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BIBLE STUDY LESSON

For the week beginning Sunday April 5, 2015

EGYPT COMPARED TO FALLEN ASSYRIA

(A warning for Pharaoh)

Ezekiel 31-32

Early in 587 B.C., only months before Nebuchadnezzar’s final destruction of Jerusalem, and only two months after the prophecy of doom that was recorded against Pharaoh Hophra of Egypt in chapter 30 (Vs.20-26), Ezekiel delivers yet another message to the ill-fated leader and his army from northern Africa.

In chapter 31, verses 1-9, the Lord uses the anthropomorphism of a “great cedar tree” to depict the characteristics of greatness that was once associated with Egypt’s former enemy, the fallen nation of Assyria. Here, it is GOD’s way of showing Egypt, who was not nearly as powerful as Assyria, just how easily HE could chop them down to size.

Egypt, who was just as proud as Assyria once was, was destined to fall just as hard as Assyria did. GOD, WHO brought down Assyria using Babylon as a weapon, was more than capable of doing the same to Egypt, using the same “instrument of destruction” (Babylon) that HE used to bring Assyria down with. Remember, Nineveh, Assyria’s capital city, was destroyed by Nabopolassar, Nebuchadnezzar’a father, in 612 B.C., and now Nebuchadnezzar would finish the job that his father started, as he would crush Assyria entirely, in 609 B.C.

In this chapter (Vs.10-14), GOD uses Assyria as an example for Egypt because of their common history with each other, and their common bout with the sin of “pride”. Assyria was the only Mesopotamian nation to ever invade the nation of Egypt (see Nahum 3:8-10), where in 633 B.C. Assyria invaded and destroyed the city of Thebes, when it was Egypt’s capital city. However, the city had, since that time, been rebuilt by the Egyptians and restored to its former self, although it was no longer her capital. And so we see that both nations shared, a common history, and in a short while, both would share a common fate of destiny in destruction.

Egypt would soon die and descend to the pits of Hell, just as Assyria had, and all of the other nations that dared to defy the sovereign GOD of the universe. Pride is always a deal- breaker, as far as GOD is concerned, and so Egypt would have to fall by the same sword, for the same reason as Assyria had fell (Vs.15-18).

In Ezekiel 32, verses 1-16, we see the sixth prophecy of Ezekiel against Egypt. It comes in the twelfth year of Jehoiachin’s captivity in Babylon, and it is only two months after the destruction of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar and his Babylonian forces in 586 B.C. The news of Jerusalem’s fall had already reached Babylon and now Nebuchadnezzar’s work slate showed a vacancy that could be filled by an attack on Egypt.

Egypt had carefully witnessed the fall of Jerusalem, and may have even felt a sense of pride in her own survival thus far. Here Ezekiel puts a damper on those prideful feelings as he depicts Egypt as a nation that has already experienced its own death. And even though they felt confident that her gods would come to their rescue, GOD’s condemnation, as believers know, would transcend and overcome their faith in a false religious system that was fueled only by their own foolishness ingenuity. And so, it is a most appropriate time for the “funeral song” that is presented here in the opening verses of this chapter for Egypt.

² “You think of yourself as a strong young lion among the nations,
    but you are really just a sea monster,
heaving around in your own rivers,
    stirring up mud with your feet.
³ Therefore, this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
I will send many people
    to catch you in my net
    and haul you out of the water.
⁴ I will leave you stranded on the land to die.
    All the birds of the heavens will land on you,
and the wild animals of the whole earth
    will gorge themselves on you.
⁵ I will scatter your flesh on the hills
    and fill the valleys with your bones.
⁶ I will drench the earth with your gushing blood
    all the way to the mountains,
    filling the ravines to the brim.
⁷ When I blot you out,
    I will veil the heavens and darken the stars.
I will cover the sun with a cloud,
    and the moon will not give you its light.
⁸ I will darken the bright stars overhead
    and cover your land in darkness.
    I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken!

⁹ “I will disturb many hearts when I bring news of your downfall to distant nations you have never seen. ¹⁰ Yes, I will shock many lands, and their kings will be terrified at your fate. They will shudder in fear for their lives as I brandish my sword before them on the day of your fall. ¹¹ For this is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“The sword of the king of Babylon
    will come against you.
¹² I will destroy your hordes with the swords of mighty warriors—
    the terror of the nations.
They will shatter the pride of Egypt,
    and all its hordes will be destroyed.
¹³ I will destroy all your flocks and herds
    that graze beside the streams.
Never again will people or animals
    muddy those waters with their feet.
¹⁴ Then I will let the waters of Egypt become calm again,
    and they will flow as smoothly as olive oil,
    says the Sovereign Lord.
¹⁵ And when I destroy Egypt
    and strip you of everything you own
and strike down all your people,
    then you will know that I am the Lord.
¹⁶ Yes, this is the funeral song
    they will sing for Egypt.
Let all the nations mourn.
    Let them mourn for Egypt and its hordes.
    I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken!” (NLT)

Even though Pharaoh Hophra viewed himself as being as powerful as any of the “Davidic Kings” (lions of Judah) of Israel, including David and Solomon, here in verse 2 GOD says that HE is more like the “sea monster” (Leviathan – the demon “Envy”) who was jealous of the Jewish kings. GOD says HE will send Babylon’s army on a “crocodile hunt” and pluck him out of his muddy (Nile) river (out of his element), kill him, and leave him on dry land to be consumed by the wildlife of the earth (Vs.2-6).

