Fri 100212 am Ez 12-13

Ezekiel 12

12.2, 3  rebellious...  Note how a rebellious heart keeps us from really seeing, hearing, and understanding.

12.22 The days grow long, and the vision comes to nothing...  Reminds me of 2 Peter 3.3-5

12.7  I did as I was commanded...  Now that's a simple, but hard, concept to follow through on.

12.15, 20  they shall know that I am the LORD...  This a repeated theme in these chapters.  It reminds me of Pharaoh's question, "Who is the Lord."

 

Ezekiel 13

13.2  who prophesy from their own hearts...  

13.3  who follow their own spirit...

13.6  they expect Him to fulfill their word...

These form careful cautions for preachers today, and not just the prosperity preachers, but especially those who intend to faithfully exposit the Word of God.

13.22  This is something that preachers should be careful of--mainly the first part.  To not beat on those who are a tender reed and not give false comfort to those the Lord is trying to deal with.

Thurs 100211 pm Ez 11-

Ezekiel 11
11.19  new spirit ... heart of stone ... heart of flesh...  
11.21  there deeds upon their heads... Maybe some of the natural consequences aren't as natural as we often think.

thurs 1002011 am Matt 28 - Mk 2

Matthew 28
28.4  for fear of him...  That must have been one big, "bad" angel.  Coolness!!
28.17  but some doubted...  After the resurrection and all some still struggled with doubt.

Mark 1
1.34  they knew Him... Known in Hell.
1.41  I will. Be clean...  These are some of the sweetest words in all the gospels.

Mark 2
2.5  when Jesus saw there faith...  Now this is James' point.  What images were hitting His retina when He saw their faith.  The faith that saves is a faith that works.
2.28  Lord even of...  Nothing is outside His rule.

Wed 100210 pm Ez 8-10

Ezekiel 8
8.3  image of jealousy... Many expositors believe that this may have been an image
of Asherah because King Manasseh had erected such an idol and then
destroyed it (2 Kings 21:3, 7; 2 Chron. 33:15), and King Josiah had
destroyed a later rebuilt version of it (2 Kings 23:6). The people could
have raised it up again after Josiah's death. Any idol provoked the Lord to
jealousy because He is the only true God (cf. Exod. 20:1-4; Deut. 4:23-
24).  ---Dr. Constable's Notes on Ezekiel
8.14 weeping for Tammuz...  Tammuz was an ancient Sumerian and then Akkadian fertility deity, the husband and brother of Ishtar.176 Since Ezekiel saw this vision in September (v. 1), these women may have been weeping for Tammuz because he was thought to die at the end of the summer but to rise again each spring.  See T. Jacobsen, The Treasures of Darkness, pp. 25-73. Another view is that "Tammuz" denotes a special genre of lament (Block, The Book . . ., pp. 294-96).  ---Dr. Constable's Notes on Ezekiel
   
Ezekiel 9
9.2  A seventh man dressed in linen also approached with them, and he had a writing kit of the type that scribes used attached to his waist. "This writing kit usually was made from an animal horn. It had a palette with a slot for pens and a hollow place for two kinds of ink, usually black and red. Professional scribes usually carried this kind of equipment." ---Dr. Constable's Notes on Ezekiel
9.9  the Lord does not see...  This is a common thread to our ignorance when we sin.  It is the opposite of the fear of the Lord.
  
Ezekiel 10
10.5 & 18  the glory of the Lord,,,

Tues 100209 Ez 6-7

Ezekiel 6
6.9  how I have been broken over their whoring heart...  This is strong wording for the ESV.  It is instructive both how he puts their sin in sexual terms and the mournful heart over their unfaithfulness.


Ezekiel 7
7.14  They have blown the trumpet and made everything ready, but none goes to battle...  How tragic and typical.

mon 100208 am Ez 4-5

Ezekiel 4
4.1 This graphic object lesson gets me to thinking how I present teaching and messages.  A couple weeks ago, I spent a long time looking for the right pictures for a lesson that seemed to pay good dividends in helping people understand and appreciate a truth.
4.5 390... a curious number


Ezekiel 5
5.6  more than the nations...  It is tragic when God's people are worse than the world.
5.8  I, even I, am against you...  I am not sure whether this is in the sense of the biggest, badest possible is against you or your last hope and friend has finally turned against you.  Either way (both are probably true) it is not a good thing for Israel.
5.15  a horror... It would be interesting th chase down the word and connotation used here.
5.13  know that I AM the LORD...
5.15  I AM the LORD, I have spoken...
5.17  I AM the LORD, I have spoke...
I would understand the name of God, I AM the LORD, to mean "and I really mean business. You can count on it."

Sun 100207 pm Ez 1-2

Ezekiel 2
2.8  open your mouth and eat whatever I give you...  Now there is a good serious application for this verse and all, but ...  is this not every parent's favorite verse (after Eph. 6.1)
   
Ezekiel 3
3.18  will require at your hand...  a sobering thought for sure.