GRACE BIBLE FELLOWSHIP | 恩道堂

At the start of Ezekiel’s commissioning, God tells him in detail his task. He is to go to his own people in exile, who are spiritually stubborn, rebellious and feisty. His message will not be God loves you and you can do whatever you want. His message is God loves you and He is also holy, if you don’t repent He will judge you but if you return to Him, He will forgive you. This job will be a very tough job, but there is sweetness to the job, as symbolized by the sweet taste of the scroll, because God is amazingly pure, gracious, and despite His judgment on the rebellious, God will continue to be faithful to His promise to restore Israel in the future no matter what the current generation of Jews will do. Because the job is so tough, Ezekiel actually was bitter and did not want the job. So God sat him among his people for seven days in order to discipline him and for him to wrestle with his feelings.

Ezekiel’s prophetic role is liken to a watchman who warns a city of coming invasion or danger. If the watchman does not warn people of danger, he is liable for their death. Ezekiel is to warn the people to be faithful to the Mosaic Covenant. It is not specified whether death is spiritual or physical or both. In any case, if one truly has faith in God as his master, then he is secure spiritually, but if he sins he will incur God’s discipline, even physical death (1 Cor 11:30). Interestingly, God did not allow Ezekiel to preach regularly, but confined Ezekiel to his house for about 7 years until the fall of Jerusalem (33:21–22). He was also bounded with cords by his compatriots. Ezekiel only preached when God told him. Most of the time, people came to him to hear God’s word (8:1; 14:1–4; 20:1). This strange setup is most likely a way to deal with this rebellious people. Also, seven years of silence most likely corresponds to Ezekiel’s 7 days of rebellion against God (cf. 4:4-8).

Sometimes, it may seem like God’s work is strange. This is because we do not understand the circumstance as well as God. Drastic times calls for drastic measures. The Jews were extremely rebellious and apathetic toward God. God used Ezekiel in an unusual way in order to get their attention. In all times, pray that you will trust the wisdom of God and be marveled by His counsel. Even if God’s wisdom were to be foolish it is still wiser than any human wisdom (1 Cor. 1:25).

以西结一开始被召，神就详述了他的任务。他要到自己被掳之民那里去，而他们本是一群属灵顽固、悖逆与反叛之民。他要传达的信息并非神爱你，你可以为所欲为。他要传的信息是神爱你，但祂也是圣洁的；你若不悔改，祂会审判你，但你若愿意回转归神，祂会饶恕你。这个任务非常艰巨，但其中也有甘甜，如书卷的甜蜜所象征的，因为神的恩典与纯洁是超乎人的想象的；神虽然会审判悖逆的人，但祂仍会坚守承诺，日后复兴以色列。无论现今的犹太人会做什么，祂仍会如此。由于任务确实非常艰巨，以西结心里产生了苦毒，不想接这份工作。因此，神为了管教以西结并让他胜过内心的挣扎，神要他在他的子民中间坐七日。

以西结作先知好比城有了守望者，警戒人民即将降临的危险或攻击。守望者若不警戒人有关眼前的危险，他就得为他们的死亡负责。以西结当劝诫以色列民遵守摩西律法。经文并没说明这个死亡是灵性上的，肉体上的，还是两者都是。无论如何，倘若人真的信靠神为他的主，他的灵命就有了保障，但是他若犯罪，他仍会受到神的管教，甚至因此而死（林前11:30）。有趣的是，神并不允许以西结常常传道，乃将他限制在自己家中七年，直到耶路撒冷的沦陷（33:21-22）。他是被同胞用绳索捆绑的。以西结唯有受到神吩咐时才传道；多数时候，人们主动到他那里想听神的话（8:1; 14:1-4; 20:1）。这种不寻常的做法很有可能是一种对待悖逆之人的方式。再者，七年的沉默也大有可能与以西结和神七天的对抗有关。