EZEKIEL LESSON 4


     We will begin this lesson in Ezekiel 4:1 "Thou also, son of man,
take thee a tile, and lay it before thee, and portray upon it the
city, [even] Jerusalem:"

     We see from this a similar object lesson as when Isaiah walked
naked and bare-foot 3 years. We just finished studying in Jeremiah
about the wooden yoke that Jeremiah wore around his neck, as a sign to
these people. Sometimes when words fail, a picture will help the
people see, as well as hear. All of the things mentioned were showing,
in the physical, the condition of the people in the spiritual.
This tile, was like a drawing pad. The picture drawn on the tile was
to be Jerusalem.

     Ezekiel 4:2 "And lay siege against it, and build a fort against
it, and cast a mount against it; set the camp also against it, and set
[battering] rams against it round about."

     We see the picture was to depict Jerusalem under siege. We saw in
the book of Jeremiah, where this very thing really happened. This
picture was to shock them into believing and repenting.

     Ezekiel 4:3 "Moreover take thou unto thee an iron pan, and set it
[for] a wall of iron between thee and the city: and set thy face
against it, and it shall be besieged, and thou shalt lay siege against
it. This [shall be] a sign to the house of Israel."

     This "iron pan" that was set up between Ezekiel and the city, is
to symbolize the impossibility of these people reaching God after the
siege has begun. This is judgement that separates them from God. In
this particular instance, Ezekiel is representing God to them. Ezekiel
was to look at the pan, and not to the city. This meant that, at that
point, they could not reach the face of God. The sign they should see
in this, is that they have put a barrier between themselves and God.
Their sins had put the barrier there.

     Ezekiel 4:4 "Lie thou also upon thy left side, and lay the
iniquity of the house of Israel upon it: [according] to the number of
the days that thou shalt lie upon it thou shalt bear their iniquity."

     The left side of the body has always symbolized the world, or
worldly blessings. This is saying, that the 10 tribes were even more
worldly than Judah's 2 tribes. The left side represented the 10
northern tribes. The fact that Ezekiel lay on his side this lengthy
time, shows them a physical picture of what will happen to them in
captivity.

     Ezekiel 4:5 "For I have laid upon thee the years of their
iniquity, according to the number of the days, three hundred and
ninety days: so shalt thou bear the iniquity of the house of Israel."

     The 390 days that Ezekiel lay on his left side, bearing their
iniquity, symbolized the number of years of captivity of the 10
northern tribes of Israel. This would be a difficult thing for Ezekiel
to do, but their captivity all those years was difficult to bear,
also. The captivity of these 10 tribes took a period of about 150
years to complete. The 390 days was more figurative than literal.

     Ezekiel 4:6 "And when thou hast accomplished them, lie again on
thy right side, and thou shalt bear the iniquity of the house of Judah
forty days: I have appointed thee each day for a year."

     The right side of the body symbolizes the spiritual. The two
tribes of Judah are represented by his lying on his right side. Their
captivity would be shorter, because their sins were not as great.
"Forty" is symbolic of a time of testing, such as the 40 days Jesus
was tested. They were actually in captivity 70 years, so the 40 has to
be a symbolic time. This captivity happened in several sieges.  The
total time of captivity was 70 years, but a certain portion could have
been 40 years. We must realize, again, that Ezekiel is giving them a
visible picture of their soon-coming captivity.

     Ezekiel 4:7 "Therefore thou shalt set thy face toward the siege
of Jerusalem, and thine arm [shall be] uncovered, and thou shalt
prophesy against it."

     "The extended arm that was uncovered" represents the fact that
God will reach out His arm against Jerusalem. This prophecy is in the
power of God, which the reached out arm represents.

     Ezekiel 4:8 "And, behold, I will lay bands upon thee, and thou
shalt not turn thee from one side to another, till thou hast ended the
days of thy siege."

     The reason Ezekiel will not be able to get relief by moving, is
because they will have no relief from the siege.

     Ezekiel 4:9 "Take thou also unto thee wheat, and barley, and
beans, and lentiles, and millet, and fitches, and put them in one
vessel, and make thee bread thereof, [according] to the number of the
days that thou shalt lie upon thy side, three hundred and ninety days
shalt thou eat thereof."

