Sermon Tone Analysis
Overall tone of the sermon
This automated analysis scores the text on the likely presence of emotional, language, and social tones. There are no right or wrong scores; this is just an indication of tones readers or listeners may pick up from the text.
A score of 0.5 or higher indicates the tone is likely present.
Emotion Tone
Anger
0.13UNLIKELY
Disgust
0.09UNLIKELY
Fear
0.53LIKELY
Joy
0.53LIKELY
Sadness
0.56LIKELY
Language Tone
Analytical
0.74LIKELY
Confident
0UNLIKELY
Tentative
0UNLIKELY
Social Tone
Openness
0.76LIKELY
Conscientiousness
0.75LIKELY
Extraversion
0.03UNLIKELY
Agreeableness
0.61LIKELY
Emotional Range
0.54LIKELY
Tone of specific sentences
Tones
Emotion
Language
Social Tendencies
Anger
< .5
.5 - .6
.6 - .7
.7 - .8
.8 - .9
> .9
PRAY
By now, if you’ve been following our series in Ezekiel,
you will know that Jerusalem in Judah, 2600years ago,
Ezekiel’s home city and country,
are in for a tough time in the near future.
In fact, they have already had a tough time.
The have been invaded and occupied more than once,
and currently by Babylon.
10,000 people were exiled to the city of Babylon, 500 miles from Jerusalem,
among them the trainee priest Ezekiel.
These events took place 2600years ago
Ezekiel’s has then spent 9 chapters already telling the exiles
of God’s further coming judgement on Jerusalem.
There are a further 8 chapters of prophetic accusations and judgement to consider today.
All becasue God’s people there, have rebelled against him.
Turned their backs on God.
We asked the question last week,
‘Is God too harsh in his judgement’,
both then,
but also in his final judgement of all humanity to come?
And we saw, no, humanity is actually the harsh one.
We push the patient loving and slow to angre God away.
I’d encourage you to listen to that sermon online if you missed it,
as it puts a helpful perspective on Ezekiel generally.
And as I’ve been thinking about todays passages,
I think 3 new questions are to be considered,
You see, it would be hard enough to trawl through another 8 chapters
of seeing how God’s people rebelled against him in different ways, how God is therefore right and just to judge them, and then to apply that to ourselves.
But I think the ongoing nature of this book demands us to ask the bigger questions.
And here they are...
ANd these are the ones we are supposed to ask as we continue today.
1 - Why so many warnings?
Or more so, why does God persist in telling Ezekiele to warn everyone to repent?
Why does God persist in these judgement warnings?
over and over again.
2 - Why is no-one listening?
So, far, despite all the warning, there has not been a single verse indicating a positive response to Ezekiel’s warnings!
And Once we know the answers to these questions,
I think that is when we can ask
3 - Why should ‘we listen’ to the ‘warnings’ today?
How does all this warning of Judgement and the fact that no-one is listening, help us today.
How do these 2600 year old prophesies and judgements affect us?
How is going to change us today?
First then,
Why so many warning?
Chapters 12-19 are the 3rd cycle of 4 judgement prophesies in Ezekiel
against Judah and Jerusalem.
It’s like a trial,
where God presents the evidence against Judah
in the form of parables, illustrations and facts.
We’ll spend some time summarising the chapters now
before we get into the question of ‘why so many warnings....’
Chapter 17 which we had read, reads as a horrific novel.
A great Eagle,
representing King Nebuchanezza of Babylon,
plucks branches from the tree, Judah,
and decimates the tree.
The tree struggles to survive the eagles attacks,
it’s branches it send out roots
but instead of turning to the living God,
it send out roots
to seek help from another great but enemy, Eagle,
the great Pharaoh of Egypt,
seeking refuge from him.
The lesser of 2 eagles you might say!
I wonder how often we turn to a lesser eagle,
rather than God for help in times of trials.
Chapter 16 is one of the most graphic and disturbing chapters in the bible.
It is so forceful and explicit that it was apparently
later excluded from use as a public reading in synagogs.
Our slightly older 1984 NIV bibles,
like the church ones,
have exchanged graphic descriptions of promiscuous behaviour for more gentle euphemisms.
I considered it as part of our reading today,
but I too, think it’s a step too far for corporate reading and discussion.
Perhaps it’s a chapter that would warrant a reading
in a church that has totally turned it’s back on the teaching of the bible.
A church that needs a graphic and brutal wake up call
to how terrible a thing it is to turn our backs on the God of love and grace.
It is a chapter to read this week in private,
and contemplate how disgusting it is for God’s people to turn their backs on God.
Perhaps if you fear you are one of them,
it might be enough to shock you back into God’s loving family,
like a defibrillator does for a failed heart.
It’s a tragic love story.
An abandoned newborn baby lying in the dirt, with it’s cord uncut and in a pool of blood.
An orphan, whom God lovingly picks up and cares for.
But she rebels terribly.
But the queen ungratefully resents His love and becomes a whore and a prostitute.
CHAPTER 16
She then builds idols out of the gifts God has given her.
queen to harlot
She even sacrifices children.
God hands her over to her lovers to get what she deserves.
convict to proverb
After all the love God has shown her,
He is disgusted with her, rightly.
cpnvict who repented
Judgement must be fulfilled, but there is an assurance of restoration.
convict who was saved
< .5
.5 - .6
.6 - .7
.7 - .8
.8 - .9
> .9