Today, I am reading and commenting on  Ezekiel 5-8.

The first thing I want to note about today’s passage is that although Ezekiel’s prophecy was about the fall of Jerusalem and the devastation which the people living in the land of Israel would experience, it was given by him to those already living in Exile.  We know from elsewhere that among the exiles there were those bemoaning their fate of being in exile while some others remained in Jerusalem.  So, in part, this prophecy was to tell them that their being in exile meant that they would avoid the suffering still to come one those remaining in Jerusalem.  However, it also contained a warning about what would befall them if they followed the idolatrous example of those still in Jerusalem.

There is another aspect to the warning which Ezekiel gives here, really a two-fold warning.  First, he warns those who believe that their wealth will allow them to avoid the suffering which others will face.  Some of those who put their trust in their wealth, make things worse for others in order to amass more wealth.  They have no concern for how their actions bring the fall of Jerusalem closer because they believe their wealth will shelter them from the consequences.  Others, gather wealth by acting to advance the interests of the enemies of their country…again, believing that their wealth will shelter them from the consequences, or perhaps believing that God will protect their country even though they weaken it by aiding its enemies.

I use the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading.