Consequence of Persistent Unfaithfulness

Ezekiel 14:12-23 

12 The word of the LORD came again to me, saying: 13 "Son of man, when a land sins against Me by persistent unfaithfulness, I will stretch out My hand against it; I will cut off its supply of bread, send famine on it, and cut off man and beast from it. 14 Even if these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they would deliver only themselves by their righteousness," says the Lord GOD.

15 "If I cause wild beasts to pass through the land, and they empty it, and make it so desolate that no man may pass through because of the beasts, 16 even though these three men were in it, as I live," says the Lord GOD, "they would deliver neither sons nor daughters; only they would be delivered, and the land would be desolate.

17 "Or if I bring a sword on that land, and say, 'Sword, go through the land,' and I cut off man and beast from it, 18 even though these three men were in it, as I live," says the Lord GOD, "they would deliver neither sons nor daughters, but only they themselves would be delivered.

19 "Or if I send a pestilence into that land and pour out My fury on it in blood, and cut off from it man and beast, 20 even though Noah, Daniel, and Job were in it, as I live," says the Lord GOD, "they would deliver neither son nor daughter; they would deliver only themselves by their righteousness."

21 For thus says the Lord GOD: "How much more it shall be when I send My four severe judgments on Jerusalem—the sword and famine and wild beasts and pestilence—to cut off man and beast from it? 22 Yet behold, there shall be left in it a remnant who will be brought out, both sons and daughters; surely they will come out to you, and you will see their ways and their doings. Then you will be comforted concerning the disaster that I have brought upon Jerusalem, all that I have brought upon it. 23 And they will comfort you, when you see their ways and their doings; and you shall know that I have done nothing without cause that I have done in it," says the Lord GOD.

Persistent unfaithfulness to the LORD called God’s people into accountability with judgment served as divine justice.  God spoke through Ezekiel to set the account straight as to His expectations and the price of consistent disobedience to His word.  When people sin in persistent unfaithfulness to Him, worshiping idols and living in immortality, then He reaches out with His hand of infinite power and just purpose to cut them off from all their blessings and provision of His common grace given to all as well as the special grace given to those called out as His own.  It was so bad that even if the three righteous men gone before (Noah, Daniel, and Job) were there, they could only save themselves and no other among them, not even protecting them from the sword of judgment by God’s hand.  None would be found righteous (Romans 3:23) and delivered either if a pandemic would sweep the land except those three chosen ones who humbled themselves and repented of their own shortcomings of sin which Israel had not done.  These four severe judgments on Jerusalem of the sword of war, famine as for God’s word, the attacks of wild beasts, and even ravaging pestilence of pandemic disease were therefore passed on God’s people for rejecting Him and refusing to confess their sin and repent.  Yet even then there was a small remnant left who He would show favor to, ones who had not forgotten or rejected the LORD.  They would be seen in the way they lived and how they acted according to His word.  This deliverance was comforting to Ezekiel and the hearers of these words of God to and through him, even in light of the utter destruction of Jerusalem and her place of worship with atoning sacrifices.  This display of the few saved on the narrow path of faithfulness taken by the remnant demonstrated God’s justice and reason for all He did against and for His people.  He did nothing without cause in all He did.  That is divine providence and the goodness of His grace is all the Sovereign King does even now as demonstrated in the gospel to sinners such as you and I.  Judgment is necessary to His justice and holiness.  Judgment is earned by us all because we all have sinned and come short of His measure of holiness and righteousness.  Mercy and grace are given to those He chooses to pull out of the fire (Jude 1:23) with eternal atonement (Romans 6:10, Hebrews 10:10) as a remnant of all mankind created in His image.  Many are called, but not many are so chosen (Matthew 22:14).  The rest only receive justice according to their impenitent hearts (Romans 2:4-6) hardened further by idolatry and immortality in refusing to accept Christ as the answer (Acts 4:12) instead of their own works (John 6:29) and turn from both their inherited (Romans 5:14-15, 7, 18, 19) and self-willed sin to Him.  May we all learn from these things of the consequences of persistent unfaithfulness that we may confess our sin, turn from it, and worship God alone in Christ.  As 1 John 5:21 says, “Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen.”