Should This Matter?

Ezekiel 16 is probably a chapter that most people have not read and likely have never heard a sermon on. With graphic language and imagery, God is making a brutal point: Israel, despite every blessing from God, has given herself over to idolatry. I think the graphic imagery is shocking, yes, but also honest, brutally so. We all know that we need brutal honesty from time to time to shake us out of our predetermined mindsets. Here God attempts just that as He explains why He must punish Israel.

This is a long chapter (63 verses) but certainly worth the read. It is easy to see our very own lives described in devastating detail. I’ll provide a quick summary here.

God uses an allegory to describe Jerusalem (Israel). Jerusalem is like a baby girl left to die in the wilderness, not cared for or even washed of her blood. But a benefactor (God) sees her and says “Live” (vs. 6). Her rescuer not only saves her life, but causes her to grow and mature. Once she is grown, he betrothed her and enters into a covenant with her. He cleans her and anoints her with oil. Now that she is his, he clothes her as a queen with every fine covering possible. He decks her with jewels and gold and silver. He provides the finest food to eat. Her beauty became known among the nations around her. But, unfortunately, this queen did not stay true to her husband/rescuer. She began to trust in the beauty and things that her husband had given her. She prostitutes herself to the idols of the surrounding nations. She took all of the gifts bestowed upon her by her husband and gave them to her lovers (idols). Her clothes, wealth, embroidered work, food, and even her children are offered to these idols. She commits fornication with the surrounding nations: Egypt, Assyria, and Chaldea. Instead of receiving gifts from her lover as most harlots do, she gives away her gifts to her lovers to acquire more of them. As a result of her actions, Israel is to be punished like an adulterous woman. God will allow all of her lovers to see her fall and destroy her. Only then will God’s fury rest.

This allegory is a beautiful (albeit blunt) description of Israel’s history depicting Israel’s growth from her initial helpless state as a slave all the way to the powerful and wealthy kingdom that she becomes and then her sudden decline to destruction. In Egypt, Israel was left to die as nothing more than slaves. She was like an abandoned infant crying out for help. However, God did not abandon her. He sent a rescuer, Moses, to bring her out of Egypt. In the wilderness, at Mount Sinai, God meets with Israel and provides His law and makes a covenant Israel. In the wilderness, God miraculously provided for His people and they multiplied in number. Joshua takes Israel into the promised land and defeats most of her enemies. King David eventually defeats the rest and settles the city of David (Jerusalem). King Solomon builds God’s temple and becomes the wisest and wealthiest man in the world. Many from the surrounding nations came to see his wealth and wisdom for themselves. But, Israel was always plagued with idolatry. From the moment the people left Egypt until their life in Jerusalem, the people of Israel couldn’t stay way from the idolatry of the surrounding nations.

Of course, God had told them to burn the graven images of the nations they defeat in the promised land when He provided His law to them. Why? Because God knew it would ensnare them into idolatry. God warns them in Deuteronomy that to choose idolatry would be to choose destruction.

Deuteronomy 7:25

The graven images of their gods shall ye burn with fire: thou shalt not desire the silver of the gold that is on them, more take it unto thee, lest thou be snared therein, for it is an abomination to the Lord thy God.

Deuteronomy 8:19-20

And it shall be, if thou do at all forget the Lord thy God, and walk after other gods, and serve them and worship them, I testify against you this day that ye shall surely perish. As the nations which the Lord destroyeth before your face, so shall ye perish; because ye would not be obedient unto the voice of our God.

Of course, history tells us that Israel does not adhere to God’s command and she falls into the idolatry of the surrounding nations. The people end up placing alters to other gods in the high places and even in God’s temple! The people sacrifice everything they have to these gods – even their children in the horrible practice of child sacrifice.

In the allegory of chapter 16, God describes all of the gifts He bestowed upon Israel (His queen). These gifts were: beautiful clothing, wealth (gold/silver/jewels), broadened clothing (royal/priestly clothing), food, and an expanding kingdom (vs. 10-14). But what I find interesting is that Israel took the gifts that God had given her and used them for her idolatry (vs. 16-21). And it is here that I believe there is a great lesson to us.

