WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.120 --> 00:00:03.560 Picture this. You're sitting by a river in a foreign land, 2 00:00:03.960 --> 00:00:07.519 far from home, when suddenly the sky tears open and 3 00:00:07.559 --> 00:00:11.279 Heaven itself comes down to meet you. This is exactly 4 00:00:11.320 --> 00:00:14.800 what happened to a young priest named Ezekiel over two thousand, 5 00:00:14.839 --> 00:00:18.079 five hundred years ago. What he saw that day would 6 00:00:18.160 --> 00:00:21.640 change not only his life, but the entire understanding of 7 00:00:21.679 --> 00:00:24.920 God's power and presence. Get ready to step into a 8 00:00:24.960 --> 00:00:30.199 world where the impossible becomes reality, where divine visions unfold 9 00:00:30.719 --> 00:00:34.200 like scenes from the most incredible movie you've ever watched. 10 00:00:34.520 --> 00:00:37.759 This isn't just ancient history. This is the beginning of 11 00:00:37.799 --> 00:00:42.159 one of the most mind blowing spiritual journeys ever recorded. 12 00:00:42.640 --> 00:00:46.840 Ezekiel was thirty years old living among the Jewish exiles 13 00:00:47.159 --> 00:00:50.719 by the Kabar River in Babylon when his ordinary day 14 00:00:50.799 --> 00:00:55.240 became anything but ordinary, as recorded in Ezekiel Chapter one, 15 00:00:55.359 --> 00:00:58.920 verse one, in my thirtieth year, in the fourth month, 16 00:00:58.960 --> 00:01:01.920 on the fifth day, while I was among the exiles 17 00:01:01.920 --> 00:01:05.040 by the Kibah River, the heavens were opened, and I 18 00:01:05.200 --> 00:01:09.519 saw visions of God. The sky above him suddenly split apart, 19 00:01:09.959 --> 00:01:13.480 like a curtain being pulled back. What came next would 20 00:01:13.480 --> 00:01:16.760 have made any one fall to their knees in absolute wonder. 21 00:01:17.200 --> 00:01:20.719 A massive storm cloud appeared, but this wasn't any normal storm. 22 00:01:21.159 --> 00:01:25.280 Lightning flashed continuously inside it, and the entire cloud glowed 23 00:01:25.640 --> 00:01:29.319 with an intense fire that seemed alive. From the center 24 00:01:29.400 --> 00:01:34.879 of this supernatural storm, something incredible emerged. Four living creatures 25 00:01:34.920 --> 00:01:37.799 stepped out of the fire, and they were unlike anything 26 00:01:37.840 --> 00:01:41.560 Ezekiel had ever seen or imagined. As described in verses 27 00:01:41.599 --> 00:01:44.560 five and six, In the fire was what looked like 28 00:01:44.719 --> 00:01:49.359 four living creatures in appearance. Their form was human, but 29 00:01:49.519 --> 00:01:54.079 each of them had four faces and four wings. These 30 00:01:54.120 --> 00:01:59.319 weren't just unusual beings. They were magnificent, powerful, and clearly 31 00:01:59.400 --> 00:02:02.239 not of this world. Each creature had the face of 32 00:02:02.280 --> 00:02:05.280 a human in front, but that was just the beginning. 33 00:02:05.799 --> 00:02:08.439 On the right side, each had the face of a lion, 34 00:02:08.840 --> 00:02:12.840 the king of all beasts, representing royal strength and majesty. 35 00:02:13.159 --> 00:02:15.159 On the left side was the face of an ox, 36 00:02:15.560 --> 00:02:19.919 symbolizing faithful service and sacrifice, And on the back was 37 00:02:19.919 --> 00:02:22.879 the face of an eagle, the master of the skies, 38 00:02:23.240 --> 00:02:28.759 representing divine swiftness and heavenly perspective. Their bodies sparkled like 39 00:02:28.840 --> 00:02:32.879 polished bronze, and their wings stretched out in perfect formation. 40 00:02:33.520 --> 00:02:37.759 When they moved, they didn't turn their bodies like humans do. Instead, 41 00:02:38.000 --> 00:02:42.520 they could go in any direction instantly, forward, backward, left, 42 00:02:42.719 --> 00:02:47.479 or right, without ever changing position. Ezekiel noted in verse twelve. 43 00:02:47.879 --> 00:02:51.360 Each one went straight ahead wherever the spirit would go. 44 00:02:51.879 --> 00:02:55.719 They would go without turning as they went. But what 45 00:02:55.879 --> 00:02:59.800 made them truly extraordinary was what appeared beneath them. Each 46 00:03:00.000 --> 00:03:02.960 creatures stood beside a wheel that touched the ground. But 47 00:03:03.080 --> 00:03:07.240 these wheels defied every law of physics. Ezekiel knew. The 48 00:03:07.280 --> 00:03:11.120 wheels gleamed like precious stones, and each wheel had another 49 00:03:11.120 --> 00:03:14.879 wheel inside it, positioned at right angles. This meant they 50 00:03:14.919 --> 00:03:18.120 could roll in any direction without turning, just like the 51 00:03:18.120 --> 00:03:21.840 creatures above them. The rims of these wheels were covered 52 00:03:21.879 --> 00:03:25.759 with eyes, not just a few eyes, but completely covered, 53 00:03:26.159 --> 00:03:29.319 as if the wheels themselves were alive and could see 54 00:03:29.360 --> 00:03:33.479 everything around them. When the creatures moved, the wheels moved 55 00:03:33.520 --> 00:03:36.680 with them. When the creatures rose from the ground, the 56 00:03:36.759 --> 00:03:41.080 wheels rose too. There was a perfect unity between them, 57 00:03:41.319 --> 00:03:44.960 as if they shared the same spirit and purpose. The 58 00:03:45.039 --> 00:03:49.919 sound they made was indescribable, Ezekiel wrote in verse twenty four. 59 00:03:50.479 --> 00:03:53.960 When the creatures moved, I heard the sound of their wings, 60 00:03:54.400 --> 00:03:57.159 like the roar of rushing waters, like the voice of 61 00:03:57.159 --> 00:04:00.840 the almighty, like the tumult of an army. It was 62 00:04:00.919 --> 00:04:04.639 the sound of pure power of Heaven itself in motion. 63 00:04:05.240 --> 00:04:08.879 Above these incredible beings was something that looked like a 64 00:04:09.000 --> 00:04:14.240 vast expanse, crystal clear and stretching out like a solid dome. 65 00:04:15.039 --> 00:04:18.560 The creature's wings touched this expanse, and beneath it, their 66 00:04:18.560 --> 00:04:22.120 wings were spread out toward each other. Each creature had 67 00:04:22.160 --> 00:04:25.759 two wings covering its body and two wings spread out, 68 00:04:25.800 --> 00:04:31.480 creating a canopy of divine protection and reverence. What Ezekiel 69 00:04:31.560 --> 00:04:35.839 saw next took his breath away completely. Above the crystal 70 00:04:35.879 --> 00:04:39.480 expanse was something that looked like a throne. And this 71 00:04:39.720 --> 00:04:43.399 wasn't just any throne. It appeared to be made of sapphire, 72 00:04:43.800 --> 00:04:47.920 the most precious and beautiful blue stone known to mankind. 73 00:04:48.319 --> 00:04:51.639 But the real wonder wasn't the throne itself, it was 74 00:04:51.680 --> 00:04:56.000 who sat upon it. Ezekiel, Chapter one, verse twenty six 75 00:04:56.079 --> 00:04:59.759 records above the vault, over their heads was what looked 76 00:04:59.800 --> 00:05:03.040 like a throne of Lapis lazuli, and high above on 77 00:05:03.120 --> 00:05:05.519 the throne was a figure like that of a man. 78 00:05:06.040 --> 00:05:10.600 This figure radiated an indescribable brightness and glory. From what 79 00:05:10.639 --> 00:05:13.319 appeared to be his waist up, he looked like glowing 80 00:05:13.439 --> 00:05:16.600 metal filled with fire. From the waist down, he appeared 81 00:05:16.639 --> 00:05:20.720 like fire itself, and brilliant light surrounded him completely. The 82 00:05:20.800 --> 00:05:24.959 light wasn't harsh or blinding in a painful way. Instead, 83 00:05:25.279 --> 00:05:28.759 it was like seeing the most beautiful rainbow after a storm, 84 00:05:29.240 --> 00:05:34.399 but infinitely more magnificent. Ezekiel described it in verse twenty eight, 85 00:05:35.199 --> 00:05:37.600 like the appearance of a rainbow in the clouds on 86 00:05:37.639 --> 00:05:41.399 a rainy day. So was the radiance around him. This 87 00:05:41.839 --> 00:05:44.879 was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of 88 00:05:44.920 --> 00:05:48.480 the Lord. This wasn't just bright light. This was the 89 00:05:48.600 --> 00:05:52.240 very presence of God himself, the creator of the universe, 90 00:05:52.560 --> 00:05:55.720 choosing to reveal himself to a young priest in exile. 91 00:05:56.319 --> 00:05:59.879 The glory that filled Solomon's temple, the presence that led 92 00:06:00.079 --> 00:06:02.959 Israel through the wilderness as a pillar of fire, was 93 00:06:03.000 --> 00:06:06.560 now appearing directly to Ezekiel in a vision that would 94 00:06:06.639 --> 00:06:11.199 change everything. While Ezekiel lay face down, trembling before this 95 00:06:11.360 --> 00:06:15.040 incredible vision, he heard a voice speaking to him. It 96 00:06:15.160 --> 00:06:17.639 was the voice of the one on the throne, and 97 00:06:17.720 --> 00:06:20.959 it carried authority unlike anything he had ever heard. But 98 00:06:21.120 --> 00:06:25.959 first something amazing happened. The spirit entered into him and 99 00:06:26.120 --> 00:06:28.879 set him on his feet, giving him the strength to 100 00:06:28.959 --> 00:06:33.519 stand before God's presence. The voice spoke with both tenderness 101 00:06:33.879 --> 00:06:37.920 and authority, calling him son of Man, a title that 102 00:06:38.040 --> 00:06:43.240 emphasized his humanity in contrast to the divine glory before him. 103 00:06:43.279 --> 00:06:47.240 As recorded in Ezekiel Chapter two, verse three, God said, 104 00:06:47.680 --> 00:06:50.839 son of Man, I am sending you to the Israelites, 105 00:06:51.199 --> 00:06:54.839 to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against me. They 106 00:06:54.959 --> 00:06:57.759 and their ancestors have been in revolt against me to 107 00:06:57.879 --> 00:07:01.439 this very day. This wasn't going to be an easy assignment. 108 00:07:01.920 --> 00:07:05.600 God was completely honest about what Ezekiel would face. The 109 00:07:05.639 --> 00:07:09.120 people he was being sent to were described as obstinate 110 00:07:09.319 --> 00:07:13.360 and stubborn. They had hard hearts and faces set like 111 00:07:13.439 --> 00:07:17.319 flint against God's message. They were like thorns and briars, 112 00:07:17.720 --> 00:07:20.879 and Ezekiel would feel like he was living among scorpions. 113 00:07:21.360 --> 00:07:26.040 But God's commission continued with both warning and encouragement. In 114 00:07:26.160 --> 00:07:29.759 verses six and seven, the Lord said, and you, son 115 00:07:29.839 --> 00:07:33.360 of Man, do not be afraid of them or their words. 116 00:07:33.720 --> 00:07:36.720 Do not be afraid. Though briars and thorns are all 117 00:07:36.800 --> 00:07:39.759 around you and you live among scorpions, do not be 118 00:07:39.839 --> 00:07:42.839 afraid of what they say or be terrified by them. 119 00:07:43.079 --> 00:07:46.639 Though they are a rebellious people. You must speak my 120 00:07:46.759 --> 00:07:50.079 words to them, whether they listen or fail to listen, 121 00:07:50.360 --> 00:07:53.959 for they are rebellious. This was perhaps the most challenging 122 00:07:54.079 --> 00:07:58.319 job description ever given. Ezekiel was being sent to people 123 00:07:58.360 --> 00:08:02.279 who had a track record of rejecting God's messengers, of 124 00:08:02.399 --> 00:08:06.040 hardening their hearts against truth, and of choosing their own 125 00:08:06.120 --> 00:08:10.000 way over God's way. They might listen or they might not, 126 00:08:10.600 --> 00:08:15.199 but that wasn't Ezekiel's responsibility. His job was simply to 127 00:08:15.319 --> 00:08:20.680 deliver God's message faithfully, regardless of their response. The commission 128 00:08:20.759 --> 00:08:24.680 came with a clear understanding that success wouldn't be measured 129 00:08:24.680 --> 00:08:28.800 by how many people listened or changed their ways. Success 130 00:08:28.879 --> 00:08:32.919 would be measured by faithfulness to the message itself. God 131 00:08:33.080 --> 00:08:36.879 wasn't asking Ezekiel to be successful in human terms. He 132 00:08:37.000 --> 00:08:40.559 was asking him to be obedient. What happened next was 133 00:08:40.639 --> 00:08:45.360 unlike anything in recorded history. God presented Ezekiel with a scroll, 134 00:08:45.879 --> 00:08:49.919 but this wasn't an ordinary document, as described in Ezekiel 135 00:08:50.000 --> 00:08:53.600 Chapter two, verse nine. Then I looked and I saw 136 00:08:53.639 --> 00:08:57.159 a hand stretched out to me. In it was a scroll, 137 00:08:57.480 --> 00:09:01.600 which he unrolled before me. This scroll was covered with 138 00:09:01.679 --> 00:09:06.639 writing on both sides, which was unusual for ancient documents. Normally, 139 00:09:07.039 --> 00:09:11.000 writing appeared only on one side to preserve the precious material. 140 00:09:11.720 --> 00:09:15.519 But this scroll was completely filled with God's message. The 141 00:09:15.600 --> 00:09:19.159 content wasn't pleasant. It was words of lament and mourning 142 00:09:19.240 --> 00:09:23.879 and woe. Then came the most extraordinary command Ezekiel had 143 00:09:23.879 --> 00:09:27.960 ever received. In chapter three, verse one, God said, son 144 00:09:28.039 --> 00:09:31.200 of Man, eat what is before you eat this scroll, 145 00:09:31.600 --> 00:09:34.519 then go and speak to the people of Israel. This 146 00:09:34.720 --> 00:09:39.320 wasn't symbolic language. God was literally telling Ezekiel to eat 147 00:09:39.360 --> 00:09:44.840 the scroll containing his prophetic message. Without hesitation. Ezekiel obeyed 148 00:09:44.919 --> 00:09:48.879 this incredible command. He opened his mouth and ate the 149 00:09:48.919 --> 00:09:53.639 scroll that God gave him. What happened next was completely unexpected, 150 00:09:54.080 --> 00:09:57.879 despite the scroll being filled with messages of judgment and sorrow, 151 00:09:58.240 --> 00:10:01.919 when Ezekiel ate it, it tasted as sweet as honey 152 00:10:01.919 --> 00:10:07.399 in his mouth. This amazing transformation revealed something profound about 153 00:10:07.399 --> 00:10:11.480 God's word, even when the message contains difficult truths. Or 154 00:10:11.559 --> 00:10:16.639 warnings of judgment. There's something inherently sweet about receiving revelation 155 00:10:16.759 --> 00:10:21.519 from God. The bitterness of the message's content was overshadowed 156 00:10:21.559 --> 00:10:26.799 by the sweetness of divine communication itself. God explained the 157 00:10:26.879 --> 00:10:30.399 significance of this act in verse four. He then said 158 00:10:30.440 --> 00:10:33.399 to me, son of Man, go now to the people 159 00:10:33.440 --> 00:10:37.519 of Israel, and speak my words to them. The scroll 160 00:10:37.639 --> 00:10:40.879 hadn't just been read by Ezekiel. It had become part 161 00:10:40.919 --> 00:10:46.120 of him. The message was now literally inside him, transformed 162 00:10:46.120 --> 00:10:50.840 from external words on a page to internal conviction and calling. 163 00:10:52.399 --> 00:10:56.480 This wasn't just about memorizing a message or understanding concepts. 164 00:10:57.360 --> 00:11:01.399 Ezekiel had internalized God's word in the mode complete way possible. 165 00:11:01.759 --> 00:11:06.159 Every word of judgment, every call to repentance, every promise 166 00:11:06.200 --> 00:11:09.120 of restoration was now as much a part of him 167 00:11:09.399 --> 00:11:13.559 as his own thoughts and feelings. After the incredible experience 168 00:11:13.600 --> 00:11:16.559 of eating the scroll, God gave Ezekiel one of the 169 00:11:16.559 --> 00:11:20.679 most sobering responsibilities ever assigned to a human being. He 170 00:11:20.879 --> 00:11:24.000 was to become a watchman. Not just any watchman, but 171 00:11:24.120 --> 00:11:29.080 a spiritual guardian, responsible for the eternal welfare of God's people. 172 00:11:30.559 --> 00:11:34.759 In ancient times, watchmen stood on city walls or high towers, 173 00:11:34.799 --> 00:11:39.879 scanning the horizon for approaching danger. When they spotted enemies 174 00:11:39.960 --> 00:11:42.840 or threats, they would blow a warning trumpet to alert 175 00:11:42.879 --> 00:11:46.399 the city. The safety of everyone depended on the watchman's 176 00:11:46.399 --> 00:11:50.720 faithfulness and alertness. Now God was appointing Ezekiel to this 177 00:11:50.840 --> 00:11:54.759 same role, but in the spiritual realm. As recorded in 178 00:11:54.799 --> 00:11:59.440 Ezekiel Chapter three, verse seventeen, God said, son of Man, 179 00:11:59.679 --> 00:12:02.440 I have made you a watchman for the people of Israel. 180 00:12:03.000 --> 00:12:06.240 So hear the word I speak and give them warning 181 00:12:06.679 --> 00:12:10.639 from me. This wasn't just about delivering messages. It was 182 00:12:10.679 --> 00:12:16.480 about bearing responsibility for people's spiritual safety and eternal destiny. 183 00:12:17.600 --> 00:12:21.840 God explained the weight of this responsibility with crystal clarity. 184 00:12:22.720 --> 00:12:27.080 If a wicked person was heading towards spiritual destruction and 185 00:12:27.200 --> 00:12:30.240 Ezekiel failed to warn them, their blood would be on 186 00:12:30.320 --> 00:12:34.200 Ezekiel's hands. In verses eighteen and nineteen, the Lord said, 187 00:12:34.559 --> 00:12:38.039 when I say to a wicked person, you will surely die, 188 00:12:38.360 --> 00:12:40.600 and you do not warn them or speak out to 189 00:12:40.679 --> 00:12:44.000 dissuade them from their evil ways in order to save 190 00:12:44.159 --> 00:12:47.279 their life, that wicked person will die for their sin, 191 00:12:47.639 --> 00:12:50.759 and I will hold you accountable for their blood. But 192 00:12:50.879 --> 00:12:53.639 if you do warn the wicked person and they do 193 00:12:53.720 --> 00:12:57.039 not turn from their wickedness or from their evil ways, 194 00:12:57.600 --> 00:13:01.440 they will die for their sin. You will have saved yourself. 195 00:13:02.240 --> 00:13:05.519 The same principle applied to righteous people who might turn 196 00:13:05.519 --> 00:13:09.480 away from their faith. If they began to sin and 197 00:13:09.559 --> 00:13:13.120 Ezekiel didn't warn them of the consequences, he would bear 198 00:13:13.200 --> 00:13:17.919 responsibility for their spiritual downfall. But if he faithfully delivered 199 00:13:17.919 --> 00:13:21.159 the warning, whether they listened or not, he would be 200 00:13:21.240 --> 00:13:26.240 free from their blood. This created an enormous burden of responsibility. 201 00:13:26.639 --> 00:13:30.960 Ezekiel wasn't just responsible for his own spiritual condition. He 202 00:13:31.080 --> 00:13:35.399 was accountable for everyone he was sent to warn. Their 203 00:13:35.480 --> 00:13:40.720 eternal destiny partly depended on his faithfulness in delivering God's messages. 204 00:13:41.399 --> 00:13:47.000 But with this great responsibility came great authority. God wasn't 205 00:13:47.120 --> 00:13:52.360 sending Ezekiel out empty handed. Every warning, every call to repentance, 206 00:13:52.639 --> 00:13:56.360 every promise of restoration carried the full weight of divine 207 00:13:56.399 --> 00:14:01.519 authority behind it. When Ezekiel spoke God's words, he spoke 208 00:14:01.600 --> 00:14:05.879 with the same authority as God himself. God's methods of 209 00:14:05.879 --> 00:14:11.240 communication through Ezekiel were unlike anything seen before. Instead of 210 00:14:11.360 --> 00:14:14.919 just speaking words. God commanded Ezekiel to act out his 211 00:14:15.039 --> 00:14:20.480 messages through dramatic, symbolic performances that would capture people's attention 212 00:14:20.879 --> 00:14:26.000 and burn the truth into their memories. The first dramatic 213 00:14:26.039 --> 00:14:29.279 act began with something as simple as a brick. In 214 00:14:29.360 --> 00:14:34.440 Ezekiel Chapter four, Verse one, God commanded, now, son of Man, 215 00:14:34.559 --> 00:14:37.000 take a block of clay, put it in front of you, 216 00:14:37.320 --> 00:14:40.639 and draw the city of Jerusalem on it. This wasn't 217 00:14:40.679 --> 00:14:43.519 just an art project. This was the beginning of a 218 00:14:43.639 --> 00:14:48.360 powerful visual prophecy. After drawing Jerusalem on the brick, Ezekiel 219 00:14:48.399 --> 00:14:51.399 was told to lay siege to it. He built siege 220 00:14:51.399 --> 00:14:55.960 works around it, erected earthworks, pitched camps, and set battering 221 00:14:56.039 --> 00:14:58.879 rams against it all around. Then he took an iron 222 00:14:59.000 --> 00:15:02.440 pan and play it as an iron wall between himself 223 00:15:02.480 --> 00:15:06.000 and the city, turning his face toward it to show 224 00:15:06.080 --> 00:15:11.120 that it was under siege. But the performance was just beginning. 225 00:15:12.000 --> 00:15:16.320 God then gave Ezekiel an incredibly difficult command that would 226 00:15:16.360 --> 00:15:19.279 test his obedience to the limit. He was to lie 227 00:15:19.320 --> 00:15:22.639 on his left side for three hundred and ninety days 228 00:15:23.120 --> 00:15:25.919 bearing the sin of the people of Israel. Then he 229 00:15:26.039 --> 00:15:29.039 was to lie on his right side for forty days 230 00:15:29.600 --> 00:15:32.799 bearing the sin of Judah, one day for each year 231 00:15:32.840 --> 00:15:37.279 of their sin. During this entire time, Ezekiel was to 232 00:15:37.360 --> 00:15:40.440 keep his face turned toward the siege of Jerusalem and 233 00:15:40.519 --> 00:15:44.159 prophesy against it with his arm bared. God even bound 234 00:15:44.200 --> 00:15:46.919 him with ropes so he couldn't turn from one side 235 00:15:46.960 --> 00:15:50.240 to the other until the days of his siege were completed. 236 00:15:51.240 --> 00:15:55.519 The food restrictions were equally extreme. Ezekiel was commanded to 237 00:15:55.559 --> 00:15:58.000 eat only about eight ounces of food per day and 238 00:15:58.080 --> 00:16:01.159 drink only about two thirds of at of water. The 239 00:16:01.200 --> 00:16:06.399 food was to be made from a mixture of wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, 240 00:16:06.440 --> 00:16:09.360 and spelt, the kind of mixture people would eat during 241 00:16:09.399 --> 00:16:14.679 a siege when normal food supplies were exhausted. Initially, God 242 00:16:14.720 --> 00:16:19.080 commanded Ezekiel to cook this food over human excrement, but 243 00:16:19.120 --> 00:16:22.720 when Ezekiel protested that he had never defiled himself with 244 00:16:22.919 --> 00:16:27.440 unclean food, God mercifully allowed him to use cow dung instead. 245 00:16:27.879 --> 00:16:32.480 This represented the unclean conditions the people would face during 246 00:16:32.519 --> 00:16:36.559 the siege of Jerusalem. Every aspect of this dramatic performance 247 00:16:36.879 --> 00:16:40.879 had meaning. The three hun ninety days represented the years 248 00:16:40.919 --> 00:16:46.200 of Israel's sin. The forty days represented Judah's sin, The 249 00:16:46.279 --> 00:16:49.759 limited food and water showed the conditions during the siege, 250 00:16:50.200 --> 00:16:54.600 and the unclean fuel represented the spiritual defilement that would 251 00:16:54.639 --> 00:16:57.840 come upon the people. One of the most heartbreaking aspects 252 00:16:57.879 --> 00:17:01.679 of Ezekiel's visions was witnessing something that had never happened 253 00:17:01.720 --> 00:17:06.119 before in Israel's history, the gradual departure of God's glory 254 00:17:06.359 --> 00:17:10.160 from the Temple in Jerusalem. This wasn't a sudden abandonment, 255 00:17:10.480 --> 00:17:15.079 but a slow, reluctant withdrawal that showed God's patience even 256 00:17:15.200 --> 00:17:20.279 in judgment. The process began when Ezekiel was transported in 257 00:17:20.440 --> 00:17:23.960 vision to Jerusalem, specifically to the entrance of the north 258 00:17:24.000 --> 00:17:26.599 gate of the Inner court of the Temple. What he 259 00:17:26.680 --> 00:17:30.839 saw there broke his heart, As recorded in Ezekiel Chapter eight, 260 00:17:30.960 --> 00:17:33.960 verse three, he stretched out what looked like a hand 261 00:17:34.359 --> 00:17:36.799 and took me by the hair of my head. The 262 00:17:36.839 --> 00:17:39.960 spirit lifted me up between Earth and Heaven, and in 263 00:17:40.039 --> 00:17:45.000 visions of God, he took me to Jerusalem. What Ezekiel 264 00:17:45.079 --> 00:17:49.640 witnessed in the temple was spiritual adultery of the worst kind. 265 00:17:50.160 --> 00:17:53.079 There was an idol at the entrance that provoked God 266 00:17:53.160 --> 00:17:57.319 to jealousy Digging through a wall, he discovered a secret 267 00:17:57.400 --> 00:18:02.119 room where seventy elders of Israel were burning incense to 268 00:18:02.279 --> 00:18:07.039 carved images of detestable animals and creatures. At the entrance 269 00:18:07.079 --> 00:18:10.480 to the north gate, women were sitting and weeping for 270 00:18:10.559 --> 00:18:14.440 the false god Tamus. In the inner court, twenty five 271 00:18:14.519 --> 00:18:17.119 men had their backs turned to the Temple of the Lord, 272 00:18:17.599 --> 00:18:21.440 worshiping the sun toward the east. The temple that was 273 00:18:21.480 --> 00:18:23.680 supposed to be the dwelling place of the Most High 274 00:18:23.759 --> 00:18:27.279 God had been turned into a center of pagan worship. 275 00:18:27.680 --> 00:18:30.720 The very leaders who should have been protecting the people's 276 00:18:30.759 --> 00:18:36.319 relationship with God were leading them into spiritual prostitution. It 277 00:18:36.400 --> 00:18:40.440 was in this context that God's glory began its slow departure. 