Hearts of Flesh

Posted on December 15, 2017 by wamplerp
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For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land. I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. Then you will live in the land I gave your ancestors; you will be my people, and I will be your God. I will save you from all your uncleanness. I will call for the grain and make it plentiful and will not bring famine upon you. I will increase the fruit of the trees and the crops of the field, so that you will no longer suffer disgrace among the nations because of famine. Then you will remember your evil ways and wicked deeds, and you will loathe yourselves for your sins and detestable practices. I want you to know that I am not doing this for your sake, declares the Sovereign Lord . Be ashamed and disgraced for your conduct, people of Israel! – Ezekiel 36:24‭-‬32

Well today is the day….Star Wars: The Last Jedi comes out in the theaters.  As a teenager I was very much a part of the original Star Wars phenomena.  I went to the first movie 15 times in the theaters and it transformed my outlook on the future to one in which we humans could one day travel and live in the stars.  I remember sleeping out under the stars on our deck and dreaming about being a star voyager like Luke Skywalker and Han Solo. Of course we are still a ways away from the reality of travelling to the stars, but we have made amazing strides.

So in the words of Yoda, and in honor of star wars….”Interesting this passage is”. It comes on the heels of the last passage in Ezekiel about “Muddying the Waters“. This passage also contains language that would be right at home in the new testament, “I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you”. This sounds very much like the Holy Spirit that Jesus promised to send (John 14:15-31). The water imagery is also very reminiscent of John the Baptist and Jesus baptizing with water along the Jordan River.

As I have floated through the old testament the concept of a heart has been used many times.  Back in the Psalms God described “hearts that live” when trying to explain how to please God (Psalm 69:30-36) and in Joshua we explored how our hearts (read souls) can be like water (Joshua 7:3-9).  In most cases, God has used the idea of our hearts to refer to our souls, the part inside of us that makes decisions and choices.  God can “channel our hearts” but only if we let Him and His Holy Spirit into our souls.

I really like the imagery when God says that He will “remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh” It made me ponder what it means to have a heart (read soul) of stone and how our souls would look different with a heart (soul) of flesh.  As a geologist I probably think of “stones” differently than most “normal” people.  In my mind they are durable, unchangeable, and fixed in their composition under most conditions.  So to carry the analogy to a logical conclusion, to have a heart of stone is to have a fixed and unchangeable soul.  The opposite of this is an organic and ever-changing soul (“heart of flesh”).

God explains how we achieve this heart of flesh. It is not by our own skills or might, in fact we are not even to take any credit for it.  God warned the people of Israel that “I want you to know that I am not doing this for your sake, declares the Sovereign Lord”.  We need only allow God to “put my Spirit in you”.  In other words to have a “heart of flesh”, we need to invite the Holy Spirit and God to dwell in our souls.  This is something that all of us can do at any time or place.  It does not require a college degree or special physical ability.  It merely requires humility and a realization that for our souls to be connected to God we need to have an “adapter”, the Holy Spirit. God will save us from all our uncleanness.  We do not need to do the heavy lifting, God has already done it.

Prayer: God thank You for giving us your Holy Spirit so we may have hearts of flesh and know You more deeply.

Posted in Christianity, Covenant, Discernment, Ezekiel, Following God, Free Will, God's Love for Us, Love for the Lost, The Earthly Realm, The Spiritual Realm | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Muddying the Waters

Posted on December 14, 2017 by wamplerp

Flower Pot Rocks in the Bay of Fundy, New Brunswick, Canada

For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I myself will search for my sheep and look after them. As a shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them, so will I look after my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on a day of clouds and darkness. I will bring them out from the nations and gather them from the countries, and I will bring them into their own land. I will pasture them on the mountains of Israel, in the ravines and in all the settlements in the land. I will tend them in a good pasture, and the mountain heights of Israel will be their grazing land. There they will lie down in good grazing land, and there they will feed in a rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. I myself will tend my sheep and have them lie down, declares the Sovereign Lord . I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the sleek and the strong I will destroy. I will shepherd the flock with justice.  “ ‘As for you, my flock, this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will judge between one sheep and another, and between rams and goats. Is it not enough for you to feed on the good pasture? Must you also trample the rest of your pasture with your feet? Is it not enough for you to drink clear water? Must you also muddy the rest with your feet? Must my flock feed on what you have trampled and drink what you have muddied with your feet? – Ezekiel 34:11‭-‬19

What an amazing and intimate picture of God buried here in the book of Ezekiel.  God is both Sovereign Lord and a personal Shepard searching and caring for lost sheep.  I am continually amazed at the references to the good Shepard in verses not traditionally considered to be prophetic here in the old testament, truly reflections of Him.

