I've decided after not too much debate that Ezekiel is my favorite book of the Bible. Revelation is a very close second, but Ezekiel really takes the cake. The terminology is poetic and beautiful and although the book seems like it's full of God's fury and the destruction of the Israeli people, almost every chapter that foretells how the people will be blasted off of the face of the earth and then taken into captivity ends with this beautiful promise that God will leave a remnant. The whole point of this book (so far, anyways - I'm 20 chapters in) is the repenting and restoration of the people and how God's love lasts so much longer than His fury.
"Thus says the Lord God, 'I will take also one of the highest branches of the high cedar and set it out. I will crop off from the topmost of its young twigs a tender one, and will plant it on a high and prominent mountain. On the mountain height of Israel I will plant it; and it will bring forth boughs, and bear fruit, and be a majestic cedar. Under it will dwell birds of every sort; in the shadow of its branches they will dwell. And the trees of that field shall know that I, the Lord, have brought down the high tree and exalted the low tree, dried up the green tree and made the dry tree flourish; I, the Lord, have spoken and have done it!'" - Ezekiel 17:22
"But if a wicked man turns from all his sins which he has committed, and done what is lawful and right, he shall surely live; he shall not die. None of the transgressions which he has committed will be remembered against him; because of the righteousness he has done, he shall live. 'Do I have any pleasure at all that the wicked should die?' says the Lord God, 'and not that he should turn from his ways and live?'" - Ezekiel 18:21-23.
What has really struck me these last few weeks going through the wonderful book of Ezekiel was the comparison to the New Testament. Before I read through this much of Ezekiel, I had only heard but not seen proof of the phrase "God is the same today, yesterday, and forever." I always had two distinct images of the Old Testament God (this infinitely powerful, short tempered, judging, war-waging king) and the New Testament God (this infinitely merciful, gracious, loving, sacrificing, calm, long suffering buddy-God). It wasn't until recently that I have been able to see that really, God is the same in both sections of the Bible. For one thing, even though God destroyed the world in Noah's time, he gave the people about 100 years to repent while Noah built his new-fangled water contraption. Even though he rained fire and brimstone on Sodom and Gamorrah, He admitted in His dialogue with Lot that if even 5 men were found faithful in the city, all of the inhabitants would be spared (it's not His fault there were less than 5 good people). Like I said before, almost every chapter where destruction is predicted by Ezekiel ends with a section on God leaving a remnant so that the people would not be lost. There is the much quoted verse Ezekiel 18:32, "'I have no pleasure in the death of one who dies', says the Lord God. 'Therefore turn and live!'"
God constantly exhorts His much loved and cherished children to turn and live, to repent, to quit doing stupid things and start back up on the straight and narrow. He gives countless warnings in so many different ways so that everyone can see and understand the message, and even when the destruction came, He only caused it to happen because if He didn't do that, the people would never see their need for Him and repent. Captivity has that effect on you.
The comparison is that this message in Ezekiel of love and repenting is found directly in Jesus' doctrine. Jesus called the people to repent, and gave them a way into God's kingdom. in Ezekiel (so in the Old Testament times), if a man repented and came back to obeying the Lord, his transgressions were forgotten. Totally gone! I always thought that this type of complete forgiveness and grace could only be implemented after Jesus died, but right there proves me wrong! God had the same policy before Jesus; Jesus made it wonderfully easier for us, but it's all the same. God is amazing and wonderful and merciful and gracious and harsh and judging and calm and all knowing, and so so much more that I haven't seen yet. The comparison between the OT and NT is there, and the awesome thing about reading through this book and others in the OT is that I can really see the line that is drawn through the whole thing, leading straight to Jesus and what He did. Truly, everything in the Bible points to Jesus. So many of the OT stories feature some distant ancestor of Jesus' (you can find His genealogy in Matthew 1). It's great. God is good.
Anyways, read Ezekiel, it's an amazing book with amazing imagery. Check out especially chapter 16. You really see the romantic kind of love I always hear about in the church of God towards His people. It's beautiful.
Sorry about the long time between posts. Time runs away sometimes.
Enjoy your reading, and God bless!