In verses 7-8, GOD makes reference to the Egyptian’s main god, “Ra”, or “Osiris” the sun god. Here GOD says that HE will blot out the sun that they worshipped so dearly, and neither the sun, nor the moon, nor the stars, would shine over Egypt in the day of their demise. Ra would not be able to save them from destruction, nor would he be able to show himself to their demented minds.

Many nations that had confidence in Egypt and her gods, would be disturbed and disappointed at the shellacking that GOD puts on the idolatrous nation, at the hands of Nebuchadnezzar and his Babylonian forces. Egypt’s pride would be shattered, and all of her allies would be destroyed also (Vs.9-12). All the animals and livestock would die on the banks of the Nile, the source of most of Egypt’s idol gods (v.13a). Afterwards, when all of the demons that received worship from the people are removed from the Nile, the waters would become calm again (v.13b-14).

In the seventh and final prophecy against Egypt (Vs.17-32), also coming during the twelfth year of Jehoiachin’s captivity in Babylon, the prophet Ezekiel prophesies of the descent of the nation of Egypt into the pits of Hell (Sheol), where other nations who rebelled against GOD already resided.

Here we see that GOD’s judgment of Egypt, as it is for all who defy HIM, had already been sealed, and her appointment or “reservation” to the grave was already made. Her arrival in Sheol would be mocked by those prideful armies who had previously fallen by the sword of GOD (Babylon), and were waiting for her to join them in death.

Among the host of outcasts in Sheol (Vs.22-30) were;

·         Assyria, the conqueror of northern Israel in 722 B.C. They themselves were conquered and destroyed by Babylon in 609 B.C.

·         Elam, who was subdued by Assyria and later destroyed by the sword of Nebuchadnezzar and his Babylonian army.

·         Meshech and Tubal, tribes of two of the descendants of Japheth (1 Chronicles 1:5), the son of Noah. They were located somewhere in the area that is now eastern and central Turkey. This passage states that “they once struck terror in the hearts of all people, but were now outcasts and victims of the sword”. They were not buried in honor like the fallen heroes of the other outcast nations who died, and were buried without their weapons and shields (Vs.26-27).

·         Edom was also there in Sheol with its once mighty kings and princes, all who had been slain by the sword of Babylon.

·         Sidon who was once a terror, also now lies in shame, a victim of the sword of Babylon, the instrument of GOD’s judgment.

In verses 31-32, Ezekiel says that when Pharaoh Hophra arrives in Hell he will be relieved to find that he was not alone, and he relished in the fact that he had taken a multitude of people to Hell with him (v.31).

As Christians, we need to be very careful about whom we choose to hang out with, or follow in this world. There are some among us, including spiritual leaders, who do not have our best interest at heart. They only want us to live to satisfy their own desires, and to Hell with what happens to the souls of others, in the process. Stay tuned.

A Sunday school lesson by,

Larry D. Alexander

Larry Dell Alexander (1953–) - Encyclopedia of Arkansas

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BIBLE STUDY LESSON

For the week beginning Sunday March 15, 2015

A MESSAGE FOR EGYPT

(A sad day for Egypt)

Ezekiel 29-30

When Tyre’s inland city fell to the Babylonians following a 13-year siege in 573 B.C., Tyre’s island city, with the help of Egypt, had already transported most of its wealth from there, by sea, to Egypt. As a result, King Nebuchadnezzar was not able to recover the huge military expense that he had incurred during the long siege campaign against Tyre. And so, the only way he could recoup his financial losses, was by attacking Egypt and extracting Tyre’s transferred funds from their coiffeurs.

Ironically, just as GOD had forecast Tyre’s doom in chapters 26-28, HE now, here (chapters 29-32), joins Egypt’s fate to the fate of Tyre’s, by brilliantly connecting them in judgment, just as they were connected in their betrayal of Israel. Here the LORD promises Egypt to Babylon, and the wealth of Egypt and Tyre would be forfeited to Nebuchadnezzar in one big scoop in 568 B.C.

In Ezekiel 29-32 we see the seventh and final nation of which the prophet Ezekiel prophesied against, Egypt, receiving her sentence from GOD. It is a series of seven oracles, of which six are dated, with the second one being dated later than the others. After forecasting that the Pharaoh (Hophra) and Egypt would be destroyed, Ezekiel then prophesies just who would destroy them (Nebuchadnezzar).

