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Daily Devotions

Ezekiel

Ezekiel 
Day 
Day 219

"It is the sword that slays"

Text: Ezekiel 21:14

THE SWORD THAT SLAYS

King Zedekiah believed that he could get out of any crisis. He was forever scheming. He thought that he could get help from different quarters and his allies would come to his rescue. This time, he had grossly miscalculated. No one would come to his rescue. He had angered Nebuchadnezzar so badly that he would be killed! There was no escape!

“You therefore, son of man, prophesy,
And strike your hands together.
The third time let the sword do double damage.
It is the sword that slays,
The sword that slays the great men,
That enters their private chambers.
I have set the point of the sword against all their gates,
That the heart may melt and many may stumble.
Ah! It is made bright;
It is grasped for slaughter.”
Ezekiel 21:14-15

1. A message from God to Ezekiel.

a) He must speak with even greater strength.

b) He must emphasise what he was going to preach by striking his hands emphatically.

2. “The third time”

a) This was indeed “the third time” that Nebuchadnezzar had attacked Judah.

b) The first time was King Jehoiakim (2 Kings 24:1).

c) The second time was when Judah was ruled by King Jeconiah (Jeremiah 24:1, Jeremiah 27:20, 2 Kings 24:12).

3. This would be the last attack against Jerusalem.

a) The sword would devastate the land (“double damage”).

b) The sword would slay the “great men” of Jerusalem.

c) The soldiers would search for those who try and hide themselves in private chambers.

d) No one would be spared.

4. The sword would become bright red with blood.

a) It would be at the city gates.

b) The soldiers would hold their swords strongly with the intention of making a great slaughter.

c) This third invasion of Nebuchadnezzar would see the end of Judah as a nation (2 Kings 25)