In the last chapter we saw that God's judgment was upon seven nations surrounding the nation of Israel. He judged Ammon, Moab, Edom, Philistia, Tyrus, Zidon, and Egypt. The dates of Ezekiel's visions are very significant. In chapter twenty-six, he saw the vision concerning Tyrus in the eleventh year, and then in chapter twenty-nine he saw the vision of Egypt in the tenth year. This means that Ezekiel did not keep the record according to the date, but according to the meaning. He wrote, not according to the sequence of history, but according to the sequence of meaning. According to the meaning, Tyrus has to come first, then Egypt, though in fact he saw the vision concerning Egypt earlier than that concerning Tyrus. This is strong proof that all seven nations are very meaningful and that they were put together as a record, not according to the historical events, but according to their meaning.
Clearly, the first four nations form one group, and the last three form another group. These last three are mainly related to worldly wealth and natural resources. Tyrus represents the wealth and riches of the world which damage the church life. No matter how much we say that we love the church, if we are attracted to the wealth and riches of the world, we will damage the church life. We all must look to the Lord that in the local churches none of us would ever care for worldly riches. We must be people who prefer to be poor, rather than to care for the riches of this world.
Out of the caring for worldly riches comes the pricking briers and grieving thorns. This is strongly and clearly proved by the Lord's parable in Matthew 13. The local church is like a farm and in 1 Corinthians 3, we see that the farm is growing something. Briers and thorns choke the growth of proper plants on the farm. In the local church we must look to the Lord that none of us will care for the world's wealth and riches. If we care for riches, we will choke others' growth.
The last nation is Egypt, which is closely related to Tyrus and Zidon and represents the development of the natural resources which are raised for others to trust in. Whenever the people of God become poor and lack food, they always put their trust in Egypt. But God said Egypt was a staff made of reeds and was not strong enough to trust in (29:6-7). If you trust in Egypt, you will hurt yourself. This indicates that natural resources are not trustworthy. Even many worldly people realize that natural resources are not trustworthy. If you put your trust in riches and the development of the natural resources, you will be a damage to the church life.
We have to realize that God's judgment is always purposeful. His purpose in judgment is to bring in recovery. God does not exercise and execute His judgment without a purpose, without intending to recover something.
Let us remember that God's judgment is based upon His righteous throne, upon His holiness, and upon His glory. Whenever the condition among God's people or in the world does not match these three aspects, He will exercise His judgment for the purpose of recovery. God wants to recover His people according to His glory, His holiness, and His righteousness. His recovery is by life. The judgment of God is by fire, but the recovery of God is by life.
In the Lord's recovery by life, the first thing He does is set the watchman. What is a watchman? A watchman is one who has been commissioned by God to give people a warning, to sound the trumpet, to cause God's people to turn to Him and to repent. The principle is the same in the New Testament where God sent John the Baptist as a great watchman. When John the Baptist came, he sounded the trumpet of repentance. He cried "Repent!" (Matt. 3:1-2). Ezekiel voiced the same thing in principle when he warned the people to turn from their evil ways. God did not desire for them to die; His desire was for them to turn and live. Ezekiel and John the Baptist both sounded the trumpet of repentance, warning the people to turn from their evil ways.