Ezekiel 17: 1 – 24
‘Deep secrets revealed’
1 And the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 2 “Son of man, pose a riddle, and speak a parable to the house of Israel, 3 and say, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD:“ A great eagle with large wings and long pinions, full of feathers of various colors, came to Lebanon and took from the cedar the highest branch. 4 He cropped off its topmost young twig and carried it to a land of trade; He set it in a city of merchants. 5 Then he took some of the seed of the land and planted it in a fertile field; He placed it by abundant waters and set it like a willow tree. 6 And it grew and became a spreading vine of low stature; Its branches turned toward him, but its roots were under it. So it became a vine, brought forth branches, and put forth shoots. 7 “ But there was another great eagle with large wings and many feathers; And behold, this vine bent its roots toward him, and stretched its branches toward him, from the garden terrace where it had been planted, that he might water it. 8 It was planted in good soil by many waters, to bring forth branches, bear fruit, and become a majestic vine.”’ 9 “Say, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “ Will it thrive? Will he not pull up its roots, cut off its fruit, and leave it to wither? All of its spring leaves will wither, and no great power or many people will be needed to pluck it up by its roots. 10 Behold, it is planted, will it thrive? Will it not utterly wither when the east wind touches it? It will wither in the garden terrace where it grew.”’” 11 Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 12 “Say now to the rebellious house: ‘Do you not know what these things mean?’ Tell them, ‘Indeed the king of Babylon went to Jerusalem and took its king and princes, and led them with him to Babylon. 13 And he took the king’s offspring, made a covenant with him, and put him under oath. He also took away the mighty of the land, 14 that the kingdom might be brought low and not lift itself up, but that by keeping his covenant it might stand. 15 But he rebelled against him by sending his ambassadors to Egypt, that they might give him horses and many people. Will he prosper? Will he who does such things escape? Can he break a covenant and still be delivered? 16 ‘As I live,’ says the Lord GOD, ‘surely in the place where the king dwells who made him king, whose oath he despised and whose covenant he broke—with him in the midst of Babylon he shall die. 17 Nor will Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company do anything in the war, when they heap up a siege mound and build a wall to cut off many persons. 18 Since he despised the oath by breaking the covenant, and in fact gave his hand and still did all these things, he shall not escape.’” 19 Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: “As I live, surely My oath which he despised, and My covenant which he broke, I will recompense on his own head. 20 I will spread My net over him, and he shall be taken in My snare. I will bring him to Babylon and try him there for the treason which he committed against Me. 21 All his fugitives[b] with all his troops shall fall by the sword, and those who remain shall be scattered to every wind; and you shall know that I, the LORD, have spoken.” 22 Thus says the Lord GOD: “I will take also one of the highest branches of the high cedar and set it out. I will crop off from the topmost of its young twigs a tender one, and will plant it on a high and prominent mountain. 23 On the mountain height of Israel I will plant it; and it will bring forth boughs, and bear fruit, and be a majestic cedar. Under it will dwell birds of every sort; in the shadow of its branches they will dwell. 24 And all the trees of the field shall know that I, the LORD, have brought down the high tree and exalted the low tree, dried up the green tree and made the dry tree flourish; I, the LORD, have spoken and have done it.”
Suppose that every time you opened your mouth and said something which were the words of God. It is a pretty neat thought, huh?
“1 And the word of the LORD came to me, saying,”
This is exactly what Ezekiel did. Our Holy God Almighty had stopped the voice of Ezekiel and he was only given the ability to speak after God had a message for him to deliver to the Jewish captives living in exile in the land of Babylon.
