The Hand of God Appears in Exile -- Ezek 1:1-3

"And it came to pass in [the] thirtieth year in the fourth [month] in the fifth to [the] month that I was in the midst of the exiles on the river Kebar. The heavens were opened and I saw visions of God. On the fifth of the month—it [was] the fifth year to [the] exile of King Jehoiakin—[it] happened [that] the word of YHWH was to Ezekiel the priest, son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans on the river Kebar. And the hand of YHWH was to him there" (Ezek 1:1-3).

I have just started a new study in the book of Ezekiel and will be passing along comments and meditations on the passages as I go through them personally. My hope is that these comments will bless others as they help me to synthesize my own thoughts and research. People like me sometimes get so deep into study that they forget why they were studying in the first place! I am hoping that God will use this blog to help us all position ourselves to be doers of the word of God and not just hearers only.

I surmise that most readers (who are brave enough to read the Prophets) skip over Ezek 1:1–3 quickly and do not consider what God might be saying to them through this portion of the Scripture. Dates and times aren't very interesting for many of us, and the river Chebar in land of the Chaldeans seems like something one might read about in The Princess Bride or The Never-Ending Story. Is it possible that God included these verses for more than background?

I believe these verses teach us a quick lesson in God's character as one who seeks to bestow grace. The exile was nothing less than the Israelites' deserved punishment for some horrific sins, as we will see later in the vision of the departure of God's glory from the temple. When Ezekiel states that "the word of YHWH was to Ezekiel the priest" and "the hand of YHWH was to him there," we see twice that God's attention was still focused on his exiled people. God was not content to let the exiles languish in captivity (cf. Ps 137). He gave his revelation and extended his power (his hand) to his people.

Isn't it shocking how often God initiates transformative interaction with us? We don't know whether the exiles were praying to God for his revelation, but the immediate history of the Israelites should lead us to think that such prayer was minimal at best. When our prayer lives and our fellowship with God are lacking, God often rescues us from our malaise by sending a friend, an encouraging report, a stirring occurrence, or a conviction of soul. We should thank God that he communicates with us in this way and doesn't give us the "silent treatment." It's nice to be freed from captivity.