Should This Matter?

Ezekiel, at this point in my study, has begun to feel like a list of prophecies that basically all say the same thing: Jerusalem will be destroyed. While this may seem redundant to us, God had to repeat the same message over and over again because the Jewish people wouldn’t listen. They just couldn’t believe that God would destroy His city and temple. They had their reasons for their disbelief. God had made promises after all that sounded a whole lot like Jerusalem and His temple would stand forever. At the same time, however, God also promised destruction on Israel should they turn from Him. It was hard to reconcile these two promises without favoring one over the other. I guess the history of Israel is a good example why we can’t cherry-pick passages but must know the entire Word of God!

Ezekiel 19 is no different than the preceding chapters in that it guarantees the destruction of Jerusalem. The approach of this chapter, however, focuses on the end of the royal line of Judah, the house of David. To illustrate the end of the royal line of David, Ezekiel issues a lamentation (funeral son) for the princes of Israel which centers on the failure and end of 3 of the last 4 kings of Judah. The chapter concludes with the statement, “so that she hath no strong rod to be a scepter to rule” which acknowledges that the royal line is finished.

While there is a lot of great study topics in this chapter especially regarding the end of the royal line versus the promise of 2 Samuel 7:12-16, I want to focus on one particular topic that stuck out to me for the purpose of this post. It is something that I think we all can relate to:

How should we respond to the consequences of sin?

I know that, on the surface, this topic doesn’t seem to be in this chapter, but give me a chance to show you. Judah sinned and was therefore destined to suffer the consequences of that sin. How should Judah and her king respond?

Ezekiel 19:10-14: The Consequence of Sin and Judah’s Response

At the time this prophecy is given, many Jews had been taken captive from Judah into Babylon and they were anxious to hear their fate and the fate of Jerusalem. The people left in Jerusalem were ruled by Zedekiah, a vassal king to Babylon. Many false prophets had promised that Babylon would break and the captives would be returned to Jerusalem. Ezekiel corrects this notion. Not only would the captives remain in Babylon, Jerusalem would be destroyed.

Chapter 19 includes two allegories regarding the kings of Judah. I want to focus on the 2nd one for the purpose of this post. Here is the allegory:

Ezekiel 19:10-14

Thy mother is like a vine in thy blood, planted by the waters: she was fruitful and full of branches by reason of many waters. And she had strong rods for the scepters of them that bare rule, and her stature was exalted among the thick branches and she appeared in her height with the multitude of her branches. But she was plucked up in fury, she was cast down to the ground, and the east wind dried up her fruit: her strong rods were broken and withered; the fire consumed them. And now she is planted in the wilderness, in a dry and thirsty ground. And fire is gone of a rod of her branches, which hath devoured her fruit, so that she hath no strong rod to be a scepter to rule. This is a lamentation, and shall be for a lamentation.

With a some Bible study, it is simple to see the meaning of this allegory. The vine represents Israel, the rods for the branches represent kings of Judah. The east wind represents Babylon, and the wilderness is Israel’s exile in Babylon. This story is incredibly accurate to exactly what happens to Judah. Israel had a series of strong kings and was blessed with wealth and success from God. Unfortunately, due to her sin, Israel was punished by the invasion of Babylon which removed her king, Jehoiachin. He was captured along with other nobles and taken to Babylon where he lives the rest of his life (he is later taken out of prison in Babylon). The king of Babylon set up Jehoiachin’s uncle, Zedekiah, as a vassal king in Jerusalem. At the time of this parable, Zedekiah was under pressure to rebel against Babylon by allying with Egypt.

Note that the parable here COULD end at verse 13, “and now she is planted in the wilderness, in a dry and thirsty ground.” Israel’s fate COULD have ended after the 2nd invasion of Babylon where many were taken captive but many were still remaining in Jerusalem. But verse 14 tells the last part of the story. A fire started that consumes the fruit of the vine. Where did that fire start? It “…is gone out of a rod of her branches...”. The ultimate destruction of Jerusalem came from a king of Israel, the final king: Zedekiah! This was Zedekiah’s rebellion that brought on that final invasion and the termination the king’s rule in Judah.

History tells us that Zedekiah ignores God’s warning to not rebel and decides to unite with Egypt against Babylon. This decision proves to be disastrous for Jerusalem and results in a final invasion of the city where many are killed and taken captive. Zedekiah is taken to Babylon and killed. The city and temple are destroyed. Now, it is easy to see that the rod of verse 14 is Zedekiah and the fire that begins at that rod is Zedekiah’s rebellion which ultimately ends the rulers of the house of David.

