The Watchman

“But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned; if the sword come . . . his blood will I require at the watchman's hand.” (Ezekiel 33:6)

God appointed Ezekiel to be His watchman over Israel. The watchman’s duty was to sound the alarm to warn the people of impending danger. If the people heard and ignored the warning and perished, the responsibility was theirs. If the watchman was negligent in his duty, he was held responsible for what followed.

Today, the Holy Spirit convicts and warns God’s people of sin and imminent danger, but some choose to ignore Him. For those, God may appoint a “watchman.” What must this watchman do? Speak God’s truth and sound the alarm of impending danger.

Being God’s watchman is not a self-appointed duty—it is God-ordained and sometimes unpleasant. Taking matters into your own hands when confronting someone with God’s message can cause irreparable harm. But when a God-led appointee approaches the wandering one, the Holy Spirit takes over the situation. Will the endeavor be successful in bringing the wayward one to the Lord? Not always. But the watchman has fulfilled his duty and will not be held responsible for their decision.

Once the watchman has delivered a message, the receiver decides to ignore or embrace it. If by God’s grace the sinner returns to the Lord, the watchman may have saved that person from death and brought about the forgiveness of many sins (James 5:20). Whether that person “saved from death” implies the wanderer was once lost and has entered God’s family, no longer doomed for eternal damnation, or the wanderer is a believer who escaped the sentence of death by the forgiveness of sin. Either way, sins are forgiven. 

Whether a believer, lost person, watchman or not, God holds all humanity accountable.