We might call Ezekiel the rebuking
prophet, for he had some hard things to say unto Israel for
their sin. And this is one of the most scathing
denunciation that you'll be able to find anywhere in the Old Testament
concerning the sin of that nation. And we'll look at it a little
this morning. All right, chapter 16, verse
1 through 14 of Ezekiel. Again, the word of the Lord came
unto me, saying, Son of man, cause Jerusalem to know her abomination,
and say, Thus saith the Lord God unto Jerusalem, Thy birth
and thy nativity is of the land of Canaan, thy father an Amorite,
and thy mother an Hittite. As for thy nativity, in the day
that thou was born, thy navel was not cut, neither was thy
wash in water to supple, thou was not salted at all, nor swaddled
at all. None eye pitied thee to do any
of these unto thee, to have compassion upon thee, but thou was cast
out in the open field to the loathing of thy person in the
day that thou was born. And when I passed by thee and
saw thee polluted in thine own blood, I said unto thee, when
thou was in thy blood, live. Yea, I said unto thee, when thou
was in thy blood, live. I have caused thee to multiply
as the bud of the field, and thou hast increased and waxen
great, and thou art come to excellent ornaments. Thy breasts are fashioned,
thy hair is grown, whereas thou wast naked and bare. When I passed
by thee and looked upon thee, behold, thy time was the time
of love, And I spread my skirt over thee, covered thy nakedness. Yea, I swear unto thee, and entered
into a covenant with thee, saith the Lord God, and watch this,
thou becamest mine. Then washed I thee with water.
Yea, I thoroughly washed away thy blood from thee, and I anointed
thee with oil. I clothed thee also with brodered
work, and shod thee with badger skin, and I girded thee about
with fine linen, and I covered thee with silk. I decked thee
also with ornaments. I put bracelets upon thy hand,
and a chain on thy neck. I put a jewel on thy forehead,
and earrings in thine ears, and a beautiful crown upon thine
head. Thus was thy deck with gold and
silver, and thy arraignment was of fine linen and silk and broadered
work. Thou didst eat fine flour and
honey and oil, and thou wast exceedingly beautiful, and thou
didst prosper into a kingdom. and thy renown went forth among
the heathen for thy beauty. For it was perfect through my
calmliness, which I had put upon thee, saith the Lord God." And
we can only wish that it could say, and they lived happily ever
after. But we'll see that such was not
the case. Now, in entering into this text,
We notice the word again there in the first verse, that it is
not in some text, but this suggests that this contains a message
that was often repeated or that there is another prophecy that
is to be delivered unto them. Now the message is twofold as
we look at this long chapter. Number one, God would remind
the people of their original estate. He would remind them
of their sinfulness and of their wickedness, and even to remind
them of that condition of weakness which they were in when he cast
his favor upon them or looked upon them with pity and with
favor. They had perished from the face
of the earth under the image of that little female infant,
except God had extended them mercy, and except God had passed
by and said unto them, live. Notwithstanding God's goodness
toward them, they had, however, run into idolatry. Now the second point that is
made by the prophet is that God justifies the judgment that he
is to bring upon them. because they were a sinful and
a rebellious people. And his judgments were not capricious. They were not arbitrary judgment
sent upon them. They were not sent on a whim. They were not sent out of a desire
that God might act the part of a despot because he had power
over them. But it was their sin that brought
them into judgment and brought desolation upon them. Still,
God did not punish them the full deserts of their sin, but he
tempered his judgment with mercy, and he remembered and renewed
the covenant unto them in spite of all of their wickedness. Now, let's notice the subject
of this prophetical word or this exhortation or rebuke. It's in
verse 1 and 2. Son of man, here is thy calling. Here is thy message. caused Jerusalem to know her
abomination. And we look at that in the second
verse. Son of man caused Jerusalem to
know her abomination. Lay out before her her sin and
her rebellion. Now here's the image, here's
the metaphor, here's the parable. When born as a little newborn
baby girl, And on the very day of her birth, she was thrown
out. She was not taken in and loved
and cared for. She was dropped out, as it were,
in the open field, which some expositors think answers to their
time in the land of Egypt. And if you hear verse four, once
again, that at birth, the navel cord was not cut, which is one
of the first things that is performed on a child at their birth, to
cut and to tie the navel string by which the child had received
its nourishment from its mother. If not done, it could certainly
lead to dire consequences and even death. Then again notice,
neither was the baby even given the courtesy or the blessing
of being washed to cleanse away the blood of birth. It was left
upon the little infant to dry up and to pick up dirt from the
surface. This also is one of the first
things that we find to be done at the time of birth. And the
prophet said, neither were you salted at all, perhaps to purify
any infection or wounds and to facilitate the healing of any
blemishes or scratches that might have been up on the skin. at
the act or the time of birth. Then he adds, neither were you
swaddled at all. And to swaddle, or to swath,
wrapping around in cloth, not only to protect and to warm,
but to shape the body and to give it form that it might be
wonderful. We read in Luke 2 and 7 and verse
12 that the Lord was wrapped in swaddling clothes when Mary
gave birth unto him. Nor is that all, for when we
look at verse 5, none took pity upon her. None did any of these
things that might be a help and a blessing and to help her start
her life in the right direction. None cared. None pitied. None had compassion. None took
her in, even if they saw her, and she was cast out upon the
earth. I think the word is surfeit.
