Ezekiel 32:1-32
1 And it came to pass in the twelfth year, in the twelfth month, in the first day of the month, that the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, take up a lamentation for Pharaoh king of Egypt, and say unto him, Thou art like a young lion of the nations, and thou art as a whalea in the seas: and thou camest forth with thy rivers, and troubledst the waters with thy feet, and fouledst their rivers.
3 Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will therefore spread out my net over thee with a company of many people; and they shall bring thee up in my net.
4 Then will I leave thee upon the land, I will cast thee forth upon the open field, and will cause all the fowls of the heaven to remain upon thee, and I will fill the beasts of the whole earth with thee.
5 And I will lay thy flesh upon the mountains, and fill the valleys with thy height.
6 I will also water with thy blood the land wherein thou swimmest, even to the mountains; and the rivers shall be full of thee.
7 And when I shall put thee out, I will cover the heaven, and make the stars thereof dark; I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon shall not give her light.
8 All the brightb lights of heaven will I make dark over thee, and set darkness upon thy land, saith the Lord GOD.
9 I will also vexc the hearts of many people, when I shall bring thy destruction among the nations, into the countries which thou hast not known.
10 Yea, I will make many people amazed at thee, and their kings shall be horribly afraid for thee, when I shall brandish my sword before them; and they shall tremble at every moment, every man for his own life, in the day of thy fall.
11 For thus saith the Lord GOD; The sword of the king of Babylon shall come upon thee.
12 By the swords of the mighty will I cause thy multitude to fall, the terrible of the nations, all of them: and they shall spoil the pomp of Egypt, and all the multitude thereof shall be destroyed.
13 I will destroy also all the beasts thereof from beside the great waters; neither shall the foot of man trouble them any more, nor the hoofs of beasts trouble them.
14 Then will I make their waters deep, and cause their rivers to run like oil, saith the Lord GOD.
15 When I shall make the land of Egypt desolate, and the country shall be destituted of that whereof it was full, when I shall smite all them that dwell therein, then shall they know that I am the LORD.
16 This is the lamentation wherewith they shall lament her: the daughters of the nations shall lament her: they shall lament for her, even for Egypt, and for all her multitude, saith the Lord GOD.
17 It came to pass also in the twelfth year, in the fifteenth day of the month, that the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
18 Son of man, wail for the multitude of Egypt, and cast them down, even her, and the daughters of the famous nations, unto the nether parts of the earth, with them that go down into the pit.
19 Whom dost thou pass in beauty? go down, and be thou laid with the uncircumcised.
20 They shall fall in the midst of them that are slain by the sword: she is delivered to the sword: draw her and all her multitudes.
21 The strong among the mighty shall speak to him out of the midst of hell with them that help him: they are gone down, they lie uncircumcised, slain by the sword.
22 Asshur is there and all her company: his graves are about him: all of them slain, fallen by the sword:
23 Whose graves are set in the sides of the pit, and her company is round about her grave: all of them slain, fallen by the sword, which caused terrore in the land of the living.
24 There is Elam and all her multitude round about her grave, all of them slain, fallen by the sword, which are gone down uncircumcised into the nether parts of the earth, which caused their terror in the land of the living; yet have they borne their shame with them that go down to the pit.
25 They have set her a bed in the midst of the slain with all her multitude: her graves are round about him: all of them uncircumcised, slain by the sword: though their terror was caused in the land of the living, yet have they borne their shame with them that go down to the pit: he is put in the midst of them that be slain.
26 There is Meshech, Tubal, and all her multitude: her graves are round about him: all of them uncircumcised, slain by the sword, though they caused their terror in the land of the living.
27 And they shall not lie with the mighty that are fallen of the uncircumcised, which are gone down to hell with their weapons of war: and they have laid their swords under their heads, but their iniquities shall be upon their bones, though they were the terror of the mighty in the land of the living.
28 Yea, thou shalt be broken in the midst of the uncircumcised, and shalt lie with them that are slain with the sword.
29 There is Edom, her kings, and all her princes, which with their might are laidf by them that were slain by the sword: they shall lie with the uncircumcised, and with them that go down to the pit.
30 There be the princes of the north, all of them, and all the Zidonians, which are gone down with the slain; with their terror they are ashamed of their might; and they lie uncircumcised with them that be slain by the sword, and bear their shame with them that go down to the pit.
31 Pharaoh shall see them, and shall be comforted over all his multitude, even Pharaoh and all his army slain by the sword, saith the Lord GOD.
