OUR LORD WHO CAN HEAL OUR LAND

Isaiah chapter 3 verses 4 - 9 are words spoken against Jerusalem and Judah by the Lord for their evil deeds and their evil words against Him. The passage reads this way;

“I will make mere youths their officials; children will rule over them.”

People will oppress each other—man against man, neighbor against neighbor. The young will rise up against the old, the nobody against the honored.

A man will seize one of his brothers in his father’s house, and say, “You have a cloak, you be our leader; take charge of this heap of ruins!”

But in that day he will cry out, “I have no remedy. I have no food or clothing in my house; do not make me the leader of the people.”

Jerusalem staggers, Judah is falling their words  and deeds are against the Lord, defying his glorious presence. The look on their faces testifies against them; they parade their sin like Sodom; they do not hide it.

Woe to them! They have brought disaster upon themselves.

The declaration of the dismal condition of God's people reveals a desperate and collapsing society.

The symptoms of a decaying society are listed as the experience of Jerusalem and Judah.

This society is shown to be in serious trouble because adults do not want the responsibility of leadership. Children, with their lack of knowledge and wisdom, find themselves being propelled into positions of rulership. 

Citizens lose civility and oppress each other. The youth mistreat the elderly and the honored people are besmirched by the dishonourable.

When social disollution reaches this far, people will seek those who have even slight advantages (like possesing clothes) and try to make them their rulers. But even these will decline because of how intractable the problems are.

When a people strives against the Lord, their society gradually dissolves and weakens and falls into the hands of enemies or just decays into abject ruin.

However, as it says in 2 Chronicles chapter 7 verse 14,  "if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land."

Amen.

OUR LORD REVEALS HIS NEW TEMPLE TO HIS PEOPLE

Ezekiel chapter 41 verses 9 - 10 says this;

 The outer wall of the side rooms was five cubits thick. The open area between the side rooms of the temple  and the priests’ rooms was twenty cubits wide all around the temple.

This is an exerpt from the design specifications for the new temple given in Ezekiel chapter 41 to chapter 48. The measurements are given in cubits which are 18 inches each so can be given in feet by multiplying 18 by the number of cubits and then dividing by 12.

These particular details speak of the side rooms that surround the temple and their outer walls were 7.5 feet thick.

There was an open space all around the temple between the side rooms and the priests' rooms that were 30 feet wide.

Such were the dimensions of the outer walls of the side rooms and the space around the temple  between the side rooms and the priests' rooms.

Amen.

 OUR LORD WHO MITIGATES UNFAIRNESS AGAINST US

Genesis chapter 31 verses 9 - 10 says this;

So God has taken away your father’s livestock and has given them to me.

“In breeding season I once had a dream in which I looked up and saw that the male goats mating with the flock were streaked, speckled or spotted. 

This chapter contains the words of Jacob to his wives Leah and Rachel as he explained to them why he wanted to leave their father's household and go back to his own household.

In this particular passage, Jacob was illustrating that the crisis was triggered when he started  prospering while his wive's father was losing wealth.

Whenever his father-in-law said that the speckled goats would be Jacob's wages, the flock would give birth to speckled goats and whenever his father-in-law said that streaked goats would be his wages, the flock began producing streaked goats abundantly.

It was this pattern that helped Jacob see that the Lord was helping him prosper.

In Genesis 31 verses 11 - 12, an angel in a dream clarified this for Jacob.

The angel of God said to me in the dream, ‘Jacob.’ I answered, ‘Here I am.’ And he said, ‘Look up and see that all the male goats mating with the flock are streaked, speckled or spotted, for I have seen all that Laban has been doing to you.

This favour on Jacob was predicated by his father-in-law's unfairness towards him and the Lord intervened on his behalf to prosper him inspite of the unfairness he was enduring. This favour ended up becoming so evident that animosity against Jacob began to fester in the hearts of his in-laws.

Bless our lord who helps us overcome injustice.

Amen.

OUR LORD WHO AVENGES HIS PEOPLE

Joel chapter 3 verses 4 - 5 records the words of the Lord against the kingdoms who had raided  and enslaved His people;

 “Now what have you against me, Tyre and Sidon and all you regions of Philistia? Are you repaying me for something I have done? If you are paying me back, I will swiftly and speedily return on your own heads what you have done 

For you took my silver and my gold and carried off my finest treasures to your temples.

This passage is aimed at Tyre, Sidon  and the areas of Philistia and to the spiritual kingdoms  over-shadowing them.

These kingdoms had dared to raid the Lord's people and take the Lord's silver and gold and his treasures to put them in their own temples. They then sold God's people into slavery.

What these kingdoms had done to the people of Israel, the Lord said He would do to them. 

As Joel chapter 3 verses 7 - 8 says;

“See, I am going to rouse them out of the places to which you sold them, and I will return on your own heads what you have done. I will sell your sons and daughters to the people of Judah, and they will sell them to the Sabeans, a nation far away.” The Lord has spoken.

Amen.

OUR LORD WHOSE ENEMIES ARE COMPLETELY DEFEATED

In the book of Ezekiel chapter 39, the Lord instructs Ezekiel to invite every kind of bird and wild animal to assemble on the mountains of Israel for there would be a feast of the armies of the powers of darkness. The mighty men and princes and all their horses would be slain and would be given as food to all the scavengers. Ezekiel chapter 39 verse 19 says this;

At the sacrifice I am preparing for you, you will eat fat till you are glutted and drink blood till you are drunk. 