278 00:18:40.799 --> 00:18:45.279 In chapter nine, verse three, Ezekiel recorded, Now the glory 279 00:18:45.359 --> 00:18:47.519 of the God of Israel went up from above the 280 00:18:47.640 --> 00:18:51.079 Cherubim where it had been, and moved to the threshold 281 00:18:51.119 --> 00:18:55.920 of the temple. This was the first movement. The glory 282 00:18:56.039 --> 00:18:58.880 that had rested above the ark of the Covenant in 283 00:18:58.920 --> 00:19:02.359 the Holy of Holies moved to the doorway. The glory 284 00:19:02.440 --> 00:19:06.720 didn't leave immediately. It paused at the threshold, as if 285 00:19:06.759 --> 00:19:12.200 reluctant to go, giving opportunity for repentance that never came. Then, 286 00:19:12.599 --> 00:19:16.319 in chapter ten, verse four, the glory of the Lord 287 00:19:16.480 --> 00:19:20.000 rose from above the Cherubim and moved to the threshold 288 00:19:20.039 --> 00:19:23.839 of the temple. The cloud filled the temple, and the 289 00:19:23.839 --> 00:19:26.799 court was full of the radiance of the glory of 290 00:19:26.839 --> 00:19:31.599 the Lord. The departure continued in stages. The glory moved 291 00:19:31.640 --> 00:19:35.319 from the threshold to the Cherubim, and the Cherubim lifted 292 00:19:35.359 --> 00:19:39.000 their wings. In verse eighteen, then the glory of the 293 00:19:39.039 --> 00:19:42.799 Lord departed from over the threshold of the temple and 294 00:19:42.960 --> 00:19:47.880 stopped above the Cherubim. The living creatures Ezekiel had seen 295 00:19:47.960 --> 00:19:52.279 in his first vision were now carrying God's presence away 296 00:19:52.359 --> 00:19:57.119 from his own house. The final movement was the most 297 00:19:57.240 --> 00:20:01.720 devastating of all. In chapter eleven, vers twenty three, Ezekiel 298 00:20:01.759 --> 00:20:04.680 witnessed the glory of the Lord went up from within 299 00:20:04.759 --> 00:20:07.440 the city and stopped above the mountain east of it. 300 00:20:07.880 --> 00:20:11.799 The glory that had filled Solomon's temple, that had led 301 00:20:11.880 --> 00:20:14.720 Israel through the wilderness, that had been the center of 302 00:20:14.799 --> 00:20:21.720 their worship and identity, was now departing completely. This wasn't 303 00:20:21.799 --> 00:20:26.279 God abandoning his people in anger. It was God being 304 00:20:26.400 --> 00:20:30.480 forced to leave because his holiness could no longer dwell 305 00:20:30.519 --> 00:20:34.079 in a place that had been so thoroughly defiled. The 306 00:20:34.200 --> 00:20:39.400 departure was gradual, giving multiple opportunities for repentance, but the 307 00:20:39.400 --> 00:20:44.640 people's hearts had become too hard to respond. The final 308 00:20:44.720 --> 00:20:49.240 aspect of Ezekiel's early ministry focused on the corrupt leadership 309 00:20:49.519 --> 00:20:54.440 that had led God's people astray. These weren't ordinary citizens 310 00:20:54.480 --> 00:20:58.599 making personal mistakes. These were the princes, priests, and leaders 311 00:20:58.759 --> 00:21:02.200 who held positions of trusrust and authority, yet used their 312 00:21:02.240 --> 00:21:06.359 power to lead people away from God. In Ezekiel Chapter eleven, 313 00:21:06.440 --> 00:21:09.960 verse one, the spirit lifted Ezekiel to the east gate 314 00:21:10.000 --> 00:21:12.799 of the Lord's house, where he saw twenty five men, 315 00:21:13.160 --> 00:21:16.880 including Jazaniah and Pallatia, who were leaders among the people, 316 00:21:17.559 --> 00:21:21.480 But instead of leading righteously, they were plotting evil and 317 00:21:21.519 --> 00:21:25.160 giving wicked advice to the city. God revealed their thoughts 318 00:21:25.160 --> 00:21:29.119 to Ezekiel in verse three. They say, haven't our houses 319 00:21:29.119 --> 00:21:32.359 been recently rebuilt? This city is a pot, and we 320 00:21:32.440 --> 00:21:35.119 are the meat in it. They believed they were safe, 321 00:21:35.440 --> 00:21:39.200 that Jerusalem was like a cooking pot that would protect 322 00:21:39.200 --> 00:21:42.759 them like meat protected in a vessel. Their confidence was 323 00:21:42.759 --> 00:21:46.640 in the city's walls and their own political schemes, rather 324 00:21:46.720 --> 00:21:51.599 than in God's protection. These leaders had convinced themselves and 325 00:21:51.720 --> 00:21:56.119 others that they could continue in their rebellion without consequences. 326 00:21:56.680 --> 00:22:01.240 They thought their strategic location, their fortificatetionations, and their political 327 00:22:01.279 --> 00:22:05.440 alliances would keep them safe. They had completely forgotten that 328 00:22:05.480 --> 00:22:08.839 their security had always come from their relationship with God, 329 00:22:09.240 --> 00:22:14.400 not from human strength. God commanded Ezekiel to prophesy against 330 00:22:14.400 --> 00:22:18.599 these corrupt leaders. In verse four, he said, therefore prophesy 331 00:22:18.680 --> 00:22:22.880 against them, prophecy, son of Man. The message was clear 332 00:22:22.920 --> 00:22:27.400 and devastating. Their schemes would fail. Their confidence was misplaced, 333 00:22:27.559 --> 00:22:31.240 and judgment was coming. The judgment was swift and dramatic. 334 00:22:31.640 --> 00:22:36.680 While Ezekiel was prophesying, Pallatia, son of Beniah, died suddenly. 335 00:22:37.200 --> 00:22:40.759 This wasn't coincidence. It was a sign that God's words 336 00:22:40.799 --> 00:22:45.039 through Ezekiel carried immediate power and authority. The death of 337 00:22:45.119 --> 00:22:48.000 this leader served as a warning to all the others 338 00:22:48.400 --> 00:22:52.240 about the seriousness of their rebellion. The experience was so 339 00:22:52.400 --> 00:22:56.920 intense that Ezekiel fell face down and cried out, alas 340 00:22:57.079 --> 00:23:00.799 Sovereign Lord, will you completely destroy the rem of Israel. 341 00:23:01.279 --> 00:23:05.039 He was overwhelmed by the reality that God's judgments were 342 00:23:05.039 --> 00:23:09.519 not empty threats, but immediate realities. But even in judgment, 343 00:23:10.000 --> 00:23:13.960 God's heart of mercy was revealed. He explained that although 344 00:23:14.000 --> 00:23:17.480 he had scattered his people among the nations and countries, 345 00:23:18.000 --> 00:23:21.200 he himself would be a sanctuary for them in the 346 00:23:21.240 --> 00:23:25.359 countries where they had gone. The exile wasn't abandonment, it 347 00:23:25.480 --> 00:23:29.400 was discipline with a purpose. God promised restoration in Verses 348 00:23:29.480 --> 00:23:33.279 seventeen to twenty. I will gather you from the nations 349 00:23:33.599 --> 00:23:35.799 and bring you back from the countries where you have 350 00:23:35.880 --> 00:23:38.799 been scattered, and I will give you back the land 351 00:23:39.240 --> 00:23:42.599 of Israel again. They will return to it and remove 352 00:23:42.720 --> 00:23:46.680 all its vile images and detestable idols. I will give 353 00:23:46.720 --> 00:23:49.920 them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them. 354 00:23:50.319 --> 00:23:53.079 I will remove from them their heart of stone and 355 00:23:53.160 --> 00:23:56.799 give them a heart of flesh. Then they will follow 356 00:23:56.839 --> 00:24:00.079 my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. They 357 00:24:00.119 --> 00:24:02.599 will be my people, and I will be their God. 358 00:24:03.039 --> 00:24:06.279 The corrupt leaders had hearts of stone, but God promised 359 00:24:06.319 --> 00:24:08.960 to give his people hearts of flesh. Where there was 360 00:24:09.039 --> 00:24:13.759 division and rebellion, he would create unity and obedience. Where 361 00:24:13.759 --> 00:24:18.160 there was spiritual adultery, he would restore faithful relationship. The 362 00:24:18.279 --> 00:24:21.079 judgment on the leaders wasn't the end of the story. 363 00:24:21.519 --> 00:24:24.480 It was the beginning of a new chapter of restoration 364 00:24:25.039 --> 00:24:29.240 and hope. After the incredible visions and symbolic acts of 365 00:24:29.240 --> 00:24:33.960 his calling, God commanded Ezekiel to perform another dramatic prophecy 366 00:24:34.480 --> 00:24:36.839 that would shake the hearts of everyone who witnessed it. 367 00:24:37.279 --> 00:24:40.240 This wasn't going to be comfortable or easy. It was 368 00:24:40.279 --> 00:24:42.920 going to be a living picture of the horror that 369 00:24:43.119 --> 00:24:48.079 was coming to Jerusalem. In Ezekiel Chapter twelve, Verse three, 370 00:24:48.119 --> 00:24:53.119 God gave Ezekiel a command that seemed almost impossible. Therefore, 371 00:24:53.759 --> 00:24:57.680 son of man, pack your belongings for exile. And in 372 00:24:57.720 --> 00:25:01.039 the daytime, as they watch set out and go from 373 00:25:01.079 --> 00:25:04.759 where you are to another place, perhaps they will understand. 374 00:25:05.079 --> 00:25:08.599 Though they are a rebellious people, Ezekiel was to pack 375 00:25:08.640 --> 00:25:12.119 his bags like a refugee preparing to flee his homeland. 376 00:25:12.799 --> 00:25:16.400 But this wasn't just any packing. These were the belongings 377 00:25:16.400 --> 00:25:20.920 of someone going into exile, the few precious atoms a 378 00:25:21.000 --> 00:25:25.160 person could carry when forced to leave everything behind forever. 379 00:25:25.799 --> 00:25:29.759 The people watching would immediately understand what this meant, because 380 00:25:29.759 --> 00:25:34.240 many of them had already experienced this nightmare. During the day, 381 00:25:34.720 --> 00:25:40.200 while everyone could see him clearly, Ezekiel gathered his meager possessions. 382 00:25:40.559 --> 00:25:43.440 He packed only what an exile could carry, the bare 383 00:25:43.599 --> 00:25:47.519 essentials for survival in a foreign land. No luxuries, no 384 00:25:47.720 --> 00:25:52.279 family treasures, no comfortable reminders of home, just the basics 385 00:25:52.359 --> 00:25:55.799 needed to stay alive. But the real drama came in 386 00:25:55.839 --> 00:26:01.279 the evening, as recorded in verse four. During the daytime 387 00:26:01.359 --> 00:26:04.759 while they watch bring out your Belongings, packed for exile, 388 00:26:05.119 --> 00:26:08.079 then in the evening, while they are watching, go out 389 00:26:08.160 --> 00:26:11.759 like those who go into exile. This wasn't just about packing, 390 00:26:12.200 --> 00:26:15.960 This was about acting out the actual moment of forced departure. 391 00:26:16.359 --> 00:26:20.000 When evening came, Ezekiel did something that made everyone's blood 392 00:26:20.079 --> 00:26:23.200 run cold. Instead of walking out through the door like 393 00:26:23.240 --> 00:26:26.720 a normal person, he dug through the wall of his 394 00:26:26.799 --> 00:26:31.240 house with his own hands. This represented people so desperate 395 00:26:31.279 --> 00:26:34.400 to escape that they would break through walls rather than 396 00:26:34.480 --> 00:26:38.920 use doors. Trying to avoid capture by enemy soldiers. With 397 00:26:39.039 --> 00:26:43.680 his belongings on his shoulder, Ezekiel covered his face and 398 00:26:43.759 --> 00:26:46.160 went out through the hole he had made in the wall. 399 00:26:46.640 --> 00:26:50.440 The covered face showed the shame and grief of exile people, 400 00:26:50.480 --> 00:26:52.839 too heartbroken to look back at what they were losing, 401 00:26:53.160 --> 00:26:57.200 too afraid to see what lay ahead. The next morning, 402 00:26:57.680 --> 00:27:02.160 God explained the meaning of this powerful drama. In verse ten, 403 00:27:02.279 --> 00:27:06.960 he said, say to them, this is what the sovereign 404 00:27:07.039 --> 00:27:11.680 Lord says. This prophecy concerns the prince in Jerusalem and 405 00:27:11.759 --> 00:27:16.799 all the Israelites who are there. This wasn't just about 406 00:27:17.039 --> 00:27:22.039 ordinary people. This was about their leaders, including the king himself. 407 00:27:22.519 --> 00:27:26.160 Ezekiel was told to explain in verse eleven, say to them, 408 00:27:26.400 --> 00:27:29.319 I am assigned to you as I have done, so 409 00:27:29.559 --> 00:27:31.759 it will be done to them. They will go into 410 00:27:31.839 --> 00:27:36.279 exile as captives. Every action Ezekiel had performed would be 411 00:27:36.319 --> 00:27:40.119 experienced by the people in Jerusalem. The packing, the wall breaking, 412 00:27:40.240 --> 00:27:44.079 the covered faces, the desperate escape, It would all become 413 00:27:44.160 --> 00:27:49.960 their reality. The prophecy became even more specific regarding their leader. 414 00:27:50.799 --> 00:27:55.759 In verse twelve, God revealed, the prince among them will 415 00:27:55.799 --> 00:27:58.839 put his things on his shoulder at dusk and leave, 416 00:27:59.359 --> 00:28:01.400 and a whole be dug in the wall for him 417 00:28:01.440 --> 00:28:04.400 to go through. He will cover his face so that 418 00:28:04.480 --> 00:28:08.240 he cannot see the land. Even the king would experience 419 00:28:08.319 --> 00:28:12.680 this humiliation, fleeing like a common refugee through a hole 420 00:28:12.759 --> 00:28:17.400 in the wall. But the most devastating part was yet 421 00:28:17.400 --> 00:28:22.599 to come. God declared in verse thirteen, I will spread 422 00:28:22.640 --> 00:28:24.599 my net for him, and he will be caught in 423 00:28:24.640 --> 00:28:28.039 my snare. I will bring him to Babylonia, the land 424 00:28:28.079 --> 00:28:31.480 of the Chaldeans, but he will not see it, and 425 00:28:31.559 --> 00:28:35.240 there he will die. The king would be captured, blinded, 426 00:28:35.519 --> 00:28:38.799 and taken to Babylon, where he would die without ever 427 00:28:38.880 --> 00:28:43.480 seeing the land of his captivity. While Ezekiel was faithfully 428 00:28:43.480 --> 00:28:49.480 delivering God's true messages through dramatic demonstrations, Jerusalem was plagued 429 00:28:49.559 --> 00:28:52.920 by false prophets who were telling people exactly what they 430 00:28:52.960 --> 00:28:56.960 wanted to hear. These weren't just mistaken religious teachers. They 431 00:28:57.000 --> 00:29:02.720 were dangerous deceivers, leading people towards destruction with lies disguised 432 00:29:02.759 --> 00:29:09.079 as divine revelation. In Ezekiel Chapter thirteen, verse two, God 433 00:29:09.160 --> 00:29:13.720 commanded Ezekiel to take action against these frauds, Son of Man, 434 00:29:14.000 --> 00:29:17.799 prophesy against the prophets of Israel, who are now prophesying. 435 00:29:18.359 --> 00:29:21.359 Say to those who prophesy out of their own imagination, 436 00:29:21.960 --> 00:29:26.680 hear the word of the Lord drum. These so called prophets, 437 00:29:26.880 --> 00:29:30.599 weren't receiving visions from God. They were making up messages 438 00:29:30.599 --> 00:29:35.079 from their own minds. God's condemnation was swift and fierce. 439 00:29:35.880 --> 00:29:39.519 In verse three, he declared, this is what the sovereign 440 00:29:39.559 --> 00:29:43.079 Lord says, woe to the foolish prophets who follow their 441 00:29:43.079 --> 00:29:46.640 own spirit and have seen nothing. They claimed to have visions, 442 00:29:46.920 --> 00:29:50.039 but they had seen absolutely nothing from God. They were 443 00:29:50.119 --> 00:29:55.480 spiritual frauds, leading people astray with their own imaginations. These 444 00:29:55.519 --> 00:29:59.000 false prophets were compared to jackals among ruins in verse four. 445 00:29:59.799 --> 00:30:04.599 Just as jackals scavenge in destroyed places without rebuilding anything, 446 00:30:05.000 --> 00:30:08.160 these prophets were feeding off the spiritual destruction of God's 447 00:30:08.200 --> 00:30:12.680 people without offering any real help or hope. They were parasites, 448 00:30:13.039 --> 00:30:18.079 not healers. The most tragic part was their timing. In 449 00:30:18.240 --> 00:30:22.119 verse five, God revealed their true nature. You have not 450 00:30:22.200 --> 00:30:24.759 gone up to the breaches in the wall to repair 451 00:30:24.839 --> 00:30:27.279 it for the people of Israel, so that it will 452 00:30:27.359 --> 00:30:30.240 stand firm in the battle. On the day of the Lord, 453 00:30:31.000 --> 00:30:35.640 when God's people needed true spiritual leadership most desperately, these 454 00:30:35.799 --> 00:30:38.920 false prophets were nowhere to be found. They offered no 455 00:30:39.039 --> 00:30:45.039 real strength, no genuine protection, no actual solution to the crisis. Instead, 456 00:30:45.359 --> 00:30:49.480 they spoke lies and claimed divine authority for their deceptions. 457 00:30:49.839 --> 00:30:54.160 Verse six expose their method. Their visions are false and 458 00:30:54.240 --> 00:30:57.680 their divinations a lie, even though the Lord has not 459 00:30:57.839 --> 00:31:02.240 sent them. They say, the Lord declares, and expect him 460 00:31:02.279 --> 00:31:06.319 to fulfill their words. They were putting words in God's 461 00:31:06.319 --> 00:31:10.079 mouth that he had never spoken, then expecting him to 462 00:31:10.119 --> 00:31:13.920 make their lies come true. But the false prophecy problem 463 00:31:14.039 --> 00:31:17.480 wasn't limited to men. There were also women who were 464 00:31:17.519 --> 00:31:22.000 practicing a form of spiritual deception that was equally dangerous. 465 00:31:22.799 --> 00:31:27.519 In verse seventeen, God commanded, now, son of Man, set 466 00:31:27.559 --> 00:31:30.759 your face against the daughters of your people, who prophesy 467 00:31:30.880 --> 00:31:35.240 out of their own imagination. Prophesy against them. These false 468 00:31:35.319 --> 00:31:40.599 prophetesses had developed an elaborate system of magical practices designed 469 00:31:40.599 --> 00:31:44.920 to trap people's souls, as described in verse eighteen. This 470 00:31:45.119 --> 00:31:48.279 is what the sovereign Lord says, woe to the women 471 00:31:48.559 --> 00:31:51.880 who sow magic charms on all their wrists and make 472 00:31:51.960 --> 00:31:54.640 veils of various lengths for their heads in order to 473 00:31:54.759 --> 00:31:58.359 ensnare people. Will you ensnare the lives of my people, 474 00:31:58.759 --> 00:32:04.240 but preserve of your own lives. They were creating physical objects, charms, 475 00:32:04.279 --> 00:32:08.480 and veils that they claimed had spiritual power. People were 476 00:32:08.480 --> 00:32:11.759 paying them for these items, believing they would provide protection 477 00:32:11.960 --> 00:32:16.359 or spiritual insight. But these women were actually trapping people 478 00:32:16.400 --> 00:32:21.359 in deception, taking advantage of their spiritual hunger for personal gain. 479 00:32:22.480 --> 00:32:26.880 God revealed their mercenary motivation in verse nineteen. You have 480 00:32:27.039 --> 00:32:30.359 profaned me among my people for a few handfuls of 481 00:32:30.440 --> 00:32:34.359 barley and scraps of bread. By lying to my people 482 00:32:34.400 --> 00:32:37.599 who listened to lies. You have killed those who should 483 00:32:37.640 --> 00:32:40.880 not have died, and have spared those who should not live. 484 00:32:41.680 --> 00:32:45.799 They were selling false spiritual comfort to people heading toward judgment, 485 00:32:46.240 --> 00:32:49.839 while failing to warn those who truly needed to repent. 486 00:32:50.319 --> 00:32:54.400 The judgment against all these false spiritual leaders was absolute. 487 00:32:54.799 --> 00:32:58.440 In verse twenty, God declared his intention to tear away 488 00:32:58.599 --> 00:33:03.079 their deceptive tool. Therefore, this is what the sovereign Lord says. 489 00:33:03.680 --> 00:33:06.640 I am against your magic charms with which you ensnare 490 00:33:06.720 --> 00:33:10.119 people like birds, and I will tear them from your arms. 491 00:33:10.799 --> 00:33:14.279 I will set free the people that you ensnare like birds. 492 00:33:14.839 --> 00:33:18.799 After exposing the false prophets, God gave Ezekiel a parable 493 00:33:19.000 --> 00:33:22.440 that would cut to the heart of Jerusalem's true spiritual condition. 494 00:33:22.960 --> 00:33:27.319 This wasn't a gentle metaphor. It was a devastating comparison 495 00:33:27.640 --> 00:33:31.519 that revealed how far God's chosen city had fallen from 496 00:33:31.559 --> 00:33:37.160 its intended purpose. In Ezekiel, chapter fifteen, Verse two, God 497 00:33:37.240 --> 00:33:41.519 posed a question that seemed simple but carried profound implications. 498 00:33:42.079 --> 00:33:44.839 Son of Man, how is the wood of a vine 499 00:33:45.200 --> 00:33:47.279 different from that of a branch from any of the 500 00:33:47.319 --> 00:33:51.759 trees in the forest. This question forced people to think 501 00:33:51.799 --> 00:33:56.119 about what made a vine special and valuable. Everyone knew 502 00:33:56.119 --> 00:34:01.359 the answer. A vine was valuable for only thing producing grapes. 503 00:34:01.680 --> 00:34:04.440 Unlike other trees that could be used for building or 504 00:34:04.440 --> 00:34:09.719 making tools, vine wood was soft, weak, and essentially useless 505 00:34:09.760 --> 00:34:14.360 for any practical construction purpose. Its entire value depended on 506 00:34:14.440 --> 00:34:18.239 its ability to bear fruit. God pressed the point further 507 00:34:18.639 --> 00:34:21.519 in verse three, Is wood ever taken from it to 508 00:34:21.599 --> 00:34:24.559 make anything useful? Do they make pegs from it to 509 00:34:24.559 --> 00:34:28.480 hang things on? The answer was obviously no. Nobody made 510 00:34:28.480 --> 00:34:32.880 furniture from vine wood, nobody carved tools from it. Nobody 511 00:34:32.960 --> 00:34:36.400 even made simple pegs to hang things on. Vine Wood 512 00:34:36.519 --> 00:34:39.920 was too weak and unreliable for any of these purposes. 513 00:34:40.360 --> 00:34:44.239 This led to the devastating application of the parable. Jerusalem 514 00:34:44.400 --> 00:34:47.960 was like a vine chosen by God specifically to bear 515 00:34:48.039 --> 00:34:51.519 spiritual fruit, to be a light to the nations, to 516 00:34:51.639 --> 00:34:55.639 demonstrate God's character to the world. But instead of producing 517 00:34:55.679 --> 00:34:59.599 the fruit it was created for, Jerusalem had become spiritually 518 00:34:59.679 --> 00:35:03.480 barren and just as useless. Vine wood was only good 519 00:35:03.480 --> 00:35:07.960 for one thing, burning as fuel. Jerusalem, in its fruitless state, 520 00:35:08.320 --> 00:35:11.840 was only fit for God's consuming judgment. In verse four, 521 00:35:11.920 --> 00:35:14.760 God made this clear. And after it is thrown on 522 00:35:14.800 --> 00:35:18.000 the fire as fuel, and the fire burns both ends 523 00:35:18.239 --> 00:35:21.559 and chars the middle, is it then useful for anything? 524 00:35:22.480 --> 00:35:26.280 The image became even more pointed. Even after vinewood was 525 00:35:26.320 --> 00:35:31.280 partially burned, it became completely worthless. The charred remains couldn't 526 00:35:31.280 --> 00:35:35.360 be used for anything at all. This represented Jerusalem's condition 527 00:35:35.840 --> 00:35:41.079 after experiencing God's partial judgments. Instead of repenting and returning 528 00:35:41.119 --> 00:35:45.920 to fruitfulness, the city had become even more hardened and useless. 529 00:35:46.639 --> 00:35:52.159 In verse six, God applied the parable directly. Therefore, this 530 00:35:52.360 --> 00:35:55.719 is what the sovereign Lord says. As I have given 531 00:35:55.760 --> 00:35:58.360 the wood of the vine among the trees of the 532 00:35:58.400 --> 00:36:01.559 forest as fuel for the fire, so will I treat 533 00:36:01.639 --> 00:36:05.800 the people living in Jerusalem. Jerusalem's fate was sealed not 534 00:36:05.960 --> 00:36:09.400 because God was cruel, but because the city had failed 535 00:36:09.400 --> 00:36:13.920 to fulfill its purpose and had become spiritually worthless. The 536 00:36:14.039 --> 00:36:18.639 judgment wasn't arbitrary. It was the natural consequence of fruitlessness. 537 00:36:19.559 --> 00:36:23.360 Just as a farmer eventually removes a barren vine that 538 00:36:23.440 --> 00:36:28.000 takes up space without producing grapes, God was removing Jerusalem 539 00:36:28.360 --> 00:36:31.079 because it had failed to produce the spiritual fruit it 540 00:36:31.159 --> 00:36:35.360 was planted to bear. What came next was perhaps the 541 00:36:35.400 --> 00:36:39.840 most powerful and disturbing allegory in all of scripture. God 542 00:36:39.880 --> 00:36:44.320 told Ezekiel to present Jerusalem's spiritual history as the story 543 00:36:44.360 --> 00:36:47.199 of an abandoned baby who grew up to become an 544 00:36:47.320 --> 00:36:52.679 unfaithful wife. This wasn't just a story. It was a raw, 545 00:36:52.920 --> 00:36:56.880 emotional account of betrayal that would make people understand the 546 00:36:57.119 --> 00:37:01.760 depth of their spiritual adultery. The story began with an 547 00:37:01.760 --> 00:37:05.760 image that would break any heart. In Ezekiel Chapter sixteen, 548 00:37:05.920 --> 00:37:10.519 verse four, God described Jerusalem's origins. On the day you 549 00:37:10.599 --> 00:37:13.880 were born, your cord was not cut, nor were you 550 00:37:14.039 --> 00:37:17.440 washed with water too make you clean, nor were you 551 00:37:17.519 --> 00:37:20.400 rubbed with salt or wrapped in cloths. This was a 552 00:37:20.440 --> 00:37:24.639 baby completely abandoned, left to die without even the most 553 00:37:24.679 --> 00:37:30.039 basic care that any newborn needed to survive. Verse five 554 00:37:30.199 --> 00:37:33.880 painted an even more tragic picture. No one looked on 555 00:37:33.960 --> 00:37:36.679 you with pity or had compassion enough to do any 556 00:37:36.719 --> 00:37:40.239 of these things for you. Rather, you were thrown out 557 00:37:40.280 --> 00:37:43.000 into the open field. For on the day you were born, 558 00:37:43.119 --> 00:37:47.360 you were despised. This baby wasn't just neglected, she was 559 00:37:47.400 --> 00:37:51.679 actively rejected and thrown away like garbage. But then came 560 00:37:51.719 --> 00:37:55.920 the moment of divine rescue. In verse six, God revealed 561 00:37:55.960 --> 00:37:59.000 his intervention. Then I passed by and saw you kicking 562 00:37:59.039 --> 00:38:01.000 about in your blood, And as you lay there in 563 00:38:01.039 --> 00:38:04.239 your blood, I said to you live. Indeed, God didn't 564 00:38:04.280 --> 00:38:07.199 just walk by the dying infant. He commanded her to 565 00:38:07.320 --> 00:38:13.159 live and took personal responsibility for her survival. Under God's care, 566 00:38:13.840 --> 00:38:19.639 the abandoned baby began to thrive. Verse seven described her growth. 567 00:38:20.599 --> 00:38:24.719 I made you grow like a plant of the bee effield. 568 00:38:25.280 --> 00:38:28.480 You grew and developed and entered puberty. Your breasts had 569 00:38:28.519 --> 00:38:31.159 formed and your hair had grown, Yet you were still 570 00:38:31.280 --> 00:38:34.159 naked and bare. God had brought her from the brink 571 00:38:34.159 --> 00:38:37.400 of death to the beauty of young womanhood. When she 572 00:38:37.480 --> 00:38:42.880 reached maturity, God's relationship with her changed from guardian to husband. 