Topic: God told Ezekiel not to Mourn
Read Ezekiel 24:15-27
God often called the prophets to do things that we cannot believe He asked them to do. In this case, God tells Ezekiel, I’m going to allow your wife, “who is the delight of your eye” (16) to die, and you are not to grieve in public. That sounds unloving. That sounds harsh. How could a God of love do that?!
Once again, Ezekiel is a living sermon to the nation. The people came and said “Ezekiel, why aren’t you grieving?” And Ezekiel then would give them God’s message. God was going to take away the delight of the Jews, the one thing that they prided themselves in: the temple of God.
Back in Jerusalem Jeremiah was prophesying to the people: Do not trust in deceptive words and say, “This is the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD, the temple of the LORD!” (Jeremiah 7:4). They thought God would let NOTHING happen to His temple. But their lying prophets were simply deceiving them. Judgment was about to fall.
So, Ezekiel said that just as he did not grieve for his wife, so also the people would not be able to grieve for the fall of the temple. Ezekiel was to be a sign to them and the Jews in Babylon were to respond to the destruction of the temple and the death of their children in the same manner that Ezekiel responded to the death of his wife (vv.22–23). Just as the delight of his eyes (his wife) was taken, so the delight of their eyes (the temple) would be taken. Why should they not mourn? Because Jerusalem’s fall had been foretold by many of the prophets, especially by Jeremiah and Ezekiel. This judgment should have been expected! God had been patient with them for years and years, but finally God reached the end of His patience, and judgment fell. There is nothing to grieve over, because the people brought this judgment upon themselves by their sinful actions. God tells them in verse 24 “When this happens, you will know that I am the Sovereign LORD.”
Ezekiel’s faith in God moved him to obey such an assignment. Faith does not end in death but rejoices in transfer of the body from the soul. Ezekiel’s wife—like Paul says—is absent from the body and present with the Lord (Philippians 1:21).
Do not grieve for God is not done. Ezekiel 39:25 says, “Therefore thus says the Lord God, “Now I will restore the fortunes of Jacob and have mercy on the whole house of Israel; and I will be jealous for My holy name.”
Ezekiel was faithful to his divine task, but he felt the suffering endured by his people in consequence of their sins. The sign of Ezekiel’s wife’s death was ultimately God’s way of showing the Jews that He is God (Ezekiel 24:24). He is true to His word and faithful in His judgments.
See you Sunday!
Dr. Scott Kallem