Our study today will be the book of Ezekiel, the prophet Ezekiel. And like all the other prophets, Ezekiel is writing with a focus on the Babylonian exile. Most, though not all of the prophets, are writing before the Babylonian exile. This is a little bit too trite, but just to get the basic thrust of most of the prophets, it's straighten up where this is going to happen. That is not heeded, and some will write after the exile seeking to explain it, but Ezekiel is one of the only, the other one being Daniel, our study next week, of the prophets that's writing during the exile. So he gives us kind of an on the ground explanation for what's going on. Opalma Robertson comments, in many ways Ezekiel and Daniel were distinctive men standing in the gap who were commissioned to declare with boldness the complete collapse of the nation whose demise they already were beginning to experience. But they were also called to broaden the horizon of the future so that it, and embrace the servant role purposed for this nation from its beginning in realizing God's worldwide program of redemption." There's a lot in that summary that Palmer Robertson gives there, but basically what he's saying is Ezekiel and Daniel were there to stand in the gap amongst a people that are watching everything crumble around them. See, the Babylonian exile It was a decisive event and there is a final moment of it, but it's not like one day everything was fine and then the next day, exile. It took a couple of years. There was a couple of phases of this. Nebuchadnezzar came in 590s. but it was finally completed in 586. So it was over the course of a couple of years, and Ezekiel was prophesying during that time. He's saying that the siege is underway, this is happening, and yet remember that our hope is in the future, as Robertson says, to broaden the horizon of the future so that it, that is the people of God, Israel, would embrace their servant role from the beginning and realize God's worldwide program of redemption. Ezekiel is in the muck and the mire, as it were, And he's pointing them to God's greater purpose. And as far as structure goes, it doesn't get a lot more simple than the book of Ezekiel, which is interesting because Ezekiel is one of the most mysterious, elusive books in the Bible, but it need not be so when we remember the overall structure. One commentator sums up the message of the whole book. As a summary, I think this is pretty accurate in one sentence. Ezekiel is the story of the departure of God's glory from the temple and its return. It's the story of the departure of God's glory from the temple and its return. And so if we take that very simplified, though accurate view, you could say that the first major section of the book, chapters one to 32, deal with God's judgment. We're gonna break that section up into two pieces, but that's the overall thrust of the first half of that book. And then chapters 33 to 48, that's the end of the book, deal with his restoration. to use the language of that outline. And I'm also partial to viewing the book according to the... there are three main beats, if you will, within the book. Creation, de-creation, and re-creation. Part of that's because that's how I was taught this book in seminary, and part of that's because I really think it highlights the book according to three key visions. Ezekiel has many visions in this book, but there are three very key ones. One is of the glory of Yahweh, and that's in chapter one. He sees the glory of Yahweh in the temple. That is the creation glory. In chapter 10, he has the vision of Yahweh's glory departing. leaving the temple, that's de-creation, and then in chapter 43, his glory returns to the temple, that's re-creation, restoration. And if I was going to teach Ezekiel in three lessons, that's how I would do it. I would look at each of those main visions, but we don't have three lessons to do it. I'm going to do one overview of the book, and we're gonna do it according to this three-part outline, which is very much in keeping with the original one I gave you, Chapter 1 to 24 is the coming judgment to Jerusalem. Chapter 25 to 32 is going to broaden the horizon and look at the coming judgment on the nations. We're not really going to touch on that right now because Dr. Phillips is hitting that very same theme in the morning sermon series. but just know that that's what's going on in those chapters. 