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I don’t want to talk about it

Ezekiel 8:16-18 (JDV)

Ezekiel 8:16 So he brought me to the inner court of Yahveh’s house, and I noticed about twenty-five men at the entrance of Yahveh’s house, between the portico and the altar, with their backs to Yahveh’s house and their faces turned to the east. They were bowing to the east in the worship of the sun.
Ezekiel 8:17 And he said to me, “Do you see this, son of Adam? Is it not enough for the house of Judah to commit the repulsive acts they are doing here, that they must also fill the land with violence and repeatedly anger me, even – notice this – putting the branch to their nose?
Ezekiel 8:18 That is why I am responding with wrath. My eye will not look compassionately or spare them. Though they call loudly in my hearing, I will not listen to them.”

I don’t want to talk about it

I consulted numerous commentaries to get an idea of what Ezekiel meant by these idolaters putting the branch to their nose. Most of them claimed to know what it meant but were reluctant to share it because the practice was particularly vile. It represented an act so repulsive that even describing it would be a sin.

I understand that feeling. When we stop to think about the sins that people are committing all around us — and daring us to expose them — we feel reluctant to do so, because we don’t even want to talk about these things. Yet, sadly, that is what the world has come to.

I am not claiming to be sinless. All of us are sinners — all of us fall short of God’s glory. One thing these prophetic visions teach us is that God is not indifferent to our sin. It hurts him when we turn our back on him, and worship something unworthy of worship — even our glorious sun. It hurts him when we flaunt our sin.

No one will be protected from God’s wrath — even those who claim to be his. That is another lesson from the prophets. The prophets mostly spoke against the sin of God’s own people. Our only protection from God’s coming wrath is faith in his Son — who has taken the punishment for our sin on the cross.

LORD, use these words to draw sinners to the Savior before it is too late.