Ezekiel 6:8-14: a reflection

8“‘“Yet I will leave a remnant, in that you will have some that escape the sword among the nations, when you are scattered through the countries. 9Those of you that escape will remember me among the nations where they are carried captive, how I have been broken with their lewd heart, which has departed from me, and with their eyes, which play the prostitute after their idols. Then they will loathe themselves in their own sight for the evils which they have committed in all their abominations. 10They will know that I am the LORD. I have not said in vain that I would do this evil to them.”’ 11“The Lord GOD says: ‘Strike with your hand, and stamp with your foot, and say, “Alas!”, because of all the evil abominations of the house of Israel; for they will fall by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence. 12He who is far off will die of the pestilence. He who is near will fall by the sword. He who remains and is besieged will die by the famine. Thus I will accomplish my wrath on them. 13You will know that I am the LORD when their slain men are among their idols around their altars, on every high hill, on all the tops of the mountains, under every green tree, and under every thick oak—the places where they offered pleasant aroma to all their idols. 14I will stretch out my hand on them and make the land desolate and waste, from the wilderness toward Diblah, throughout all their habitations. Then they will know that I am the LORD.’”

Even in the midst of a hard word of judgment, God speaks of preserving a remnant who, scattered among the nations, will remember him and turn from their sin. Yet I will leave a remnant, God says; those of you that escape will remember me among the nations where they are carried captive; then they will loathe themselves for the evils which they have committed. Even in judgment, God's purpose was not only punishment but restoration: he would preserve a remnant, and in their scattering they would come to remember him, to grieve their sin, and to turn back. God's discipline aimed to bring people back to himself. This shows that even in hard discipline, God works to bring people to remember him and turn from sin. Even in discipline, God works to bring people back to himself. God preserves a remnant who will remember him and turn. God's hard discipline aims at restoration, not only punishment. In scattering, God brings people to remember and turn to him.

Notice the purpose beneath God's hard word. This is a passage of judgment, hard and severe; and yet in the midst of it, God speaks of leaving a remnant, of preserving some who escape, and of a purpose in their scattering: that they would remember God among the nations, come to grieve and loathe the evils they had committed, and turn back to him. God's discipline, even when severe, was not aimed only at punishment, but at restoration, at bringing his people back to himself, to remembrance and repentance. This reveals something about God's heart even in his discipline. When God disciplines his people, even hard, it is often not merely to punish, but to bring them back, to break through their forgetfulness and turn them again to himself. The very hardship can be the means by which people, brought low, remember God, come to their senses, grieve their sin, and return. This can steady us in God's hard dealings with us. His discipline, painful as it may be, often aims not at our destruction but at our restoration, at bringing us back to himself when we have wandered. We can trust that even God's hard discipline is aimed at bringing us to remember him and turn back, not at destroying us. God's discipline aims to bring us back to himself, not to destroy us. Even hard hardship can be the means of remembering God and turning. God's severe dealings often aim at restoration. Trust that God's discipline seeks to bring you back to him.

That is worth taking to heart, for even in hard discipline, God works to bring people back to himself, to remember him and turn from sin, as he preserved a remnant who in their scattering would remember him and grieve their sin. We can experience God's discipline as only punishment, aimed at our harm; but even in this hard word, God's purpose was to preserve a remnant and bring them, in their scattering, to remember him and turn back. God's discipline aims at restoration. When God's dealings with you are hard, trust that they may aim not at your destruction but at bringing you back to him. Trust that even God's hard discipline often aims not at your destruction but at bringing you back to himself, to remember him and turn from sin, as even in a hard word of judgment God spoke of preserving a remnant who, scattered among the nations, would remember him and come to grieve and loathe the evils they had committed; for even in judgment God's purpose was not only punishment but restoration, to preserve a remnant and bring them in their scattering to remember him and turn back, which reveals something about God's heart even in his discipline, that when he disciplines his people, even hard, it is often not merely to punish but to bring them back, to break through their forgetfulness and turn them again to himself, so that the very hardship can be the means by which people, brought low, remember God, come to their senses, grieve their sin, and return, which can steady us in God's hard dealings with us, since his discipline, painful as it may be, often aims not at our destruction but at our restoration, at bringing us back to himself when we have wandered, so that we can trust that even God's hard discipline is aimed at bringing us to remember him and turn back, not at destroying us.

Lord, even in the midst of a hard word of judgment, you speak of preserving a remnant who, scattered among the nations, will remember you and turn from their sin. Yet I will leave a remnant, you say; those of you that escape will remember me among the nations where they are carried captive; then they will loathe themselves for the evils which they have committed. Even in judgment, your purpose was not only punishment but restoration: you would preserve a remnant, and in their scattering they would come to remember you, to grieve their sin, and to turn back. Your discipline aimed to bring people back to yourself. Show me the purpose beneath your hard word. This is a passage of judgment, hard and severe; and yet in the midst of it, you speak of leaving a remnant, and of a purpose in their scattering: that they would remember you among the nations, grieve the evils they had committed, and turn back. Your discipline, even when severe, was not aimed only at punishment, but at restoration, at bringing your people back to yourself. This reveals something about your heart even in your discipline. When you discipline your people, even hard, it is often not merely to punish, but to bring them back, to break through their forgetfulness and turn them again to yourself. The very hardship can be the means by which people, brought low, remember you, come to their senses, grieve their sin, and return. This can steady me in your hard dealings with me. Your discipline, painful as it may be, often aims not at my destruction but at my restoration. Take that to my heart, for even in hard discipline you work to bring people back to yourself. When your dealings with me are hard, help me trust that they may aim not at my destruction but at bringing me back to you, Lord, to remember you and turn from sin, rather than at destroying me, and let even hardship turn me again to you.