Ezekiel 3:17, commentary and pictures

God Himself makes His prophet, servant and minister a watchman over His people, joining the shepherd's care of the flock with watching from the walls for approaching danger. His commission is to hear the word at God's mouth and give them warning from Him, whether they will hear or refuse, lifting the trumpet with a certain sound so none are left in darkness but may shun evil and choose good. If the wicked is warned from his wicked way he may turn and live, and if the righteous is warned not to sin and heeds he shall surely live; but if the watchman fails to warn, the sinner dies in his iniquity while his blood is required at the watchman's hand, whereas the watchman who warns faithfully delivers his own soul even when the hearer refuses. Faithfulness demands a wide-awake, discerning watchman who guards his own soul, speaks the whole counsel plainly with Christ's meekness and tears, and never softens reproof into peace where there is no peace. An unfaithful watchman sleeps, neglects duty and lets the flock stray to be torn and scattered, and that neglect lays upon him the blood of souls lost unwarned with no excuse to stand.

Watchman Appointment and Identity

The verse is God's own making of Ezekiel, His prophet and servant and minister, as a watchman unto the house of Israel, His people, set to hear the word at God's mouth and give them warning from God. The one made a watchman is a son of man, a man appointed by God to listen to God's message and made responsible to warn the people. The commission belongs to the prophet for Israel, to hear and to warn whether they heed or refuse.

The office joins the watchman on the walls of Zion with the shepherd to the flock, charged both to watch for evil and danger and to care for, protect, and bring back the sheep. As watchman he exists to watch, discern danger, and warn, and as shepherd he exists to watch for every danger lest the sheep be harmed and destroyed by wolves, keeping them from straying from the true pasture to be torn and scattered and devoured. Being made a watchman is a trust that requires speaking warning and forbids keeping silent, for to stay silent when warning is needed is to be unfaithful to that trust.

The placing on the watchtower is by God Himself, and no one is to take that place or climb up there on his own to watch his brethren. Those who set themselves to watch brethren to magnify their wrongs, being exacting over little things in the house, in dress, and in manners, and reproving and ordering about this, that, and the other, have climbed up when God has not placed them there at all, and they must come down. Such self-made watching, with debate and strife and smiting with the fist of wickedness, curses the cause, only hurts their own influence, and places the person watched beyond the reach of their help.

In every age the Lord has His watchmen, faithful souls who constitute His church on earth and bear faithful testimony to the generation in which they live. These sentinels give the message of warning in their generation in covenant relation with Him, uniting the church on earth with the church in heaven, and when they are called to lay off their armor others take up the work in succession. God sends His angels to minister to them and sustains them through centuries of persecution, conflict, and darkness so that opposing forces do not prevail against His people.

The work requires staying near to God so as to hear His word and be guided by His Spirit, listening closely and depending on Him as instructor while faithfully doing the entrusted work. Like watchmen on a city wall, their vigilance matters for the safety and salvation of those entrusted to them, and they are to proclaim the warning faithfully as living human agents. God works through human agents, but the glory belongs to Him, with no power or credit sought for self.

Hearing and Giving Warning

The commission is to hear the word at God's mouth and give His warning to the people, whether they will hear or whether they will refuse. The one entrusted with warning others must deliver what he has heard even when correcting is painful and difficult to give. If the warning is withheld he is held accountable, but if it is given he has delivered his own soul and is accountable for the warning itself and not for the hearer's refusal to turn. The duty covers both the wicked and the righteous when they turn toward sin.

The people are to know when peril threatens them and are not to be left in darkness. The watchman must therefore raise his voice when danger is upon them and lift the trumpet with a certain sound, so they may shun evil and choose good. Wide-awake at his post day and night, recognizing the voice of the true Shepherd, he takes up the warning without sleeping under stupor, for breakers and hidden rocks on every side will wreck souls unless they make God their refuge and help. Stupidity and careless indifference in this work cannot be excused.

The warning must be plain, pointed, and the whole counsel of God. It includes personal testimony to individuals in danger of losing the soul if they die as they are, and to those who are deceived and think they are right. A brother is not to be suffered to continue in sin unwarned, but is to be told his danger that the wages of sin is death. Failure here comes because the watchman's own soul is not right before God.