Egypt is situated on the northeast shoulder of Africa and is bordered by the Sahara Desert (on the west), the tropical forests of Nubia (on the south), the Red Sea (on the east), and the Mediterranean Sea (on the north). The Nile River serves as the bloodstream of Egypt, and its waters brought life to the parched plains that were cultivated by the Egyptians in the biblical days. It also served as one of the great shipping lanes of the ancient world, as it offered over 600 miles of smooth sailing from the Mediterranean coast to Syene.

Besides being on different continents, Egypt is separated from Palestine by only the rocky Sinai Peninsula, and several marshes and lakes between the Mediterranean and the Red Sea. Their cultures are radically different, and its people are even of a different race. Yet, through various distinctive acts of GOD, biblical history shows us how they were brought together time and time again, for better and for worse, but mostly for the worse.

In Ezekiel 29, verses 2-5, the Pharaoh, Hophra, Neco’s successor, is depicted as a “crocodile”, or “Leviathan” (one of the Nile gods), a powerful creature like GOD describes in the book of Job (Job 41). Here GOD says that he is a “great monster” lurking in the streams of the Nile, even calling the river “his own” and actually saying that he himself “made the Nile”. In verse 4 GOD says that HE will do what HE implies in Job 41:1-2 (that which no man can do), and that is “put a hook in the jaw of this great monster and pull him out of the Nile with other fish sticking to his scales”.

In verses 8-12 GOD says;

 “I will bring an army against you, O Egypt, and destroy both people and animals.  The land of Egypt will become a desolate wasteland, and the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord.

“Because you said, ‘The Nile River is mine; I made it,’ I am now the enemy of both you and your river. I will make the land of Egypt a totally desolate wasteland, from Migdol to Aswan, as far south as the border of Ethiopia.  For forty years not a soul will pass that way, neither people nor animals. It will be completely uninhabited.  I will make Egypt desolate, and it will be surrounded by other desolate nations. Its cities will be empty and desolate for forty years, surrounded by other ruined cities. I will scatter the Egyptians to distant lands” (NLT).

However, the LORD says in verses 13-16 that at the end of forty years HE will bring the Egyptians back home again and restore them to their prosperous state, but they will become an unimportant, minor kingdom, and never again become great enough to rise above their neighbors.

And so seventeen years later, during the twenty-seventh year of King Jehoiachin’s captivity in Babylon, the words of Ezekiel came true as the LORD rewarded King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon with all the riches of Egypt to compensate for his financial loss in his campaign against Tyre, whom the LORD had sent him to destroy (Vs.17-20). Whenever we suffer losses for the LORD’s sake, no matter who we are, HE always compensates us for those losses.

In Ezekiel 30, verses 1-19, a sad day is depicted for Egypt as yet another message came to the prophet Ezekiel from the LORD. This message comes in four parts with the first part occurring in verses 1-5.

“Son of man, prophesy and give this message from the Sovereign Lord:

“Weep and wail
    for that day,
for the terrible day is almost here—
    the day of the Lord!
It is a day of clouds and gloom,
    a day of despair for the nations.
 A sword will come against Egypt,
    and those who are slaughtered will cover the ground.
Its wealth will be carried away
    and its foundations destroyed.
The land of Ethiopia will be ravished.
    Ethiopia, Libya, Lydia, all Arabia,
and all their other allies
    will be destroyed in that war”.

Unlike Ezekiel’s other prophecies, this one is not dated. Here in verses 1-5 Ezekiel seems to be speaking of a future (eschatological) date referred to by the term, “the Day of the LORD”, (when GOD will judge the whole world for its sin), however, that ideology would separate the phrase from the context seen here. Here we have to keep in mind that the term “the day of the LORD” can refer to any day in which the LORD chooses to exact HIS judgment on HIS people, or any people, past, present, or future. For example, for northern Israel, that day occurred in 722 B.C. (Israel’s destruction by Assyria), here in the context of the book of Ezekiel, he is referring to a day in 586 B.C. (Judah’s destruction at the hands of Babylon). Here in chapter 30, the day of the LORD (GOD’s judgment) is extended to Egypt and its most important cities (568 B.C.).

Taking up in verse 6 (the second section of this prophecy) the LORD says that even all of Egypt’s allies will fall, from Migdol to Aswan, and the pride of their power will be ended. Egypt’s treasuries would be looted, including those treasures that once belonged to Tyre, that Egypt had assisted them in hiding from the Babylonians earlier in its siege against those cities (Ezekiel 29:17-20). Ethiopia (Cush), Libya and Lydia (Put), and Arabia (all the bi-racial people of that area) would be destroyed. Egypt would become desolate, and would be surrounded by desolate nations (v.7).