cast out upon the surface of the earth without any of these
things, without any food, and without any drink. In fact, she
was put there and was left to perish except for the mercy of
a stranger or a wayfaring one who might pass by and have mercy
upon her, but none did. I only remind you quickly how
many times we have seen this play out in our society. It is not unusual to hear on
the news, little newborn baby dumped, put in the dumpster or
cast upon a doorstep. But back to Ezekiel chapter 16,
the newborn baby girl and a metaphor or a symbol of Israel is what
this is representing. and would have perished beyond
doubt except for the divine intervention. If God had not intervened, certainly
she would have perished off of the face of the earth. What a
blessing. We look at verse 6 and following. I passed by, I saw thee, and
I said. Those three things God described. The Lord likens himself to a
man upon a journey, and passing by the very place, and lo and
behold, here lay an infant upon the surface of the earth, may
be squirming in her blood, as the NASB translates it, as it
crying, we covered in blood dried and in filth. possibly beaten
and eaten on by the insects of the field. And at this point,
it made me think of the parable of the Good Samaritan in the
10th chapter of the Gospel of Luke. You remember the man who
went on a journey? He fell among thieves, and they
beat him, and they robbed him, and they took all of his clothes,
and they left him there to die. The scripture said left him half
dead in verse 30. Well, a priest passed by, saw
it, went by on the other side. A Levite came, saw it, went by
on the other side. When the good Samaritan came,
lay him on his beast, tended his wound, carried him to the
inn, and offered to pay for all of his treatment. Therefore,
the Lord did not leave this little infant to perish. He passed by,
that is, he came that way. In fact, there are two passings
by that are mentioned in this passage of the scripture. The
first in verse six and the second in verse eight and each time
God blessed them. These two times when God likens
himself to one that comes that way and passes by, and he names
the two great things which he had done for them that redounded
under their good and under their help. Verse 6, he passed by. When he passed by this time,
they lay polluted in their own blood, or the margin has it like
this, trodden underfoot. There they were, could have been
stepped on, could have been trodden by man or beast, which Gil said
is the meaning of the word Need we repeat this answers of their
being under Pharaoh and they're being made slaves and their life
and awful drudge Their baby boys being killed at birth in Exodus
chapter 1 Joseph is gone now and there's a new king that does
not know Joseph Exodus chapter 1 and verse 8. So their situation
has changed down in the land of Egypt. And notice the word
spoken by God, the word live. I said unto thee when you were
in your condition coated in your blood, laying in the filth of
the earth. Yea, I said unto you, squirming
in your blood and trodden underfoot, live." This he says twice, live,
when they seemed at the point of extinction. Then God preserved
them. He saved them from ruin or from
death or from extinction. Unknown unto them, God had preserved
them by his secret providence, because to him belongs the power
of life and of death. And this word of God was efficacious. When God said, live, it was effectual
unto them. They not only lived, but look
at verse 7, in keeping with a metaphor of a young female reaching the
time or the age of her adolescent. That is, the period between childhood
and full maturity. Verse 7, I cause thee to multiply. Now, we read back in Exodus 1
and verse 12, that the more they afflicted them, the more they
multiplied and grew. They became as the bud of the
field. In other words, they became numerous. They became many. Now, in the
metaphor of the female, this answers to the time of puberty. Look at verse 7 and the last
part. Thou art come to excellent ornament. The margin has it, ornament of
ornament. In studying the word, it means
the finery or the better of outfits, that is, clothes and garments
that they like to wear, begin to wear when they reach that
age. It means trappings, I think, from a word meaning to advance
or to pass, to continue, and to be decked, and can refer this
to the time when the nurturing young lady as the ages desire
a different style of dress. They begin to become more aware
and dress more according under their age and maturity. It's the same word that we have
down in verse 11 I decked thee with fine ornament. And so she
began to wear them. I dressed you with fine ornament. Now, the last type of verse 7
describes the arrival of puberty. Your breasts are grown, are fashioned,
come to size, and your hair is grown. Maturity, puberty has
come. In other words, the once deserted
infant cast out in the open field in her own blood and in danger
