Sunday School Lesson 3-1-09

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A New Spirit Bible Background • EZEKIEL 11:14-21 Printed Text • EZEKIEL 11:14-21 Devotional Reading • 2 CORINTHIANS 3:1-11 LESSON OBJECTIVE

By the end of the lesson, we will: EXPLORE the promises God made to His people living in exile; ACCEPT the fact that God is a promise maker and promise keeper; and RELY on God's promises when faced with challenging situations.

WORDS TO

KNOW

A. Sanctuary (Ezekiel 11:16) miqdash (Heb.) —Sacred place, holy place, the tabernacle of the Most High.

B. Heart (vv. 19, 21) leb (Heb.)—Mind, inclination, will, mind-set, temper.

C. Spirit (v. 19) ruwach (Heb.)—Wind, breath, mind.

UNIFYING PRINCIPLE

A New Spirit of Hope. Many times life's frustrations, especially those of our own making, may cause us to give up hope for change. Is everything truly lost because we must reap the rewards of our own mistakes? No. Holding on to the promises of God in challenging situations can save us from the turmoil we experience when we feel hopeless.

Maecenas pulvinar sagittis enim.

The Prophet Ezekiel is one of the major prophets of the Old Testament

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The Sacred Scroll

KING JAMES VERSION KJV Ezekiel 11:14 Again the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, 15 Son of man, thy brethren, even thy brethren, the men of thy kindred, and all the house of Israel wholly, are they unto whom the inhabitants of Jerusalem have said, Get you far from the Lord: unto us is this land given in possession.

16 Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Although I have cast them far off among the heathen, and although I have scattered them among the countries, yet will I be to them as a little sanctuary in the countries where they shall come.

17 Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will even gather you from the people, and assemble you out of the countries where ye have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel.

18 And they shall come thither, and they shall take away all the detestable things thereof and all the abominations thereof from thence.

19 And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh: 20 That they may walk in my statutes, and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God.

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Portrait of Ezekiel

NEW LIVING TRANSLATION NLT Ezekiel 11:14 Then this message cameto me from the Lord: 15 "Son of man, the people still left in Jerusalem are talking about you and your relatives and all the people of Israel who are in exile. They are saying, 'Those people are far away from the Lord, so now he has given their land to us!'

16 "Therefore, tell the exiles, 'This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Although I have scattered you in the countries of the world, I will be a sanctuary to you during your time in exile.

17 I, the Sovereign Lord, will gather you back from the nations where you have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel once again.'

18 "When the people return to their homeland, they will remove every trace of their vile images and detestable idols.

19 And I will give them singleness of heart and put a new spirit within them. I will take away their stony, stubborn heart and give them a tender, responsive heart, 20 so they will obey my decrees and regulations. Then they will truly be my people, and I will be their God. 21 But as for those who long for vile images and detestable idols, I will repay them fully for their sins. I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken!"

17 Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will even gather you from the people, and assemble you out of the countries where ye have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel.

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People Places and Time of the Lesson Today A BRIEF LOOK INTO THE “SITZ IM LIEBUM�

Ezekiel. He was the son of the priest named Buzi (Ezekiel 1:3). In addition to being a prophet of God, he was a priest like his father. His name means "God will strengthen," which is what he did for the Jewish exiles.

Ezekiel was taken into captivity during the second wave of the Babylonian exile around 597 B.C. along with King Jehoiachin

Prophet Ezekiel by the artist Raphael

a n d h i s o f fi c i a l s ( 2 K i n g s 24:12-15). Follo wing the command of God for all Jews in exile (Jeremiah 29:5-7), Ezekiel settled into Babylonian life, living along the Chebar River in his home (Ezekiel 8:1). He even took a wife, who later died (24:18). His ministry began the fi f t h y e a r o f Je h o i a c h i n ' s captivity (592 B.C.). Ezekiel was

highly regarded among the exiles in his area and was even counsel for the Jewish elders (8:1; 11:25; 14:1; 20:1).

Source: Unger, Merrill F. The New Unger's Bible Dictionary. Edited

by R.K. Harrison. Chicago: Moody Press, 1988.

Statue Bust of Ezekiel

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the book of Isaiah

The Tomb of Ezekiel

BACKGROUND

The Babylonian captivity happened in three waves. The passage in today's lesson occurred some time between the second (597 B.C.) and third (586 B.C.) waves. Ezekiel's initial audience would have been the Jews who had been living in exile at least five years and had settled along the Chebar River in Babylon.

The Jews were in captivity because of their own sinfulness. Although they had committed all sorts of abominations, one sin that was most prevalent was idolatry. They loved to worship false gods (Isaiah 57:5). This, of course, was in violation of God's covenant in which He said He would punish to the "third and fourth generation of those who hate Him" (Deuteronomy 5:7-10).

