Reading: Ezekiel 19-21, Psalm 36
Is it to inquire of me that you have come? As I live, declares the Lord, I will not be inquired of by you!
Today’s reading is framed around the elders of Israel coming to inquire of God through Ezekiel at his house. He has just finished a lament, a rather long one that began in yesterday’s reading about the faithfless bride that Judah had become. The elders of the exiled community, having heard this blaring indictment of their people, come to Ezekiel’s house to makes an inquiry of the God of Israel. What we are not told is the question they asked, or the circumstances around it. We do get God’s answer, which is “No.”
Why would God refuse to answer the inquiry of the elders of the exiles? He has had a lot of bad things to say about the people who remained in Jerusalem, but there are strong indications that the exiles are now the favored branch of Israel. God has said he will be with them in Babylon. In order to answer the question I think we will have to look at God’s extended answer. He does the elders the favor of explaining why he will not answer their inquiry, and it goes on for a bit.
God begins with the Exodus. God gives pretty complete answers. God called the people out of Egypt and told them to serve no other gods, especially those of Egypt. But they went right back to them, and held onto their idols as they left. Then God could have destroyed them, but in protection of his own name did not. So he brought them to Sinai and gave them the law and the Sabbath. They broke those, and God could have destroyed them, but in protection of his own name he did not. He gives them the promised land, but they are still disobedient and he could have destroyed them. For the sake of his own name he does not.
Are you seeing a pattern? God has been tolerant. He has been patient. He has allowed enormous offense again him to protect his own name. Finally, he was done. He sends them into exile, by making their laws and statutes not good, causing their sacrifices to be a defilement. The prophets talk about this as false sacrifices, not from the heart. Keeping all the forms of the law without heart change is worthless. Like a rotten fruit, the law has ceased to be good.
Right in the middle of his long reasoning, God reveals for us what the elders are up to: What is in your mind will never happen- your thought, “We shall be like the nations, like the tribes of the countries, and worship wood and stone.” God sees through the “inquiry” of the elders and sees an attempt to normalize their God to the gods of Babylon and the other nations they are now interacting with. After all, for them the Temple is gone, the center of worship removed from them. What else is there but to integrate into the culture and start making a reasonable life? God is not amused by that, and declares him intention to restore Israel… but with a forceful twist we haven’t seen before.
As usual, following the judgment there will be blessing, as God promises to restore Israel… through destruction and fire. Even the image of restoration here is pretty harsh, as God is portrayed with a mighty arm and wrath poured out. The picture is of God bringing Israel back, but less as a gentle shepherd and more the King he says he will certainly be over them. These elders think they are rulers of the people now, God leaves no doubt who is in charge. Surely with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm with wrath poured out, I will be King over you.
One might think that will all the history laid out in front of them like this, the elders would get it. That they would shut down their plans and accept that their God is in charge, and be obedient. But of course not. These are, after all, descendants of Jacob, Israel, who struggles with God and man. Ezekiel tells us what they think Is he not a maker of parables? The elders think of Ezekiel as a moralistic storyteller. This is a common error among people who don’t want to believe something is true- let’s make it over into a story that means something else. God is not amused by their tactic, and the following chapter is in fact a parable, albeit a radically obvious one.
The image that God gives Ezekiel, the story he tells him, is about God unsheathing a sword, heralding destruction for both Israel and Judah, and now extended to all flesh. God has seen the doubt of the elders of Israel, but he tells them it is actually much worse than they think! All the people of the land, the righteous and the unrighteous, will be subject to wrath. The coming of the king of Babylon will be really bad for everyone… but that isn’t the end of the story, or the worst of it. There is a deeply disturbing line in the middle of this chapter, especially if you are an ancient Israelite: you have made your guilt to be remembered. The entire edifice of Israelite worship was built on the idea of atonement. That guilt would be taken away and no longer remembered. For those paying attention, this is the worst kind of judgment that God could level on his people. Atonement will be removed with the destruction of the Temple. The part about being fuel for the judgment fire at the end of the chapter pales in comparison to it, strange as that may sound.
We aren’t told how the elders responded to this message, but the next few chapters don’t much change the tone of God’s pronouncements through Ezekiel, so we can assume it wasn’t repentance. Ezekiel will have some good and happy, if confusing, things to say, but he is far from done issuing judgment.