By: Dr. Dale Weckbacher
Text: Ezekiel
25:12-17
Romans
12:2
And do
not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your
mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable
and perfect will of God.
(NKJV)
As you may remember from
the previous posting from Ezekiel, Ezekiel
25:1-32:32 is a series of oracles to assure those in exile that God will
punish those who have mistreated them. The oracles against Egypt are there to
remind Israel and Judah not to misplace their trust that should be in the Lord
by placing it in Egypt. The text of Ezekiel
25:12-17 are the oracles consisting of proclamations against Edom and
Philistia, two enemies of God’s people one of which is part of the family of
Isaac and the other a longstanding enemy of Israel and Judah.
The first oracle is the
proclamation against Edom which occurs because of what Edom did against the
house of Judah by taking vengeance on them, offending Judah by avenging itself
on them (Ezekiel
25:12). For this reason, the Lord vows to stretch out His hand against them
by cutting off both man and beast and making Edom desolate. The specific
mention of the cities of Teman and Dedan indicates the desolation will stretch
from the northernmost part to the southernmost part of the country (Ezekiel
25:13). God intends to use His people Israel to bring about the devastation
of Edom in accordance with His anger and fury to show the people of Edom His
vengeance (Ezekiel
25:14).
The text then moves on to
the proclamation against Philistia. This too is a proclamation from the Lord
against the Philistines who have dealt vengefully with Judah with a spiteful
heart intent on destruction because of an old hatred against Judah (Ezekiel
25:15). The Lord vows to stretch out His hand against the Philistines by
cutting off the Cherethites and destroying the remnant of the seacoast (Ezekiel
25:16). The Lord’s judgment against the Philistines will come with a great
vengeance from the Lord involving furious rebukes to show them the Lord is the
Lord (Ezekiel
25:17).
The purpose of these
oracles from Ezekiel is to assure those exiled that God is just and will punish
the enemies of Israel and Judah for their treatment of God’s people. The
Edomites are the descendants of Esau the firstborn of Isaac (Genesis
25:29-34). Ezekiel
25:12 speaks of God having an issue with Edom due to their showing
vengeance against Judah, the roots of which come from the blessing of the firstborn
going to Jacob instead of Esau. In addition, Edom revolted against Judah’s
authority during the reign of Jehoram in Judah (2
Kings 8:16-22). This is a family struggle and perhaps why God allows His
people to take vengeance on them.
The Philistines are a
longstanding enemy of Israel and Judah. Perhaps the most well-known encounter
between Israel and the Philistines is the defeat of the giant Goliath by the
shepherd boy David (1
Samuel 17). However, even after the defeat of Goliath, the Philistines
continued to be an enemy of Israel due to the moral decline in Israel and Judah
(2
Chronicles 28:18-19). Even though God used the Philistines to humble Judah
due to the moral decline in the country, their vengefulness against Israel and
Judah cannot go unpunished.
The people of Edom are
like those who compromise their God-given birthright for the things of this
world with the Philistines like giants attacking the Church requiring a
shepherd’s intervention. As believers in Jesus as our Savior, we would like to
see our Churches filled with people seeking a relationship with Jesus Christ or
a closer and more intimate relationship with Jesus if they already have one.
However, there is a temptation to compromise teaching truth that might offend
someone such as pointing out sin in their lives. There can also be a temptation
not to offend someone, so they no longer contribute to the ministry. Members
and leaders in the Church must not sell the birthright of the Gospel through
compromise.
The Church has enemies and one arch enemy, Satan, who does
not consist of flesh and blood (Ephesians
6:12). Unfortunately, in places with freedom of religion, the Church
can become complacent by believing everyone likes them and be blindsided by
cultural goliaths that taunt the Church. The current goliath faced by the
Church is the woke culture that attempts to force acceptance of abortion, gay
marriage, transgenderism, and critical race theory. The only acceptable truth
for the Church is the Bible, the Word of God with any cultural norm violating
this truth deemed unacceptable. Do not fear hurling stones of God’s truth at
the cultural goliaths in the world so they come down.
If you are reading this
and have not prayed for the forgiveness of your sins making Jesus the Lord of
your life, or have drifted away from your relationship with Christ, I invite
you to pray with me now,
Dear Lord Jesus, I know I have sinned (Romans
3:23)
and know that the penalty for my sin is death (Romans
6:23). I ask you to forgive me of my sin and cleanse
me as you promise in your Word (1
John 1:9). I believe
you died, spent three days in the grave, and resurrected from the dead and now
declare you Lord of my life.
May God challenge,
convict, and bless everyone reading this post.
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