God as Shepard promises to look after us sheep and rescue us “from all the places where they were scattered on a day of clouds and darkness”.  God has our backs and will keep us safe from dangers.  I am not sure what is meant here by the day of clouds and darkness.  I suppose it could be a reference to one of the invasions of Jerusalem or Egypt described previously.  Certainly these were dark days in the eyes of some of the people on the receiving end of the invasions. It could also be interpreted more broadly to mean all the dark places in our lives as well that God is prepared to rescue us from.

The end result is a gathering of God’s people back to the “mountains of Israel, in the ravines and in all the settlements in the land”.  God is allowing what appears to be very dark and bad things to bring about something good, namely the return of His people to their own land.  This is another glimpse into the sometimes confusing “spiritual cycle” which allows what appear to be bad things to happen to good people.

God is taking personal responsibility for leading and tending the people of Israel at this point in time, and in the future through Jesus, the good Shepard for all of us God-followers. God says “I myself will tend my sheep and have them lie down..I will search for the lost and bring back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak”. The language here is so similar to the language of the Gospels when Jesus showed up in Galilee to heal the lame and find the lost.  God is promising to lead us beside quiet waters and quench the thirst of our very souls.

The God being described here is not something intangible, but a living, loving, and involved parent of His children – a resting place for lost sheep. Our response to God’s sheparding is also crucial. Are we rams or goats?  How do we treat each other and the blessings God provides?  Are we taking advantage of our pasture to grow and thrive, or are we mucking it up for others?

As a modern-day God follower I take this to mean either diluting the gospel or polluting it with our own, culture, commotion and clumsiness. I am reminded of the epic failure of some Christian leaders and the damage they caused for other believers just trying to hear and obey the Shepard. Don’t get me wrong, we are all flawed followers when it comes to being God’s sheep. We just need to humbly and carefully partake of the living water God provides without mucking it up for others.

Prayer: God thank You for this amazing picture of your intimate love and care for us.  Help me to be a sheep able to partake of your living water without mucking it up for others. 

Posted in Ezekiel, Following God, Free Will, God's Love for Us, Jesus, Love for the Lost, Prophecy, reconciliation, The Nature of God, The Spiritual Realm | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Abundant Waters

Posted on December 10, 2017 by wamplerp

Very large cedar stump in the Olympic Mountains of Washington

In the eleventh year, in the third month on the first day, the word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, say to Pharaoh king of Egypt and to his hordes: “ ‘Who can be compared with you in majesty? Consider Assyria, once a cedar in Lebanon, with beautiful branches overshadowing the forest; it towered on high, its top above the thick foliage. The waters nourished it, deep springs made it grow tall; their streams flowed all around its base and sent their channels to all the trees of the field. So it towered higher than all the trees of the field; its boughs increased and its branches grew long, spreading because of abundant waters. All the birds of the sky nested in its boughs, all the animals of the wild gave birth under its branches; all the great nations lived in its shade. It was majestic in beauty, with its spreading boughs, for its roots went down to abundant waters. The cedars in the garden of God could not rival it, nor could the junipers equal its boughs, nor could the plane trees compare with its branches— no tree in the garden of God could match its beauty. I made it beautiful with abundant branches, the envy of all the trees of Eden in the garden of God. “ ‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because the great cedar towered over the thick foliage, and because it was proud of its height, I gave it into the hands of the ruler of the nations, for him to deal with according to its wickedness. I cast it aside, and the most ruthless of foreign nations cut it down and left it. Its boughs fell on the mountains and in all the valleys; its branches lay broken in all the ravines of the land. All the nations of the earth came out from under its shade and left it. All the birds settled on the fallen tree, and all the wild animals lived among its branches. Therefore no other trees by the waters are ever to tower proudly on high, lifting their tops above the thick foliage. No other trees so well-watered are ever to reach such a height; they are all destined for death, for the earth below, among mortals who go down to the realm of the dead. “ ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: On the day it was brought down to the realm of the dead I covered the deep springs with mourning for it; I held back its streams, and its abundant waters were restrained. Because of it I clothed Lebanon with gloom, and all the trees of the field withered away. I made the nations tremble at the sound of its fall when I brought it down to the realm of the dead to be with those who go down to the pit. Then all the trees of Eden, the choicest and best of Lebanon, the well-watered trees, were consoled in the earth below. They too, like the great cedar, had gone down to the realm of the dead, to those killed by the sword, along with the armed men who lived in its shade among the nations. “ ‘Which of the trees of Eden can be compared with you in splendor and majesty? Yet you, too, will be brought down with the trees of Eden to the earth below; you will lie among the uncircumcised, with those killed by the sword. “ ‘This is Pharaoh and all his hordes, declares the Sovereign Lord .’ - Ezekiel 31:1‭-‬18

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Once again God is very specific about the time that this prophecy is being given. I’m not sure I understand why the specificity is needed here or for other passages in Ezekiel. Perhaps one day on down the river it will be come more clear.

