Ezekiel 4 Legos in the Bible (kinda?)

WEEK  23                                              Ezekiel 4

SATURDAY  Reflections

If Legos would have been around in Ezekiel's day, I imagine God would have told Ezekiel to make a town out of Legos and set Lego siege engines against it. This may sound foolish but this is exactly what God told Ezekiel to do (absent the Legos). After his modeling project, Ezekiel was supposed to lie down on his left side then his right side to represent the iniquity of Israel and Judah.

 

There had to be a lot of people wondering what the prophet was up to doing this day after day. Each time someone would ask it would be another opportunity for Ezekiel to share God's message. It may be strange but God knows what each person and each group needs to experience before they will face their sins. Before you think this is really strange, think about some of the strange props speakers and preachers have used to get their point across. Consider art which is made to describe the artist's concerns or emotions. Maybe this isn't as strange as we may think.

Eze 4:1-17
(1)  Thou also, son of man, take thee a tile, and lay it before thee, and pourtray upon it the city, even Jerusalem:
(2)  And lay siege against it, and build a fort against it, and cast a mount against it; set the camp also against it, and set battering rams against it round about.
(3)  Moreover take thou unto thee an iron pan, and set it for a wall of iron between thee and the city: and set thy face against it, and it shall be besieged, and thou shalt lay siege against it. This shall be a sign to the house of Israel.
(4)  Lie thou also upon thy left side, and lay the iniquity of the house of Israel upon it: according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon it thou shalt bear their iniquity.
(5)  For I have laid upon thee the years of their iniquity, according to the number of the days, three hundred and ninety days: so shalt thou bear the iniquity of the house of Israel.
(6)  And when thou hast accomplished them, lie again on thy right side, and thou shalt bear the iniquity of the house of Judah forty days: I have appointed thee each day for a year.
(7)  Therefore thou shalt set thy face toward the siege of Jerusalem, and thine arm shall be uncovered, and thou shalt prophesy against it.
(8)  And, behold, I will lay bands upon thee, and thou shalt not turn thee from one side to another, till thou hast ended the days of thy siege.
(9)  Take thou also unto thee wheat, and barley, and beans, and lentiles, and millet, and fitches, and put them in one vessel, and make thee bread thereof, according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon thy side, three hundred and ninety days shalt thou eat thereof.
(10)  And thy meat which thou shalt eat shall be by weight, twenty shekels a day: from time to time shalt thou eat it.
(11)  Thou shalt drink also water by measure, the sixth part of an hin: from time to time shalt thou drink.
(12)  And thou shalt eat it as barley cakes, and thou shalt bake it with dung that cometh out of man, in their sight.
(13)  And the LORD said, Even thus shall the children of Israel eat their defiled bread among the Gentiles, whither I will drive them.
(14)  Then said I, Ah Lord GOD! behold, my soul hath not been polluted: for from my youth up even till now have I not eaten of that which dieth of itself, or is torn in pieces; neither came there abominable flesh into my mouth.
(15)  Then he said unto me, Lo, I have given thee cow's dung for man's dung, and thou shalt prepare thy bread therewith.
(16)  Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, behold, I will break the staff of bread in Jerusalem: and they shall eat bread by weight, and with care; and they shall drink water by measure, and with astonishment:
(17)  That they may want bread and water, and be astonied one with another, and consume away for their iniquity.

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Hosea 3

WEEK 23                                              Hosea 3

FRIDAY  Reflections

Gomer's lifestyle led her into insurmountable debt. By running away from her husband, she didn't find a better life, but one that took everything she had and then even took her freedom. This is the same thing that was happening to Israel. They were on a path to slavery, yet God's plan as he told Hosea to do was to buy back his wayward wife. Hosea's love not only cost him something again. 

On top of the cost which wasn't a lot, indicating she wasn't worth much, the prophet we can assume had the shame of community which knew what was going on. This, however, was probably not discussed much as Hosea's response would have been, Yes, Gomer has treated me poorly but you've done the same to God. 