25 to 32 is the coming judgment to the nations, and then the rest of the book, 33 to 48, is the restoration of God's people. So let's start with the first major section, chapters one to 24, the coming judgment to Jerusalem. So we begin the book, in the 30th year, in the fourth month, on the fifth day of the month, As I was among the exiles by the Kedbar Canal, the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God. On the fifth day of the month, it was the fifth year of the exile of the King Jehoiachin. So he's saying we're in the fifth year of the beginning of the exile. The word of the Lord came to Ezekiel, the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the Kedbar Canal, and the hand of the Lord was upon him there. And so we have here Ezekiel is most commentators because the initial date is not given in reference to the reign of a particular king. He fleshes out that he's in the fifth year of a particular king or the fifth day of the month of the fifth year of the king of Jehoiachin. But this 30th year does not have a reference to a king. Pretty much everywhere I checked, everyone's agreed that's a reference to how old he is. It's the 30th year of his life. So we've got this prophet that's 30 years old and he's somewhere between the first and second wave of the Babylonian invasion. At first the Babylonians came in and kind of took over and set up kind of a puppet government, if you will. And then the second wave will be actually taking wide swaths of people out. And in this year, Ezekiel gets a vision of the glory of the Lord, which is, as we've said, the great theme of the book. The great theme of the book is the glory of God. Before we get to that vision properly, it is helpful to know how exactly this first segment of the book is lined up. I think a lot of the trouble that people have with Ezekiel would fall into the category of apocalyptic prophetic literature. It's like the Book of Revelation. In fact, it's the closest thing the Old Testament has to the Book of Revelation. And the reason people get tripped up on it, despite what seems like a pretty straightforward outline, is because it does have these recurring cycles. And you'll notice if you give a close read to the opening chapters of the book later, there is a cycle. This section walks through twice before it moves into the Judgment of the Nations. There's a vision. Then Ezekiel is given some symbolic way to live out or demonstrate that vision to the people. And then he gives speeches, or you might call them sermons, to explain that vision. And so within this section, we're going to see God give Ezekiel a vision. Then God gives Ezekiel a mission, a sign that he is to live out. And then God gives Ezekiel a sermon. And now there are a lot of parts to the vision of the glory of the Lord in chapter one. There's a lot of symbolism that's going on here, and it would be worthwhile to delve into all of these different things. What does it mean to have a human likeness? What's it mean to have the calf's foot and the sparkled like burnished bronze? And what's the significance of all these things? We don't have time to go into all those. We will focus on one particular thing that I think bears impact on really the rest of the book. And again, I checked several commentaries. Everyone agrees this is the most important detail. It's the emphasis on the wheels in verses 15 to 21. And I'll read that section for us real quick. Now, as I looked at the living creatures, I saw a wheel on the earth beside the living creatures, one for each of the four of them. As for the appearance of the wheels and their construction, their appearance was like the gleaming of Beryl. And the four had the same likeness, their appearance and construction being as it were a wheel within a wheel. When they went, they went in any of their four directions without turning as they went. And their rims were tall and awesome. And the rims of all four were full of eyes all around. And when the living creatures went, the wheels went beside them. And when the living creatures rose from the earth, the wheels rose. Wherever the spirit wanted to go, they went. And the wheels rose along with them. For the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels. When those went, these went, and when those stood, these stood. And when those rose from the earth, the wheels rose along with them, for the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels. Why are the wheels such an important part to understand about this vision of the throne of God and his glory? Many of you in here, in the not too distant past, have received your driver's license. and some of you have wheels now. What do those wheels symbolize to you? Open-ended question. Not like some deep level, what do they mean? What does that represent to you? Transportation, okay, mobility, right? And freedom. You can go places by yourself. It's a terrifying thought and yet it is true. That is the same thing that they represent here. How might that be a corrective to a Jew's thinking in this time? Because they have this thinking during the time of Solomon's temple. Solomon's temple is where the glory of God dwells. We read this in Second Chronicles, it's in First Kings as well, where the glory of the Lord fills the temple, and you think the glory of the Lord lives in the temple, and now, Ezekiel says, that throne on which the Lord reigns has wheels. It can move. You've thought for so long that it's permanently settled there. And they've bound up the glory and the holiness of God to this specific place. And this vision that the Lord gives Ezekiel is as if to say, not so fast. I can go when and where and how I want. The wheels represent a God who cannot be contained conveniently in a single place. This is a mobile sanctuary. And then the Lord gives Ezekiel in chapter three, excuse me, in chapter four, rather, signs to perform. What are the implications of this? Demonstrating what has already happened. So, would