The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my heart and mind in Ezekiel 4:12-15,
"'Eat the food as you would a loaf of barley bread; bake it in the sight of the people, using human excrement for fuel.' The Lord said, 'In this way the people of Israel will eat defiled food among the nations where I will drive them.' Then I [Ezekiel] said, 'Not so, Sovereign Lord! I have never defiled myself. From my youth until now I have never eaten anything found dead or torn by wild animals. No impure meat has ever entered my mouth.' 'Very well,' he [the Lord] said, 'I will let you bake your bread over cow dung instead of human excrement.'"
As one of the Lord's prophets, Ezekiel was given assignments by the Lord to communicate to the people - sometimes in some surprising ways. In this passage Ezekiel was to eat a prescribed bread, the ingredients of which was given by the Lord, baked over human excrement to make it "unclean." The point of which was to communicate to the inhabitants of Jerusalem that they were going to be placed in a position of having to eat rationed unclean food. This would be a part of their judgment from God for their rebellion against him.
What I find fascinating, is that out of the bizarre things the Lord was having Ezekiel do to communicate to the Jews of their upcoming judgment (e.g. lie on his left side for 390 days to communicate the number of years of rebellion of the norther ten tribes and 40 for the people of Judah, etc.), the Lord was going to have Ezekiel eat unclean food (unclean because of the baking fuel) - and when Ezekiel protested to the Lord, the Lord actually relented!
The Lord told Ezekiel to do something that was abhorrent to Ezekiel, and when he complained, the Lord changed his mind! Ezekiel had never eaten 'impure meat". When Ezekiel voiced his concern, the Lord allowed him to do it in a way that did not impinge upon the conscience of his life and practice with the Lord. Here the Lord accommodated Ezekiel.
This account does not comport well with the theology of some, which is why we all need to check our theology at the door as we enter into the sacred pages of Scripture. We just may find something that challenges our conceived notions of the things of God!
In another passage, the Lord asked Peter to eat unclean food in a vision, Acts 10:9-16. "'Surely not, Lord!' Peter replied. 'I have never eaten anything impure or unclean.'" Although Peter was not told to physically eat anything, as it was all in a vision, nevertheless, it was abhorrent to Peter and he expressed his complaint. The Lord did not relent in Peter's vision as he did with Ezekiel, as it was the adjustment of Peter's outlook to accept that which he had heretofore rejected that was the purpose of the vision. Peter, as well as the other Jews that made up the early church, was now to accept "unclean" Gentiles into the fellowship. As this inclusion of Gentiles had been the Lord's redemptive plan all along, Peter and all the believing Jews that made up the early church would have to make the adjustment. No accommodation here.
"'Eat the food as you would a loaf of barley bread; bake it in the sight of the people, using human excrement for fuel.' The Lord said, 'In this way the people of Israel will eat defiled food among the nations where I will drive them.' Then I [Ezekiel] said, 'Not so, Sovereign Lord! I have never defiled myself. From my youth until now I have never eaten anything found dead or torn by wild animals. No impure meat has ever entered my mouth.' 'Very well,' he [the Lord] said, 'I will let you bake your bread over cow dung instead of human excrement.'"
As one of the Lord's prophets, Ezekiel was given assignments by the Lord to communicate to the people - sometimes in some surprising ways. In this passage Ezekiel was to eat a prescribed bread, the ingredients of which was given by the Lord, baked over human excrement to make it "unclean." The point of which was to communicate to the inhabitants of Jerusalem that they were going to be placed in a position of having to eat rationed unclean food. This would be a part of their judgment from God for their rebellion against him.
What I find fascinating, is that out of the bizarre things the Lord was having Ezekiel do to communicate to the Jews of their upcoming judgment (e.g. lie on his left side for 390 days to communicate the number of years of rebellion of the norther ten tribes and 40 for the people of Judah, etc.), the Lord was going to have Ezekiel eat unclean food (unclean because of the baking fuel) - and when Ezekiel protested to the Lord, the Lord actually relented!
The Lord told Ezekiel to do something that was abhorrent to Ezekiel, and when he complained, the Lord changed his mind! Ezekiel had never eaten 'impure meat". When Ezekiel voiced his concern, the Lord allowed him to do it in a way that did not impinge upon the conscience of his life and practice with the Lord. Here the Lord accommodated Ezekiel.
This account does not comport well with the theology of some, which is why we all need to check our theology at the door as we enter into the sacred pages of Scripture. We just may find something that challenges our conceived notions of the things of God!
In another passage, the Lord asked Peter to eat unclean food in a vision, Acts 10:9-16. "'Surely not, Lord!' Peter replied. 'I have never eaten anything impure or unclean.'" Although Peter was not told to physically eat anything, as it was all in a vision, nevertheless, it was abhorrent to Peter and he expressed his complaint. The Lord did not relent in Peter's vision as he did with Ezekiel, as it was the adjustment of Peter's outlook to accept that which he had heretofore rejected that was the purpose of the vision. Peter, as well as the other Jews that made up the early church, was now to accept "unclean" Gentiles into the fellowship. As this inclusion of Gentiles had been the Lord's redemptive plan all along, Peter and all the believing Jews that made up the early church would have to make the adjustment. No accommodation here.
Where things may seem inconsistent in Scripture, when we understand what the Lord is doing, it all falls together in a way we may not initially understand.
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.
Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just respond and let me know.
Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com
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