This verse records a pointed warning against the army of darkness who attacked the Lord's people. As powerful as these forces are, they will be crushed and their remains will be a bounty for birds and wild animals to eat. 

Such is the fate of the spiritual rulers and powers who will mount an assault against the Lord's people.

Amen.

 OUR LORD IS THE ONLY ONE WHO CAN SAVE

Isaiah chapter  43 verse 10 is a rare meta  declaration by the Lord God giving  an unequivocal statement about His own unique place as  the only and eternal God. In this passage, speaking to His people, the Lord says this;

“You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord, “and my servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he. Before me no god was formed, nor will there be one after me.

From the perspective of an omniscient God, to categorically declare that there is no other who existed before Him or after Him would have to be the  definitive statement of facts. In the eternal timeline from eternity past and eternity future, there exists no other God.

 Another meta declaration is found in Isaiah chapter 44 verse 8;

You are my witnesses. Is there any god besides me? No, there is no other Rock; I know not one.”

Here, the Lord God rhetorically  asks if there is any god besides Himself and He declares again that he does not know of any such being in any spatial location  or dimension.

This all encompassing statement of the Lord's uniqueness leads us to conclude that He is our only possible saviour. Isaiah chapter 43 verse 11 says this;

I, even I, am the Lord, and apart from me there is no savior.

The declaration by the Lord that there is no saviour apart from Him is equally definitive.

This is why the apostle Peter proclaimed this about the Lord Jesus Christ in Acts chapter 4 verse 12;

Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”

Amen.

Source: https://bible.knowing-jesus.com/

OUR LORD WHO GIVES CLEAR WARNINGS OF DANGER

Ezekiel chapter 4 verses 3 - 5 says this;

Then take an iron pan, place it as an iron wall between you and the city and turn your face toward it. It will be under siege, and you shall besiege it. This will be a sign to the people of Israel.

 “Then lie on your left side and put the sin of the people of Israel upon yourself. You are to bear their sin for the number of days you lie on your side. I have assigned you the same number of days as the years of their sin. So for 390 days you will bear the sin of the people of Israel.

Having already instructed Ezekiel to make a small scale  model  of Jerusalem, the Lord told Ezekiel to create a miniturized  siege against the city complete with siege works, battering rams, ramps and encampments. The Lord then directed Ezekiel to  take an iron pan and place it between the city and himself to enact the siege.

The passage then records that the Lord instructed Ezekiel to lie on the ground  on his left side facing the model of Jerusalem  and to take the sin of Israel onto himself for 390 days which was one day for each year of their sin.

 Ezekiel chapter 4 verse 6 then records Ezekiel being instructed to lie down on his right side but this time, it would be to bear the sin of Judah for 40 days with a day for each year of Judah's sin. The verse reads this way;

“After you have finished this, lie down again, this time on your right side, and bear the sin of the people of Judah. I have assigned you 40 days, a day for each year.

For a total of 430 days, Ezekiel was to lie facing the scale model of Jerusalem bearing the sin of Israel and of Judah.

This way, the unmistakable message of the impending siege was communicated to the people of Israel and Judah warning of the dreadful conditions that would befall them when the food and water supplies were cut off.

The Lord warned his people with graphic depictions of imminent danger so that they could be prepared.

Amen.

 OUR LORD WHO SIGNALS HIS FORCES INTO ACTION

Isaiah chapter 13 verses 1 - 3 reads this way;

A prophecy against Babylon that Isaiah son of Amoz saw: Raise a banner on a bare hilltop,  shout to them; beckon to them to enter the gates of the nobles. 

I have commanded those I prepared for battle; I have summoned my warriors to carry out my wrath—those who rejoice in my triumph.

Isaiah watched the prophetic scene unfold capturing it vividly in this chapter. 

Babylon, the future world system, is quiety being besieged but she is not aware of the mounting danger.

What is underway is that the Lord's warriors are being prepared and positioned to topple the power structures of Babylon.

When all is set, a signal banner, which is a silent signal, is lifted up on a prominent high point. A shout goes forth commanding the Lord's special task forces to enter the gates of the headquaters of the kingdom of Babylon.

This sudden and precisely timed incursion into the nerve centers of the Babylonian hierarchy is the beginning of the end of Babylon's world system.

This initial move then makes way for the Lord's massive army to begin operations, this time signalled by a loud trumpet in Zion. The stealth operation is over and the overt invasion begins.

Joel chapter 2 verse 2 says this;

Like dawn spreading across the mountains a large and mighty army comes, such as never was in ancient times nor ever will be in ages to come.

Amen.

OUR LORD WHO GIVES WARNING THROUGH HIS PROPHETS.

Ezekiel chapter 12 verses 12 -13 says this;

“The prince among them will put his things on his shoulder at dusk and leave, and a hole will be dug in the wall for him to go through. He will cover his face so that he cannot see the land. I will spread my net for him, and he will be caught in my snare; I will bring him to Babylonia, the land of the Chaldeans, but he will not see it, and there he will die.

This passage describes the meaning of the actions that the Lord told Ezekiel the prophet to take. Ezekiel was to pack his belongings in the sight of all the people to represent that he was going into exile. He was then to dig a hole in the perimeter wall with his hands and leave with his belongings through the hole in the wall with his face covered so that he could not see the land as he left.

