Behold, I will make your face as hard as their faces, and your forehead as hard as their foreheads. Behold, I will make your face as hard as their facesThis phrase indicates divine empowerment and resolve. In the context of Ezekiel's prophetic mission, God is preparing him to confront a rebellious and obstinate people. The hardening of Ezekiel's face symbolizes the strength and determination needed to deliver God's message without fear or compromise. This mirrors the cultural context of ancient Near Eastern prophets who often faced opposition and hostility. The phrase also echoes the biblical theme of God equipping His servants for their tasks, similar to how He strengthened Moses ( Exodus 4:15-16) and Jeremiah ( Jeremiah 1:18). and your forehead as hard as their foreheads
The forehead represents determination and resilience. In ancient cultures, the forehead was often seen as a symbol of one's resolve and character. By making Ezekiel's forehead hard, God is ensuring that he can withstand the stubbornness and resistance of the people of Israel. This imagery is reminiscent of the "set face" of Jesus as He resolutely headed towards Jerusalem (Luke 9:51), indicating a prophetic type of Christ's unwavering commitment to His mission. The hardening also serves as a protective measure, ensuring that Ezekiel remains steadfast in the face of potential ridicule or persecution, much like the armor of God described in Ephesians 6:10-18. Persons / Places / Events 1. EzekielA prophet called by God to deliver His messages to the Israelites during their Babylonian exile. Known for his vivid visions and symbolic acts. 2. GodThe speaker in this verse, empowering Ezekiel to stand firm against opposition. 3. IsraelitesThe audience of Ezekiel's prophecies, often described as rebellious and hard-hearted. 4. Babylonian ExileThe historical context in which Ezekiel prophesied, a period of great trial and testing for the Israelites. 5. JerusalemThough not directly mentioned in this verse, it is central to Ezekiel's prophecies, as he often speaks of its destruction and eventual restoration. Teaching Points Divine EmpowermentGod equips those He calls. Just as He made Ezekiel's face and forehead hard, He strengthens us to stand firm in our faith and mission. Facing OppositionBelievers should expect resistance when delivering God's truth. Like Ezekiel, we must be prepared to face it with courage and resilience. Spiritual ResolveThe hardening of Ezekiel's face and forehead symbolizes the need for spiritual resolve. We must be unwavering in our commitment to God's word. Rebellion and Hard-heartednessThe Israelites' resistance serves as a warning against hard-heartedness. We must remain open to God's correction and guidance. Prophetic MissionEzekiel's mission highlights the importance of obedience to God's call, regardless of the challenges or the audience's response. Bible Study Questions 1. How does God's empowerment of Ezekiel in this verse encourage you in your own spiritual journey? 2. In what ways can you prepare yourself to face opposition when sharing your faith, as Ezekiel did? 3. Reflect on a time when you felt spiritually resolved. How did that experience strengthen your faith? 4. How can we guard against becoming hard-hearted like the Israelites Ezekiel was sent to? 5. What lessons can we learn from Ezekiel's obedience to God's call, and how can we apply them in our daily lives? Connections to Other Scriptures Jeremiah 1:18Similar to Ezekiel, Jeremiah is made a fortified city, an iron pillar, and bronze walls against the whole land, showing God's empowerment of His prophets. Isaiah 50:7Isaiah speaks of setting his face like flint, indicating resolve and determination, akin to Ezekiel's hard face and forehead. Acts 7:51Stephen accuses the Sanhedrin of being stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, echoing the rebellious nature of the Israelites Ezekiel faced. People EzekielPlaces Chebar, Tel-abibTopics Behold, Brow, Brows, Face, Faces, Forehead, Foreheads, Hardened, StrongDictionary of Bible Themes Ezekiel 3:7-9 7758 preachers, call Library Cæsarius of Arles.
He was born in the district of Chalons-sur-Saone, A. D. 470. He seems to have been early awakened, by a pious education, to vital Christianity. When he was between seven and eight years old, it would often happen that he would give a portion of his clothes to the poor whom he met, and would say, when he came home, that he had been, constrained to do so. When yet a youth, he entered the celebrated convent on the island of Lerins, (Lerina,) in Provence, from which a spirit of deep and practical piety …
Augustus Neander—Light in the Dark PlacesBoniface, Apostle of the Germans.
