8. Be not thou rebellious. There was danger that with so forbidding a prospect, Ezekiel would shrink from his responsibility. In so shrinking he would identify himself with the very rebellion he was sent to reprove. There was danger that he would be influenced by his environment of prevailing apostasy and that he would lose his sense of the exceeding sinfulness of sin. There is a subtle poison in the atmosphere of evil society. It is difficult for a man to be faithful among the faithless, especially when the faithless profess the same hopes and aspirations as he. That is why the greatest danger to the church is from within, not without. If those who are called to be leaders are themselves “rebellious,” like the “rebellious house,” then what else can be expected but a widespread departure from God? The history of the apostasy of Israel reveals the baneful result of what happens when men look to men and trust in human leaders who themselves are practicing evil.
Eat that I give thee. This is symbolic prophecy, and the prophet ate the scroll in vision, not in fact (see on 2). The figure is full of spiritual meaning. In order to impart to his fellow men, the teacher must first receive from God. Second, as physical nourishment introduced into the body becomes flesh, blood, and bones, so the message must be appropriated and become a part of the messenger. The teacher cannot be fitted for service by a superficial and uncertain acquaintance with his message. The message must sink into the depths of his nature, must penetrate his being, must enter into all the functions of his spiritual life. It must become an integral part of his thought and life.