This somber prophetic object lesson was to be a message to the prince of Jerusalem and all the Israelites who were in the city. The prince was going to have his things put on his shoulders and he would leave through a hole on the wall and he would not see the land as he left to go to Babylonia where he would die.

Ezekiel enacted the exile scene in the sight of all the people as a sign to them of what would happen to them. Surprisingly, the people of Israel were indifferent to what Ezekiel was doing and did not ask him what it meant.

The Lord, seeing that the people of Israel did not ask, told Ezekiel to say to the people that what he was doing would happen to them and that they would be going into captivity.

Ezekiel chapter 12 verse 11 reads like this; 

 Say to them, ‘I am a sign to you.’ “As I have done, so it will be done to them. They will go into exile as captives.

Even when the people ignored the warning message, the Lord instructed Ezekiel to explain to people what it meant so that they were adequately warned.

As it says in Amos chapter 3 verse 7; Surely the Sovereign Lord does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets.

Amen.

OUR LORD WHO GRANTS US MERCY

Ezekiel chapter 14 verses 1 - 2 says this;

Some of the elders of Israel came to me and sat down in front of me. Then the word of the Lord came to me:

This verse describes a scene where Ezekiel the prophet was approached by some of the elders of Israel and they sat before him waiting to inquire of the Lord through the prophet.

While they sat, a word of the Lord came to Ezekiel but this word was a word of knowledge about the men who had come before him that revealed that these men had idols in their hearts and had placed wicked stumbling blocks before their faces. Ezekiel chapter 14 verse 3 says it this way;

“Son of man, these men have set up idols in their hearts and put wicked stumbling blocks before their faces. Should I let them inquire of me at all?

Here, the Lord privately revealed this word about the elders to Ezekiel and then asked him if he, the Lord, should let the consultation continue in light of the revelation of what was in the hearts of the elders of Israel.

The Lord Himself provided the answer to the question with a course of action and instructed Ezekiel to reveal to the elders that the idols in their hearts and the stumbling blocks before their faces  needed to be repented of and renounced as Ezekiel chapter 14 verse 6 says;

 “Therefore say to the people of Israel, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Repent! Turn from your idols and renounce all your detestable practices!

The Lord's direct response to the inquiry by the people in calling them to repent is designed to capture the hearts of the people who had abandoned their God to go after idols.

As Ezekiel chapter 14 verse 5 says;

 I will do this to recapture the hearts of the people of Israel, who have all deserted me for their idols.’

The Lord's willingness to forgive extends to all those who deserted him but were willing to repent.

Bless the Lord who grant's us all mercy.

Amen.

OUR LORD WHO KINDLES A FIRE OF RETRIBUTION AND PURIFICATION

Ezekiel chapter 24 verse 9 says this;

 “‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: “‘Woe to the city of bloodshed!  I, too, will pile the wood high.

This verse is a description of the judgement that is brought upon Jerusalem because of the murders in the city.

Because of the blood that they shed in their midst, the Lord declares that He himself will pile on the wood that represents the judgement of fire that will be brought to that city.

The killings of people that were committed in Jerusalem will be rettributed when the fiery judgement of God is leveled against the city.

Amen.

OUR LORD WHOSE ARMY OVERWHELMS THE ENEMY

Ezekiel chapter 26 verse 10 says this;

His horses will be so many that they will cover you with dust. Your walls will tremble at the noise of the warhorses, wagons and chariots when he enters your gates as men enter a city whose walls have been broken through.

This verse paints the picture of a total invasion of the kingdom of Tyre by the chariots and horsemen of Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon.

This massive assault was triggered when Tyre looked upon Jerusalem and the nations who were her allies and saw that they were undefended because the gates were broken and the doors left wide open.

The king of Tyre opportunistically attacked Jerusalem and as he did so, found himself facing a gigantic army that suddenly appeared in a surprise counter-attack  against him.

After laying siege on Tyre and smashing its walls with battering rams, the swarming army thundered into Tyre bringing destruction and quickly razing the whole kingdom to bare rock.

After witnessing the crushing of Tyre, the princes who were allies to Tyre were so traumatized  that they immediately surrendered to the invading army.

As Ezekiel chapter 26 verse 16 says;

Then all the princes of the coast will step down from their thrones and lay aside their robes and take off their embroidered garments. Clothed with terror, they will sit on the ground, trembling every moment, appalled at you. 

This metaphoric narrative could be read like this;

 The army invading Tyre would be the Kingdom of Light invading the kingdom of darkness. 

The conquering army could be seen as the army of the saints of the Lord defeating the kingdom of  darkness and Tyre's allies could be understood to be the kingdoms of this world who cooperate with the kingdom of darkness to attempt to establish the dominion of evil on the whole earth. 

These events are part of the same invasion that is described by the prophets Joel and Isaiah ;

 Joel chapter 2 verse 2;

Like dawn spreading across the mountains a large and mighty army comes, such as never was in ancient times nor ever will be in ages to come.

and Isaiah chapter 13 verse 4;

Listen, a noise on the mountains, like that of a great multitude! Listen, an uproar among the kingdoms, like nations massing together! The Lord Almighty is mustering an army for war.

The Lord musters His army and it is fearsome to behold.

Amen.

