Scripture Reading: Ezek. 8:2-4; 9:3, 9:4; 11:16-17, 11:22-24; 10:2; 22:20-22; 14:21; 12:15; 7:21; 33:21; 3:17; 6:8; 20:40; 17:22-23; 21:10, 27; 29:21
In this message we will consider the judgment of God’s people.
First, we need to see the basis of God’s judgment upon His people. God’s judgment upon His people was based on three things: the righteousness of God, the holiness of God, and the glory of God. In the first section of Ezekiel (ch. 1), in the vision of the appearance of the glory of the Lord, we saw three main things: the throne, which looked like a sapphire, signifying God’s righteousness; the fire, signifying God’s holiness; and the glowing electrum, signifying God’s glory. As we have pointed out, these three things give us three basic colors. The throne in the appearance of sapphire was blue; the fire was red; and the glowing electrum was yellow. When these three basic colors shine, reflect, and refract together, they give the appearance of the rainbow. The crucial matter here is that God’s righteousness, holiness, and glory are the basis upon which God exercises His judgment over His people.
In chapters two through twenty-four there are some negative things which are versus the righteousness, holiness, and glory of God. God’s glory is versus idols, and in 8:2-4, 10 and in 9:3 God’s glory is contrasted with idols. In a vision Ezekiel was brought to Jerusalem and entered the temple. Before Him the glory of God and the idols were contrasted. On the walls were the images of the idols, and over the temple was the glory of the Lord. The glory of the Lord could not tolerate the images of the idols. Those images were called provoking images because they provoked God’s jealousy (8:3). Our God is a jealous God; He will not tolerate idols. Because of the idols in the temple, the glory of God withdrew step by step, leaving the temple, the city, and the people. In the last step the glory of the Lord left the temple and the city, stopping on the Mount of Olives on the east side of the city (11:23), the same place where the Lord Jesus ascended to the heavens. The glory of the Lord stopped there and waited for a while, but eventually it left that mountain and went back to the heavens. That was the departure of the glory of the Lord.
God’s judgment upon His people is based first upon His glory. Anything that is versus God’s glory will surely provoke His judgment. Today’s Christianity is under God’s judgment. The situation of today’s Christianity is provoking God’s jealousy because of the many idols. The Roman Catholic Church has all kinds of idols, and other so-called churches also have idols. In some of these places there may not be physical idols, but there are other kinds of idols. With some their work for God is an idol. With others Bible teaching or evangelism becomes an idol. If we love our work, activity, or practice more than the Lord, even such things, which are for the Lord, may be idols. Based upon this principle, we can realize that the situation of Christianity is filled with idols. This is why I say that the situation of today’s Christianity is provoking to God and under His judgment.
God’s holiness is God’s separation and sanctification, and this is versus dross. As God’s elect, God’s chosen people, the church should be pure gold, pure silver, and a pure treasure. However, like the people of Israel at Ezekiel’s time, the church has become dross. Therefore, like Israel the church needs to be burned by fire. The Lord said that He would put the city of Jerusalem and the people of Israel into a furnace to burn them (22:17-22). This indicates that God’s holiness is versus dross. God’s holiness cannot tolerate any kind of dross.
Consider the situation of today’s Christianity. Where can you find a pure treasure to God? Nearly everywhere you look there is only dross. Surely there is the need of God’s burning fire to burn out the dross.
The love expressed by many Christians today is not pure but is dross because it is according to the flesh. These ones may love others, but their love is according to the natural human emotion and contains a great deal of mixture or impurity. This kind of love is a love that has not passed through the cross. The same is true of the kindness and humility expressed by many Christians. In this kind of love, kindness, and humility there is no pure gold. Instead of something pure and holy, there is mixture, dross. Those who express such love, kindness, and humility are in the flesh, doing good things or expressing something in a good way. Although the expression may be good, it is still the flesh. There is no dealing of the cross and no dealing of God’s holiness. Therefore, this kind of love, kindness, and humility needs to be burned and judged; it needs to be put under God’s judgment by fire. From this we see that not only does our hatred need to be burned, but even our love needs to be burned. Likewise, both our pride and our humility need to be burned by God.
God’s righteousness was versus Israel’s injustice and oppression. During Ezekiel’s time the people used oppression and exercised robbery (22:29). On the basis of His righteous throne, God had to exercise His judgment upon all unrighteous and unjust things.
