Ezekiel has been prophesying about the coming judgement to Jerusalem and now Ezekiel covers the causes.
This message from the Lord starts off with a bang:
“Son of man, set your face toward the mountains of Israel, and prophesy against them... Ezekiel 6:2
To have the Lord to have his earthly representative set his face against you and prophesy...not a place you want to find yourself.
The Lord has promised to bring the sword to all of the hills and mountains around Jerusalem. The people, even after all of the eras of teaching and punishment, were still going to the high places and making alters to their gods, Ba'al specifically. So many alters to idols while He is protecting and providing for them. I cannot even imagine how much that would hurt.
It's worth repeating that God isn't going to let you sin without consequence for the same reason. He provides and protects and we still try to go our own way. How painful for Him.
Verse 4 tells us that for this rebellion, the alters will be desolate and their soldiers will fall in front of their idols. He goes on the describe the complete destruction of the soldiers bones, the alters, and the cities. Every part of life is effected. The New Testament tells us that sin leads to death every time. The thing we choose to rebel with is the thing that will lead to destruction if we don't listen to the Spirit and repent.
He ends this paragraph this way:
The slain will fall among you, and you will know that I am the Lord. Ezekiel 6:7
Either you exalt His name as His priest or His name will be exalt in the flame of your destruction. His name will be exalted and we get to chose how we would like to participate. Note to self.
And now the part we can always look forward to because he is called Faithful and True:
However, I will leave a remnant, for you will have those who escaped the sword among the nations when you are scattered among the countries. Then those of you who escape will remember Me among the nations to which they will be carried captive, how I have been hurt by their adulterous hearts which turned away from Me, and by their eyes which played the harlot after their idols; and they will loathe themselves in their own sight for the evils which they have committed, for all their abominations. Ezekiel 6: 8–9
Those of us in the remnant have to take our job very seriously. We may have escaped the utter destruction, but it was for one purpose, remember Him among the nations.
In the rest of the chapter He reiterates what they did and what's coming to the full land promised to them–from north to south. Even though He's been using Jerusalem as His object lesson, this is for all of the people of the twelve tribes who inherited this land, as long as they chose life and chose God. Which they did not. Now they will take the same message He gave to them and a remnant will take it to the world as they are scattered.
I'm writing this just after Christmas, and I listened to a podcast on the Charles Dickens' story, A Christmas Carol. To me, Ezekiel has a similar message. Remember, Jeremiah and other prophets were directly warning the people in Judah; but Ezekiel is speaking to those already taken captive in Babylon. Changing their behavior won't save Israel, Judah, or even Jerusalem; so why is Ezekiel preaching this message to them? Because it's too late for Israel. It's too late for Judah. It's too late for Jerusalem. Only a handful of people will survive from their and even they sin all the way to Egypt. But those held captive in Babylon can still make choices for their own good. They can be part of the remnant. If they can tear down their alters and destroy their idols. Like Scrooge, they still have time to make choices towards God's purposes.
Every new day He gives us is a day to choose life. May God bless us, every one!