In the third section of this prophecy, verses 10-12, the LORD names exactly who HE will use as HIS instrument of destruction. Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, and his ruthless army would make war against Egypt and its allies and prevail over them. HE would also dry up the demon-filled Nile River, and turn it over to the wicked king, along with everything else in Egypt.

In verses 13-19, the fourth section of this prophecy, Ezekiel names the many places in Egypt that will soon be destroyed by GOD.

·         Memphis - First GOD says HE will destroy the idol god images of Memphis, the first capital city of “United Egypt”. And though it was no longer the capital city, it was still perhaps the most important religious center in Egypt.

·         Pathros – An area located midway between Cairo and Answan (upper Egypt).

·         Zoan – A royal residence in the delta region of Egypt, known as “Tanis” by the Greeks.

·         Thebes – Located in southern Egypt about 400 miles from Cairo. It also served at one time as Egypt’s capital.

·         Pelusium – Name means “sin”. It is located deep in the delta about a mile from the Mediterranean Sea. It served as Egypt’s military stronghold.

·         Heliopolis – At one time was a major religious center. It was located in northern Egypt, south of the delta region.

·         Bubastis – also a religious center that once served as Egypt’s capital.

·         Tahpanhes – Located near the present-day Suez Canal. At that time Pharaoh had a palace there. Jeremiah once prophesied against this city, and the city of Memphis (Jeremiah 2:16).

The destruction of these major cities in Egypt would effectively zap the strength of the entire nation.

The fourth prophecy against Egypt (Vs.20-26), is one that is directed against its current Pharaoh, Hophra, the successor to the throne following the death of Pharaoh Neco. He was known as “the strong arm” by all who feared him. In 588 B.C., he even flexed his muscles at Babylon while they were mounting a two-year military siege against Jerusalem (Jeremiah 37:5-8) causing them to momentarily retreat and put him in check. That was when Egypt’s first arm was broken; however, they had not yet been totally subdued.

This fourth prophecy, which is to be fulfilled twenty years later, is forecasted for a time after Babylon had already totally defeated Egypt (568 B.C.). Here GOD says that HE had already “broken the arm” of Pharaoh (588 B.C.), a pun on the nickname “the strong arm”, and left his wound untreated (without a cast or splint). In 568 B.C. Nebuchadnezzar was to finish the job (break the other arm of Pharaoh), as GOD would allow Babylon to overtake them, and scatter those who survived, into distant lands. And even though GOD would restore Egypt at a future date, they would forever remain in a weakened state of unimportance.

A Sunday school lesson by,

Larry D. Alexander

Larry Dell Alexander (1953–) - Encyclopedia of Arkansas

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BIBLE STUDY LESSON

For the week beginning Sunday February 22, 2015

A MESSAGE FOR TYRE

(The end of Tyre’s glory)

Ezekiel 26-28

“Tyre”, which means “rock”, was a city on the central coast of Phoenicia that was noted for its commercial activity and success. It was located between Accho and Sidon, north of Palestine, and was the principal seaport of Phoenicia. Tyre actually consisted of two cities, one of which was a rocky coastal city on the mainland and the other, a smaller island city just off the shore. It was a city that was difficult to attack or invade, as it was strategically situated with its rear set against the mountains of Lebanon to the east, and the sea served as protection at its front on the west.

Tyre was a very ancient city that was founded circa 2750 B.C., however, it was not as old as her sister city, Sidon. In fact, for many years Sidon had ruled over Tyre after it successfully besieged the city in 1400 B.C. It was not until sea raiders left the city of Sidon in ruins, some 200 years later, that Tyre was able to regain her independence from Sidon.

Over the next 400 years, as Phoenicia gained more and more independence, so too, Tyre would become more powerful, particularly under the rule of King Hiram I (980-947 B.C.), who got along famously with both King David (1 Kings 5:1 & 1 Chronicles 14:1) and King Solomon (1 Kings 9:26-28). Hiram also fortified Tyre’s two harbors on the north and the south with walls. From that point on, Tyre began to dominate Mediterranean commerce. In fact, the prophet Isaiah says that “Tyre’s merchants were princes, the honorable of the earth” (Isaiah 23:8). 

Here in Ezekiel chapters 26-28 we find a rather extensive oracle against the city of Tyre that foretells and details her destruction by Nebuchadnezzar and his Babylonian forces. This already fabulously wealthy city had applauded the fall of Jerusalem in 586 B.C., and were enthusiastically looking forward to gaining even more dominance in the Mediterranean area by taking over land trade routes to the east, that had been controlled by Judah (Ezekiel 26:2) since the time of King David.