Now we can see that God’s judgment of His people was based on His glory, holiness, and righteousness. Anything that did not match His glory, holiness, and righteousness had to be judged.
God judged His people by four terrible things: the sword, famine, pestilence or disease, and wild, noisome beasts (14:21). Ezekiel says clearly some were killed by the sword. The escapees died from the lack of food; others were killed by pestilence; and the remainder were devoured by beasts. War causes famine. Thus, when there is war, there is a shortage of food. The lack of food brings in pestilence or disease. These are the means God used to exercise His judgment on His people (7:15-17).
These four means of God’s judgment can be applied to the situation of today’s Christianity. Among Christians there is much fighting and very little peace. If in a particular church there is war, this indicates that God’s judgment has come. It indicates that something idolatrous, unholy, or unrighteous has brought in God’s judgment, which is first by the sword, that is, by fighting. We all need to be careful. If there is fighting or dissenting among us, that is a sign of God’s judgment. The more we fight with one another, the more we will suffer God’s judgment.
Due to the fighting among Christians, there is the shortage of food. When a church is filled with fighting, there will not be in such a church a rich supply of spiritual food. Instead of spiritual food, there will be dearth, famine. There will be no supply, no riches of Christ, no living word, and no healthy word. If we desire to have the healthy word, the supply of Christ, and the rich and special spiritual food, we need oneness, peace, and harmony. There is the need for everyone to be in the Spirit and to be one. Such a church is always full of the food supply. After every meeting, there is an abundance of “leftovers.” This is a strong proof that those in this church are not under God’s judgment.
Because of the shortage of spiritual food, there is pestilence among Christians today. This means that there are all kinds of spiritual disease, sickness, and weakness. However, when the church life is proper, there will be no pestilence, no disease. Rather, there will be healing, strengthening, and building up.
Furthermore, among Christians today there are many roaring, devouring, and ravening beasts. In Acts 20:29 Paul warned the elders from Ephesus that one day wolves would come into the church who would have no pity on the flock. Caring only for themselves, they would devour the church. It may be that there are small wolves in some of the local churches.
Today’s Christianity is characterized by fighting, by the shortage of food, by spiritual diseases, and by roaring, devouring beasts. As a result, nearly all Christians are spiritually dead. Not many living ones remain.
Now we need to go on to see the results of God’s judgment of His people.
The first result of God’s judgment was that the people of Israel lost the good land. They were scattered, dispersed, and brought into captivity (Ezek. 12:15; 7:21). In spiritual experience, to lose the good land means to lose the enjoyment of Christ. Today the vast majority of Christians are deadened, scattered, and have no enjoyment of Christ.
The second result of God’s judgment was that the glory of the Lord departed (9:3; 11:22-23). In the history of the people of Israel, the glory of the Lord came to them twice and filled them. The first time was at Mount Sinai, when the tabernacle was erected (Exo. 40:34). The glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle from that time until the time of Eli. During the time of Eli, the people of Israel fought against the Philistines with the ark in a superstitious way and were defeated (1 Sam. 4:3-10). The ark was captured, and the glory of the Lord left the tabernacle. This means that the Lord gave up the tabernacle. When the temple was built at the time of Solomon, the glory of the Lord returned to fill the temple (1 Kings 8:10-11). The glory of the Lord remained there until the time when Ezekiel saw it departing, leaving the temple and the city, resting on the Mount of Olives, and finally returning to the heavens.
With today’s Christianity there is no glory of the Lord. On the contrary, there are dispersion, scattering, captivity, and the loss of the enjoyment of Christ. Concerning this matter there is no need to argue in the way of right and wrong. Instead, we should simply check if the glory of the Lord is present. If you have the glory of the Lord, you are right. If you do not have the glory of the Lord, you are wrong. If God’s glory is not in the church, we will not be able to sense God’s flavor and manifestation.
The third result of God’s judgment was that the temple was destroyed and the city was burned. About 606 B.C., Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, came to Jerusalem and captured King Jehoiachin, taking him to Babylon (2 Chron. 36:9-10). Ezekiel was also captured at that time. Five years later he began to see the visions in chapter one of Ezekiel. In the following years, he continued to see visions concerning a later capture of Jerusalem. While he was in captivity, he was brought back in the Spirit to Jerusalem to see the coming events. After Nebuchadnezzar captured Jehoiachin, he established Jehoiachin’s brother, Zedekiah, as the king over Israel (v. 10). However, Zedekiah, rebelling against Nebuchadnezzar, turned to Egypt for help. Then Nebuchadnezzar came back to Jerusalem, burned the city, destroyed the temple, and captured Zedekiah (v. 19; Jer. 52:11; Ezek. 33:21). Before these events actually happened, Ezekiel saw them in his visions.