573 00:38:43.480 --> 00:38:47.159 In verse eight, he declared, later, I passed by, and 574 00:38:47.239 --> 00:38:49.639 when I looked at you and saw that you were 575 00:38:49.679 --> 00:38:52.440 old enough for love, I spread the corner of my 576 00:38:52.559 --> 00:38:56.079 garment over you and covered your naked body. I gave 577 00:38:56.119 --> 00:38:59.280 you my solemn oath and entered into a covenant with you, 578 00:38:59.440 --> 00:39:02.360 and you became became mine. This was the moment of 579 00:39:02.400 --> 00:39:06.960 their spiritual marriage, God choosing Jerusalem as his bride. The 580 00:39:07.000 --> 00:39:11.000 blessings that followed were extraordinary. God clothed her in the 581 00:39:11.239 --> 00:39:17.199 finest materials, embroidered cloth, leather, sandals, fine linen, and costly garments. 582 00:39:17.599 --> 00:39:22.199 He adorned her with jewelry, bracelets, necklaces, rings, and a 583 00:39:22.239 --> 00:39:27.239 beautiful crown. He fed her the finest foods, honey, olive, oil, 584 00:39:27.599 --> 00:39:32.800 and the best flower. She became incredibly beautiful and rose 585 00:39:32.880 --> 00:39:37.480 to become a queen among nations, but success corrupted her heart. 586 00:39:37.840 --> 00:39:42.199 In verse fifteen, the tragic turn began. But you trusted 587 00:39:42.239 --> 00:39:46.239 in your beauty and used your fame to become a prostitute. 588 00:39:46.760 --> 00:39:49.679 You lavished your favors on any one who passed by, 589 00:39:50.199 --> 00:39:54.719 and your beauty became his the very gifts God had 590 00:39:54.760 --> 00:40:00.400 given her became tools of spiritual adultery. The adultery wasn't 591 00:40:00.440 --> 00:40:05.800 just occasional unfaithfulness, it was systematic spiritual prostitution. She took 592 00:40:05.840 --> 00:40:08.639 the clothes God had given her and made shrines for 593 00:40:08.719 --> 00:40:12.000 false gods. She took the jewelry he had provided and 594 00:40:12.079 --> 00:40:15.719 made idols. She even took the food he supplied and 595 00:40:15.880 --> 00:40:19.639 offered it to other gods as incense. But the most 596 00:40:19.800 --> 00:40:24.639 horrifying aspect was yet to be revealed. In verse twenty, 597 00:40:24.960 --> 00:40:28.960 God exposed the ultimate abomination. And you took your sons 598 00:40:29.039 --> 00:40:32.440 and daughters whom you bore to me, and sacrificed them 599 00:40:32.440 --> 00:40:35.960 as food to the idols. Was your prostitution not enough? 600 00:40:36.400 --> 00:40:38.679 She had taken the children of her marriage with God 601 00:40:39.000 --> 00:40:42.920 and sacrificed them to false gods, the ultimate betrayal of 602 00:40:42.960 --> 00:40:48.119 trust and love. The allegory continued with devastating detail showing 603 00:40:48.199 --> 00:40:51.280 how Jerusalem had actually paid other nations to be her 604 00:40:51.280 --> 00:40:55.679 lovers instead of being paid like a normal prostitute. She 605 00:40:55.760 --> 00:40:59.360 had reversed the natural order, giving gifts to her spiritual 606 00:40:59.400 --> 00:41:04.159 lovers instead of receiving them. God's next message came in 607 00:41:04.199 --> 00:41:06.800 the form of a riddle that would puzzle every one 608 00:41:06.840 --> 00:41:11.760 who heard it until Ezekiel explained its meaning. This wasn't 609 00:41:11.840 --> 00:41:16.079 just a nature story. It was a political prophecy disguised 610 00:41:16.119 --> 00:41:20.800 as a parable about eagles and trees. In Ezekiel Chapter seventeen, 611 00:41:20.920 --> 00:41:25.039 verse two, God commanded son of Man, set forth an 612 00:41:25.079 --> 00:41:28.440 allegory and tell it to the Israelites as a parable. 613 00:41:29.079 --> 00:41:32.760 What followed was a story that seemed simple on the surface, 614 00:41:33.079 --> 00:41:36.800 but contained layers of meaning that would reveal the political 615 00:41:36.880 --> 00:41:40.519 drama happening around them. The riddle began with a great 616 00:41:40.599 --> 00:41:43.920 eagle in verse three, say to them, this is what 617 00:41:43.960 --> 00:41:47.760 the sovereign lord says. A great eagle with powerful wings, 618 00:41:48.119 --> 00:41:51.800 long feathers, and full plumage of varied colors, came to Lebanon. 619 00:41:52.159 --> 00:41:54.920 Taking hold of the top of a cedar. He broke 620 00:41:55.360 --> 00:41:58.519 off its topmost chute and carried it away to a 621 00:41:58.599 --> 00:42:01.760 land of merchants, where he planted it in a city 622 00:42:01.800 --> 00:42:07.719 of traders. This great eagle represented nebicud Neza, the King 623 00:42:07.800 --> 00:42:12.280 of Babylon, with his powerful military might. The cedar tree 624 00:42:12.559 --> 00:42:15.639 was the royal house of Judah, and the topmost shoot 625 00:42:15.800 --> 00:42:19.320 was King Jehoyakin, whom nebucad Neza had carried away to 626 00:42:19.360 --> 00:42:22.920 Babylon in the first deportation, but the eagle didn't just 627 00:42:23.039 --> 00:42:28.239 take he also planted. Verse five continued the story. He 628 00:42:28.920 --> 00:42:31.559 and took one of the seedlings of the land and 629 00:42:31.599 --> 00:42:34.639 put it in fertile soil. He planted it like a 630 00:42:34.679 --> 00:42:38.400 willow by abundant water, and it sprouted and became a 631 00:42:38.440 --> 00:42:44.320 low spreading vine. This seedling was Zedekiah, whom nebukud Nezza 632 00:42:44.360 --> 00:42:47.559 had placed on the throne as a puppet king. The 633 00:42:47.679 --> 00:42:51.440 arrangement seemed to be working well. The vine grew and spread, 634 00:42:51.920 --> 00:42:54.320 but it remained low and under the control of the 635 00:42:54.400 --> 00:42:59.440 eagle that had planted it. This represented the tributary relationship, 636 00:42:59.639 --> 00:43:04.840 where Judah would remain a kingdom, but under Babylonian authority. However, 637 00:43:05.400 --> 00:43:09.280 the story took a dramatic turn in verse seven. But 638 00:43:09.400 --> 00:43:12.679 there was another eagle, a great one with powerful wings 639 00:43:12.719 --> 00:43:15.840 and a lot of feathers. The vine now turned its 640 00:43:15.920 --> 00:43:18.519 roots toward him from the plot where it was planted, 641 00:43:18.880 --> 00:43:22.639 and stretched out its branches to him for water. This 642 00:43:22.760 --> 00:43:26.280 second eagle was Egypt, and the vine turning toward it 643 00:43:26.639 --> 00:43:31.719 represented King Zedekiah's decision to seek Egyptian help in rebelling 644 00:43:31.760 --> 00:43:36.559 against Babylon. The question posed in verse nine revealed the 645 00:43:36.559 --> 00:43:41.079 foolishness of this decision. Will it thrive? Will it not 646 00:43:41.239 --> 00:43:44.159 be uprooted and stripped of its fruit so that it withers, 647 00:43:44.760 --> 00:43:47.360 or its new growth will wither. It will not take 648 00:43:47.400 --> 00:43:49.639 a strong arm or many people to pull it up 649 00:43:49.719 --> 00:43:52.679 by the roots. The vine that tried to serve two 650 00:43:52.719 --> 00:43:57.199 eagles would be destroyed by both. God then revealed his 651 00:43:57.280 --> 00:44:01.400 personal involvement in this political drama. In verse sixteen, he declared, 652 00:44:01.920 --> 00:44:05.440 as surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, he 653 00:44:05.519 --> 00:44:08.360 shall die in Babylon, in the land of the king 654 00:44:08.440 --> 00:44:11.639 who put him on the throne, whose oath he despised, 655 00:44:11.840 --> 00:44:16.079 and whose treaty he broke. Zedekiah's rebellion wasn't just against 656 00:44:16.360 --> 00:44:20.400 nebucud Nezza. It was against God himself, who had ordained 657 00:44:20.400 --> 00:44:25.280 the Babylonian king's authority. The judgment was swift and certain. 658 00:44:25.760 --> 00:44:29.000 Verse twenty proclaimed, I will spread my net for him, 659 00:44:29.199 --> 00:44:31.760 and he will be caught in my snare. I will 660 00:44:31.760 --> 00:44:35.039 bring him to Babylon and execute judgment on him there, 661 00:44:35.440 --> 00:44:39.800 because he was unfaithful to me. God would personally ensure 662 00:44:40.079 --> 00:44:44.000 that the rebellious king faced justice for his oath breaking 663 00:44:44.039 --> 00:44:48.000 and unfaithfulness. But the parable ended with hope. In verse 664 00:44:48.039 --> 00:44:51.760 twenty two, God promised, this is what the sovereign Lord says, 665 00:44:52.360 --> 00:44:54.880 I myself will take a shoot from the very top 666 00:44:54.920 --> 00:44:57.760 of a cedar and plant it. I will break off 667 00:44:57.760 --> 00:45:00.880 a tender sprig from its topmost shoots and plant it 668 00:45:00.920 --> 00:45:05.719 on a high and lofty mountain. This represented God's promise 669 00:45:05.840 --> 00:45:08.920 to raise up a future king from David's line who 670 00:45:08.920 --> 00:45:13.239 would rule righteously. After delivering these harsh judgments against the 671 00:45:13.320 --> 00:45:17.199 nation as a whole, God revealed a principle that would 672 00:45:17.280 --> 00:45:21.960 revolutionize how people understood divine justice. This wasn't just about 673 00:45:22.039 --> 00:45:27.960 national consequences. It was about individual responsibility and the possibility 674 00:45:28.000 --> 00:45:32.039 of personal redemption even in the midst of national judgment. 675 00:45:33.079 --> 00:45:37.239 The principle was introduced through a popular saying that people 676 00:45:37.280 --> 00:45:42.400 were using to excuse their situation. In Ezekiel chapter eighteen, 677 00:45:42.559 --> 00:45:47.079 verse two, God addressed this excuse what do you people mean? 678 00:45:47.199 --> 00:45:50.599 By quoting this proverb about the land of Israel. The 679 00:45:50.719 --> 00:45:54.440 parents eat sour grapes and the children's teeth are set 680 00:45:54.480 --> 00:45:57.480 on edge. People were claiming they were suffering for their 681 00:45:57.519 --> 00:46:02.960 ancestors sins, not their own. God's response was absolute and final. 682 00:46:03.559 --> 00:46:07.039 In verse three, he declared, as surely as I live, 683 00:46:07.519 --> 00:46:11.039 declares the Sovereign Lord, you will no longer quote this proverb. 684 00:46:11.079 --> 00:46:15.920 In Israel, the era of blaming previous generations was officially over. 685 00:46:16.280 --> 00:46:19.800 Each person would be held accountable for their own choices 686 00:46:19.840 --> 00:46:25.079 and actions. To illustrate this principle, God presented three generations 687 00:46:25.079 --> 00:46:29.719 of a family with different moral choices. The first generation 688 00:46:30.360 --> 00:46:34.159 was represented by a righteous man described in verse five. 689 00:46:34.800 --> 00:46:37.519 Suppose there is a righteous man who does what is 690 00:46:37.840 --> 00:46:42.039 just and right. This man followed God's laws completely. He 691 00:46:42.079 --> 00:46:46.599 didn't worship idols, commit adultery, oppress others, or charge interest 692 00:46:46.639 --> 00:46:50.480 on loans. He fed the hungry, clothed the naked, and 693 00:46:50.599 --> 00:46:54.559 executed true justice. The verdict for this righteous man was 694 00:46:54.639 --> 00:46:59.400 clear in verse nine. He follows my decrees and faithfully 695 00:46:59.519 --> 00:47:03.440 keeps my mind laws. That man is righteous. He will 696 00:47:03.519 --> 00:47:08.559 surely live, declares the Sovereign Lord. His righteousness guaranteed his 697 00:47:08.719 --> 00:47:12.639 life and God's blessing. But then God presented the second generation, 698 00:47:13.280 --> 00:47:16.840 the son of this righteous man, who chose a completely 699 00:47:16.920 --> 00:47:22.159 different path. In verse ten, the scenario changed. Suppose he 700 00:47:22.239 --> 00:47:25.599 has a violent son who sheds blood or does any 701 00:47:25.639 --> 00:47:29.639 of these other things. This son committed every sin his 702 00:47:29.719 --> 00:47:36.239 father had avoided, murder, adultery, oppression, robbery, and idolatry. The 703 00:47:36.320 --> 00:47:40.079 question was crucial. Would this wicked son be protected by 704 00:47:40.119 --> 00:47:44.440 his father's righteousness. God's answer was definitive. In verse thirteen, 705 00:47:45.000 --> 00:47:48.039 will such a man live? He will not, because he 706 00:47:48.079 --> 00:47:51.159 has done all these detestable things. He is to be 707 00:47:51.239 --> 00:47:54.320 put to death. His blood will be on his own head. 708 00:47:55.280 --> 00:48:00.440 Parental righteousness provided no protection for personal wickedness. The third 709 00:48:00.519 --> 00:48:06.079 generation completed the illustration. In verse fourteen. God presented another possibility. 710 00:48:06.719 --> 00:48:10.400 But suppose this son has a son who sees all 711 00:48:10.519 --> 00:48:13.639 the sins his father commits, and though he sees them, 712 00:48:14.079 --> 00:48:18.400 he does not do such things. This grandson chose righteousness 713 00:48:18.480 --> 00:48:23.119 despite his father's terrible example. The grandson's fate was determined 714 00:48:23.119 --> 00:48:28.800 by his own choices, not his family history. Verse seventeen declared, 715 00:48:29.519 --> 00:48:33.119 he withholds his hand from mistreating the poor and takes 716 00:48:33.159 --> 00:48:36.800 no interest or profit from them. He keeps my laws 717 00:48:36.880 --> 00:48:39.719 and follows my decrees. He will not die for his 718 00:48:39.760 --> 00:48:44.360 father's sin. He will surely live. A wicked father couldn't 719 00:48:44.400 --> 00:48:47.760 condemn a righteous son any more than a righteous grandfather 720 00:48:48.360 --> 00:48:54.079 could save a wicked grandson. God summarized the principle with 721 00:48:54.159 --> 00:48:58.840 perfect clarity in verse twenty the one who sins is 722 00:48:58.880 --> 00:49:02.960 the one who will die. The child will not share 723 00:49:03.440 --> 00:49:06.480 the guilt of the parent, nor will the parent share 724 00:49:06.519 --> 00:49:09.840 the guilt of the child. The righteousness of the righteous 725 00:49:10.119 --> 00:49:13.519 will be credited to them, and the wickedness of the 726 00:49:13.559 --> 00:49:18.440 wicked will be charged against them. But the most amazing 727 00:49:18.599 --> 00:49:23.719 part was the possibility of personal transformation. In verse twenty one, 728 00:49:24.119 --> 00:49:27.800 God revealed that even the most wicked person could change 729 00:49:27.840 --> 00:49:31.280 their destiny. But if a wicked person turns away from 730 00:49:31.320 --> 00:49:34.239 all the sins they have committed and keeps all My 731 00:49:34.400 --> 00:49:38.639 decrees and does what is just and right, that person 732 00:49:38.719 --> 00:49:44.519 will surely live. They will not die. Past sins didn't 733 00:49:44.519 --> 00:49:50.719 have to determine future fate. As Jerusalem's political situation deteriorated rapidly, 734 00:49:51.239 --> 00:49:54.480 God commanded Ezekiel to compose a funeral song for the 735 00:49:54.559 --> 00:49:58.440 royal family. This wasn't just poetry. It was a prophetic 736 00:49:58.559 --> 00:50:02.159 lament that would capture the tragedy of leadership that had 737 00:50:02.159 --> 00:50:07.719 failed to protect God's people. In Ezekiel, chapter nineteen, Verse one, 738 00:50:08.480 --> 00:50:12.519 God gave the command take up a lament concerning the 739 00:50:12.519 --> 00:50:15.639 princes of Israel. This was to be a morning song, 740 00:50:16.119 --> 00:50:20.239 the kind sung at funerals when great leaders died. But 741 00:50:20.360 --> 00:50:23.480 these princes weren't dead yet. This was a prophecy of 742 00:50:23.519 --> 00:50:28.280 their coming doom. The lament began with a powerful metaphor 743 00:50:28.400 --> 00:50:33.199 in verse two. What a lioness was your mother among 744 00:50:33.199 --> 00:50:37.239 the lions? She lay down among young lions and reared 745 00:50:37.280 --> 00:50:41.239 her cubs. The mother lioness represented the royal line of David, 746 00:50:41.559 --> 00:50:45.159 specifically the kingdom of Judah. She was strong and noble, 747 00:50:45.519 --> 00:50:49.559 raising her young among other powerful leaders. The first cub 748 00:50:49.639 --> 00:50:54.719 grew to become a fearsome predator. Verse three described his development. 749 00:50:55.159 --> 00:50:57.719 She brought up one of her cubs, and he became 750 00:50:57.760 --> 00:51:00.760 a strong lion. He learned to tear them prey, and 751 00:51:00.840 --> 00:51:04.880 he became a man eater. This represented King Jehoahas, who 752 00:51:05.000 --> 00:51:08.320 ruled for only three months before being captured, but his 753 00:51:08.400 --> 00:51:12.400 reign was cut short by foreign intervention. In verse four, 754 00:51:12.880 --> 00:51:17.199 the lament continued. The nations heard about him, and he 755 00:51:17.320 --> 00:51:20.800 was trapped in their pit. They led him with hooks 756 00:51:20.840 --> 00:51:25.000 to the land of Egypt. Jehoahas was taken captive by 757 00:51:25.039 --> 00:51:29.159 Pharaoh Neko and died in Egyptian exile, never to return 758 00:51:29.199 --> 00:51:33.280 to his homeland. The lioness didn't give up after losing 759 00:51:33.320 --> 00:51:36.760 her first cub. Verse five told of her next attempt. 760 00:51:37.199 --> 00:51:41.280 When she saw her hope unfulfilled, her expectation gone, she 761 00:51:41.360 --> 00:51:44.679 took another of her cubs and made him a strong lion. 762 00:51:45.800 --> 00:51:49.800 This second cub was Jehoyakin, who seemed destined for greater 763 00:51:49.880 --> 00:51:55.159 success than his predecessor. This second lion also became powerful 764 00:51:55.320 --> 00:51:59.599 and dangerous. Verse six described his reign. He prowled among 765 00:51:59.639 --> 00:52:03.119 the lions, for he had become a strong lion. He 766 00:52:03.239 --> 00:52:06.519 learned to tear the prey, and he became a man eater. 767 00:52:07.360 --> 00:52:11.800 Like his predecessor, he ruled with violence and oppression, devouring 768 00:52:11.840 --> 00:52:17.599 his own people. His destructive behavior extended beyond just personal violence. 769 00:52:18.119 --> 00:52:21.519 Verse seven revealed the scope of his damage. He broke 770 00:52:21.639 --> 00:52:25.800 down their strongholds and devastated their towns. The land and 771 00:52:25.880 --> 00:52:28.840 all who were in it were terrified by his roaring. 772 00:52:29.559 --> 00:52:34.079 This king destroyed the very infrastructure and communities he was 773 00:52:34.119 --> 00:52:37.760 supposed to protect. But his fate was even worse than 774 00:52:37.800 --> 00:52:42.159 the first cubs. In verse eight, the Lament described his capture. 775 00:52:42.880 --> 00:52:47.119 Then the nations came against him, those from regions round about. 776 00:52:47.440 --> 00:52:50.280 They spread their net for him, and he was trapped 777 00:52:50.280 --> 00:52:54.079 in their pit. Unlike the first king, who was taken 778 00:52:54.159 --> 00:52:57.840 by one nation, this one faced a coalition of enemies. 779 00:52:58.280 --> 00:53:02.480 The end was swift and final. Verse nine completed his 780 00:53:02.559 --> 00:53:06.280 story with hooks. They pulled him into a cage and 781 00:53:06.360 --> 00:53:09.079 brought him to the king of Babylon. They put him 782 00:53:09.079 --> 00:53:12.039 in prison, so his roar was heard no longer on 783 00:53:12.119 --> 00:53:16.559 the mountains of Israel. Jehoiakin was taken to Babylon in chains, 784 00:53:17.119 --> 00:53:21.239 and his voice of authority was silenced forever. The Lament 785 00:53:21.480 --> 00:53:25.400 then shifted metaphors, comparing the royal line to a vine 786 00:53:25.760 --> 00:53:29.719 that had once been fruitful and strong. Verse ten painted 787 00:53:29.719 --> 00:53:33.159 a picture of former glory. Your mother was like a 788 00:53:33.280 --> 00:53:37.079 vine in your vineyard, planted by the water. It was 789 00:53:37.159 --> 00:53:42.480 fruitful and full of branches because of abundant water. This 790 00:53:42.840 --> 00:53:48.000 represented the kingdom during its prosperous years, but success led 791 00:53:48.039 --> 00:53:53.519 to pride and destruction. Verse twelve described the catastrophe, but 792 00:53:53.599 --> 00:53:56.760 it was uprooted in fury and thrown to the ground. 793 00:53:57.320 --> 00:54:00.239 The east wind made it shrivel. It was stripped of 794 00:54:00.280 --> 00:54:05.119 its fruit. Its strong branches withered, and fire consumed them. 795 00:54:05.519 --> 00:54:10.679 The east wind represented the Babylonian invasion that would destroy everything. 796 00:54:11.159 --> 00:54:15.440 The final image was one of complete desolation. Verse thirteen 797 00:54:15.599 --> 00:54:19.280 concluded the lament. Now it is planted in the desert, 798 00:54:19.800 --> 00:54:23.320 in a dry and thirsty land. The royal vine that 799 00:54:23.440 --> 00:54:27.679 had once flourished by abundant water, was now withering in exile, 800 00:54:28.239 --> 00:54:31.960 far from the source of its strength and life. For 801 00:54:32.039 --> 00:54:35.760 the final symbolic act in this section, God gave Ezekiel 802 00:54:35.800 --> 00:54:39.679 one of the most vivid and disturbing metaphors. Yet. Jerusalem 803 00:54:39.800 --> 00:54:42.800 wasn't just a city under siege. It was like a 804 00:54:42.880 --> 00:54:47.079 cooking pot that had become so corroded and filthy that 805 00:54:47.159 --> 00:54:50.599 it could never be cleaned again. The prophecy came with 806 00:54:50.639 --> 00:54:55.400 a specific date in Ezekiel Chapter twenty four, Verse one. 807 00:54:55.760 --> 00:54:59.159 In the ninth year, in the tenth month, on the 808 00:54:59.239 --> 00:55:01.920 tenth day, the word of the Lord came to me. 809 00:55:02.440 --> 00:55:05.760 This wasn't just any day. This was the exact day 810 00:55:06.119 --> 00:55:12.079 that nebicud Nezzer began his final siege of Jerusalem. While 811 00:55:12.079 --> 00:55:15.679 the attack was starting hundreds of miles away, God was 812 00:55:15.719 --> 00:55:21.039 revealing it to Ezekiel in real time. God commanded Ezekiel 813 00:55:21.119 --> 00:55:24.840 to record this date. In verse two, son of Man, 814 00:55:25.239 --> 00:55:28.199 record this date, this very date, because the King of 815 00:55:28.239 --> 00:55:31.920 Babylon has laid siege to Jerusalem this very day. This 816 00:55:32.039 --> 00:55:35.599 prophecy would serve as proof that God knew exactly what 817 00:55:35.760 --> 00:55:40.039 was happening. And when the metaphor began, simply enough in 818 00:55:40.159 --> 00:55:45.280 verse three, tell this rebellious people a parable, and say 819 00:55:45.320 --> 00:55:50.159 to them, this is what the sovereign lord says. Put 820 00:55:50.199 --> 00:55:53.920 on the cooking pot. Put it on, and pour water 821 00:55:54.039 --> 00:55:58.719 into it. At first, this seemed like normal cooking preparation, 822 00:55:59.159 --> 00:56:03.000 but as the instructionctions continued, the true meaning became clear. 823 00:56:04.039 --> 00:56:07.760 Verse four revealed what was going into the pot. Put 824 00:56:07.760 --> 00:56:11.559 into it the pieces of meat, all the choice pieces, 825 00:56:11.719 --> 00:56:14.280 the leg and the shoulder. Fill it with the best 826 00:56:14.320 --> 00:56:18.119 of these bones. The meat represented the people of Jerusalem, 827 00:56:18.480 --> 00:56:23.639 and the best pieces represented the nobility and leadership. The 828 00:56:23.639 --> 00:56:27.639 cooking process began in verse five. Take the pick of 829 00:56:27.679 --> 00:56:31.519 the flock, pile wood beneath it for the bones, Bring 830 00:56:31.559 --> 00:56:34.480 it to a boil, and cook the bones in it. 831 00:56:34.920 --> 00:56:38.039 This was the siege of Jerusalem. The city was being 832 00:56:38.119 --> 00:56:41.519 heated by the fires of war, and everyone inside was 833 00:56:41.559 --> 00:56:45.039 being cooked by the pressure and violence. But then God 834 00:56:45.119 --> 00:56:48.559 revealed the real problem with this pot. In verse six, 835 00:56:48.599 --> 00:56:51.719 he declared, for this is what the sovereign lord says, 836 00:56:52.079 --> 00:56:55.519 woe to the city of bloodshed, To the pot now encrusted, 837 00:56:55.719 --> 00:56:58.960 whose deposit will not go away, take the meat out, 838 00:56:58.960 --> 00:57:03.599 piece by piece, in whatever order it comes. The pot 839 00:57:03.880 --> 00:57:07.320 was corroded with rust and deposits that couldn't be cleaned. 840 00:57:07.800 --> 00:57:12.039 The rust and corrosion represented the accumulated bloodshed and sin 841 00:57:12.519 --> 00:57:15.880 that had built up in Jerusalem over generations. Just as 842 00:57:15.960 --> 00:57:19.679 rust weakens metal and makes it unusable, the moral corruption 843 00:57:19.800 --> 00:57:25.079 had weakened the city beyond repair. Verse seven identified the 844 00:57:25.119 --> 00:57:28.280 source of this corruption. For the blood she shed is 845 00:57:28.360 --> 00:57:31.320 in her midst she poured it on the bare rock. 846 00:57:31.679 --> 00:57:34.360 She did not pour it on the ground where the 847 00:57:34.440 --> 00:57:37.760 dust would cover it. The city had committed murders so 848 00:57:38.000 --> 00:57:41.920 openly and brazenly that the blood cried out for vengeance. 849 00:57:42.400 --> 00:57:46.639 The judgment was both just and inevitable. In verse eight, 850 00:57:47.159 --> 00:57:51.880 God explained his response to stir up wrath and take revenge. 851 00:57:52.119 --> 00:57:54.360 I put her blood on the bare rock so that 852 00:57:54.400 --> 00:57:57.800 it would not be covered. God himself had ensured that 853 00:57:57.880 --> 00:58:01.719 Jerusalem's crimes would not be hidden or forgotten. The corruption 854 00:58:02.039 --> 00:58:07.960 was so complete that normal cleaning wouldn't work. Verse eleven 855 00:58:08.039 --> 00:58:12.599 described the drastic measures needed. Then set the empty pot 856 00:58:12.639 --> 00:58:16.239 on the coals till it becomes hot and its copper glows, 857 00:58:16.639 --> 00:58:20.079 so that its impurities may be melted and its deposit 858 00:58:20.239 --> 00:58:24.039 burned away. The only way to deal with this level 859 00:58:24.079 --> 00:58:27.159 of corruption was to heat the pot until the metal 860 00:58:27.199 --> 00:58:31.760 itself glowed and the rust was burned away. But even 861 00:58:31.840 --> 00:58:36.360 this extreme treatment failed. Verse twelve revealed the hopeless condition. 862 00:58:37.239 --> 00:58:40.880 It has frustrated all efforts. Its heavy deposit has not 863 00:58:40.920 --> 00:58:44.559 been removed, not even by fire. The corruption was so 864 00:58:44.840 --> 00:58:48.840 deep and complete that even the most intense purification couldn't 865 00:58:48.880 --> 00:58:52.920 clean it. The final verdict was devastating in verse thirteen. 