God is once again speaking to Pharaoh the leader of Egypt. God begins by saying that the majesty of Pharaoh is beyond compare. Then He goes on to compare Assyria, not Egypt, to a mature cedar tree. “Consider Assyria, once a cedar in Lebanon, with beautiful branches overshadowing the forest; it towered on high, its top above the thick foliage.”

The water imagery then gets very rich and vivid, “The waters nourished it, deep springs made it grow tall; their streams flowed all around its base and sent their channels to all the trees of the field. So it towered higher than all the trees of the field; its boughs increased and its branches grew long, spreading because of abundant waters.” I am not sure I fully understand this imagery, but it is beautiful none the less. It conjures up a picture in my mind of a place of great beauty and abundant water where things just grow.

I recently returned from a trip to the Olympic Rain forest in Washington state and this imagery reminds of this lush place of abundant and exuberant growth. Things grow fast and strong there because they have “abundant water” and a climate that is temperate. Things grow throughout the year, in fact one of my colleagues who had never seen a rain forest before, commented that they “never stop growing”. Not a bad recommendation for all of us God-followers – we should never stop growing either.

Then the hyperbole takes a confusing turn, a murky metaphor to be sure. God says “no tree in the garden of God could match its beauty.” God is referring to Assyria. This seems like some sort of blasphemy for God to say that an earthly entity could match or even surpass a tree in the “garden of God”. But God acknowledges that He in fact made this tree to flourish and thrive. But God gave the tree over to “the hands of the ruler of the nations, for him to deal with according to its wickedness. God did this “Because the great cedar towered over the thick foliage, and because it was proud of its height”.

So it sounds like the people of Assyria, and by implication Pharaoh and us, have taken the abundant living water that God provides to make us flourish and interpreted it to be something that we are owed. They have become proud and conceited. This proud tree is about to be laid low “I cast it aside, and the most ruthless of foreign nations cut it down and left it. Its boughs fell on the mountains and in all the valleys; its branches lay broken in all the ravines of the land.” The once proud nation is to be scattered and broken.

God is telling Pharaoh, and prophetically all of those who are reading this, that “On the day it was brought down to the realm of the dead I covered the deep springs with mourning for it; I held back its streams, and its abundant waters were restrained.” This sounds like a profound separation from God, similar to the expulsion from the garden of Eden that Adam and Eve experienced. In a sense, we are still subject to this separation.

The bridge for this profound separation is the person of Jesus Christ. We have but to accept that He is this bridge and we free to pass from this land of Oblivion to the undiscovered country.

Prayer: God thank You for being the bridge so that we can have access to the abundant waters you provide.

Posted in Discernment, Exodus, God's Love for Us, Jesus, Prophecy, reconciliation, The Earthly Realm, The Nature of God, The Spiritual Realm | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

A Day of Clouds

Posted on November 3, 2017 by wamplerp

The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, prophesy and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: “ ‘Wail and say, “Alas for that day!”  For the day is near, the day of the Lord is near— a day of clouds, a time of doom for the nations.  A sword will come against Egypt, and anguish will come upon Cush. When the slain fall in Egypt, her wealth will be carried away and her foundations torn down.  Cush and Libya, Lydia and all Arabia, Kub and the people of the covenant land will fall by the sword along with Egypt.  “ ‘This is what the Lord says: “ ‘The allies of Egypt will fall and her proud strength will fail. From Migdol to Aswan they will fall by the sword within her, declares the Sovereign Lord .  “ ‘They will be desolate among desolate lands, and their cities will lie among ruined cities.  Then they will know that I am the Lord , when I set fire to Egypt and all her helpers are crushed.  “ ‘On that day messengers will go out from me in ships to frighten Cush out of her complacency. Anguish will take hold of them on the day of Egypt’s doom, for it is sure to come.  “ ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: “ ‘I will put an end to the hordes of Egypt by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon.  He and his army—the most ruthless of nations— will be brought in to destroy the land. They will draw their swords against Egypt and fill the land with the slain.  I will dry up the waters of the Nile and sell the land to an evil nation; by the hand of foreigners I will lay waste the land and everything in it. I the Lord have spoken.  ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: “ ‘I will destroy the idols and put an end to the images in Memphis. No longer will there be a prince in Egypt, and I will spread fear throughout the land.  I will lay waste Upper Egypt, set fire to Zoan and inflict punishment on Thebes.  I will pour out my wrath on Pelusium, the stronghold of Egypt, and wipe out the hordes of Thebes.  I will set fire to Egypt; Pelusium will writhe in agony. Thebes will be taken by storm; Memphis will be in constant distress.  The young men of Heliopolis and Bubastis will fall by the sword, and the cities themselves will go into captivity.  Dark will be the day at Tahpanhes when I break the yoke of Egypt; there her proud strength will come to an end. She will be covered with clouds, and her villages will go into captivity.  So I will inflict punishment on Egypt, and they will know that I am the Lord .’ ” Ezekiel 30:1‭-‬19

