Abominable Fruit

As I live, saith the Lord God, Sodom thy sister hath not done, she nor her daughters, as thou hast done, thou and thy daughters. Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fulness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. And they were haughty, and committed abomination before me: therefore I took them away as I saw good. Ezekiel 16:48-50

In our passage for this week Ezekiel is presenting God’s reprimand for the Children of Isreal’s sins against God, generation after generation after entering into the promised land. The voice of the Lord explains that Isreal has betrayed Him despite everything He has done to bless them and lift them up. They had turned their backs on Him, as well as His most precious principles. The chapters preceding this passage give an intensely vivid depiction of just how full of idolatry and betrayal Isreal was, and we can see the most abominable fruit of that betrayal as called out by the profit.

As stated in Deuteronomy several times, false idol worship and the worship of any graven image is an abomination to the Lord (Duet. 7:25, 27:15, 32;16). We can identify this as the primary abomination committed by Isreal. Yet, it is important to understand that when a heart turns away from God, the fruit of their life will reflect the turning away from Him also. The false idol worship will pour out in their actions, perceptions, and attitudes. It will affect how they interact with the world and people around them. Let’s call these “abominable fruits”.

So what are these “abominable fruits” as explained in biblical texts? First, let us start with the passage for the week in Ezekiel, and then we will explore further in the book of Proverbs. He noted that the iniquity of Isreal is far worse than that of even Sodom and her daughters. The place so evil that the Lord could not find even 10 righteous men in it (Gen 18:16-33). So what were the iniquities of Sodom? We know that they practiced sexual immorality, but what Ezekiel highlights is something different. (Please note, alongside idol worship and the abominable fruit mentioned in this week’s lesson there are certain sexual practices that are noted as abominations to God. For further study into these please reference Leviticus chapter 18.)

He explains the abominations were pride, haughtiness and abundance of both idleness and resources. Yet, in that, what was worst was they were unable to extend that abundance into serving those that had need. They had no generosity in their hearts despite the abundance of provision available to them. Isreal is charged with this same list of great abomination, but why is it magnified? If we look into the surrounding chapters, we can understand more wholly the picture. God lists through these surrounding chapters the multitude of provision, as well as mercy and faithfulness He had expressed towards Isreal; and yet, they squander it and their hearts did not appreciate the provider provided to them. Rather they took it for granted while turning from Him. They had experienced God’s goodness in a way Sodom never had, yet they chose darkness. God had shown Isreal the most profound elements of His nature; grace, mercy, service, patience, faithfulness, and provision: and yet, in the pride of their own hearts, in the haughtiness of their self-image, they were unable and unwilling to approach God with loyalty and gratitude, or to extend the overflow of God’s provision in mirroring His nature to each other or others.

Let us look into a passage in Proverbs chapter 6 as an examination of what abominable fruit expressly looks like.

“These six things doth the Lord hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him: A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief, A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren.” (Proverbs 6:16-19)

Each in this list deserve meditation, and I challenge you over the week to meditate on them. In short: pride; deception; chaos, division, and disorder created in an attempt to manipulate certain outcomes or controls are expressed abominations to God. The presence of these abominable fruits is the symptom of a greater spiritual sickness within a believer. Maybe it is a lack of faith. Maybe it is idolatry. Maybe it is a lack of gratitude. Maybe it is pride or haughtiness. Whatever it may be, we are responsible for reflecting on our own lives, inner thoughts, and actions. We are responsible for surrendering our feelings to the Holy Spirit and the word of God so that He can transform them. As believers it is our purpose to extend His light into the world. So, by His grace, let us do it well.