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CLARK'S FOEEIGN

THEOLOGICAL LIBRARY.

FOURTH SERIES. VOL. XLIX.

Sttl on

tije

^ropi)eciC!S of

VOL.

5PF;fsj

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AND ARMSTRONG.

BIBLICAL

COMMENTARY ^

PRESERVA-r:OM

ON THE

SERVICI-S

MG2 4

PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

CARL FRIEDRTCH KEIL,

D.D.,

DOCTOR AND PKOFKSSOR OF THEOLOGY.

EEV.

JAMES MAETIN,

VOL.

B.A.

<^. ^

EDINBURaH: CLARK, 38 aEORGE STREET. MDCCCLXXVI.

The first

whole of

this

Commentary, with the exception of the

99 pages of Vol.

i.,

has been translated by Rev.

James

Martin, B.A. F. C.

University, St. Andeews.

CONTENTS.

INTRODUCTION.

..... ......7

I'.VOR

II.

III.

The Person of the Prophet,

The Times of the Prophet, The Book

of Ezekiel,

EXPOSITION. FIRST HALF.â&#x20AC;&#x201D;THE PROPHECIES OF JUDGMENT. CHAP. I.-XXXII.

......

The Consecration and Calling (Chap,

i.-iii.

21),

The Destiny of Jerusalem and

of Ezekiel to the Office of Prophet

its

Inhabitants (Chap.

iii.

22-v. 17),

17 61

The Judgment upon the Idolatrous Places, and on the Idol-worshippers (Chap,

The Overthrow

vi.),

of Israel (Chap, vii.),

Vision of the Destruction of Jerusalem (Chap.

Departure of the King and People

viii.-xi.),

of the

God towards

xiv.),

Wood

of a

xiii.),

Wild Vine (Chap,

Ill

166 Ifi-l

xvi.),

.177

Its

xv.),

God (Chap,

xviii.),

Lamentation for the Princes of Israel (Chap,

xix.),

191

Punishment

Humiliation and Exaltation of the Davidic Family (Chap,

The Retributive Justice

.....

Ingratitude and Unfaithfulness of Jerusalem.

and Shame (Chap,

xii.),

the Worshippers of Idols, and Certainty

Judgments (Chap,

Jerusalem, the Useless

and Bread of Tears (Chap,

;

Against the False Prophets and Prophetesses (Chap, Attitude of

.93 .99

194

236

xvii.), .

246

268

CONTENTS. PAQK

The Past, Present, and Future

of Israel (Chap, xx.),

263

Prophecy of the Burning Forest and the Sword of the Lord (Chap. XX. 45 to Chap, xxi, 82 (Heb. Chap, xxi.)),

286

The Sins of Jerusalem and

309

Israel (Chap, xxii.),

........ ...... .

Oholah and Oholibah, the Harlots Samaria and Jerusalem (Chap, xxiii.),

820

Prediction of the Destruction of Jerusalem both in Parable and

by Sign (Chap,

xxiv.),

....

339

PREDICTIONS OF JUDGMENT UPON THE HEATHEN NATIONS (CHAP. XXV.-XXXII.), Against

Ammon, Moab, Edom, and

the Philistines (Chap XXV.),

Against Tyre and Sidon (Chap. xxvi.-xxviii.),

The Fall of Tyre (Chap,

xxvi.),

363 360

370 370

Lamentation over the Fall of Tyre (Chap, xxvii.)

383

Against the Prince of Tyre (Chap,

405

xxviii. 1-19),

....

Prophecy against Sidon, and Promise for 20-26),

Israel (Chap,

425

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL. INTRODUCTION. THE PERSON OF THE PROPHET.

jZEKIEL,

f'Np]n^,

(i.

strengthens^ ^le^eKiijX

ch. xlix. 8), in the

after the Hesekiel,

example of the

into exile to

24),

i.e.

LXX.,

Babylon

King

in the year

and was carried

599

Jehoiachin, the nobles of the kingdom,

and the better (i.

2, xl. 1

;

class of the population of

cf.

2 Kings xxiv. 14

ff.;

name

writes the

priestly descent,

B.C.,

i.e.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;along

the eleventh year before the destruction of Jerusalem,

with

God

p?n;,

and Book of Sirach,

Vulgate Ezechiel, while Luther,

was the son of Busi, of

away captive

xxlv.

(LXX.

many

priests,

Jerusalem and of Judah

Jer. xxix. 1).

lived

there in the northern part of Mesopotamia, on the banks of the

Chaboras, married, and in his

own

house, amidst a colony of

banished Jews, in a place called Tel-Abib

In the

1, xxiv. 18).

fifth

(i. 1, iii.

year of his banishment,

15, 24,

i.e.

595

he was called to be a prophet of the Lord, and laboured in official position, as

may

i.e.

572

The

dated in the twenty-seventh year of

B.C. (xxix. 17).

stances and events of his

known.

this

be shown, twenty-two years; for the

latest of his prophecies is

his exile,

viii.

B.C.,

life,

Regarding the other circum-

as also of his death, nothing

apocryphal legends found in the Fathers and in

the Rabbinical writings, to the effect that he was put to death

by a prince of

own

his

buried in the tomb of Introd.

ii.

EZEK.

p. I.

203

ff.),

nation for rebuking his idolatry, and was

Shem and Arphaxad,

etc. (cf.

are without any historical value.

Carpzov,

So much

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

2 alone

certain, that

God had

he ended his

him

assigned

life

among

his sphere of labour,

contemporary Daniel (comp. Dan.

his

termination of the Captivity and the

the exiles, where

and did

not, like

21, x. 1), outlive

commencement

the*

of the

redemption of Israel from Babylon, as his prophecies do not contain the slightest allusion to that effect.

II.

THE TIMES OF THE PROPHET.

Ezekiel, like Daniel, different fashion

away

from the

him

prisoner before

a prophet of the latter,

Babylon on the

but in a

exile,

who had been

already carried

capture of

first

Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar in the reign of Jehoiakim, and

who

lived there

upwards of seventy years

and Medo-Persian important

offices

court,

at the

and who held from time

of State.

Daniel was placed by

Babylonian to time very

God

in this

high position, which afforded him a view of the formation and evolution of the world-kingdom, in order that from this standpoint he might be enabled to see the development of the world-

kingdoms in the struggle against the kingdom of God, and predict the indestructible

dom, which overcomes

all

power and glory of the

latter king-

the powers of the world.

Ezekiel,

on the other hand, was appointed a watcher. over the exiled nation of Israel, and was in this capacity to continue the work of the earlier prophets, especially that of Jeremiah, with

he in several ways

associates

whom

himself in his prophecies

;

preach to his contemporaries the judgment and salvation of

God, to

in order to convert

them

to the

Lord

their

God.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Rightly

understand his work as a prophet, the ripe fruit of which

lies

before us in his prophetic writings,

we must not only keep

in view the importance of the exile for the development of the

kingdom of God, but tions amidst

What

the

also

form a clear conception of the

which Ezekiel carried on

Lord had caused

tribes of Israel while

rela-

his labours.

be announced by Moses to the

they were yet standing on the borders of

INTRODUCTION.

the Promised Land, and preparing to take possession of that

it,

viz.

they should persistently transgress His commands,

would not only chastise them with heavy punishments, but would to

finally drive

them out

of the land which they were about

occupy, and disperse them

14â&#x20AC;&#x201D;45; Deut. all

xxviii.

15-68),

among

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

all

nations (Lev. xxvi.

threatening, repeated

this

the prophets after Moses, had been already executed

the Assyrians upon the ten tribes,

who had

by by

revolted from the

house of David, and was now in process of fulfilment by the

Chaldeans upon the kingdom of Judah

also.

In the reign of

Jehoiakim, Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, for the

first

time invaded Judah, captured Jerusalem, made Jehoiakim tributary,

and carried away

Babylon a number of

Israelitish

youths of noble birth and of the blood-royal, amongst

whom

was Daniel, along with a portion of the vessels of the temple, in order that these youths

might be trained up for the service

of his court (Dan.

With

1-7).

this invasion of the

Chaldeans

begin the seventy years of Chaldean servitude and exile in

Babylon, predicted by Jeremiah.

As Jehoiakim,

so early as

three years afterwards, revolted against Nebuchadnezzar, the latter, after

in the third

away into

a lengthened siege, took Jerusalem a second time,

month

and the members salem, a great

of his court, the nobles of

number

monarch Judah and Jeru-

of priests, warriors, carpenters, and

smiths, leaving behind in the land only the

the people, over

whom

meaner portion of

King Matbanished monarch, whose name he

he appointed as

taniah, the uncle of the

his vassal

changed to Zedekiah (2 Kings xxiv. 10-17 this

and carried

of the reign of Jehoiachin,

captivity ta Babylon, along with the captive

;

Jer. xxix. 2).

removal of the heart and strength of the nation the power

of the

kingdom of Judah was broken

;

nezzar did not at that time destroy

and although Nebuchadit,

but

still

allowed

remain as a subject kingdom under his sway, yet could not be of any long duration.

its

Judah had

existence

fallen too

deeply to recognise in the calamities which she had suffered the

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

THE PROPHECIES OF

EZEKIF.L.

bow

chastening hand of her God, and to

under His mighty arm. the prophet

herself repentantly

Instead of listening to the voice of

Jeremiah, and bearing the Chaldean yoke in

patience (2 Chron. xxxvi. 12), both monarch and people placed

Egypt, and Zedekiah broke the

their trust in the assistance of

oath of fealty which he had sworn to the king of Babylon.

punish

Nebuchadnezzar again marched against

this perfidy,

Jerusalem, and by the capture and burning of the city and

temple in the eleventh year of Zedekiah's reign put an end to the

kingdom of Judah.

beleaguered his sons to

who

first

Zedekiah,

who had

Riblah into the presence of King Nebuchadnezzar,

caused the sons of Zedekiah to be put to death before

the eyes of their father of sight, and then

;

next, Zedekiah himself to be deprived

commanded

monarch

the blind

ducted in chains to Babylon (2 Kings xxv. 1-21

Many

from the

fled

was taken by the Chaldeans, and brought with

city,

military officers

death at Riblah

and

priests of

be con-

Jer.lii. 1-30).

rank were

who had been taken

while those

;

also

put to

prisoners at

Jerusalem, along with the deserters and a great portion of the rest

the

were led away into

people,

exile

Babylon

Jer. lii. 1-30). By this catastrophe the (2 Kings xxv. 1-21 Old Testament theocracy lost its political existence the cove;

;

nant people were

now

own

driven out of their

land amongst the

heathen, to bear the punishment of their obstinate apostasy

from the Lord

their

God.

Nevertheless this dispersion

the heathen was no entire rejection of Israel suspension^

and not an

;

among

was merely a

annihilation, of the covenant of grace.

Man's unfaithfulness cannot destroy the

faithfulness of

God.

" In spite of this terrible judgment, brought down upon them

by the heaviest

transgressions, Israel was,

and remained,"

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

Auberlen (The Prophet Daniel, p. 27, 2d ed.) well remarks, " the chosen people, through whom God was still to carry out

His intentions towards humanity.

His

not be repented of " (Rom.

Even

exile the theocracy

xi,

29).

gifts

was not again restored

and

after the ;

calling

may

Babylonian

the covenant people

INTRODUCTION. did not after their return again recover

tlieir

independence, but

remained, with the exception of the short period the Maccabees they stant dependence

won

when under

for themselves their freedom, in con-

upon the heathen world-rulers,

until,

after

the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans, they were completely dispersed

among

the nations of the

all

kingdom of God, however, was not the external theocracy

;

was only

really to perish along with

renewal and perfection in that kingdom of

its

which was

new phase of medium of transition

to pass into a

development, which was intended to be the

towards

The

earth.

To pave

be founded by Christ.

way

the

God

to this

end, and at the same time to serve as a witness to the exiles, that Israel, notwithstanding still

its

dispersion

among

the heathen,

remained God's people, the Lord raised up in Ezekiel, the

son of a priest, a prophet of

uncommon power and energy

the midst of the captives, " one who raised his voice aloud, like a trumpet,

and showed

to Israel its misdeeds,

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; whose whole

manifestation furnished the most powerful testimony that the

Lord was

amongst His people

still

of the Lord, before

;

who was

whom the visible temple,

himself a temple

which yet remained

standing for a short time at Jerusalem, sank back into

nothingness

;

a spiritual Samson,

who

seized with

the pillars of the idol temple, and dashed

mighty arm

to the

its

ground

;

powerful, gigantic nature, which was fitted by that very qualification to effectually

which delighted

subdue the Babylonian

in powerful, gigantic,

spirit of

the time,

and grotesque forms;

standing alone, but equal to a hundred of the sons of the

prophets " (Hengstenberg's Chnstol. II.

The

call of

Ezekiel to the prophetic

531).

office

took place in the

fifth

year of the reign of Zedekiah, in the fourth month of the

year

(i.

1, 2), at

a point of time when, amongst those

remained behind in the land, as well as amongst those

who had who had

been carried to Babylon, the hope of the speedy downfall of the Babylonian monarchy, and of the return of the exiles to their native country,

which was then

to follow, Nvas very strong,

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

and was powerfully encouraged by the lying statements prophets;

cf.

of false

In the same year and month pro-

Jer. xxix.

phesied Hananiah, a prophet from Gibeon, in the temple at

Jerusalem, before,the eyes of the priests and the whole people, saying that Jehovah would break the yoke of the king of Baby-

and within two years bring back to Jerusalem

lon,

temple-vessels carried

Jechoniah and

all

away by Nebuchadnezzar,

the captives

And

lon, Jer. xxviii. 1-4.

the word of the tions

all

as well as

the

King

who had been brought to Babywho with

the prophet Jeremiah,

Lord rebuked and opposed

those lying predic-

and empty hopes, and foretold that the Babylonian

servi-

tude would be of long duration, was violently assailed and persecuted by the lying prophets, even by those of them

were to be found in Babylon This delusion regarding the spirit of resistance to

;

cf.

who

Jer. xxviii. 5-17, xxix. 21-32.

political condition of affairs, this

the decree of the Lord, had seized not

only upon the people, but also upon the nobles and the king, so that they

formed and eagerly carried on conspiracies against

The meeting

the king of Babylon.

of the kings of

Edom,

Moab, Ammon, Tyre, and Sidon, with Zedekiah

in Jerusalem,

had no other object than

The embassy,

this (Jer. xxvii. 3).

moreover, sent by Zedekiah to Babylon (Jer. xxiv. 3), as well as his li.

own journey

59),

thither in the fourth year of his reign (Jer.

were intended merely to deceive the king of Babylon,

by assurances of devotion and

fidelity, in

tended revolt might be carried out.

But

order that the inthis baseless

hope

of a speedy liberation

from the Babylonian yoke was igno-

miniously

disappointed

rebellion of Zedekiah,

siege of a year

and temple

this

and a

to the

blow

all

consequence of the treacherous

Nebuchadnezzar, after a blockade and half, captured Jerusalem,

burnt the city

ground, and destroyed the kingdom of Judah. the supports upon which the God-alienated

nation had vainly relied were broken. of the false prophets

had proved

The be

delusive statements

lies;

the predictions

of the Lord's prophets, on the contrary, had been strikingly

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

INTRODUCTION.

The

justified as divine truth.

destruction of Jerusalem, the

burning of the temple, and the downfall of the kingdom, form accordingly a turning-point for the prophetic labours of Ezekiel. Hitherto, prior to the calamity, he had to announce to the

people (animated with the hope of speedy liberation from exile) the judgment of the downfall of Jerusalem and Judah, although

such preaching found

The

acceptance.

little

had now arrived when,

in order to preserve

time, however,

from despair the

nation languishing in exile, and given over to the scorn, con-

tempt, and tyranny of the heathen, he was able to open up the

by announcing

sources of comfort

of the ignominy heaped

upon His

that the Lord, in requital

people,

would overwhelm

the heathen nations with destruction, but that,

whom

them a holy

Him land

His people

they had oppressed would repent and return to Him,

would again gather them out of of

their dispersion

nation, walking in

a willing service

;

all

would make

;

His commands and yielding

would conduct them back

to their

own

would give them His servant David for a prince, and

;

once more gloriously establish His kingdom.

III.

The

THE BOOK OF EZEKIEL.

collection of the prophecies placed together in this book,

forming a complete unity,

Announcements

nations, Israel,

ch. ch.

judgment upon

i.-xxxii.

falls into

;

two main Israel

salvation for

Each of these main two sections. The first, namely,

xxxiii.-xlviii.

subdivided into

and the heathen

Announcements of

II.

divisions

contains the

prophecies of judgment (a) upon Jerusalem and Israel, ch. iii.

22-xxiv.

;

(6)

upon

The second main

xxxii.

of the redemption

the

heathen

nations,

ch.

xxv.-

division contains (c) the predictions

and restoration of

Israel,

and the downfall

of the heathen world-power, ch. xxxiii.-xxxix.

;

(d) the pro-

phetic picture of the re-formation and exaltation of the king-

dom

God, ch.

xl.-xlviii.

;

and the entire

collection opens

;

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

with the solemn dedication of Ezekiel to the prophetic ch.

1-iii.

21.

The

prophecies of

the

office,

and

third,

first,

fourth parts are throughout arranged in chronological order

—the threatenings predicted —are disposed according

those of the second part

the heathen nations subject-matter.

against

to their actual

This

attested

by the chronological data

the superscriptions, and confirmed by the contents of the whole of the groups of prophecies in the

year of the captivity of Jehoiachin

and

Israel

(i.

time of

first

then the sixth

;

first

the fifth

as the

and of the

Ezekiel's call to the office of prophet, tions regarding Jerusalem

The

three parts.

first

part contains the following chronological notices

predic-

(viii. 1),

seventh (xx. 1), and ninth years of the captivity of

monarch

(xxiv. 1).

The second

against seven foreign nations, of which those against in the eleventh (xxvi. (xxix. 1),

xxxi.

1),

parts,

1), those against

Egypt

Tyre

fall

in the tenth

twenty-seventh (xxix. 17), eleventh (xxx. 20 and

and twelfth years of the

exile.

the two last

each contains only one chronological notice, namely,

ch. xxxiii. 21, the twelfth year of the captivity, after the destruction of Jerusalem fifth

that

part contains the predictions

;

and

i.e.

one year

ch. xl. 1, the twenty-

year of the captivity, or the fourteenth after the destruc-

tion of Jerusalem.

their

The remaining

prophecies, which bear at

head no note of time, connect themselves

their contents with those

which are furnished with chrono-

logical data, so that they belong to the

From

this it

closely as to

same period with

appears that the prophecies of the

first

those.

part

wholly, those of the second part to a great extent, date before

the destruction of Jerusalem parts

;

those of the third and fourth

proceed from the time after this catastrophe.

chronological relationship

— as the majority of

ch.

expositors suppose

second, but rather to the

of the view that the

in favour

prophecies against foreign nations,

first

This

—

xxv.-xxxii.,

are not

to be assigned to the

half of the book.

This view

confirmed, on the one hand, by the contents of the prophecies,

INTRODUCTION.

inasmuch

an exception, announce only the

as these, without

downfall of the heathen nations and kingdoms, making no

residue of these nations,

and conversion of the

forgiveness

reference to the future

and through

this

very peculiarity con-

nect themselves closely with the prophecies of threatening against Israel in the

resemblance which

first

exists

part; on the other hand, by the

1-20 and

between ch. xxx.

16-21, compared with ch.

iii.

no doubt upon the point that

ch.

19-32, and which leaves

xviii.

1-20 marks out

ch. xxxiii.

the prophet the task which was to occupy his attention after the destruction of Jerusalem, and consequently forms the introduction to the second half of his prophecies.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;For further

remarks upon the contents and subdivisions of the book, see the expositions in the introductory observations to the individual sections

and chapters.

Ezekiel's style of prophetic representation has

In the

ties.

him

prevails in

and

phets;

first place,

a greater degree than in

many

peculiari-

the clothing of symbol and allegory all

the other pro-

symbolism and allegory are not confined to

his

general outlines and pictures, but elaborated in the minutest details, so as to

and

present figures of a boldness surpassing reality,

ideal representations,

which produce an impression of im-

Even

posing grandeur and exuberant fulness. prophetic discourse

and

rich in imagery,

the simplest bold, partly

even strange, comparisons, and branches out into a copiousness

which

exhaust the subject on

strives to

of which

many

peculiar expressions

all sides, in

consequence

and forms are repeated,

rendering his language diffuse, and occasionally even clumsy.

These

peculiarities of his style of representation

has been

attempted, on the one hand, to explain by the influence of the

Babylonian

spirit

and

taste

upon the form of

while others, again, would regard

them

his

prophecy;

the result of a

literary art, striving to supply the defect of prophetic spirit,

and the

failing

power of the living word, by the

and an elaborate imitation of actual

life.

aid of learning

The supposed Baby-

—

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

Ionian

spirit,

however, in the forms of our prophet's symbolism,

The

has no existence.

Havernick, that " the

assertion of

whole of these symbols has a colossal character, which points in

many ways

to those powerful impressions experienced

the prophet in a foreign land,

— Chaldea, —and which

here are

grasped and given out again with a mighty and independent spirit,"

remains yet

many

For the observation

be proved.

these symbols, in reference to

form and contents, resemble in

respects the symbols of his contemporary Daniel,

sufficient for the purpose,

that

and cannot in

itself

not

be accepted as

the truth, by reference to the picture of the eagle, and the

comparison of rich

men

to trees, cedars, in ch. xvii., because

these pictures already occur in the older prophets, as well as cedars are native in Palestine.

and

Just as

lions as

little

are

Babylonian impressions to be recognised in the visions of the field

with the dead men's bones, ch. xxxvii., and of the

temple, ch.

xl.

new

so that there only remains the representation

of the cherubim with four faces, in ch.

and

x.,

which

peculiar to Ezekiel, as presumptive evidence of Chaldean in-

But if we leave out of account that the throne, upon which the Lord appears in human form, indisputably forms

fluence.

the central point of this vision, and this central point has no specific

Babylonian impress, then the representation of the

cherubim with faces of men,

lions, oxen,

and

eagles, cannot

derived from the contemplation of the Assyrian or Chaldean

human figures with winged oxen with human heads,

sculptures of

eagle heads and wings, or or sphinxes with bodies of

animals and female heads, such as are found in the ruins of ancient Nineveh, inasmuch as the cherubim of Ezekiel were

not pictures of oxen with

human countenances has

still

lions'

manes, eagles' wings, and

furnished with horns,

—

^as

W. Neumann

portrayed them in his treatise upon the tabernacle,

but had, according to Ezekiel, ch.

There are indeed

also found,

among

the

human form.

the Assyrian sculptures,

winged human figures; but these Ezekiel had no reason

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

INTRODUCTION. copy, because the cherubic images in

human

form, belonging

The whole

to Solomon's temple, lay

much

of Ezekiel's symbolism

derived from the Israelitish sanctuary,

and

nearer to his hand.

an outcome of Old Testament ideas and views.

picture of the ideal temple in ch. xl. to the relations of

ff. is

the

sketched according

Solomon's temple, which was burnt by the

Chaldeans, so the elements for the description of the majestic

theophany,

ch.

and

x.,

are

contained in the throne

was above the cherubim, who were over

of Jehovah, which

the covering of the ark of the covenant

mena amid which was manifested

;

and

glory at the establishment of the covenant on Sinai. basis of these facts, Isaiah

pheno-

in the

the revelation of the divine

had already represented

the

to himself

the appearance of the Lord, as a vision, in which he beholds

Jehovah

in the temple, sitting

on a high and

lofty throne, and,

who This symbolism we

standing around the throne, seraphim with six wings,

began to sing, " Holy, holy " (Isa. vi.).

find modified in Ezekiel, so as to correspond with the his vocation,

and

which he works out

and other symbols certainly

this vision

gives evidence of his capacity to describe, distinctly tively in words, what he had beheld in spirit

symbolism

itself

is,

just as

little

of poetic art, or the subjective

its

real, i.e.

attrac-

mere product lively fancy,

for

;

rests, in

harmony

contents and form, upon views which are spiritually

produced by the Spirit of

distinct reproduction of

It is only the

God

reduced to a faithful

what had been seen

characteristic

lively imagination,

of Ezekiel,

in the spirit,

and which betrays

and the many-sidedness of

qualities appear not

temple (ch.

in the soul of the pro-

abundance of pictures and metaphors, which

in this respect

These

and

although the

as the vision, a

phet, in which the art of the author

and

;

framework of a

without any real objective foundation with

aim of

The manner

elaborated to a greater extent.

xl. ff.),

his knowledge.

merely in the sketch of the new

but also in the description of the wide-

spread commerce of Tyre (ch. xxvii.), and of the relations of

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

Egypt

and

xxix.

(cli.

xxxi.), as well as in tlie

fest in all his representations,

and

descriptions

and

judgment,

and

allegorical portraits (ch. xvi.

and

sins,

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

xxiii.),

through

it,

but

threatenings of punishment and

throw light upon

and not

without any

in the

to follow out the subject treated of into the

special details, to

effort, in so

and

all sides,

and that

This style

still

more in the

relations

in his attitude towards that generation to

As symbolism and is,

it,

foundation not merely in

its

he had to announce the counsel and

proverbs

most

to penetrate

doing, to avoid repetitions.

the individuality of our prophet, but of his time,

from

he has exhausted

to rest until

of representation, however, has

whom

endeavours mani-

merely in the symbolical

the simple discourses, in the rebukes of the current

also in

vices

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;not

will of the

Lord.

the employment of parables, pictures, and

in general, only

a means for the purpose of pre-

senting in an attractive light the truths to be delivered, and

to strengthen

attractiveness

this

made by

the impression

speech and discourse, so also the copiousness and circumstantiality of

the picture, and even the repetition of thoughts and

expressions under

new

points

of view, serve the

same end.

The people to whom Ezekiel was now to preach repentance, by announcing the divine judgment and salvation, was " a rebellious race,

impudent and hard-hearted"

was

xii. 2, etc.).

If he

charge the

office, laid

faithfully

(ch.

iii.

7-9, 26,

and conscientiously

upon him by the Lord,

to dis-

of a watcher over

the house of Israel, he must not only punish with stern words,

and

in drastic fashion, the sins of the people,

and

distinctly

paint before their eyes the horrors of the judgment, but he

must

also

set

forth, in

salvation which was

when

a style palpable to the senses, that

bloom forth for the repentant nation

the judgment was fulfilled.

Closely

connected

with

this

the

Ezekiel's style of prophecy, namely, the

other

peculiarity of

marked prominence

assigned to the divine origin and contents of his announce-

ments, which distinctly appears in the standing form of address

INTRODUCTION.

— " Son of

man "

—with

speech and action '" *10N

formulae

;

God summons

which

in the continual use of

nb or

'^"^

the prophet to

niiT '•jhs

in the introduction

;

in the

almost

every discourse of God's requirement to him to prophesy or

and that; and in the formula which recurs

to do this

quently in

the discourses,

all

shall

know

fre-

that I

standing address, " Son of man," and the

The

Jehovah."

— " Ye

frequent call to speech and action, are likewise regarded by

modern

Both phrases, however, could only be held

power. so

a token of the failure of the prophetic spirit-

critics as

much,

—

convey

conformity with the view of Ewald, who, agree-

ably to the naturalistic representation of prophecy, assumes to be a result of high poetic inspiration

by Ezekiel

own

of his

free choice,

and employed with the inten-

tion of expressing the feeling of his

God, and of imparting

— they had been selected

own profound

distance from

to himself courage to prophesy.

If,

the contrary, according to the Scriptural conception of proas " son of

phecy,

God

called

him, moreover, on each occasion to utter predictions,

the

Lord addressed Ezekiel

man," and

then the use of the God-given name, as well as the mention of the summons, as

God

proceeding from

only, furnishes

evidence that Ezekiel does not, like the false prophets, utter the thoughts and inspirations of his

own

heart, but, in all that

he says and does, acts under a divine commission and under divine inspiration,

and serves

to impress the rebellious nation

more and more with the conviction that a prophet of the Lord is

in their midst

(ii.

5, xxxiii. 33),

and that God had not de-

parted with His Spirit from Israel, notwithstanding their banish-

ment among the heathen.

In favour of the correctness of

this

view of the expressions and phrases in question, there speak decisively the

manner and fashion

which Ezekiel was

and consecrated to the prophetic office tion

which God communicates

his calling first act

(ii.

1-3, 21),

—and

of his prophetic activity.

him

;

called

not only the instruc-

for the performance of

which, immediately upon the

supplements to the effect

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

him dumbness or

of enjoining upon

permitting him to open his to inspire

people

(iii.

mouth

him with a word 26, 27

;

(ch.

i.),

when He wishes

to speak

to be addressed to the rebellious

27 and

cf. xxiv.

theophany which inaugurated his

tion,

entire silence, only tlien

xxxiii. 22),

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;but

also the

to the prophetic office

call

which, as will appear to us in the course of the exposi-

has unraistakeably the significance of an explanation of a

reality,

which

will not

dissolution of the

be dissolved and annihilated with the

kingdom of Judah, and the destruction of

Jerusalem, and of the temple of that covenant of grace which

Jehovah had concluded with It

Israel.

usual, moreover, to quote, as a peculiarity of Ezekiel's

prophecies, the prominence given to his priestly descent especially

disposition,

and

viii.-xi.

XX. 12

ff.,

in the

xl.-xlviii.,

and

8, xxvi.

xxii.

ch.

visions,

and ch.

x.,

individual traits, as iv. 13

24,

ch.

cf.

i,,

ff.,

etc.,

ff.,

which Ewald

explains as " a result of the one-sided literary conception of antiquity according to

of the extreme

mere books and

prostration

spirit

traditions, as well

duration of the exile and bondage of the people

de Wette, Gesenius, and others would see in narrowness on the part of the prophet.

by the long

intensified

while

intellectual

The one view

groundless and perverse as the other, because resting upon the superficial opinion that the copious descriptions of the sacred

temple were sketched by Ezekiel only for the

articles in the

purpose of preserving for the future the elevating recollection of the better times of the past (Ewald).

When we

on the contrary, the symbolical character of these

we may always

say that for the portrayal of the conception

of the theophany in ch.

temple in ch.

xl.,

and

x.,

no individual was

and of the picture of the so well fitted as

familiar with the institutions of worship.

however,

we may

this

a priest,

symbolism,

not venture to seek for the products of intel-

lectual narrowness, or of sacerdotal ideas, but

conviction that

recognise,

descriptions,

God

the

Lord

selected a priest,

must

rise to

and no

the

other, to

INTRODUCTION.

be His prophet, and permitted him to behold the future of His

kingdom on earth

in the significant

forms of the sanctuary at

Jerusalem, because this form was the symbolical covering which presented the closest correspondence to the same. the passages laid

13 ff., xx. 12

iv.

ff.,

and

others, in

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

Still less

which

upon the ceremonial commands of the law, and where

violation is

stress is

their

mentioned as a cause of the judgment that was

breaking over Israel, furnish evidence of priestly one-sidedness or narrowness of spirit.

Law

Ezekiel takes up towards the Mosaic

no other position than that which

prophets.

finds impressed

taken by the older

on the precepts, not only of the

Moral, but also of the Ceremonial Law, divine thoughts, essential

elements of the divine holiness, attesting itself in and to Israel;

and penetrated by a sense of the everlasting importance of the whole law, he urges obedience to adherence to the Pentateuch

common criticize

life

prescriptions in the Mosaic

decessor Jeremiah,

its

commands.

not at

all

inasmuch as

to all the prophets,

and judge the

of the nation

Law.

Even

the close

peculiar to him, but all,

without exception,

by the standard of the

Ezekiel, with his nearest pre-

from

in this respect only distinguished

the earlier prophets, that the verbal references to the Pentateuch in both occur with greater frequency,

emphasis.

But

this

has

and receive a greater

ground not so much in the descent

its

of both from a priestly family, as rather in the relations of their time, especially in the circumstance that the falling

of the nation from the law

had become

away

so great, in consequence

of which the penal judgments already threatened in the Penta-

teuch upon transgressors had fallen upon them, so that the prophets of the

Lord were

obliged, with all their energy, to

hold up before the rebellious race not merely the ments, but also the threatenings of the law, fully to discharge the office to

The

language of Ezekiel

of words

which they had been distinguished

command-

they were faithcalled.

by a great number

and forms, which do not occur elsewhere, and which,

probably, were for the greater part coined by himself (see an

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

enumeration of these in duction^ ยง 77,

Rem.

6),

tlie

Manual of

and shows a strong leaning towards It has, however, been unable to

the diction of the Pentateuch. resist the influences of

Aramaic idiom,

the inaccurate popular dialect, and of the

so that

corruptions, the decline

the

Hebrew tongue

Ilistonco-Critical Intro-

betrays, in

many

its

anomalies and

and commencement of the dying out of

(cf. ยง

17 of the Historico- Critical Manual),

and reminds us that the prophet's residence was

in a foreign

country.

The

genuineness of Ezekiel's prophecies

day, unanimously recognised by

all critics.

is,

the present

There is, moreover,

no longer any doubt that the writing down and redaction of them in the volume which has been transmitted to us were the

work of the prophet himself.

Only Ewald and

Hitzig, for the

purpose of setting aside the predictions which so

them, have proposed very

manner and way

artificial

much

offend

hypotheses regarding the

which the book originated

;

but

appears

unnecessary to enter into a closer examination of these, as their probability

and trustworthiness depend only upon the dogmatic

views of their authors.

For the exegetical vol.

353 (new

very recent date.

literature, see the Historico- Critical

ed. p. 254),

Das Buck

von Dr. Th. Kliefoth. and 1865.

where

EzecJdels.

Manual,

also to be added, as of

Uebersetzt und erklart

Zwei Abtheilungen.

Rostock, 1864

.iidzsLi y:- < :A-.)jii3ya'! .ijii

EXPOSITION. riEST HALF -THE PEOPHECIES OF JUDGMENT. CHAP. I.-XXXII.

CHAP.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

THE CONSECRATION AND CALLING OP EZEKIEL TO THE OFFICE OF PROPHET.

r.-TTI. 21.

N a vision of through

God, Ezekiel beholds in a great cloud,

which shone the splendour of

fire,

and

which a tempestuous wind drives from the north, the glory of the Lord above the cherubim upon a

throne in

majestic

human form

(ch.

i.),

and

hears

voice, which sends him as a prophet to Israel, and inspires him

with the subject-matter of

thereafter

his

announcements

transported in

Chebar, into the midst of the

spirit

called,

The whole occurrences

him

ters

;

and

From

these contents

do not constitute the

i.,

by which he

him

for the discharge of the

clearly appears that these chap-

fi.rst

introduction to the whole, to T.

office.

into the revelation of the word,

1-3, 21, which prepares

EZEK.

4-21).

in the vision are subdivided into the

consecrated for his calling ii.

(iii.

and ordained to the prophetic

copious description of the theophany, ch.

same.

3).

on the

appearance and the commission therewith connected

he consecrated,

ch.

1-iii.

(ii.

Tel-abib

and the duties and

exiles,

responsibilities of his calling laid before this divine

section of the book,

but the

which the circumstantial notices

THE FBOPHEGIES OF EZEEIEL.

of the time and place of this revelation of

mencement, Chap.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; to

God

com-

at the

1-3, also point.

The Appearance op the Glory op the Lord. Time and place of the same. Ver. 1. Now it came

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

Vers. 1-3.

pass in the thirtieth year, in the fourth {month), on the fifth

(day) of the month, as

I teas among

Ver.

On the fifth day of the month,

Jehoiachins captivity, Ver.

I saw

visions of

God.

of King Lord came to

loas the fifth year

The word of

by the river of

the captives

Chehar, that the heavens were opened, and

the

Ezehiel the priest, the son of Busi, in the land of the Chaldeans

by the river Chebar

;

and

the

hand of

the

Lord was

there

upon

him.

Regarding i.

beginning of a book, as

at the

''H^l

the note on Josh.

cf.

The two

e.g.

Jonah

notices of the

year in vers. 1 and 2 are closely connected with the twofold introduction of the theophany. first,

according to

its

This

form or phenomenal nature, and then in

verses second and third, according to

upon the prophet.

effect

its

this, that

its

not merely

when

disclosed of the heavenly glory of

intended purpose, and

The phenomenon to

God

our eye a glimpse (Calvin), but also

when God manifests His glory in a manner human sight. The latter was the case here. *'

visions of

God," are not "

;

perceptible

1 Kings xxii. 19; 2 Kings

vi.

17.

^'''<y^. ^lii*"!^,

visiones prcestantissimce,^^

which have divine or heavenly things for vi.

consisted in

the heavens were opened, and Ezekiel saw visions of

The heaven opens

God.

described in verse

but visions

their object; cf. Isa.

Here

it is

the mani-

festation of Jehovah's glory described in the following verses.

This was beheld by Ezekiel in the ing to verse second, was in the Jehoiachin.

The

real

thirtieth year, which, accord-

fifth

year of the captivity of

identity of these

two dates

placed

beyond doubt by the mention of the same day of the month, *'

on the

ver. 1).

fifth

The

day of the month " fifth

(ver.

2 compared

with

year from the commencement of Jehoia-

CHAP L 595

chin's captivity is the year

sequently,

B.C.; the thirtieth year, con-

But the

the year 625 B.C.

with which this date

1-3.

reckoned,

era, in

no longer be ascertained with certainty. Hengstenberg, that the reference

own

accordance

matter of dispute,

and can with

suppose,

to the year of the prophet's

forbidden by the addition " in the fourth month, on

life, is

the fifth day of the month," which points to an era generally

In the year 625

recognised.

B.C.,

Nabopolassar became king

and therefore many of the older expositors have

of Babylon,

supposed that Ezekiel means the thirtieth year of the era of

Nothing, however,

Nabopolassar.

known

any such

Others, as the Chaldee paraphrast and Jerome, and in are

times also Ideler,

era.

modern

opinion that the thirtieth year

reckoned from the eighteenth

year of the reign of Josiah,

because in that year the book of the law was discovered, and the regeneration of public worship completed by a solemn cele-

bration of the Passover.

trace,

however, can elsewhere be

pointed out of the existence of a chronology dating from these

The Rabbins

events.

Seder

Olam assume a chronology

according to the periods of the years of jubilee, and so also Hitzig

but for this supposition too

;

wanting. npian Tjina, their

ch.

midst of the exiles,"

settlements, not, in their

iii.

society

proofs are

Ezekiel found himself

time mentioned,

the

in the

reliable

all

;

within the circuit of

i.e.

for

evident from

15 that he was alone when the theophany was imparted

to him,

and did not repair

the settlers.

Chaldees,

i.e.

Ver. in

till

afterwards to the residences of

the river Chebar, in the land of the

Babylon or Mesopotamia.

The

river 133, to be

distinguished from l^^n, the river of Gosan, which flows into

the Tigris, see on 2 Kings xvii.

^A^oppa^ (Strabo,

jy_^

(Edrisi

xvi.

Clim.

6, is

the

Mesopotamian Chaboras,

748), or Xal3dopa<i (Ptolem. v. 18, 3),

iv.

Abulf. Mesopot. in the according to Edrisi takes

Repertor.

its

ii.

150, III.

ed. p.

Jaubert and xxiv.),

which

rise from " nearly three hundred

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

springs," near the city Bas-el-^Ain, at the foot of the

mountain

range of Masiiis, flows through Upper Mesopotamia in a direction parallel with its

two principal streams, and then, turning

westward, discharges

itself into

the Euphrates near Kirkesion.

The

There the hand of Jehovah came upon Ezekiel. sion (?^) ?V nn^n

'^"i

always

the power or omnipotence of

signifies a

God upon

expres-

miraculous working of

a man,

— the hand being

—

by which he is placed in a consuperhuman power, 1 Kings xviii. 46, and is

the organ of power in action, dition to exert

the regular expression for the supernatural transportation into the state of ecstasy for the purpose of beholding and announcing (cf.

2 Kings

iii.

15), or undertaking, heavenly things

throughout Ezekiel,

cf.

iii.

22,

viii.

the

Ij xxxiii.

;

and

22, xxxvii. 1,

xl. 1.

Vers. 4-28. of the

spirit

Description prophet.

pestuous wind came rolled together like

about

it,

and

metal from

Ver.

from

ball,

out of

the

—

its

theophany seen by the

And I

the north,

and

saw, and,

a tem-

a great cloud, and a jire

brightness

the

lo,

light

round

midst, as the appearance of glowing

midst of the

fre^^^The

description begins

with a general outline of the phenomenon, as the same presented

itself

to the

spiritual eye of the

proach from the north.

prophet on

its

ap-

tempestuous wind brings hither

from the north a great cloud, the centre of which appears as a

lump

ness

fire,

of light, and presents in

glowing metal. north

which throws around the cloud the bright-

is,

The coming

its

midst the appearance of the

phenomenon from the

as a matter of course, not connected with the

Baby-

lonian representation of the mountain of the gods situated in

the extreme north, Isa. xiv. 13.

According

to the invariable

usage of speech followed by the prophets, especially by Jere-

miah

(cf. e.g.

14, iv. 6, vi. 1, etc.), the north

from which the enemies who were Jerusalem and Judah break

coming of

this divine

in.

to execute

According

the quarter

judgment upon

to this usage, the

appearance from the north

signifies that

CHAP. L

5-14.

from the north that God will bring to pass the judgment nni3^n» m^ « fire rolled together like a ball," is

it is

upon Judah.

an expression borrowed from Ex.

naini^ *o B'^, as

The

27 and ch.

having a bright

" brass," and the Talmudic word

hbl2

"rough gold

reading N^^D in the

a metal

a compound of

or vb^D^ "

ri^'nj,

aurum rude"

ore," is opposed the fact that the

Talmud

Gesen. Thesaur.

(cf.

Septuagint i.e.

Plin. Hist. Nat. xxxiii. 4.

;

and

and consisting of a mixture of gold and

lustre,

Cf. Strabo, III. 146

signifies

The

disputed.

fpieicrpov^ electrum,

the explanation of Bochart, that

K^D»

tJV,

K*t?n T|in».

of this word, which occurs again

ver. 2,

viii.

and Vulgate translate

and

refers to

from the words in apposition,

see

The meaning

ance of ^^^V.

silver.

which formed the centre of the cloud, had the appear-

fire,

in ver.

10.

ix.

not certain, but purports to be

and Buxtorf, Lexic. Talmud,

p. 535,

1214), as well as the circumstance that raw gold ore has not

a lustre which could shine forth out of the probability has the supposition that in Syriac " coii/lavit, fabricavit,"

Still

fire.

a compound of

and u^n,

less StJ'n,

on which

"fricuit,^^

Havernick and Maurer base the meaning of " a piece of metal

wrought

from D"i3,

The word

in the fire."

UZ'n,

and to denote " glowing ore." where So^n py

priate both in ver. 27, as well

ver. 7

and

viii.

Dan. x.

Him who

x. 6 of the

manifests Himself.

more minutely. and

This meaning is

inf,

appro-

explained by

ti^'x-nxno,

" brilliancy," stands as

different

from

??i^

^f^^ in

the three places to

enthroned above the cherubim

;

while

spoken of the feet of the cherubim, and

arms and In

feet of the personage

verse fifth the

There

the seer four beings, figure

where

appended, as ?0i3 from

6, for p^'fH refers in all

ntyna in ver. 7 is

Dan.

however,

^^'^^,

it.

the person of

ch.

as in

parallel to

P7i5

appears simply to be formed

probably " to glow," with

first

whom

appearance

who

there

described

present themselves to the eye of

he describes according to their

style.

Vers. 5-14.

The four cherubim.

—Ver.

A7id out of its midst

;

THE TROPHECIES OF EZEEIEL

22 there prominently

and

this

Ver.

was

appeared a figure^ consisting of four creatures^

their

appearance

their feet like the soles

ance of shining brass.

under

their

of a man.

the figure

turned

iiot

of a

calf,

Ver.

and sparkling

And

Their wings were joined one

as they went

appear-

man

were

And

form of

Ver. 10.

man ; and

on the right all four had a

four had

the face

And

the

of an ox

their faces

another; they

they went each one in the direction of

;

his face.

Ver. 11.

like the

hands of a

the

wings on their four sides ; and all four had faces and

Ver.

wings.

all

had

they

And each had four faces, and each of them had four wings. 7. And their feet were upright- standing feet ; and the soles

and

;

and

their faces Uoitls

all

was

that of

face ; and on the

four had an eagle

left

s face.

wings were divided above, two

their

of each uniting loith one another, and two covering their bodies Ver. 12. And they went each in the direction of his face whithersoever the spirit was to go, they went they went.

Ver. 13.

burning coals of fire,

And

the likeness

like the

and from

the fire

beings ran hither

From

and

they turned not as

appearance of torches

went hither and thither amongst the beings liant,

;

of the creatures resembled

came forth

thither in

;

and

lightning.

the fire

(the fire)

was

Ver. 14.

bril-

And the

a zig-zag manner.

out of the fiery centre of the cloud there shows

itself

the form (H^OT, properly " resemblance," " picture ") of four

" living creatures ;" fcoa, Apoc. iv. 6 ; not " wild beasts," as Luther has incorrectly rendered it,

n^n, animantia, Brjpia,

after the animalia of the Vulgate. D'lN niOT,

" the figure of a man."

These four creatures had Agreeably to

this notice,

placed at the head of the description, these creatures are to be

conceived as presenting the appearance of a

human body

points not otherwise specified in the following narrative.

article stands as

Each

and four wings (Ons without the a distributive, and D^?J3 are " pinions," as in

them had four

Isa. vi. 2, not

in all

faces

" pairs of wings ").

Their feet were

niK*^ bT}_,

straight foot;" the singular stands generically, stating only the

nature of the feet, without reference to their number.

CHAP.

5-14.

have accordingly to assume in each of the four creatures two IK'J, " straight," i.e. standing upright, not legs, as in a man. bent, as

when

sitting or kneeling,

ing the knee and thigh, and

under part of the

/J"}.

This part, not the whole

leg,

^^i^

The

nK'TO.

The

legs sparkled

subject of

verse fifth" (Hitzig), for this subject

which

^D"'^nj

15,

D'VV'b

which like

and

?^i^ riB'TO

the

not " the

ni'n in

too far distant, but

here construed as masculine, as in Jer.

words apprehended

this sense are these

word

calf's foot,

which are understood to be intended under the

D"'in3j

tread on the ground.

resembled the

firmly planted on the ground.

appearance of

" sole of the foot," or the

with which

leg,

the whole leg, includ-

p^] is *1|,

16.

xiii.

Apocalypse,

in the

there translated by ')(akK6kL^avo<;.

this

Hengstenberg and Diisterdieck on the Apoc. i. 15. probably signifies " light," i.e. " bright, shining brass,"

see

hhp 'nj

have rendered

as the old translators

i^aarpdnrroiv

The Septuagint has

it.

the Vulgate, aes candens; and the Chaldee para-

;

The

phrast, aes fiammans.

brass " (Bochart), rests Thes. p. 1217, and

signification

" smoothed, polished

upon uncertain combinations

;

cf . Gesen.

appropriate neither here nor in Dan. x. 6,

where these words precede, " His face had the appearance of lightning,

and

his eyes

were as a flame of

Under

fire."

the

four wings were four hands on the four sides of each cherub,

formed rested

The

The wings

accordingly

upon the shoulders, from which the hands came

Chetib

others

the hands of a man.

H"'!

may

we punctuate

"^1],

D'lK elliptically, " his

(i.e.

were (the hands of) a

of God."

Job

suffix distributively

and

each of the four creatures) hands

man

passages like that in Ps. (feet) of hinds ;"

and take the

forth.

Kimchi and

certainly be defended if with

;" cf. for

such an

xviii. 34, ni'''^53 vJ"!,

ellipsis as this,

feet as the

xxxv. 2, ?X0, " before the righteousness

extremely probable, however, that

error of an old copyist for

and that the Keri

reading, as the taking of DIN elliptically

the broad style of Ezekiel, which in

its

^Tl

only the

the correct

not in keeping with verbosity verges

;

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

The second half of

tautology.

ver. 8 is neither,

to be referred to the following ninth verse,

no more spoken but

of, nor,

to be taken as

with Hiivernick,

where the faces are

with Hitzig, to be arbitrarily mutilated stands, comprising all that has hitherto

been said regarding the faces and wings, in order to append thereto in ver. 9 sqq. the description of the use

The

members. one

11 limited to the two upper wings,

to another," is in ver.

according to which

and nature of these

" the wings were joined

definite statement, that

we have

so to conceive the matter, that the

top or the upper right wing of each cherub

with the top of the

came

in contact

wing of the neighbouring cherub.

left

This junction presented to the eye of the seer the unity and coherence of

and implied,

all

the four creatures as a complete whole

as a consequence, the

harmonious action in

of the four creatures.

They

but proceeded each in

-the direction of his face.

" over against his face." Kliefoth

Via I3y"-'X,

thus rightly given by

they had four faces, they needed not to turn as (i.e.

in the direction in which) they

were going, always after the face."

In the closer description

man

of the faces in ver. 10, the face of the

was turned towards the

In naming these

remarked that

three,

it is

naming the man's

word

omitted, because the

DillV.?

immediately precedes.

first

mentioned

and that of the eagle (behind).

left,

seer, that of the lion to

the right side, the ox to the

had these faces

n'ri,

did not turn as they went along^

The meaning

they went, but went on as

as that which

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;a

common

all

the four creatures

face, this

(referring to

ver. 11,

it is

all

remark the

four)

next remarked of the

faces and wings, that they were divided above (n^j?ÂťpÂť, "

from

above," "

upward ")

precisely stated.

;

The word

the preceding, " and

expunged

then the direction of the wings

a gloss

;

was

but

Q'^\^?i is

neither to be referred to

their faces," norj with Hitzig, to be

quite in order as a statement that

not only the wings but also the faces were divided above, consequently were not like Janus

faces

upon one head, but the

four faces were planted upon four heads and necks.

In the

CHAP.

follows, K'^N

description that is

K''^?

5-14.

nhnin

not quite distinct, and

manifestly to be taken as an abbreviation of ~^^ HE'S

nninx in ver. 9 i.e.

on each were two wings joining one another,

touching with their tops the tips of the wings of the cherub

beside them, in accordance with which

Two

the wings as expanded.

we have

conceive

were covering their bodies,

i.e.

each cherub covered his body with the pair of wings that folded

downwards

;

not, as Kliefoth supposes, that the lower

wings of

the one cherub covered the body of the other cherub beside

him, which also

that verse.

ments

not the meaning in ver. 23

ver. 12,

what

;

see note

to be said about their

move-

brought to a conclusion, while both statements are completed by the addition of the In whatever direction the nn " was to go,

repeated in ver. 9&, and

principium movens.

in that direction they

their

own

went

i.e.

not according to the action of

but wherever the nn impelled them, n^i, hownot " impulse," nor, in this place, even " the

will,

ever, signifies

wind," as the vehicle of the power of the spiritual

life

palpable

which produced and guided their movements,

to the senses,

For, according to ver. 20, the move-

(Kliefoth), but spirit.

harmony with the movements

of the cherubim, was not caused

by the wind, but proceeded

ment

of the wheels, which

from the n>nn nn,

i.e.

was

from the

the contrary, there

spirit

dwelling in the creature.

not in the whole description, with the

exception of the general statement that a tempestuous wind

drove from the north the great cloud in which the theophany

was enwrapped, any to the senses.

entire

allusion to a

means of motion palpable

In the 13th and 14th verses

described the

produced by the movement oS the whole nvnn nim;i precedes, and is taken absolutely " as

impression

appearance,

regards the form of

the creatures," and corresponds to the

niÂťn y3"|^ n^o^ in ver. 5,

with which the description of the indifire

was

Their appearance was like burning coals of

fire,

vidual figures which appeared in the brightness of the introduced. like the

appearance of torches.

K^n refers to

as the principal

—

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL. Fire, like the fire of burning coals

concepthn.

and torches,

went, moved hither and thither amongst the four creatures.

This

presented a bright appearance, and out of

fire

The

forth h'ghtnings.

motion. V^^, to

The

Ni^*^,

from

The

run.

Ni2»J,

stands instead of the finite verb.

Gen.

after

The continued motion

coming

moving on

"They went

split,"

in the

because they had a countenance

;

not " lightning" (zrp'ia), but comes from PT3

" to be

not in

straight before

looking in the direction of every side " (Kliefoth). fies

and

as Hitzig

and yet always

hither and thither,

direction of their countenances

inapproout,"

the creatui'es

contradiction with their perpetually

them.

7 (Hitzig),

viii.

to think of "

exists for the striking out of the words,

proposes.

came

constant

an Aramaising form for the Hebrew

we have not

because here

no reason

N^"),

infin. ahsol.

conjecture of

priate,

creatures, moreover, were in

and denotes " the

splitting,"

i.e.

PT3 signi-

in Syriac,

;

the zigzag course

of the lightning (Kliefoth).

Vers.

Ver. 15.

15—21. The four wheels beside the clierubim.

And I saw

the creatures, and,

lo,

there icas

a wheel upon Ver. 16.

the earth beside the creatures, toioards their four fronts.

The appearance of

Hie wheels

ance of the chrysolite their

and

their

work was

Ver. 17. Towards

were high and

round about in

creatures moved,

raised themselves.

and

the wheels

moved

beside them ;

up from

in the wheels.

moved the

also

;

Ver. 21.

lohen the

former

When

and when

for the the

was

sjnrit

was

the

go,

go ; and the

spirit of the creatures

former moved,

stood, the latter stood

former raised themselves from

the

the earth, the wheels also

Ver. 20. Whithersoever the

wheels raised themselves beside them

their

And when

Ver. 19.

all the four.

And

Ver. 18.

their felloes icere full

they went in the direction in xchich the spirit

was

appear-

four sides they went when

their

terrible ;

creatures raised themselves

like the

four had one kind of figure : and work loas as if one wheel icere within all

moved: they turned not as they went.

felloes, they

eyes

and

appearance and their

the other.

they

;

the latter

and

lohen

the ground, the loheels raised

CHAP. themselves beside them wheels.

way

— The

woi'ds, "

15-21.

for the spirit of the creatures was in the and I saw the creatures," prepare the

new

for the transition to the

object which presented itself

in these creatures to the eye of the seer.

upon the ground he

creatures

sees a wheel,

fronts, or front faces of the creatures.

VJS

rij;3")}<7

chariot,

the side of these

and that

The

can neither be referred, with Rosenmiiller,

which

not mentioned at

all,

and

so be understood as if every

and Kliefoth,

This meaning refers

ad sensum

to the figure of the

(Ewald),

we have

or, to express it

cherubim with

front, conceived as a unity

cordingly,

at right angles.

The

not to be found in the words.

to n^*n

—

wheel looked towards four

because a second wheel was inserted in

sides,

to the

nor, with Hitzig, to the

preposition ?^^, nor, with Havernick, Maurer, (Six,

at the four

singular suffix in

its

suffix

correctly,

four faces turned to the

as one creature

('^'T'l',

ver. 22).

so to represent the matter, that

by the

Acside

of the four cherubim, namely, beside his front face, a wheel

was

be seen upon the earth.

Ezekiel then saw four wheels,

one on each front of a cherub, and therefore immediately speaks in ver. 16 of v^heels (in the plural). is

adspectus,

and

'IB'yD

" work ;"

i.e.

this verse nN"iD

both statements employing

the term " construction," although in the

hemistich only

first

the appearance, in the second only the construction, of the wheels

described.

U^^T\

the topaz of the moderns,

The

the chrysolite of the ancients,

—a stone having the

construction of the wheels was as

within a wheel,

i.e.

the four sides.

I'll''??,

lustre of gold.

one wheel were

were inserted at

as if in the wheel a second

right angles, so that without being turned all

could go towards

"As

in ver. 18, stands absolutely.

regards their felloes," they possessed height and terribleness,

— the

latter

because they were full of eyes

arbitrarily understands n33 of the

the Arabic, of the under side, or that which

The movement of movement of the creatures

back.

round.

all

upper sides

;

and

lies

Hitzig

nNi"|j

after

towards the

the wheels completely followed the (vers,

19-21), because the

spirit

;

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

the creature was in the wheels,

not the " principle of

rrnrij

in vers.

20 and

creatures conceived as a unity, as in ver. 22, where the

ing

The

undoubted.

motion and

21,

" (Hiivernick), but the cherubic

life

senso

mean-

the wheels were, in their

completely bound by the movements and rest

rest,

of the creatures, because the spirit wliich ruled in them was also

the wheels, and regulated their going, standing, and

rising upwards.

the n'nn

the wheels are bound in one

with the cherub-figures, but not by means of a chariot, to or

upon which the cherubim were attached.

The throne

Vers. 22-28.

Jehovah.â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver.

22.

heads of the creature there appeared an expanse

And

over the

the appear-

ance of the terrible crystal, stretched out over their heads above.

And

Ver. 23.

under the expanse

straight one towards another

toere

each had

and each two (wings\ covering

their

tioo toings,

wings, extended covering to these,

Ver. 24.

to those, their bodies.

And /heard the sound of their wings, as the sound of many waters, like the voice

the

of the Almighty, as they

clamour of a camp: when they

And

Ver. 25.

wings.

came a

there

icent

a loud rushing

down

stood, they let

voiae

from above

their

the ex-

panse which was above their heads; when they stood, they Ver. 26. Over the expanse above

wings sink down.

their

heads was

and over above

it.

to be seen, like

the figure

And I

brass, like the appearance

from

the

a sapphire stone, the figure of a throne:

of the throne was a figure resembling a

Ver. 27.

saw

and a shining

light

appearance of the the

it,

spake.

man

appearance of gloioing

of fire within the same round about

I saw

as of the appearance of fire,

was round about

boio,

which

it.

Ver. 28. Like the

in the clouds in the

appearance of the shining

the appearance

saw

like the

appearance of his loins upwards, and from the appear-

ance of his loins downwards,

was

let

their

light

day of rain,

round about.

This xoas

of the likeness of the glory of Jehovah.

and fell upon my

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Above,

face,

and I heard

the voice

And

of one that

over the heads of the figures of the cherubim,

Ezekiel sees something like the firmament of heaven (ver.

2Âť

CHAP. L 22-28.

sq.),

and hears from above

this

canopy a voice, which re-

echoes in the rushing of the wings of the cherubim, and deter-

mines the movement as well as the standing

The

creatures.

"And as

first

sentence of ver. 22 literally signifies:

a likeness was over the heads of the creature,

were, stretched out."

Vi?"!

it,

and before

has 3 fallen out (as Hitzig supposes), nor Tn'Q'i

is it

V''\>'] ;

ri^O"=j,

neither

be supplied.

denotes not any definite likeness, with which another

could be compared, but, properly, similitudoy and

by Ezekiel article,

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; a canopy,

not the genitive after

but an explanatory apposition to

For

these

still

in the sense of " something like."

mean

does not

employed

Vi?"!,

without the

the firmament of heaven, but any ex-

panse, the appearance of which

is first

the firmament by the words nnjjn pys.

described as resembling It

not the firmament

of heaven which Ezekiel sees above the heads of the cherubim,

but an expanse resembling

it,

of a fear-inspiring crystal.

which has the shining appearance used of crystal, in so far as

t^niJ^

the appearance of this glittering mass dazzles the eyes, and assures terror, as in Judg. in

Job

xiii. 6,

of the look of the angel

The

xxxvii. 22, of the divine majesty.

;

and

description

based upon Ex. xxiv. 10, and the similitude of the crystal has passed over to the Apocalypse, the wings of the cherubim,

iv. 6.

n^i^^.,

Under

the canopy were

standing straight,

i.e.

spread

out in a horizontal direction, so that they appeared to support the canopy.

nriinx"7K HE'S

be referred to the cherubim

The

not, with

(^^'I'lI),

others, to

nn"'3:3j as in

ver. 9.

^is? which follows does refer, on the contrary, to the

cherub, and literally signifies, " ing, namely, to these to C'i^p, in a

and

are divided into this

two

each were two wings, cover-

those, their bodies."

manner analogous

repetition of the nsH/',

That

Jerome and

but to

T^^ij?

corresponds

to DH? nriNp in ver. 6.

pairs, standing opposite to

the

one another.

statement contradicts, as Hitzig asserts, the

of the verse,

" to these and those," the four cherubim

by no means evident.

first

half

If the two creatures on

each side covered their bodies with the two wings, then two

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

other wings could very easily be so extended under the canopy

that the tops of the one should touch those of the other.

the creatures moved, Ezekiel hears the sound,

i.e.

the rustling

of their wings, like the roaring of mighty billows.

This

strengthened by the second comparison, " like the voice of the

Almighty,"

i.e.

that follows

still

resembling thunder,

depends on V^'^^.

here and in Jer.

xi.

>^}^[}.,

The

"roaring," "noise," "tumult."

fall

motion

for

;

down.

course, applies only to the upper wings, as the

when

This, of

under ones,

which covered the body, hung downwards, or were it

jiJ^n,

This rushing sound, however,

they stood, they allowed their wings to

this

i'ip

which occurs only

was heard only when the creatures were

From

>y^^[}.

probably synonymous with

cf.

down.

let

clearly appears that the upper wings neither sup-

ported nor bore up the canopy over their heads, but only were so extended,

when the cherubim were In

touched the canopy.

ver.

is also

in motion, that they

mentioned whence the

loud sound came, which was heard, during the moving of the wings, from above the canopy, consequently from him

placed above

who was

so that the creatures, always after this voice

it,

resounded, went on or stood

still, i.e.

put themselves in motion,

or remained without moving, according to

its

With

command.

the repetition of the last clause of ver. 24 this subject

Over

cluded in ver. 25.

or above

con-

upon the firmament was

be seen, like a sapphire stone, the likeness of a throne, on which

one in the form of a

sat

form, as in

Dan.

vii.

man i.e. Jehovah appeared in human Upon this was poured out a fiery,

9 sq.

shining light, like glowing brass (/^^'^ PV, as in ver. 4) and like fire, n^3D n^Ti^a,

" within," and to

rb,

ÂŤ within

round about " (n'2^

pointing back to N33

niD'n).

They

be the simplest explanation of these obscure words.

are rendered differently fire

Hitzig,

who

which has a covering round about

enclosed, whose shining contrasts so

account of the dark surroundings."

translates it, i.e.

much

the

= n^3,

This appears

them

like fire

" like

which

more brightly on

But, to say nothing of

CHAP.

