Like Fathers, like Sons . . . but Not Forever

Like Fathers, like Sons . . . but Not Forever

Ezekiel 20:1-44

Main Idea: Despite our lineage of sin and continued propensity toward it, God will set our hearts and hands free from the idols we treasure.

Is there a specific sin you cannot seem to stop? How long has it been part of your life? A week? A year? Decades? How many times have you “given it to Jesus” only to find you pick it back up some time later? With Christ we have the power to put away besetting sin (Rom 6:1-23). In the power of the Spirit, we should be intentional to put to death anything in our flesh that would lead us away from God (Rom 8:13). Memorizing His Word can help us in our battle against sin as well (Ps 119:11). Confessing our sins to one another and praying for one another are ways a faith family can pursue holiness together (Jas 5:16). Despite all of these extraordinary resources, perfection will not come until our glorification.

While we await glorification, our sanctification is a process. Sometimes it can even be a slow and painful process. In our hearts a daily war rages between the flesh and the Spirit (1 Pet 2:11; Rom 7:23). These powers are not equal, for the One who is in us is greater (1 John 4:4), but the draw of the flesh has not been completely removed from our lives. In considering these matters, Paul cries, “What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this dying body?” (Rom 7:24). There is only one answer: “I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Rom 7:25).

What about those, however, who are not crying to be set free from their sin? What about those who show no sign of struggle but only pure embracing of their rebellion? In Ezekiel 20 Israel’s history and current pursuit of idolatry are revealed. Every generation of God’s people since Egypt has engaged in the worship of other gods besides Yahweh. The real wonder is that Israel still exists. At various times God has considered wiping His people out, but for the sake of His name, He has withheld His wrath. Instead of lowering His standards, He will one day raise His people and set them free from their cycle of sin.

I believe the true depth of the gospel can only be appreciated by studying chapters like Ezekiel 16; 20; and 23. In these chapters facing the facts of our depravity shatters our notions of “we are not that bad.” In reality we are far worse than we know, and God is far more merciful than we realize. Ezekiel 20 reveals that no matter how bent we are on pursuing sin, God is even more determined to save us from ourselves (v. 32). In the battle of wills, God’s grace will ultimately overcome all our rebellion and rip our hands and hearts free from the idols we would have clutched until they killed us. In Christ, God forgives every treacherous act of our turning our back on Him and turning our hearts to gods we create. In Christ, He forgives our lack of trust in Him and His ways. All who see how His grace transforms us will marvel because there is no other who could produce such change. For all eternity, we will be portraits of His grace (Eph 2:7) testifying that God is able to save His people through Christ (Heb 7:25). All will know He is Yahweh (Ezek 20:38). In the current text He wants Israel’s elders to know they cannot seek His counsel and simultaneously ignore their sin. Let’s turn to this now.

God Will Be Sought on His Terms, Not Ours

Ezekiel 20:1-3,30-31

God is not a genie in a lamp who is bound to grant our wishes. We cannot prance into His presence and make our petitions known without any regard for His perspective on our lives. For some reason the elders of Israel were slow to learn this lesson. Whether the group in Ezekiel 20:1-3 is the same group of elders who came to consult God in Ezekiel 14:1-3 is not known. In both cases, however, God let these men know that halfhearted seeking never warrants His wholehearted response (Jer 29:13).

Why were they consulting God anyway? We know whatever He told them they would not obey (33:31-32). We also know they did not believe what He said, or if they did, they at least considered His words to be for those coming behind them (12:22,27). Their specific motive for approaching God is not revealed in the text, but God’s seizing of the opportunity to say what they needed to hear most is.

God refuses to be consulted by those who continue to ignore sin in their lives. Our pursuit of sin reveals that His will is not our priority. His counsel is not to be an add-on to our life, but His words are to be our very life (Deut 32:47). Until Israel turned from their idolatry, everything else was secondary. To enter into God’s presence is a privilege. His refusal to leave us in our sin is a grace. Israel’s elders are about to receive a history lesson in the idolatry of their ancestors and a confrontation of their own idolatry. God’s purpose, however, is not just to inform these elders of what they most likely knew well but also to call them to repentance. When we come to God, we may not receive what we asked for, but we will always receive what is for our best.

Here’s one final thought for those of us who readily take advantage of the privilege we have to draw near to God through Christ (Heb 10:19-22). Had these elders felt they could consult God on their own, they would have done so. Prior to Pentecost, Stuart asserts “believers in general often did not think of themselves as having direct access to God’s guidance, approaching instead prophets through whom God could provide guidance to them” (Ezekiel, 168). What a blessing we have in our opportunity through Christ to ask, seek, and knock with the promise that “everyone who asks receives, and the one who searches finds, and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened” (Matt 7:8). Because of our Mediator, we can seek the Lord’s wisdom at any time and any place (1 Tim 2:5). But let us not make the same mistake as the elders of Israel, who tried to seek His wisdom without sincerity in their heart.