OUR LORD WHO LEADS HIS MIGHTY ARMY

Joel chapter 2 verses 9 - 10 says this;

They rush upon the city; they run along the wall.

They climb into the houses; like thieves they enter through the windows.

Before them the earth shakes, the heavens tremble, the sun and moon are darkened, and the stars no longer shine.

This passage tells of an unprecedented assault on the kingdom of darkness by the army of the Lord after the trumpet in Zion is sounded.

Disciplined and unrelenting, this swarming force sweeps through cities and houses leaving smouldering destruction behind them.

The effect of this ground movement is so profound that nature itself reels  and the earth shakes , the heavens tremble, the sun and moon are darkened and the starless night sky is pitch black.

The Lord, at the head of His vast and mighty army, thunders His commands which His forces take heed to obey.

Even at this juncture, as it says in Joel chapter 2 verses 12 - 13, the Lord offers a chance to his people to return to Him. 

“Even now,” declares the Lord, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning.” Rend your heart and not your garments. 

Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity.

How mighty the Lord is and how gracious He is.

Amen.

OUR LORD WHO GATHERS THE NATIONS FOR JUDGEMENT

Joel chapter 4 verses 2 - 9 says this;

I will gather all the nations and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat. There I will enter into judgment with them on behalf of my people, my heritage, Israel;

Because they scattered them among the nations they divided up my land. For my people they cast lots trading a young boy for the price of a prostitute, exchanging a young girl for the wine they drank.

Moreover, what are you doing to me, Tyre and Sidon, and all the regions of Philistia? Are you paying me back for something? If you are, I will very quickly turn your deeds back upon your own head. You took my silver and my gold and brought my priceless treasures into your temples! You sold the people of Judah and Jerusalem to the Greeks, taking them far from their own country! 

Look! I am rousing them from the place to which you sold them, and I will turn your deeds back upon your own head. I will sell your sons and daughters to the Judahites who will sell them to the Sabeans, a distant nation. The Lord has spoken!

Announce this to the nations: Proclaim a holy war! Alert the warriors! Let all the soldiers  report and march!

This passage begins by specifying the arena of judgement which will be at the Valley of Jehosephat which is also called the Kidron Valley which is between the city of Jerusalem and the Mount of Olives.

This judgment against the nations is predicated by what they did to God's people, the children of Israel. 

God's people were scattered, the land divided up, their children sold for prostitutes and wine.

The Lord's gold and silver implements were taken and placed in foreign temples. The people of Judah and Jerusalem  were sold to the Greeks so that they were far from their homes.

For these actions against the Lord and the enslavement of His people, these scriptures are a call to alert the army of God. 

Let all the soldiers report and march!

Amen.

OUR LORD WHO BRINGS DOWN THE PRINCES OF DARKNESS

Ezekiel chapter 39 verse 4 says this;

On the mountains of Israel you will fall, you and all your troops and the nations with you. I will give you as food to all kinds of carrion birds and to the wild animals.

This passage  references the spiritual kingdom of Meshek and Tubal led by a spiritual prince named Gog.

The prophecy written by Ezekiel against Gog describes how he is dragged from the far north and compelled to move against the mountains of Israel. 

Here, Gog is disarmed and he falls along with all his troops and all the nations aligned with him. His remains are given to vultures and scavenger animals as food.

This passage illustrates how the hierarchy of the kingdom of darkness is systematically brought to utter ruin by the God of Israel. 

Mighty princes are corralled into inescapable strategic positions and their weapons taken from them. They and their allies are then destroyed.

Such is the fate of those who rally against the Lord God Almighty and who disregard His offer of salvation through belief in Jesus Christ who paid by His death to redeem mankind.

Call upon the name of the Lord and be saved.

Amen.

OUR LORD WHO HEARS HIS PROPHETS IN JUDGEMENT

Amos chapter 7 verses 7 - 8 reads as follows;

This is what he showed me: The Lord was standing by a wall that had been built true to plumb, with a plumb line in his hand. And the Lord asked me, “What do you see, Amos?”

“A plumb line,” I replied.

Then the Lord said, “Look, I am setting a plumb line among my people Israel; I will spare them no longer.

The previous judgements against Israel that were shown to Amos were aimed at the entire nation. 

The locusts swarms that the Lord showed Amos, were going to devour the crops of all the people of Israel and destroy the whole country. Amos asked that the Lord spare Israel and the Lord relented.

Next, the Lord showed Amos the judgement of fire that was going to dry out the great deep and devour the land. The totality of the destruction caused Amos to ask the Lord to allay the judgement of fire and the Lord relented.

The plumb line in this passage represents the measuring of Israel's alignment to God's standard of righteousness and this was the means that the Lord showed to Amos that did not bring complete ruin to Israel.

This tool was the means by which judgement was to be aimed precisely at those who were causing Israel to be out of alignment. 

When the Lord held the plumb line among the people of Israel,  He named the following areas in Amos chapter 7 verse 9 as those that would be targeted for destruction;

“The high places of Isaac will be destroyed and the sanctuaries of Israel will be ruined; with my sword I will rise against the house of Jeroboam.”

The Lord heard the pleas of His prophet Amos and relented on His total  judgement of Israel and instead, aimed ruin against the religious and political leadership of the country that was  leading people into error.

Amen.

