Eze 23:11-35 | KingComments | STEP | Jerusalem (and Judah) has not let the terrifying example of Samaria and Israel keep them from going the same sinful way ( ). In fact, she has surpassed her sister in wickedness. Her passion leads her to act even more perniciously than her sister. Like Samaria, Judah has sought help from Assyria ( ), because she too has become enchanted with what Assyria has to offer ( ; ). The LORD perceives how she has defiled herself by associating with Assyria and adopting its idolatry ( ). Thus both sisters, Oholah and Oholibah, continue on the same path of evil, away from the LORD. Jerusalem does not limit herself to Assyria. She also comes under the temptation of the Chaldeans or Babylonians ( ). She sees the images of Chaldeans, portraits, engraved in the wall according to Babylonian custom. The red color of vermilion makes it appealing and attractive. The men depicted wear with pride the clothes of Babylon ( ). The advertisement works enchanting. Jerusalem instantly falls in love when she sees it with her own eyes ( ). Covetousness comes through seeing. It is the cause of the fall into sin ( ; ). Advertising still works the same way today. Jerusalem sends envoys to Babylon to ally with her. For a people who have the LORD as their God, this mission is deeply shameful. This mission is a great dishonor to God. In doing so, Jerusalem commits spiritual unfaithfulness that is equivalent to harlotry ( ). She defiles herself by this act. Sharing the love bed possibly also refers to worshiping the idols of Babylon, which we see in the word “harlotry”. Then she becomes disgusted with Babylon because Babylon’s love is over and Babylon treats her harshly. But when Babylon notices that Jerusalem seeks help from Egypt during the reign of Jehoiakim and Zedekiah ( ; ), Babylon turns against Jerusalem. Shameless harlotries or idolatry has the effect that God also turns away from Jerusalem with disgust ( ). He cannot stand the fact that she, whom He has taken for a wife, behaves like a vulgar harlot who bares her body for any man. Jerusalem keeps on playing the harlot and multiplies her harlotries by making new contacts, now with Egypt ( ). She seeks help from Egypt against the supremacy of Babylon. As a result, she comes to adopt the customs of Egypt. Judah imitates Samaria in this ( ). Also in Jerusalem, the ‘infatuations’ of the past reappear ( ). The Egyptians are compared to “donkeys” and “horses”, animals known for their fiery sex drive. For the gratification of that animal kind, Jerusalem makes itself available. Then Ezekiel addresses Jerusalem directly (“thus you longed for”). He reminds her of her past shameful lusts and accuses her of allowing those feelings to gain the upper hand over her again ( ). It is a warning to us: if past sins, especially sexual ones, are not radically judged as sin, sooner or later they will take hold of us again (cf. ). In the magazine ‘Live’, April/May 2013 issue, I read an article on ‘first impressions’ in which “remembering the days of her youth” ( ) has a current application. The article quotes something from the popular science magazine ‘Weet Magazine’. It concerns a remarkable quote from a lawyer, specializing in divorce, on April 24, 2010, in the daily Dutch newspaper ‘de Telegraaf’. After estimating the significant increase in divorces in the first quarter of 2010 at about 20%, this lawyer says: ‘The number of divorces has been increasing for years, partly because people are cheating more often and because of the rise of the Internet. As a result, old lovers suddenly reappear, with far-reaching consequences.’ Old loves with ‘first impressions’ that have not been forgotten, have not been discarded, and flare up again …

‏ Ezekiel 23:11-35

The Sin of Oholibah

Jerusalem (and Judah) has not let the terrifying example of Samaria and Israel keep them from going the same sinful way (Eze 23:11). In fact, she has surpassed her sister in wickedness. Her passion leads her to act even more perniciously than her sister.

Like Samaria, Judah has sought help from Assyria (2Kgs 16:7), because she too has become enchanted with what Assyria has to offer (Eze 23:12; Eze 23:6). The LORD perceives how she has defiled herself by associating with Assyria and adopting its idolatry (Eze 23:13). Thus both sisters, Oholah and Oholibah, continue on the same path of evil, away from the LORD.

Jerusalem does not limit herself to Assyria. She also comes under the temptation of the Chaldeans or Babylonians (Eze 23:14). She sees the images of Chaldeans, portraits, engraved in the wall according to Babylonian custom. The red color of vermilion makes it appealing and attractive. The men depicted wear with pride the clothes of Babylon (Eze 23:15). The advertisement works enchanting. Jerusalem instantly falls in love when she sees it with her own eyes (Eze 23:16). Covetousness comes through seeing. It is the cause of the fall into sin (Gen 3:6; 1Jn 2:16). Advertising still works the same way today.

Jerusalem sends envoys to Babylon to ally with her. For a people who have the LORD as their God, this mission is deeply shameful. This mission is a great dishonor to God. In doing so, Jerusalem commits spiritual unfaithfulness that is equivalent to harlotry (Eze 23:17). She defiles herself by this act. Sharing the love bed possibly also refers to worshiping the idols of Babylon, which we see in the word “harlotry”. Then she becomes disgusted with Babylon because Babylon’s love is over and Babylon treats her harshly. But when Babylon notices that Jerusalem seeks help from Egypt during the reign of Jehoiakim and Zedekiah (Jer 37:5-8; Eze 17:12-15), Babylon turns against Jerusalem.

