Grasp the Gospel — Bible Comprehension Quizzes

Ezekiel 24 Devotional

A Grief Held in Silence

“So I spoke to the people in the morning, and in the evening my wife died. And the next morning I did as I had been commanded.”Ezekiel 24:18 (BSB)

The siege of Jerusalem begins, and God has Ezekiel record the date (24:1-2). The city is a pot crusted with rust that even fire cannot remove. God says he tried to cleanse her, but she would not be made clean (24:6, 11-13). Then God tells Ezekiel that he will take from him the one his eyes delight in, and that he must not mourn openly (24:16-17). That evening Ezekiel's wife dies, and the next morning he does as he was told (24:18).

The text does not explain this loss away. God himself describes her as treasured (24:16), and Ezekiel is allowed only quiet groaning (24:17). His silence became a sign: soon the people would lose their own treasure, the temple, and waste away in their sins without the usual mourning (24:21-24). This was a single sign, not a pattern for how God's people must grieve. Jesus wept at his friend's tomb (John 11:35), and Paul tells believers to grieve with hope (1 Thessalonians 4:13). Your tears are welcome before God.

To think about: What loss are you carrying today, and how does Jesus weeping at a tomb give you freedom to bring your grief honestly to God?

About Ezekiel 24: The Boiling Pot and Ezekiel's Loss

On the day Babylon begins its siege of Jerusalem, God likens the city to a rusted pot set on the fire for its bloodshed. Ezekiel is told not to mourn openly when his wife dies, a sign that God will profane the temple, and his silence will end when a survivor brings the news.

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