58 Reasons to Take Note

Scripture Verse that Caught my attention today: Ezekiel 29:6 Then all the inhabitants of Egypt shall know
that I am the LORD
because you were a staff of reed
to the house of Israel;

Observation: It seemed like the phrase “shall know the Lord” comes kept coming up in today’s readings. So I got out my concordance and found that that phrase occurs 58 times in Ezekiel! It only occurs 10 other times in the entire Bible (7 times in Exodus, 2 times in 1 Kings, and one time in Isaiah). Usually it’s preceded by the word “they” or by the word “you.”

Application: It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see a theme here! The God of the Old Testament was facing an identity crisis of sorts; this God, apparently, was not readily recognized by the people. Furthermore, people were taking pride in themselves and their circumstances as if they deserved it. And so there was both the threat and plan for lots of destruction. After all of this, God thought, surely “all the inhabitants of Egypt shall know that I am the Lord.”

Please understand that I mean no disrespect when I comment that, it appears, either God thought wrong or the prophet misrepresented God. From history we know that some people later learned to know God as the Lord, but many did not. Destruction in and of itself is not always convincing as a proof of God’s existence or a compelling introduction to God.

It’s little wonder, then, that God later chose the opposite tactic—Love. The most famous New Testament passage of all tells us that “God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son…”

Admittedly, even this tactic hasn’t totally won the world over—at least not quite yet. There are still many who do not know who is the Lord. But I must say that I find the love approach—especially as it is embodied in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus—to be a much more compelling witness.

Prayer: Lord, you so dearly desire that we might know you as Lord. Please help us along in that regard, not just in recognizing you as such, but in knowing and following you as such. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

(Scripture Readings today included: Ezekiel 29-32 and Revelation 11)