Prophecy:
Ezekiel 33-34
Lesson X
From Chapters 25 to 32 the prophecies were directed to Israel’s
Gentile enemies.
These two chapters turn our attention again to the Nation of Israel.
Notice Ezekiel 33:2,12,17,30.
Here the Prophet is directed to speak to “the children of thy
people.” Ezekiel’s people are the Jews
of the Nation of Israel.
Ezekiel 33:7,10,11,20
The house of
Ezekiel 33:21
A messenger had brought word to Ezekiel about the capture of Jerusalem.
Ezekiel 33:28,29
Prophecies of future desolations of the land of Israel are made at this
time.
Thus the whole 33rd chapter is focused on Israel,
her people and her land.
J.B Pritchard wrote: “Behold the Jew and believe. Believe the Bible. Behold the Jew and tremble for the judgments
coming upon the earth. Behold the Jew
and rejoice for the glorious rapture that awaits the believer when Jesus comes
and for the world-wide blessings in Christ’s Millennial Reign.”
Ezekiel
chapter thirty-three.
Ezekiel 33:1-7
(1) Again the word
of the LORD came unto me, saying,
(3) If when he seeth
the sword come upon the land, he blow the trumpet, and warn the people;
Ezekiel 33:1-6 The words are
addressed to the watchmen in Israel.
Ezekiel 33:7 Ezekiel is told that he is one of them. “O son of man, I have set thee a watchman
unto the house of
The work of the watchman was to warn both the righteous and the wicked.
Acts 20: 28-31
Acts 20: 28-31
To the Ephesian Elders, Paul said: “Take heed therefore unto
yourselves, and to all the flock over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you
overseers, to feed the Church of God, which he hath purchased with His own
blood. For I know this, that after my
departing shall grievous wolves (they are not sheep) enter in among you, not
sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse
things, to draw away disciples after them.
Therefore, watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I
ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.”
Colossians 1:28
(28) Whom we preach, warning every man, and
teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in
Christ Jesus:
Colossians 1:28 “Whom we preach, warning
every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom....”
So this business of “warning men” is not confined to the
people of
Ezekiel 33:8-20
Romans 11:7
(7) What then? Israel hath not obtained
that which he seeketh for; but the election hath obtained it, and the rest were
blinded
Ezekiel 33:8-20
Within the Nation of Israel lines are clearly drawn between “the
righteous” and “the wicked.
Between the “saved” and the “unsaved.”
Between the “believers and the “unbelievers.”
Between the “election” and the “rest” of the Nation (Romans 11:7).
The passage clearly teaches that the ways of God in dealing with the
righteous or the wicked are always right.
Ezekiel 33:11 “God has no
pleasure in the death of the wicked” and continues to plead, “turn ye, turn ye
from your evil ways for why will ye die, O house of Israel.”
Well has C.S. Lewis written: “Hell will be God’s answer to those who
have chosen to leave Him out of their lives.”
Ezekiel 33: 21-22
(21) And it came to pass in the twelfth
year of our captivity, in the tenth [month], in the fifth [day] of the month,
[that] one that had escaped out of Jerusalem came unto me, saying, The city is
smitten.
(22) Now the hand of the LORD was upon me
in the evening, afore he that was escaped came; and had opened my mouth, until
he came to me in the morning; and my mouth was opened, and I was no more dumb.
Jeremiah 52:12
(12) Now in the fifth month, in the tenth
[day] of the month, which [was] the nineteenth year of Nebuchadrezzar king of
Babylon, came Nebuzaradan, captain of the guard, [which] served the king of
Babylon, into Jerusalem,
Ezekiel 24:25-27
(25) Also, thou son of man, [shall
it] not [be] in the day when I take from them their strength, the joy of their
glory, the desire of their eyes, and that whereupon they set their minds, their
sons and their daughters,
(26) [That] he that escapeth in that day shall come unto thee, to cause [thee]
to hear [it] with [thine] ears?
(27) In that day shall thy mouth be opened to him which is escaped, and thou
shalt speak, and be no more dumb: and thou shalt be a sign unto them; and they
shall know that I [am] the LORD.
Ezekiel 33: 21-22
The predicted fall of Jerusalem had been fulfilled, “on the tenth day
of the fifth month” (Jeremiah 52:12), but the news did not reach the Jewish
Captives in Babylon until “the 5th day of the 10th
month.” Ezekiel 33:21. That news was brought to Ezekiel by one who
had escaped out of the city of
Ezekiel 33: 23-29
(23) Then the word of
the LORD came unto me, saying,
Ezekiel 33: 23-29
It was at that time, the prophecy was repeated that more judgment was
to fall on the land of Israel. The
destruction of the city of
Notice verses 28, 29 The word
“desolate” is found three times.