32 For I have caused my terror in the land of the living: and he shall be laid in the midst of the uncircumcised with them that are slain with the sword, even Pharaoh and all his multitude, saith the Lord GOD.
Ezekiel: “They shall know that I am God”
God’s Plans for *Israel and the Nations
Ezekiel Chapter s 25 to 39
Ian Mackervoy
Chapter 32
A funeral song for Egypt – Ezekiel 32:1-16
v1 God spoke to me in the 12th year during our *exile. It was the first day of the 12th month. v2 ‘*Son of man, sing a funeral song about the king of Egypt. Say this to him. “You are like a young lion among the nations. You are like a giant animal that lives in the seas. You splash about in your streams. You stir up the water with your feet and you make the rivers muddy.
v3 This is what the *LORD your King says to you. I will spread my net over you. With a large group of people, I will pull you up in my net. v4 Then I will throw you on the land. I will drop you on the ground. I will bring all the birds in the air to come onto you. And all the animals on the earth will eat you until they are full. v5 I will scatter your body on the mountains. And I will fill the valleys with whatever remains of you. v6 I will water the ground with your blood, which will flow as far as the mountains. And the streams will be full of you. v7 When I *destroy you, I will cover the sky. The stars will be dark. A cloud will cover the sun. And the moon shall not give its light. v8 All the lights that shine in the sky will become dark over you. I will bring darkness over your country, says the *LORD your King. v9 I will take you *Egyptians as *exiles into other nations. You will go into countries that you have not known. By this, I will cause many people to be afraid. v10 I will cause many people to know about you. It will be a great shock to them. Their kings will tremble with fear because of you. They will be afraid when I swing my sword in front of them. They will tremble all the time on the day that you *fall. They will be afraid for their own lives.
v11 This is what the *LORD your King says. The sword of the king of Babylon will attack you. v12 By the swords of powerful men, I will make your people *fall. These men are from the most terrible nation in the world. They will *destroy Egypt and all its people. The *Egyptians will die because they are proud. v13 I will kill all the animals in Egypt that live by the rivers. Then the foot of a man will not stir the water, and the feet of animals will not make it muddy. v14 So, I will make the waters clear. And I will make the rivers to flow like oil. I, the *LORD your King have spoken. v15 I will make the country called Egypt empty. And I will remove everything from the country. I will *destroy all who live there. Then they will know that I am the *LORD.”
v16 People will sing this funeral song for Egypt. The women from the nations will sing it. Because of Egypt and all its people, they will sing it, declares the *LORD your King.’
Verses 1-2 The *Lord gave this song to Ezekiel in March 585 *BC. A couple of months earlier, Ezekiel heard that the *Babylonians had destroyed Jerusalem (Ezekiel 33:21).
The king of Egypt was like a young lion. He was proud of his strength but he was not strong enough. Or, he was like a *crocodile in streams of shallow water. His efforts stirred up the mud but they achieved nothing.
Verses 3-10 The *Lord will catch the king of Egypt like a *crocodile in a large net. The dead *crocodile will be food for the birds. Wild animals will come and they will eat its meat. So, the armies of Babylon would kill the king and his people through all Egypt. And they would not even bother to bury the dead bodies. Egypt’s punishment would be awful.
The *Lord will cover the sun. Its light will not shine. The moon and the stars will not give their light. These verses are about the religion of the *Egyptians. The sun god was the main god of the *Egyptians. They *worshipped the sun, the moon and the stars. Their gods did not have the power to save the nation. The gods that they served are no gods. The *Lord is the one real God.
Many of the people will go into *exile as God sends them to other countries. People in other nations will see what happened to Egypt. The *Lord will destroy that great nation. Fear will grip the nations. That is, the people in those nations will feel the greatest terror. Even Egypt could not avoid its punishment from the *Lord.
Verses 11-16 The king of Babylon will be God’s agent to destroy Egypt. Babylon was more cruel than any other nation. The armies of Babylon will kill the king of Egypt, his people and their animals. They will punish Egypt because it was proud.
In the end, the muddy waters will be clear. The River Nile and the rivers will return to their normal state. There will be a future for Egypt. Egypt’s punishment was not permanent. It would last for 40 years (Ezekiel 29:12).
It was the custom for the women to sing the funeral songs. So, the women from different nations will sing for the *Egyptians.