22-23.

the change which would then be necessary of this

meaning seems very

far-fetched,

IT'S

into n^3,

and cannot be accepted

for this reason alone, that t^X ^^"!^, neither in the following

hemistich (ver. 276) nor in

viii.

has any such or similar

The appearance above

strengthening addition.

shows, as the

centre of the cloud (ver. 4), a fiery gleam of light, only there is

to be perceived

upon the throne a figure resembling a man,

from the

fiery-looking

round about the

loins

figure, or rather

light (nJb, cf. ver. 4), like the

This

iv. 3.

upwards and downwards, and

[xin, ver. 28, does

round the throne, a shining

rainbow in the clouds,

appearance of him who was enthroned,

and cherubim

included, but throne

cf.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; the

(x. 4,

covering of light

19) excluded (Hitzig)]

was the appearance of the likeness of Jehovah's glory.

The

these words closes the description of the vision. clause,

And

Apoc.

not refer to ^i^^, but to the whole

With

following

I saw, etc.," forms the transition to the word of

Jehovah, which follows on the second chapter, and which sum-

moned Ezekiel

become

Before we pass,

a prophet to Israel.

however, to an explanation of this word, we must endeavour to

form to ourselves a clear conception of the significance of

this

theophany.

For

its

view that

full it

understanding we have

was imparted

called to the office of prophet, but times,

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;namely,

in ch.

iii.

sqq.,

when he

sqq.,

all

to keep in

merely on his being

was again repeated three

where he was commissioned

impending siege of Jerusalem

to predict symbolically the viii.

first

to Ezekiel not

;

ch.

transported in spirit to the temple-court

Jerusalem for the purpose of beholding the abominations of

the idol-worship practised by the people, and to announce the

judgment which, burst

upon the

consequence of these abominations, was

city

and the temple,

which

him how the glory of the Lord abandons, thereafter the city also

shown

him the

;

and in ch.

shown

the temple and

1 sqq., in which

the new temple with the glory of among the children of Israel. In

filling of

the Lord, to dwell for ever

xliii.

first

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

Âť3 all

three passages

From

of his call.

may

first

has drawn the ri^ht con-

4 sqq. bears a relation not

but to the whole prophetic work of Ezekiel

not say that

time, because

which he witnessed on the occasion

this Kliefoth

theophany in ch.

elusion, that the to the call only,

expressly testified that the divine ap-

pearance was like the

God

so appears to Ezekiel at a later

him

so appeared to

say, conversely, that because

God

at his call

but

;

and must

wills

we must

so appear to

Ezekiel at a later time while engaged in his prophetic vocation,

therefore

The

call."

him and

him

also appears to

distinctly contained in the

ch.

xliii

God

form already

in this

God

which

intention, however, with

two

at his

so appears to

last passages, ch. viii.-xi.

withdraws in a

manner from the

visible

temple and Jerusalem, which are devoted to destruction on

God

account of the sin of the people: in a visible manner

new temple

the

enters into

the

whole of what

comprehended

a better its

;

these two things,

and

existing temple

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

the future

was inspired

Ezekiel

city,

was

foretell

the destruction of the

and the raising up of a new and

because the whole of his prophetic vocation had

God

fulfilment in these, therefore

his call to

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

and because

;

appears to Ezekiel on

be a prophet in the same form as that in which

departs from the ancient temple and Jerusalem, in order to their destruction,

in order to fore, is

make it

what

it is

and announce of the temple,

a temple. in

and on the other

itself is

because

purpose was to show side the destruction

restoration

why God

made

from

here has the cherubim with

Him,

without cherubim

God

glorification."

clear

no other significancy than what nacle, viz. that

and

clear.

while on the occasion of other appearances Isa. vi.

edifice

the theophany, there-

its

on the one its

new

correct, only the significance of the

not thereby

the purpose indicated

enters into the

The form of

sqq.,

to the prophet,

These remarks are quite theophany

and in which

;

as the

it is

(e.g.

Dan.

vii.

cherubim here have

their figures

have in the taber-

has there His dwelling-place, the seat of

;

CHAP.

His gracious presence either the special

distinguished

22-28.

yet this does not satisfactorily explain

;

marks by which the cherubim of Ezekiel are

from those

and

in the tabernacle

in Solomon's

temple, or the other attributes of the theophany.

Kliefoth,

moreover, does not misapprehend those diversities in the figures of the cherubim, and finds indicated therein the intention of

causing

distinctly to

appear that

Jehovah, enthroned amid the

who again uprears

temple, and

predict both

events,

the one and same

who

cherubim,

destroys

the

Because Ezekiel was called

it.

he therefore thinks there must be

excluded, on the one hand, such attributes in the form of the

harmony with the

manifestation as would be out of

different

aims of the theophany; while, on the other, those which are important for the different aims must be combined and com-

prehended in one form, that

this

may

one form

to all the manifestations of the theophany.

fore have in

be appropriate

It could not there-

the ark of the covenant and the mercy-seat

because, although these would probably have been appropriate to the manifestation for the destruction of the old

temple

(viii.

1 sqq.), they would not have been in keeping with that for

new

must show " the living God Himself upon the throne among the living entering into the

creatures ;" because

Instead of

temple.

belongs to the

of the temple of the future, that self

dwelling within

this, it

new and

glorious existence

Himtoo, may

should have Jehovah

in a visible form.

From

this,

be explained the great fulness of the attributes, which are divisible into three classes

God

festation of

which

Those which

;

God

first class all

essential

in itself, e.g. the visibility of

general, the presence of the cherubim in

ÂŁZEK.

Those

for entering into the

the last class belongs everything which

consequently,

mani-

and, 3. Those which serve both objects in com-

to the manifestation of

the

relate to the

for the destruction of Jerusalem; 2.

relate to the manifestation of

new temple mon.

itself,

and

God

the signs that indicate wrath and judgment,

first,

the coming from the north, especially the

THE PnOPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

fire,

the lightnings, in which

judgment

God

appears as

He who

but to the second, besides the rainbow and the

;

God

appearance of

human

form, especially the wheels and

For the

the fourfold manifestation in the oherubim and wheels.

new temple

coming

does not represent the rebuilding of the temple by

Zerubbabel, but the economy of salvation founded by Christ at

His appearing, to which they belong as

own coming and

founded, on the one hand, by God's

upon the earth

on the other,

;

and

His throne

lowers

down

dwelling

local nature of the pre-

vious ancient dispensation of salvation.

human form;

;

be of an oecumenic character,

in opposition .to the particularities

essential tokens

God

appears bodily,

canopy on which

to earth the

seated; the cherubim, which

indicate God's

gracious presence with His people, appear not merely in symbol,

but in living

reality, plant their feet

upon the ground, while

each cherub has at his side a wheel, which moves, not in the air,

but only upon the earth.

Himself

this it is

walk and

to descend to the earth, to

among His economy of

people

;

shown that God to dwell visibly

while the oecumenic character of the

salvation,

for the establishment of which

new

God

to visit the earth, is represented in the fourfold

form of the

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;the

sign of the

cherubim and wheels. oecumenicity which

spread abroad into

and wheels, of

God

The number

four

and the symbol of

to come,

all

the world

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

to portray the spreading

assigned to the cherubim

true and striking this attempt at explanation

may

tion, that in the

The

that

contain in

does not touch the heart of the subject, and

free from bold combinations.

being

abroad of the new kingdom

But how much soever

over the whole earth.

details, it

its

not

correctness of the assump-

theophany attributes of an opposite kind are

united, namely, such as should refer only to the destruction of

Jerusalem and of the temple, and such as foundation and nature of the beset with well-founded doubts.

relate only to the

new economy

Why, on

of salvation, is

such a hypothesis,

should the form of the theophany remain the same throughout

;

CHAP. in

22-28.

This question, wlilch

three or four cases?

all

surface,

not satisfactorily answered

lies

on the

by the remark that

Ezekiel had to predict not only the destruction of the old, but

new and much more

also the foundation of a

glorious

kingdom

For not only would this end, but also the object of showing that it is the same God who is to accomplish both, have been fully attained if the theophany had remained the

of God.

same only in those

which emblemize

attributes

a general

way God's

gracious presence in His temple

attributes,

which typify only the one and the other purpose of

;

while the special

the divine appearance, would only then have been added, or

brought prominently out, where

theophany had to be announced.

this or that

element of the

Moreover, the necessity in

general of a theophany for the purpose alleged

much

not evident,

the necessity of a theophany so peculiar in form.

less

Other prophets

also,

e.g.

Micah, without having seen a theo-

phany, have predicted in the clearest and distinctest manner both the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple, and the

raising

reason,

of a

then,

only at his

new and more

why

call,

glorious

The

kingdom of God.

Ezekiel witnessed such a theophany, not

but had

repeated to him at every

in his prophetic ministry,

new turn

must be deeper than that assigned

and the theophany must have another meaning than that of merely consecrating the prophet for the purpose of announcing both the judgment upon Jerusalem and the temple, and the raising

up of a new and more

glorious

economy

of salvation,

and strengthening the word of the prophet by a symbolical representation of

its

contents.

recognise this meaning,

distinct conception, not

we must endeavour

form a

merely of the principal elements of our

theophany, but to take into consideration at the same time their relation to other theophanies.

are

unmistakeably prominent,

cherubim 3d,

;

2d,

The wheels

The firmament

In our theophany three elements

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

1st,

The

peculiarly formed

are seen beside the cherubim

;

and,

above, both with the throne and the form of

— ;

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

God

human shape

upon the throne.

seated

these three elements in the description

any importance, but seer

who

on earth

look next turns

all,

first

presents

however,

He who

indisputably pointed out that

God

that

that to the

and that

itself,

upper part of the theophany.

the

the cherubim under or at the throne of

the same

this,

the under part of the figure which,

Especially significant above

order of

perhaps hardly of

simply explicable from

appearing visibly in the clouds, his

The

the appearance of

God

;

and by

this

it is

appears upon the throne

enthroned in the temple between the

the mercy - seat upon their outspread wings. Whatever opinion may be formed regarding the nature and

cherubim of

significance of the cherubim, this lished, that

much

undoubtedly estab-

they belong essentially to the symbolical repre-

sentation of Jehovah's gracious presence in Israel, and that this portion of

our vision has

its

real foundation in the plastic

representation of this gracious relation in the

of the tabernacle or temple.

Holy

of Holies

As, however, opinions are divided

on the subject of the meaning of these symbols, and the cherubim of Ezekiel, moreover, present no inconsiderable

differ-

ences in their four faces and four wings from the figures of the cherubim upon the mercy-seat and in the temple, which

had only one face and two wings, we must, standing of our vision; look a

and

little

for the full under-

closely to the nature

significance of the cherubim.

While, according to the older view, the cherubim are angelic beings of a higher order, the opinion at the present day

widely prevalent, that they are only symbolical figures, to which

nothing real corresponds, creature life in *

Compare the

its

— merely

highest fulness.*

ideal

representations of

This modern view, how-

investigation of the cherubim in

Handhuch der Bib-

pp. 86 sqq. and 113 sqq. ; also Klieioih's Abhandlung iiber die Zahlensymbolik der heiligen Schrift in der Theolog. ZeitscTirift von lischen Archseologie,

Dieckhoff und Kliefoth, III. p. 381 sqq., where especially the older view that the cherubim are angelic beings of a higher rank is defended in a

—

thorough manner, and the daring hypothesis of Hofmann signally refuted

CHAP.

22-28.

ever, finds in the circumstance that the

cherubim in the Israel-

sanctuary, as well as in Ezeklel and in the Apocalypse,

itish-

are symbolical figures of varying shape, only an apparent but

The cherubim

real support.

God, after expelling the

occur for the

Gen.

history of Paradise, where, in

human

first

at the east side of the garden the

22-24,

iii.

first it

time in the related that

pair from Paradise, placed

cherubim and the flame of a

sword, which turned hither and thither, to guard the

to the

If this narrative contains historical truth, and

tree of life.

not merely a

myth

or philosopheme

;

remain real things and occurrences,

— pure

must the cherubim

will not

Hebrew fancy

creations of

—

have placed

at the gate of

Upon

the basis of this narrative, Ezekiel

cherubim to be

spiritual beings of a higher rank.

Paradise," Kliefoth. also held the

God

humanity, are to

all

—then

" For

also be taken as real beings.

Paradise and the Fall,

with their consequences, extending over

symbols

way

This appears from ch.

xxviii.

14-16, where he compares the

prince of Tyre, in reference to the high and glorious position

God had

which

assigned him, to a cherub, and to Elohim.

It does not at all conflict with the recognition of the

cherubim

as real beings, and, indeed, as spiritual or angelic beings, that

they are employed in visions to represent super-sensible relations, or are represented in a plastic

Israel.

ference to is

who

testify ;

in the sanctuary of

When this,

angels," as Kliefoth correctly remarks in re" sing the song of praise in the holy night, this

historical occurrence,

angels

form

and these angels are

real ancels,

their appearance that there are such beings as

but when, in the Apocalypse, angels pour forth sounds

of wrath, these angels are figures in vision, as elsewhere, also,

men and

objects are seen in vision."

But even this employment upon the belief that

of the angels as " figures " in vision, rests

Ed. C. Aug. Riehm, De natiird et notione symholicd Cheruhorum, Commentat. Basil. 1864, who, proceeding from the view adopted by Bahr, Hengstenberg, and others that the cherubim were only symbolical figures, has sought to determine more minutely the meaning of these symbols.

lastly,

—

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

there are actually beings of this kind.

Biblical symbolism

furnishes not a single undoubted instance of abstract ideas, or

by the

ideal creations of the imagination, being represented

prophets as living beings.

Under

the plastic representation of

the cherubim upon the mercy-seat, and in the most holy and

holy place of the tabernacle and the temple, these are heavenly, spiritual beings

temple (which was built after the kingdom of

God

its

;

is sufficient to

and

all

the symbols derived

When, however, on

real existence.

other hand, Hengstenberg objects, on Apoc.

Vitringa remarks

the idea, that

pattern) essential relations of

are embodied, and

from things having a

lies

for in the tabernacle

the

" that what

iv. 6,

refute those who, under the

cherubim, would understand angels of rank,

—

viz. that

these

four creatures are throughout the whole of this vision connected

with the assembly of the elders, and are distinguished not only

from the vii.

11,"

From into

angels, but

—we must

from

all the angels, as is

done in ch.

regard this refutation as altogether

futile.

the division of the heavenly assembly before the throne

two choirs or

classes

(Apoc.

and

vii.),

(cherubim) and the elders form the one the other choir (ver. 11),

—

which the fwa dyyeXoc

(v. 8), the

— an argument can be as

against the angelic nature of the cherubim, as

little it

derived

could be

shown, from the distinction between the arparia ovpdvio<i and a77e\o9, in Luke ii. 13, that the " multitude of the heavenly host" were no angels at

And

all.

the passage in Apoc.

vii.

would only then furnish the supposed proof against the lationship of the in general

—

were spoken

cherubim

angels,

all

of.

to the

11 re-

angels, if Trai/re? dyyeXoi

how numerous

soever they

But the very tenor of the words,

may

Travre? ol

ayyeXoi, "all the angels," points back to the choir of angels

already mentioned in ch. v. 11, which was formed by iroWol ayyeXoij whose

number was ten thousand

times ten thousand,

and thousands of thousands.*

From

See on this distinction Winer's (Moulton's translation), p. 137, where,

Grammar of New Testament Greek among other remarks, it is observed

the distinction between

CHAP. the fwa

22-28.

and the dyyeXot in the Apocalypse, no further

in-

common

ference can be deduced than that the cherubim are not

angels, "ministering spirits, sent forth to minister" (Heb.

14), but constitute a special class of angels of higher rank.

More exact information regarding the relationship of the cherubim to the other angels, or their nature, cannot indeed be obtained, either from the name cherubim or from the circumstance that, with the exception of Gen.

iii.,

only in connection with the throne of God. the word

2l"i3

obscure:

proposed from the

make to

all

Hebrew

they occur always

The etymology

the derivations that have been

or any other Semitic dialect cannot

the slightest pretensions to probability.

The word

appears

have come down from antiquity along with the tradition of

my Biblical

See

Paradise.

Archceology, p. 88 sqq.

first

in ch. x. employs the

nacle, or rather

name

Q''?1"i3,

be inferred from x. 20, he

first

of the theophany related in ch.

form a supposition,

;

take

and

the taber-

since, as

may

recognised, from the repetition

seen in the vision were cherubim, tion nvn,

known from

from the history of Paradise

ni'n,

them

into consideration, however, that Ezekiel calls

that the living creatures

x.,

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;we

may, from the designa-

not as to their nature, at least

as to the significance of their position towards the throne of

God.

They

are termed nvn, " living," not as being " ideal

representatives of all living things

berg), but as beings which,

and

earth, possess

upon the earth " (Hengsten-

among

and manifest

all

the creatures in heaven

life in

the fullest sense of the

word, and on that very account, of

all spiritual

God

all flesh

nearest to the

eternity to eternity),

of the spirits of

and encircle His throne.

beings, stand

(who

With

lives

from

this repre-

sentation harmonises not only the fact, that after the expulsion

of the to

first

human

guard the way

beings from Paradise, to the tree of life,

that " xeiaxi ysvieti are xi yivtai (Matt.

all

God commanded them

but also the form in which

generations, whatever their

17), all the generations,

number

;

%eiaoi.i

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;those which, either from

context or in some other way, are familiar as a definite number."

the

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL were represented in the sanctuary and in the

tliey

The cherubim

in the sanctuary

visions.

had the form of a man, and

were only marked out by their wings

as super-terrestrial beings,

not bound by the earthly limits of space.

The cherubim

Ezekiel and the Apocalypse also preserve the appearance of a

man.

Angels

visibly to

assume the human form when they appear

also

men on

earth, because of all earthly creatures

man,

and highest

place.

created in the image of God, takes the

For although the spiritual nature of

Spirit of is

God,

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

divine image

man,

^yet his

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

first

principally

and

we have any know-

as such forms the most appropriate

garment for

But the

rendering visible the heavenly spiritual being within.

cherubim in our vision exhibit, besides the figure of the

body with the face of a man, and of the

ox,

eagle,

human

also the face of the lion, of the

and four wings, and appear as four-sided,

square-formed beings, with a face on each of their four so that

the

him by the

bodily form, as the vessel of this soul,

the most perfect corporeity of which

ledge,

consists

in the soul breathed into

sides,

they go in any direction without turning, and yet,

while so doing, they can always proceed in the direction of one face

;

while in the vision in the Apocalypse, the four faces of

the creatures

named

among

are divided

portrayed his soul and

higher order of animals,

its

spirit,

them

doubtless, to represent

ness and the power of divided

among

and

nature.

and eagle-faces with that of man

life,

the four cherubim, so

In the countenance of

that each has only one of them.

one

in each

The union

of the lion, ox,

in the cherubim,

as beings

man

also of the

intended,

which possess the

ful-

which in the earthly creation

The

the four creatures named.

dictum (Schemoili Rabba, Schottgen, Horce HebraiccB, Quatuor sunt qui principatum in hoc miindo

Rabbinical p.

tenent.

1168)

Inter

creaturas homo, inter aves aquila, inter pecora bosy inter bestias leOy

contains it

a truth, even

there

lies

the foundation

the idea that these four creatures represent the entire

earthly creation.

For

in the cherub, the living

powers of these

CHAP.

22-28.

That the

four creatures are actually united.

eagle, namely,

comes into consideration only in reference to flight, in

which he excels

may

other birds,

all

from the circumstance that

Apoc.

iv.

the ox and the lion

power of

be concluded

7 the fourth ^coov

According

described as resembling an eagle flying. principle,

his

this

are only to be considered

reference to their physical strength, in virtue of which the ox

amongst tame animals, the first

his

place, while

lion

amongst wild

man, through the power of

supremacy over

earthly creatures.^

all

beasts, take the

mind, asserts

his

The number

four,

both of the cherubim and of the four faces of each

lastly,

connected with their capacity to go in

cherub in our

vision, is

all directions

without turning, and can contribute nothing in

favour of the assumption that these four indicate the whole living creation, Is

upon

tlie

simple ground that the

number four

not essential to them, for on the mercy-seat only two cheru-

That they are

bim are found.

also represented in the vision

as higher spiritual beings, appears not only

where a cherub stretches forth

his

from Ezek.

x. 7,

hand and fetches out

fire

from between the cherubim, and places it in the hands of the angel clothed in white linen, who was to accomplish the burning of Jerusalem in the

;

them, as Kliefoth activity

worship,

still

distinctly,

has

from what

already pointed out,

v. 8, xix.

what the four them gives

first

all

;

they repeat the

creation, v.

;

" in manifold ;

they offer

Amen

to the

they invite John to see

seals are accomplishing, vi. 1, 3, 5, 7

to the

said

Here we observe

they utter day and night the Tersanctus iv. 8, 9,

song of praise from

but,

Apocalypse regarding their working.

;

one

seven angels the seven phials of wrath,

XV. 7." ' This has been already rightly recognised by Riehm, I.e. p. 21 if., who has drawn from it the inference quaternis igitur faciehus eximiae vires atque facultates signijicantur cherubis a deo ad niunus suum sustinendum :

which is connected with the erroneous representation that the cherubim are intended to bear the throne of God, and to carry the Lord of impertitae^

the world.

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL Besides this activity of theirs in the carrying out of the

we must,

divine counsel of salvation,

in order to gain as clear

a view as possible of the significance of the cherubim in our vision, as well as in Biblical

symbolism generally, keep

also in

view the position which, in the Apocalypse, they occupy around

Those who are assembled about the throne

the throne of God.

form these three concentric

form the innermost

circle

;

circles

thrones, clothed in white garments,

upon

their heads,

all, is

number was many thousands

8, vii. 11).

and wearing golden crowns

compose the wider

the third, and widest of

the four ^wa (cherubim)

the twenty-four elders, seated upon

circle that follows

of thousands (Apoc.

iv. 4, 6, v. 6,

made

perfect from

heathens, peoples, and languages, in white raiment,

all

and with palms tribulation,

Him

who have come

in their hands,

and have washed

in the blood of the

serve

while

these are added the great, innumerable host,

standing before the throne, of the just

among

;

formed by the many angels, whose

their robes,

Lamb, and now,

out of great

and made them

wOiite

before the throne of God,

day and night in His temple

(vii. 9,

Ac-

14, 15).

cordingly the twenty-four elders, as the patriarchs of the

and

New

Old

Testament congregation of God, have their place

beside God's throne, between the cherubim and the myriads of

the other angels

;

and

in the

same manner

as they are exalted

above the angels, are the cherubim exalted even above them.

This position of the cherubim

justifies the conclusion that

they

have the name of ^wa from the indwelling fulness of the everlasting blessed life

out from

Lord

which

within them, and which streams

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; the

the Creator of spirits all lords

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; upon

King

all

the spiritual beings of heaven, and

that the cherubim immediately surround the throne of

being representatives blessedness, feited

God,

life

and bearers of the everlasting

which men, created in the image of God, have

by the

Fall, but

and

kings,

which they are again, from the

for-

infini-

tude of the divine compassion, to recover in the divine kingdom

founded for the redemption of fallen humanity.

CHAP. It is easier to recognise the

22-281

meaning of the wheels which

The wheel

our vision appear beside the cherubim.

now

serves to

Although the throne of God

put the chariot in motion.

not

expressly represented and designated as a chariot-throne,

yet there can be no doubt that the wheels which Ezekiel sees

under the throne beside the cherubim are intended

to indicate

moved

the possibility and ease with which the throne can be

The mean-

the direction of the four quarters of the heavens. ing of the eyes, however, according to

matter of controversy, with which,

18, the felloes of the wheels, and, as

mentioned in ch.

and

x. 12,

also noted in

cherubim themselves are furnished

Apoc.

expressly

iv.

the

According to

round.

all

Kliefoth, the eyes serve the purpose of motion; and as the

movement

of the cherubim and wheels indicates the spreading

abroad over the whole earth of the this

abroad

this spreading

of salvation,

to take place, not through blind acci-

dent, but with conscious clearness. priate

Apoc.

beside them, to

new economy

mass of eyes in the cherubim and wheels must indicate that

iv.

The meaning

and where a going forth

be thought

Here

of.

not appro-

where the cherubim have no wheels into all countries is not

therefore, according to Kliefoth, the

eyes only serve to bring into view the moral and physical

powers which have created and supported the kingdom of

upon earth, and which are mation.

This

also to bring

now

to its

God

consum-

manifestly arbitrary, as any support from

passages of the Bible in favour of the one view or the other

The remark

entirely wanting.

truth, that

of Kosenmiiller

by the multitude of the eyes

naturarum perspicacia

explanation of Apoc. v.

o^vmiriay

nearer the

denoted Coelesiium

and leads

the correct

where the seven eyes of the

Lamb

are declared to be ra iTrra irvevfiaTa tov ÂŠeov, ra aireaTaXfieva â&#x201A;Ź49 iraa-av rrjp yrjv

effects

manner analogous of the

;

the eyes consequently indicate the spiritual

which proceed from the to

Lamb

over the entire earth in a

His seven horns, which are the symbols

completeness of His power.

The

eye, then, is

the

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

picture and mirror of the Spirit

;

and the ornamentation of the

cherubim and wheels with eyes, shows that the power of the divine Spirit dwells within them, their

and determines and guides

movements.

The remaining objects of the vision are not difficult to explain. The appearance of the expanse over above the cherubim and wheels, upon which a throne

ment

upon the throne holy

to be seen, represents the firma-

God appears human form, in the terrible glory of His The whole appearance draws nigh to the

or heaven as the place of God's throne.

majesty.

prophet in the covering of a great fiery cloud (ver. cloud points back to the

This

4).

thick cloud" in which Jehovah, in the

ancient time, descended upon

Mount

Sinai amid thunders and

lightnings (Ex. six. 16) to establish His covenant of grace,

promised to the patriarchs with their seed,

brought forth from Egypt,

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; and

grace upon the earth.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;the people of

Israel

found His kingdom of

observe the connection of our

God on

theophany with that manifestation of

Sinai for

the

founding of the Old Testament dispensation of salvation, we shall neither confine the fire

the manifestation of

God

and the lightnings

our vision to

for the destruction of Jerusalem

and

the temple, nor refer the splendour which appears above the

throne in the form of a rainbow to the grace which returns after the execution of

salvation which

judgment, or to the new dispensation of

to be established.

differing attributes,

Nor may we

by referring them

historical elements of the revelation of

in opposition

;

but must

holiness,

specially to individual

God

conceive of them,

from the point of view of unity,

regard these

His kingdom, as

more generally and

as symbols of the righteousness,

and grace which God reveals

in the

preservation,

government, and consummation of His kingdom.

holds

true also of our theophany what Diisterdieck remarks on Apoc. iv.

(cf. p.

219 of the second

edition of his

Commentary)

re-

garding the importance of the divine appearance described in that passage

may

not hastily apply in a general way

CHAP. L 22-28.

the description before us of

God

special reference to the

judgments

(which are seen at a later time) in their relation to the

divine grace

enough that

it is

;

personal ground of

all

here,

where the everlasting and

that follows

God

glory and righteousness of

described, the sacred

appear in the closest connec-

His unchanging, friendly grace,

tion with

so that the entire

future development of the kingdom of God, and of the world

down

to the final

termination, as that

marvellous unity of being which

in the holy, righteous,

gracious God, must not only according to

according to living

its

contains

all

its

and

course, but also

object, correspond to this threefold glory of the

God."

determined by the

fundamental vision (of the Apocalypse)

this

that serves to alarm the enemies and to comfort

the friends of

Him who

Ezekiel also has

its

sits

on the throne, so the vision of

fundamental significance not only for the

whole of the prophet's ministry, but, generally, for the continuation and development of the

kingdom of God

in Israel,

consummation in glory

until its

aim has been reached in

This,

fundamental significance, unmistakeably appears from

its

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

the twofold circumstance,

its

that

firstly,

imparted to the prophet at his

call,

the theophany

was

and was then repeated

the principal points in his prophetic ministry, at the announce-

ment both

of the dissolution of the old

kingdom of God by the

destruction of Jerusalem and the temple, ch. ix.-xi., and also at the erection of the

new temple and a new arrangement

the kingdom (ch. xl.-xlviii.).

remarked

(p. 35),

Since, as was formerly already

a theophany was not required either for the

calling of Ezekiel to the office of a prophet, or for the announce-

ment which was entrusted

him of the

annihilation of the old

and the foundation of the new kingdom of God, so the revelation of

God, which pointed in

dwelling of the Lord in the temple (and living

among

its

among His

phenomenal shape

the

people in the Holy of Holies

which was imparted

in this place to Ezekiel,

the exiles in the land of Chaldea by the banks of

the Chebar), could only be intended, in view of the dissolution

THE PROPHECIES OP EZEKIEL.

of the theocracy, which to

had already begun, and was shortly

be completed, to give to the prophet and those of his con-

who were

temporaries

him

living with

that the essential element of

in exile, a real pledge

theocracy was not to be

the

removed by the penal judgment which was passing over the

and kingdom

sinful people

but that

;

God

the

Lord would

still

continue to attest Himself to His people as the living God, and preserve His kingdom, and one day bring

consummation.

again to a glorious

correspondence with this aim,

God

appears

temple in the symbolical forms of His gracious presence

in the

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;In

He who

throne

movement

throned above the cherubim

furnished with

are

of the throne in

;

but cherubim and

which represent the

attributes,

all directions,

not merely to indicate

kingdom of God over all the earth, but to Lord and King, whose might extends over

the spreading of the reveal Himself as

the whole world, and

who

power

possesses the

to judge all the

heathen, and to liberate from their bondage His people,

have been given into their hands,

Him and who ;

will again gather

who

they repent and turn unto

them

together,

in the place of their inheritance to the glory

and

raise

them

which had been

promised.

Such

the significance of the theophany at the inaugura-

tion of Ezekiel to the prophetic office.

The

significance,

how-

ever,

which

facts

which the prophet was herewith permitted by God

its

From

behold.

repetition possesses is clearly contained in the

nations, the gracious presence of

temple and city struction

;

into

the temple and city, polluted by sinful abomi-

may the

God

departs, in order that

be given over to the judgment of de-

new and

glorious

temple

again the glory of God, to dwell for ever

among

there

enters

the children

of Israel.

Chap.

OFriCE.

ii.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

follows the

Call of Ezekiel to the Peophetic and 2. Upon the manifestation of the Lord

1-iii. 3.

Vers. 1

word of vocation.

Having,

in the feeling of his

;

CHAP.

weakness and sinfulness, fallen

II. 1, 2.

to the

ground before the

revelation of Jehovah's glory, Ezekiel

is first

terrible

of all raised

again by the voice of God, to hear the word which calls him to the prophetic function.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver.

I will He spake

stand upon thy feet, spirit unto

and 1 heard

Him

speaking unto me. it

its

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;The address

2"lS"iji

must be regarded

That

meaning

variously given.

17.

viii.

me on my feet,

placed

Elsewhere

peculiarities of his prophecies.

although

me, Son of man,

Ver. 2. Tlien came

thee.

unto me, and

so frequently in Ezekiel, that

Dan.

And He said to

speak with

occurs only once,

significant, is generally recognised,

as a reminder of the weakness

and

Most

frailness of

expositors take

human

Coccejus and Kliefoth, on the contrary, connect

God

circumstance that find in

;

with the

human form, and God speaks in him as man man with his friend. This

appears to Ezekiel in

interpretation, however, has against it the u^us loquendi.

last

nature

a TCKfi^piov amicitice, that

man, converses with him as a

occurs

one of the

man

denotes

0']i<")^

according to his natural condition,

used throughout as a synonym with

and

Job XXV. 6 the meaning ;

Isa.

li.

also of

^^% denoting the

in opposition to

greatly beloved,"

Daniel

11, 19, cf. ix.

addressed,

be imparted to him, as HilDH

Dan.

trary, in ch. viii. 17,

;

seen from the various addresses in Daniel.

where comfort

weakness

God of. Ps. viii. 5 and Num. xxiii. 19. This is 12, Ivi. 2 ^"i^*'!^ in the address, as may be distinctly

man

fragility of

it is

ty^N^

*'man

23; but, on the con-

where he has fallen on

his face in terror

before the appearance of Gabriel, with the words, " Understand,

son of man," in order to remind him of his

weakness.

had

fallen

This

upon

also the case in

his face,

again raised to his feet. is

human

our verse, where Ezekiel,

and by God's word spoken

too,

to him,

It is only in Ezekiel that this address

constantly employed to

mark

the distance between the

human

weakness of his nature and the divine power which gives him the capacity and the impulse to speak. the design, mentioned

Not, however, with

by Jerome on Dan.

viii.

17, " that

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

may

not be elated on account of his high calling," because, as

Havernick subjoins, Ezekiel's extremely powerful and forcible

may have needed

nature

is in reality

before God.

of this address,

If this were the

would

be perpetually reminded of what

meaning and object

also probably occur in the writings of

several of the other prophets, as the supposition that the nature

of Ezekiel was more powerful and forcible than that of the other prophets

the

The

altogether without foundation.

use of this form of address in Ezekiel

manner and fashion

imparted to him, that

constant

connected rather with

which most of the revelations were

in is,

with the prevalence of " vision," in

which the distinction between

God and man comes

out more

prominently than in ordinary inspiration or revelation, effected

by means of an impression upon the inner

faculties of

The

man.

bringing prominently forward, however, of the distance between

God and men is to remind the prophet, as well as the to whom he communicated his revelations, not merely weakness of humanity, but

show them,

how powerfully the word of God operates also that God, who has selected the prophet will, possesses also

at the

people of the

same time,

in feeble

man, and

as the organ of

His

the power to redeem the people, that were

lying powerless under the oppression of the heathen, from their misery, and to raise

them up again.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;At the word of

the Lord,

" Stand upon thy feety'' came rrn into the prophet, which raised

him

to his feet,

n^i here

not "

life,

consciousness " (Hitzig),

but the spirit-power which proceeds from God, and which

conveyed through the word which imparted to stand before the face of "i3"||0,

him the strength

God, and to undertake His command. " collocutor" occurs here and

partic, Hithpa., properly

ch.

xliii.

and in

Num.

vii.

;

elsewhere,

only in

2 Sam. xiv. 13.

The

Vers. 3-7.

calling of the prophet begins with the

describing to Ezekiel the people to in order to

vocation,

whom He

make him acquainted with

and

Lord

sending him,

the difficulties of his

encourage him for the discharge of the same.

;

CHAP.

Ver.

And He

dren of Israel,

and

said to me,

their fathers

thee to the chil-

And

the

rebelled against

they

even until

this

children are of hard face,

and

have fallen away from me,

Ver. 4.

very day.

Son of man, I send

who have

to the rebels

S-7.

II.

hardened heart. To them I send thee ; and to them shalt thou speak:

Thus says

the

Lord Jehovah.

Ver.

And

they,

— they may hear

do so) ;for they are a stiff-necked race,

thee or fail {to

— they shall

Ver.

experience that a prophet has been in their midst.

But

man, fear not before them, and be not afraid of their thistles and thorns are round about thee, and thou sittest

thou, son of

words, if

upon scorpions; fear not before before their faces

speak

words

for they are

The

;

them, whether they

may

hear or fail

(with the article)

;

4),

but

article,

but

Dnniisn D'.ia,

employed substantively

They have

God

rebelled against

in in

that they, like their fathers, have separated themselves

from Jehovah down i.

God.

not to be joined as an adjective to

the form of an apposition. this,

do so)

(to

Isa.

("in,

as being rebels against

is,

without the

And

become heathen, no longer a

children of Israel have

" heathens," that

which

Ver.

stiff-necked.

people of God, not even a heathen nation Qia,

and tremble not

their words,

for they are a stiff-necked race.

and n^n

Gen.

to this

day

Ci'n D^*y, as in the

Like their

13, xvii. 23, etc.).

vii.

nance

nso

''\^mj

" of hard brow "

cf .

;

Lev.

fathers,

they are CiS

rebellious, and, in addition,

(as regards 3 V'^^, see

Pentateuch

''{f'p,

(iii.

Isa.

xxiii.

the sons are

of hard counte-

7),

i.e.

impudent,

without hiding the face, or lowering the look for shame.

This

these

shamelessness

from

springs

hardened sinners Ezekiel

Whether they hear xxiv. 15

hardness of heart.

announce the word of the Lord.

or not (DX1

Eccles. xi. 3,

;

xii.

— DK,

sive

—

ence that a prophet has been amongst them. neglect to hear

race (n^3,

Josh.

That they

will

very probable, because they are a stiff-necked

house "

= family).

introduces the apodosis.

EZEK.

sive, as in

14), they shall in any case experi-

n\'i is

The Vau

before

IV"]^

perfect, not present.

(ver. 5)

This

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

demanded by the nsus loquendi and the connection of the thought. The meaning is not they shall know from his testi:

mony

that a prophet

fulfilled, that

therefore,

but they shall experience from

;

when the word announced by him

the result, viz.

been

there

D"'?'JD

and

regards

in xxviii.

indeed denote " refractarius one,

Donasch

and means "

24,

but

and inappropriate here.

to singe,"

and

3"iD in

this signification is a derived

" stinging-nettle,

urtica,'^

in Raschi has already explained

and occurs frequently

strengthened by the words "to

men

for

(-'X

according

" by and with of

in Ezekiel.

sit

to burn,

and

Thistles

The thought

^J?)

scorpions," as

and dangerous wound.

these animals inflict a painful similitude of dangerous

thistle,"

'JiniX is,

it.

thorns are emblems of dangerous, hostile men. is

placed

Aramaic does

3"iD is related to y]'i,

to the later usage, for ^J^K, expressing the association,"

a7ra|

renuentes" but are sub-

rebelles et

the signification " thorn "

Ii?D,

beyond doubt by P?p

The

sins.

are not, with the older expositors, to

D''?i?D,

be explained adjectively: " stantives.

Ezekiel,

not to be prevented by fear of them and their

words from delivering a testimony against their \eyofieva,

have

will

a prophet has been amongst them.

For the and

to scorpions, cf. Sir. xxvi. 10,

other proof passages in Bochart, Hierosoic. III. p. 551

sq., ed.

Rosenmiill.

Ver. 8 ad

fin,

and

ch.

iii.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; After

the

Lord had pointed

out to the prophet the difficulties of the call laid upon him, prepares

him

for the performance of his office,

with the divine. word which he tJioUj

son of man, hear what

like the stiff-necked race

unto thee. totcards

10.

And He

the front

and

Ver.

me ;

and,

spread

announce.

say

to thee.

in the

lo, it

and woe.

man, what thou findest

lo,

same a

out before

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver.

;

the

Ch. ;

iii.

of a hook.

same

tvas written

upon

And He

eat the roll,

And

not stiff-necked give

a hand outstretched

roll

there toere written

eat

He him

inspiring

open thy mouth, and eat what

Then I saw, and,

and back : and

sighing,

;

Ver.

upon

lamentations,

said to

me : Son

and go and speak

to the

CHAP.

Ver.

house of Israel.

and fill thy body with

thy belly,

ate

and

it,

prophet the

Lord

was

inspires

him

cf.

;

and which

Apoc.

only a more distinct form of

""in

from

not

'''}^,

embodied

This

God's

roll

was

and woe

('>}

or as Ewald, Â§ 101c,

The meaning

or in).

was inscribed a multitude of mournful

roll

was

also, at

9 sqq.

''X,

that the prophet

And

thee.

hand reaches

that an outstretched to swallow,

both sides with lamentations, sighing,

upon the

gave

which

expressions of every kind, but that there all

I give

This thought

announce.

not, that

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;The

either abbreviated

thinks,

which

this roll

mouth as honey and

command, he does swallow inscribed on

mouthy and

me : Son of man, feed siceetness.

way

in symbol, in such a

Imy

said to

to the people of Israel only that

announce

him a book, which he

And

Then opened

Ver.

this roll to eat.

8-III.

II.

was written upon

now read

announce, and what we

These contents were of a mournful nature, for they

his book.

related to the destruction of the kingdom, the destruction of

That Ezekiel may look over the

Jerusalem and of the temple. contents, the roll to

him

spread out before his eyes, and then handed

be eaten, with the words, "

children of Israel,"

i.e.

announce

you have received into yourself, or as ^"^,21,

words."

The words

Go and

speak to the

iii.

termed in ver.

3a were spoken by

while handing to the prophet the roll to be eaten.

merely to

eat, i.e.

body and

belly therewith,

take

being the word of

into his

God

i.e.

away

The

mouth, but he

He to

God

not

fill

his

to receive into his innermost

Whilst eating

it, it

it,

was sweet

in his

sweet taste must not, with Kliefoth, be explained

into a sweet " after-taste,"

and made

ence, that the destruction of Jerusalem

more glorious

presented to him, to change

were, into sap and blood.

mouth.

what

to the children of Israel

The

restoration.

sorrow, and woe, tasted to

him

roll,

to bear this refer-

would be followed by a

inscribed with lamentation,

sweetly, because

its

contents was

God's word, which sufficed for the joy and gladness of his heart (Jer. xv. 16); for

"infinitely sweet

and lovely

— ;

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

be the organ and spokesman of the Omnipotent," and even the

most painful of divine truths possess to a spiritually-minded

man

a joyful and quickening side (Hengstenberg on the Apoc.

X. 9).

judgments

this it is added, that the divine penal

and righteousness of God, but

reveal not only the holiness

prepare the

way

also

and minister

for the revelation of salvation,

the saving of the soul.

Chap.

The Sending of the Prophet.

4-21.

iii.

—

This consists in God's promise to give him power to over-

come the

of his vocation (vers. 4-9)

difficulties

porting him to the place where he

and

entrusted

willingness to

in next trans-

;

10-15)

to labour (vers.

the responsibility of the souls

After Ezekiel had

charge (vers. 16-21).

his

by eating the

testified,

him

laying upon

lastly, in

which had been given him,

roll

his

announce the word of the Lord, the Lord

acquaints him with the peculiar difficulties of his vocation, and

promises to bestow upon him strength to overcome them.

Ver.

of to

And

Israeli

lie said to we, Son of man^ go

and speak with my words

a people of hollow

lips

and heavy them have

tonguej whose

I sent

Ver.

countenances, to

and

nations of hollow lips

Not

words thou dost not understand; but can understand thee,

Israel,

Ver.

thee.

But

because they will not hear

the

me ;

of hard brow and hardened heart

Lo, I make thy countenance hard

thy

For not

many

house of Israel will not hear

are they.

Ver.

house

art thou sent, (but) to

thee, they

for the whole house of

them.

to the

and heavy tongue

Ver.

the house of Israel.

away

brow hard

adamant, harder than rock, do

like their

I make

thy brow

like their

Ver.

brow. :

fear not, and

tremble not before them, for they are a stiff-necked race.

—The

contents of this section present a great similarity to those in ch.

ii.

3-7, inasmuch as here as well as there the obduracy and

stiff-neckedness of Israel

stated as a hindrance

the success of Ezekiel's work.

This

which opposes

done here, however,

a different relation than there, so that there

no tautology.

CHAP.

Here, where the Lord

III.

4-9.

sending the prophet,

brings

first

prominently forward what lightens the performance of his mission

;

and next, the obduracy of

which surrounds

Israel,

with difficulty for him, in order at the same time to promise

him strength is to

for the vanquishing of these difficulties.

speak, in the words communicated to

Ezekiel

him by God,

to the

This he can do, because Israel

house (people) of Israel.

not

a foreign nation with an unintelligible language, but possesses the

capacity

understanding the words of

(vers. 5-7), nsb'

''i^cy

and hard

of speech hollow, 'b

''ipcy is

Dy, " a people of deep

be understood

not genitive, and DP

an adjective belonging to

DJ?,

lips," ;

and used

of a style

in the plural, because

"And

of heavy tongue,"

with a language the understanding of which

Both

i.e.

cf. Isa. xxxiii. 19.

not the status constructus, but

contains a collective conception.

great difficulty.

prophet

the

i.e.

attended with

epithets denote a barbarously sounding,

The

unintelligible, foreign tongue.

unintelligibility of a lan-

guage, however, does not alone consist in unacquaintance with the meaning of liarities of

words and sounds, but

its

also in the pecu-

each nation's style of thought, of which language

only the expression in sounds.

this respect

we may, with

Coccejus and Kliefoth, refer the prophet's inability to understand the language of the heathen to

this, that their

manner

thinking and speaking was not formed according to the word of God, but was developed out of purely earthly, and eren

God-resisting factors.

by Kliefoth

Only the

to this side of the

irreconcilable with the words, "

exclusive

prominence given

subject

incorrect, because

many

nations,

whose words

(discourse) thou dost not understand " (ver. 6).

These words

show that the

unintelligibility of

understanding the sounds of

its

the language

words.

Before

ver. 5, the adversative particle sed is omitted (cf.

the omission here

consequence of referred to both.

its

perhaps caused by position

Ewald,

this, that

lies

not

''^ ^"'5"''??, ยง

354a)

;

n^B' nriK, in

between both sentences, can be

In ver. 6 the thought of

ver. 5

expanded

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

by the addition of

Coy,

D''3'}

"many

languages, in order to show that

nalions'' with different

not in the ability, but in

it is

the willingness, to hear the word of the are wanting.

languages that

God

i.e.

second hemistich of ver. 6 they had not read

heathen),

they

Lord

that the Israelites

nations with unintelligible

sending the prophet, but to such

are able to hear him,

many

not to

men as The

can understand his language.

rendered by the old translators as

" if I

after DS,

them (the

sent thee to

Modern expositors have meaning, either by taking NÂŤ' DX as

would hear thee"

endeavoured to extract

this

a particle of adjuration, profecto, " verily" (Rosenmiiller, Havernick,

and

xxiii.

13.

others), or reading K^ DN, as

But the one

VO DX stands the fact that against the view that

it is

does, after

written with

meaning "

preceding,

;

^\f?^j,

which, according to

to '^'^ ?iBn, partly the impossibility of

W HK.

such were the case, Ezekiel would have really done

sentence

Gen.

against

not with k

taking T^npB^ conditionally after the preceding

to conceal his

a particle of adjuration, stands partly

the position of the words before '^^

the sense, must belong

Ewald

as untenable as the other

all

he could

(Hitzig), for X? DX, after a negative

signifies

but ;"

Gen.

cf.

xxiv.

38.

Consequently neither the one view nor the other yields an appropriate sense.

"If I had sent thee

involves a repenting of the act, which

Against the meaning "profecto" idea, "

Had

the

heathen,"

not beseeming in God.

the consideration that the

I sent thee to the heathen, verily they would hear

thee,'' is in contradiction

with the designation of the heathen as

those whose language the prophet does not understand.

If the

heathen spoke a language unintelligible to the prophet, they consequently did not understand his speech, and could not therefore

comprehend

his preaching.

apply the sentence simply to the nations, but to the Israelites ^lypa'^

It only remains, then, to

Israelites,

" not to heathen

have I sent thee," and to take

as potential, " they are able to fear thee," " they can

understand thy words.'*

This in ver. 7

closed

by the

antithesis,

CHAP.

10-15.

III.

" But the house of Israel will not hear thee, because they will

not hear

(Jehovah), as they are morally hardened."

Ibf cf.

ii.

The Lord, however,

power

to resist this

obduracy

and unshaken firmness, his

brow hard

than rock Israel.

Ex.

as in

IV,

Zech.

(cf.

iv.

cf. Isa.

As 1.

harder

parallel passages in

and Jer.

transported to the sphere of his activity.

thee, take into

thy heart,

and say

18.

hear thee or fail {to hear

up,

them,

Lord Jehovah," whether

thee).

and I heard behind me

Ver. 12.

the voice

And

Ver. 11.

thine ears.

And

10.

of thy people, and speak

them, " 77ms saith the

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver.

words which I shall speak

and hear with

to the exiles, to the children

raised

make

will

12), which

vii.

25, =:"i^V.

lie said to me, Son of man^ all

may

10-15. Prepared then for his vocation, Ezekiel

Vers.

him unbending courage

cf Jer. xv. 20.

;

With

His prophet with

therefore he shall not fear before the obduracy of

;

regard of the subject-matter,

now

will lend

;

ver. 8

adamant

will provide

they

a wind

of a great tumult,

" Praised be the glory of Jehovah," from their place hitherward.

And

Ver. 13.

each other,

and

great tumult.

and I went

the noise

Ver. 14.

the

wings of the creatures touching

of the wheels beside them, the noise of a

And a

wind raised me up, and

thither embittered in the

took me,

warmth of my spirit ; and the Ver. 15. And I came to

hand of Jehovah was strong upon me. Tel-

A bib

to the exiles,

they sat there sat their midst.

heart, as

it is

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;The

who dwelled by

I down

the river Chebar,

seven days, motionless

not,

and hear with thine ears"

miiller),

postquam auribus tradas,

but

this,

tuis percepisses

sed corde suscipe

" All

words with thine

animo

words which I

nounce them

to them."

ears,

With

etc.

infige''^

shall

con-

The meaning

mea mandata,

lay to heart, that thou mayest obey them.

(ver. 10), disappears so soon

observed that the clause " hear with thine ears "

oblivioni

heard

and dumb,

apparent hysteron proteron, " take into thy

nected with the following " go to the exiles," is

and where

ea ne

(Rosen-

speak to thee

When

thou hast

then go to the exiles and an-

ver. 11 cf.

ii.

4, 5.

Observe that

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

56 it is Still

^oy

^33,

ÂŤ the children of thy" (not "

Stiff-necked Israel

mand "to go

my ")

to the

people"

" people.**

The com-

no longer Jehovah's people.

in ver. 12 sqq., immediately

is,

executed by the prophet, the wind raising him up and transporting him to Tel-Abib, considered,

among

the exiles,

God makes

a wind of which

prophet to the scene of his labour

air

representation

is,

suppose, in ipso corpore^

Not a this

i.e.

air took place,

by the wind was

;

only the thither.

but not as Jerome and Kliefoth

;

so that

an actual bodily removal

but the raising up and taking away

effected in spirit in the condition of ecstasy.

syllable indicates that the

removal

that " he was borne thither through the

by the wind " (Kliefoth)

through the

use to conduct the

but the wind

which transports him

sensible substratum of the spirit

The

;

phenomenally

^n^,

theophany was at an end before

the contrary rather

by the

clearly indicated

remark that Ezekiel heard behind him the noise of the wings of the cherubim

nn do

And

and of the wheels.

that the words '^^^)^

not necessitate us to suppose a bodily removal

by the comparison with

viii. 3,

xi.

shown

24, where Kliefoth also

understands the same words in a spiritual sense of a merely internal

experienced in a state of ecstasy

i.e.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;removal of the

prophet to Jerusalem and back again to Chaldea. noise which Ezekiel hears behind

from the appearance of the

'n''

him proceeds,

(according to ver. 13) not in order to remove

the

prophet

decidedly in

favour of

its

sphere of

the this

great

1i33 being set in motion, but

raptured prophet, but by changing attend

The

at least in part,

itself

from the

present position, his

supposition,

labour.

that

tells

the prophet,

according to ver. 23, again sees around him the same theophany in the valley

where he begins

indeed, presupposes that sight,

call

This reappearance,

had previously disappeared from

but the disappearance

only after his

his work.

his

to be supposed as taking place

has been completed,

i.e.

after ver. 21.

While

being removed in a condition of ecstasy, Ezekiel heard the rushing sound, "Praised be the glory of Jehovah."

ioipep

CHAP.

belongs not to

bat to

'li^

which would yield no appropiiate

^^"^3,

where

y'?K'S,

10-16.

III.

makes no

meaning whether the

suffix

sense,

difference of importance in the

referred to

or to 1123.

nin''

Ezekiel heard the voice of the praise of God's glory issuing

from the place where Jehovah or His glory were

forth

found,

where they had appeared to the prophet, not at all

i.e.

Who

from the temple.

sounded

this

song of praise

not

Close by Ezekiel heard the sound, the rustling of

mentioned.

the wings of the cherubim setting themselves in motion, and

how

came

the wings

touched each other

went,

nn nÂťn3

drove thither,

Although

spirit."

and

of wrath

P^'J,

" to join," " to touch one

mood

mind

Raised by the wind, and carried on, he

carried away. i.e.

from

Ver. 14 describes the prophet's

another").

into contact with the tips of each other,

(niiTE'D,

*110

displeasure, yet

appropriate to nan, "

1Âť, " bitter in the heat of his

used as well of grief and mourning as

warmth

mourning and sorrow are not

of spirit," " anger."

The suppo-

however, that sorrow as well as anger were in him, or

sition,

that he

was melancholy while displeased (Kliefoth),

patible with the

incom-

fundamental idea of 10 as " sharp," "

bitter."

Ezekiel feels himself deeply roused, even to the bitterness of anger, partly by the obduracy of Israel, partly sion to

announce

word of the Lord.

of success, the

himself unequal, therefore his natural Spirit of

man

him away

to the place of his

Jonah once upon him,

did.

i.e.

The hand

3),

the

The

call,

and he would as

of the Lord, however,

;

cf. Isa. viii.

from 133, " heavy," Ps. xxxii. 4. is

;

Moses and was strong

" held him up in this inner struggle with unyield-

ing power " (Kliefoth)

exiles.

feels

rebels against the

work

seek to withdraw himself from the divine

of ears,"

any prospect

heavy a task he

God, which, seizing him with a strong and powerful

grasp, tears

differs

by the commis-

to this obdurate people, without

name

place

and derived

" firm," " strong,"

3"'3N isn, i.e.

" the

hill

of the place where resided a colony of the

was its

pTH,

situated on the river

Chebar

name, no doubt, from the

(see

on ch.

fertility

of the

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

valley, rich

rounded

;

grain

^^^' 23),

(^V'?-?'^>

nothing further, however,

The

Thesaur. p. 1505.

by which

known

and

"^^^ly

be joined with the following

cf.

;

offence,

DB',

would be expressed

this

differently, as Hitzig thinks,

The Keri

not only unnecessary, but also inappropriate, which

holds true also of other conjectures of

Ezekiel sat there seven days, D''^e^,

modern

expositors.

deprived of

neither

«'•«•

sensation," nor " being silent," but as the partic. Hiphil

Ezra

DDB', as DOiEis in

fore " motionless

referred to

;

ix. 3, 4,

The

and dumb."

seven days are not regarded ii.

but as both the purification and the dedication and

preparation for a holy service as being the viii.

from

" rigidly without moving," there-

mourning, in support of which Job

as a period of

Lev.

That

cannot be established by means of Job xxxix. 30. SB'XI

" where they

sat" (so rightly the Chaldee, Syriac, and Vulgate). signification

Gesen.

Chetib IB'W, at which the Masoretes

and many expositors have unnecessarily taken read

was sur-

number

measured by the number seven,

of God's works (cf. Ex. xxix. 29 sqq.;

33 sqq.; 2 Chron. xxix. 17), so Ezekiel

sits

for a

week " motionless and dumb," to master the impression which the word of God, conveyed to him in ecstatic vision, had made upon

his

mind, and to prepare and sanctify himself for

his

vocation (Kliefoth).

Vers. 16-21.-

comes

him

When

the final

these seven days are completed, there

word, which appoints him watchman

over Israel, and places before him the task and responsibility of his vocation.

—Ver.

seven daysy that the

16.

And

of Ver. 17. Son of man^ I have honse of Israel thou shalt loarn

Thou to

;

came

set thee to be

thou shalt hear the loord

them from me

shalt surely die,

warn

the sinner

his evil

he, the sinner, die because

way

as follows

a watchman over the

from my mouthy and

Ver. 18. If

and thou warnest him

from

require at thy hand.

pass after the lapse

word of Jehovah came

that he

I say

not,

to the sinner,

and

may

speahest not

live,

then shall

his evil deeds, but his blood will

Ver. 19. But if thou warnest the sinner^

;

CHAP.

and he turn not from

16-21.

III.

wichdness and

his

his evil

way, then shall

he die because of his evil deeds, but thou hast saved thy soul.

Ver. 20.

and do

And

if a righteous

unrighteousness,

and

not be remembered,

man

from

his righteousness

—

require at thy hand.

the righteous

man

and thou hast saved thy

prophet for Israel, Ezekiel

ii.

1),

—

sin, then will

because he has been warned,

tower (Hab.

to his charge.

i.e.

one standing upon a watch-

watch over the condition of the people,

admonish the wicked

ways, that they die not in their

sinner," JVilDT\

name, and with

i.e.

live,

vi.

As such, he is responsible for the souls entrusted From the mouth of Jehovah, i.e. according to

God's word, he evil

so that

—As a

soul.

and warn them of the dangers that threaten them (Jer. Isa. Ivi. 10).

die

which he has done shall

and he do not

sin not,

his righteousness,

warned him, he shall

but his blood will

Ver. 21. But if thou loarnest him the righteous

turn

lay a stumblingblock before him,

if thou hast not

then shall he die;

because of his sin,

man

and I

to turn ^3^0,

sins.

commission.

from

their

" from me,"

" If I say

to the

I commission thee to say to him (Kimchi).

nio reminds us of Gen.

ii.

17, so

blood will I require at thy hand," an allusion to Gen. If the prophet does not

the threatening, " his

warn the wicked man,

ix. 5.

God

has

commanded him, he renders himself guilty of a deadly sin, which God will take vengeance on him as on the murderer the shedding of blood. ministers of the word.

LXX.

for for

awfully solemn statement for

"^VFIO? ^° "^^^s.

all

18 and 19, at which the

have stumbled, so that they have twice omitted

it,

not a substantive, and to be changed, with Hitzig, into nVKh,

but

an adjective, foemin.

construed as feminine.

gen.,

The

and belongs

righteous

to i3"!%

man who

before God, regarded as equal with the sinner

which

backslides

who

is is,

persists

in his sin, if the former, notwithstanding the warning, perse-

veres in his backsliding (ver. oneself from

away from

his

sqq.).

ipl^p

righteousness," denotes the

the path of righteousness, not

2^5?',

to turn

formal falling

mere " stumbling or

;

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

sinning from weakness."

"to

act perversely,"

^itybo

belongs

""ririjl

not a

apodosis,

suppose, PiB'sp,

—"

7\V nb^Vj

" to do unrighteousness,"

prorsus dedere impietatV (Calvin).

to the protasis^ niO) K'ln

still

sentence,

relative

—

forming the

and Hitzig

Evvald

so that he, or, in consequence of which,

he die."

" object of offence," by which any one comes to

fall,

not destruction, considered as punishment deserved (Calvin,

Havernick), but everything that

may come

God

which

sinner, in order that the sin,

and ripen

forth to the light,

way

puts in the

of the

germinating in his soul,

God,

to maturity.

indeed, neither causes sin, nor desires the death of the sinner

and

in this sense

does not tempt to evil (Jas.

13), but

guides and places the sinner in relations in

life

must come

good and divine,

and

a decision for or against what

in which he

either suppress the sinful lusts of his heart, or burst the

barriers

which are opposed to their

not do the former, but the

satisfaction.

latter, evil

If he does

him more

gains within

and more strength, so that he becomes the servant of finally reaches a point

consists the ^^'^^,

where conversion

this, that

God For

perish.

no ground

A thnach

lets

God

which

away from righteousness

places before him,

man run on

i^'l^'J'?

and there

change of punctuation

sin,

and

this

who

may

turns

man

therefore

" in general only dies

—that meaning

die or

carry forward

For the subject spoken

(Hitzig).

not warned" (Hitzig),

in order that

n^O^ does not stand for noj,

for a

impossible.

to unrighteousness or evil, but not in

that the backsliding righteous is

not

not in ver. 21, " that

he, in contrast to the J^Kn, gives sure obedience to the warning,"

—but

only the possibility

transgressed

upon the way

supposed that a

P'^'^V,

who

has

of evil, will yield obedience to the

warning, but not that he will of a certainty do

this.

As with

the VBH in ver. 19, only the case of his resisting the warning is

expressly mentioned

;

while the opposite case

in consequence of the warning, be converted

so in ver. 21, with the

p'''^V,

who

—

—that he

may,

not excluded

;

has entered upon the path of

CHAP.

III.

22-V.

17.

unrighteousness, only the case of conversion in consequence of

the warning his

expressly mentioned, without the possibility of

hardening himself against the prophet's word being thereby

For the

excluded.

instruction of the prophet

to bring forward the

them

two cases mentioned, as

was

sufficient

appears from

that in the one case as well as in the other he has done

his duty,

CHAP.

and saved

III.

22-V.

his soul.

THE DESTINY OF JERUSALEM AND

17.

ITS

INHABITANTS. Vers. 22-27 in ch.

iii.

no longer belong

inauguration and introduction into conclusion of his

call,

office,

to the prophet's

nor do they form the

but the introduction to his

first

prophetic

act and prediction, as has been rightly recognised by Ewald

and Kliefoth. formula,

and, more

anew

This appears already from the introductory

The hand distinctly

Jehovah came upon me "

(ver. 22),

from the glory of Jehovah appearing

still,

to the prophet (when, in obedience to a divine impulse,

he had gone down into the valley), in the form in which he had seen

by the river Chebar, and giving him a commission

announce by word and symbol the siege of Jerusalem, and the fate of

its

inhabitants.

For, that the divine commission did

not consist merely in the general directions, ch. is first

given in

its

principal parts in ch. iv.

25-27, but

iii.

and

v.,

indis-

putably evident from the repetition of the words ^l^"!^ in ch. iii. 25, iv. 1, and v. 1. With nnsi neither can the nor, in general, a

'l^^l first

new prophecy begin. This has been recognised

by Hitzig himself

in ch. iv. 1,

where he remarks that the

of the three oracles which follow

makes begin with

iv. 1,

" attaches

continuation of the same."

hold true also of

iii.

itself

But what

viii, 1,

to ch.

new

connected with

commencement, then, we have

first

and which he

iii.

holds true of

that no

25, viz.

with this verse, but that

down

25-27

as a

iv. 1

must

oracle can begin iii.

The

22-24.

to seek in the formula,

and

—

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

63 the

hand of Jehovah came upon me"

also

viii.

new

oracles

—

are introduced.

and

xl.

iii.

22 every note of

But nothing further can be inferred from the divine word contained in iii. 2 5- v. 17 was

wanting.

than that

this,

^'^^l5)

doubt these passages are

preceded by chronological notices, while in time

22), with which

(iii.

1 (where only 7Sni stands instead of

imparted to the prophet immediately after his consecration and

under the date of ch.

call,

so that

also

be discovered from

it still falls

named

the locality

this, that

last

word of

then, and

call,

calling

(iii.

announce

in the

still

to the people. iii.

22-24

;

This revelation

25, iv. 1, v. 1).

In the

And

first section,

him general injunctions

gives

exiles,

introduced by

with

its

man " 25-27, God

thou, son of

ch.

iii.

as to his conduct while carrying

out the divine commission.; in the second, ch.

mands him

and

;

iv.,

to represent symbolically the siege of

miseries

Ezekiel

and divided into three sections by

the thrice-occurring, similar address, " (iii.

same place

divine revelation which, as prophet, he was

first

the words in ch.

may

16-21) was addressed to

him, namely, at Tel-Abib, in the midst of the received the

which

;

in ver. 15.