Why was there to be further destruction?
Ezekiel 33:29-32 Answers that
question.
Because of their continued abominations and because “for with their
mouth they shew much love but their heart goeth after covetousness.” Verse 31 “And, lo, thou art unto them a
very lovely song of one that hath a pleasant voice, and can play well on an instrument:
for
they hear thy words but they do them not”.
Compare Luke
16:15,16; Matthew 15:7-9.
Ezekiel 33:29-32
Luke 16:15-16
(15) And he said unto them, Ye are they
which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that
which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.
(16) The law and the prophets [were] until
John: since that time the kingdom of God is preached, and every man presseth
into it.
Matthew 15:7-9
(7) [Ye] hypocrites,
well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying,
(9) But in vain they
do worship me, teaching [for] doctrines the commandments of men.
Ezekiel 33:33 We should know
that Ezekiel was a true prophet because what he prophesied about the Land of
Israel has come to pass.
Cf Deuteronomy 18:22. Note the
words “lo, it will come to pass” and compare with Ezekiel 36:36
Ezekiel 33:33
(33) And when this cometh to pass, (lo, it
will come,) then shall they know that a prophet hath been among them.
Deuteronomy 18:22
(22) When a prophet speaketh in the name of
the LORD, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that [is] the thing which
the LORD hath not spoken, [but] the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously: thou
shalt not be afraid of him.
Ezekiel 36:36
(36) Then the heathen that are left round
about you shall know that I the LORD build the ruined [places, and] plant that
that was desolate: I the LORD have spoken [it], and I will do [it].
.
Ezekiel
chapter thirty-four.
The chapter could be divided into two parts:
Ezekiel
34:1-10 The false shepherds in
Israel.
Ezekiel
34:11-31 The true Shepherd who will
come to Israel.
Ezekiel 34:1-10
(1) And the word of
the LORD came unto me, saying,
(7) Therefore, ye
shepherds, hear the word of the LORD;
(9) Therefore, O ye
shepherds, hear the word of the LORD;
Ezekiel 34:2-10 The words are against the shepherds in
Israel (also in verse 10).
We have already commented on the fact that such words are often used in
Ezekiel. How dreadful to have the Lord
against you!
We observe that in speaking about Israel, the Lord says: “my
sheep” in verse 6; “my flock” four times in verse 8,
and “my
flock” twice in verse 10. God’s
people both in the Old Testament and in the New Testament are likened to “sheep.”
Psalm 23; Psalm100:3; Matthew 10:6; John 10:27 are some examples.
Psalm 23
(A Psalm of David.)
(1) The LORD [is] my shepherd; I shall not want.
(2) He maketh me to
lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
(3) He restoreth my
soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
Psalm100:3
(3) Know ye that the LORD he [is] God: [it
is] he [that] hath made us, and not we ourselves; [we are] his people, and the
sheep of his pasture.
Matthew 10:6
(6) But go rather to the lost sheep of the
house of Israel.
John 10:27
(27) My sheep hear my voice, and I know
them, and they follow me:
Never are God’s people called “dogs and sows” (2 Peter 2:22).
2 Peter 2:22
(22) But it is happened unto them according
to the true proverb, The dog [is] turned to his own vomit again; and the sow
that was washed to her wallowing in the mire.
Judgment had been pronounced against the Nations that had become
enemies of Israel, and now judgment is pronounced against the leaders in
Israel: those who were called the shepherds of the flock of God.
Ezekiel 34:2 “Woe to the shepherds.”
Notice that word “woe” in Isaiah 3:9,11; Isaiah
5:8,11,18,21,22.
And the word can be found in all the writings of the other Prophets.
Isaiah 3:9,11
Isaiah 5:8,11,18,21,22
Ezekiel 34:8 Why the judgment? The shepherds were feeding themselves but not
the sheep. Read verse 8 again.
2 Peter 2:1-3
(1) But there were
false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers
among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord
that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.
(2) And many shall
follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil
spoken of.
(3) And through
covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose
judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not.
Ezekiel 34:4
1 Peter 5:1-3
(1) The elders which
are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings
of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed:
(2) Feed the flock of
God which is among you, taking the oversight [thereof], not by constraint, but
willingly; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind;
(3) Neither as being
lords over [God's] heritage, but being ensamples to the flock.
2 Peter 2:1-3 identifies false
teachers as those who make merchandise of God’s people.
It would seem to me we see this mark on many a big name preacher of our
day. These false shepherds had no
compassion on the diseased, sick and bruised.
Ezekiel 34:4 But “with force
and with cruelty have ye ruled them.” (See the tactics of some healing
evangelists today and the words used in this text describe them.)