of perishing, is now become, in the metaphor, a beautiful
young woman of marriageable age and condition. And she hath comely
form and looks, and ready and qualified to be taken as a wife. This in contrast with her first
condition, squirming infant naked and bare now in verse 8 is the
second passing by and this time God said was the time of love
now it seems literally to be the time of loves and In the
plural, I passed by, it was the time of love, I spread my skirt
over you, and I covered your neckiness. Do you remember Ruth
requesting Boaz to do that? in Ruth chapter 3 and verse 9. Now in verse 8, resolves the
manifold blessing which God bestowed upon them. I passed by, I looked
upon you, I spread my skirt over you, thereby covering your neck
in it. But noted, I swear unto thee
and entered covenant with thee. I think historically this involves
redeeming them out of the land of Egypt, bringing them out from
under their bondage, and bringing them to Sinai, and giving them
the law there, and entering there into covenant with them, and
so forth. Now, the spreading of the skirt
that is mentioned here describes a betrothal, as we might call
it in our day, of forming a marital union in the future. There is
a union that is to be formed and that he takes her under his
wing and protects her and cherishes her as his very own. But listen to those great words
in the end of that verse, and you became mine. What a wonderful
saying is that, and how wonderful. In Exodus chapter 19, God brought
the people unto Sinai. And in chapter 19, made preparation
for them for the receiving of the law at Sinai. And Moses acted as the mediator
there between God and the people, and in Exodus chapter 19 and
verse 4 and 5, and I would like to read it in our hearing. They
have come out of Egypt, they have come to Sinai. Ye have seen
what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare them on eagle's
wings, and brought you unto myself. Now therefore, if you will keep
my voice, indeed, and keep my covenant, then you shall be a
peculiar people unto me above all people, for all of the earth
is mine." Now, on this day, if I may continue with a metaphor,
they consummated the covenant between God and Israel. In the forming of the union,
the Lord Jehovah swear unto them. I will covenant with you. I will
be your God. I am a faithful husband. And you know, he likens himself
to a husband unto Israel. You'll find that in Jeremiah
31, 32, saying in Jeremiah chapter 3 and verse 14, I am married
unto you. You'll find it again in Isaiah
chapter 54 and verse 5. Hosea 2, 19 and 20, and other places where God portrays
himself as a husband unto Israel. Well, on the other hand, God
said, I will enter covenant, you will be mine. On the other
hand, the people vowed in Exodus 19 and verse 8, all that the
Lord has spoken, we will do. In Exodus 24 and verse 3, all
that the Lord has said we will do. In Exodus 24 and 7, all that
the Lord has said will we do and be obedient. Also see Deuteronomy
5 and 27. The principle firstly relates
to the law given at Sinai. Yes, we will have no other gods
before you. We will not make unto us any
graven images and so forth. We will forsake all other gods. will cleave only unto you and
many such like things they said on that occasion and at that
time as a bride making her vows and entering into the Covenant
Union. Now we need to understand the
impact of the covenant arrangement and the far-reaching consequences
of the words here in our text in the end of verse 8 I swear
unto thee I entered into covenant with thee and you became mine
my people my peculiar people you became mine in covenant with
me. Now, let's illustrate that out
of life. A couple betrothed or engaged. It is time of love with them. And then they come to be married. And then can each one say, you
are mine. And the union becomes more permanent
and intimate. And they become one flesh. They
leave father and mother, and they cleave unto each other until
death do them part in the perfect situation, forsaking all other,
at least ideally. But then, of course, owing to
depravity, it is not always so. even in the world and that holy
matrimony. Of course, God has made covenant
with Abraham before this quite some time, but here the Lord
formally and publicly binds the nation to him by the cords of
a covenant. using the metaphor or the parable
of marriage rights, albeit spiritual ones. This is a spiritual union. And Gill likened it to a sort
of marriage contract with them and what Calvin called, quote,
a custom marriage rights, unquote. And at that time, He bound them
as a nation, as a people and nation to him by covenant and
by law, and he set their order of worship at that time that
they were to follow. And God left all other nations
unto themselves. He chose this one and left the
Gentiles unto themselves. Remember that? In Acts chapter
14 and verse 16, suffered all nations to walk in their own
way. Remember Ephesians chapter 2?