866 00:58:53.800 --> 00:58:58.079 Now your impurity is lewdness, because I tried to cleanse you, 867 00:58:58.199 --> 00:59:01.400 but you would not be cleansed from your impurity. You 868 00:59:01.480 --> 00:59:04.679 will not be clean again until my wrath against you 869 00:59:04.840 --> 00:59:09.039 has subsided. The pot was beyond redemption and would have 870 00:59:09.119 --> 00:59:14.559 to be completely destroyed. After delivering devastating prophecies against Jerusalem, 871 00:59:14.719 --> 00:59:19.440 God's attention turned to the nations surrounding Israel. These weren't 872 00:59:19.519 --> 00:59:24.800 random judgments against distant peoples. They were targeted pronouncements against 873 00:59:24.840 --> 00:59:30.280 specific neighbors who had celebrated Jerusalem's downfall and taken advantage 874 00:59:30.280 --> 00:59:36.119 of God's people in their darkest hour. The first nation 875 00:59:36.280 --> 00:59:40.599 to face judgment was Ammon, located east of the Jordan River. 876 00:59:41.119 --> 00:59:45.119 In Ezekiel chapter twenty five, verse two, God commanded, son 877 00:59:45.199 --> 00:59:48.760 of Man, set your face against the Ammonites, and prophesy 878 00:59:48.880 --> 00:59:53.039 against them. The Ammonites were descendants of Lot, making them 879 00:59:53.079 --> 00:59:57.440 distant relatives of Israel, but they had shown no family loyalty. 880 00:59:57.719 --> 01:00:02.039 When Jerusalem fell. Their crime was revealed in verse three. 881 01:00:02.880 --> 01:00:06.119 Say to them, hear the word of the sovereign Lord. 882 01:00:06.760 --> 01:00:10.679 This is what the sovereign Lord says. Because you said 883 01:00:10.719 --> 01:00:14.599 aha over my sanctuary when it was desecrated, and over 884 01:00:14.639 --> 01:00:17.599 the land of Israel when it was laid waste, and 885 01:00:17.679 --> 01:00:20.480 over the people of Judah when they went into exile. 886 01:00:21.400 --> 01:00:25.800 The Ammonites had actually celebrated when God's temple was destroyed 887 01:00:26.079 --> 01:00:29.599 and his people were dragged away in chains. This wasn't 888 01:00:29.639 --> 01:00:34.679 just political rivalry, it was spiritual mockery. They had rejoiced 889 01:00:35.039 --> 01:00:38.719 when the place where God's name Dwelt was defiled and destroyed. 890 01:00:39.239 --> 01:00:42.639 Their aha was a cry of triumph over what they 891 01:00:42.679 --> 01:00:47.000 saw as the defeat of Israel's God, not just Israel's army. 892 01:00:47.760 --> 01:00:51.719 The punishment would fit the crime perfectly. In verse four, 893 01:00:51.840 --> 01:00:54.800 God declared, Therefore, I am going to give you to 894 01:00:54.920 --> 01:00:57.559 the people of the East as a possession. They will 895 01:00:57.559 --> 01:01:00.320 set up their camps and pitch their tents amung you. 896 01:01:00.679 --> 01:01:03.639 They will eat your fruit and drink your milk. The 897 01:01:03.800 --> 01:01:07.440 very people the Ammonites thought would protect them would instead 898 01:01:07.880 --> 01:01:11.519 consume everything they had. Their capital city would become a 899 01:01:11.559 --> 01:01:15.679 pasture for animals. In verse five, I will turn rubber 900 01:01:15.800 --> 01:01:19.159 into a pasture for camels, and amon into a resting 901 01:01:19.199 --> 01:01:22.800 place for sheep. Then you will know that I am 902 01:01:22.840 --> 01:01:26.760 the Lord. The city where they had celebrated Israel's destruction 903 01:01:27.159 --> 01:01:32.320 would become grazing land for wandering herds. Next came Moab, 904 01:01:32.639 --> 01:01:36.519 another descendant nation of Lot. Their sin was different, but 905 01:01:36.639 --> 01:01:42.239 equally serious. In verse eight, God revealed their offense. This 906 01:01:42.880 --> 01:01:47.280 is what the sovereign Lord says, because Moab and Sayer said, look, 907 01:01:47.800 --> 01:01:52.199 Judah has become like all the other nations. Moab had 908 01:01:52.199 --> 01:01:56.159 denied the uniqueness of God's relationship with his people, claiming 909 01:01:56.239 --> 01:02:00.639 Judah was no different from any pagan nation. This was 910 01:02:00.679 --> 01:02:05.039 a direct attack on God's character and covenant faithfulness. By 911 01:02:05.039 --> 01:02:09.320 saying Judah was just like other nations, Moab was essentially 912 01:02:09.360 --> 01:02:12.719 claiming that the God of Israel was powerless and no 913 01:02:12.880 --> 01:02:16.599 different from the false gods of other peoples. The judgment 914 01:02:16.639 --> 01:02:20.039 against Moab would expose the flank of their country. In 915 01:02:20.159 --> 01:02:23.440 verse nine, Therefore, I will expose the flank of Moab, 916 01:02:23.679 --> 01:02:28.920 beginning at its frontier towns beth Jeshamuth, Balmion, and Kiriatheim. 917 01:02:29.239 --> 01:02:33.000 The glory of that land. Their strongest defensive positions would 918 01:02:33.000 --> 01:02:37.679 be stripped away, leaving them vulnerable to invasion. Edom's judgment 919 01:02:38.000 --> 01:02:41.360 was perhaps the most personal of all. These were the 920 01:02:41.400 --> 01:02:46.199 descendants of Esau, Jacob's twin brother, making them the closest 921 01:02:46.280 --> 01:02:50.159 blood relatives Israel had among the nations, but their behavior 922 01:02:50.280 --> 01:02:55.000 during Jerusalem's crisis had been absolutely brutal. Their crime was 923 01:02:55.079 --> 01:02:59.480 revealed in verse twelve. This is what the sovereign Lord says, 924 01:03:00.159 --> 01:03:04.400 because Edom took revenge on Judah and became very guilty 925 01:03:04.440 --> 01:03:10.079 by doing so. When Judah was already suffering under Babylonian attack. 926 01:03:10.800 --> 01:03:14.719 Edom had taken the opportunity to settle old scores and 927 01:03:14.840 --> 01:03:18.920 inflict additional damage on their wounded relatives. This wasn't just 928 01:03:19.000 --> 01:03:23.599 opportunistic raiding. It was calculated revenge that showed a deep 929 01:03:23.679 --> 01:03:28.119 hatred that had been festering for generations. They had waited 930 01:03:28.159 --> 01:03:32.280 for their moment of weakness and then struck with vicious cruelty. 931 01:03:33.079 --> 01:03:38.320 God's response would be equally personal and devastating. In verse thirteen, 932 01:03:38.440 --> 01:03:42.679 he declared, Therefore, this is what the Sovereign Lord says. 933 01:03:43.119 --> 01:03:46.039 I will stretch out my hand against Edom and kill 934 01:03:46.159 --> 01:03:49.599 both man and beast. I will lay it waste, and 935 01:03:49.639 --> 01:03:53.159 from Teman to Dedan they will fall by the sword. 936 01:03:53.760 --> 01:03:57.559 The entire nation would be devastated from north to south. 937 01:03:57.960 --> 01:04:01.559 But the most shocking aspect of Eddomom's punishment was who 938 01:04:01.599 --> 01:04:05.199 would carry it out. Verse fourteen revealed, I will take 939 01:04:05.360 --> 01:04:08.239 vengeance on Edon by the hand of my people Israel, 940 01:04:08.559 --> 01:04:10.960 and they will deal with Edom in accordance with my 941 01:04:11.079 --> 01:04:14.760 anger and my wrath. They will know my vengeance, declares 942 01:04:14.800 --> 01:04:19.280 the Sovereign Lord. Israel themselves would eventually be God's instrument 943 01:04:19.360 --> 01:04:24.119 of revenge against their treacherous relatives. The final neighbor to 944 01:04:24.199 --> 01:04:28.119 face judgment was the Philistines, the ancient enemies who lived 945 01:04:28.119 --> 01:04:33.880 along the Mediterranean coast. Their crime was described in verse fifteen. 946 01:04:34.480 --> 01:04:38.840 This is what the Sovereign Lord says, because the Philistines 947 01:04:39.000 --> 01:04:43.039 acted in vengeance and took revenge with malice in their hearts, 948 01:04:43.320 --> 01:04:48.519 and with ancient hostility, sought to destroy Judah. Like Edom, 949 01:04:48.880 --> 01:04:52.639 they had used Judah's weakness as an opportunity to settle 950 01:04:52.760 --> 01:04:58.760 ancient grudges. The phrase ancient hostility pointed to centuries of 951 01:04:58.840 --> 01:05:03.159 conflict between these peoples from the days of Samson and David. 952 01:05:03.519 --> 01:05:07.559 The Philistines had been persistent enemies of God's people. Now 953 01:05:07.559 --> 01:05:09.840 they thought they saw their chance to finish what they 954 01:05:09.880 --> 01:05:14.119 had started long ago, but their celebration would be short lived. 955 01:05:14.719 --> 01:05:19.800 In verse sixteen, God pronounced their doom. Therefore, this is 956 01:05:19.840 --> 01:05:23.000 what the Sovereign Lord says. I am about to stretch 957 01:05:23.039 --> 01:05:26.559 out my hand against the Philistines, and I will wipe 958 01:05:26.559 --> 01:05:30.360 out the Karathites and destroy those remaining along the coast. 959 01:05:31.000 --> 01:05:35.199 By the coastal cities that had been centers of Philistine 960 01:05:35.239 --> 01:05:40.639 power for centuries would be completely eliminated. Among all the nations, 961 01:05:40.679 --> 01:05:44.679 that would face God's judgment. None was more powerful or 962 01:05:44.719 --> 01:05:51.760 prestigious than Tire. This wasn't just another city state. Tire 963 01:05:52.000 --> 01:05:55.920 was the crown jewel of ancient commerce, a maritime empire 964 01:05:56.119 --> 01:06:00.000 that controlled trade routes across the Mediterranean Sea and had 965 01:06:00.079 --> 01:06:05.440 grown fabulously wealthy from its strategic position. The prophecy against 966 01:06:05.519 --> 01:06:08.920 Tire began with the same attitude that had condemned the 967 01:06:09.000 --> 01:06:13.559 other nations. In Ezekiel chapter twenty six, verse two, God 968 01:06:13.679 --> 01:06:19.519 revealed their response to Jerusalem's fall, Son of Man. Because 969 01:06:19.599 --> 01:06:23.280 Tire has said of Jerusalem, Aha, the gate to the 970 01:06:23.719 --> 01:06:26.840 nations is broken, and its doors have swung open to me. 971 01:06:27.400 --> 01:06:30.519 Now that she lies in ruins, I will prosper. And 972 01:06:30.559 --> 01:06:36.199 a Tire saw Jerusalem's destruction as a business opportunity. Jerusalem 973 01:06:36.199 --> 01:06:40.199 had been a major commercial center, controlling important trade routes 974 01:06:40.239 --> 01:06:45.039 between Africa, Asia, and Europe. With Jerusalem out of the way, 975 01:06:45.440 --> 01:06:48.719 Tire expected to capture all that lost business and become 976 01:06:48.800 --> 01:06:52.760 even richer. They were celebrating the death of a competitor 977 01:06:53.119 --> 01:06:57.599 rather than mourning the suffering of fellow human beings. This 978 01:06:57.840 --> 01:07:02.480 mercenary attitude toward human tree tragedy would bring divine judgment 979 01:07:02.880 --> 01:07:08.159 unlike anything the ancient world had ever seen. In verse three, 980 01:07:08.800 --> 01:07:12.960 God declared, therefore, this is what the sovereign Lord says. 981 01:07:13.280 --> 01:07:16.000 I am against you, Tire, and I will bring many 982 01:07:16.079 --> 01:07:19.079 nations against you, like the sea casting up its waves. 983 01:07:19.480 --> 01:07:23.679 The metaphor of waves was particularly appropriate for Tire, since 984 01:07:23.719 --> 01:07:26.719 the city was built partly on an island and partly 985 01:07:26.760 --> 01:07:31.599 on the mainland coast. Just as relentless waves eventually wear 986 01:07:31.679 --> 01:07:35.719 down the strongest rock, wave after wave of enemy armies 987 01:07:35.920 --> 01:07:40.119 would crash against Tire until nothing remained, the first wave 988 01:07:40.159 --> 01:07:44.599 would be the most devastating. In verse seven, God identified 989 01:07:44.639 --> 01:07:48.960 the primary attacker, for this is what the sovereign Lord says, 990 01:07:49.760 --> 01:07:53.199 from the north, I am going to bring against tire Nebuchadnezzar, 991 01:07:53.360 --> 01:07:57.320 King of Babylon, king of kings, with horses and chariots, 992 01:07:57.559 --> 01:08:01.400 with horsemen and a great army. The same Babylonian army 993 01:08:01.440 --> 01:08:06.039 that destroyed Jerusalem would turn its attention to tire Nebucanz's 994 01:08:06.039 --> 01:08:10.119 siege methods were described in terrifying detail in verse eight, 995 01:08:11.239 --> 01:08:14.400 he will ravage your settlements on the mainland with the sword. 996 01:08:15.039 --> 01:08:18.319 He will set up siege works against you, build a 997 01:08:18.439 --> 01:08:21.039 ramp up to your walls and raise his shields against you. 998 01:08:21.640 --> 01:08:25.399 The mainland portion of Tire would fall first, providing a 999 01:08:25.439 --> 01:08:28.840 base for attacking the island fortress. The assault would be 1000 01:08:28.880 --> 01:08:34.960 overwhelming in its scope and violence. Verse nine continued, he 1001 01:08:35.000 --> 01:08:38.199 will direct the blows of his battering rams against your 1002 01:08:38.239 --> 01:08:43.079 walls and demolish your towers with his weapons. The famous 1003 01:08:43.119 --> 01:08:46.760 walls of Tire, which had protected the city for centuries, 1004 01:08:47.079 --> 01:08:52.199 would crumble under the relentless Babylonian attack. The aftermath would 1005 01:08:52.199 --> 01:08:56.239 be even more devastating than the battle itself. In verse ten, 1006 01:08:56.800 --> 01:09:01.159 God described the occupation. His horse will be so many 1007 01:09:01.479 --> 01:09:04.600 that they will cover you with dust. Your walls will 1008 01:09:04.600 --> 01:09:07.600 tremble at the noise of the war horses, wagons, and 1009 01:09:07.720 --> 01:09:11.000 chariots when he enters your gates, as men enter a 1010 01:09:11.039 --> 01:09:16.920 city whose walls have been broken through. The complete destruction 1011 01:09:17.720 --> 01:09:22.439 was described in verse twelve. They will plunder your wealth 1012 01:09:22.840 --> 01:09:26.199 and loot your merchandise. They will break down your walls 1013 01:09:26.520 --> 01:09:30.239 and demolish your fine houses, and throw your stones, timber, 1014 01:09:30.319 --> 01:09:33.960 and rubble into the sea. Everything that had made Tire grate, 1015 01:09:34.439 --> 01:09:38.359 its buildings, its wealth, its very foundations would be cast 1016 01:09:38.479 --> 01:09:43.279 into the waters. The final image was one of absolute desolation. 1017 01:09:44.520 --> 01:09:48.199 In verse fourteen, God declared, I will make you a 1018 01:09:48.239 --> 01:09:51.560 bare rock, and you will become a place to spread 1019 01:09:51.680 --> 01:09:55.239 fish nets. You will never be rebuilt, for I the 1020 01:09:55.359 --> 01:09:59.720 Lord have spoken, declares the Sovereign Lord. The mighty commercial 1021 01:09:59.840 --> 01:10:02.760 en would be reduced to a bare rock where fishermen 1022 01:10:02.840 --> 01:10:06.680 dried their nets, But tires fall would have implications far 1023 01:10:06.800 --> 01:10:10.199 beyond the city itself. The economic shock waves would be 1024 01:10:10.239 --> 01:10:14.520 felt throughout the ancient world. In verse fifteen, God revealed 1025 01:10:14.560 --> 01:10:18.560 the broader impact. This is what the Sovereign Lord says 1026 01:10:18.600 --> 01:10:22.319 to Tire. Will not the coastlands tremble at the sound 1027 01:10:22.319 --> 01:10:25.880 of your fall when the wounded grown and the slaughter 1028 01:10:26.000 --> 01:10:30.399 takes place in you. The smaller coastal cities that depended 1029 01:10:30.439 --> 01:10:34.760 on Tire's trade networks would be terrified, realizing that if 1030 01:10:34.920 --> 01:10:39.119 mighty Tire could fall, no city was safe. Their economic 1031 01:10:39.199 --> 01:10:42.000 lifeline was being cut, and they would have to find 1032 01:10:42.079 --> 01:10:46.119 new ways to survive in a world without Tyrian commerce. 1033 01:10:47.840 --> 01:10:51.319 The princes of the Sea the rulers of other maritime cities, 1034 01:10:51.640 --> 01:10:58.239 would perform elaborate morning rituals. Verse sixteen described their response. Then, 1035 01:10:58.319 --> 01:11:00.760 all the princes of the coast lands were step down 1036 01:11:00.800 --> 01:11:04.359 from their thrones and lay aside their robes and take 1037 01:11:04.399 --> 01:11:08.560 off their embroidered garments. Clothed with terror, they will sit 1038 01:11:08.640 --> 01:11:12.359 on the ground, trembling every moment, appalled at you. After 1039 01:11:12.399 --> 01:11:16.800 prophesying the political and economic destruction of Tire, God commanded 1040 01:11:16.840 --> 01:11:19.960 Ezekiel to compose a funeral dirge for the King of Tire. 1041 01:11:20.479 --> 01:11:24.319 But this wasn't just about an earthly ruler. This lament 1042 01:11:24.359 --> 01:11:28.840 would reveal spiritual realities that went far beyond human politics 1043 01:11:29.199 --> 01:11:32.760 and reach into the very origins of evil itself. The 1044 01:11:32.840 --> 01:11:36.439 lament began with what seemed like excessive praise for a 1045 01:11:36.560 --> 01:11:40.439 human king. In Ezekiel Chapter twenty eight, verse twelve, God 1046 01:11:40.479 --> 01:11:44.239 commanded son of Man take up a lament concerning the 1047 01:11:44.319 --> 01:11:46.880 King of Tire, and say to him, this is what 1048 01:11:46.960 --> 01:11:50.960 the sovereign Lord says. You were the seal of perfection, 1049 01:11:51.479 --> 01:11:56.039 full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. Oh, no human 1050 01:11:56.159 --> 01:12:00.520 ruler had ever been described in such absolute terms. Description 1051 01:12:00.680 --> 01:12:05.720 continued with even more extraordinary language in verse thirteen. You 1052 01:12:05.800 --> 01:12:09.880 were in Eden, the garden of God. Every precious stone 1053 01:12:09.920 --> 01:12:18.039 adorned you, Carnelian chrysolite, and emerald tapas Onyx and Jasper, Lapis, Lazuli, turquoise, 1054 01:12:18.079 --> 01:12:21.039 and Beryl. Your settings and mountings were made of gold. 1055 01:12:21.560 --> 01:12:24.720 On the day you were created, they were prepared. This 1056 01:12:24.840 --> 01:12:27.840 being had been present in the original garden of Eden, 1057 01:12:28.279 --> 01:12:33.079 adorned with precious stones, and created by God himself. The 1058 01:12:33.119 --> 01:12:37.880 revelation became even more astounding in verse fourteen. You were 1059 01:12:37.920 --> 01:12:42.159 anointed as a guardian Cherub, For so I ordained you. 1060 01:12:42.159 --> 01:12:44.880 You were on the holy mount of God. You walked 1061 01:12:44.880 --> 01:12:49.199 among the fiery stones. This wasn't describing any human king. 1062 01:12:49.680 --> 01:12:53.000 This was describing a powerful angelic being who had held 1063 01:12:53.039 --> 01:12:56.560 one of the highest positions in God's heavenly court. This 1064 01:12:56.720 --> 01:13:00.840 Guardian Cherub had originally been perfect in every where. Verse 1065 01:13:00.840 --> 01:13:04.760 fifteen confirmed you were blameless in your ways from the 1066 01:13:04.840 --> 01:13:07.880 day you were created till wickedness was found in you. 1067 01:13:08.600 --> 01:13:11.359 There had been a time when this being was completely 1068 01:13:11.399 --> 01:13:15.600 without sin fulfilling his role as God's appointed guardian with 1069 01:13:15.760 --> 01:13:20.039 perfect obedience and righteousness. But something had gone terribly wrong. 1070 01:13:20.640 --> 01:13:24.359 The perfection had been corrupted from within, and the change 1071 01:13:24.479 --> 01:13:27.520 was connected to the same thing that had corrupted tire, 1072 01:13:28.079 --> 01:13:34.680 commercial success and pride. Verse sixteen revealed the process through 1073 01:13:34.760 --> 01:13:39.439 your widespread trade. You were filled with violence, and you sinned. 1074 01:13:39.840 --> 01:13:42.560 So I drove you in disgrace from the mount of God, 1075 01:13:42.880 --> 01:13:47.039 and I expelled you Guardian Cherub from among the fiery stones. 1076 01:13:48.000 --> 01:13:51.359 The root of the corruption was identified in verse seventeen. 1077 01:13:52.239 --> 01:13:55.880 Your heart became proud on account of your beauty, and 1078 01:13:55.960 --> 01:13:59.239 you corrupted your wisdom because of your splendor. So I 1079 01:13:59.319 --> 01:14:02.079 threw you to the earth. I made a spectacle of 1080 01:14:02.119 --> 01:14:06.760 you before kings. Pride in his own beauty and wisdom 1081 01:14:07.039 --> 01:14:11.720 had transformed this perfect being into a rebel against his creator. 1082 01:14:12.159 --> 01:14:16.960 The judgment that followed was total and irreversible. In verse eighteen, 1083 01:14:17.439 --> 01:14:21.720 God declared, by your many sins and dishonest trade, you 1084 01:14:21.800 --> 01:14:25.439 have desecrated your sanctuaries. So I made a fire come 1085 01:14:25.479 --> 01:14:28.960 out from you, and it consumed you, and I reduced 1086 01:14:28.960 --> 01:14:31.239 you to ashes on the ground in the sight of 1087 01:14:31.279 --> 01:14:34.239 all who were watching. The fire of judgment would come 1088 01:14:34.279 --> 01:14:38.800 from within, consuming everything this being had been and accomplished. 1089 01:14:39.239 --> 01:14:43.159 The final verdict was absolute in verse nineteen. All the 1090 01:14:43.279 --> 01:14:46.159 nations who knew you are appalled at you. You have 1091 01:14:46.279 --> 01:14:49.119 come to a horrible end and will be no more. 1092 01:14:49.560 --> 01:14:52.760 This powerful being who had once walked in God's presence 1093 01:14:53.039 --> 01:14:56.720 would be completely destroyed, becoming a source of horror and 1094 01:14:56.760 --> 01:15:01.119 warning to all who witnessed his fate. This lament revealed 1095 01:15:01.159 --> 01:15:04.159 that the human king of Tire was being used as 1096 01:15:04.199 --> 01:15:10.600 an earthly representation of a much greater spiritual reality. The pride, corruption, 1097 01:15:10.760 --> 01:15:14.880 and fall of the earthly king paralleled the ancient rebellion 1098 01:15:15.279 --> 01:15:18.520 of this guardian cherub, who had fallen from heaven through 1099 01:15:18.600 --> 01:15:23.000 pride and become an enemy of God. After the elaborate 1100 01:15:23.039 --> 01:15:28.039 prophecies against Tire and its king, God's attention turned to Sidon, 1101 01:15:28.439 --> 01:15:32.239 Tire's northern neighbor and partner in maritime commerce. But the 1102 01:15:32.279 --> 01:15:36.000 prophecy against Sidon was shorter and served as a bridge 1103 01:15:36.039 --> 01:15:40.800 to something much more hopeful, the promise of Israel's eventual restoration. 1104 01:15:42.399 --> 01:15:46.680 In Ezekiel chapter twenty eight, verse twenty one, God commanded, 1105 01:15:47.680 --> 01:15:53.520 son of Man, set your face against Sidon, prophesy against her. 1106 01:15:55.039 --> 01:15:58.479 Sidon was an ancient Phoenician city that had been a 1107 01:15:58.560 --> 01:16:02.600 center of trade and paidan worship for over a thousand years. 1108 01:16:03.600 --> 01:16:07.600 Like Tire, it had profited from relationships with various nations 1109 01:16:08.039 --> 01:16:13.239 while maintaining its independence through commercial power. The judgment against 1110 01:16:13.239 --> 01:16:17.239 Sidon was swift and direct. In verse twenty two, God declared, 1111 01:16:17.800 --> 01:16:21.119 this is what the sovereign Lord says. I am against you, 1112 01:16:21.279 --> 01:16:24.319 side on and among you. I will display my glory. 1113 01:16:24.640 --> 01:16:26.760 You will know that I am the Lord. When I 1114 01:16:26.800 --> 01:16:29.880 inflict punishment on you, and within you am proved to 1115 01:16:29.920 --> 01:16:35.119 be holy. Unlike the detailed description of Tire's fall, Sidon's 1116 01:16:35.199 --> 01:16:39.560 judgment was presented as a demonstration of God's holiness and power. 1117 01:16:41.079 --> 01:16:45.239 The method of judgment was described in verse twenty three. 1118 01:16:45.640 --> 01:16:48.319 I will send a plague upon you and make blood 1119 01:16:48.319 --> 01:16:51.760 flow in your streets. The slain will fall within you, 1120 01:16:52.239 --> 01:16:55.079 with the sword against you on every side. Then you 1121 01:16:55.119 --> 01:16:59.479 will know that I am the Lord. Disease and warfare 1122 01:16:59.520 --> 01:17:03.239 would come to devastate the city, proving that no amount 1123 01:17:03.239 --> 01:17:08.359 of commercial success could provide protection against divine judgment. But 1124 01:17:08.479 --> 01:17:12.760 immediately after pronouncing judgment on Sidon, God shifted to a 1125 01:17:12.800 --> 01:17:17.000 message of hope for Israel. This wasn't coincidental. It was 1126 01:17:17.039 --> 01:17:21.000 a deliberate contrast between the fate of those who opposed 1127 01:17:21.039 --> 01:17:25.079 God's people and the future that awaited God's chosen nation 1128 01:17:25.520 --> 01:17:30.119 despite their current suffering. In verse twenty four, God addressed 1129 01:17:30.239 --> 01:17:34.960 Israel's situation no longer will the people of Israel have 1130 01:17:35.079 --> 01:17:39.560 malicious neighbors who are painful briars and sharp thorns. Then 1131 01:17:39.600 --> 01:17:43.079 they will know that I am the Sovereign Lord. All 1132 01:17:43.119 --> 01:17:46.680 the neighboring nations that had tormented Israel throughout their history 1133 01:17:47.000 --> 01:17:52.720 would be removed as sources of temptation and oppression. The 1134 01:17:52.800 --> 01:17:58.600 promise of restoration was comprehensive and wonderful. Verse twenty five declared, 1135 01:17:59.199 --> 01:18:02.479 this is what the Sovereign Lord says. When I gather 1136 01:18:02.560 --> 01:18:05.239 the people of Israel from the nations where they have 1137 01:18:05.359 --> 01:18:08.640 been scattered, I will be proved wholly through them in 1138 01:18:08.720 --> 01:18:11.239 the sight of the nations. Then they will live in 1139 01:18:11.279 --> 01:18:14.319 their own land, which I gave to my servant Jacob. 