Biblical History

The Day You were Born as a Nation

Dan

It was my observation in Ezekiel 16 that God was feeling sorrow for the impending destruction of Jerusalem. A parent knows what must be done to help a child even if the punishment is painful, so does Adonai. Previously (in chapter 15) Ezekiel compared Jerusalem to a vine that bears no fruit. Now we look back when God first spoke to Abraham about becoming a father of many nations. God compares the Hebrews to a loose woman who needs to be held accountable for her actions. Part of the accountability is to be sure they understood why the judgements were happening and to remove any and all mitigation they might offer to repel the judgements as unfair. Let us begin.

Ezekiel 16: 1-14 says — Son of man, confront Jerusalem with her detestable practices and say, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says to Jerusalem: Your ancestry and birth were in the land of the Canaanites; your father was an Amorite and your mother a Hittite. On the day you were born your cord was not cut, nor were you washed with water to make you clean, nor were you rubbed with salt or wrapped in clothes. No one looked at you with pity or had compassion enough to do any of these things for you. Rather, you were thrown out into the open field, for on the day you were born you were despised. I bathed you with water and washed the blood from you and put ointments on you. … You became very beautiful and rose to be a queen. And your fame spread among nations on account of your beauty, because the splendor I had given you made your beauty perfect, declares the Sovereign Lord. [NIV]

I think Ezekiel was already in Babylon when this message came to him. It feels more like a conversation over coffee between two friends rather than a message. By this time, Jeremiah was also present in Babylon. The two of them were both working for God, getting the message out. They told the Hebrews to stay calm in the exile, they often focused on the remnant, bringing hope for the future. On the other hand, their message for the rebel Hebrews still in Jerusalem and struggling in captivity was simple. They spoke to bring conviction and humiliation that led the rebels to repentance. This message seems to be a message of morning from God for the failures of his poster child nation.

In this scene, we see Abraham as an outcast child born in obscurity. Abraham was the beginning of the Hebrews, he was the beginning of Jerusalem. The mother of Abraham is not clear, the Talmud suggests her name is Amathlai, she is not named in scripture (see Genesis 20:12). His father was Terah (the ninth descendant from Noah), they were strangers and sojourners drifting across the desert with no possessions, strength, power, not even a place to call their own. As I understand things, in the early days, Terah, Abraham, Sarah and Lot headed together from Ur (a city near the Persian Gulf) to Canaan (modern day Israel), but stopped in Haran (a city in Turkey, close to the modern-day border of Syria). Terah remained in Haran but the others continued to a land that God would show them. God promised to make Abraham a great nation and bless his family (see Genesis 12-25).

In the early years Abraham wanders about as a tenant in Canaan. He could have asserted himself but did not at first. Yet God blessed them and nurtured their life as the gradually abandoned their old heritage and started earnestly worshiping the one true living God. This rag tag band of followers was the beginning of the proud nation. And now, as Ezekiel finishes his coffee shop reminiscent with God, he gets back to his work and starts hammering the Hebrews for their persistent idolatry and rebellion.

We are wise to note the mercy of God documented by Ezekiel. He is quick to forgive our transgressions. He longs for success in our life. When we accept his yoke, he builds protection around us. But if we stray, we are held accountable. He is no pushover. The buck stops with him, it stops at his throne. There is no appeal to his judgements. We know he is fair. We are wise to yield. He declares there is only one way, one truth and one life to choose if we want to see the Father (see John 14:6). I choose Jesus.

I have set my Face Against Them (Part 2)

Dan

It has been my observation that God’s tears flow in the book of Ezekiel. In the 15th chapter, we find a woeful message for those who teach and lead others. When we fail to abide by the guidelines, we lose track of our role, or we drift from the truth to what is expedient, then we are setting the stage for trouble (see Mark 9:42-50, I am a poster child for this issue, yet God’s mercy prevailed after I repented).