OUR LORD WHO BRINGS RETRIBUTION ON THOSE WHO COMMIT ATROCITIES

Amos chapter 1 verse 7 says this;

I will send fire on the walls of Gaza that will consume her fortresses.

Here, in a prophetic utterance by the prophet Amos, the Lord speaks judgement on Gaza, which is the land Southwest of Israel, because they took entire communities captive and sold them to the kingdom of Edom.

Because of their wholesale cruelty, their walls and fortresses were burned down. A fire was ignited along the perimeter of their cities and it spread to their fortresses and destroyed them.

Without fortresses, these cities were exposed to attacks that would result in those who dwelled in them being taken as captives and sold as slaves.

Their leaders in their main cities, Ashdod and Ashkelon, were slain because of their part in wiping out whole communities for profit by selling them to Edom. For this,  the Lord set his hand to wipe out every last Philistine in Gaza.

This judgement on Gaza is reciprocal in that the evil that they did to others is visited upon them. 

As the Lord Jesus said in Mathew 7 verse 12, "So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.

Amen.

 OUR LORD WHO KNOWS OUR FRAME

Ezekiel chapter 4 verses 13 -14 is a excerpt from a conversation between Ezekiel the prophet and the Lord in which the Lord is instructing Ezekiel to lie down for 390 days  in the sight of the people Jerusalem and eat food cooked over human excrement. This action is to be a prophecy of the defiled food the people of Israel will eat when they are sent into exile.  The passage goes like this;

The Lord said, “In this way the people of Israel will eat defiled food among the nations where I will drive them.”

Then I said, “Not so, Sovereign Lord! I have never defiled myself. From my youth until now I have never eaten anything found dead or torn by wild animals. No impure meat has ever entered my mouth.”

Ezekiel responds to the Lord by objecting to eating food cooked over human excrement. He mentions to the Lord that he has never defiled himself by eating animals found dead or those torn apart  by wild animals and that he has never eaten impure meat.

Ezekiel equates eating bread cooked over human excrement with eating defiled meat which  means that the exposing bread to burning human excrement defiles it in the same way that the meat of animals torn apart by wild animals is defiled or how the meat of animals that die of natural or unknown causes is defiled.

The Lord gives Ezekiel a reprieve by allowing him to use cow dung instead of human waste to cook his bread which transmits the same prophetic message  to the observers but without bringing  defilement to Ezekiel. 

Let us bless the Lord who remembers that we are but dust and who lightens our burdens that he  gives us so that we can bear them. 

Amen.

OUR LORD WHO JUDGES HIS PEOPLE IF THEY ARE UNFAITHFUL

Ezekiel chapter 14 verse 15 - 16 is a warning from the Lord to Israel that if they sin against the Lord by being unfaithful towards Him, they would draw repercussions upon themselves. 

The judgement against then would be so sure that even if Noah, Daniel and Job were among them, these three righteous men would be saved but Israel would still suffer judgement. These three intercessors would not be able to allay the punishment of the Lord on Israel.

The passage reads like this;

“Or if I send wild beasts through that country and they leave it childless and it becomes desolate so that no one can pass through it because of the beasts, as surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, even if these three men were in it, they could not save their own sons or daughters. They alone would be saved, but the land would be desolate."

In this particular judgement possibility, wild beasts are let loose in the land so that the country is left childless and desolate. If the Lord were to let that occur, Noah, Daniel or Job would survive but even their own sons and daughters would not be saved and  the whole  land would be not escape desolation.

This judgement mirrors Leviticus chapter 26 verse 22 which delineates the consequences of  not obeying the law of the Lord. It reads this way;

I will also send wild beasts among you, which shall rob you of your children, destroy your livestock, and make you few in number; and your highways shall be desolate.

The wild beasts rob children and destroy livestock  and shrink the population and make the whole place desolate and no one moves along the roadways.

Let us act faithfully towards our the Lord listening to Him only and not to the allurements  of the world and the temptations of the flesh.

Amen.

OUR LORD WHO BRINGS DOWN THE PRIDEFUL

Ezekiel chapter 31 is a prophetic pronouncement that uses trees as metaphors for spiritual kingdoms. 

The use of trees to represent spiritual kingdoms in this chapter is  the same as when the Lord Jesus used the metaphor of a mustard seed to describe the Kingdom of heaven in Mathew chapter 13 verses 31 and 32 which reads like this;

He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.”

In Ezekiel chapter 13, the Lord, speaking to Pharaoh  of the spiritual kingdom of Egypt, tells him of the spiritual kingdom of Assyria which He compared to a cedar tree describing it this way;

I made it beautiful with abundant branches, the envy of all the trees of Eden in the garden of God.

Here, the Lord informs Pharoah that it was He who made Assyria beautiful so that even the trees planted in the garden of God envied it.

Nevertheless, when the tree of  Assyria grew tall and pridefully towered over the nations, the Lord cast it aside and it was ruthlessly cut down.

The Lord then informs Pharoah of the spiritual kingdom of Egypt that in the same way, even though his kingdom exceeds all other kingdoms, he will be brought down from his heights and he will lie among the slain. Ezekiel chapter 31 verse 18 says it this way;

“‘Which of the trees of Eden can be compared with you in splendor and majesty? Yet you, too, will be brought down with the trees of Eden to the earth below; you will lie among the uncircumcised, with those killed by the sword.

Bless our Lord whose power and might can bring down the kingdoms of the oppressors even though they are formidable and entrenched.

Amen.

OUR LORD WHO CLEANSES HIS PEOPLE

Isaiah chapter 4 verses 1 - 5 says this;

In that day seven women  will take hold of one man and say, “We will eat our own food and provide our own clothes only let us be called by your name. Take away our disgrace!”

 In that day the Branch of the Lord will be beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the land will be the pride and glory of the survivors in Israel.  Those who are left in Zion, who remain in Jerusalem, will be called holy all who are recorded among the living in Jerusalem. The Lord will wash away the filth of the women of Zion; he will cleanse the bloodstains from Jerusalem by a spirit of judgment and a spirit of fire.Then the Lord will create over all of Mount Zion and over those who assemble there a cloud of smoke by day and a glow of flaming fire by night; over everything the glory will be a canopy.

This passage reveals some surprising aspects of the day of the Lord which is the day of judgement as revealed in Isaiah chapter 3 verse 13 which says; "The Lord takes his place in court; he rises to judge the people."

Starting off, the women scramble to get the attention of a limited number  of men asking them if they could be called by their names in order to "take away their disgrace."

This verse implies that on the day of judgement, there will be a category of women who will realise that they are in a state of insufficiency that could potentially be mitigated by attaching themselves to a man and so a bidding war begins with women trading their requirements down to even where they would cover  their own expenses as long as they could be called by a man's name.

Next, the branch of the Lord, which is the church (as Jesus said, "I am the vine and you are the branches"),  is described as "beautiful and glorious" the fruit of whom is the pride of Israel.

The passage goes on to say that those who are holy will be the ones who remain and are found in Jerusalem.

The passage then speaks of the filth of the women being washed away by the Lord and the bloodstains of Jerusalem being cleansed by a spirit of judgement and a spirit of fire which reveals that the Lord himself will wash away residual stains among His people so that they are presented holy and blameless. 

Then, the Lord will create a cloud of smoke by day and a glow of flaming  fire by night as a canopy over everything. This canopy will provide shade and shelter for God's people which is reminiscent of the pillar of cloud and pillar of fire that led the children of Israel in the wilderness.

Amen.

OUR LORD WHO CURTAILS THE SCHEMES OF HIS ENEMIES

Revisiting Isaiah chapter 19 verse 13, let's look again at what this verse  says about the oppressors of God's people, represented by Egypt;

The officials of Zoan have become fools, the leaders of Memphis are deceived; the cornerstones of her peoples have led Egypt astray.

The backdrop of this verse is that Egypt's leadership had decided to enslave the children of Isreal because they believed they were becoming too numerous and that they represented a political threat to their establishment.

When the Lord moved to free His people from the bondage of slavery, He targeted the leadership of Egypt by pouring a spirit of dizziness on them. 

The officials of Zoan, which at the time was an important administrative center of Egypt, became fools. Their perceptions of reality were distorted and they could not properly formulate rational decisions.

The leaders of Memphis, which was an important religious center,  were deceived. In their religious pursuits, they became gullible and followed bad spiritual counsel.

All the leaders of Egypt who should have been the cornerstones of the nation to bring knowledge and wisdom for the guidance of the country, instead, led Egypt astray.

For the oppressors who conspire to subjugate God's people using administrative weapons and spiritual deception, the Lord has means of His own to render the  schemers mentally  unable to plan and execute their ambitions.

Bless the Lord who saves His people from oppressors no matter how formidable they appear.

Amen.

OUR LORD WHO IS NOT MOCKED

Ezekiel chapter 35 verses 1 - 3 reads this way;

The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, set your face against Mount Seir; prophesy against it  and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against you, Mount Seir, and I will stretch out my hand against you and make you a desolate waste.

This prohecy of woe against Mount Seir stems from their ancient hostility against the land of Israel. As it says in verses 5 - 6;

“‘Because you harbored an ancient hostility and delivered the Israelites over to the sword at the time of their calamity, the time their punishment reached its climax, therefore as surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, I will give you over to bloodshed and it will pursue you.

The kingdom of Mount Seir wrongly positioned themselves against the kingdom of Israel because the Lord had explicitly instructed Israel as they were approaching the promised land, not to claim any of the land of Mount Seir because He had given it to Esau, the brother of their forefather, Jacob.  Deuteronomy chapter 2 verse 5 says it this way;

don't contend with them; for I will not give you of their land, no, not so much as for the sole of the foot to tread on; because I have given Mount Seir to Esau for a possession.

Nevertheless, Mount Seir, in verses 10 - 11 of Ezekiel chapter 35, claimed Israel as their possesion. The passage says this;

 “‘Because you have said, “These two nations and countries will be ours and we will take possession of them,” even though I the Lord was there, therefore as surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, I will treat you in accordance with the anger and jealousy you showed in your hatred of them and I will make myself known among them when I judge you.

Most offensive about this claim over Israel by the Kingdom of Mount Seir, was that it overlooked that fact that Lord, God of Jacob was there even though it was He who underwrote their protection from invasion by the approaching Israelites.

Because of their hatred towards Israel while they  ignored the presence of the Lord, the prophecy declared that their judgement would be according to their behaviour and attitude toward the kingdom of Israel.

In present times, the enemies of God's people have presumed to oppress the Lord's inheritance as though the Lord Himself were not there and they have rashly spoken against them and against the Lord.

