Speak Truth

Have you not seen a false vision and uttered a lying divination, whenever you have said, ‘Declares the Lord,’ although I have not spoken?” Therefore thus says the Lord God: “Because you have uttered falsehood and seen lying visions, therefore behold, I am against you, declares the Lord God. My hand will be against the prophets who see false visions and who give lying divinations. They shall not be in the council of my people, nor be enrolled in the register of the house of Israel, nor shall they enter the land of Israel. And you shall know that I am the Lord God. Precisely because they have misled my people, saying, ‘Peace,’ when there is no peace, and because, when the people build a wall, these prophets smear it with whitewash, say to those who smear it with whitewash that it shall fall! There will be a deluge of rain, and you, O great hailstones, will fall, and a stormy wind break out. And when the wall falls, will it not be said to you, ‘Where is the coating with which you smeared it?’ Therefore thus says the Lord God: I will make a stormy wind break out in my wrath, and there shall be a deluge of rain in my anger, and great hailstones in wrath to make a full end. And I will break down the wall that you have smeared with whitewash, and bring it down to the ground, so that its foundation will be laid bare. When it falls, you shall perish in the midst of it, and you shall know that I am the Lord. Thus will I spend my wrath upon the wall and upon those who have smeared it with whitewash, and I will say to you, The wall is no more, nor those who smeared it, the prophets of Israel who prophesied concerning Jerusalem and saw visions of peace for her, when there was no peace, declares the Lord God. (Ezekiel 13:7–16)

This prophet has a way with words. The Holy Spirit reveals the picture Ezekiel paints concerning false teachers. First they say all is well when it isn’t. This tells me to face the reality of a very messy world but not sugarcoat it as if nothing bad is happening or will happen.

Also, if people build a wall to protect themselves and feel safe in whatever is threatening them, or build a wall to repair what has been destroyed, the false prophets will applaud their human efforts. This may not be a wrong action, but if done without the Lord’s direction or in the power of His Spirit, the storm that hits them will reveal that neither the wall or the whitewash will do what was intended.

In our day, to whitewash anything is about disguising it. If I make a mistake and invent an excuse to protect my ego or reputation, I am whitewashing it. Instead of being honest with others and with God, such pride promotes a false teaching. It is never right to lie by whitewashing truth.

Jesus, more and more I realize the power of truth. If spoken, people listen. Your Spirit often is also speaking, backing up what I say with His own way to telling people to listen. Keep me from whitewashing anything, even embellishing anything to make me look better than I am, or to make anything look more glorious than it really is.