God’s Razor of Judgment
ezekiel 5:1-17
King James Version (KJV)
5 And
thou, son of man, take thee a sharp knife, take thee a barber's razor, and
cause it to pass upon thine head and upon thy beard: then take thee balances to
weigh, and divide the hair.
2 Thou shalt burn
with fire a third part in the midst of the city, when the days of the siege are
fulfilled: and thou shalt take a third part, and smite about it with a knife:
and a third part thou shalt scatter in the wind; and I will draw out a sword
after them.
3 Thou shalt also
take thereof a few in number, and bind them in thy skirts.
4 Then take of
them again, and cast them into the midst of the fire, and burn them in the
fire; for thereof shall a fire come forth into all the house of Israel.
5 Thus saith the
Lord God; This is Jerusalem: I have set it in the midst of the nations and
countries that are round about her.
6 And she hath
changed my judgments into wickedness more than the nations, and my statutes
more than the countries that are round about her: for they have refused my
judgments and my statutes, they have not walked in them.
7 Therefore thus
saith the Lord God; Because ye multiplied more than the nations that are round
about you, and have not walked in my statutes, neither have kept my judgments,
neither have done according to the judgments of the nations that are round
about you;
8 Therefore thus
saith the Lord God; Behold, I, even I, am against thee, and will execute
judgments in the midst of thee in the sight of the nations.
9 And I will do in
thee that which I have not done, and whereunto I will not do any more the like,
because of all thine abominations.
10 Therefore the
fathers shall eat the sons in the midst of thee, and the sons shall eat their
fathers; and I will execute judgments in thee, and the whole remnant of thee
will I scatter into all the winds.
11 Wherefore, as I
live, saith the Lord God; Surely, because thou hast defiled my sanctuary with
all thy detestable things, and with all thine abominations, therefore will I
also diminish thee; neither shall mine eye spare, neither will I have any pity.
12 A third part of
thee shall die with the pestilence, and with famine shall they be consumed in
the midst of thee: and a third part shall fall by the sword round about thee;
and I will scatter a third part into all the winds, and I will draw out a sword
after them.
13 Thus shall mine
anger be accomplished, and I will cause my fury to rest upon them, and I will
be comforted: and they shall know that I the Lord have spoken it in my zeal,
when I have accomplished my fury in them.
14 Moreover I will
make thee waste, and a reproach among the nations that are round about thee, in
the sight of all that pass by.
15 So it shall be
a reproach and a taunt, an instruction and an astonishment unto the nations
that are round about thee, when I shall execute judgments in thee in anger and
in fury and in furious rebukes. I the Lord have spoken it.
16 When I shall
send upon them the evil arrows of famine, which shall be for their destruction,
and which I will send to destroy you: and I will increase the famine upon you,
and will break your staff of bread:
17 So will I send upon you famine and evil beasts, and
they shall bereave thee: and pestilence and blood shall pass through thee; and
I will bring the sword upon thee. I the Lord have spoken it.
Christ Revealed In Ezekiel, Christology and the Person and work of the Holy Spirit are inextricably bound together. Although a messianic figure is not clearly discernible in Ezekiel’s final vision, several messianic titles and functions in the book indicate that a Messiah is part of his eschatological vision.
The title "Son of Man" occurs some ninety
times in Ezekiel. While the title is applied to Ezekiel himself, Jesus as His
favorite self-designation appropriated it. Therefore, Ezekiel may be regarded
as a type of Christ. As such, Ezekiel was empowered as a prophetic voice of the
messianic age when "the
Spirit of the lord fell” upon him (11:5).
The descent of the Holy Spirit upon Jesus at Jordan empowered Him to
articulate the advent of the messianic kingdom (Luke 4:18, 19).
5:1 –A sharp knife: What Ezekiel does as prophetic symbolism, Isaiah expresses in a
metaphor (Is. 7:20).
Once Ezekiel has a nice pile of cut hair, he will use a scale to weigh
it and divide it into three equal piles. The individual hairs in each pile
represent the people living in Jerusalem. The first pile he’ll burn on top of
his brick city—that will represent those who will die inside the city of
Jerusalem due to famine and disease. The second pile he’ll chop with his sword
around the brick—that will represent those who run out of the city and get
chopped down by enemy soldiers. The third pile he’ll toss into the wind—that
will represent those who will flee to other nations. But they won’t flee to
safety, for the Lord says that He will pursue them with a sword—meaning He will
kill a lot of them off using various methods. What we can learn from this
chapter is:
- The nations
around Israel are pretty horrific with their sadism, perversion, and
worship of demonic powers. The moral standards of such nations are
shockingly low, yet the Lord accuses His people of not even
meeting those standards. Then_
THE WRATH OF GOD(5-17)
- A change in heart attitude is all the Lord asked.
- When God convicts us of sin, He
does so in a way that points us towards hope and encourages us about our future
with Him.
5:2 Burn with fire:
This is defined more specifically as pestilence and
famine in
v. 12. When the days of the siege are fulfilled is after the 390 symbolic days
of 4:5.
5:5 Midst of the nations: God had placed Israel in a strategic position, and thus her
punishment will be more severe.
5:8 I, even, I am against thee: A phrase used often by Ezekiel to express God’s judgment.
5:10 Fathers shall eat: Cannibalism is possible during siege. It is predicted in Deut. 28:53 and Jer. 19:9, and attested in 2 Kin. 6:28, 29.
5:11 As I live: A divine oath found several times in Ezekiel.
5:12 The threefold judgment of pestilence,
famine and sword is found several times in Ezekiel; a fourth judgment of wild beasts is
added.
5:15 A reproach, and a taunt, an instruction and an
astonishment: Another use of four items.
More of Christ revealed.….. to be cont’d
Playwright Janet Irene Thomas
Founder/President/CEO
Bible Stories Theatre of
Fine & Performing Arts
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