"Then this message came to me (Ezekiel) from the LORD: 'Son of man, look toward Jerusalem and prophesy against Israel and her sanctuaries. Give her this message from the LORD: I am your enemy, O Israel, and I am about to unsheathe my sword to destroy your people - the righteous and the wicked alike. Yes, I will not spare even the righteous! I will make a clean sweep throughout the land from south to north. All the world will know that I am the LORD. My sword is in my hand, and it will not return to its sheath until its work is finished."
As I read this, it seemed very unfair that the LORD would take out the righteous with the unrighteous. Why LORD, I asked? Aren't you supposed to be fair? As I sat asking these questions, something I had read in the Book of Jeremiah came to mind. In chapter 24, we read of a vision prophet Jeremiah had. We read,
"vs. 1... I (Jeremiah) saw two baskets of figs placed in front of the LORD's Temple in Jerusalem. One basket was filled with fresh, ripe figs, while the other was filled with figs that were spoiled and could not be eaten. Then the LORD said to me, "What do you see, Jeremiah?" I replied, "Figs, some very good and some very bad." Then the LORD gave me this message: "This is what the LORD, the God of Israel says: The good figs represent the exiles I sent from Judah to the land of the Babylonians. I have sent them into captivity for their own good. I will see that they are well treated, and I will bring them back here again. I will build them up and not tear them down. I will plant them and not uproot them. I will give them hearts that will recognize me as the LORD. They will be my people, and I will be their God, for they will return to me wholeheartedly."As I was thinking on these scripture portions, the lives of four exiles named Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego from the book of Daniel came to mind. They were the young men who were exiled into Babylon along with other captives from the land of Israel and Judah. The lives of these young men played out the prophecies of Jeremiah and Ezekiel who were prophesying in the land of Israel and Judah. Prophet Jeremiah's ministry was from about 626 B.C to 585 B.C. and Prophet Ezekiel's ministry was from 593 B.C. to 571 B.C. Young Daniel and his friends exile in Babylon was from 605 B.C. to 536 B.C.
The Book of Daniel captures their exile and life in Babylon. We read in chapter 1 once the exiles were brought over to Babylon, King Nebuchadnezzar ordered the chief of his palace officials to bring to the palace some of the young men of Judah's royal family and other noble families, who had been brought to Babylon as captives. He instructed his chief to select strong, healthy and good-looking young men. Those selected were well versed in every branch of learning, gifted with knowledge and good sense, and the poise needed to serve in the royal palace. These young men were taught the language and literature of the Babylonians. This select group of young men were assigned a daily ration of the best food and wine from the King's own kitchens. They were to be trained for service in his royal court. Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego took a decision to be obedient to God and not defile themselves with the King's food and wine. The remaining chapter and book talks about God's favor upon these young men through great trials and how in the end they were honored in the Babylonian kingdom by the King himself. Here we see that God sent the righteous into exile with the unrighteous for their own good. How true was Jeremiah's vision for the righteous though Ezekiel's prophesies seemed so harsh to the whole of Israel!
In light of these scripture portions, we see not an unfair God who whimsically punished both the righteous and the unrighteous to gratify his anger, rather a purposeful and fair God. May God bless you and keep you!
Hillsong - Hosanna
