What are you crying over?

The births and deaths of hundreds of people are recorded in the Bible, but only one can be linked with a verifiable date – August 14, 586 B. C. On that date the city of Jerusalem was burned and destroyed for the first time, and on that date a delightful woman died, the wife of Ezekiel the prophet. When God speaks to Ezekiel, he says, “at one blow I am going to remove the delight of your eyes. Don’t weep or mourn, grieve quietly, as a sign to the house of Israel in exile.” (My paraphrase) Ezekiel preached to the people in the morning and at evening his wife died, a prophetic symbol, a pawn in God’s hands.

I was shocked when I realized that God would snuff out the life of Ezekiel’s wife, the delight of his eyes, just to illustrate a truth to his people. And then he told his servant not to mourn or wail or express his feelings! What kind of God do we serve? With these questions in mind I went back to the beginning of the book to take a deeper look.

Ezekiel was chosen by God to be his spokesman in captivity, to speak God’s heart to the exiles in Babylon who awaited news about the fate of their beloved Jerusalem. It was a terrible job, since both the exiles and those back in Judah were a rebellious people who would not repent of their sins. Up to the 24th chapter, Ezekiel is told to mourn, wail, and grieve, but when his wife dies he is not to do that. So in God’s opinion what should we mourn and not mourn?

We should not mourn and bewail the loss of our loved ones who die and go to God’s presence, as is taught in the writings of the apostles. We should not mourn the loss of our earthly goods or when we are persecuted or mistreated by the world.

What should we mourn? According to the book of Ezekiel this is what should break our heart and drive us to our knees.

This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Strike your hands together and stamp your feet and cry out "Alas!" because of all the wicked and detestable practices of the house of Israel, for they will fall by the sword, famine and plague. 6:11

Go throughout the city of Jerusalem and put a mark on the foreheads of those who grieve and lament over all the detestable things that are done in it." 9:4

"Son of man, tremble as you eat your food, and shudder in fear as you drink your water. Say to the people of the land: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says about those living in Jerusalem and in the land of Israel: They will eat their food in anxiety and drink their water in despair, for their land will be stripped of everything in it because of the violence of all who live there. 12: 18-19


Therefore groan, son of man! Groan before them with broken heart and bitter grief. And when they ask you, ‘Why are you groaning?’ you shall say, ‘Because of the news that is coming. Every heart will melt and every hand go limp; every spirit will become faint and every knee become as weak as water. 21:6-7

"I looked for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found none. So I will pour out my wrath on them and consume them with my fiery anger, bringing down on their own heads all they have done, declares the Sovereign LORD. 22:30


Our heart should break and we should cry out over the destruction that awaits those who continue to reject God, those who insist on following evil. Our hearts cry should be that of the just God who none the less cries out, “Repent! Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall. Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, O house of Israel? For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign LORD. Repent and live!” 18:30-32

What is your reaction to the eternal damnation of your neighbors, the homeless in your streets, the prostitutes on your corners, the corruption and greed in your city, the lost tribes in the jungles of the Amazon, those worshiping false gods in Asia and Africa? Do you care about them, or the pain God feels when he sees them wandering blindly through life and into the abyss?

For God, Jerusalem was and is the delight of his eyes, the city he founded and make beautiful, the joy of the whole earth. When his people made a temple for him, a resting place for his glory, it brought him honor and great joy. Now he is forced to withdraw himself from that sanctuary, because it has become vile and filthy. His cry rings out in 8:6, "Son of man, do you see what they are doing— the utterly detestable things the house of Israel is doing here, things that will drive me far from my sanctuary?”

That is why Ezekiel’s wife had to die, so that he could feel the terrible sorrow and anguish of God almighty, who wanted at least one human to share his indescribable pain over the consequences of sin and evil.

What are you crying over?