Being made a watchman is a trust that forbids silence and requires speaking. One who has received a warning from God must make it known and must not remain silent, including in warnings concerning institutions and the publishing work. Those who see others becoming untrue to principle must speak up against the danger of apostasy.

That plain testimony must be given with the spirit and meekness of Christ, not in an impatient, overbearing, or domineering spirit. The solemn work is to be fulfilled with tears, earnest supplication, and confession, under the power and presence of God to bless.

Faithfulness forbids softening the messenger's reproof, excusing wrongdoing, or intervening to lift the burden the wrongdoer should feel, for whoever does so shares in the wrong and obstructs righteousness. It forbids crying Peace, peace where there is no peace to quiet aroused fear, as when the coming hour of judgment and plagues is denied and those who warn of it are called fanatics and evil men who would ruin the people. Such refusal keeps souls from the truth that would have saved them, and in fearful agony the deceived will turn upon those ministers with bitter hate for not warning them. It also forbids substituting sensational religion that rests on mere emotional exercise, moves the feelings but leaves the heart unchanged, and fails to lead deeper into practical godliness.

Wicked and Righteous Warned

The charge to warn begins when God declares that the wicked shall surely die, requiring the watchman to speak and warn him from his wicked way to save his life. Such warning is not empty form, for a warning faithfully given can turn a person from sin and preserve life. The same commission also lays upon the watchman the duty to warn the righteous man that the righteous sin not.

If the watchman gives the wicked no warning nor speaks to warn him from his wicked way to save his life, the wicked shall die in his iniquity, but his blood will be required at the watchman's hand. The people are to know when peril threatens them and are not to be left in darkness, so the watchman must raise his voice when they are in danger. Failure to warn leaves the blood of the unwarned upon the watchman, who is accountable for that death.

If the watchman warns the wicked and he does not turn from his wickedness nor from his wicked way, the wicked shall die in his iniquity, but the watchman has delivered his soul. Faithful warning delivers the watchman whether the wicked turns or dies in iniquity, and whether hearers heed or refuse. There is no encouragement in this for the worker who is unfaithful in his labors.

The same charge covers a righteous man who turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity. Before such a one God lays a stumbling-block, and if unwarned he shall die in his sin and his righteousness which he has done shall not be remembered, but his blood is required at the watchman's hand. The accountability that applies to warning the wicked to save his life applies likewise to warning a righteous man turning to iniquity lest he die in sin with his past righteousness forgotten.

If the righteous man is warned that the righteous sin not and he does not sin, he shall surely live because he is warned, and the watchman has also delivered his soul. He must also be warned when turning toward wrongdoing, so that person may avoid sin and live. The duty requires plain warning, not suffering a brother to continue in sin nor saying to the sinner it shall be well with him, but telling him his danger that the wages of sin is death.

Faithfulness and Unfaithfulness

The faithful watchman stays wide-awake at his post of duty day and night, watching with eagle eye for the approach of danger and of the enemy. He is quick to see and to discern, recognizing the voice of the true Shepherd and understanding the necessities of the cause. His eyes are anointed with heavenly eyesalve so that he can distinguish between good and evil, between truth and error, and between righteousness and unrighteousness. He receives the warning given him and faithfully gives the alarm, lifting the voice of warning and giving the trumpet a certain sound so the people may shun evil and choose good. To stand as such a sentinel in the last days he must remain surrendered to God and kept by divine power, lest deceptive reasoning lead him to speak in ways that betray his sacred trust.

Faithfulness requires taking heed to self, guarding one's own house and family, examining self and realizing one's own weakness, and staying constantly on guard because Satan watches to take souls unawares. It requires receiving the cleansing of the refining furnace, being cleansed from everything that defiles through the grace Christ supplies, and taking position on a much higher plane. The word of warning must not be neglected, for the salvation of the watchman's own soul is in peril.

The unfaithful watchman sleeps under stupor and Satan's opiate, neglects duty, and does not see peril and gives no warning. He waits for evil to develop instead of acting with haste, and lets the flock stray from the true pasture to be torn and scattered, confused and destroyed by wolves and by fanaticism. Breakers and hidden rocks are on every side that will wreck souls unless they make God their refuge and help, so stupidity and careless indifference cannot be excused. His work is not done by pulpit labor alone but requires seeing and discovering dangers and giving warning, with vigilance constantly increasing as the close of time nears.

