Ezekiel 14:1-11
Some of the elders of Israel pay a visit to Ezekiel with seemingly good intentions: to enquire of the LORD. But the prophet is warned by his God not to let himself be deceived by appearances. The hearts of these men were filled with idols which constituted a veritable wall between Himself and them: "they are all estranged from me through their idols" (v. 5; cf. Luke 16:15).
Let us take account of this important lesson: to know and understand the Lord’s will, the fundamental requirement is not our degree of intelligence, nor our Christian experience nor even our knowledge of the Bible; it is the state of our heart. Is it right before God? Or is it hiding inadmissible things, deep-rooted idolatries? Let us not look elsewhere for the reason why God sometimes does not answer our prayers. And let us engrave in our minds this word of the Lord, "Without me ye can do nothing" (cf. v. 5), with its precious counter-part, "If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you" (John 15:5-7).