CHAPTER 8

1 And it came to pass in the sixth year, in the sixth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I sat in mine house, and the elders of Judah sat before me, that the hand of the Lord GOD fell there upon me.

The first vision Ezekiel had was on the 5th day of the 4th month in the 5th year (See Ezekiel 1:1-2). This vision appears 14 months later.

Ezekiel was still in his house in the country of the Babylonians, and the elders that had been carried away into captivity were with him.

The vision Ezekiel is about to describe is in three parts:
First, there is the viewing of idolatry in the temple at Jerusalem (Chapter 8:5-18).
Second, he views the slaughter of the inhabitants of Jerusalem (Chapter 9:1-11).
And, third, there is the burning of the city of Jerusalem (Chapter 10:1-22)

2 Then I beheld, and lo a likeness as the appearance of fire: from the appearance of his loins even downward, fire; and from his loins even upward, as the appearance of brightness, as the colour of amber. 3 And he put forth the form of an hand, and took me by a lock of mine head; and the spirit lifted me up between the earth and the heaven, and brought me in the visions of God to Jerusalem, to the door of the inner gate that looketh toward the north; where was the seat of the image of jealousy, which provoketh to jealousy. 4 And, behold, the glory of the God of Israel was there, according to the vision that I saw in the plain.

According to verse 4, the vision begins the same as the one described in Chapter 1, where the Lord is in fiery brightness above the "firmament" (See Chapter 1:26-28).

In Chapter 5:1, Ezekiel had been commanded to shave his hair. There has enough time elapsed that his hair has grown back (verse 3 above).

5 Then said he unto me, Son of man, lift up thine eyes now the way toward the north. So I lifted up mine eyes the way toward the north, and behold northward at the gate of the altar this image of jealousy in the entry. 6 He said furthermore unto me, Son of man, seest thou what they do? even the great abominations that the house of Israel committeth here, that I should go far off from my sanctuary? but turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations.

First, Ezekiel sees an "image of jealousy" in the gate which leads to the altar of sacrifice. This "image of jealousy" has been described by some as an image of "Asherah." This was an idol worshipped mostly by the people of Syria, and some in Canaan.

The presence of an idol in the temple of God is indicative of the priests having corrupted the worship of God. God had begun the covenant with Israel in the wilderness of Sinai with the statement of His ten great commands. The very FIRST of those commands was "Thou shalt have no other gods before me." And the SECOND of those commands was "Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image." (See Exodus 20:1-5).

7 And he brought me to the door of the court; and when I looked, behold a hole in the wall. 8 Then said he unto me, Son of man, dig now in the wall: and when I had digged in the wall, behold a door. 9 And he said unto me, Go in, and behold the wicked abominations that they do here. 10 So I went in and saw; and behold every form of creeping things, and abominable beasts, and all the idols of the house of Israel, pourtrayed upon the wall round about. 11 And there stood before them seventy men of the ancients of the house of Israel, and in the midst of them stood Jaazaniah the son of Shaphan, with every man his censer in his hand; and a thick cloud of incense went up. 12 Then said he unto me, Son of man, hast thou seen what the ancients of the house of Israel do in the dark, every man in the chambers of his imagery? for they say, The LORD seeth us not; the LORD hath forsaken the earth. 13 He said also unto me, Turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations that they do.

Now Ezekiel is shown a secret room in which the elders are worshipping all sorts of "images."

These visions are given to Ezekiel so that he can communicate to the exiles in Babylon WHY God would utterly destroy Jerusalem. The reason is because even the elders were defiling the worship of God with idolatry.

These elders thought they were hiding their actions, but God sees and knows all that is happening.

Just like those who were hiding in the secret room, people try to hide secret sins today. They can sometimes be hidden from other people, but not from God. The secret sins of jealousy, bitterness, grudgery - these are all spiritual idols, and are destructive to the Christian life.

14 Then he brought me to the door of the gate of the LORD's house which was toward the north; and, behold, there sat women weeping for Tammuz. 15 Then said he unto me, Hast thou seen this, O son of man? turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations than these.