In fact, the Lord is there and His judgement looms over those who do not have His salvation which is given as a gift through believing in Jesus, the one who died and shed His blood to pay for our sins.

Amen.

OUR LORD WHO RESTORES HIS PEOPLE FROM USURPERS AND PLUNDERERS

Ezekiel chapter 36 verses 4 - 5 says this;

therefore, mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Sovereign Lord: This is what the Sovereign Lord says to the mountains and hills, to the ravines and valleys, to the desolate ruins and the deserted towns that have been plundered and ridiculed by the rest of the nations around you

—  this is what the Sovereign Lord says: In my burning zeal I have spoken against the rest of the nations, and against all Edom, for with glee and with malice in their hearts they made my land their own possession so that they might plunder its pastureland.’

This passage is a prophecy spoken to the  mountains of Israel.  The mountains, which are the kingdoms whose foundations are the ancient heights of Israel, are given a solemn promise by the Lord that he will speak against the nations that have brought ruin to the towns and countrysides of Israel.

The nations who gleefully plundered and ridiculed the lands of Israel and took them for their own possession, will be zealously confronted by the Sovereign Lord.

The Lord will take action against those who over-run Israel and swears that he will invert Israel's plight so that those who plunder and ridicule Israel will themselves be plundered and ridiculed. As it says in verse 7;

Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I swear with uplifted hand that the nations around you will also suffer scorn.

Amen.

OUR LORD WHO REVIVES HIS PEOPLE

Ezekiel chapter 37 verse 14 says this;

I will put my Spirit in you and you will live, and I will settle you in your own land. Then you will know that I the Lord have spoken, and I have done it, declares the Lord.’”

This verse concludes the famous passage in Ezekiel chapter 14 where the prophet wrote of his experience in the valley of dry bones.

In the Spirit, Ezekiel was taken to a valley littered with dry bones and the Lord commanded him to prophecy to the bones to be reconstituted into living bodies and that they would be revivified. 

Ezekiel did as he was commanded and the dry bones reassembled themselves and were covered with tissue and skin and then they were given breath and they arose to their feet - a vast army.

The Lord then explained the scene to Ezekiel telling him that the dry bones represented the people of Israel who had been in a state of hopelessness and despair as recorded in verse 11;

“Son of man, these bones are the people of Israel. They say, ‘Our bones are dried up and our hope is gone; we are cut off.’"

Proverbs 17 verse 22 echoes the condition they were in by saying;

A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.

The Lord, in His sovereignty, revived all the people who were dead and when they stood up, they were an army of men filled with the Spirit of God.

This is the vast army that the Lord mustered in  Isaiah chapter 13  verse 4 that appeared out of nowhere.

Listen, a noise on the mountains, like that of a great multitude! Listen, an uproar among the kingdoms, like nations massing together! The Lord Almighty is mustering an army for war.

This army is also described in Joel chapter 2 verse 2;

Like dawn spreading across the mountains a large and mighty army comes, such as never was in ancient times nor ever will be in ages to come.

This spiritual army is now being conscripted. The people of God who were dead are being revived and they are learning their places in the formations under the command of the Lord Almighty.

Pray and intercede always for these are the prerequisites to be joined to the army of the Lord.

Amen.

OUR LORD WHO JUDGES THE REBELLIOUS 

Isaiah chapter 14 verses 9 - 10 is a prophecy about the collapse of the kingdom of darkness.  The plans and strategies to usurp the whole world and take the inheritance of the Lamb of God away from Him have been brought to an ignominious end.  

The lord of the kingdom of darkness has been defeated and captured to await judgement. The prophecy describes the arrival of the anti-christ into the abode of the dead and reads this way;

The realm of the dead below is all astir to meet you at your coming; it rouses the spirits of the departed to greet you—all those who were leaders in the world; it makes them rise from their thrones—all those who were kings over the nations. They will all respond, they will say to you, “You also have become weak, as we are; you have become like us.”

The departed leaders of the nations, who were led astray by the anti-christ and found themselves awaiting judgement for their collusion with him, are stirred up to receive him into the abode dead. They are astonished that he who deceived and subjugated them had been reduced to the same state of weakness that they were in.

Isaiah chapter 14 verse 12 - 15 reveals the reason that Satan's fall occured which culminated in his defeat and banishment to hell to await judgement along with those who heeded and followed Him.

How you have fallen from heaven, morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations!

You said in your heart, “I will ascend to the heavens; I will raise my throne above the stars of God;

I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of Mount Zaphon. I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.”

This well-known passage in Isaiah describes how the prideful thoughts of a cherub led him to believe that he was entitled to ascend above the stars of heaven and gain mastery over creation and to make himself like the Most High.

For this, he was brought low and captured for judgement.

In contrast, the Lord Jesus Christ descended into hell after he was put to death on the cross where He was tried and tested and no fault was found in Him. He was thus made  strong  by the Spirit of God and defeated sin and death and rose out of hell in power triumphantly leading the first fruits of those He was to save.

Jesus, humble and selfless, then ascended to heaven and having given his life to redeem the people of the earth, was seated at the right hand of God the Father as King of kings and Lord of lords.

Jesus is now enthroned eternally over all things and from thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead.

Bless our Lord who conquered sin and death and paid a costly ransom for our salvation. 

Amen.