God’s Kindness, Mercy, and Love Toward His Rebellious People Is Without Equal

Ezekiel 20:4-31

In his opening paragraph of Let the Nations Be Glad, John Piper writes,

Missions is not the ultimate goal of the church. Worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn’t. Worship is ultimate, not missions, because God is ultimate not man. When this age is over, and the countless millions of the redeemed fall on their faces before the throne of God, missions will be no more. It is a temporary necessity. But worship abides forever. (Piper, Let the Nations, 17)

Worship is and has always been a purpose of God’s having a people for the sake of His name. Worship is God’s aim in delivering His people not only from Egypt but also from sin. Duguid contends, “The goal of exodus, indeed of all salvation, is a purified people worshipping the one true God” (Ezekiel, 270).

Historically, Israel does not have a problem with worship. Their problem is the object—or better, objects—of their worship. If Israel were on a modern television show, it would be Intervention. On this show families confront loved ones whose addictions are destroying their lives. Israel was addicted to idolatry and had been since its creation (v. 8). Their treacherous actions were driven by their heart’s desire to be like the nations and worship wood and stone (v. 32). Why would they want to be like everyone else when they had been chosen to be unique (v. 5; cf. Ps 135:4)? More importantly, why would they want to embrace false gods and reject the one true living God?

Stuart provides some insights on why Israel and other nations frequently worshiped idols they created. He asserts,

Ancient people believed that if they made an image (idol) of a god no matter how crudely it may have been fashioned and no matter how partially it may have represented the god, it nevertheless captured its essence. Therefore, with idols they could guarantee that the gods would be with them, right in their presence, taking note of their offerings and automatically hearing their prayers. (Stuart, Ezekiel, 166)

Despite the customs of the day, however, God clearly instructed His people not to have other gods besides Him and not to make an idol for themselves (Exod 20:3-4).

The history of God’s people is not a pretty one. It may not have been so bad in the memories of the people, but God’s memory is the only one that counts. When stories were passed from generation to generation, I’m uncertain how many examples of Grandpappy’s idolatry were heralded, but there were plenty of possibilities. The summary of God’s brief history lesson to the elders of Israel is that God’s people have been idolatrous in Egypt (vv. 4-9), idolatrous in the wilderness (vv. 10-17), idolatrous in the wilderness again (vv. 18-26), idolatrous in Canaan (vv. 27-29), and idolatrous even in exile (vv. 30-32). All along they have worshiped; they have just not worshiped Yahweh alone. Each new generation and each new location brought the same old situation as God’s people pursued idols.

With each act of idolatry, God was tempted to exhaust His anger by pouring out His wrath on His people (vv. 8,13,21). But with each generation, He resisted for the sake of His name (vv. 9,14,17,22). In covenanting with His people, God tied His reputation and renown to them, and His treatment of them always accorded with what brought Him the most glory. His withholding of His wrath did not mean its removal, only its delay. It also did not mean there were no consequences for His people’s rebellion. There were. Their idolatry cost one generation the opportunity to enter Canaan (v. 15) and another generation the opportunity to stay there (v. 23).

In Ezekiel 20 the goodness of God and the wretchedness of man are on full display. God initiates a relationship by choosing them and then covenants Himself to them (v. 5). Of His own accord, He promises to deliver Moses’ generation from Egypt and bring them to “the most beautiful of all lands,” which He searched out (and made) Himself (v. 6). During their 430-year stay in Egypt, they picked up some detestable practices and idols of the “host” country. For their own good God tells them to throw away their idols because He is Yahweh their God (v. 7). How was God’s kindness rewarded? They rebelled against Him and refused to listen to Him, and none of them—did you get that? zero of them—threw away their detestable things or let go of their idols. God considered bringing them to an end in Egypt, but He resisted for the sake of His name (vv. 8-9) and brought them out of Egypt instead.

If given the opportunity to talk with Moses’ generation, one question I would ask is, Why would you bring gods out of Egypt that could not bring you out of Egypt? I would follow with another question: When you carried your carved images out of Egypt, did it occur to you that these gods could not carry you anywhere? God’s people may have been liberated from their oppressors, but they were still in bondage to their sin.