"Tammuz" was a Babylonian diety. He was at first called Dumuzu and was the husband of Ishtar. Ishtar corresponds to the Greek goddess Aphrodite. Supposedly "Tammuz" was killed, and Ishtar mourned for him. Then she descended into the nether world trying to liberate him from the hold of death.

The "weeping" for this babylonian fable obviously included taking on the attributes of Ishtar, or Aphrodite. Very much immorality was associated with this worship.

16 And he brought me into the inner court of the LORD's house, and, behold, at the door of the temple of the LORD, between the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the temple of the LORD, and their faces toward the east; and they worshipped the sun toward the east. 17 Then he said unto me, Hast thou seen this, O son of man? Is it a light thing to the house of Judah that they commit the abominations which they commit here? for they have filled the land with violence, and have returned to provoke me to anger: and, lo, they put the branch to their nose. 18 Therefore will I also deal in fury: mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity: and though they cry in mine ears with a loud voice, yet will I not hear them.

"Sun worshippers" were on the very porch of the temple of God! People worshipping the created more than the Creator! (See Romans 1:25)

After Ezekiel has seen the immorality and idolatry of the people, he now receives a vision of the destruction of these people.

CHAPTER 9

1 He cried also in mine ears with a loud voice, saying, Cause them that have charge over the city to draw near, even every man with his destroying weapon in his hand. 2 And, behold, six men came from the way of the higher gate, which lieth toward the north, and every man a slaughter weapon in his hand; and one man among them was clothed with linen, with a writer's inkhorn by his side: and they went in, and stood beside the brasen altar. 3 And the glory of the God of Israel was gone up from the cherub, whereupon he was, to the threshold of the house. And he called to the man clothed with linen, which had the writer's inkhorn by his side; 4 And the LORD said unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof.

The Lord "cried...with a loud voice" calling the ones set aside to destroy the people. My friend, God is in anguish at the sins of people today! He CRIES OUT! And His cry sometimes is for the destruction of those hiding secret sins!

One particular "man" had a pouch within which was a flask of ink and several ink pens. With the pens, he was to mark the foreheads of all those who "mourned" for those abominal sins that were being committed. My friends, God KNOWS who is really broken-hearted over sins today!

It is very interesting to note that the words "a mark" (verse 4), come from the Hebrew taw. The taw was the last letter of the Hebrew alphabet, and was written like a CROSS! When people come under the blood of Christ, they MOURN for sin, and grieve for what it does to men.

5 And to the others he said in mine hearing, Go ye after him through the city, and smite: let not your eye spare, neither have ye pity: 6 Slay utterly old and young, both maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man upon whom is the mark; and begin at my sanctuary. Then they began at the ancient men which were before the house.

Take careful note here. Those who were NOT grieving for sin and what it does to people were slain!

Also, note verse 6. God BEGAN at the "sanctuary!" Peter might have been thinking of this instance when he wrote:

"For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God? And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear? Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God commit the keeping of their souls to him in well doing, as unto a faithful Creator. (1Peter 4:17-19)

7 And he said unto them, Defile the house, and fill the courts with the slain: go ye forth. And they went forth, and slew in the city. 8 And it came to pass, while they were slaying them, and I was left, that I fell upon my face, and cried, and said, Ah Lord GOD! wilt thou destroy all the residue of Israel in thy pouring out of thy fury upon Jerusalem? 9 Then said he unto me, The iniquity of the house of Israel and Judah is exceeding great, and the land is full of blood, and the city full of perverseness: for they say, The LORD hath forsaken the earth, and the LORD seeth not. 10 And as for me also, mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity, but I will recompense their way upon their head. 11 And, behold, the man clothed with linen, which had the inkhorn by his side, reported the matter, saying, I have done as thou hast commanded me.

Ezekiel was overly concerned because he saw so many dying, and he questions if God will destroy the "WHOLE?"

But God assures Ezekiel that those being slain are those who have determined that He (GOD) is not alive, or has "forsaken the earth." God has no pity upon those who refuse to acknowledge Him.

As quickly as the destruction began, it was done. In a matter of seconds Ezekiel sees the "man" with the inkhorn return stating that his mission is accomplished.