OUR LORD WHO BRINGS JUDGEMENT ON THE KINGDOM OF DARKNESS

Isaiah chapter 34 verses 9 to 11 speaks of the  retribution that is visited on the nations for the sake of Zion. The passage says this;

Edom’s streams will be turned into pitch, her dust into burning sulfur; her land will become blazing pitch!

It will not be quenched night or day; its smoke will rise forever.

From generation to generation it will lie desolate; no one will ever pass through it again.

The desert owl and screech owl will possess it; the great owl and the raven will nest there.

God will stretch out over Edom the measuring line of chaos and the plumb line of desolation. 

Edom, representing the coalition of nations who aligned with the kingdom of darkness against Zion, is fearsomely  judged.

Her streams of water  that used to bring life and refreshing, are turned into streams of burning tar and the acrid smoke of sulphur and bitumen rise and fill the atmosphere making the whole land a toxic, uninhabitable wasteland.

The land is forsaken and abandoned so that only unclean birds (evil spirits) could dwell there.

The devastation of this judgement is so complete that the conditions in the aftermath are described with the same terms ( chaos and desolation ) that are used to outline the primordial conditions at creation which Genesis chapter 1 verse 2 says this way;

Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, 

This passage in Isaiah chapter 34  also mirrors the book of Revelation chapter  14 verse  11 with the  description of  smoke rising up forever. The passage in Revelation reads this way;

And the smoke of their torment will rise for ever and ever. There will be no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and its image, or for anyone who receives the mark of its name.”

The judgement against the kingdom of darkness and those who align with darkness is dreadful and eternal. The finality of the destruction is marked by the eternal columns of smoke rising from the scorched landscape.

Let us be sincerely grateful to our Lord who has given us the power to believe in the gospel of His salvation that saved us from the judgement reserved for the princes of darkness.

Amen.

OUR LORD WHO INTERVENES TO REDEEM US FROM OPPRESSION

Isaiah chapter 19 verse 13 reads this way;

The officials of Zoan have become fools, the leaders of Memphis are deceived; the cornerstones of her peoples have led Egypt astray.

In the time of Moses, when Egypt oppressed the children of Israel as slaves, the Lord intervened to redeem His people out of Egypt. He confounded the wise men and leaders of the land so that the whole nation was led astray. The Egytians, faced with the unrelenting pressure from the Lord, lost heart and released Israel from slavery.

The time now approaches when the Egypt that oppressed the children of Israel will represent the emerging oppressors of the Lord's people around the world.

The agenda of the powers of darkness is to erase the people of God and  strip even the memory of God from the face of the earth. 

But, as the Lord did to the Egyptians on the Nile, the Lord will confound the wise men of the modern  oppressor such that they all become gullible fools and in that state, lead the whole strategy of darkness astray.

The next verse (Isaiah 19 verse 14), graphically illustrates the condition of the oppressor after the Lord deals with them.

The Lord has poured into them a spirit of dizziness; they make Egypt stagger in all that she does, as a drunkard staggers around in his vomit.

The Great God of Israel renders the enemies of His people unable to function rationally and their plans and ambitions collapse.

Bless the Lord who intervenes to redeem us from oppression.

Amen.

OUR LORD WHO INTERCEPTS DANGER ON OUR BEHALF

Genesis chapter 31 verse 28 are words spoken to Jacob by his father-in-law, Laban.

Leading up to this point, Jacob, having lived with his in-laws for 20 years, began to sense some menace towards him from them and decided to make a run back to his own family. 

He packed his wives and children up and fled  but when Laban learned of the escape, he gathered his relatives and pursued them and after 7 days, caught up with them. 

Laban, having chased down his own daughters and grandchildren, was angry and was probably prepared to unleash some vengeance on Jacob.

Instead, when Laban was face to face with Jacob, he questioned him but did not harm him even though he had the power to do so. Laban said that the God of Jacob's father visited him in a dream and cautioned him to be careful not to say anything good or bad to Jacob. 

The dream may have saved Jacob's life that day. Laban, to his credit, heeded the warning in the dream and carefully worded his confrontation with Jacob saying things like;

You didn’t even let me kiss my grandchildren and my daughters goodbye. You have done a foolish thing. 

The Lord,  in a last minute intervention, saved Jacob from Laban's wrath and Jacob was able to proceed to the land of his own family where the amazing story of redemption resumed its course through history.

Bless the Lord who works all things together for good to those who love God and are called according to His purpose.

Amen.

OUR LORD WHO IS OUR SURE FOUNDATION

Ezekiel 39 verse 4 records the Lord's words to Gog, chief prince of Meshek and Tubal.

On the mountains of Israel you will fall, you and all your troops and the nations with you. I will give you as food to all kinds of carrion birds and to the wild animals.

This stern warning to a chief  prince in the spiritual realm is about the Lord rising up against them for moving against His people.

On the mountains of Israel, the Lord will bring the chief prince down along with his army and the nations he had formed alliances with.

They will be brought to such utter destruction that vultures and wild animals will partake in the cleanup of the battlefield.

The time of this battle approaches as alliances of darkness align  nations against God's people.

The Lord is mighty to save and the attempt by the kingdom of darkness to erase the Lord's inheritance will be met by our strong fortress on the mountains of Israel.

Let us bless the Lord who scatters his enemies and is our rock and our sure foundation.

Amen.