Perhaps all Israel needed in order to release their idols fully was a fresh walk through the wilderness. After drowning Pharaoh and his army, God continued to initiate kindness to His people. He gave them His statutes and explained His ordinances to them. He also gave them Sabbaths (vv. 11-12). His rules and His rest were for setting His people apart as holy (v. 12). They were not intended to be burdens but blessings. The law was not a means of earning righteousness, but it was good, and the one who walked in it would not be put to death for rebellion (v. 13). The walk in the wilderness, however, did not change Israel’s hearts, nor did they release the idols from their hands. They rebelled against God and rejected His ordinances, statutes, and Sabbaths. It’s as if they collectively shook their fist at God and said, “We do not care what You want!” God considered killing them all but refrained for the sake of His name (vv. 14,17). Instead, He would not allow their generation to enter Canaan because their hearts went after their idols (vv. 15-16).

Once the exodus generation walked around in the wilderness until they all died, God was ready to move forward with their children. Because He was Yahweh their God, He charged them not to follow the statutes of their fathers or pursue their idols (v. 18). The apple, however, did not fall far from the tree. They did all the evil their fathers had done and raised the ante by sacrificing their firstborn children to pagan gods (v. 26). God considered wiping them out as well but once again withheld His wrath for the sake of His name (v. 22). Because their eyes were fixed on their father’s idols, God promised to disperse them and allowed them to follow statutes and ordinances that were no good (vv. 23,25). Every child sacrifice brought them nothing but defilement (v. 26).

Perhaps if God could just lead His people into Canaan, then the next generation would be fully obedient. Wrong. They quickly adopted the practices of the Canaanites and offered sacrifices on any high hill or under any leafy tree (v. 28). Instead of following the command to participate in the yearly festivals in Jerusalem, God’s people desired convenience over obedience. Any ol’ hill will do if you do not want to put too much effort into worship. They were a far cry from David’s desire not to offer the Lord anything that cost him nothing (2 Sam 24:24). Like their fathers and grandfathers they received good from God and returned to Him nothing but bad.

At this point in Ezekiel’s relaying of God’s history lesson to the elders of Israel, they might have been saying to one another, “I told you we were being punished for the sins of previous generations.” God, however, had already cleared this up in Ezekiel 18 and would soon reveal that Ezekiel’s generation was no innocent bystander. In fact, they were doing the same evil their ancestors had done, including sacrificing their children (20:31).

Why? Of all the pagan practices, why did Israel add this to their repertoire of disobedience? Stuart believes,

Thinking themselves likely to gain the lifetime favor of the gods in this way, the Israelites borrowed child sacrifice, too, from their neighbors and began killing their firstborn infants and burning them on altars as a means of sending them to the false gods they were worshipping. It is evident that such people really wanted the gods to love them and were willing to “give their all” to gain such love. (Stuart, Ezekiel, 175)

How foolish! They were trying to gain the love of gods that did not exist, all the while shunning the love of the God who does. They were seeking to earn the love of their idols, while Yahweh’s love had been given freely.

As God comes to the end of His recounting of Israel’s idolatry, He reveals to the elders who were there with Ezekiel that they may not consult Him (v. 31). If they want His wisdom, then they must do something about their sin. He has been nothing but faithful while they and their ancestors have been nothing but unfaithful. He has initiated love to each of their generations only to be met with rejection. He is done being consulted by people who have their own agendas. The question remains, though, is He finally done with His people? Will He finally destroy them in His wrath? By now, however, we know the answer. He will not destroy them, but He will discipline them. Best of all, the punishment will also be a means of purification. God is not done with His people, but He is done with their idolatry.

When you read through Ezekiel 20:4-31, what are your thoughts? Are you disgusted with Israel’s consistent rebellion and rejection? Are you overwhelmed by God’s steadfast love? Are you amazed by God’s restraint and withholding of wrath? Are you surprised that after all of God’s goodness, His people still refused to put away what pulled them away from Him? When encountering a passage like this, we want to make sure we are not wearing our rose-colored classes when we consider our own past. We were no better than Israel. All of us turned away from God, and none of us sought Him on our own (Rom 3:11-12). His love for us is just as staggering since while we were still sinners, Christ died for us (Rom 5:8). The wrath God withheld with each disobedient generation would ultimately be atoned not through exile but through the cross of His Son. What He withheld from Israel (and us), He poured out on Jesus. I wonder then if His forgiveness of and patience with sinners is evident in our lives? Are our Father’s traits of long-suffering and mercy being displayed in us and through us? Are there any idols we are foolishly carrying around that we need to “throw away” (Ezek 20:7)? Are there any ways we are trying to earn His love rather than resting in what Christ has earned already? How can the cycle of sin be stopped for Israel and for us? The answer to this question is in the next part of the passage.