Israel took her garments and used them to decorate her “high places” (altars to other gods often set on mountains or high buildings). She used her gold and silver and jewels to make graven images and would cover her idols with the broidered garments. She would offer the meat, oil, flour, and honey to her idols. Finally, she took her children and offered them as a sacrifice to the gods. Everything that God had given her, she gave to her lovers (idols).

It’s easy for us to look back over Israel’s history and shake our heads and wag our fingers. How could Israel throw away everything that God had given her to worthless idols? But this chapter isn’t here to just provide us a history lesson: it is a lesson for us today too! After all, those who refuse to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.

Think about our spiritual condition. He saved us when we were drenched in our own sin and destined for death. He washed us clean through the blood of Jesus Christ anointing us as His sons and daughters! He provides many blessings and gifts to us. So, are we staying true to Jesus Christ? Or have we found other things in our lives more important?

Do we take the gifts that God has given us and feed them to our idols? Let’s look at our finances. If someone were to look through our bank account, what would they learn about you? Would they see that you donate money to the poor, orphaned, and needy? Or would they see that you use the money you have only for yourself? Sadly, I bet that our finances would reveal our idols: materialism, vanity, self, etc. Now, analyze your time. If someone were to log your daily hours, what would they learn about you? Would they know that you were a Christian? Would they see you helping others and spending time in prayer or Bible Study? Like with our finances, our time would betray our idols: phones, laziness/apathy, self, etc.

Finally, let’s look at our children because they are a gift from God just as God says in verses 20-21. Are we feeding our children to our idols? Or are we giving them over to God? Our children belong to God. God even says they were “born unto me” and calls them “my children” in verse 20-21. If we are not preparing our children in the knowledge of God, spiritually, we are feeding them to our idols. Maybe we say we are too busy with work, ourselves, our phones, etc. We place so many things before our children. We hope that Sunday school will teach them or us so that we don’t actually have to give up anything to teach our children about God. But in the end, we are halting their future in God! We are minimizing their future impact in the world for God! This is one way that we may be allowing our children to be “devoured” by our idols.

Of course, there is the literal feeding of the children to idols as well. In the case of Israel, they actually practiced child sacrifice to Molech and Chemosh (two Canaanite gods) with some of the kings even sacrificing their own sons for a hand up in an upcoming battle. The children were burned alive. This practice began to take root among Israelites when Solomon allowed his wives, which he took from the surrounding nations, to practice their idolatry. Before long, the practice of child sacrifice took place just outside Jerusalem in the Valley of Hinnom but would also take place in the high places. It was only when the Jews endured the punishment described in this chapter, the destruction of Jerusalem and the exile to Babylon, that this horrific activity was finally demolished. In the case of today, we also sacrifice our children to an idol: sexual freedom. We call it abortion, but it is nothing more than child sacrifice. We take what should be a blessing from God, and we feed it to our idols. We kill our children for our convenience and sexual liberty. As we can tell from verses 20-21, God did not like the practice of child sacrifice back then and I can guarantee that He doesn’t like it now. Just as Israel did thousands of years ago, we are also incurring the judgement of God upon our heads. He sees us killing our children, His children. Instead of taking the blessing of a child and honoring God, we do the most abominable thing we can do.

Ezekiel 16:20-21

Moreover thou hast taken thy sons and thy daughters, whom thou has borne unto me, and these hast thou sacrificed unto them to be devoured. Is this of thy whoredoms a small matter, that thou hast slain my children, and delivered them to cause them to pass through the fire for them?

God has given us so much. We are expected to give it back to Him. It is an investment, and God is expecting a return. Just as a husband would expect for the gift he has given to his wife to be something enjoyed between just them, we are expected to cherish God’s blessings with God.

Take the parable of the talents, for example (Matthew 25:14-30). A master must leave on a journey but before he goes, he gives one of his servants 5 talents, another 2 talents, and to another 1 talent. The servant with 5 talents uses his 5 talents to earn another 5 talents for a total of 10. The servant with 2 talents gains 2 more. The servant with 1 talent, however, hid the money. So, when the master finally returns, the he asks for his talents back along with the gains. The first two servants were congratulated but the servant who hid the talent returned only the talent given back to the master. The master is angry that nothing worthwhile was done with the talent and that servant is cast “into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

How well are you investing God’s gifts? Remember, everything good is from God! Our life, our heart beat, our money, and our children are blessings God has given us! Do we waste them on our idols? Our idols can do nothing for us!