Ezekiel Chapter Seven, God's Pattern of Judgment...
In our study of Ezekiel chapter seven, we will look at the pattern that God follows in judging the actions of His people. We will look at the example of God's judgment on Israel and apply it to the coming judgment of all mankind.
Ezekiel 7:1 & 2
"The word of the Lord came to me: 'Son of man, this is what the Sovereign Lord says to the land of Israel: "The end! The end has come upon the four corners of the land!"'" NIV translation
Although the prophet was sharing the fact that Israel was going to be led into the Babylonian captivity, we can learn from it today. We see that God always sends warning prior to His judgment. We have been given God's warning that He will judge all of the earth in the Book of Revelation.
Ezekiel 7:3 & 4
"'"The end is now upon you, and I will unleash my anger against you. I will judge you according to your conduct and repay you for all your detestable practices. I will not look on you with pity; I will not spare you. I will surely repay you for your conduct and for the detestable practices among you. Then you will know that I am the Lord."'" NIV translation
As we see here, the pattern for God's judgment begins with the conduct of mankind. God only judges man after they have rejected Him and His authority. We also see that it is universally applied to all who reject Him (nobody is able to pretend and get away with it).
We also see that God's judgment is the venting of His anger and that might make us uncomfortable. Too often, we have only heard that "God is love" which is true but He is also a jealous God. He is provoked to anger when His created beings reject Him. The purpose of this and all judgment is so that people will acknowledge the fact that He is Lord of all the things He has created.
Ezekiel 7:5
"'This is what the Sovereign Lord says, "Disaster! Unheard-of disaster! See, it comes!"'" NIV translation
To the people of Ezekiel's day, being captured by the Babylonians was an unthinkable disaster. The judgment that is coming on all of the earth is so terrible that it could not even be adequately described by John in Revelation. We have heard about the great depths of God's love but the heights of His wrath upon those who reject Him is just as big.