1 Peter 5:1-3 Peter exhorts the
elders to “tend the flock not for filthy lucre (that is, material gain) and not
as lords over God’s heritage.”
How difficult to seems for some men to be “leaders” without being
“lords.” If God was against unfaithful
shepherds in
Ezekiel 34:11-22
(11) For thus saith
the Lord GOD; Behold, I, [even] I, will both search my sheep, and seek them
out.
(15) I will feed my
flock, and I will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord GOD.
Ezekiel 34:11-22 We could sum-up
these verses with one statement. Here
are great
promises to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
Look at verse 11: “Behold, I even I, will both search my sheep, and
seek them out.” Perhaps that verse
should have a bearing on how we interpret Luke 15:3-7.
Luke 15:3-7
(3) And he spake
this parable unto them, saying,
(5) And when he hath
found [it], he layeth [it] on his shoulders, rejoicing.
Again in verse 12: “As a
shepherd seeketh out his flock in the day that he is among his sheep that are
scattered, so will I seek out my sheep.”
And again verse 13: “I will
bring them ... gather them form the countries, and will bring them to their own
land.” What land? The verse tells us
plainly: “the mountains of Israel.”
Verse 14: “I will feed
them in good pasture”. Where? “Upon the
high mountains of Israel.”
Verse 15: “I will feed my
flock and I will cause them to lie down…”
This verse reminds one of Psalm 23:1-2. Whoever thinks of applying that Psalm to
Israel first?
Remember Romans 1:16 the gospel is to the Jew first.
Romans 1:16
(16) For I am not
ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to
every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.
Verse 16: What the false shepherds and prophets failed
to do (verse 4), the True Shepherd will yet do!
Verses 17-21: The True
Shepherd will also judge the flock. Perhaps
this will be fulfilled in the day of the separation of the sheep from the goats
as described in Matthew 25:31-34
Matthew 25:31-34
(33) And he shall set
the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left.
Verse 22: In that day He
will save His flock.
Ezekiel 34:23-31 Here are more
promises to His flock of Israel.
Ezekiel
34:23-31
(31) And ye my flock,
the flock of my pasture, [are] men, [and] I [am] your God, saith the Lord GOD.
Ezekiel 34:23-24 “I will set one
shepherd over them, even my servant David.”
The reference must be to David’s Greater Son. See Jeremiah 23:5,6; Jeremiah 30:3,9; Hosea 3:5;
Isaiah 9:6-7.
Jeremiah 23:5-6
(5) Behold, the days
come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a
King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the
earth.
(6) In his days Judah
shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he
shall be called, THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.
Jeremiah 30:3, 9
(3) For, lo, the days
come, saith the LORD, that I will bring again the captivity of my people Israel
and Judah, saith the LORD: and I will cause them to return to the land that I
gave to their fathers, and they shall possess it.
(9) But they shall
serve the LORD their God, and David their king, whom I will raise up unto them.
Hosea 3:5
(5) Afterward shall the children of Israel
return, and seek the LORD their God, and David their king; and shall fear the
LORD and his goodness in the latter days.
Isaiah 9:6-7
(6) For unto us a child is born, unto us a
son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall
be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The
Prince of Peace.
(7) Of the increase of [his] government and
peace [there shall be] no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom,
to order it, and to establish it with judgment and with justice from henceforth
even for ever. The zeal of the LORD of hosts will perform this.
Elsewhere David’s Greater Son is identified as the Servant of Jehovah. Zechariah 3:8; Isaiah 42:1; Isaiah 52:13,14.
Zechariah 3:8
(8) Hear now, O Joshua the high priest,
thou, and thy fellows that sit before thee: for they [are] men wondered at:
for, behold, I will bring forth my servant the BRANCH.
Isaiah 42:1
(1) Behold my servant, whom I uphold; mine
elect, [in whom] my soul delighteth; I have put my spirit upon him: he shall
bring forth judgment to the Gentiles.
Isaiah 52:13-14
(13) Behold, my servant shall deal
prudently, he shall be exalted and extolled, and be very high.
(14) As many were astonied at thee; his
visage was so marred more than any man, and his form more than the sons of men:
Thus, King David of history became a type of Christ in His sufferings.
Ezekiel 34:25 A promise of a covenant of peace with Israel.
This promise is repeated in Ezekiel 36:26. Remember the covenants belong to Israel
(Romans 9:4). See Jeremiah
31:31,32; Hebrews 8:8.
Before this covenant is realized,
Ezekiel 36:26
(26) A new heart also will I give you, and
a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of
your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.