In the New Testament we see another example of our Supreme Sovereign Lord shutting up the mouth of a man. Many of you are familiar with the Christmas story as reported by Luke in chapter 1,
5 There was in the days of Herod, the king of Judea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the division of Abijah. His wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. 6 And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless. 7 But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren, and they were both well advanced in years. 8 So it was, that while he was serving as priest before God in the order of his division, 9 according to the custom of the priesthood, his lot fell to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord. 10 And the whole multitude of the people was praying outside at the hour of incense. 11 Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing on the right side of the altar of incense. 12 And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him. 13 But the angel said to him, “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your prayer is heard; and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you shall call his name John. 14 And you will have joy and gladness, and many will rejoice at his birth. 15 For he will be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink. He will also be filled with the Holy Spirit, even from his mother’s womb. 16 And he will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God. 17 He will also go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, ‘to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children,’ and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” 18 And Zacharias said to the angel, “How shall I know this? For I am an old man, and my wife is well advanced in years.” 19 And the angel answered and said to him, “I am Gabriel, who stands in the presence of God, and was sent to speak to you and bring you these glad tidings. 20 But behold, you will be mute and not able to speak until the day these things take place, because you did not believe my words which will be fulfilled in their own time.”
“57 Now Elizabeth’s full time came for her to be delivered, and she brought forth a son. 58 When her neighbors and relatives heard how the Lord had shown great mercy to her, they rejoiced with her. 59 So it was, on the eighth day, that they came to circumcise the child; and they would have called him by the name of his father, Zacharias. 60 His mother answered and said, “No; he shall be called John.” 61 But they said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who is called by this name.” 62 So they made signs to his father—what he would have him called. 63 And he asked for a writing tablet, and wrote, saying, “His name is John.” So they all marveled. 64 Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue loosed, and he spoke, praising God. 65 Then fear came on all who dwelt around them; and all these sayings were discussed throughout all the hill country of Judea. 66 And all those who heard them kept them in their hearts, saying, “What kind of child will this be?” And the hand of the Lord was with him.”
Do we not sometimes wish that our Wonderful God would shut the mouths of other people?
“2 “Son of man, pose a riddle, and speak a parable to the house of Israel, “
You are now sitting with the elders of Israel and Ezekiel begins to speak as God has given him the ability. This time our Holy Father’s message is both a riddle and a parable. A riddle is basically a very hard question. We see in Scripture some examples of riddles being used. You probably are familiar with these examples. In the book of Judges chapter 14 we read of a Jewish leader who used a riddle against his enemy.
1 Now Samson went down to Timnah, and saw a woman in Timnah of the daughters of the Philistines. 2 So he went up and told his father and mother, saying, “I have seen a woman in Timnah of the daughters of the Philistines; now therefore, get her for me as a wife.”3 Then his father and mother said to him, “Is there no woman among the daughters of your brethren, or among all my people, that you must go and get a wife from the uncircumcised Philistines?” And Samson said to his father, “Get her for me, for she pleases me well.” 4 But his father and mother did not know that it was of the LORD—that He was seeking an occasion to move against the Philistines. For at that time the Philistines had dominion over Israel. 5 So Samson went down to Timnah with his father and mother, and came to the vineyards of Timnah. Now to his surprise, a young lion came roaring against him. 6 And the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him, and he tore the lion apart as one would have torn apart a young goat, though he had nothing in his hand. But he did not tell his father or his mother what he had done. 7 Then he went down and talked with the woman; and she pleased Samson well. 8 After some time, when he returned to get her, he turned aside to see the carcass of the lion. And behold, a swarm of bees and honey were in the carcass of the lion. 9 He took some of it in his hands and went along, eating. When he came to his father and mother, he gave some to them, and they also ate. But he did not tell them that he had taken the honey out of the carcass of the lion. 10 So his father went down to the woman. And Samson gave a feast there, for young men used to do so. 11 And it happened, when they saw him, that they brought thirty companions to be with him. 12 Then Samson said to them, “Let me pose a riddle to you. If you can correctly solve and explain it to me within the seven days of the feast, then I will give you thirty linen garments and thirty changes of clothing. 13 But if you cannot explain it to me, then you shall give me thirty linen garments and thirty changes of clothing.” And they said to him, “Pose your riddle, that we may hear it.” 14 So he said to them: “Out of the eater came something to eat, And out of the strong came something sweet.” Now for three days they could not explain the riddle.15 But it came to pass on the seventh day that they said to Samson’s wife, “Entice your husband, that he may explain the riddle to us, or else we will burn you and your father’s house with fire. Have you invited us in order to take what is ours? Is that not so?” 16 Then Samson’s wife wept on him, and said, “You only hate me! You do not love me! You have posed a riddle to the sons of my people, but you have not explained it to me.” And he said to her, “Look, I have not explained it to my father or my mother; so should I explain it to you?” 17 Now she had wept on him the seven days while their feast lasted. And it happened on the seventh day that he told her, because she pressed him so much. Then she explained the riddle to the sons of her people. 18 So the men of the city said to him on the seventh day before the sun went down: “What is sweeter than honey? And what is stronger than a lion?” And he said to them: “If you had not plowed with my heifer, You would not have solved my riddle!” 19 Then the Spirit of the LORD came upon him mightily, and he went down to Ashkelon and killed thirty of their men, took their apparel, and gave the changes of clothing to those who had explained the riddle. So his anger was aroused, and he went back up to his father’s house. 20 And Samson’s wife was given to his companion, who had been his best man.”
