DCLM Daily Manna 2025: DCLM Daily Manna 11 January 2025: Divine Recompense
Text: Ezekiel 23:36-49 (KJV)
36 The LORD said moreover unto me; Son of man, wilt thou judge Aholah and Aholibah? yea, declare unto them their abominations;
37 That they have committed adultery, and blood is in their hands, and with their idols have they committed adultery, and have also caused their sons, whom they bare unto me, to pass for them through the fire, to devour them.
38 Moreover this they have done unto me: they have defiled my sanctuary in the same day, and have profaned my sabbaths.
39 For when they had slain their children to their idols, then they came the same day into my sanctuary to profane it; and, lo, thus have they done in the midst of mine house.
40 And furthermore, that ye have sent for men to come from far, unto whom a messenger was sent; and, lo, they came: for whom thou didst wash thyself, paintedst thy eyes, and deckedst thyself with ornaments,
41 And satest upon a stately bed, and a table prepared before it, whereupon thou hast set mine incense and mine oil.
42 And a voice of a multitude being at ease was with her: and with the men of the common sort were brought Sabeans* from the wilderness, which put bracelets upon their hands, and beautiful crowns upon their heads.
43 Then said I unto her that was old in adulteries, Will they now commit whoredoms with her, and she with them?
44 Yet they went in unto her, as they go in unto a woman that playeth the harlot: so went they in unto Aholah and unto Aholibah, the lewd women.
45 And the righteous men, they shall judge them after the manner of adulteresses, and after the manner of women that shed blood; because they are adulteresses, and blood is in their hands.
46 For thus saith the Lord GOD; I will bring up a company upon them, and will give them to be removed and spoiled.
47 And the company shall stone them with stones, and dispatch them with their swords; they shall slay their sons and their daughters, and burn up their houses with fire.
48 Thus will I cause lewdness to cease out of the land, that all women may be taught not to do after your lewdness.
49 And they shall recompense your lewdness upon you, and ye shall bear the sins of your idols: and ye shall know that I am the Lord GOD.
KEY VERSE: Ezekiel 23:49
“And they shall recompense your lewdness upon you, and ye shall bear the sins of your idols: and ye shall know that I am the Lord GOD.”
Daniel Webster, former United States Secretary of State and a great statesman, attended a public luncheon toward the end of his life. One of the people asked him a question: “What was the greatest thought to ever pass through your mind?” to which he replied, “My accountability to God.”
Today’s text reminds us that the day of accountability will arrive when divine judgment will be delivered against idolatry, flagrant disobedience, and despicable acts against natural justice and divine precepts. Using symbolism and metaphor of the sins of Aholah and Aholibah, God vividly describes and laments the grievous sins of unfaithfulness and idolatry of the people of Israel. He warns that the consequences will surely come.
This inescapable accountability to God played out in the story of the Babylonian kingdom, around 539 BCE. King Belshazzar of Babylon hosted a grand feast where he and his guests drank from the sacred vessels stolen from the temple in Jerusalem. During the feast, a mysterious hand appeared and wrote on the wall, pronouncing judgment against Belshazzar’s sacrilege and arrogance. That very night, Babylon fell to the invading Persian forces, and Belshazzar was killed.
As we draw some valuable lessons from this narrative, we see God’s hatred for sin, the consequences of straying from God’s path, and the necessity of seeking forgiveness and redemption. The danger of sliding back into the ways and practices of non-believers around us stares us in the face daily. No Christian should feel too comfortable to mix with the world and seek to learn their ungodly practices. Although our God is a God of love and mercy, he demands accountability, justice, and obedience from us all. We must, therefore, live and conduct our lives in the light of the imminent day of accountability when God’s wrath will be unleashed against all ungodliness of humanity. Salvation through Christ remains the only way of escape.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
There’s a nasty payday at the end of heydays of sin.
THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Genesis 32-34
Daily Manna 11 January 2025
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