King James Bible Study – [And when he had called the people unto him with his disciples also, he said unto them, Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. – Mark 8:34]
Date: Tuesday, September 02, 2025
Chapters: Ezekiel 21-22
Message: Ezekiel: God Draws His Sword
Hello My Friend,
As we continue in the reading of Ezekiel we learn of God’s anger and indignation toward those who oppress His people and endanger lost souls with their idol worship and false doctrine, [Matthew 23:3-4,13-14 All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not. 4 For they bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers. 13 But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in. 14 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows’ houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.]
False religion, even if it is illeducated and has good intention, sends more people to hell than not knowing who Christ is. Yesterday we learned how a soul that sins dies and how those who turn from their wicked ways can avoid it and today is a continuation of that. God, sets His sight on Jerusalem, in particular the people of Israel whom have destroyed it with their idol worship and the shedding of innocent blood.
[Ezekiel 21:2-6 Son of man, set thy face toward Jerusalem, and drop thy word toward the holy places, and prophesy against the land of Israel, 3 And say to the land of Israel, Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I am against thee, and will draw forth my sword out of his sheath, and will cut off from thee the righteous and the wicked. 4 Seeing then that I will cut off from thee the righteous and the wicked, therefore shall my sword go forth out of his sheath against all flesh from the south to the north: 5 That all flesh may know that I the LORD have drawn forth my sword out of his sheath: it shall not return any more. 6 Sigh therefore, thou son of man, with the breaking of thy loins; and with bitterness sigh before their eyes.]
This message is addressed to the priests and ministers of God, He was about to cut off Jerusalem and the whole land so that all might know His anger toward the wicked and rebellious people who were supposed to be holy and upright. God, does not need an actual sword to cut someone, all He does is speak His Word, [Hebrews 4:12-13 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. 13 Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.]
Jerusalem, was the heart of Israel and Israel was the land God promised to the children of Israel. The children of Israel were guilty of turning their backs on God with the exception of Judah, who God promised to always keep on the throne as long as they were faithful. Well, Judah not only forsook God, they defiled the temple and Jerusalem with their idol worship. God, wanted Jerusalem out of His sight and cut off from both the righteous and wicked. Nevertheless, doing this did not please God one bit, that is why He tells Ezekiel to sigh for them in bitter sorrow and pain over the coming destruction because He was fully determined to carry out His judgment. God, now goes into greater detail about that day.
[Ezekiel 21:9-10,14-15,17 Son of man, prophesy, and say, Thus saith the LORD; Say, A sword, a sword is sharpened, and also furbished: 10 It is sharpened to make a sore slaughter; it is furbished that it may glitter: should we then make mirth? it contemneth the rod of my son, as every tree. 14 Thou therefore, son of man, prophesy, and smite thine hands together, and let the sword be doubled the third time, the sword of the slain: it is the sword of the great men that are slain, which entereth into their privy chambers. 15 I have set the point of the sword against all their gates, that their heart may faint, and their ruins be multiplied: ah! it is made bright, it is wrapped up for the slaughter. 17 I will also smite mine hands together, and I will cause my fury to rest: I the LORD have said it.]
This is actually in regards to Zedekiah the wicked prince who rebelled and how he would be the last son of Judah to reign in Jerusalem until Jesus returns. Jesus, by the way, is the very rod of God, and when He does return He is not going to be the meek and mild man He was when He first came here, He is coming with a vengeance, [2 Thessalonians 1:7-8 And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, 8 In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:]
This is the scenario of what Ezekiel is doing in front of the crowd in Babylon, from sighing he goes on to crying and howling. Once he gets the attention of the people, he speaks to them about this sword of the Lord that is to be stretched out against Jerusalem and how God is coming with His sword to judge them. God Himself, will clap His hands together after Jerusalem is destroyed, symbolizing that His anger toward them was now appeased, that He is now at rest, and reconciliation can begin. God’s wrath actually ended and reconciliation began at the cross where His Son died.