Romans 9:4
(4) Who are Israelites; to whom
[pertaineth] the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of
the law, and the service [of God], and the promises;
Jeremiah 31:31-32
(31) Behold, the days come, saith the LORD,
that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of
Judah:
(32) Not according to the covenant that I
made with their fathers in the day [that] I took them by the hand to bring them
out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an
husband unto them, saith the LORD:
Hebrews 8:8
(8) For finding fault with them, he saith,
Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the
house of Israel and with the house of Judah:
Isaiah 28:15
(15) Because ye have said, We have made a
covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement; when the overflowing
scourge shall pass through, it shall not come unto us: for we have made lies
our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves:
Daniel 9:27
(27) And he shall confirm the covenant with
many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice
and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall
make [it] desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be
poured upon the desolate.
Ezekiel 34:26
When the True Shepherd makes His covenant with
Romans 11:17
(17) And if some of the branches be broken
off, and thou, being a wild olive tree, wert graffed in among them, and with
them partakest of the root and fatness of the olive tree;
Ezekiel 34:27
“...they shall be safe in their land.”
Ezekiel 34:28
“They shall no more be a prey to the heathen. Again it is written “they shall dwell safely.”
Ezekiel 34:29
The promise of “a plant of renown”. A.C. Gaebelien writes: “ this speaks of
Christ”.
I am not so sure. A few years
ago I found the following report. “A
wonder grass with multiple uses and a promising commercial future has been
developed in
I am not suggesting that this is the fulfillment of the prophecy, but
it does illustrate how easily God can fulfill His word.
Ezekiel 34:30 “I the LORD their
God am with them…”
We believe this verse, and also verses 23-29, can only be fulfilled
when King Jesus comes back to establish His Millennial Kingdom with its center
in
I quote another:
“The King is coming in
glory. What a day of glory it will be
for Him when He comes back to earth! It
will be a day of glory for Him because the Word of Scripture will be vindicated
and verified. Men have scoffed. 2 Peter
3:3 ‘Where is the promise of His coming?’
Men have not believed. Men have
ridiculed. But there will be no scoffing
then! There will be no ridiculing then. All will bow before the King. It will be the great day of glory for Him for
He will see the travail of His soul and be satisfied. He suffered, He now reigns. He bore the cross, He now wears the crown. It will be a day of glory for Him for He
comes in His own glory. He comes in His
Father’s glory. He comes in the glory of
the holy angels, for all the holy angels will be with Him. He will be the victorious King. He went to the cross in victory. Colossians
2:14. He is victor now. Romans 14:9. He will be Victor then. Showing to His Creation that He is King of
kings and Lord of lords.”
2 Peter 3:3
(3) Knowing this first, that there shall
come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts,
Colossians 2:14
(14) Blotting out the handwriting of
ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of
the way, nailing it to his cross;
Romans 14:9
(9) For to this end Christ both died, and
rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living.
Ezekiel 34:31
We have not been speculating. “And ye my flock, the flock of my pasture, are
men, and I am your God, saith the Lord God.”
How can such words be spiritualized away?
Blessings to Israel are yet
to come. Note the order of prediction in
Deuteronomy 30:1-5
Deuteronomy 30:1-5
Review of
chapters 1 through 34
1. God made choice of the Nation of Israel, called her
out from the Nations of the world to be different.
2. Israel, departed from God, sinned against Him and
became like the Nations in sin and in idolatry.
3. Therefore, Israel was driven from her land and
scattered among the Nations of the world. The people of Israel have suffered greatly
where ever they have been. All of this
was first in prophecy in the Book of Ezekiel, but now it has become actual
history.
4. The Nations that surround Israel rejoiced in
Israel’s judgments.
5. Therefore, God judged those Nations and destroyed
their cities. The evidence of this
destruction remains to this day. But
note again, all this was prophecy in Ezekiel but now has become history.
6. In Ezekiel 34, the Prophet predicts blessings yet to
come to this same Nation. Note the order
of prediction in Deuteronomy 30:1-5.
7. Ezekiel chapter 34 has never been fulfilled. Will it not have the same kind of fulfillment
as the preceding chapters?
8. The chapters we are about to consider outline events
that will precede the final promised blessing that will yet come to the Nation
of Israel.
The whole purpose of all this detailed history of the past is to prove
that History is God’s story. That He has been involved in the history of
Nations and He will yet be involved in the days to come. The promised blessings are of such a nature
that only God can fulfill them and only by the return of Christ to earth will
these promises be fulfilled.
When one studies the Old Testament in detail about the land and the
people of Israel, one is convinced that a Millennial reign of Christ is a
necessity. It is only by spiritualizing
the promises made to Israel and making them apply to the Church that one can
dispense with the 1000- year reign of Christ. Sadly, this has been the pattern of Church
history.