In the first seven verses of chapter 12, the Prophet Ezekiel was told to prepare baggage like an exile leaving his country. He was to act out in the full sight of the people in the day. Then in the night, he was told to dig through the wall of his home with his hand to escape. He was further told to carry a bundle with him in the cover of darkness. Besides, he was to cover his face so that he could not be recognized. Ezekiel carried out the instructions precisely as instructed. All he was told was that it would be a sign to the people. The obvious reason for it was not fully known to him.
Interestingly, verse 8 implied
that the people were asking Ezekiel what he was doing. They wanted to know the message
of his skit. Yet it seemed that he did not have a complete answer for them. He probably
knew the broad stroke of the message but not the exact details until the Lord’s
explanation. The skit Ezekiel acted was to draw the attention of
the people. God knew the skit would puzzle the people and stimulate them to ask
questions.
So,
in Ezekiel 12:9-16 God set out to provide the explanation and give the meaning for
the drama that he had acted out. The intended message according to verse 10 had
to do with the prince of Jerusalem and all the house of Israel. The prince in
question was Zedekiah, the ruling king of Jerusalem at that point. He was referred to as the prince because the people still viewed King Jehoiachin, the previous king
as the legitimate ruler. Zedekiah was made king by Nebuchadnezzar who took Jehoiachin
into exile for the latter’s rebellion. The details are provided in 2 Kings 24.
However, in
2 Kings 25, Zedekiah also rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar later, by turning to
Egypt for help. This caused the king of Babylon to carry out another siege. And
Zedekiah together with his men and family then attempted to escape in the cover
of darkness. He carried a simple baggage on his back, covered his face to conceal
his identity, and dug a hole through the rubble to escape. Second Kings 25:6 the king and
his army were overtaken by the pursuing Chaldeans in the plain of Jericho. With
his capture, his army scattered from him. He was brought to the king of Babylon
at Riblah to be dealt with. Cruelly, Nebuchadnezzar slaughtered all of Zedekiah’s
sons before his eyes. They also had his eyes gouged out as he was bonded with
bronze fetters and brought him to Babylon. Here’s the
reason why Ezekiel 12:12 said “…he may
not see the land with his eyes.” Ezekiel 12:15 then said that
God would scatter the people but spare some. This would be His remnant who
would be preserved to testify and attest to what had happened.
Obedience
is critical in God’s service. Ezekiel did not fully know the details when he was
asked to perform the skit. Yet he did it obediently. It is true that in the service
of God, many a time the reason why we are instructed to do a certain thing
will only become clear when we act on it. God expects us to obey even when we
may not fully comprehend His every move. True obedience requires that we adopt
the attitude of the Light Brigade in Alfred Lord Tennyson’s poem. Like them, ours
is to obey at all costs even when we don’t know the reason why!
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