Of Zombies, Scorpions, and Honey

They will throw their silver into the streets, and their gold will seem like something filthy. Their silver and gold will be unable to save them in the day of the LORD’S wrath. They will not satisfy their appetites or fill their stomachs, for these were their stumbling blocks that brought about their iniquity. -- Ezekiel 7:19

In these days of a battered stock market and a dollar that would look anorexic in a family of Ethiopians, we are tempted to turn to other forms of wealth. Some advocate the purchase of precious metals like silver and, especially, gold. An ounce of gold will buy about the same amount of bread it always did.

But there has to be bread to for sale.

The Bible warns that there can be a famine, not of bread, but of hearing the Word of God. No currency, nothing the world values, nothing that bears Caesar’s image can save those who come to that day. Hollow-eyed forms, the living dead will walk the malls staring at the plenty that stares back as useless and pointless as more sand in the desert. They waste away for the lack of they know not what. Their souls wail and cry but find no relief, for, as Jeremiah says, they have abandoned the springs of living water and sought to drink from their man-made cisterns which are broken, empty, and dry.

They were told to trust in gold, in bank accounts, stock portfolios, and retirement accounts. It only made sense to gain as much as they could. If a little was good, a lot was better. The scientists and the economists assured them that they had no soul, and if they did, it was not worth troubling over. Sell it for what you can get and put it in equities. Tear down your houses and build bigger. Trade your cars for newer models, and your spouse, too, while you’re at it. There’s no reason to be unhappy when you have no fault divorce, five hundred channels, the Blue Pill, and Prozac.

The poet called them hollow men and prophesied their whimpering end. They did not die on their feet in battle, but on their faces, clinging to a dunghill.

On the other hand: Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, because they will be filled. (Matthew 5:6)

Those who will hear, not the jangling and clanging of the words, but the melodious song of the Word, the chanting Spirit, they will have their souls satisfied, their spirits fed and made strong. They will not faint in the day of battle, nor lose their footing and fall. Having done all to stand, they will stand clothed in the Lord’s own armor with the shield of faith and wielding the sword of the Spirit.

The world’s great motivator is fear. It is filled with fear and dread. If I listen too much to it, sometimes it makes me afraid. I start counting my bullets and sharpening my knives. Then I get this nudge, and I have to smile. Terror on every side, you say? Weren’t you told about this when you signed on?

”But you, son of man, do not be afraid of them or their words, though briers and thorns are beside you and you live among scorpions. Don’t be afraid of their words or discouraged by their faces, for they are a rebellious house. But speak My words to them whether they listen or refuse … And you, son of man, listen to what I tell you: Do not be rebellious like that rebellious house. Open your mouth and eat what I am giving you … Eat this scroll, then go and speak …”. So I ate, and it was sweet as honey in my mouth. (Ezekiel 2:6-3:3)