The
Gap-Man
By the time the prophet Ezekiel came
upon the scene to prophesy to a wayward Israel, the Babylonian
captivity was a done deal. Ezekiel served during the aftermath of God’s
judgment upon the nation. In 22:30, God through his prophet offered
this word of epilogue: “And I sought for a man among them, that should
make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I
should not destroy it: but I found none.” Ezekiel heard these
words, wrote them down in 593 BC. Judah had gone into Babylonian
captivity in 597 BC, or about 4 years earlier. Thus the idea of
‘epilogue’ is appropriate.
There’s not a preacher worth his salt
that hasn’t read that text and asked himself whether (1) God was STILL
looking for those kinds of men, and (2) he might become the kind of
gap-man God could use. Any interpreter must ask: (1) What is
the historical context? (2) When did God start seeking for such a man
to save the nation from ruin? (3) Is God still looking for
gap-men?
The word “gap” refers to a breach in
a broken down wall. The “gap” was meant to describe the broken down
status of the nation in every way—spiritually, morally and politically.
The nation had become defenseless due to its rebellion against her God.
The “gap” was created circa 960 BC after the death of King Solomon when
the ten Northern tribes broke from the two Southern tribes by refusing
to acknowledge the kingship of Rehoboam, Solomon’s son.
Under both David and Solomon, the
kingdom of Israel was UNITED, a genuine theocracy with its enemies on
every side subdued. But after Solomon’s death, the nation became
DIVIDED.
The verbs “sought” and “found” are
both past tense, which affirms God had ceased his search and therefore
unleashed his indignation against his people (22:31). The kind of man
God was searching for was another David, who could bring the tribes
together again, reestablish genuine worship in the land and assuage
God’s wrath. But such a gap-man never came on the scene. There were a
handful of ‘good’ kings that ruled in Judah during the 400-year stretch
between the Kingdom split and the Captivity. But there were NONE that
could serve as a UNITER. The kings in the ten Northern tribes ‘did
evil’ before the Lord non-stop.
Fast forward to the shores of the
Jordan River after Jesus was baptized by John. When the voice from
heaven said, "This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased,” the
Father in essence was saying: “I finally have my Gap-Man, who also
happens to be the God-Man!”
The “gap” that existed in Israel had
existed with mankind since Adam. Jesus of Nazareth, of the seed of
David, is the Gap-Man who (1) bridged the gap between a holy God and
sinful men with his substitutionary death on Calvary, (2) brought Jew
and Gentile together into one body, the Church, and (3) will save ALL
Israel and REUNITE the nation at his Second Coming.
Jesus the God-Man is now THE Gap-Man
for every believer who’s trusted him for salvation. He is the ONLY man
who could have made up the hedge, stood in the gap for sinners, and
made those once dead in trespasses and sins the sons of the Living God!
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