Sunday: Sermon in a Knapsack: Ezekiel 12:1-16
The prophet is told to play the part of a fugitive escaping from a besieged city. He packs a knapsack and leaves it a distance from his house, to show that Jerusalem’s leaders were planning an escape. Digging through the wall of his house symbolized the besieging army. Leaving through the hole in his house was a sign of the Jewish leaders trying to flee. But they would be caught. It would all happen just as Ezekiel portrayed!
Monday: A Meal of Fear: Ezekiel 12:17-28
Shaking and trembling as if in fear, Ezekiel eats a simple meal of bread and water before the people. He was illustrating the horrid condition of the people still in Jerusalem, beset with famine and fear. The theme of Ezekiel’s message was the absolute certainty and nearness of God’s judgment on Judah. He was to refute the proverb that “the days are prolonged, and every vision fails” (Ezekiel 12:22). Instead, the prophet proclaims a new proverb (Ezekiel 12:25), a clear message that the current generation would see the horrible calamity of God’s judgment.
Tuesday: Prophetic Arrogance: Ezekiel 13:1-16
Four times in this passage, God declares that the false prophets saw vanity and proclaimed falsehoods. They spoke from their own imaginations—a “self-induced” inspiration. Ezekiel compares them to foxes, or jackals, who lived as desert scavengers. They were opportunists who preyed on the weakness and ignorance of the people who were desperate for hope and security. They were “workmen” who failed to build anything lasting—ignoring God’s Word to substitute their own lies (untempered mortar = whitewash). They painted a bright picture of the future that would soon collapse in devastation.
Wednesday: The Fortunetellers of Jerusalem: Ezekiel 13:17-23
The Jewish women Ezekiel exposes are actually “sorceresses” practicing magical arts—activities prohibited from the Jews (Deuteronomy 18:9-14). They made magical charms so people could ward off evil. They told fortunes and enticed people to buy their services. Using the crisis for personal gain, they preyed on the others’ fears. Instead of condemning the evil and rewarding the good, they embraced the evil and denied righteousness.
Thursday: False Piety: Ezekiel 14:1-5
God tells Ezekiel that the leaders were righteous outwardly, but inside they were idolaters. Anything that replaces God in our affections and our obedience is an idol. It can be wealth, notoriety, knowledge, immorality, substance abuse, or a host of other evils. The result is the same: hypocrisy!
Friday: Personal Repentance: Ezekiel 14:6-11
When people won’t receive the truth that saves, God may send them “strong delusion” that they would believe a lie (2 Thessalonians 2:10-11). The condition of a person’s heart determines how they will respond to God’s testing. A person isn’t lost because of the sins of the group—God calls each “one” of us to personal repentance. We must turn to Him with our whole heart.
Saturday: False Hopes: Ezekiel 14:12-23
Four judgments are described in this passage: famine (Ezekiel 14:12-14); wild beasts (Ezekiel 14:15-16); the sword (Ezekiel 14:17-18); and pestilence (Ezekiel 14:19-20). Even if Noah, Daniel, and Job, were with them, (men who had all been tested and proved faithful), it wouldn’t have saved them. There is no such thing as “borrowed faith.” Another’s testimony will not save us! In Ezekiel 14:21-23, God’s judgments are finally understood to be deserved.