1140 01:18:14.760 --> 01:18:17.840 This gathering wouldn't just be a return to geography. It 1141 01:18:17.880 --> 01:18:21.239 would be a return to their covenant relationship with God. 1142 01:18:21.359 --> 01:18:26.239 They would once again demonstrate God's holiness to the watching world, 1143 01:18:26.319 --> 01:18:29.359 not through their rebellion and punishment, as they had been doing, 1144 01:18:29.600 --> 01:18:34.159 but through their restoration and blessing. The restoration would include 1145 01:18:34.199 --> 01:18:39.000 both security and prosperity. In verse twenty six, God promised, 1146 01:18:39.399 --> 01:18:42.479 they will live there in safety, and will build houses 1147 01:18:42.520 --> 01:18:45.479 and plant vineyards. They will live in safety. When I 1148 01:18:45.560 --> 01:18:49.079 inflict punishment on all their neighbors who malign them, then 1149 01:18:49.119 --> 01:18:52.279 they will know that I am the Lord their God. 1150 01:18:52.399 --> 01:18:56.119 The safety would come not from military might or political alliances, 1151 01:18:56.439 --> 01:19:00.199 but from God's protection after he dealt with all their enemies. 1152 01:19:01.680 --> 01:19:05.319 This promise served as a crucial reminder that God's judgments 1153 01:19:05.359 --> 01:19:10.159 against the nations weren't motivated by favoritism or ethnic preference. 1154 01:19:10.479 --> 01:19:13.359 They were the result of these nations treatment of God's 1155 01:19:13.359 --> 01:19:19.239 people and their rejection of divine justice. When God restored Israel, 1156 01:19:19.760 --> 01:19:22.560 it would be as a demonstration of his faithfulness to 1157 01:19:22.640 --> 01:19:28.079 his covenant promises, not as a reward for Israel's perfect behavior. 1158 01:19:29.920 --> 01:19:33.399 Of all the nations that would face God's judgment, none 1159 01:19:33.560 --> 01:19:38.119 was more significant than Egypt. This wasn't just another neighboring country. 1160 01:19:38.439 --> 01:19:43.199 Egypt was a world's superpower, the ancient center of civilization, 1161 01:19:43.640 --> 01:19:47.000 and the nation that had enslaved God's people for four 1162 01:19:47.079 --> 01:19:51.199 hundred years before the Exodus. The prophecies against Egypt would 1163 01:19:51.239 --> 01:19:56.000 span multiple chapters and reveal God's sovereignty over even the 1164 01:19:56.119 --> 01:20:00.720 mightiest earthly powers. The word against Egypt came with specific 1165 01:20:00.800 --> 01:20:04.960 dating in Ezekiel chapter twenty nine, verse one in the 1166 01:20:05.039 --> 01:20:07.640 tenth year, in the tenth month, on the twelfth day, 1167 01:20:07.880 --> 01:20:11.159 the word of the Lord came to me. This precision 1168 01:20:11.520 --> 01:20:14.960 showed that God's timing was exact and his knowledge of 1169 01:20:15.000 --> 01:20:21.000 international events was perfect. God commanded Ezekiel to deliver this message. 1170 01:20:21.000 --> 01:20:25.920 In verse two, Son of Man, set your face against Pharaoh, 1171 01:20:25.960 --> 01:20:30.600 King of Egypt, and prophesy against him and against all Egypt. 1172 01:20:31.079 --> 01:20:33.920 This wasn't just about the current ruler. It was about 1173 01:20:33.960 --> 01:20:37.800 the entire Egyptian system of power that had dominated the 1174 01:20:37.840 --> 01:20:43.039 ancient world for millennia. Egypt's primary sin was arrogance and 1175 01:20:43.199 --> 01:20:48.600 self dearification. In verse three, God revealed Pharaoh's attitude. Speak 1176 01:20:48.640 --> 01:20:51.479 to him and say, this is what the Sovereign Lord says. 1177 01:20:52.000 --> 01:20:55.319 I am against you, Pharaoh, King of Egypt, you great 1178 01:20:55.479 --> 01:20:59.840 monster lying among your streams, you say the Nile belongs 1179 01:20:59.880 --> 01:21:04.319 to me. I made it for myself. Pharaoh claimed ownership 1180 01:21:04.359 --> 01:21:07.479 and creation of the very river that gave Egypt life. 1181 01:21:07.920 --> 01:21:12.560 This wasn't just political pride, it was religious blasphemy. By 1182 01:21:12.600 --> 01:21:16.000 claiming to have made the Nile, Pharaoh was asserting divine 1183 01:21:16.119 --> 01:21:20.319 power and denying God's role as creator. The Nile was 1184 01:21:20.399 --> 01:21:24.279 Egypt's lifeline, and Pharaoh was claiming credit for the miraculous 1185 01:21:24.399 --> 01:21:29.800 annual flood that made Egyptian civilization possible. The punishment would 1186 01:21:29.840 --> 01:21:34.279 be both humiliating and devastating. In verse four, God declared, 1187 01:21:34.680 --> 01:21:37.680 but I will put hooks in your jaws and make 1188 01:21:37.760 --> 01:21:41.079 the fish of your streams stick to your scales. I 1189 01:21:41.119 --> 01:21:44.399 will pull you out from among your streams, with all 1190 01:21:44.520 --> 01:21:49.199 the fish sticking to your scales. The great monster would 1191 01:21:49.239 --> 01:21:52.199 be dragged out of his element like a caught fish, 1192 01:21:52.479 --> 01:21:56.880 helpless and gasping. The imagery continued in verse five, I 1193 01:21:56.920 --> 01:21:59.600 will leave you in the desert. You and all the 1194 01:21:59.640 --> 01:22:02.920 fish of your streams. You will fall on the open 1195 01:22:02.960 --> 01:22:05.680 ground and not be gathered or picked up. I will 1196 01:22:05.680 --> 01:22:08.359 give you as food to the beasts of the earth 1197 01:22:08.600 --> 01:22:12.680 and the birds of the sky. This represented complete defeat 1198 01:22:12.760 --> 01:22:17.039 and abandonment, with no proper burial or mourning. But God's 1199 01:22:17.079 --> 01:22:21.800 case against Egypt went beyond just Pharaoh's arrogance. There was 1200 01:22:21.840 --> 01:22:26.239 a specific betrayal that had sealed their doom. In verse six, 1201 01:22:26.319 --> 01:22:29.640 God explained, then all who live in Egypt will know 1202 01:22:29.920 --> 01:22:32.800 that I am the Lord. You have been a staff 1203 01:22:32.840 --> 01:22:36.600 of reed for the people of Israel. Egypt had failed 1204 01:22:36.600 --> 01:22:40.960 as an ally when Israel needed support most. The metaphor 1205 01:22:41.039 --> 01:22:45.319 of the reed staff was devastating. In verse seven, When 1206 01:22:45.319 --> 01:22:48.359 they grasped you with their hands, you splintered, and you 1207 01:22:48.520 --> 01:22:51.960 tore open their shoulders. When they leaned on you, you 1208 01:22:52.119 --> 01:22:56.159 broke and their backs were wrenched. Instead of providing the 1209 01:22:56.199 --> 01:22:59.960 military support they had promised, Egypt had collapsed under pressure 1210 01:23:00.239 --> 01:23:04.239 and caused additional injury to those who trusted them. This 1211 01:23:04.279 --> 01:23:08.800 had happened repeatedly throughout Israel's history. Whenever Israel faced a 1212 01:23:08.880 --> 01:23:12.760 crisis and turned to Egypt for help instead of trusting God, 1213 01:23:13.399 --> 01:23:17.800 Egypt had proven unreliable and had often made the situation worse. 1214 01:23:18.600 --> 01:23:21.560 They had been a false hope that led to disappointment 1215 01:23:21.840 --> 01:23:27.079 and disaster. The judgment would be comprehensive and long lasting. 1216 01:23:27.520 --> 01:23:30.279 In verse eight, God declared, Therefore, this is what the 1217 01:23:30.359 --> 01:23:33.640 sovereign Lord says. I will bring a sword against you 1218 01:23:33.720 --> 01:23:36.840 and kill both man and beast. This wouldn't just be 1219 01:23:36.880 --> 01:23:41.000 a political defeat. It would be a demographic catastrophe that 1220 01:23:41.079 --> 01:23:47.159 would reduce Egypt's population drastically. The desolation would last for decades. 1221 01:23:48.600 --> 01:23:54.079 Verse ten specified the duration. Therefore, I am against you 1222 01:23:54.680 --> 01:23:58.279 and against your streams, and I will make the land 1223 01:23:58.319 --> 01:24:02.600 of Egypt a ruin and desolate waste. From Migdol to Asswan, 1224 01:24:03.119 --> 01:24:07.479 as far as the border of Kush. From the Mediterranean 1225 01:24:07.600 --> 01:24:12.920 coast to the southern border, the entire country would become uninhabitable. 1226 01:24:13.960 --> 01:24:17.920 The most shocking aspect was the complete depopulation described in 1227 01:24:18.039 --> 01:24:21.479 verse eleven. The foot of neither man nor beast will 1228 01:24:21.520 --> 01:24:25.079 pass through it. No one will live there for forty years. 1229 01:24:26.079 --> 01:24:29.279 For an entire generation, Egypt would be as empty as 1230 01:24:29.279 --> 01:24:32.560 a desert, with no human or animal life surviving in 1231 01:24:32.600 --> 01:24:36.079 what had been one of the most densely populated regions 1232 01:24:36.119 --> 01:24:39.279 on Earth. But like the other judgments, this one had 1233 01:24:39.319 --> 01:24:44.279 a redemptive purpose. After forty years of desolation, God would 1234 01:24:44.359 --> 01:24:49.359 restore Egypt, though not to its former glory. Verse thirteen promised. 1235 01:24:49.760 --> 01:24:53.279 Yet this is what the sovereign Lord says. At the 1236 01:24:53.399 --> 01:24:56.640 end of forty years, I will gather the Egyptians from 1237 01:24:56.680 --> 01:25:00.720 the nations where they were scattered. Even God's enemies would 1238 01:25:00.720 --> 01:25:05.760 eventually experience mercy and restoration. Two years after the first 1239 01:25:05.800 --> 01:25:10.199 prophecy against Egypt, God gave Ezekiel another vision that portrayed 1240 01:25:10.239 --> 01:25:14.479 Pharaoh in an even more dramatic and terrifying way. This time, 1241 01:25:14.560 --> 01:25:17.399 the Egyptian ruler wasn't just a reed or a monster. 1242 01:25:17.920 --> 01:25:21.760 He was depicted as a massive crocodile that terrorized the 1243 01:25:21.800 --> 01:25:26.680 waters but would ultimately be trapped and destroyed. The second 1244 01:25:26.760 --> 01:25:30.359 prophecy came with its own date in Ezekiel, chapter thirty two, 1245 01:25:30.760 --> 01:25:34.560 verse one, in the twelfth year, in the twelfth month, 1246 01:25:34.560 --> 01:25:37.359 on the first day, the word of the Lord came 1247 01:25:37.399 --> 01:25:41.600 to me. This was near the end of Ezekiel's prophetic ministry, 1248 01:25:41.840 --> 01:25:46.479 showing that God's attention to Egypt's fate continued throughout the 1249 01:25:46.640 --> 01:25:51.560 entire period of Jerusalem's crisis. The new metaphor was introduced 1250 01:25:51.560 --> 01:25:55.520 in verse two. Son of Man take up a lament 1251 01:25:55.760 --> 01:25:59.439 concerning Pharaoh, King of Egypt, and say to him, you 1252 01:25:59.520 --> 01:26:02.880 are like a lion among the nations. You are like 1253 01:26:02.920 --> 01:26:06.479 a monster in the seas, thrashing about in your streams, 1254 01:26:07.079 --> 01:26:10.560 churning the water with your feet and muddying the streams. 1255 01:26:11.920 --> 01:26:15.800 Pharaoh saw himself as a noble lion, but God saw 1256 01:26:15.880 --> 01:26:21.000 him as a destructive sea monster. The crocodile imagery was 1257 01:26:21.079 --> 01:26:25.680 particularly appropriate for Egypt, since the Nile was famous for 1258 01:26:25.760 --> 01:26:30.760 its dangerous crocodiles that could kill unwary travelers or animals 1259 01:26:30.800 --> 01:26:33.800 that came to drink. Pharaoh was like the largest and 1260 01:26:33.920 --> 01:26:38.399 most dangerous of these predators, dominating his territory through fear 1261 01:26:38.520 --> 01:26:42.640 and violence. But this great predator would face a hunter 1262 01:26:42.840 --> 01:26:47.560 far more powerful than himself. In verse three, God declared, 1263 01:26:48.079 --> 01:26:51.520 this is what the sovereign lord says, with a great 1264 01:26:51.560 --> 01:26:53.720 throng of people. I will cast my net over you, 1265 01:26:54.119 --> 01:26:56.520 and they will haul you up in my net. The 1266 01:26:56.600 --> 01:26:59.439 image was of fishermen working together to catch a creature 1267 01:26:59.479 --> 01:27:02.960 too large for any individual to handle. The capture would 1268 01:27:03.000 --> 01:27:07.159 be both public and humiliating. Verse four continued, I will 1269 01:27:07.159 --> 01:27:09.279 throw you on the land and hurl you on the 1270 01:27:09.279 --> 01:27:12.079 open field. I will let all the birds of the 1271 01:27:12.079 --> 01:27:14.680 sky settle on you, and all the animals of the 1272 01:27:14.720 --> 01:27:19.119 wild gorge themselves on you. The mighty river predator would 1273 01:27:19.159 --> 01:27:24.319 become carrion for scavengers. The scale of destruction would be unprecedented. 1274 01:27:24.760 --> 01:27:27.880 In verse five, God revealed, I will spread your flesh 1275 01:27:27.960 --> 01:27:30.760 on the mountains and fill the valleys with your remains. 1276 01:27:31.199 --> 01:27:36.279 This hyperbolic language emphasized that Pharaoh's downfall would affect the 1277 01:27:36.439 --> 01:27:41.920 entire landscape of Egypt and surrounding regions. The blood imagery 1278 01:27:41.960 --> 01:27:45.840 became even more intense. In verse six, I will drench 1279 01:27:45.920 --> 01:27:49.159 the land with your flowing blood, all the way to 1280 01:27:49.239 --> 01:27:53.319 the mountains, and the ravines will be filled with your flesh. 1281 01:27:53.479 --> 01:27:56.840 This represented not just Pharaoh's death, but the deaths of 1282 01:27:56.880 --> 01:28:00.880 all his armies and supporters in a massive military catastrophe. 1283 01:28:01.319 --> 01:28:04.399 Even the heavens would be affected by this earthly judgment. 1284 01:28:05.279 --> 01:28:09.079 Verse seven declared, when I snuff you out, I will 1285 01:28:09.079 --> 01:28:13.399 cover the heavens and darken their stars. I will cover 1286 01:28:13.479 --> 01:28:15.880 the sun with a cloud, and the moon will not 1287 01:28:15.960 --> 01:28:19.960 give its light. This cosmic imagery showed that Pharaoh's fall 1288 01:28:20.359 --> 01:28:24.199 would be an event of universal significance. The terror would 1289 01:28:24.239 --> 01:28:29.960 spread far beyond Egypt's borders. In verse nine, God revealed, 1290 01:28:31.000 --> 01:28:33.960 I will trouble the hearts of many peoples when I 1291 01:28:34.039 --> 01:28:37.840 bring about your destruction among the nations, among lands you 1292 01:28:37.960 --> 01:28:41.319 have not known. Even distant countries that had never dealt 1293 01:28:41.359 --> 01:28:45.000 directly with Egypt would be shaken by news of such 1294 01:28:45.079 --> 01:28:50.720 a powerful empire's collapse. Kings everywhere would tremble at the implications. 1295 01:28:51.800 --> 01:28:56.680 Verse ten described their reaction. I will cause many peoples 1296 01:28:56.720 --> 01:28:59.840 to be appalled at you, and their kings will she 1297 01:29:00.039 --> 01:29:02.800 utter with horror because of you. When I brandish my 1298 01:29:02.960 --> 01:29:06.920 sword before them on the day of your downfall, each 1299 01:29:07.000 --> 01:29:10.199 of them will tremble every moment for his life. If 1300 01:29:10.239 --> 01:29:14.479 Egypt could fall, no nation was safe from divine judgment. 1301 01:29:14.880 --> 01:29:18.920 The specific weapon of destruction would be identified in verse eleven. 1302 01:29:19.880 --> 01:29:23.600 For this is what the Sovereign Lord says. The sword 1303 01:29:23.640 --> 01:29:28.079 of the King of Babylon will come against you. Nebucad Neza, 1304 01:29:28.279 --> 01:29:31.840 who had already destroyed Jerusalem and Tire, would also be 1305 01:29:31.920 --> 01:29:36.479 the instrument of Egypt's humiliation. The final prophecy against Egypt 1306 01:29:36.840 --> 01:29:40.359 was perhaps the most haunting of all. It depicted the 1307 01:29:40.399 --> 01:29:44.279 proud empire descending into the realm of the dead, where 1308 01:29:44.279 --> 01:29:48.000 it would join other fallen nations in the darkness below 1309 01:29:48.079 --> 01:29:52.439 the earth. This wasn't just about political defeat. It was 1310 01:29:52.479 --> 01:29:57.560 about eternal consequences and the fate of all earthly powers 1311 01:29:57.600 --> 01:30:01.119 that defy God. This ultimate prophit he came two weeks 1312 01:30:01.159 --> 01:30:04.960 after the previous one, as recorded in Ezekiel, chapter thirty two, 1313 01:30:05.039 --> 01:30:09.159 verse seventeen, in the twelfth year, on the fifteenth day 1314 01:30:09.199 --> 01:30:11.920 of the month, the word of the Lord came to me. 1315 01:30:12.439 --> 01:30:16.680 The rapid succession of these prophecies showed the urgency and 1316 01:30:16.800 --> 01:30:22.199 intensity of God's judgment against Egypt. God commanded Ezekiel to 1317 01:30:22.279 --> 01:30:27.039 perform a funeral ritual in verse eighteen, Son of Man 1318 01:30:27.520 --> 01:30:30.640 wail for the hordes of Egypt and consigned to the 1319 01:30:30.720 --> 01:30:34.359 earth below both her and the daughters of the mighty nations, 1320 01:30:34.680 --> 01:30:37.439 along with those who go down to the pit. This 1321 01:30:37.640 --> 01:30:41.399 was a burial ceremony for a nation that wasn't dead, yet, 1322 01:30:41.439 --> 01:30:45.840 prophetically sealing their doom. The descent to Shiol was described 1323 01:30:45.880 --> 01:30:50.600 in verse nineteen. Do you surpass others in beauty? Go 1324 01:30:50.680 --> 01:30:54.319 down and be laid among the uncircumcised. Egypt's pride in 1325 01:30:54.359 --> 01:30:57.479 its beauty and civilization would count for nothing in the 1326 01:30:57.520 --> 01:31:03.000 realm of death, where all earthly distinctions disappeared. In the underworld, 1327 01:31:03.359 --> 01:31:07.880 Egypt would encounter other fallen powers. Verse twenty two revealed 1328 01:31:07.880 --> 01:31:12.159 the first group. Assyria is there with her whole army. 1329 01:31:12.560 --> 01:31:15.279 She is surrounded by the graves of all her slain, 1330 01:31:15.720 --> 01:31:19.479 all who have fallen by the sword. The mighty Assyrian Empire, 1331 01:31:19.760 --> 01:31:23.520 which had once terrorized the ancient world, was already waiting 1332 01:31:23.520 --> 01:31:27.479 in the darkness. Each fallen nation was described with the 1333 01:31:27.479 --> 01:31:32.960 same refrain about their former power and present humiliation. Verse 1334 01:31:33.000 --> 01:31:36.640 twenty four introduced another Ilam is there with all her 1335 01:31:36.680 --> 01:31:39.960 hordes around her grave. All of them are slain, fallen 1336 01:31:40.000 --> 01:31:42.720 by the sword. All who had spread terror in the 1337 01:31:42.800 --> 01:31:47.199 land of the living went down, uncircumcised, to the earth below. 1338 01:31:48.159 --> 01:31:51.319 The pattern continued with more nations. In verse twenty six, 1339 01:31:52.279 --> 01:31:55.880 Meshek and Tubal are there with all their hordes around 1340 01:31:55.920 --> 01:32:00.800 their graves. All of them are uncircumcised, killed by the sword. 1341 01:32:01.199 --> 01:32:04.119 Because they spread their terror in the land of the living. 1342 01:32:04.640 --> 01:32:08.439 Each empire that had once inspired fear was now itself 1343 01:32:08.560 --> 01:32:13.279 terrified and defeated. Even the ancient warriors of old were present. 1344 01:32:13.720 --> 01:32:17.000 Verse twenty seven described them, but they do not lie 1345 01:32:17.079 --> 01:32:19.880 with the fallen warriors of old, who went down to 1346 01:32:19.960 --> 01:32:22.720 the realm of the dead with their weapons of war, 1347 01:32:23.239 --> 01:32:26.920 their swords placed under their heads and their shields resting 1348 01:32:26.960 --> 01:32:31.119 on their bones. Though these warriors also had terrorized the 1349 01:32:31.199 --> 01:32:34.279 land of the living, there were different levels. Even in 1350 01:32:34.359 --> 01:32:38.760 the realm of death. The prophecy became personal for Egypt's allies. 1351 01:32:38.920 --> 01:32:43.319 In verse twenty nine, Edom is there, her kings and 1352 01:32:43.439 --> 01:32:47.279 all her princes, despite their power. They are laid with 1353 01:32:47.399 --> 01:32:52.199 those killed by the sword. They lie with the uncircumcised, 1354 01:32:52.520 --> 01:32:55.520 with those who go down to the pit. Egypt would 1355 01:32:55.560 --> 01:32:58.800 be joined by nations that had trusted in their alliance 1356 01:32:58.880 --> 01:33:02.640 with her. The final group mentioned was particularly relevant in 1357 01:33:02.760 --> 01:33:06.199 verse thirty All the princes of the North and all 1358 01:33:06.279 --> 01:33:10.039 the Sidonians are there. They went down with the slain 1359 01:33:10.159 --> 01:33:13.800 in disgrace, despite the terror caused by their power. They 1360 01:33:13.880 --> 01:33:18.000 lie uncircumcised with those killed by the sword, and bear 1361 01:33:18.039 --> 01:33:20.119 their shame with those who go down to the pit. 1362 01:33:20.960 --> 01:33:26.279 Even Egypt's commercial partners would share her fate. When Pharaoh 1363 01:33:26.359 --> 01:33:28.680 arrived in this realm of the dead, he would find 1364 01:33:28.680 --> 01:33:33.239 a strange comfort in discovering he wasn't alone. Verse thirty 1365 01:33:33.239 --> 01:33:37.720 one revealed his reaction. Pharaoh, he and all his army 1366 01:33:37.920 --> 01:33:40.680 will see them, and he will be consoled for all 1367 01:33:40.720 --> 01:33:43.800 his hordes that were killed by the sword, declares the 1368 01:33:43.880 --> 01:33:47.920 sovereign Lord. His consolation would come from realizing that all 1369 01:33:48.079 --> 01:33:52.279 earthly powers eventually faced the same end. The final verdict 1370 01:33:52.560 --> 01:33:56.800 sealed Egypt's doom in verse thirty two. Although I had 1371 01:33:56.880 --> 01:34:00.119 him spread terror in the land of the living, Pharaoh 1372 01:34:00.119 --> 01:34:03.880 and all his hordes will be laid among the uncircumcised, 1373 01:34:04.199 --> 01:34:07.920 with those killed by the sword, declares the sovereign Lord. 1374 01:34:08.439 --> 01:34:12.840 The empire that had terrorized others would itself become a 1375 01:34:12.960 --> 01:34:17.239 source of terror through its spectacular fall. The vision of 1376 01:34:17.319 --> 01:34:21.800 Sheiole that concluded the prophecies against Egypt wasn't just about 1377 01:34:21.880 --> 01:34:26.119 one nation's fate. It was a comprehensive picture of the 1378 01:34:26.239 --> 01:34:31.640 ultimate destiny of all earthly powers that set themselves against God. 1379 01:34:32.199 --> 01:34:36.560 This underground realm was portrayed as a vast cemetery where 1380 01:34:36.600 --> 01:34:41.800 the proud empires of history lay in eternal defeat and shame. 1381 01:34:42.560 --> 01:34:46.920 The description of this realm revealed a hierarchy even in death. 1382 01:34:47.439 --> 01:34:51.439 Some nations were buried with honor, maintaining some dignity even 1383 01:34:51.479 --> 01:34:54.960 in defeat, while others were consigned to the deepest shame 1384 01:34:55.039 --> 01:35:00.000 and disgrace. The uncircumcised were separated from those who had 1385 01:35:00.119 --> 01:35:04.760 maintained some covenant relationship with God, showing that spiritual condition 1386 01:35:05.279 --> 01:35:10.319 affected even the after life. The repeated phrase they spread 1387 01:35:10.479 --> 01:35:13.920 terror in the land of the living emphasized that these 1388 01:35:14.039 --> 01:35:17.800 nations had all been characterized by their use of fear 1389 01:35:17.880 --> 01:35:21.279 and violence to maintain power. They had built their empires 1390 01:35:21.359 --> 01:35:26.079 through intimidation and military might, making others tremble before their 1391 01:35:26.199 --> 01:35:30.880 armies and political influence. But in death the tables were 1392 01:35:30.880 --> 01:35:36.520 completely turned. Those who had caused terror were now themselves terrorized. 1393 01:35:36.880 --> 01:35:40.199 Those who had made others tremble were now trembling. The 1394 01:35:40.319 --> 01:35:43.640 very power they had used to dominate others had become 1395 01:35:43.680 --> 01:35:48.359 the source of their eternal humiliation. The image of weapons 1396 01:35:48.439 --> 01:35:52.159 buried with some warriors but not others, suggested that there 1397 01:35:52.199 --> 01:35:55.520 were different types of military honor. Some had fought with 1398 01:35:55.560 --> 01:35:57.960 a code of conduct that earned them a measure of 1399 01:35:58.039 --> 01:36:01.640 respect even from their enemies, while others had been so 1400 01:36:01.840 --> 01:36:06.239 brutal and dishonorable that they deserved no recognition even in death. 1401 01:36:06.960 --> 01:36:11.239 The presence of kings, princes, and entire armies in this 1402 01:36:11.399 --> 01:36:15.800 realm showed that no level of earthly authority provided protection 1403 01:36:16.119 --> 01:36:21.479 from divine judgment. Royal blood, political alliances, military might, and 1404 01:36:21.560 --> 01:36:25.840 economic power all proved useless when faced with the consequences 1405 01:36:25.840 --> 01:36:29.720 of defying the creator of the universe. The mention of 1406 01:36:29.800 --> 01:36:37.079 specific nations Assyria, elam Meshek, tubal Edom, and Sidon created 1407 01:36:37.159 --> 01:36:41.760 a comprehensive survey of the ancient world's power centers. Each 1408 01:36:41.800 --> 01:36:45.560 had dominated their region for a time, inspiring fear and 1409 01:36:45.640 --> 01:36:49.239 commanding respect, but all had ultimately fallen to the same 1410 01:36:49.319 --> 01:36:53.600 fate that awaited Egypt. This vision served as both warning 1411 01:36:53.920 --> 01:36:57.079 and comfort. It was a warning to any nation or 1412 01:36:57.159 --> 01:37:02.000 ruler who thought they could defy God without consequences, showing 1413 01:37:02.039 --> 01:37:06.319 that even the mightiest earthly powers were temporary and vulnerable. 1414 01:37:06.640 --> 01:37:10.039 But it was also comfort to God's people, showing that 1415 01:37:10.079 --> 01:37:14.399 their oppressors would eventually face justice and that no enemy 1416 01:37:14.439 --> 01:37:20.319 of God's people would escape accountability forever. The cosmic scope 1417 01:37:20.359 --> 01:37:24.600 of this judgment revealed that history itself was moving toward 1418 01:37:24.680 --> 01:37:28.520 a divine conclusion, where all accounts would be settled and 1419 01:37:28.600 --> 01:37:31.800 all wrongs would be made right. The nations that had 1420 01:37:31.800 --> 01:37:36.439 seemed so permanent and powerful were actually just temporary actors 1421 01:37:36.439 --> 01:37:41.279 on a stage controlled by eternal purposes beyond their understanding. 1422 01:37:42.039 --> 01:37:46.199 After all the devastating prophecies of judgment against Jerusalem and 1423 01:37:46.239 --> 01:37:50.960 the surrounding nations, God was ready to show Ezekiel something 1424 01:37:51.000 --> 01:37:54.199 that would change everything. This wasn't going to be another 1425 01:37:54.359 --> 01:37:57.960 vision of destruction. This was going to be the most 1426 01:37:57.960 --> 01:38:02.840 spectacular demonstration of resurrection power the world had ever seen. 1427 01:38:03.800 --> 01:38:08.279 In Ezekiel, Chapter thirty seven, Verse one, something extraordinary happened. 