Egypt and the nations in the place of dead people – Ezekiel 32:17-32
v17 The *LORD spoke to me in the 12th year. It was the 15th day in the month. v18 ‘*Son of man, weep for the *Egyptians. Send them down with the women of great nations to the earth below. They will join those people who go down to the place of dead people. v19 Say to them, “You are no better than other people. In death, you will lie with those people who do not belong to God.” v20 The *Egyptians will *fall among those who died in war. The sword of the enemy will kill them. And he will drag Egypt and all its people away. v21 Strong leaders will speak from hell about Egypt and about those people who help it. “They have come down to us. The sword has killed them. They lie with those people who do not belong to God.”
v22 Assyria, and all its army, lie dead there. Its graves are round about it. All its soldiers are dead. They died in battle. v23 Their graves are in the deepest parts of the place of dead people. The armies of Assyria lie about its grave. They have all died by the sword. When they lived on the earth, they caused terror among the people.
v24 The nation called Elam is there; and all its army is about its grave. All of them died by the sword in battle. They had caused terror to the people on the earth. But the people from Elam do not belong to God. In their shame, they have gone down to the place of dead people. v25 Elam has a bed (grave) with all those people who died in war. The graves of all its soldiers surround it. All of them died by the sword and they do not belong to God. They frightened people when they lived on the earth. Now they must suffer their shame with those people who have gone down to the place of dead people. Their graves are with the rest of those people who died in battle.
v26 Meshech and Tubal are there; and the graves of all their soldiers are about them. They caused terror in the world when they were alive. They all died by the sword and they do not belong to God. v27 They do not lie with other foreign soldiers who died in battle. Those soldiers went down to the grave in honour. They had their swords under their heads. The boards that protected them in battle covered their bodies. They were a terror to people when they lived on the earth.
v28 So, you, king of Egypt, will die among foreigners. You will lie with those people who died by the sword.
v29 Also Edom is there, with its kings and all its leaders. They were strong, but now they are dead. They lie with those people who died in war. They go down to the grave with those people who do not belong to God.
v30 All the rulers of the north and all the people from Sidon are there. They have gone down in shame with those people who died in war. By their strength, they caused terror to the people. They lie with those people who do not belong to God. They lie with those people who died by the sword. With them, they go down to the grave in shame.
v31 When the king of Egypt sees them, he will comfort himself because of all his people. The sword will kill the king of Egypt and all his army, declares the *LORD your King. v32 I made people afraid of the king of Egypt while he lived on the earth. But he and all his people will lie among those people who died by the sword. They will lie with those people who do not belong to God. This is what the *LORD your King says.’
Verses 17-32 Two weeks later, in March 585 *BC, the *Lord spoke to Ezekiel. He told Ezekiel to weep for the *Egyptians. The *Lord must punish people because of their *sins. However, he is sad that he must do it. (See 2 Peter 3:9.) Those people who refuse to *turn to him will suffer because of their *sins.
When we die that is not the end. We will exist beyond the grave. There is the place of the dead; or there is life with God.
The *Egyptians who died would go to the place of the dead. All those people who do not belong to God will go there.
In that place of the dead, there will be many of the great nations. They had caused terror while they were on the earth.
The king of Egypt will see the nations in the place of the dead. He will have some comfort. He will not suffer alone in that awful place. People had been afraid of him when he was alive. But God will send the *Babylonians to kill him and his people. And they will go down to the place of the dead.
Chapter 33:1-20
Ezekiel warns the *exiles from Judah– Ezekiel 33:1-20
This passage is teaching basic principles. It is important not to misunderstand its message:
(1) In order to have a right relationship with God, a person must obey God. A wicked person must start to obey God. And a good person must continue to obey God.
(2) The *Lord is good. He always does what is right and fair. And he always wants people to do what is right and fair too.
(3) This passage does not teach that people can achieve a right relationship with God by their own efforts. Nobody can please God by means of good works or human effort. But the passage does teach that people must change their attitudes in order to please God. That is what it means to *repent. A person must be sincere and humble in order to *repent. And then that person’s behaviour will start to change. The person will start to do those things that please God.
(4) The passage does not teach that people can easily lose their relationship with God. Even in the *Old Testament, God did everything possible to bring people back to himself. See, for example, David’s experience in 2 Samuel chapter 12. As Ezekiel 32:11 says, God does not even want to punish a wicked person. And he cares very much about his own people who have a relationship with him. In the *New Testament, real Christians have the benefit of what Jesus achieved by his death. Our relationship with God is not something weak. God established it. So, we can be confident about what he has done.
