I read the whole book of Ezekiel on my recent Manila to Nashville flight. I also watched a couple of forgettable movies. As usual, I didn’t sleep—never been able to sleep on planes.
Here are some of my notes from Ezekiel, from 40,000 feet above the Pacific Ocean:
1. Open heavens, visions of God, word of the Lord, hand of God, brilliant light, supernatural fire, lightning from heaven, glowing metal . . . and that’s just the first 4 verses of Ezekiel.
2. The phrase “then they will know I am the Lord”—or something like it—appears over 65 times in Ezekiel. The basic message of Ezekiel is that everything God does, from blessing to judgment, is SO WE WILL KNOW HIM AS LORD. In other words, everything he does is ultimately relational and redemptive.
3. God wants to “recapture the hearts” of his people who have deserted him for idols. (Ezekiel 14:5) Is your heart captive or wild? Is your heart pursuing God or idols? God wants your heart!
4. We all know that Sodom was a wicked place, but why? “This was the sin of Sodom: she did not help the poor and needy.” (Ezekiel 16:49) If helping the poor is the standard, then there are a lot of wicked people in our churches today.
5. God is concerned about how his leaders treat weak, sick, injured, stray, and lost sheep. (Ezekiel 34:4)
6. Seems like every time Ezekiel “fell under the power” in the presence of God, that God immediately told him to stand up. I guess falling down is OK, as long as we get up and move on right away. (Ezekiel 1:28,2:1 and Ezekiel 3:23,24)
7. Wealth and beauty can cause hearts to be proud. And a proud heart is not really a good thing. (Ezekiel 28:5,17)
If you are interested in further study of point #2, here are a few of the 65+ verses about knowing God as Lord:
Ezekiel 6:13,14
Ezekiel 7:4,9,27
Ezekiel 12:15,16
Ezekiel 14:8
Ezekiel 28:23,26
Ezekiel 29:5,6,8,16
Ezekiel 30:26
Ezekiel 36:11,37,38
Ezekiel 38:23