Today’s passage continues the dire prophecy against Egypt and Pharaoh. This time their day of doom comes with “a day of clouds”. What immediately comes to mind when I think of a day of clouds is my childhood growing up in Seattle, WA.  There were many times when we would go weeks without seeing the sun.  I do not think that is the image God is trying to convey here.

God up to this point has interacted with the people of Israel as a cloud in the temple, or even clouds high above. I think God is telling Pharaoh and the people of Egypt that He is going to show up in a dramatic and permeating way, like a cloud – a Godly condensate.

I suppose one could also view this “day of clouds” as a menacing, slate-grey, gathering of thunderheads ready to rain on everyone’s parade.  Perhaps these seemingly disparate views are really a distinction without a difference.  Whether God appears as a gentle dew or a drenching rain may depend on where one is standing.

Pharaoh and the Egyptian people are standing pridefully on the banks of the Nile thinking they are something special.  God makes it clear Who the true water source is in this parable.  He says “I will dry up the waters of the Nile and sell the land to an evil nation”.  God wants the Egyptian people to acknowledge that He is the true source of the Nile and all that it provides.

I think we all have “Nile Rivers” in our lives. Things and people in whom we place our trust rather than the God who made them. Perhaps the Egyptians were just more up front and “in your face” about it, but the end result is the same.  We must decide when the “day of clouds” arrives do we run for cover to avoid God’s rain, or do we allow God’s spirit to envelope us and permeate our very soul.

Prayer: God help me to receive Your presence as a permeating cloud, drenching my soul.

Posted in Covenant, Ezekiel, Following God, God's Love for Us, The Nature of God | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Self Sufficient Fish

Posted on October 3, 2017 by wamplerp

In the tenth year, in the tenth month on the twelfth day, the word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, set your face against Pharaoh king of Egypt and prophesy against him and against all Egypt. Speak to him and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: “ ‘I am against you, Pharaoh king of Egypt, you great monster lying among your streams. You say, “The Nile belongs to me; I made it for myself.” But I will put hooks in your jaws and make the fish of your streams stick to your scales. I will pull you out from among your streams, with all the fish sticking to your scales. I will leave you in the desert, you and all the fish of your streams. You will fall on the open field and not be gathered or picked up. I will give you as food to the beasts of the earth and the birds of the sky. Then all who live in Egypt will know that I am the Lord . “ ‘You have been a staff of reed for the people of Israel. When they grasped you with their hands, you splintered and you tore open their shoulders; when they leaned on you, you broke and their backs were wrenched. “ ‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will bring a sword against you and kill both man and beast. Egypt will become a desolate wasteland. Then they will know that I am the Lord . “ ‘Because you said, “The Nile is mine; I made it,” therefore I am against you and against your streams, and I will make the land of Egypt a ruin and a desolate waste from Migdol to Aswan, as far as the border of Cush. – Ezekiel 29:1‭-‬10

I’m not sure why this passage is so specific about timing but the prophecy is reported to the day. This prophecy is directed at Egypt and Pharaoh, king of Egypt. Pharaoh is described as a “great monster lying among your streams.” As we will soon see he has an appointment with a hook and a fisherman named God.

I find it somewhat interesting that Pharaoh is described as a monster lying among streams. In that part of the world there are few streams. The only real water source comes from the Nile. So I guess it is not clear what is meant by “streams”. The passage goes on to partially answer this question when it refers to the Nile and Pharaoh’s wish to take ownership and control it using canals and artificial water sources. It seems like there is more to this metaphor than meets the eye.

The metaphor begins to get a little murky when God goes on to say He “will put hooks in your jaws and make the fish of your streams stick to your scales. I will pull you out from among your streams, with all the fish sticking to your scales.” It sounds like Pharaoh is going to be unceremoniously yanked from his position of power like a fish on a hook, and the people of Egypt are going along for the ride “stuck like scales”.