In verses 7-14 the prophet Ezekiel predicts that Babylon will begin a process that will ultimately result in the total destruction of Tyre down the line. The city was located only 100 miles from Jerusalem, and just 35 miles from the Sea of Galilee, and sure enough, after he destroyed Jerusalem, Nebuchadnezzar put a 13-year siege on Tyre’s mainland city, literally ruining its influence as a world trade leader. However, because he had no navy, Nebuchadnezzar could not destroy the island city of Tyre.

History now records, however, that some 150 years after Ezekiel utters this prophecy (322 B.C.), Alexander the Great and his Greek forces totally demolished mainland Tyre and threw all the stones, timber, and rubble out into the sea (v.12), using the debris, and timber from Lebanon, to build a causeway between the mainland and island sections of the city, and then crossed over to conquer and destroy it also. And thus no more music ever came out of the once bustling city of Tyre, and Ezekiel’s entire prophecy was fulfilled, just as the LORD had spoken (Vs13-14).

The effects of Tyre’s destruction are summed up in the “funeral song” composed in verses 17-18, and Tyre was made into an uninhabited place, sunken beneath the waves of the wrath of GOD, and deposited in the pits of Sheol, where the dead will never be allowed to leave and return to the land of the living (Vs.19-21).

In Ezekiel 27 another message from the LORD came to Ezekiel concerning Tyre, “the mighty gateway to the sea”, the trade center of the world. It is a “funeral song”, a lament that sings of the death of this beautiful and glorious seaport to the kings. Verses 4-24 are dedicated to giving us a vivid description of Tyre’s massive trading and bartering with nations around the world, including Judah and Israel.

This poetic description of the fall of a city is one of the most powerful to be found anywhere in world history, and it sums up just how the world, was and is, preoccupied with material wealth and prosperity that cannot help but breed pride that is out of control. Clearly GOD is seeking to show us how vulnerable all material wealth is, to destruction.

Here in this chapter Tyre is compared to a soundly constructed, beautiful world-class luxury ship (Vs.1-9) that is about to sink into Hades. She has had many trading partners over the years (vs.10-25), but now was about to experience a catastrophic shipwreck at sea that she will never be able to recover from (Vs.26-36). Ironically, her destruction would come in an atmosphere where she was most comfortable, that of the open sea.

In Ezekiel 28 we see yet a third message from the LORD to Ezekiel, this time, a message to the “ruler”, or “head prince” (in the Hebrew “Nagid”- “man at the top”). Here GOD is singling out the city of Tyre and Sidon’s leader, who at that time was Ethbaal III, the father of Jezebel (1 Kings 16:31). He ruled from 591-572 B.C., and because of his pride, he viewed himself as a god, and not as a man (v.2). In fact, many people also believed that he was “the idol god Baal” himself, and he regarded himself as being wiser than Daniel the prophet, whom GOD allowed to know secret things (v.3).

Even though Ethbaal’s worldly wisdom had made him very rich, his riches had made him very proud, and here in verses 6-10 GOD delivers this personal message to him, through Ezekiel:

“Therefore, this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
Because you think you are as wise as a god,
     I will now bring against you a foreign army,
    the terror of the nations.
They will draw their swords against your marvelous wisdom
    and defile your splendor!
 They will bring you down to the pit,
    and you will die in the heart of the sea,
    pierced with many wounds.
 Will you then boast, ‘I am a god!’
    to those who kill you?
To them you will be no god
    but merely a man!

You will die like an outcast
    at the hands of foreigners.
    I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken!” (NLT)

Beginning in verse 11 we see Ezekiel’s final prophecy against Tyre (Vs.11-19).

 Then this further message came to me from the Lord:  “Son of man, sing this funeral song for the king of Tyre. Give him this message from the Sovereign Lord:

“You were the model of perfection,
    full of wisdom and exquisite in beauty.
 You were in Eden,
    the garden of God.
Your clothing was adorned with every precious stone—
    red carnelian, pale-green peridot, white moonstone,
    blue-green beryl, onyx, green jasper,
    blue lapis lazuli, turquoise, and emerald—
all beautifully crafted for you
    and set in the finest gold.
They were given to you
    on the day you were created.
I ordained and anointed you
    as the mighty angelic guardian.
You had access to the holy mountain of God
    and walked among the stones of fire.

 “You were blameless in all you did
    from the day you were created
    until the day evil was found in you.

 Your rich commerce led you to violence,
    and you sinned.
So I banished you in disgrace
    from the mountain of God.
I expelled you, O mighty guardian,
    from your place among the stones of fire.
 Your heart was filled with pride
    because of all your beauty.
Your wisdom was corrupted
    by your love of splendor.
So I threw you to the ground
    and exposed you to the curious gaze of kings.
You defiled your sanctuaries
    with your many sins and your dishonest trade.
So I brought fire out from within you,
    and it consumed you.
I reduced you to ashes on the ground
    in the sight of all who were watching.
All who knew you are appalled at your fate.
    You have come to a terrible end,
    and you will exist no more.” (NLT)

The use in verse 12 of the Hebrew word “melek” for “king”, instead of “nagid” for “ruler” is significant in light of the content of these final two prophecies. Whereas Ezekiel rebuked the “ruler”, Ethbaal III for falsely claiming to be a god in the previous prophecy, here Ezekiel describes a king in terms that cannot apply to a mere man. Here he describes a king who appeared in the Garden of Eden (v.13), and had been a “guardian cherub” (v.14a), and also had had, at one time in the past, free access to GOD’s Holy Mountain (v.14b). Ezekiel also says that this king had been sinless from the time he was created (v.15).

