A Lamentation for Lions and Vines

Rev. Brian Flamme, pastor at Immanuel Lutheran Church in Roswell, NM, joins host Rev. Timothy Appel to study Ezekiel 19:1-14.

The LORD gives Ezekiel a lament for the princes of Israel; these wicked men do not deserve the title of king. The lament uses the images of a lion and a vine, both drawn from Jacob’s blessing to Judah in Genesis 49. The two lion cubs picture Jehoahaz and Jehoiachin, two wicked kings of Judah; the vine pictures the final kings of Judah more generally. Through their idolatrous rejection of the LORD’s Word, they proved the sharpest of contrasts with what the LORD desired for His kings. Because of their wickedness, the LORD’s judgment would fall upon them and the people of Judah. Yet the use of the imagery from Genesis 49 is a reminder that the LORD will not nullify His promise to send the Messiah. The true lion from the tribe of Judah and the living vine, Jesus Christ, has come as the promised Savior who rules His people in an everlasting kingdom of grace.

“The Faithful Watchman” is a mini-series on Sharper Iron that goes through the book of Ezekiel. Just when Ezekiel should have begun his service as priest in the temple in Jerusalem, the LORD called him to be a prophet in exile in Babylon. Through fantastic visions and attention-grabbing action prophecies, the prophet Ezekiel is a faithful watchman who proclaims the word of the LORD to bring people to repentance over their sins and to faith in the coming Savior, Jesus Christ, the glory of the LORD made flesh.