Context for Ezekiel 2:1-3:21
God selected Ezekiel for a special charge. Ezekiel was to be sent as an itinerate among the Jews to continue the preaching carried on by generations of prophets before him. If the reaction of the people to those previous prophets was any indication, Ezekiel had a long road ahead of him.
Ezekiel 2:1-3:21
“But you shall speak My words to them whether they listen or not, for they are rebellious.
Ezekiel 2:7 NASB
God’s charge to Ezekiel was a hard one. God was sending Ezekiel to the people of Israel, a people already carried into exile because of their rebellion, to continue preaching God’s Word of hope and redemption. Even though those people were not ready to listen, God was ready to speak to them, and Ezekiel was His mouthpiece.
Today, this charge to Ezekiel rests on all of our shoulders. By faith, God has made us into His royal priesthood. We have the Word, in its purity and truth, at our disposal. By faith, God has placed that Word in our hearts and on our tongues. Now, like Ezekiel, we are charged with sharing that Word with a hard-hearted and rebellions generation intent on ignoring what God has to say to them.
Like Ezekiel, our charge is not easy, but it is a charge we cannot ignore. Faith comes by hearing the Word, and those without faith cannot hear the Word unless we are sharing it with them. Therefore, we must be brave and fearless and continue to share what we know by faith, whatever the circumstances or cost so that God’s will may be done through us.