No excuse stands for letting the flock stray to be torn and scattered and devoured, and especially not that the weak erring sheep led him out of the way. That plea only proves him unfaithful and unfit to watch over the sheep, to care for and protect them, to guide and shield the flock, and to bring back the straying. It destroys confidence in his ability to care for the sheep, and the flock should be taken out of his hands.

Failure in showing sin and warning the sinner comes because the watchman's own soul is not right before God. When he is unconverted, jealous, and untrustworthy, indefinite in position, opposing organization, gratifying envy, creating distrust, and leading into fanaticism, God holds him responsible for the resulting temporal and spiritual injury to souls and to the cause, and the church cannot depend on him. If his mind is diverted from the great work by unholy thoughts filling the mind, by selfish plans robbing sleep and lessening mental and physical strength, by pleasure and inclination, by business entanglements and self-indulgence at the expense of spiritual strength, he sins against his own soul and against God. Then discernment is blunted, sacred things are placed on a level with common, and he moves indiscreetly, fitful, impulsive and unconsecrated, doing and undoing, building up and then tearing down, kindling an interest only to quench it for lack of consecration and divine wisdom, disheartening and discouraging the very souls his truth converted until they lose confidence. If errors in deportment are made prominent he lays a stumbling block by which many stumble into perdition, and souls who accept the truth reproduce his defects in conduct and perpetuate sin unless the Word is taken into the heart to expel guile and selfishness and weave truth into character.

Watchman work does not mean watching fellow workers with jealousy over their outgoings and incomings, blocking their way, or restricting the liberty of another. Workers struggling with difficulties in hard places are to be trusted and encouraged, for there is a Watcher above who takes the measure of character and will judge accordingly, keeping a report of every soul who hinders them. Nor does it permit neglecting God-given abilities and opportunities, for a person who fails to give warnings and perform entrusted duties is answerable for the good left undone and for souls that might have been saved through faithful service.

Neglect brings upon the watchman the blood of souls lost without warning, and the sin and injury done to the cause rests heavier upon that unfaithful watchman than upon others. Souls will rise up in the judgment to condemn him for unfaithfulness, a result never fully understood until he sees as God sees. Those who refuse the watchman's work and cry peace to quiet aroused fear keep souls from receiving the truth that would have saved them from the hour of judgment and plagues, and in fearful agony the deceived will turn upon such ministers with bitter hate for not warning them. God will not let those ministers escape His wrath but will make their sufferings tenfold greater than their people's, and watchmen who fail to teach duty to God as owner by creation and redemption and to warn of woe and destruction on wrongdoing are especially accountable.

Wider Present Applications

The charge reaches to the present, resting first on every minister and then with equal weight on every professing soul, with none excused in indifference and indolence, for each will answer for the good he might have done and did not do. The church is appointed as watchman over children and youth, to discern approaching danger and warn them lest they be left to ruin, and physicians are to warn patients of spiritual duty as well as care for the body, so that none comes near to death unwarned. Those who have received warning concerning institutional dangers, as of the publishing house and other institutions, must make it known and not remain silent, and those who see others becoming untrue to principle must speak up against the danger of apostasy. The work is not done by pulpit labor alone but by coming close to individuals, watching over single souls and warning them of duty with the sense of giving account to God.

The warning to be given includes the coming hour of judgment and the plagues, and to cry that all the world is to be converted and to cry peace to quiet aroused fear is to refuse the watchman's work and keep souls from the truth that would have saved them from that awful hour. Those in responsible positions must sound the alarm clearly by teaching duty to God as owner by creation and redemption, for His day brings woe and destruction on wrongdoing, and failure here brings especially heavy accountability. Ministers should have discerned the signs of Jesus' coming from the prophets and the signs of the times and passed on God's warning, and must be quick to see and wide-awake to discern the enemy's approach. That vigilance includes warning against pleasing spiritualistic fables circulating among the people, for sleep on the walls of Zion in face of their dangerous character brings God's rebuke. Those standing on the walls must be men able to see dangers beforehand and to distinguish truth from error and righteousness from unrighteousness, receiving the warning given them and warning the people to prepare for coming strife and confusion in the cities so severe that escape will become impossible, with the call to leave the cities for the country.