1428 01:38:09.359 --> 01:38:12.880 The hand of the Lord was on me, and he 1429 01:38:13.000 --> 01:38:15.640 brought me out by the spirit of the Lord and 1430 01:38:15.760 --> 01:38:18.079 set me in the middle of a valley. It was 1431 01:38:18.199 --> 01:38:21.760 full of bones. God didn't just give Ezekiel a vision 1432 01:38:21.800 --> 01:38:25.479 this time, he physically transported him to a place that 1433 01:38:25.560 --> 01:38:29.119 would become the setting for the most incredible miracle in 1434 01:38:29.159 --> 01:38:32.560 the entire book. This wasn't just any valley, and these 1435 01:38:32.600 --> 01:38:36.560 weren't just a few scattered bones. As Ezekiel looked around, 1436 01:38:36.880 --> 01:38:40.399 he saw something that made his heart sink. Verse two 1437 01:38:40.439 --> 01:38:44.720 described what he witnessed. He led me back and forth 1438 01:38:44.760 --> 01:38:48.000 among them, and I saw a great many bones on 1439 01:38:48.079 --> 01:38:51.680 the floor of the valley, bones that were very dry. 1440 01:38:52.640 --> 01:38:56.920 These weren't recent casualties of war. These were bones that 1441 01:38:57.039 --> 01:39:00.439 had been bleaching in the sun for years, completely dried 1442 01:39:00.479 --> 01:39:05.479 out and lifeless. The sight was overwhelming. Everywhere Ezekiel looked 1443 01:39:05.800 --> 01:39:09.880 there were human remains scattered across the valley floor, skulls, 1444 01:39:10.079 --> 01:39:14.359 rib cages, leg bones, arm bones, the remnants of what 1445 01:39:14.479 --> 01:39:18.079 had once been a massive army or population, now reduced 1446 01:39:18.079 --> 01:39:21.880 to sun bleached skeletons with no flesh, no life, and 1447 01:39:22.000 --> 01:39:25.520 certainly no hope of ever living again. Then God asked 1448 01:39:25.560 --> 01:39:28.079 him a question that seemed to have an obvious answer. 1449 01:39:28.479 --> 01:39:31.359 In verse three, he asked me, son of Man, can 1450 01:39:31.399 --> 01:39:35.800 these bones live? Any reasonable person looking at this scene 1451 01:39:36.119 --> 01:39:41.439 would have immediately answered absolutely not. These bones were beyond dead. 1452 01:39:42.039 --> 01:39:46.279 They were completely desiccated, scattered, and had been lying there 1453 01:39:46.479 --> 01:39:49.960 so long that any connection between them had been lost. 1454 01:39:50.439 --> 01:39:54.239 But Ezekiel had learned something important during his years as 1455 01:39:54.279 --> 01:39:58.560 a prophet. When God asked questions, the obvious human answer 1456 01:39:58.920 --> 01:40:02.159 wasn't always the right answer. So instead of saying what 1457 01:40:02.239 --> 01:40:08.439 seemed logical, Ezekiel gave the perfect response, Sovereign Lord, you 1458 01:40:08.600 --> 01:40:13.239 alone know. He was admitting that human understanding had limits, 1459 01:40:13.520 --> 01:40:17.239 but God's power didn't. What happened next defied every law 1460 01:40:17.279 --> 01:40:20.640 of nature and every expectation of what was possible. In 1461 01:40:20.760 --> 01:40:25.039 verse four, God commanded prophesy to these bones and say 1462 01:40:25.079 --> 01:40:28.119 to them, dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. 1463 01:40:29.159 --> 01:40:32.840 Ezekiel was being told to preach to a congregation of skeletons, 1464 01:40:33.399 --> 01:40:35.800 to deliver a sermon to an audience that had no 1465 01:40:35.920 --> 01:40:41.079 ears to hear. The message itself was incredible. Verse five 1466 01:40:41.199 --> 01:40:44.319 contained God's promise to the bones. This is what the 1467 01:40:44.359 --> 01:40:48.399 sovereign Lord says to these bones. I will make breath 1468 01:40:48.680 --> 01:40:52.640 enter you, and you will come to life. God wasn't 1469 01:40:52.680 --> 01:40:56.239 just promising to put the bones back together. He was 1470 01:40:56.279 --> 01:41:01.079 promising to restore complete, living, breathing human being. The process 1471 01:41:01.119 --> 01:41:05.359 would be systematic and amazing. Verse six outlined the steps. 1472 01:41:05.720 --> 01:41:08.680 I will attach tendons to you and make flesh come 1473 01:41:08.720 --> 01:41:11.319 on you and cover you with skin. I will put 1474 01:41:11.359 --> 01:41:14.399 breath in you, and you will come to life. Then 1475 01:41:14.479 --> 01:41:18.560 you will know that I am the Lord. First, the 1476 01:41:18.600 --> 01:41:23.239 skeletal structure would be rebuilt, that muscles and organs, then skin, 1477 01:41:23.840 --> 01:41:27.880 and finally the breath of life itself. Ezekiel obeyed God's 1478 01:41:27.920 --> 01:41:32.159 command and began preaching to the bones. What happened next 1479 01:41:32.279 --> 01:41:36.279 was like watching the most incredible special effects movie ever made, 1480 01:41:36.680 --> 01:41:41.800 except this was completely real. Verse seven recorded the immediate response. 1481 01:41:42.159 --> 01:41:45.560 So I prophesied as I was commanded, And as I 1482 01:41:45.640 --> 01:41:49.479 was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound, and 1483 01:41:49.520 --> 01:41:53.880 the bones came together, bone to bone. The noise must 1484 01:41:53.880 --> 01:41:58.840 have been incredible. Thousands of bones rolling across the valley floor, 1485 01:41:59.159 --> 01:42:03.000 finding their proper partners and clicking into place with perfect 1486 01:42:03.039 --> 01:42:08.239 precision skulls rolled to meet spinal columns. Arm bones found, 1487 01:42:08.279 --> 01:42:12.039 shoulder sockets, leg bones connected to hip joints. In a 1488 01:42:12.079 --> 01:42:16.399 matter of moments, the scattered remains had become complete skeletons 1489 01:42:16.760 --> 01:42:20.000 lying in formation across the valley floor. But that was 1490 01:42:20.279 --> 01:42:24.840 just the beginning. Verse eight continued the amazing transformation. I 1491 01:42:24.960 --> 01:42:28.600 looked and tendons and flesh appeared on them, and skin 1492 01:42:28.800 --> 01:42:31.960 covered them, but there was no breath in them. Now 1493 01:42:32.000 --> 01:42:36.239 instead of dry bones, there were perfect human bodies lying 1494 01:42:36.359 --> 01:42:39.520 motionless in the valley. They looked like people who were sleeping, 1495 01:42:39.840 --> 01:42:43.920 but they weren't breathing. God gave Ezekiel another command that 1496 01:42:44.039 --> 01:42:47.640 seemed just as impossible as the first. In verse nine, 1497 01:42:47.680 --> 01:42:51.640 he said, prophesy to the breath, prophesy, son of Man, 1498 01:42:52.000 --> 01:42:55.119 and say to it, this is what the sovereign Lord says. 1499 01:42:55.600 --> 01:42:59.439 Come breath from the four winds, and breathe into these 1500 01:42:59.479 --> 01:43:04.079 slain that they may live. Now Ezekiel had to preach 1501 01:43:04.119 --> 01:43:07.920 to the air itself, calling for the wind to come 1502 01:43:07.960 --> 01:43:11.600 and give life to these perfectly formed but lifeless bodies. 1503 01:43:12.159 --> 01:43:17.039 The response was immediate and spectacular. Verse ten described the 1504 01:43:17.079 --> 01:43:21.520 final miracle. So I prophesied. As he commanded me and 1505 01:43:21.640 --> 01:43:24.840 breath entered them. They came to life and stood up 1506 01:43:24.840 --> 01:43:28.399 on their feet a vast army. Not only did they 1507 01:43:28.399 --> 01:43:31.920 come alive, but they stood up at attention, like soldiers 1508 01:43:31.960 --> 01:43:35.279 ready for battle. The valley that had been a graveyard 1509 01:43:35.359 --> 01:43:38.199 was now filled with a mighty army of living people. 1510 01:43:39.399 --> 01:43:43.920 Then God explained what this incredible vision meant. These bones 1511 01:43:43.960 --> 01:43:48.039 weren't just random dead people. They represented something very specific. 1512 01:43:48.479 --> 01:43:52.479 In verse eleven, God revealed, Son of Man, these bones 1513 01:43:52.520 --> 01:43:55.119 are the people of Israel. They say, our bones are 1514 01:43:55.199 --> 01:43:57.960 dried up and our hope is gone. We are cut off. 1515 01:43:59.000 --> 01:44:02.520 The vision was about God's people in exile, who felt 1516 01:44:02.560 --> 01:44:06.960 as hopeless and lifeless as scattered bones. The Israelites in 1517 01:44:07.039 --> 01:44:10.439 Babylon felt exactly like those dry bones. They had been 1518 01:44:10.479 --> 01:44:14.159 cut off from their homeland. Their temple was destroyed, their 1519 01:44:14.239 --> 01:44:18.840 king was in chains, and their national identity seemed completely finished. 1520 01:44:19.359 --> 01:44:22.199 They were saying things like, we're as good as dead. 1521 01:44:22.760 --> 01:44:26.000 Our nation is over, there's no hope for us to 1522 01:44:26.119 --> 01:44:29.159 ever be a people again. But God had a message 1523 01:44:29.199 --> 01:44:34.359 for them through this incredible vision. In verse twelve, he declared, therefore, 1524 01:44:34.399 --> 01:44:37.640 prophesy and say to them. This is what the Sovereign 1525 01:44:37.680 --> 01:44:41.039 Lord says, my people, I am going to open your 1526 01:44:41.079 --> 01:44:43.880 graves and bring you up from them. I will bring 1527 01:44:43.920 --> 01:44:48.039 you back to the land of Israel. What seemed impossible 1528 01:44:48.359 --> 01:44:52.680 to them was not only possible but absolutely certain. From 1529 01:44:52.720 --> 01:44:57.800 God's perspective. The restoration wouldn't just be political, it would 1530 01:44:57.840 --> 01:45:03.800 be spiritual. Verse thirty promised, Then you, my people, will 1531 01:45:03.840 --> 01:45:07.399 know that I am the Lord. When I open your 1532 01:45:07.439 --> 01:45:12.000 graves and bring you up from them. They would experience 1533 01:45:12.039 --> 01:45:15.920 God's power in such an unmistakable way that their faith 1534 01:45:15.960 --> 01:45:19.840 would be completely renewed. But the most amazing promise was 1535 01:45:19.920 --> 01:45:24.680 still to come. In verse fourteen, God revealed the ultimate purpose. 1536 01:45:25.399 --> 01:45:28.199 I will put my spirit in you, and you will live, 1537 01:45:28.600 --> 01:45:31.640 and I will settle you in your own land. Then 1538 01:45:31.680 --> 01:45:35.119 you will know that I, the Lord, have spoken and 1539 01:45:35.279 --> 01:45:39.399 I have done it, declares the Lord. This wasn't just 1540 01:45:39.479 --> 01:45:44.079 about returning to geography. It was about receiving new spiritual 1541 01:45:44.159 --> 01:45:49.159 life that would make them truly God's people again. After 1542 01:45:49.199 --> 01:45:55.560 the spectacular vision of resurrection, God gave Ezekiel another dramatic demonstration, 1543 01:45:56.119 --> 01:45:59.560 but this one was simpler and more practical. It involved 1544 01:45:59.600 --> 01:46:02.680 two pieces of wood and a message that would give 1545 01:46:02.720 --> 01:46:05.560 hope to a people who had been divided for centuries. 1546 01:46:06.720 --> 01:46:11.399 The demonstration began with a simple command in Ezekiel chapter 1547 01:46:11.479 --> 01:46:16.720 thirty seven, verse sixteen, Son of Man, take a stick 1548 01:46:16.760 --> 01:46:20.279 of wood and write on it belonging to Judah and 1549 01:46:20.359 --> 01:46:25.000 the Israelites associated with him. Then take another stick of 1550 01:46:25.039 --> 01:46:28.760 wood and write on it belonging to Joseph, that is, 1551 01:46:29.199 --> 01:46:35.039 to Ephraim and all the Israelites associated with him. Ezekiel 1552 01:46:35.479 --> 01:46:39.560 was to prepare two wooden sticks, each representing one part 1553 01:46:39.640 --> 01:46:43.239 of the divided kingdom. This division went back over three 1554 01:46:43.359 --> 01:46:46.840 hundred years to the time when Solomon's kingdom had split 1555 01:46:47.199 --> 01:46:51.600 after his death. The northern kingdom called Israel or Ephraim 1556 01:46:51.920 --> 01:46:55.600 had included ten tribes and had been destroyed by Assyria. 1557 01:46:56.279 --> 01:47:00.279 The southern kingdom called Judah had included two tribes and 1558 01:47:00.359 --> 01:47:04.439 had just been destroyed by Babylon. For centuries, these two 1559 01:47:04.520 --> 01:47:08.760 parts of God's people had been separate nations, often fighting 1560 01:47:08.800 --> 01:47:13.199 against each other instead of working together. The next instruction 1561 01:47:13.840 --> 01:47:18.640 was simple but profound. Verse seventeen commanded join them together 1562 01:47:18.760 --> 01:47:22.399 into one stick, so that they will become one. In 1563 01:47:22.479 --> 01:47:25.960 your hand. Ezekiel was to hold the two sticks together 1564 01:47:26.239 --> 01:47:28.680 so they appeared to be a single piece of wood. 1565 01:47:29.079 --> 01:47:33.159 This visual demonstration would capture every one's attention and make 1566 01:47:33.239 --> 01:47:37.359 them ask what it meant. Sure enough, the people's curiosity 1567 01:47:37.640 --> 01:47:43.159 was aroused. Verse eighteen recorded their question, when your people 1568 01:47:43.239 --> 01:47:46.199 ask you, won't you tell us what you mean by this? 1569 01:47:47.520 --> 01:47:51.199 They could see that something significant was being communicated through 1570 01:47:51.239 --> 01:47:56.279 this simple act, but they needed the interpretation. God's explanation 1571 01:47:56.479 --> 01:48:00.640 was better than anything they could have imagined. In verse nineteen, 1572 01:48:01.039 --> 01:48:05.319 he revealed, say to them, this is what the sovereign 1573 01:48:05.359 --> 01:48:08.840 Lord says. I'm going to take the stick of Joseph, 1574 01:48:09.000 --> 01:48:12.399 which is in Aphram's hand, and of the Israelite tribes 1575 01:48:12.439 --> 01:48:16.319 associated with him, and join it to Judas stick, making 1576 01:48:16.359 --> 01:48:19.319 them a single stick of wood, and they will become 1577 01:48:19.399 --> 01:48:23.920 one in my hand. God himself was going to reunify 1578 01:48:24.000 --> 01:48:29.159 his divided people. The reunification wouldn't just be symbolic, It 1579 01:48:29.199 --> 01:48:32.800 would be literal and permanent. Verse twenty one promised, I 1580 01:48:32.840 --> 01:48:35.680 will take the Israelites out of the nations where they 1581 01:48:35.720 --> 01:48:39.119 have gone. I will gather them from all around and 1582 01:48:39.159 --> 01:48:43.239 bring them back into their own land. This would involve 1583 01:48:43.239 --> 01:48:46.520 people who had been scattered, not just to Babylon, but 1584 01:48:46.680 --> 01:48:51.439 to many different countries over several centuries. The new unified 1585 01:48:51.560 --> 01:48:55.359 nation would be completely different from the old divided kingdoms. 1586 01:48:55.680 --> 01:48:58.800 Verse twenty two declared, I will make them one nation 1587 01:48:58.960 --> 01:49:02.039 in the land on the mountains of Israel. There will 1588 01:49:02.079 --> 01:49:04.600 be one king over all of them, and they will 1589 01:49:04.640 --> 01:49:08.399 never again be two nations or be divided into two kingdoms. 1590 01:49:08.920 --> 01:49:13.159 The political division that had weakened and eventually destroyed both 1591 01:49:13.279 --> 01:49:18.159 kingdoms would never happen again. The spiritual transformation would be 1592 01:49:18.319 --> 01:49:23.079 just as dramatic as the political reunification. Verse twenty three promised, 1593 01:49:23.279 --> 01:49:26.840 They will no longer defile themselves with their idols and 1594 01:49:27.079 --> 01:49:30.760 vile images, or with any of their offenses. For I 1595 01:49:30.800 --> 01:49:34.079 will save them from all their sinful backsliding, and I 1596 01:49:34.119 --> 01:49:37.359 will cleanse them. They will be my people, and I 1597 01:49:37.479 --> 01:49:41.359 will be there God. The idolatry that had caused the 1598 01:49:41.399 --> 01:49:46.760 original division and both kingdoms destruction would be completely eliminated. 1599 01:49:47.239 --> 01:49:50.880 The leadership of this new unified nation would be perfect. 1600 01:49:51.279 --> 01:49:54.800 Verse twenty four revealed, My servant David will be king 1601 01:49:54.920 --> 01:49:58.279 over them, and they will all have one shepherd. They 1602 01:49:58.319 --> 01:50:01.840 will follow my laws and be careful to keep my decrees. 1603 01:50:03.239 --> 01:50:06.319 This wasn't referring to the historical David coming back from 1604 01:50:06.359 --> 01:50:10.239 the dead, but to a future king from David's family 1605 01:50:10.319 --> 01:50:13.479 line who would rule with David's heart for God. This 1606 01:50:13.640 --> 01:50:17.439 perfect king would establish a perfect kingdom. Verse twenty five 1607 01:50:17.520 --> 01:50:20.880 described the permanence of this arrangement. They will live in 1608 01:50:20.960 --> 01:50:24.119 the land I gave to my servant, Jacob, the land 1609 01:50:24.159 --> 01:50:27.880 where your ancestors lived. They and their children and their 1610 01:50:28.000 --> 01:50:32.199 children's children will live there forever, and David, my servant, 1611 01:50:32.479 --> 01:50:36.159 will be their prince forever. This wouldn't be another temporary 1612 01:50:36.199 --> 01:50:39.399 kingdom that would rise and fall like all the others. 1613 01:50:39.800 --> 01:50:44.079 This would be an eternal kingdom. The relationship between God 1614 01:50:44.119 --> 01:50:47.079 and his people would be restored to what it was 1615 01:50:47.119 --> 01:50:52.199 always meant to be. Verse twenty six promised, I will 1616 01:50:52.199 --> 01:50:54.960 make a covenant of peace with them. It will be 1617 01:50:55.000 --> 01:50:59.760 an everlasting covenant. I will establish them and increase their numbers, 1618 01:51:00.079 --> 01:51:03.439 and I will put my sanctuary among them forever. Instead 1619 01:51:03.439 --> 01:51:06.960 of the broken covenant that had led to judgment and exile, 1620 01:51:07.439 --> 01:51:11.880 there would be an unbreakable covenant that would guarantee permanent blessing. 1621 01:51:12.960 --> 01:51:16.880 The ultimate purpose was that the whole world would recognize 1622 01:51:16.920 --> 01:51:21.239 God's relationship with his people. Verse twenty seven declared, my 1623 01:51:21.359 --> 01:51:24.079 dwelling place will be with them. I will be their 1624 01:51:24.119 --> 01:51:27.039 God and they will be my people, and verse twenty 1625 01:51:27.039 --> 01:51:30.560 eight concluded, then the nations will know that I the 1626 01:51:30.680 --> 01:51:35.279 Lord make Israel holy when my sanctuary is among them forever. 1627 01:51:35.720 --> 01:51:39.560 The restored and unified people would become a testimony to 1628 01:51:39.640 --> 01:51:44.399 all nations of God's faithfulness and power. Just when it 1629 01:51:44.439 --> 01:51:47.439 seemed like the promises of restoration meant that God's people 1630 01:51:47.479 --> 01:51:50.840 would live in peace forever, God revealed that there would 1631 01:51:50.880 --> 01:51:55.039 be one final test. A massive invasion would come against 1632 01:51:55.079 --> 01:51:59.520 the restored nation, but this attack would ultimately demonstrate God's 1633 01:51:59.560 --> 01:52:04.760 power to the entire world and establish his people's security permanently. 1634 01:52:05.600 --> 01:52:08.760 The prophecy began with God addressing the leader of this 1635 01:52:09.199 --> 01:52:14.119 future invasion. In Ezekiel chapter thirty eight, verse two, God commanded, 1636 01:52:14.520 --> 01:52:18.119 son of Man, set your face against God of the 1637 01:52:18.199 --> 01:52:21.680 land of Magog, the chief prince of Meishek, and Tubal 1638 01:52:22.279 --> 01:52:26.199 PROPHESI against him. This Gog wasn't a specific person that 1639 01:52:26.279 --> 01:52:29.880 Ezekiel knew, but a future leader who would arise from 1640 01:52:29.960 --> 01:52:34.319 the far north. God described Gog's intentions in verse three. 1641 01:52:35.680 --> 01:52:39.600 This is what the sovereign Lord says, I am against you, Gog, 1642 01:52:39.920 --> 01:52:44.319 Chief Prince of Meshek and Tubal. This wasn't just a 1643 01:52:44.399 --> 01:52:48.880 human political decision. This invasion would be motivated by forces 1644 01:52:49.159 --> 01:52:52.880 that opposed God himself and his purposes for his people. 1645 01:52:53.680 --> 01:52:58.439 The invasion force would be massive and international. Verse four 1646 01:52:58.800 --> 01:53:03.199 described God's role in organizing Bidda. I will turn you around, 1647 01:53:03.520 --> 01:53:05.640 put hooks in your jaws, and bring you out with 1648 01:53:05.720 --> 01:53:09.319 your whole army, your horses, your horsemen fully armed, and 1649 01:53:09.399 --> 01:53:12.760 a great hoarde with large and small shields, all of 1650 01:53:12.800 --> 01:53:16.119 them brandishing their swords. Even though God would think he 1651 01:53:16.239 --> 01:53:19.840 was making his own decisions, God would actually be directing 1652 01:53:19.840 --> 01:53:24.000 events for his own purposes. The coalition would include nations 1653 01:53:24.039 --> 01:53:28.359 from all directions. Verse five listed some of the participants 1654 01:53:28.880 --> 01:53:33.680 Persiakush and put will be with them, all with shields 1655 01:53:33.720 --> 01:53:38.039 and helmets. These represented countries from the east, south, and west, 1656 01:53:38.399 --> 01:53:41.920 showing that this would be a truly international effort against 1657 01:53:42.000 --> 01:53:46.079 God's people. The northern forces were described in verse six, 1658 01:53:46.600 --> 01:53:51.000 also Goma with all its troops, and beth Togomah from 1659 01:53:51.039 --> 01:53:54.000 the far north with all its troops. The many nations 1660 01:53:54.000 --> 01:53:58.640 with you, This coalition would include peoples from the distant North, 1661 01:53:59.039 --> 01:54:02.720 representing the most remote and powerful nations of the Earth. 1662 01:54:03.479 --> 01:54:07.960 But the timing of this invasion was crucial. It wouldn't 1663 01:54:08.000 --> 01:54:13.680 happen immediately after the people returned from exile. Verse eight explained, 1664 01:54:14.079 --> 01:54:17.079 after many days, you will be called to arms. In 1665 01:54:17.159 --> 01:54:20.159 future years, you will invade a land that has recovered 1666 01:54:20.159 --> 01:54:23.399 from war, whose people were gathered from many nations to 1667 01:54:23.479 --> 01:54:27.000 the mountains of Israel, which had long been desolate. They 1668 01:54:27.039 --> 01:54:29.920 had been brought out from the nations, and now all 1669 01:54:29.960 --> 01:54:33.800 of them live in safety. This invasion would come after 1670 01:54:33.920 --> 01:54:36.960 Israel had been fully restored and was living in peace 1671 01:54:37.039 --> 01:54:42.079 and prosperity. The restored nation would be completely unprepared for war. 1672 01:54:42.520 --> 01:54:46.560 Verse eleven described their vulnerable condition. You will say, I 1673 01:54:46.560 --> 01:54:50.199 will invade a land of unwalled villages. I will attack 1674 01:54:50.239 --> 01:54:54.000 a peaceful and unsuspecting people, all of them living without 1675 01:54:54.039 --> 01:54:58.319 walls and without gates and bars. The people would be 1676 01:54:58.439 --> 01:55:01.680 so confident in their secure that they wouldn't even have 1677 01:55:01.760 --> 01:55:09.199 military defenses. God's motivation would be purely materialistic. Verse twelve 1678 01:55:09.279 --> 01:55:13.840 revealed his thinking, I will plunder and lute and turn 1679 01:55:13.960 --> 01:55:17.720 my hand against the resettled Ruins. And the people gathered 1680 01:55:17.760 --> 01:55:21.920 from the nations, rich in live stock and goods. Living 1681 01:55:21.960 --> 01:55:25.399 at the center of the land. He would see Israel's 1682 01:55:25.880 --> 01:55:30.159 prosperity and decide to take it for himself. Other nations 1683 01:55:30.199 --> 01:55:35.520 would notice the invasion but wouldn't intervene. Verse thirteen described 1684 01:55:35.520 --> 01:55:39.920 their response. Sheba and Deaden and the merchants of Tarshish 1685 01:55:40.199 --> 01:55:42.840 and all her villages will say to you, have you 1686 01:55:42.920 --> 01:55:46.039 come to plunder? Have you gathered your hoardes to loot, 1687 01:55:46.159 --> 01:55:49.039 to carry off silver and gold, to take away live 1688 01:55:49.079 --> 01:55:52.800 stock and goods, and to seize much plunder? They would 1689 01:55:52.800 --> 01:55:56.199 ask questions but wouldn't take action to help. The invasion 1690 01:55:56.239 --> 01:56:00.920 would seem overwhelming from a human perspective. Verse five described 1691 01:56:00.960 --> 01:56:04.399 the massive force. You will come from your place in 1692 01:56:04.479 --> 01:56:08.239 the far north, you and many nations with you, all 1693 01:56:08.319 --> 01:56:11.399 of them riding on horses, a great horde, a mighty army. 1694 01:56:11.800 --> 01:56:15.039 Might This wouldn't be a small raid. It would be 1695 01:56:15.159 --> 01:56:19.640 the largest military force ever assembled against God's people. But 1696 01:56:19.840 --> 01:56:24.800 God had his own plans for this invasion. Verse sixteen 1697 01:56:25.359 --> 01:56:30.079 revealed his purpose. You will advance against my people Israel 1698 01:56:30.520 --> 01:56:34.479 like a cloud that huncovers the land in days to come. 1699 01:56:34.560 --> 01:56:37.560 God I will bring you against my land, so that 1700 01:56:37.600 --> 01:56:40.199 the nations may know me when I improved wholly through 1701 01:56:40.239 --> 01:56:43.600 you before their eyes. This attack would become an opportunity 1702 01:56:43.640 --> 01:56:47.399 for God to demonstrate his power to the entire world. 1703 01:56:48.079 --> 01:56:51.439 The battle itself would be unlike anything in human history. 1704 01:56:52.880 --> 01:56:58.880 Verse nineteen described God's intervention in my zeal and fiery wrath. 1705 01:56:59.239 --> 01:57:01.960 I declare there at that time there shall be a 1706 01:57:01.960 --> 01:57:05.319 great earthquake in the land of Israel. Natural disasters would 1707 01:57:05.359 --> 01:57:09.920 be God's first weapon against the invaders. The supernatural intervention 1708 01:57:10.319 --> 01:57:15.720 would intensify. Verse twenty two listed the divine weapons. I 1709 01:57:15.760 --> 01:57:19.479 will execute judgment on him with plague and bloodshed. I 1710 01:57:19.520 --> 01:57:23.680 will pour down torrents of rain, hailstones, and burning sulfur 1711 01:57:23.720 --> 01:57:26.279 on him, and on his troops, and on the many 1712 01:57:26.359 --> 01:57:30.359 nations with him. God would use weather, disease, and fire 1713 01:57:30.439 --> 01:57:34.840 from heaven to destroy the invasion force. The result would 1714 01:57:34.840 --> 01:57:39.079 be complete victory for God's people without them having to 1715 01:57:39.159 --> 01:57:42.880 fight at all. Verse twenty three declared the ultimate purpose. 