The Hebrews were famous in the middle east for treating others justly, exuding mercy, and walking humbly. And then, they didn’t. They lost their way, they lost their collective walk with God, they lost interest in serving the one true living God. They turned to the habits of their neighbors trying to fit in and look relevant amongst the progressive leaders of the surrounding nations (see Mark 9:38-41).

Ezekiel 15: 6-8 says — This is what the Sovereign Lord says: As I have given the wood of the vine among the trees of the forest as fuel for the fire, so will I treat the people living in Jerusalem. I will set my face against them. Although they have come out of the fire, the fire will yet consume them. And when I set my face against them, you will know that I am the Lord. I will make the land desolate because they have been unfaithful, declares the Sovereign Lord [NIV].

When proper worship of the one true living God was in vogue, God blessed the Hebrews for their attentiveness. God had built a fence around the community; he kept predators out. But now we see a transition, the Hebrews were abandoning their faith. Thus, we see the hedge removed (see Isaiah 5:5-7). At this point, we are given a front row seat to view the Hebrew problem through God’s eyes.

The Hebrews were presented in this segment of scripture as a vine branch, one that was defective, thus it was proper for God to set his face against them as the Hebrews had set their face against God. The first conquest of Judah occurred about 605BC; Daniel was transported to Babylon. In 597BC Nebuchadnezzar II invaded and captured Jerusalem. He deposed Jehoiachin and transported much of the population (including Ezekiel) to Babylon. Then there were multiple encounters between the Egyptians and the Babylonians in the general proximity of Jerusalem for the next 18 years.

In 587BC Zedekiah started to resist Babylon, Jerusalem was attacked, this time the temple was destroyed. More people were taken to Babylon. Nebuchadnezzar II was in full control of Jerusalem by 572BC. Control of Babylon passed through several Babylonian rulers and then in 539BC Cyrus the Meade took Babylon for himself and returned the Jews to Jerusalem. Upon their return, the foundation of the temple was laid, but work stalled. Ezra returned to Jerusalem and the walls of the city were started.

The temple was completed by 515BC but the Ark of the Covenant was not present. The room was empty.

Does this matter? Yes, it matters. The Ark was the sign of God’s presence. We read in Exodus — I will meet with you, and from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim that are on the ark of the covenant, I will deliver to you all my commands for the Israelites (Exodus 25:22). Effectively, from the time Ezekiel documented the departure of God from the temple (see Ezekiel 10) to the time the holy Spirit arrived in the Church (Acts 2) the Hebrews were drifting. The Hebrew remnant did have God nearby for the duration (see Ezekiel 11:16-25). But the formal presence of God within the Hebrew nation was over. The Hebrews said they would not do what God asked (Ezekiel 5:5-6) and God put his foot down (John 15:6, Ezekiel 5:14-17). Considering the outcome, I doubt the rebellious Hebrews fully understood the implications of their actions. Fortunately, God’s mercy prevailed and we were given a new covenant. I choose Jesus.

I have set my Face Against Them (Part 1)

Dan

It has been my observation that Ezekiel has been called, over and over again to warn the Hebrews of the impending disaster that is coming. I think that Ezekiel is grieving over the turmoil and his inability to capture the attention of his countrymen. Furthermore, his grieving reflects God’s empathy as he moves forward to the required completion of the plan (the expulsion of his children to the hands of others).

For anyone who thinks the death of Jesus was hard stuff for the Father, you are wise to be careful and peek under the hood of Ezekiel’s messages to see the emotions and feelings of God over losing his child – Israel. I know on the larger scale there is no comparison, but this event (the exile thingy) certainly was a prelude to the main event (the death of Jesus). The cause was the same. The impact was the same.

God tried to get their attention. He used visions, he used theatrics, he used direct messaging.

