BIBLE: Ezekiel Chapter 14 – Headline “A Trinity of Righteousness … Noah, Daniel, Job”

Words in italic type have been added for clarity. They are not found in the original Hebrew or Aramaic.

Ezekiel 14

597 BC

There is no longer any hope for Judah, it is decided and done. Twice God declares “even though Noah, Daniel, and Job were in it, they would only save themselves for their righteousness.” Twice means two words: Decided and Done.

Two more times God mentions these three men without giving their names for a total of four references. The number “four” refers to justice.

To see Ezekiel’s timeline in history, download (click below) and scroll Timeline BC to the year 597 BC when Ezekiel (with 10,000 to 11,000 Jews) are taken captive by Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon and the beginning of his visions. Scroll down to travel backwards in time. Scroll up to advance towards the present.

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Idolatry Will Be Punished

Ezekiel 14:¹ Now some of the elders of Israel came to me (Ezekiel) and sat before me.

Are these the same leaders of Israel who prophesied falsely and persecuted Jeremiah?

Ezekiel 14:²And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, ³“Son of man, these men have set up their idols in their hearts, and put before them that which causes them to stumble into iniquity. Should I let Myself be inquired of at all by them?

Ezekiel 14:⁴“Therefore speak to them, and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Everyone of the house of Israel who sets up his idols in his heart, and puts before him what causes him to stumble into iniquity, and then comes to the (true) prophet (Ezekiel), I the Lord will answer him who comes, according to the multitude of his idols,

To set up an idol in the heart is to set it in a “high” place. The Jews worshiped idols on the hills and the high places. The high places are places of pride.

Ezekiel 14:⁵that I may seize the house of Israel by their heart, because they are all estranged from Me by their idols.” ’

The leaders, priests and king were responsible for allowing the worship of many idols throughout Israel.

Ezekiel 14:⁶“Therefore say to the house of Israel, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Repent, turn away from your idols, and turn your faces away from all your abominations.

► Definition of “Repent”: Make a “YOU” turn.

►Story with a moral:
The Sunday school teacher asked her class, “What does it mean to repent?”
One little girl said, “It means to be sorry when you do something wrong.”
But another little girl was waving her arm wildly, so the teacher then called on her.
“It means,” the second girl earnestly answered, “to be sorry and to do different.”

Ezekiel 14:⁷For anyone of the house of Israel, or of the strangers who dwell in Israel, who separates himself from Me and sets up his idols in his heart and puts before him what causes him to stumble into iniquity, then comes to a prophet to inquire of him (the true prophet) concerning Me, I the Lord will answer him by Myself.

The Lord answer for Himself in Ezekiel 20.

It is audacious to worship idols – then seek out God’s prophet to inquire about God. It is hypocritical. The definition of hypocrite in Hebrew is “actor”. An actor is like a reptilian chameleon changing costumes. Satan is always compared to a reptile in scripture; a dragon, serpent, crocodile, sea monster, leviathan, sea beast, etc. (Other reptiles not mentioned in scripture but give us insights into the nature of reptiles are man eating monitor lizards, sand lizards, chameleons, etc.)

Jerusalem’s Doom Is Sealed. Jeremiah 21:1-2 The word which came to Jeremiah from the Lord when King Zedekiah sent to him: (Ezekiel) (these people:) Pashhur the son of Melchiah, and Zephaniah the son of Maaseiah, the priest, saying, 2 “Please inquire of the Lord for us, for Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon makes war against us. Perhaps the Lord will deal with us according to all His wonderful works, that the king of Babylon may go away from us (bg: and hopefully leave us alone).”
Jeremiah 38:1 Jeremiah in the Dungeon: Now Shephatiah the son of Mattan, Gedaliah the son of Pashhur, Jucal the son of Shelemiah, and Pashhur the son of Malchiah heard the words that Jeremiah had spoken to all the people…4 Therefore the princes said to the king, “Please, let this man be put to death,

Ezekiel 14:⁸I will set My face against that man and make him (mark him as) a SIGN and a (sad) PROVERB (example), and I will cut him off from the midst of My people. Then you shall know that I am the Lord.

