The Watchman Held Accountable | The Institute for Creation Research

The Watchman Held Accountable

“Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: . . . When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning . . . the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand.” (Ezekiel 3:17-18)

Our text comprises part of Ezekiel’s commission as prophet to Judah. His function was compared to a watchman on the city walls whose duty was to warn the city of impending danger. Ezekiel was to warn the apostate people of Jerusalem of the coming invasion by the Babylonians under Nebuchadnezzar. God warned Ezekiel that if he refused to pass on whatever messages he received from God, he himself would be held accountable.

On the other hand, Ezekiel was not accountable for the response of the hearer. “Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness . . . he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul” (v. 19). He would also be requested to give similar injunctions and warnings to righteous men who had fallen into sin, but again he was not held accountable for their response (vv. 20-21).

A corresponding teaching is found in the New Testament. “Obey them that have rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls, as they that must give account” (Hebrews 13:17). Church leaders, we are told, will give an account before the Lord someday as to how those in their flock have fared. They will not be accountable for the response of others but are required to see to it that each person in their care clearly and lovingly understands the truth and the consequences of disobedience. This is a heavy responsibility!

Let each of us respond properly to the truth as presented by our church leaders, that they may minister with joy and not with grief. JDM

The Latest
NEWS
Was Life Detected on a Distant Planet?
There was celebration, albeit briefly, for the discovery of potential life on a planet called K2-18b, which is 124 lightyears away from Earth. The...

NEWS
Ichthyosaur Graveyard Explained by the Flood
Ichthyosaurs are marine reptiles that occur globally in the same rock layers as dinosaurs. Specimens with babies support the idea that they gave live...

CREATION PODCAST
What Do We Do With Geology's Unconforming Features? | The Creation...
Welcome to the fifth episode in a series called “The Failures of Old Earth Creationism.” Many Christians attempt to fit old...

NEWS
Freshwater Fish Fossil in Australia
Yet another fish fossil has been discovered. This one was found in the Australian desert and was dated by evolutionists to be “15 million years...

NEWS
May 2025 ICR Wallpaper
"Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." (Romans...

NEWS
Acoustic Communication in Animals
We are all familiar with vocalizations in the animal world. For example, dogs bark, birds sing, frogs croak, and whales send forth their own distinct...

ACTS & FACTS
Creation Kids: Crystals!
by Michael Stamp and Susan Windsor* You're never too young to be a creation scientist and explore our Creator's world. Kids, discover...

APOLOGETICS
Playing Chess with Little Furry Critters
God’s multifarious and marvelous designs for basic creature needs are so innovatively clever and providentially purposeful that Christ’s...

ACTS & FACTS
Credit Only Our Creator
History was my favorite subject as a young kid. But it always puzzled me when my teachers said, “We study history so that we don’t repeat...

ACTS & FACTS
Genomic Tandem Repeats: Where Repetition Is Purposely Adaptive
Tandem repeats (TRs) are short sequences of DNA repeated over and over again like the DNA letter sequence TACTACTAC, which is a repetition of TAC three...