Just yesterday I was cleaning some fish that I had previously yanked from the water on a hook. I remember distinctly as I was cleaning the fish that the scales did have a nasty habit of sticking to my hands and to the meat even after I filleted the fish. It is not entirely clear what sticky fish scales has to do with pharaoh and his posture towards God, but I’m hoping by the time I’m done pondering this passage it will become more clear.

As I have chewed on this passage it seems as if God is trying to use this metaphor to highlight the alternative reality that the Egyptians have created along the Nile. They have created an entire ecosystem apart from God. They have become comfortable and complacent and have no need of God. They are self-sufficient fish, scales and all.

Pharaoh, as king of Egypt, is the biggest fish of all and is partially responsible for creating the alternative reality in which they are living. Perhaps the scales “sticking” to Pharaoh is an allusion to the god-like status he has taken for himself above his people.

God is going to take these fish out of the comfortable “stream” they’ve been living in and place them in a dry and dusty desert where they will not be able to survive. They will be removed from the only god they have known – the Nile. They will die in the desert, separated from their god, “you will fall on the open field and not be gathered or picked up” – fish out of water. It sounds like they will not even have the privilege of becoming someone’s dinner. They will be “as food to the beasts of the earth and the birds of the sky”. They will become part of God’s ecosystem whether they like it or not. In the end God wins.

Although many aspects of this passage remain confusing, the take-home message for me is that we need to be cautious about complacency and becoming too comfortable in the “environments” we create for ourselves that do not include God. God wants us to be a bit uncomfortable here in this land of Oblivion. It is not our home, only a place where we will live for a time on our way to the Undiscovered Country.

Perhaps the scales “sticking” to Pharaoh is an illusion to the god-like status he has taken for himself above his people. He fancies himself as Lord of the Dance. In this prophecy God is reminding him that he is not.

Prayer: God help us to remember that we are part of Your “ecosystem”. We can choose to have You at the center or ourselves. Help us choose You.

Posted in Discernment, Ezekiel, Following God, God's Love for Us, Heaven, Obedience, Prophecy, The Earthly Realm, The Nature of God, The Spiritual Realm | Tagged , , , , , , | 5 Comments

The Pride of Your Heart

Posted on September 24, 2017 by wamplerp

The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, say to the ruler of Tyre, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: “ ‘In the pride of your heart you say, “I am a god; I sit on the throne of a god in the heart of the seas.” But you are a mere mortal and not a god, though you think you are as wise as a god.  Are you wiser than Daniel ? Is no secret hidden from you?  By your wisdom and understanding you have gained wealth for yourself and amassed gold and silver in your treasuries.  By your great skill in trading you have increased your wealth, and because of your wealth your heart has grown proud.  “ ‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: “ ‘Because you think you are wise, as wise as a god,  I am going to bring foreigners against you, the most ruthless of nations; they will draw their swords against your beauty and wisdom and pierce your shining splendor.  They will bring you down to the pit, and you will die a violent death in the heart of the seas.  Will you then say, “I am a god,” in the presence of those who kill you? You will be but a mortal, not a god, in the hands of those who slay you.  You will die the death of the uncircumcised at the hands of foreigners. I have spoken, declares the Sovereign Lord .’  – Ezekiel 28:1‭-‬10

The core issue in this passage is pride. The pride of the king of Tyre, and the pride of all who are reading the passage. Water comes in a couple of times in the form of the sea. The king of Tyre seems to think that he rules the seas, God has another idea.

The main character here is still Ezekiel, but he is sharing a prophecy with the king of Tyre who apparently has an overinflated view of himself, “In the pride of your heart you say, “I am a god; I sit on the throne of a god in the heart of the seas””. This sounds like a “self-made” man who is successful by all earthly measures.

In previous passages the heart has been used metaphorically to represent the soul.  So God is saying to the king that his soul is full of pride about his power and position. He is so full of himself that there is no room for God. He also apparently thinks he is as wise as God, a dangerous position to be sure.

God tells the king that he should prepare for a wake-up call in the form of foreigners invading and sending him to the “depths of the pit” and the “heart of the seas”. I am not sure exactly what this means, but it doesn’t sound good.

It seems that the root of the king’s pride is wealth acquired through “great skill”.  This king was the successful day trader of his day.

The take-home message for me here is that we should be always be examining ourselves and our hearts to be sure there is room for God. We should also be wary of attributing our success to our own ingenuity and intelligence.