Sign = Badge of Identification. When Jesus forgave the sins of the paralytic and then healed him, the healing was the sign that Jesus was God and had the authority to forgive sins. Miracles are used as signs.
Miracle = The unseen revealed by something seen: a Supernatural Intervention which takes authority over the physics of nature resulting in prophetic knowledge or a warning.
Proverb = An example – of a person or event – leading to a path of wisdom.
Wonders = Events or revelations leaving a person awe struck.

POWER:	SIGNS:	MIRACLES:	WONDERS:
^{Greek dynamis g1411 mighty (supernatural) works Hebrew kōaḥ h3581 strength, power, might, force, ability, chameleon (Satan), fruits, powerful.}	^{Greek Semeion g4592 a sign, mark, token. Hebrew ‘ôṯ h226 A mark, token, pledge of a covenant.} ^{Examples: Mark of the Beast, Mark (seal) of the 144,000 in Revelation, the marking (sealing) of believers by the Holy Spirit. The cutting of a covenant between God and man.}	^{Hebrew pālā ‘h6381 to be marvellous, be wonderful, be surpassing, be extraordinary, separate (be holy) by distinguishing action. Greek dynamis g1411 power, force Greek sēmeion g4592 a sign, mark, token. All miracles are signs but not all signs are miracles.}	^{Greek (only) teras g5059}
^{Power has a deeper meaning than we can imagine. It’s used to describe strength of mind, moral qualities of a person, power of faith etc. … It means an inner strength that does not depend on outward things.}	^{Badge of Identification. When Jesus forgave the sins of the paralytic and then healed him. Healing was the sign that Jesus, as God, had the authority to forgive sins which only God can do. Jesus asked his disciples “Who do men say I Am?” In other words He is asking, do they recognize my identification, my mission and my authority? All miracles are signs but not all signs are miracles.}	^{The unseen revealed by something seen: a Supernatural Intervention which takes authority over the physics of nature resulting in prophetic knowledge or warnings.}	^{Events or revelations leaving a person awe struck. (with power, signs, and miracles)}
^{When a person accepts the blood of Christ to save them spiritually, they inherit the Power of God.}	^{Sign of Jonah, sign of raising the temple,}	^{He turned water into wine, calmed the storm. He miraculously appeared on the other side of the sea immediately.}	^{The multitudes wondered (awe struck) when they saw the healings. (made them think and ask themselves what this meant.)}
^{A paralytic being healed is like a person coming to faith in God. The muscles must be exerted in order to gain their strength. Power is like a generator, men must be regenerated.}	^{Signs cause its witnesses to recognize the identity of Jesus as the Jewish Messiah, the Son of God and the second person of the Godhead.}	^{Miracles teach that God has authority over weather, nature, health, time, distance, and the entirety of His creation.}	^{An emotional reaction when one realizes that nothing is impossible for God.} ^{“Seeing is believing” becomes “Believing is seeing” (faith).}
The Power of God: ^{Matt 13:54 Suspension of the natural and interjection of the super-natural.} VS: The Power of Satan: ^{Satan is always described as a reptile in scripture who also has supernatural abilities; however, the power of God is greater than the power of Satan.} ^{Lev 11:30 ‘the gecko, the monitor lizard, the sand reptile, the sand lizard, and the chameleon.’ G3581} ^{2Th 2:9 The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders,}		pil’î from pālā ^{Jdg 13:18 And the Angel of the LORD said to him, “Why do you ask My name, seeing it is Wonderful (Miraculous and Full of Wonders)?”} ^{Mar 9:39 But Jesus said, “Do not forbid him, for no one who works a miracle in My name can soon afterward speak evil of Me.}	^{2Th 2:9 The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders,}

