Ezekiel 33:21 And it came to pass in the twelfth year of our captivity, in the tenth month, in the fifth day of the month… Ezekiel had relatedly and most plainly foretold the capture of Jerusalem. He waited in sad suspense for the fulfillment of his inspired prediction. At last it came; and one who had escaped from Jerusalem, and who had fled eastward, brought the tidings to the children of the Captivity. I. THESE TIDINGS AFFECTED EZEKIEL AS A MAN, AROUSING HIS SYMPATHY. II. THESE TIDINGS AFFECTED HIM AS A PATRIOT, AFFLICTING HIM WITH HUMILIATION. Jerusalem was the metropolis of his country, of his race, - it was the scene of events famous in national story. It had been won by the prowess of David; it had been adorned by the opulence and splendor of Solomon; it had been the emporium of commerce, and the home of the learned and the great. It had been the chosen seat of the sanctuary of Jehovah. How could a true-hearted Hebrew like Ezekiel hear of the capture and fall of the city of David, without feeling his heart sore and anguished because of his country's bitter humiliation? III. THESE TIDINGS AFFECTED HIM, AS A DEVOUT ISRAELITE, WITH SINCERE DISTRESS. Ezekiel looked upon this event as a chastisement from God inflicted because of the unfaithfulness of the people, and their neglect to use their privileges and opportunities as they should have done. When the blow fell, his fears were realized and his sorrow was stirred within him, because of this consequence of Judah's sins, and because of the evidence afforded of the displeasure of the righteous God. IV. THESE TIDINGS AFFECTED HIM AS A PROPHET WHO RECOGNIZED HEREIN THE FULFILMENT OF THE INSPIRED PREDICTION. What befell Jerusalem was what Ezekiel had, in the name of the Lord, repeatedly and plainly foretold. He could not but be confirmed in the veracity of his God and in the authenticity of his own commission, when the word which he had spoken was fulfilled, and when the disaster of which he had faithfully warned his fellow-countrymen fell upon them in all its destructiveness and desolation. - T. Parallel Verses KJV: And it came to pass in the twelfth year of our captivity, in the tenth month, in the fifth day of the month, that one that had escaped out of Jerusalem came unto me, saying, The city is smitten. |
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