We see another example of the use of riddles in the book of 1 Kings chapter 10, “1 Now when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon concerning the name of the LORD, she came to test him with hard questions. 2 She came to Jerusalem with a very great retinue, with camels that bore spices, very much gold, and precious stones; and when she came to Solomon, she spoke with him about all that was in her heart. 3 So Solomon answered all her questions; there was nothing so difficult for the king that he could not explain it to her. 4 And when the queen of Sheba had seen all the wisdom of Solomon, the house that he had built, 5 the food on his table, the seating of his servants, the service of his waiters and their apparel, his cupbearers, and his entryway by which he went up to the house of the LORD, there was no more spirit in her. 6 Then she said to the king: “It was a true report which I heard in my own land about your words and your wisdom. 7 However I did not believe the words until I came and saw with my own eyes; and indeed the half was not told me. Your wisdom and prosperity exceed the fame of which I heard. 8 Happy are your men and happy are these your servants, who stand continually before you and hear your wisdom! 9 Blessed be the LORD your God, who delighted in you, setting you on the throne of Israel! Because the LORD has loved Israel forever, therefore He made you king, to do justice and righteousness.”
A Parable is a story with a meaning behind it. So how can you or I be able to answer what a riddle or a Parable means? Only God can give the answer. Yet in His Love he Gives us the answer as Proverbs 1 informs us, “2 To know wisdom and instruction, To perceive the words of understanding, 3 To receive the instruction of wisdom, Justice, judgment, and equity; 4 To give prudence to the simple, To the young man knowledge and discretion— 5 A wise man will hear and increase learning, And a man of understanding will attain wise counsel, 6 To understand a proverb and an enigma, The words of the wise and their riddles. 7 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.”
“3 and say, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD:“ A great eagle with large wings and long pinions, full of feathers of various colors, came to Lebanon and took from the cedar the highest branch. 4 He cropped off its topmost young twig and carried it to a land of trade; He set it in a city of merchants. 5 Then he took some of the seed of the land and planted it in a fertile field; He placed it by abundant waters and set it like a willow tree. 6 And it grew and became a spreading vine of low stature; Its branches turned toward him, but its roots were under it. So it became a vine, brought forth branches, and put forth shoots.”