Immediately after his

where the

the DK' in ver. 22 points to

com-

Jerusalem

in the third, ch. v., the destiny of the

inhabitants after the capture of the city.

Chap.

iii.

22-27. Introduction to the

—Ver.

22.

Jehovah^ and

And

first

prophetic announce-

came upon me there the hand of Up / go into the valley^ there will 1 speak to thee. Ver. 23. And I arose, and went into the valley : and, lo, there stood the glory of Jehovah, like the glory which I had seen and I fell upon my face. Ver. 24. And at the river Chehar spirit came into me, and placed me on my feet, and He spake ment.

there

said to mg,

with me, and said to me, Go, and shut thyself in thy house. ^I'i??'!'

is,

Ezekiel

without doubt, the valley situated near Tel-Abib.

go out from the midst of the

according to ver. 15, he had found himself

because

—

God

will

reveal Himself

exiles

—into

him only

—

where,

the valley, in

solitude.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

CHAP.

When

he had complied with

22-24

III.

command,

this

had appeared to him at the Chaboras a second time, on his face

falls,

occasion, again raised to his feet, cf.

Lord commands him

the

4-28)

(i.

but

;

there appears to

same form

there the glory of Jehovah, in the

him

also, as

28-ii. 2.

which doubtless he inhabited in Tel-Abib,

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

on the

is i.

to shut himself

which

before

;

first

Hereupon

his house,

not probably " as

a sign of his future destiny," as a realistic explanation of the

words, " will

Thou

canst not walk in their midst (ver. 25)

;

they

prevent thee by force from freely exercising thy vocation

For

in the midst of the people."

in that case the " shutting of

himself up in the house" would be an arbitrary identification

with the " binding with fetters " (ver. 25) significance of the address D'lX

and

iv. 1

V. 1

v. 1,

nnsi,

;

and

would be misconceived.

and

For

besides, the

repetition in

its

as in iv. 1

and

there are introduced with this address the principal parts

was

of the duty which Ezekiel

to perform, so the proper divine

may also first begin with the same in iii. 25 consethe command " to shut himself up in his house " can

instruction

quently

;

only have the significance of a preliminary divine injunction,

without possessing any significancy in as a to

means

itself;

what the prophet

for carrying out

do in the following chapters " (Kliefoth),

that he

perform in

is to

in ch. iv.

and

performance.

nor can

from others

v.,

or that he

him; but only that he Jerusalem ing to

bake

iv.

can only mean

commanded him

not to leave his house during their

iv. 3,

12,

to allow

no one

For,

the symbolical representation of the siege of

be a sign for the house of Israel Ezekiel

his contemporaries

approach

not to leave his dwelling.

is,

;

and accord-

during this symbolical action, to

his bread before their eyes.

ceedings.

commissioned

i.e.

More can hardly be sought in this injunction, all be taken to mean that, having shut himself up in his house,

according to

own house what

his

but only "serve

might come

From

this

seen that

him and observe

his pro-

, :

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

The

Vers. 25-27.

And

general

of man,

thou, son

lo,

divine

instructions.

they will lay cords

hind thee

thei'ewith, so that thou canst not

Ver. 26.

And I shall make

—Ver.

upon

25.

and

thee,

go out into their midst.

thy tongue cleave to thy palate, that

thou mayest be dumb, and mayest not serve them as a reprover

Ver. 27. But when 1

for they are a stiff-necked generation.

speak

Thus sayeth

and

I will open thy mouth, that thou mayest say to them. the Lord Jehovah, Let him who wishes to hear, hear

to thee,

let

him who

neglects, neglect {to hear)

necked generation.

—

meaning of

Tlie

for they are a

depends upon the determination of the subject in

Most

stiff

general injunctior,

this

wri3, ver.

who

expositors think of the prophet's countrymen,

25.

are to

bind him with cords so that he shall not be able to leave his house.

The words

Daina >«:n ntI appear to support

suffix in D3in3 indisputably refers to his

circumstance is

by no means

the twofold difficulty,

—

decisive

what he performs exiles

in ch. iv.

and

But

this

while against this view

;

that a binding of the prophet

firstly,

with cords by his countrymen

by the

the

this, as

countrymen.

;

scarcely reconcilable with

secondly, of hostile attacks

upon the prophet there

not a trace to be

discovered in the entire remainder of the book.

The house

Israel is indeed repeatedly described as a stiff-necked race, as

hardened and obdurate towards God's word

ment of

feeling against the prophet,

make

so far as to bind him, or even to

;

but any embitter-

which should have

risen

direct attempts to pre-

vent him from exercising his prophetic calling, can, after what is

related in xxxiii.

30-33 regarding the

towards him, hardly be imagined. fettering of the prophet

position of the people

Further, the binding and

to be regarded as of the

same kind

with the cleaving of his tongue to his jaws, so that he should

silent

and not speak

(ver. 26).

suspends this dumbness over him also

God who is

God, however, who

and according

to iv. 8,

binds him with cords, so that he cannot

one side to the other. passage

;

The demonstrative power

stir

it is

from

of the latter

not to be weakened by the objection that

it is

CHAP.

25-27.

III.

passage of an altogether different kind, and the connection

For the complete

altogether different (Havernick).

between the two passages would

have

first

object, indeed, of the binding of the prophet in iv. 8

from that in our

Here

verse.

the prophet to go out of the house

him from moving from one

to render

in iv. 8,

;

difference

The

to be proved. is

different

impossible for to prevent

But the one

side to the other.

object does not exclude the other; both statements coincide,

himself entirely to the divine house, but ing.

must adapt

the general thought that the prophet

rather, in

lie

—We

also for

will,

—not only

390 days upon one

not leave the

side without turn-

might rather, with Kliefoth, understand

8 to

iv.

mean that God accomplished the binding of the prophet by human instruments viz. that He caused him to be bound

—

by foreigners be

But

25).

(iii.

good reasons, pronounced

would only

this supposition also

the sense of the words in

justified, if either

in favour of the

25, or other

iii.

view that

was

who had bound the prophet. But as this is not so we are not at liberty to explain the definite '•'I^ii,

the exiles the case,

" I lay on "

according to the indefinite

(iv. 8),

on," or " one lays on "

(iii.

25)

understand our verse in accordance with

iv.

Hitzig) think of heavenly powers as the subject to

Job

vii.

;

Dan.

iv.

;

Luke

" they lay

^JnJ,

but must, on the contrary,

;

xii.

20,

—

and (with iJnJ,

—

as in

without, in so doing,

completely identifying the declaration in our verse with that in iv. 8,

pletion

in the latter passage only that

which had been here

(iii.

was brought

25) predicted.

If,

com-

however,

the binding of the prophet proceeds from invisible powers, the

expression

not to be understood

material cords

;

—

but

God

literally,

—of

a binding with

binds him by a spiritual power, so

that he can neither leave his house nor go forth to his country-

men, nor, to him.

at a later time (iv. 8),

'This

his vocation, but,

make him fitted work commanded him. E

on the contrary,

successful performance of the

VOL.

change the position prescribed

done, however, not to prevent the exercise of to

for the

-THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

C)Q

not to quit his house, nor enter into fellowship and intercourse

may show

with his exiled countrymen, that he separation

from them,

to ])e a

the same grounds he

opens his mouth for that purpose

unconcerned whether they

4, 7).

keep

also (vers. 26, 27) to

and not even correct them with words, but only

God

himself,

prophet and organ of the Lord.

;

listen to his

silence,

speak when

to remain, moreover,

words or not

(cf.

ii.

do both of these things, because his contem-

poraries are a stiff-necked race

cf . ver. 9

;

and

he may not speak from any impulse of his own,

That

5, 7.

ii.

God

will cause

tongue to cleave to his jaws, so that he cannot speak ; " That the prophet is to refrain from Ps. cxxxvii. 6. his

speech

God

— even

—

will,

with

all

from the utterance of the words given him by

on the one hand, make the divine words which

he utters appear the more other,

cf.

be an evidence

which

filled

distinctly as such his

;

while,

on the

silent

sorrow

hearers of the

by the contents

the

divine

word, and with which they also ought justly to be filled" (Kliefoth).

This state of speak

which were

and

according to which he his

mouth

to be given him,

— —

the prophet iv.

silence,

when God opened as follows

is,

indeed, at

from the

only then to

for the utterance of words first

imposed upon

relation of vers.

25-27

only for the duration of the period ch.

v. 17, or rather vii.

27.

But the

Kliefoth has rightly recognised,

iii.

to ch.

divine injunction extends, as

further on

still

— over

the

whole period up to the fulfilment of his prophecies of threatening by the destruction of Jerusalem.

from

this,

This appears especially

that in xxiv. 27 and xxxiii. 22 there

upon him

able reference to the silence imposed

an undeniour verse,

when the messenger mouth should be opened and he should be no longer dumb. The and with reference to which

it is

said, that

should bring back the news of the

fall

of Jerusalem, his

reference in xxiv. 27 and in xxxiii. 22 to the verse before us

has been observed by most expositors

;

but several of them

CHAP.

would

limit the

which

lies

III.

xxxiii.

arbitrary, as neither in ch. xxiv.

imposed upon him

but

;

merely to the time

the prophet

silence of

between ch. xxiv. and

This

sqq.*

nor in ch.

both chapters

dumb

he should no longer be

25-27.

quite

xxxiii. is silence

only stated that

after the receipt of the intelli-

gence that Jerusalem had been destroyed by the Chaldeans.

The

supposition of Schmieder, moreover,

untenable, that the

injunction of ver. 25 refers to the turning-point in the prophet's office,

which commenced on the day when the siege of

For although

Jerusalem actually began.

this

day forms a

turning-point in the prophetic activity of Ezekiel, in so far as

he on

announced

tion of Jerusalem,

and then spake no more

occurrence of this event, yet

was then

time the destruc-

to the people for the last

dumb from

it is

to Israel until the

not said in xxiv. 27 that he

The

that day onwards.

hypothesis

then only remains, that what was imposed and enjoined on the prophet, in vers. 26 and 27, should remain in force for the

whole period from the commencement of to the receipt of the arrival of a

with

news of the

fall

his prophetic activity

of Jerusalem,

messenger on the banks of the Chaboras.

by the There-

also connected the position of this injunction at the

head of the

first

prophecy delivered

him (not

at his call),

only the contents and importance of this oracle be understood

and recognised, that

embraces not merely the siege of

Jerusalem, but also the capture and destruction of the

and the dispersion of the people among the heathen, quently contains in mice the people

down

in all the divine

all

words from ch.

tions

the discourses

and

vi. to

ch. xxiv., he

in different ways, actually

down

city,

conse-

that Ezekiel had to announce to

to the occurrence of this calamity,

and again, though only If

all

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

and which,

had again announced.

to ch. xxiv. are only further exposi-

attestations of the revelation of

God

in ch. iv.

and

v.,

then the behaviour which was enjoined on him at the time of this

announcement was

be maintained during

discourses of similar contents.

all

following

Besides, for a correct apprecia-

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

tion of the divine precept in vers. 2(5

noticed that the prophet

when God is

inspires

him

speak

explained to mean, that he

typ\D

tr^S,

and 27,

also to be

it is

not to keep entire silence, except

but that his keeping silence

;

be to his contemporaries no

" no reprover," and consequently will place their sins

before them to no greater extent, and in no other way, than

God

expressly

silence

communicated in

Understood in

him.

directs

neither with

contradiction ch.

way,

this

the

God

words of

nor with the predictions

to xxiv.,

vi.

the

directed against foreign nations in ch. Kxv.-xxxiii., several of

which

fall

this the

Chap.

within the time of the siege of Jerusalem.

remark upon xxiv. 27 and

iv.

The Sign of the Siege of Jerusalem. â&#x20AC;&#x201D; This

which Ezekiel

sign,

first

perform in

the eyes of the exiles

connected

Of. with

xxxiii. 22.

who

visit

own house

his

him, consists in three inter-

and mutually-supplementary symbolical

of which

and the third

acts,

the

described in vers. 1â&#x20AC;&#x201D;3, the second in vers. 4â&#x20AC;&#x201D;8,

in vers. 9-17.

cally to represent the

in the second place,

In the

first place,

impending siege of Jerusalem

by lying upon one

side,

the punishment of Israel's sin (vers. 4-8)

by the nature of

before

his food,

is,

;

symboli-

(vers. 1-3);

announce

in the third place,

while lying upon one side, to

hold forth to view the terrible consequences of the siege to Israel.

The

close connection as to their subject-matter of these

three actions appears clearly from this, that the prophet, accordto ver. 7, while lying

upon one

side, is

to direct his look

his arm upon the picture of the besieged city before him

according to ver. 8, lasts,

to lie

and during that time

prescribed in ver. 9 sqq. division of the chapter,

prophet

upon

and,

his side as long as the siege

to nourish himself in the

In harmony with

inasmuch

;

and

this

as the three acts,

manner

the formal

which the

perform for the purpose of portraying the im-

pending siege of Jerusalem, are co-ordinated to each other

by the

repetition of

the address nnxi in vers. 3, 4, and 8,

—

CHAP.

to the general injunction

and subordinated

salem as a besieged city T T

T -

—

The

first

symbolical action.

son of man, take to thyself a brick,

draw thereon a

it,

Jerusalem

city,

build against

it ;

camps against

erect

round about.

and place

Ver. 3.

Let

The

—Ver.

lay

Ver.

And

tliou^

and

before thee,

And

direct

siege

up a mound against

thou, take to thyself

as an iron wall between thee

and

an iron pan,

and

the city,

and

be in a state of siege,

let it

direct

besiege

be a sign to the house of Israel.

and 2 contain the general

directions in vers. 1

basis for

the symbolical siege of Jerusalem, which the prophet

Upon

before Israel as a sign.

a brick he

sent Jerusalem

around the

city

to lay

to sketch a city

engrave with a writing instrument) which

(Pi?n, to

Jeru-

to portray

and place battering-rams against

it,

thy face towards it ; thus it.

and

siege-towers, raise

—

introduced in ver. 1 with the words

Vers. 1-3.

against

IV. 1-3.

to repre-

to erect siege-works

towers, walls, camps, and battering-rams

i.e.

;

is to

inscribe

the representation of them, and place before himself the picture

The

of the besieged city. stone, not as

burnt in a

kiln,

selection of a brick,

i.e.

of a tile-

but merely dried in the sun,

not,

Havernick supposes, a reminiscence of Babylon and monu-

mental inscriptions

common

Palestine, also,

;

building material (Isa.

such bricks were a

in consequence of which

ix. 9),

the selection of such a soft mass of clay, on which a picture

might be "liVO D1B>j

easily inscribed,

Mic.

iv.

siege-works." is

was readily suggested.

14, " to make a siege,"

"li^fO

(see

on 2 Kings xxv. 1)

raises

;

riijnp,

several

;

nppb,

P'.'n,

mound "

" siege-towers" (see

on 2 Sam.

" camps" in the plural, because the hostile army

camps around the

" wall-breakers," arietes

;

city

;

C)''"!3,

" battering-rams,"

according to Joseph Kimchi, " iron

rams," to break in the walls (and gates, xxi. 27). sisted

\T^

therefore the general expression which

specialized in the following clauses

XX. 15)

i.e.

1i^

" to bring forward

of strong

beams of hard wood, furnished

They

con-

at the

end

;

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

with a ram's head made of iron, which were suspended by a chain,

and driven forcibly against the wall by the

Compare the iii.

description of

The

7. 19.

them by Josephus, de

suffix in Hvy, in ver.

2, refers to

soldiers.

Judaico

hello

1"'V.

The

siege-

works which are named were not probably to be placed by Ezekiel as

figures around the brick, so that the latter

little

would represent the around the

but to be engraved upon the brick

city,

The

city thereon portrayed.

expressions,

a siege," " to build towers," " to erect a mound,"

was

selected because the drawing

when a

city

besieged.

inscribed picture of the city

" to make

what

to represent

are

etc., is

done

ver. 3, in reference to this, the

once termed "

city,"

and in

ver. 7 the picture of the besieged Jerusalem, " the siege of

Jerusalem."

who saw But

The meaning of

was

the prophet

siege itself,

iron

pan

and

the picture

to carry

still

;

out.

is clear.

Jerusalem

to recognise that

Every one be besieged.

will

to take in

that end, he

hand the

is to

an iron wall between himself and the

place an

city sketched

on the brick, and direct his countenance stedfastly towards the city (r^D)? is

and

so besiege

it.

The

iron pan, erected as a wall,

to represent neither the wall of

the city (Ewald) nor the

enemies' rampart, for this was already depicted on the brick

while to represent

it, i.e.

the city wall, as " iron,"

would be contrary

i.e.

immove-

meaning of the prophecy.

to the

ably

fast,

The

iron wall represents, as Rosenmiiller, after the hints of

Theodoret, Cornelius a Lapide, and others, has already observed,

a firm, impregnable wall of partition, which the prophet as

messenger and representative of

and the beleaguered

interjectum esse cives inter et

sententiam contra

illos

God

se,

i.e.

Cf. Isa

lix.

;

Lam.

iii.

iron plate for baking their loaves

Lev.

ii.

The

to raise

between himself

quasi ferreum

Deum

selection of such

munim

Deique decretum

latam esse irrevocahilem, nee

preces et querimonias auditurum aut

tendum.

city, ut signijicaret,

Deum

civium

iis

ad misericordiam

44.

nnna^ ÂŤ pan/'

and

slices of

cakes

;

Jlec-

ÂŤ'^'

see on

an iron plate for the purpose

;

CHAP.

mentioned

not to be explained, as Kliefoth thinks, from the

circumstance that the pan

primarily to serve the prophet for

preparing his food while he

The

sketch.

IV. 4-8.

completing his

occupied in

If he were

have

not, at the

same

between himself and the

city.

text says nothing of that.

employed the pan for such a purpose, he could time, have placed

The

choice

was

be explained simply from

be found

object intended. in

it,

as a wall

that such a plate

this,

every household, and was quite

fitted for the

If any other symbolical element

contained

the hard ignoble metal might, perhaps, with Grotius, be

taken to typify the hard, wicked heart of the inhabitants of

Jerusalem

;

xxii.

cf.

of Jerusalem

a pre-announcement of

Israel

Jer. xv. 12.

;

to be a sign

its

The

symbolical siege

for the house

Israel,

i.e.

The house

impending destiny.

the whole covenant people, not merely the ten

house of Judah

tribes as in ver. 5, in contradistinction to the (ver. 6).

Vers. 4-8. lay

till/self

The second

upon thy

symbolical act.

and

left side^

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver.

lay upon

And do tlioti

the evil deeds

of the

house of Israel ; for the number of the days during which thou liest

three

Ver.

thereon shalt thou hear their evil deeds.

reckon

to thee the

hundred and ninety days shalt thou bear

the house

of Israel.

Ver.

And

these, thou shalt then lay thyself

and bear

And I

years of their evil deeds as a number of days

the evil deeds

the evil deeds of

(when) thou hast completed

a second time upon thy right

side,

of the house of Judah forty days ; each

Ver. 7. And upon the siege of Jerusalem shalt thou stedfastly direct thy countenance, and thy

day I reckon

to thee

as a year.

naked arm^ and shalt prophesy against

I lay

until thou hast

it.

Ver.

And,

lo,

cords upon thee, that thou stir not from one side to the other

ended the days of thy

siege.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Whilst Ezekiel, as

God's representative, carries out in a symbolical manner the

siege of Jerusalem, he

in this situation to portray at the

same time the destiny of the people of their metropolis.

Lying upon

Israel beleaguered in

his left side for

390 days without

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

turning, he

to bear the guilt of Israel's sin

days more upon his right

side,

In so doing, the number of the

sin.

reclines

upon

his sides shall

number

the same

the evil deeds,"

and

be accounted as exactly equal to

to atone for them, to suffer the

xiv. 34, etc.

upon which he

and

reclines,

ing, however, of the guilt of sin

and mediatorial,

Judah which was

ever,

upon

laid

rising, full

re-

way bear

it.

This bear-

not to be viewed as vicarious

and symbolical

that

;

his side,

down by

are to be cast

The

sins.

Num.

to lay upon the

intended

to say, Ezekiel,

show

to the people

the siege of Jerusalem, and

how, while lying on the ground, without the

taming or

cf.

;

sin,

long bound under the burden of Israel and

his lying so

how they

in this is

sin

and punishment,

as in the sacrifice of atonement, but

as purely epideictic

" to bear

liV KKi'J,

punishment of

Sin, which produces guilt

garded as a burden or weight, which Ezekiel side

Judah's

upon himself the consequence of

to take

then, lying

during which he

dai/s

of years of their sinning.

i.e.

;

to bear the guilt of

possibility

they are to bear the punishment of their

understanding of

this

symbolical act, how-

depends upon the explanation of the specified periods

of time, with regard to which the various views exhibit great

discrepancy.

In the

first place,

the separation of the guilt into that of the

house of Israel and that of the house of Judah

closely con-

nected with the division of the covenant people into the two

kingdoms of

Israel

That Ezekiel now

and Judah.

bear

Judah on the right side, is not fully explained by the circumstance that the kingdom of the ten tribes lay to the left, i.e. to the north, the kingdom the sin of Israel

Judah

upon the

to the right,

left,

i.e.

that of

to the south

must undoubtedly point at the same time of

Judah over

Judah

Israel

cf.

390 days

days = 40

= 390

years.

pre-eminence

period of punishment

its

years

to the

This pre-eminence of

Eccles. x. 2.

manifestly exhibited

extending only to 40 contrary,

;

of Jerusalem, but

;

that of Israel, on the

These numbers, however,

CHAP.

IV. 4-8.

cannot be satisfactorily explained from a chronological point of view, whether they be referred to the time during which Israel

and Judah sinned, and heaped upon themselves was

guilt

which

be punished, or to the time during which they were to

punishment for their

atone, or suffer

references are possible

which Ezekiel

tioned to the

number

the

;

sins.

first, viz.

themselves, both

in so far as the days in

to bear the guilt of Israel,

might be propor-

of the years of their

guilt, as

many

Rabbins, Vatablus, Calvin, Lightfoot, Vitringa, J. D. Michaelis,

and others suppose, while in so doing the years are calculated very differently

;

des Vignoles, Chronol.

cf.

Rosenmiiller, Scholia, Excvrs. to ch.

I. p.

479

sqq.,

and

All these hypotheses,

iv.

however, are shattered by the impossibility of pointing out the

harmonize with the chro-

specified periods of time, so as to

If the days, reckoned as years, correspond to the

nology.

duration of their sinning, then, in the case of the house of Israel,

only the duration of this kingdom could come into con-

sideration, as the period of

punishment began with the captivity

kingdom

of the ten tribes.

But

The remaining 137

years the Rabbins have

this

from the period of the Judges destruction of the ten tribes

;

lasted only

others,

down

from the time of the even

Both are altogether

can the 40 years of Judah be calculated,

Still less

as all the determinations of the beginning

phantoms of the

years.

attempted to supply

to that of Ezekiel, or

to that of the destruction of Jerusalem.

arbitrary.

253

The

air.

and the end are mere

fortieth year before

our prophecy

would nearly coincide with the eighteenth year of Josiah's reign,

and therefore with the year

effected the reformation of religion.

not represent this

Judah's

sin.

which

this pious

king

Ezekiel, however, could

year as marking the commencement of

must

therefore, as the literal

meaning of the

words primarily indicates, regard the specified periods of time as periods of

then,

had

punishment for Israel and Judah.

to maintain

Since Ezekiel,

during the symbolical siege of Jerusalem

this attitude of reclining for Israel

and Judah, and after the

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

completion of the 390 days for Israel must (p''^^, ver.

(390

+ 40)

40 days

to reckon the

against

but

it,

days.

dred and ninety

for

Judah, he had

430

include the forty days in the three hun-

But

contrary to the statements in the text.

two periods is

a second time

lie

to recline in all

together has not only

no argument

even suggested by the circumstance that the

prophet, while reclining on his left and right sides,

to repre-

Regarded, however, as periods of

sent the siege of Jerusalem.

punishment, both the numbers cannot be explained consistently with the chronology, but must be understood as having a sym-

The

bolical signification.

nounced

space of 430 years, which

an-

to both kinf^doms together as the duration of their

chastisement, recalls the

had spent

Egypt

already intimated to

430 years which bondage (Ex.

Abraham (Gen.

in the far past Israel

xli.

40),

had been

xv. 13) that the sojourn

Egypt would be a period of servitude and humiliation for ; and at a later time, in consequence of the oppression

his seed

which the

then experienced on account of the rapid

Israelites

increase of their number, in Deut. xxviii. 68, that

was

—upon

God would

the basis of the threat

punish Israel for their per-

by bringing them back

sistent declension,

—taken

bondage in Egypt

into ignominious

by the prophet

as a type of the

banishment of rebellious Israel among the heathen. sense Hosea already threatens

(viii.

with being carried back to Egypt; see on Hos.

more frequently, upon the

basis of

this

6) the ten tribes

13, ix. 3,

ix.

conception,

Still is

the

redemption from Assyrian and Babylonian exile announced as a

new and miraculous exodus

Egypt, lies

e.g.

Hos.

ii.

;

of Israel from the bondage of

Isa. xi. 15, 16.

—This

accordance with the statement of Jerome,^ cepted by the ^

typical

meaning

also at the foundation of the passage before us,

Jews

of his time,

Alii vero et viaxime Judaei

as,

was already

ac-

and has been again recognised

a secundo anno Vespasiani, quando Hieru-

salem a Romanis capta templumque sulversum est, siipputari volunt in tribulatione et angustia et captivitatis jugo populi constUui annos quadringentos

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

CHAP.

IV. 4-8.

modern times by Havernick and Hitzig. That Ezeklel looked upon the period during which Israel had been subject to the heathen in the past as " typical of the future,

is to

be assumed,

because only then does the number of 430 cease to be arbitrary

and meaningless, and

become

explicable."

at the

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

same time

Hitzig.

course, to be understood as Hitzig if

390

division into

its

This

latter

view

and Havernick take

+ 40 of

not, it, i.e.

the 40 years of Judah's chastisement were to be viewed apart

from the 40

years' sojourn of the Israelites in the wilderness,

upon which the look of the prophet would have been turned by For the 40 years

the sojourn in Egypt.

in the wilderness are

not included in the 430 years of the Egyptian sojourn, so that

Ezekiel could have reduced these 430 years to 390, and yet

have added to them the 40 years of the desert wanderings.

For the coming period

of punishment,

for Israel with the siege of Jerusalem,

which

fixed at

commence

430 years with

reference to the Egyptian bondage of the Israelites, and this period

must

divided into 390 and 40

this division thei*efore

commencement,

also have, if not its point of

point of connection, in the

The

and

;

at least a

430 years of the Egyptian sojourn.

division of the period of chastisement into

two parts

is to

be explained probably from the sending of the covenant people into the

kingdom

of Israel

and Judah, and the appointment of

a longer period of chastisement for Israel than for Judah, from the greater guilt of the ten tribes in comparison with Judah,

but not the incommensurable relation of the divisions into 390

The foundation of this, that the number

and 40 years.

this division can, first of all,

only

forty already possessed the

lie

symbolical significance of a measured period of divine visitation.

This significance

had already received, not through the 40

years of the desert wandering, but through the 40 days of rain at the time of the deluge triginta,

et sic

(Gen.

vii.

17), so that, in conformity

populum ad pristinum statum ut quomodo annis fuerunt in Aegijpto, sic in eodem numero

redire

filii Israel 430

finiatur: scriptumque

esse in

Ex.

xii.

40.

Hieronyjius.

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

with

the punishment of dying in the wilderness, suspended

this,

over the rebellious race of Israel at Kadesh,

years, although

Num.

xiv.

If now, however,

32 sqq.

had contributed

this penal sentence

as a symbolical

already stated at

included in reality only 38 years

number

;

see

should be supposed that

number

to the fixing of the

to denote a longer period of punish-

ment, the 40 years of punishment for Judah could not yet have

been viewed apart from

ment for

that case be measured if

The

this event.

and Judah

Israel

390

-f

fixing of the chastise-

40 years could only

by the sojourn of the

Egypt,

Israelites in

the relations of this sojourn presented a point of connection

for a division of the

430 years

into

390 and 40,

tinguished from the preceding 390. this

offered

by an event

the

i.e. if

somehow be

years of the Egyptian servitude could

last

dis-

point of contact for

in the life of

Moses which

falls

within that period, and was fertile in results for him as well as for the whole of Israel, viz. his flight

from Egypt

quence of the slaughter of an Egyptian who had Israelite.

in conse-

ill-treated

the Israelites, his brethren, did not recognise the

meaning

of this act,

them by

his

and did not perceive that God would save

hand, Moses was necessitated to

the land

flee into

of Midian, and to tarry there 40 years as a stranger, until the

Lord

called

him

His messenger

be the saviour of his nation, and sent him as

Pharaoh (Ex.

ii.

11-iii.

10; Acts

vii.

These 40 years were for Moses not only a time of

23-30).

trial

and

purification for his future vocation, but undoubtedly also the

period of severest Egyptian oppression for the Israelites, and in this

respect quite fitted to be a type of the

punishment for Judah, in which was

had experienced

Egypt,

coming time of

be repeated what Israel

that, as Israel

had

lost their

helper

and protector with the flight of Moses, so now Judah was to lose her king, and be given over to the tyranny of the heathen world-power.^ *

Another ingenious explanation of the numbers in question has been Proceeding from the symbolical p. 123.

attempted by Kliefoth, Comment,

—

cnAp.

While Ezekiel thus

IV. 4-8.

reclines

upon one

side,

the picture of the besieged city, and keep his

ready for action against the

(Isa.

city,

lii.

and outstretched,

10),

especially

through

which he had taken up against

God

(see on until

unchangingly upon the siege of Jerusalem,

his look

out,

will

bind him with cords,

i.e.

25), so that he cannot stir

iii.

the

it.

to direct i.e.

upon

arm bare, i.e. and prophesy

menacing attitude

be able to carry this

fetter

him

from one

to his

couch

side to another

he has completed the time enjoined upon him for the In

siege.

this is contained the

thought that the siege of Jeru-

number 40 as a measure of time for divine visitation he supposes that the prescription in Deut. xxv. 3 that if an Israelite were to be subjected to corporal punishment, he was not to receive more than 40 stripes is founded upon this symbolical signification, ^a

signification of the

and

—

trial,

—

prescription which, according to 2 Cor. xi. 24,

was

in practice so carried

From

the application and bearing numbers in the passage before us are to be explained. Every year of punishment is equivalent to a stripe To the house of Israel 10 X 39 years = stripes, were of chastisement.

out that only 39 were actually thus given to the

adjudged,

i.e.

number

to each of the ten tribes 39 years

tribes are treated as so

amoimt

inflicted.

40, the symbolical

many

= stripes

the individual

;

and each receives the one individual. Judah, on the

single individuals,

of chastisement usual in the case of

contrary, is regarded as the one complete historical national tribe, because

two faithful tribes of Judah and Benjamin the people collecwere represented. Judah, then, may receive, not the number of stripes falling to individuals, but that only which fell upon one, although, as a fair compensation, not the usual number of 40, but the higher nmnber compatible with the Torah of 40 stripes = years. To this explanation we would give our assent, if only the transformation into stripes or blows of in the tively

—

the days of the prophet's reclining, or of the years of Israel's punishment, could be shown to be probable through any analogous Biblical example,

and were not merely a deduction from the modern law of punishment, in which corporal punishment and imprisonment hold the same importance. The assumption, then, is altogether arbitrary irrespective of this, that in the case of the house of Israel the measure of punishment is fixed differently from that of Judah in the former case, according to the number of the tribes; in the latter, according to the unity of the kingdom in the former Finally, the presupposition that the later at 39, in the latter at 40 stripes. Jewish practice of inflicting only 39 instead of 40 stripes in order not to transgress the letter of the law in the enumeration which probably was made at the infliction of the punishment goes back to the time of the ;

—

exile,

extremely improbable, as

Pharisaic micrology.

altogether breathes the spirit of

THE PKOPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

78 salem

be mentally carried on

new symbol

during

(ver. 9 sqq.)

this

The

Vers. 9-17.

time

millet,

but no

and

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Ver.

Leans,

and

barley,

and put them

spelt,

of the prophet

employed.

symbolical act.

third

thou take to thyself wheat,

and

capture

its

For such a purpose the food

implied.

until

of the state of prostration of the besieged Jerusalem

in a vessel,

Ajid do lentiles,

and prepare them

number of the days on which hundred and ninety days shalt thou

as bread for thyself, according to the

thou eat

liest

on thy side

three

And

Ver. 10.

it.

;

thy food, which thou eatest, shall be ac-

cording to weight, twenty shekels for a day shalt thou eat

And

Ver. 11.

it.

ing to measure, a sixth part of the hin,

thou drink

and

shalt

Ver. 13.

Ver. 12.

it.

bake

And

never been polluted ;

I never

amongst

me: Lo, I allow

therewith

said to me.

eyes

and of a

thee the

human

toith

rip

and of

and abominable

Ver. 15. Theji said lie unto

dung of animals instead of

lo,

I will

and drink water by meacure, and

Ver. 17. Because bread and water shall

away one with

another,

that

Ver. 16.

And

break the staff of bread in

Jerusalem, so that they will eat bread according in affliction,

of Israel

I shall drive my soul has

that %ohich is torn,

until now,

thou prepare , thy bread.

Son of man,

it,

excrement.

the children

Lord, Jehovah,

carcase,

my youth my mouth.

may est

time to time

time to time shalt

the heathen, whither

Ah!

eaten from

flesh has not come into

man;

from

Jehovah spake; then shall

Ver. 14. Then said I:

them.

from

as barley cakes shalt thou eat

their

before

eat their bread polluted

have

And

;

water shalt thou drink accord-

and disappear

fail,

and

to weight,

and

in amazement.

they shall pine

in their guilt.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; For the

whole duration of the symbolical siege of Jerusalem, Ezekiel

furnish himself with a store of grain corn and leguminous fruits, to place this store in a vessel beside

weight (about 9 ounces), and to bake

upon a it

him, and daily to prepare

form of bread a measured portion of the same, 20 shekels

in the

fire,

this as barley cakes

prepared with dried dung, and then to partake of

the different hours for meals througliout the day.

;;

CHAP. addition to this, he

hours appointed for eating, to

at the

is,

IV. 9-17.

drink water, in like manner according to measure, a sixth part of the hin daily,

Archdol. II.

pared the

a quantity less than a pint (cf. Biblisch.

i.e.

The

141).

from wheat

riiay

guests (Gen. xviii. 6). tion,

barley

mon

and not merely when they had

Ezekiel, however,

to take, in addi-

other kinds of grain with leguminous fruits, which were

employed

iv.

Israelites, probably, generally pre-

flour,

;

when wheat was

in the preparation of bread

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;baked John

into bread

vi.

;

see

by the poor (Judg.

on 1 Kings

v. 8)

food of the Hebrews (2 Sam.

vii.

b)B,

;

xvii. 28),

deficient ;

2 Kings

" beans," a com-

which appears

have been mixed with other kinds of grain for the purpose of This especially holds true of the

being baked into bread.^ lentiles,

Hebrews (Gen. xxv. 29

a favourite food of the

from which,

Egypt

at the present day, the poor

still

bread in times of severe famine (Sonnini, M. II. 390

Arabs " Dochn'^ and

apTo<;

,^S)i paiiicum, a fruit cultivated in Egypt, more frequently in Arabia (see Wellsted, Arab. I.

still

{

295), consisting of longish round

brown

from which, in the absence of better baked.

;

ID% "millet," termed by the

Athenaeus. IV. 158).

^dKivo<i,

sq.),

bake

Cf. Celsius, ITierohotan,

Thesaur. p. 333.

" spelt or

2''DD3,

grain, resembling rice,

a sort of bad bread

fruits,

453

sqq.

;

and Gesen.

corn " (cf . Ex.

German

ix.

32), a kind of grain which produces a finer and whiter flour

than wheat flour

somewhat

dry,

cf. Celsius, is

;

the bread, however, which

and

baked from

said to be less nutritive than

Hierobotan,

ii.

sq.

all

to place certain quantities in a vessel

it is

wheat bread

these fruits Ezekiel

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; to

indicate that all

kinds of grain and leguminous fruits capable of being converted into bread will

collected,

appeasing of hunger. of flour ^

in order to

bake bread for the

In the intermixture of various kinds

are not, with Hitzig, to seek a transgression of the

Cf. Plinii Histor.

Natur.

faiae, quippe ex qua tentatus

apud plerasque

gentes et

xviii. sit

" Inter legumina maximus Jionos Frumento etiam miscetur

etiam pania

maxime panico

solida ac delicatius fracta.^^

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

law

Lev.

xix.

;

Deut.

The

measure or duration.

number

the

house of

was

of the situation,

accusative of

be fixed according

ver. 9 only the

390 days of the

of punishment are mentioned

qriod

summa (Prado) and because this make prominent the hardship and oppression the 40 days of Judah were omitted for the

sake of brevity.^

shall

quantity

tlie

fere universa

sufficient to

eat,"

*i3po

of the days.

Israel's period

plures essent

xxll. 9.

'131

;

''l??^??,

" thy

food

which thou shalt

the definite portion which thou shalt have to eat,

i.e.

be according to weight (between subject and predicate

the substantive verb

9 ounces of

flour,

the half of what a daily support.^

be supplied).

Twenty

shekels

yield 11 or 12 ounces of bread,

man i.e.

= 8 or

most

needs in southern countries for his

The same

sixth part of a hin,

i.e.

the case with the water.

a quantity

niggardly allowance for a day.

less

than a pint,

Both, however,

a very

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;eating

the

what is required in vers. 9-17 and not also to the 40 days of Judah, so that so long as Ezekiel lay and bore the sins of Israel, he was to eat his food by measure, and unclean. For this is in contradiction with the distinct announcement that during the whole time that he lay upon the one side and the other, he was besieging Jerusalem and by the scanty and unclean food, was to portray both the deficiency of bread and water which occurred in the besieged city (ver. 17), as well as the eating of unclean bread, which impended over the Israelites when among the heathen nations. The famine which took place in Jerusalem during the siege did not affect the ten tribes, but that of Judah while unclean bread had to be eaten among the heathen not only by the Israelites, but also by the Jews transported to Babylon. By the limitation of what is prescribed to the prophet in vers. 9-15 to the time during which the sin of Israel was to be borne, the significance of this symbolical act for Jerusalem and Judah is taken away. 2 In our climate (Germany) we count 2 lbs. of bread for the daily supply but in warm countries the demand for food is less, so that of a man ^

Kliefoth's supposition

refers in reahty only to the

untenable, that

390 days of

Israel,

;

Wellsted {Travels in Arabia, II. p. 200) scarcely IJ lbs. are required. relates that "the Bedoweens will undertake a journey of 10 to 12 days

without carrying with them any nutriment, save a bottle full of small cakes, baked of white flour and camel or goat's milk, and a leather bag of water. Such a cake weighs about 5 ounces. Two of them, and a mouthful of water, the latter twice within 24 hoiu^,

is all

which they then partake of."

CHAP.

bread and drinking the water,

IV. 9-17.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;he

ai-

do from time

shall

" not throughout the entire fixed period of

i.e.

(Havernick)

but he

;

to time,

390 days but

shall not eat the daily ration at once,

divided into portions according to the daily hours of meals, so

In addition to

that he will never be completely satisfied. is

this

the pollution (ver. 12 sqq.) of the scanty allowance of food

by the manner

which

it is

prepared.

naj? is

D''")'yB>

predicate

" as barley cakes," " prepared in the form of barley cakes,"

The

shalt thou eat them.

suffix in '"^^bas^n is neuter,

and

refers

to on? in ver. 9, or rather to the kinds of grain there enumerated,

which are ground and baked before them

The

addition

W""]]}'^

Dnp,

not to be explained from

" food."

i,e.

that the

this,

principal part of these consisted of barley, nor does

that in general no other than barley cakes were

known

prove

(Hitzig),

but only that the cakes of barley meal, baked in the ashes,

were an extremely frugal kind of bread, which that prepared

by Ezekiel was

The

to resemble.

nay

was probably always

baked on hot ashes, or on hot stones (1 Kings

The

pans, as Kliefoth here supposes.

bake them in (with) human ordure. be understood as

which view

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

he were

Isa. xxxvi.

i.e.

so that

shows

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;he

dung forms the material

bread must be polluted by this

by no means

13 that the use of

fire

bake

of the

food, for

but

That the

fire.

3, vii. 21,

;

over the

conceivable, although

not be proved from the passages in Lev. v. xxiii.

12 has been erroneously appealed to

as ^\}yV. in ver. 15 clearly

dung,

prophet, however,

This

mix the ordure with the

not on

xix. 6),

can-

and Deut.

composed of dung made the food

prepared thereon levitically unclean.

The use

human

with

fire

ordure must have communicated to the bread a loathsome smell

and

taste,

by which

was rendered unclean, even

That the

been immediately baked in the hot ashes. of the bread

had not

pollution

we see from the " Thus shall the ver. 13 bread among the heathen."

the object of this injunction,

explanation which

God

gives in

children of Israel eat their defiled

The

if it

heart of the prophet, however, rebels against such food.

EZEK.

— ;

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

82'-

says he has never in his life polluted himself

by eating food

forbidden in the law; from his youth up he has eaten no neither of a carcase, nor of that which was torn

unclean

flesh,

by wild

beasts (cf. Ex. xxii. 30; Deut. xiv. 21), nor flesh of

sacrifices

decayed or putrefying

Isa. Ixv. 4).

and permits him

men/

that of

God

this

(/^SS,

ver.

on Lev.

vii.

omits the requirement in ver. 12,

to take for firing the

see

dung

of oxen instead of

given the explanation

sq., finally, is

of the scanty allowance of food meted out to the prophet,

namely, that the Lord, at the impending siege of Jerusalem,

away from

to take

to languish in literal

the people the staff of bread, and leave

hunger and

distress.

The

explanation

them is

adherence to the threatenings of the law (Lev. xxvi. 26

and 39), which are now

to pass

into fulfilment.

Bread

called " staff of bread" as being indispensable for the preserva-

tion of life.

added

;

and

''i'K'ipa,

Lev. xxvi. 26, '"ij^l?, "in sorrow," is " in astonishment," i.e. in fixed,

to the water, ti»i3C'3,

silent pain at the miserable death,

they see before them.

DJiJ?3 ipnj

by hunger and

thirst,

Lev. xxvi. 39. If we,

cast a look over the contents of this first sign,

Jerusalem suffer *

says that

soon to be besieged, and during the siege

hunger and terror as a punishment for the

which

finally,

sins of Israel

of dung as a material for burning is so common in the East, cannot be supposed that Ezekiel first became acquainted with it

The use

that

and therefore regarded

with peculiar loathing. is never so employed, although the objection raised by Hitzig, on the other hand, that it would not yield so much heat as would be necessary for roasting without immediate contact, i.e. through the medium of a brick, rests upon an in a foreign country,

Human

ordure, of course, so far as our knowledge goes,

But the employment of cattledung for firing could not be unknown to the Israelites, as it forms in the Hauran (the ancient Bashan) the customary firing material cf. Wetzstein's erroneous representation of the matter.

;

8 (Eng. tran.), where the preparation of the ^elle this prevalent material for burning in the Hauran from cow-dung mixed with chopped straw is minutely described and this remark is made among others, that the flame of the gelle, prepared and dried from the dung of oxen that feed at large, is entirely without smoke, and that the ashes, which retain their heat for a lengthened time, are as clean as those of wood.

remarks on Delitzsch's Job,

—

vol. I. pp. 377,

;

—

CHAP, V

and Judah

upon the capture of the

that

;

1-4.

they are to be dispersed

among

(Judah)

city of Israel

the heathen, and will there be

To this in ch. which shows further how it shall

obliged -to eat unclean bread.

v. is

second sign,

fare with the

joined a

people at and after the capture of Jerusalem (vers. 1-4)

5-17).

Chap.

The Sign which

1-4.

Israel's impending Destiny.

man, take to

take

and go with thee

the days

son of

thou,

and

divide

and over thy

the

and

sword round about to the

Ver.

chin,

Ver. 2.

hair).

{the

with fire in the midst of the

maining) third scatter out after them.

to portray

And

of the siege are accomplished:

smite with

third,

Ver.

thy head,

over

scales,

hum

third part

—

a sharp sword, as a razor shalt thou take

to thyself

thyself,

and

judgment

these signs, and establishes the necessity of the penal (vers.

;

which developes the significance of

after that a longer oracle,

when

city,

take the (other)

and

it:

the

winds ; and the sword will

(re-

I draw

a few of them by number, and Ver. 4. And of these

3. Yet take

bind them in the skirt of thy garment.

again take a few, and cast them into the fire, and burn them with fire;

from

Israel.

—

thence a fire shall go forth over the whole house of

^The description of this sign

n"'3p3n nyrij

" razor of the barbers,"

be understood to the

suffix in n|ni3Jn

purpose for which Ezekiel

easily

understood.

the predicate, which

and the clause

;

to use the sharp

sword

—

razor, in order to cut off therewith the hair of his

beard.

The

hair,

when

cut

off,

with a pair of scales (the suffix in

The one

the hair).

third he

states the viz. as

head and

to divide into three parts

Dljii??n

burn

refers

ad sensum

in the city,

not in

i.e.

the actual Jerusalem, but in the city, sketched on the brick,

which he

symbolically besieging

to be referred the suffix in

doubt by ver. 12.

In the

r|''riu"'2ip,

(iv. 3).

the city also

ver. 2, as is placed

last clause

of ver. 2, which

beyond is

taken

from Lev. xxvi. 33, the description of the sign passes over into

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; 84 its

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL exposition, for Di}^n^ does not refer to the hair, but to the

The

inhabitants of Jerusalem.

bolical act is easily recognised,

12.

sym-

significance also of this

and

is,

moreover, stated in ver.

Ezekiel, in this act, represents the besieged Jerusalem.

What

he does to

God do

his hair, that will

of Jerusalem.

to the inhabitants

the hair of the prophet falls under the

sword, used as a razor, so will the inhabitants of Jerusalem

when

the city

fall,

captured, into destruction, and that verily an

This idea

ignominious destruction.

contained in the picture

of the hair-cutting, which was a dishonour done to what forms

the ornament of a man. the same

See on 2 Sam.

so will pestilence

capture of the

city, fall

the last third will

The second

God

by the sword

A third of

sqq.

to persecute

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

will

third

will,

and

draw forth the sword

and smite them

dispersed

among

winds, Ezekiel

(ver. 12).

ad sensum,

act,

^"y? nntn

thence," refers not to

JT'B'^B'n,

the place where

fi'ora

found"

i.e.,

who

ii.

as regards the

the disor ends

34), denotes the preservation of

are gathered together out of the whole of those

among the heathen; cf. 1 Sam. xxv. 29; But even of these few He shall still cast some and consume them. Consequently those who are

are dispersed

Ezek.

xvi. 8.

into the

fire,

gathered together out of exile are not are

but,

the third

who are to be found among The binding up into the 0^333, " the corners

of the garment " (cf . Jer.

the few,

when

the third scattered to the

subject-matter, of those persion.

which

to bind a small portion in the skirt of his

scattered to the winds

after

This sign

further to happen to the people

D^, "from

garment.

that

the heathen.

;

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; as Moses has

continued (vers. 3 and 4) in a second symbolical

shadows forth what

on the

in the environs (ver. 12)

scatter to the winds,

already threatened the people still

the fire destroys the hair,

and hunger consume the inhabitants of the

beleaguered city (ver. 12).

them,

to perish in the city.

still

Bumed.

be sifted by

fire,

all to

be preserved, but

which process a part

This image does not refer

to those

con-

who remain behind

CHAP.

when

in the land,

the nation

V. 1-4.

led

away

captive to Babylon

(Theodoret, Grotius, and others), but, as Ephretn the Syrian

and Jerome saw,

to those

to their further destiny, as

;

already clear from the DE'p, rightly

The meanincr

understood.

puted

who were saved from Babylon, and is

it,

of the last clause of ver. 4

=i3^0j

announcement of the thing

which Evvald would

arbitrarily alter into ''3Sp,

cannot, with Hiivernick, be referred to this yields a

and preserved, and yet of

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;from

that a portion thereof

this portion

many

rescued

consumed by

are

that a fire shall go forth over the whole house of

This

Israel.

because

t^'Xn iliri-7N,

very forced sense, but relates to the whole act

described in vers. 3 and 4

fire,

dis-

as in the final clause of ver. 2, the symbolical

representation passes over into the itself.

fire is

explained by almost

all expositors,

from

Theodoret and Jei'ome onwards, of the penal judgments which

were

inflicted after the exile

upon the Jews, which reached

their

culminating point in the siege and destruction of Jerusalem

by the Romans, and which

still

But

throughout the whole world. already remarked,

how

this

view, as Kliefoth has

not only in decided antagonism to the in-

tention of the text, but see

continue in their dispersion

moreover, altogether impossible to

it is,

judgment of extermination for

Israel can be

all

deduced from the fact that a small number of the

who

are scattered to the winds,

are saved a part

there can only Israel,

come

Israelites,

saved, and that of those

consumed with

From

fire.

who

thence

forth a fire of purification for the whole of

through which the remnant, as Isaiah had already pre-

dicted (vi. 12 sqq.), clause,

still

consuming by

converted into a holy seed. fire is

not referred

to.

In the

The

fire,

last

how-

ever, has not merely a destructive, but also a cleansing, purifying,

and quickening power.

did Christ

come (Luke

xii.

49),

kindle such a

and from

out over the whole house of Israel.

Him

fire

on earth

the same goes

This view, for which

Kliefoth has already rightly decided, receives a confinnation

through ch.

vi.

8â&#x20AC;&#x201D;10, where

announced the conversion of the

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

remnant of those

Israelites

who had been

among

dispersed

the

nations.

we pass on to we must still briefly

Before, however,

far the symbolical acts.

the explanation of the following oracle,

touch the question, whether these acts were undertaken and

performed by the prophet in the world of external

whether they were occurrences only internally Ezekiel experienced in spirit

and afterwards communicated expositors, Kliefoth has

i.e.

act,

and yet

also

Amongst modern

to the people.

defended the former view, and has

who behold

those

such, as Hitzig supposes, that

A significant

must be performed, that

silent, leisurely one,

may show something to

which

ecstatic condition

adduced the following considerations in support

reality, or

real,

Nor

it.

the case

would have been impossible

carry out what had been required of the prophet in ch.

1-17.

It had, indeed, its difficulty; but

quires from His servants

helps

them

what

performance of

to the

God

difficult,

it.

easy for the prophet to recline, by binding him the sign, this certainly was kept in view, that

formed; and in

it,

assertions,

intelligible

make

" In

(iv. 8).

should be per-

it."

For

these latter

anything but convincing proof.

not so simple as Kliefoth supposes, although we

are at one with

him

in this, that neither the difficulty of

carrying out what was reality,

also

with reference to an act com-

does not expressly state

however, there

The matter

will

moreover, teas performed, although the text,

a manner quite

manded by God,

iv.

sometimes re-

although

So here

commanded

in the world of external

nor the non-mention of the actual performance, furnishes

sufficient

grounds for the supposition of merely internal,

occurrences.

also are of opinion that very

spiritual

many

of the

symbolical acts of the prophets were undertaken and performed in the external world,

and that

corresponds most fully with the

this supposition, as that literal

meaning

on each occasion the most obvious, and to,

which

of the words,

to be firmly

adhered

unless there can be good grounds for the opposite view.

CHAP. the case

now

before us,

V. 1-4.

we have

â&#x20AC;˘

take into consideration

first to

that the oracle which enjoins these symbolical acts on Ezekiel

stands in close connection, both as to time and place, with the

inauguration of Ezekiel to the prophetic the

Lord comes upon him

at the

same

The hand

office.

place,

where the con-

cluding word at his call was addressed to him (the

points back to

found himself

iii.

15)

;

which he here

God

still

14),

(iii.

shows that the new

in our

glory of Jehovah in the same

ecstatic vision,

again,

ecstatic condition, as

book always has

but also most undoubtedly from

prophet.

from the formula, "the hand of the Lord

clear not only

came upon me," which

when

office of

this divine revelation,

as at his consecration, transported into

viz.

22,

received, followed very soon, if

not immediately, after his consecration to the

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

iii.

on the same spot to which he had been

still

Then, upon the occasion of

DK',

and the circumstance that Ezekiel

transported by the Spirit of revelation,

manner

he had seen

But

an ecstatic condition.

it is

this signification,

that he again sees the

this,

this

in ch.

were an

obvious that the acts also which the divine

appearance imposed upon him must be regarded as ecstatic occurrences

since the assertion that every significant act

;

be performed, in order that something

who

witness

this act

it, is

must

may

must

be shown to those

fundamentally insufficient for the proof that

fall

within the domain of the earthly world of

sense, because the occurrences related in ch. viii.-xi. are vieV^ed

even by Kliefoth himself as purely internal events.

decisive,

however, for the purely internal character of the symbolical acts

under consideration

(ch. iv.

and

v.), is

the circumstance that

the supposition of Ezekiel having, in his lain

390 days upon

his left,

own

house, actually

and then, again, 40 days upon

his

right side without turning, stands in irreconcilable contradiction

with the fact that he, according to ch.

away

viii.

1 sqq., was carried

in ecstasy to Jerusalem, there to behold in the temple the

monstrosities of Israel's idolatry

salem.

For the proof

and the destruction of Jeru-

of this, see the introduction to ch.

viii.

;

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEEIEL.

The Divine Word which explains the

Vers. 5-17.

Symbolical Signs, is laid down as to its

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver.

Tims says

which the judgment that

cause (5-9) and as to

Lord Jehovah

the

announced

nature (10-17).

its

This Jerusalem have

placed in the midst of the nations^ and raised about her the countries.

Ver.

nations,

But

in wickedness she resisted

and my

more than

statutes

laws more than the

which are round

the countries

about her; for they rejected my laws, and did not walk in my statutes.

Ver.

Lord Jehovah

Therefore thus says the

Because ye have

raged more than the nations round about you, and have not walked

and have not obeyed my

statutes,

laws,

and have not done

even according to the laws of the nations which are round about

you

;

Ver.

Lord Jehovah

8. Therefore thus saith the

I, shall be against thee,

and

before the eyes of the nations.

Lo,

even

perform judgments in thy midst

loill

Ver.

And I

will do unto thee

what I have never done, nor will again do in

manner, on

account of all thine abominations. 'Z'Vt^

nxT,

not " this

Jerusalem,"

Jerusalem (Havernick), but " is

this

i.e.

placed before the noun in the sense of

this is

the destiny of

Jerusalem " (Hitzig) iste,

as in

Ex.

nxT

;

xxxii. 1

cf.

Ewald,

its

proper prominence, the censure of her sinful conduct opens

Â§

2936.

place the culpability of Jerusalem in

with the mention of the exalted position which

God had

assigned

Jerusalem h described in ver. 5 as forming the

her upon earth.

central point of the earth

this is done,

however, neither in an

external, geographical (Hitzig), nor in a purely typical sense,

as the city that

blessed more than any other (Calvin, Haver-

nick), but in a historical sense, in so far as " God's people city actually

and

stand in the central point of the God-directed

world-development and

its

movements " (Kliefoth)

relation to the history of salvation, as the city in

;

or,

which

God

hath set up His throne of grace, from which shall go forth the

law and the statutes for of the whole world iv.

1 sqq.).

But

may

all

nations, in order that the salvation

be accomplished (Isa.

ii.

2 sqq.

;

Mic.

instead of keeping the laws and statutes of

CHAP.

V. 5-9.

the Lord, Jerusalem has, on the contrary, turned to do wickedness more than the heathen nations in

the lands round about

all

cum accusal, object.j " to act rebelliously towards"). Here we may not quote Rom. ii. 12, 14 against this, as if the heathen, who did not know the law of God, did not also trans(nnorij

â&#x20AC;˘

gress the same, but sinned

for the sinning

dv6fjia)<;;

of which the apostle speaks,

really a transgression of the

With

law written on the heart of the heathen. the penal threatening

introduced

av6fjLQ)<;,

;

15^,

in ver. 7,

but before the punishment

down, the correspondence between guilt and punishment

laid

brought forward more prominently by repeatedly placing in

juxtaposition the godless conduct of the rebellious city. is infinitive,

norij

from

"to rage,"

(Oi^,

i.e.

last clause of ver.

a secondary form

God;

to rebel against

7 contains a climax

cf.

And

12 (where

Ps.

made

ii.

The

ye have not even This

acted according to the laws of the heathen." real contradiction to ch. xi.

'233Âťri

in the sense of

|ion,

not in any

a subject of

reproach to the Israelites that they have acted according to the laws of the heathen), so that

and Hitzig,

in these latter,

obliged, with

has only been omitted to avoid the sup-

posed contradiction with

xi.

The

12.

contradiction lies in the double

solution of the apparent

meaning of the Dian

The heathen had laws which were opposed but also such as were rooted in the law of their hearts.

worthy

;

Ewald

in the verse before us, because

and several Hebrew manuscripts.

wanting in the Peshito

Even

we would be

expunge the N?

Obedience

''^B'^p.

to those of

God

written

God,

upon

the latter was good and praise-

to the former, wicked and objectionable.

Israel,

which

hated the law of God, followed the wicked and sinful laws of the heathen, and neglected to observe their before us

to be

judged by Jer.

had already made reference.^

laws.

Tlie passage

10, 11, to

which Raschi

<7ooc^

ver. 8 the

announcement of

xi. 12 : " Haec prole conImitabantur Judaei gentiles velfovendo opiniones gentiles, vel etiam assumendo ritus et sacra gentilium. Sed nonfaciehant ut gentes^ quae integre 1

Coccejus had already well remarked on ch.

cordant.

ii.

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

the pimisliment, interrupted cause,

by the repeated mention of the

a^ain resumed with the words

'W^

salem has acted worse than the heathen,

Since Jeru-

p-'.

God

execute His

will

judgments upon her before the eyes of the heathen.

D^CBB' nb'y

or D''D3l^p nb'jj (vers. 10, 15, ch. xi. 9, xvi. 41, etc.),

" to accom-

plish or execute judgments," xxxiii.

used in Ex.

12 and

xii.

Num.

4 of the judgments which God suspended over Egypt.

The punishment

be suspended shall be so great and heavy,

that the like has never happened before, nor will ever happen

These words do not require us either

again.

to refer

the

threatening, with Coccejus, to the last destruction of Jerusalem,

which was marked by greater severity than the earher one, or to suppose, with Havernick, that the prophet's look to both the periods of Israel's

Roman

Babylonian and

punishment

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; the

directed

times of the

Both suppositions

calamity together.

are irreconcilable with the words, as these can only be referred to the first

impending penal judgment of the destruction of

Jerusalem.

This was, so

far,

more severe than any previous

or subsequent one, inasmuch as by of

God was

Israel,

the existence of the people

for a time suspended, while that Jerusalem

were no longer the people of God, inasmuch as the sisted at that

affected

latter

con-

time of the Christian community, which was not

by that catastrophe (Kliefoth).

Vers. 10-17. Further execution of this threat. Therefore shall fathers devour

theCf

and

Therefore^ as

tJieir

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

Ver. 10.

children in thy midst,

and I will

and

exercise

judgments

disperse all thy remnant to the winds.

Ver. 11.

children shall devour

upon

and

which were destroyed and annihilated by the Romans,

Verily, because

live,

tlieir

fathers

the declaration

thou hast polluted

the

Lord Jehovah,

sanctuary with all thine

ahominations and all thy crimes^ so shall I take

away mine

eye without mercy, and will not spare.

thee

shall die

diissuis serviebant. videri valebant."

Ver. 12.

third of by the pestilence, and perish by hunger in thy

Nam

Israelitae nomine

Dei ahutebantur

et ipsius

populus

CHAP. midst;

and

part shall

the tidrd

I scatter

the third part will

and I will .

And

cool

by the sword ahout thee;

fall

to all the loinds

draw

will

and

v^rath against them,

will take vengeance.

my And I

they shall experience that /, Jehovah, have spoken in

zeal,

when

toill

make

lohich are

I accomplish my

wrath upon them.

round about it

judgments upon thee I,

of every passer-by. mockery and a scorn, a warning and

which

send

Ver. 16.

it.

destroy you

shall break to

shall send hunger thee childless

when 1

When

arrows of hunger, tohich minister

I shall

and

thee,

and

;

exercise

anger and wrath and in grievous visita-

Jehovah, have said

thee the evil

the nations

thee, before the eyes

shall be a

a terror for the nations round about

tions.

Ver. 14.

a desolation and a mockery among

thee

And

Ver. 15.

you,

and

;

And my anger shall he fulfilled,

Ver. 13.

out the sicord after them.

V. 10-17.

you

;

for hunger shall

the staff

upon you, and pestilence

I send against

beasts,

I heap upon And I

Ver. 17.

of bread:

evil

destruction,

which shall make

and blood shall pass over

bring upon thee.

thee;

and

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

the

sword

a proof of the unheard-of severity of the judgment, there

ivill

Jehovah, have spoken

it.

immediately mentioned in ver. 10 a most horrible circumstance,

which had been already predicted by Moses (Lev. xxvi. 29 Deut.

xxviii.

53) as that

which should happen

hard pressed by the enemy,

viz.

to the people

;

when

a famine so dreadful, during

the siege of Jerusalem, that parents would eat their children,

and children their parents the dispersion of those all

;

and

after the capture of the city,

who remained "

quarters of the world."

This

to all the winds,

i.e.

described more minutely, as

an appendix to the symbolical act in vers. 1 and

2, in vers.

and 12, with a solemn oath, and with repeated and prominent mention of the

sin, is

sins

which have drawn down such chastisements.

mentioned the pollution of the temple by idolatrous

abominations, which are described in detail in ch. J*"!^?}

which

variously understood

by the old

viii.

The

translators (for

which some Codices

offer the explanatory correction JJ^3s), is

to be explained, after

Job

xxxvi. 7, of the " turning

away

of the

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

eye," and the it

feel

following as the object

^?''y

no compassion,"

while

;

" that

D^nn"*^?^,

interjected between the verb

and

object with the adverbial signification of " mercilessly."

its

For

that the words Dinn iS) are adverbially subordinate to jn3N,

from the correspondence

distinctly appears

—between

i'lJX

—indicated by ^N

Di\

and Pions NP. Moreover, the thought, " Jehovah

withdraw Plis care for the people," is not to be termed " feeble " in connection with what follows ; nor is the will mercilessly

which

contrast,

a positive

act,

indicated in the clause

nick supposes.

''?^^D31

which would correspond

This

sanctuary.

