Ezekiel 2:1 He said to me, “Human being! Stand up! I want to speak with you!” 2 As he spoke to me, a spirit entered me and put me on my feet, and I heard him who was speaking to me. 3 He said, “Human being! I am sending you to the people of Isra’el, that nation of rebels who have rebelled against me — they and their ancestors have been transgressing against me to this very day. 4 Because they are defiant, hardhearted children, I am sending you; and you are to tell them, ‘Here is what Adonai Elohim says.’ 5 Whether they listen or not, this rebellious house will still know that a prophet has been among them! (Complete Jewish Bible).
***"You can't un-hear things," a wise mentor once told me. Feeling like the words you say to others go unheard can be maddening. But words spoken are never completely ineffective. Words can be run from. Words can be hid from. Words can be buried, repressed, stuffed down and ignored. But words can never be unheard.
God sent Ezekiel to God's people in their time of impudence and stubbornness. Maybe you know people like that. Maybe you love people like that. Maybe you are people like that (*raises hand sheepishly*). The good news of today's reading is that even when they (we, I) try to refuse to hear, it never really works. The very attempt to refuse a word is an acknowledgment of the power of that word and its truth which can devastatingly change us. Keep on speaking people of God. And, maybe, try your ear at hearing as well.
God, it is so frustrating to feel unheard. Strengthen in me your power of trust that the words you give me are heard—and open my own ears to the words that I may be refusing. Amen.
Rachel Wrenn, '11
PhD Student in Hebrew Bible at Emory University, Marietta, GA
Ezekiel 2: The Vision of the Scroll
1 He said to me: O mortal,[Ezekiel 2:1 Or son of man; Heb ben adam (and so throughout the book when Ezekiel is addressed)] stand up on your feet, and I will speak with you. 2 And when he spoke to me, a spirit entered into me and set me on my feet; and I heard him speaking to me. 3 He said to me, Mortal, I am sending you to the people of Israel, to a nation[Ezekiel 2:3 Syr: Heb to nations] of rebels who have rebelled against me; they and their ancestors have transgressed against me to this very day. 4 The descendants are impudent and stubborn. I am sending you to them, and you shall say to them, “Thus says the Lord God.” 5 Whether they hear or refuse to hear (for they are a rebellious house), they shall know that there has been a prophet among them. (New Revised Standard Version).
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