Ancient Babylon is in present-day Iraq! Many Jews were enslaved by the Babylonian government. Ezekiel was among them.
The Jews were God’s chosen people. Why would He allow them to be carried away into captivity? That question is answered in Ezekiel 22:23-29. The Jewish priests, princes, prophets and people had completely turned their backs on God. They had sinned! In God’s Justice, He had to punish their sin. It was the “just” thing to do. However, God is also a merciful God. In His mercy, He wanted to forgive them. Now, this begs the following questions: “Which does God exercise? Does He apply justice or mercy, and why?”
In Ezekiel 22:30 the answers are clear. “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.” The phrase “that I should not destroy it” tells us that God wanted to exercise His mercy! The component necessary was “a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap for the land.” God was looking for someone praying for the folks! The saddest statement is, “I found none”!
The next verse (vs. 31) tells us that God exercised His justice and punished the people. Why? He punished the nation because no one was praying! It is an awesome thing to understand that our prayers make a difference in the actions of Almighty God!
