MARKED

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

Then I heard Him call out in a loud voice, “Bring near those who are appointed to execute judgment on the city, each with a weapon in his hand.” And I saw six men coming from the direction of the upper gate, which faces north, each with a deadly weapon in his hand. With them was a man clothed in linen who had a writing kit at his side. They came in and stood beside the bronze altar.”

Now the glory of the God of Israel went up from above the cherubim, where it had been, and moved to the threshold of the temple. Then the Lord called to the man clothed in linen who had the writing kit at his side and said to him, “Go throughout the city of Jerusalem and put a mark on the foreheads of those who grieve and lament over all the detestable things that are done in it.”

As I listened, He said to the others, “Follow him through the city and kill, without showing pity or compassion. Slaughter the old men, the young men and women, the mothers and children, but do not touch anyone who has the mark. Begin at my sanctuary.”

So they began with the old men who were in front of the temple.

Ezekiel 9:1-6

This ends today’s reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

The warnings of judgment were over. Ditto for the visual evidence provided to the prophet Ezekiel of the Israelites’ sinful idolatry. Now the Lord was ready to execute punishment on those who had disrespected and disobeyed Him but not before ordering a preliminary step to take place. Look at today’s scripture passage as we look at the opening verses of Ezekiel 9:

Then I heard Him call out in a loud voice, “Bring near those who are appointed to execute judgment on the city, each with a weapon in his hand.” And I saw six men coming from the direction of the upper gate, which faces north, each with a deadly weapon in his hand. With them was a man clothed in linen who had a writing kit at his side. They came in and stood beside the bronze altar.”

Now the glory of the God of Israel went up from above the cherubim, where it had been, and moved to the threshold of the temple. Then the Lord called to the man clothed in linen who had the writing kit at his side and said to him, “Go throughout the city of Jerusalem and put a mark on the foreheads of those who grieve and lament over all the detestable things that are done in it.”

As I listened, He said to the others, “Follow him through the city and kill, without showing pity or compassion. Slaughter the old men, the young men and women, the mothers and children, but do not touch anyone who has the mark. Begin at my sanctuary.”

So they began with the old men who were in front of the temple.  Ezekiel 9:1-6

Note here that the Lord has made the call to execute those who had chosen to sin against Him by worshiping false gods and idols in Jerusalem and particularly in His holy temple. Six executioners, angels of God’s wrath, were present with weapons in hand, ready to slay whoever the Lord called on them to kill. In their midst was a seventh angel who was clothed in linen and had a writing kit at his side, a kit he would use to mark a number of people who would be spared from God’s death penalty.

What were the qualifiers for someone to end up marked?

We find out in the scriptures for God tells the man in linen to mark those people who grieved and lamented over “all the detestable things” that had been done. These were the people who mourned over the fact that some of the Israelites had turned their backs on God and chose to be unfaithful in the most wicked way possible. Perhaps these people feared God’s judgment would come on them as well as the real offenders but as they were about to see, God was not only a God of judgment but also a God of justice and fairness. For once the person was marked, they would be passed over by the executioners.

As for the unmarked, those guilty of willfully and willingly committing idolatry in plain sight of God, their fate would not be as fortunate. For as we read, God gave His angels of wrath a directive to follow the man in linen around the city and “kill, without showing pity or compassion”. They were to “slaughter the old men, the young men and women, the mothers and children”. No one who gave their devotion to idols would live to tell about it. But as for those who had displayed deep remorse over the evil actions of their peers, those who had been marked, they would not be harmed.

This whole scene beckons us back to the day of Passover in a lot of ways. You’ll remember that God was about to send His most deadly plague yet (an angel of death who would kill all the firstborn) on the Egyptians, led by Pharaoh who refused to release the Israelites from captivity. Before that angel came, God, who wanted to spare His own people from the judgment, had them mark where they lived by spreading the blood of a sacrificed lamb on the doorposts of the dwelling. This would be the indicator that would cause the angel of death to pass over that particular home as it carried out God’s will, sparing those within. In that instance, the Israelites were not the guilty party so they would not suffer the consequences God was sending, just like those who grieved and lamented in today’s passage.

Now, imagine if this scenario played out today. What if there was some determining factor that would mark you, sparing you from God’s judgment when it comes? What if I told you that this very scenario will play out sometime in the future?   

You see, a time of judgment is ahead, one that will be the last judgment of mankind ever. It is a time when Jesus is going to return to earth and usher in the advent of God making all things new.

Those who placed their belief, hope, and trust in Jesus as Savior will be passed over and spared annihilation, marked and saved by the blood of the Lamb of God who came to earth to take away the sins of the world. They will be taken from earth to reside in the new earth God will make before destroying the heavens and earth as we know them today.

As for those who rejected Jesus, they will find themselves rejected and utterly destroyed in a lake of fire (Revelation 20). Their time will be over as they experience the fullest measure of God’s anger and its associated punishment.  

Given this, where will you find yourself on judgment day, marked and safe or unmarked and perishable?

If you haven’t accepted Jesus by now, it’s not too late.

Amen

In Christ,

Mark
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