somebody please read Ezekiel chapter four, verses one to three, and you'll see the first of these signs. Miss Duncan. And you, son of man, take a brick and lay it before you, and engrave on it a city, even Jerusalem, and put siege works against it, and build a siege wall against it, and cast up a mound against it. set camps also against it and plant battering rams against it all around. And you take the iron griddle and place it on an iron wall between you and the city and set your face toward it and let it be in the state of siege and press the siege against it. This is a sign for the house of Israel. All right. So he says, take a brick and draw on it or write on it or in some way represent that this brick represents Jerusalem. And then, You're gonna put up a bunch of sieges, a bunch of invading armies. And also there's a wall between you, my prophet, who speaks to the people on my behalf, who represents me to the people. You're gonna put a wall between you and the brick. Symbolism should be rather clear. Israel, or excuse me, Judah in this case, God's chosen people, have been cut off from the holiness of God. They've cut themselves off from his protection. As Ezekiel will explain in the speeches in chapter six and seven, this will, this, um, their sin and their idolatry is the means by which they have severed themselves from God. And so when these invasions come and when these, uh, these other nations come, particularly Babylon under the reign of Nebuchadnezzar, God's not there. because they've gone after other gods. That's what it means, and he'll flesh that out in chapters six and seven. And while the judgment will be for a fixed amount of time, that's what we see in this second act that God gives him to do, laying on his left side for a set number of days, and then on his right side for another set number of days. one side representing the northern tribes, the other side representing the southern tribes, Judah and Jerusalem, then he says that this will be a severe cutting off. It will be for a fixed amount of time, but it will be severe as is demonstrated in the vision, or excuse me, the act that he's commanded to do. in chapter five, and I'll just read chapter five beginning in verse one. And you, O son of man, take a sharp sword and use it as a barber's razor and pass it over your head and your beard. Then take balances for weighing and divide the hair. A third part you shall burn in the fire in the midst of the city when the days of the siege are completed. And a third part you shall take and strike with the sword all around the city. And a third part, you shall scatter to the wind, and I will unsheath the sword after them. And you shall take from these a small number and bind them on the skirt of your robe. And of these again, you shall take some and cast them into the midst of the fire and burn them in the fire. From there, a fire shall come out into all the house of Israel." Skipping down. to the next paragraph, thus says the Lord God, this is Jerusalem. I have set her in the center of the nations with all the countries around her, and she has rebelled against all my rules, and therefore, this level of destruction, this level of being cut off, is coming. And you say, well, how are they supposed to get that just from watching him cut his hair and do weird things with it? Well, Ezekiel himself is going to preach about these very things in the following chapters. And why might all of this be happening to God's people? How bad does the idolatry have to be? It's very bad. Let's look at chapter eight, and we'll see the next set of visions that Ezekiel gets. And this is also the section eight to 11, where the departure of God's glory happens. And it gives us the reason for it. Uh, somebody please pick up in Ezekiel chapter eight, beginning in verse seven to 13 or seven to 13 chapter eight. Ms. Duncan again, please. He brought me to the entrance of the court. And when I left behind, there was a hole in the wall. Then he said to me, son of man, dig in the wall. So I dug in the wall, and behold, there was an entrance. And he said to me, go in and see the vile abominations that they are committing here. Pause. So he takes him to the entrance of the court. That's a specific spot in the temple. So God is transporting Ezekiel in a vision to see what's going on in the temple. Go on, Ms. Duncan. Verse eight. So I went in and saw, and there engraved on the wall, all around, was every form of creeping thing, and loathsome beasts, and all the idols of the house of Israel. Pause. So inside the temple, inside the place where God's glory is to be the most highly revered, are all these inscriptions and depictions of false gods. Keep going. And before them stood seventy men of the elders of the house of Israel, with Jezaniah the son of Shaphan, standing among them, each had his censer in his hand, and the smoke of the cloud of incense went up. Then he said to me, son of man, have you seen what the elders of the house of Israel are doing in the dark, each in his room with pictures? For they say, the Lord does not see us, the Lord has forsaken the land. He said also to me, you will see still greater abominations that they