Now you, son of man, set your face against the daughters of your people who are prophesying from the own inspiration. Prophesy against them and say, Thus says the Lord God,"Woe to the women who sew magic bands on all wrists and make veils for the heads of persons of every stature to hunt down lives. Will you hunt down the lives of My people, but preserve the lives of others for yourselves? For handfuls of barley and fragments of bread, you have profaned Me to My people to put to death some who should not die and to keep others alive who should not live, by your lying to My people who listen to lies.
Therefore, thus says the Lord God, "Behold, I am against your magic bands by which you hunt lives there as birds and I will tear them from your arms; I will let them go, even those lives whom you out as birds. I will also tear off your veils and deliver My people from your hands, and they will not longer be in your hands to be hunted, and you will know that I am the Lord. Because you disheartened the righteous with falsehood who I did not cause him grief, but have encouraged the wicked not to turn from his wicked way and preserve his life, therefore, you women will no longer see false visions or practice divination, and I will deliver My people out of your hand. Thus you will know that I am the Lord." Ezekiel 13:17-23
I usually try to keep the verses short, but this passage is full of riches. It speaks to women in particular about their use of cloth in deceiving the people. There is so much false teaching out there. There is so much we will buy into to solve a problem in our lives. There are many who will fall for anything that people say will help them medically, emotionally, and spiritually. These gals promised that if you would wear their magic bracelets and cover themselves with veils of some sort (made for all age groups...individually tailored to your height...that these things would take the place of righteous worship. They were making up their own rules and telling the people that God wanted them to do these things, to wear these things. It ensnared the people, made the righteous wail in their hearts over the deceit that had been foisted on the people, and changed their thoughts about those who God stood against. False prophets were to be stoned, and instead, these gals were looked to for spiritual guidance, when in fact they were leading the people into a trap. God promises to take these gals down and to free his people from their snare. But they have to let God tear away those clothes, these false promises, to get there.
It is sooo easy for women to be deceived. Here I sit, and when I think I have some never-been-thought-about insight into scripture, I immediately put a check on my heart and pray. Pride is an evil enemy. The desire to hear from God is real, and the desire to think that if God does speak to us, even the truth of His Word, we are somehow really something, we are in danger of becoming one of these women. That is a seriously dangerous place to be. I write these blog posts mostly for me, to ponder the Words of God in a more serious way rather than to glance over them. I write them because I marvel at the unity of scripture. I write to warn myself and others that God is serious about our lives and worship and lack thereof. He is great and merciful and powerful and to be greatly feared. John walked with Jesus on earth with a boasting heart, but on Patmos, when he saw Him in His glory, he fell flat on His face. This was the disciple that Jesus loved. And John loved him. But the reality of who Christ is, who God is, is more than we as humans can handle. One by one those who saw the Lord in scripture fell flat on their faces. They saw their unworthiness. And if we don't approach scripture that way, we become Pharisees and put burdens on people that they should not have to bear. And they were the most harshly treated by Jesus. He called them snakes to their faces! This Christ was no wimp. And He was not cruel. He knew their hateful, prideful hearts and warned them about the judgment heading their way. And they did not repent. Woe to us who do not heed the Word of God, taking all of it and making it our meditation. There are many things in scripture that I fight with, but God has to win because He is right and He gets to make the rules, not me! And not you, either.
So the cloth aspect of this...the magic bracelets and veils. What do we put into peoples' lives to make them feel better about their sin? If we aren't fulfilling God's Word and choose to do something else to make ourselves acceptable, we are being like these women. We can sew and give, think everyone needs what we have to offer to make themselves good enough or better. Not to say that we shouldn't give those quilts, pillowcases, weighted blankets, toys, and other comforts, but we cannot neglect the soul. The weighted blankets may be a substitute for a hug, for human contact. Let us not give one to the neglect of the other. Reaching out with cloth is a wonderful thing, but we can isolate ourselves from the very ones we are "helping." I am guilty of this. I like to "do my thing" and give with cloth. I like to keep myself busy feeling like I have something to contribute that others will not take the time to do. I hear people criticize those who sew and do NOT donate their time or fabrics or knowledge of the craft to some cause. They justify themselves while condemning others. That is not a right heart attitude. If someone turns down the offer to give, let it go. If God lays on YOUR heart to do something, it doesn't mean that everyone has to do it or they aren't listening to God. It means God has spoken to you about this and not them. You (and I) should me humble and realize that God has uniquely gifted us with that talent and passion for that cause at that time. To judge others by what we do is not gracious, but rather makes us bitter and pompous. And that ruins the whole thing. We are not to weary in well-doing. Even joyful giving of our sewing time and resources can grow old after a while. God may change your direction and focus, but never let any of it change the point that you are doing what He calls you to do. If you aren't doing it for Him, but for yourself, it's time to take a heart-check. There may be a hardening of the arteries...and attitude toward God, those around us, or the causes we support.
Ok, I am done preaching. I see so much of the human heart. Mine is corrupt and so is yours. But God acts through us anyway. If we are righteous, wanting Him more than anything, He will pull us out of the snares we get entangled in. He is just that kind of kind God. Let us serve with grateful hearts. And make sure that we are not playing the trapper...or God will deal with us and release those who we have ensnared from our grasp. God forbid that we ensnare others. Love is the only answer to the common heart. His Love.
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