When God takes away the "delight of our eyes"
(Base text: Ezekiel 24: 15 to 27)
How many times do we lose things, people, pleasant moments in life, due to the omniscient will of God? Precisely what we loved and wanted most, causing pain and suffering. What we don't understand is the main purpose of each situation, the why and what for everything that happened. And through our inquiries and indignation, we began to ''blame'' God for the non-happening of the facts as we wanted, that is, according to OUR WILL.
Verse 15 "The word of the Lord came to me, saying:
16 Son of man, behold, I will suddenly take away the delight of your eyes, but you shall not wail, nor cry, nor shall tears flow.
The prophet Ezekiel, in chapter 24, could have reacted like this, asking God, becoming indignant, not accepting the terrible situation through which God allowed him to go through; namely, the death of his beloved wife. The Bible says that she was considered by him as the 'delight of his eyes', thus conjecturing the size of the love he felt for her. If God said that Ezequiel's wife was the delight or desire of his eyes, it is because there was a very strong and beautiful feeling in the prophet's INTIMUS. It was God himself who called it that! He knows everything, including the heart. Just imagine, for a woman, to be recognized like that by a man? How she must have been loved! History shows that his wife died suddenly, suddenly. But God had revealed it to him before, he had given him the word. When God wants to accomplish something in our lives, He prepares us in advance. Ezequiel was prepared by God to face the difficult situation. And this preparation can happen in 2 ways: By revealing the word of God or imperceptibly in life's situations; i.e. His dealing with us in some way.
We are enveloped in life by various kinds of "delights" or "pleasures" (as it is written in some translations). It could be our car, our job, son, daughter, husband, wife, house, parents, siblings, friends, etc. I don't know. But God KNOWS WHAT YOU ASK. In the Old Testament, God repeatedly tested the faith of His prophets, giving them seemingly absurd commands. In the case of Abraham, for example, God commanded him to sacrifice Isaac, the son of promise. Abraham was willing to obey, and at the “H” hour God saved Isaac from being immolated. Abraham's faith was tested without bloodshed!
Vers 17 ' ' Groan in silence, do not mourn for the dead, fasten your turban, put your sandals on your feet, do not cover your whiskers and do not eat the bread they send you.
18 I spoke to the people in the morning, and in the evening my wife died; the next morning I did as I was told.”
But the most interesting thing about this story and what we should pay attention to is Ezequiel's obedience to God's instructions regarding that terrible moment he was going through. In the face of all the PAIN he felt, he was directed to suffer QUIET. It was practically forbidden by God to watch over his own wife! And we can ask ourselves: Why would God have given him this “crazy” direction? This is where His sovereignty and will come in: God wanted to test Ezekiel's character and make this death and the prophet's reaction to it serve as a witness to the people of Israel. The Israelites were immersed in sins, idolatries and corruptions, and God wanted to "warn them" about what would happen to the Temple of Jerusalem, to the city itself and to their relatives.
Then you may wonder: But would God use the pain, the tragedy of a person's life to warn a stubborn people? The answer is yes! The Bible says, in Romans 8:28, that ''All things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.'' Therefore, God will always allow bad events to prove and show His fidelity. Do you think He abandoned Ezequiel right at the worst moment of his life? Of course not! He was there, sustaining him, strengthening him, and most importantly, USING him! It is in the worst moments of our lives that He gives us the greatest revelations, the best words.
OBS.: Meaning of the name Ezequiel: ''God strengthens''.
Prophet has no history, he has TESTIMONY.*
Let's understand some orders given to Ezekiel by God:
1. ''Moan in silence'' - God was proving his obedience and at the same time saying: ''Stay firm, endure, for I am sustaining you.''
2. ' ' Do not mourn for the dead ' ' - God wanted him not to regret the past.
3. ''Strap your turban'' - Turban talks about public demonstration of his mood. The turban is a cloth 45 meters long, widely used in the Middle East by Muslims. Its innumerable ways of tying represent a kind of popular language; it can indicate a social position, a tribe to which the person belongs or even their mood. God wanted Ezequiel to keep a low profile in front of people and not expose his feelings; that is, he would guard his heart.
4. ''Put your sandals on your feet'' - Sandals talk about wearing the gospel of peace. The prophet should continue his spiritual walk.
5. ''Don't cover your mustaches'' - Mustache speaks of social importance. Ezekiel was a prophet and God wanted him to be respected by the people. Historically, the mustache is a facial feature that tends to identify different cultures. Its use demonstrated, in the 19th and 20th centuries, socio-economic ostentation and had obligatory use among men of great importance in those times.
6. ''Do not eat the bread they send you'' - Bread is spiritual food. And God orders Ezekiel not to eat the “bread” offered by the people, which was the result of inquiry and indignation.
Vers 19 ' ' Then the people said to me: Will you not make us know what these things mean that you are doing?
20 And I said to them, The word of the LORD came to me, saying,
21 Say to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I will profane my sanctuary, the glory of your strength, the desire of your eyes, and the desire of your souls; and your sons and your daughters whom you have left behind will fall by the sword.
22 And ye shall do as I have done; you shall not cover your whiskers, nor shall you eat the bread they command you.
23 And your turbans shall be on your heads, and your shoes on your feet; ye shall not wail nor weep, but pine away in your iniquities, and groan with one another.
24 Thus shall Ezekiel be a sign unto you; according to all that he did, will you do; when this happens, you will know that I am the Lord GOD.”
The public mourning procedure was common at that time, so they asked him, they considered his attitude to be impious, but Ezequiel explained that his wife represented the Temple, “the delight of their eyes”, which would be profaned, that is, destroyed by the Chaldeans , and their relatives would also be killed. And just as he did not publicly weep for his wife, neither should they publicly mourn the destruction of the Temple. Rather, they should weep for their sins. We often go through afflictions, difficulties, whatever the area, with the purpose of serving as living testimonies before God and men, of being tested in our character and love for Him, of learning to obey Him. God's omniscience is unreachable. The Bible says, in Isaiah 55:9, that ''His thoughts and His ways are higher than ours.'' When God gives us direction, we should instantly obey it. The prophet clearly demonstrated this attitude. He had to let go of all the pain he felt without worrying about what people would think or say about his situation. Many people, at certain times, will ask you why you didn't react in such a way, why you didn't say this, why didn't you say that, why did God allow you to go through that?, Why you, who are so faithful to God , lost his wife so? But, maintain your posture of obedience to God's order, because it will yield you, in the future, very rewarding fruits!
*Time is the best conflict solver.*
Verse 25 ''Son of man, shall it not happen that on the day I take away their pride, their joy, their glory, the delight of their eyes and the desire of their soul, and their children and their daughters,
26 on that day, will anyone who escapes come to you to tell you the news in person?
27 In that day your mouth will be opened to him who escapes; you will speak and you will no longer be silent. So you will be a sign to them, and they will know that I am the LORD.”
If God tells you to shut up at certain times, shut up. There are always specific situations that He will use you to help someone with the same problem, with the same pain, to confront or prophesy about that person's life. As with Ezekiel, we will be the SIGN of God's omniscience, omnipotence and faithfulness. At the right time He will command you to open your mouth!
SOURCE: https://karenborba.webnode.com.br/news/quando-deus-nos-tira-a-delicia-dos-nossos-olhos/