Wherefore, O harlot, hear the word of the Lord: Thus saith the Lord
God; Because thy filthiness was poured out, and thy nakedness
discovered through thy whoredoms with thy lovers, and with all the
idols of thy abominations, and by the blood of thy children, which
thou didst give unto them; Behold, therefore I will gather all thy
lovers, with whom thou hast taken pleasure, and all them that thou
hast loved, with all them that thou hast hated; I will even gather
them round about against thee, and will discover thy nakedness unto
them, that they may see all thy nakedness. And I will judge thee, as
women that break wedlock and shed blood are judged; and I will give
thee blood in fury and jealousy. And I will also give thee into
their hand, and they shall throw down thine eminent place, and shall
break down thy high places: they shall strip thee also of thy
clothes, and shall take thy fair jewels, and leave thee naked and
bare. They shall also bring up a company against thee, and they
shall stone thee with stones, and thrust thee through with their
swords. And they shall burn thine houses with fire, and execute
judgments upon thee in the sight of many women: and I will cause
thee to cease from playing the harlot, and thou also shalt give no
hire any more. So will I make my fury toward thee to rest, and my
jealousy shall depart from thee, and I will be quiet, and will be no
more angry. Because thou hast not remembered the days of thy youth,
but hast fretted me in all these things; behold, therefore I also
will recompense thy way upon thine head, saith the Lord God: and
thou shalt not commit this lewdness above all thine abominations.
Behold, every one that useth proverbs shall use this proverb against
thee, saying, As is the mother, so is her daughter. Thou art thy
mother's daughter, that loatheth her husband and her children; and
thou art the sister of thy sisters, which loathed their husbands and
their children: your mother was an Hittite, and your father an
Amorite. And thine elder sister is Samaria, she and her daughters
that dwell at thy left hand: and thy younger sister, that dwelleth
at thy right hand is Sodom and her daughters. Yet hast thou not
walked after their ways, nor done after their abominations: but, as
if that were a very little thing, thou wast corrupted more than they
in all thy ways. As I live, saith the Lord God, Sodom thy sister
hath not done, she nor her daughters, as thou hast done, thou and
thy daughters. Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom,
pride, fulness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her and in
her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and
needy. And they were haughty, and committed abomination before me:
therefore I took them away as I saw good. Neither hath Samaria
committed half of thy sins; but thou hast multiplied thine
abominations more than they, and hast justified thy sisters in all
thine abominations which thou hast done. Thou also, which hast
judged thy sisters, bear thine own shame for thy sins that thou hast
committed more abominable than they: they are more righteous than
thou: yea, be thou confounded also, and bear thy shame, in that thou
hast justified thy sisters. When I shall bring again their
captivity, the captivity of Sodom and her daughters, and the
captivity of Samaria and her daughters, then will I bring again the
captivity of thy captives in the midst of them: That thou mayest
bear thine own shame, and mayest be confounded in all that thou hast
done, in that thou art a comfort unto them. When thy sisters, Sodom
and her daughters, shall return to their former estate, and Samaria
and her daughters shall return to their former estate, then thou and
thy daughters shall return to your former estate. For thy sister
Sodom was not mentioned by thy mouth in the day of thy pride. Before
thy wickedness was discovered, as at the time of thy reproach of the
daughters of Syria, and all that are round about her, the daughters
of the Philistines, which despise thee round about. Thou hast borne
thy lewdness and thine abominations, saith the Lord. For thus saith
the Lord God; I will even deal with thee as thou hast done, which
hast despised the oath in breaking the covenant (verses 35-59).
The Word of the Lord is now addressed not to the beloved city, but to
the harlot. She had committed the most awful spiritual fornication, with
which she had insulted Jehovah, and utterly rejected His love and mercy.
All the idols of abominations were found in her. The different nations
which surrounded the land were given to the most degrading idolatries,
and Jerusalem had not alone taken up this wicked idol worship, but she
became worse than the heathen which practised these things. "They did
after the abominations of the heathen which the Lord had cast out before
the children of Israel" (2 Kings xxi:2). Graven images were set up in
Jerusalem. Moloch service (sacrifice of children) became general.