''?^?"Qi1,

lost, as

Haver-

does not require jns to be understood of

shown by the

to the desecration of the

last clause of

The

the verse.

withdrawal without mercy of the divine providence

is,

besides,

in reality, equivalent to complete devotion to destruction, as is

For

particularized in ver. 12.

ver. 12 see

and

vers. 1

carrying out the threatened division of the people into three

parts, the

wrath of

God

to be fulfilled,

of the divine wrath upon the people

and God

""JJipninj

;

by revenge "

xxviii.

non

in xvi. 42, xxi. 22, xxiv.

Hithpael, pausal form for

Deut.

63.

from the people

the full measure

to be exhausted (cf. 7, 8),

appearand "cool" His anger,

iram" occurs again satisfaction

i.e.

ver.

cf.

" se

Isa.

consolari,^^

24,

ri'iprij

13.

« sedavit ""^pnanj

" to procure

and for the thing,

14 sqq. the discourse turns again

to the city of Jerusalem.

It is to

become a

was already threatened in Lev. xxvi. 31 and 33 of Israel, and thereby a " mockery " to all nations,

wilderness, as to the cities

in the is

manner described

in Deut. xx\x.

not to be changed, after the

into the second person

subject which

;

LXX.,

but Jerusalem

23 sq.

ver. 16,

and

Among

hunger

first

ver.

in ver. 15,

be regarded as the

become the object of scorn and hatred,

when God accomplishes His judgments. example.

nn^'^l,

Vulgate, and some Mss.,

"iD^iO is

the judgments which are to overtake

again

made

specially

prominent

etc.,

a warning-

(cf. iv.

it,

16);

17 are wild beasts, pestilence, blood, and

Bword added, and a quartette of judgments announced as in

CHAP. xiv. 21.

For

as a unity

by means of the

VI. 1-7.

and blood are comprehended together

pestilence

Their connection

predicate.

be understood according to xiv. 19, and the number four

For more minute

nificant, as in xiv. 21; Jer. xv. 3sqq.

meaning, see on

as to the

xiv. 21.

The

evil

sig-

details

arrows point back

Lev. xxiv. 22 and Deut.

to Deut. xxxii. 23; the evil beasts, to

To produce an impression, the prophet heaps his words together. Unum ejus consilium fuit penetrare in animos 24 sqq.

xxxii.

Hcec igitur

pojpuli quasi lapideos etferreos.

varietate utatur et exornet

CHAP.

cur hie tanta

THE JUDGMENT UPON THE IDOLATROUS PLACES, AND ON THE IDOL- WORSHIPPERS.

VI.

To God's

address

in vers.

appended in

ch. iv. 1-5, are oracles,

est ratio,

suam doctrinam variis figuris (Calvin).

5-17, explaining the signs in ch. vi.

and

vii.

two additional

which present a further development of the contents of

these signs, the

judgment portrayed by them

In ch.

greatness.

vi.

there

and

in its extent

announced, in the

first section,

the idolatrous places, and on their account to the land, desola-

and

tion,

to the idolaters, destruction (vers. 3-7)

and

;

to this is

added the prospect of a remnant of the people, who are persed

among

the heathen, coming to be converted to the

In the second section the necessity and

(vers. 8-10).

character of the impending judgment

dis-

Lord

terrible

repeatedly described at

length as an appendix to vers. 12, 14 (vers. 11-14).

The

Vers. 1-7. idolaters.

ing

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

Ver.

desolation of the land,

^Ver. 1.

Soji

And

the

word of

the

and destruction of the

Lord came

of man, turn thy face towards

of Israel, and prophesy against them.

Ver.

the

me^ say-

mountains

And

say,

mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord Jehovah saith the valleys,

you,

and

made

Lord Jehovah

and

to the

mountains, and to the

low grounds. Behold,

destroy your high places.

desolate,

and your

Ver.

I 4.

Thus

hills, to the

bring the sword upon

Your

altars shall he

sun-pillars shall he broken

;

and I shall

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

make your

I will and all

slain fall in the presence

of your

will scatter

your bones round about your

your dwellings shall

and

idols broken

made

the cities he

may

places waste ; that your altars destroyed,

and your

will fall in your midst; that

With

ver. 1 cf.

(ver. 2) as

and

pars pro hills

and

sun-pillars

Ver.

you may know

The prophet

16.

iii.

Jer.

ii.

20,

and

Atid the slain

I am Jehovah.

that

toto, is

wady.

when

to the

moun-

are added also the valleys and low grounds, as

iii.

;

see

on Hos.

I.e.

and Deut.

word

Hos.

cf.

;

iv.

D^p'SX,

xii. 2.

" the beds

as equivalent to

^^^, a valley with a brook or stream, like the Arabic

^\\,

properly " deepening," " the deep ground," " the

deep valley;" on the form nrsa, of

juxtaposition

mountains

and

cf.

between mountains and valleys

The

xxxiv. 13.

Ewald,

hills,

grounds, occurs again in xxxvi. 4, tion

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

to prophesy against

seen from ver. 3,

of the stream ;" but Ezekiel uses the i.e.

hewn down, and

in the older writings, denotes the " river channels,"

valley,

the high

and your

waste,

the places where idolatry was specially practised ;

And

That the mountains are mentioned

the mountains of Israel.

tains

Ver.

altars.

desolate,

be desolate

works of your hands exterminated.

the

Ver.

idols.

lay the coiyses of the children of Israel before their idols^

The

Â§ 186rfa.

valleys

and xxxv. 8

and low

the opposi-

;

also, in xxxii. 5,

and

valleys are to be conceived of as furnished

with trees and groves, under the shadow of which the worship of Astarte especially was practised; see on ver. 15. tains

and

Astarte.

in the valleys

The announcement

to the threatening in

and describes sacrifice

of their destruction

at greater length.

him

the

moun-

Baal and

appended

Lev. xxvi. 30, which Ezekiel takes up

and worship, and the

dedicated to

were sanctuaries erected

Beside the D"'?l3n,

as the sun-god,

riiD3,

the places of

pillars or statues of Baal,

he names also the

altars,

which, in Lev. 7.c. and other places, are comprehended along

with the ni03

;

see

on Lev. xxvi. 30 and 1 Kings

iii.

With

the destruction of the idol temples, altars, and statues, the idol-

worshippers are also to be smitten, so as to

fall

down

in the

CHAP.

The fundamental meaning

presence of their idols.

word

borrowed from Lev.

C?*^?, "idols,"

employed by Ezekiel, wood," from

y>^,

uncertain

taken quite

literally

the destruction

may be

Ver. 5a

of stone" (Hiivernick).

from Lev.

The ignominy

xxvi. dOb.

In order that the

altars.

the high places, are to be devastated, ver. 6.

all

and

n:^'^']^

are probably not to be derived

lO'^J^";

but to be referred back to a stem-

§ 138Z)),

which

^^), with the signification of Q^K*, the existence of

name

and

else-

certainly only mater lectionis.

appears certain from the old

The N

where.

ID'kJ^^K''

liO''K^.

in Ps. Ixviii.

The

ver. 7, the singular bhn stands as indefinitely general.

thought, " slain will

not

are saved, slain

your

fall in

the people will

all

fall,

midst,"" involves

what

follows.

with their idols

—

survivors shall go

amongst the heathen, and

shall

that will have been fulfilled.

The

falling of the

to conversion to

away

remember the word, of the Lord 8. But I shall preserve a rem-

—Ver.

you some who have escaped

among

shall be dispersed

Ver.

And

when ye

those of

among

the nations whither they are led captive,

broken to

their

their eyes,

the

sword

the lands.

you who have escaped, will make mention of when I have

me among and

Him.

into banishment

nant, in that there shall be to the nations,

who

leads to the recognition

Jehovah as the omnipotent God, and

The

the idea that

but that there will survive some

and prepares for

— the idolaters

Vers. 8-10.

heightened by the bones of the slain idolaters

from DOS' (Ewald,

form

''3,

entirely rooted out, the cities throughout the

whole land, and

The forms

of the

and frequently

signifying either " logs of

;

being scattered round about the idol idolatry

I.e.,

(Gesen.), or stercorei, from

to roll "

"dung;" not "monuments is

VI. 8-10.

whorish heart, which had departed from me,

which went a whoring after their idols

and

they

shall loathe themselves because of the evil which they have done in

reference to all their abominations. that 1

"v^nirij

superstites facere,

Jehovah.

connection with

'lil

Not

And ye shall know I spoken this evil to you.

Ver. 10.

in vain have

" to make or preserve survivors."

ni^na

—

The

analo<Tous to the construction of

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

1'ninj in the sense of

Deut.

11 and xxx.

xxviii.

Ewald and

giving a superabundance," with 3

and

For

Hitzig, as inadmissible.

the old versions, and the change of

would have

be referred to ver.

n^^^3

supported by

into

^J?irii'"il.

which

'''i'"!?*!^,

opposition to the two-

7, is in

fold repetition of the nin^ ^JN ^3 Driyi^l OV]J^^), vers.

shows that the thought in

as this repetition

reij

not to be rejected, with

10 and 14,

ver. 7

different

from that in 17, 21, not " they shall know that Jehovah has spoken," but " they shall know that He who has done this is

God

Jehovah, the will

The

of Israel."

be shown in

some who have

that they shall have

this,

escaped the sword.

preservation of a remnant

Niph. with a plural form

DD"'rih}n is in/in.

of the suffix, as occurs elsewhere only with the plural ending

while Ezekiel has extended

ni of nouns,

infinitive of rh verbs

;

remembrance of Jehovah

Him.

conversion to as relative

'IK'N

pronoun with

used conditionally, "

(ver. 9)

before 027,

the

"^"โ ขH^'J

but

The Niphal

"iSE'i

sibi frangere,

i.e.

here

and

else-

6 and 2 Chron.

xi.

not to be taken as passive, but middle,

D3?, poenitentid conterere

God

external senses which allure the heart to

form

The

commencement of

in the signification of the futur. exact.

the eyes also are mentioned, which

responds

of the

not to be connected

animum eonim

ipsum (Deum) redeant (Maurer, Havernick).

to ^i3p.

T\S

2596.

as in Lev. iv. 22, Deut. xi. 27,

if,"

'"Jji"!?^^

ยง

a conjunction, though not

where, but of time, ore, " when," as Deut.

XXXV. 20, and

to the

and Ewald,

cf . xvi. 31,

Besides the heart, is

to smite, as the

whoredom.

at the beginning of the verse,

ItOpJI

ti^ip,

cor-

the later

for pp, " to feel a loathing," Iliphil, " to be filled with

loathing;" faces,"

i.e.

xxxvi. 31.

cf.

Job

their

1 with

persons or themselves

riijnn bs, in allusion to

reference to

all their

"in (on)

ohject.f :

their CjiQ,

so also in xx. 43,

the evil things; '3jnn"?DPj in

abominations.

This

duced by chastisement, namely, that the

fruit,

which

pro-

idolaters are inspired

with loathing for themselves, and led to the knowledge of Jeho van, will furnish the proof that

God

has not spoken in vain.

— :

CHAP. VL

11-14.

The punishment is just and well deserved. Ver. 11. Thus saith the Lord Jehd\)ah, Smite with thy handy and stamp with thy foot^ and say, Woe on all the wicked abomiVers. 11-14.

nations of the house of Israel! that they must perish by sword,

hunger, and pestilence. the pestilence

and he who

and he

;

and

survives

shall accomplish

I am

idols

round about your

altars,

A nd

Ver. 13. lie

ye shall

in the midst of

on every high

upon

hill,

and under every green

the mountains,

sword;

shall fall by the

presetted will die of hunger : and

wrath upon them.

that

that is afar off will die

hand

Jehovah, when your slain

know

summits of

Ver. 12.

that is near at

tree,

your

all the

and under

every thick-leaved terebinth, on the places where they brought their

Ver. 14.

pleasant incense to all their idols. out

my hand

more than

know

shall ye

and make

against them,

the wilderness

— the

pleasure of Jehovah

and

desolate

all their dwellings

^3?? nan

feet

prophet

make known

the dis-

the horrible idolatry of the people,

ei3

in xxi. 19 expressed

clap the hands

;

Num.

" cf .

a conjunction, " af."

mentioned

he who

hand

is ;

far

removed from

who

to perish of hunger.

The

in ver. 12.

while he

signification

it^'X,

cf.

ver. 3,

its

one

will

scene as

'ai"73 7«,

EZEK.

spe-

escape the judgment

little

"11V3,

he who

ver. 126, cf. v. iv.

servatus, preserved, as in Isa. xlix. 6.

(LXX.,

Vulgate, Targum,

13; on 13a, 13; Jer.

ii.

iii.

'i^B'an

etc.),

as a

5; and on 136,

cf. ver.

20,

according to later usage, for '2Tb^ I.

escapes the pestilence and the sword

besieged "

and Hos.

ver. 11,

This

Hitzig can only maintain by arbitrarily expunging gloss.

" to

Their abominations are so wicked, that

they must be exterminated on account of them. cially

i.e.

nSj an exclamation of

xxiv. 10.

lamentation, occurring only here and in xsi. 20. is

well

distinctly

" to strike one hand against the other,"

5)3 "Tjn,

—Through clapping of the —the gestures which indicate

and thereby make manifest that the penal judgment deserved.

stretch

Jehovah.

hands and stamping of the violent excitement

the land waste

of Diblath, in

I am

that

And I will

6; Deut.

hv.

nn''3

xii. 2.

ry}^

used

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

in the Pentateuch of sacrifices pleasing to

ferred to idol sacrifices; see on Lev.

God,

account of the prevalence of idolatry in

make

•f

serves to strengthen the idea 'inpan "isiEip

words

are

;

all parts,

The union

the land entirely desolate.

hero trans-

9 and Gen.

viii.

21.

God

will

noOB' of nsBio'j T T T :

;

The

cf . xxxiii. 8 sqq., xxxv. 3.

obscure,

" in the wilderness

either

towards Diblath " (even to Diblath), or " more than the wilder-

There

ness of Diblath " (I? of comparison).

nom. prop. ; cf the name of the

nn73"n is a

Num.

The second

xlviii.

;

words

more probable than the

xxxiii. 46.

terminus a quo, and

first.

no doubt that

city D^n^ST in Jer.

acceptation of the

For,

"iS'l'sp

the

the terminus ad quern of the extent of

f^ri^?"!

the land, then must "^^IPP be punctuated not only as status

but

absolut.,

wilderness

—

must

that,

also

have the

article

namely, of Arabia

of the article cannot be justified

—

;

because a definite

meant.

by reference

The

omission

to xxi. 3 or to

Ps. Ixxv. 7 (Hitzig, Ewald), because both passages contain

general designations of the quarters of the world, with which the article

always omitted.

be pointed out in the north Rihla, already proposed

;

In the next place, no Dibla can

and the change of Dihlatha

forward again by J. D. Michaelis, has not only against authority of

all

into

by Jerome, and more recently brought it

the

the old versions, but also the circumstance that

the Ribla mentioned in 2 Kings

xxiii.

33 did not form the

northern boundary of Palestine, but lay on the other side of in the land of

11,

Hamath ;

n^2"]n,

while the

named

it,

Num. xxxiv.

a place on the eastern boundary to the north of the Sea

of Gennesareth, which would, moreover, be inappropriate as a

designation of the northern boundary.

the land from the south to the north

a different way; 1

Kings

viii.

2 Chron.

xiii.

non

sia?

nnpni

;

cf. ;

xiii.

;

Finally, the extent of

constantly expressed in

21 (xxxiv. 8); Josh.

2 Kings xiv. 65

vii.

named

Num.

;

Amos

vi.

;

and even by Ezekiel himself

as the

•^^O'?,

although the

Chron.

(xlviii.

The form name is hardly

boundary on the north.

similar to nri:»n for

xiii.

CHAP.

VII. 1-4.

be explained, with Havernick, as an appellation, after the

Arabic

With

unknown.

The

calamitas, exitium.

J-'t>,

'li1

Ijn^'i

the

wilderness of Dihlah

discourse

rounded of in

returning to the beginning of ver. 13, while the thoughts in

13 and 14 are only a variation of

vers.

CHAP.

4—7.

vers.

THE OVERTHROW OF ISRAEL.

VII.

" word of God," contained in this chapter, com-

The second

announcement of judgment upon Jerusalem and

pletes the

Judah, by expanding the thought, that the end

will

both quickly and inevitably upon the land and people.

word

for

first

Thus

saith

Adonai Jehovah "

of these sections the

theme

(vers. 2

God

and

drawing nigh,

judge Israel without mercy according

will

The second

abominations.

5).

given in short, expres-

and monotonous clauses ; namely, the end

sive,

This

divided into two unequal sections, by the repetition of

the phrase, "

In the

come

section (vers. 5-27)

to its

arranged in

four strophes, and contains, in a form resembling the lamentation in chap, xix., a

more minute description of the end predicted.

—

The endcometh. Ver. 1. And the word of JehoVer. .2. And thou, son of man, thus saith me thus

Vers. 1-4.

vah came the

Lord Jehovah

upon

the

end upon

end

four borders of

and I

thee,

shall send

thee according to thy ways,

nations.

and J

Ver.

to the

And my

land of Israel

Ver.

the land.

God It

—

nriNl^

(cometh') the

thee,

and judge

thee all thine

abomi-

eye shall not look with pity upon thee^

shall not spare, but bring thy

Jehovah.

end cometh

the

Now

wrath upon

and bring upon

abominations shall be in the midst of

I am

ways upon thee; and thy

thee, that

may know

with the copula, connects

with the preceding one, and shows

this

that

word of

to be a continuation.

commences with an emphatic utterance of the thought, that is coming to the land of Israel, i.e. to the kingdom of

the end

Judah, with

its

capital Jerusalem.

Desecrated as

has been

—

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

100

the abominations of

inhabitants,

its

will cease to

''^ rip*iK7 (to

land of God's people Israel.

be the

the land of Israel)

not to be taken with "lOK nb (thus saith the Lord) in opposi-

tion to the accents, but is connected with

the Targ. and Vulgate, and

placed

niD33

by the parallelism

limited

of the land of Israel.

The

(Isa. xi. 12).

Chetib

(an end), as in

Ki?.

for the sake of greater

first

In the construction, compare Job

emphasis.

psn

14.

vi.

riy3")NI

to the four extremities

used elsewhere for the whole earth

riV?")^?

placed, in opposition to the

The

ordinary rule, before a noun in the feminine gender.

Keri gives the regular construction 3 the end

ver.

upon thee

i.e.

267c).

" Give

explained to be a wrathful judgment.

thine abominations

(|rij)

Ewald,

(vid.

send the consequences,

punishment for them. The same thought is expressed in the phrase, " thine abominations shall be in the midst of

inflict

thee ;" in other words, they would discern them in the punish-

ments which the abominations would bring in their 4a compare ch.

ver.

The

Vers. 5-27.

execution of the judgment announced in

vers. 2-4, arranged in four strophes

The Jirst

23-27.

and

the

and Ver.

upon

;

thee

behold^

cometh

cometh.

Ver.

and not joy upon

mountains.

thee ; all

the

I bring

upon

thee, that

Thus

saith

thee,

Ver.

and I shall thee,

Ver.

of tune of a singular kind

not spare

Now

near

;

thee,

tumtdt

speedily will

;

come,

and bring upon

eye shall not

look

thee

with

according to thy ways will

that 1, Jehovah,

shall

day

and accomplish mine anger on

and thy abominations

may know

;

waketh

The fate cometh upon

thee according to thy ways,

thine abominations.

pity upon thee,

the time cometh, the

fury upon

and judge

end

there cometh the

Ver.

Misfortune^ a singular misfortune^ behold,

End

10-14, 15-22,

Vers. 3 and 4 are repeated as a refrain

inhabitants of the land

pour out

vers. 5-9,

with slight modifications.

Lord Jehovah

cometh.

strophe depicts the end as a terrible calamity,

as near at hand.

in vers. 8

For

train.

v. 11.

nyn

shall be in the midst

smiting.

—Misfor-

made more emphatic

CHAP. VIL

by njn nnK,

which nnx

101

6-0.

placed

the sake of

for

first

emphasis, in the sense of unicus, singularis; a calamity singular

(unique) of ch. V.

upon

9).

thee,

kind, such as never had occurred before (cf.

its

In is

Pi?'!!}

waketh

(the end)

suggested by the paronomasia with

force of the words

subject to

6 the poetical PirHj

ver.

And

in opposition to the context.

The

X\^J^.

weakened by supplying Jehovah

as the

will not

do to supply njn (evil) from ver. 5 as the subject to nx3 nan (behold,

HNS

cometh).

construed impersonally

It cometh,

namely, every dreadful thing which the end brings with

The meaning in

which

of tz'phiruh

occurs

of diadem or crown, which

The

doubtful.

is Isa. xxviii. 5,

where

only other passage

used in the sense

Raschi

altogether unsuitable here.

has therefore had recourse to the Syriac and Chaldee

tempus matutinum,

aurora,

accordingly, " the

dawn

Joel

ii.

t^"]??,

and Havernick has explained

But the dawn

of an evil

never used as a symbol or

it.

omen

day."

of misfortune, not even in

but solely as the sign of the bursting forth of light

Abarbanel was on the right track when he

or of salvation.

started from the radical meaning of 1?^, to

tAvist,

and taking

tz^phirdh in the sense of orhis^ ordo, or periodical return, under-

stood

as probably denoting

orhem redeiintem (Ges.

Tlies. p.

rerum fatique vicissitudinem in

But

1188).

has been justly

observed, that the rendering succession, or periodical return,

Winer has given

can only give a forced sense in ver. 10. better rendering, viz. fatum,

which he refers

mutandum given of T]''n,

to the

inevitahile.

D''"|n

malum

Arabic / A-^j

intorturrij

more probable one than that

context,

HDino,

that

So much

tumult,

the

the joyous vintage cry (Jer. xxv. 30

splendor, gloria.

then fatum haud

Different explanations have also been

But the opinion that

nn.

fatale, fate or destiny, for

;

10),

an unusual form of

any rate

hapax legomenon

or the noise of

synonymous with

Isa. xvi.

war.

nin,

obvious from the the

antithesis

The shouting

of the

102

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

mountains,

vicinity, in

as in Deut.

xxxii.

shall learn that

For

but ^'2^

;

added in the

Jehovah who

last clause.

This thought

smites.

expanded in the following strophe. Vers. 10-14. Second strophe.

hold,

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver.

10. Behold the day^ he-

comeih; the fate apringeth up; the rod sprouteth; the pride

Ver. 11.

blossometh.

up as

77ie violence risefh

nothing of them, nothing of their midtitude,

crowd, and nothing glorious upon them. Cometh, the day approacheth the seller trouble himself ;

was

lohich

its

no one goeth multitude.

the trumpet

into the battle:

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;The rod

the ungodly.

This

for

earth

(i<y^, ;

let

not

seller will not return to that

were

still

among

the living

to his

through his iniquity.

life

and make everything ready

wrath cometh upon

;

but

all their left of

the leading thought of the strophe.

The

already prepared

three clauses of ver. 10ZÂť are tion in thethought.

The time

and

nothing will be

Ver. 12.

whole multitude will not turn bach; and

no one will strengthen himself as Ver. 14. They blow

rod of evil:

for torath cometh upon the whole mul-

sold, even though his life

for the prophecy against

the

nothing of their

not the buyer rejoice,

let

Ver. 13. For the

titude thereof.

n?3^ see ch.

^6<

of the strophe (vers. 8b and 9)

3^^i5$5,

a temporal not a local sense,

= immediately).

and 4

repetition of vers. 3

They

(

The remainder

vi. 12.

upon the mountains.

shouting, a rejoicing

from the immediate

;

synonymous

;

The approaching fate

but there

a grada-

springs up out of the

applied to the springing up of plants, as in 1 Kings

Isa.

xi.

1, etc.)

;

sprouts as a rod, and flowers as

pride.

Matteh, the rod as an instrument of chastisement (Isa.

X. 5).

This rod

then called zddhon, pride, inasmuch as

makes use of a proud and

violent people,

(Hab.

6 sqq.

;

Jer.

seq.),

God

namely the Chaldeans

to inflict the

punishment.

Sprouting and blossoming, which are generally used as figurative representations of fresh

and joyous

prosperity, denote here

the vigorous growth of that power which the punishment. refer to the

Both chdmds

enemy who

(violence)

destined to inflict

and zddhon (pride)

to chastise Israel.

The

violence

;

CHAP.

which he employs

rises

into the chastening rod of "

In ver. 116 the

of ungodly Israel.

i.e.

103

VII. 10-14.

J<?

The emotion apparent

described in short, broken sentences. in the frequent repetition of

evil,'*

blow

effect of the

by the omission

intensified

of the verb, which gives to the several clauses the character of

exclamations. insert

and

in thought,

nV"!";

will not

far as the

meaning

to take IP in a partitive sense

be anything of them,

i.e.

nothing

will

explained by the nouns which follow,

Dnon, plural of Dn or

nprij

ncn the multitude of possessions

anxiety or trouble,

viz.

The

priate.

uTT.

\ey.

vii

lament, as the Rabbins affirm

adopts this derivation

com-

(like lion, Isa.

Ix.

Ps,

;

unsupported and inappro-

not to be derived from ;

assigns to

or interpreted, as

—maintains, on

i^[}},

Kimchi

— who

the ground of Jer. xvi.

sqq., as signifying that, on account of the multitude of the

dying, there will be no leaves the root

1^13 ;

hence a

\ey.

ott.

are so

The meaning which Havernick

xxxvii. 16, etc.).

hdmeh,

i^'o>^,

the tumultuous multitude of people,

|ion signifies

bined that

them them)

(of

and the

l^on

both derivatives of

there

left of

Dn»

(the Israelites, or the inhabitants of the land). is

we have

concerned,

way

Mappik

in Arabic,

more lamentation for the dead.

in n unexplained. isU,

This

a derivative of a

elata fuit resy eminuit, magnijicus fuit

When

everything disappears in such

as this, the joy occasioned

by the acquisition of property,

Pib,

res magnijica.

and the sorrow caused by

The buyer he

?i!)

will not

will

its loss, will

also pass

away

(ver. 12).

not rejoice in the property he has bought, for

be able to enjoy

;

and the

seller will not

mourn

that he has been obliged to part with his possession, for he

would have

lost it in

any

falls

equally upon them

The wrath

case.^

against their whole multitude all.

;

that

The

God

to say, the

suffix

7\'i\0T\_

kindled

judgment refers,

It is a natural thing to rejoice in the purchase of property,

mourn over its sale. But when slavery and captivity stare you rejoicing and mourning are equally absurd."— Jerome.

and to

in the face,

;

10*

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

Jerome has

correctly shown, to the " land of Israel " (admath,

Yisrael) in ver.

i.e.

The

to the inhabitants of the land.

words, " the seller will not return to what he has sold," are to

be explained from the legal regulations concerning the year of jubilee in

Lev. xxv., according to which

had been sold was

that

landed property

all

owner

to revert to its original

without compensation, in the year of jubilee

heir),

would then return

his

mimhdr (Lev. xxv.

(or his

so that

;

14, 27, 28).

Henceforth, however, this will take place no more, even Dri'iij

their (the setlers')

when the return

time

life,

should be

to his property

alive {sc. at the

still

would take

place, accord-

ing to the regulations of the year of jubilee), because Israel will

be banished from the land.

conditional circumstantial clause. (312'^

N?)

The clause 'n C'n? nijn is a The seller will not return

to his possession, because the

prophecy concerning

the whole multitude of the people will not return (2^^ will not turn

23, Iv. 11).

back (for

^Vki'^

so does njion h'^-m

)irn

this

meaning of

compare

Isa. xlv.

N? corresponds to the previous

^itJ'^

to n:ion-b-i>x jinn in ver. 12.

last clause of ver. 13, injn is

not to be taken with

sense of " in the iniquity of his

but with

iJiy? superfluous,

31B',

s^?), i.e.

life,"

^pjnn^j

N?,

In the

i^iya in

which makes the

the

suffix in

the Hithpael being construed

with the accusative, " strengthen himself in his

Whether

life."

these words also refer to the year of jubilee, as Havernick supposes, inasmuch as the regulation that every one

was to

recover his property was founded upon the idea of the restitution

and re-creation of the theocracy, we may leave undecided

since the thought

be deprived of

its

evidently simply this

ungodly Israel

possession, because the

obtain the strengthening of his

life

wicked

through his

shall

shall sin.

not

This

thought leads on to ver. 14, in which we have a description of the utter inability to offer any successful resistance to the

enemy employed difficulty solute,

in executing the judgment.

connected with the word

which the form

Jrtp^

VipJ^?,

There

some

since the infin. ah'

seems to indicate, cannot be con-

CHAP. VIL

105

15-22.

Even

strued with either a preposition or the article. expression

^Vpi^ V'^P^'^ in

Jer.

vi.

was

floating before the

of Ezekiel, and led to his employing the bold phrase

would not position

the

mind

yipJ^i?,

this

Justify the use of the infinitive absolute with a pre-

and the

article.

must be a substantive form, and

VipJ])

denote not clangour, but the instrument used to sound an alarm, viz. the shophdr (ch. xxxiii. 3). of the inf. abs. (see Josh. finite tense,

vii.

7),

T^^,

used in the place of the

and signifying to equip for war, as in Nah.

And

everything requisite for waging war.

''3^,

an unusual form

wrath of

into the battle, because the

God

ii.

no one goes

turns against them

(Lev. xxvi. 17), and smites them with despair (Deut. xxxii. 30).

Thus

Vers. 15-22. Tldrd strophe. sistible

destruction

even their

;

rescue, but will cast

enemy.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

The sword

^Ver. 15.

icithin: he

who

and pestilence

away

loithout,

will devour

him

the valleys, all icill

terrors will cover

silver into

Ver. 16.

upon

the

And

mountains

moaning, every one for his iniquity.

become feeble, and all knees flow with

them ; on

the

all faces there

and

streets,

Their silver and their gold

day of JehovaKs wrath

;

bling-block to guilt, it

their gold will xoill

tions they

made

And 1

turn

be as filth to them.

And His

was

them a stum-

beautiful ornament, they

abominable images, their abomina-

their

into the

wicked of the earth for

/ shall

and

throw their

not be able to rescue them in the

thereof : therefore

shall give

ivill

they will not satisfy their souls there-

Ver. 20.

for pride ; and

will be shame,

Ver. 19. Tliey

with, nor fill their stomachs thereby, for

22.

sword; and famine

that is in the city.

baldness on all their heads.

to the

for the

Ver. 18. Tliey will gird themselves with sackcloth, and

water.

21.

will not

and pestilence and famine

in the field will die hy the

Ver. 17. All hands

used

and leave

as useless,

if their escaped ones escape^ they will he the doves

will they fall into irre-

and gold they

silver

I make

Ver.

hand of foreigners for prey, and

spoil, that tliey

my face from

filth to them.

may defile

them, that they defile

it.

Ver.

treasure ;

106

THE PROPEECIES OF EZEKIEL,

and oppressors

ment

ch. V. 12)

;

come upon

shall

God

even

Mace.

ii.

Those who have

bring misery.

mourn, moan

i.e.

and

if.—The chastise-

defile

mountains, that are inaccessible

flight to the

to the foe (compare 1

—

penetrates everywhere (ver. 15 compare with

—

;

Matt. xxiv. 16), will only

mountains

fled to the

like the doves of the valleys,

will coo

which

(as

Bochart has correctly interpreted the simile in his Hieroz. II. p. 546, ed. Ros.),

" when alarmed by the bird-catcher or the

hawk, are obliged to forsake their natural abode, and

where

The mountain

to save their lives.

with those of the valleys, as wild with tame."

and the

figure

made

fact are fused together.

men who have

late to the

fled

to agree with that of

regarded by the ancients as a (for proofs, see Gesen.

uses the

growl

(cf. Isa. lix.

11).

T\\dT\

The words

Dp3 the

actually re-

whereas the gender of nion

The

V.^'?-

moan

cooing of doves was

{hdgdh), a mournful note

Isa. xxxviii. 14)

stronger expression

still

their iniquity, the

When

;

fly else-

doves are contrasted

hdmdh

;

for which Ezekiel

fremere^ to howl or

The low moaning has

reference to

punishment of which they are enduring.

the judgment bursts

upon them, they

will

all

(not

merely those who have escaped, but the whole nation) be over-

whelmed with

terror,

The

shame, and suffering.

words, "

all

knees flow with water " (for hdlak in this sense, compare Joel are a hyperbolical expression used to denote the entire

iv. 18),

loss of the strength of

like the heart

With

the knees (here, ver. 17 and ch. xxi. 12),

melting and turning to water in Josh.

this utter despair there are associated grief

vii. 5.

and horror

the calamity that has fallen upon them, and shame and pain at

them

into such

for n^^2

D-Ja-^ia-^S,

the thought of the sins that have plunged n«>>3 nnD3, compare Ps.

distress.

For

Mic.

10, Jer.

vii.

Amos

viii.

10.

li.

;

and for

Iv.

r\ny^

;

'KW-ba,

Isa. xv. 2,

the custom of shaving the head bald on

account of great suffering or deep sorrow, see the comm. on

Mic.

16.

treasures

—In

away

this state of

anguish they will throw

as sinful trash (ver. 19 sqq.).

all their

the silver

CHAP.

and gold which they

will

throw away

understand idolatrous images

spoken of in ver. 20,

—

107

VII. 15-22.

(ver. 19),

particularly,

are not to

— these

are

first

but the treasures of precious metals

on which they had hitherto

They

set their hearts.

will not

merely throw these away as worthless, but look upon them as nidddh,

filth,

an object of disgust, inasmuch as they have been

The next

the servants of their evil lust.

and

clause, "silver

o;old

cannot rescue them," are a reminiscence from Zeph.

But

Ezekiel gives greater force to the thought by adding,

" they

will not

appease their hunger therewith,"

—

18.

that

say, they will not be able to protect their lives thereby, either

comm. on Zeph. i. 18) or from death by starv^ation, because there will be no more food The clause 'lJ1 ?iK'3» '•3 to purchase within the besieged city. from the sword of the enemy

assigns the reason for that

(see the

which forms the leading thought of

away

the verse, namely, the throwing filth; Djiy ^^^?^,

guilt

and punishment

his beautiful

V"}^

;

ornament.

and the singular

of the gilver

and gold as

a stumbling-block through which one falls into ''3^,

The

suffix is to

the beauty of his ornament,

allusion

to the silver

i.e.

and gold;

be explained from the fact that the

prophet fixed his mind upon the people as a whole, and used

The words

the singular in a general and indefinite sense.

are

commencement of the sentence; hence ^n»b'. Jerome has given the true mean-

written absolutely at the

the suffix attached to

ing of the words: ''what I (God) gave for an ornament of the possessors

and

And

for their wealth, they turned into pride."

not merely to ostentatious show (in the manner depicted in Isa. iii.

sqq.),

but to abominable images,

apply the costly gifts of to

make

God

(cf.

of (gold and silver)

;

Hos.

viii.

God

made

i.e.,

(ver.

nb'j;,

(as in

Ex.

21) by giving

according to ver. 19, it

away

as booty to the foe.

The

by placing them in such circumstances that they and

4, xiii. 2).

punishes this abuse by making

(gold and silver) into nidddh to them,

as filth,

did they

idols,

2 denoting the material with

which one works and of which anything xxxi. 4, xxxviii. 8).

i.e.

cast

;

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

108

enemy 9),

godless men,

i.e.

who not only

holy,

and

defile

The

it.

Chetib

withstanding the fact that

What

suffix.

Israelites),

will

i.e.

>}^^}^

was preceded by a masculine

from His people

that which

Obad.

ver. 6).

temple, or the it

(l^no,

His

defile

Ts'phuiil

treasure.

(Job xx. 26

hidden, the treasure

generally supposed to refer to the

Most Holy Place

arcanum meum, and gives

Jerome renders

in the temple.

this explanation

" signifying the

of Holies, which no one except the priests

Holy

Lord

from the

withdraw His gracious protection from

them, so that the enemy will be able to TsapJiuTif

that

all

be retained, not-

threatened will take place, because the

turn away His face

will

upon the possession of

seize

but in the most wicked manner lay hands upon

Israel, is

described as "the wicked of the earth" (cf. Ps. Ixxv.

and the high

This interpretation was so commonly

priest dared to enter."

adopted by the Fathers, that even Theodoret explains the rendering given in the Septuagint,

rrjv eTnaKOTrriv fiov, as signify-

ing the Most Holy Place in the temple.

the other hand,

the Chaldee has 'n:'^f n^3 Njns, " the land of the house of ;

majesty " and Calvin understands

which was safe under His difficult to reconcile either

The verb

tsdphun.

(i.e.

tsdplian signifies to hide, shelter, lay

These meanings do not

temple or the land of Israel.

priests,

but

was not a

this the case

XX. 26

laity,

secret, a

and Obad.

true that the Ploly of

and even by the ordihidden place

;

and

still

We therefore

with the land of Canaan.

adhere to the meaning, which

Job

it is

Holy of Holies

befit either the

Holies was unapproachable by the

was

But

God's) protection."

in the

less

as signifying " the land

explanation with the use of the word

safety.

nary

so thoroughly sustained

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; namely, " treasure," by which,

ver. 6,

no doubt, the temple-treasure

primarily intended.

This

rendering suits the context, as only treasures have been referred r\2

before

;

and

1S3 which follows.

locuTHj

but also venire in

may

be made to harmonize with

3 Xia signifies not merely intrare in (e.g.

Kings

vi.

;

possibly Ezek.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

CHApI

may

XXX. 4), and

therefore be very properly rendered, " to get

possession of," since

only possible to obtain possession of a

it is

by penetrating

treasure

concealed.

109

VII. 23-27.

There

it is

up or

laid

nothing at variance with this in the word

p^n, profanarej since

where

into the place

has already occurred in ver. 21 in con-

nection with the defiling of treasures and jewels. as Calvin has correctly observed, the

word

Moreover,

employed here

denote " an indiscriminate abuse, when, instead of considering to

what purpose things have been entrusted

them

to us,

rashly and without selection, in contempt

we squander and even

scorn."

Vers. 23-27. Fourth strophe.

Still

worse

coming, namely,

the captivity of the people, and overthrow of the kingdom.

Ver. 23. Make the chain, for the land

and

/ shall

the city full

the nations, that they

shall put

an end

may

he defiled.

but

there

Ver. 24.

of outrage.

may

to the

bring evil ones of

take possession of their houses

Ver. 25. Ruin has come Ver. 26.

none.

;

ariseth

;

they seek visions

away from

learn that

the

common

will deal with them according to their

to their judgments will

I am

from and

the priest,

prince will clothe himself in horror, and the hands of the

may

upon destruction

Ver. 27. The king will mourn, and

counsel from the elders.

way, and according

and

they seek salvation,

Destruction

but the law will vanish

people will tremble.

;

pride of the strong, that their sanctuaries

and report upon report

Cometh,

prophets,

full of capital crime,

Jehovah.

I judge them,

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Those who

that they

have escaped death

by sword or famine at the conquest of Jerusalem have captivity

and to

exile awaiting

make

exile.

the chain,

them. i.e.

there

the meaning of the

command

necessary, because the land

judgment of

blood.

full

This cannot mean,

a judgment upon the shedding of blood,

murder, which poses.

the fetters needed to lead the people into

This punishment

of mishpat ddmim,

This

i.e.

upon

conducted by Jehovah, as Havernick sup-

Such a thought

the parallel DDH ns^D.

n^m

irreconcilable with ^^7^,

133^0

and with

to be explained after the

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

same manner

t3SB^ (a matter for sentence of death, a

capital crime) in Deut. xix. 6, 21, 22, as signifying a matter

for sentence of bloodshed,

a crime of blood, or capital

i.e.

crime, as the Chaldee has already rendered

land

Lord

violence, the i.e.

Because the

it.

with capital crime, and the city (Jerusalem) with

is filled

bring

will

D^iJ 'jn, evil

ones of the heathen,

the worst of the heathen, to put an end to the pride of the D^?V liK| is

Israelites.

not " pride of the insolents

does not stand for C^a MV (Deut. xxviii. 50, etc.). pression

rather to be explained from

ch. xxiv. 21, xxx. 6,

Jlxa,

T'y

for C^y

;

The

ex-

pride of strength,

Lev. xxvi. 19), and embraces

(cf.

man (or a nation) bases his power and The Israelites are called D*?y, because they

everything on which a rests his confidence.

thought themselves strong, their strength

This

land.

Niphal of

^r'n

upon the

indicated

and

according to ch. xxiv. 21, based

or,

and the holy

possession of the temple Dn^Kni?D

\?rri)

which

follows,

a participle Piel, from t^i^»,

Dn''BnpOj not

with the Dagesh dropped, but an unusual form, from

Dn^BnpO

215a).

(vid. E\v. §

—

The

drawn back on account of the Ges.

the Rabbins), from

X3 is

IBi^,

tone-syllable

to shrink or roll

a prophetic perfect.

K"Ji?p

for

utt. Xey. nnap, with the tone

which follows

3. 6), signifies excidium, destruction

§ 29.

i*™,

ver.

(cf.

(according to

(Isa. xxxviii. 12).

25 the ruin of the kingdom

declared to be certain, and in vers. 26 and 27 the occurrence it is

ruin

Stroke upon stroke does the

more minutely depicted.

come

;

and

it is

intensified

reports, alarming accounts,

which crowd together and increase the

terror,

and

also

by the

desperation of the spiritual and temporal leaders of the nation,

—the

prophets, priests, and elders,

revelation, knowledge,

—whom

and counsel;

God

deprives of

so that all ranks (king

and princes and the common people) sink into mourning, alarm, and horror.

That

no purpose that visions or

prophecies are sought from the prophets (ver. 26),

from the elders

antithetical

evident

statement concerning the priests

which immediately follows.

The

and

three statements serve

Ill

CHAP. VIIL-XI.

complements of one another.

They seek

from prophets, but the prophets receive no

They seek

drawn from the tion out

from

instruction

priests,

and so

priests;

forth.

and heads of

tribe-princes

nsn

revelation.

with-

signifies instruc-

from the

Q3"!"^P, literally

I do to them

regulated accordingly.

comm. on

king, prince

viz.

{i.e.

people, the people of the land, in

civil rulers, as in

from

i.e.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

which

classes into

families), and, in contradistinction to

common

Dy, the

distinction

the

Tordh

In ver. 27, the three

7).

ii.

the people were divided are mentioned

30.

but instruction

of the law, which the priests were to give to the

people (Mai.

both,

for predictions

vision,

2 Kings xxi. 24,

their way, their

mode

from

action will be derived criiN for Dn^5, as in ch.

xxiii.

of action, will

iii.

theirs,

and (See

22, etc.

ch. xvi. 59.)

CHAP. VIII.-XI. VISION OF THE DESTRUCTION OP

JERUSALEM.

A year and two months

after his call, the glory of the

appeared to the prophet a second time, as he had seen

Chebar.

Lord

by the

transported in spirit to Jerusalem into the

court of the temple (ch.

viii.

1-4), where the

Lord causes hiui and secondly,

to see, first the idolatry of Israel (ch. viii. 5-18),

the judgment why, on account of this idolatry, tants of Jerusalem are smitten (chap,

with after

fire,

and the sanctuary forsaken by God

he has been charged to

the people more

who

ix.),

all

the city

(ch. x.).

burned Lastly,

foretell to the representatives of

especially the

coming judgment, and

are sent into exile a future salvation (ch.

describes

the inhabi-

xi.

to those

1-21), he

how the gracious presence of God forsakes the city own eyes (ch. xi. 22, 23). After this has taken

before his

place, Ezekiel is carried

more; and

there,

announces to the 24, 25).

back in the vision

after the vision has exiles

come

Chaldea once

an end, he

what he has seen and heard

(ch. xi.

112

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL,

Chap.

viil.

OF Israel. tion.

—Ver.

Abominations op the Idolatry of the House Time and place of the divine revela-

—Vers. 1-4. Arid

came

pass in the sixth year, in the sixth

I was sitting in my house, me ; there fell upon me

(month)j on the fifth {day) of the month,

and the

hand of

the

ofJudah were

elders

Lord Jehovah

the

behold a figure

like the look

wards fire, and from

upwards

Ver.

the sight of red-hot brass.

Ver.

there.

of fire, from

its loins

of a hand, and took me by

me away

sitting before

And

1 saw, and

its loins

down-

a look of brilliance,

And he stretched out the form my head, and wind carried

the locks

the look

between earth and heaven, and brought

Jerusalem

in visions of God, to the entrance of the gate of the inner court,

which faces towards the north, where the image of jealousy exciting

had

jealousy

its

Ver. 4. And, behold, the glory of the

stand.

God of Israel was there, like the vision which I have seen in the The place where Ezekiel received this new theophany valley.

—

agrees with the statements in ch.

was

to shut himself

and

and 40 days upon the right

left side,

The

24 and

iii.

in his house,

use of the word

^^\

" I sat,"

side

iv. 4, 6,

that he

390 days upon the

lie

—in

all,

430 days.

not at variance with

this,

as ^^l does not of necessity signify sitting as contrasted with lying, but

may

also be

used in the more general sense of stay-

Nor

ing, or living, in the house.

Judah

opposed to the

command,

the presence of the elders

in ch.

24, to shut himself

we have already observed in the notes on The new revelation is made to him in the pre-

in the house, as

that passage.

sence of these elders, because

it is

of the greatest importance to

them.

They

lias left

the prophet, are to hear from his

are to be witnesses of his ecstasy

the divine revelation (ch.

time of the revelation. ch.

iii.

viii.

xi.

25).

;

lips the

and

after this

substance of

It is otherwise with the

we compare

the date given in

1 with those mentioned before, this

new

vision ap-

parently falls within the period required for carrying out the

symbolical actions of the previous vision. (the fifth

day of the fourth month

Between the

fifth

ch.

year) and

CHAP.

cli. viii.

113

VIII. 1-4.

1 (the fifth day of the sixth

we have one year and two months,

month that

in the sixth year)

to say (reckoning

the year as a lunar year at 354 days, and the two months at

59 days), 413 days ; whereas the two events recorded in ch. 1-vii.

27 require

at least

= 430

and 390 + 40

new theophany would Ezekiel was to of

lie

fall

iii.

15) and 390

7 days for the

But however

interval of

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; a period

after adding

but to leave

iv. 5, 6),

time that elapsed between ch.

may

vii.

and

purely conjectural

to give

probability.

;

and there

viii.

appear, the assump-

tion that the fifth year of the captivity of Jehoiachin^

leap year

not only to include the

days (ch.

attractive this reckoning

get rid

year of

fifth

months or 385 days,

444 days

sufficient

+ 40

Judah.

side for

2) was a leap year of 13

for the two months,

15,

iii.

Consequently the

5, 6.

Hitzig conjectures that the

by which he obtains an 7 days (ch.

iv.

within the 40 days, during which

upon the right

this difficulty,

Jehoiachin (ch.

437 days, namely 7 days for ch.

days for ch.

was a

nothing whatever

Consequently the only thing that could

lead us to adopt such a solution, would be the impossibility of

drawn from the chronological

reconciling the conclusion to be data, as to the time of the

of these divine revelations.

two theophanies, with the substance If

we assume

out the symbolical acts mentioned in ch.

that Ezekiel carried

iv.

and

v. in all their

we can hardly imagine that the vision described in the chapters before us, by which he was transported in spirit to entirety,

Jerusalem, occurred within the period of forty days, during

which he was to typify the siege of Jerusalem by lying upon liis

right side.

Nevertheless, Kliefoth has decided in favour

of this view, and argues in support of scribed in ch. that ch.

iii.

viii.

identical in

22-vii. 27,

that occurred here

was

that the vision de-

it,

1 sqq. took place in the prophet's

substance with what

and that there was purely

to address the

own

house,

contained in

no discrepancy, because

internal,

and the prophet himself

words contained in ch.

14-21 to the inhabitants of Jerusalem EZEK. I.

all

xi.

4-12 and

xi.

in his state of ecstasy. *

114

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

Moreover, when

stated in ch. xi. 25 that Ezekiel related

had seen in the

to the exiles all that he

open to us to assume that his report to

them of the words

those which follow in ch.

vision,

God

perfectly

it is

same time

this took place at the

and

in ch. vi.

be replied that the impression produced by ch.

xi.

and

vii.,

But, on the other hand,

xii.

may

not that

the prophet waited several weeks after his visionary transport to

Jerusalem before communicating to the elders what he saw in

And

the vision.

even

the possibility of this cannot be dis-

puted,

we cannot imagine any

shown

to the prophet four

Again, there

the exiles.

reason

the vision should be

was

be related to

and the revelation in

viii.-xi.

any motive

for the

two

to coincide.

true that the burning of Jerusalem, which Ezekiel sees in

ch. viii.-xi., city,

consequent upon the siege and conquest of that

which he has already predicted in

figure

and word; but they are not

was necessary on account of to

not sufficient identity between the

substance of the vision in ch. ch. iv.-vii., to suggest

why

weeks before

ch. iv.-vii. both

this connection for

him before the completion of the symbolical

And,

salem. process

lastly,

be shown

siege of Jeru-

although the ecstasy as a purely internal

so far reconcilable with the prophet's lying

so closely connected, that

upon

his

right side, that this posture did not preclude a state of ecstasy

or render

impossible, yet this collision

would ensue, that

while the prophet was engaged in carrying out the former word of

God, a new theophany would be received by him, which

must necessarily abstract previous

which

command

mind from the execution

his

of God,

and place him

would be impossible for him

to set his face firmly

account of this

the assumption, that

lying bound by

collision,

in to

was during the time that Ezekiel was

God upon

his right side to bear the sin of

Jerusalem, that he was transported in Jerusalem.

upon

commanded to do we cannot subscribe

the siege of Jerusalem, as he had been ch. iv. 7.

of the

in a condition in

the contrary,

spirit to

the temple at

the fact that this transport

;

CHAP. occurred, according to eh.

115

VIII. 1-4.

vlii. 1,

at a time

have ended the symbolical acts of eh. required to carry them out in

all

when he could not he had been

iv.,

their external reality, furnishes

us with conclusive evidence of the correctness of the view

have already expressed, that the symbolical acts of ch. did not

on ch.

iv.

and

within the sphere of outward reality (see coram,

lie

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;And

V. 4).

Ezekiel did not really

430

for

lie

days,

there was nothing to hinder his having a fresh vision 14 months

theophany in ch.

after the '"

*l^,

see at ch.

The

iii.

22 and

iii.

22 sqq.

For

vision

described in

vj? 75in

same terms

The sameness

27.

and ch.

which Ezekiel sees in the

ficjure

ver. 2 in precisely the cli.

as the appearance of

of the two passages

God

a sufficient

defence of the reading B'STlNTOa against the arbitrary emenda-

tion

after the Sept. rendering

'l23j

port of which

D"isi.

Ewald and Hitzig appeal

this is

not

tJ'''N,

but

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

^.the

fiery

appearance

is all

that

mentioned

taken for granted in the allusion to the D^^n? 0^^

loins), either as self-evident, or as well is

26, though

not expressly stated here that the apparition was

human form

but

to ch.

any reason, as the reading there

witliout

dvBp6<i, in sup-

6/j,oi(Ofia

synonymous with

present theophany

I'lii

in ch.

known from

4, 27.

What

ch.

new

inf

in the

the stretching out of the hand, which

grasps the prophet by the front hair of his head, whereupon he is

carried

ch.

by wind between heaven and

earth,

i.e.

through the

Jerusalem, not in the body, but in visions of

air, to

1), that

to say, in spiritual ecstasy,

the entrance of the inner northern door of the temple. is

not an adjective belonging to "^W, for this

noun, but n''rp*;sn

used as a substantive, as in ch.

cf. ch. xl.

40)

God

(cf.

and deposited

ri"'p^3an

not a feminine xliii.

gate of the inner court,

5 (=">ynn

i.e.

the gate

on the north side of the inner court which led into the outer "VVe are not

court.

informed whether Ezekiel was placed on

the inner or outer side of this gate, court

;

but

it is

i.e.

in the inner or outer

evident from ver. 5 that he was placed in the

116

THE PROrHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

inner court,

.as his position

which stood

The

further statement,

image of jealousy was,"

why

out the reason expression

commanded

a view of

image

tlie

at the entrance of the gate towards the north.

"image

what

anticipates

and points

follows,

The

the prophet was placed just there. of jealousy"

Jehovah

excites the jealousy of

Consequently,

" where the standing place of the

we have

explained by

which

'"iiipsHj

comm. on Ex.

(see the

xx. 5).

not to think of any image of Jehovah,

but of an image of a heathen idol

(cf.

Deut. xxxii. 21)

pro-

;

bably of Baal or Asherah, whose image had already been placed in the temple by Manasseh (2 Kings xxi. 7)

erroneous assumption that

all

certainly

wax

not the image of the corpse of Adonis moulded in

This opinion, which Havernick advances,

or clay.

connected with the

the idolatrous abominations

men-

tioned in this chapter relate to the celebration of an Adonisfestival in

There

the temple.

(ver. 4) in the court of the

God

temple Ezekiel saw once more the glory of the as he

had seen

in the valley (ch.

the appearance of

i.e.

and wheels

him

;

God upon

iii.

22) by the Chaboras,

the throne with the cherubim

whereas the divine figure, whose hand grasped

in his house,

and transported him

to the temple (ver. 2),

The

showed neither throne nor cherubim. of Israel," instead of Jehovah (ch.

iii.

expression "

23),

stood in the temple.

set

tical

the

God

of Israel,

God

chosen as an

antithesis to the strange god, the heathen idol,

tolerate the

of Israel,

whose image

Jehovah cannot

image and worship of another god

His temple.

up such an image in the temple of Jehovah was a prac-

renunciation of the covenant, a rejection of Jehovah on

the part of Israel as

its

covenant God.

Hera, in the temple, Jehovah shows to the prophet the various kinds of idolatry which Israel

and

privately, not

whole land.

practising both publicly

merely in the temple, but throughout the

The arrangement

of these

different

forms of

idolatry in four groups or abomination scenes (vers. 5, 6, 7-12,

13-15, and 16-18), which the prophet sees both in and from

CHAP.

VIII. 5,

117

the court of the temple, belong to the visionary drapery of this It is altogether erroneous to interpret the

divine revelation.

were prac-

vision as signifying that all these forms of idolatry

an assumption which cannot be

tised in the temple itself;

doing violence to the description, more

carried out without

especially of the second abomination in vers. 7-12.

untenable trous

Still

Havernick's view, that the four pictures of idola-

shown

practices

the prophet are only intended to

represent different scenes of a festival of Adonis held in the

temple.

The

selection of the courts of the temple for depicting

the idolatrous worship, arises

from the

fact that the temple

the place where Israel was called to worship the

Lord

its

was

God.

Consequently the apostasy of Israel from the Lord could not be depicted more clearly and strikingly than by the following series of pictures of

idolatrous abominations practised in the

temple under the eyes of God. Vers. 5 and

First abomination-picture.

Son of man, lift up thine And I lifted up my eyes towards

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

^Ver. 5.

now

And He

said to me,

eyes

north.

the north, and, behold,

to the

toivards

the

north of the gate of the altar ivas this image of jealousy at

Ver.

the entrance.

And He

said to me,

Son of man,

seest

thou what they do ? great abominations, which the house of Israel doeth here, that

I may go far away from my sanctuary

shalt yet again see greater abominations

still.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;As

;

and thou

Ezekiel had

taken his stand in the inner court at the entrance of the north gate,

and when looking thence towards the north saw the image

of jealousy to the north of the altar gate, the image

must have

stood on the outer side of the entrance, so that the prophet it

he looked through the open doorway.

The

saw

altar gate is

the same as the northern gate of the inner court mentioned in ver. 3.

But

it is

impossible to state with certainty

to be called the altar gate.

how

came

Possibly from the circumstance

that the sacrificial animals were taken through this gate to the altar, to

be slaughtered on the northern side of the

ing to Lev.

4, v. 11, etc.

altar,

accord-

Dno, contracted from Dn'r'O, like

113

THE rEOPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

njo from nt no in

Ex.

iv. 2.

here " do not force us to

worshipping the

idol.

The words " what

assume that

They simply

they are doing

at that very time they

describe

were

what was generally

The setting up of the image involved the worThe subject to f^iJCl^P is not the house of Israel, but They perfonn great abominations, so that Jehovah is

practised there.

ship of

it.

Jehovah.

compelled to go to a distance from His sanctuary, it (cf.

ch. xi. 23), because they

make

Vers. 7-12. Second abomination 7.

And He

and behold to

brought there

Worship of

to the entrance

was a hole in

and behold

there

was a door.

to forsake

beasts.

court,

the

Ver.

the wall.

me, Son of man, break through the wall

the wall,

i.e.

an idol-temple.

And He

I broke And He

and

Ver.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver.

and I saw, said

through said to

me. Come and see the wicked abominations which they are doing here.

And I came and saw, and

Ver. 10.

kinds offigures of

idols

reptiles,

and

behold there were all

beasts, abominations,

and

all kinds

of the house of Israel, drawn on the wall round about.

And seventy men of the elders of the house of Israel, the son of Shaphan standing among them, stood Jaazaniah with Ver. 11.

in front, every

man

with his censer in his hand

a cloud of incense arose. Ver. 12. thou, son of man, lohat the elders of

;

For

the

principal entrance to

the smell

now

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;The entrance

transported cannot be

the outer court towards the east

This would be at variance with the context, as

(Ewald).

they say : Jehovah

Jehovah hath- forsaken the land.

of the court to which Ezekiel was

and

said to me, Seest

the house of Israel do in the

dark, every one in his image-chambers ?

doth not see us

;

And He

not only find the prophet at the northern entrance in vers. 3

and

but

at ver.

14 we find him there

still.

If he

had been

taken to the eastern gate in the meantime, this would certainly

have been mentioned.

must be

that

not the case, -the reference

to that entrance to the court

entrance-gate of the inner court

which lay between the

(ver. 3)

and the northern

entrance-gate to the house of Jehovah (ver. 14), or northern

gate of the outer court, in other words, the northern entrance

CHAP.

Thus

into tlie outer court.

the inner court through

the prophet was conducted out of

northern gate into the outer court,

its

and placed in front of the northern open

There he saw a hole

ah".

it,

he saw

gate,

which led out into the

in the wall,

command

through the wall, by the

having entered

119

VIII. 7-12.

of God, he

and on breaking saw a door, and

kinds of figures of animals en-

all

graved on the wall round about, in front of which seventy of the elders of Israel were standing and paying reverence to the

According

images of beasts with burning incense. the prophet was thereby

shown what the

From

the dark, every one in his image-chamber. tion on the part of

prophet,

God

this explana-

concerning the picture shown to the

very evident that

had no reference

the outer court of the temple.

objection raised

by Kliefoth

any

more of the

idolatrous worship practised by the elders in one or cells of

to ver. 12,

elders of Israel did in

For even though the

to this view,

namely, that

can-

not be proved that there were halls with recesses in the outer court,

neither valid nor correct, since the existence of such

halls is placed

2 Kings is

beyond the reach of doubt by Jer. xxxv.

xxiii. 11,

and

1 Chron. xxviii. 12; such a supposition

decidedly precluded by the fact, that the cells and recesses at

the gates cannot have been large enough to allow of seventy-one

men

taking part in a festive idolatrous service.

that the seventy-one is

men were

at variance with the distinct

The supposition

distributed in different

words of the

chambers

The prophet

text.

not only sees the seventy elders standing along with Jaazaniah,

but he could not look through one

chambers

at once,

The assembling

their walls. cell

door into a number of

and see the pictures drawn

by the northern gate of the outer temple

idolatrous

all

images enjrraved on the walls of the

feature in the visionary

round upon

of the seventy elders in a s'ecret

form given

worship the cell,

to the revelation of

one

what

the elders of the people were doing secretly throughout the

whole land.

bring out more strikingly the secrecy of this

idolatrous worship, the cell

so completely hidden in the wall,

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

120

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

that the prophet

by breaking

obliged to enlarge the hole

through the wall before he cau see the door which leads to the cell

and gain a view of them and of the things

And

the things that are done therein.^

and

contains,

number

the

of the

persons assembled there suggests the idea of a symbolical repre-

The

sentation, as well as the secrecy of the cell.

represent the whole nation

Num.

Ex. xxiv. Isqq. and

command

16, xxiv. 25,

xi.

at the

seventy elders

to represent the

making of the covenant, and

we may

congregation was not a permanent institution, as in

Num.

xi.

after-

This representation of the

support his authority.

from the fact that

from

taken

where Moses, by the

God, chooses seventy of the elders

whole comrrefjation

wards

and the number

;

seventy other

men

The high

have been chosen for the purpose named.

council,

consisting of seventy members, the so-called Sanhedrim,

formed after the captivity on the

basis of these

see

are said to

Mosaic

was

types.

In the midst of the seventy was Jaazaniah the son of Shaphan, a different

man

ch. xi. 1.

Shaphan

therefore from the Jaazaniah mentioned in

of distinction in 2 xxxix. 14. is

specially

account of as

Kings

xxii.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; On the wall 24).

;

but

can hardly be on

bore, "

Jehovah

hears,"

probable that he held a prominent

the elders of the nation, so that he

mentioned

as the leader of this national representation.

of the

chamber round about there were drawn

kinds of figures of nnnni i.

;

the meaning of the name he

among here by name

man

Jer. xxix. 3, xxxvi. 10,

impossible to decide on what ground Jaazaniah

Havernick supposes.

Gen.

3 sqq.

mentioned by name

position

all

probably the person mentioned as a

\\>^ is in

B>0"1j

reptiles

and quadrupeds

apposition not only to

^'^T}^^

(see

but also

and therefore, as belonging to both, is not to be conThe drawing of nected with nÂťn3 in the construct state.

{J'^'i,

1 " Because the -whole is exhibited pictorially and figuratively, he says that he saw one hole in a wall, and was directed to dig through and make it larger, that he might enter as if through an open door, and see the

things which he could not possiby have seen while stationed outside." Jerome.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

CHAP,

and quadrupeds became a

reptiles

121

VIII. 13-15.

slieqetz,

or abomination,

from

the fact that the pictures had been drawn for the purpose of following clause, " and

The

religious worship.

the house of Israel,"

co-ordinate with

'l2^

all

the idols of

n"'32ri"?3.

Besides

the animals drawn on the walls, there were idols of other kinds in

The drawing

chamber.

the

of reptiles and quadrupeds

naturally suggests the thought of the animal-worship of Egypt.

must not

of animals

limit the

words to

met with

in the nature- worship of other heathen

and the expression

nations,

however, since the worship

this,

n"'33n"73,

all

kinds of figures," as

well as the clause, "all kinds of idols of the house of Israel," points to every possible form of idol-worship as spread abroad in Israel,

Aramaean

according to the

iriy,

sii^mentum, perfume,

nn33 in 2 Sam.

xii.

in the dark,

'^IK'na,

;

in secret, like

not in the sacred darkness of the

cloud of incense (Havernick). the term applied to the

usage, signifies

i.e.