(5) The passage teaches that God’s message is very important. People who receive God’s message have an important responsibility. They must not neglect it. Jesus taught that too (Luke 19:11-27). See also James 3:1.
v1 The *LORD spoke to me. v2 ‘*Son of man, say this to the people from your own country. Tell them: “Suppose that I (the *LORD) bring a war against a nation. The people in the country may choose a man to watch for danger. v3 If he sees the enemy, he will blow on the *trumpet. So, he will warn the people about the attack. v4 When the people hear the *trumpet, they must prepare for the fight. If they do not get ready, the enemy will kill them. They will be responsible for their own deaths. v5 They heard the sound of the *trumpet but they did not prepare for the fight. So, they will be to blame for their own deaths. If they had done something, they could have saved their own lives. v6 The man saw the enemy come to attack. If he did not blow on his *trumpet, he would not warn the people. Then if the enemy kills someone, that person will die because of his own *sins. But I will punish the man who did not warn them.”
v7 *Son of man, you are the man who must watch on behalf of the *Israelites. You must hear what I say. Then you must warn the *Israelites. v8 Suppose that I say this to wicked people: “Because you are wicked, you will die.” You must warn those people. You must warn them to stop doing evil things. If you do not warn them, they will die because of their *sins. But I will punish you because of their deaths. v9 But if you warned them, you would save your own life. If they do not change, they will die because of their *sins.
v10 *Son of man, speak to the *Israelites. This is what they are saying: “We have not obeyed the law. And our *sins hurt us. We die because of them. What can we do so that we will live?” v11 I, the *LORD your King who lives, declare this to them. I do not want any of the wicked people to die. I want them to stop doing evil things. Then they will live. Stop! *Turn from your wicked ways! *Israelites, if you change, you will not die.
v12 Therefore, *son of man, say this to the people from your own country. Say this to the good person: “You do what is right. But your goodness will not save you if you *sin.” Say this to the wicked person: “I will not punish you because of your evil deeds if you *turn from your wicked ways.” If good people *sin, I will not allow them to live because of their former goodness. v13 I could tell the good people, “You will live.” But they might think that they have done enough good deeds. If then they *sin, I will not remember their good deeds. They will die because of the bad things that they have done. v14 I might say to the wicked people, “You will die.” But they may *turn from their evil ways. And they may start to do good deeds. v15 They could give back what they had received as a promise to pay a loan. They could give back what they had taken. They could obey the laws that give life. They could *turn and they could do no evil deeds. If they do these things, they will live. They will not die. v16 I will not remember against them the *sins that they had done. They now do what is right and good. So, they will live.
v17 But your people say, “The way of the *Lord is not fair.” But their way is not fair. v18 Suppose that good people *turn from their good deeds. Then they do evil things. They will die because of the evil things that they do. v19 Suppose that wicked people stop doing bad deeds. Then they do what is right and fair. They will live because of the good deeds that they do. v20 You still say, “The way of the *Lord is not fair.” *Israelites, I will be your judge. You will get what your deeds deserve.’
Verses 1-6 The *Lord gave Ezekiel this story to tell to the *exiles.
During a war, a city had to be ready to defend itself. It was the custom to appoint a person to watch. This guard would stand on the wall of the city and he would carry a *trumpet. When he saw the enemy, he would blow his *trumpet. Then the people would prepare to fight.
If the people did not get ready, they would die. It would be their fault. And they would be to blame. The guard who had warned them would not be guilty.
If the guard had not warned them, they would not be ready. They would die because they were not ready. But the guard would be to blame. He would be guilty because he had not warned them.
In this story, the *Lord punishes the people because of their *sin. They could have *repented and God would have saved them. But the *Lord will punish the guard if he had not warned them.
Verses 7-9 God had called Ezekiel to warn his people. He was like the guard on the wall. His task was to tell the people that God would punish them because of their *sin. What he heard from God, he must tell to the people. Those people who did not *repent and change would die. But if Ezekiel obeyed God, he (Ezekiel) would live. If Ezekiel neglected to warn them, God would punish him (Ezekiel). Ezekiel would be responsible for their deaths.
Verses 10-11 The *Lord asked Ezekiel to warn his people again. They knew why they suffered. They had neglected to obey God’s law. And because of their *sin, they would die. Now they recognised that their *sin was the problem. *Sin always leads to death (Romans 6:23).
The *Lord does not want anyone to die (2 Peter 3:9). He does not want them to go to the place of dead people (see my note on Ezekiel 32:17-32). He tells them to *repent of their *sins. They must stop doing evil things. And they must *turn to the *Lord. If the people refuse to change, they will die. But if they change, they will live.