And verse 12, that at that time the Gentiles were without Christ,
they were without God, they were strangers from the commonwealth
of Israel, from the covenant of promise, having no hope, and
without God in the world. But he took little old Israel
and said unto them, live, and he blessed them and took them
as his people. And here in Ezekiel chapter 16,
in our text, verse 9 through verse 14, where still using the
metaphor or the image. of the young female, albeit recently
come to the time of love and become a bride. He recalls how
richly he had endowed her, clothed her exquisitely as his bride
or people, and left her wanting for absolutely nothing. She had the finest clothes, she
had jewelry, she had the richest food, she was distinguished among
the other nations of the world for her beauty, and she became
the envy of all. I want you to think what Moses
told them on one occasion. It's in Deuteronomy chapter 4,
And I want to turn there and read it for our entering it into
the record. Here's what Moses once said unto
the people. Deuteronomy 4 and verse 7 and
verse 8. And we need to take it to heart.
What nation is there so great? who hath God so nigh unto them
as the Lord our God in all things that we call upon him for? And what nation is there so great
that has statutes and judgments so righteous as all this law
which I have set before you this day? Coming to 2nd Samuel chapter
7 and verse 23 and verse 24 We have that thought brought before
us again What one nation in the earth is like thy people? even
like Israel whom God went to redeem for people to himself
and to make him a name and to do for you great things and terrible
and for the land before thy people, which thou redeemest to thee
from Egypt, from the nations and their God, for thou hast
confirmed to the people unto thee forever, to be a people
forever, and thou, Lord, art become their God. Now there's the blessing that
he put upon them. We read in the scripture, blessed
is the nation whose God is the Lord and whom he has chosen for
his own inheritance. Psalm 33 and verse 12. And while God left the other
nation to kiss their idols, and to bow before them, he revealed
himself to those from Abraham and Isaac, and he made them his
people. He was their God and took them
into covenant. And right it is, what Spurgeon
wrote on this verse, election is at the bottom of it all, unquote. This is an instance of the sovereign
election of God. Israel did not choose God. He
chose them. They did not say, we want to
have God as our God. They too were in their blindness
and God chose them, yet not for anything in them or about them
or anything good or meritorious. It was not because he saw any
potential. It was not because they were
many nations or because they were powerful or mighty, for
they were not. They were the least of all. Why
did he choose them? He tells them. Because he would. And to quote Gil, he was their
God in a distinguishing manner, and out of that people the Messiah
came in the flesh. But remember, back in verse 2
of Ezekiel 16, God had said, cause Jerusalem to know her abomination. And this is summed up in verse
15. Let me read it now. The 15th
verse, Ezekiel chapter 16. Now remember what he said in
verse 14, thy renown went forth among the heathen, For thy beauty
it was perfect through thy comeliness which I put upon thee, saith
the Lord." The most beautiful woman or wife that one can imagine. But now look at verse 15. But
thou didst trust in thine own beauty. and played the harlot
because of thy renown, and poured out thy fornication on every
one that passed by his it was. Now it is clear, the image, a
beautiful woman, but who has cast off her chastity and has
taken illicit lovers in abundance one after the other. You must
remember Solomon's description of this. in Proverbs chapter
5 and again in chapter 7. In Proverbs chapter 5, 3 through
23. In chapter 7, 6 through 27, as
he describes the wiles of the harlot woman. The scenario has
often been repeated of a woman who has a husband Taking care
of her and yet turns around and takes other lovers Breaking wedlock
as it is described in Ezekiel 16 and verse 38 Israel therefore
is likened unto a wife that commits adultery Taking strangers instead
of her husband verse 32 She trusted in her beauty She played on her
fame. She played the harlot. She poured
out her fornication on everyone that passed by. It was him. Now, please notice something
here. What the prophet is saying unto her, he is not saying that
she was seduced. He's not saying that she was
enticed. He is accusing her of being the
enticer and the seductress. She is not enticed, but she is
the enticer. Look at it. Pouring out fornication
in verse 15. Opening her feet to everyone
that passed by in verse 25. How descriptive. Exposing herself