We may want to thank God we aren't called to this life but aren't we? Love your enemies, do good to those that despise you, turn the other cheek, love as I have loved you. Perhaps we have been called to live more like Hosea than we might originally think. After all, aren't we supposed to be Christ-like?

Hos 3:1-5
(1)  Then said the LORD unto me, Go yet, love a woman beloved of her friend, yet an adulteress, according to the love of the LORD toward the children of Israel, who look to other gods, and love flagons of wine.
(2)  So I bought her to me for fifteen pieces of silver, and for an homer of barley, and an half homer of barley:
(3)  And I said unto her, Thou shalt abide for me many days; thou shalt not play the harlot, and thou shalt not be for another man: so will I also be for thee.
(4)  For the children of Israel shall abide many days without a king, and without a prince, and without a sacrifice, and without an image, and without an ephod, and without teraphim:
(5)  Afterward shall the children of Israel return, and seek the LORD their God, and David their king; and shall fear the LORD and his goodness in the latter days.

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Matthew 23

 Matthew 23

 

THURSDAY  Reflections

Jesus is giving a warning to his disciples and the people about not being like so many of the religious people of that day. There are three things I would like to highlight. 

Jesus' command not to be called Father or teacher isn't a command not to use these titles, as we see apostle, teacher, pastor, and prophet all used in the book of Acts. It is, however, a command not to seek personal recognition or authority. 

Jesus doesn't say we don't need to clean up the appearance of our lives (the outward), but to focus on the inside. I have seen this used as an excuse for people to continue looking like (and acting like) the world they came out of. Jesus isn't saying we shouldn't clean up the outward appearance, but we shouldn't focus on just looking good to others. This isn't saying someone has to put on a suit or talk a certain way (Victorian English), but considering the culture they live in, it might. Again it's our focus, who we truly are first, and when that changes, we won't have to worry about the outside because it will change too.

Lastly, after the criticisms of the things going on in religious Jerusalem, Jesus weeps over them. Jesus cares even about those who are rejecting him and those that live in hypocrisy. I hear a lot of criticism about hypocrisy, but not a lot of tears, at least in my area of the planet. I can't see how we can be justified in one if we aren't moved by the other.  

MATTHEW 23 KJV

23 Then spake Jesus to the multitude, and to his disciples,

2 Saying The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat:

3 All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not.

4 For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men's shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers.

5 But all their works they do for to be seen of men: they make broad their phylacteries, and enlarge the borders of their garments,

6 And love the uppermost rooms at feasts, and the chief seats in the synagogues,

7 And greetings in the markets, and to be called of men, Rabbi, Rabbi.

8 But be not ye called Rabbi: for one is your Master, even Christ; and all ye are brethren.

9 And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.

10 Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ.

11 But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant.

12 And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.

13 But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.

14 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.

15 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.

16 Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor!

17 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold?

18 And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty.

19 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift?

20 Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon.

21 And whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein.

22 And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon.

23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.

24 Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel.

25 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess.

26 Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.

27 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness.

28 Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.

29 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous,

30 And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets.

31 Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets.

32 Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers.

33 Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?

34 Wherefore, behold, I send unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city:

35 That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar.

36 Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon this generation.

37 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!

38 Behold, your house is left unto you desolate.

39 For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.

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Psalm 93

WEEK  23                                        Psalm 93

WEDNESDAY  Reflections

The complaint has been made that some of these modern choruses are too short and don't have a lot of deep scriptural truths. I see this, and other very short psalms and realize short "choruses" aren't anything new.

 

What great truths to be reminded of: God's works endure and God is holy. Short and yet when we apply it to our heart it is transformational. The flood (crowds) may rage against God but He is mightier than them all.  

Psa 93:1-5
(1)  The LORD reigneth, he is clothed with majesty; the LORD is clothed with strength, wherewith he hath girded himself: the world also is stablished, that it cannot be moved.
(2)  Thy throne is established of old: thou art from everlasting.
(3)  The floods have lifted up, O LORD, the floods have lifted up their voice; the floods lift up their waves.
(4)  The LORD on high is mightier than the noise of many waters, yea, than the mighty waves of the sea.
(5)  Thy testimonies are very sure: holiness becometh thine house, O LORD, for ever.