Here in this passage (Vs.11-19) we see a depiction that clearly fits “Lucifer”, the once glorious archangel who had been expelled from Heaven because of his pride and sin against GOD. It does not at all seem to depict the earthly mortal ruler Ethbaal III of Tyre mentioned in the previous verses, 1-10, nor does the language used here depict Adam in the Garden of Eden as some scholars have suggested. Here in verses 11-19 Ezekiel is describing satan who is the true king of Tyre, the demon who is influencing and motivating the human ruler, Ethbaal III.

Although there is, admittedly, strong metaphoric, and poetic interpretational references, to the human ruler of Tyre, Ethbaal III, in this passage, the message is clearly aimed at the spiritual ruler and prince of the demons of this world, who is satan.

In verses 20-24 we see a message of doom for Tyre’s older sister city, and former ruler, Sidon. Sidon was located just 20 miles north of Tyre, along the Mediterranean coast, and except for brief periods in history, had always been closely allied with Tyre, especially at that time, since both cities were ruled by the same man, Ethbaal III. GOD’s judgment against Sidon would be both, “a plague”, and “war” (v.23). This judgment would have two results. First, it would compel Sidon to acknowledge GOD’s “righteous character” (v.22), and secondly, GOD’s judgment would remove Sidon’s influence as an obstacle to Israel’s walk with HIM (v.24). Many of the Israelites had begun worshiping “Baal” since the time of King Ahab (Israel’s king), who’s wife was the infamous Jezebel.

Finally this chapter ends on an encouraging note, a message of “restoration for Israel (Vs.25-26 - NLT).

 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: The people of Israel will again live in their own land, the land I gave my servant Jacob. For I will gather them from the distant lands where I have scattered them. I will reveal to the nations of the world my holiness among my people.  They will live safely in Israel and build homes and plant vineyards. And when I punish the neighboring nations that treated them with contempt, they will know that I am the Lord their God.”  

A Sunday school lesson by,

Larry D. Alexander

Larry Dell Alexander (1953–) - Encyclopedia of Arkansas

LARRY D. ALEXANDER'S BOOK BY BOOK BIBLE STUDY

larrydalexanderbiblestudies.blogspot.com

            Larry D. Alexander's Books and Publications Spotlight

Larry D. Alexander - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

                                 

                                           LARRY D. ALEXANDER- Official Website

Clinton Family Portrait - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

BOOK BY BOOK BIBLE STUDY

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BIBLE STUDY LESSON

For the week beginning Sunday February 8, 2015

THE SIGN OF THE COOKING POT

(Messages for Israel’s enemies)

Ezekiel 24-25

In mid-January of 588 B.C. (Gregorian calendar date) Nebuchadnezzar began a two-year siege on Jerusalem that would ultimately result in its final destruction in 586 B.C. It was a day that Ezekiel had been forecasting for four years, and the prophet Jeremiah had touted for more than forty years. The siege came during the ninth year of King Jehoiachin’s captivity in Babylon, and it signaled the end of Ezekiel’s “Prophesies of Doom” against Judah.

Here in Ezekiel 24, verses 1-14, the prophet tells the divine parable of “The Cooking Pot” that was given to him by GOD on the very day that the final Babylonian siege began. This parable is similar to the message in chapter 11, where the leaders used the symbol of the “cooking pot” to give Jerusalem a feeling of false hope and security. There the leaders had the people thinking that, by being in the cooking pot (Jerusalem), they would be automatically safe from any harm, including the famine, the war, the beasts, and, fatal diseases and sicknesses that had come on them because of GOD’s wrath. In verses 6-8 Ezekiel shouts;

“What sorrow awaits Jerusalem,
    the city of murderers!
She is a cooking pot
    whose corruption can’t be cleaned out.
Take the meat out in random order,
    for no piece is better than another, For the blood of her murders
    is splashed on the rocks.
It isn’t even spilled on the ground,
    where the dust could cover it!
 So I will splash her blood on a rock
    for all to see,
an expression of my anger
    and vengeance against her”.