Shameless harlotries or idolatry has the effect that God also turns away from Jerusalem with disgust (Eze 23:18). He cannot stand the fact that she, whom He has taken for a wife, behaves like a vulgar harlot who bares her body for any man.

Jerusalem keeps on playing the harlot and multiplies her harlotries by making new contacts, now with Egypt (Eze 23:19). She seeks help from Egypt against the supremacy of Babylon. As a result, she comes to adopt the customs of Egypt. Judah imitates Samaria in this (Eze 23:3 ; 8). Also in Jerusalem, the ‘infatuations’ of the past reappear (Eze 23:20). The Egyptians are compared to “donkeys” and “horses”, animals known for their fiery sex drive. For the gratification of that animal kind, Jerusalem makes itself available.

Then Ezekiel addresses Jerusalem directly (“thus you longed for”). He reminds her of her past shameful lusts and accuses her of allowing those feelings to gain the upper hand over her again (Eze 23:21). It is a warning to us: if past sins, especially sexual ones, are not radically judged as sin, sooner or later they will take hold of us again (cf. Eph 4:17-19).

In the magazine ‘Live’, April/May 2013 issue, I read an article on ‘first impressions’ in which “remembering the days of her youth” (Eze 23:19) has a current application. The article quotes something from the popular science magazine ‘Weet Magazine’. It concerns a remarkable quote from a lawyer, specializing in divorce, on April 24, 2010, in the daily Dutch newspaper ‘de Telegraaf’. After estimating the significant increase in divorces in the first quarter of 2010 at about 20%, this lawyer says: ‘The number of divorces has been increasing for years, partly because people are cheating more often and because of the rise of the Internet. As a result, old lovers suddenly reappear, with far-reaching consequences.’

Old loves with ‘first impressions’ that have not been forgotten, have not been discarded, and flare up again …

Judgment on Oholibah

“Therefore” (Eze 23:22) refers to the unfaithfulness mentioned in the previous verses. The LORD will, as punishment for that unfaithfulness, set against her the nations from whom she has previously sought help. The LORD says who those are (Eze 23:23). They are the Babylonians and the Assyrians, with some nomadic tribes, whom she has so admired (Eze 23:6), but against whom she has also rebelled again. They will come against Jerusalem with great military display and set themselves against her from all sides (Eze 23:24). They will be given power by the LORD to execute judgment on Jerusalem. They will do so in accordance with the customs of the nations she has adopted.

Through the former lovers, the LORD will make Jerusalem feel His jealousy (Eze 23:25). He acts like a jealous husband who has been cheated by his wife in the lowest way. For this He is so wroth that He will bring His anger down on the city through the enemies. They will mutilate Jerusalem, make it hideous. Those who remain alive in the city will fall by the sword or be taken. Jerusalem will be deprived of all that is graceful and she will be displayed naked (Eze 23:26).

That punishment will have the result that she will cease behaving shamefully and playing the harlot (Eze 23:27). She will no longer think of an adulterous relationship with Egypt. That she will no longer think of Egypt is not because she has come to repentance. It is because the LORD has delivered her up to her enemies and she has lost all attractiveness because of her deformity. In particular, she need not think any more of Egypt, which is not interested in a stripped and disheveled Jerusalem.

Eze 23:28-30 repeat in other words, what has already been said in Eze 23:22-27. The LORD is so repulsed by her behavior that He presents her with her sins once again. He has to because she is so stubborn. He gives her over to the power of peoples she hates and from whom she sought to tear herself away (Eze 23:28). Those nations, driven by hatred, will treat her shamefully, and will take away everything from her and leave her poor and destitute (Eze 23:29).

She brought this judgment upon herself by her own disgraceful behavior toward the LORD (Eze 23:30). She has offended Him to the depths of His soul by seeking support in political alliances with the neighboring nations. That lewd connection has manifested itself in the worship of the stink gods of those heathen peoples. What an insult to Him!

Thus, Jerusalem has gone the same way as her sister Samaria (Eze 23:31). Therefore, Jerusalem will suffer the same judgment as Samaria; only it will be carried out by a different people. She will have to drink the cup of the wrath of God when the city is invaded by the Babylonians, just as Samaria drank that cup in her removal by the Assyrians.

This judgment is placed before the attention of Jerusalem once more in a song (Eze 23:32). The fate of Jerusalem will not provoke pity, but jeers and mockery. The cup of God’s wrath is filled to the brim. The enemies will note with gloating that the cup she is given to drink is well full, that severely she is punished. The cup is so full that whoever drinks it will be filled with drunkenness (Eze 23:33). This drunkenness will not result in ‘pleasantness’, but in great and bitter suffering. Jerusalem can check with her sister Samaria to see what drinking that cup means.

Jerusalem will drink that cup and will drink it and drain it (Eze 23:34). The punished harlot, who used to become drunk in committing her shameful fornication with lust, will now become drunk and insane with pain and grief when she has to drink the cup of God’s wrath to the last drop. Out of her mind with pain, she will bite the cup to pieces; with the fragments, she will rip open her breasts, with which she used to please her lovers. The Lord GOD has personally spoken this word and therefore it will happen.

Once again, the cause of this disciplinary action is emphatically presented to Jerusalem (Eze 23:35). She has forgotten the LORD. That ignoring of the LORD is a guilty forgetting. It is the source of the misery. However, she has gone even further and cast Him contemptuously behind her back, thereby demonstrating how worthless she finds Him, not worth paying any attention to anymore. What she now faces are the consequences of her own sins.