Again, may I point out that the destruction of so many was simply because they refused to acknowlege God!

CHAPTER 10

1 Then I looked, and, behold, in the firmament that was above the head of the cherubims there appeared over them as it were a sapphire stone, as the appearance of the likeness of a throne. 2 And he spake unto the man clothed with linen, and said, Go in between the wheels, even under the cherub, and fill thine hand with coals of fire from between the cherubims, and scatter them over the city. And he went in in my sight. 3 Now the cherubims stood on the right side of the house, when the man went in; and the cloud filled the inner court. 4 Then the glory of the LORD went up from the cherub, and stood over the threshold of the house; and the house was filled with the cloud, and the court was full of the brightness of the LORD's glory. 5 And the sound of the cherubims' wings was heard even to the outer court, as the voice of the Almighty God when he speaketh.

Verse 1 here corresponds with the description given in Chapter 1:6. God is on the throne, and speaks to the man who has the inkhorn (verse 2). He is now to take coals from the fire of God and scatter it over the city. This symbolized the fact of the burning of Jerusalem.

6 And it came to pass, that when he had commanded the man clothed with linen, saying, Take fire from between the wheels, from between the cherubims; then he went in, and stood beside the wheels. 7 And one cherub stretched forth his hand from between the cherubims unto the fire that was between the cherubims, and took thereof, and put it into the hands of him that was clothed with linen: who took it, and went out. 8 And there appeared in the cherubims the form of a man's hand under their wings. 9 And when I looked, behold the four wheels by the cherubims, one wheel by one cherub, and another wheel by another cherub: and the appearance of the wheels was as the colour of a beryl stone. 10 And as for their appearances, they four had one likeness, as if a wheel had been in the midst of a wheel. 11 When they went, they went upon their four sides; they turned not as they went, but to the place whither the head looked they followed it; they turned not as they went. 12 And their whole body, and their backs, and their hands, and their wings, and the wheels, were full of eyes round about, even the wheels that they four had. 13 As for the wheels, it was cried unto them in my hearing, O wheel. 14 And every one had four faces: the first face was the face of a cherub, and the second face was the face of a man, and the third the face of a lion, and the fourth the face of an eagle. 15 And the cherubims were lifted up. This is the living creature that I saw by the river of Chebar. 16 And when the cherubims went, the wheels went by them: and when the cherubims lifted up their wings to mount up from the earth, the same wheels also turned not from beside them. 17 When they stood, these stood; and when they were lifted up, these lifted up themselves also: for the spirit of the living creature was in them. 18 Then the glory of the LORD departed from off the threshold of the house, and stood over the cherubims.

The description of the wheels is basically the same here as in Chapter 1. However, in Chapter 10, the "living creatures" are realized to be cherubim (see verse 8).

A slightly different description is given as they move. The four faces are different from the way they were described in Chapter 1. In Chapter 1, Ezekiel was seeing the cherubim arrive from the "North" (see Chapter 1:4). And NOW (in Chapter 10) Ezekiel is seeing them heading East. The "ox" face is first seen, which Ezekiel describes as "cherub."

Verse 18 says that God's "glory" LEFT the threshold of the temple! When God's GLORY departs, so does his protection, provision, and power!

19 And the cherubims lifted up their wings, and mounted up from the earth in my sight: when they went out, the wheels also were beside them, and every one stood at the door of the east gate of the LORD's house; and the glory of the God of Israel was over them above. 20 This is the living creature that I saw under the God of Israel by the river of Chebar; and I knew that they were the cherubims. 21 Every one had four faces apiece, and every one four wings; and the likeness of the hands of a man was under their wings. 22 And the likeness of their faces was the same faces which I saw by the river of Chebar, their appearances and themselves: they went every one straight forward.

The cherubim, the wheels, and the glory of God appeared to Ezekiel ABOVE the Eastern Gate of the "LORD'S house." He was LEAVING!

But the Bible gives us HOPE! Later, Ezekiel is given a vision of the RETURN of the Lord. There He is described as coming BACK from the EAST! ((See Ezekiel 43:1-4))

PLEASE CONTINUE WITH US IN BIBLE STUDY TOMORROW.