Sorceries and demon-cults flourished. The vilest immoralities were
linked with all this false worship. Jerusalem had become a harlot in the
fullest sense of the word, a sink of iniquity. And her lovers, the
nations, whose idolatries she had accepted, would now be gathered
against her to be used in her judgment (verse 37). Her judgment would be
"as a woman that breaks wedlock," that is, an adulteress--"and I will
give thy blood in fury and jealousy" (verse 38). Stoning was the
judgment for a woman who committed adultery (Lev. xx:10; John viii:5).
Therefore the Lord said, "They shall also bring up a company against
thee, and they shall stone thee with stones and thrust thee through with
their swords" (verse 40). The judgment would be exhaustive upon her and
she would be caused to cease playing the harlot--"thou shalt also give
no hire any more" (verse 41). Without following the description of her
doom and Jehovah's scathing condemnation in detail, we turn to that
which is of much importance and interest. Samaria is mentioned and her
daughters as the elder sister of Jerusalem, and Sodom and her daughters
as her younger sister (verse 46). And though the corruption of Samaria
and Sodom were so great, yet Jerusalem "was corrupted more than they" in
all her ways. "As I live, saith the Lord God, Sodom thy sister hath not
done, she nor her daughters, as thou hast done, thou and thy daughters"
(verse 48). Samaria is called the elder sister, because the northern
kingdom was the larger; and Sodom is called the younger, because her
territory was smaller. The daughters mentioned in connection with each
has reference to the allied towns of Jerusalem, Samaria and the region
south of Jerusalem, where Sodom was the chief city. Then Sodom's sin is
mentioned. Pride stands first (verse 49); luxurious living, and then
followed abomination, and God took them away. After the sins of Samaria
are briefly rehearsed we find in this chapter the following words: "When
I shall bring again their captivity, the captivity of Sodom and her
daughters, and the captivity of Samaria and her daughters, then will I
bring again the captivity of thy captives in the midst of them" (verse
53). And again we read: "When thy sisters, Sodom and her daughters,
shall return to their former estate, and Samaria and her daughters shall
return to their former estate, then thou and thy daughters shall return
to your former estate" (verse 55). These two statements are used by a
certain class of teachers to back up their unscriptural theory of a
future restitution of the wicked dead. They say that these two passages
predict a restoration of Sodom and the other wicked cities which
perished in judgment by fire (Gen. xix), and also a restoration of
Samaria as well as Jerusalem, and upon this they built their hope that
all the wicked dead will be raised up and restored to a place of
blessing. They make therefore much of a restoration of the wicked dead
by resurrection.[13] Besides these two passages they also use the
following Old Testament scriptures to confirm their theory: Eze.
xxxvii:1-14; Hosea xiii:14; Jere. xlviii:47; Is. xxv:7-8, and others.
These passages are applied by these teachers to a restitution of the
wicked dead by resurrection. But this is the wrong interpretation. They
have nothing to do with the resurrection of the physical dead. They
refer to national resurrection and restoration. Three facts will show
the error of making the Old Testament teach the restoration of the
wicked dead:
_I. The Old Testament is not that part of the divine Revelation where
teachings and doctrines about the future state are given._
[13] Millennial Dawn, or Associated Bible Students, Restorationists,
etc., do this.
This is a most important fact. The Old Testament shows man as upon the
earth, on this side of death, and not beyond death. The future of Israel
on the earth, their supremacy and destiny of glory amidst the nations
of the earth, the judgments of God in the earth, as well as the future
blessings for the nations inhabiting the earth during the coming age,
are all clearly revealed in the Old Testament. The state after death,
that which is beyond this life, is shrouded in mystery in the Old
Testament Scriptures. That great judgment, the great white throne
judgment, is nowhere mentioned in the Old Testament, nor do we read a
word there of "the second death." Resurrection of the dead, no doubt,
was known to individual saints of Old Testament times; the Spirit of God
revealed it to their hearts, but as a doctrine, resurrection is not
found in the Old Testament. In Psalm xvi is revealed the hope of
resurrection of the body, and there is a prophecy of the resurrection of
our Lord.
_II. Should we find anything in the Old Testament concerning the future
state, the state of the righteous and the unrighteous after death, such
a hint or statement can only be rightly understood and interpreted by
the great doctrine concerning the future state as revealed in the New
Testament._
By this, of course, we do not say that the Old Testament needs
correction by the revelation of the New, nor do we say that the Old is
inferior to the New; all _is_ the Word of God. However, as the Old
Testament does not show man's condition after death, any passage which
appears to relate to such a condition must be interpreted by the full
light as given in the New Testament.
