Quiet Time:Ezekiel's Wife Dies

Ezekiel Chapter 24
15 The word of the LORD came to me: 16 "Son of man, with one blow I am about to take away from you the delight of your eyes. Yet do not lament or weep or shed any tears. 17 Groan quietly; do not mourn for the dead. Keep your turban fastened and your sandals on your feet; do not cover the lower part of your face or eat the customary food of mourners ."
18 So I spoke to the people in the morning, and in the evening my wife died. The next morning I did as I had been commanded.

19 Then the people asked me, "Won't you tell us what these things have to do with us?"

20 So I said to them, "The word of the LORD came to me: 21 Say to the house of Israel, 'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I am about to desecrate my sanctuary—the stronghold in which you take pride, the delight of your eyes, the object of your affection. The sons and daughters you left behind will fall by the sword. 22 And you will do as I have done. You will not cover the lower part of your face or eat the customary food of mourners . 23 You will keep your turbans on your heads and your sandals on your feet. You will not mourn or weep but will waste away because of [a] your sins and groan among yourselves. 24 Ezekiel will be a sign to you; you will do just as he has done. When this happens, you will know that I am the Sovereign LORD.'

25 "And you, son of man, on the day I take away their stronghold, their joy and glory, the delight of their eyes, their heart's desire, and their sons and daughters as well- 26 on that day a fugitive will come to tell you the news. 27 At that time your mouth will be opened; you will speak with him and will no longer be silent. So you will be a sign to them, and they will know that I am the LORD."

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It's funny, man learn their lesson by experiencing the failure and by hitting the walls. Man don't listen, we refuse to listen. What a heartbreaking experience for Ezekiel. God allowed his wife to die. And he was commanded not to openly grieve for her death. How bitter it is to not be able to grieve and express ones sorrow at the lost of his love one. Sometimes, the emotional pain surpasses that of a physically one. You can literally feel a cut in your heart and around the chest area, as though it was a physical pain. I have experience both physical and emotion pain.

At Cherating, Kuantan west Malaysia, I got stung by jellyfish (or jellyfishes) on my arms, across my chest, part pf my ab and parts of my thigh. The most severely affected area is my right fore arm. It was as though someone is constantly pouring boiling water on my forearms, with electric shock sensation all together. The pain was overwhelming. I felt giddy and I though I almost passed out. I couldn't think properly nor talk. All my attention were diverted to my arms.Tears trickled down my cheeks uncontrollably.

I will share some, but not all, of my emotionally pain, the kind of emotional pain that I mentioned earlier. First was the lost of my grandfather a couple of years ago. At the funeral wake and weeks after his death, I think about him all the time. I think about him before i sleep, at the instant I woke up, while walking to the MRT.

2ndly, the death of my beloved dog, Mao Mao. He has been with my family for about 15 years. He was a part of the family. I remember how his health deteriorate to a point that my family decide to put him to sleep. We figure he'd suffer less. When I received the sms from my eldest sister that Mao Mao is gone, I wept. It hits me real hard, like a cut in my heart.

Back to the bible. He lost Jerusalem his bride just like how Ezekiel lost his wife. God could relate to Ezekiel. God was grieved but he had no choice but to sent them to exile in Babylon. Jerusalem was deeply in sin. They were beyond the point of no return. God had to resort to teach them the hard way, since they wouldn't repent nor response to God's messenger by ways of the prophets. It was in their exile did Jerusalem learn, repent and turn their hearts back to Him.