1.
Again in the ninth year, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
2.
Son of man, write thee the name of the day, even of this same day: the king of Babylon set himself against Jerusalem this same day.
3.
And utter a parable unto the rebellious house, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Set on a pot, set it on, and also pour water into it:
4.
Gather the pieces thereof into it, even every good piece, the thigh, and the shoulder; fill it with the choice bones.
5.
Take the choice of the flock, and burn also the bones under it, and make it boil well, and let them seethe the bones of it therein.
6.
Wherefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Woe to the bloody city, to the pot whose scum is therein, and whose scum is not gone out of it! bring it out piece by piece; let no lot fall up on it.
7.
For her blood is in the midst of her; she set it upon the top of a rock; she poured it not upon the ground, to cover it with dust;
8.
That it might cause fury to come up to take vengeance; I have set her blood upon the top of a rock, that it should not be covered.
9.
Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Woe to the bloody city! I will even make the pile for fire great.
10.
Heap on wood, kindle the fire, consume the flesh, and spice it well, and let the bones be burned.
11.
Then set it empty upon the coals thereof, that the brass of it may be hot, and may burn, and that the filthiness of it may be molten in it, that the scum of it may be consumed.
12.
She hath wearied herself with lies, and her great scum went not forth out of her: her scum shall be in the fire.
13.
In thy filthiness is lewdness: because I have purged thee, and thou wast not purged, thou shalt not be purged from thy filthiness any more, till I have caused my fury to rest upon thee.
14.
I the LORD have spoken it: it shall come to pass, and I will do it; I will not go back, neither will I spare, neither will I repent; according to thy ways, and according to thy doings, shall they judge thee, saith the Lord GOD.
15.
Also the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
16.
Son of man, behold, I take away from thee the desire of thine eyes with a stroke: yet neither shalt thou mourn nor weep, neither shall thy tears run down.
17.
Forbear to cry, make no mourning for the dead, bind the tire of thine head upon thee, and put on thy shoes upon thy feet, and cover not thy lips, and eat not the bread of men.
18.
So I spake unto the people in the morning: and at even my wife died; and I did in the morning as I was commanded.
THE TEARLESS SORROW
‘So I spake unto the people in the morning: and at even my wife died; and I did in the morning as I was commanded.’
Ezekiel 24:18
I. We all know the striking though brief notice of the death of Ezekiel’s wife: she was taken away simply that the prophet’s conduct might be a type to the people. No sorrow was to be considered by him tantamount to fulfilling in each part his ministry; he might not grieve because it would hinder the lesson he was to inculcate.
II. Ezekiel’s life reads to us a lesson of no ordinary import.—The very ties of his life were created for the express purpose of being rent asunder, in order that he might show to the people of God by his sufferings the meaning of his warnings; his afflictions became the interpreters of his words, his personal bereavements the parallel comment on his discourses. ‘In the evening my wife died.’ And he was forbidden to weep. No rending of the heart’s affection—no human suffering, however keen—no tearing up by the roots of family ties, however close, were for one moment to enervate the vigour and force of his example. The expression of sorrow would have melted away the severe outline of that perfect form of resignation which he was to exhibit. Surely, brethren, the prophet of the captivity speaks, in words of no light import to us, of the necessity of our living for our people, and showing by patient sufferings and denials the truth, the reality, of what we daily read and hourly teach.
III. In every human experience there are times when the personal must be subordinated to the national and universal.—We must choke back our sobs, crush down our almost uncontrollable emotion, preserve a calm and tranquil exterior, that we may devote ourselves more earnestly and continuously to the crying need of others. There is nothing nobler than the self-restraint which anoints the head and washes the face, that it may have leisure from itself to do its life-work, and to press to its bosom those who are suffering around. There was an illustration of this in a recent railway accident, when a little girl, badly hurt, insisted on the helpers caring for others first.
Rev. E. Monro.
Illustrations
(1) ‘Ezekiel was told to veil his emotion for a specific reason, and as a sign to his people. But may we not staunch our flowing tears for yet another reason, when we remember into how much blessedness our dear ones have gone? Heaven is not far away, but enwraps us. In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, as the veil of mortality drops from over our vision, we see the presence in which we have ever been. They have found themselves surrounded by a great kindred, and they have known as they have been known, have recognised as they have been recognised. Many recognised Jesus, though in the Resurrection Body. It must be a great hour, when the soul passes unto that loving and rejoicing throng, to be welcomed into everlasting habitations of which our Lord spoke.’
(2) ‘Ezekiel’s natural tenderness is shown in the graphic words, “the desire of thine eyes.” He loved his wife with the most devoted attachment; but though he knew that she would be taken from him at a stroke, he spoke to the people in the morning as usual.
The lesson was obvious. However much the people might love their relatives, there would be no opportunity to mourn for them after the usual fashion; the most that would be possible would be to moan to one another. Oh for Ezekiel’s devotion!
I am His,
Not mine, not hers; I dare not weep for her
When God hath need of me.’
19.
And the people said unto me, Wilt thou not tell us what these things are to us, that thou doest so?
20.
Then I answered them, The word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
21.
Speak unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will profane my sanctuary, the excellency of your strength, the desire of your eyes, and that which your soul pitieth; and your sons and your daughters whom ye have left shall fall by the sword.
22.
And ye shall do as I have done: ye shall not cover your lips, nor eat the bread of men.
23.
And your tires shall be upon your heads, and your shoes upon your feet: ye shall not mourn nor weep; but ye shall pine away for your iniquities, and mourn one toward another.
24.
Thus Ezekiel is unto you a sign: according to all that he hath done shall ye do: and when this cometh, ye shall know that I am the Lord GOD.
25.
Also, thou son of man, shall it not be in the day when I take from them their strength, the joy of their glory, the desire of their eyes, and that whereupon they set their minds, their sons and their daughters,
26.
That he that escapeth in that day shall come unto thee, to cause thee to hear it with thine ears?
27.
In that day shall thy mouth be opened to him which is escaped, and thou shalt speak, and be no more dumb: and thou shalt be a sign unto them; and they shall know that I am the LORD.