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Ezekiel 14: Idols of the Heart

Elders come to inquire of God while clinging to idols in their hearts, and the LORD reveals that even the most righteous can save only their own souls.

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Ezekiel 14 (WEB)

1 Then came certain of the elders of Israel to me, and sat before me.

2 Yahweh’s word came to me, saying,

3 Son of man, these men have taken their idols into their heart, and put the stumbling block of their iniquity before their face: should I be inquired of at all by them?

4 Therefore speak to them, and tell them, Thus says the Lord Yahweh: Every man of the house of Israel who takes his idols into his heart, and puts the stumbling block of his iniquity before his face, and comes to the prophet; I Yahweh will answer him therein according to the multitude of his idols;

5 that I may take the house of Israel in their own heart, because they are all estranged from me through their idols.

6 Therefore tell the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord Yahweh: Return, and turn yourselves from your idols; and turn away your faces from all your abominations.

7 For everyone of the house of Israel, or of the strangers who live in Israel, who separates himself from me, and takes his idols into his heart, and puts the stumbling block of his iniquity before his face, and comes to the prophet to inquire for himself of me; I Yahweh will answer him by myself:

8 and I will set my face against that man, and will make him an astonishment, for a sign and a proverb, and I will cut him off from the midst of my people; and you shall know that I am Yahweh.

9 If the prophet is deceived and speak a word, I, Yahweh, have deceived that prophet, and I will stretch out my hand on him, and will destroy him from the midst of my people Israel.

10 They shall bear their iniquity: the iniquity of the prophet shall be even as the iniquity of him who seeks him;

11 that the house of Israel may go no more astray from me, neither defile themselves any more with all their transgressions; but that they may be my people, and I may be their God, says the Lord Yahweh.

12 Yahweh’s word came to me, saying,

13 Son of man, when a land sins against me by committing a trespass, and I stretch out my hand on it, and break the staff of its bread, and send famine on it, and cut off from it man and animal;

14 though these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they should deliver but their own souls by their righteousness, says the Lord Yahweh.

15 If I cause evil animals to pass through the land, and they ravage it, and it be made desolate, so that no man may pass through because of the animals;

16 though these three men were in it, as I live, says the Lord Yahweh, they should deliver neither sons nor daughters; they only should be delivered, but the land should be desolate.

17 Or if I bring a sword on that land, and say, Sword, go through the land; so that I cut off from it man and animal;

18 though these three men were in it, as I live, says the Lord Yahweh, they should deliver neither sons nor daughters, but they only should be delivered themselves.

19 Or if I send a pestilence into that land, and pour out my wrath on it in blood, to cut off from it man and animal;

20 though Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, as I live, says the Lord Yahweh, they should deliver neither son nor daughter; they should but deliver their own souls by their righteousness.

21 For thus says the Lord Yahweh: How much more when I send my four severe judgments on Jerusalem, the sword, and the famine, and the evil animals, and the pestilence, to cut off from it man and animal!

22 Yet, behold, therein shall be left a remnant that shall be carried out, both sons and daughters: behold, they shall come out to you, and you shall see their way and their doings; and you shall be comforted concerning the evil that I have brought on Jerusalem, even concerning all that I have brought on it.

23 They shall comfort you, when you see their way and their doings; and you shall know that I have not done without cause all that I have done in it, says the Lord Yahweh.

Summary

Certain elders of Israel come and sit before Ezekiel to inquire of the LORD, but God exposes them: these men have taken their idols into their hearts and set the stumbling block of their iniquity before their faces. God refuses to be inquired of on their terms, declaring that if such a man comes, the LORD himself will answer him "according to the multitude of his idols" so as to seize the heart that is estranged from him. Yet he tenderly calls the whole house of Israel to "Return, and turn yourselves from your idols" and turn their faces from all their abominations. A prophet who is deceived and the one who consults him will both bear their iniquity, so that Israel may stop straying and again be God's people and he their God. Then God presents a sobering principle: when a land sins grievously and he sends his judgments, even Noah, Daniel, and Job, were they present, could deliver only their own souls by their righteousness, not their sons or daughters. He applies this to Jerusalem, against which he will send his four severe judgments, the sword, famine, evil animals, and pestilence. Yet a remnant of sons and daughters will be carried out and come to the exiles, and when they see the conduct of that remnant, the exiles will be comforted, knowing God has not acted without cause.

Key Figures

  • The elders of Israel — Leaders who sit before the prophet to inquire of God while harboring idols in their hearts and stumbling blocks before their faces.
  • Noah, Daniel, and Job — Three famed righteous men named as a measure; even together they could deliver only their own souls in a land ripe for judgment.
  • Yahweh (the LORD) — The God who searches the heart, refuses idolatrous inquiry, calls his people to return, yet preserves a comforting remnant.

Key Verse

Ezekiel 14:6 (WEB)

Therefore tell the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord Yahweh: Return, and turn yourselves from your idols; and turn away your faces from all your abominations.

Lessons Learned

  • God reads the heart; outward worship means nothing while idols are secretly enthroned within.
  • We cannot lean on the righteousness of others to cover our own rebellion; faith and obedience are personal.
  • The LORD's call to "return" is always open, even to those whose hearts have wandered into idolatry.
  • God's judgments are never without cause, and a watching remnant can comfort the grieving by vindicating his justice.
  • Idols of the heart corrupt our worship. These men "have taken their idols into their heart, and put the stumbling block of their iniquity before their face" (Ezekiel 14:3, WEB), so their inquiry of God is hollow.
  • God answers us according to our true devotion. The LORD will answer the idolater "according to the multitude of his idols" (Ezekiel 14:4, WEB), giving the heart over to what it has chosen, to expose and reclaim it.
  • Righteousness is not transferable. Even Noah, Daniel, and Job "should deliver but their own souls by their righteousness" (Ezekiel 14:14, WEB). No one is saved by borrowing another's faith.
  • God's justice can be seen and trusted. When the remnant's ways are seen, "you shall know that I have not done without cause all that I have done" (Ezekiel 14:23, WEB). His judgments will one day be vindicated before all.
  1. What secret problem does God expose in the elders who come to inquire of him (14:3)?
  2. What does it mean that God will answer a person "according to the multitude of his idols" (14:4)?
  3. Why does God name Noah, Daniel, and Job, and what does their example teach about personal responsibility?
  4. How can the surviving remnant bring "comfort" to the exiles concerning Jerusalem's judgment (14:22-23)?
  5. What "idols of the heart" can quietly occupy the place of God in your own life, and how might you turn from them?
  1. They have "taken their idols into their heart" and set "the stumbling block of their iniquity" before their faces (14:3). They want guidance from God while their affections belong to other gods, so their religion is a contradiction God will not honor.
  2. God gives them an answer that matches their divided hearts, exposing the idolatry they tried to hide and confronting them with the truth of what they truly worship (14:4-5). Mercy aims to "take the house of Israel in their own heart" and bring them back.
  3. They were known as outstandingly righteous, yet even they could save only themselves, not even their own children, in a thoroughly corrupt land (14:14, 16, 20). Each soul stands before God on its own; we cannot coast on another's holiness.
  4. When the exiles see the conduct of those carried out of Jerusalem, they will understand the depth of the city's sin and recognize that God acted justly, not arbitrarily (14:22-23). Seeing his righteousness comforts the grieving heart.
  5. This is a gentle personal-application question. Encourage members to name, perhaps silently, anything that has crept into the heart's throne, security, approval, control, comfort, and to hear God's tender call to "Return" (14:6) without shame.

Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible (WEB), the King James Version (KJV), and the American Standard Version (ASV), all of which are in the public domain.