There were eleven years between these two captures. The city and the temple were destroyed not in the capture of Jehoiachin but in the capture of Zedekiah. At the time of the capture of Zedekiah, the glory of the Lord left the holy city and the holy people. Then both the temple and the city were destroyed. Apparently, that was the end of the history of Israel.
Although everything seemed to be lost due to God’s judgment, God showed forth His mercy. We praise the Lord that in His judgment there are still His mercy and the visitation of His mercy. How marvelous! This also is applicable to today’s Christianity. Although the situation is pitiful and seemingly hopeless, God’s mercy is still present. No matter how much Christianity is under God’s judgment, God’s mercy still remains there.
In the midst of His judgment upon Israel, God was merciful to His people and provided a number of things for them.
First, in His mercy God established watchmen such as Ezekiel to warn the people (3:17). As we read the book of Ezekiel, we can see that the people of Israel were not happy with him, because Ezekiel did not speak pleasant words to them. God told Ezekiel that He was sending him to a rebellious house, to those with hard foreheads and stiff hearts. However, He said that He would make Ezekiel’s forehead harder than theirs and his heart harder than theirs, as a diamond is harder than flint (vv. 8-9). In His mercy God established such a watchman to warn His people. The principle is the same today.
Before God sent fire to exercise His judgment, He sent His angel to mark out His seekers (9:4). He marked out those who sighed and cried over all the sinfulness and evils in the city of Jerusalem. God told His angel to mark them out so that they would not be killed by the sword, not be killed by pestilence, not be devoured by beasts, and not suffer famine. Only the marked-out ones would remain alive. The situation is the same today. Certain dear seekers have truly been marked out by God. No matter how much other Christians fight, they have nothing to do with that. These marked-out ones are not damaged by the fighting among Christians. Neither do they suffer a shortage of spiritual food or have any kind of spiritual disease. Praise the Lord that He has some marked-out ones. At the beginning of the Lord’s recovery in this country, in 1962, some brothers and I prayed day after day for the seeking ones, praying that the Lord would bring them into His recovery. Today the Lord still has His seeking ones, those who have been marked out by Him.
Ezekiel 6:8-9 says, “Yet will I leave a remnant, that ye may have some that shall escape the sword among the nations, when ye shall be scattered through the countries. And they that escape of you shall remember me among the nations whither they shall be carried captives, because I am broken with their whorish heart, which hath departed from me, and with their eyes, which go a whoring after their idols: and they shall loathe themselves for the evils which they have committed in all their abominations.” Here we see that in the midst of His judgment God, according to His great mercy, preserved a remnant. Most were killed by the sword, and others died of famine or pestilence or were devoured by beasts. The rest were scattered in captivity, where God kept them as a remnant. The principle is the same today. God has not only marked out the seekers, but He has also preserved and kept a remnant. I believe that those who come into the church life in this country will be the remnant, the seekers marked out by God. The remnant — the seekers marked out by God — will be brought by the Lord into His recovery.
God said that even in the captivity He would be a sanctuary to His people for a little while (11:16, lit.). He became not a permanent sanctuary like the one in Jerusalem but a temporary sanctuary to His captured and scattered people.
If you tell others that Christianity has become degraded, they may argue with you by saying that they have the Lord’s presence in their meetings. We must admit this fact. It is true that the Lord is a sanctuary for a little while to those in captivity. We should not say that they do not have the real presence of the Lord at all; rather, we should point out that this is only a temporary sanctuary. Here and there, in some homes and groups, they have the Lord’s presence in a temporary way as a temporary sanctuary. However, no one should be satisfied with a temporary sanctuary. The temporary sanctuary should be a calling back to Jerusalem, back to the permanent sanctuary.
We praise the Lord that in His mercy He promised those in the captivity that one day He would bring them back to the land (11:17). The land to which He would bring them would be on the highest mountains of Israel (20:40). The high mountains typify the resurrected and ascended Christ. The Christ whom we experience and enjoy today in the local churches is very high, for He is the resurrected and ascended Christ.
In this section on God’s judgment, God, in His mercy, predicted something concerning Christ.