We, his people, understood, we simply refused to accept the message. We were happy to accept the delusion from Lucifer. How full of himself Lucifer must have been as he watched the City of God, the lamp on the hill, the candle of light, flicker and fade. But God prevailed, his victory was documented in the last few chapters of Ezekiel. Simply stated, God raises his hand and hammers Lucifer. The hammer of Thor is child’s play compared to God’s hand.  God’s city emerges and his people inhabit the city.

Ezekiel 15: 1-5 says — The word of the Lord came to me: Son of man, how is the wood of a vine different from that of a branch from any of the trees in the forest? Is wood ever taken from it to make anything useful? Do they make pegs from it to hang things on? And after it is thrown on the fire as fuel and the fire burns both ends and chars the middle, is it then useful for anything? If it was not useful for anything when it was whole, how much less can it be made into something useful when the fire has burned it and it is charred? [NIV]

Huh. What now? Ezekiel had his mind on the trouble that was descending upon Jerusalem, his city the noble structure it was, the city of God was in dire straits. God describes the city in terms of a vine. In Ezekiel’s day the vineyard was a desirable business and the vine that is fruitful was a star in the vineyard (see Judges 9:12-13 and Psalms 104:15). When Jerusalem was on task, the fruit was amazing; the city of God was a visible demonstration of the impact of blessings from God (see Psalms 80:8-15).

But, if the vine is not fruitful, it is taking up space in the vineyard (see Hosea 10:1-4). Wasted space. But God says — the wood can still be of use. He demonstrates. He gives the vine branches over to common slave labor. He says — Let us use nonproductive vines for firewood. Goodness, if the vine has no interest in producing fruit, God will still use it anyways. But the impact of the service will be more draconian.

In Hebrew culture, the vine, a highly valuable economic tool, should never be used as mere firewood. Yet, all through the Old Testament we see references that discuss making idols from firewood (see Isaiah 44:14-20). Now we see the Hebrews being called firewood. Don’t let this get by you. Make no mistake about God’s intent. El Shaddai loves every man-jack reading this essay. But Adonai calls us to repent. Elohim’s palm is opened to us, mercy at his fingertips. Jehovah-Jireh reaches out to us and makes the path home possible.

Read this slowly. He has a plan. He has things for us to do. But our resistance to the plan will have dire consequences. It will cripple our life. Resistance will cripple our relationships. Resistance is futile. The consequences will transfer our penchant for resistance to our children. They imitate us. Hanging out in the fireplace as defiant forced labor, is no place to be. I choose Jesus.

Soothsayers and Star Gazers.

Dan

It has been my observation that God has little respect for the soothsayers and star readers. He called Cyrus to pull God’s people out of Babylon and allow them to return to their homeland after 70 years of isolation and captivity in Babylon. I think there were two different things happening at the same time. First God was using Cyrus (in his heathen state) for a mission, and I think God was trying to get his attention. The message in Isaiah 47 seems to address problems in Babylon, but in a broader sense to problems with those who tried ridiculously hard to make their own version of God.

This message is partially for Cyrus, to bring him out of the sin of his legacy, to walk away from the idolatry of his ancestors, which included sorcery, star gazing, and worship of wood, metal, and stone images. Often, when people conquered a culture, they tried to act benevolent; this caused them to integrate their culture with the conquered culture. Additionally, they would often get a ‘big head’ and add a new god into the mix – themselves. I think the one true living God was trying to help Cyrus, when he when he settled into Babylon, he becomes rich and more powerful than ever. Yet he must remember that still he is but a man, and there is no God but one. Babylon fell because of Elohim, not because of Cyrus. If God wanted the Hebrews to stay in Babylon, Cyrus would have not been successful.