Here GOD is saying that Jerusalem is so corrupt that it doesn’t matter who HE takes out first. She had become a city of bloodthirsty murderers who openly sacrificed their children in the fire (Kings 16:3, Acts 7:43, Amos 5:26, 2 Chronicles 28:3 & 33:6) to the idol god Mollech, splashing their blood on the rocks in the valley of Ben-Hinnom (Jeremiah 19), They also caused the death of many innocent people through many injustices and oppression. They were also leading people away from GOD, by way of their false teaching. Now GOD says that HE will splash their blood on the rocks of Jerusalem. In verses 9-13 the Sovereign LORD says;

“What sorrow awaits Jerusalem,
    the city of murderers!
    I myself will pile up the fuel beneath her.
 Yes, heap on the wood!
    Let the fire roar to make the pot boil.
Cook the meat with many spices,
    and afterward burn the bones.
 Now set the empty pot on the coals.
    Heat it red hot!
    Burn away the filth and corruption.
 But it’s hopeless;
    the corruption can’t be cleaned out.
    So throw it into the fire.
 Your impurity is your lewdness
    and the corruption of your idolatry.
I tried to cleanse you,
    but you refused.
So now you will remain in your filth
    until my fury against you has been satisfied.

This, the LORD’s second statement through Ezekiel in this chapter, deals specifically with the corrupted filthy cooking pot (Jerusalem), and how the meat (the Israelites) had allowed the pot to become corrupted and defiled by the demonic forces that inhabited the whole land through the idols, and the shrines, that the people worshiped in.

When we worship anything other than GOD, the object of that worship can become inhabited by demons who then receives our worship through that object, be it a house, a car, another person etc. That is why GOD instructed Ezekiel on several occasions to prophesy against the land, and other inanimate objects (Ezekiel 6, & 20:45-21:4). It is because the demons that we can’t see are controlling us through certain objects, animals, and people that we worship.

When everything is defiled, including in the church that calls itself by GOD’s name, GOD destroys it all, and then starts over afresh, because the filth can’t be totally purged. Because of our mixing of the holy with the profane, even in the church, then and now, GOD will also tear down the whole defiled religious system (Ezekiel 21:1-4), and start all over again (CHRIST’s Millennial Kingdom). And GOD will do it because, then and now, we will refuse to let those demons that control us, go. We will remain filthy until GOD’s fury against us has been totally satisfied (v.13).

Taking up at verse 15 of this chapter we see a rather grim message to the exiles at Babylon. Here Ezekiel presents the image of a stern and unyielding person, very much the opposite of, say, Jeremiah, who often wept for the people he prophesied to. Here GOD informs HIS faithful prophet Ezekiel, that, HE is about to take his dearest treasure, his wife, away from him. And if that isn’t bad news enough, GOD tells him that he must not even cry for her (except for quiet sighing), or show any sorrow, even at her gravesite. He was not to take off his sandals, or accept any food from consoling friends. Nor was he to perform any of the other traditional rituals of mourning that he was accustomed to performing for close relatives whom he adored (Vs15-17).

Here in this passage we learn that, though we may be a believer, we are not immune to pain and suffering. We are also reminded here, that, pain and suffering doesn’t qualify as an excuse for not obeying GOD. Remember, I’ve told you on several occasions that a true prophet demonstrates GOD’s message with his whole life and body. Well, here in this passage, we see Ezekiel’s personal life with his wife being sacrificed to convey a solemn message to a hopelessly rebellious people, who, had refused to heed all prior warnings from GOD. In verses 21-24, following the death of his wife Ezekiel proclaims this message from the LORD;

“I was told to give this message to the people of Israel. This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will defile my Temple, the source of your security and pride, the place your heart delights in. Your sons and daughters whom you left behind in Judah will be slaughtered by the sword.  Then you will do as Ezekiel has done. You will not mourn in public or console yourselves by eating the food brought by friends.  Your heads will remain covered, and your sandals will not be taken off. You will not mourn or weep, but you will waste away because of your sins. You will groan among yourselves for all the evil you have done.  Ezekiel is an example for you; you will do just as he has done. And when that time comes, you will know that I am the Sovereign Lord.”

In verses 25-27 the LORD tells Ezekiel that HE will take away Israel’s stronghold (Jerusalem), and HE will strip them of their joy and glory, their heart’s desire, and their dearest treasure (the Temple). HE would also take away their sons and daughters, and on that day, a refugee from Jerusalem will come to them in Babylon to tell them everything that has happened to their beloved city. At that time, a once silent Ezekiel will regain his voice so as to talk to the refugee, and he (Ezekiel) will become a symbol for the exiles, and they will know that the GOD of their ancestors is truly the one and only GOD.

In Ezekiel 25, Ezekiel turns his attention from an already doomed Jerusalem, to the task of prophesying against the Gentile nations that surrounded Judah. It only stands to reason that if GOD would not spare HIS own people, certainly HE was not going to allow the pagan nations that so influenced them, mocked them, and blasphemed HIM, to go unpunished. History now records that both Ammon and Moab fell to the Babylonians only five years after Judah’s destruction in 586 B.C.