_III. If such passages as Ezekiel xvi:53 and Ezekiel xxxvii:1-14, etc.,
teach the restitution of the wicked by resurrection for another chance,
we must then find such a doctrine of the restoration of the wicked dead
for another chance to accept salvation most clearly and fully revealed
as one of the great doctrines of the New Testament._
In vain, however, do we look in the New Testament for such a
restoration--second probation doctrine. Such a doctrine is not even
hinted at in the New. However, the New Testament gives the fullest
revelation concerning resurrection and the future state. It tells us
that there is indeed a resurrection of the body for every human being.
This revelation of resurrection as contained in the New Testament leaves
no room whatever for the Sodomites and all the wicked idolatrous
Israelites, to be raised up for another chance. Our Lord in John v:29
reveals a two-fold resurrection, a resurrection unto life and a
resurrection unto damnation. The human race, those who have died, are
therefore in resurrection divided into two classes: they must come forth
either unto life or unto damnation; there is no middle class. Later the
New Testament teaches a first resurrection, an out resurrection from the
dead. Only those who have believed and died in Christ will have a share
in this resurrection. Both Old and New Testament saints belong to it,
but none have a part in it who died in their sins. The rest of the dead,
meaning of course, the wicked dead, are not raised up till after the
thousand years. This is a second resurrection and this takes place not
when the Lord comes the second time, but after His millennial reign
(Rev. xx). The subjects of this second resurrection appear before the
great white throne and are cast into the lake of fire. Now, these
teachers claim that the return of Sodom and Samaria to their former
estate means their resurrection for another chance when the Lord comes.
But as these departed wicked people are wicked still, how can they have
part in the first resurrection when the Lord comes, which is the
resurrection of the righteous?
They surely cannot belong to this resurrection. And there is nowhere in
the New Testament a word about another special resurrection in which all
the wicked are raised from dead for another chance. After the
resurrection of the righteous dead there is but one more resurrection,
the resurrection of the wicked unto damnation. In the light of these
facts the flimsy theory built upon misapplied texts of the Old
Testament, texts which relate to national restoration and blessing,
breaks down completely. And now having seen what the statements in this
chapter of Ezekiel do not mean, let us see what is their meaning. While
these statements cannot mean the resurrection of individuals, they mean
a _national_ restoration. There is promised in many passages of the Old
Testament a national restoration of Israel. The ten tribes are to be
brought back to their former possessions. Historically they have been
lost.[14] But they are not lost to God. He knows where they are. He has
kept track of them, and in His own time He will make good the promises
of their restoration and will bring back the remnants of the house of
Israel, now scattered still among the nations. The Jews will also be
restored to their territory. Repeatedly this national restoration of the
ancient people is promised under the picture of a resurrection. But to
other nations there is also promised such a national restoration in the
days to come, when the Lord comes and begins His Kingdom reign over the
earth. Such a national revival is beyond a doubt promised for a future
day to Moab, Ammon, Assyria and Egypt. Edom and Babylon, however, are
doomed as nations and no revival whatever is promised to them.
[14] The so-called Anglo-Israel theory lacks all Scriptural and
historical support.
We do not know of course how God will accomplish these promises of
restoration and national revivals, and how He will gather the remnants
of these former nations from the great sea of nations. We can leave this
and other difficulties with Him who will see to the fulfillment of all
these things.
And so there is promised not alone a return of Samaria to her former
estate, but also to Sodom and the cities which were wiped out by
judgment. Here is the difficulty which is used to prove that a literal
resurrection of the wicked Sodomites must be meant. Were they not all
totally destroyed? How then can there be a national restoration when
they all perished? But while it is true that all who were in Sodom and
the other cities perished, we do not know how many of the inhabitants of
these prosperous cities, thickly populated, no doubt, happened to be
away from home, on journeys or outside of the doomed district, and thus
escaped the fate of others. God knows all this and keeps track of all.
There is certainly promised a healing for the territory occupied by
Sodom and her sister cities. The vision of the stream issuing from the
temple (Ex. xlvii) is seen emptying into the sea, which is the Dead Sea,
"and the waters shall be healed and everything shall live whithersoever
the river cometh." See also Zechariah xiv:8. And what else it may mean
we do not know. But of one thing we can be assured, it does _not_ mean
the resurrection of the wicked Sodomites for a second chance, for we
know that they are "suffering the vengeance of eternal fire" (Jude 7).