Isaiah 47:10-15 says You have trusted in your wickedness and have said, ‘No one sees me. Your wisdom and knowledge mislead you when you say to yourself, ‘I am, and there is none besides me. Disaster will come upon you, and you will not know how to conjure it away. A calamity will fall upon you that you cannot ward off with a ransom; a catastrophe you cannot foresee will suddenly come upon you. Keep on, then, with your magic spells and with your many sorceries, which you have labored at since childhood. Perhaps you will succeed, perhaps you will cause terror. All the counsel you have received has only worn you out! Let your astrologers come forward, those stargazers who make predictions month by month, let them save you from what is coming upon you. Surely, they are like stubble; the fire will burn them up. They cannot even save themselves from the power of the flame. These are not coals for warmth; this is not a fire to sit by. That is all they are to you—these you have dealt with and labored with since childhood. All of them go on in their error; there is not one that can save you. [NIV]

I am not surprised to hear that the pagan rites had similar language about their puffed-up belief of self-deity. The message from the rebellious human is clear, I (the human) am, there is none (no other God) besides me. The human vainly declares – I am god! Are we astonished? Not really. The message has not changed for three centuries. Lucifer is on the job. From his viewpoint, if it is not broken, do not change it. We are told all the time by the mystics of today – look inside yourself, find the God that you are.

I have learned in my lifetime the stuff we pursue, the objects we place in our house (big boy toys) do not bring real comfort. The objects cannot feel the sound of my laugh or feel my gleeful giggle from the pleasure the objects provide. There is nothing. No response, no empathy, no power. Nothing. The tools of soothsayers and star gazers offer nothing that a 6-year-old cannot easily refute.

I have learned to appreciate why our glorious God formed the light we use every day, all day to see things. It is merely a precursor to the spiritual light that men feel enveloped around the throne. There is nothing like this in the universe. Spiritual light originates from the presence and person of God – injected into our heart. This light flows into our minds through the Holy Spirit who enlightens, teaches, and leads us to do the right thing (implied in John 14:26, John 16:13.) Selah.

I choose Jesus.

There is none besides me.

Dan

It has been my observation while reading Isaiah 45 that Cyrus was given incredible understanding of his role in God’s Plan for the emancipation of the Hebrews held captive in Babylon. God pushes his agenda forward as the sole and sovereign overseer for Israel. God then asserts his plan to use Cyrus to crush the Babylonian’s and free the Hebrews. As I review Isaiah 45, I can see Elohim’s sovereignty defined by two statements: (1) I am the Lord and there is no other; (2) I the Lord, have done these things.

Isaiah 45:5-10 says — I am the Lord, and there is no other; apart from me there is no God. I will strengthen you, though you have not acknowledged me, so that from the rising of the sun to the place of its setting people may know there is none besides me. I am the Lord, and there is no other. I form the light and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the Lord, do all these things. You, heavens above, rain down my righteousness; let the clouds shower it down. Let the earth open wide, let salvation spring up, let righteousness flourish with it; I, the Lord, have created it. Woe to those who quarrel with their Maker, those who are nothing but potsherds among the potsherds on the ground. Does the clay say to the potter ‘What are you making?’ Does your work say, ‘The potter has no hands’? Woe to the one who says to a father, what have you begotten? or to a mother, what have you brought to birth? [NIV].

There are several fundamental truths present in this passage. The repetition of ‘I am the Lord’ drives home the point. We can do nothing else but engage in a firm belief built upon immutable truth.

I think if any person reads and embraces the purity of this message, they will not be able to form any conclusion except to abandon idolatry and self-worship immediately. I get the feeling that God was not pleased, he speaks with commanding authority, the air of majesty infuses the words, power, dominance, and sheer animosity displayed for all pretenders. This message thunders power to the world. How much stronger can it be — I am the Lord, there is no other, there is no God besides me, there is no other self-existent, self-sufficient, infinite, and eternal God. Selah.

Sometimes I drive downtown Tucson and wander through the shops on Fourth Street. Over and over, I see defiance of the one true living God. Some of the shops sell trinkets and tools that mislead and entice our people away from the things they might have learned as children. God thunders out – There is none besides me. None! The enemy smiles and continues to sell things (tools of necromancy) that appear to be innocent but compete with the one true living God, these things are counterfeits; they are mere distractions. These resellers are like a potter who makes and sells idols. They sell chaff to distract the mind and prevent the truth of God from hitting the mark. Who gave the earthly potter permission to use clay from God’s earth to build their distractions. Who gave the earthly potter permission to use things from earth to discern the future? Lucifer’s day of reckoning is coming. Selah.