in a provocative way. Playing the whore with the Egyptians
in verse 26. With the Assyrians in verse 28. With the Chaldeans in verse 29. And even those in the land of
Canaan. and everyone that passes by. Now time is short, but let's
look at verse 31 through verse 34 in this chapter of the scripture. Let me read. in that thou buildest
thine eminent place in the head of every way, makest thine high
place in every street, and hast not been as an harlot. I want you to watch this. You've
got to get this. And has not been as a harlot
in that thou scornest hire. Verse 32. But as a wife that
commiteth adultery, You're not like a harlot that has hire,
but you're a wife that commits adultery, which take as strangers
instead of her husband. Then look at verse 33. Thou gave
gifts to all, they give gifts to all whores. But thou givest
thy gift to all thy lovers, and hirest them, that they may come
unto thee on every side for thy whoredom. And the contrary is
in thee from other women in thy whoredoms, whereas none followeth
thee to commit whoredom, and in that thou givest a reward,
and no reward is given unto thee, thou for thou art contrary. What a passage of the scripture
have we read. Her paying instead of receiving. Reward is given unto thee. It's a common practice of the
harlot or the prostitute that she might receive higher. But
Israel differed it. differed in that instead of prostituting
for hire, she was a faithless wife, even giving her illicit
gifts one after another. In other words, pictured as one
driven by her lust. This is an ultimate degradation
for women, to prostitute themselves and that to total strangers.
And it is the ultimate betrayal of the marriage bond and the
breaking of the one-flesh union. Now, why does the prophet so
rebuke them? And again, where is there a more
stinging rebuke to be found than this one? We didn't read it,
but from 15 on, it will make your ears burn. Their sin is
more detestable because, verse 22 and B, they had not remembered
what they were and what God had done for them. They had forgotten
where they began. They had forgotten where God
found them. They had forgotten what God did
for them in the way of blessing, as seen in verse 1 through 14.
What would have happened to them had not God intervened? So they
forgot his former mercies, and they flirted with idols. He had delivered them out of
the land of Egypt. He had brought them to be his
people and entered into covenant. Now, I think there's a lesson
here for all of the children of God. That is to remember the
love of thine espousals. Jeremiah chapter 2 in verse 2.
Remember the love of his spouse, how we loved and then entered
into the wedding union. Remember the first love, the
first love that God put into our heart. To remember how God
did come unto us, when we were dead, in trespasses, and in sin. And at that time, he said to
our soul, live. And life came into us. There was a time when, like fools,
We galloped along the public highway at noonday, not ashamed
of our sin and of our way of life, and pouring out our sin
for all the world to see, and that without shame. And yet God
came to us. God passed by when we were in
that awful, hopeless condition, dead in trespass and in sin. And he said, live? and we were
quickened or regenerated, and he called us away from our former
life, and thank God for all of that, or we would have entered
into certain destruction. Now let us remember first mercies. Let us remember past mercies. Let us remember how he guided
us through our youthful stupidities and then came to us in a way
of living grace and regeneration and brought us to a saving knowledge
of himself. Now we might close with this.
What is to become of Israel? Here they're charged as no other
people could be charged or rebuked. But let's look at verse 60 of
the same chapter. Nevertheless, I will remember
my covenant with thee in the days of thy youth, and I will
establish unto thee an everlasting covenant. I will not be unfaithful. I will not be true. I will keep
covenant. And I will make an everlasting
covenant, one greatly different and one greatly more spiritual. So God is a faithful God, even
in our unfaithfulness. I read somewhere, a Puritan said,
my soul feels like that faithless spouse. in Ezekiel chapter 16. And I guess sometime we all feel
that way. How gracious God has been to
save us when we had nothing to offer, to save us when we were
sinful, to save us when we even hated him and blasphemed the
church as Paul did. And yet God passed by and he
said to us, live. And we lived. and he preserved
us, and he took us as his people. We're in covenant with the holy
and eternal God. The bride of Christ, he the husband. Thank God for that image, metaphor,
parable.