Daily Devotions
Ezekiel
"The hand of the Lord GOD fell upon me"
Text: Ezekiel 8:1
IN THE SIXTH YEAR OF JEHOIACHIN’S CAPTIVITY
Ezekiel made a note of his commencement as a prophet of the LORD. He was 30 years old and it commenced when King Jehoiachin was in captivity for 5 years (Ezekiel 1:1-2).
Ezekiel made another historical note with reference to Jehoiachin. Jehoiachin had now been in captivity for 6 years and six months. Ezekiel began to have another series of revelations from the LORD (Ezekiel 8-11 are to be read as a unit).
“And it came to pass in the sixth year, in the sixth month, on the fifth day of the month,
as I sat in my house with the elders of Judah sitting before me,
that the hand of the Lord God fell upon me there.
Then I looked, and there was a likeness, like the appearance of fire—
from the appearance of His waist and downward, fire;
and from His waist and upward, like the appearance of brightness,
like the colour of amber.”
Ezekiel 8:1-2
1. Ezekiel with some elders of Judah.
a) Ezekiel was in his own house.
b) There were some “Elders of Judah” in his house.
i) These elders may have been religious leaders in Judah.
ii) Like Jehoiachin, they had been exiled to Babylon.
iii) But they were still regarded and respected as “elders”.
c) They had visited Ezekiel.
i) The reasons they visited him were not disclosed.
ii) But it was not uncommon for prophets to have people seek them out for counsel.
iii) They were gathered together in Ezekiel’s home.
2. The hand of the LORD God.
a) This was mentioned previously (Ezekiel 1:3; 3:14, 22).
b) It was mentioned again (Ezekiel 8:1).
3. The vision of a Divine Man.
a) This was first noted earlier (Ezekiel 1:26).
b) This vision also involved Him (Ezekiel 8:2).
c) His appearance was similar to the original vision in Ezekiel 1:26-28.
i) From His waist down, “fire”,
ii) From the waist upwards, “brightness”.
iii) The colour was like “amber”.
d) This appearance (Ezekiel 8) was less detailed.
But there is no doubt that the same “Divine Man” is described here.