Ezekiel 6:9

They shall loathe themselves.

Self-loathing after sin

We never realise what sin is till its passion is over, and we have time quietly to remember. Oh, the terror of those hours of remembrance and remorse! Sitting in the captivity of its prison, or serving in the heavy bondage of its fetters, the soul has time to review the bitter path by which it has come to such a pass, and the way it has broken the hearts of those who loved and trusted. But the most terrible element in remorse will be the personal one: “Shall remember Me.” One of our great writers depicts a heartless, thoughtless husband standing beside the newly covered-in grave of his wife, and saying, “Ah, Milly, Milly; dost thou hear me? I was not tender enough to thee; but it is too late to alter it now.” The child who has given way to fits of ungovernable passion, which have broken up the home, and brought down grey hairs with sorrow to the grave, will loathe itself. Similarly, as we review our past life, and see how we must have grieved the tender Spirit of God, we fall at the feet of Jesus and cover them with tears and kisses. (F. B. Meyer, B. A.).

Ezekiel 6:9

And ye shall know that I am the Lord that smiteth.

God’s hand in judgment

You look at second causes, and think it is Nebuchadnezzar that smites you, but you shall be made to know he is but the staff; it is the hand of the Lord that smiteth you, and who knows the weight of His hand? (M. Henry.)