Baptismal meditation

Ezekiel 16: 3-6: Thus says the Lord GOD to Jerusalem: Your birth and your nativity are from the land of Canaan; your father was an Amorite and your mother a Hittite. As for your nativity, on the day you were born your navel cord was not cut, nor were you washed in water to cleanse you; you were not rubbed with salt nor wrapped in swaddling cloths. No eye pitied you, to do any of these things for you, to have compassion on you; but you were thrown out into the open field, when you yourself were loathed on the day you were born. And when I passed by you and saw you struggling in your own blood, I said to you in your blood, Live! Yes, I said to you in your blood, Live!

Jerusalem was an abandoned infant, left by Canaanite parents who had performed none of the birth ceremonies. They had not cut the cord, they had not washed her, they had not rubbed her with salt. The Lord found Jerusalem screaming naked in her blood, and spoke to her words of life.

He washes the blood from her, anoints her with oil, clothes her with embroidery. As she grows, he puts sandals of skin on her feet, wraps her in linen, adorns her with bracelets, a necklace, a nose ring and an earring, and places a crown on her head. Abandoned infant Jerusalem grows into a princess, a queen that attracts the attentions of surrounding kings. Yahweh spreads the wing of His own robe over her, and claims her as His bride.

The story is ultimately a tragedy, as Jerusalem proves unfaithful and goes after false gods. It is one of the most graphic depictions of idolatry in Scripture.

Ezekiel 16 is not only an allegory of Jerusalem, but an allegory of each of us. We are all born in blood, and left to die. We are born dead in transgressions and sins. We are born of a fallen parent, Adam. But the Lord has shown pity. He has had compassion on us. When we were thrown into an open field, wallowing in blood, He came near and caught us up. He washed us, salted us, clothed us, and prepared us to share His throne as members of His bride.

Interestingly, Ezekiel mentions salting as part of the preparation of the newborn. There may well be medical reasons for this – salt is a disinfectant perhaps. But the salting of the newborn is also rich in symbolism. As I mentioned in the sermon, salt is a sign of judgment, and represents a break with the past. Salting a newborn symbolizes the end of the infant’s life in utero and the beginning of a new life. Salting is for sacrifice, and salting a newborn is preparing the newborn to offer himself as a living sacrifice.

This passage points to the significance of baptism. Baptism is the beginning of our preparation for royalty. Baptism is obviously a washing, as we can see from the rite itself. It is also, the New Testament says, an investiture, a clothing, that makes us priests and kings and queens in training. And baptism is a salting. Through baptism, the Lord breaks us from our old fallen family and world and brings us into a new household. Through baptism, the Lord salts us to be living sacrifices.

You need to teach your daughter all this. She is baptized, and so she is a member of the royal priesthood. She has been baptized, and so she has been clothed in royal garments; treat her as the princess that she is, and train her to reign with beauty as a queen. She has been salted in baptism, and should expend herself in life as a living sacrifice.

Above all, teach her that baptism is God’s word to her. God went by Jerusalem, saw her in her infant blood, and had compassion on her. He spoke to her, and she came to life. And in baptism, God speaks that word again. Remind her that in baptism, God says to her “Live.”