BONIFACE, or Winfried, as they called him in Anglo-Saxon, born at Crediton in Devonshire, in 680, deserves to be honoured as the father of the German Church, although he was by no means the first who brought the seeds of the Gospel to Germany. Many had already laboured before him; but the efforts which had been made here and there did not suffice to secure the endurance of Christianity amongst the many perils to which it was exposed. Christianity needs to be linked with firm ecclesiastical institutions, …
Augustus Neander—Light in the Dark Places Epistle xxxiv. To Venantius, Ex-Monk, Patrician of Syracuse .
To Venantius, Ex-Monk, Patrician of Syracuse [1331] . Gregory to Venantius, &c. Many foolish men have supposed that, if I were advanced to the rank of the episcopate, I should decline to address thee, or to keep up communication with thee by letter. But this is not so; since I am compelled by the very necessity of my position not to hold my peace. For it is written, Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet (Isai. lviii. 1). And again it is written, I have given thee for a watchman …
Saint Gregory the Great—the Epistles of Saint Gregory the Great The Greatness of the Soul,
AND UNSPEAKABLENESS 0F THE LOSS THEREOF; WITH THE CAUSES OF THE LOSING IT. FIRST PREACHED AT PINNER'S HALL and now ENLARGED AND PUBLISHED FOR GOOD. By JOHN BUNYAN, London: Printed for Benjamin Alsop, at the Angel and Bible in the Poultry, 1682 Faithfully reprinted from the Author's First Edition. ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR. Our curiosity is naturally excited to discover what a poor, unlettered mechanic, whose book-learning had been limited to the contents of one volume, could by possibility know …
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3 The Servant's Inflexible Resolve
'For the Lord God will help Me; therefore shall I not be confounded: therefore have I set My face like a flint.'--ISAIAH l. 7. What a striking contrast between the tone of these words and of the preceding! There all is gentleness, docility, still communion, submission, patient endurance. Here all is energy and determination, resistance and martial vigour. It is like the contrast between a priest and a warrior. And that gentleness is the parent of this boldness. The same Will which is all submission …
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture The Iranian Conquest
Drawn by Boudier, from the engraving in Coste and Flandin. The vignette, drawn by Faucher-Gudin, from a statuette in terra-cotta, found in Southern Russia, represents a young Scythian. The Iranian religions--Cyrus in Lydia and at Babylon: Cambyses in Egypt --Darius and the organisation of the empire. The Median empire is the least known of all those which held sway for a time over the destinies of a portion of Western Asia. The reason of this is not to be ascribed to the shortness of its duration: …
G. Maspero—History Of Egypt, Chaldaea, Syria, Babylonia, and Assyria, V 9 The Prophet Jonah.
It has been asserted without any sufficient reason, that Jonah is older than Hosea, Joel, Amos, and Obadiah,--that he is the oldest among the prophets whose written monuments have been preserved to us. The passage in 2 Kings xiv. 25, where it is said, that Jonah, the son of Amittai the prophet, prophesied to Jeroboam the happy success of his arms, and the restoration of the ancient boundaries of Israel, and that this prophecy was confirmed by the event, cannot decide in favour of this assertion, …
Ernst Wilhelm Hengstenberg—Christology of the Old Testament Ezekiel
To a modern taste, Ezekiel does not appeal anything like so powerfully as Isaiah or Jeremiah. He has neither the majesty of the one nor the tenderness and passion of the other. There is much in him that is fantastic, and much that is ritualistic. His imaginations border sometimes on the grotesque and sometimes on the mechanical. Yet he is a historical figure of the first importance; it was very largely from him that Judaism received the ecclesiastical impulse by which for centuries it was powerfully …
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament Links Ezekiel 3:8 NIVEzekiel 3:8 NLTEzekiel 3:8 ESVEzekiel 3:8 NASBEzekiel 3:8 KJV
Ezekiel 3:8 Commentaries
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