^''r^'P ^7^.^,

rooms or

closets

image-chambers,

in the dwelling-

houses of the people in which idolatrous images were set up and H^sb'D signifies idolatrous figures, as in

secretly worshipped.

Num.

Lev. xxvi. 1 and

This idolatry was

xxxiii. 52.

justified

by the elders, under the delusion that " Jehovah seeth us not ;" to say, not

that

but

does not trouble Himself about us,"

does not see what

do, because

not omniscient

has forsaken the land, withdrawn

His presence and His help.

Thus they deny both the omni-

(cf. Isa. xxix.

science

15)

;

and

and omnipresence of God

(cf. eh. ix. 9).

Vers. 13-15. Third abomination

Ver. 13.

And He

said to me,

abominations which they do.

Thou

Worship of Thammuz.

shall yet again see still greater

Ver. 14.

And He brought me to

entrance of the gate of the house of Jehovah, which north,-

and behold

Ver. 15.

And He

there sat the

The

prophet

still

toivards the

women, loeeping for Thammuz.

said to me, Dost thou see

TJiou shalt yet again see

the

it,

son of

man

greater abominations than these.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

taken from the entrance into the court to the

entrance of the gate of the temple, to see the

women

sitting

122

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEU

Thammuz. The article in D"'B'3n is used Whilst the men of the nation, represented by

there weeping for generically.

the seventy elders, were secretly carrying on their idolatrous worship, the

women were

sitting at the

ing in public lamentation for for

Thammuz, Jerome (with

T^sri, Qafi,/jLov^

or ©afifiov^,^'

interpreted as Adonis,

Syriac of

;

Thammuz.

Under the weeping all the Greek

Melito of Sardis and

has correctly recognised the

Fathers) "

temple gate, and indulg-

worship

says Jerome, "

whom we

Thamuz both

called

beautiful youth

said to

have

Hebrew and

and because, according to the heathen legend,

Venus and most

Adonis.

this lover

have been

slain in

June and then restored to life again, they call this month of June by the same name, and keep an annual festival in his honour, at which he is lamented by women as the

month

though he were dead, and then afterwards celebrated as having

come

in songs

This view has not been shaken

to life again."

even by the objections raised by Chwolson

in his Ssaabins (II.

27. 202 sqq.), his relics of early Babylonian literature (p. 101),

and

his

Tammuz and human-worship among

the ancient

Baby-

Thammuz, mentioned in Nabataean writings as a man who was put to death by king of Babylon, whom he had commanded to introduce For the myth

lonians.

the

worship of the seven planets and the twelve signs of the zodiac,

and who was exalted with a mourning

god

to a

festival, is

after his death,

and honoured

nothing more than a refined inter-

pretation of the very ancient nature-worship which spread over

the whole of Hither Asia, and in which the power of the sun

over the vegetation of the year was celebrated. of the

word Tammuz

riTDHj

from

tTO

= DD»j

doubtful. so that

probably a contraction

denotes the decay of the force

of nature, and corresponds to the (see

The etymology

Greek

a^aviafjLo'i ^ABoi>vcBo'i

Havernick in loc).

Vers. 16-18. Fourth abomination the priests.

—Ver.

16. A7id

took

Worship of the sun by into the inner court

of the

house of Jehovahj and behold^ at the entrance into the temple of

CHAP.

123

VIII. 16-18.

Jehovah, hetween the porch and the altar, as

were Jive and

twenty men, with their backs towards the temple of Jehovah and their faces

towards the east;

towards the

east.

man

son of

the abominations

again

said to me, Seest thou this,

for the house of Judah

which they are performing

land with violence, and provohe

the

fill

too little

For behold

voice in

anger again and

eye sJiall not look com-

and I loill not spare ; and if

ears,

perform

here, that they also

they stretch out the vine-branch to their nose.

Ver. 18. But 1 also will act in fury ; passionately,

sun

they were worshipping the

And He

Ver. 17.

I will

not hear them.

a loud

they cry with

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; After

Ezekiel has seen

the idolatrous abominations in the outer court, or place for

the people, he

taken back into the inner court, or court of

the priests, to see

still

greater abominations there.

Between

the porch of the temple and the altar of burnt-offering, the

most sacred spot therefore

in the inner court,

alone were permitted to tread (Joel five

men, with

their backs

17), he sees as

C"'")^*?/

{vid.

men

Ewald,

Â§

;

after the analogy of 3 before

2826).

twenty-

not a preposition, circa,

about, but a particle of comparison (an appearance)

twenty-five

priests

toward the temple, were worshipping

3 before

the sun in the east.

ii.

which the

For the number here

mative one; but twenty-five

as if

an accusative

not an approxi-

the exact number, namely, the

twenty-four leaders of the classes of priests (1 Chron. xxiv. 5 sqq.

;

2 Chron. xxxvi. 14

;

Ezra

x. 5),

with the high priest at

the head (see Lightfoot's Chronol. of 0. T., 0pp.

the whole nation was seen in the seventy elders, so

124).

the entire

priesthood represented here in the twenty-five leaders as deeply

sunk in disgraceful

shown

idolatry.

Their apostasy from the Lord

in the fact that they turn their

and therefore upon Jehovah, who was enthroned and worship the sun, with

The worship as

back upon the temple, in the temple,

their faces turned towards the east.

of the sun does not refer to the woi'ship of Adonis,

Havernick supposes, although Adonis was a sun-god; but

generally to the worship of the heavenly bodies, against which

—

124

—

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

Moses had warned found

way

its

temple, whence

people (Deut.

was afterwards expelled by Josiah

Dn^irinB'b

as the supposition that

;

play upon

and which

19, xvii. 3),

iv.

time of Manasseh into the courts of the

The form

xxiii. 5, 11).

D^inriK'p

tlie

in the

must be a

case be a 2d per. plur. perf.,

Kings

an unusual form, with a

it is

precluded by the fact that

ri"'nt;'n,^ is

copyist's error for

would in that

and such a construction

dered impossible by the nsn which immediately precedes

Ewald,

118a).

added other

—To

sins, as if these

This

in themselves. 7p3n

i»,

as in Isa. xlix. 6.

is it

guilt, reference is

of Judah.

the meaning of the question in ver. 17,

they provoke

again briefly

made

to the

with

moral corruption

the injuries inflicted upon i.e.

idolatry.

repeatedly to anger

The

very obscure.

men

;

violent deeds

followed by an in-

(pi^^,

expresses the repetition of an action).

of ver. 17 ('liVD^npb' D3n^) tion,

all

towards God,

God

?i>^

indicate the fulness of the measure of

D^n embraces

niayinj impiety

finitive,

Judah has

abominations were not bad enough

too little for the house of Judah, etc. ?

'"iJI

these idolatrous abominations

ren-

it (cf.

last clause

usual explana-

which has been adopted by J. D. Michaelis and Gesenius

"they hold the twig

to their nose," namely, the sacred twig

Barsom, which the Parsees held in their hands when praying (vid.

Hyde, de

relig. vet.

Pars. p. 350, ed. 2

;

and Kleuker,

Zend-Avesta^ III. p. 204), suits neither the context nor the

According

words.

we do

explanation of the

God by

word

to the position of the clause in the context,

not expect an allusion to a

its

way

Barsom,

of the vine (cf. ch. xv. 2

The Barsom, on

idolatrous rite, but an

Moreover,

violent deeds.

to apply to the

new

which Judah had excited the wrath

;

Z'mOrdh Isa.

xvii.

^"J^l^T is

not a suitable

a shoot or tendril ;

Num.

xiii.

23).

the other hand, consisted of bunches of twigs

of the tree Gez or Hoin, or of branches of the pomegranate,

the tamarisk, or the date (cf. Kleuker 1

I.e.,

and Strabo,

XV.

733),

extraordinary form, invented for the purpose of more effectually

expressing their extraordinary abominatiou."

Lightfoot.

—

CHAP.

and was not held as a magical

Lastly,

?^?

mouth

to tlie nose, but kept in front of the

mode

npB'"

125

IX. 1-3.

demons away

of driving

does not

mean

Hyde,

(vid.

to hold anything,

I.e.).

but to stretch

out towards, to prepare to strike, to use violence.

the

other explanations given, only two deserve any consideration,

namely, *•

the supposition that

a proverbial expression,

it is

to apply the twig to anger," in the sense of adding fuel to the

fire, '*

first,

which Doederlein (ad Grotii adnott.) applies in

by these things they supply

food, as

which burns against themselves," of

i.e.

were, to

Hor. hehr. ad John xv.

they bring fuel to the

The second

" they apply the sickle to their nose,"

me, they injure themselves.

i.e.

The

this case nnioT

and pointed

saying does appear to be a proverbial one, but the

torily explained.

—

Chap.

ix.

Vers. 1-3.

This judgment he shows

(cf. ch. vii. 4, 9, v. 11).

two following chapters.

The Angels which At

—Ver.

Come

voice, saying,

And He

called in

ears loith

ye watchmen of the

hither,

city,

every one his instrument of destruction in his hand.

Aiid behold six men came hy

hand and

;

—

smite Jerusalem.

the call of Jehovah, His servants appear to

execute the judgment.

directed toward

satisfac-

Ver. 18. Therefore will the Lord punish

to the prophet in the

a loud

to injure

must be taken

and meaning of the proverb' have not yet been

unsparingly

fire

that of Hitzig:

by seeking

in the sense of ^nsTDj a sickle or pruning-knife,

origin

way,

wrath,

Lightfoot gives a similar explanation in his

wrath.

nniCT.

this

the icay

of the upper

gate,

and

Ver.

which

the north, every one loith his smashing-tool in his

and a man in

icrithig materials

the brazen altar.

the midst

hy his hip

Ver.

And

of them, clothed in white

and

;

they

the glory oj the

from the cherub, upon ichich it house, and called to the man clothed

linen,

came and stood near

God

of Israel

rose tip

loas, to the threshold

the

in white linen, by whose

hip the writing materials were.

punishments of the

city.

—

"^"^V^

ni^ipQ

does not

This rendering does not

mean

the

suit the con-

126

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

text, since it is

men who

the

not the punishments that are introduced, but

execute them

usage of the language.

and

;

n"ni5Si

not established by the

frequently used, no doubt, in

the sense of visitation or chastisement ix.

but

;

it is

torate, in

which sense

priests,

Num.

iii.

38, where

city, the

whom God

watchmen,

—who

are

godly, as the authorities appointed

{Kal), as Hitzig proposes. sense, festinanter

persons called

—

to inflict

tive Plel, as in Isa. xli. 21,

and as

has appointed to watch over the xi. 18),

now

Ix. 17,

Consequently

in the Chronicles.

city-guard (2 Kings

11 and

lii.

relates to the presidency of the

and very frequently

are those

ni'Hi^Q

occurs not only in Jer.

but also (in the singular) in Isa.

xliv. 11,

early as

only occurs in the sense of supervision or protec-

the plural

Ezek.

3; Hos.

Isa. x.

(e.g.

not met with in the plural in this sense.

not earthly, but heavenly

punishment upon the un-

by God.

lli*ip^

an impera-

and must not be altered

The

Piel

appropinquavit,

come by the way

into

I3"]i?

used in an intransitive xxxvi.

as in ch.

The

of the upper northern gate of

the temple, to take their stand before Jehovah, whose glory had

appeared in the inner court.

The upper

gate

the gate lead-

ing from the outer court to the inner, or upper court, which stood on higher ground,

and tools

—

In the midst of the

there was one

the gate mentioned in ch. six

men

viii.

furnished with smashing-

clothed in white byssus, with writing

The

materials at his side.

dress

and equipment,

as well as the

instructions which he afterwards receives and executes, show

him

to be the prince or leader of the others.

question the opinion that these seven

without any reason.

Angels appearing

frequently called CTJ^. or habitus.

dogma

But

the

men

tl'^X,

Kliefoth calls in are angels

;

human form

but are

according to their external

number seven

of the seven archangels, nor

neither is

presupposes

the

copied from the seven

The dress worn by the high priest, when presenting the sin-offering on the great day of atonement (Lev. xvi. 4, 23), was made of ^3, i.e. of white material

Parsic amscJiaspands.

CHAP.

woven from byssus thread It has been inferred

from

(see the

this,

who

and care for

priest, to protect

may be

the circumstance

comm. on Ex.

xxviii. 42).

that the figure clothed in white

linen was the angel of Jehovah,

high

127

IX. 1-3.

appears as the heavenly

own.

his

In support of

also adduced, that the

man whom

Daniel saw above the water of the Tigris, and whose appearance described, in

Jehovah Rev.

Dan.

x. 5, 6, in

the same

manner

4, 26, 27, and that of the 13-15, appears clothed in C'n? (Dan.

Ezek.

Nevertheless,

we cannot regard

shining white talar, which

this

as that of

risen Christ in x. 5, xii. 6, 7).^

The

view as established.

evidently meant by the plural

occurring only here and in Daniel

(ut. sup.),

Q"'"^?,

not a dress

Christ.

The seven

angels, with the vials of wrath, also appear in

garments of

peculiar to the angel of

Jehovah or

shining white linen {evhehvfievoL 'kivov KaOapov Xa/xTrpov, Kev. XV. 6)

and the shining white

;

tation of divine holiness

and Rev.

described in a totally different

and there

i. ;

equal with God. other six

men

same

in the

and of "just men made perfect"

spirits

ance of Jehovah in Ezek.

Rev.

^2^

or that of Christ in

Again, the distinction between him and the

no other conclusion, than that he stood

relation to

x.,

nothing whatever to indicate a being

leads to

by the writing

D^tja

manner from the appear-

and Dan.

them

or the chancellor to the other

cated

Moveover, the angel with the writing materials

(Rev. xix. 8). is

xvi.

xix. 8), is the colour generally chosen for the clothing

both of the heavenly

here

colour, as a symbolical represen-

and glory (see comm. on Lev.

as the high priest to the Levites, officials.

This position

materials on his hips,

rendered by the

LXX., in

i.e.

indi-

in the girdle

the passage before us, ivhlvKu;

with this that Christ is described in Rev. i. 13 as clothed "with a 3-oS;5g)jf, and not after Dan. x. 6, as Hengstenberg supposes. In Dan. x. 5, the Septuagint has IvlihvfAbo? (ixlliv or tx. fixloh. In other places, the Sept. rendering of na is >./*oj/ (thus Lev. xvi. 4, 23, vohvipvi.

It is in accordance

3 ; Ex. xxviii. 42, etc.) and hence the T^iuov "Kai^vrpou of Rev. xv. 6 answers to the *T3 made of ]i}^, fiwao;, and is really the same as the

vi.

^â&#x20AC;˘jaatiiou

;

Tixfivpov of Rev. xix. 8.

128

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL which scribes

hips, in

liis

East are accustomed to carry

in the

their writing materials (vid. Rosenmiiller,

IV.

p. 323).

N. Morgenland,

provided with these for the execution of

the commission given to him in ver. 4.

way

this

the de-

scription can be very simply explained, without the slightest

necessity for our resorting to Babylonian representations of

the god Nebo,

men

seven

take their station by the altar of burnt-offering,

because the glory of God, whose

had taken up

to receive,

(Kliefoth)

command^ they were about moment

position there for the

its

not because the apostate priesthood was stationed

;

The

there (Havernick).

not that

glory of Jehovah, however, rose

from the cherub to the threshold of the house. of this

The

Mercury, as the scribe of heaven.

i.e.

removed from the

The

meaninor

interior of the sanctuary

to the outer threshold of the temple-building (Havernick), for it

was already

stationed, according to ch. viii. 16, above the

cherub, between the porch and the altar.

went back from

thence to the threshold of the temple-porch, through which one entered the leaving

its

Holy Place,

to give its orders there.

The

reason for

place above the cherubim (the singular 3113

collectively) to

this,

used

was not that " God would have had

turn round in order to address the seven from the throne, since,

according to ch.

viii.

4 and

16,

had gone from the north

gate of the outer court into the inner court, and His servants

had followed Him " (Hitzig)

for the

;

four directions, and therefore

cherubim moved in

could turn without difficulty to eveiy side.

throne, that

upon

Israel

self to

might

issue

God

left

had assumed in

His command for the judgment

Israel.

This

command He

Himself

Vers. 4-7.

The

Issues .from the

temple court, because the temple was the place whence

to hirrij

His

from the threshold of the temple, and show Him-

be the judge who would forsake the throne which

attested

all

God, even from the throne,

God

His people, both by mercy and judgment.

divine

command.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

through the midst of the

And

Ver.

city,

through

Jehovah said ilie

midst of

;

CHAP.

IX. 4-7.

129

.:.-

Jerusalem and mark a cross upon the foreheads of the men tcho J

and groan over

sigh

Ver.

midst.

the city behind him^

and

Ver.

the house. fill

any one

And

sanctuary.

Ver.

persons

city.

their'

through

destruction

but ye

upon him ; and begin

icho has the cross

who were

said to them, Defile the house,

And

before

they went out,

and and

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; God

may

nation, in order that they

W, the

judgment.

be spared in the time of the

Hebrew

the

last letter of

although there was at

make

distinguish those

was

Ver.

body

and saw therein a prophetic

of the letter

mark is

a n,

this sign

than

judgment of

marked, so that they

And

this

was the reason

the early Christians, according to

;

a statement in Origen, looked

cross of Christ

mark

form of a cross

be marked upon the forehead, the most

visible portion of the

the distinctive

in the

in inflicting the

who were

might do them no harm. the

mark

no other purpose in

first

to enable the servants employed to

alphabet, had the

in ninn^ to

of a cross in the earlier writing,

therefore the same as to

why

commands the man provided with the materials to mark on the forehead with a cross all the in Jerusalem who mourn over the abominations of the

writing

God

they began with the old men,

And He

Old men, young men, and

the courts with slain; go ye out.

smote in the

form

ears

Let not your eye look compas-

smite.

spare.

maidens, and children, and women, slay shall not touch

those he said in

and do not

sionately,

which take place in

all the abominations

And

upon the sign

itself as significant,

allusion to the sign of the cross as

of Christians.

direct prophecy of the

certainly not to be found here, since the form

Tdv was the one generally adopted as a

sign, and,

according to Job xxxi. 35, might supply the place of a signaNevertheless, as Schmieder has correctly observed, there

ture. is

something remarkable in

this coincidence to the thoughtful

observer of the ways of God, whose counsel has carefully considered

all

beforehand, especially

when we bear

mind

that

in the counterpart to this passage (Rev. vii. 3) the seal of the

living

God

EZEK.

stamped upon the foreheads of the servants of I

130

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

God, wlio are

be exempted from the judgment, and that

name

according to Rev. xiv. 1 they had the

upon

So much,

foreheads.

their

obvious from

this,

any

God

rate,

written

perfectly

namely, that the sign was not arbitrarily

chosen, but was inwardly connected with the fact which indicated

(Ex.

vision

based

22 sqq.) the distinctive mark placed upon the

13,

xii.

upon which our

just as in the event

;

houses of the Israelites in Egypt, in order that the destroying

angel might pass them by, namely, the smearing of the door-

lamb that had been

posts with the blood of the paschal

was selected on account of to

the thing signified.

its

The

significance

passed over as being self-evident; and it

it is

even indirectly referred to again.

follows, first of

They

all,

the

and

execution of

command

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; In

who

before Dinri

are

marked with the

all

vers. 5, 6 there

man

Aramaean.

The

Chetih

grammatically considered, and

sibility of

ment

clothed in

the inhabitants of

The

cross.

7y for 7S

very improbable,

accounted for from the change of N into CS^i"];

the

which

been substituted as Keri.

They are

any life being saved.

^^yy^

at the sanctuary, because

worship of

idols,

the Lord.

command

to be

com-

which is

followed by

show the impos-

make

a commence-

has been desecrated by the

and therefore has ceased

this

the unusual form

singular,

increase the force of the words and

D^nc'ot', to

11 that

either a slip of the pen, or, as the continued

transmission of so striking an error

correct, has

ver.

sex, with this exception, that they are not to

touch those

command

given to the other six men.

white linen, and to smite without mercy

mon

till

are to go through the city, behind the

whatever age or

corresponding

its

this

not

slain,

the execution

be the house of is

immediately

appended ; they began with the old men who were before the house,

i.e.

they began to slay them.

the twenty-five priests (ch. (ch.

viii.

11).

The

latter

viii.

2"'?f:^'i

^^'^^^7 ^''^ neither

16) nor the seventy elders

were not

ri^3n ^JSp,

by the outer temple gate; whereas

but in a chamber

ri^sn "iSp,

front of the

CHAP.

temple house, points it

131

IX. 8-11.

to the inner court.

rendered ''SnpSD by diro twv D''K'JX is

fore

no doubt

come

men advanced

to think of

in ver. 66, is

defile the house, slain.

i.e.

This

fill."

slain

expression

We have there-

in years,

who had

and thereby had

ver. 7 the

the temple, namely, by filling the courts

way

It is in this

so far as the sense

LXX.

command, which once more resumed. They are to

judgment.

liable to the

was interrupted

and

priests.

into the court possibly to offer sacrifice,

become

with

But the

ar^lxov fiov.

an unsuitable one for the

D''Ji5f

makes

Tliis locality

natural to think of priests, and consequently the

that

are to connect together,

concerned, the two clauses, " defile

For those

required by the facts of the case.

"before the house" could only have been slain in the

courts, as there

was no space between the temple house and the

men

courts in which

could have been found and

slain.

But

n^an â&#x20AC;˘pQ? cannot be understood as signifying "in the neigh-

bourhood of the temple," as Kliefoth supposes, for the simple reason that the progressive order of events would thereby be

completely destroyed.

The

who were

angels

standing before

the altar of burnt-offering could not begin their work

out of the court to smite the sinners

who happened

by going

to be in the

neighbourhood of the temple, and then returning to the court to

do the same there, and then again going out into the city

finish their

sinners

work

who happened

defiled the

They could only begin by

there.

slaying the

be in the courts, and after having

temple by their corpses, by going out into the city

to slay all the

ungodly there, as

related in the second clause

of the verse (ver. 7b).

Vers. 8-11. Intercession of the prophet, and the answer of the Lord.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver.

remained,

A nd

came

Thou

and

pass when they smote and

cried,

and said: Alas! Lord

destroy all the remnant of Israel, hy pouring

Thy wrath upon Jerusalem ?

The iniquity of great,

I fell upon my face, and

Jehovah, wilt out

the house

the land is full

Ver.

And He

of Israel and Judah

of blood-guiltiness, and

said to

immeasurably the city full

132

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

perversion

Jehovah pity,

for

;

Ver. 10. So also shall

seeth not.

and I

say Jehovah hath forsaken the land, and

titer/

will not spare

I will give man clothed

;

Ver. 11. And, behold, the

their

eye not look toith

way upon

who had

in white linen,

and said

writing materials on his hip, brought answer,

done as thou hast commanded me.

their head*

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;The Chetib ISB'W

the

have

in-

congruous form, composed of participle and imperfect fused into one,

and

altered into

evidently a copyist's error.

however (the

l^^^J!,

be read as a participle

"lij^ii,

fell

left, i.e.

on his

but to

For the words do not

that Ezekiel alone was left, but that

smote and he was rest,

not to be

and taken with DHisna as a con-

tinuation of the circumstantial clause.

mean

1st pers. iraperf. N'iph.),

when

the angels

was spared, was not smitten with the

face, to entreat the

Lord

for mercy.

These

words and the prophet's intercession both apparently presuppose that

among the

inhabitants of Jerusalem there was no one

found who was marked with the sign of the

But

could be spared. established.

this is

For, in the

first

been smitten by the angels

;

place,

it is

and therefore

cross,

by no means

to be regarded as

not stated that all had

and, secondly, the intercession of

the prophet simply assumes that, in comparison with the multi-

tude of the

slain,

the

number

of those

who were marked with

the sign of the cross and spared was so small that

prophet's eye, and he was afraid that they might

escaped the all

be slain

without exception, and the whole of the remnant of the cove-

nant nation be destroyed.

The

the covenant nation in

existing state,

its

and Judah

nns'j' of Israel

when

had been so

reduced by the previous judgments of God, that out of the whole of what was once so numerous a people, only a small portion

remained

in the land.

Although God has previously promised

that a remnant shall be preserved (ch. v. 3, 4),

renew

this

does not

promise to the prophet, but begins by holding up the

greatness of the iniquity of Israel, which admits of no sparing,

but

calls for the

according to the

most merciless punishment, strict

demand

show him

that,

of justice, the whole nation has

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

;

CHAP.

n^so (ver. 9)

deserved destruction, oppression

although

Ex.

(Isa. Iviii.

9),

but

where n^n occurs

For

vid. eh. viii. 12.

Kings

22, 31), vid. 1

not equivalent to

^nna

viii.

same

in the

'"13

also omitted in

For

sense.

10 and

D3"i^ (ver.

While God

32.

ver. 95,

ch. xi. 21,

conversing with

the prophet, the seVen angels have performed their work in ver.

t^i^iJ^,

perversion of justice

signifies

not mentioned, since this

lOSB'D is

xxiii. 2,

133

X. 1-8.

;

and

11 their leader returns to Jehovah with the announce-

ment

that His orders have been executed.

in his

own name

of the

judgment

does

this,

The

not

first

act

thus shown to the prophet in a figurative

The second

representation.

only, but in that of all the rest.

act follows in the next chapter.

Burning of Jerusalem, and Withdrawal of THE Glory of Jehovah from the Sanctuary. This Chap.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

chapter divides

prophet

Vers. 1-8.

Ver.

And I

spake

man

from

appeared above them.

and

eyes.

when

before

inner court.

lifted itself

and

up from

the house

came

and

Ver. 4.

the

And

the

cherubim

came, and

the cloud

man

the glory

of Jehovah had

the cherubim to the threshold

was filled

loith the

Almighty God when

pass, when

said,

And He

Come between

thy hollow hands loith

Ver.

cloud,

of the cherubim icas heard

voice of the

Ver.

and said

Jill

the splendour of the glory of Jehovah. the wings

His temple.

between the cherubim, and scatter them over the

filled the

firmament^ which was

the

clothed in white linen,

and he came

will forsake

fire.

teas like sapphire- stone, to look at as the

stood to the right of the house

city

burned with

to be

and behold upon

saw,

the loheels below the cherubim,

Jire-coals

1-8 the

vers.

angel scatters coals of fire over Jerusalem.

of a throne ;

to the

sections.

shown how Jehovah

The

above the cherubim, likeness

two

shown how Jerusalem

9-22 he

vers.

into

itself

He commanded

the

and Ver.

the house ;

the coxu't

was full of

And

the noise

the outer court, as the

speaketh.

man

Ver.

And

clothed in white linen,

Take fire from between the wheels, from between the

134

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

cherubimy and he came and stood by the side of the wheel, Ver. T. Tliat the cherub stretched out his

and gave

And

hand between

which toas between the cherubim, and

the fire,

hands of the

into the

he took

and went

it,

man

Ver.

out.

cherubim

the

{some) off

lifted

clothed in white linen. 8.

And

appeared

there

by the cherubim the likeness of a maris hand under their wings.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

Ver. 1 introduces the description of the second act of the judg-

According

ment.

Jehovah had come down from

to ch. ix. 3,

His throne above the cherubim

to the threshold of the

ants of Jerusalem, and according to ch. x. 4

Consequently

once more.

deed in so sees the

many

goes thither

expressed in ver.

not in-

words, but indirectly or by implication. Ezekiel

theophany ; and on the firmament above the cherubim,

sapphire-stone to look

he beholds the likeness of a

at,

throne on which Jehovah appeared.

prominence in

human

had resumed His seat above the

This

cherubim in the me'antime.

temple

His orders thence for the judgment upon the inhabit-

to issue

this

avoid giving too great

appearance of Jehovah to the bodily or

form, Ezekiel does not speak even here of the form of

Jehovah, but simply of His throne, which he describes in the

same manner

as in ch.

26.

usa^e of the languaije.

later

literal sense, as

Kliefoth does, and render the words

saw

move away

nani

nin^ or

not

b^ stands for ?V according to the It will never do to take ?X in

to the '"lini

ling in sapphire-stone

;

firmament " for the object to

â&#x20AC;˘^X'lNj

but the form of the throne spark-

ni23,

and

its

" Ezekiel

this

throne had not separated

itself

from the firmament above the cherubim, but Jehovah, or the glory of Jehovah, according to ch.

ix. 3,

had

risen

up from the

The 3

cherubim, and moved away to the temple threshold. before

"^?")^

LXX.,

not to be erased, as Hitzig proposes after the

on the ground that

quite appropriate

here.

it is

not found in ch.

For the words do not

26;

of the

like sapphire-stone, like the

form of a throne.

affirm that

Ezekiel saw the likeness of a throne like sapphire-stone that he saw something

;

but

appearance

Ezekiel does not see Jehovah, or the

CHAP. glory of Jehoval),

move away

to the throne.

135

1-8.

to the firmament,

and then return

simply sees once more the resemblance of

upon the firmament, and the Lord appearing thereon. The latter is indicated in DHvy nxna. These words are not to a throne

be taken in connection with tence

'^??1^3, so

'lJ^

form one sen-

as to

but have been very properly separated by the athnach

;

under

and treated

i^B3,

an independent

The

assertion.

subject to nNiJ might, indeed, be S<D3 T\\m^ " the likeness of a

throne appeared above the cherubim;" but in that case the

words would form a pure tautology, as the fact of the throne

becoming

visible

The

clause.

has ah'eady been mentioned in the preceding

subject

ipi<'? in ver. 2,

must therefore be Jehovah,

as in the case

where there can be no doubt on the matter.

Jehovah has resumed His throne, not

for the purpose of

removing to a distance, because the courts of the temple have been defiled by dead bodies " (Hitzig), but because the object for

which

the

man

left it

has been attained.

under the cherubim, and

did, so that Ezekiel could see

hands with

According

it.

fire-coals

follows,

glory of Jehovah had risen

removed

to this,

appears

the city that

man

up again from the

in white linen

left

;

]jut

evident from ver. 4 that the

to the threshold of the temple,

after th6

from

This he

city (Jerusalem).

Jehovah had issued the command from His throne

we compare what

till

his

fill

them over the

thence, and scatter

He now commands

clothed in white linen to go in between the wheels

throne,

and that

had scattered the

and

was not

coals over

the threshold of the temple, and ascended

once more up to the throne above the cherubim, so as to forsake the temple (ver. 18 sqq.).

Consequently

we can only

understand vers. 2-7 as implying that Jehovah issued the com-

mand

in ver. 2, not

the temple,

and that

from His throne, but from the threshold of He had therefore returned to the threshold

of the temple for this purpose, and for the very in ch. ix. 3.

way

The

same reason

possibility of interpreting the verses in this

apparent from the fact that ver. 2 contains a

summary

;

136-'

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

of the whole of the contents of this section,

and that

3-7

vers.

simply furnish more minute explanations, or contain circumstantial clauses, is

which throw light upon the whole

This

affair.

obvious in the case of ver. 3, from the form of the clause

and

in vers.

mand

4 and

(ver. 2)

from the fact that

already indicated in

''J^y?

and carried forward

in the closing

'^i???'

^)i*).

i.e.

'?â&#x20AC;˘'?'?

and 7 the comit,

which was

more minutely described

K3JV(ver. 2),

words of the seventh

verse,

in ver. 2 signifies the whirl or rotatory motion,

the wheel-work, or the four ophannim under the cherubim

The angel was

regarded as moving.

and take coals out of the '^

city.

the

in vers. 6

resumed, and the execution of

In the for

fire

fire there,

between these,

and scatter them over the

of God, the fire of His wrath, will kindle

consuming the

city " (Kliefoth).

depict the

scene more clearly, Ezekiel observes in ver. 3, that at this

moment i.e.

the cherubim were standing to the right of the house,

on the south or rather south-east of the temple house, on

According

the south of the altar of burnt-offering.

Hebrew usage

the right side was the southern side, and the

prophet was in the inner court, whither, according to ch. the divine glory had taken

him

;

and, according to ch.

seven angels had gone to the front of the

commands

the

viii.

16,

ix. 2,

the

altar, to receive

the

Consequently we have to picture to

of the Lord.

ourselves the cherubim as appearing in the neighbourhood of

the altar, and then taking

their position to the south thereof,

when the Lord returned

to the threshold of the temple.

reason for stating this

not to be sought, as Calvin supposes,

in the desire to to

go straight

there ready, as tion in

show " that the way was opened for the angel to it

God, and that the cherubim were standing were, to contribute their labour."

which the cherubim appeared

with prospective reference to vers.

The

posi-

more probably given

the account which follows in

9-22 of the departure of the glory of the Lord from the

temple.

As an

Israel, the glory

indication of the significance of this act to

which issued from

this manifestation of the

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

;

divine doxa

The

described in vers. 36-5.

137

-"1 "i^i*

-GHA-r. X, 9-22.

cloud, as the

earthly vehicle of the divine doxa, filled the inner court

when

the glory of the

the temple

also,

Lord

stood

upon the

threshold,

;

and

it filled

while the court became full of the splendour

That

of the divine glory.

to say, the brilliancy of the divine

nature shone through the cloud, so that the court and the

The

temple were lighted by the shining of the light-cloud. brilliant

splendour

a symbol of the light of the divine grace.

The wings of the cherubim rustled, and at the movement God (i. 24) were audible even in the outer court.

this picture of the glorious manifestation of the divine

After

doxa, the fetching of the fire-coals from the space between the

wheels under the cherubim

One

closely described in vers. 6

of the cherub's hands took the coals out of the

and

fire,

and put them into the hands of the man clothed in white

linen.

supplementary remark

this a

added in ver.

8, to

the effect that the figure of a hand was visible by the side of

The word

the cherubim under their wings. out," indicates that the

man

coals over the city, to set

The

Vers. 9-22.

Ver.

And

i^V*!,

" and he went

clothed in white linen scattered the

and consume

fire

it.

glory of the Lord forsakes the temple.

1 saw, and behold four wheels by the side of

the

cherubim, one wheel by the side of every cherub, and the appear-

ance of the wheels was

And

10.

if one wheel were in the midst

to the

place

had

the other.

went, they went to their four sides

for

of a chrysolith

like the look

as for their appearance, they

;

Ver. 12.

and

their hands,

the wheels,

Ver. 14.

was

and

And

the face the

them was

every one

four one form, as

IL When

Ver.

which the head was directed,

were full of eyes round about: by

to that they

And

they

their wings,

and

whirl!" in

had four faces ;

the

went

their whole body,

the loheels,

all four their wheels.

called,

Ver.

stone.

they did not turn in going

they did not turn in their going. their back,

all

Ver. 13. hearing.

face of the first

of the cherub, the face of the second a man's face,

third

lianas face,

and

the fourth

eagle s face.

138

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

And

Ver. 15.

cherubim ascended.

the

wings

from

Ver. 17.

When

was in them.

And

Ver. 18.

out from the threshold of the house,

And

Ver. 19.

the

the earth before

them

and

;

cherubim raised

and stood above

their wings,

;

and

the glory

of the

which

And

I had

they themselves.

was above

under the

God

that they were

a man^s hands under their

as for the likeness of their faces, they were

seen by the river Chebar, their appearance

They went

one according

evein)

the words " I saw, and behold," a

With

Israel

I saw

Ver. 21. Evei'y one had four faces, each and every

Ver. 22.

the faces

the cherubim.

the wheels beside

and I perceived

one four wings, and something wings.

and ascended from

and

God of

Ver. 20. This was the being lohich

cherubim.

the spirit

of Jehovah went

the glory

eyes on their going out,

of Israel by the river Chebar,

and

them; for

and

they stopped at the entrance of the eastern gate of the

house of Jehovah them.

cherubim raised

those stood, they stood;

those ascended, they ascended with

the being

lohen the cherubim

the

ascend from the earthy the wheels also did not turn

their side.

when

And

and when

went, the wheels went by them; their

This was the being lohich

Ver. 16.

saxo by the river Chehar.

vision is introduced.

The

new

to its face.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

feature in the

description of the appearance of the

cherubim in these verses coincides for the most part verbatim with the account of the theophany in ch.

It differs

from

this,

however, not only in the altered arrangement of the several features,

and

in the introduction of certain points

to complete the former account

of a

number

but

still

of narrative sentences, which

not merely a repetition of the trary, Ezekiel

;

of the glory of

now

first

describing the

which serve

in the insertion

show that we have

chapter here.

the con-

moving of the appearance

Jehovah from the inner court or porch of the

temple to the outer entrance of the eastern gate of the outer court

;

of the

in other words, the departure of the gracious presence

Lord from the temple and in order to point out more and meaning of this event, he depicts :

distinctly the importance

once more the leading features of the theophany

itself.

The

CHAP.

139

X. 9-22.

narrative sentences are found in vers. 13, 15, 18, and 19. ver.

13 we

have the exclamation addressed to the wheels by the

cherubim

side of the

to set themselves in

motion

in ver. 15,

;

ascended; and in vers. 18

the statement that the cherubim

and 19, the account of the departure of the glory of the Lord

from the inner portion of the temple.

this

we may add

the

repeated remark, that the appearance was the same as that

which the prophet had seen by the

22).

river

Chebar

(vers. 15, 20,

bring clearly out to view both the independence of

these divine

manifestations and their significance to Israel,

Ezekiel repeats the leading features of the former description

but while doing

he either makes them subordinate

this,

;

to the

thoughts expressed in the narrative sentences, or places them first as

introductory to these, or lets them follow as explanatory.

Thus, for example, the description of the wheels, and of the

manner

which they moved

duce and explain the motion.

The

description of

monizes with ch.

(vers. 9-12), serves both to intro-

call to the

wheels to set themselves in

the wheels in vers. 9-11 har-

16 and 17, with

however,

this exception,

that certain points are given with greater exactness here

;

such,

movements of the wheels

for example, as the statement that the

were so regulated, that in whichever direction the front one turned, the others did the same.

tJ'Nin,

the head,

head-wheel, or the wheel which was always the

first to

not the

move, but

the front one, which originated the motion, drawing the others after

and determining

fact that the wheels ver.

their direction.

were covered with

For

ver.

12h and the

eyes, see ch.

18.

12a we have the important addition, that the whole of the

body and back, as well as the hands and wings, of the cherubim were

full of eyes.

addition, or

remove

There it

is all

inasmuch as the statement

mony

itself is

with the whole procedure

by the eyes

the less reason to question this

(as Hitzig does)

;

by an arbitrary

erasure,

apparently in perfect har-

and the significance possessed

in relation to the wiieels

was not only appropriate

iu the case of the cherubim, but necessarily to be

assumed in

140

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

such a connection.

Tlie fact that the suflRxes in

refer to the cherubim,

obvious enough,

wheels to which immediate reference

Q*Jv'?) ^"ij??) etc.,

we consider that the made were by the side if

of the cherubim (ver. 9), and that the cherubim formed the principal feature in the whole of the vision.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver. 13 does not

point back to ver. 2, and bring the description of the wheel-

work

This assumption, by

Hitzig supposes.

to a close, as

which the meaning of the whole description has been obscured, is based upon the untenable rendering, " and the wheels they

named

whirl"

(J.

D. Mich.,

Havernick has already pointed

out

the

before

ears

namely, that with such a rendering addition N'JP is

;

whereas

etc.).

this,

forms an unmeaning

""JTSia

precisely this addition

it is

Eos.,

objection

which shows that

used here in the sense of addressing, calling, and not of

One

naming.

called to the wheels

name

to verify their

galgalj viz.

''Spsn,

themselves in motion by revolving.

given by Theodoret

whirl

;

i.e.

they were

to revolve or whirl, to set

This

the explanation

avaKvickeiaOai, KaX avaKivelaOai irpocre-

These words therefore gave the signal for

Ta-)(6T]aav.

departure, and accordingly the rising

Ver. 14 prepares the

related in ver. 15.

by mentioning the four

their

of the cherubim is

way

faces of each cherub

;

for their ascent

and

this is still

further expanded in vers. 16 and 17, by the statement that the

wheels moved according to the movements of the cherubim.

inNp without an ch.

6 and 10.

article is

The

used distributively (every one), as in

fact that in the description

lows only one face of each of the four cherubs at variance

with ch.

10, according to

cherubs had the four faces named. tion to

mention

all

which

given,

fol-

not

which every one of the

was not Ezekiel's inten-

the faces of each cherub here, as he had

done before ; but he regarded

as sufficient in the case of each

cherub to mention simply the one face, which was turned toward him.

The

only striking feature which

the statement that the face of the one,

i.e.

still

of the

remains

first,

was the

face of the cherub instead of the face of an ox (cf, ch.

10),

CHAP.

man, the

since the faces of the

cherubs' faces.

and

;

3l"i3n

still

also

rid of the difficulty

this will not solve it

remain inexplicable how copyist's error

and the eagle were

lion,

may, no doubt, get

but

altering the text,

141

X. 9-22.

;

for

would

could have grown out of

liB'

still

by a

more, how such an error, which might

have been so easily seen and corrected, could have been not Moreover, we have

only perpetuated, but generally adopted. 2^"i3n,

the article in

which would also be inexplicable

the word

had originated in an oversight, and which gives us precisely the index required to the correct solution of the as

does that

of the cherub, so that the allusion

who was

difficulty,

was not merely a cherub's

either well

is to

one particular cherub,

known from what had gone

occupied a more prominent position than the

cherub

from the

the one mentioned in ver.

There did not appear

exactly, as

ch.

10.

from

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;In

Such a

who had taken

the coals

to Ezekiel.

be any necessity to describe his face

could be easily seen from a comparison with

ver. 15, the fact that the

their place

figure

before, or

rest.

between the wheels, and stood nearest

fire

showing

face, but the face

cherubim arose

to depart

followed by the remark that the cherubic

was the being

(n'nn^ singular, as in

Ezekiel saw by the Chaboras, because j)ortance that the identity of the

ch.

22) which

was a matter of im-

two theophanies should be

established as a help to the correct understanding of their real

But before the departure

signification.

the temple

of the theophany

related, there follows in vers.

16 and 17 a

tion of the circumstantial description of the

ments of the wheels and the cherubim then,

in ver.

significance,

18,

the

that the glory of the

threshold of the temple,

cherubim the

God

;

and

lastly,

harmonious move-

(cf. ch.

statement which

19-21); and practical

Lord departed from the

and resumed the throne above the

upon

this throne,

took up

at the entrance of the eastern gate of the temple. is

had such

the account in ver. 19, that the glory of

of Israel, seated

of this gate

from

repeti-

its

position

The entrance

not the gate of the temple, but the outer side of

;

142

THE PBOPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

the eastern gate of the outer court, which formed the principal

The

entrance to the whole of the temple-space.

God

"Jehovah"

of Israel" instead of

expression

and

significant,

used to intimate that God, as the covenant God, withdrew His gracious presence from the people of Israel by this departure

from the temple

and Judah

;

from the whole of the covenant

not, indeed,

from the rebellious

nation, but

for the

;

Israel

which dwelt in Jerusalem

same glory of God which

left

the temple

had appeared

in the vision before the eyes of Ezekiel

to the

prophet by the river Chebar, and by calling him to be the prophet for Israel, had shown Himself to be the

His covenant, and proved corrupt

generation,

God who

kept

by the judgment upon the

that,

simply desired

exterminate

its

ungodly nature, and create for Himself a new and holy people. This

the meaning of the remark which

20-22, that the apparition which

left

repeated in vers.

the temple was the same

being as Ezekiel had seen by the Chaboras, and that he recognised the beinffs under the throne as cherubim.

Chap.

Mercy.

Threatening of Judgment and Promise or Conclusion of the Vision. This chapter con-

xi.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

tains the concluding portion of the vision

;

namely,

first,

the

prediction of the destruction of the ungodly rulers (vers. 1-13) secondly,

the consolatory and closing promise, that the

would gather carried

away

Spirit

(vers.

Lord

Himself a people out of those who had been

into exile,

14-21)

gracious presence of

and would sanctify them by His Holy and,

;

tldrdly,

God from

the

withdrawal

the

the city of Jerusalem, and the

transportation of the prophet back to Chaldea with the termi-

nation of his ecstasy (vers. 22-25).

Vers. 1-13.

And

a wind

Judgment upon

lifted

up,

and

the rulers of the nation.

took

to the eastern gate

house of Jehovah, which faces toicards the east the entrance

of the gate

among them Jaazaniah

loere five

the son

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver.

;

and

of the

behold, at

and twenty men, and T saw

of Azzur, and Pelatiah

the son

CHAP.

Benaiali, the

Son of man,

the pot,

;

men

these are the

Ver.

evil counsel in this city ;

houses

Ver.

of the nation.

cJiififs

prophesy against them

And

he said

tcho devise iniquity,

Who say,

and we are ;

143

XI. 1-4.

not near to build

Ver. 4. Therefore

the flesh.

prophesy, son of man.

more transported from the inner court

— Ezekiel

(ch.

Nb'iii,

as in

which, according to ch. x. 19, the vision of

God

There he

had removed.

them two priests

mentioned

priests standing

men

whose names are given.

identical with the twenty-five

in ch. viii. 16, as

Havernick supposes.

from the difference

evident, not only

(ni"i

men, and among

sees twenty- five

of the princes of the nation,

These twenty-five men are not

between the porch and the

altar,

whereas the

referred to here stood at the outer eastern entrance to the

mentioned by name are called Dyn so that

we may probably

were secular

a term that is

may

as erroneous

whereas

it is

Havernick

men

infer

also

"•"ib

from

who

be applied

this that all the

twenty-

to princes

among

'»'ib>

that the priest-princes

Ezra

Neh.

20,

x. 1,

the priests,

his assertion viii.

are

(princes of the people),

Havernick's opinion, that Dyn

chiefs.

called " princes" in

five

This

in the locality, the

court of the temple, but from the fact that the two

five

once

16) to the

viii.

outer entrance of the eastern gate of the temple ch. viii. 3), to

and counsel

are

and Jer. xxxv.

only to national princes that these passages refer. equally incorrect in supposing that these twenty-

take the place of the seventy mentioned in ch.

viii.

for those seventy represented the whole of the nation, whereas

these twenty-five (according to ver. 2) were simply the counsellors

of the city

—

not, however, the twenty-four duces of

twenty-four divisions of the

Judah,

assertions

with a prince of the house of

Prado maintains, on the strength of certain Eabbinical ;

or twenty-four

president (Rosenmiiller) of the nation)

manders

city,

;

members

of a Sanhedrim, with their

but the twelve tribe-princes (princes

and the twelve royal

Chron.

xxvii.),

officers,

or military com-

with the king himself, or possibly with

the commander-in-chief of the

army ;

so that these twenty-five

144

men

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL. represent the

civil

government of

Israel, just as the

twenty-

four priest-princes, together with the high priest, represent the spiritual authorities of the

two are

specially

mentioned by name

as nothing further

God

words of

known

The

covenant nation.

why

reason

involved in obscurity,

The

of either of these persons.

to the prophet in ver. 2 concerning

them are

perfectly applicable to representatives of the civil authorities or

temporal rulers, namely, that they devise and give unwholesome

and

This counsel is described in ver. 3 by the " house-building is not near ; it their mouths

evil counsel.

words placed (the city) difficult,

and

The

given.

the caldron,

These words are

are the flesh."

different interpretations have consequently been

rendering, "

build houses,"

(the

judgment)

not near,

incorrect; for the infinitive

cannot stand for the imperative or the

must be the subject

of the sentence.

let

but

infinitive absolute,

construct nii3

inadmissible also to

take the sentence as a question, "Is not house-building near?" in the sense of "

it is

certainly near," as

of the ancient versions.

For even

Ewald

does, after

an interrogation

some some-

times indicated simply by the tone in an energetic address, for example, in 2 Sam.

xxiii.

this

as,

cannot be extended to

cases in which the words of another are quoted.

Still less

can

mean non est tempus, it is not yet time, as Maurer The only way in which the words can be made to supposes.

2ni?a N7

yield a sense in

harmony with the

a tacit allusion to Jer. xxix.

context,

by taking them

Jeremiah had

called

upon

those in exile to build themselves houses in their banishment,

and prepare for a lengthened stay in Babylon, and not

to allow

themselves to be deceived by the words of false prophets, predicted a speedy return fall

for severe

" house-building a long

should

way

fall either

;

in the land.

This

authorities in Jerusalem ridiculed, saying

not near,"

off

who

judgments had yet to

upon those who had remained behind

word of Jeremiah the

still

;

will

i.e.

the house-building in exile

not come to

this,

that Jerusalem

permanently or entirely into the hands of the

;

145

CHAP. XL 6-12.

king of Babylon. we,

its

this

the contrary, Jerusalem

from burning,

as the pot protects the flesh

hand, there

north

13,

the other

no foundation for the assumption that the words

an allusion

also contain

to Jer.

Jeremiah, namely,

to other sayings of

where the judgment about

from the

to burst in

represented under the figure of a smoking pot

where Jerusalem

Jer. xix.,

so does the

Jerusalem protect us from destruction.^

city of

the pot, and

Tiie point of comparison

inhabitants, are the flesh.

;

or to

depicted as a pot about to be

oroken in pieces by God; for the reference in Jer. xix.

words in the verse before us have nothing at with the figure in Jer.

met with

The

13.

and the

3, 6,

common

where the figure of

though

again,

all

correctness of our explana-

from ch. xxiv.

tion is evident both

pot and flesh

;

simply to an earthen pitcher, not to a meat-caldron

differently applied,

and from the reply which Ezekiel makes

to the saying of these

men

7â&#x20AC;&#x201D;11).

the

that

verses

(vers.

This saying

expresses not only false confidence in the strength of Jerusalem,

but also contempt and scorn of the predictions of the prophets sent by God.

Ezekiel

therefore to prophesy, as he does in

vers. 5-12, against this pernicious counsel, which

confirming

the people in their sins.

Ver.

A7id the Spirit of Jehovah fell upon me, and said

Thus

^Say,

what

riseth

So ye

saith Jehovah,

your

spirit,

increased your slain in this city,

Ver.

7. Therefore, thus saith the

ye have laid in the midst of but

men

hut the

will lead

you out of

sword shall

Jehovah.

Ver.

" This city

it,

I 7

that

and

Ver.

bring upon you,

till

and

it is

is the

the

you out of

saying of the it

and

its

caldron

till it is

an extreme old age."

give

pot;

Lord

you

into

are the flesh

perfectly boiled,

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;HUlsemann in Calov.

Bihl. Illustr.

EZEK.

Ye have

Ver. 8. The sword you fear

it.

a pot, our receptacle and defence, and

continue here

filled its streets with slain.

Lord Jehovah, Your slain, whom

enclosed therein; as flesh is preserved in so shall

house of Israel, and

say,

I knoio,

they are the flesh,

shall lead

146

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL. hand of

the

and

foreigners,

Bg the sword I judge you ; and ye shall

Ver. 10. shall

It shall not be as

a pot

I am

''*

the frontier

"hv,

1),

And

Ver. 12.

judge.

compare ch.

action

mentioned here

The words

it.

God

discerned by God, because the twenty-fi-ve n^i

and counsellors of the nation,

may be

into the mind.

;

(ch.

because is

are directed

and thoughts are

men

are the leaders

nvVO, thoughts, suggestions

explained from the phrase 3^ ?^ npy^ to

Their actions furnish the proof of the

They have

evil suggestions of their heart.

slain

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;For 720

"hand"

Instead of the

viii.

against the " house of Israel," whose words

come

ye shall

simply a divine inspiration, and there

connected with

of the mind,

done, but have acted according to

the Spirit of Jehovah

what follows

11.

Jehovah, in whose statutes ye have not walked,

judgments of the heathen who are round about you.

viii.

of Israel

I am Jehovah. Ver.

you, so that you should be flesh therein

and my judgments ye have not the

learn that

on the frontier of Israel shall learn that

upon you.

shall execute judgments

shall ge fall:

filled

the city with

not "turned the streets of the city into a battle-field,"

however, by bringing about the capture of Jerusalem in the time of Jeconiah, as Hitzig would explain to be understood in a

much more

itÂť

The words

are

general sense, as signifying

murder, in both the coarser and the more refined signification of the word.^

^^{?'*.?P

a copyist's error for DriK?p.

who have been murdered by you (ver. 7).

Ezekiel gives them back their

which contain an undoubted

have made the city into a pot

Only

own

words, as words

from

truth, but in a different sense

that in which they have used them.

pickled.

Those

are the flesh in the caldron

in this sense is

their bloodshed they

which the

flesh of the slain is

Jerusalem a pot for them

not

;

a pot to protect the flesh from burning while cooking, but a ^

Calvin has given the correct explanation, thus : " He does not mea had been openly assassinated in the streets of Jerusalem

that

under

this

form of speech he embraces

all

kinds of injustice.

mean

but For we know ;

all who oppressed the poor, deprived men of their possessions, or shed innocent blood, were regarded as murderers in the sight of God."

that

CHAP.

147

XI. 13.

pot into which the flesh of the slaughtered

even in

this sense will

They

worthless counsellors (ver. 11). city

(^''V^f^,

in ver. 7,

in Jerusalem,

you out of the

and from which

fear,

this city

come upon you, and cut you down

protect you, will

is to

will lead

the 3d pers. sing, with an indefinite

The sword which ye

subject).

Yet

thrown.

Jerusalem not serve as a pot to these

but on the frontier of

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

not

TMi'bv, in ver. 10,

Israel.

cannot be taken in the sense of " away over the frontier," as Kliefoth proposes ver. 11.

only because of the synonym

This threat was

Riblah (Jer.

;

lii.

i'^^ri'X

bloody scenes

literally fulfilled in the

It is not therefore a vaticinium

24-27).

ex eventUf but contains the general thought, that the wicked

who

boasted of security in Jerusalem would not find protection

either in to

Jerusalem or in the land of Israel as a whole, but were

be led out of the land, and judged outside.

intensifies the

This threat

punishment, as Calvin has already shown.^

ver. 11 the negation (n^) of the first clause is to be supplied in

the second,

as, for

example, in Deut. xxxiii.

compare the remarks on ch.

word are demonstrated

this

The

v. 7.

at once

For

ver. 12,

truth and the power of

by what

related in the

following verse.

Ver. 13. A7id

came

pass, as

Pelatiah the son of Benaiah died:

I was

then

prophefyiug, that

fell

and

cried with a loud voice,

and said : Alas

dost

Thou make an end of

remnant

the

vpon

face,

Lord Jehovah,

Jsrael ?

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;The sudden

death of one of the princes of the nation, while Ezekiel was prophesying, was intended to assure the house of Israel of the certain fulfilment of this "

word of God.

far,

however, as

God will

cast them out which they delight, and where they say that they will still make their abode for a long time to come, so that exile may be the first punishment. He then adds, secondly, that He wUl not be content with exile, but will send a severer punishment, after they have been cast out, and both home and land have spued them out as a stench which they ^

threatens a double punishment

;

Jirst,

that

of Jerusalem, in

could not bear. 1 will judge you at the frontier of Israel, i.e. outside the holy land, so that when one curse shall have become manifest in exile, a severer and

more formidable punishment

shall still await you."

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

148 the fact itself it

was only

we must bear

concerned,

in spirit that Ezekiel

phesied to the

men whom he saw

was

and

vision,

this prince

during or immediately after the publication of the vision.

when the prophet saw

the occurrence, even

in spirit,

pro-

in all

was actually realized by the sudden death of

bability

and pro-

at Jerusalem,

in spirit there, so the death

was simply a part of the

of Pelatiah

in mind, that as

But made

such an impression upon his mind, that with trembling and despair he once in ch. ix. 8,

more made an importunate appeal

and inquired whether

whole of the remnant of

comm. on Nah.

ing assurance in vers. 14-21, that

among

the exiles, and

God, as

to destroy the

object, as in Zeph.

The Lord then

8).

meant

npa nb'y, to put an end to a

Israel,

ns before the

thing, with

gives

18 (see the

him the comfort-

will preserve a

remnant

make them His people once more.

Vers. 14-21. Promise of the gathering of Israel out of the nations.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

And

Ver. 14.

the

word of Jehovah came

me, saying,

Ver. 15. Son of man, thy brethren, thy brethren are the j^eople

of thy proxy, and

whom

the whole house

us the land

given for a possession.

Therefore say. Thus saith the

Lord Jehovah,

Yea,

them a sanctuary for a

have sent

Jehovah,

And I will

together

give

you

the

from

flesh,

and

ivalk in

you

;

they will be

statutes,

I will

and

give them

and

will collect

which ye are scattered, and will

Ver. 18.

And they

all its detestable things,

Ver. 19. And.

spirit within

I have

while in the lands whither

gather you from the nations,

the lands in

land of Israel.

and remove from tions.

little

Ver. 17. Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord

they have come.

you

Ver. 16.

them far aicay, and have scattered them in the lands, but become

it,

of Jerusalem say, Remain far away from

the inhabitants

Jehovah;

of Israel, the whole of

and

will

all its

give them one heart,

will take the heart

come

and

thither,

abomina-

give a

new

stone out of their

of a heart of flesh ; Ver. 20. Tliat they may and preserve my rights, and do them : and

people,

and I will

those whose heart goeth to the heart

be their God.

Ver. 21. But

their detestable things

and

;

CHAP.

ahominationSj

t7iei7'

all

will give their

Lord Jehovah.

saying of the

XI. 14r-2L

way upon

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;The prophet had Jerusalem

for the inhabitants of

for the rulers of the nation,

their head, is the

interceded,

(ch. ix. 8),

first

and then

and had asked God whether

would entirely destroy the remnant of replies that his brethren, in

149

whom

Israel.

this

God

to interest himself, are

not these inhabitants of Jerusalem and these rulers of the nation, but the Israelites carried into exile,

by these inhabitants God.

The nouns

resumed

Jerusalem as cut

in ver.

off

who

are regarded

from the people of

15a are not " accusatives, which are

in the sujffix to D''npmn in ver. 16," as Hitzisj imagines,

but form an independent clause, in which Tp^.

and ^n^Sf

'K^J^ÂŤ

as well as

i'K"Jf:

n^a-^a

the subject,

The

the predicates.

repetition of " thy brethren " serves to increase the force of the

expression pi'iests,

thy true, real brethren

;

not in contrast to the

who were lineal relations (Havernick), but in contrast who had only the name of Israel, and denied

to the Israelites,

These brethren are

nature.

its

and toward these he

to be the people of his proxy

n?S3

to exercise n?xa.

or the duty and right, of the Goel.

According

the business,

to the law, the

Goel was the brother, or the nearest relation, whose duty

come

was

to the help of his impoverished brother, not only

redeeming (buying back) his possession, which poverty had compelled him to

sell,

had been

pay

sold to

but

redeem the man himself,

his debts {vid.

Lev. xxv. 25, 48).

The

Goel therefore became the possessor of the property of which his brother till

had been unjustly deprived,

after his death

(Num.

v. 8).

were not restored

Consequently he was not

only the avenger of blood, but the natural supporter and agent of his brother;

and n?N3

kindred, but proxy,

i.e.

signifies

not merely redemption or

both the right and obligation to act as

the legal representative, the avenger of blood, the heir, the brother.

The words " and

etc.,

the whole of the house of Israel'*

are a second predicate to " thy brethren," and affirm that the

brethren, for

whom

Ezekiel can and

to intercede,

form the

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

150

whole of the house of

Israel, the

more emphatic by the

drawn between

away from Jehovah,

to us

towards

whom

contrast

" whole house of Israel " and the inhabi-

this

who say

from

repetition of hb in n?3.

tants of Jerusalem,

It follows

term " whole " being rendered

this, first

he was

to those brethren, "

far

the land given for a possession."

Remain

all,

that the bretliren of Ezekiel,

to act as Goel,

were those who had been

taken away from the land, his companions in exile

;

and,

secondly, that the exiles formed the whole of the house of Israel, that is to say, that

God

they alone would be regarded by

His people, and not the inhabitants of Jerusalem or those

left in the land,

of the nation

who regarded

the exiles as no longer a portion

simply because, in their estrangement from God,

they looked upon the mere possession of Jerusalem as a pledge of participation in the grace of God.

This shows the prophet

where the remnant of the people of God this there is

appended in

which the Lord

ver.

make

will

be found.

16 sqq. a promise of the way in

this

remnant His true people.

J3?.

therefore, viz. because the inhabitants of Jerusalem regard the exiles as rejected

that

by the Lord, Ezekiel

Jehovah is their sanctuary even

to declare to

and because the others deny that they have any share

Lord

possession of the land, the

again, and give

them the land of

are co-ordinate,

and introduce the

them

in their dispersion (ver. 16)

will

;

in the

gather them together

The two

Israel (ver. 17).

}5<

antithesis to the disparaging

sentence pronounced by the inhabitants of Jerusalem upon those

who have been

The before the two mean " because," serving to

carried into exile.

leading clauses in ver. 16 does not

""a

introduce a protasis, to which ver. 17 would form the apodosis, as

Ewald

affirms

;

but

stands before the direct address in the

sense of an assurance, which indicates that there at the bottom of the

judgment pronounced by

the inhabitants of Jerusalem. position of affairs

them

The thought

some truth

their opponents, this

the present

unquestionably that Jehovah has scattered

(the house of Israel)

among

the Gentiles; but

has

;

CHAP.

not therefore cast them

them

151

XI. 14-21.

off.

has become a sanctuary to

in the lands of their dispersion.

Migddsh does not mean

either

asylum or an object kept sacred (Hitzig), but a sanc-

tuary,

become

They

especially the temple.

outward temple (at Jerusalem)

What made

their temple.

had, indeed, lost the

but the Lord Himself had

;

the temple into a sanctuary

was the presence of Jehovah, the covenant God, therein. This even the exiles were to enjoy in their banishment, and in this

they would possess a substitute for the outward temple.

This thought

rendered

which may refer either short time," or " in

still

more precise by the word

some measure."

between these two renderings. Kliefoth prefers (after the

tsyo,

measure, and signify " for a

to time or

difficult to

In support of the

LXX.

latter,

and Vulgate),

decide

which

may

argued that the manifestation of the Lord, both by the mission of prophets solations

and by the outward deliverances and inward con-

which

He bestowed upon the

faithful,

was but a

partial

substitute to the exile for His gracious presence in the temple

and

in the holy land.

Nevertheless, the context, especially the

promise in ver. 17, that

them back

will

gather them again and lead

into the land of Israel, appears to favour the former

signification,

sional one,

namely, that this substitution was only a provi-

and was only

to last for a short time, although

also implies that this could not

and was not meant

to be a per-

fect substitute for the gracious presence of the Lord. Israel, as the people of it

its

God

in the midst of

in its

own

by the Lord,

land,

and that

a manner more real than could possibly be the case in

captivity

among

the Gentiles.