[Colossians 1:19-22 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell; 20 And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven. 21 And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled 22 In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight:]
Of course, all of this will be carried out by the Babylonians, under the direction of Nebuchadnezzar, but God reveals something that may seem kind of shocking to us, He actually uses false divination to judge His people. God, goes on to reveal how Nebuchadnezzar chose Jerusalem as his target.
[Ezekiel 21:20-23 Appoint a way, that the sword may come to Rabbath of the Ammonites, and to Judah in Jerusalem the defenced. 21 For the king of Babylon stood at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination: he made his arrows bright, he consulted with images, he looked in the liver. 22 At his right hand was the divination for Jerusalem, to appoint captains, to open the mouth in the slaughter, to lift up the voice with shouting, to appoint battering rams against the gates, to cast a mount, and to build a fort. 23 And it shall be unto them as a false divination in their sight, to them that have sworn oaths: but he will call to remembrance the iniquity, that they may be taken.]
This was some strange ritual that Nebuchadnezzar used to know his will from his gods. They took some arrows and placed them in a jar, then shook the jar and whatever arrow came out that was the place they chose. To make certain that their choice was correct they inspected the liver of sacrificial animals. In other words, Nebuchadnezzar held up in his right hand the arrow marked “Jerusalem,” to indicate that this was their goal, and inspecting the liver confirmed it. Of course, this was all done by God, and He will use the wicked to wake up the saved, [Romans 9:22-23 What if God, willing to shew his wrath, and to make his power known, endured with much longsuffering the vessels of wrath fitted to destruction: 23 And that he might make known the riches of his glory on the vessels of mercy, which he had afore prepared unto glory,]
The diviners of the Ammonites made false prophecies of victory, but they would fail and never recover their power, and in time would be wholly forgotten. God’s judgments are inevitable, and both, the righteous (saved) and wicked (unsaved) will be impacted. God, goes on to explain how He will overturn the wicked one.
[Ezekiel 21:26-28,31-32 Thus saith the Lord GOD; Remove the diadem, and take off the crown: this shall not be the same: exalt him that is low, and abase him that is high. 27 I will overturn, overturn, overturn, it: and it shall be no more, until he come whose right it is; and I will give it him. 28 And thou, son of man, prophesy and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD concerning the Ammonites, and concerning their reproach; even say thou, The sword, the sword is drawn: for the slaughter it is furbished, to consume because of the glittering: 31 And I will pour out mine indignation upon thee, I will blow against thee in the fire of my wrath, and deliver thee into the hand of brutish men, and skilful to destroy. 32 Thou shalt be for fuel to the fire; thy blood shall be in the midst of the land; thou shalt be no more remembered: for I the LORD have spoken it.]
The prince of the wicked, Satan himself, has taken over the world, but the day will come when the true Prince, Jesus Christ will overturn his power, and destroy him, and all evil, once and for all, [Revelation 20:10 And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.]
Satan’s day is coming, and while he is in denial of that fact, he is also freaking out right now, which is why we are seeing so much evil taking place. And talk about being sifted as wheat, God goes on to tell Jerusalem what they are guilty of.
[Ezekiel 22:2-5 Now, thou son of man, wilt thou judge, wilt thou judge the bloody city? yea, thou shalt shew her all her abominations. 3 Then say thou, Thus saith the Lord GOD, The city sheddeth blood in the midst of it, that her time may come, and maketh idols against herself to defile herself. 4 Thou art become guilty in thy blood that thou hast shed; and hast defiled thyself in thine idols which thou hast made; and thou hast caused thy days to draw near, and art come even unto thy years: therefore have I made thee a reproach unto the heathen, and a mocking to all countries. 5 Those that be near, and those that be far from thee, shall mock thee, which art infamous and much vexed.]
