In our study of Ezekiel chapter three, we will look at his call to be a watchman for God's people and how it applies to our lives today. We will find that it is just as relevant to the life of a Christian as it was to the prophet and we will see that God has given each and every one of us the same call. With that call comes a great deal of responsibility.
Now, if God speaks to you in this study, you can save your own personal notes on this page. Then, every time that you look at this study, your notes will automatically be added to the page. To add a note or to display your previous notes, click on the YOUR NOTES button.
He said to me, "Human being, eat what you see in front of you; eat this scroll. Then go and speak to the house of Isra'el." So I opened my mouth, and he gave me the scroll to eat,
As we saw in chapter 2, this scroll contained the Ten Commandments and God has told the prophet to eat them. This is the first step in God equipping the watchman for his ministry. This is a reminder that the Word of God should be a part of each and every believer but especially those that are called to preach and teach. God also told John to eat a scroll in Revelation 10.
as he said, "Human being, eat this scroll I am giving you; fill your insides with it." When I ate it, it tasted as sweet as honey.
What goes into our stomachs gives us the power for our bodies to function. God is letting us know that, in order to function properly as His people, we need to fill our stomachs with His Word. That is why, when Jesus was tempted by the devil, He quoted Deuteronomy 8:3 "Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God". It was sweet for the prophet to taste and that is the same thing that John said in Revelation. We need to ask ourselves if we, as Christians, find the words of God to be sweet to us. Do we long to read and study His Word in order to know Him more?
"Human being," he said to me, "go to the house of Isra'el, and speak my words to them.
Like Ezekiel, once the Word is living inside of us, we then have the power to go in the name of Jesus and to share that Word with others. The key thing in this verse is that he was told to go and share "my words" (speaking of God's words) and not his own.
For you are not being sent to a people with a difficult language and unintelligible speech, but to the house of Isra'el - not to many peoples with difficult languages and unintelligible speech, whose words you can't understand when you hear them. Without doubt, if I sent you to them, they would listen to you.
There will not be any language barriers in Ezekiel's ministry so, at the proper time, the people cannot use that as an excuse. Even for us today, it is just easier to go and to share the gospel with those who speak a different language than us. They usually pay more attention and want to hear and understand more than those who are more like us but, just like the prophet here, God may want you to go to those that are like you even if it is more difficult.
But the house of Isra'el will not be willing to listen to you, because they aren't willing to listen to me; since all the house of Isra'el are obstinate and hardhearted.
God explains that the people are not going to listen to Ezekiel because of the fact that their hearts are not open to hearing. The words may enter their ears but they will not penetrate the stubborn heart. This is also what Jesus was talking about in the letters to the churches when He said "He who has an ear to hear, let him hear" (see Revelation 2). The same is true today as many people may hear the good news that Jesus has paid for their sins but they do not let the words penetrate to their hearts and change them.
However, I am making you as defiant and obstinate as they are. Yes, I am making your resoluteness harder than flint, as hard as a diamond. So don't be afraid of them or depressed by how they look at you, because they are a rebellious house."
God continues to tell Ezekiel of how he is going to be used. Here, we see that God is going to make the prophet stand firm even though the people do not want to listen. This is speaking of patience which is one of the "fruits of the Spirit" that Paul talked about in Galatians 5. Just as God said that He was going to do this in the prophet, we can be assured that God will do the same in us through the Holy Spirit. Today, there are many that do not want to hear about the things of God but we, like Ezekiel, must be unyielding in our proclamation of the very Word of God. God said that He would make his head harder than flint which is a rock that is so hard that it is used to create a spark and a fire. May God make us so steadfast in His Word that it causes a fire in hearts around the world.
Then he said to me, "Human being, receive in your heart and hear with your ears all my words that I speak to you. Then go to the exiles, to your countrymen; and speak to them. Tell them, 'Here is what Adonai ELOHIM, says,' whether they listen or not."
Ezekiel has received his instructions and been reassured that God is with him. Now, he is told to go to those who are in exile and declare the Word of the Lord. This is just like what happened before Jesus was taken up to heaven. He gave us our instructions, reassured us that He would be with us, and told us to go (see Matthew 28:18-20). We, too, are told to go to those who are in exile as, without Christ, those around us are in captivity.
A spirit lifted me up, and I heard behind me a very loud sound - blessed be the glory of ADONAI from his place! It was the sound of the wings of the living creatures as they beat against each other, and the sound of the wheels next to them, a very loud sound.
Ezekiel begins to describe what happened next but he broke out in praise as God was behind him and on the move. As a Christian, you may know the feeling of knowing that God is with you and in control and many times that can just cause us to break out in worship as we meditate on that fact. When God is really moving in your life, worship is a natural reaction to that presence (glory).
So a spirit lifted me up and took me away. I went in bitterness and the heat of my spirit, with the hand of ADONAI strong on me. I went to the exiles who were living in Tel-Aviv, by the K'var River and stayed with them there in a stupefied state for seven days.
The Spirit of God took Ezekiel and placed him at Tel Abib where he was to share the message. The prophet is honest as he tells us that he didn't want to go and in fact was bitter and angry in his spirit. He had forgotten that falling on your face in worship of God is good but God is also worshiped when we obediently go and do what He has for us to do. Then, he tells us that for seven days he simply sat among the people in shock.
After seven days the word of ADONAI came to me: "Human being, I have appointed you to be a watchman for the house of Isra'el. When you hear a word from my mouth, you are to warn them for me.
