THE FINAL SIEGE That was the final talk about the ultimate captivation of Judah, and the destruction of the city of the great King; It started with his vision of the fiery divine chariot; to set his heart aflame amid the bitter news and ended by this bitter speech: the pot set on the fire; and the silent sighs of his heart, like kindled fire inside him, for the sudden death of his wife - the desire of his eyes - without mourning or proclaiming his grief for her. 1- The pot and the fire 1-14. 2- The death of the prophet’s wife 15-27. 1- THE POT AND THE FIRE The Lord set to the prophet Ezekiel, the ninth year of the reign of Jehoiachin, in the tenth month, on the tenth day, as the date when king Nebuchadnezzar would be coming to Jerusalem. God commanded him to write down that date in his records; that conformed to the date of the ultimate siege of Jerusalem (2 Kings 25:1). It is as though the Lord intended to proclaim that what is going on, is neither accidental, nor according to human planning, but are events allowed by a divine plan, according to precise timing. The Lord commanded Ezekiel to utter a parable “to the rebellious house” (Ez 24:3), that would become desolate. He likened Jerusalem to a pot full of scum (rust); in which were put choice cuts of meat, “the thigh and the shoulder,” beside choice bones to be boiled with them. The words of God were: “Woe to the bloody city, to the pot whose scum is in it, and whose scum is not gone from it! Bring it out piece-by-piece, on which no lot has fallen... Heap on the wood; kindle the fire; Cook the meat well, Mix in the spices, and let the cuts be burned up. Then set the pot empty on the coals, that it might become hot and its bronze may burn; that its filthiness may be melted in it; that its scum may be consumed” (Ez 24:6-11). He saw Jerusalem as a pot, and fire kindled beneath it, the way the prophet Jeremiah saw it (Jer 1:13). Yet with a conception different from what the rulers of the people held, when they assumed that Jerusalem is the pot that protects the meat inside it; and that nobody can reach the meat as long as it is inside the pot (Exod. 11:3). They assumed that Jerusalem remains a bronze wall that protects those inside it; protected by God whatever the circumstances are; because it is His city. Here Ezekiel proclaims that, on the contrary, it is the pot underneath which God will kindle the fire of His fury, because of its scum, namely its corruption. Fire refers to the bitterness of captivity, and to the destruction of everything in it by a divine command; saying to the Chaldeans: “Heap on the wood; kindle the fire.” Her lewdness so much increased, thus she needs a lot of fire to chasten her. Putting water with the meat pieces inside the pot is a reference to the state of looseness that Judah has reached; both rulers and people. All became like water: helpless and fluid! Putting the choice pieces of thigh and shoulder, together with the bones, refers to the fact that neither the rulers nor the people will be spared. All will fall in the fire; and will be “brought out piece by piece, on which no lot has fallen;” a sign that all will come out of the city, regardless of anybody’s dignity, capabilities or possibilities; All will be 5 scattered in a foreign land. Jerusalem will be emptied of her people, and destroyed, to be purified of her increasing scum. The pagan worship has entered the temple of God and His sanctuaries; on every high place on mountains and hills, as well as in valleys, on the banks of rivers, and underneath every green tree. It is a horrible portrait of Jerusalem consumed by fire. Yet that is not without purpose. St. Jerome believes that in this situation, there is hope for reform; saying: [Placing the meat in the pot means that sinners would become gentler; their violence would change and would turn to God; with hearts of flesh instead of stone... What a great mercy!.. What a great mystery! The pieces of meat are put in the pot, for the heart of man to melt; and to know that the Lord is God!1] 2- THE DEATH OF HISWIFE That was the last of God’s proclamations to the prophet Ezekiel concerning the ultimate captivation of Judah, and the destruction of the city. It reached the climax, as the divine command came to him that his wife would die; and that he should proclaim this to the men of Judah; that he should not mourn for her, nor shed a tear on her; should sigh in silence; bind his turban on his head; put his sandals on his feet; should not cover his lips; and should not eat man’s bread of sorrow; although his wife was the “desire of his eyes”! He spoke to the people as such in the morning, and at the evening his wife died; and he did as he was commanded, on the next day. It is a horrible portrait of the coming destruction of the people - God’s beloved bride - with nobody to mourn for her or shed a tear because of the deadly grief. The tongue will stop talking, the tears will dry up; and man will be swallowed up by inner sorrow, and would become as though spellbound! All that was realized; and that was the last arrow to hit the prophet Ezekiel; being a sign to them (Ez 24:24, 27). He bitterly sighed in silence; not capable of uttering a word; refused to accept the bread of men; namely the bread of sorrow; as people of the east used to send food to the house of sorrow to eat. He would not accept fulfillment from a human hand, nor be comforted by man! He made no mourning for his wife. As in Jerusalem there was nobody who cared to cry for those killed and cast away or to shed a tear on them. As to binding the turban, putting on the sandals, and not covering the lips; all those were a sign that there is no more way to remain in the house to grieve. Everyone should get out and escape. Nobody should mourn for the dead! His wife died by night in the dark; a sign of their being unprepared for those events, despite the continuous divine warnings through His prophets! 1 On Ps.. Homily, 34. 6 AN INSPIRATION FROM THE BOOK OF E ZEKIEL 24 A FUNERAL WITH NO TEARS You likened Your people to meat in a rusty pot. Fire is kindled with no benefit. The meat done, but it is poisoned! Allow me, O God, to benefit from the fire of Your chastisement! Rid my heart of the rust of sin. And uproot the poisonous roots from my depths. Then, I would benefit from the fire of Your chastisement; And become useful food. You allowed for Your prophet’s wife to die. She was the desire of his eyes, which he loved; Yet he does not mourn for her, And would not accept comfort from anyone! She died in the darkness of the night. Like that, my very precious soul would die. It would die amid the darkness of sin. I would accept no comfort from anybody. But I would seek Your help and Your comfort. You are alone capable of raising it from the darkness of the grave. You would make it a holy temple for Your Holy Spirit!
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