1716 01:57:43.399 --> 01:57:46.600 And so I will show my greatness and my holiness, 1717 01:57:46.920 --> 01:57:49.119 and I will make myself known in the sight of 1718 01:57:49.199 --> 01:57:53.439 many nations. Then they will know that I am the Lord. 1719 01:57:54.520 --> 01:57:57.640 This battle would serve as the final proof of God's 1720 01:57:58.039 --> 01:58:02.560 sovereignty over all earthly power. After the spectacular defeat of 1721 01:58:02.640 --> 01:58:05.960 God's invasion, the land of Israel would need to be 1722 01:58:06.039 --> 01:58:10.239 thoroughly cleansed before God's people could fully enjoy their inheritance. 1723 01:58:10.640 --> 01:58:12.920 This wouldn't just be a matter of cleaning up after 1724 01:58:12.960 --> 01:58:17.119 a battle. It would be a comprehensive purification that would 1725 01:58:17.159 --> 01:58:21.239 take years to complete and would transform the very spiritual 1726 01:58:21.319 --> 01:58:25.960 atmosphere of the land. The aftermath of the battle was 1727 01:58:26.039 --> 01:58:30.680 described in Ezekiel chapter thirty nine, verse nine. Then those 1728 01:58:30.720 --> 01:58:33.279 who live in the towns of Israel will go out 1729 01:58:33.279 --> 01:58:36.000 and use the weapons for fuel and burn them up. 1730 01:58:36.359 --> 01:58:39.880 The small and large shields, the bows and arrows, the 1731 01:58:39.920 --> 01:58:43.880 war clubs and spears. For seven years, they will use 1732 01:58:44.399 --> 01:58:47.760 them for fuel. The amount of military equipment left behind 1733 01:58:48.079 --> 01:58:51.279 would be so massive that it would provide fuel for 1734 01:58:51.319 --> 01:58:56.640 the entire nation for seven years. This detail revealed several 1735 01:58:56.680 --> 01:59:01.520 important things. First, the invasion force had been enormous, large 1736 01:59:01.600 --> 01:59:05.760 enough to equip an entire nation with fuel for seven years. Second, 1737 01:59:06.159 --> 01:59:09.000 the weapons were made of materials that could be burned, 1738 01:59:09.479 --> 01:59:13.000 showing that even in this future time, some warfare would 1739 01:59:13.000 --> 01:59:18.760 still involve traditional materials rather than being completely technological. Third, 1740 01:59:19.319 --> 01:59:23.079 the people would be so secure after this victory that 1741 01:59:23.119 --> 01:59:27.199 they could afford to burn military equipment rather than storing 1742 01:59:27.199 --> 01:59:30.640 it for future conflicts. The clean up of human remains 1743 01:59:30.840 --> 01:59:34.199 would be even more extensive than dealing with the weapons. 1744 01:59:34.600 --> 01:59:38.640 Verse eleven described the burial process. On that day, I 1745 01:59:38.680 --> 01:59:41.439 will give Gog a burial place in Israel, in the 1746 01:59:41.520 --> 01:59:44.359 valley of those who travel east of the Sea. It 1747 01:59:44.399 --> 01:59:47.359 will block the way of travelers because Gog and all 1748 01:59:47.439 --> 01:59:50.119 his hordes will be buried there, so it will be 1749 01:59:50.199 --> 01:59:54.319 called the Valley of Hammon Gog. The number of bodies 1750 01:59:54.600 --> 01:59:57.720 would be so great that they would create a physical 1751 01:59:57.760 --> 02:00:01.760 obstacle for people trying to travel through the area. The 1752 02:00:01.800 --> 02:00:06.720 burial would be a massive national project. Verse twelve explained 1753 02:00:06.760 --> 02:00:11.920 the scope. For seven months, the Israelites will be burying 1754 02:00:11.960 --> 02:00:14.760 them in order to cleanse the land. It would take 1755 02:00:14.760 --> 02:00:18.600 the entire nation working for seven months just to bury 1756 02:00:18.640 --> 02:00:22.119 all the dead invaders. This showed both the enormous size 1757 02:00:22.159 --> 02:00:25.760 of the invasion force and the thoroughness required to properly 1758 02:00:25.800 --> 02:00:29.600 cleanse the land. But even after seven months of intensive 1759 02:00:29.680 --> 02:00:34.880 burial work, the job wouldn't be completely finished. Verse fourteen 1760 02:00:35.039 --> 02:00:40.000 described the ongoing clean up. People will be continually employed 1761 02:00:40.039 --> 02:00:43.399 in cleansing the land. They will spread out across the land, 1762 02:00:43.760 --> 02:00:46.680 and along with others, they will bury any bodies that 1763 02:00:46.720 --> 02:00:50.159 are lying on the ground. Some bodies would be missed 1764 02:00:50.159 --> 02:00:52.239 in the initial clean up and would need to be 1765 02:00:52.319 --> 02:00:56.560 found and buried later. The search would be systematic and careful. 1766 02:00:57.319 --> 02:01:01.840 Verse fifteen outlined the procedure. As they go through the land, 1767 02:01:02.319 --> 02:01:05.680 any one who sees a human bone will leave a 1768 02:01:05.720 --> 02:01:08.800 marker beside it until the grave diggers have buried it. 1769 02:01:08.880 --> 02:01:12.279 In the valley of Hamon Gog, no remains would be 1770 02:01:12.319 --> 02:01:16.399 left unburied, ensuring that the land was completely cleansed from 1771 02:01:16.399 --> 02:01:20.720 the defilement of death. The spiritual significance of this clean 1772 02:01:20.800 --> 02:01:26.079 up was enormous. In ancient times, contact with dead bodies 1773 02:01:26.399 --> 02:01:31.439 made people ceremonially unclean and prevented them from participating in worship. 1774 02:01:31.760 --> 02:01:36.359 Having thousands of unburied corpses scattered across the land would 1775 02:01:36.359 --> 02:01:40.680 have made the entire country spiritually defiled and unfit for 1776 02:01:40.760 --> 02:01:45.279 God's presence. The thoroughness of the purification showed that God 1777 02:01:45.359 --> 02:01:49.720 intended his restored people to enjoy perfect fellowship with Him 1778 02:01:49.760 --> 02:01:53.960 in a completely holy land. There would be no spiritual obstacles, 1779 02:01:54.359 --> 02:01:58.760 no unclean areas, no reminders of death and destruction to 1780 02:01:58.880 --> 02:02:02.920 interfere with their word, worship, and relationship with God. The 1781 02:02:03.000 --> 02:02:06.680 clean up would also serve as a permanent reminder of 1782 02:02:06.680 --> 02:02:10.319 God's victory over his enemies. Every time someone passed the 1783 02:02:10.439 --> 02:02:14.000 valley of Hummud God, they would remember how God had 1784 02:02:14.039 --> 02:02:18.319 defeated the greatest army ever assembled against his people. The 1785 02:02:18.359 --> 02:02:22.479 burial site would become a monument to Divine power and faithfulness. 1786 02:02:23.359 --> 02:02:27.159 The birds and wild animals would also participate in the 1787 02:02:27.199 --> 02:02:30.880 clean up, but in a different way. Verse seventeen describe 1788 02:02:30.920 --> 02:02:34.399 a gruesome feast, Son of Man, this is what the 1789 02:02:34.520 --> 02:02:38.520 Sovereign Lord says. Call out to every kind of bird 1790 02:02:38.600 --> 02:02:42.680 and all the wild animals. Assemble and come together from 1791 02:02:42.720 --> 02:02:46.000 all around to the sacrifice. I am preparing for you 1792 02:02:46.680 --> 02:02:50.880 the great sacrifice on the mountains of Israel. There you 1793 02:02:50.960 --> 02:02:55.079 will eat flesh and drink blood. The carrion eating creatures 1794 02:02:55.119 --> 02:02:59.000 would consume the remains that couldn't be properly buried. This 1795 02:02:59.199 --> 02:03:03.000 wasn't just about practical clean up. It was about demonstrating 1796 02:03:03.079 --> 02:03:07.079 that those who opposed guard would become food for scavengers. 1797 02:03:07.479 --> 02:03:10.960 The mighty warriors who had marched proudly to battle would 1798 02:03:11.000 --> 02:03:14.720 end up as meals for vultures and jackals. Their strength 1799 02:03:14.800 --> 02:03:18.199 and pride would be reduced to nothing more than nourishment 1800 02:03:18.479 --> 02:03:22.760 for the lowest creatures. The feast would include the highest 1801 02:03:22.840 --> 02:03:27.439 ranks of the enemy forces. Verse eighteen specified the menu, 1802 02:03:27.960 --> 02:03:30.760 you will eat the flesh of mighty men, and drink 1803 02:03:30.800 --> 02:03:32.720 the blood of the princes of the earth, as if 1804 02:03:32.800 --> 02:03:36.119 they were rams and lambs, goats and bulls, all of 1805 02:03:36.159 --> 02:03:40.439 them fattened animals from Bashan. Generals, kings, and nobles would 1806 02:03:40.439 --> 02:03:44.399 all receive the same treatment, becoming food for animals. The 1807 02:03:44.439 --> 02:03:49.399 abundance would be overwhelming. Verse nineteen promised at the sacrifice 1808 02:03:49.399 --> 02:03:52.600 I am preparing for you, you will eat fat until 1809 02:03:52.640 --> 02:03:55.960 you are glutted, and drink blood until you are drunk. 1810 02:03:56.840 --> 02:04:00.119 There would be so many bodies that even the scavengers 1811 02:04:00.159 --> 02:04:04.840 would be overwhelmed by the abundance. This graphic imagery served 1812 02:04:05.000 --> 02:04:09.319 multiple purposes. It showed the completeness of God's victory, the 1813 02:04:09.399 --> 02:04:14.119 humiliation of his enemies, and the thoroughness of the land's purification. 1814 02:04:14.560 --> 02:04:17.399 No trace of the invasion would remain except for the 1815 02:04:17.479 --> 02:04:20.680 Memorial Valley and the seven years worth of fuel from 1816 02:04:20.680 --> 02:04:26.319 their weapons. Twenty five years after Ezekiel's first vision by 1817 02:04:26.319 --> 02:04:30.039 the Kiba River, God gave him the most detailed and 1818 02:04:30.119 --> 02:04:35.000 elaborate vision of his entire prophetic ministry. This wasn't about 1819 02:04:35.119 --> 02:04:39.119 judgment or restoration in general terms. This was a precise 1820 02:04:39.319 --> 02:04:44.119 architectural blueprint for a temple that would surpass even Solomon's 1821 02:04:44.119 --> 02:04:51.399 magnificent building in glory and significance. The vision began with 1822 02:04:51.479 --> 02:04:57.039 another supernatural transportation. In Ezekiel Chapter forty, verse one, the 1823 02:04:57.159 --> 02:05:00.600 date was carefully recorded in the twenty fi fifth year 1824 02:05:00.680 --> 02:05:03.720 of our exile, at the beginning of the year, on 1825 02:05:03.840 --> 02:05:06.760 the tenth day of the month in the fourteenth year 1826 02:05:07.079 --> 02:05:09.920 after the fall of the city. On that very day, 1827 02:05:10.520 --> 02:05:14.239 the hand of the Lord was on me, and he 1828 02:05:14.279 --> 02:05:18.680 took me there. This was exactly twenty five years after 1829 02:05:18.720 --> 02:05:22.479 Ezekiel had been taken into exile and fourteen years after 1830 02:05:22.560 --> 02:05:27.640 Jerusalem's destruction. Ezekiel found himself in a completely different place 1831 02:05:27.680 --> 02:05:31.079 than the Valley of dry Bones. Verse two described his 1832 02:05:31.159 --> 02:05:34.560 new location in Visions of God. He took me to 1833 02:05:34.640 --> 02:05:37.159 the land of Israel and set me on a very 1834 02:05:37.239 --> 02:05:40.479 high mountain, on whose south side were some buildings that 1835 02:05:40.520 --> 02:05:43.680 looked like a city. He was back in the Promised Land, 1836 02:05:44.199 --> 02:05:48.399 but everything was different from what he remembered. A mysterious 1837 02:05:48.439 --> 02:05:52.159 figure was waiting for him there. Verse three introduced this being. 1838 02:05:52.640 --> 02:05:55.479 He took me there, and I saw a man whose 1839 02:05:55.520 --> 02:05:58.920 appearance was like bronze. He was standing in the gateway 1840 02:05:58.960 --> 02:06:02.039 with a linen cord and a measuring rod in his hand. 1841 02:06:03.520 --> 02:06:08.479 This wasn't an ordinary person. His bronze like appearance suggested 1842 02:06:08.560 --> 02:06:12.840 a supernatural being, possibly an angel, who had been appointed 1843 02:06:12.880 --> 02:06:16.159 to give Ezekiel a tour of this new temple complex. 1844 02:06:16.760 --> 02:06:20.560 The bronze man gave Ezekiel specific instructions. In verse four, 1845 02:06:21.239 --> 02:06:24.920 the man said to me, son of Man, look carefully 1846 02:06:24.960 --> 02:06:27.720 and listen closely, and pay attention to everything I'm going 1847 02:06:27.760 --> 02:06:30.239 to show you, For that is why you have been 1848 02:06:30.239 --> 02:06:35.880 brought here. Tell the people of Israel everything you see. 1849 02:06:36.359 --> 02:06:40.159 This wasn't just a casual tour. Ezekiel was being commissioned 1850 02:06:40.199 --> 02:06:43.399 to remember every detail and report it accurately to the 1851 02:06:43.439 --> 02:06:47.720 exiles in Babylon. The first thing they measured was the 1852 02:06:47.760 --> 02:06:52.399 outer wall that surrounded the entire temple complex. Verse five 1853 02:06:52.479 --> 02:06:57.039 described it I saw a wall completely surrounding the temple area. 1854 02:06:57.479 --> 02:06:59.840 The length of the measuring rod in the man's hand 1855 02:07:00.399 --> 02:07:03.720 was six long cubits, each of which was a cubit 1856 02:07:03.800 --> 02:07:07.520 and a handbreadth. He measured the wall. It was one 1857 02:07:07.600 --> 02:07:11.920 measuring rod thick and one rod high. The wall was 1858 02:07:11.960 --> 02:07:16.720 approximately ten feet thick and ten feet high, creating a 1859 02:07:16.760 --> 02:07:21.079 substantial barrier around the holy area. The attention to detail 1860 02:07:21.199 --> 02:07:27.079 was extraordinary. Every gateway, every room, every pillar, every threshold 1861 02:07:27.520 --> 02:07:30.840 was measured with precision. The east gate, which was the 1862 02:07:30.880 --> 02:07:36.159 main entrance, was particularly elaborate. Verse six began its description. 1863 02:07:37.000 --> 02:07:40.159 Then he went to the east gate. He climbed its 1864 02:07:40.159 --> 02:07:43.239 steps and measured the threshold of the gate. It was 1865 02:07:43.319 --> 02:07:47.640 one rod deep. Every step of the entrance process was 1866 02:07:47.720 --> 02:07:52.359 carefully designed and precisely measured. The guard rooms inside the 1867 02:07:52.399 --> 02:07:56.439 gates were identical in size and spacing. Verse seven recorded 1868 02:07:56.479 --> 02:08:00.199 their dimensions. The alcoves for the guards were one rodd 1869 02:08:00.239 --> 02:08:04.079 long and one rod wide, and the projecting walls between 1870 02:08:04.119 --> 02:08:07.960 the alcoves were five cubits thick. And the threshold of 1871 02:08:07.960 --> 02:08:10.920 the gate next to the portico facing the temple was 1872 02:08:11.039 --> 02:08:15.199 one rod deep. These weren't random rooms. They were carefully 1873 02:08:15.199 --> 02:08:19.439 planned spaces for specific functions. The inner court had its 1874 02:08:19.439 --> 02:08:22.600 own set of gates that mirrored the outer gates, but 1875 02:08:22.680 --> 02:08:26.960 were even more elaborate. Verse twenty eight described the south gate. 1876 02:08:27.800 --> 02:08:30.720 Then he brought me into the inner court through the 1877 02:08:30.800 --> 02:08:33.960 south gate, and he measured the south gate. It had 1878 02:08:34.000 --> 02:08:37.960 the same measurements as the others. The symmetry and consistency 1879 02:08:38.079 --> 02:08:41.960 showed that this was a carefully planned design, not a 1880 02:08:42.000 --> 02:08:47.000 haphazard collection of buildings. The porticos around the inner court 1881 02:08:47.039 --> 02:08:52.359 were especially impressive. Verse thirty one noted one detail. Its 1882 02:08:52.439 --> 02:08:56.720 portico faced the outer court. Palm trees decorated its jams, 1883 02:08:56.920 --> 02:08:59.600 and eight steps led up to it. The palm trees 1884 02:09:00.079 --> 02:09:04.680 weren't just decoration, they were symbols of righteousness and flourishing, 1885 02:09:04.960 --> 02:09:09.039 showing that this temple was designed to promote spiritual growth 1886 02:09:09.520 --> 02:09:14.920 and blessing. The rooms for preparing sacrifices were strategically located 1887 02:09:15.000 --> 02:09:19.960 near the gates. Verse thirty eight described their purpose. A 1888 02:09:20.079 --> 02:09:23.479 room with a doorway was by the portico in each 1889 02:09:23.560 --> 02:09:27.279 of the inner gateways, where the burnt offerings were washed. 1890 02:09:28.399 --> 02:09:32.159 Every aspect of temple worship was carefully planned and provided for. 1891 02:09:32.960 --> 02:09:37.319 Even the musicians had their designated spaces. Verse forty four 1892 02:09:37.399 --> 02:09:41.399 mentioned outside the inner gate. Within the inner court were 1893 02:09:41.439 --> 02:09:43.960 two rooms, one at the side of the north gate 1894 02:09:44.000 --> 02:09:46.760 and facing south, and another at the side of the 1895 02:09:46.800 --> 02:09:51.359 south gate and facing north. These rooms were specifically designed 1896 02:09:51.359 --> 02:09:55.039 for the singers who would lead worship in the new temple. 1897 02:09:55.359 --> 02:09:59.239 The measurements continued with the temple building itself. Verse forty 1898 02:09:59.239 --> 02:10:02.159 eight began the day description of the main structure. He 1899 02:10:02.199 --> 02:10:05.199 brought me to the portico of the temple and measured 1900 02:10:05.279 --> 02:10:09.079 the jambs of the portico. They were five cubits wide 1901 02:10:09.119 --> 02:10:11.960 on either side. The width of the entrance was three 1902 02:10:12.079 --> 02:10:18.840 cubits on either side. Every dimension was precisely specified, showing 1903 02:10:18.880 --> 02:10:22.640 that this wasn't a vague vision, but a detailed blueprint. 1904 02:10:23.920 --> 02:10:28.039 The recording of all these measurements served several purposes. First, 1905 02:10:28.439 --> 02:10:33.199 it showed that God cared about details and order in worship. Second, 1906 02:10:33.520 --> 02:10:37.560 it demonstrated that this temple was designed by divine wisdom 1907 02:10:38.000 --> 02:10:42.399 rather than human creativity. Third, it provided hope to the 1908 02:10:42.439 --> 02:10:46.640 exiles that God had specific plans for their restoration that 1909 02:10:46.760 --> 02:10:52.560 were as detailed and certain as these architectural specifications. After 1910 02:10:52.640 --> 02:10:57.239 the exhaustive tour of the temple's architecture, Ezekiel witnessed something 1911 02:10:57.640 --> 02:11:01.239 that surpassed even the spectacular vision of the Valley of 1912 02:11:01.359 --> 02:11:05.119 dry Bones. The glory of God, which he had seen 1913 02:11:05.159 --> 02:11:08.600 departing from the old temple in stages, was now returning 1914 02:11:08.640 --> 02:11:12.039 to fill the new sanctuary with even greater splendor than before. 1915 02:11:13.279 --> 02:11:16.800 The vision of God's return began at the east gate, 1916 02:11:17.239 --> 02:11:22.079 which had special significance throughout Ezekiel's ministry. In Ezekiel Chapter 1917 02:11:22.159 --> 02:11:25.560 forty three, Verse one, the scene was set. Then the 1918 02:11:25.600 --> 02:11:29.640 man brought me to the gate facing east. This was 1919 02:11:29.680 --> 02:11:32.800 the same direction from which Ezekiel had seen the glory 1920 02:11:32.880 --> 02:11:36.319 depart years earlier, and now it would be the direction 1921 02:11:36.479 --> 02:11:40.600 from which Glory would return. What Ezekiel saw coming from 1922 02:11:40.640 --> 02:11:44.800 the east was beyond description. Verse two. Attempted to capture it, 1923 02:11:45.319 --> 02:11:48.039 and I saw the glory of the God of Israel 1924 02:11:48.119 --> 02:11:51.399 coming from the east. His voice was like the roar 1925 02:11:51.560 --> 02:11:55.840 of rushing waters, and the land was radiant with his glory. 1926 02:11:56.600 --> 02:11:59.720 This wasn't just a bright light. This was the very 1927 02:11:59.760 --> 02:12:04.079 presence of the creator of the universe, returning to dwell 1928 02:12:04.159 --> 02:12:07.840 with his people. The site immediately brought back memories of 1929 02:12:07.880 --> 02:12:13.279 Ezekiel's earlier visions. Verse three recorded his recognition. The vision 1930 02:12:13.319 --> 02:12:16.279 I saw was like the vision I had seen when 1931 02:12:16.359 --> 02:12:19.399 he came to destroy the city, and like the visions 1932 02:12:19.439 --> 02:12:22.039 I had seen by the Kebbah river, and I fell 1933 02:12:22.159 --> 02:12:25.800 face down. This was the same glory that had called 1934 02:12:25.880 --> 02:12:29.199 him to be a prophet, the same presence that had 1935 02:12:29.239 --> 02:12:33.800 departed from Jerusalem, now returning in triumph. The glory didn't 1936 02:12:33.840 --> 02:12:37.439 just hover outside the temple, it entered and filled the 1937 02:12:37.600 --> 02:12:43.000 entire structure. Verse four described the magnificent entrance. The glory 1938 02:12:43.039 --> 02:12:46.840 of the Lord entered the temple through the gate facing east. 1939 02:12:47.319 --> 02:12:50.479 The same gate through which the glory had departed was 1940 02:12:50.560 --> 02:12:54.640 now the portal for its glorious return. The intensity of 1941 02:12:54.680 --> 02:12:59.199 the divine presence was overwhelming. Verse five recorded what happened next. 1942 02:12:59.640 --> 02:13:02.159 Then the the Spirit lifted me up and brought me 1943 02:13:02.359 --> 02:13:05.199 into the inner court, and the glory of the Lord 1944 02:13:05.359 --> 02:13:10.119 filled the temple. The entire building was saturated with God's presence, 1945 02:13:10.920 --> 02:13:14.399 just as Solomon's temple had been filled at its dedication, 1946 02:13:14.840 --> 02:13:20.159 but even more intensely. Ezekiel found himself prostrate before this 1947 02:13:20.359 --> 02:13:24.399 incredible display of divine glory, just as he had been 1948 02:13:24.439 --> 02:13:28.239 at his first vision, but this time, instead of receiving 1949 02:13:28.279 --> 02:13:32.600 a commission to prophesy judgment, he was witnessing the fulfillment 1950 02:13:32.680 --> 02:13:36.560 of restoration promises. The God, who had been forced to 1951 02:13:36.640 --> 02:13:40.920 depart because of his people's sin, was now returning to 1952 02:13:41.000 --> 02:13:44.880 dwell with them permanently. The voice that spoke to him 1953 02:13:44.960 --> 02:13:48.680 came from inside the temple, showing that God had truly 1954 02:13:48.760 --> 02:13:52.840 taken up residence there. Verse six recorded while the man 1955 02:13:53.000 --> 02:13:56.159 was standing beside me, I heard someone speaking to me 1956 02:13:56.479 --> 02:14:00.840 from inside the temple. God was no longer speaking from 1957 02:14:00.840 --> 02:14:04.000 a distance or through visions. He was speaking from his 1958 02:14:04.159 --> 02:14:08.680 dwelling place among his people. The message was one of 1959 02:14:08.800 --> 02:14:13.520 permanent establishment and eternal relationship. In verse seven, God declared, 1960 02:14:14.119 --> 02:14:17.199 son of Man, this is the place of my throne 1961 02:14:17.520 --> 02:14:20.199 and the place for the souls of my feet. This 1962 02:14:20.439 --> 02:14:23.800 is where I will live among the Israelites forever. The 1963 02:14:23.840 --> 02:14:27.039 people of Israel will never again defile my holy name, 1964 02:14:27.439 --> 02:14:32.319 neither they nor their kings by their prostitution and the 1965 02:14:32.399 --> 02:14:36.119 funeral offerings for their kings at their death. This wouldn't 1966 02:14:36.119 --> 02:14:40.399 be another temporary arrangement that could be broken by human sinfulness. 1967 02:14:40.840 --> 02:14:44.439 The reason for this permanence was explained in the promise 1968 02:14:44.520 --> 02:14:49.359 of transformation. God wasn't just returning to the same people 1969 02:14:49.600 --> 02:14:53.960 who had defiled his previous temple. He was returning to 1970 02:14:54.039 --> 02:14:58.399 a people who had been fundamentally changed. Their hearts had 1971 02:14:58.399 --> 02:15:02.039 been renewed, their spirit and it had been regenerated, and 1972 02:15:02.119 --> 02:15:07.640 their capacity for spiritual adultery had been removed. The contrast 1973 02:15:07.680 --> 02:15:12.199 with the past was emphasized in verse eight when they 1974 02:15:12.319 --> 02:15:16.239 placed their threshold next to my threshold, and there your 1975 02:15:16.239 --> 02:15:19.439 posts beside my doorposts, with only a wall between me 1976 02:15:19.520 --> 02:15:23.720 and them. They defiled my holy name by their detestable practices. 1977 02:15:24.079 --> 02:15:27.039 So I destroyed them in my anger. The old temple 1978 02:15:27.119 --> 02:15:30.560 had been contaminated by the proximity of pagan worship and 1979 02:15:30.680 --> 02:15:34.920 royal corruption, but the new arrangement would be completely different. 1980 02:15:35.520 --> 02:15:38.479 Verse nine promised, Now let them put away from me 1981 02:15:38.640 --> 02:15:42.520 their prostitution and the funeral offerings for their kings, and 1982 02:15:42.640 --> 02:15:46.319 I will live among them forever. The spiritual adultery that 1983 02:15:46.399 --> 02:15:51.079 had characterized the past would be permanently eliminated. This return 1984 02:15:51.159 --> 02:15:55.960 of God's glory wasn't just a restoration, it was an escalation. 1985 02:15:56.680 --> 02:16:00.239 The presence would be more intense, more permanent and more 1986 02:16:00.319 --> 02:16:05.560 transformative than ever before. The people who experienced this would 1987 02:16:05.600 --> 02:16:08.479 be changed by the encounter in ways that would make 1988 02:16:08.560 --> 02:16:13.760 future rebellion impossible. With God's glory now filling the new Temple, 1989 02:16:14.199 --> 02:16:17.399 it was time to establish the regulations that would govern 1990 02:16:17.520 --> 02:16:21.560 worship in this holy place. These weren't just updated versions 1991 02:16:21.560 --> 02:16:24.960 of the old laws. They were designed for a people 1992 02:16:25.000 --> 02:16:28.079 who had been transformed and a temple that would never 1993 02:16:28.159 --> 02:16:33.440 again be defiled. The first priority was ensuring that only 1994 02:16:33.479 --> 02:16:37.360 appropriate people would be allowed to enter the sacred areas. 