Verses 12-16 The good person must not depend on his goodness. If a good person changes to be a wicked person, he will die because of his *sins. His good deeds of the past will not save him. He must take care to do what is right. He must depend on the *Lord for his life.
A wicked person may *repent of his *sins. And then he may do what is right. If so, the *Lord will forgive his *sins. That person will not die because of past *sins. When possible, that person must undo the wrong things that he has done. And he must not continue to *sin. He must do what is right. Then, as he depends on the *Lord, he will live.
Verses 17-20 A good person who then *sins would die. This did not seem fair to the *exiles. They thought that the good deeds of the past would save that person. But what is important is the current state of that person. The *Lord is a just and fair judge. So, people will get what they deserve.
Part Three – Ezekiel 33:21-39God will bring *Israel back to their Country |
The country that God promised to them – Ezekiel 33:21-33
At last, Ezekiel received the terrible news that the *Babylonians had destroyed Jerusalem. But even after that event, the *Israelites were still not ready to *turn to God. Whether they were in *Israel or in *exile, the people only really cared about themselves.
Chapter 33:21-33
News about the defeat of Jerusalem – Ezekiel 33:21-22
v21 In the 12th year during our *exile, a man escaped from Jerusalem. It was the 5th day of the 10th month when he came to me. And he said, ‘The enemy has destroyed the city.’ v22 On the evening before the man came, I felt the *LORD’s power upon me. I had been dumb but the *LORD opened my mouth. So, by the morning when the man came, I could speak again.
Verses 21-22 In January 585 *BC, a man who had escaped from Jerusalem came to Ezekiel. He brought the news that the *Babylonians had destroyed Jerusalem. It had taken this man about 6 months to bring the news. It was a long way to travel on foot. And he had to come into the country of the enemy. It would have been a particularly difficult journey.
For some years, Ezekiel had not been able to speak except as the *Lord told him (Ezekiel 3:25-27). Now he was able to speak freely. The *Lord had made him dumb but now the *Lord had freed him. The *Lord told Ezekiel that this would happen in Ezekiel 24:26-27.
*Prophecy against those still in the country – Ezekiel 33:23-29
v23 Then the *LORD spoke to me. v24 ‘*Son of man, the enemy has destroyed the nation called *Israel. But there are people who still live there. This is what they say: “Abraham was just one man, and the *LORD gave this whole country to him. There are many of us, and so this country must be ours.” v25 Say to them, “The *LORD your King says this to you. You eat meat with the blood still in it. You ask your false gods to help you. And you kill people. Because of this, you should not possess the country. v26 You depend on your sword. You do terrible things, which I hate. You have sex with your neighbour’s wife. So, you should not have the country.”
v27 Tell them, “The *LORD your King says this to you. I am the God who lives. Those people who live in the *ruined cities shall die by the sword. The wild animals will eat those people who live in the country. And those people who live in the strong buildings or in caves shall die from diseases. v28 I will make the country into an empty desert. The people were proud of the nation’s power but that power will end. *Israel’s mountains will be so wild that nobody will travel through them. v29 The people have done such bad things. I hate what they have done. Therefore, I will make the country into an empty desert. And then they will know that I am the *LORD.” ’
Verse 23-29 God had promised to Abraham the country that became *Israel (Genesis 13:14-15). The people who were still in the country were from the family of Abraham. Therefore, they said that the country belonged to them. But they did not understand God’s promise to Abraham. To have the country they must obey the agreement with Moses. Ezekiel then shows some of the evil things that they did. The law of Moses forbids each of these things. Therefore, the people could not claim the country.
They ate meat with the blood still in it (see Leviticus 17:10-14).
- They *worshipped foreign gods (see Exodus 20:1-6)
- They killed people (see Exodus 20:13).
- They had sex with other men’s wives (see Exodus 20:14).
The people who remained in the country would not live. They would die by the sword, by wild animals or by disease. Their proud attitudes would end. God would empty the country. It would become like a desert.
Then people will know that God is the *Lord.
The *exiles do not obey – Ezekiel 33:30-33
v30 ‘But as for you, *son of man, the people from your nation talk about you. They talk together by the walls and at the doors of their houses. They say to each other, “Come. Let us hear what the *LORD says.” v31 My people come to you, as usually they do. They sit in front of you and they listen to your words. But they do not do what you tell them. With their mouths, they tell me that they love me. But their hearts’ desire is for their own profits. v32 To them you are like a singer of love songs. You are like a man with a beautiful voice who plays an instrument well. The people hear your words, but they will not obey them.
v33 All that you have told them will happen. Then they will know that a *prophet has been among them.’
