Repetitive. Hard. Weird. Seriously depressing. Ultimately hopeful?

The things I’m marking in the book of Ezekiel as I try to read and make sense of it are the phrases and ideas that Ezekiel repeats over and over:

Son of man: God’s nickname for Ezekiel. Almost every time God speaks to Ezekiel, the Lord calls his priest/messenger boy, “Son of man” or “Son of Adam.” Ezekiel’s actual name is only mentioned twice in the book of Ezekiel, in Ezekiel 1:3 and 24:24. The Hebrew expression “son of man” (בן–אדם, ben-‘adam) appears 107 times in the Hebrew Bible. The phrase is used mostly in Ezekiel (93 times). (Wikipedia)

I remember that Jesus called himself the “Son of man.” What does that mean? It means that Ezekiel and Jesus were both human, both sons of Adam. We forget the humanity of Christ sometimes, that God took on human flesh, that he humbled himself, that he was a “son of Adam” as well as son of God. This dual nature as the theologians call it is, of course, a mystery. But it is also an encouragement. God spoke to a son of man (Ezekiel), and God became the Son of Man (Jesus).

The glory of the Lord: My pastor preached about this phrase this morning. In Ezekiel chapter 11 the glory of the Lord departs from His temple and the glory doesn’t return until chapter 43. What is this glory?

John MacArthur, Grace to You: “The glory of the Lord is the expression of God’s person. It is any manifestation of God’s character, any manifestation of His attributes in the world, in the universe is His glory. In other words, the glory is to God what the brightness is to the sun. The glory is to God what wet is to water. The glory is what heat is to fire. In other words, it is the emanation, it is the effulgence, it is the brightness, it is the product of His presence, it is the revelation of Himself. Anytime God discloses Himself, it is the manifestation of His glory.”

And the Apostle John wrote, “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”
“The everlasting Logos, the Word of God, who was with God and who is God, has now inhabited the creation that He made.”

Thus saith the Lord, or the word of the Lord came to me or declares the Lord: Ezekiel indicates over and over again that God actually spoke to him, audibly and in visions. Again, the word came to Ezekiel, but that’s only a hint of the final Word that was and is to come, the Word become flesh and dwelling among us.

Then you will know (or they will know) that I am the Lord This phrase appears more than sixty times in the book of Ezekiel. God tells the people through Ezekiel that He is planning to bring great calamity and judgment upon them and that then they will know that I AM THAT I AM. Sin separates us from the life and the glory of God, but we will no longer ignore His word or His glory when He brings both judgment and mercy to bear upon our sin.

He is there, and He is not silent. ~Francis Schaeffer

And the Egyptians will know that I am the LORD when I stretch out my hand against Egypt and bring the Israelites out of it. Exodus 7:5

The LORD is known by his acts of justice. Psalm 9:16

The true state, both of nations and of individuals, may be correctly estimated by this one rule, whether in their doings they remember or forget God. ~Matthew Henry

For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. Philippians 4:9-11

1. I’m involved in a Beth Moore Bible study at church: David, a Man After God’s Own Heart. So, we’re studying in First and Second Samuel. We’re going to be discussing the rather distressing story of Amnon, Tamar, and Absalom at Bible study on Wednesday, and I’m hoping to gain some insight into the parenting and letting go of adult children, although I can assure you that if I had a son like Amnon, I would be completely devastated and paralyzed for life. The story, if you want to read it, is in II Samuel 13-15.

2. Also at church, my pastor is preaching through the book of Revelation. So, I’m studying that, even though it’s my least favorite part of the Bible.

3. At our Women’s Retreat in April we’ll be doing a topical study on loving and living the law of the Lord, the Word of God. I’m looking forward to that study.

4. I’ll be reading through the New Testament during Lent, perhaps using this plan. I plan to read from the new paraphrase/translation, The Voice, from Thomas Nelson Publishers, to see what I think of it as I read.

5. After Easter, I want to do a study of the books of Judges and of Acts, to compare and see what I might need to be doing to cooperate with the Holy Spirit in times like these. I think we’re living in Judges and in Acts, both at the same time, but I need to do some study to flesh that analogy out.

6. I hope to spend the summer in one of the major prophets, probably either Isaiah or Jeremiah.

7. Beginning in August, I will probably listen to Beth Moore’s study of the gospels, Jesus, the One and Only.

8. Z-baby and I are doing this 2012 Bible Reading Challenge, courtesy of Redeemed Reader. At least, we’re trying. We’re still only on Week 1.

9. On August 5, 2012 my pastor will begin a fall series in 1st Peter. So, that would be a good place to be concentrating.

10. I would like to memorize a psalm this year, but I haven’t decided which one.

11. I’d also be interested in memorizing some portion of the Sermon on the Mount, maybe in the fall along with my study of the life of Christ.

12. Finally, I want to go over the Old Testament prophecies that speak to the coming of Jesus as Messiah and Lord during Advent with my urchins.

Too ambitious? Not enough? I may not do all of the above, but I know enough about myself to know that if I don’t have some sort of plans and a variety of ideas, I will do nothing at all.