     This is just showing the great shortage of bread made of wheat
there will be during this terrible siege. He would have to have
something to eat, but it would be a very meager allotment. This would
be enough to survive on, but nothing else. The famine will be great
during the siege.

     Ezekiel 4:10 "And thy meat which thou shalt eat [shall be] by
weight, twenty shekels a day: from time to time shalt thou eat it."

     There will be such a shortage that food will be weighed. The 20
shekels would weigh about 10 ounces. Ten ounces of food is very little
for a whole day, but you could survive on it. Meat is speaking of
food, not flesh of an animal in the verse above.
     Ezekiel 4:11 "Thou shalt drink also water by measure, the sixth
part of an hin: from time to time shalt thou drink."

     This is to show that there will be a shortage of water during the
siege, as well. The water supply will be so short, each drop drunk
will be measured. This would be a little over a half of a pint of
water per day.

     Ezekiel 4:12 "And thou shalt eat it [as] barley cakes, and thou
shalt bake it with dung that cometh out of man, in their sight."

     Generally, they would cook their food with wood chips, but there
would be no wood to cook with. This. again, shows the severity of the
siege. Sometimes on cattle drives men use dried dung of cattle {chips}
to cook with. This is what is spoken of here, but human chips.

     Ezekiel 4:13 "And the LORD said, Even thus shall the children of
Israel eat their defiled bread among the Gentiles, whither I will
drive them."

     Those who were under the law would classify such cooking as a
defilement. The problem is, in war there is no choice. They were
captives. They would have no choice, but to cook with whatever was
available. This is such a change from the bread that fell from heaven
to feed them on their way to the promised land. They have angered God
to the extent, that He will not even provide bread for them.  They
will have to get it the best way they can. They will be driven out of
their land of milk and honey.

     Ezekiel 4:14 "Then said I, Ah Lord GOD! behold, my soul hath not
been polluted: for from my youth up even till now have I not eaten of
that which dieth of itself, or is torn in pieces; neither came there
abominable flesh into my mouth."

     This is Ezekiel speaking. He knows the law about unclean food
very well, since he is a priest. He had kept God's laws, and he did
not want to ruin it here with this abominable food.

     Ezekiel 4:15 "Then he said unto me, Lo, I have given thee cow's
dung for man's dung, and thou shalt prepare thy bread therewith."

     We see that God substituted cow's dung for human dung. This is to
keep Ezekiel from feeling personal guilt from eating defiled food.

     Ezekiel 4:16 "Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, behold, I
will break the staff of bread in Jerusalem: and they shall eat bread
by weight, and with care; and they shall drink water by measure, and
with astonishment:"

     This is an explanation that the same thing that happened to the
10 tribes, will happen to Jerusalem, as well. There will be a shortage
of food and water here, the same as with the 10 tribes. The
astonishment will be in the fact that God will not provide food and
water for them.

     Ezekiel 4:17 "That they may want bread and water, and be astonied
one with another, and consume away for their iniquity."

     The reason for the famine and the shortage of water, is because
of the sins they have committed. It will get so severe, that they will
do anything to get the food and water they want. This is punishment
that comes upon them for the worship of false gods. Many of them will
starve to death.













































                         Ezekiel 4 Questions


1.  What does God call Ezekiel in verse 1?
2.  What was the tile like?
3.  What was he to write on it?
4.  How long had Isaiah walked naked and barefoot?
5.  What had Jeremiah done, as a sign to the people?
6.  What is verse 2 describing?
7.  What did the "iron pan" symbolize?
8.  What did lying on the left side symbolize?
9.  How long was Ezekiel to lie on his left side?
10. What did the days he laid on his side symbolize?
11. The time was more __________ than __________.
12. What did the right side symbolize?
13. Who were represented in this?
14. "Forty" is a symbolic time of __________.
15. How long was Judah actually in captivity?
16. What did the "extended uncovered arm" show us?
17. Why can Ezekiel not take relief by moving?
18. What is verse 9 speaking of?
19. How much is 20 shekels of food?
20. How much is the sixth part of an hin?
21. What was he to bake his food with?
22. What one request did Ezekiel make of God?
23. How did God answer him?
24. What was the reason for the famine?