“Son of man, I send thee to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation that hath rebelled against me: they and their fathers have transgressed against me, even unto this very day. For they are impudent children and stiffhearted. I do send thee unto them; and thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD.” (Ezekiel 2:3-4)

Yahweh tasked Ezekiel with a very difficult assignment. His message was to be presented to a hostile audience. Instead of faithfully listening to and embracing the teaching of God’s word, the people Ezekiel preached to were rebellious and obstinate. It was like pastoring a problematic and difficult church.

“Rebellious” means defiance or insubordination to authority. It occurs nine times in Ezekiel 2 and 3, and is repeated another eight times in the rest of his book. “Stiffhearted” and “hardhearted” occur in Ezekiel 2:4 and 3:7, and convey the obstinance and disobedience of God’s people. Similar expressions appear another seven times in the Bible to indicate a self-imposed spiritual hardening of the heart (Exodus 32:9; 33:3, 5; 34:9; Deuteronomy 2:30; Isaiah 48:4; Romans 10:21).

Rather than listening to God’s messenger, Ezekiel’s “congregation” viewed their captivity as a temporary setback to be alleviated by God in time, but certainly not through repentance and contrite hearts on their part (Psalm 51:17; Jeremiah 44:10). Like many today, Israel refused to admit their sin, unwilling to submit to the lordship of Yahweh. Ezekiel’s task then was the same as ours is now—declaring God’s Word to whomever God places in our path.

Ambassadors of Christ have the mandate to lovingly declare the gospel. All of God’s revealed truth is written to point us toward making that all-important gospel decision, placing our hands on the plow, and pressing forward in service to our Lord (Luke 9:62). CM

Days of Praise Podcast is a podcast based on the Institute for Creation Research quarterly print devotional, Days of Praise. Start your day with devotional readings written by Dr. Henry Morris, Dr. Henry Morris III, Dr. John Morris, and others to strengthen and encourage you in your Christian faith.