Our Holy Creator God does not like to play tricks on us by keeping us in the dark. We will find out in verse 12 that the eagle was Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon. This country was the world power at this time and was the leading trade center. Israel’s enemies however throughout history used the eagle as their emblem. Deuteronomy chapter 28 says this, “49 The LORD will bring a nation against you from afar, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle flies, a nation whose language you will not understand,”
The statement ‘Full of feathers of various colors, came to Lebanon and took from the cedar the highest branch’ has an interesting thought behind it. The feathers of various colors mean ‘many nations’. In addition, the reference to ‘Lebanon’ is talking about the Temple. We find this out in the book of 1 Kings chapter 5, “1 Now Hiram king of Tyre sent his servants to Solomon, because he heard that they had anointed him king in place of his father, for Hiram had always loved David. 2 Then Solomon sent to Hiram, saying: 3 You know how my father David could not build a house for the name of the LORD his God because of the wars which were fought against him on every side, until the LORD put his foes under the soles of his feet. 4 But now the LORD my God has given me rest on every side; there is neither adversary nor evil occurrence. 5 And behold, I propose to build a house for the name of the LORD my God, as the LORD spoke to my father David, saying, “Your son, whom I will set on your throne in your place, he shall build the house for My name.” 6 Now therefore, command that they cut down cedars for me from Lebanon; and my servants will be with your servants, and I will pay you wages for your servants according to whatever you say. For you know there is none among us who has skill to cut timber like the Sidonians.7 So it was, when Hiram heard the words of Solomon, that he rejoiced greatly and said, Blessed be the LORD this day, for He has given David a wise son over this great people! 8 Then Hiram sent to Solomon, saying: I have considered the message which you sent me, and I will do all you desire concerning the cedar and cypress logs. 9 My servants shall bring them down from Lebanon to the sea; I will float them in rafts by sea to the place you indicate to me, and will have them broken apart there; then you can take them away. And you shall fulfill my desire by giving food for my household.10 Then Hiram gave Solomon cedar and cypress logs according to all his desire.”
The seed represented the royal line of David. The king of Babylon appointed [planted] the person whom he chose. This person was Zedekiah. “Its branches turned toward him, but its roots were under it. So it became a vine, brought forth branches, and put forth shoots’, refers to the conspiracy of betrayal by Zedekiah against Nebuchadnezzar by engaging in an alliance with Egypt.
Jeremiah 2: 36 – 37 speaks about this conspiracy, “36 Why do you gad about so much to change your way? Also you shall be ashamed of Egypt as you were ashamed of Assyria. 37 Indeed you will go forth from him with your hands on your head; For the LORD has rejected your trusted allies, and you will not prosper by them.”
7 “ But there was another great eagle with large wings and many feathers; And behold, this vine bent its roots toward him, and stretched its branches toward him, from the garden terrace where it had been planted, that he might water it. 8 It was planted in good soil by many waters, to bring forth branches, bear fruit, and become a majestic vine.”’
A willow tree grows well near water. It grew into a luxuriant vine means that although subservient [ a vine of low statue] the rule under Babylon was fruitful. In other words Zedekiah was doing pretty good being king of Judah while the king of Babylon was his boss.
9 “Say, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “ Will it thrive? Will he not pull up its roots, cut off its fruit, and leave it to wither? All of its spring leaves will wither, and no great power or many people will be needed to pluck it up by its roots. 10 Behold, it is planted, will it thrive? Will it not utterly wither when the east wind touches it? It will wither in the garden terrace where it grew.”’”
Our Wonderful God speaks directly to the current schemes of Zedekiah. He asks a question. Pretty much it is this, ‘Will this scheme work?’ Nebuchadnezzar of course will learn of this action and will respond in kind. In fact, he will come on the Israelites like Sherman ran rip shod though the South during the Civil War.
“11 Moreover the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 12 “Say now to the rebellious house: ‘Do you not know what these things mean?’ Tell them, ‘Indeed the king of Babylon went to Jerusalem and took its king and princes, and led them with him to Babylon.”
There is a break in time even though the chapter just continues. Every time you see, ‘the word of Yahweh’ came to me, it means a period of time had elapsed between the last message.
‘Say now to the rebellious house’ shows how our Holy Creator God viewed His elect. History if no learned is often repeated. The Jews knew that their former king Jehoiachin and other high level people were taken back to Babylon. They should have taken serious the red flag of warning.
“13 And he took the king’s offspring, made a covenant with him, and put him under oath. He also took away the mighty of the land, 14 that the kingdom might be brought low and not lift itself up, but that by keeping his covenant it might stand.”
The king of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar, put in Jehoiachin’s position as king of Judah, his uncle, Mattaniah and changed his name to Zedekiah as reported in 2 Kings chapter 24, “17 Then the king of Babylon made Mattaniah, Jehoiachin’s uncle, king in his place, and changed his name to Zedekiah.”