Reproof of sin and wrong must exist in the church by God's design, or His people would become careless and corrupt their ways before Him, and He has always had men to stand in defense of the right to oppose wrong and repress sin and corruption. That duty requires protesting, counterworking, and praying earnestly for God by His Spirit to counteract movements trusting in the arm of flesh, though many who should fill the place are Christians only in name and fail in duty. Vigilance must constantly increase as the close of time nears, with continual rising to greater heights in Christian experience, heavenly attainments, and holy purposes, watching for souls as those who must give account. The work demands faithful sentinel service as a soldier of Christ as long as warfare lasts, without idleness, unbelief, darkness, or control by the entanglements of this life.

Faithful ministers must first be converted and begin reformation with themselves before they can strengthen their brethren, walking with God in life, zeal, and devotion and remembering that Satan remains alive, persevering, earnest, and artful in alluring souls from righteousness. They are not to preach themselves but Christ and His righteousness, preaching both law and gospel with the love, pity, and self-sacrificing compassion of Jesus in touching appeals, urgent entreaties, and cheering promises. They must sound the note of warning to the careless and unsuspecting overcharged with surfeiting and drunkenness and the cares of this life and worldly enterprise, portray the fate of the hypocrite in Zion, and faithfully present health reform as connected with the third angel's message as part and parcel of the same work. If a watchman does all he can in the fear and love of God and souls still refuse Bible truth and perish, he is blameless, but he must sustain the truth by influence and example, for prominent errors in deportment lay a stumbling-block by which many stumble into perdition and defects are reproduced in converts to perpetuate sin.

To fulfill the charge the minister must settle into God, feel the worth of souls, seek opportunities to present truth to individuals, and take up pastoral labor involving a cross with Jesus and righteousness as themes, acting from principle rather than impulse. He must train the mind, crucify the old man with affections and lusts, be balanced by God's Spirit so all movements are regulated by Him, and live a life of prayer and faith linked with God lest he sow to the flesh and reap corruption, build up and tear down, and kindle interest only to quench it for lack of consecration and divine wisdom. Rough stones taken from the quarry of the world must be hewed and squared in God's workshop by His prophets through reproofs, warnings, admonitions, and advice until heart and character are changed after Christ's pattern and keep the way of the Lord, and men in holy trust will be qualified by the Holy Spirit day by day and hour by hour if they do not trust in men and make flesh their arm but maintain consecration, prayerful study of the Word, and watching unto prayer. Faithfulness is proved by voices often raised in earnest supplication for power from on high, by pure and strong faith, by putting away prejudice, evil thinking, and evil speaking, by setting affections on things above, and by open eyes to the needs of those around. With the close of probation nearing, workers must pray as never before for a more abundant bestowal of the Holy Spirit with sanctifying influence, so that those they labor for know they have been with Jesus, and they need spiritual eyesight to see afar and discern the enemy's snares, spiritual power to grasp the great subjects of Christianity, and daily and hourly faith to fight the good fight.

The true watchman holding present truth goes forth bearing precious seed, sowing beside all waters with weeping and prayer, the soul stirred to the depths under a burden taxing mind and heart. That strain cannot be kept continuously without premature wearing out, and he needs strength and efficiency in every discourse and fresh supplies of things new and old from the storehouse of God's word to impart life and power, for God does not want his efforts left without freshness and life. He is pledged to give soul, body, and spirit to the salvation of souls, supported humbly from the treasury with undivided interests, and cannot safely interweave his interests with mines, real estate, money schemes, or feverish desire for means that turns minds and money from the Redeemer's kingdom and its institutions while heartfelt piety is neglected. He must closely examine the foundation of his hope of salvation, live the truth he preaches, take the Word into the heart until it expels guile and selfishness, writes God's law in the heart, and weaves truth into character in supreme love to God and love to neighbor, lest little neglects, deficiencies, dishonesties, prevarications, misstatements, and departures from Christ's principles blind the soul, separate from God, dishonor Christ, and ruin influence.

The chapter is a lesson that workers must depend on God as instructor while faithfully doing the entrusted work, for God works through human agents but the glory belongs to Him and no power or credit is to be sought for self. They are to proclaim the warning faithfully as living agents, hearing God's word and delivering His warning whether to the wicked who shall surely die unless he turns to save his life or to the righteous turning from righteousness, delivering their own souls whether hearers heed or refuse. In that faithful hearing and warning there is solemn responsibility, and there is no encouragement in it for the worker unfaithful in his labors.