Ezekiel 8:17 – “And He said to me, ‘Have you seen this, O son of man? Is it a trivial thing to the house of Judah to commit the abominations which they commit here?’” In the eighth chapter of Ezekiel God brings Ezekiel “in visions of God to Jerusalem (vs. 3).” When Ezekiel arrives in Jerusalem he is standing in the north gate door of the Temple’s inner court. Through the rest of the chapter God takes Ezekiel on a tour through the Temple to show him “the great abominations that Israel commits… (vs. 6).” Ezekiel witnessed idols scribed onto the Temple walls, elders burning incense to idols and a group of men with their back turned to the Temple bowing in worship to the sun. The Israelites had taken the very building that had been built for the name of the Lord God of Israel and had turned it into a house of idolatry. After showing Ezekiel the abominations in the Temple God asks Ezekiel, “Is it a trivial thing to the house of Judah to commit the abominations which they commit here?”
The prose of this question implies it was as much a statement as it was a question. The answer to the question was, yes – it was a trivial thing to house of Judah to commit these abominations. It did not bother them in the least bit to be worshipping idols in God’s Temple. It did not matter to them that they had turned the House of God into a house of pagan worship. It did not bother their conscience and they did not even give it a thought. It was a trivial thing.
The house of Judah had strayed far from God by defiling the very Temple that had been built to honor God. God deserves to be revered, honored, praised and worshipped. His name and His being are to be regarded as holy. The house of Judah was not giving God the proper reverence, honor, praise or worship. They did not regard God or His Temple as holy.
An individual does not have to bow in worship to the sun or burn incense to idols to not give God the proper reverence and worship He deserves. Many times we allow ourselves to commit acts against God and disregard His holy name because, just as the house of Judah, we view these acts as trivial – things that don’t really matter. Take a very basic example – saying the name of the Lord in vain. Many people, and even Christians, say God’s name in vain with no thought to its significance. To them, it is a trivial thing to take the Lord’s name in vain.
Just as with the example above Satan would like to convince the entire world, Christian or otherwise, that many of the things that matter to God are just trivial matters. He would like us to believe that our actions have no bearing on our salvation and our righteousness. He would like us to believe that all we must do is love Jesus and that everything else – how we live, how we worship God, etc. – are just trivial matters. But when it comes to living a godly life and giving God the reverence, honor, praise and worship He deserves there are very few things that are trivial. Romans 12:1 reads, “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present yourself as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.” Our lives should be an act of worship to the Father. If we believe our actions and how we worship God to be trivial matters, then we need to reconsider.
