25 - Bible Commentary | Karuna Sadan

Two watchmen are described here

1.The diligent Watchman

2.The indifferent Watchman

"So you, son of man: I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; therefore you shall hear a word from My mouth and warn them for Me. (Ezekiel 33:7)

A prophet is a watchman. He must tell people of what he hears from the Lord. It may be very unpopular but important

Say to them: ‘As I live,’ says the Lord God, ‘I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn, turn from your evil ways! For why should you die, O house of Israel?’ (Ezekiel 33:11)

God is not vindictive. He does not desire to see his enemies die in their sins. Divine chastisement is designed to move wicked people to repentance so that they might escape the ultimate consequences of their sin.

“Therefore you, O son of man, say to the children of your people: ‘The righteousness of the righteous man shall not deliver him in the day of his transgression; as for the wickedness of the wicked, he shall not fall because of it in the day that he turns from his wickedness; nor shall the righteous be able to live because of his righteousness in the day that he sins.’ (Ezekiel 33:12)

A man’s past will not determine his future relationship with the LORD. For example a backslider who once lived by the law of God will not escape punishment. Similarly, a repentant sinner will not suffer punishment because of his sins if he has truly repented.

"Yet the children of your people say, ‘The way of the Lord is not fair.’ But it is their way which is not fair! When the righteous turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity, he shall die because of it. But when the wicked turns from his wickedness and does what is lawful and right, he shall live because of it. Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not fair.’ O house of Israel, I will judge every one of you according to his own ways.” (Ezekiel 33:17-20)

Some Jews argued that Ezekiel’s teaching will portrayed God as inconsistent. The way of the Lord is not equal, they said.

Righteous men do in fact turn from righteousness and pay the consequences (v 18). Wicked men sometimes do repent and reap the reward (v 19). God deals with men as they are in the present, not as they were in the past (v 20).

Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying: “Son of man, they who inhabit those ruins in the land of Israel are saying, ‘Abraham was only one, and he inherited the land. But we are many; the land has been given to us as a possession.’ (Ezekiel 33:23-24)

Again Ezekiel received revelation from the Lord (v 23). It pertained to those pitiful survivors who remained among the ruins of Judah under the governorship of Gedaliah. Once the initial shock of seeing their homeland ravished had passed, that ragtag band began to imagine that they were the favored of the Lord. They apparently believed that they will form the nucleus of a new nation. They consoled themselves by the thought that originally Canaan had been given to a solitary individual, the patriarch Abraham. But how much greater their claim to that land!

They were many, and they were actually occupying that land. They will be able to recoup their loses and rebuild that land in no time (v 24).

"As for you, son of man, the children of your people are talking about you beside the walls and in the doors of the houses; and they speak to one another, everyone saying to his brother, 'Please come and hear what the word is that comes from the LORD.' So they come to you as people do, they sit before you as My people, and they hear your words, but they do not do them; for with their mouth they show much love, but their hearts pursue their own gain. Indeed you are to them as a very lovely song of one who has a pleasant voice and can play well on an instrument; for they hear your words, but they do not do them. (Ezekiel 33:30-32)

God called Ezekiel to be a watchman to the nation of Israel. He was to warn the people of the coming judgment and to get the people to turn back to God. Even though Ezekiel was faithfully doing what God wanted him to do, many of the people saw him as just another person. They heard his message and did nothing with it. They treated his prophetic messages as entertainment.

Each week, churches around the world are filled with many people who claim to be serving and loving God. Many pastors in these churches faithfully and accurately bring out the word of the Lord.

Most people hear the word of God that is preached or taught and admit that it was a great sermon. Some even shout out ‘Amen’ and cheer the pastor as he speaks. Many even invite their friends and relatives to listen to their pastor - after all he is such a great speaker. However, they do nothing with the message. It's just like another form of entertainment to them.

“….for they hear your words but do not put them into practice.” Ezekiel 33:32

This is also a prophetic warning for those of us reading Scripture on a daily basis. This verse tells us that we may be reading about what to do but if we don’t do what we know consistently, it's just a waste.

Chapter 33