God tells the prophet that he is a watchman for the house of Israel. This is talking about the fact that the cities had men stationed on top of the walls to watch for approaching danger. The job of the watchman was to alert the people so that they would be ready to defend themselves and not be destroyed. Likewise, Ezekiel is to listen and give the warning to God's people so that they might be saved. Although we do not have many walled cities today, this is much like the lifeguards that we have at beaches and pools. These people are trusted to keep people safe and warn them of approaching dangers such as rip currents and sharks. We, too, are called to sound the alarm and warn our fellow man that danger is coming in the form of judgment for sin.
If I say to a wicked person, 'You will certainly die'; and you fail to warn him, to speak and warn the wicked person to leave his wicked way and save his life; then that wicked person will die guilty; and I will hold you responsible for his death.
If a watchman did not warn the people of approaching danger, then they would die and he would be the cause. As we see in this verse, the same is true if Ezekiel does not warn the people that judgment for their sins is coming. What if the lifeguard saw a bunch of sharks approaching a group of swimmers and did not warn them? We would all agree that their injuries and possible death would be because of the lifeguard. We, too, have that same responsibility (if we are in Christ). God places people in our path every day that need to hear the gospel and, if we do not share the good news that Jesus Christ paid for their sins, their blood is on our heads because we had the power to warn them but did not do so.
On the other hand, if you warn the wicked person, and he doesn't turn from his wickedness or his wicked way, then he will still die guilty; but you will have saved your own life.
Ezekiel's job was to proclaim the Word of God to the people and trust God to work in them to bring them to repentance. The same is true for us today in that we are called to tell people the gospel of Jesus Christ but they must accept it and believe for themselves. Like Ezekiel, we must warn them that the penalty for sin is death and they can either accept the payment from Jesus or pay it for themselves. If they reject the Truth then they will die for their sins. When God says "you will have saved yourself" it does not mean that we will lose our salvation if we do not tell someone about Jesus but it does mean that we will have to answer for it in the judgment of saints. This is when Jesus hands out rewards for our service here on earth (see Revelation 20).
Similarly, when a righteous person turns away from his righteousness and commits wickedness, I will place a stumblingblock before him - he will die; because you failed to warn him, he will die in his sin; his righteous acts which he did will not be remembered; and I will hold you responsible for his death.
Throughout the Bible, the number two is associated with testimony and the establishment of truth. When God repeats something, it is wise for us to pay attention. Here the concept of the responsibility of the watchman is repeated and so we, too, should take this to heart. The stumbling block that is mentioned here is grace through Jesus Christ and that causes those who trust in their own actions for salvation to stumble and fall. They can do a million things right but, without grace, one bad thing will lead to destruction.
But if you warn the righteous person that a righteous person should not sin, and he doesn't sin; then he will certainly live, because he took the warning; and you too will have saved your life."
If the watchman warns the people and they are prepared, then they are saved from the coming danger. The same is true for us today in that, if we hear the good news of Jesus Christ and take it to heart, we are saved from the coming destruction and will live with Him forever. When it says that the watchman will be saved it is not talking about this salvation but about responsibility and the second judgment (rewards judgment for believers).
The hand of ADONAI came on me there, and he said to me, "Get up, go out to the valley, and I will speak with you there." So I got up and went out to the valley. The glory of ADONAI was there, like the glory I had seen by the K'var River; and I fell on my face.
After explaining his responsibility to him, God tells the prophet to go out into the plain. When he obeys, God is there once again. It may seem kind of strange that God does not just lay it all out there for Ezekiel but instead has him going here and there. Once again, when God shows up the prophet assumes the normal position which is face to the ground. Though God will never leave us, the closeness of our relationship with Him changes. If, like Ezekiel, we listen and obey Him, He will meet us where He sends us. If we do not listen and obey, we may go some other direction and miss the blessing that the prophet describes in seeing His glory.
A spirit entered me and put me on my feet. Then he spoke with me and said to me, "Go, shut yourself inside your house. Human being, you are going to be bound with ropes, unable to go out among the people. I will make your tongue stick to the roof of your mouth, so that you will be mute, unable to reprove them; for they are a rebellious house.
God tells Ezekiel that he is going to be persecuted (tied with ropes) and, even in the midst of the attacks on him, he is not going to be able to cry out or to curse them. This is the same thing that happened to Jesus in that, as they beat Him and even crucified Him, He did not curse those that were doing it. It is also a pattern for us to follow in that, if we are following Christ, we can expect persecution as well and our reaction should be the same. This reaction can only come from God as we see that it was God who closed Ezekiel's mouth. God has given us the same power through the presence of the Holy Spirit and, if we listen and obey, we can react like Jesus even in the face of severe trials.
But when I speak with you, I will open your mouth; and you will say to them, 'This is what Adonai ELOHIM says.' Whoever is inclined to listen will listen, and whoever is inclined to refuse will refuse, because they are a rebellious house.
Ezekiel was only to share the words that God gave him but he was to share them and leave the results up to God. It is a reminder that the watchman is only responsible for sounding the warning; the people are responsible for listening and obeying. The same is true in our sharing of the gospel in that, we are called to tell people of the Savior and how to be saved but the people must make their own choice of whether to obey. Too many people have forgotten that it is God who calls the people to salvation and it is even God who makes them able to hear and respond. We, like Ezekiel, are simply watchmen sounding the warning that judgment is coming (soon!).
Read about what we do with the data we gather and the rules you agree to by using this website in our privacy policy.