Despite the many warnings against idol worship, the people continued their evil practices.

This led to the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple (Jeremiah 32:28-35). However, even though they had sinned against Him, prophets like Ezekiel were sent to comfort the Jews in exile. God's purpose was to preserve a remnant of the people, one that He would allow to return to their land (Jeremiah 23:3).

Source: Unger, Merrill F. The New Unger's Bible Dictionary. Edited by R.K. Harrison. Chicago: Moody Press, 1988.

The Jews were in captivity because of their own sinfulness.

Although they had committed all sorts of abominations, one sin that was most prevalent was idolatry. They loved to worship false gods (Isaiah 57:5).

Continued on Page 6

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In Depth Look at the Lesson 1. Words of the Wicked (Ezekiel 11:14-15) This week's passage begins with "The word of the Lord."

This revealed to the p ro p h e t E ze k i e l ' s audience, his brethren, blood relatives, and others of the house of Israel that he was sharing with them an authentic word. Because what he was about to say would have been hard for the Jewish exiles to hear, it was important to authenticate his words. The people of Jerusalem, those who had yet to be taken into captivity, had disowned the exiles. Furthermore, they insisted that God had forsaken and forgotten them.

According to those left in Jerusalem, even the land the exiles held so dear had been taken from them and their possessions given to those not in captivity. The words of the wicked would have dealt a deathblow to the already despondent exiles. If these claims were true, it would have realized their worst fears: God, indeed, did not love them anymore, and they would never see their beloved homeland again.

Unfortunately, in the midst of our afflictions, we sometimes encounter people who like to "rub it in." They have little knowledge of the ways of God and equate His allowance of trials and tribulations, in the lives of His people, with disinheritance. "You must have done something wrong to be punished like this," they say. "You don't

have enough faith and that's why you are in this situation." Job, for example, c e r t a i n l y c o u l d re l at e t o s u ch statements, as they are similar to the words of his friends (Job 8:4, nlt; 11:6).

However, even in instances unlike Job's, when we are the source of our own affliction, "the Lord will not cast off for ever" (Lamentations 3:31), for He knows "the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end" (Jeremiah 29:11).

2. God's Promise to Keep and Restore (vv. 16-17) "Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord GOD" begins both verses 16 and 17. Here and in other places where this phrase and variations of it are used, it ushers in God's correction of a past action (Ezekiel 12:21-23, 26-28; 13:6-8, etc.).

Those in Jerusalem said God had forsaken the exiles and given away their land, but God's words say the exact opposite. It's interesting to note that before instructing Ezekiel to relay these words, God told Ezekiel to refer to Him as Lord GOD. In the niv, this is translated the "Sovereign Lord."

Consequently, before the exiles heard what God had to say, they were reminded that He is sovereign. This was important for the exiles to know, because what Ezekiel was going to momentarily share with them would

seem improbable, and only through a sovereign God would it be possible.

God stated that He would be a sanctuary to them. By this time, the Jewish exiles would have begun to accept that it was their own sinfulness that put them in their current predicament (Lamentations 3:37-42).

They had been warned by the prophets numerous times and had perhaps begun to see that God had been justified in punishing them and, from their perspective, leaving them alone.

They believed their identity was lost.

The one thing that distinguished the Jews from the pagan people around them was the temple at Jerusalem or rather what it represented. The temple was where the Lord dwelled (1 Kings 6:11-13; 8:10-12). As long as the Jews had the temple, they knew God was with them. In their belief system, without the temple, they had no foundation, no place to worship, no place to be in relationship with God. Therefore, the exiles believed they would forever be lost among the heathen. So when God says, "I will be your sanctuary in the countries where I have scattered you," this is foreign to the exiles' beliefs. You can almost hear them say, "How can this be? We are not in Jerusalem." God is saying your sanctuary, or sacred place of worship, is not tied to a geographical location.

This is a precursor of sorts to John 4:21, 23, in which Jesus told the woman at the well "the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father... the

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THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SNEAK PREVIEW! hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him."

Unlike the Jews in today's lesson, we believers know that we do not have to wait to get to a certain place to communicate with God. We know that wherever we are, in whatever spiritual state, we are assured that God is with us and keeping us. We also know that because His promises are true, upon them, we can build the foundation of our lives.

3.G o d ’ s Promise of a New Spirit (vv.