This will be fully realized in

the heavenly Jerusalem, where the

the

For

God, could not remain scattered abroad

must possess the inheritance bestowed upon

and have

Lamb

will

Lord God Almighty and

be a temple to the redeemed (Rev. xxi. 22).

Therefore will Jehovah gather together the dispersed once more, and lead them back into the land of Israel, land which

designed for Israel

i.e.

into the

whereas the inhabitants of

152

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

Jerusalem, will lose

who

boast of their possession of

what they now

then remove

all

ways of God, and be

in the

(ver. 15), will

and receive

idolatrous abominations (ver. 17),

from God a new and feeling heart walk

Canaan

Those who are restored

possess.

(ver. 19), so that they will

God

in truth the people of

(ver. 20).

The

fulfilment of this promise did, indeed, begin with the

return of a portion of the exiles under Zerubbabel

;

but

was

not completed under either Zerubbabel or Ezra, or even in the

Maccabean

Although

times.

Israel

may have

entirely relin-

quished the practice of gross idolatry after the captivity,

not then attain to that newness of heart which

ing of repentance, and with the coming of Christ realized in the children of Israel,

by Christ

Him

make them

;

and

was

who accepted Jesus in faith, children of God. Yet even

prophecy has not yet been perfectly

this

its

fulfilled in

hardness that stony heart which must be removed out

flesh before it

its

predicted in

but only in part, since the greater portion of Israel has

Israel, still

did

This only commenced with the Baptist's preach-

vers. 19, 20.

and suffered

ver. 19 has for

its

The promise

can attain to salvation.

basis the prediction in

the circumcision of the heart

Deut. xxx.

What

there, viz. the removal of all

uncleanliness, of which outward circumcision was both the type

and pledge,

represented here as the giving of a heart of flesh

instead of one of stone" (Hengstenberg).

in^

heart,

ins

3?,

which Hitzig

37, another heart,

wrong

after the

LXX.,

plained by Jer. xxxii. 39, " I give to fear

heart

continually " (cf . Zepji.

I give them one

in proposing to alter into is

supported and ex-

them one heart and one way iii. 9 and Acts iv. 32). One

not an upright, undivided heart (pb^

2^),

but a har-

monious, united heart, in contrast to the division or plurality of hearts which prevails in the natural state, in which every one

own own way"

follows his

heart and his

his

(Isa.

causes

all

liii.

6).

own mind, turning " every one to God gives one heart, when He

hearts and minds to

become one.

This can only be

CHAP.

effected

by His giving a " new

and giving a heart of

heart,

taking away the stone-

spirit,"

For the

flesh instead.

and

fosters nothinEj but efi^otism

153

Xr. 22-25.

The

discord.

old spirit

heart of stone

God and

has no susceptibility to the impressions of the word of the drawing of

man

heart of

In the natural condition, the

divine grace.

as hard as stone.

external leadings of God, pass

The

may

latter

crush

ments continue hard (Hengstenberg). tible to the

where these

The

by and leave no

and yet not break

it,

;

The word

of God, the trace behind.

Even

it.

the frag-

yea, the hardness goes on increasing

heart of flesh

a tender heart, suscep-

drawing of divine grace (compare ch. xxxvi. 26^ which are peculiar to Ezekiel, recur and

figures,

;

The fruit commandments of

for the substance of the prophecy, Jer. xxxi. 33).

of this renewal of heart

Lord

the

walking in the

and the consequence of the

;

latter

the perfect

realization of the covenant relation, true fellowship with the

Lord God. Those who judgment

But judgment goes

side

will not forsake their idols

(ver. 21).

The

first

side with this renewal.

become victims

hemistich of ver. 21

to the

a relative

which 1t^'^* is to be supplied and connected with " Whose heart walketh after the heart of their abomina-

clause, in

D3p

The

tions."

and

heart,

detestations,

i.e.

the disposition and

worship of

idols.

which

attributed to the abominations

to the idols, is the inclination to idolatry, spirit

which manifest themselves in the

Walking

after the heart of the idols forms

the antithesis to walking after the heart of 14).

For

'121

D3"i^,

Vers. 22â&#x20AC;&#x201D;25.

God

" I will give their way," see ch.

The promise

that the

Sam.

ix.

xiii.

10.

Lord would preserve

Himself a holy seed among those who had been carried away captive,

brought to a close the announcement of the judgment

that would fall

All that

upon the ancient

now wanting,

Israel

and apostate Jerusalem.

as a conclusion to the whole vision,

the practical confirmation of the announcement of judgment.

This

given in the two following verses.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

Ver. 22.

And

the

cherubim raised their wings, and the wheels beside them ; and the

1'04

THE PnOPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

ofthe God

glory

of Israel was vp ahove them.

took

its

stand ttpon the mountain which

Ver. 24.

And wind

ascended away

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;The

left the

and brought me

city^

of the

and city.

Chaldea

of God; and the vision

from me, which I had

to the exiles all the

me.

up,

the vision, in the Spirit

the exiles, in

spoke

lifted

the east

And

Ver. 23.

the glory of Jehovah ascended from the midst of the

And I He had shown

Ver. 25.

seen.

words of Jehovah, which

manifestation of the glory of the

Lord had already

temple, after the annonncement of the burning of

Jerusalem, and had taken

its

stand before the entrance of the

eastern gate of the outer court, that itself (ch. X. 19, xi. 1).

But now,

after the

say, in the city

announcement had

been made to the representatives of the authorities of their

removal from the

city, the

gloiy of

God

tlie

of Israel forsook

the devoted city also, as a sign that both temple and city had

ceased to be the seats of the gracious presence of the Lord.

The mountain on which of

the east of the city

God

xiv, 4, will

the last judgment on the

Mount

of Olives,

There the glory

who

are to be saved.

also that the

Son

the second destruction the same mountain

God

Jehovah

proclaimed to the degenerate city

(Luke

xix.

He made

His

;

Matt. xxiv. 3)

;

and from

visible ascension to

His resurrection (Luke xxiv. 50

mountain

for

was from the Mount of Olives

;

cf.

Acts

as Grotius has observed, "thus did Clirist ascend into Plis

appear at

also

of Olives above Jerusalem, to

and prepare a way of escape

fight thence against Plis foes,

after

the

remained, to execute the judgment upon Jerusalem.

Thus, according to Zech.

those

affords a lofty outlook over the city.

heaven

12)

;

from

andj this

kingdom, to execute judgment upon the

Jews."

After

this vision of the

judgments of God upon the ancient

people of the covenant and the kingdom of God, Ezekiel was carried back in the spirit into Chaldea, to the river Chaboras.

The

vision then vanished

he had seen.

;

and he related

to the exiles all that

;

CHAP.

DEPARTURE OF THE KIXG AND PEOPLE AND BREAD OF TEARS.

XII.

The words

155

XII.

God which

follow in ch. xii.-xix. do not con-

any chronological data defining the exact period

tain

which

they were communicated to the prophet and reported by him.

But

so far as their contents are concerned, they are closely con-

nected with the foregoing announcements of judgment this renders the

not far removed from them in time, but

fell

eleven months intervening between ch.

were designed to carry out

judgment

all

still

This

in ch. viii.-xi.

thrown upon

light

and

;

assumption a very probable one, that they were within the space of

viii.

and

xx. 1,

and

further the announcement of

done more especially in the

the circumstances, on which the im-

penitent people rested their hope of the preservation of the

kingdom and Jerusalem, and of

their speedy liberation

The purpose

the Babylonian yoke.

of the whole

from

show the

worthlessness of this false confidence, and to affirm the cer-

and

tainty

irresistibility

and Jerusalem,

in the

of the predicted destruction of

hope of awakening the rebellious and

hardened generation to that thorough

which

xii.

2, xiv. 1,

and xx.

hardness of Israel ;

In the

first

remarks in ch.

of these passages the

mentioned as the motive for the ensuing

whilst in the other two, the visit of certain elders of

Israel to the prophet, to seek the

him,

without

This definite purpose in the prophecies which

clearly indicated in the introductory

prophecy

repentance,

was impossible that peace and prosperity could ever

be enjoyed. follow

Judah

Lord and

to inquire

through

given as the circumstance which occasioned the further

prophetic declarations.

words of

God had

already

evident from this that the previous

made some

hearers, but that their hard heart

impression upon the

had not yet been broken by

them.

ch.

xii.,

Ezekiel receives instructions to depict, by means

of a symbolical action, the departure of the king and people

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

156

from Jerusalem

and

(vers. 3-7),

to explain the action to the

After

refractory generation (vers. 8-16).

by another symbolical

sign, the

want and

this

to exhibit,

distress to

And

people will be reduced (vers. 17-20).

which the he

lastly,

rebut the frivolous sayings of the people, to the effect that

what

predicted will either never take place at

all,

or not

till

a very distant time (vers. 21-28).

Vers. 1-7.

Symbol of the Emigration.

word of Jehovah came

the

and

see not

and have ears

;

a refractory generation. thyself an

depart

outfit

from

for

hear,

Ver.

exile,

and hear not ; for

And

and depart hy day

before their eyes ;

thy place to another place before their eyes

Ver.

and carry

look not

house of

carried out evening

upon

Ver.

for

;

outfit

;

took

upon

their eyes, as

as a sign to the

set thee

so as

cover thy face,

I was commanded : I

for exile by day, and in the

through the wall with it

Ver. 4.

Before their eyes take

have

And I did

things like

I broke

in the darkness

the land

Ver.

Israel.

perhaps

by day before

exile

out in the darkness

and

Before their eyes break through

out there.

upon thy shoulder, carry

and

for

outfit

do thou go out in the evening before

xohen going out to exile. the wall,

out thy things like

their eyes ; but

eyes to

they are

of man, make

thou, son

they might see, for they are a refractori/ generation.

And cany

And

who have

thou dwellest amidst the refractory generation, see,

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver.

me, saying, Ver. 2. Son of man,

my hand

;

I carried

shoulder before their eyes.

ver. 2 the reason is assigned for the

command

out

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

perform

the symbolical action, namely, the hard-heartedness of the people.

Because the generation

in the midst of

which Ezekiel

dwelt was blind, with seeing eyes, and deaf, with hearing ears, the prophet was to depict before that followed, the as

added in

ver. 3, that

the sign to heart. 5, 6,

iii.

its

eyes,

by means of the sign

judgment which was approaching; in the hope,

The

they might possibly observe and lay refractoriness

26, etc.) is described as

CIO

obduracy,

JTia,

viz.

as in ch.

having

ii.

eyes.

CHAP.

and not seeing 3

(cf. Jer. V.

having

;

ears,

Isa. vi. 9

;

157

XII. 1-7.

and not hearing, Matt.

;

after Deut. xsix.

The

14, 15).

xiii.

root of

mental blindness and deafness was to be found in

this

nacy,

in not willing

i.e.

obsti-

" in that presumptuous insolenee," as

;

Michaelis says, " through which divine light can obtain no adnpiJ

mission." staff

and

''73j

the goods (or outfit) of exile, were a pilgrim's

traveller's

wallet,

with the provisions and utensils

Ezekiel was to carry these out of the

necessary for a journey.

house into the street in the day-time, that the people might see

them and have

their attention called to

Then

them.

in the

evening, after dark, he was to go out himself, not by the door of the house, but through a hole which he

wall.

was

shoulder and carry

covering his face to

had broken

Thy

place "

thy dwelling-place.

as the departures of exiles generally take place,

" at the usual time

For

of departure into exile," as Havernick proposes.

the

his

through the hole and out of the place,

as exiles are accustomed to depart, not

the

in the

upon

travelling outfit

the while, that he might not see the land

which he was going.

n?ij ''Nii03 i.e.

all

take the

also

comm. on Mic.

'^^^V.^ differs

v. 1.

darkness of the depth of night

however, " darkness

artificially

from

(cf.

^tj^l,

*^-pO,

and

signifies

Gen. xv. 17)

produced, equivalent

see

not,

;

with

to,

the eyes shut, or the face covered; so that the words which follow are simply explanatory of

Such an assumption would be

T\iy?V'^"

as Schmieder imagines.

at variance not only with ver. 7,

but also with ver. 12, where the covering or concealing of the face is expressly distinguished from the carrying out " in the dark."

The

order was to be as follows:

In the day-time

Ezekiel was to take the travelling outfit and carry the road first

;

out into

then in the evening he was to go out himself, having

of all broken a hole through the wall as evening

coming on

;

and

his shoulders

in the darkness of night

whatever he was about

take his departure.

him a mopheth

he was

to carry with

This he was to do, because

for Israel

to place

in other words,

was

upon

him, and

God had made

by doing

this

he was

158 to

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

show himself

be a marvellous sign to

comm. on Ex.

see the

In ver.

21.

iv.

For

Israel.

mOpJiSthj

the execution of the

command, which evidently took place in the strictness of the There was nothing impracticable in letter, is fully described. the action, for breaking through the wall did not preclude the

use of a

hammer

or some other tool.

Vers. 8-16. Explanation of the symbolical action.

— Ver.

And the word of Jehovah came to me in the morning^ saying, Ver. Son of mauj have they not said

What

refractory generation,

Tims

saith the

art thou doing ? Ver. 10.

Lord Jehovah,

burden applies

27iis

Jerusalem, and to all the house of Israel to

Ver. 11. Say, to

them

;

lam your

I have

who

and carry

and

will go out

out thereby

not see the land with eyes.

it,

and

help the

and

all his troops,

sword behind them.

Jehovah, when in the lands.

them,

they belong.

done, so shall

happen

And

Ver. 12. lift

upon

may

And I vnll spread my net my snare and I will take

Ver. 13.

Ver. 14.

his

they will break through the

Babel, into the land of the Chaldeans will die there.

prince in

he will cover his face, that he

over him, so that he will be caught in

him

whom

in the midst of them he will

shoulder in the dark,

Say

to the

into exile, into captivity, will they go.

the prince

wall,

sign

house of Israel, the

to theCy the

And

;

all that

but he will not see

about him^ his

I will scatter into all winds, and draw out Ver. 15. And they shall learn that lam

I scatter them among the nations, and winnow them Ver. 16. Yet I will leave of them a small number

of men from the sword, from the famine, andfrom the pestilence; that they

may

relate all their abominations

whither they have come

;

and

learn that

among

I am

the nations

Jehovah.

—As

queries introduced with N?n have, as a rule, an affirmative sense,

the words " have they not asked," ites

etc.,

imply that the Israel-

had asked the prophet what he was doing, though not in a

proper state of mind, not in a penitential manner, as the epithet ••nQn JTia

plainly shows.

The prophet

therefore to interpret

the action which he had just been performing, and different stages.

The words

riiH

Nt^n

K'b'jn^

all

its

which very

CHAP. XIL

have been given, are to be translated simply

different renderings

" the prince

Hammassd

159

8-16.

burden,"

is this

mean

does not

the object of this burden.

i.e.

the carrying, but the burden,

the

i.e.

threatening prophecy, the proplietic action of the prophet, as in the headings to the oracles (see the comra.

" prince "

The This

the

king, as

who had been

Jehoiachin,

ch. xxi. 30,

carried into exile,

stated in the apposition " in Jerusalem,"

to " the prince," though cate, as

Gen.

it is

not introduced

xxiv. 24.

on Nah.

till

this there

1).

though not

but Zedekiah.

which belongs after the predi-

appended the

further definition, " the whole house of Israel," which, being co-ordinated with

K"'"K'3rrj

affirms that all Israel (the covenant

In the

nation) will share the fate of the prince. ver.

10 Mina does not stand for

refer to Jerusalem, " in the midst of Israel)

are."

last clause of

that the suffix would

nriina, so

which they (the house of

cannot be a nominative, because in that

*1B'N

nan would be superfluous ; it is rather to be taken with Daina, and nan to be understood as referring to the persons case

addressed,

i.e.

the midst of

to the Israelites in exile

whom

they are,

sentence explains the reason

i.e.

why

(Hitzig, Kliefoth)

whom

they belong.

The

the prophet was to announce

to those in exile the fate of the prince

and people in Jerusalem

;

namely, because the exiles formed a portion of the nation, and

would be

affected

by the judgment which was about

upon the king and people was sign .

also ;

Jerusalem.

who were

his sign

was

to burst

Ezekiel

this sense

able to say to the exiles (in ver. 11), " I

inasmuch as

as those

am your

also of importance for them,

already banished would be so far affected by

the departure of the king and people which Ezekiel depicted, that it

would deprive them of

native land.

must go

''?f'?.

into exile,

13 with reference

hope of a speedy return

DH?, in ver. 11, refers to the

of Israel in Jerusalem. addition of

all

n7i33 is

rendered more forcible by the

The announcement is

carried out

to the king^

to their

king and the house

still

and

that both king

and people

further in vers. 12 and

in ver.

14 with regard

to the

;

160

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

The king will

people.

The

experience

occurrence of what

literal

Jer. xxxix. 1 sqq.,

lii.

4 sqq.

all

that Ezekiel has described.

predicted here

related in

When

2 Kings xxv. 4 sqq.

;

the

Chaldeans forced their way into the city after a two years' siege,

city

Zedekiah and his

men

of war fled by night out of the

through the gate between the two walls.

stated, indeed, in the historical accounts that a

in the wall

not expressly

breach was made

but the expression " through the gate between the

;

two walls" (Jer. xxxix.

lii.

2 Kings xxv. 4) renders this

;

very probable, whether the gate had been walled up during the siege, or it

was necessary to break through the wall

one par-

The king's attendants breach was made in the wall,

ticular spot in order to reach the gate.

would naturally take care that a to secure for

will

him a way of escape

The

break through."

mentioned in the

left

hence the expression, " they

historical accounts

means improbable, Zedekiah

;

covering of the face,

as a sign of the

The words, "

the city.

but in

;

shame and

also, is

not

itself it is

by no

grief with

which

may

that he

not see the

land with eyes," do not appear to indicate anything more than

consequence of covering the face, and refer

the necessary

primarily to the simple fact that the king fled in the deepest sorrow, and did not

want

clearly intimates, they

by the

were

to see the land; but, as ver. fulfilled in

another way, namely,

fact that Zedekiah did not see with his eyes the land of

the Chaldeans into which he was led, because he had been

blinded at Riblah (Jer. xxxix.

lii.

;

2 Kings xxv. 7).

T)h, by eye = with his eyes, is added to give prominence to the For the same purpose, the subject, which is idea of seeing.

already implied in the verb,

and

this K'ln

trast with

rendered more emphatic by Nin

placed after the verb, so that

n?7'

stands in con-

"^^^ capture of the king was not depicted

Ezekiel; so that in this respect the announcement (ver. 13) goes further than the symbolical action, and removes as to the credibility of the prophet's word, tion of the fate awaiting him.

by a

all

doubt

distinct predic-

At the same time,

his not seeing

CHAP. the land of Babylon

left so

161

XII. 17-20.

indefinite,

Babylon (Jer.

cannot be

Zedekiah died in prison

regarded as a vaticinium post eventum. at

that

Along with the king, the whole of

Hi. 11).

his military force will be scattered in all directions (ver. nnty, his

help,

V5i3S"?3, all his

wings (the wings of his army),

of his forces.

The word

" wings" by Jos. Kimchi, rest of the verse 8, xl. 7, 12.

lii.

and only a small

14).

the troops that break through with him.

i.e.

compare

i.e.

peculiar to Ezekiel, and

k'ndphaim

ch. v. 2

the rest

rendered

in Isa. viii. 8.

For the

and for the

;

all is

fulfilment, Jer.

The greater part of the people will perish, number remain, that they may relate among

the heathen, wherever they are led,

may

Israel, in order that the heathen

all

the abominations of

learn that

God

weakness, but simply to punish idolatry, that

up His people to them

it is

not from has given

Jer. xxii. 8).

(cf.

Vers. 17-20. Sign depicting the Terrors and Consequences OF THE Conquest of Jerusalem. Ver. 17. And

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

the loord of Jehovah

came

me, saying, Ver. 18.

thou shalt eat thy bread with quaking,

and

trembling land,

Thus

trouble

;

salem, in the land of Israel,

and drink

their water in

waste of all

its

And

Ver. 20.

They

that ye

;

carrying out of this sign to its

taken for granted.

trembling. ;

laid

therein.

become desolate, and the land learn that

I am

not mentioned

;

Jehovah.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

not that there it is

simply

trouble and trembling could only be ^Ti, generally an earthquake

here, simply shaking,

" Bread and water "

synonymous with

the standing expression

so that even here the idea of scanty provisions

to be sought therein.

EZEK.

;

who dwell

having been done, but that

The

or violent convulsion

people of the

inhabitants of Jeru-

will eat their bread in trouble,

may

expressed by means of gesture.

for food

to the

amazement, because her land

the inhabited cities

any doubt as

ntJ"!,

say

to the

fulness for the wickedness of all

will be laid waste

The

And

Ver. 19.

Lord Jehovah

saith the

Son of man^

and drink thy water with

This idea

not

found merely in the signs

162

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

of anxiety and trouble with which Ezekiel was to eat his food. riDlK-i'K

This

appended

to those

" upon the land," equivalent to " in the land."

'iv.-by,

show that the prophecy does not

who had

refer

already been carried into exile, but to the

who were

inhabitants of Jerusalem

subject-matter, compare ch.

iv.

For the

in the land.

still

lyp? indicates not the

16, 17.

intention, " in order that," but the motive, " because."

Declarations to remove all Doubt as TO the Truth of the Threat. The scepticism of the Vers. 21-28.

—

people as to the fulfilment of

which had been made

two

itself in

still

threatening prophecies,

these

more emphatic by

Some

different ways.

prophecies would ever be fulfilled (ver. 22)

not go so far as before they

this,

came

thought that

;

others,

prophetesses

For

false prophets.

by a stern reproof of the

who

led the

word of Jehovah came

this reason the

— Ver.

people astray,

followed

21.

And

Therefore say to them. Thus saith the

say

and

the

me, saying, Ver. 22. Son of man, what

days become long, and every prophecy comes

to this saying,

and

false prophets

kind of proverb have ye in the land of Israel, that ye say,

an end

did

These doubts were fed

refutation of these sceptical opinions (vers. 21-28) in the next chapter

who

would be a long time

to pass (ver. 27).

by the lying statements of

signs, manifested

altogether denied that the

they shall say

to nothing'^

Tlie

Ver. 23.

Lord Jehovah, I will put it

no more in Israel ; but

them, The days are near, and the word of every prophecy.

Ver. 24. For henceforth there shall be no vain prophecy and flattering soothsaying in the midst of the house of Israel,

For I am Jehovah to pass,

and no

generation,

vah.

;

I speak ;

the time

not being

for in your days,

proverb, a saying current

and constantly repeated i.e.

;

will

come

refractory

I speak a word and do it, is the saying of the Lord Jeho-

—Mdshdl, a

etc.,

word which I speak

the

longer be postponed

Ver. 25.

fulfilled.

as a truth.

among

the people,

" The days become long,"

lengthening out, and yet the prophecy *I?N, perire, to

come

to nothing, to fail of

163

CHAP. XIL 21-28.

fulfilment,

God

the opposite of Ni3, to come, to be fulfilled.

put an end to these sayings, by causing a very speedy

will

The days

fulfilment of the prophecy.

word of the prophecy,

come

dicted shall

24 and 25,

vers.

introduced with

The

to pass.

reason for this

prophecy shall henceforth

First, every false

'3.

;

God

secondly,

own word, and

bring about the

will

that without delay (ver.

Kliefoth proposes to take

predicate to

|iTn

no prophecy in

ing soothsaying, but

all

NIK'

and

CDj^o

and unnatural, since

prophecy

Dpipo as the

become

shall

and

true,

not only

flatter-

contains this incongruity, that

by Himself.

the other hand, there

no force in the objection raised by Kliefoth to put

an end

false

anticipate the substance of the sixth

impossible to see

here, i.e.

and then

flattering 4, 5).

xiii.

still

God

The same

Hence

vers.

26-28.

saying.^

The

prophecy in Israel would

word of God

(i.e.

ch. xiii.).

a thought should not be expressed

further expanded in ch.

(compare Hos.

objection raised

words.

why

x. 2;

xiii.

p?n, smooth,

and for the prediction, Zech.

reply serves also to overthrow the sceptical

by the frivolous despisers of the prophet's

there

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Ver. 26.

only a brief allusion

And

the icord

made

them

of Jehovah came

Ver. 27. Son of man, behold, the house of Israel

vision that he seeth is for

for distant times.

to the ordinary

rendering of the words, namely, that the statement that

in a

apply the term DppOj soothsaying, to the predictions

of prophets inspired

was about

i.e.

artificial

would be inserted as a predicate

most unsuitable manner, but

God would

pbr\

25).

meaning of

Israel shall be vain

Such an explanation, however,

fulfilled.

given in

Different explanations have been given of the ver. 24.

and every

two co-ordinate sentences, both of which are

cease in Israel (ver. 24) fulfilment of His

are near,

the days in which every word pre-

i.e.

many days

off,

Ver. 28. Therefore say

me,

saith,

and he prophesies

to them,

Thus

saith

the

Lord Jehovah, All my words

shall he no longer postponed

the

word which I

come

Jehovah.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;The

shall speak shall

words are plain

;

to pass, saith the

Lord

and after what has already

164 been

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL they need no special

said,

Ver. 20 com-

explanation.

pare with ver. 25.

CHAP.

XIIT.

AGAINST THE FALSE PROPHETS AND PROPHETESSES.

The way was

already prepared for

by the announcement in parts, viz. vers.

vers.

ch.

xii.

24.

and then the punishment

Jeremiah, like Ezekiel, and sometimes

denounces the conduct of the

be sought for not merely among the

among

those

who were

A lively

9 sqq.).

left

still

false prophets,

who

but principally {vid. Jer. xxiii.

up between the two,

from Canaan

vice versa.

Against the False Prophets.

Vers. 1-16.

Their conduct.

are therefore

exiles,

intercourse was kept

and

fore-

strongly,

behind in the land

that the false prophets extended their operations to the Chaboras,

and

;

In both parts

17-23, against the false prophetesses.

told.

two

It divides. itself into

1-16, directed against the false prophets

their conduct is first described,

address in this chapter

tlie

—Ver.

And

—Vers.

word of Jehovah came

the

1-7.

me,

Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel who prophesy, and say to the prophets out of their heart,

saying, Ver. 2.

word of Jehovah.

Hear ye

the

Jehovah,

Woe upon

and

that

which they have not seen

have thy prophets become, before the breaches, nor wall to

Ver.

TIuis saith the

Ver.

4. LiJce

the wall

and

Ye do not stand

around

the house of Israel

lying soothsaying, loho say,

and Jehovah hath not fulfilment of the icord.

sent

foxes in ruins

Ver.

Israel.

stand firm in the battle on the day of Jehovah.

see vanity

Ver.

fluous.

them ; so that they might hope for the

Ver.

—The addition

Ezekiel

Tlcey

" Oracle of Jehovah ;"

ye not see vain visions, and

speak lying soothsaying, and say, Oracle of Jehovah ; and not spoken

Lord

the foolish prophets, xoho go after their spirit,

C^'SSl',

who prophesy,"

I have

not super-

not to direct his words against the prophets

CHAP.

as a body,

165

XIII. 1-7.

but against those who follow the vocation of prophet

in Israel without being called to

by God on receiving a divine

own

revelation, but simply prophesying out of their

own

according to their of the

Lord he

follow their

own

bear in mind that

merely a moral

The phrase

spirit; in folly,

failing,

them with woes,

Hebrew

according to the

but actual godlessness

dered more emphatic by

who we must

as fools

connection with which

going after their

relative clause,

In the name

subjective imagination.

to threaten

idea,

which

was not

Ps. xiv. 1).

(cf.

spirit " is interpreted

lt*T '^^7^?,

heart, or

and ren-

be taken as a

" that which they have not seen,"

i.e.

whose

prophesying does not rest upon intuition inspired by God.

Consequently they cannot promote the welfare of the nation,

The

but (ver. 4) are like foxes in ruins or desolate places. point of comparison

ground by

foxes, qui

suffodiunt (Bochart).

to be found in the undermining of the

per cunicidos suhjectam terram excavant

For the thought

not exhausted by the

circumstance that they withdraw to their holes instead of standing in front of the breach (Hitzig)

;

and there

the objection that, with this explanation,

no force in

'^^^"^p^ is

passed over

and becomes in fact tautological (Havernick). The expression " in ruins " points to the fall of the theocracy, which the false prophets cannot prevent, but, on the contrary, accelerate by

undermining the moral foundations of the

state.

For

(ver. 5)

they do not stand in the breaches, and do not build up the wall

around the house of Israel (N7 belongs

who

desires to

fortress, will

keep

off the

stand in the breach.

to both clauses).

enemy, and prevent

his entering the

For the same purpose

gaps and breaches in the fortifications carefully built up. sins of the people

Jerusalem city. its

;

are

The

had made gaps and breaches in the walls of had caused the moral decay of the

in other words,

But they had not

causes, as the calling

stood in the

way

of this decay

and

and duty of prophets demanded, by

reproving the sins of the people, that they might rescue the people and kingdom from destruction by restoring

its

moral

;

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

166 and

n»npB3

religious life.

subject

IbjJp, to stand,

or keep ground,

might have kept your ground

so that ye

the war.

i.e.

The

the false prophets, not Israel, as Havernick supposes.

" In the day of Jehovah,"

Not

has decreed.

i.e.

judgment which Jehovah

in the

mean merely

to stand, does not

to avert the

threatening judgment, but not to survive the judgment

to be overthrown

prophesying

lie

;

God

name they have

because Jehovah, whose

in their mouths, has not sent

upon DH?^

itself,

This arises from the fact that their

it.

them

vn^l

(ver. 6).

dependent

has not sent them, so that they could hope

for the fulfilment of the

word which they speak.

Tiie render-

ing adopted by others, " and they cause to hope," is untenable for ?nj with ? does not mean " to cause to hope," or give hope,

but simply

and

it is

This was really the case

hope for anything.

affirmed in the declaration, which

form of a

repeated in the

direct appeal in ver. 7, to the effect that their visions

For

were vain and lying soothsaying.

this

they are threatened

with the judgment described in the verses which follow.

Vers. 8—16. Punishment of the false Tlierefore thus saith the

lying, therefore, behold,

saying of the

Lord Jehovah. who

Ver.

be,

and

Israel they shall not be registered, ;

and ye

vanity

I will deal with you, is the 9. And my hand shall be

and

see vanity

of my people they shall not they not come

—Yer.

Lord Jehovah, Because ye speak

and prophesy

against the prophets

prophets.

divine lies

in the council

in the register of the house of

and

into the land

shall learn that

I am

the

of Inrael shall

Lord Jehovah.

Ver. 10. Because, yea because they lead my people astray, and say, " Peace^^ though there is no peace ; and when it {my people) build a wall, behold, they plaster to the plasterers, that it will fall

it :

with cement: Ver. 11. Say

tliere

cometh a pouring rain

;

and ye hailstones fall, and thou stormy wind break loose ! Ver. 12. And, behold, the wall falleth ; will men not say to you, Where is the plaster loith

thus saith the

which ye have plastered

it"?

Ver. 13. Therefore

Lord Jehovah, I cause a stormy wind

break

CHAP.

forth in

and

that its foundation

may

And I

and

those

who

plaster

and

all over

it ;

and

peace for her, though there

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;In

no peace,

is the

God

;

that

and

in ver. 9

announcements.

its

(1)

(liD

the sphei'e of counsellors, not the

(2) Their names shall not be registered in the

book of the house of

The book

Israel.

of the house of Israel

the register in which the citizens of the

entered.

Any one whose name was

was struck out of

and

ship of Israel,

conferred.

The

xxxii. 32).

to its

;

Lord

upon the

to say, they will lose their influential position

the people.

social sphere.)

Ex.

to fall

are no longer to form part of the council of the people of

among

saying of the

form of a climax, rising

specifically described in the

higher and higher in the severity of

They

with the

Jerusalem, and saw visions of

threatened in general terms

shall

Jehovah.

to you. It is all over

punishment which

ver. 8 the

false prophets

and ye

I am

with those who plastered it; Ver. 16. With the

prophets of Israel who prophesied

Jehovah.

shall fall,

the ground,

wrath upon the wall, and upon

say

loill

it to

shall learn that

will exhaust

wall,

and

he exposed,

perish in the midst of it;

Ver. 14.

wall which ye have plastered, and cast

Ver. 15.

my anger, And I demo-

wrath, and a pouring rain will come in

hailstones in wrath, for destruction.

lish the

167

XIII. 8-16.

it,

was separated thereby from the

lost

Israel

citizen-

the privileges which citizenship

all

book of

figure of the

For

kingdom of God are

not admitted into this book,

life is

a similar one (cf.

not referred to here with regard

outward nationality, but as the people of God

;

so that

exclusion from Israel was also exclusion from fellowship with

God.

The circumstance

that

names from the book that

being entered in the book at

not the erasure of their

mentioned here, but their not all,

may be

accounted for from

the reference contained in the words to the founding of the

new kingdom

God.

The

old

theocracy was abolished,

although Jerusalem was not yet destroyed. nation had fallen under the judgment of Israel which was dispersed

among

;

The covenant

but out of that portion the heathen, a remnant

168

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

would be gathered together again, and having been brought back of

to its

God

own

land,

(cf. ch. xi.

would be made anew

But

sqq.).

into a holy people

the false prophets are not to

be received into the citizenship of the new kingdom. are not even to

come

merely to remain in

into the land of Israel

but to lose

;

i.e.

(3)

They

they are not

all

share in the privileges

and blessings of the kingdom of God.

This judgment will

exile,

come upon them because they lead astray the people by proclaiming peace where there and cherishing

false

no peace

(cf. Jer. xxiii. is

all is well,

and there

17 and Mic.

of a figure.

raising

and lead them

no judgment

t^^

to be feared

of this offence

because and because

itself is

exhibited

(cf.

by means

the people build a wall, the false prophets

plaster the wall with lime.

clause

tVIISl

and the offence

;

When

lives,

The exposure

5).

iii.

introduced by the solemn

Lev. xxvi. 43)

i.e.

God,

hopes of prosperity and peace, by which

they encourage the people in their sinful

imagine that

;

Nini (ver. 10) refers to

a circumstantial one.

"'ÂŠy,

and the

?sn signifies the plaster coating

or cement of a wall, probably from the primary meaning of ?SJ^,

to stick or plaster over (=?S13, conglutinare^

fasten together), insipid,

from which the secondary meaning of weak,

has sprung.

n^^ (ver. 12), and

The proper word

hpj!}

for plaster or

13;

Lam.

gible enough.

ii.

14).

The

cement

probably chosen with an allusion to

the tropical signification of that which xxiii.

to glue,

The meaning

is silly

or absurd (Jer.

of the figure

is intelli-

people build up foolish hopes, and the pro-

phets not only paint these hopes for them in splendid colours,

but even predict their fulfilment, instead of denouncing their folly,

pointing out to the people the perversity of their ways,

and showing them that such

sinful conduct

followed by punishment and ruin.

The

must inevitably be

plastering

therefore

a figurative description of deceitful flattery or hypocrisy, the covering up of inward corruption by

appearance (as in Matt,

xxiii.

means

27 and Acts

figure leads the prophet to describe the

i.e.

of outward

xxiii.

3).

This

judgment which they

CHAP.

169

XIII. 8-18.

upon the nation and themselves, as a tempest accompanied with hail and pouring rain, which throws down the wall that has been erected and plastered over; and in

are bringing

connection with this figure he opens out this double thought (1) the conduct of the people,

which

encouraged by the false

prophets, cannot last (vers. 11 and 12)

work of also

theirs

(the wall)

commences with the

fall,

and (2) when

fate they deserve (vers. 13-16).

meet with the

of judgment

;

this

overthrown, the false prophets themselves will

thought (Ewald,

shall

Â§

347a).

The

threat

''^"I),

let it

short, energetic

with Vav to indicate the train of

fall,

The

subject

^Sin,

In ver. 12

suggests a resemblance in sound.

as the fate awaiting the plastered wall.

which

^h\

this is predicted

In the description of

the bursting storm the account passes with njnxi (and ye) into

a direct address

;

in other words, the description

assumes the

form of an appeal

to the destructive forces of nature to burst

forth with

violence against the

all their

the prophets, and to destroy K'''3apN 'â&#x20AC;˘32S

ch. xxxviii. 22.

The word

stones.

bably

(Job

K'^Sa

then crystal,

ver.

riinvp

pouring rain

;

cf.

which

peculiar to Ezekiel,

the Arabic article 7N

;

proice;

nn^ wind of storms, a hurricane or tempest.

used intransitively, to break loose; but in

transitive, to

work plastered over by

^CiK' DK'3,

here and ch. xxxviii. 22 are hail-

18), with

xxviii.

(ver. 11) is

yip2n

5J'''a3ps,

it.

The

cause to break loose.

rendering adopted by Kliefoth, " thb storm will rend," plaster of the wall,

inappropriate in ver. 11

;

active sc.

the

for a tempest

does not rend either the plaster or the wall, but throws the wall

The

down. will

rend by tempest,"

and the in

which Kliefoth gives in

translation

sense.

Jehovah

at variance with both the

will

The

not to

(the wall),

"i"*!?

The words

wall,

and lay

suffix in Piaina refers (ac?

which

level

language

with the

sensum) to Jerusalem,

masculine, and has no

'ni^?

pass from the figure to the reality here

plastered wall

cause this tempest to burst forth

His wrath and destroy the

ground.

ver. 13, "

;

(midst). for the

a symbol of Jerusalem, as the centre of the

;

170

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

theocracy, which

prophets in

word

>i?y?

and

to be destroyed,

'n^?3l (ver.

ruins.

its

in ver. 13.

new turn given

God

repeats the thought that the wrath of

wall and

its

plasterers

the threat with

off

prophets

who

whom

refers.

the

and through

thou, son

God. of man,

own

And

out

—Ver.

the

head of every

people,

And

with

keep alive which should not to lying.

size,

and

souls alive.

which should not

by your lying

live,

tirely

hands,

Ver. 19.

die,

and

my people who

the prophetesses

own

heart

18 and 19 their offences are more

The meaning

particularly described.

people for handfuls of barley and

— Like the prophets in ver. in vers.

catch souls I

here described as prophesying out of their ;

of thy

Lord Jehovah, Woe

and keep your

to slay souls

for pieces of bread,

And

17.

and prophesy against

heart

their

coverings together over all the joints of

ye profane

and pro-

false prophets,

say, Thus^saith the

(ver. 17)

— As

without being impelled by the

Iiearts

catch the souls of

are

false

gifts of prophecy,

direct thy face towards the daughters

and make caps for

hearken

the

Miriam, Deborah, and Huldah

up along with the

who prophesy

who sew

also, e.g.

Vers. 17-19. Their conduct.

them, Ver. 18. those

he rounds

the express declaration, that

women

phesied out of their

people,

to destroy the

Against the False Prophetesses.

also rose

Spirit of

this repetition

Lord had not endowed men only with the

but sometimes

women

to n^3, Ezekiel

are ever preaching peace are the plasterers to

Vers. 17-23.

;

bury the lying

15) contains a play upon the

of these verses

dependent upon the view to be taken of

'''V,

majority of expositors, following the lead of the

en-

which the

LXX.,

the

Syriac, and the Vulgate, have regarded as identical with D)T or

^^ and understood as referrins; to the hands of the prophetesses.

that it

""T"

-T

to be

But

there

an unusual form for

{Lehrhuch,

women

nothing to justify the assumption

177a).

D''1\ •

"T/

which even Ewald takes

Still less

can

stand for the

CHAP.

And we

singular 1\

have not

the text, as the expression

171

XIII. 17-19.

ground for altering

sufficient

D2''nyi">I

in ver.

(I will tear the

ninD3 from your arms) does not require the assumption that the prophetesses had hidden their arms in ninD2; and such a supposition

by no means obviously Ewald,

radical letter (cf.

ment =n!iD3.

harmony with the

ninpa^ from DDS, with n fem. treated as a

The word

facts.

186e),

Â§

means a covering or conceal-

The meaning "cushion"

(LXX.

or "pillow"

drawn

irpoa-Ke^akaia, Vulg. pulvilli) is merely an inference

from (to

and

this passage,

sew together)

phrase

'^'}\

upon the

''^"'Sf^"''?

decidedly erroneous

"iSJ^

inapplicable to cushions, as well as the

inasmuch

''V,

The

not placed

as cushions are

and

joints of the hands,

together upon them.

word

for the

;

less

still

are they sewed

latter is also a decisive reason for

rejecting the explanation given

by Havernick, namely, that the

ÂĽsdthoth were carpets, which were used as couches, and upon

which these voluptuous women are represented as reclining.

For cushions or couches are not placed upon, but under, the arm-joints (or elbows) and the

understands by

*i^

shoulders,

which Havernick

This also overthrows another expla-

v^V^*

nation given of the words, namely, that they refer to carpets,

which the prophetesses had sewed together for joints, so as to

that they

may

tion given

all their

form comfortable beds upon splendid

indulge in licentiousness thereon.

The

carpets,

explana-

by Ephraem Syrus, and adopted by Hitzig, namely,

that the k^sdthoth were amulets or straps, which they

wound

round their arm-joints when they received or delivered oracles, is equally untenable. *'

it is

evident that there

not a word in the text about adultery,

And

again,

when we

proceed to the next clause, the traditional rendering of signifying either

pillows

Vulg.) or broad cloaks neither supported

mony with

K'^T ?y.

their

For, as Kliefoth has observed,

or amulets, or straps used in prayer."

arm-

{xnrav)(evia,

= HinstpD

Symm.

;

riinsipOj

cervicaliuj

(Hitzig, Havernick, etc.),

by the usage of the language, nor

in har-

Mispdchothj from saphach, to join, cannot

172

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

have any other meaning fitting close to the

was followed,

head

the present context than a cap

and ?V must denote the pattern which

;

as in Ps. ex. 4, Esth. ix.

head of every

after (answering to) the

they make the caps

The words

stature.

both clauses are figurative, and have been correctly explained

by Kliefoth

as follows

the prophetesses.

In the

gether to wrap round

He of

place,

first

brought against

they sew coverings to-

they cover up and conceal the word

i.e.

;

double charge

the joints of the hand of God, so that

all

cannot touch them

God by

their prophesying,

especially

its

rebuking and

threatening force, so that the threatening and judicial arm of

God, which ought above tive

all to

become both manifest and

effec-

through His prophetic word, does not become either one or

the other.

In the second

place, they

make coverings upon the

heads of men, and construct them in such a form that they exactly

men

fit

the stature or size of every individual, so that the

neither hear nor see

which adapt themselves

i.e.,

;

by means of

their flattering lies,

to the subjective inclinations of their

hearers at the time, they cover

up the senses of the men,

both of these to catch souls. their act

inevitable consequence of

represented as having been intended by them

this intention

then

still

souls of the people of

;

and

further defined as being to catch the

God

;

own

i.e.

to allure

them

to destruction,

The

clause niinivn niK'san " not to be taken as a question, " Will ye catch the souls ?

and take care of is

The

They do

that they retain neither ear nor eye for the truth."

their

souls.

implying a doubt whether they really thought that they could carry on such conduct as theirs with perfect impunity (Havernick).

contains a

simple statement of what really took

place in their catching of souls, namely, " they catch the souls

of the people of God, and preserve their

rob the people of

own

(Kliefoth).

constr.) to

God "'isyp

of is

flieir lives,

souls

;

i.e.

rests

they

and take care of their

used instead of the genitive

show that the accent

same way we have

own

upon

nja? instead of the suflSx.

'â&#x20AC;˘By.

The

And

(stat.

in the

construction

173

CHAP. XIIL 20-23.

the same as in 1

Sam

Ver. 19 shows

xiv. 16.

had been.

delivering the suggestions of their

bread thereby

(cf.

Mic.

through their

lies,

those

by slaying the

;

for the purpose of getting their daily

as divine revelations,

;

iii.

who

;

by hurling

which ought to

souls of the people

to live,

The punishment

souls (Deut. xviii. 20).

into destruction,

are only too glad to listen to

and by preserving those which ought not

Lord Jehovah,

your coverings with which ye

I will

1 will

Ver. 21.

fly.

caps in pieces, and deliver

let

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

Ver. 20.

I will

I am

Jehovah.

righteous with lying,

deal with

and

the souls fly ;

set the souls free,

And I will

your

tear

people out of your hand, and they

more become a prey in your hand; and ye

shall no

the

Behold,

them away from your arms, and

tear

which ye catch, the souls

that

catch,

own

their

i.e.

Vers. 20-23. Punishment of the false prophetesses. Therefore thus saiih the

live,

for this will not fail

come.

their

God among His people namely, own heart to the people

Tliey profane

sin

lying

how great

shall learn

Ver. 22. Because ye grieve the heart of

when I have

not pained

hands of the wicked, so that he does not turn from his

way,

preserve his

people out of your hand

Jehovah.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;The

evil

Ver. 23. 21ierefore ye shall no more

life.

and no longer practise soothsaying

see vanity,

the

him ; and strengthen

and ye

;

judgment

threat of

and I

will deliver

shall learn that

I am

closely connected with

Vers. 20 and 21 correspond to the

the reproof of their sins.

reproof in ver. 18, and vers. 22 and 23 to that in ver. 19.

In the

and

first

caps,

place, the

i.e.

Lord

the tissue of

and rescue the people from secondly.

will entirely

will tear in pieces the

lies

woven by the

their snares (vers.

nsriK "IK'S to ninnbp (ver. 20a),

ninnb? will not

get fit

any in.

;

and,

and 23).

The words from

when taken

as one clause, as

they generally are, offer insuperable to

20 and 21)

put an end to the pernicious conduct

of the persons addressed (vers. 22

impossible

coverings

false prophetesses,

satisfactory

difficulties,

since

meaning from D^, and

Whether we understand by

k^sdthoth

174

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

coverings or cushions, the connection of

^f with

(where ye

"iB*V|

catch the souls), which the majority of commentators prefer,

untenable; for coverings and cushions were not the places

where the

souls

were caught, but could only be the means

employed for catching them. D3 or

£3^?

Instead of DB*

and Hitzig proposes

;

amend

less admissible is the proposal to

take

we should expect

in this way.

DK> as referring to

salem (" wherewith ye catch souls there ")

;

as DB>

Still

Jeru-

would not

only contain a perfectly superfluous definition of locality, but

would introduce a limitation altogether that they

prophetesses

alone. ral

and prophesied

lived

and 17 reference

vers. 2

with the

at variance

the prophets or of the

It is not affirmed either of

context.

made

Jerusalem

in the most gene-

terms to the prophets of Israel and the daughters of thy

people

and

;

in ver.

it is

simply stated that the false prophets

prophesied peace to Jerusalem

when

there was no peace at

Consequently we must regard the attempt to find in

Jerusalem

allusion to

all.

DC>

16) as a mere loophole, which

(cf. ver.

betrays an utter inability to get any satisfactory sense from the

Moreover,

word. ninnbp

construe the words in this manner,

most part admitted that nna sense of volare^ to

no doubt about Deut.

its

having

meaning

the

by Ps.

(set free)

i.e.

so that

For

meaning.

a bird, or letting npB' is

n?B' is

fly

;

used in

and the

supported by the expression

while the comparison of souls to

xxi. 26, xi.

and cxxiv. .

Hence the true

niCB^nTlK

"•nnpB' is,

the souls, which ye have caught, as

they shall be able to

in the first half also

ing for

used here in the Aramaean

of the whole passage ninVap

away

flying ones,

But

Ex.

sustained

I send

And

this

xxii. 7 for liberating

••K'anp n?K'

In the second half of the verse there

fly.

combination Hinibp 'a^n-DK

birds

Commentators have for the

also incomprehensible.

we must not adopt

riinnb^j since niB'asnTiN is also

fly

away

at liberty.

a different render-

connected with

there.

the words in question are combined into one clause in

first

hemistich, they will give us a sense which

obviously

CHAP.

wrong,

175

XIII. 20-23.

" wherewith ye catch the souls to

viz.

let

them

fly."

the impossibility of adopting this rendering has been clearly

been made to cloak over the

seen, the attempt has

means of paraphrases.

difficulty

Ewald, for example, renders ninnb?

;

both cases " as

they were birds of passage " but in the

instance he applies

birds of passage, for which nets are

it to

spread for the purpose of catching birds of passage

which are

he understands, the

ing,

and the second,

of birds

;

refutes

itself,

well.

others,

The who

them

first

letting

them

fly

itself.

;

first

And

better.

upon

to ninnbp into

two

There

lative iCJ'Nj as

If,

therefore,

meaning from the

I^V

Db',

the

meaning

clauses, as

impossible to

existing text,

can-

open to us than to alter

we have done to supply

nariK "IB'K

in our translation

anything to the

construed with a double accusative

D'^n IXi^ to

dis-

no authority

and divide the words from

no necessity is

the

riin"ii3

which there

and no other course

the unsuitable QB' into

to catch " as

not removed by resorting to the dialects, as Haver-

not be correct

viz.

mean "

ninnbp ut advolent ad vos in the

translate

obtain any satisfactory

vii.

speak-

rendering adopted by Kimchi, Rosenmiiller, and

the Hebrew language

Mic.

strictly

an explanation which

as pdrach, to fly, cannot

soluteness or licentiousness, for

niTivJpj

in the second, to

Thus,

ninnbp as signifying the catching

nick, for the purpose of forcing

above.

and

;

set at liberty.

hemistich, and ut avolent in the second, difficulty

first

re-' {e.g.

catch with a net), and the object to

the souls, can easily be supplied from the next

DK', as a participle, can either be connected with ÂŤ behold, I make," or taken as introducing an explanatory

clause. ^33n,

clause

" making the souls into flying ones,"

are able to fly {h

the

first

UW, Gen.

xii. 2, etc.).

so that they

clauses of

hemistich would then exactly correspond to the two

clauses of the second half of the verse,

tory of 'nD3 ?K

arms.

i.e.

The two

'jJHj

onk

"â&#x20AC;˘riVli^"!

explana-

I will tear off the coverings from their

These words do not require the assumption that the

prophetesses wore the niDDi' on their arms, but

may

be fully

;

176

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

explained from

supposition that the persons in question

tlie

prepared them with their to 'ui niB'Bsn-ns Db>

own hands.

and nimb!>

;

'W1

"''iinpL'h

insertion of D^K'sanTiK is to be accounted for

nature of Ezekiel's style

;

repetition of niE'San'ns,

which

relative clause 'xo

I'^K,

shows,

D"'B''B3

^^^

that the souls, while

The

time,

The

from the copious

not merely a

separated from nirrib? by the

but as the unusual plural form

intended as a practical explanation of the fact,

beings, which

same

at the

corresponds

governed by ^nnW.

compared

to birds,

the meaning borne by

may

omission of the article after riK

are regarded as living tJ'S3

in other passages.

be explained, however,

from the fact that the souls had been more precisely defined just before xviii. 18,

;

just as, for example, in 1

where the more precise

afterwards

(cf.

Ewald,

Sam.

xxiv. 6, 2

definition follows immediately

277a, p. 683).— The same thing

said in ver. 21, with regard to the caps, as has already been said of the coverings in ver. 20. also,

phetesses.

God

will

tear these in pieces

His people from the power of the lying pro-

to deliver

In what way

God

will

this is explained in vers.

22 and 23, namely, not only by putting their lying prophecies to

shame through His judgments, but by putting an end

soothsaying altogether, and exterminating the false prophetesses

by making them an object of ridicule and shame. for this threat is

given of the disgraceful conduct of these persons

the disgracefulness of their conduct

and without any

figure.

HipJdl, connected with 27, to :

afflict

;

and here

to the righteous

of nx3, in Syriac, to use harshly or depress

adverbially

reason

exhibited in literal terms

They do harm

good, and strengthen the hands of the wicked.

•

The

given in ver. 22, where a further description

;

rii^*3'!',

and

Hiphil

so here in the

the heart.

with lying, or in a lying manner

'^\>^ ;

used

namely, by

predicting misfortune and divine punishments, with which they

threatened the godly,

who would

not acquiesce in their conduct

whereas, on the contrary, they predicted prosperity and peace to the

ungodly,

who were

willing to be ensnared

by them, and

CHAP. XIV.

177

God would shame through His judgments, which would make For

thus strengthened them in their evil ways.

put them to

their deceptions manifest,

and

this

their soothsaying loathsome.

CHAP. XIV. ATTITUDE OF GOD TOWARDS THE WOKSHIPPEES

OF IDOLS, AND CERTAINTY OF THE JUDGMENTS. This chapter contains two words of God, which have obvi-

The first (vers. who have come to the prophet of God, that the Lord will not allow idolaters to Him, but will answer all who do not turn from

ously an internal connection with each other.

1-11) announces to the to inquire

inquire of

elders,

idolatry with severe judgments,

phets

who venture

and

will

an answer

to give

even destroy the pro-

God

second (vers. 12-23) denounces the false hope that avert the

judgment and spare Jerusalem because of the

eousness of the godly

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

gives no

Answer to the Idola-

Ver. 1 narrates the occasion for this and the following

words of

God

and

down

sat

will

right-

therein.

The Lord

Vers. 1-11.

ters.

men

The

such inquirers.

There came

before me.

to me men of the elders of Israel, These men were not deputies from

the Israelites in Palestine, as Grotius and others suppose, but elders of the exiles

They came

among whom Ezekiel had been

to visit the prophet (ver. 3), evidently

tention of obtaining, through him, a

word of God concerning

the future of Jerusalem, or the fate of the

But Havernick

wrong

either the first or second

had addressed to

coming

supposing that

word of God

to the prophet

which the answer

their

labouring.

with the in-

kingdom

we may

of Judah.

infer,

from

in this chapter, that they

a distinct inquiry of this nature,

given in vers. 12-23.

For although

the prophet showed that his prophecies had

made an impression upon them,

not stated in ver. 1 that

they had come to inquire of God, like the elders in ch. xx.

and there is no allusion ezek. I.

any

definite questions in the

words of

178

God

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

The

themselves.

first

2-11) simply assumes that

(vers.

they have come with the intention of asking, and discloses the state of heart

which keeps them from coming

to inquire

and

;

the second (vers. 12-23) points out the worthlessness of their

godly men.

false confidence in the righteousness of certain

Ver.

And

Son of man and have set J

word of Jehovah came to me, men have let their idols rise up

saying^ Ver. 3.

the

these

in their heart,

the stumbling-block to guilt before their face: shall

Ver. 4. Iherefore

allow myself to be inquired of by them'?

Lord Jehovah,

speak to them, and say to them. Thus saith the

Every man of the house of Israel toho lifteth tip his idols in Ids heart, and setteth the stumbling-block to his sin before his face, and Cometh

to the prophet, to

him do

according thereto, according

To grasp

of Israel by

the house

away from me,

all

Jehovah, show myself, atisweinng multitude of his idols

to the

''^

*^^'^.})

permit

"To

their idols.

set before

out of his mind. (cf. ch. vii.

one's

19),

the idols.

which a

Thus

Him.

The

tains a strong negation. t5n"ns

as parallel to

towards false gods.

spirit

attached to idols to

God In

lies

K'l'nxn

'^31

multitude of his

con-

the infinitive is

softened

;

hence in

Isa. Ixv. 1

vers. 4, 5, there follows a

God

are devoted to idolatry in their heart.

God according to idols. The Niphal n:j?3

be answered by

guilt

^"V}, to allow oneself to

positive declaration of the attitude

will

and

the two phrases simply

The emphasis

N^3.

put

will not

placed before the verb, in which the n

sought, involves the finding of ti*!*!?

man

interrogative clause

into K, to avoid writing n twice.

busy therewith.

be understood, in a

also

face** is

does not suffer those whose heart

seek and find

have

have not to

D3iy Pitibp, stumbling-block to sin i.e.

to gross idolatry.

in the heart, to be mentally

denote the leaning of the heart and

absolute

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;We

means, to allow anything to come into the mind,

to rise

spiritual sense, as relating to a thing

God

Ver.

their heart, because they have turned

of them through

picture these elders to ourselves as given 2?

;

towards those

Every such

who

Israelite

the measure of the has not the significa-

CHAP. XIV.

and does not mean "

tlon of the Kal,

Ewald

supposes, or to converse

passive sense, " to be answered,"

(Job

xi. 2, xix. 7).

hold

Chetih

for

1^3,

but

;

in a reflective sense,

according to the

n3,

which the Keri suggests the

softer gloss N3,

3h3 which follows; the nominative beincj antici-

common

pated, according to an idiom very

previous pronoun.

Aramaean, by a

written here for the sake of emphasis,

to bring the following object into

generally used in a

to find or obtain a hearing

i.e.

employed here

be answerable," as

show oneself answering.

refers to

179

6-8.

striking prominence.

used here in the sense of secundum^ according

because, since this meaning

where

ver. 7,

manner

reserved

and

ments

viz. to

grasp Israel by the heart;

improve them, but

Here, is

not merely to touch

their heart

by judg-

Lev. xxvi. 41), and thus move them to give up

(cf.

idolatry

i.e.

down

to bring

ver. 8.

till

on the part of God

in ver. 5, the design of this procedure :

The

(*3).

show Himself answering the

will

idolatry according to their idols,

given

not

quite .unsuitable for the 3 in

occurs in the same connection

which God

to,

and return

God.

to the living

draw away from God.

Dp3

Iif3,

as in Isa.

4, to

an emphatic

repetition

Vers. 6-8. In these verses the divine threat, and the

summons

recede, to

of the subject belonging to IIW.

to repent, are repeated,

words. the

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver.

expanded, and uttered in the clearest

Therefore say

Lord Jehovah, Repent, and

turn

away your face from

all

to the

turn

house of Israel, Thus saith

away from your

Ver. 7. For and of the foreigners who sojourn

in Israel, if he estrange himself from me,

and come

and

to the

set the

prophet

and

let

his idols rise

to seek

me for

himself ;

loill

show my-

my own

way.

my face

and

destroy him, for a sign

against that man,

zcill

for proverbs, and will cut him off out of

I am

stumbling-hlock to his sin before his face,

self to him, answering in

learn that

and

your abominations.

every one of the house of Israel,

in his heart,

idols ;

Jehovah.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

pj* in ver.

Ver.

8. 1

will direct

my people ; and ye is

and shall

co-ordinate with the

180

THE rnOPHECIES OF EZEKIEL the thought

]?> in ver. 4, so far as

attached to ver. 5b

God

from God, therefore

For God

God

directly

requires

them

and

to repent

tui'n.

with idols in his heart, whether he be an

foreigner living in the midst of Israel.

Israelite, or a

turn, be

it is

answer with severe judgments every one who

will

would seek

concerned, but

because they have estranged themselves

converted,

addition of D3\:Q

is .

rendered

\ypn.

iDltJ',

more emphatic by the

still

This double

call

repentance

corresponds to the double reproof of their idolatry in ver. 3, viz.

^2W, to

idols is

ni?

I3i}\'??

nbn

'bi

;

and ny:Q

^TB'n, to their setting the

not used intransitively, as

^^''B'n is

^?^Âť

apparently

in ch. xviii. 30, but is to be taken in connection with the

object

C33''pB,

which follows

simply repeated before emphasis.

The

idolatry

explained in ver.

end of the verse ; and

at the

reason for the

summons in the

to repent

God and

phraseology of ver. 7a xvii.

10,

and

idolatry xvii.

;

Ex.

13.

God

xii.

the obligation of foreigners to avoid

relat.,

he separate himself from â&#x20AC;˘?

^'''^7'^r'

one, to

and

make

may

vid.

before

Lev. xx.

and

7T3^,

2, xviii. 26, bvi

but simply supposes a case

tJn'n

followers,

and

does not

" should

let his idols rise

up,

cannot be taken as referring to the

with

does sometimes

mean

therefore indicate the person to

to seek

whom

any

one goes

inquiry (cf. 2 Chron. xv. 13, xvii. 4, xxxi. 21), be-

Jehovah who

remark, that " ^y\ with

cause

)

does not mean, " to seek counsel of him (the

prophet) from me," for prophet, although

The

19, etc.

stand for the Vav

etc."

attaches himself to idols.

will

who The

adopted almost verbatim from Lev.

moral abominations,

all

and

and give up

threat that

destroy every Israelite, and every foreigner in Israel,

draws away from

sake of clearness

for the

D3''JD

it is

sought in this case

;

and Hiivernick's

merely indicates the external object

sought by a man, and therefore in this instance the

organ through

whom God

the passages just cited.

speaks,"

medium

proved to be erroneous by

Sb is reflective,

or to be taken as a dat.

commodi, denoting the inquirer or seeker.

The

person ap-

—

CHAP. XIV.

181

9-11.

proaclied for the purpose of inquiring or seeking,

indicated by the preposition 3, as in 1 Chron. x. 14

and

also frequently, in the case of idols,

or help

way

only in this

that

and

correspond to the same words in the apodosis counsel of God, to

Him,

namely, in the manner described in ver. posed of passages in the law

Lev. XX.

Deut.

after

and

;

xxviii.

therefore, that "•ni^rn in

"•riiDw'n,

The and

from

D'B',

comafter

threat

Moreover,

form; and

The

connection.

desolate, so that

Vers. 9-11.

The

freely,

no doubt,

D''^ in

in ch. xx.

expression

all

;

^nioa^'n is

although the

renderings of

Q''b'

(cf.

the perfect never takes the

26 we have

allusion to

46 of the same

assumption that

and pointed accordingly

Targ., Syr., and Vulg. have

Ps. xliv. 16). Hipliil

'W1 ''^'^^n,

There

njn in ver.

compared with Hixp

sufficient to set aside the

to be derived

LXX.,

accordance with the custom in later writings of re-

xxviii. 37,

chapter,

"'S;

own way,

be derived from ^^^, and stands for

solving the Dagesh forte into a long vowel.

Deut.

Whosoever seeks

though somewhat

nrsK?^ n;n).

%"9^

'Wl ""pa ^rina

^n'niOB'ni,

131

('"131

2 Kings

;

God show Himself answering

will

Kni);

can be made to

accordance with His nature, in His

i.e.

him

God,

either an oracle

sought from them (1 Sam. xxviii. 7

2 sqq.).

when

i.e.

(nin''a

a similar

D^ti'N in

a pregnant one

make him

he becomes a sign and proverbs.

prophet

to give

any other answer.

—Ver.

But if a prophet allow himself to he persuaded, and give a word, I have persuaded this prophet, and will stretch out my hand against him,

and

cut

him

off out

Tliey shall hear their guilt the guilt

Israel

people Israel.

