Examining The Scripture CXV: God Will Spend His Wrath

God has reasons and purposes for everything that He does. The reason and purpose for the Israelites being located in Jerusalem is so Israel would be “in the center of the nations with all countries all around her”.


(1) Geographic/Geo-political: This is a geographically correct statement as Israel is the fertile land bridge (as opposed to hostile desert wilderness) between Asia Minor, Egypt and Arabian Peninsula. It is also the center of many political tug-of-wars between nations, always being traded off to other nations like Egypt, Assyria, Babylonian, etc. Ironically these bouncing back-and-forth are viewed as the natural course of history and the rise and fall of empire by the modern secular world but in reality it is God rewarding or punishing His people by using foreign nations providentially to do his will. Modern secular historians are not thinking big enough.

(2) Spiritually: God has made for Himself a city, Jerusalem and as we know from having read the entire reading of the Bible (you read it, right?) it is the central focal point of Jesus’ ministry who is Himself the centrality of Scriptures both at the macrocosmic level and the microcosmic level.

It is why God would allow His people to suffer and sometimes die shamefully at the hands of the Babylonians. This had to do with God’s eternal purposes and for those purposes, Jerusalem and Israel are where it would take place. Even John said it in his Gospel, “Salvation is of the Jews”.

Unfortunately, Israel squandered the opportunity to be the beacon of God's hope and grace choosing to be sinning fools instead. God would, as in every other instance of corruption and sin, eventually judge and punish these transgressions.

"Yet in her wickedness she has rebelled against my laws and decrees more than the nations and countries around her. She has rejected my laws and has not followed my decrees. Therefore this is what the Sovereign LORD says: You have been more unruly than the nations around you and have not followed my decrees or kept my laws. You have not even conformed to the standards of the nations around you." Ezekiel 5:6-7

Like all sinful people they rebelled against God and disobeyed His ordinances and commandments (v. 6). At times Israel’s wickedness was worse than that of their pagan neighbors. They did not walk in Gods statutes. They squandered the opportunity God had given them to be His holy people, His holy priesthood (v. 7). Therefore God says He will be against them and will execute judgment in Jerusalem within the sight of the other nations so that they can see what befalls Israel. This I imagine serves a two-fold purpose. Israel will be judged and the other nations will see the power and might of the God of Israel and possibly come to understand that He is God. Similar to what we saw with Egypt and the Exodus. Because of all of their evils and abominations God would punish them in a way he never had before and never would again (v. 9). He would allow:

(1) Fathers to eat their sons and sons to eat fathers within Jerusalem (cannibalism due to siege)

(2) He would execute judgment and scatter survivors to every direction of the wind (exile)

Why so merciless? God will show them “no pity, because you have defiled My sanctuary with all your detestable practices and abominations.” It goes on later to say in verse 13 that God will “spend” his anger and when his “wrath has been vented” He will be appeased. After this they will know that He is the Lord. We see this often in Scripture. God does not capriciously and whimsically release His wrath every chance He gets. Sinners build up wrath against themselves through their own stupidity and sin. God is slow to anger. Once the accumulation of sin reaches its tipping point God releases his judgment in righteous and just anger “until it is spent” His justice has to be satisfied. He leaves none of it behind. The slate is cleaned. It starts over from the zero-line.


The venting of His wrath will take on many forms including some already mentioned in Ezekiel 4:1-5:4 and some new ones. They would be a ruinous disgrace and would be mocked because of it. God would shoot arrows of famine, plague, destruction and dangerous animals. Jerusalem would be left childless.

Dyer, Charles., John Walvoord. "Ezekiel" Bible Knowledge Commentary Old Testament: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Bible Knowledge). Acambaro: Victor, 1985. 1237-1238. Print.

Wiersbe, Warren. "From Priest To Prophet." Bible Exposition Commentary: Old Testament: The Prophets (Bible Knowledge). Acambaro: Victor, 2003. 173-174. Print.