A Song and a Dance

Ezekiel 33:21-33

21 And it came to pass in the twelfth year of our captivity, in the tenth month, on the fifth day of the month, that one who had escaped from Jerusalem came to me and said, "The city has been captured!"

22 Now the hand of the LORD had been upon me the evening before the man came who had escaped. And He had opened my mouth; so when he came to me in the morning, my mouth was opened, and I was no longer mute.

23 Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying: 24 "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.'

25 "Therefore say to them, 'Thus says the Lord GOD: "You eat meat with blood, you lift up your eyes toward your idols, and shed blood. Should you then possess the land? 26 You rely on your sword, you commit abominations, and you defile one another's wives. Should you then possess the land?"'

27 "Say thus to them, 'Thus says the Lord GOD: "As I live, surely those who are in the ruins shall fall by the sword, and the one who is in the open field I will give to the beasts to be devoured, and those who are in the strongholds and caves shall die of the pestilence. 28 For I will make the land most desolate, her arrogant strength shall cease, and the mountains of Israel shall be so desolate that no one will pass through. 29 Then they shall know that I am the LORD, when I have made the land most desolate because of all their abominations which they have committed."'

30 "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.' 31 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. 32 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. 33 And when this comes to pass—surely it will come—then they will know that a prophet has been among them."

God’s people had a song and a dance instead of hearing and heeding the word of the LORD.  They listened when God opened Ezekiel’s mouth after holding his words for a time, only to hear how Thor sins of idolatry and immortality had caused them to lose their inheritance given by the covenant to Abraham and Isaac which they broke by disregard no disobedience.  They openly did contrary to the laws of the commandments with eating blood and worship of idols, they relied on strength to kill and lived in immoral ways with each other’s wives and husbands in disregard for the marriage covenant which is a shadow of the covenant with God in commitment and wholehearted purity.  Then they still thought they should own the land of covenant after broken these with Him!  The LORD therefore told them the sword would devour them and they would lose their land given over to desolation for a time.  They were hearers but not doers of God’s word.  They ran to hear what the prophet would tell them, but then go off forgetting everything (James 1:23-24) they had been told.  They mouthed words of love to others but instead turned to run after their own gain instead of others (1 Corinthians 10:24).  They heard the lovely music of preaching and teaching but did not heed the lyrics to learn and live accordingly.  May we learn from their bad example to do the good and listen to hear, trust, and do God’s word.  May we not just give a song and a dance around obedience.