Here is the deeper truth – Jehovah Shammah is the first cause of all things we can see, hear, feel, smell, taste and know. Lightening surrounds his voice when he speaks. None can stand in his presence. He says — I am the Lord, the origin of all beings, the source of all power and wisdom. He who formed the natural light (Genesis 1:3) forms the spiritual light in our hearts.

He who at first made our peace with the principles of nature has also offered peace in the affairs of men. He who allowed the absence of light, created natural light. He who brings grace to all, is slow to judgment. He who stands against evil, offers a hand of peace to avert our afflictions. Our God, in all his wisdom, brings order to chaos. I choose Jesus.

Reaching the Ends of the Earth.

Dan

It was my observation while digging into Cyrus, Babylon, and the clay potters that make idols that I encountered an unexpected maxim; Woe unto him that strives with his Maker (Isaiah 45:9). God is the Maker of all things; we are wise to avoid becoming contentious with him and never stand against him.

Let us not align ourselves accidently with the sly oppressors who plot designs against God concerning the deliverance of his people (Nehemiah 4:8), nor think to detain them any longer when the time shall come for their release. Woe to the insulting and designing Babylonians that set God at defiance, as Pharaoh did, and will not let his people go! (Ezra 4:5).

While studying these passages, I found myself considering an uncomfortable question. We readily recognize nations, kings, and empires that contend with God, but do we recognize the same tendency within ourselves? The desire to argue with our circumstances, resist correction, or harden our hearts against the Potter is not limited to Babylon. It is a condition common to mankind. Sometimes this striving is found among the powerful; other times it is found among the broken.

As I drive the streets of Tucson, I can see the homeless and the poor in their oppression, in the dejection of their spirits, some are murmuring and quarreling with themselves, family, government, or God. I do not have an answer to homelessness, but I can see the despair, and passionately believe Jesus is the answer. At Pantano, many of us are familiar with the work being accomplished through the Gospel Rescue Mission, the Prison, and other ministries serving those in distress. I think that the Gospel Rescue Mission (GRM) can help with mental health, addictions, or despair. The GRM can help them get back on their feet and find a job, Goodwill can help improve their job skills, and for many, provide employment at their facilities. Furthermore, I think that Habitat for Humanity can provide them with a home and in a few cases employment, but at the same time I know this plan is too simplistic and unsatisfactory because the agencies are at best a loosely connected support system. They are aware of each other but do not always accomplish smooth transitions of the disenfranchised from organization to organization (if at all).

The disenfranchised need a strong integrated community. They need a place and a group of people who integrate all the services into a tapestry of seamless support. They need a place to meet friends and long-term mentors to help them stay on course. Who provides community? In my view, only the Church can deliver this type of community. We can be part of the solution. We need to be part of the solution.

Jeremiah 18:1-10 says — This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: go down to the potter’s house and there I will give you, my message. So, I went down to the potter’s house, and I saw him working at the wheel. But the pot he was shaping from the clay was marred in his hands; so, the potter formed it into another pot, shaping it as seemed best to him. Then the word of the Lord came to me. He said, Can I not do with you, Israel, as this potter does?” declares the Lord. Like clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in my hand, Israel. If at any time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be uprooted, torn down, and destroyed, and if that nation I warned repents of its evil, then I will relent and not inflict on it the disaster I had planned. And if at another time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be built up and planted, and if it does evil in my sight and does not obey me, then I will reconsider the good I had intended to do for it [NIV].

One thing I know – if the homeless strive with their Maker, then they will have difficulty egressing from the woeful condition they have entered. Striving with Elohim makes recovery harder regardless of how a person arrived in trouble. Our resistance often prevents us from seeing His hand reaching out to help us. A humbled heart is frequently the first step toward becoming responsive to Elohim’s grace. How will they know these things if no one is willing to engage and try to be helpful?