Boy, if this is not the state of America right now, my goodness, it is such a mirror to Israel. America is a reproach to our enemies, being mocked like never before, and oppression among Christians growing more rapid by the day, which by the way, we are the strangers of this world as this is not our home, [John 17:14-17 I have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. 15 I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. 16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. 17 Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.]
As you read through the chapters of Ezekiel you start to feel the pain that God felt as He describes the state of Israel and how He could no longer stand to watch them destroying the land He gave to them with all the evil. And let me tell you, America has many cities that look like that now, if we do not start heeding these warnings, God will do the same to this country. And if you think that committing the sin is not bad enough, imagine what those who are making money off the sin are going to face. God, goes on to tell them what He is going to do to them.
[Ezekiel 22:8-12,14 Thou hast despised mine holy things, and hast profaned my sabbaths. 9 In thee are men that carry tales to shed blood: and in thee they eat upon the mountains: in the midst of thee they commit lewdness. 10 In thee have they discovered their fathers’ nakedness: in thee have they humbled her that was set apart for pollution. 11 And one hath committed abomination with his neighbour’s wife; and another hath lewdly defiled his daughter in law; and another in thee hath humbled his sister, his father’s daughter. 12 In thee have they taken gifts to shed blood; thou hast taken usury and increase, and thou hast greedily gained of thy neighbours by extortion, and hast forgotten me, saith the Lord GOD. 14 Can thine heart endure, or can thine hands be strong, in the days that I shall deal with thee? I the LORD have spoken it, and will do it.]
Make money killing babies, cosmetically altering ones gender, creating a virus that shuts down the entire earth for a year, and they will lose their inheritance. While Satan is the prince of all evil, he still cannot make us do something no more than God can, and we will be held accountable for all sin. The “City of Bloods”, was the name given to Jerusalem for her sin, the crimes she committed were charged, included murder, idolatry, sacrificing their children, abominable acts of the flesh, dishonoring parents, oppression, extortion, profaning the sabbath. Through Ezekiel, God gives the sentence.
[Ezekiel 22:25-26,29-31 There is a conspiracy of her prophets in the midst thereof, like a roaring lion ravening the prey; they have devoured souls; they have taken the treasure and precious things; they have made her many widows in the midst thereof. 26 Her priests have violated my law, and have profaned mine holy things: they have put no difference between the holy and profane, neither have they shewed difference between the unclean and the clean, and have hid their eyes from my sabbaths, and I am profaned among them. 29 The people of the land have used oppression, and exercised robbery, and have vexed the poor and needy: yea, they have oppressed the stranger wrongfully. 30 And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none. 31 Therefore have I poured out mine indignation upon them; I have consumed them with the fire of my wrath: their own way have I recompensed upon their heads, saith the Lord GOD.]
Every nation is subject to the judgment of God, especially one that is His and has turned away from them, which is why He was so angry at the state of Jerusalem. We are blessed right now to have God’s protections in many of our countries because there are the few and faithful who are willing to stand in the gap and speak on behalf of Christ, but they are becoming few and far between, [2 Peter 3:9-10 The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. 10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.]
Today’s Prayer: God, Thank You for the great sacrifice that You made in sending Your Son, Jesus Christ, to be the payment for us to be saved from judgment. It is only by Your mercy that we are not consumed on the spot, and it is only by Your grace that we are not given the punishment we truly deserve when we fully accept Your Son as our Saviour. You allow Satan to sift us as wheat, but You do that to keep us accountable and that we might come to You for the cleansing of all our sin. Lord, As our relationship with You grows, give us Your love, mercy, grace, and strength to remain faithful to You, no matter who or what tries to get between us. Help us to keep our eyes on You and Your Word in our heart so that we can truly emulate Your Son and bring others to You by our faithfulness. Give us Your power, wisdom, and guidance, to fear You, and never let us forget just how much You love us and want only the best for us. I ask these things in Your name, Jesus. Amen.
God Bless You, I am praying for you,
Christina
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