Ezekiel 8:13 says, He said also unto me, Turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations that they do. Ezekiel was then told by God to turn again, and he would see greater abominations that the people of Israel had done. Their wickedness could be seen all around him, and some of it was greater than others. We can see wickedness all around us today as Christians, but it should not be in the church.
Verse fourteen adds, Then he brought me to the door of the gate of the Lord's house which was toward the north; and, behold, there sat women weeping for Tammuz. God then brought Ezekiel to the gate of the Lord's house, and this time he saw women of Israel weeping for an idol. This was all taking place at the temple, God’s house. There are still women, and even men, today who cry when some person that they had idolized dies but who still have never accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord and cried because He had to die so that they could be forgiven. There are also some people who weep at the feet of idols that are false gods and not just someone that they idolize. Both of these things are an abomination to God, and we as God's people should not allow this to happen in our life. I am not saying that it is wrong to be sorrowful if someone we really admire dies, but we should never idolize them more than we do God.
Verse fifteen continues, Then said he unto me, Hast thou seen this, O son of man? turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations than these. God asked Ezekiel if he had seen these things, and then He told Ezekiel to turn once more and he would see greater abominations. Just because we have seen bad things happen in the world doesn’t mean that we will never see worse, but we should never see things in the church that are getting worse and worse. These were God’s chosen people who were guilty of these abominations because they had become His people in name only while chasing after other gods. We need to make sure that if we call ourselves Christians that we really are because we have a personal relationship with God by accepting Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord. There are some people today who call themselves Christian but the attempt to change the way one comes to God and even Who Jesus Christ was and is.
Verse sixteen states, And he brought me into the inner court of the Lord's house, and, behold, at the door of the temple of the Lord, between the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the temple of the Lord, and their faces toward the east; and they worshipped the sun toward the east, Ezekiel said that when God brought him into the inner court of the temple that he saw twenty-five men with their backs to the temple and facing east to worship the sun. Even inside the temple, men who were most likely priests were being disobedient to God. They had turned their back to God’s temple and were worshipping the sun and likely the stars well, and we as followers of Christ should never believe that the sun and stars somehow affect our lives. We need to worship God alone and if we do, He will always be with us.
Verse seventeen adds, Then he said unto me, Hast thou seen this, O son of man? Is it a light thing to the house of Judah that they commit the abominations which they commit here? for they have filled the land with violence, and have returned to provoke me to anger: and, lo, they put the branch to their nose. God asked Ezekiel if he had seen what the people were doing and then asked if it was a light thing that they were doing. God then stated that the people of Judah had filled the land with violence and had returned to anger Him. Matthew Henry says putting a branch up their nose could refer to giving a great affront to God by worshiping trees and using them in the temple while professing to worship God. We need to never allow false gods to be the ones we look to for help, and we certainly need to never bring false teachings into the church.
Verse eighteen continues, Therefore will I also deal in fury: mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity: and though they cry in mine ears with a loud voice, yet will I not hear them. God said it was too late for the people to call out to Him after He had called them to be His people and they had profaned His temple. I don’t believe that God was being unjust by saying He would no longer hear them since He had already given them ample opportunities to be obedient to Him and they had chosen not to. Their destruction came because of their rebellion against God and their becoming His people in name only. God will always give everyone ample opportunity to accept His gift of salvation, but if they don’t, they will one day face His judgment. Just as God said then that He would no longer hear them crying out to Him because they had ignored Him too long, there may come a day when it becomes too late for a person to accept God’s gift of salvation, and I know this is true after someone dies. God’s not hearing them was the result of their continuing to sin instead of repenting and being obedient to Him. If we continue to hear God's calling us to salvation but refuse to answer His call, there may come a day when He no longer calls, but He will never fail to give everyone ample opportunity to accept His gift of salvation by putting their faith in Jesus Christ.
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