At best we are contentious people, quarrelsome brutes; yet, many of us can and do calm down. The despairing homeless, they are broken potsherds, and their troubles are magnified by their discord and friction; only God can repair them. Our job? We should encourage them to lay down the sword; but if they persist in rancor, try to show kindness and gently caution them to never contend with Him who is infinitely wiser and more powerful than anything they will ever encounter.

So then, what do you say to the ones that earnestly long for change, quietly seeking their redemption from trouble and from despair. Two words — Grace abounds. I think the precepts of scripture are very clear – God is in control, he will help. He comes and He shepherds the flock. God is our strength. He can and will move in our life and their life. Then we live securely, confident of his majesty, and of his protection. His greatness reaches every corner, hidden street, culvert, everywhere. He will reach the ends of the earth to redeem anyone who calls his name (implied in Micah 5:4). Our job? Just try to be helpful.

I choose Jesus.

Declared from the Distant Past

Dan

It was my observation that when Cyrus was sending the Israelis back to the promised land that God had a thing or two to say with regards to the Babylonians. God called the people of Babylon ignorant for carrying idols of wood, Isaiah made it clear there is no God but Elohim, Isaiah then tells the Babylonians clearly – sooner or later all will worship the one true living God, every knee shall bend, every tongue will swear allegiance, all who rage against Elohim will be put to shame.

Isaiah wrote — Gather together and come; assemble, you fugitives from the nations. Ignorant are those who carry about idols of wood, who pray to gods that cannot save. Declare what is to be, present it — let them take counsel together. Who foretold this long ago, who declared it from the distant past? Was it not I, the Lord? And there is no God apart from me, a righteous God and a Savior; there is none but me. Turn to me and be saved, all you ends of the earth; for I am God, and there is no other. By myself I have sworn, my mouth has uttered in all integrity a word that will not be revoked: Before me every knee will bow; by me every tongue will swear. They will say of me, ‘In the Lord alone are deliverance and strength. All who have raged against him will come to him and be put to shame. But all the descendants of Israel will find deliverance in the Lord and will make their boast in him (Isaiah 45:20-25).

For 70 years the nation of Israel was banished to Babylon as punishment for not allowing their agricultural lands to rest every 7 years. Now that the banishment is complete, the Israelites are being gathered and returned to the promised land, God is being clear with the people of Babylon – the idols must be left behind, they are hollow and worthless.  I wonder what ‘important things’ we worship — cars, trucks, music, houses, degrees, job titles, we have a litany of things that we carry about like a wooden idol and look to them for comfort and strength. Yet the ‘important things’ cannot help us, they do not hear our mutterings, they have nothing we can cling to – they are an idol with no power. Nada.

After Isaiah completes the idolatry message, he starts comparing the one true living God with the Idols. First, the obvious statement appears; There is (and never has been) another God like Elohim. Let us take a deeper dive into this idea.  When considering our ‘important things’ such as our job title, does that job title make us a ruler? Are we trained to rule? By what authority to we operate; some ‘man given’ authorization to act? Does this authorization have boundaries? Are we limited? Well, you know job titles are limited.  And you know — only God can help in every situation. Does our job title give us the ability to help anyone in all cases? I think not, our Job title authority is limited. Who has more power, your Job Title or God?  When you weigh the value of ‘important things’ vs God I think we should note — Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the LORD that will stand (Proverbs 19:21)

This I know for sure — Elohim will be exalted. We read in Hebrews – when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself, saying, “Surely I will bless you and multiply you.” And thus Abraham, having patiently waited, obtained the promise. For people swear by something greater than themselves, and in all their disputes an oath is final for confirmation. So, when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it with an oath, so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us. We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek (Hebrews 6:13-20)

I choose Jesus.