*Scripture: Ezekiel 2:1—3:11 (NKJV)* 2:1 And He said to me, "Son of man, stand on your feet, and I will speak to you." 2 Then the Spirit entered me when He spoke to me, and set me on my feet; and I heard Him who spoke to me. 3 And He said to me: "Son of man, I am sending you to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against Me; they and their fathers have transgressed against Me to this very day. 4 For they are impudent and stubborn children. I am sending you to them, and you shall say to them, 'Thus says the Lord GOD.' 5 As for them, whether they hear or whether they refuse—for they are a rebellious house—yet they will know that a prophet has been among them.
6 "And you, son of man, do not be afraid of them nor be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns are with you and you dwell among scorpions; do not be afraid of their words or dismayed by their looks, though they are a rebellious house. 7 You shall speak My words to them, whether they hear or whether they refuse, for they are rebellious. 8 But you, son of man, hear what I say to you. Do not be rebellious like that rebellious house; open your mouth and eat what I give you." 9 Now when I looked, there was a hand stretched out to me; and behold, a scroll of a book was in it. 10 Then He spread it before me; and there was writing on the inside and on the outside, and written on it were lamentations and mourning and woe. 3:1 Moreover He said to me, "Son of man, eat what you find; eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel." 2 So I opened my mouth, and He caused me to eat that scroll. 3 And He said to me, "Son of man, feed your belly, and fill your stomach with this scroll that I give you." So I ate, and it was in my mouth like honey in sweetness. 4 Then He said to me: "Son of man, go to the house of Israel and speak with My words to them. 5 For you are not sent to a people of unfamiliar speech and of hard language, but to the house of Israel, 6 not to many people of unfamiliar speech and of hard language, whose words you cannot understand. Surely, had I sent you to them, they would have listened to you. 7 But the house of Israel will not listen to you, because they will not listen to Me; for all the house of Israel are impudent and hard-hearted. 8 Behold, I have made your face strong against their faces, and your forehead strong against their foreheads. 9 Like adamant stone, harder than flint, I have made your forehead; do not be afraid of them, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they are a rebellious house." 10 Moreover He said to me: "Son of man, receive into your heart all My words that I speak to you, and hear with your ears. 11 And go, get to the captives, to the children of your people, and speak to them and tell them, 'Thus says the Lord GOD,' whether they hear, or whether they refuse." *Devotion* Our text for today's devotion picks up where yesterday's left off. Ezekiel now hears God speak to him. Ezekiel is addressed as "Son of man." This reminds us of Psalm 8: "What is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit him?" Ezekiel was just a man, to be sure, but that is the beauty of how God deals with us. He sends men to preach His Word. Lowly though they be, the lowliness of the messenger does not diminish the message. Ezekiel would go to a "rebellious people" with God's Word. Some would heed God's call to repentance and others would not. Either way, the message was to remain the same and not be altered to appease the listener. Sadly, many who claim to be speaking for God have changed the message. This is done in an effort to "reach the lost," however, the question they fail to answer is: What good is accomplished if the lost are not really hearing God's Word? God was very clear on how Ezekiel was to speak, "Speak with My words to them." Ezekiel was not to change what had been given to him. Even though many of the children of Israel would not listen, Ezekiel was to speak the Word of God. These "impudent and hard-hearted people" were going to be dashed against the Word. So we, too, are daily broken by the Law as the Holy Spirit works to brings us to repentance. But we are not left broken, for He has healed us by forgiving our sins.
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