Prayer: Help to make room in my heart for you and see the ways that pride is getting in the way.

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Shipwreck

Posted on August 27, 2017 by wamplerp

“ ‘The ships of Tarshish serve as carriers for your wares. You are filled with heavy cargo as you sail the sea.  Your oarsmen take you out to the high seas. But the east wind will break you to pieces far out at sea.  Your wealth, merchandise and wares, your mariners, sailors and shipwrights, your merchants and all your soldiers, and everyone else on board will sink into the heart of the sea on the day of your shipwreck.  The shorelands will quake when your sailors cry out.  All who handle the oars will abandon their ships; the mariners and all the sailors will stand on the shore.  They will raise their voice and cry bitterly over you; they will sprinkle dust on their heads and roll in ashes.  They will shave their heads because of you and will put on sackcloth. They will weep over you with anguish of soul and with bitter mourning.  As they wail and mourn over you, they will take up a lament concerning you: “Who was ever silenced like Tyre, surrounded by the sea?”  When your merchandise went out on the seas, you satisfied many nations; with your great wealth and your wares you enriched the kings of the earth.  Now you are shattered by the sea in the depths of the waters; your wares and all your company have gone down with you.  All who live in the coastlands are appalled at you; their kings shudder with horror and their faces are distorted with fear.  The merchants among the nations scoff at you; you have come to a horrible end and will be no more.’ -Ezekiel 27:25‭-‬36

I have taken numerous trips to Haiti over the last 10 years or so and every time I fly into Port-au-Prince I am peering out the window to see if I can see a shipwreck that is visible just off the coast.  I am not sure when this ship met it’s end, but it must have been heartbreaking to sink so close to land. The shipwreck described in this passage must have been equally disheartening.

As I have chewed on this passage I have been reflecting on what typically causes ships to wreck.  Typically they either 1) encounter an immovable object that they were not aware of or could not avoid; or 2) they are overcome by wind or storms that are beyond the ships ability to stay afloat.  It struck me that both of these ways to wreck a ship would apply metaphorically to God.  He is certainly an immovable object which one would be wise to know about and avoid “running into”.  God also sends storms into our lives like those He sent into Job’s life.  I do not think He does this to “sink” us but rather to force our reliance on Him.  We can choose to allow our boat to be piloted by Him or we can take the reigns and take our chances.

In many ways this seems like a retelling of the story in the previous passage.  The added details here mainly relate to Tyre’s position and reputation as a trading port and to the “shipwreck”. The details described here remain reminiscent of a regional earthquake and rearranging of the shoreline. Especially the timing of shipwreck, “The shorelands will quake when your sailors cry out”.  Now this may be totally metaphorical and have nothing to do with an actual earth event, but if there were an earthquake near the coast it would not be surprising for it to generate a tsunami which could certainly wreak havoc for a ship if it was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

There is also an almost ecclesiastical hopelessness and futility embedded in this passage. Like the passage immortalized by the Byrds in the sixties when they sang “Turn, turn, turn (To Everything There Is a Season)” (Ecclesiastes 3:1-8). All the running and sailing about with wares will end in a pile of debris on the bottom of the sea. It does not matter how much they know about trading or sailing the end result is the same.

I take this as a cautionary passage that we should not place our trust, or invest our time here on Earth, on ephemeral things.  We should have our eyes fixed on the horizon, and on God, so we can successfully navigate from this land of Oblivion to the undiscovered country.

Prayer: God help us to place our trust in you and keep our eyes fixed on what is important to You. 

Posted in Conflict, Death and Dying, Ezekiel, Following God, Free Will, God's Love for Us, Haiti, Obedience, The Earthly Realm, The Spiritual Realm, Trusting God | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments

Trembling Coastlands

Posted on August 15, 2017 by wamplerp

TyreThey will plunder your wealth and loot your merchandise; they will break down your walls and demolish your fine houses and throw your stones, timber and rubble into the sea. I will put an end to your noisy songs, and the music of your harps will be heard no more. I will make you a bare rock, and you will become a place to spread fishnets. You will never be rebuilt, for I the Lord have spoken, declares the Sovereign Lord .  “This is what the Sovereign Lord says to Tyre: Will not the coastlands tremble at the sound of your fall, when the wounded groan and the slaughter takes place in you? Then all the princes of the coast will step down from their thrones and lay aside their robes and take off their embroidered garments. Clothed with terror, they will sit on the ground, trembling every moment, appalled at you. Then they will take up a lament concerning you and say to you: “ ‘How you are destroyed, city of renown, peopled by men of the sea! You were a power on the seas, you and your citizens; you put your terror on all who lived there.  Now the coastlands tremble on the day of your fall; the islands in the sea are terrified at your collapse.’  “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: When I make you a desolate city, like cities no longer inhabited, and when I bring the ocean depths over you and its vast waters cover you, then I will bring you down with those who go down to the pit, to the people of long ago. I will make you dwell in the earth below, as in ancient ruins, with those who go down to the pit, and you will not return or take your place in the land of the living. I will bring you to a horrible end and you will be no more. You will be sought, but you will never again be found, declares the Sovereign Lord .” – Ezekiel 26:12‭-‬21

