HelpFinder Bible - Flipbook - Page 1098
Ezekiel
“ I F Y O U D O T H AT A G A I N , I will punish you,” a mother warns.
The child laughs and repeats the offense. True to her word, the mother
punishes the child. Only by following through with her warning will the
mother help the child learn that discipline is a consequence of offense.
What you will be
That’s what God was teaching the people of
reading about
Judah during Ezekiel’s time. In 605 BC, about
twelve years before Ezekiel’s ministry began,
1:1– 3:27
God calls Ezekiel to be a
King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon made Judah a
prophet
vassal state, taking a number of choice people
4:1 –7:27
back to Babylon, including Daniel. The people
Persistent sin will spell the
of Judah assumed that Jerusalem could never be
end for Judah
destroyed, but when King Jehoiakim of Judah
8:1– 11: 25
rebelled a few years later, Nebuchadnezzar
The departure of God’s glory
from Jerusalem
returned and sacked the city. He took thousands
of Judeans, including the young priest Ezekiel,
12:1– 24:27
Jerusalem’s coming exile
back to Babylon.
Both those deported and those left behind con25:1 – 32 :32
Messages of judgment on
tinued to dream of Nebuchadnezzar’s defeat and
surrounding nations
the return of the deportees to Judah. They stead33:1– 37: 28
fastly refused to believe that Jerusalem would
Messages of hope for
ever be destroyed.
restoration
In Jerusalem, the prophet Jeremiah warned of
38:1 – 39:29
coming destruction. To those deported, Ezekiel
Satan’s last great battle at
gave the same warning. Both urged the people
the end of time
to repent and get right with God. Both promised
40 :1 – 4 8:35
destruction if the people continued to turn their
The new Temple and the
return of God’s glory
backs on God. The people refused to listen to
either prophet. It was as though they believed there would be no consequences
for their evil actions.
But evil does have consequences. Refusing to obey God has consequences.
Refusing to listen to God’s prophets has consequences. Too late, the people of
Judah learned the severe consequences when Jerusalem fell and was utterly
destroyed.
As you read Ezekiel, think of consequences—the inevitable consequences of
good or evil. In the day in which we live, too often people fail to recognize that
actions have consequences.
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