Here in this chapter we see several Gentile nations, Ammon, Moab, Edom, and Philistia all being handed a message regarding impending judgment from the LORD, because of their sins and mockery against Judah. Ammon, Moab, and Edom all formed the eastern border of Judah, while Philistia is located to the west. GOD’s judgment here is based on the “Abrahamic Covenant” which states that “those who bless the descendants of Abraham will be blessed, and those who curse the descendants of Abraham will be cursed” (Genesis 12:1-3, 15).

They would all be handed down indictments and verdicts from GOD, through Ezekiel, beginning with Ammon, who had scoffed and mocked Judah when Nebuchadnezzar decided to attack Judah first, instead of them (Ezekiel 21:18-27). Ammon, who had earlier sided with Judah against Babylon, was relieved by Nebuchadnezzar’s choice, and instead of helping Judah in her plight, Ammon chose to rejoice over Judah’s demise. They celebrated as the temple at Jerusalem was desecrated and destroyed.

Now, for their punishment, GOD would start with them first, and allow the Babylonians to set up camp and pitch tents in their land, harvest their crops, and steal their livestock. And because they celebrated Israel’s demise, their capital city, Rabbah, would be turned into pastureland for camels, and the remainder of their land would be an enclosure for keeping sheep. As a civilization, they would be utterly destroyed (Vs.1-7).

In verses 8-11, we see a message for Moab, who, in contempt for GOD’s chosen nation, said that “Judah was nothing special, and were just like any other nation”. This attitude is seen by GOD as being blasphemous toward HIM. However, in truth, the relationship between Israel and Moab had deteriorated since the time of King Saul’s regime, when he conquered and made Moab a “vassal state” to Israel, and Moab remained that way throughout King Solomon’s reign. And so, when Judah was destroyed by Babylon, as far as the pagan world was concerned, it gave credence to the contemptuous words and saying of Moab. And now GOD was bent on restoring HIS reputation as a GOD WHO is sovereign and in control of all things holy and secular.

Here GOD says that HE will open up Moab’s eastern flank and wipe out their glorious frontier cities, Beth-jeshimoth, Baal-meon, and Kiriathaim (v.9), and then HE would hand Moab over to the Babylonians. And so GOD promises to, first, take away Moab’s defense and protection, and then, HE would take away their freedom.

In verses 12-14, Ezekiel turns his prophesying to the nation of Edom. Edom’s conflict with Israel dates all the way back to the time when Edom refused to allow Israel to cross its border when they were wandering in the desert following their exodus from Egypt (Numbers 20:14-21). Ezekiel says here that Edom’s sin was that she “took revenge on the house of Judah”.

Edom saw Judah’s conflict with Babylon as a grand opportunity to strengthen her own position of power in the region. Edom believed that, if Judah were destroyed, she would be able to gain a foothold in the area south of the Dead Sea. And so they aided Babylon in her efforts to destroy Jerusalem. Now, GOD was saying that HE would aid in Edom’s destruction. Here GOD says that, “I will raise my fist of judgment against Edom. I will wipe out its people and animals with the sword. I will make a wasteland of everything from Teman to Dedan.  I will accomplish this by the hand of my people of Israel. They will carry out my vengeance with anger, and Edom will know that this vengeance is from me. I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken!” (Vs.13-14 – NLT).

In verses 15-17, the people of Philistia are given their warning from the LORD by Ezekiel.

“This is what the Sovereign Lord says: The people of Philistia have acted against Judah out of bitter revenge and long-standing contempt. Therefore, this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will raise my fist of judgment against the land of the Philistines. I will wipe out the Kerethites and utterly destroy the people who live by the sea.  I will execute terrible vengeance against them to punish them for what they have done. And when I have inflicted my revenge, they will know that I am the Lord.” (NLT)

The Philistines had been in conflict with the Israelites since the Israeli conquest of the “Promised Land”. Israel had failed in their attempt to conquer the Philistines, in part, because of the Philistines superior military. However, because of the Israelites disobedience to GOD at that time, it was really GOD’s will that allowed the Philistines to be successful against HIS chosen people.

King David finally subdued the Philistines early on in his reign over the “United Kingdom” of Israel, and Philistia remained Israel’s vassal state all the way through the reign of King Solomon. However, following the break-up of Israel’s northern kingdom and Judah after Solomon’s death, the feud between the two was renewed. Philistia was able to win her freedom from Israel during the reign of King Jehoram, King Jehoshaphat’s son and heir, and over the years, power between the two countries shifted back and forward. Time and time again the Philistines tried to usurp GOD’s authority, and time and time again GOD would put her down. In fact, it was not until Nebuchadnezzar conquered both countries, Judah and Philistia, that their feuding came to a screeching halt.   

A Sunday school lesson by,

Larry D. Alexander

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