Trusting God When Things Are Unfair

SCRIPTURE: Ezek. 24:15-24
¹⁵ The word of the LORD came to me: ¹⁶ “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 the lower part of your face or eat the customary food of mourners.”

¹⁸ So I spoke to the people in the morning, and in the evening my wife died. The next morning I did as I had been commanded.

¹⁹ Then the people asked me, “Won’t you tell us what these things have to do with us?”

²⁰ So I said to them, “The word of the LORD came to me: ²¹ Say to the house of Israel, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I am about to desecrate my sanctuary—the stronghold in which you take pride, the delight of your eyes, the object of your affection. The sons and daughters you left behind will fall by the sword. ²² And you will do as I have done. You will not cover the lower part of your face or eat the customary food of mourners. ²³ You will keep your turbans on your heads and your sandals on your feet. You will not mourn or weep but will waste away because of your sins and groan among yourselves. ²⁴ Ezekiel will be a sign to you; you will do just as he has done. When this happens, you will know that I am the Sovereign LORD.’

OBSERVATIONS: This has always seemed so harsh to me. Ezekiel has to suffer the loss of his beloved wife and not mourn for her in the customary way just to be a sign to the rebellious Israelites of the kind of judgment coming their way. Yet Ezekiel does not question the Lord about this. He simply obeys what he is told to do.

APPLICATION: All of the prophets had to suffer somewhat to be obedient to the Lord. Ridicule was common; threats from authorities were also to be expected. But I admire Ezekiel most of all. He was asked to do the most bizarre things of any of the prophets (lie on his sides for over a year while cutting his hair up and cooking his food over cow dung for example). This would have been the hardest thing he was ever asked to do. To lose the love of his life, his support through all his trials, not for anything wrong he had done, but as an example of what God was going through in losing His people and what the people were going to go through when judgement came upon them. I have to ask myself when I read this, "Would I be as obedient as Ezekiel was?" I hope I would, but honestly, I don't know. God has never asked anything so difficult from me. How God's heart longs for such obedient servants. His promise to them is to care for them and protect them through everything. Ezekiel had the joy of intimate fellowship with God, but it came at a high price.

PRAYER: Lord, I have tasted and seen that You are good. You have sustained me and been my comfort through many tough trials, persecutions, and even the consequences of my own disobedience. I want to be a servant like Ezekiel. Hearing Your Word and obeying every command, no matter how difficult. I know it is the only way to live a joyful and happy life. Trouble and pain come whether a person serves You or not. So help me to have only the pain that comes from serving You because that is the only productive pain. You give life through every trouble if I am obedient to You. Strengthen me to be like Ezekiel, my hero. In Jesus' Name, Amen.