Ver. 10.

as the guilt of the inquirer, so shall

Ver. 11. In order that the house of no more stray from me, and may no more defile itself

of the prophet he

may

;

may he my people, and I Lord Jehovah. The prophet who

all its transgressions ; hut they

their

God,

twiih allows xiii. 2),

is the

saying of the

himself to be persuaded

—

not a prophet

i3po

(ch.

but one who really thinks that he has a word of God.

nns, to persuade, to entice by friendly words (in a good sense,

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

182 Hos.

16)

ii.

but generally sensu maloy to lead astray, or seduce

;

which

be persuaded

to that

" If he allow himself to " not necessarily with the hope of payment

unallowable or

evil.

from the hypocrites who consult him" (Michaelis).

weakens the thought.

And "the word"

good-nature.

selfish

This

might sometimes be done from un-

need not have

itself

been a divine oracle of his own invention, or a false prophecy.

The

allusion

simply to a word of a different character from

demands repentance

that contained in vers. 6â&#x20AC;&#x201D;8, which either

judgment upon the impenitent

or denounces therefore,

which could by any

his security.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; By

nin*

(ver. 9) the apodosis

""^x

an emphatic manner, as

in vers,

4 and 7

but

;

earlier

tion of

which they understand

a permissive sense,

being seduced. the former of

him

whom

it,

and did not prevent

their

more wrong are Storr and Schmieder,

Still

regards

as simply declaratory, " I will

have gone aatiay from the worship of Jehovah;"

the latter, " I will show

him

The words

his disobedience."

accordance with 1 Kings is

The Fathers

in their interpreta-

''^''^^i

(pittdh)

cannot be

must be a

Lutheran theologians are wrong

meaning simply that God allowed

declare

since the persuading of the prophet would necessarily

precede his allowing himself to be persuaded.

and

introduced in

^^"'Pis

taken in a future sense ('^I will persuade"). perfect

every word,

possibility confirm the sinner in

xxii.

done by a lying

be a

fool,

by punishing him for

are rather to be understood in

spirit,

sqq.,

where the persuading

which inspires the prophets of

Ahab to predict success to the king, in order that he may fall. As Jehovah sent the spirit in that case, and put it into the mouth

of the prophets, so

effected

by God

ordination and

human

the persuasion in this instance also

not merely divine permission, but divine

arrangement;

freedom, but, like

all

though

possibility of not allowing himself to

discussion of this question in the

20 sqq.

The remark

this

does not destroy

"persuading," presupposes the

be persuaded.

commentary on

See the

Kings

xxii.

of Calvin on the verse before us

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

CHAP. XIV.

183

12-23.

correct: "it teaclies that neither impostures nor frauds take

place apart from the will of

God "

{nisi

But

volente).

this

which have not been

to the utterance of self-willed words,

spired

Deo

on the part of God, or the persuading of the prophets

willing

by God, only takes place in persons who admit

themselves, and

in-

evil into

designed to tempt them and lead them to

decide whether they will endeavour to resist and conquer the

them

sinful inclinations of their hearts, or will allow

to shape

themselves into outward deeds, in which case they will become ripe for judgment.

It is in this sense that

He may

a prophet, in order that

But

people. only.

this

punishment

God

persuades such

then cut him

will not fall

off

out of His

upon the prophet

It will reach the seeker or inquirer also, in order

back from

possible to bring Israel

make

into a people of

11).

was

to this

God

of Judah,

namely, that

end

God

wandering astray, and

its

purified

from sin

(vers.

that, in the last times of the

10 and

kingdom

allowed false prophecy to prevail so mightily,

might accelerate the process of distinguishing

between the righteous and the wicked

;

and then, by means of

the judgment which destroyed the wicked, purify His nation

and lead

on to the great end of

its calling.

Vers. 12-23. The Righteousness op the Godly will NOT AVERT THE JUDGMENT. The threat contained in the

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

preceding word of God, that

God would

the idolaters did not repent,

not answer them in any other

exterminating judgment,

left

the possibility

way than still

with an

open, that

would avert the destruction of Judah and Jerusalem for the sake of the righteous therein, as

Abraham (Gen.

that

xviii.

He would do

sqq.).

had promised the patriarch

in the case of

Sodom and Gomorrah

This hope, which might be cherished

by the people and by the eldera who had come is

now

follows,

to the prophet,

be taken from the people by the word of containing as

land should

God which

does the announcement, that

sin so grievously against

God by

its

apostasy,

any

184

THE PKOPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

would be driven

to inflict

upon

by Moses against apostate

the punishments threatened

elsewhere), namely, to destroy both

the land a desert; to

and

Israel (Lev. xxvi. 22, 25, 26,

man and

and make

beast,

would be of no advantage to such a land

have certain righteous men, such as Noah, Daniel, and Job,

For although

living therein.

men would

these righteous

saved themselves, their righteousness could not possibly secure salvation for the sinners. is

13-20

carried out in vers.

manner

Tiie is,

waste

and

;

come upon the land and

men, such

own

only save their

souls,

thus, according to vers.

Noah, Daniel, and Job, would

His

manner

in such a

21-23,

Lord

will the

and

;

act

when

will execute

therein.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;This

word

forms a supplementary side-piece to Jer. xv. 1-4, where

Lord

and righteousness of

that the necessity

made manifest

acts shall be

And

and not one of the sinners.

sends His judgments against Jerusalem

them

lay

words are repeated,

in the case of every one, the

that even righteous

thought

this

that four exterminating punish-

ments are successively supposed it

which

replies to the intercession of the prophet, that

God tlie

even the

Moses and a Samuel on behalf of the people

intercession of a

would not avert the judgments which were suspended over them. Ver.

And

12,

of Jehovah came

tvord

the

Ver. 13. Son of man, if a land sin against me ouslyy

for

and

I stretch

the

cut off from these

three

my hand

out

against

it,

man and

men

beast

And

Ver. 14.

make

Ver. 15. If I bring it childless,

passeth through

men

therein, as

not deliver sons the land

and

live, is

and

is the

saying of the

evil beasts into the land, so

become a

the saying of the

and daughters

say.

it,

there should be

desert, so that

no one

because of the beasts: Ver. 16. Tliese three

would become a

that land,

in pieces

into

Noah, Daniel, and Job, they would

therein,

Lord Jehovah.

me, saying,

and break

support of bread, and send famine

through their righteousness deliver their soul,

that they

to act treacher-

Let

desert.

the

;

Lord Jehovah, would

they only would be delivered, but

Ver. 17. Or 1 bring the sicord into

sword go through

the

land; and I cut off

CHAP. XIV.

from

and

man and

live, is

185

12-20.

These three men therein, as

beast: Ver. 18.

Ver. 19. Or

daughters, hut they only would he delivered.

I send pestilence blood, to cut off

man and

Lord Jehovah, would

may be

beast it,

I live,

own

very plainly defined as ?V^~?V^b,

other words, by idolatry, or by withholding what

comm. on Lev.

the other

manner,

due

Him

In the passage before us

v. 15).

the treachery of apostasy from

by idolatry that is intended.

the epithet used to denote the sin

40 and Deut.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

pyo, literally,

by apostasy from Him,

especially towards Jehovah, either

they

;

soul through their righteousness.

to cover, signifies to act in a secret or treacherous

(see

intentionally left indefinite, that the thought

saying of the

is the

expressed in the most general manner.

hand, the sin

fury upon

Ver. 20. Verily, Noah,

deliver neither son nor daughter

icould only deliver their

and pour out

into that land,

from

Daniel, and Job, in the midst of

in ver.

of the Lord Jehovah, loould not deliver sons

the saying

taken from Lev. xxvi.

punishments mentioned in

xxxii. 51, so the four

the following verses, as well as in ch. v. 17, are also taken from

Lev. ver.

xxvi.,

;

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

pestilence,

from

named

Job, are

ni^ny (vers. 14,

tion, quicquid is

8 sqq.,

The

;

vi.

The

ver. 25.

of the staff of bread, from

and the sword and

;

three men, Noah, Daniel, and

as examples of true righteousness of

20)

;

Gen.

vi.

and Daniel,

;

manner,

named

before

said in the history,

postulated. logical,

but

mentioned

meant, of

and whose existence

For the enumeration is

Dan. life.

Job does not warrant the

conjecture that some other older Daniel is

Noah

juste vivendi.

and Job, in the Book of Job

11 sqq., as faithfully confessing his faith in his

fact that Daniel

nothing

life,

according to Calvin's correct explana-

i.e.,

pertinetad regulam sancte

so described in

xii. 4, etc. i.

the breaking

viz.

the evil beasts, from ver. 22

whom merely

not intended to be chrono-

arranged according to the subject-matter; the

order being determined by the nature of the deliverance ex-

perienced by these

men

for their righteousness in the midst of

186

THE PROl'HECIES OF EZEKIEL. Consequently, as Havernick and Kliefoth

great judgments.

have shown, we have a climax here along with himself 17, 18)

ii.

;

saved his family

righteousness, was not even

but Job, with his

able to save his children.

introduced with

Noah

Daniel was able to save his friends (Dan.

;

—The

second judgment (ver. 15)

which, as a rule, supposes a case that

^b,

expected to occur, or even regarded as possible ^b

Mappik, because the tone

comm. on Amos

(see

pour out

my wrath

this sense pestilence

in ch. V. 17.

— If we

*•

manifested in the shedfor the life

life,

and blood were

in the

also associated

look closely at the four cases enumerated,

find the following difference in the statements concerning

the deliverance of the righteous is

nnbsB' has no

a pregnant one, for to pour out

ding of blood or the destruction of

here, however,

In ver. 19, the expression

11).

blood"

not

drawn back upon the penultima

wrath in such a manner that

blood.

;

used as perfectly synonymous with DS.

that, in the first instance,

simply stated that Noah, Daniel, and Job would save their

soul,

i.e.

others,

their life,

it is

their righteousness

declared that as truly as the

;

whereas, in the three

Lord

liveth they

would

not save either sons or daughters, but they alone would be delivered.

The

progress in the

address by

not merely a rhetorical climax or

means

and

of asseveration

The

but indicates a distinction in the thought.

thesis,

case

difference

antifirst

only intended to teach that in the approaching judg-

ment the righteous would save their lives, i.e. that God would not sweep away the righteous with the ungodly. The three cases

which follow are intended, on the other hand,

exemplify

the truth that the righteousness of the righteous will be of no avail to the idolaters

and apostates ; since even such patterns

of righteousness as Noah, Daniel, and their

own

others also. in ver. 14,

lives,

This

The

Job would only save

and would not be able tallies

first

declaration, that

righteous in the coming

to save the lives of

with the omission of the asseveration

God would

deliver the

judgments, needed no asseveration.

CHAP. XiV.

inasmuch

was not called

as this truth

187

21-23.

in question

but

;

was

required in the case of the declaration that the righteousness of the rif^hteous would

was the hope which the ungodly cherished,

nation, since this

and

was

bring no deliverance to the sinful

other differences which

find in the description given of the

several cases are merely formal in their nature,

any way

affect the sense D^*,

which we find

in vers.

ri3,

vers. (ver.

e.g.

;

which

of the particle

and

The

hope which was to be taken from them.

this

commonly employed

and do not in

the use of N?, in ver. 18, instead

16 and 20

;

in oaths,

and

the choice of the singular

in ver. 20, in the place of the plural ni33^ D^J3, used in

16 and 18

and the variation

;

14), DK'SJ >b'T (ver. 20),

and

in the expressions, 2^^2)3 V^^\ ^^S3^.

D^ab nsn (vers. 16 and

18), which Hitzig proposes to remove by altering the first two forms into the third, though without the slightest reason. For

although the Piel occurs in Ex.

away or

spoiling,

and

sense of delivering,

xii.

in the sense of taking

not met with anywhere else in the

may

just as well be used in this sense, as

the Hiphil has both significations.

The

Vers. 21â&#x20AC;&#x201D;23.

rule expounded in vers.

13-20

here

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

Ver. 21. For thus saith the Lord much more when 1 send my four evil judgments^ sword, and famine, and evil beasts, and pestilence, against JeruVer. 22. And, behold, salem, to cut off from it man and beast"? applied to

Jehovah^

there

Jerusalem.

How

remain escaped ones in her who will be brought

and daughters their evil

;

walk and

which

their

I have

will console you,

ye will see that

works

;

and

when ye

see their

21 the application of

her, is the saying

in the

the

that

all

see

they

and

have

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; By

general rule to

The meaning, why Jehovah was obliged to

form of a reason.

not, that the reason

And

works

their

of the Lord Jehovah.

made

Ver. 23.

walk and

have not done loithout cause

done

may

console yourselves concerning the

brought upon Jerusalem.

ver. is

out, sons

behold, they will go out to you, that ye

Jerusalem however,

act in this

unsparing manner was to be found in the corrupt condition of

188

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

the nation, as Havernick supposes,

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;a thought

quite foreign to

the context ; but ^3 indicates that the judgments upon Jerusalem will furnish

in vers.

a practical proof of the general truth expressed

13-20, and so confirm

This

it.

emphatic yea than the following "

formed by the coming

to the antithesis

^3 is

no more an

a forcible introduction

*l^?

fact,

to the merely

imaginary cases mentioned above" (Hitzig).

un-

has

doubtedly the force of a climax, but not of an asseveration,

" verily " (Hav.) It is

a meaning which this particle never has.

;

used here, as in Job

the ^3 which follows time, " when."

twice

;

but

it is

The thought

the sense of

iv. 19, in

in this case

^t<

Consequently

""S

and

;

a conditional particle of

ought properly to be written

only used once, as in ch. xv. 5; Job

is this

how much more

ix. 14, etc.

will this be

the case,

namely, that even a Noah, Daniel, and Job will not deliver either sons or daughters

Jerusalem.

The

perfect ''^^Fp

as in ver. 13, because it,

when I send my judgments upon

God

and does not merely mention

number four

significant,

the whole of Jerusalem

mind

;

used, and not the imperfect,

will fall

whereby

must

all sides,

also

the same time,

Israel, so far as it

by the

fact that the

was

Lord

or upon

be borne in

that Jerusalem as the capital represents the

Judah, or the whole of

The

as a possible case.

symbolizing the universality of the

judgment, or the thought that

has actually resolved upon sending

still

kingdom of in Canaan.

allows sons and

daughters to escape death, and to be led away to Babylon, forces the

acknowledgment of the necessity and righteousness

of His judgments

among

those

who

are in exile.

This

general terms the thought contained in vers. 22 and 23, to

which very different meanings have been assigned by the expositors.

latest

Havernick, for example, imagines that, in addition

to the four ordinary

judgments

laid

down

announces a new and extraordinary one

;

in the law, ver.

whereas Hitzig and

Kliefoth have found in these two verses the consolatory assurance, that in the time of the judgments a few of the younger

;

CHAP. XIV.

189

21-23.

generation will be rescued and taken to those already in exile in Babylon, there to excite pity as well as to express

it,

and

give a visible proof of the magnitude of the judgment which

They

has fallen upon Israel.

from each other,

differ so far

however, that Hitzig regards those of the younger generation

who

are saved as

who have saved themselves through and who will

Ci?^"!^,

their innocence, but not their guilty parents,

excite

the commiseration of those

their blameless conduct

who are rescued when they come been longer in

already in exile through

whilst Kliefoth imagines that those

;

are simply less criminal than the rest, and to Babylon will be pitied

exile,

and

will pity

them

by those who have

in return.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Neither of

these views does justice to the words themselves or to the con-

The meaning

text.

of ver. 22a

main there has been no

When man

and beast are cut

judgments,

will

all

These are

to vers. 16, 18,

will

;

enough

;

and

but "^^vQ, left,

and

i.e.

will

in the it.

persons

who

be led out of

and daughters, with an

called sons

and 20

clear

out of Jerusalem by the four

off

not perish

have escaped destruction, the city.

difference of opinion concerning

allusion

and consequently we must not take

;

these words as referring to the younger generation in contrast to the older.

They

in the land, but to

that

to say, to

be led out of Jerusalem, not to remain

will

come

go into

effected not only

God

Babylon,

in is

i.e.

those already in exile,

Babylon.

exile to

either a modification or

for the cutting off of

" you,"

This does not imply

a sharpening of the punishment

man and

slaying, but

leaving some

beast

from a town may be

by leading away.

escape,

The

design

and carrying them

explained in the clauses which follow from

^^''^1^

onwards, the meaning of which depends partly upon the more

planation to

and

and partly upon the exbe given of ^Vy^'^V CriDHJ and D^HN it^qjl. The

precise definition of

DS'l'n

ways and works are not and righteous works, reply to Hitzig.

Still

0111771;,

to be taken without reserve as

as Kliefoth has correctly less

shown

good

in his

can ways and works denote their

; ;

THE PROPHECIES OF EZCKIEL.

190

experience or fate, wliich of the words, vers.

21-23.

when expounding the meaning and connection of The context certainly points to wicked ways and

And

evil works.

it is

only the sight of such works that could

lead to the conviction that

God had

cause, that

And

Jerusalem.

the explanation given by Kliefoth

was not

Dsn^ in vain,

i.e.

without

such severe judgments upon

inflicted

which

in addition to this effect,

mentioned

upon those who were already in exile, the conduct of the n^^a that came to Babylon,

in ver. 23 as produced

by the

sight of

the immediate design of 'lil

The

nyiiTpy. T T T

God

described in ver. 22b as Dnttn:^

with TJ cannot be used here in the verb ona â&#x20AC;˘

sense of to repent of anything, or to grieve over still less

can

cannot repent inflicted

mean

upon him, but only of

mean

and DHJ does not in the Piel with

self, as in

2 Sam.

Gen.

xiii.

evil

judgment which God has

which he himself has done

when construed

to pity a person, either

an accusative of the person, or

O^^n?

c. hv, rei.

for, a

NipJial,

and

(Hitzig)

For a man

any one (Kliefoth).

to pity

be sorry

of, or

in the

Niplud

here to console one-

signifies

xxxviii. 12 with ?V, concerning anything, as in

and

39, Jer. xxxi. 15, etc.;

^ona (ver. 23), with

the accusative of the person, to comfort any one, as in Gen. li.

came

;

ii. 11, etc. But the works and doings of those who Babyh n could only produce this effect upon those who

Job

were already there, from the fact that they were of such a character as to demonstrate the necessity for the judgments

which had

fallen

upon Jerusalem.

conviction of the neces-

judgments would cause them to comfort

sity for the divine

God

themselves with regard to the evil inflicted by as they

would

see,

a chastisement well deserved, but that

would stay the punishment when

and

God

had

inasmuch

His righteousness

fulfilled

restore the penitent sinner to favour once

the consolation

;

not only that the punishment endured was

which those who were

exile

His purpose, more.

But

would derive

from a sight of the works of the sons and daughters who had escaped from death

and come

to Babylon,

attributed in

CHAP. XV. ver.

23 (23nx ^on?)

sense that

it is

191

1-8.

to the persons themselves.

expressions of pity, but

by the

in this

;

stated that " they will comfort

you " not by This

sight of their conduct.

directly affirmed in the words, " when ye shall see their conduct

Consequently ver. 23a does not contain

and their works." a

new

thought, but simply the thought already expressed in

ver. 22bj

which

new form

repeated in a

And the

emphatic.

expression HvJ?

serves to increase the force

make

the

nx, in ver. 22,

"TkJ'K"?!!

''T}ii2r}

whilst nx^ in the sense of quoad,

;

serves to place the thought to be repeated in subordination to

the whole clause (cf. Ewald,

277a, p. 683).

ยง

CHAP. XV. JERUSALEM, THE USELESS

certainly as

God

will not spare

WOOD OF A WILD

Jerusalem for the sake of

the righteousness of the few righteous is

men

therein, so certain

no superiority over other

that Israel has

of the godly,

which

the previous

confidence in the righteousness

false

what follows

nations,

could secure Jerusalem against destruction.

word of God overthrows

TINE.

in this chapter

directed against

the fancy that Israel cannot be rejected and punished

overthrow of the kingdom, because of

by the

election to be the

its

people of God.

Ver.

And

the

word of Jehovah came

Son of man, what advantage has

me, saying, Ver. 2.

the xcood

of the vine over every

wood, the vine-branch, lohich icas among the

Ver.

3. Is

take a

peg from

Behold,

sumed

wood taken from

it to

hang

not used for

Ver.

any work

and scorched

the

it is

less

upon

vessels

or do ?

men

Ver. 4.

If the fire has conscorched, will

Behold, when

how much can

of the forest'?

it is

when

uninjured,

then it

the fire has con-

be still used for

work !

Ver.

Lord Jehovah, As the wood of the vine wood of the forest, which I give to the fire to consume,

Therefore thus saith the

among

all kinds

trees

use for any work

two ends, and the middle of

its

given to the fire to consume.

he fit for any work ?

sumed

—

192

THE PKOPHUCIES OF EZEKIEL.

I gice up

SO do

fire will

—

Israel

wood

like the

burn, because

Israel

its

From

Dent,

frequently compared to a vine

;

Isa. v.

;

and always, with the exception of Ps. This comparison

degeneracy.

put into the

good for nothing.

or a vineyard (cf. Ps. Ixxx. 9 sqq. 21),

Lord Jehovah.

saying of the

is the

of the wild vine, which

33 onwards,

xxxii. 32,

direct

And I make t/ie land a desei't,

Ver. 8.

against them.

because they committed treachery,

fire

And

They have gone out of the fire, and the that ye may learn that I am Jehovah, when

consume them ;

my face

set

of Jei'usalem, Ver.

the inhabitants

face against them.

lies at

Hos.

Jer.

;

of the wild vine.

This wood has no superiority over any other kind of wood. cannot be used, like other timber, for any useful purposes is

only

wood

to be burned, so that

fit

2 and

(vers.

And

3tt).

it is

if,

its

superiority has

wood.

'Wl

T^'K nniD^n

—

above

(|p,

'"^."iT'^^j

wood?

in apposition to i&3n

KJ^"?!'?,

of fagot

;

for nniOT does not

i.e.

The

not to

LXX.

—

mean a

(cf. ch., viii. 17),

further defined by the following relative clause

wood-vine,

what

i.e.

any other

and

has been by the

but the tendril or branch of the vine

grapes.

partially

followed by

i.e.

YP.,

cannot

notwithstanding the Masoretic accentuation,

mean every kind

still

when

comparative)

to YiT^'^y all kinds of

be connected with Vulgate,

perfect state,

less

scorched and consumed (vers. 4 and 5)

means, what

but

;

really inferior to all other

be used for anything, how much

|0,

ii.

the foundation of the

wood

figure employed, in vers. 2-5, of the

x. 1

Ixxx., to point out

and

so as

fagot,

which to

be a

a wild vine, which bears only sour, uneatable preterite nNn (which

was ;

not,

may

be ex-

plained fi'om the idea that the vine had been fetched from the forest in order that

in ver. 3

is,

its

wood might be

used.

The answer given

that this vine-wood cannot be used for any pur-

pose whatever, not even as a peg for hanging any kind of

domestic utensils upon (see

The

weak even

for this.

M3K7op

make, or apply

comm. on Zech.

x. 4).

object has to be supplied to it,

for

any work.

Because

too

rtB*]^?

cannot

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

be used as timber,

it is

''3*^

The

negative.

The

scorched.

"iin,

supposes a case, from

inj

xiv. 21.

The

question,

perfect; and

in the sense of, to be

subject to in*l

the suffix in ^n^r'^x refers.

introduced

determined in ver. 5 in the

n^: as in ch.

imperfect, Niphal,

first

clauses in ver. Ab

deduced as a conclusion.

any work ? "

for

fit

The two

riK.

are to be connected together.

which the second

A fresh thought

burned.

46 by the words

in ver.

193

"Mr

CHAP. XV. 1-8.

"in.l:

burned or

no doubt the wood,

which

the same time, the two clauses

are to be understood, in accordance with ver. 4&, as relating to

the burning of the ends and the scorching of the middle. Vers. 6-8. In the application of the parable, the only thing to

which prominence

given,

the fact that

the inhabitants of Jerusalem in the same

God

will deal

manner

vine-wood, which cannot be used for any kind of work. implies that Israel resembles the this possesses is

no superiority

even worse than they, and therefore

fire.

This

of the

fire,

accounted for in ver. 7

and the

fire will

This

of a forest-vine.

wood, but, on the contrary,

to other

utterly useless, so Israel has

but

wood

with

as with the

to other nations,

given up to the

" They have come out

consume them" (the inhabitants of

These words are not to be interpreted proverbias meaning, " he who escapes one judgment falls into

Jerusalem). ally,

another" (Havernick), but show the application of

and 5

to the inhabitants of

come

either

already.

must

It resembles a wild vine

which has been consumed

fire,

now about

must not

come

vers.

of a fire one

Israel has been in the fire

and which

Out

burned or scorched.

ends by the

at both

Jerusalem.

while the middle has been scorched, to be given

restrict the fire,

up altogether

to the fire.

however, out of which

has

half consumed, to the capture of Jerusalem in the time

of Jehoiachin, as Hitzig does, but

ments which of the

fell

kingdom of the ten

of Jehoiachin,

EZEK.

must extend

to all the

judg-

upon the covenant nation, from the destruction

and

tribes to the catastrophe in the reign

consequence of which Israel

now resembled

—

194

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

The

a vine burned at both ends and scorched in the middle. threat closes in the

same manner

ver. 76 with ch. xiv. 8&,

and

Compare

as the previous one.

ver.

8 with ch.

xiv.

15 and 13.

CHAP. XVI. INGRATITUDE AND UNFAITHFULNESS OP

JERUSALEM.

The

previous word of

useless vine,

PUNISHMENT AND SHAME.

ITS

God

which had

represented Israel as a wild and

be consumed.

planted this vine in His vineyard, as as

But

God had

had adopted

Israel

His own people, the rebellious nation, though met by these

threatenings of divine judgment, might

would not

reject

still

on account of

Israel,

its

covenant of grace

removed by the word of God

present chapter, which shows that by nature Israel

than other nations

;

and

that, in

ingratitude towards the Lord, its

and has sunk

consequence of

who saved

no better shameful

from destruction

its

obliged to punish and judge

as the others.

the

has sinned so grievously against

its

low among the heathen through

God

idolatry, that

same manner

youth,

as the

election

This proof of false confidence in the divine

covenant nation.

the days of

God

plead that

the same time, the

Him,

excessive it

in the

Lord

will

continue mindful of His covenant

;

Sodom and Samaria, He

turn the captivity of Jeru-

salem,

—

will also

and on the

— and

will

—The contents of

this

divide themselves, therefore, into three parts.

to the

deep humiliation and shame of Israel,

establish an everlasting covenant with

word

God

we have the away from

the

first^

its

falling

the second^ the

and

in the

63).

from

The

it.

description of the nation's sin, through its

God

into idolatry (vers.

announcement of the punishment

tJiirdj

2-34)

(vers.

;

35-52);

the restoration of Israel to favour (vers. 53-

past, present,

its first

restoration of

and future

commencement

its

These copious contents are draped carried out on a magnificent scale.

of Israel are

all

embraced,

ultimate consummation. in

an allegory, which

Starting from the repre-

—

CHAP. XVI.

195

1-3,

sentation of the covenant relation existing between the

Lord

and His people, under the figure of a marriage covenant, which runs through the whole of the Scriptures, the capital of the

kingdom of God,

Israel, the

covenant nation,

attitude of

God to

— Jerusalem,

as the representative of

addressed as a wife

and the

;

Israel, as well of that of Israel to its

God,

depicted under this figure.

Vers. 1-14. Israel, by nature unclean, miserable, and near

by the Lord and clothed

to destruction (vers. 3-5), is adopted

Vers. 1 and 2 form the introduc-

in splendour (vers. 6-14). tion.

—Ver.

And

the

word of Jehovah came

me, saying,

—

Son of man, show Jerusalem her abominations. The "abominations" of Jerusalem are the sins of the covenant

Ver.

nation,

which were worse than the sinful abominations of

The theme

Canaan and Sodom.

declaration of these abominations. first

Thus

all

shown what

saith the

from the land of Amorite, and thy mother a birth, in the

day of thy

—Ver.

And

thee

the

Canaanites ; thy father was the

Ver.

Hittite.

birth thy navel

in bandages.

Ver.

with pity, to do one of these

—According

say,

Jerusalem, Thine origin and thy

And

was not

iVb eye

to thee in

thou wast cast into the field, in disgust at thy thy birth.

as for thy

cut,

and thou

wast not bathed in water for cleansing ; and not rubbed with

and not lorapped

the

end the nation

this

was by nature.

Lord Jehovah

birth are

word of God

of this

to the allegory,

compassion

life,

salt,

upon

looked ;

but

on the day of

which runs through the

whole chapter, the figure adopted to depict the origin of the Israelitish nation is that

of the nation,

Jerusalem, the existing representative

described as a child, born of Canaanitish

parents, mercilessly exposed after

perishing.

its birth,

and on the point of

Hitzig and Kliefoth show that they have com-

pletely misunderstood the allegory,

when they not only

explain

the statement concerning the descent of Jerusalem, in ver. 3, as relating to the city of that

name, but

restrict it to the city

alone, on the ground that " Israel as a whole was not of

; ;

196

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL. was radically

Canaanitisli origin, whereas the city of Jerusalem

and

a Canaanitish, Amoritish,

But were not

Hittite city."

Or was

the cities of Israel radically Canaanaean ?

Aramaean descent?

altogether, but only half, of

merely as a

all

Israel not

Regarded

Jerusalem was neither of Amoritish nor

city,

Hittite origin, but simply a Jebusite city.

And

it is

too obvi-

ous to need any proof, that the prophetic word does not refer

mass of houses ; but that Jeru-

to the city as a city, or to the

kingdom of Judah

salem, as the capital of the far as

its

Israel, or the

covenant nation.

but the population,

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;which

referred

its

not physical,

are

excited

which Jesus said

father the devil " (John

but

descent and

spiritual

descent.

from the land of the Canaanites

father was the Amorite and

same sense

The

concluded a marriage covenant.

Spiritually, Israel sprang

and

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;that

multiplied into myriads

clothed in splendour, and chose as the bride with

7),

whom He birth

was not the mass of houses,

was the foundling,

Jehovah's compassion, and which (ver.

at that time, so

inhabitants were concerned, represents the people of

viii.

its

mother a

The land

44).

Hittite, in the

to the Jews, "

are of your

of the Canaanites

mentioned as the land of the worst heathen abominations

and from among the Canaanitish

tribes,

the

and mother, not because the

Hittites are mentioned as father

Jebusites are placed between the two, in

Hitzig supposes, but because leaders

Amorites

Canaanitish

('")toNn)

Amorites and

Num.

xiii.

29, as

they were recognised as the

ungodliness.

The

iniquity

the

was great even in Abraham's time, though

not yet full or ripe for destruction (Gen. xv. 16); and the

daughters of Heth,

whom Esau

bitterness of spirit

(Gen.

married, caused

xxvii. 46).

substratum for our description.

And

These

Rebekah great

facts furnish the

they also help to explain

the occurrence of ''I^Nn with the article, and n^rin without

The

plurals 'nT'"'^P

and

for physical generation

once for

all.

^'n'"i?b

and

it.

also point to spiritual descent

birth are both acts that take place

nnbo or nn^SO (ch.

xxi. 35, xxix. 14) is not the

197

CHAP. XVI. 3-5. place of begetting, but generation

= to

beget

(cf. Isa.

plural corresponding

with the birth.

"il3=n'^3, to dig "lip)?,

natalesy origines.

or a

J^"!!^^^

5 describe the circumstances connected 4) stands at the head as an

(ver.

'H^JD''?^''

absolute noun.

Latin

the

Vers. 4 and

birth.

from

itself,

not equivalent to

It is

1).

li.

the birth of the child

did not receive the

cleansing and care which were necessary for the preservation

and strengthening of

The

construction ^nix

the object)

life,

its

H'lp'in

but was exposed without pity.

(the passive, with an accusative of

the same as in Gen.

Pual -i,

ri"n3

which

and

;

'H'!!^

from

very rare in

for rnb (Judg. vi. 28),

with the reduplication of the

"ib^,

Hebrew

cutting the navel-string, the child

71).

liberated after birth

from

Ewald,

{vid.

the blood of the mother, with which

womb.

and many other

20,

xl.

rr^S

passages of the earlier writings,

was nourished

in the

If the cutting be neglected, as well as the tying of the

navel-string,

which takes place

same time, the

at the

child

must perish when the decomposition of the placenta begins.

The new-born

child

purities attaching to

then bathed, to cleanse ''V^^

it.

meaning

VV'^; because neither the

from the im-

cannot be derived from T^^f to see, to look

(nyti'),

nor the

other meaning to smear (VV^), yields a suitable sense.

Kimchi «_A^,

ii.

evidently right in deriving

and

iv.,

Aramaean form

wipe

was rubbed with

salt,

in ancient times,

and

Hieron. ad

721)

;

drier

The

cleanse.

165a).

termination

of the absolute state, for the

cleansing (cf. Ewald,

(vid.

off,

from Vp^,

Hebrew

Jos.

Arabic is

••

the

IT'^?'^,

After the washing, the body

according to a custom very widely spread still

met with here and there

L Galen, de Sanit.

;

in the

East

Troilo Reisebeschr. p.

and that not merely for the purpose of making the skin and firmer, or of cleansing

bably from a regard to the virtue of

more thoroughly, but prosalt as

putrefaction, " to express in a symbolical

a protection from

manner

desire for the vigorous health of the child*' (Hitzig

nick).

And,

finally,

hope and

and Haver-

was bound round with swaddling-

198

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

clothes.

Not one

servation

and strengthening of the

of these things, so indispensable to the pre-

case of Israel at the time of

child,

show

passionate love (ph^n?, infinitive, to

towards that

?y3, to

it)

;

but

was

was performed in the

from any feeling of com-

birth

its

cast into the field,

might perish ^K'W

pyiJ3 in

pity or compassion

i.e.

exposed, in order

disgust at thy life (compare

The

thrust away, reject, despise. Lev. xxvi. 11, xv. 30).

day of the birth of Jerusalem,

i.e.

of Israel, was the period of

sojourn in Egypt, where Israel as a nation was born,

its

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;the

who went down to Egypt having multiplied into The different traits in this picture are not to be in-

sons of Jacob

a nation.

terpreted as referring to historical peculiarities, but have their

explanation in the totality of the figure.

they express a level with

much all

the same time,

more than " that Israel not only stood upon

other nations, so far as

its

origin

and

nature

its

were concerned, but was more helpless and neglected as nature and

its

both

natural advantages, possessing a less gifted

nature than other nations, and therefore inferior to the rest (Kliefoth).

The

smaller gifts, or humbler natural advantages,

are thoughts quite foreign to the words of the figure as well as to the context.

Both the Canaanitish descent and the merciless

exposure of the child point to a totally different point of view, as indicated to the

by the allegory.

The Canaanitish

descent points

moral depravity of the nature of Israel

glected condition of the child

;

and the ne-

intended to show

how

little

there was in the heathen surroundings of the youthful Israel

Canaan and Egypt

that was adapted to foster

health, or to educate Israel

and

fit

for

its

life

and

future destination.

the Egyptians the Israelites were an abomination, as a race

of shepherds; and not long after the death of Joseph, the

Pharaohs began

to oppress the

growing nation.

Vers. 6-14. Israel therefore owes tion to

honour and glory

Then I passed by said to theej

thee,

to the

and saw

thy blood live!

its

Lord thee

preservation and exaltaits

God

alone.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

Ver.

stamping in thy blood, and

and said

to thee,

In thy blood

6-14. '1 ^'i*

CHAP. XVI.

Ver.

live!

The

cheeks.

thou wast naked

saw

iliee

and thou grewest and

field,

/ made

swore

wing over

and

to thee,

Ver.

thee,

And I

passed by

and

love

;

and I

;

and I

the time

time,

entered into covenant with thee,

bathed thee in water, and rinsed thy blood from

And I

Ver. 10.

thee,

and covered thy nakedness

of the Lord Jehovah, and thou becamest mine.

thee with oil.

ornament

earnest to

and thy hair grew, whereas

was thy

and

becarnest tall,

bare.

and, behold,

thee,

spread

myriads as the growth of the

into

breasts expanded,

and

199

Ver. thee,

the saying 9.

And I

and anointed

clothed thee with embroidered

work, and shod thee with morocco, and wrapped thee round with byssus, toith

and covered

with

thee

Ver. 11.

silk.

adorned thee

ornaments, and put bracelets upon thy hands, and a chain

around thy

head.

Ver. 13.

silver ;

and thy

And I

Ver. 12.

neck.

and earrings

thine ears,

And

gave thee a ring in thy nose,

and a splendid crown upon thy

thou didst adorn thyself with gold

clothing

was byssus, and

and embroidery.

silk,

Wheaten-flour, and honey, and oil thou didst eat very beautfal ; and didst thrive

and thou wast

;

regal dignity.

and

Ver. 14.

Thy

name went forth among the nations on account of thy beauty ; for it

was perfect through of

the

Lord Jehovah.

glory, which

His compassionate love

Israel in

I put upon thee, is

the saying

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; The description of what the Lord did for is

divided into two sections by

the repetition of the phrase " I passed by thee " (vers. 6 and 8).

The

embraces what

first

increase of the nation glorification

possession.

When

new-born it life,

;

Israel,

for the preservation

the second, what

by adopting

Israel

was lying

strength to

and

had done for the

as the people of

His

in the field as a neglected

Lord passed by and adopted

child, the

and giving

God had done

live.

it,

promising

bring out the mag-

nitude of the compassion of God, the fact that the child was lying in

its

blood

mentioned again and again.

tion to be given of npoiariD (tlie Hithpolel of

upon, tread under foot)

The D^ia,

explana-

trample

doubtful, arising from the difficulty

of deciding whether the Hithpolel

be taken in a passive or

— ;

200

THE PROPHECIES OP EZEKIEL.

The

a reflective sense.

upon"

passive rendering, "trampled

(Umbreit), or ad conculcandum projectus, thrown down, to be trodden under foot (Gesenius, that the Ilophal reflective

field

open

etc.), is

this.

would not be found stamping with the

ver. 66,

gives a

expression

more emphatic

sense.

^^0*]^ is

struction of this kind

ver.

Hitzig's

live.

in the first clause with "n,

^^.J?"]?

second with 1»K, can hardly be entertained.

and

in the

double con-

not required either by the repetition of

or by the uniform position of

clauses, as

a concise

for although lying in thy blood, in which thou

;

proposal to connect

compared with

before

^^'"0'^2

Kings xx. 18 and

''^n

in both

Isa. xxvii. 5.

la the description of the real fact breaks through the

The word

allegory.

God

""^n,

live,

was

The

resumed immediately.

child

grew

visibly fulfilled in

But the

the innumerable multiplication of Israel.

(•"'^'i,

as in

allegory

Gen.

xxi.

to enter into a thing, as in ver. 8

supposes).

charms, for

D''''^y '•'ly, D"'''ny is

not the plural of

editions,

in, as

Hitzig

""ly

but according to the

;

with the tone upon the

equivalent to Ci^ny, a dual

cannot mean ornament in ciii. 5,

not to proceed

not most beautiful ornament, or highest

and most of the

penultima,

;

Deut. XXX. 16), and came into ornament of cheeks (Nia with

Chetib

be taken

We prefer the former,

Live.' "

wouldst inevitably bleed to death, yet thou shalt

"i»k,

'n!'?*^?

which

or with "^ i»N1: I said to thee, " In thy blood live;"

^^n

because

T]?

has no force

feet,

In the clause

allegorical description.

" I said to thee in thy blood,

or,

as the objec-

;

namely, that a new-born child thrown into

written twice, the question arises whether

with

to the objection

therefore prefer the

meaning, treading oneself, or stanjping

tion offered to this,

used for

the cheek," which

form

so that

'^^V

this case, but, as in Ps. xxxix. 9

and

;

the traditional meaning (cf. Ges.

Ornament of cheeks is youthful freshness and beauty of face. The clauses which follow describe the arrival |i33, when applied to the breasts, means to expand, of puberty. Thes. p. 993).

lit.

to raise oneself up.

"iyB>

= wh^i

"ij?*^,

pubes.

The

descrip-

CHAP. XYI.

201

6-14.

tlon given in these verses refers to the preservation

vellous multiplication of Israel in Egypt,

grew

Israel

(D'ly

abstract sense of nakedness to give

where the sons of

under the divine blessing.

into a nation

was quite naked and bare

adjectives

and bareness, used in the place of

Naked and bare

Nakedness represents deprivation of

gracious revelations of God.

grown up

and chose

for

His

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver.

His bride the

womanhood, and with

love.

precisely defined as

spread

my wing

nakedness. ii.

(of.

" I swore

Ruth

iii.

C^M

9),

at Sinai.

i.e.

in other words,

;

and thereby covered thy and

His wife.

i.e.

into

of Israel as

Vers. 9 sqq. describe

and Deut.

5, 6,

adorning, and maintenance of

the bride prepares herself for the wedding Israel

blemishes and impurities which adhered to

from

rinsing from the blood

how Jehovah provided

washing and anointing, so did the Lord cleanse

The

Hos.

fidelity (cf.

represented as a marriage

covenant (compare Ex. xxiv. 8 with xix.

for the purification, clothing,

the lappet of

by the adoption is

thy

tJPiy,

ny, the time of conjugal

to thee," sc. love

the possession of Jehovah, which

for ^^^).

contracted mar-

21, 22), and entered into a covenant with thee,

"HJ^N

glorious,

The Lord then went who had already

whom He

over thee,

that gracious connection formed

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

possession.

virgin,

garment, which also served as a counterpane I married thee

(Hitzig).

state of nature, destitute of the

by the conclusion of the covenant

riage

Egypt"

the blessings of salva-

as the people. of

Egypt, Israel was living in a

time,

all

which the Lord endowed Israel and made

had adopted

past again,

are

destitute of either clothing or

still

of the people in the wilderness attached to

in the

This implies something more than " the poverty

ornaments.

after

Still it

and nny are substantives

greater emphasis).

figurative expressions for

tion with

and mar-

must not be understood

from the birth.

its

as specially

referring either to the laws of purification given to the nation (Hitzig), or as relating solely to the purification effected

covenant

sacrifice

(Havernick).

embraces

all

by the

that the

Lord

;

202

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

did for the purifying of the people from the pollution of sin, i.e.

for

The

sanctification.

its

anointing with

powers of the Spirit of God, which flowed

The

divine covenant of grace.

and adorning with

and glory of

that promote the heauty

described as

made

were accustomed

clothe

comm. on Ex.

l^n^,

themselves.

'^^\P.f

embroidered

The word

used here for a fine

which ornamental sandals were made :

the headband

;

for

^^n

this

the technical expression for

winding round of the turban-like headdress

the binding or

Ex. xxix. 9; Lev.

ch. xxiv. 17;

by the Targum covering with

clothing

" I bound thee round with byssus "

a kind of morocco.

(cf.

the gifts

all

The

probably the sea-cow, Manati (see

xxv. 5).

description of leather of

refers to

life.

of the costliest materials with which queens

cloth (Ps. xlv. 15).

the

from the

a wealthy lady or

equipment of Israel with

princess, points to the

indicates the

clothing with costly garments,

the jewellery of

all

oil

to Israel

viii.

13),

to the headdress of the priests. ''^'^,

and

applied

Consequently

distinguished from clothing, can only

refer to covering with the veil, one of the principal articles of

a woman's

The

toilet.

dir.

\ey.

""^'D

(vers.

explained by the Rabbins as signifying

render

According

Tpv)(a'inov.

formed by the

LXX.:

tum, ut pilorum

quod taniae

silk.

Jerome,

10 and 13)

this

LXX.

The

word

subtilitatis fuerit vestimen-

capillorum tenuitatem habere credatur.

The

jewellery included not only armlets, nose-rings, and ear-rings,

which the daughters of

Israel

were generally accustomed

wear, but also necklaces and a crown, as ornaments worn by princesses

and queens.

For

T*?"!,

see

comm. on Gen.

Ver. 13 sums up the contents of vers. 9-12.

conform

result of the

''K'O

the food

whole

said to

referred to once

^C'E' is

;

xli.

42.

made

and the

have been, that Jerusalem became

exceedingly beautiful, and flourished even to royal dignity.

The

latter

ment

cannot be taken as referring simply to the establish-

of the

monarchy under David, any more than merely

the spiritual sovereignty for which Israel was chosen from the

CHAP. XVI.

very beginning (Ex. xix.

The

beauty,

i.e.

Israel

and the

of priests,

his-

through the Davidic sovereignty.

torical realization of this call

fame of

expression includes both,

kingdom

the call of Israel to be a

viz.

The

5, 6).

203

15-22.

glory, of Israel

became

so great, that the

name or

sounded abroad in consequence among the nations.

was perfect, because the Lord had put His glory upon His

Church.

This, too,

we must

not restrict (as Havernick does) to

the far-sounding fame of Israel on

(Ex. XV. 14 sqq.)

;

departure from Egypt

its

refers pre-eminently to the glory of the theo-

cracy under David and Solomon, the fame of which spread into lands.

all

—Thus had

the nations, but

The

Vers. 15-34.

15-22

vers.

;

its

Israel

been

glorified

its

and

beauty,

didst

—

described as

Ver. 15. But thou didst trust in thy

commit fornication upon thy name, and didst

pour out thy fornication over every one who passed by Ver. 16. Thou didst take of thy

became.

and

•make to thyself spotted heights,

them

take place.

Ver. 17.

ornameiit of

and

make

didst

them;

with

didst

things ichich should not come,

clothes,

and

And

gold and of

And

fed

thee,

came

gave

and

didst

thou didst

to thee, fine flour,

and

I had

which

didst cover them therewith

and my

oil

and my

And my

Ver. 19. oil,

embroidered

thy

take :

given thee,

commit fornication

and honey,

bread,

luherewith

thou didst set before them for a pleasant odour

to pass, is the

saying of' the

me, and didst sacrifice them

Lord Jehovah.

didst give them up, thine

them

devoting them to them.

abominations

this

Ver. 20.

whom

And

thou barest

devour.

Ver. 21. Thou didst slay

fornication too little?

all

didst

which should not

that

thou didst take thy sons and thy daughters, to

clothes,

commit fornication upon

and

silver,

thyself male images,

Ver. 18.

his it

and

thou didst take jewellery of thine

incense thou didst set before them.

which

all

God.

In close

vers. 23-34.

magnitude and extent,

adultery.

its

and nature,

Its origin

apostasy of Israel.

connection with what precedes, this apostasy

whoredom and

God above

did not continue in fellowship with

Was

thy

sons,

and

Ver. 22. Aiid in

and thy fornications thou

didst

not

204

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

remember

and

bare,

days of thy youth, when thou wast' naked and

the

layest

stampmg

glory, of Israel led to

confidence; that

its

and

possessions

in thy blood.

and allowed

conferred upon

itself

its

xxxii.

the

i.e.

the ground

looked upon

beauty,

made

the gifts

and

desert;

for-

with the heathen nations,

traffic

For the

to be seduced to heathen ways.

compare Deut.

fact,

say,

getting the giver, began to

—The

because

fall,

its

15 and Hos.

xiii.

"We

are

inflamed with pride and arrogance, and consequently profane the gifts of God, in which His glory ought to be resplendent ^OK'

(Calvin).

mit fornication Thes. p. 422),

only

'Jin

does not

;

connected with

njT

has neither of these meanings, even in Judg.

It means, " thou didst

xix. 2.

name,

mean either " thou didst comnotwithstanding thy name " (Winer and Ges. or "against thy name" (Havernick) for ?V

i>y

i.e.

we must

commit

not understand

the city of God, but must explain as denoting the

among words,

name,

i.e.

its

beauty.

In the closing

and

"'H"!

stands for

*n^^,

refers to

"isij?"73, ""n^l

because

remaining (compare

''i}\

'H!,

Hos.

ought

the copula

to stand first,

The

vi. 1).

depicted in concrete terms in vers.

made

spotted

its

God.

heights for

—Ver.

16.

With

and

;

still

represented as giving up to idolatry

had received from

This

16-22

with the marriage relation described in vers. 8-13 view, Israel

subject

the beauty became his (cf. Ps. xlv. 12).

is "•£)*;

fornication

accordance with ver. 14,

the heathen on account of '•n^

and only ''i}\

name

as referring to the

it,

the renown, which Israel had acquired

having been dropped from

upon thy

fornication

upon thy name " (Hitzig and Maurer)

in reliance

all

that

the clothes

n^03 stands for ni»3 ^03^

itself.

temples of heights, small temples erected upon heights by the side of the altars (1 fact, see

the

Kings

comm. on

xiii.

Kings

;

2 Kings

iii.

2),

xvii.

xxiii. 7,

for the

which may probably

have consisted simply of tents furnished with carpets. 2 Kings

;

Compare

where the women are described as weaving

tents for Astarte, also the tent-like temples of the Slavonian

— ;

CHAP. XVL tribes in

Germany, which

curtains (see

Mohne on

bamoth Ezekiel speckled

(cf.

3HT

205

and

consisted of variegated carpets

These

Creuzer's Si/mboUk, V. p. 176).

not variegated, but spotted or

riiN7a,

calls

15-22.-i<I

Gen. xxx. 32), possibly with the subordinate idea

of patched (^^??P, Josh. ix. 5), because they used for the carpets

not merely whole garments, but pieces of cloth as well

word being introduced here

commit whoredom upon them,"

The words

'1J1

the

for the purpose of indicating con-

temptuously the worthlessness of such conduct.

temples.

;

i.e.

upon the carpets

Thou

didst

in the tent-

niX3 N? are no doubt relative clauses

but the usual explanation,

which has not occurred, and

not be," after Ex. x. 14, cannot be vindicated, as

it is

will

impossible

to prove either the use of Nis in the sense of occurring or

happening (=

n^n), or

the use of the participle instead of the

preterite in connection with the future.

can only supply one of

this connection

imperfect (Ewald,

ought to be.

The

168c), and, like

form

participial

The participle niN3 in the many senses of the

n\n^j

express that which

riiX3 is evidently

chosen for

the sake of obtaining a paronomasia with niD3: the heights

which should not come

(i.e.

should not be erected)

points back to On^j; ^JWI

'^'!J}\

;

while k^

« what should not happen."

The jewellery of gold and silver was used by Israel W^j idols of the male sex, to commit fornication with

Ver. 17. for

"I3T

Ewald

them.

which were

set

thinks that the allusion

is to

Penates (terapkim),

up in the house, with grnaments suspended upon

them, and worshipped with

lectisternia.

But

there

still

less

do, of

And

allusion to lectisternia here than in ch. xxiii. 41.

no more there

ground for thinking, as Vatke, Movers, and Havernick

Lingam-

or Phallus-worship, of which

find the sli<Thtest trace

among

the Israelites.

it is

impossible to

The arguments

used by Havernick have been already proved by Hitzig to have

no force whatever.

The

context does not point to idols of any

particular kind, but to the

whilst the worship of

many

Moloch

varieties of Baal-worship;

specially

mentioned in vers.

sqq. as being the greatest abomination of the whole.

The

;

206

TUE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

fact that BD^3Q7

them

to set before

{n3,

(the

does not

idols),

refer to lectisternia, but to sacrifices offered as food for the gods, is

indisputably evident from the words nn^3

God

expression for the sacrificial odour ascending to i.

13, etc.).

(ver.

'•n.'l

and

19),

came

the technical

n"'^?,

Lev.

(cf.

to pass {sc. this

abomination), merely serves to give emphatic expression to the disgust which

occasioned (Hitzig).

even content with

—Vers. 20, 21.

And

which God had given her

The

to idols.

revulsion of feeling

produced by the abominations of the Moloch- worship in the expression

^'^^^?.f

that they might devour

question

was

this

;

and

still

there too

little

viii.

little

whoredom?" which

The

in this cormection.

17 and

\0 is rather

Isa. xlix. 6, in the sense of too:

20 and 25)

33, but without

comes out

still

any

little,

The

was that

Chetib

a singular, as in vers. 25 and 29

whereas the Keri has treated

and

idols,

whoredom?"

in thy

thou didst also slaughter thy children to idols? (vers.

shown

in the reproachful

thy whoredom, already described in vers. 16—19, too

TjniJtn

thy children to

a smaller thing than thy

would mean far too used, as in ch.

them

sacrifice

used in a comparative sense, though not to

JO before ^^niJTn is

signify "

thou didst

"was

01?»n,

'riD

not

the adulteress sacrificed the children

this,

as a plural, as in vers. 15, 22,

The

satisfactory ground.

more strongly

indignation

in the description given of these

abominations in ver. 21: "thou didst slay wiy sons" (whereas

whom

in ver.

20 we have simply " thy

me "),

" and didst give them up to them,

them pass through,"

sc.

the

for lustration or februation

fire,

sons,

"*'?J?'!I

fire,

Kings

xxiii. 10).

by making

used here not merely

but for the actual burning

of the children slain as sacrifices, so that "i]?Q? IJ'Sa "i^^vn

thou hast born to 'T'?^'!'?,

equivalent to

the process of burning,

the sacrifices were given to Moloch to devour.

Ezekiel has

the Moloch-worship in his eye in the form which

had assumed

from the times of Ahaz downwards, when the people began burn their children xxiii. 10),

whereas

all

Moloch

(cf.

2 Kings xvi.

3, xxi.

to 6,

that can be proved to have been practised

207

CHAP. XVI. 23-34.

in earlier times

through

by the

Israelites

fire

(compare the remarks on

fire

Lev.

was the passing of children

without either slaying or burning

xviii. 21).

—Amidst

this

;

subject in the

youth, or

its

through the abundance of His

shows the depth of

out of the glorious

This base ingratitude

gifts.

and magnifies

its fall,

22& compare vers. 7 and

comm. on

these abominations Israel did not

all

how the Lord had adopted it deepest wretchedness to be His people, and had made remember

For

guilt.

its

And

came

thee I is the saying

pass after

and

cross road,

— Yer.

Woe^ woe

—Ver. 24.

Thou

didst

thyself high places in all

and

didst disgrace thy beauty,

and

open thy

stretch

for every one that passed by, and didst increase thy whore-

dom.

Ver. 26. Thou didst commit fornication with the sons of

Egypt thy neighbours, great whoredom out

make

didst

—

Ver. 25. Thou didst build thy high places at every

the streets.

feet

all thy wichedness

of the Lord Jehovah

build thyself arches,

ver.

Vers. 23-34. Extent and magnitude of the idolatry. 23.

a februation

my hand

gave thee

against thee,

to the desire

the Philistines,

in flesh,

and

didst

increase thy

Ver. 27. And, behold, I stretched

provoke me.

and diminished those

who

and

thine allowance,

hate thee, the daughters of

who are ashamed of thy lewd way. Ver.

28.

And

thou didst commit fornication with the sons of Asshur, because

thou art never satisfied; and did^t commit fornication with them,

and wast thy

Ver. 29.

also not satisfied.

whoredom

not satisfied.

saying of the

And

thou didst increase

Canaan^ s land, Chaldaea, and even thereby

Ver. 30.

How

Lord Jehovah,

thy heart

ivast

the

that thou doest all this, the doings

Ver.

of a dissolute prostitute. arches at every cross road,

languishing

31.

When

thou buildest thy

and madest thy high places

in every

road, thou wast not like the harlot, since thou despisedst payment,

Ver. 32. The adulterous wife taketh strangers instead of her husband. Ver. 33. Men give presents to all prostitutes ; but thou gavest thy presents to all thy suitors,

and

didst

reward them for coming to

thee from all sides, for fornication with thee.

Ver. 34.

And there

208

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

was in

thee the very opposite

men did

and payment was not given

the

women

not go whoring after thee.

^r'y"^"''? ^"iin^)

commenced

to thee,

the picture of

in ver. 22,

whoredom,

in thy

In that thou thou wast

tJie

very opposite.

all sin, all evil,

must

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

the wide spread of idolatry,

placed in the relation of chronological

sequence to the description already given of the idolatry

For

that

payment}

givest

first exist

before

itself.

The

can spread.

spreading of idolatry was at the same time an increase of apostasy from God.

This

not to be sought, however, in the

which

fact that Israel forsook the sanctuary,

pointed for itself it

as the scene of

It consisted rather in this, that

erected idolatrous altars and

all

ap-

His gracious presence, and built

idol-temples (Kliefoth).

and cross-roads

God had

little

(vers. 24, 25),

temples at

all

street-corners

and committed adultery with

heathen nations (vers. 26, 28, 29), and could not be induced

to relinquish idolatry either

by the

27), or

qnjivpzi is the

uselessness

The

(ver.

such conduct (vers. 32-34).

whole of the apostasy from the Lord depicted

which prevailed more and more as idolatry

in vers. 15-22,

spread.

by the chastisements of God

picture of this extension of idolatry

introduced

with woe! woe! to indicate at the outset the fearful judgment

which Jerusalem was bringing upon clamation of woe

inserted parenthetically

forms the apodosis to

^'^'11

taken as general terms

;

thereby.

itself

in ver. 23.

but, as the

for

;

ex-

(ver.

24)

and non are to be

singular

plural ^^nbi in ver. 39 plainly shows, 33

""ii^rii

The

with the

'H??

a collective word.

Havernick has very properly called attention to the analogy between

and nap in Num. xxv.

which

used there to

denote an apartment furnished or used for the service of BaalPeor.

nai?^

a vault; so arched, a

33,

hump

from

331?, signifies literally

from

333, is literally

or back, and hence

that which

arched,

curved or

used here for buildings

erected for idolatrous purposes, small temples built on heights,

which were probably so for fornication.

The

called to distinguish

them

ancient translations suggest

as chapels this,

viz.

CHAP. XVI.

LXX. thus

evOa

"Trpoaycoyiovj

and

oiKTjfia TTopviKov

word rdmdli

sit

7roppa<s rpicpeiv

Hoi

elwOaai ; Vulg.

signifies artificial heights,

upon eminences, commonly

altars built

primary

which Polycliron. explains

eKOe/xa,

Ta<;

lupanar and prostibulam.

209

23-34.

i.e.

The

bdmoth.

called

probably chosen here with an allusion to the

signification, height, as

Jerome has

said

quod excelsus

ut volentihus fornicari procul appareat fornicationis locus et

nan necesse

sit

The

quaeri.

the idolatry and

26-29 by a

individualized in vers.

facts.

intercourse

increase of the

intercourse with

illicit

whoredom,

i.e.

heathenish ways,

specification of historical

cannot agree with Hitzig in restricting the

Egypt

with

(ver.

26),

Asshur

(ver.

illicit

and

28),

Clialdaea (ver. 29) to political apostasy, as distinguished from

There

the religious apostasy already depicted. indicate

any such

Under

distinction.

nothing to

the figure of whoredom,

both in what precedes and what follows, the inclination of Israel to heathen political, is

in all

Egypt

its

extent, both

stands

first

;

and

religious

for the apostasy of

from the Lord commenced with the worship of the golden

Israel calf,

ways

embraced.

and the longing

the wilderness for the fleshpots of

From time immemorial Egypt was most deeply sunken heathenish worship of nature. The sons of Egypt are

Egypt. in the

therefore described, in accordance with the allegory, as

magni came {hdzdr^ a euphemism

;

cf. ch. xxiii.

ing to the correct explanation of Theodoret

Tcov elBdoXwv Bepair^ia TrpoaTerrjKora';, ovroL

rfi

20),

"^'^3 'h^}^

i.e.

accord-

jxeB' virep^o\ri<i

yap koI rpdjoxj^

Kol ^6a<i Kol irpo^ara, Kvva^ re KaX iriO^KOvi Kol KpoKoBeLXov^

The way

which

God

punished this erring conduct was, that, like a husband

who

KoX

X^â&#x201A;Źi<s

Koi UpaKa<i irpocreKvvrja-av.

endeavours by means of chastisement to induce his faithless wife to return,

diminished the supply of food, clothing,

etc.

{chog, as in Prov. xxx. 8), intended for the wife (for the fact

compare Hos.

ii.

10)

to attain to the glory

been conferred upon

EZEK.

;

this

did by " not allowing Israel

and power which would otherwise have it

;

that

to say,

by not permitting

; ;

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

210.

acquire the undisturbed and undivided possession of Canaan,

but giving

power and scorn of the princes of the

to the

rwn

Philistines" (Kliefoth).

|n3,

any one up

to give

The daughters

desire of another.

to the

of the Philistines are the

Philistian states, corresponding to the representation of Israel as an adulterous wife.

principal foes,

The

Philistines are

because Israel

mentioned as the

completely into their power at

fell

Sam.

the end of the period of the Judges (cf. Judg. xiii.-xvi.; 1 iv.)

and they are referred

;

of Israel, as having been

the

Israelite's,

to here, for the deeper humiliation

ashamed of the

licentious conduct of

because they adhered to their gods, and did not

exchange them for others as Israel had done (compare Jer. ii.

nST (ver. 27)

10, 11).

which

Lev.

xviii. 17.

Kings

that

dom sober

applied to the sin of profligacy,

Israel

was not improved by

Ahaz, who sought help from the

xvi. 7 sqq.)

;

and even with

of it,

Judah by seeking the so as to lead

Q''JTri

(nJT,

this

with accus.).

satisfied

brought upon the king-

friendship of Assyria did not

to give

Assyrians

was not

this it

to say, the serious consequences

heathen and their gods.

from

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; But

way,

in apposition to ^3'}'1: thy

committed adultery with Asshur also from

times of

the

Zimmdh

zimmdh.

chastisement.

up seeking

ver. 28, ^^

''^l^

The former

from the

for help

distinguished

denotes the immoral

pursuit of a person for the purpose of procuring his favour

the latter, adulterous intercourse with him,

has been secured.

The thought

when

of the verse

sought the favour of Assyria, because

and continued

this

was not

his favour :

Israel

satisfied

with

illicit

intercourse with Egypt,

yet

did not find satisfaction or sufficiency even in this, but

increased

Chaldaea.

Canaan

its

cultivate

adultery ^^''^f? il'?| ri^"''^, to the Canaan's-land J'nsi is not the proper name of the land of

IV^a

here, but

an appellative designation applied to Chaldaea

{Kasdim) or Babylonia,

as in ch. xvii.

4 (Raschi).

tion of the words, as signifying the land of

by the fact that an

The

Canaan,

allusion to Canaanitish idolatry

explana-

precluded

and

inter-

;

211

CHAP. XVI. 28-34.

course after the mention of Assliur would be out of place, and

would not coincide with the

historical order of things

since

;

cannot be shown that " a more general diffusion of the religious customs of Canaan took place after the Assyrian era."

word

And

more decidedly precluded by the introduction of the

it is still

'^9''1^?j

which cannot possibly mean as far

as,

or unto,

Chaldaea, and can only be a more precise definition of

The

jyja.

only thing about which a question can be raised,

the reason

why

Chaldaea

whether

;

the epithet it

should have been applied to

}j;23

merely related

to the

commercial

spirit,

which Babylon was by no means behind the Canaanitish

Tyre and Sidon, or whether

allusion

and immorality of Canaan.

idolatry

also made to the The former is by no

was

we find that in ch. xvii. 4 " the land designated "a city of merchants" {rokliHim).

means

to be excluded, as

Canaan" is But we must not exclude the of

Belus- and

11 tta-

latter either,

as in the

and Astarte-worship of Canaan had degenerated

of the Baal-

into shameless unchastity (cf. Herodotus,

inasmuch

worship of Babylon the voluptuous character

ver. 30, the contents of vers.