1995 02:16:38.040 --> 02:16:41.719 In Ezekiel, chapter forty four, verse six, God addressed the 1996 02:16:41.760 --> 02:16:45.920 issue that had caused problems in the past. Say to 1997 02:16:46.040 --> 02:16:51.120 rebellious Israel, this is what the Sovereign Lord says. Enough 1998 02:16:51.159 --> 02:16:55.479 of your detestable practices, people of Israel, now in the 1999 02:16:55.559 --> 02:16:59.920 casual attitude toward holiness that had characterized the past, would 2000 02:17:00.120 --> 02:17:03.680 not be tolerated in the new Temple. The specific problem 2001 02:17:03.760 --> 02:17:07.719 was identified in verse seven. In addition to all your 2002 02:17:07.760 --> 02:17:13.760 other detestable practices, you brought foreigners uncircumcised in heart and 2003 02:17:13.920 --> 02:17:18.559 flesh into my sanctuary, desecrating my temple, while you offered 2004 02:17:18.600 --> 02:17:21.719 me food, fat, and blood, and you broke my Covenant. 2005 02:17:23.280 --> 02:17:26.920 Allowing unqualified people into sacred areas had been one of 2006 02:17:26.959 --> 02:17:31.239 the major causes of the temple's defilement. The solution was 2007 02:17:31.280 --> 02:17:35.600 strict access control. But nine established the new policy. This 2008 02:17:35.799 --> 02:17:40.319 is what the sovereign Lord says. No foreigner uncircumcised in 2009 02:17:40.440 --> 02:17:44.159 heart and flesh is to enter my sanctuary, not even 2010 02:17:44.239 --> 02:17:49.159 the foreigners who live among the Israelites. Physical circumcision alone 2011 02:17:49.680 --> 02:17:54.000 wasn't enough. There had to be spiritual circumcision as well, 2012 02:17:54.280 --> 02:17:58.520 representing a genuine heart relationship with God. But the access 2013 02:17:58.559 --> 02:18:02.840 restrictions weren't just about foreigners. Even among the Levites, there 2014 02:18:02.840 --> 02:18:06.600 would be different levels of service based on their past faithfulness. 2015 02:18:07.159 --> 02:18:11.639 Verse ten addressed those who had been unfaithful. The Levites 2016 02:18:11.639 --> 02:18:15.680 who went far from Me when Israel went astray, and 2017 02:18:15.760 --> 02:18:20.159 who wandered from Me after their adoles must bear the 2018 02:18:20.200 --> 02:18:24.719 consequences of their sin. These unfaithful Levites would still have 2019 02:18:24.799 --> 02:18:27.559 a role in the Temple, but it would be limited. 2020 02:18:28.399 --> 02:18:33.000 Verse eleven defined their duties. They may serve in my sanctuary, 2021 02:18:33.399 --> 02:18:37.239 having charge of the gates of the temple and serving 2022 02:18:37.319 --> 02:18:41.159 in it. They may slaughter the burnt offerings and sacrifices 2023 02:18:41.200 --> 02:18:44.520 for the people and stand before the people and serve them. 2024 02:18:44.959 --> 02:18:47.760 They could handle the physical work and assist the people, 2025 02:18:48.159 --> 02:18:52.200 but they couldn't approach God's presence directly. However, those who 2026 02:18:52.200 --> 02:18:57.399 had remained faithful would receive special privileges. Verse fifteen identified 2027 02:18:57.440 --> 02:19:01.319 this group. But the levitical priests who are descendants of 2028 02:19:01.399 --> 02:19:04.959 Zadok and who guarded the duties of my sanctuary when 2029 02:19:04.959 --> 02:19:08.239 the Israelites went astray from me, are to come near 2030 02:19:08.319 --> 02:19:11.840 to minister before me. They are to stand before me 2031 02:19:12.079 --> 02:19:17.120 to offer sacrifices of fat and blood, declares the Sovereign Lord. 2032 02:19:17.600 --> 02:19:21.200 The family of Zadok had remained loyal when others fell 2033 02:19:21.239 --> 02:19:26.680 into idolatry, and their faithfulness would be rewarded. These faithful 2034 02:19:26.719 --> 02:19:31.120 priests would have exclusive access to the most sacred duties. 2035 02:19:31.639 --> 02:19:35.559 Verse sixteen specified their privileges. They alone are to enter 2036 02:19:35.600 --> 02:19:38.600 my sanctuary. They alone are to come near my table, 2037 02:19:38.840 --> 02:19:43.360 to minister before me, and serve me as guards. Only 2038 02:19:43.440 --> 02:19:47.680 they could approach the altar, where God's presence dwelt most intensely. 2039 02:19:48.239 --> 02:19:52.520 The clothing regulations for these priests were detailed and specific. 2040 02:19:52.920 --> 02:19:56.040 Verse seventeen began the dress code when they enter the 2041 02:19:56.079 --> 02:19:59.559 gates of the inner court, they are to wear linen clothes. 2042 02:20:00.079 --> 02:20:03.159 They must not wear any woolen garment while ministering at 2043 02:20:03.200 --> 02:20:05.680 the gates of the inner court or inside the temple. 2044 02:20:06.600 --> 02:20:11.200 Linen was cooler and cleaner than wool, representing the purity 2045 02:20:11.319 --> 02:20:15.840 required for God's service. The head coverings were particularly important. 2046 02:20:16.479 --> 02:20:20.600 Verse eighteen specified they are to wear linen turbans on 2047 02:20:20.680 --> 02:20:24.719 their heads and linen undergarments around their waists. They must 2048 02:20:24.719 --> 02:20:29.200 not wear anything that makes them perspire. Sweating was associated 2049 02:20:29.239 --> 02:20:32.040 with the curse of hard labor after the fall, and 2050 02:20:32.079 --> 02:20:35.159 there would be no reminders of the curse in God's presence. 2051 02:20:35.639 --> 02:20:38.959 When the priests finished their duties and returned to the 2052 02:20:39.040 --> 02:20:42.239 outer court, where regular people gathered, they had to change 2053 02:20:42.239 --> 02:20:46.680 clothes completely. Verse nineteen explained the procedure. When they go 2054 02:20:46.799 --> 02:20:49.959 out into the outer court where the people are, they 2055 02:20:49.959 --> 02:20:52.319 are to take off the clothes they have been ministering 2056 02:20:52.360 --> 02:20:54.959 in and are to leave them in the sacred rooms 2057 02:20:55.319 --> 02:20:58.399 and put on other clothes so that the people are 2058 02:20:58.479 --> 02:21:02.959 not consecrated through contact with their garments. The holiness was 2059 02:21:03.040 --> 02:21:06.559 so intense that even their clothing could transmit it to 2060 02:21:06.680 --> 02:21:12.760 unprepared people. Personal grooming standards were also specified. Verse twenty 2061 02:21:12.959 --> 02:21:16.799 established the rules. They must not shave their heads or 2062 02:21:16.879 --> 02:21:20.000 let their hair grow long, but they are to keep 2063 02:21:20.040 --> 02:21:24.840 the hair of their heads trimmed. Extreme hair styles associated 2064 02:21:24.879 --> 02:21:31.000 with pagan mourning rituals or ascetic practices were forbidden. Everything 2065 02:21:31.040 --> 02:21:36.440 should be moderate and appropriate. Marriage restrictions ensured the priest's 2066 02:21:36.479 --> 02:21:41.000 family life supported their sacred duties. Verse twenty two outlined 2067 02:21:41.000 --> 02:21:44.920 the requirements. They must not marry widows or divorced women. 2068 02:21:45.360 --> 02:21:49.280 They may only marry virgins of Israelite descent or widows 2069 02:21:49.319 --> 02:21:54.040 of priests. Their marriages needed to be unquestionably pure and 2070 02:21:54.200 --> 02:21:58.760 free from any moral complications. The priest's teaching role was 2071 02:21:58.799 --> 02:22:02.600 emphasized as being just as important as their ritual duties. 2072 02:22:02.959 --> 02:22:06.799 Verse twenty three described this responsibility. They are to teach 2073 02:22:06.920 --> 02:22:10.159 my people the difference between the holy and the common, 2074 02:22:10.559 --> 02:22:13.799 and show them how to distinguish between the unclean and 2075 02:22:13.840 --> 02:22:18.520 the clean. The people needed constant instruction to maintain the 2076 02:22:18.559 --> 02:22:24.440 spiritual standards required for God's presence among them. Legal responsibilities 2077 02:22:24.600 --> 02:22:28.200 were also part of their duties. Verse twenty four explained 2078 02:22:28.760 --> 02:22:32.159 in any dispute, the priests are to serve as judges 2079 02:22:32.200 --> 02:22:36.079 and decided according to my ordinances. They are to keep 2080 02:22:36.159 --> 02:22:39.959 my laws and my decrees for all my appointed festivals. 2081 02:22:40.440 --> 02:22:44.200 They are to keep my Sabbaths holy. They would be 2082 02:22:44.280 --> 02:22:49.239 the final arbiters of religious law and practice. Property ownership 2083 02:22:49.360 --> 02:22:52.399 rules for priests were designed to keep them focused on 2084 02:22:52.600 --> 02:22:59.000 spiritual rather than material concerns. Verse twenty eight addressed their inheritance. 2085 02:22:59.760 --> 02:23:03.520 I am to be the only inheritance the priests have. 2086 02:23:04.079 --> 02:23:06.639 You are to give them no possession in Israel. I 2087 02:23:06.719 --> 02:23:11.200 will be their possession instead of owning land like other Israelites. 2088 02:23:11.479 --> 02:23:14.799 The priests would be supported by offerings and would depend 2089 02:23:14.840 --> 02:23:20.000 completely on God for their needs. The festivals and sacrificial 2090 02:23:20.040 --> 02:23:25.159 system would be restored, but with new meaning and power. 2091 02:23:26.399 --> 02:23:32.040 Chapter forty five outlined the regulations for the various offerings, 2092 02:23:32.520 --> 02:23:35.799 showing that worship would continue, but in a context of 2093 02:23:35.920 --> 02:23:41.040 permanent divine presence rather than the tentative relationship that had 2094 02:23:41.120 --> 02:23:47.600 characterized the past. The Sabbath regulations were particularly emphasized, showing 2095 02:23:47.639 --> 02:23:51.719 that rest and worship would be priorities in the restored community. 2096 02:23:52.159 --> 02:23:56.520 Verse seventeen of chapter forty six specified the prince is 2097 02:23:56.559 --> 02:24:00.799 to provide the burnt offerings, grain offerings, and drink offerings. 2098 02:24:00.799 --> 02:24:04.680 At the festivals, the New Moons and the Sabbaths. At 2099 02:24:04.719 --> 02:24:09.600 all the appointed festivals of Israel, even the political leadership 2100 02:24:09.639 --> 02:24:15.120 would be focused on facilitating worship rather than pursuing secular power. 2101 02:24:15.639 --> 02:24:18.719 The final vision that God gave to Ezekiel was perhaps 2102 02:24:18.959 --> 02:24:22.280 the most practical and hopeful of all. After seeing the 2103 02:24:22.319 --> 02:24:25.879 temple rebuilt and worship restored, he was shown how the 2104 02:24:26.040 --> 02:24:30.719 entire promised land would be redistributed among the twelve tribes 2105 02:24:31.040 --> 02:24:35.360 in a way that would insure justice, equality, and permanent peace. 2106 02:24:36.200 --> 02:24:40.200 This wasn't just about returning to the old tribal territories 2107 02:24:40.520 --> 02:24:44.159 that had existed before the exile. This was a completely 2108 02:24:44.280 --> 02:24:48.479 new arrangement that would correct the inequalities and conflicts that 2109 02:24:48.559 --> 02:24:53.600 had contributed to the nation's downfall. In Ezekiel, Chapter forty seven, 2110 02:24:53.760 --> 02:24:58.879 verse thirteen, God introduced the new system. This is what 2111 02:24:59.079 --> 02:25:03.680 the sovereign law Lord says. These are the boundaries of 2112 02:25:03.719 --> 02:25:06.719 the land that you will divide among the twelve tribes 2113 02:25:06.719 --> 02:25:11.360 of Israel as their inheritance, with two portions for Joseph. 2114 02:25:11.600 --> 02:25:16.600 The distribution would be fundamentally different from the original conquest 2115 02:25:16.680 --> 02:25:21.239 under Joshua. Instead of each tribe receiving territory based on 2116 02:25:21.319 --> 02:25:26.719 their military success or political influence. Everyone would receive equal 2117 02:25:26.840 --> 02:25:31.639 portions arranged in orderly parallel strips across the land. This 2118 02:25:31.760 --> 02:25:36.799 geometric precision showed that divine wisdom, rather than human politics, 2119 02:25:36.920 --> 02:25:41.520 would determine the boundaries. The northern border was carefully defined 2120 02:25:41.559 --> 02:25:45.319 in verse fifteen. This is to be the boundary of 2121 02:25:45.360 --> 02:25:48.799 the land on the north side. It will run from 2122 02:25:48.840 --> 02:25:53.680 the Great Sea by the Hethlon Road, past Libohammoth to Zedad. 2123 02:25:54.159 --> 02:25:57.719 The boundaries would be larger and more clearly defined than 2124 02:25:57.760 --> 02:26:00.520 they had been in the past, ensuring that there would 2125 02:26:00.520 --> 02:26:05.040 be no disputes about territorial limits. But before describing the 2126 02:26:05.120 --> 02:26:09.520 tribal allocations, God revealed something that would transform the very 2127 02:26:09.600 --> 02:26:13.280 nature of the land itself. In chapter forty seven, verse one, 2128 02:26:13.799 --> 02:26:18.360 Ezekiel was shown an incredible sight. The man brought me 2129 02:26:18.440 --> 02:26:21.079 back to the entrance to the temple, and I saw 2130 02:26:21.159 --> 02:26:23.639 water coming out from under the threshold of the temple 2131 02:26:23.680 --> 02:26:27.879 toward the east. For the temple faced east, the water 2132 02:26:28.079 --> 02:26:31.520 was coming down from under the south side of the temple, 2133 02:26:31.920 --> 02:26:35.280 south of the altar. This wasn't just a small spring 2134 02:26:35.440 --> 02:26:39.639 or drainage system. As Ezekiel followed the water eastward, it 2135 02:26:39.760 --> 02:26:44.879 grew dramatically. Verse three described the first measurement as the 2136 02:26:44.920 --> 02:26:47.840 man went eastward with a measuring line in his hand. 2137 02:26:48.440 --> 02:26:52.079 He measured off a thousand cubits and then led me 2138 02:26:52.120 --> 02:26:55.479 through water that was ankle deep. The water was already 2139 02:26:55.559 --> 02:26:59.680 substantial enough to create a stream. Another thousand cubits further, 2140 02:27:00.079 --> 02:27:04.719 the water had grown significantly. Verse four continued. He measured 2141 02:27:04.719 --> 02:27:08.239 off another thousand cubits and led me through water that 2142 02:27:08.360 --> 02:27:11.959 was knee deep. He measured off another thousand and led 2143 02:27:12.000 --> 02:27:15.360 me through water that was up to the waste. The 2144 02:27:15.440 --> 02:27:20.120 stream was becoming a river fed by some supernatural source 2145 02:27:20.399 --> 02:27:25.159 within the temple. The final measurement revealed something miraculous. Verse 2146 02:27:25.239 --> 02:27:30.360 five described the climax. He measured off another thousand, But 2147 02:27:30.479 --> 02:27:32.719 now it was a river that I could not cross, 2148 02:27:33.159 --> 02:27:35.959 because the water had risen and was deep enough to 2149 02:27:36.079 --> 02:27:39.319 swim in. A river that no one could cross. In 2150 02:27:39.479 --> 02:27:43.200 just four thousand cubits, about two miles ankle deep water 2151 02:27:43.280 --> 02:27:46.280 had become a major river. This river would bring life 2152 02:27:46.319 --> 02:27:51.959 wherever it flowed. Verse nine explained its power. Swarms of 2153 02:27:52.040 --> 02:27:56.239 living creatures will live wherever the river flows. There will 2154 02:27:56.639 --> 02:28:00.239 be large numbers of fish because this water flows there 2155 02:28:00.559 --> 02:28:03.959 and makes the salt water fresh. So where the river flows, 2156 02:28:04.319 --> 02:28:07.959 everything will live. Even the dead sea, which had been 2157 02:28:08.000 --> 02:28:11.639 lifeless for millennia, would teem with fish when this river 2158 02:28:11.760 --> 02:28:16.399 reached it. The vegetation along the river banks would be supernatural. 2159 02:28:17.440 --> 02:28:21.639 Verse twelve described the miracle trees. Fruit trees of all 2160 02:28:21.760 --> 02:28:24.680 kinds will grow on both banks of the river. Their 2161 02:28:24.799 --> 02:28:28.440 leaves will not wither, nor will their fruit fail. Every 2162 02:28:28.479 --> 02:28:31.079 month they will bear fruit because the water from the 2163 02:28:31.120 --> 02:28:34.600 sanctuary flows to them. Their fruit will serve for food 2164 02:28:34.879 --> 02:28:39.440 and their leaves for healing. These trees would provide constant 2165 02:28:39.479 --> 02:28:43.959 nourishment and medicine for God's people. This river flowing from 2166 02:28:44.000 --> 02:28:47.840 the temple represented the life giving power of God's presence 2167 02:28:48.159 --> 02:28:51.120 among his people. Just as the temple would be the 2168 02:28:51.159 --> 02:28:54.120 center of worship, it would also be the source of 2169 02:28:54.239 --> 02:28:59.520 physical blessing that would transform the entire land into a paradise. 2170 02:29:00.799 --> 02:29:05.040 With this supernatural irrigation system in place, the land could 2171 02:29:05.120 --> 02:29:09.760 support a much larger population than ever before. The tribal 2172 02:29:09.799 --> 02:29:14.639 allocations reflected this new abundance. In chapter forty eight, verse one, 2173 02:29:15.040 --> 02:29:20.360 the distribution began. These are the tribes listed by name 2174 02:29:21.200 --> 02:29:26.440 at the northern frontier Dan will have one portion. Each 2175 02:29:26.559 --> 02:29:31.360 tribe would receive territory perfectly suited to their needs. The 2176 02:29:31.520 --> 02:29:35.399 order of the tribes was significant. Instead of the traditional 2177 02:29:35.520 --> 02:29:40.200 arrangement based on birth order or previous territorial claims, the 2178 02:29:40.280 --> 02:29:43.319 tribes were arranged to ensure that the temple would be 2179 02:29:43.399 --> 02:29:47.920 at the geographic center of the nation. Verse eight identified 2180 02:29:47.959 --> 02:29:52.959 the central portion bordering the territory of Judah from east 2181 02:29:53.000 --> 02:29:55.639 to west will be the portion you are to present 2182 02:29:55.680 --> 02:29:59.000 as a special gift. It will be twenty five thousand 2183 02:29:59.120 --> 02:30:02.799 cubits wide, and its length from east to west will 2184 02:30:02.840 --> 02:30:06.200 equal one of the tribal portions. The sanctuary will be 2185 02:30:06.520 --> 02:30:10.200 in the center of it. This central area would be 2186 02:30:10.239 --> 02:30:14.280 divided into three sections. The priests would receive the section 2187 02:30:14.440 --> 02:30:18.959 containing the temple, the levites would have the adjacent area 2188 02:30:19.079 --> 02:30:22.200 for their cities, and the prince would have territory on 2189 02:30:22.280 --> 02:30:25.719 both sides to provide for the civil government. Verse fifteen 2190 02:30:25.799 --> 02:30:30.399 described the city's portion. The remaining area, five thousand cubits 2191 02:30:30.399 --> 02:30:34.079 wide and twenty five thousand cubits long will be for 2192 02:30:34.159 --> 02:30:36.959 the common use of the city, for houses and for 2193 02:30:37.079 --> 02:30:40.040 pasture land. The city will be in the center of it. 2194 02:30:40.520 --> 02:30:44.879 The city itself would be perfectly planned and designed. Verse 2195 02:30:44.959 --> 02:30:49.840 sixteen specified its dimensions. These will be its measurements the 2196 02:30:49.879 --> 02:30:53.319 north side four thousand, five hundred cubits, the south side 2197 02:30:53.399 --> 02:30:56.959 four thousand, five hundred cubits, the east side four thousand, 2198 02:30:57.000 --> 02:31:00.159 five hundred cubits, and the west side forty five five 2199 02:31:00.200 --> 02:31:04.360 hundred kubits. This square city would be surrounded by pasture 2200 02:31:04.440 --> 02:31:08.520 land and supplied by workers from all the tribes. Each 2201 02:31:08.559 --> 02:31:11.040 side of the city would have three gates named after 2202 02:31:11.079 --> 02:31:14.719 the tribes, ensuring that every part of the nation had 2203 02:31:14.760 --> 02:31:19.680 representation in the capital. Verses thirty one thirty four listed 2204 02:31:19.760 --> 02:31:22.719 all twelve gates. The gates of the city will be 2205 02:31:22.840 --> 02:31:25.879 named after the tribes of Israel. The three gates on 2206 02:31:25.920 --> 02:31:28.799 the north side will be the Gate of Reuben, the 2207 02:31:28.840 --> 02:31:32.239 Gate of Judah, and the Gate of Levi. On the 2208 02:31:32.280 --> 02:31:36.200 east side, which is forth ou five hundred cubits long, 2209 02:31:36.280 --> 02:31:39.159 will be three gates, the Gate of Joseph, the Gate 2210 02:31:39.200 --> 02:31:42.680 of Benjamin, and the Gate of Dan. On the south side, 2211 02:31:42.719 --> 02:31:46.520 which measures four thousand, five hundred kubits, will be three gates, 2212 02:31:46.879 --> 02:31:50.079 the gate of Simeon, the Gate of Isakar, and the 2213 02:31:50.079 --> 02:31:53.520 gate of Zebulun. On the west side, which is fourth 2214 02:31:53.520 --> 02:31:57.280 through five hundred kubits long, will be three gates, the 2215 02:31:57.319 --> 02:31:59.920 gate of Gad, the Gate of Asher, and the gate 2216 02:32:00.200 --> 02:32:03.840 of Naftali. The new name of the city would reflect 2217 02:32:03.959 --> 02:32:09.040 its greatest glory, the permanent presence of God among his people. 2218 02:32:10.079 --> 02:32:14.760 Verse thirty five concluded the entire book with this magnificent promise. 2219 02:32:15.280 --> 02:32:19.520 The distance all around will be eighteen thousand cubits, and 2220 02:32:19.600 --> 02:32:21.680 the name of the city from that time on will 2221 02:32:21.680 --> 02:32:27.000 be the Lord is there. This wasn't just a geographical designation. 2222 02:32:27.559 --> 02:32:31.079 It was a theological statement. The city would be known 2223 02:32:31.120 --> 02:32:34.600 throughout the world not for its wealth, its military power, 2224 02:32:34.920 --> 02:32:39.520 its political influence, or its architectural beauty, but for the 2225 02:32:39.520 --> 02:32:42.680 fact that the creator of the universe had chosen to 2226 02:32:42.799 --> 02:32:50.319 dwell there permanently among his people. Tah equal distribution of 2227 02:32:50.440 --> 02:32:54.959 land among the tribes would eliminate the economic inequalities that 2228 02:32:55.079 --> 02:32:58.879 had contributed to social unrest in the past. No tribe 2229 02:32:58.879 --> 02:33:02.760 would be disadvantage by poor soil or limited water access, 2230 02:33:02.799 --> 02:33:07.079 because the supernatural river would ensure that all areas were 2231 02:33:07.159 --> 02:33:12.239 equally productive. The geometric precision of the boundaries would prevent 2232 02:33:12.360 --> 02:33:17.000 the territorial disputes that had often led to conflict between tribes. 2233 02:33:17.399 --> 02:33:20.520 There would be no ambiguity about who owned what, and 2234 02:33:20.600 --> 02:33:24.680 no opportunity for stronger tribes to encroach on weaker ones. 2235 02:33:25.239 --> 02:33:27.879 The central location of the temple and the city would 2236 02:33:27.920 --> 02:33:31.920 ensure that worship remained the focus of national life. No 2237 02:33:32.040 --> 02:33:34.840 tribe would be so far from the sanctuary that regular 2238 02:33:34.879 --> 02:33:39.399 participation in festivals would be difficult, and the prince's territory 2239 02:33:39.520 --> 02:33:43.719 surrounding the central area would guarantee that civil government would 2240 02:33:43.760 --> 02:33:49.520 always be oriented towards supporting, rather than competing with, religious leadership. 2241 02:33:49.840 --> 02:33:54.159 Most importantly, the entire arrangement would serve as a physical 2242 02:33:54.200 --> 02:33:58.399 demonstration that God had kept his promises to restore his 2243 02:33:58.520 --> 02:34:02.200 people to their land and renew his relationship with them. 2244 02:34:02.559 --> 02:34:07.719 Every boundary marker, every city gate, every flowing stream would 2245 02:34:07.760 --> 02:34:10.319 be evidence that the God who had seemed to abandon 2246 02:34:10.360 --> 02:34:13.760 them during the dark days of exile, had actually been 2247 02:34:13.799 --> 02:34:19.760 planning their restoration all along. The vision ended where it 2248 02:34:19.799 --> 02:34:24.600 had begun twenty five years earlier, with the overwhelming reality 2249 02:34:25.040 --> 02:34:28.719 of God's presence among his people, but instead of the 2250 02:34:28.760 --> 02:34:31.959 mobile throne chariot that had appeared by the Keebar River, 2251 02:34:32.559 --> 02:34:35.239 or the departing glory that had left the old Temple. 2252 02:34:35.799 --> 02:34:40.520 This presence was stationary, permanent, and transformative. The name of 2253 02:34:40.559 --> 02:34:44.239 the city the Lord is there captured the essence of 2254 02:34:44.280 --> 02:34:48.319 everything Ezekiel had been called to prophesy. Judgment would give 2255 02:34:48.360 --> 02:34:52.639 way to restoration, exile would end in return, and the 2256 02:34:52.680 --> 02:34:56.879 God who seemed distant would prove to be eternally near. 2257 02:34:57.399 --> 02:35:00.200 If this journey through Ezekiel has opened your eyes to 2258 02:35:00.239 --> 02:35:04.079 see God's power and faithfulness in a new way, don't 2259 02:35:04.159 --> 02:35:07.319 keep it to yourself. Hit that subscribe button right now 2260 02:35:07.639 --> 02:35:11.479 so you never miss another incredible biblical adventure. There are 2261 02:35:11.520 --> 02:35:14.879 so many more amazing stories waiting to be discovered together. 2262 02:35:15.719 --> 02:35:19.200 And here's the thing. Someone in your life needs to 2263 02:35:19.239 --> 02:35:23.200 hear this message of hope today. Maybe they're going through 2264 02:35:23.239 --> 02:35:26.520 their own valley of dry bones moment, feeling like their 2265 02:35:26.600 --> 02:35:30.559 dreams are scattered and lifeless. Share this video with them. 2266 02:35:30.920 --> 02:35:33.799 Let them see that the same God who promised to 2267 02:35:33.799 --> 02:35:38.040 breathe life into Israel's hopeless situation is still breathing life 2268 02:35:38.360 --> 02:35:43.879 into impossible circumstances to day, Your like, your share, your comment. 2269 02:35:44.559 --> 02:35:48.159 They all help spread these life changing biblical truths to 2270 02:35:48.280 --> 02:35:52.040 people who desperately need to hear them. Together, we can 2271 02:35:52.079 --> 02:35:55.280 make sure everyone gets to experience the Book of Ezekiel 2272 02:35:55.799 --> 02:35:58.719 like they've never seen it before. So what are you 2273 02:35:58.760 --> 02:36:05.520 waiting for? Subscribe, share, and let's continue exploring God's incredible 2274 02:36:06.040 --> 02:36:06.760 word together