Archive for category: GAMEtime Sharing

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Ezekiel 23:1-31.  Let’s go!

Ezekiel 23:1-4 (NIV) 
1  The word of the LORD came to me:
2  “Son of man, there were two women, daughters of the same mother.
3  They became prostitutes in Egypt, engaging in prostitution from their youth. In that land their breasts were fondled and their virgin bosoms caressed.
4  The older was named Oholah, and her sister was Oholibah. They were mine and gave birth to sons and daughters. Oholah is Samaria, and Oholibah is Jerusalem.

On verses 1-4:  Here the Lord begins to tell Ezekiel a parable concerning two sisters called Oholah and Oholibah.  Oholah (whose name means “her tent”) is the older sister and represents the northern kingdom of Israel and in particular its capital city Samaria.  Oholibah (whose name means “my tent is in her”) is the younger sister and represents the southern kingdom of Judah and in particular its capital city Jerusalem.  They were “daughters of the same mother” (v2) in that Judah and Israel originally comprised the one nation called “Israel” before they divided into two kingdoms.  When verse 3 says that these two sisters were “prostitutes in Egypt, engaging in prostitution from their youth” (v3), this is likely a reference to how early on Israel looked to the Egyptians to save them from death (Genesis 42:1) but eventually became slaves to the Egyptians (Exodus 1:11).

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Ezekiel 22:1-16.  Let’s go!

Ezekiel 22:1-5 (NIV) 
1  The word of the LORD came to me: 
2  “Son of man, will you judge her? Will you judge this city of bloodshed? Then confront her with all her detestable practices 
3  and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: O city that brings on herself doom by shedding blood in her midst and defiles herself by making idols, 
4  you have become guilty because of the blood you have shed and have become defiled by the idols you have made. You have brought your days to a close, and the end of your years has come. Therefore I will make you an object of scorn to the nations and a laughingstock to all the countries. 
5  Those who are near and those who are far away will mock you, O infamous city, full of turmoil.
 
On verses 1-5:  In another message that God gives to Ezekiel for the city of Jerusalem, God confirms that it was the people of Jerusalem who brought trouble upon themselves.  He describes Jerusalem as the “city that brings on herself doom by shedding blood” (v3), that “defiles herself by making idols” (v3), who has “become defiled by the idols you have made” (v4) and “brought your days to a close” (v4).

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Ezekiel 21:1-17.  Let’s go!

Ezekiel 21:1-7 (NIV) 
1  The word of the LORD came to me: 
2  “Son of man, set your face against Jerusalem and preach against the sanctuary. Prophesy against the land of Israel 
3  and say to her: ‘This is what the LORD says: I am against you. I will draw my sword from its scabbard and cut off from you both the righteous and the wicked. 
4  Because I am going to cut off the righteous and the wicked, my sword will be unsheathed against everyone from south to north. 
5  Then all people will know that I the LORD have drawn my sword from its scabbard; it will not return again.’ 
6  “Therefore groan, son of man! Groan before them with broken heart and bitter grief. 
7  And when they ask you, ‘Why are you groaning?’ you shall say, ‘Because of the news that is coming. Every heart will melt and every hand go limp; every spirit will become faint and every knee become as weak as water.’ It is coming! It will surely take place, declares the Sovereign LORD.”
 
On verses 1-7:  In case the Israelites did not understand the message Ezekiel was sharing in Ezekiel 20:45-48, God gives Ezekiel an even clearer and more direct message to give the Israelites about the destruction that was coming to Jerusalem and Judah (the kingdom in which Jerusalem was situated). 

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Ezekiel 20:1-29. There are many lessons we can learn from this passage. Let’s go!

Ezekiel 20:1-3 (NIV)
1 In the seventh year, in the fifth month on the tenth day, some of the elders of Israel came to inquire of the LORD, and they sat down in front of me.
2 Then the word of the LORD came to me:
3 “Son of man, speak to the elders of Israel and say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Have you come to inquire of me? As surely as I live, I will not let you inquire of me, declares the Sovereign LORD.’

On verses 1-3: According to many scholars, the date Ezekiel describes in verse 1 can be equated to sometime in August 591 B.C. At that time some elders of Israel come to Ezekiel to inquire of the Lord. However, the Lord tells Ezekiel that He refuses to let the elders inquire of Him (v3).

Why would the Lord not let the elders of Israel inquire of Him? In the rest of chapter 20, God will explain in an indirect way His reason for not letting the Israelite elders inquire of Him: it’s because of the Israelites’ tendency to rebel against what God says. Why would God bother telling the Israelites what they should do when the Israelites would refuse to do it?

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Ezekiel 18:21-32. Let’s go!

On verses 21-32: When you read these verses, at first you might find a reason for some humanistic hope, thinking, “Okay, so if I clean up my entire act, turn away from my sins and keep God’s decrees, doing what is just and right, I will have eternal life.” But if you really consciously try to keep all of God’s decrees, you’ll find that there is absolutely no way that you can do it. No matter how hard we try, there is no way we can turn away from “all the sins” we have committed (v21) and keep “all” of God’s decrees (v21), for nobody’s perfect. As much as God does not want us to die and be separated from Him eternally, and as much as we don’t want that either, there is no way we could ever be free of sin by our own strength. What we need is a Saviour who can do what we ourselves can’t do. Praise God for Jesus Christ who lived the perfect life on our behalf and suffered death on the cross for our sins, so that through Jesus Christ we can have eternal life.

These verses also show us repeatedly God’s heart, that while God is just and in His justice needs to punish sin, God takes no pleasure in punishing or destroying anyone for their sin. As verse 32 says, “For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign LORD. Repent and live!” (v32, see also verse 23). Rather God delights in giving people a new start with “a new heart and a new spirit” (v31).