to be spared (v. 11). Cf. Rom 11:1, 2, 25–27. (MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (2006). The MacArthur study Bible: New American Standard Bible. (Eze 9:8). Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers)
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Stirred to the depths of his being by this vision of the slaughter of priests and people (so soon to be accomplished by the Chaldean armies), Ezekiel fell down on his face before God and pleaded that He would not destroy all the remnant of Israel when He poured out His wrath upon Jerusalem. God answered by declaring that conditions were such that judgment could no longer be delayed, and inasmuch as the whole people had departed from Him, and had refused all entreaty to repent and seek His face, judgment without mercy should be meted out to them.
But this did not mean that He had forgotten the few in the land who sighed and cried because of conditions which they could not remedy. He had commanded the destroyers already, saying, “Come not near any man upon whom is the mark.” This indicated clearly His care for the faithful remnant.
As the first part of the vision came to an end the man with the inkhorn reported, saying, “I have done as Thou hast commanded me.” This was to reassure the prophet concerning those who had humbled themselves before God and mourned because of the sin of Judah. (Ironside, H. A. (1949). Expository notes on Ezekiel, the prophet. (pp. 59–60). Neptune, NJ: Loizeaux Brothers.)
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Ver. 9. Then he said unto me, &c.] In order to satisfy the prophet, and make him easy, and shew the equity and justice of the divine proceedings: the iniquity of the house of Israel and Judah is exceeding great; it can’t be well conceived or expressed how great it is; it abounded and superabounded: this is the answer in general, but in particular it follows: and the land is full of blood; of murders, as the Targum interprets it; of shedding of innocent blood; and even of all atrocious and capital crimes: and the city full of perverseness; or of perversion of judgment, as the Targum; the city of Jerusalem, where was the highest court of judicature, where the sanhedrim of seventy-one sat to do justice and judgment, have nothing but perversion and injustice: for they say, the Lord hath forsaken the earth, and the Lord seeth not; does not concern himself with human affairs, and takes no notice of what is done below; and, having imbibed such atheistical principles, were hardened in sin, and gave themselves over to all iniquity; having no restraints upon them from the consideration of the providence of God, and his government of the world: or else the sense is, that the Lord had withheld his mercy and favours from them; and therefore they shewed no regard to him, and looked upon all their evils and calamities as fortuitous events, and not as ordered by him as punishments for their sins. (Gill, J. (1810). An Exposition of the Old Testament (Vol. 6, p. 40). London: Mathews and Leigh.)
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FROM MY READING:
(Remember the only author that I totally agree with is the HOLY SPIRIT in the inerrant WORD OF GOD called THE BIBLE! All other I try to gleam what I can to help me grow in the LORD!!)
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IT’S YOUR TURN by Anne R. C. Neale
This is your turn to be on earth,
Enjoy and savor every blessing given to you,
Be productive and don’t waste any precious time,
God’s Heavenly open door is waiting for you,
this is your turn on earth,
Your ancestors all had their turn way back when,
make the most out of your turn
Before it is too late and you moved on to Heaven,
It’s your turn now, treasure every precious moment,
God wants you to have the very best,
This is your turn, to love, to learn, and to enjoy,
Do it now while you’re alive before your eternal rest.
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Joshua reviews Israel’s history, charges them to serve the Lord, then dies at the age of 110.
INSIGHT
Joshua again gathers Israel to hear a review of their history and the good things God has done for them. He states the benefits and consequences of faithfulness and unfaithfulness. “If it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve. . . . But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord” (v. 15). Fortunately, the Israelites accept the challenge and agree to serve the Lord.
From time to time, the Lord may challenge us through various and unpredictable ways. When we drift from Him, when we get stale, or cease growing, the Lord will often bring a circumstance into our lives which forces us to choose whom we will serve. At those times, we must learn from the nation of Israel and choose to serve the Lord.
PRAYER
· Because the Lord cares enough about us to challenge us to total commitment, we praise Him: (Quiet Walk)
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THE SOUL
For what shall it pro?t a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? Mark 8:36
Our Lord always talked about one thing only. He had only one theme, and that was the soul of man. He kept on saying that there was something about the individual that was of priceless value. “For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?” It was as if He looked at His congregation and said to them, “You are always interested in things, in the world itself; but I am interested in that which is within you, which is called the soul. It will avail you nothing, though your whole world is put in order, if your soul is wrong with God.” The soul—that was His constant theme. He persisted in dealing with it, and thereby He offended large numbers of people who listened to Him, people who were at first interested but who ended, like the people in John 6, by going home and walking no more with Him.
Think of many of the illustrations our Lord uses. Cannot you see that all of them are just illustrations about the soul? Look at Him in the country standing there with His followers beside the orchard. He seems to be very interested in fruit trees. He talks about them quite often and seems to know a lot about them. Yet He never lectured on horticulture and the mystery of life in the trees. He says in effect, “Do you see the trees of the orchard? They can be either good or bad, and you judge the tree eventually by the fruit that it bears. If it bears evil fruit, it is an evil tree. If it bears good fruit, it is a good tree. For ‘by their fruits ye shall know them.’ You have a soul within you, and it is like that tree in the orchard.”
A Thought to Ponder The soul—that was His constant theme. (From The Heart of the Gospel, p. 58, by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones)
Morality cannot trun the stony heart to flesh, it cannot break the chains of sin, and it cannot reconcile us to God. in that sense, morality alone is as empty to save as any satanic religions. (p. 10)
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So whatever imaginary righteousness man has, whatever superficial morality he exhibits, is just a charade. There is no one righteous, no matter what king of pious façade people put up. (p. 11)
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Pharisees and prostitutes share the same hell. (p. 11)
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It’s hypocritical for Christians to berate the secular world for the way unbelievers behave when so many churches are validating it either by believing in its ability to be redeemed by human power or by putting on worldly circus of entertainment and cheap distractions form the real issues. (p. 13) (Christ’s Call to REFORM the Church by John MacArthur)
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