Verses 30-33 The *exiles talked about Ezekiel. They discussed the strange things that he did. They spoke about what Ezekiel had said. They seemed eager to hear the word of the *Lord. They came to Ezekiel to listen to him. They heard what Ezekiel said. But they did not obey what the *Lord said by Ezekiel. They said that they loved the *Lord. But they did not love him. They cared too much about their own wealth, possessions and money.
They liked to listen to Ezekiel. It seemed to amuse them. But they would not believe what he said. All this will change. Ezekiel was not just speaking his own ideas. His messages were from the *Lord. So, the things that Ezekiel spoke about will definitely happen. Then they will know that Ezekiel was a *prophet from the *Lord.
True and false leaders – Ezekiel 34:1-31
The *Lord gave Ezekiel this message about the situation of the people from *Israel. It is in the form of a story about *shepherds and sheep. The *shepherds mean the rulers of *Israel. The sheep mean the people from *Israel. Some of the sheep are fat and greedy. They mean the proud people who have been cruel to weaker people. But God will act on behalf of those weaker people. He is like a good *shepherd who looks after his sheep well.
Israel ~ Israel is the nation whose ancestors were Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The country in which they live is called Israel. Israel became the name of the northern nation when it separated from Judah. However, Ezekiel sometimes uses the word ‘Israel’ to refer to Judah.
ancestors ~ people in history from whom your family has come.
exile ~ When people have to live in a foreign country they are in exile. Such a person is called an exile.'son of man ~ Ezekiel. ‘Son of man’ was the title that God used for Ezekiel. It emphasised that Ezekiel was a mere man. Ezekiel would have to depend on God’s Spirit to make him strong. Only then could Ezekiel do what God told him to do.
Lord ~ a title for God, to show that he is over all people and things.
LORD ~ ‘LORD’ is the special name that God gave to himself. It probably means ‘always God’. This name has a relationship with the special promises that God gave to his people.
destroy ~ to carry out the most severe punishment possible; to cause someone to suffer; to kill everyone in a nation.
Egyptian ~ a person from the nation called Egypt or anything that has a relationship with Egypt.
fall ~ when enemies destroy a city or a country; when a person dies suddenly.
Lord ~ a title for God, to show that he is over all people and things.
LORD ~ ‘LORD’ is the special name that God gave to himself. It probably means ‘always God’. This name has a relationship with the special promises that God gave to his people.
BC ~ years before Christ was born.
Babylonian ~ a person from the nation called Babylon or anything that has a relationship with Babylon.
crocodile ~ a very large animal that lives in and by water.
worship ~ an act to give honour to God (or to a false god). When people praise and thank God.
sin ~ Sin means the wrong things that we do. To sin is to do wrong, bad or evil deeds and not to obey God. People are called sinners because of their sins.
turn ~ to change your behaviour, your friends, or your God; or, to carry out actions in order to oppose someone.
repent ~ to change the mind; to turn away from sin and turn to God.
turn ~ to change your behaviour, your friends, or your God; or, to carry out actions in order to oppose someone.
sin ~ Sin means the wrong things that we do. To sin is to do wrong, bad or evil deeds and not to obey God. People are called sinners because of their sins.
holy ~ a holy object is special; it is only for religion. God himself and his name are also called ‘holy’. This means that God and his name are perfect, in fact, even more than perfect.
trumpet ~ a musical instrument. A trumpet makes a loud sound when a person blows into it.
Israelites ~ the people whose ancestors are Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
ancestors ~ people in history from whom your family has come.
turn ~ to change your behaviour, your friends, or your God; or, to carry out actions in order to oppose someone.'son of man ~ Ezekiel. ‘Son of man’ was the title that God used for Ezekiel. It emphasised that Ezekiel was a mere man. Ezekiel would have to depend on God’s Spirit to make him strong. Only then could Ezekiel do what God told him to do.
sin ~ Sin means the wrong things that we do. To sin is to do wrong, bad or evil deeds and not to obey God. People are called sinners because of their sins.
prophecy ~ a message from God; a gift of the Holy Spirit.
ruined ~ the state of buildings and whole cities when armies destroy everything completely.
prophet ~ person who speaks for God. He can sometimes say what will happen in the future. However, false prophets are people who merely pretend to speak God’s words.
shepherd ~ someone who takes care of sheep.