Babylon’s initial takeover of Judah was prophesied a long time ago as a punishment for the sins of Judah under the particularly evil reign of Manasseh (2 Kings 23:26, 2 Kings 24:3-4, Jeremiah 15:4). God pleaded with Judah to repent of their sin on many occasions since Manasseh’s reign not because the Babylon invasion would be taken away, but to lessen the destructive effect of the invasion as Jeremiah 27 tells us:

Jeremiah 27:6-8

And now I have given these lands into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant; and the beasts of the field have I given him also to serve him. And all nations shall serve him, and his son, and his son’s son, until the very time of his land come: and then many nations and great kings shall serve themselves of him. And it shall come to pass that the nation and kingdom which will not serve the same Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, and that will not put their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, that nation will I punish, saith the Lord, with the sword, and with the famine, and with the pestilence, until I have consumed them by his hand.

God had already determined the punishment against Judah. God warns Judah to humble themselves and accept their punishment. This would require that they admit their culpability, though.

Jeremiah 27:11-12

But the nations that bring their neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him, those will I let remain still in their own land, saith the Lord; and they shall till it and dwell therein. I spake also to Zedekiah king of Judah according to all these words, saying, bring your necks under the yoke of the king of Babylon, and serve him and his people, and live. Why will ye die, thou and thy people…

If Zedekiah and the people of Judah accepted their punishment, they would be much better off than if they fought against the judgement of God. Yes. They would have to deal with submission to Babylon, but Jerusalem and the temple would have remained standing. Zedekiah could have continued to rule. Many people would have lived instead of died.

How Do I Respond to Sin’s Ramifications in My Life?

Now let’s bring this close to home. Do you see yourself fighting against the consequences of your sin? Do you even blame God for your problems even though you know that those issues are due to your own sin?

We all have experience in this! We know that when we choose to sin, there are often consequences that last long after our sin is complete.

Here is just one example. Sexual sin leads to an unplanned pregnancy for a single woman. The consequence of that sin is a child and the sacrifices it takes to take care of that child. Instead of focusing on eliminating the initial sin, our culture puts all its energy into reducing the consequences of the sin. Abortion is a prime example. Just eliminate the child through murder. Another way our society deals with sexual sin in this example is by pushing a mindset that being a single woman is a demonstration of strength and a good thing. They also encourage more government assistance and overreach to handle this situations.

Of course, we know that anyone can repent of their sin and gain God’s forgiveness. Surely Ezekiel understood this because in the previous chapter he states, “But if the wicked will turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statues, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die. All his transgressions that he hath committed, they shall not be mentioned unto him: in his righteousness that he hath done he shall live.” As experience demonstrates, just because God forgives our sin doesn’t mean that God will eradicate the consequences of our sin.

After sin, we have to deal with these ramifications which tend to make the initial sinful action, not worth the small satisfaction it provided at the time. Because of this, we tend to fight against the consequences. We may even blame GOD for them (for example: “Wow! God is really testing me!”)! Nevertheless, our fight against our sinful consequences often worsen our situation. In the case of the example above, abortion leads to a devaluation of life, guilt, and even suicide. Altering societies view of the consequence, leads to more women without any support from men and children without fathers. Women who are told that they should be able to easily handle being single mothers are frustrated that real life doesn’t match what they are told to be. Our tax dollars are shoveled into government programs that may alleviate stress but do nothing to combat the original problem.

When you sin, repent. Yet, understand that your sin’s ramifications can continue. God can give you the strength to get through them. Even in difficult circumstances can you emerge stronger and even blessed.

The Ultimate Consequence of Sin and Our Fight Against It

It is in our human nature to resist the results of our sin. Even the first consequence of sin has plagued humans since the beginning of time. We still fight it!

Genesis 2:17

But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.

All Christians know this story. Adam and Eve were created perfect. They were given one instruction. Only ONE! Unfortunately, Adam failed to obey the one rule God gave them. This sin created a very serious consequence: death.

This ramification not only affects Adam and Eve but all of the earth! Today, we still live with this consequence. And as is human nature, we rebel against it constantly.

In fact, we spend billions of dollars fighting death. Now, I am not trying to say that we shouldn’t take care of ourselves or go to the doctor. Those can be good things. But our hearts should be humble enough to acknowledge that we ALL deserve death. But sadly, it isn’t just the world that fears death and fight against it. We as Christians are the same. Death is the result of sin and even as Christians, we must go through death to live eternally. So think about this. Although, God has forgiven us of our sins, we still have to face the consequence of sin: death.

What I find interesting about our fight against death is that often times our efforts to resist death actually makes things harder for ourselves. Our medications come with an infinite list of side affects and addictions. We are more tempted to rely on man or medical science than God. We live in anxiety and fear.

Death is inevitable. But to live after death is up to you! Repent of your sin! Accept the culpability we deserve. Look forward to spending eternity with Christ. Only now will death elicit no fear from you.

1 Corinthians 15:55

Oh death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmoveable , always abounding in the work of the Lord, for as much as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.