Ezekiel 24:16-17 “Son of man, with one blow I am about to take away from you the delight of your eyes. Yet do not lament or weep or shed any tears. 17 Groan quietly; do not mourn for the dead. Keep your turban fastened and your sandals on your feet; do not cover your mustache and beard or eat the customary food of mourners.”
Some things in life are almost impossible to handle by yourself. They overwhelm your internal resources and can push you over the edge. The death of a spouse is one such event.
Over the years I have walked with those who have lost spouses, and what a great burden it is to bear for these widows and widowers. Their worlds were torn in two, half of them ending up in a casket. Everything they thought about life ends in a moment, and there is no immediate alternative way of thinking that can ease the pain and emptiness.
There are many other losses that can bring this kind of impact to a person to a greater or lessor degree. But this is the nature of loss. It pulls the plug on the old life and propels you into the future with your navigation system in dysfunction.
So when the LORD tells the prophet Ezekiel that is wife is going to die and he can only grieve quietly, I think I might have begun to question the LORD. Talk about too much to bare! He is told not to put on any of the outwards signs of that culture connected to grief. He is to act publicly as if she hadn’t died. Wow!
So why did the LORD put a hold on Ezekiel’s grief? Remember, the LORD uses Ezekiel’s life as a mini-series drama to get His message across to His people. The things that happen to Ezekiel tell a story to the people, at least those who are willing to listen. The very things in his life tell the story.
So the death of Ezekiel’s wife tells the story of the destruction of the sanctuary in Jerusalem. And the LORD won’t mourn for His people. They have gotten what they deserved. The LORD’s mercy was put on hold. His grace was held back. Judgment came instead.
It is bad enough to lose a loved one, but to have to suffer alone, that makes the loss that much greater. The people who go into exile will be suffering alone. The LORD isn’t going to be there to rescue and redeem them. They will suffer for the wrongs they have done.
But the LORD put a 70 year promise on the table. Hope was offered even in the middle of the execution of judgment. There would come a day when mercy and grace would once again rule the day. They would return to their lands and once again seek the LORD.
And there is a coming day for us as well. We don’t have a timetable like they did. But we do have the promise that Jesus will return and make wrong right. He will bring true justice. His hands will be filled with mercy and grace. And the world will be as it was designed to be.
So today, as you face your challenges, there is hope. Keep that hope in mind as you carry out your Kingdom work today.
The Arnold Journey 