The Faithless City, the Useless Vine

[Sung Psalm: 80]

“The God I worship would never…”

Do you recognize that sort of argument? “The God I worship would never…” When you hear that, the next phrase usually asserts that God would never command the slaughter of innocent children, or God would never condemn “loving” homosexual activity.

But before you dismiss these people – pay a little more attention! Because if you look a little more closely, they are usually not making arbitrary claims. They are arguing, based on other passages of scripture, that the church has been mistaken about its interpretation of these passages of scripture.

And that is precisely what Ezekiel is facing. Ezekiel is answering those who want to make God sound “nicer” than he is. There is nothing new about this. From ancient Babylon to the present, people in every generation have tended to use their favorite parts of scripture to get around other parts of scripture!

Is God being fair? Surely not everyone in Jerusalem is that bad! Surely there is a righteous remnant! Remember Noah – Noah was a righteous man, and because of his righteousness, his children were delivered from the Flood!

Aren't there enough righteous individuals to spare Jerusalem from judgment?

After all, remember what God said to Abraham about the destruction of Sodom: the LORD said that if ten righteous men were found in Sodom, then he would not destroy the city! If God said that he would spare such a wicked city as Sodom for ten righteous men, then surely a God who is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love, surely such a God would spare his own city, Jerusalem – and the temple, where his name dwells – for ten righteous men!