commit. Thank you, Ms. Duncan. So not only are there idols hung in the temple, They're being worshipped by the elders, by the leaders of God's people, the ones that are supposed to be setting the example. And what are these men saying? They're saying, the Lord has no regard for us. The Lord has cut us off, so we're going to serve these gods over here. And it is true, the Lord is judging them. It is true, the Lord is punishing them. But the wrong conclusion to draw then is, then we'll seek help somewhere else. The right answer is, therefore, let us repent and seek his mercy and his loving kindness, which he has vowed to give them. And we know that throughout the Old Testament, right? Solomon's famous prayer in the dedication of this very same building, if my people who are called by my name will repent and turn from their sin, I will hear them and I will come to them. But rather than heeding those words, They're looking to the very same gods that caused the true and living God to cut them off in the first place. The Lord does not see us. The Lord has forsaken us. And then I'll read verses 14 and 15. Then he brought me to the entrance of the north gate. So now we're at the house of the Lord. So now we're in another part of the temple. And behold, there sat women weeping for Tammuz. This is another false pagan god. Then he said to me, have you seen this? Oh, son of man, you will see still greater abominations than these. So the elders are worshiping false gods in corners of the temple. Women are in the courts, worshiping false gods and mourning for false gods. in the public gates, and then he brings him into the inner court of the house of the Lord, verse 16, and behold, at the entrance of the temple of the Lord, between the porch and the altar, that's very significant, where the sacrifice is supposed to be laid, were about 25 men with their backs to the temple of the Lord and their faces toward the east, worshiping the sun toward the east. This would be like if when Dr. Phillips is administering the Lord's Supper, He's ascribing the power to the sun or to the stars or to something other than the Lord Jesus at what is supposed to be the table of the Lord. They're in the innermost part of the sanctuary where the altar is and they're looking away from that and ascribing all majesty and glory and honor to the sun. It would be one thing if you're walking down the street and you hear false preachers or false teachers. It'd be one thing if you're walking down the street of downtown Greenville, and you will see this if you walk downtown Greenville, and see Jehovah's Witnesses out there blaspheming the name of the Lord. That's bad, we don't like that, but it's kind of expected. But imagine coming to church this Sunday morning and hearing Pastor Phillips from the pulpit say, Jesus is just a highly exalted man. He's just a good example. It would be even worse, right? Because these are the people that are supposed to know better and who have an example that's likely to be followed. And that's why Ezekiel goes on to lay out all of these judgment passages that will come on Jerusalem and then also on the nations. And again, we don't have time to really go into the chapters 25 to 33, but, What is significant and helpful to know is that part of the judgment on the nations is because they're delighting in the destruction of Israel. They're, as it were, looking at what God's doing and taking pleasure in just the destruction of this people who remain beloved of the Lord. For the sake of time, let's jump up to chapter 33. 33, 22 becomes kind of the turning point of the book. Now the hand of the Lord had been a heavy upon me and the evening before the fugitive came and he opened my mouth by the time the men, the man came to me in the morning. So my mouth was opened and I was no longer mute. And Ezekiel will go on once again to warn of the coming judgment and the hopelessness for those that are the recipients of it. But then he gets to this glimmer of hope in chapter 34, beginning in verse 11. For thus says the Lord God, behold, I, I myself will search for my sheep and will seek them out as a shepherd seeks out his flock when he is among his sheep that I have scattered. So I will seek out my sheep and I will rescue them from the places where they have been scattered on the day of the clouds and thick darkness. I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries and will bring them into their own land. These elders that were worshiping false gods in the temple, leading the people astray, that were supposed to be shepherds and overseers of the flock. God does hold his people accountable for following the bad example, but he says, now it's a new ballgame. I will shepherd them. I will bring them back. I will gather them since you failed me. And how is one brought into this new administration of God's covenant of grace. We see, we don't have time to go into this, but chapter 34 beginning in verse 25 begins to speak about, uh, this, this covenant of peace that he makes with his people. That's the assurance that they have is that God has vowed that he will do this thing, but how does he do it? How is one restored? God does it chapter 36 beginning