When a conqueror did this it signified vassal hood and allegiance to their new ruler. Nebuchadnezzar again took many more gifted and noble people back to Babylon as 2 Kings chapter 24 informs us, “16 All the valiant men, seven thousand, and craftsmen and smiths, one thousand, all who were strong and fit for war, these the king of Babylon brought captive to Babylon.”
“ 15 But he rebelled against him by sending his ambassadors to Egypt, that they might give him horses and many people. Will he prosper? Will he who does such things escape? Can he break a covenant and still be delivered? 16 ‘As I live,’ says the Lord GOD, ‘surely in the place where the king dwells who made him king, whose oath he despised and whose covenant he broke—with him in the midst of Babylon he shall die. “
Our Holy God again asks a question through Ezekiel to the elders of Israel living in exile in Babylon. He was saying in effect, ‘Hey guys, do you think this game plan is going to work out?’ I think by now someone should have spoken and said, ‘I do not think so!’ The rebellion was doomed from the start.
Here is a key point to sink deep into our hearts. Not following God’s Will results in loss. Sometimes the enemy will allow a little success or victory to suck us in deeper toward the wrong choice.
We see this in how Egypt made a show of strength and the siege of Jerusalem was lifted for a time while Nebuchadnezzar had to focus on them. Ultimately he came back with more vengeance in mind. Zedekiah really made him mad by not keeping his oath.
“17 Nor will Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company do anything in the war, when they heap up a siege mound and build a wall to cut off many persons. 18 Since he despised the oath by breaking the covenant, and in fact gave his hand and still did all these things, he shall not escape.’”
Zedekiah could have easily ruled in Jerusalem and everything would have been peaceful under Nebuchadnezzar’s supervision. But no, through pride, he thought he could pay the same amount to Egypt only once and then Egypt would free him from servant hood to Babylon. He forgot one great big thing. This covenant that he made with Babylon was also a covenant with our Holy Yahweh. The Lord Almighty gives Israel an adverse notice ‘Even though you hired the Egyptians, they will not come to your help when needed. You have been duped by them!’
‘He has given his hand’ means just what it says in regards to an agreement? It use to be when you shook hands you were entering into a binding agreement. Now you better have a team of lawyers watching for every loophole. You can see how insulting this was to Nebuchadnezzar. This insult justifies the strong reprisal. Look at what happened as Jeremiah chapter 39 reports,
“1 In the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army came against Jerusalem, and besieged it. 2 In the eleventh year of Zedekiah, in the fourth month, on the ninth day of the month, the city was penetrated.3 Then all the princes of the king of Babylon came in and sat in the Middle Gate: Nergal-Sharezer, Samgar-Nebo, Sarsechim, Rabsaris, Nergal-Sarezer, Rabmag, with the rest of the princes of the king of Babylon. 4 So it was, when Zedekiah the king of Judah and all the men of war saw them, that they fled and went out of the city by night, by way of the king’s garden, by the gate between the two walls. And he went out by way of the plain] 5 But the Chaldean army pursued them and overtook Zedekiah in the plains of Jericho. And when they had captured him, they brought him up to Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, to Riblah in the land of Hamath, where he pronounced judgment on him. 6 Then the king of Babylon killed the sons of Zedekiah before his eyes in Riblah; the king of Babylon also killed all the nobles of Judah. 7 Moreover he put out Zedekiah’s eyes, and bound him with bronze fetters to carry him off to Babylon. 8 And the Chaldeans burned the king’s house and the houses of the people with fire, and broke down the walls of Jerusalem. 9 Then Nebuzaradan the captain of the guard carried away captive to Babylon the remnant of the people who remained in the city and those who defected to him, with the rest of the people who remained.”
“19 Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: “As I live, surely My oath which he despised, and My covenant which he broke, I will recompense on his own head.”
The Israelites had broken the covenant with Kind Nebuchadnezzar but more importantly they had long ago broken the most important covenant. At Mount Sinai the Holy Lord Almighty had made a covenant with His chosen people. So, although all these things in present situations with the Babylonians were occurring, the real reason for the hard times was due to the violation of God’s contract with Judah.
“20 I will spread My net over him, and he shall be taken in My snare. I will bring him to Babylon and try him there for the treason which he committed against Me.”