POWER – SIGNS – MIRACLES – WONDERS

KNOWLEDGE:	WISDOM:	UNDERSTANDING:	INSTRUCTION:
^{The Son is higher than the angels, higher than the priesthood, Lord of the Sabbath, the Jewish Messiah, and the second person of the Godhead.}	^{Knowing the value on one thing over another. The act of proper priorities.}	^{Living with the knowledge of God’s infallible character. See’s the pain in others to react accordingly to turn sorrow into joy.}	^{Putting one’s Knowledge, Wisdom and Understanding to practical use.}

KNOWLEDGE – WISDOM – UNDERSTANDING – INSTRUCTION

PROVERB:	PARABLE:
^{An Example. An example of a person or event leading to a path of wisdom. A teaching using such examples.}	^{A symbolic story illustrating a truth.}
^{A beautiful woman who acts with indiscretion is like putting a gold ring in the snout of a pig. Beauty is compared to gold, rare and valuable. The moral of the proverb is, “Don’t sell your beauty cheaply.”}	^{Seed is compared to the Word of God in Jesus’ parable of the sower. A man’s heart is compared to the soil in how he receives God’s Word.}
^{Proverbs teach the wisdom of God in all that He has determined.}	^{A parable is valuable in getting a man to understand a spiritual truth by a physical application.}

PROVERB – PARABLE

Ezekiel 14:⁹“And if the (false) prophet is induced to speak anything, I the Lord have induced that prophet, and I will stretch out My hand against him and destroy him from among My people Israel.

^Ancient ^{Israel ,,, was getting a lot of bad news from prophets like Jeremiah and Ezekiel. They didn’t like what they were hearing. So instead of heeding the prophets’ warnings, many turned to false prophets who told them what they wanted to hear. It’s easy to shake our heads at this behavior, but often, we do the same thing today.} ^{http://www.biblestudytools.com › bible-study › topical}

^{Jeremiah 5:31 The prophets prophesy falsely, And the priests rule by their own power; And My people love to have it so. But what will you do in the end?}
^{Jeremiah 14:13 Then I said, “Ah, Lord God! Behold, the prophets say to them, ‘You shall not see the sword, nor shall you have famine, but I will give you assured peace in this place.’ ”}

False prophets by name:

1. Pashhur
^{“The Lord’s name for you is not Pashhur (“freedom and/or liberation”), but Magor-Missabib (“terror on every side”). For this is what the LORD says: ‘I will make you a terror to yourself AND to ALL your friends; with your own eyes you will see them fall by the sword of their enemies. I will hand ALL Judah over to the king of Babylon, who will carry them away to Babylon or put them to the sword. I will hand over to their enemies ALL the wealth of this city–all its products, all its valuables and all the treasures of the kings of Judah. They will take it away as plunder and carry it off to Babylon. And you, Pashhur, and all who live in your house will go into exile to Babylon. There you will die and be buried, you and all your friends to whom you have prophesied lies.’” (Jer 20:3-6)}

^{Pashhur put Jeremiah in stocks (whipped forty lashes minus one) then in a prison, then in a pit. Pashhur tried to kill Jeremiah by putting him in a pit up his neck in mire.}

^{In turn, God followed by putting Pashhur in Babylonian chains, then imprisoned him in Babylon, then in the pit of the grave. Pashur died and was buried in the pit of Babylon. He must have been hated and despised by all the captives who had believed him.}

^{Jeremiah was vindicated. Pashhur experienced perpetual and eternal shame.}

A sample of stocks that would have held Jeremiah as he was beaten.

False prophets throughout the ages have taught others to persecute believers. Those who follow the teachings of these false prophets will suffer the same consequences as those prophets who teach them.

2. Zephaniah (the priest)

^{Religious leaders killed the prophets. Religious leaders killed Jesus. Religious leaders created the inquisition. In the future it will be a religious leader (the false prophet) who will cause everyone to worship the Beast-like Antichrist or be killed.}

3. Shephatiah

4. Gedaliah (son of Pashhur)

5. Jucal (or Jehucal)

Ezekiel 14:¹⁰And they (the corrupt questioners) shall bear their iniquity; the punishment of the prophet shall be the same as the punishment of the one who inquired,

They ALL went into captivity who were able to escape the sword, starvation, became prey to the predators, or taken by pestilence. The grave is also a place of captivity. They ALL went into captivity, the punishment of the false prophet was the same as the people who listened to their false leaders.

