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You must be in fellowship prior to your Bible study, so that the spiritual information you receive can become a source, of blessing to your soul and produce spiritual growth. Eze. 4:7-8 7 Therefore thou shalt set [kuwn] thy face [paniym] toward the siege [matsowr] of Jerusalem [Yaruwshalaim], and thine arm [zarowa] shall be uncovered [chasaph], and thou shalt prophesy [naba] against it. 8 And, behold, I will lay [nathan] bands [aboth] upon thee, and thou shalt not turn [haphak] thee from one side [tsad] to another [tsad], till thou hast ended [kalah] the days [yowm] of thy siege [matsowr]. KJV-Interlinear 7 'Then you shall set your face toward the siege of Jerusalem with your arm bared, and prophesy against it. 8 'Now behold, I will put ropes on you so that you cannot turn from one side to the other, until you have completed the days of your siege. NASB Setting ones face against the city was to take on a stern face of determination. That is the attitude of Nebuchadnezzar when confronted with Zedekiah's treachery. Nebuchadnezzar became furious. But his anger was not intended to have a quick and decisive victory. The Armies of Babylon could have easily destroyed Jerusalem in a very short time. Judah had no military or defenses to speak of. Nebuchadnezzar was determined to make the city an example, and thus the siege. A siege to make them 'pay' dearly for their insolence. Thus they were going to suffer. Just as Judah was insolent toward Babylon, so they were insolent against God, the one who really decided their fate. When God is about to do some great work he is said to make bare his arm, Isa. 52:10. Isa. 52:10 10 The LORD has bared His holy arm In the sight of all the nations, That all the ends of the earth may see The salvation of our God. NASB Ezekiel was to initiate the siege (in his sign) with vigor and determination. He was to bare his arms. A person who is hyped up and ready to get right into their work with enthusiasm and intensity and emotion, will take their shirt off, roll up their sleeves, bare their arms so to speak and then get with their work. So it was with Nebuchadnezzar and the armies of Babylon. They would surround the city and make the citizens of Jerusalem sweat out their fate. Teasing them as it were (and starving them), before the final assault. They were to suffer, before their suffering began. This, in order to compound their misery and fears. Jerusalem had the wounds and Nebuchadnezzar had the salt. Ezekiel was performing this sign for well over a year - for 390 days and then for 40 days. A year is only 365 days, and this was for a total of 430 days. He was tied and forced to lay on one side then on the other, for the duration of each respective period. We haven't gotten to the starvation diet yet, but when added to the sign this is to paint a picture of the misery together with the stubbornness that the people will hold on to intensely. Just as Nebuchadnezzar was intent on making them suffer, so the people inside the city will be intent in holding on to their stubbornness - even to their own obvious detriment. When you are surrounded by an enemy army and you do not have any defenses of your own, then your fate should be obvious. Furthermore, Ezekiel's prophecy occurring for well over a year and prior to the actual historical event, will make its way down the trade routes and into the city. People will hear of it and know what it all means. Most just won't believe it. They will reject it. All of Gods warnings are intended to bring the hearer to a point of repentance. That simply means that God wants you to change you ways and get with a daily study and follow His principles of life, not those of your own design, nor those principles that the world presents to you. You and I are lucky that we have all of our lives, living in a relatively prosperous area such that we do not have to worry about gangs and thugs, and armies, crashing down our doors and killing us. We get to sleep at night, and we get to go to work each day and have a life. But Gods warnings are still there for us as well. Our siege will come at the end of our life. Then we will have to face the ultimate music of our life long choices, and with no excuses. Ezekiel could not turn over during the entire period he laid on his side. Thus the people will not be able to turn their lives around so as to avoid this discipline and judgment against them. Only a third of the inhabitants of the city will survive the siege. Obviously they could change their minds and look to God for help, but they still must endure the penalty for their long standing attitudes. We all do things in our lives that we eventually have to pay dearly for. Smoking cigarettes is a good example of following a lifetime of decisions to smoke and then end up in later years with lung cancer. No amount of prayer will make the cancer go away. So you suffer to some extent for your decisions. But that does not prevent you from having a successful spiritual life. Stubbornness will only bring you to misery. That is the wage of a negative attitude toward God. Lam. 1:14 14 'The yoke of my transgressions is bound; By His hand they are knit together; They have come upon my neck; He has made my strength fail; The Lord has given me into the hands Of those against whom I am not able to stand. NASB People always have ample time to prepare their lives for their ultimate destiny. The Israelites in captivity and who are hearing this prophecy will become witness to the ultimate outcome of continued negative volition toward God. Those who live in Jerusalem will hear of this sign of their demise, for the magnitude of it will be greater than any one geographical area. They will have no excuse. Likewise you have ample warning, either by this study or by means of any number of things that occur in your life. God has many ways to communicate to you, His wisdom and make clear the results of your ways. No one has an excuse. Ezekiel's sign will last for well over a year. How long should it take for people to get their life's act together? Look at your own life. How old are you? Are you a spiritual giant? Have you wasted any part of your life? When will you make a change and how long will you stick with it? End Of Lesson Study to show thyself approved (mature) unto God, a workman that needs not to be ashamed, rightly dividing (studying/discerning), the Word of truth.

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