Let us all understand that Zedekiah’s problem was that the Holy Divine father of Heaven above was against him. That is a scary thing. To have the Most High God against you is the ultimate fear. May He always be honored and obeyed by us His children.
“21 All his fugitives with all his troops shall fall by the sword, and those who remain shall be scattered to every wind; and you shall know that I, the LORD, have spoken.”
I think that all of us at work for one reason or another have allied ourselves with a certain boss or manager. You have heard the old saying of, ‘hanging on the boss’s coat tails.’ In the corporate world when the boss that you like is promoted, in many cases you move up the ladder also. But there is also a downside to this work environment. If something causes your boss to be demoted or lose his hob, in many cases you are let go also because of your close relationship to him or her. The company cleans house and you become one of the victims, whether you did anything wrong or not.
Our Lord Jesus Is saying the same thing here. Those who have aligned themselves with Zedekiah would suffer the same fate. They would be hunted down. Some would be slain and the remainder would have to run for cover.
“22 Thus says the Lord GOD: “I will take also one of the highest branches of the high cedar and set it out. I will crop off from the topmost of its young twigs a tender one, and will plant it on a high and prominent mountain. 23 On the mountain height of Israel I will plant it; and it will bring forth boughs, and bear fruit, and be a majestic cedar. Under it will dwell birds of every sort; in the shadow of its branches they will dwell.”
The bible informs us that there are only three things worthwhile that we can take out of this world – faith, hope, and love. All the great accomplishments you achieve in the long run are useless and worthless.
Our Holy Lord tells us what is important. If we put our faith and trust in the Wonderful Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ, we can be overwhelmed with hope that He will take care of us now and for all eternity. For we can love Him for He first loves us even when we were sinners.
Throughout our Lord’s discipline to His rebellious people He extends a palm branch of hope. The Holy Father announced here that He would plant a tender twig. This ‘top of the lofty cedar’ Is none other that His Anointed – The Messiah, Our Lord Jesus Christ.
Isaiah 11: 1 – 5, “1 There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots. 2 The Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon Him, The Spirit of wisdom and understanding, The Spirit of counsel and might, The Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORD. 3 His delight is in the fear of the LORD, and He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes, nor decide by the hearing of His ears; 4 But with righteousness He shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; He shall strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, and with the breath of His lips He shall slay the wicked. 5 Righteousness shall be the belt of His loins, and faithfulness the belt of His waist.”
The Holy Yahweh’s Christ would establish a kingdom that would grow and become a shelter for all people from all nations that would come to Him.
Isaiah 9: 6 – 7, “6 For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. 7 Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end, upon the throne of David and over His kingdom, to order it and establish it with judgment and justice from that time forward, even forever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will perform this.”
Jeremiah 23: 5 – 6, 5 “ Behold, the days are coming,” says the LORD, “ That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness; A King shall reign and prosper, and execute judgment and righteousness in the earth. 6 In His days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell safely; Now this is His name by which He will be called: THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS
24 And all the trees of the field shall know that I, the LORD, have brought down the high tree and exalted the low tree, dried up the green tree and made the dry tree flourish; I, the LORD, have spoken and have done it.”
Israel who had claimed through puffed up pride that she was a living tree, or a flourishing nation will see that in fact that she is dried up. In the book of Revelation our Lord Jesus points out that we Christians should also not be so smug. To the church of Laodicea we read in chapter 3 the same accusation by our Master, 14 “And to the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write, ‘These things says the Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God: 15 “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. 16 So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. 17 Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’—and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked— 18 I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see. 19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent. 20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. 21 To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. 22 “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”’”
The low and dry tree, which represents the despised remnant still faithfully to Almighty God, will flourish.
Isaiah 6: 13, “13 But yet a tenth will be in it, and will return and be for consuming, as a terebinth tree or as an oak, whose stump remains when it is cut down. So the holy seed shall be its stump.”
Isaiah 53: 2, “2 For He shall grow up before Him as a tender plant, and as a root out of dry ground. He has no form or comeliness; and when we see Him, There is no beauty that we should desire Him.”
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