EZEKIEL 24
The death of a city. Ezekiel was far away in Babylon, yet he knew what was happening in Jerusalem (Amos 3:7;
The death of a wife. During his years of ministry, Ezekiel had paid a price to “act out” some of his sermons (chap. 12), but none was as costly as this one. The life you live is the greatest sermon you can ever preach. The city of Jerusalem was the delight of the Jews, but she would be buried—and that was what the nation deserved. Ezekiel told the people in the morning that his wife would die, just as he had told them for years that their beloved city would be destroyed; in the evening, his words came true.
If the people wanted to mourn at all, they should have mourned over their sins and not over the loss of their city and temple. But it was too late. They should have heeded this advice: “Seek the Lord while He may be found (Isa. 55:6).