THE STORY OF JESUS: Ezekiel 7-9
“The land is full of bloodshed and the city is full of injustice.” (Ezekiel 9:9)
We need to realize that the detestable ways of the people were really bad.
We read these judgments in the context of our times, but those times were worse.
There were no human rights, and what courts there were served the king, not the law.
Foreigners, slaves, women, children, the elderly, the disabled – all were victims.
God is not just ticked off because He is hyper-sensitive… things were really bad.
And it was being practiced and sanctioned by rulers and religious leaders.
What was happening then would have made your stomach sick.
These judgments were not just an emotional outburst of an angry God.
They came after years and years of appeals and warnings.
As a Jesus follower, I do not take pleasure in these judgment words.
But I do get them; like Jesus I ought to hate such corruption and cruelty.
Like God, I ought to do what I can to help, to warn, to change it.
But in the end, if grace is refused, what else can God do?
Grace and mercy is available for all, but woe to those who refuse it.
What do you sense the Lord saying to you?
PRAYER
Lord, I am in no place to judge, my own heart has its own defects. Help me to hate sin, especially in me. And help me to stand with and for the oppressed, the victims of bloodshed and violence.