in verse 24. I will take you from the nations and gather you from all the countries and bring you into your own land. I will sprinkle clean water on you and you shall be clean from all your uncleanness and from all your idols. I will cleanse you and I will give you a new heart and a new spirit I will put within you and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. He says, I'm going to do all of this. Six times in those verses the Lord says, I will, I will, I will. It's a direct echo of actually Genesis chapter 12 and the call of Abel. Go to the nation that I will show you, and I will make your name great, and I will give you a heritage, and I will give you all these things. God will redeem his people. And as much as I would like to dwell on the implications brought about by being brought into this covenant community by the sprinkling of water We do not have time for that right now, but the important thing is God does it. It is a unilateral act of the Lord and he does it primarily and specifically through one particular means. The symbolism is in the sprinkling of the water, but the primary means is the proclamation of his word. And that's what we see in chapter 37. If you know one passage in Ezekiel, it's probably this, because for no other reason, Dr. Phillips talks about it all the time. It's the valley of the dry bones. And the Lord says to Ezekiel, can these bones live? Ezekiel gives one of the wisest answers of a human in all of the Bible. Oh, Lord God, you know. Whenever God asks you a question, that's a good answer. You know the answer, Lord, just tell me. And the Lord says, prophesy, preach, speak my word. And then in chapter seven or chapter seven, 37 verse seven. So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I prophesied, there was a sound and behold a rattling and the bones came together bone to its bone. And I looked and behold, there were sinews on them and flesh had come upon them and skin had covered them, but there was no breath in them. Then he, the Lord, said to me, prophesy to the breath, prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, thus says the Lord God, come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these slain that they may live. So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived and stood on their feet, an exceeding great army. God restores. redeems and makes alive his people through worship. Primarily, the preaching of his word. And that must be accompanied by the ministry of the Holy Spirit. This word breath, or this concept of wind, in the Hebrew as well as in the Greek, it's the same word for wind and spirit. Because as Jesus says in John chapter three, the Holy Spirit moves like the wind, blowing to and fro where it may. And so it's through these simple, ordinary acts of worship that God works most powerfully. And this is, honestly, one of my biggest fears for you guys, is you're so familiar with it. And sometimes you can come to church thinking this is a passive, transactional thing where I sit through the guy talking up front, and I hopefully learn something, and that's why I'm here. I hope you do learn something, right? I don't spend all this time studying so that you just say, blah, heard it, right? That's not the goal. But it's supposed to be more than that. I have heard from mouths of people that should know better, people that were raised in churches just like this one, some that were raised in this church that say, why do I need to go to church? I've heard all that. I've heard it my whole life. I don't have anything else to learn. It's a wrong view. God works supernaturally through his worship that you might meet with him, that you might, that you might see him face to face as it were in his word. And Ezekiel, really the back half of this book is all about worship. There's eight chapters, not eight, like six chapters on the restoration of the temple. It's all about worship. The reason that we come to church is not to learn facts, though we should be learning facts. The reason that we're here is as Ezekiel ends the book, what makes this place special is the very last sentence in Ezekiel, and the name of the city from that time on shall be the Lord is there. We come here to meet with God. Yes, he's everywhere. Yes, we meet with him. in private worship. Yes, we can call on him in prayer at any time, but it is through the corporate means of worship that God redeems, restores, renews our souls. And my fear is the old expression, familiarity breeds contempt. Does anyone have heard that? Does anyone know what that, what's that mean? It means over acquaintance with something causes a disrespect towards it. It's a privilege that we get to come to God's house and worship him and lay aside the concerns of this world. It should never be something taken for granted. Let's pray. God in heaven, we give thanks to you that you work powerfully through your word to bring life. And I pray for my young friends and myself that we would never be too overly acquainted with your worship, that we would never take it for granted, but that we would, as we hear your word preached even this morning, be brought closer to the Lord Jesus, in whose name we pray, amen.