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Hosea 2

WEEK   23                                             Hosea 2

TUESDAY  Reflections

The story of Hosea and God merges in this chapter some of the verses applying to both, some applying only to Israel, though the tone is true for both. In this, we see that some of Hosea's children may in fact not be his. Though for all the talk of judgment and punishment, the longing of God and Hosea is to have their lover back. There is no talk of casting them aside forever, or of moving on, but of enduring love. The punishment spoken of is, in truth, a way to cause Israel and Gomer to return to their first husband. 

The second verse sounds as if Hosea had an affair with Gomer, but they were never married. This may sound correct, but that isn’t what the Hebrew says, and as we see later in the chapter, he speaks of her returning to her husband, which also points out they were married, even if she wasn’t living like it. The question then is raised, how can she return to someone she didn't have? A clearer understanding is that they are not living as husband and wife; this looks back to where God said that Israel wasn't His people in chapter 1. Israel and Gomer never quit being married as it were, but they were completely absorbed in a lifestyle that showed no indication of a marriage relationship.

Hos 2:1-23
(1)  Say ye unto your brethren, Ammi; and to your sisters, Ruhamah.
(2)  Plead with your mother, plead: for she is not my wife, neither am I her husband: let her therefore put away her whoredoms out of her sight, and her adulteries from between her breasts;
(3)  Lest I strip her naked, and set her as in the day that she was born, and make her as a wilderness, and set her like a dry land, and slay her with thirst.
(4)  And I will not have mercy upon her children; for they be the children of whoredoms.
(5)  For their mother hath played the harlot: she that conceived them hath done shamefully: for she said, I will go after my lovers, that give me my bread and my water, my wool and my flax, mine oil and my drink.
(6)  Therefore, behold, I will hedge up thy way with thorns, and make a wall, that she shall not find her paths.
(7)  And she shall follow after her lovers, but she shall not overtake them; and she shall seek them, but shall not find them: then shall she say, I will go and return to my first husband; for then was it better with me than now.
(8)  For she did not know that I gave her corn, and wine, and oil, and multiplied her silver and gold, which they prepared for Baal.
(9)  Therefore will I return, and take away my corn in the time thereof, and my wine in the season thereof, and will recover my wool and my flax given to cover her nakedness.
(10)  And now will I discover her lewdness in the sight of her lovers, and none shall deliver her out of mine hand.
(11)  I will also cause all her mirth to cease, her feast days, her new moons, and her sabbaths, and all her solemn feasts.
(12)  And I will destroy her vines and her fig trees, whereof she hath said, These are my rewards that my lovers have given me: and I will make them a forest, and the beasts of the field shall eat them.
(13)  And I will visit upon her the days of Baalim, wherein she burned incense to them, and she decked herself with her earrings and her jewels, and she went after her lovers, and forgat me, saith the LORD.
(14)  Therefore, behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfortably unto her.
(15)  And I will give her her vineyards from thence, and the valley of Achor for a door of hope: and she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, and as in the day when she came up out of the land of Egypt.
(16)  And it shall be at that day, saith the LORD, that thou shalt call me Ishi; and shalt call me no more Baali.
(17)  For I will take away the names of Baalim out of her mouth, and they shall no more be remembered by their name.
(18)  And in that day will I make a covenant for them with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven, and with the creeping things of the ground: and I will break the bow and the sword and the battle out of the earth, and will make them to lie down safely.
(19)  And I will betroth thee unto me for ever; yea, I will betroth thee unto me in righteousness, and in judgment, and in lovingkindness, and in mercies.
(20)  I will even betroth thee unto me in faithfulness: and thou shalt know the LORD.
(21)  And it shall come to pass in that day, I will hear, saith the LORD, I will hear the heavens, and they shall hear the earth;
(22)  And the earth shall hear the corn, and the wine, and the oil; and they shall hear Jezreel.
(23)  And I will sow her unto me in the earth; and I will have mercy upon her that had not obtained mercy; and I will say to them which were not my people, Thou art my people; and they shall say, Thou art my God.