Ezekiel 3:16-27--A Watchman for Israel

Ezekiel 3:16-27
English Standard Version

A Watchman for Israel
16 And at the end of seven days, the word of the LORD came to me: 17 “Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning from me. 18 If I say to the wicked, ‘You shall surely die,’ and you give him no warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, in order to save his life, that wicked person shall die for his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand. 19 But if you warn the wicked, and he does not turn from his wickedness, or from his wicked way, he shall die for his iniquity, but you will have delivered your soul. 20 Again, if a righteous person turns from his righteousness and commits injustice, and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die. Because you have not warned him, he shall die for his sin, and his righteous deeds that he has done shall not be remembered, but his blood I will require at your hand. 21 But if you warn the righteous person not to sin, and he does not sin, he shall surely live, because he took warning, and you will have delivered your soul.”

22 And the hand of the LORD was upon me there. And he said to me, “Arise, go out into the valley, and there I will speak with you.” 23 So I arose and went out into the valley, and behold, the glory of the LORD stood there, like the glory that I had seen by the Chebar canal, and I fell on my face. 24 But the Spirit entered into me and set me on my feet, and he spoke with me and said to me, “Go, shut yourself within your house. 25 And you, O son of man, behold, cords will be placed upon you, and you shall be bound with them, so that you cannot go out among the people. 26 And I will make your tongue cling to the roof of your mouth, so that you shall be mute and unable to reprove them, for they are a rebellious house. 27 But when I speak with you, I will open your mouth, and you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD.’ He who will hear, let him hear; and he who will refuse to hear, let him refuse, for they are a rebellious house.

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The LORD had given Ezekiel a message and a charge to share it with all the people of Israel, starting with those that were right around him, but Ezekiel had been overwhelmed by his vision of the LORD and His glory, and he sat in silence for a full week.  The LORD appears again to Ezekiel, this time telling him that silence is not an option.  He is in the position of a watchman on the wall that is supposed to alert the city to danger.  If he sees danger and does not alert the city, is he not responsible for the lives of all those in the city?  Yet, if he sees danger and alerts the city, but they do not listen to him, then he is guiltless.  So it will be with the prophet Ezekiel and the message that the LORD gave to him.

The wicked watchman that does not relay the message of danger to those he is watching over deserves to die, and so it would be for Ezekiel who was both prophet and priest to these people.  It matters not to the LORD how righteous a man has been if he enters a high-handed sin of rebellion, he is worthy of death at that moment.  No one will remember any of the former good acts of the watchman if he is a coward in the end and that cowardice leads to the death of those who he was watching over.  Now do you understand why "and all cowards" is one of the groups of people that will have their part in the Lake of Fire prepared for the devil and his angels.?  However, if he does warn the people like the LORD told to, then the life and death of the one who hears the warning lies on if they obey what they hear.  The people are to hear the warnings that are the Word of the LORD and act accordingly.  Even though the LORD knows they will not listen, the guilt will be on their heads and hands, and not on the head and hands of Ezekiel. (or on the LORD for not warning them. though they will still try to claim this when judgment comes)

Then the LORD told Ezekiel to get up from that place and to go to the valley so that the LORD could speak to him there.  Once again, Ezekiel saw the glory of the LORD, and once again he fell down and the Spirit of the LORD had to enter him and stand him on his feet.  This time, the LORD did tell Ezekiel to sit in isolation for a time.  Cords would be used to bind him and his tongue would stick to the roof of his mouth so that he could not form words.  In this way, he would not be able to use his own words to go out and warn the people--he would only go out in the power and strength of the LORD to deliver the message that the LORD had given to him.  He would be unable to do anything to help them by his own strength, with his own words, or with his own reason or powers of persuasion.  When the LORD speaks to His people through Ezekiel, only those who the LORD has given ears to hear will hear and understand and repent.  For those who have wicked and rebellious hearts that they have hardened, they will not respond to the Word of the LORD and they will reject His warnings and they will suffer the just consequences of that rebellion.