Today’s passage is a continuation of the description of the coming calamity for the city of Tyre, which is in modern-day Lebanon.  I did a little investigation in to this location because I was curious about all the talk in the previous passages, and this passage, about this location being under the sea in the future (“you will become a place to spread fishnets”).

When I investigated the location in Google Earth I learned two interesting things: 1) the ruins of the Phoenician City of Tyre described here are still quite visible along the southern shore of a peninsula in modern day Lebanon (33°16’06.62″ N 35°11’43.68″ E); 2) These ruins appear to extend out into the ocean almost as if part of the city was in fact submerged.

God promises in this passage that the city will never be rebuilt after it is destroyed. Now there does appear to be a city of Tyre on the map which would imply that a city was rebuilt, but there is also the presence of the ruins of the older city which are still there.  Perhaps God meant that the city would not be able to exist at the location described here, which may be accurate. Either way it is interesting that there is abundant evidence still at this location to examine.

God goes on to talk about how this destruction of Tyre will impact those who live there and the surrounding towns. The “princes” are going to be freaked out by whatever happens so much that they will “sit on the ground, trembling every moment, appalled”. What is interesting is in the next couple of verses the very coast is said to “tremble on the day of your fall”.

This could be completely metaphorical or describing an emotional rather than a physical reality, but I find three things interesting about the description of this event as a geologist: 1) the surrounding towns were apparently affected in some way (“all the princes of the coast will step down from their thrones and lay aside their robes”); 2) the coastline was “trembling” (“coastlands tremble”); 3) the location of the town was submerged (“I bring the ocean depths over you and its vast waters cover you”).

All of these events are consistent with an earthquake, widespread chaos and damage, and associated land subsidence. Now all of these things could also be describing a battle or some other human event, but I do find to description odd for that sort of calamity.

I am not sure what larger message I can glean from this passage other than that God is God and we are not.  If he chooses to allow a town to be submerged under the sea, whether it be from an earthquake or some other event, so be it.  In this case it seems the reason was that the people of Tyre were taking advantage of the people of Israel while God was disciplining them.  Sort of like when you break up a fight and one of the parties takes a cheap shot while you have the other party restrained. Never a good place to be – between God and the subject of His wrath.

Prayer: God make your plans clear to us so that we do not get between You and those You are trying to correct.

Posted in Ezekiel, Prophecy, The Earthly Realm, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Open Doors

Posted on August 14, 2017 by wamplerp

 

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAIn the eleventh month of the twelfth year, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, because Tyre has said of Jerusalem, ‘Aha! The gate to the nations is broken, and its doors have swung open to me; now that she lies in ruins I will prosper,’ therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against you, Tyre, and I will bring many nations against you, like the sea casting up its waves. They will destroy the walls of Tyre and pull down her towers; I will scrape away her rubble and make her a bare rock. Out in the sea she will become a place to spread fishnets, for I have spoken, declares the Sovereign Lord . She will become plunder for the nations, and her settlements on the mainland will be ravaged by the sword. Then they will know that I am the Lord . – Ezekiel 26:1‭-‬6

This passage is one of a litany of judgments that are to befall the nation’s surrounding Israel if they take advantage of God’s judgement of Jerusalem. The nation of Tyre was an ancient Phoenician port city, in what is now Lebanon. God is warning the nation of Tyre not to take advantage of the destruction God has allowed in Jerusalem.

Jerusalem, the city of David, is referred to in the passage as “the gate to the nations”.  In yesterday’s post God shared a hard prophecy with Ezekiel about his wife and the temple being destroyed. This is what God is referring to when he says in this passage “its doors have swung open” Taken literally, this might mean God does not want the nation of Tyre to rob and pillage Jerusalem while He is punishing Israel. This makes sense, but as as I have ruminated on this passage another meaning of this story has occurred to me.

At this point in history God is not ready to “open up the gates” of “the city” to the likes of the people of Tyre. God is still desperately trying to get the attention, and affection, of his chosen people, the Israelites. His special relationship with them is still pretty exclusive. Fortunately for me, and all other modern-day God followers, the snare has been broken and all who choose to do so can now enter the city (the kingdom of heaven) freely.