In 17:22-23 the house of David, the royal household, is likened to a cedar tree. First, a branch of the tree, Jehoiachin, was cut off. Later, another branch, Zedekiah, was set up and was also cut off. Eventually, this chapter tells us that on the top of this cedar tree there was one tender twig, one tender branch, which was cropped and planted on the top of the mountain, becoming a high cedar. If we read carefully, we will realize that this tender twig is Christ. Christ, who belongs to the house of David and who was born as a descendant of the house of David, is a tender branch of the cedar of David. As such a tender branch, He was cut off by being crucified. When He was nailed to the cross, He, the tender One, was “cropped.” But by His resurrection He was planted on the mountaintop and eventually became a great cedar tree. Man “cropped” this tender One, but God caused Him to be resurrected and to ascend. In this way God planted Christ in a high place, and Christ became a majestic cedar under which many people will dwell.
This was not only a prophecy but also a promise given by God to the discouraged people. At that time the house of David was fully discouraged and disappointed, but Ezekiel predicted that out of the house of David there would be a tender twig set upon the mountaintop and this twig would become a great cedar tree. This was an encouragement and a promise to the house of David concerning Christ.
Although the house of David was “cropped” because of their corruption and thus became desolate and lowly, one day they will be revived in Christ. Because they will be joined to Christ, they will become majestic once again. The principle is the same with us in our spiritual experience. Because of certain wrongdoings, we may be “cropped” and thereby become lowly. But because God has caused us to be joined to Christ and to be one with Him, we will become majestic in Him.
Ezekiel 21:10 is another verse which many students of the Word believe refers to Christ. This verse is difficult to translate, but the best rendering is, “The scepter of my son despises all trees.” This word is surely based on Genesis 49:10, which speaks regarding the scepter of Judah. The scepter of Judah is Christ. In Ezekiel’s time the cedar tree, the house of David, was cut off and burned. Some, however, still made mirth and were joyful, saying, “The scepter of my son despises all trees.” This means that while Ezekiel was prophesying, telling the people that God was about to burn the people of Israel, including the house of David, which belonged to the tribe of Judah, some of them made mirth, saying, “We have Christ. We have the scepter of God’s Son, who despises and surpasses all trees.” God’s reply was to ask a question: Since He was going to burn everything, should they make mirth by saying this? Thus, this verse refers to Christ, the scepter of Judah; that is, it refers to the power and authority of the Son of God.
Ezekiel 21:27 indicates that Christ is the One who has the right to inherit the kingdom of Israel. At that time God was overturning the kingdom and the nation of Israel, but eventually the One who has the right to inherit the kingdom of Israel will come. This One is Christ.
Ezekiel 29:21 says, “In that day will I cause the horn of the house of Israel to bud forth, and I will give thee the opening of the mouth in the midst of them; and they shall know that I am the Lord.” Christ is the horn of the house of Israel which will bud forth. God will bring forth this horn of the house of Israel. At Ezekiel’s time other nations had conquered and oppressed the people of Israel, and they had no way to go on. But God promised that one day a horn will spring forth from the house of Israel to be against all the nations and to overcome the authorities on earth so that the nation of Israel may be saved. Christ will become the horn to deliver them from all oppression and bondage.
Now we can see that while the judgment of God was upon His people and while they experienced much disappointment, God prophesied that Christ was their hope and encouragement. Although they were under the judgment of God, there was no need for them to be disappointed, for they were able to be encouraged by Christ and with Christ.
This should also be our experience today. If while we are under God’s judgment we are faithful to Him, we may be encouraged with Christ. We have God’s mercy, and we have God’s Christ. Yes, we may be under God’s judgment. However, even under God’s judgment there is still the mercy of God and the encouragement of Christ. Hallelujah for God’s mercy and for God’s Christ!
The final result of God’s judgment upon the Israelites was to cause them to turn to Christ and to gain Christ so that Christ would be everything to them. Because they will be joined to Christ, they will ascend from being lowly to being very high, having Christ as the authority to surpass all the nations and authorities on earth. Because of Christ, the nation of Israel will be restored and Christ will be the King. In that day Christ will become the horn to deliver them from oppression and bondage. Therefore, everything is based on Christ and is received in Christ.
The principle is the same with the church today. The result of God’s judgment upon the church is to gain a group of people who return to Christ and gain Christ. Christ becomes their cedar tree to be their authority, and Christ becomes their horn of salvation.