God Does Not Lower His Standards but Raises His People

Ezekiel 20:32-44

That Israel has a history beyond verse 8 should amaze all of us, but the fact they are given the promises of verses 32-44 should leave us in absolute wonder of God’s mercy. For Israel (and us), what has always been will not always be. Despite all their running away, God never does anything but run to His people. He knows changing generations and changing locations in themselves will not produce lasting change in His people. Up to this point, they have produced no change. God, however, will set His people free from their greatest bondage, which is sin.

The cycle of idolatry will be broken because God will demonstrate His holiness through His people and not just to them (v. 41). He will not let their desire to “be like the nations, like the people of other countries, worshiping wood and stone” be their final lot (v. 32). God graciously rescues us from ourselves. He will rule over His people, He will bring them from the peoples and gather them from the nations, He will lead them into a new wilderness and judge them, He will make them pass under the rod for the purpose of bringing them back into the bond of the covenant, and He will purge from their presence all who rebel and transgress against Him (vv. 33-38). These are not just possibilities but certainties. He will do what He is declaring.

God’s purifying work in His people will be so effective they will one day no longer defile His holy name with their gifts and idols (v. 39). In fact, they will hate the evil things they used to do (v. 43). Not just some of the people He preserves will serve on Israel’s high mountain, but all of them, the entire house of Israel, will be accepted and bless Him with holy offerings (v. 40). His people will be a pleasing aroma to the Lord (v. 41). Despite generations of idolatry, God will deal with His people for the sake of His name rather than according to their evil ways and corrupt acts (v. 44). He will not treat them as they deserve but will bless them for their good and His glory. When all this occurs, both His people and the nations will know He is Yahweh (vv. 42,44).

In considering Ezekiel 20:1-44, Block confesses,

The experience of divine mercy drives true covenant people to their knees. . . . God did not express his love in Jesus Christ in response to our worthiness, but to redeem us from our unworthiness. The fundamental problem with most of us is not deficient self-esteem but an inadequate divine-esteem. As we submit ourselves to God, recognizing that ultimately he operates for his own name’s sake, and that his investment in us relates to agendas far greater than ourselves, we will treasure the grace with which he reaches out to us. (Block, Ezekiel, 658–59)

Block’s point is that we should never look at the love God demonstrates for us in the cross of Christ and think to ourselves, “Of course He wants to save me. I’m great.” Instead, with Watts we should ask,

While all our hearts and all our songs

Join to admire the feast,

Each of us cry, with thankful tongues,

“Lord, why was I a guest?

“Why was I made to hear Thy voice,

And enter while there’s room,

When thousands make a wretched choice,

And rather starve than come?”

’Twas the same love that spread the feast

That sweetly drew us in;

Else we had still refused to taste,

And perished in our sin.

(Isaac Watts, “How Sweet and Aweful Is the Place,” 1707)

As I said in the beginning, God’s grace will ultimately overcome all our rebellion and rip our hands and hearts free from the idols we would have clutched until they killed us. Despite all our unfaithfulness He chooses to forsake His Son so that He does not have to forsake us. It was the offering of His Son that atoned for our sins and not the burning of any of ours. He did not give up on Israel in Egypt or in the wilderness or in Canaan because He brings to completion the work He starts (Phil 1:6). Ezekiel 20 gives us a better picture of just how much work was required in Israel and in us. God does not treat us according to our sins because He treated Christ according to them and treats us according to Christ’s righteousness. May our mouths never cease to offer Him praise and to announce to a lost world the good news of Jesus Christ. There is no sinner His grace cannot deliver!

Reflect and Discuss

1. Why did Israel exhibit so little gratitude for God’s kindness and love? In what ways are you different?
2. Why was letting go of idols so difficult for Israel? How has God pried your hands free of a besetting sin?
3. What are your thoughts as you examine Israel’s depravity and God’s steadfast love? How have you experienced these in your life?
4. In what ways did the idols of the fathers influence the sons? In what ways are our children being influenced by what we treasure?
5. Why would Israel ever seek to earn another god’s favor? In what ways have you ever tried to earn God’s?
6. Why is changing locations or even habits not enough to ultimately free us from sin?
7. In what ways does God demonstrate His holiness through us and not just to us?
8. How can we balance loathing our previous sin and moving forward in God’s grace?
9. How often do you consider that God does not deal with us according to our evil ways and corrupt acts because He laid these on Christ?
10. In what ways is God’s patience with and forgiveness of sinners evident through you?