18-20) The time the Jews spent in captivity would have changed them. God used the exile to rid the house of Israel of those who wanted to rebel against Him (Ezekiel 20:38). For this reason, when finally restored to their land, the remnant— the faithful ones—would not have the desire to worship other gods as had the Jews of generations past. They would rid the land of their idols. It is one thing to have the idols destroyed by natural disasters like a hurricane or earthquake, but for those who were once devotees to these images, to destroy them is quite another story. If we were to think of worshiping idols as an addiction, to voluntarily destroy them would be comparable to an addict voluntarily deciding to put down his/her addiction. Only when the addict is able to do this has true changed happened; he/she is ready to

be restored. For the Jews to willingly rid their land of idols was monumental.

The exile experience would have taught them: (1) to rely on God and trust His promises; (2) that God's mercy is great because by His mercy they would return to their land; and (3) to not only stop doing evil, but to start doing good.

In verse 19, God's promise to the exiles is threefold. First, after having learned well, God promised to give them one heart. Their desire, their will, would be fixed on God, not wavering.

Second, God promised to give them a new spirit, a new temperament, different inclinations. Sinful things they once found enjoyable would become distasteful for them. Third, God promised to take out their stony hearts and replace them with ones of flesh.

Before the exile, the Jews had become so hardened by sin that they were desensitized to the leading of God. After completing the purging of the exiles, the Jews would have softened hearts—ones malleable enough to cause them to bend to the will of God and walk in His ways. The result of a new spirit and changed hearts would be a restored relationship between the Jews and God. The Lord had already established the requirement for being His people. One simply had to follow His ways (Deuteronomy 28:9). The Jews had to experience the exile in order to learn that following God's ways was best for them.

4. Fate of the Wicked (v. 21) After having spent great detail in laying out His

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promise through Ezekiel, God added a simple reminder for the Jews. He made it clear that if the people chose to continue down the evil path of idol worship, they could only blame themselves for the punishment they received. To be sure, God did not have to give them this warning. He had given it so many times before. This, however, illustrates His great love. God does not want anyone to perish, and therefore, reminds us of what not to do.

Sources: Gower, Ralph. The New Manners and Customs of Bible Times. Chicago: Moody Press, 1987.

Henry, Matthew. Commentary on the Whole Bible: Genesis to Revelation, Vol. IV, Isaiah to Malachi. Public Domain. http://www.ccel.org/ccel/ henry/mhc4.html.

Strong, James. The New Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible.

Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1990.

Search the Scriptures 1. How did those in Jerusalem view the situation of those in exile (Ezekiel 11:14-15)?

2. How did God promise to restore and keep the Jews in exile (vv.

16-17)?

3. Once they removed the idols, what did God promise the exiles He would give them (vv. 18-19)?

4. Why would God call the exiles His people (v. 20)?

5. What was the fate of those who continued in sin (v. 21)?

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THE SUNDAY SCHOOL SNEAK PREVIEW! Discuss the Meaning 1. How do the promises of God differ from the promises people make?

2. In the past, what was your initial reaction to challenging situations?

3. Think about the trials God has brought you through.

How did those experiences change you?

4. What did those experiences teach you about God? Lesson in Our Society Sometimes we want our lives to be easy. We don't want the challenging times, but they still come because of no fault of our own, or unwise decisions, or because of sin we have willfully committed. When these problems come, we want to know immediately every detail of how God is going to get us through them. More often than not,

God does not share every detail, but He does ask that we trust in Him and in the promises He has made. .

Make It Happen When facing life's trials, some days are great. Because everything went according to our plans, there are times when we believe the trials are over.

Other days are bad. Those are the times when nothing goes right and we feel alone and rejected. It's easy enough to rely on God at the high points, but it's challenging to do so at the low points. At these moments, reflect upon the ways God helped you cope in the past. Jot down those experiences and periodically read them as a source of encouragement to you. You can also share them with someone else who may need encouragement.

More Light on the Text Ezekiel 11:14-21 In contrast to the preceding section, Ezekiel 11:11-13, that is filled with a concern for the corruption of

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Je r u s a l e m a n d i t s c o n s e q u e n t judgment, verses 14-21 focus on the well-being of the exiles, and its message is that of hope. Whereas verses 11-13 announced the judgment of God against those wicked persons who remained in Jerusalem and made a mockery of the types and predictions of the prophets (1-13), God promised to favor those who had gone into captivity, and intimated their restoration from the Babylonian yoke (14-21). When reading Ezekiel, it is evident that one of the primary motivations for Yahweh's activity at this point in the lives of His chosen people was a concern for selfvindication. It appears that because of this self-vindication, the people of Israel are to receive an astounding gift.

This gift is one that they have never been able to muster for themselves, namely, the ability to respond to and obey Yahweh's will. This gift is that of a "new heart" and a "new spirit." The latter is the subject of consideration in this lesson.

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