PERSONAL APPLICATION:
If you chose to listen to false teachers, you will suffer the same fate as theirs. They are the blind who lead their followers into a pit, ie: the grave.

Luke 6:39 And He spoke a parable to them: “Can the blind lead the blind? Will they not both fall into the ditch (pit)?

Ezekiel 14:¹¹that the house of Israel may no longer stray from Me, nor be profaned anymore with all their transgressions, but that they may be My people and I may be their God,” says the Lord God.’ ”

God stopped speaking to the Jews and commanded them not to speak His name. In Daniel, God called them “your people” not “my people”.

When Jesus returns and sets up His kingdom, they will once again be called by God “My people”.

Hosea 1:9 Then God said: “Call his name Lo-Ammi, For you are not My people, And I will not be your God.
Hosea 1:10b And it shall come to pass In the place where it was said to them, ‘You are not My people,’ There it shall be said to them, ‘You are sons of the living God.’
Hosea 2:23 Then I will sow her for Myself in the earth, And I will have mercy on her who had not obtained mercy; Then I will say to those who were not My people, ‘You are My people!’ And they shall say, ‘You are my God!’ ”
Zechariah 8:8 I will bring them back, And they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. They shall be My people And I will be their God, In truth and righteousness.’
Zechariah 13:9 I will bring the one-third through the fire, Will refine them as silver is refined, And test them as gold is tested. They will call on My name, And I will answer them. I will say, ‘This is My people’; And each one will say, ‘The Lord is my God.’ ”

The Restoration of Israel

“Yet the number of the children of Israel Shall be as the sand of the sea, Which cannot be measured or numbered. And it shall come to pass In the place where it was said to them, ‘You are not My people,’ There it shall be said to them, ‘You are sons of the living God.’

Judgment on Persistent Unfaithfulness

Ezekiel 14:¹²The word of the Lord came again to me, saying:

Ezekiel 14:¹³“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.

Famine = Fruitlessness, Starvation, Drought, Misery, Dearth. A lack of God’s life giving resources, God’s manna (bread) from heaven.

John 6:35 And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.
Amos 8:11 “Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord God, “That I will send a famine on the land, Not a famine of bread, Nor a thirst for water, But of hearing the words of the Lord.

Ezekiel 14:¹⁴Even if these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they would deliver only themselves by their righteousness,” says the Lord God.

These three men had no sin associated with them. Three is the number of the Godhead, a trinity of righteousness.

The intimation is such that if there were no Noah, God would not have saved his family from the great world wide flood. Only because of Noah his family was saved.
The intimation is such that when Nebuchadnezzar killed all the royal family members of king Zedikiah, it included Daniel’s family.
The intimation is such that Job’s family did not have Job’s passion for righteousness. His wife told him to curse God and die.

Ezekiel 14:¹⁵“If I cause wild beasts to pass through the land, and they empty it (Lit. bereave it of children), and make it so desolate that no man may pass through because of the beasts,

Wild Beast = Uncivilized, Undomesticated, Lawless

Ezekiel 14:¹⁶even though these three men were in it (Lit. in the midst of 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.

Ezekiel 14:¹⁷“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,

Sword = War, Combat, An actual sword or the Word of God

Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
Exodus 15:9 The enemy said, ‘I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the spoil; My desire shall be satisfied on them. I will draw my sword, My hand shall destroy them.’

Ezekiel 14:¹⁸even 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.

Ezekiel 14:¹⁹“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,

Pestilence = plague, pandemic

Habakkuk 3:5 Before Him went pestilence, And fever followed at His feet.

Ezekiel 14:²⁰even 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.”

Noah saved his family of seven, he being the eighth.
Daniel did not save his family. Nebuchadnezzar executed the entire royal family except King Zedekiah, who was blinded and taken into captivity.
Job did not save his family but God gave him a new family.

Ezekiel 14:²¹For thus says the Lord God: “How much more it shall be when I send My four severe (Lit. evil) judgments on Jerusalem—the sword and famine and wild beasts and pestilence—to cut off man and beast from it?

The Sword	Famine	Wild Beasts	Pestilence
^{Sword = War, Combat, An actual sword or the Word of God}	^{Famine = A lack of the Bread from heaven. Physical starvation and/or spiritual starvation.} ^{Famine = Fruitlessness, Starvation, Drought, Misery, Dearth. A lack of God’s life giving resources, A lack of God’s manna (bread) from heaven.}	^{Wild Beasts = Untamed, Lawless, Unpredictable, Heartless}	^{Pestilence = plague, pandemic}
	^{Ref: Jeremiah 14}^{Sword, Famine, and Pestilence: The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah concerning the droughts. “Judah mourns, And her gates languish; They mourn for the land, And the cry of Jerusalem has gone up. Their nobles have sent their lads for water; They went to the cisterns and found no water. They returned with their vessels empty; They were ashamed and confounded And covered their heads.} ^{Ref: II Chronicles 20:9}^{‘If disaster comes upon us—sword, judgment, pestilence, or famine—we will stand before this temple and in Your presence (for Your name is in this temple), and cry out to You in our affliction, and You will hear and save.’} ^{Ref: Amos 8:11}^{“Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord God, “That I will send a famine on the land, Not a famine of bread, Nor a thirst for water, But of hearing the words of the Lord.} ^{Ref: John 6:35 And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.}	^{Ref: 2 Peter 2:12}^{But these, like natural brute beasts made to be caught and destroyed, speak evil of the things they do not understand, and will utterly perish in their own corruption,}	^{Ref: Habakkuk 3:5 Before Him went pestilence, And fever followed at His feet.}

Famine = A lack of the Bread from heaven. Physical starvation and/or spiritual starvation.

^{Jeremiah 14 Sword, Famine, and Pestilence: The word of the Lord that came to Jeremiah concerning the droughts. “Judah mourns, And her gates languish; They mourn for the land, And the cry of Jerusalem has gone up. Their nobles have sent their lads for water; They went to the cisterns and found no water. They returned with their vessels empty; They were ashamed and confounded And covered their heads.}
^{Chronicles 20:9 ‘If disaster comes upon us—sword, judgment, pestilence, or famine—we will stand before this temple and in Your presence (for Your name is in this temple), and cry out to You in our affliction, and You will hear and save.’}
^{Amos 8:11 “Behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord God, “That I will send a famine on the land, Not a famine of bread, Nor a thirst for water, But of hearing the words of the Lord.}

Wild Beasts = Untamed, Lawless, Unpredictable, Heartless

^{2 Peter 2:12 But these, like natural brute beasts made to be caught and destroyed, speak evil of the things they do not understand, and will utterly perish in their own corruption,}

Four is the number of Justice.

Four times God repeated “These three men: Noah, Daniel and Job”. Why wouldn’t God save their family? Because their family did not have their righteousness and would propagate those things which God is destroying.

God would not have saved Ham, Japheth and Shem which was the entire future of humanity, or Daniel’s mother and father, or Job’s old AND NEW family.

Ezekiel 14:²²Yet 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.

When it comes to God’s chosen people, God ALWAYS leaves a remnant. The remnant will possess the righteousness of Noah, Daniel, and Job.

Ezekiel 14:²³And they will comfort you, when you see their ways and their doings; and you shall know that I have done nothing without cause (justice) that I have done in it,” says the Lord God.

PERSONAL APPLICATION:
In the era in which you live, do you see evidence of God’s judgment?

SUMMARY:
When things go bad, justice results in a hopeful future.

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