God says He will be against Tyre, bringing many nation’s against Tyre, like “the sea casting up it’s waves”. God goes on to say “I will scrape away her rubble and make her a bare rock” – sounds like extreme erosion to this geologist. As many homeowners along the sea can attest, fighting the sea is often a loosing battle and one that is better to avoid.

The passage goes on to describe Tyre as, “Out in the sea she will become a place to spread fishnets”. This description has me a little confused. It almost sounds like this coastal town will soon become part of the sea through land subsidence, a rising sea, or perhaps erosion? I will have to ponder the meaning of this murky metaphor as I continue down the river.

The take home for me from this passage is that God has extended His arm and opened the gates to all those who are willing to faithfully follow Him. We need not worry like the people of Tyre that we will be pounded into a pulp by wave upon wave of erosive seas.

Prayer: God thank you for opening the gates to all those who choose to follow You.

SDG
Posted in Covenant, Ezekiel, Following God, God's Love for Us, Prophecy, Sharing the Gospel, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

A Fugitive Will Come…

Posted on August 13, 2017 by wamplerp

The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, with one blow I am about to take away from you the delight of your eyes. Yet do not lament or weep or shed any tears. Groan quietly; do not mourn for the dead. Keep your turban fastened and your sandals on your feet; do not cover your mustache and beard or eat the customary food of mourners.”  So I spoke to the people in the morning, and in the evening my wife died. The next morning I did as I had been commanded.  Then the people asked me, “Won’t you tell us what these things have to do with us? Why are you acting like this?”  So I said to them, “The word of the Lord came to me: Say to the people of Israel, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am about to desecrate my sanctuary—the stronghold in which you take pride, the delight of your eyes, the object of your affection. The sons and daughters you left behind will fall by the sword. And you will do as I have done. You will not cover your mustache and beard or eat the customary food of mourners. You will keep your turbans on your heads and your sandals on your feet. You will not mourn or weep but will waste away because of your sins and groan among yourselves. Ezekiel will be a sign to you; you will do just as he has done. When this happens, you will know that I am the Sovereign Lord .’  “And you, son of man, on the day I take away their stronghold, their joy and glory, the delight of their eyes, their heart’s desire, and their sons and daughters as well— on that day a fugitive will come to tell you the news. At that time your mouth will be opened; you will speak with him and will no longer be silent. So you will be a sign to them, and they will know that I am the Lord .” – Ezekiel 24:15‭-‬27

God is sharing a personal prophecy with Ezekiel in this passage. He is predicting the death of a very important person, his wife – “the delight of your eyes”. This is likely to be a rough bit of water and God wants Ezekiel to be ready. The water reference is to tears, samples of our souls, as we will see this is something God directs Ezekiel not to shed.

This must have been a hard prophecy to hear for Ezekiel – on par with some of the things Job went through as he faced wave upon wave of calamities in his life. God also seems to require Ezekiel  to “Groan quietly; do not mourn for the dead”. So not only is he going to lose his wife, but he cannot even be sad about it. This teaching is right up there with some of Jesus’ teachings in the sermon on the mount in terms of level of difficulty, both to understand and to do.

It sounds like this passage is predicting the “death” of something very dear to the people of Israel, presumably the temple. Why would God remove Ezekiel’s wife and the temple?  I think the answer lies near the middle of the passage, when God directs Ezekiel to tell the people, “I am about to desecrate my sanctuary—the stronghold in which you take pride, the delight of your eyes, the object of your affection“. The issue, it seems, is the posture and perspective of the people. God wants to be the object of the people’s affection and the delight of their eyes before all else, even the temple.

The passage ends with an interesting riffle. On the very day that God is to take away their “stronghold, their joy and glory, the delight of their eyes, their heart’s desire, and their sons and daughters as well” God sends a “fugitive”. The fugitive will restore Ezekiel’s voice and share “news” with him. It may be a stretch, but it seems that this part of the passage contains a reflection of Him. The coming “Fugitive” sounds a lot like a young man from Galilee that was a fugitive almost from birth (Matthew 2:13). This fugitive will share news, good news?

The take home message for me in this passage is that God wants to be the object of our affection, the delight of our eyes, and the stronghold in which we take pride. He has wanted that from the  beginning and He wants the same from us today.

Prayer: God help me to place you first in my life, and make you the delight of my eyes, and the object of my affection. 

Posted in Ezekiel, God's Love for Us, Jesus | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment