Ezekiel 28

This chapter gives us a prophecy about the king of Tyre. As we read through the same, we understand that this king was actually controlled by Satan himself!

So a good deal of this chapter tells us how Satan became Satan, although he was actually created as an anointed cherub who was set on the holy mountain of God and who walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire. vs 14.

He was the sealer of perfection, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty, vs 12, wiser than Daniel, with no secret hidden from him, vs 3, and every precious stone was his covering, vs 13.

He was blameless in his behaviour, until the day sin was found in him, vs 15! How did he fall into sin? It was on account of the abundance of his trade (prosperity), that his heart was lifted up in pride and so he became violent, vs 16, and thus his beauty and outshining nature also led to his down fall, vs 17.

So, God judged him severely and he was cast as profane out of the mountain of God, and brought low where kings could see his shame, and as if that was not enough, God promised to bring forth a fire from his midst that would devour him, and bring him to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all who beheld him, vs 18. Then all who knew him in His previous glory would be astonished to see his present state, as he would become an object of terror that would eventually come to a ruinous end, vs 19! These similar traits were seen in the king of Tyre too, and God told Ezekiel to tell him so, vs 1,2, and to sing a lament about the origin of this spirit that controlled the king of Tyre, vs 11,12.

This king’s great wisdom and skill in trade enabled him to amass wealth and gold and silver for himself, which made him excessively proud and deceived him into believing that he was God Himself, vs 2,4,5! Therefore, because he did not give the glory to God, on imagining that he was God Himself when he wasn’t, God promised to bring foreigners against him so as to defile his splendor and bring him down to the pit by means of a violent death in the heart of the seas, wherein he boasted the most, vs 2, 6-10! Similarly, God told Ezekiel to prophesy against Sidon too because they surrounded and scorned His people Israel, vs 20,21,24.

For this reason, God was going to magnify Himself in Sidon’s midst by bringing His judgments against her by means of sword, bloodshed and plague, vs 22,23,24, such that Israel would no longer suffer from Sidon’s taunts! On the contrary, He would reveal His sovereign power over His people by regathering them and bringing them back into their land wherein they would, once again, build houses, plant vineyard and live securely, vs 25,26.

These verses show us the great danger that we put ourselves in when we fail to consistently give God the glory for all the time, talent and treasure that He has mercifully and graciously gifted us with. Woe be the day when we begin to imagine that, ‘this is the great Babylon that I have built’, Daniel 4:30,31! It is better to be genuinely rooted in small thoughts about ourselves by remind ourselves whenever we are tempted, by saying, ‘What is it that I have not received grace to do, and if I have received grace to do it, then why do I boast as though I did not receive that grace, 1 Corinthians 4:7?

Further, as seen from God’s judgment on Sidon, it is a dangerous thing for us to taunt any of God’s people, and especially when God is using someone to discipline them for their sins, for in so doing, we will inevitably cause God’s wrath to be turned towards us! Let him who has an ear, hear! Amen.

Rowena Thomas
Mumbai, India.