1. Sad pattern and a merciful God (1-10)

Some elders of Israel came to the prophet-priest Ezekiel to inquire of the Lord. Instead, God retold their repeated rebellious history in Egypt and the wilderness, which followed a 4-step pattern: (1) God revealed himself to his people as the Lord and gave them a promise or warning; (2) his people rebelled and rejected God's word; (3) God said he'd pour out wrath on them; (4) God showed mercy so his name would not be profaned in the eyes of the nations. God retold of his promise to bring them out of Egypt into a land of milk and honey, but they had to get rid of the vile idol images of Egypt. Instead, they rebelled. Even so, God, in his mercy, brought them out of Egypt into the wilderness.

2. Repeated rebellion (11-26)

In the wilderness, God gave them his laws and Sabbaths to make them holy. One who obeys God's word will live (11,13,21). But they rebelled and did not enter the promised land. God told their children not to follow their parents' wicked ways, but to keep the Lord's laws and Sabbaths. Then they would know the Lord. They also rebelled and suffered horrible consequences, like their exile to Babylon (23).