Ezekiel 12:17 - Meaning and Application

Here the prophet is again made a sign of the devastation coming on Judah and Jerusalem. He himself must eat and drink in fear and worry, especially when he is with other people (Ezekiel 12:17, Ezekiel 12:18). Even though he is in no danger himself and lives in safety and plenty, he must eat his bread with trembling, “the bread of sorrow” (Psalm 127:2), and drink his water with anxiety and care. This was to picture the miserable condition of the people in Jerusalem during the siege.

He was not pretending to be afraid when he really was not. Since he had to speak of this judgment, he should show that he truly believed it, and that he was deeply grieved by it. Ministers, when they speak about ruin coming on stubborn sinners, should speak with real feeling, as people who know the fear of the Lord. They must be willing to endure hardship if only they may do good.

He must also tell them that the people in Jerusalem will eat and drink in the same fearful way (Ezekiel 12:19, Ezekiel 12:20). Those living in Jerusalem, and those from the land of Israel who come there hoping to be safe, will eat their bread with worry and drink their water with shock and dread. They may fear that their supplies will not last, or they may live in constant fear of enemy attacks, with their lives hanging in the balance (Deuteronomy 28:66). So even what they have will bring them no comfort or benefit.

Worry and fear, when they take hold of a person, can spoil every comfort. They are in themselves a serious judgment. The people will be brought into these desperate conditions so that, little by little, and through the hand of those who press them hard, both city and countryside may be ruined. God’s aim is nothing less than the complete destruction of both, so that the land will be laid waste, stripped of its riches and fruit, and the cities that depend on it will also fall.

The cause of this judgment was their violence, the injustice and oppression of everyone living there, and the wrong they did to one another. God would call them to account for that, as well as for the dishonor they had shown him in worship. When a nation loses virtue, everything else begins to break down too. And when neighbors turn on one another, it is right for God to send enemies to devour them all.

The good result of the judgment would be this: “You will know that I am the Lord.” If these judgments led them to know him truly, that would more than make up for all they lost in the devastation. Hard afflictions can be blessed afflictions, however painful they are to human nature, if they bring us into a better knowledge of God and deepen that knowledge.