199).

16-29 are summed up

in the

verdict which the Lord pronounces upon the harlot and adulteress

" yet

participle

Kal

in the Fual,

how

languishing

air. \ey.

and that

thy heart

^^^^.

(as

since the verb only occurs elsewhere

;

in the sense of faded or

pining away)

can only signify a morbid pining or languishing, or the craving of

immodest

form T\\id}

nzip

desire,

also utt. \ey.

nD?t;^,

zondhy one

which has grown into a

powerful,

;

but

commanding

who knows no

The

disease.

analogous to the plural ;

an epithet applied to

limit to her actions, unrestrained

^ Hitzig objects to the two forms, which do not occur elsewhere and with the help of the Sept. rendering ri Itxdu rvii/ dvyccripx aov, which is a mere guess founded upon the false reading T\r\X> n^DN flD, he adopts the ;

conjectural reading !|ri2^ n^lpX HD,

by which he

enriches the

"what hope is there for thy daughter?"

Hebrew language with a new word

the prophecy contained in this chapter with a thought which foreign to

it,

and altogether unsuitable.

(ni?CiN), is

and

completely

212

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

hence in Arabic, insolent, shameless. independent sentence, which

Ver. 31 contains an

facilitates the

to the

transition

thought expanded in vers. 32-34, namely, that Jerusalem had surpassed

ail

as dependent

upon the

protasis in ver. 30,

draggling style of expression, but the

31&

ver.

If we take ver. 31 we not only get a very new thought expressed in

other harlots in her whoredoms.

reduced to a merely secondary idea; whereas the

expansion of

32 sqq. shows that

in vers.

And

feature into the address.

if this

cannot be taken as co-ordinate with as the apodosis

"Ti^^y,

the case,

For commentary on

the plural suffix attached to ^^01333, see the

The

ch. vi. 8. {vid.

what

infinitive Dpjpp

Ewald,

Â§

payment words,

answers to the Latin gerund in

237c and 2S0d), indicating wherein, or in

respect, the harlot

prostitute

thou wast not

thou disdainest payment."

like the (ordinary) harlot, since

ndo

"'^l^^'^"^j?1

but must be construed

" in thy building of rooms

new

introduces a

Jerusalem differed from an ordinary

namely, in the fact that she disdained to receive

;

That

for her prostitution.

meaning

this is the

rendered indisputable by vers. 32-34.

of the

But the

majority of expositors have taken Ijnx DviP as indicating the point of comparison between Israel and other harlots,

what respect

defining in

then, as this thought

at variance with

attempted to remove the explanations.

Most

what

them

resort to the explanation

who

still

more,^

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;an

;

have

thou

disdain to receive the

offered for their prostitution, in the

obtaining

follows,

and

discrepancy by various untenable

wast not like the other prostitutes,

payment

i.e.

Israel resembled other prostitutes

hope of thereby

explanation which imports into the

^ Jerome adopts this rendering non facta es quasi meretrix fastidio augens pretium, and gives the following explanation " thou hast not imi:

tated the cunning prostitutes,

who

are accustomed to raise the price of lust

increasing the difficulties, and in this

greater frenzy." tion

" thou

offered

way

to excite their lovers to

Rosenmiiller and Maurer have adopted a similar explana-

difPerest greatly

them by their

harlots, who despise the payment may get still more for thou acceptest

from other

lovers, that

they

any reward, being content with the lowest payment offer a price to thine own lovers."

;

yea, thou dost even

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

CHAP. XVI.

213

23-34.

words a thought that has no existence in them

Haver-

all.

nick seeks to fix upon D^p, by means of the Aramaean, the

meaning

cry out (crying out payment), in opposition to the

ordinary meaning of u?p, to disdain, or ridicule, in which sense

Ezekiel also uses the noun

Hitzig

np?!? in ch. xxii. 4.

back upon the handy method of altering the text

;

and

Kliefoth gives to ? the imaginary meaning " so far as,"

falls

finally, i.e.

" to

such a degree that," which cannot be defended either through

Ex. xxxix. 19 or from Deut. xsiv.

which the

infinitive construct

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;With

with

p is used,

the loose

we grant

way

that the

words are ambiguous, and might have the meaning which the majority of the commentators have discovered in them this

view

idea introduced

iJOK D?pp

ject of the sentence, "

subject

;

but

by no means necessary, inasmuch as the subordinate

compared.

may

tJiou,'^

Only

refer quite as well to the sub-

as to the zondh with

whom

in the latter case the I^HN D?i?

the

would

apply to other harlots as well as to Israel; whereas in the

former

and shows

applies to Israel alone,

Israel did not resemble ordinary prostitutes. tion

which followed was a

sufficient safe^juard against mistake.

this explanation adulteresses are

and then common be taken, as

what it was that But the explana-

mentioned

prostitutes (vers. 33, 34).

first

(ver. 32),

Ver. 32 must not

has been by the majority of commentators, as an

exclamation, or a reproof addressed to the adulteress Jerusalem:

thou adulterous wife, that taketh strangers instead of her

husband

Such an exclamation

nection at

all.

But the verse

account, as Hitzig proposes.

as this does not suit the con-

not to be struck out on that

It has simply to be construed in

another way, and taken as a statement of what adulteresses do (Kliefoth).

They

take strangers instead of their husband, and

seek their recompense in the simple change, and the pleasure of being with other men.

n'^'''X

nnri,

lit.

under her husband,

i.e.

as a wife subject to her husband, as in the connection with HJT in ch. xxiii. 5 and Hos. iv. 12 (see

Vers. 33, 34.

Common

thecomm. on Num.

prostitutes give themselves

v. 19).

for pre-

214

THE PROPHECIES OP EZEKIEL

sents

that

but Israel, on the contrary, gave presents to

;

did the very opposite to

its

lovers, so

other harlots, and the practice

all

of ordinary prostitutes was left far behind by that of Israel.

The change

of forms

and

i<^3

175

(a present)

probably to be

explained simply on the ground that the form Uli was length-

ened into p3 with a consonant as the termination, because the suffix

could be attached more easily to the other.

reverse, the opposite,

unheard harlot.

with the present context, something

i.e.

now

Israel has

punish

will

been worse than

notwithstanding

shame shall be uncovered before

all

its

all

the nations (vers. 36-42), and

According

manifest (vers. 43-52).

the threat of punishment divides

manner

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

In the

shall be

made

to these points of view,

two parts in the

itself into

first (vers.

35-42) we have,

first

36), a recapitulation of the guilty conduct described

16-34

in vers.

the heathen,

election, so that its

the justice of the judgment to be inflicted upon

all (in ver.

The

Jerusalem with her abominations.

turns to an announcement of the punishment.

Vers. 35-52.

following

him

has thus fulfilled the task appointed

in ver. 2, to charge

Jehovah

the

which never occurred in the case of any other

of,

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Ezekiel

address

^S[i,

;

and secondly, an announcement of the punish-

ment corresponding to the guilt, as the punishment of adultery and murder retribution

(vers.

the second part justice of this

35.

(vers.

its infliction,

39-42).

(vers.

43-52) there follows a proof of the

judgment.

Vers. 35-42.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Ver.

37 and 48), and a picture of

for the enormities committed

The punishment

Therefore,

harlot,

will

correspond to the

sin.

hear the word of Jehovah!

Ver. 36. Thus saith the Lord Jehovah, Because thy brass has been lavished, lovers,

and thy shame exposed

and because of

according

the blood

all the idols

in thy

whoredom

thou hast pleased,

with all

whom

thy

and

of thy sons, which thou hast given them

Ver. 37. Therefore, behold, 1 will gather together

whom

xcith

thine abominations,

and

all

thou hast hated,

whom

and

;

all thy lovers,

thou hast loved, together

will gather

than against

thee

CHAP. SVI.

from round

may the

aboutf

and

will expose thy

shame.

see all thy

shame

/ will

Ver. 38.

215

35-42-

them^ that they

judge thee according

judgment of adulteresses and murderessesj and make

thee into

And I tvill give

thee into

blood of wrath and jealousy.

Ver. 39.

may destroy may strip tliy

their hand, that they

heights

that they

;

thy arches,

and pull down thy

clothes off thee,

and

take thy

splendid jewellery, and leave thee naked and bare.

And

they shall bring

and

cut thee in pieces loith their sicoi'ds.

shall

up a company against

burn thy houses with

and thou

;

and

of many women.

before the eyes

whoredom

fire^

And I

quiet

jealousy

from

thee,

wilt also give

stone thee,

Ver. 41. A7id they

judgment upon

payment no more.

thee^

I may

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; In the brief summary of

and

Thus do 1 put an end

fury toward that

execute

thee,

Ver. 40.

repose

and

loill

her shame

Ver. 42.

and vex myself no more.

the guilt of the whore, the followis

(1) the pouring out of her brass and the exposure of ;

(2) the idols of her abominations (with bv before

the noun, corresponding to

before the infinitive)

\V'l

(3) the

;

blood of her sons, with the preposition 3, according indicate the measure of her punishment.

mentioned as constituting the

The

thy

away my

turn

ing objects are singled out, as those for which she

punished

thee

first is,

first

Two

to,

things are

ground of punishment.

" because thy brass has been poured out."

Most

of the commentators have explained this correctly, as referring to the fact that Israel

from the Lord, (vers.

had squandered the possessions received

viz. gold, silver, jewellery, clothing,

10-13 and 16-19), upon

connected with

this is

idolatry.

The

and food

only difficulty

the use of the word n^chosheth, brass or

copper, in the general sense of

money

or metal, as there are no

other passages to support this use of the word.

the same

time, the objection raised to this, namely, that n^chosheth cannot signify

money, because the Hebrews had no copper

coin, is

assertion without proof, since all that can be affirmed with cer-

tainty

is,

money is not menOld Testament, with the exception of

that the use of copper or brass as

tioned anywhere in the

216

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

But we cannot

the passage before us.

from

this that

began to stamp

was not then

infer with certainty

in use.

soon as the

coins, bronze or copper coins

Hebrews

were stamped as

and specimens of these are

well as the silver shekels,

still

existence from the time of the Maccabees, with the inscription

" Simon, prince of Israel

by Werlhof,

transl.

these coins were in

Cavedoni, Bibl. Numismatiky

(cf.

Judging from

sqq.).

their size,

probability worth a whole, a half,

all

quarter gerah (Caved, pp. 50, 51).

and a

then, the silver shekel

If,

of the value of 21 grains contained twenty gerahs in Moses' time, and they had already silver pieces of the weight of a

shekel and half shekel, whilst quarter shekels are also

men-

tioned in the time of Samuel, there would certainly be metal

and

coins in use of the value of a gerah for the purposes of trade

commerce, and these would

in all probability be

made of brass, penny would

copper, or bronze, as silver coins of the value of a

have been found too small. Consequently it cannot be positively

may have been

denied that brass or copper

used as coin for the

payment of a gerah, and therefore

that the

may have been

applied to money.

word n'chosheih

therefore adhere to

the explanation that brass stands for money, which has been already adopted by the

LXX.

and Jerome

;

and we do so

the more, because every attempt that has been

another meaning upon pretation (Rabb.), or is

whether by

all

to fasten

allegorical inter-

from the Arabic, or by altering the

text,

not only arbitrary, but does not even yield a meaning that

suits the context.

lavished.

the of

n'chosJieth,

made

'^ISE'n,

be poured out â&#x20AC;&#x201D; squandered or

the squandering of the possessions bestowed

Lord upon His congregation,

its

shame,

i.e.

the disgraceful sacrifice of the honour and

dignity of the people of God, of which Israel had guilty

its

whoredom with

and adopting heathen ways. thy lovers (/^ standing for

Ewald,

there was added the exposure

Â§ 217i, p. 561),

idols, i.e.

^^?l|^'P~''V, ?i?,

made

itself

falling into idolatry,

to (towards),

i.e.

according to later usage

with vid.

be explained after the analogy of

CHAP. XVI. 7K

njT,

Lord,

But

was not enough

their idols

Israel also

;

made

of logs of abominations,

honey

of idols,

i.e.

but gave to

this,

Lord

will

by slaying

Because

the sin.

its

all

the

shall

ii.

Jerusalem

crime.

had committed adultery, by

Israel)

explanation nations shall

to adultery

had committed

bloodshed.

;

has

be given up

The

12.

upon Jerusalem the punishment due (i.e.

now

The heathen

of the figure follows in ver. 38.

into idolatry

The

Isz'ael

the uncovering of the naked-

ness as a punishment, compare Hos.

with

them execute the judgment.

will correspond

altogether into their power.

Jehovah

satisfied

gather them together, both friend and foe,

cultivated friendship with the heathen,

inflict

its

Therefore (vers. 37 sqq.) the

(ver. 20).

against Jerusalem, and let

punishment

kinds

hung

uncover the shame of His people before

will

nations.

was not even

all

and incense, meal and

idols the blood of its sons,

its

Moloch

children to

upon which

set oil

And

18 and 19).

(vers.

heathen and

to the

for itself niayin vl?ii"73j

ornaments, and before which

i.e.

to sacrifice the gifts of the

His possessions and His glory,

i.e.

217

commit adultery towards a person,

as signifying to

with him.

35-42.

falling

and bloodshed, by the

this

and

twofold

away from

sacrifices offered

The punishment for adultery was death by stoning comm. on ver. 40) and blood demanded blood (Gen.

to Moloch. (see the ix.

;

Ex.

xxi. 12).

'lil

blood in thee" (Ros.), or

anger "

(De Wette, Maurer,

does not mean, " I will put

^""ririil

will etc.)

cause thy blood to be shed in ;

but I make thee into blood

;

which we must not soften down, as Hitzig proposes, into cause thee to bleed.

The thought

rather the following

be turned into blood, so that nothing but blood thee,

and that the blood of fury and jealousy,

of the wrath

and jealousy of God (compare

end the heathen and

riiD"i,

will destroy all the

may

ver. 42).

left of

working

this

objects of idolatry (33

ver. 39, as in vers. 24, 25), then take

thou shalt

as the

from the harlot

both clothes and jewellery, and leave her naked,

Jerusalem and lay

i.e.

plunder

waste, and, lastly, execute upon her the

THE PBOPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

â&#x20AC;˘218

punishment of

by stoning and by sword

deatli

The words ^?VX}, they bring may be explained from the

destroy both city and kingdom.

(up) against thee an assembly, ancient

mode

in oUier words,

;

'lil

of administering, justice, according to which the

popular assembly cases of adultery

(qd/idl,

and

Prov. v. 14) sat in judgment on

cf.

capital crimes,

and executed the sentence,

as the law for stoning expressly enjoins (Lev. xx. 2

XV. 36

Deut.

;

But they

xxii.

;

compare

;

Num.

Bibl. Archdol. II. p. 257).

who would march

are also applicable to the foes,

against Jerusalem (for qdhdL in this sense, compare ch. xvii. 17).

The punishment

of adultery (according to Lev. xx. 10) was

death by stoning, as we XX.

may

see

24 compared with John

viii.

from Lev. xx. 2-27 and Deut. This was the usual mode

when

of capital punishment under the Mosaic law,

judicial

sentence of death was pronounced upon individuals (see

The

Archdol. II. p. 264).

other form of punishment, slaying

by the sword, was adopted when there were many criminals

be put to death, and was not decapitation, but cutting down or

hew

stabbing (bdthaq, to

Archdol. severe

I.e.).

The

pieces) with the

punishment of death was rendered more

by the burning

of the corpse (Lev. xx. 14, xxi. 9).

Consequently the burning of the houses in ver. 41 regarded as intensifying the punishment light that the threat

many

;

and

to be regarded, that the

it is

The many

are the

tion of

Jerusalem or Israel as an unfaithful wife.

heathen nations, according to the descrip-

the greatest punishment to an adulterous

before the eyes

(Kliefoth).

its

sin

This

before the

of other

punishment

severest portion of Israel's

exposed in

same

judgment would

women

her sin

also to

in the

many women.'

be executed "before the eyes of

sword (see

the

way

eyes

which

woman women

;

be, that

all

God

"As

it is

to be exposed so it

will

the

will stand

other nations"

will

put an end to

the fornication, and appease His wrath and jealousy upon the harlot (vers. 41 i

and 42).

JT^'f'"?,

cease to be or do anything.

For

with

|p,

ver. 42,

to cause a person to

compare ch.

v. 13.

CHAP. XVI. 43-52.

219

the execution of the judgment the jealousy ("^^f?) of the injured husband is appeased.

Vers. 43-52. This judgment

perfectly just

not only forgotten the grace of

God

its

in its election, but has even surpassed both

I also

I may

that

loho casteth off her sisters,

Your mother

And

not do that which

;

who

lorong above all

as the mother, so

sister,

who

and thou

husbands and

only

art the

their children.

smaller than thou,

Ver. 46.

;

who

dwelleth

Ver. 47. But thou

her daughters.

and done according

loays

their

little

;

and your father an Amorite.

Sodom with

abominations a

children

Samaria with her daughters, who dwelleth

not walked in

Iter

cast off their

Hittite,

and thy

at thy right, is

hast

husband and

thy great sister

at thy left

;

Ver. 45. Tliou art the daughter of thy mother,

the daughter.

of thy

in all this

thy head, is the saying of the

proverbs will use this provei'b concerning thee

sister

Ver. 44. Behold, every one that useth

abominations.

thine

way upon

give thy

Lord Jehovah,

Samaria and Sodom

days of thy youth, and hast raged against

behold,

for Israel has

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver. 43. Because thou hast not remembered

in its abominations. the

;

manifested towards

their

thou didst act more corruptly than

As J

they in all thy ways.

Ver. 48.

Lord Jehovah, Sodom

thy sister, she with her daughters hath not

the saying

live,

done as thou hast done with thy daughters.

was

this

the

of food, and

sin of

Sodom, thy

rest undisturbed

the

Ver. 49. Behold,

pride, superabundance

sister:

had

she with her daughters,

and

hand of the poor and needy she did not hold. Ver. 50. They were haughty, and did abominations before me; and I

the

swept them away when hath not sinned

thine abominations

righteous

all

I saw

the

half of thy svis

more than thine

Ver. 51.

it.

they,

;

And

Sanmina, she

thou hast increased

and hast made thy

abominations

xchich

sisters

thou hast done.

Ver. 52. Bear, then, also thy shame, ichich thou hast adjudged to

thy sisters.

Through thy

more abominably than thou.

they,

thoUf then, also

put

sins,

which thou hast committed

they become to

more righteous than

shame, and bear thy disgrace,

220

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

as thou to

]V)

Jiast justified

thy sisters.

in ver. 36, introduces a

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

which corresponds

'iK'x \Vl,

new

Most of

train of thought.

the commentators take ver. 43 in connection with what precedes,

and place the pause

shows that

judgment

wrong.

this is

recapitulation,

But the

at ver. 44.

in vers. 35-42, the

the contrary, the punishment

43 simply contained a

ver.

punishment would be announced

By the

justice of the divine procedure,

"thou

which

end the guilt of Jerusalem didst not

""nriJ,

vindication of the

w^e find in vers.

sqq.

mentioned once more

remember the days of thy youth,"

thou didst experience in thy youth

i.e.

what

the misery in which thou

;

and out of which I rescued thee and exalted

didst find thyself,

thee to glory (vers. 4-14).

was added rage

this there

which manifested

against Jehovah, p TJn, to

perfect

exhibited as a completed fact,

and further reasons are then assigned

this

"'ijinj

or a concluding summary, of the threat of

in the future tense, as it is in ver. 37.

perfect

idolatrous acts,

itself

be excited upon or against any person, to rage; thus

in Hilhpael

compare ch.

ix.

The last

10.

clause of ver. 43,

been misinterpreted in many ways. pointing, WB'i;

the second person

a suitable meaning.

For

nST HK'^

'W1

According but

;

mi2

For

with ^N in 2 Kings xix. 27, 28.

this

'TT'B'J?

ij^-n

N7l,

|n3,

has

to the Masoretic

does not yield

not used in the sense

adopted by the Targum, upon which the Masoretic pointing

undoubtedly based, and which Raschi, Kimchi, and Rosenmiiller retain, viz. cogitationem facere

any thought concerning

all

" thou hast not taken

thy abominations,"

i.e.

hast not felt

any remorse.

The

wrong, and

used for the most part of unnatural offences

(cf.

Judg. XX. 6

;

true meaning

Hos.

vi. 9).

There

for retaining this meaning, that nsT nisT

= niSip)

all

the more reason

(apart from the plural

only occurs sensu malo, and for the most part in

the sense of an immoral action (yid.

sequently

commit a crime, a

we should have

Job

xxxi. 11).

adopt the rendering

longer committest this immorality above

all

Con-

and thou no

thine abominations.

—

CHAP. XVI.

Bat

in that case not only

and the

Israel

would liy have

be supplied, hut a

would be drawn between the abominations committed

distinction

221

43-52.

sin of lewdness,

adultery,

i.e.

which

quite

foreign to the connection and to the contents of the entire

chapter

according to these, the abominations of Israel

for,

;

We must there-

consisted in adultery or the sin of lewdness.

fore take

^JT'b'j;

as the first person, as

Symm. and Jerome have

from Lev.

done, and explain the words

xix. 29,

by a father of the whoredom of a daughter

toleration

signated as zimmdh.

we adopt

He has punished the spiritual whoredom of that He may not add another act of wrong to the

tions of Israel

by allowing such immorality

did not punish,

The concluding

Israel.

tion of Israel

fits

Israel, in

abomina-

go on unpunished.

accessory to the sins of

characteristic of the moral degrada-

in very appropriately here in vers.

which Jerusalem

de-

would commit a zimmdh Himself,

would make Himself

in other words,

Jehovah

this interpretation,

says that

order

where the

compared

sqq.,

Samaria and Sodom, both of

which had been punished long ago with destruction on account of their sins.

This characteristic

proverbial sayings. as in

Num.

xxi. 27) will

her daughter. strikes

expressed in the form of

Every one who speaks in proverbs

Her abominable

life

so conspicuous, that

every one, and furnishes occasion for proverbial sayings.

nsx may be a feminine form of CX, as nsp or

(nioshel,

then say over thee: as the mother, so

may

also be a

Raphe form

for

r\i^^

mother, so her (the mother's) daughter note, with § 21, 22^).

the representative of

of 3? (ver. 30)

;

as her (the daughter's) (cf.

Ewald,

174g,

The daughter is of course Jerusalem, as Israel. The mother is the Canaanitish

race of Hittites and Amorites, whose immoral nature had been

adopted by Israel relation

further.

added

Some

(cf. vers.

3 and Abh).

In ver. 45 the

to the maternal, to carry out the difficulty arises

sisterly

thought

still

here from the statement, that

the mothers and the sisters despise their husbands and their children, or put

them away.

For

unquestionable that the

222

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

nVa belongs

participle

relative clause I^W

to ^^K,

and not

to na,

which applies

">K'N,

husband of the wife Jerusalem

from

the

tlie

parallel

The

sisters.

Jehovah, as the matrimonial

head of the covenant nation or congregation of

The

Israel.

children of the wives, viz. the mother, her daughter, and her sisters,

here attributed to

no other proofs of to

and

among the Samaria and Sodom

its

from which

;

whom

not only of the

^ninx (ver. 45)

and

ver.

regarded

from Jehovah, and Jehovah

Israelites,

but of the heathen

also.^

a plural noun, as the relative clause which

clearly show,

and therefore

a contracted

form of T.Oinx (ver. 51) or ^ni^nx (ver. 52; vid. Ewald,

Samaria and Sodom are called

p. 538).

made

the mother

evident that Ezekiel

idolatry generally as apostasy

follows

though we have

also,

Tiie husband,

and

have put away, cannot therefore be any other than

sisters

God

early Canaanites,

existence there than the references

Old Testament.

in the

Jehovah

the

The

are the children offered in sacrifice to Moloch.

worship of Moloch was found

sisters of

ยง 212^>,

Jerusalem,

not because both cities belonged to the same mother-land of

Canaan, for the origin of the sideration here at

all,

and the

cities

does not come into con-

represent the kingdoms, as

the additional words " her daughters," that of a land or

kingdom dependent upon the

sisters of

by the same

spirit

Jerusalem in a of idolatry.

belonging to

Samaria

Sodom

animated

called the great

the smaller

sister.

not equivalent to the older and the younger, for Samaria

was not more deeply sunk Grotius)

;

than Sodom, nor was

in idolatry

her idolatry more ancient than that of

cities

spiritual sense, as

(greater) sister of Jerusalem, and

This

to say, the cities

capital, clearly prove.

Samaria and Sodom, with the daughter them, are

Sodom (Theodoret and

and Havernick's explanation, that " the

Theodoret has explained

correctly in this

way

finer

form

" He shows by

this,

not the God of Jews only, but of Gentiles also ; for God once gave oracles to them, before they chose the abomination of idolatry. Therefore he says that they also put away both the husband aud the chilthat

dren by denying God, and slaying the children to demons."

223

CHAP. XVI. 43-52.

Jehovah with that of

of idolatry, the mixture of the worship of

by Samaria, was the

nature, as represented

to find an

first

entrance into Judah, and this was afterwards followed by the coarser abominations of heathenism,"

unsatisfactory, for the

books of the Old

simple reason that, according to the historical

Testament, the coarser forms of idolatry forced their

Judah

at quite

as early a period as the

idolatry of the time of

way

Eehoboam and Abijam was

into

The

refined.

not merely

a mixture of Jehovah-worship with the worship of nature, but the introduction of heathen idols into Judah, along with which

no doubt that the

there

places

was

syncretistic worship of the high

7113

also practised.

and

old

and young, but great and small.

old

and young can only apply

ness it

and

l^i^

do not generally mean

The

men and

littleness are really signs of

a difference in age

altogether inapplicable to kingdoms or

which

by no means dependent upon

meaning when great-

transferred animals,

cities,

their age.

;

but

the size of

Consequently

the expressions great and small simply refer to the extent of the kingdoms or states here named, and correspond to the description given of their situation

" at the

the north, and " at the right hand,"

i.e.

left

hand,"

to the south of

i.e.

Jeru-

salem and Judah.

Jerusalem had not only equalled these

sisters in

sins

and

abominations, but had acted more corruptly than they (ver. 47).

The

first

hemistich of this verse, " thou walkest not in their

ways,"

etc., is

half.

The

formed by

more precisely defined by

'â&#x20AC;˘nnki^'ini

in the second

link of connection between the two statements t^i>

there disgust," their ways,

|np

I3j;03. i.e.

This

generally rendered, " soon was

thou didst soon feel disgust at walking in

and didst act

still

that while disgust at the

worse.

way

But

apart from the fact

of the sisters might very well

constitute a motive for forsaking those ways, their abominations, it could not furnish a

those abominations. logical difficulty, that

This explanation tDi?

itself

i.e.

relinquishing-

motive for surpassini' exposed to the philo-

cannot signify taeduit

te,

and

— —

224

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

the impersonal use of O^p would at

could not be omitted, even

These

tive.

Arabic

didsf act

from the

t3i5

only" with the preceding clause.

little

obtain this very appropriate thought

ways of thy

sisters

;

and that not a

more corruptly than

still

vers.

48 sqq. by an enumeration of the pride, satiety,

— and

i.e.

thou didst walk

only, but thou

little

This

they.

were

XXX. 9),

interpret

omninOf tantum^ as Alb. Schultens has done, and con-

kji,

We then

away

difficulties fall

nect the definition

in the

all events require ?I^, which up were intended for a substan-

They

Sodom.

sins of

superabundance of bread

careless rest or security,

proved in

{vid.

Prov.

which produce haughti-

ness and harsiiness, or uncharitableness, towards the poor and

In this way Sodom and her daughters (Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboim) became proud and haughty, and comwretched.

mitted abominations xviii.

21)

Samaria

sins of

^iSf*, i.e.

before Jehovah (alluding to Gen.

and God destroyed them when

;

saw

this.

The

(ver. 51) are not specially mentioned, because

the principal sin of this kingdom, namely, image-worship, was well known.

It is simply stated, therefore, that she did not

much as Jerusalem and in fact, if we except Ahab and his dynasty, pure heathenish idolatry

sin half so

times of

;

the did

not exist in the kingdom of the ten tribes, so that Samaria

seemed

a righteous city in comparison with the idolatry

really

of Jerusalem and Judah,

Ahaz onward

{vid. Jer.

iii.

more 11).

especially

from the time of

The punishment

by the destruction of the kingdom of the ten passed over as being well ver. 52 the application

Judah to

thy

Thou

sisters,"

also, sc.

known directly

of Samaria

tribes is also

to every Israelite

made

;

to Jerusalem,

bear thy shame, thou

who

and in i.e.

hast adjudged

by pronouncing an uncharitable judgment

upon them, thinking

thyself better than they, whereas thou

hast sinned more abominably, so that they appear more right-

eous than thou.

Piy^ to

be righteous, and

used in a comparative sense.

P"||V,

to justify, are

In comparison with the abomi-

CHAP. XVI. nations of Jerusalem, the sins of

After ON

perfectly trivial.

ment

225

53-63.

Sodom and Samaria appeared the announcement of punish-

Wl.,

repeated for the sake of emphasis, and that in the form

of a consequence resulting from the sentence with regard to

the nature of the sin

therefore be thou also put to shame,

and bear thy disgrace.

But

Vers. 53-63.

this disgrace will not

be the conclusion.

Because of the covenant which the Lord concluded with Jerusalem

will

glory promised to the people of

God

that all boasting will be excluded,

shame,

God.

will attain

—

to a

God may

;

— and that

such a

way

and Judah, with the deepest

knowledge of the true compassion of

Yet, in order that

promises of

Israel,

not continue in misery, but will attain to the

all false

confidence in the gracious

be prevented, and the sinful nation be

thoroughly humbled, this last section of our word of

God

announces the restoration of Sodom and Samaria as well as that of Jerusalem, so that

precluded.

—

will turn their captivity^ the cap-

of Sodom and her daughters^ and the captivity of Samaria

tivity

and her daughters^ and of them

the captivity

of thy captivity in

all that thou hast done, in

thy sisters,

Sodom and her

daughters, will return to their

and Samaria and her daughters

first estate ;

and thou and thy daughters

Ver. 56.

And Sodom

Ver. 55.

comforting them.

first estate ;

estate.

the midnt

Ver. 54. That thou rnayest bear thy shame, and be

ashamed of

And

boasting on the part of Israel

all

And I

Ver. 53.

will return to their

will return to

your first

thy sister was not a discourse in

thy mouth in the day of thy haughtinesses, Ver. 57. Before thy

wickedness was disclosed, as at the time of the disgrace of the daughters of

Aram and

all its surroundings, the daughters

Philistines, %vho despised thee

round about.

of the Ver. 58. Thy wrong-

doing and all thy abominations, thou bearest them,

of Jehovah.

do with

Ver. 59. For

thus saith the

thee as thou hast done,

And

who

is the

saying

Lord Jehovah, And I

hast despised oath to break

remember

covenant.

Ver. 60.

thee in the

days of thy youth, and shall establish an everlasting

EZEK.

shall

covenant with

226

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

covenant

and

Ver.

xoith thee.

when thou

be ashamed,

And

(51,

thou wilt remember thy ways,

receivest thy sisters, tliose greater

and I

thou to those smaller than thou;

than

give them to thee for

daughters, although they are not of thy covenant.

And

Ver. 62.

I will establish my covenant with thee ; and thou wilt perceive that I am Jehovah ; Ver. 63. That thou mayest remember, and be ashamed, and there may no longer remain to thee an opening of the mouth because of thy disgrace, when I forgive thee all that thou hast done, is the saying of the Lord Jehovah. — The promise commences with an announcement of the

Sodom and Samaria.

Jerusalem, but of peoples,

upon which judgment

to receive

mercy ; and

restoration, not of

The two kingdoms,

will not

till

also be the first

first fell, shall

after then that Jeru-

salem, with the other cities of Judah, will also be restored to favour, in order that she of her sins (ver. 54)

Samaria have borne

may bear her disgrace, and

that

;

to say, not because

be ashamed

Sodom and

punishment for a longer time, but

their

the deeper shaming, the more complete humiliation of Jeruril3B' a^B*,

salem.

to turn the captivity, not " to bring

captives" (see the

comm. on Deut.

xxx. 3),

back the

here used in a

figurative sense for restitutio in statum integritaiis, according to

carry-

ing away, or captivity, took place in the case of Sodom.

The

the explanation given of the expression in ver. 55.

form

ri^^B',

which the Cheiib has adopted several times here,

has just the same meaning as

mean

rf\2\^.

^W^B'

r\''2^

does not

the captives of thy captivity, since the same word cannot

be used

first

as a concrete

and then

an abstract noun

;

nor

does the combination serve to give greater emphasis, in the sense of a superlative,

equivalent

—

viz.

" the captivity of thy

Stark and Havernick suppose.

The

explanatory, as already proposed foth

mode

captivities,

thy severest or most fearful captivity,"

" captivity, which of expression

thought, " thine

own

genitive

—

must be taken as

by Hengstenberg and Klie;

thy captivity " and the pleonastic

chosen to give greater prominence to the captivity," than

would have been given to

CHAP. XVI.

njnjDina, in

noun.

suffix attached to the simple

by a

227

63-63.

their

Judah was situated now in Sodom and Samaria, so its captives

midst, does not imply, that just as

the very midst between

would return home occupying the centre between those two (Hitzig)

;

the reference

rather to fellowship in captivity, to

the fact that Jerusalem would share the same fate, and endure the same punishment, as Samaria and

The

Sodom

(Hengst., Klief.).

concluding words of ver. 54, " in that thou comfortest

them," do not refer to the sins already committed by Israel (as

who

Kliefoth,

rendering, " didst comfort them,"

adopts the

imagines), but to the bearing of such disgrace as makes Jeru-

salem ashamed of

sins.

its

bearing disgrace,

i.e.

its

endurance of well-merited and disgraceful punishment, Jerusalem consoles her

Samaria and Sodom ; and that not

sisters

merely by fellowship in misfortune, (Calvin, Hitzig, etc.),

—but

by the

— solamen

miseris,

etc,

from the punish-

fact that

ment endured by Jerusalem, both Samaria and Sodom can discern the righteousness of the ways of God, and find therein a foundation for their hope, that the righteous to

an end the merited punishment

been attained

comm. on

(see the

God

as soon as its

ch. xiv. 22, 23).

will

bring

object has

The turning

of the captivity, according to ver. 55, will consist in the fact that

Sodom, Samaria, and Jerusalem return

original state,

no"]!?

does not

mean

LXX.),

but the original state (w? rjaav air ap'^'i, xxiii.

Kliefoth

meaning creative iatisy

to their

l^^'?'!!??,

the former or earlier state, as in Isa.

wrong, however, in explaining

" as they were,

hand of God."

when they came The original state

in is

Adam

this as

from the

the status integri-

not as a state of sinlessness or original righteousness and

holiness,

—for neither Jerusalem on the one hand, nor

and Sodom on the

—but

other,

an original

had ever been

state of glory, in

Samaria

in such a state as this,

which they were before

they had fallen and sunk into ungodly ways.

But how could a (Gomorrah,

etc.)

Sodom and her daughters when the destruction of these

restoration of

be predicted,

228

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

cities

was accompanied by the sweeping away of

habitants from off the face of the eartli

mentators have attempted to remove the

Sodom

that

Many of

difficulty

here stands for the Moabites and Ammonites,

such an explanation

untenableness of

Sodomites than Lot himself.

Origen and Jerome, and a typical

also unsatisfactory.

And

that fell

only so far as

classed with

undeniably to

(vers. 49, 50), point

into consideration

that the pardon of a heathen city, so deeply

degraded as Sodom, carries with will be

generally,

special reference to the judg-

The heathen world comes

this,

by Havernick, that

name denoting heathenism The way in which Sodom is

upon Sodom

the real Sodom.

But the from the

the view expressed

lately revived

Samaria and Jerusalem, and the

ment

obvious,

who

Ammonites and Moabites were no more

simple fact that the

the com-

by assuming

were descendants of Lot, who escaped from Sodom.

Sodom

their in-

all

extended to

all

the assurance that

heathen nations.

mercy

must therefore

Yet we cermoment think of any earthly restoration of For even if we could conceive of a restoration of the

take the words as referring to the

literal

Sodom.

tainly cannot for a

Sodom.

were destroyed by

cities that

the

Dead

Sea,

it is

fire,

and sunk

into the depths of

impossible to form any conception of an

earthly and corporeal restoration of the inhabitants of those

who were

cities,

nection

it is

destroyed at the same time ; and in this con-

chiefly to

them

that the words refer.

not by any means prove that the thing

itself is

This does

impossible, but

simply that the realization of the prophecy must be sought for

beyond the present order of

things, in

one that extends into the

life everlasting.

55 elucidates the contents of ver. 53, so the thought

ver.

of ver. 54

much

vers.

explained and

The meaning

and 57 so

further expanded in vers. 56

of ver. 56a

a subject of dispute; but

indisputable, that the attempt of Kliefoth to explain

56 and 57

in the

still

as referring to the future,

coming day of

its

and signifying that

glory Israel will no longer carry

229

CHAP. XVI. 63-63.

Sodom

as a legend in its

the grammar, and to take

nti as

nri"'n

does now, does violence to It

iD? (ver. 57), "

Dj;

Moreover, the application of

of scorn."

of future glory )iN3 is

no more allowable

a future, in the sense of " and will not be,"

than to render nsnn

word

mouth

quite a mistake.

will

be like the time

^)3iX3 ni"'3

day

to the

precluded by the fact that in ver. 49 the

used to denote the pride which was the chief sin of

Sodom ; and the reference to this verse very naturally suggests itself. The meaning of ver. 56 depends upon the rendering to given be The explanation given by Eosenmiiller to WOK*?. and Maurer,

after

Jerome,

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

viz.

non erat in auditione,

audiebatur, thou didst not think at all of

Sodom,

i.e.

non

didst not take

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

name into thy mouth, is by no means satisfactory. nj?^DB' means proclamation, discourse, and also report. If we adopt the last, we must take the sentence as interrogatory (\fSh for its

^^''H), is

Although

Hengstenberg and Hitzig have done.

are no

there

certainly admissible,

clear

indexes

warrant our assumption of an interrogation, which

hinted at by the tone.

" discourse : " thy

mouth

sister

therefore prefer the

Sodom was

only

meaning

not a discourse in thy

day of thy haughtinesses, that thou

in the

this

here to

didst talk of

Sodom and lay it to heart when thou wast in proThe plural ^^3iK3 is more emphatic than the singular.

the fate of sperity.

The day

of the haughtinesses

defined in ver. 57 as the

period before the wickedness of

Judah had been

disclosed.

This was effected by means of the judgment, which burst upon

Jerusalem on the part of Babylon. Jerusalem

Through

this

time when the daughters of Aram,

i.e.

(Aram on

on the west,

11), scorned and maltreated

Isa.

ix.

at the

the cities of Syria, and

those of the Philistines

about.

judgment

have been covered with disgrace, as

said to

the east, and the Philistines it

round

This refers primarily to the times of Ahaz, when the

Syrians and Philistines pressed hard upon Judah (2 Kings XV. 37, xvi. 6

;

and 2 Chron.

restricted to this,

however

;

xxviii. 18, 19).

must not be

but was repeated in the reign of

;

230

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

when Jehovah

Jehoiachin,

sent

Chaldaeans,

of the

troops

Aramaeans, Ammonites, and Moabites against him,

Judah

Kings

mentioned here

;

xxiv. 2).

infer that they also attempted at the

grace upon Judah.

Jerusalem

bear

have

will

wrong-doing and

its

same time

may

to bring dis-

according to Aramaean usage,

to atone for this pride,

and

The

perfect

punishment

cates that the certainty of the

The

had already commenced.

D"'r)KB'3

For

abominations (ver. 58).

its

zimmdh, see the comm. on ver. 43.

if it

Ezek. xxv. 15, we

or with repudiation (cf. ch. xxviii.

to treat contemptuously,

24, 26).

not

true, the Philistines are

but from the threat l3^?B' = OiC',

to destroy

indi-

just as great as

reason assigned for this

thought in ver. 59 forms a transition to the further expansion promise in

of the

correctly pointed copulative,

summary

60 sqq.

vers.

by the Masoretes

(ver.

59) has been

The

as the 1st person.

and shows that what follows forms the concluding

all

^niK for ^J^S, as in vers. 60,

that precedes.

The

deal with any one.

etc., to

n^E'jn

construction of HK'y, with an

accusative of the person, to treat any one, cannot be sustained

from

either

ch. xvii.

and Gesenius Isa. xlii. 16.

xxix. 11, 12,

Sinai

17 and

wrong

xxiii.

25, or from Jer. xxxiii. 9

in assuming that

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Despising

we meet

with

the oath {^^^) points back to Deut.

where the renewal of the covenant concluded

described as an entrance into the covenant and oath

which the Lord then made with His people. Israel has faithlessly broken the covenant,

consequent punishment, the unfaithfulness of alter the faithfulness of

God.

This

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;But

even

and must bear the

man can

never

the link of connection

between the resumption and further expansion of the promise in ver.

60 and the closing words of ver. 59.

of His covenant

only motive that will induce again,

when

the humiliation

punishment has brought covenant which

The remembrance

mentioned in Lev. xxvi. 42 and 45 as the

God

to restore Israel to favour

effected

by the endurance of

to a confession of its sins.

The

concluded with Israel in the dav of

its

CHAP. XVI.

youth,

when He

i.e.

led

everlasting covenant.

-231

63-63.

out of Egypt,

Consequently

will establish as

not an entirely

it is

new

covenant, but simply the perfecting of the old one for ever-

For the

lasting duration.

the

making

compare

fact itself,

of the everlasting covenant

the stedfast mercies of David,

mise given to David (2 Sam.

i.e.

Isa. Iv. 3,

where

described as granting

as the fulfilment of the pro-

This promise

vii.).

called

David himself an everlasting covenant which God had made with him (2 Sam. lasting duration

xxiii. 5).

was

to be

God

the forgiving grace of

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;The bestowal of

brance of

its

ways, and

the assurance of

found in the fact that

upon the fulfilment

did not rest

31-34).

And

of the law, but simply

with

(I will

'iiil^t

Israel

remember)

when

ever-

upon

put Israel in remem-

with shame.

(and thou shalt remember), in ver. 61,

upon

its

covenant

(compare ver. 63 with Jer. xxxi.

this grace will

fill it

this

this sense ^1^^.

placed side by side

This shame

in ver. 60.

will seize

the establishment of an everlasting covenant

followed by the greater and smaller nations being associated

with

in glory,

are not of

its

and incorporated covenant.

The

into

the greater and smaller nations, as

family of man, family of God.

and 55

as children,

prophecy of the reception of

members

all

alone,

from

the greater and smaller nations

this that

Sodom and Samaria

Sodom

God.

may

represent the heathen

nations generally, as standing outside the

pensation

of the universal

expanded here into a

into fellowship in the glory of the people of see

though they

who are to be exalted to the glory of one large The restoration, which is promised in vers. 53

Sodom and Samaria

greater and smaller sisters are

Old Testament

dis-

representing those that were sunk in the

deepest moral degradation, and Samaria those that had fallen

from the

state of grace.

The

attitude in

which these nations

stand towards Israel in the everlasting covenant of grace, defined as the relation of daughters to a mother. Israel,

its

If, therefore,

which has been thrust out among the heathen on account deep

fall, is

not to return to

its fisst

estate

till

after the

—

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

232

of Sodom, which has been destroyed, and Samaria,

return

which has been condemned, the election of Israel before

all

the

nations of the earth to be the first-born son of Jehovah will

new

continue unchanged, and Israel will form the stem of the

which the heathen nations will be incorThe words, " and not of thy covenant," have been

kingdom of God, porated.

into

taken by most of the commentators in the sense

For even

thesis to

"my

covenant"

could not possibly

(vers.

signify

60 and 62), "thy covenant" fulfilment

the

The words belong

obligations.

as having no claim

God made

i.e.

will

know

—When

that

God

this is

that

;

may

with Israel, and consequently

hereafter to be

covenant has been established, Israel

call to

mind,

commentary on Gen.

see the sc.

both

its

sinful abominations

and the compassionate grace of God, and be so

shame and penitence that

will

no more venture

mouth, either for the purpose of finding excuses for fall,

or to

when

the

murmur Lord

are

Jehovah, the unchangeably true (for the

meaning of the name Jehovah, ii.

who

as not included

virtue of that covenant to participate in

the glory of the everlasting covenant which established.

thy covenant

to hdnoth (daughters),

thereby designated as extra-testamental, in the covenant which

" not be-

" but this is certainly " thy covenant " really formed an anti-

cause thou hast kept the covenant incorrect.

of,

;

against

God and His

forgives all

lasting covenant, the kernel

its

sins

filled

with

open

its

judgments,

its

— namely,

establishing the ever-

and essence of which

Thus

the forgiveness of sins (cf. Jer. xxxi. 34).

consists in

will the ex-

perience of forgiving grace complete what judgment has already

begun, into

viz. the

transformation of proud and haughty sinners

meek and humble

children of God, for

whom

the kingdom

has been prepared from the beginning.

This thought brings the entire prophecy to a

close,

—

a pro-

phecy which embraces the whole of the world's history and the

New Testament, the parallel to which is contained words, "

God

hath concluded them

all

in the apostle's

in unbelief, that

233

CHAP. XVI. 53-63.

might have mercy upon all" (Eom.

ment threatened

to the adulteress,

that had despised

xi.

i.e.

32).

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; As

God and King, had been

its

Jerusalem and the Jews, and

the punish-

to the nation of Israel fulfilled

in process of fulfilment

upon still,

so has the promise also been already fulfilled, so far as

commencement fulfilment

The turning

only to be expected in time to come.

its

concerned, though the complete and ultimate

of the captivity, both of Jerusalem and her daughters, and of

Samaria and her daughters, commenced with the establishment of the everlasting covenant, Christ,

and Galilee (Acts

in Judaea, Samaria,

And

the turning of the captivity of

among the

the spread of the gospel into

of the covenant

i.e.

made through

and with the reception of the believing portion of Israel

the

kingdom of

daughters represents

Christ,

sqq., 25, ix. 31).

Sodom commenced with

heathen, and their entrance

inasmuch as Sodom with her

morally

the

viii.

degraded heathen world.

Their reception into the kingdom of heaven, founded by Christ

on earth, forms the commencement of the return of the forgiven to their

first

the restoration of

estate all

on the "

moral relations

constitution (compare Acts

with Matt.

xvii.

11),

restitution of all things,"

iii.

which

to their original

21 and Meyer's comm. thereon

will attain

its

â&#x20AC;˘jraXiyyevecTM, the general restoration of the

nal glory (compare Matt. xix. 28 with

2 Pet.

iii.

points to this final goal.

perfection in the

world to

Rom.

.The prophecy before us

13).

i.e.

normal

viii.

its origi-

18 sqq. and

in ver.

55 clearly

true that one might understand

the return of Jerusalem and Samaria to their original state,

which

predicted here as simply relating to the pardon of the

covenant nation, whose apostasy had led to the rejection of both

its

parts

tion into the

God.

;

and

this

pardon might be sought

kingdom of Christ and

its

in its recep-

restoration as the people

In that case the complete fulfilment of our prophecy

would take place during the present aeon gospel

among

Israel

which

all nations,

still

in the spread of the

and the conversion of that portion of

remained hardened after the entrance of the

234 full

THE FÂŁOPHÂŁCIES OF EZEKIEL.

number

kingdom

of the Gentiles into the

this limitation

3ut

of God.

would be out of harmony with the equality of

position assigned to

Sodom and her daughters on the one hand, other. Though Sodom is

and Samaria and Jerusalem on the

not merely a type of the heathen world, the restoration of

Sodom and her daughters cannot descendants of the

cities

consist in the reception of the

on which the judgment

kingdom of God or the Christian Church, ner in which those

cities

fell

into the

since the peculiar

were destroyed prevented the

man-

possibility

of any of the inhabitants remaining alive whose descendants

could be converted to Christ and blessed in present period of the world.

Him

during the

the other hand, the opinion

expressed by C. a Lapide, that the restoration of

Sodom

is to

referred and restricted to the conversion of the descendants of the

inhabitants of Zoar, which was spared for Lot's sake,

other

cities of

the plain were destroyed,

too

much

when the

at variance

with the words of the passage to allow of our accepting such a

Sodom and Sodom

solution as this.

The turning

her daughters,

the forgiveness of the inhabitants of

and the other

i.e.

cities of

of the captivity of

the plain, points beyond the present

aeon, and the realization can only take place on the great day

of the resurrection of the dead in the persons of the former inhabitants of

Sodom and

same way the

restoration of

completely fulfilled

till

the neighbouring

And

cities.

Samaria and Jerusalem

after the perfecting of the

in the

will not

kingdom

Christ in glory at the last day.

Consequently the prophecy before us goes beyond Rom. xi.

sqq.,

inasmuch as

only, but, in

presents, not to the covenant nation

Samaria and Sodom,

heathen nations

also,

into the everlasting

to all the larger

and smaller

the prospect of being eventually received

kingdom of God ; although,

in accordance

with the main purpose of this prophetic word, namely, to bring the pride of Israel completely down, this

and no precise intimation

simply hinted

at,

given of the manner in which the

predicted apokatastasis will occur.

But notwithstanding

this

CHAP. XVI.

indefiniteness,

we must

away

not explain

arbitrary expositions, since

and

tolerable in the

xi.

the fact itself by

placed beyond

it is

24, to the effect that

be more

day of judgment for Sodom than for Capernaum

and every other

which has

Lord

of our will

have rejected the preaching of

city that shall

way

the gospel, teach most indisputably that the stands open

possible doubt

all

The words

by other passages of the Scriptures. in Matt. x. 15

^35

53-03.

still

even for Sodom

fallen

upon

itself,

mercy

and that the judgment

does not carry with

the final deci-

For Sodom did not put mercy and salvation. If the

sion with regard to its inhabitants.

away the

perfect revelation of

mighty works which were done in Capernaum had been done in

Sodom,

And from fell

would have stood

day (Matt.

to the present

xi.

23).

judgments which

this it clearly follows that all the

before the time of Christ, instead of carrying with

them

the final decision, and involving eternal damnation, leave the

pardon open

possibility of eventual

which

full revelation of grace

gospel be preached to

and truth

all

;

at the time

when

will the

way

who

did

has been already preached,

Christ went to them in

according to God's

What

after the

Not only

in Christ.

although judged according to man's live

judgment,

till

to the spirits in prison,

not believe at the time of Noah,

iv. 6).

last

nations before the end comes (Matt.

xxiv. 14), but even to the dead

might

The

still.

decisive for eternity, does not take place

spirit, in

way

order that,

in the flesh, they

in the spirit (1 Pet.

the apostle teaches in the

concerning the unbelievers before the

first

flood,

second concerning the dead in general,

iii.

19,

of these passages

and affirms

in the

equally applicable

who were judged way in the flesh, and indeed generally to all heathen who either lived before Christ or departed from this

according to our prophecy to the Sodomites after man's

nations

earthly life without having heard the gospel preached.

according to these distinct utterances of the

New

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

It is

Testament

that the prophecy before us respecting the apokatastasis of

Sodom, Samaria, and Jerusalem

to be interpreted

;

and

this

236 is

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

not to be confounded with the heretical doctrine of the

restoration,

i.e.

the uUimate salvation of

the ungodly, and

all

If the preaching of the gospel pre-

even of the devil himself.

judgment

cedes the last judgment, the final sentence in the

be regulated by the attitude assumed towards the gospel

will

by both the reject

and the dead.

living

and harden themselves in unbelief,

The

everlasting damnation.

Sodom and Samaria in the general

fact

All souls that obstinately

will

why

reason

be given up to

the conversion of

not expressly mentioned,

found

to be

tendency of the promise, in which the simple

announced without the intermediate circumstances, for

The

the purpose of humbling Jerusalem.

conversion of Jeru-

not definitely stated to be the condition of pardon,

salem also

but

assumed as well known from the words of Lev.

this is

xxvi.,

simply implied in the repeated assertion that Jerusalem

and

will

be seized with the deepest shame on account of the pardon

which she receives.

CHAP. XVII. HUMILIATION AND EXALTATION OF THE

DAVIDIC FAMILY.

The

contents of this chapter are introduced as a riddle and a

parable,

and are divided

tain the parable

King Zedekiah

and

;

Messianic kingdom. Vers. 1-10.

came

the

The

Parable.

me, saying, Ver.

a parable

to the

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

Ver.

And the word

Son of man, give a

and brought Ver.

and

relate

Thus

saith

A great eagle, with great wings and long pinions,

the top of the cedar

it.

say,

of the

of Jehovah

riddle,

And

full of feathers of variegated colours, came to

set

and application

vers. 22-24, the promise

house of Israel; Ver. 3.

Lord Jehovah,

shoots,

Vers. 1-10 con-

into three sections.

vers. 11-21, the interpretation

;

Ver.

And

into seed-land ; took

into

Lebanon and

He plucked- of the

its

Canaan! s land ; in a merchant-city he

he took of the seed of the land, it

took

topmost of

away

many

waters^ set

and put

as a willow.

CHAP. XVII.

Ver.

And

grew, and became an overhanging vine of low

might turn towards him^ and

stature^ that its branches

might be under him

and

;

and

became a

vine^

and many feathers ; and,

towards him, that he might water

Ver.

8. It

Thus

and

its roots,

fresh leaves of

Ver.

become a glorious vine.

its

will

And,

branches

its

planting.

which

grew

Say,

the east

up from

its

planted, will

wind touches

it ?

upon

exactly to the

New

will wither.

withereth ? all the

parable (mdshdl, corresponding

Testament irapa^oXrj)

send

and not with strong arm

be possible to raise

when

Ver.

will they not pull

thrive ?

behold, although

not icither

sprouting will wither,

10.

thrive ? will

The

the beds

cut off its fruit, so that

and with much people

the beds in

from

Lord Jehovah, Will

saiih the

roots.

its

was planted in a good field by many waters,

and bear fruit,

out roots

shoots,

behold, this vine stretched

roots languishingly towards him, and extended

its

roots

its

and produced

Ver. 7. There was another great eagle with

sent out foliage.

great wings

237

1-10.

called chldhdh, a riddle, because of the shell. The symmany commentators

deeper meaning lying beneath the parabolic bolism of this parable has been traced by to

Babylonian influences working upon the prophet's mind

without any tenable ground.

The

of prey, applied to a conqueror

country, has as

little

;

but

figure of the eagle, or bird

making a rapid descent upon a

of a specifically Babylonian character

as the comparison of the royal family to a cedar or a vine.

Not only xlvi.

40,

xlviii.

ness of

;

Nebuchadnezzar compared

xlix. 22,

Cyrus

God

over His xix.

own

4; Deut.

and the vine are genuine

The

the great

article is

an eagle in Jer.

a bird of prey in

Isa.

people as bearing them upon eagle's

The cedar of Lebanon figures. The great eagle

xxxii. 11). Israelitish

King Nebuchadnezzar (compare

ver. 12)

simply used to indicate the species, for which we

should use the indefinite article,

but even Moses has described the paternal watchful-

wings (Ex.

in ver. 3

we have

article.

in^f in the sense of

ver. 7, instead

"apother,"

This

the first

238

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

eagle has large wings and long pinions

;

victoriously over wide-spread countries.

niDpnn

which

he has already flown

him the variegated ornament,

as such

an ornament.

colours

point to

The

which he has

i.e.

feathers of variegated ornamental

many

the

iP'lti'K, literally,

peoples,

differing

language,

manners, and customs, which were united under the sceptre of

Nebuchadnezzar (Hitzig,

etc.)

not to the wealth and splendour

;

of the conqueror, as such an allusion

altogether remote from

He came

the tendency of the parable.

Lebanon.

This

not a symbol of the Israelitish land, or of the kingdom of

Judah with

Hab.

but, as in Jer. xxii. 23, of Jerusalem, or

;

its ii.

royal palace so rich in cedar

17 and Zech.

xi. 1), as

wood

(see the coram,

it is

or, as it

King Jehoiachin.

only met with in Ezekiel, and there

only for the top of a cedar (compare ch. xxxi. 3 sqq.).

primary meaning

The cedar

ver. 12).

the royal house of David, and the top of is

Zion,

being the place where the cedar

was planted (compare the remarks on

The word tzammereth

Mount

Some

doubtful.

derive

The

from the curly,

were, woolly top of the older cedars, in which the small

twigs that constitute their foliage are only found at the top of the tree.

^^,

Others suppose

to conceal,

to be connected with the Arabic

and understand

as an epithet applied to the

In ver.

foliage, as the veil or covering of the tree. is

explained to be

1''riip"'3")

B'Xt, the

the eagle plucked off and carried to

topmost of 1^33 p.^"'*^}

tzammereth

shoots.

its

This

an epithet applied

Babylonia here and in ch. xvi. 29, as being a land whose

trading spirit had turned

from the

city of traders,

parallel Dy3">

pare ver. 12).

The

"'"'y,

into a

Canaan. i.e.

This

King Zedekiah, because he was after the analogy of Dni^ in

Num.

xxiii.

27.

Hos.

air.

xi. 3,

Hj?,

for np?,

and pointed with Kametz T'N njp?

used as in

\ey. nsys^ signifies, in Arabic

Talmud, the willow, probably so

of the land, the native king,

from the imperative.

The

evident

seed of the land, according to ver. 13,

in contrast to a foreign, Babylonian governor.

to distinguish

Babylon (com-

called because

and the

grows in well-

CHAP. XVII.

watered places

1-10.

according to Gesenius,

;

it is

treated

inasmuch

as one,

in a well-watered

grew

set

he took

object of this growth was, that

and

The

vrinrj

refer to

15), but also

14,

Isaiah has

ver.

where the roots and In ver. Qb,

branch covered with

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; The other

Egypt, according

for

feathers, is

i.e.

to ver. 15.

had

also large

the king of

wings and

a widely spread and powerful kingdom

;

nothing said about pinions and variegated colours, his

kingdom over many coun-

and peoples, or subjugated a variegated medley of peoples tribes.

IQ3, as

after a thing

a verb

to drink, or

nip^'npj that

water

njj^D r\Sr\Vp are not connected with nip^'nij, nB33j

from the beds of

its

yearn or pine

dir. \ey., signifies to

in Chaldee, to hunger,

;

eagle-Pharaoh) might give

briefly

ornament

foliage, as the

eagle mentioned in ver. 7

Pharaoh had not spread out

tries

and

again.

foliage, or a

but there

This

The form nn^s is peculiar to Ezekiel. mxs = mx9 in ch. x. 33. The word signifies branch

summed up

many

eagle).

"ifJ.

what has already been affirmed concerning the growth

and

The

clearly shows.

branches of the vine stretch to the (other) eagle.

of a tree.

cutting

required not only by the explanation in ver. 14

vers.

The

branches might turn to him

its

and

to V^Nt

suffixes attached

allusion

waters, set

might be under him (the

roots

its

many

per-

means he

to a vine spreading out its

i.e.

the following expression HDip npD*^

(the eagle),

fj^V,

though not growing very high, as

directions,

all

as a willow "

in a suitable place.

soil, i.e.

into an overhanging vine,

branches in

derived from

This meaning

to overflow, literally, the inundated tree.

fectly appropriate here.

239

planting,

i.e.

but with

which

he (the

The words

it.

nnf'tt'

and

was planted

;

stretched out roots and branches to the other eagle, that he,

might give 15.

to drink.

The words

PifiiK

The

nSpprh^

interpretation

given in ver.

which are added by way of ex-

planation, do not interrupt the train of thought

;

nor are they

superfluous, as Hitzig

supposes, because the vine

enough already

and

(vers. 5

8).

For

had water,

this is precisely

what

the-

240

THE PKOPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

passage

intended to show, namely, that there was no occasion

for this pining and stretching out of the branches towards the

other eagle, inasmuch as

where

The

was planted.

once more

latter is expressly stated

meaning of which

in ver. 8, the

that

could thrive very well in the place

perfectly clear,

— namely,

Zedekiah had remained quiet under Nebuchadnezzar, as

a hanging vine, his government might have continued and

prosper

npvn

following question, which subject to

pJ!}T,

and

answered in the negative by the

introduced with an affirmative Ki?n.

DDip^_ is

not the

first

"one" (man,

nezzar), but the indefinite clause of ver. 9 niKtJ'O

of the Lord, will

and the third person, neuter

a question,

This question

gender.

The

name

But, asks Ezekiel in the

prospered.

eagle (Nebuchad-

In the

they).

of the simple form of the infinitive, after the form

2 Chron. xix.

with the termination

(compare Ewald,

T\'h

the same as in

ni,

N'I'O

borrowed from the verb

1606 and 239a), and the construction

Amos

not be possible

will

last

a substantive formation, used instead

10:

to raise

vi.

will not

be to raise up

up (compare Ges.

is it

132,

Anm.

1).

up by

the root (Havernick), but to rear the withered vine

from

its

raise

up from

roots again, to cause

its

root does not

mean

to tear

This rendering

to sprout again.

of the words corresponds to the interpretation given in ver. 17.

—In

ver.

10 the leading thought

and rounded

off.

on account of

Job

xxvii.

its

The east wind

repeated with emphasis,

peculiarly dangerous to plants

dryness (compare Gen.

appropriately here, as the Chaldeans

;

and

the

refractory race

the king

of Babel came

and brought them

he took of the royal seed, to enter

into

—Ver.

himself

Babel.

And

11.

the

Say, Behold,

this is ?

Jerusalem, and took to

used very

east.

me, saying, Ver. 12. Say

ye not know what

princes,

caused him

it is

came from the

Vers. 11-21, Interpretation of the riddle.

word of Jehovah came

and Wetstein on

xli. 6,

21 in Delitzsch's Commentary)

its

king

and

Ver. 13.

its

And

and made a covenant with him, and an oath ; and he took

the strong ones

CHAP. XVII.

of the land

Ver. 14. That

to lift itself up, that he

might he a lowly kingdom, not

might keep his covenant, that

Ver. 15. But he rebelled

stand.

messengers to Egypt, that

Will he prosper

people.

He As I live, of

241

11-21.

might

against him by sending

his

might give him horses and much

? will

he that hath done this escape ?

has broken the covenant,

and should he

escape'?

saying of the

Lord Jehovah,

surely in the plact

is the

who made him king,

the king,

lohose oath he despised,

covenant he broke with him, in Babel he not with great

army and much people

cut off

many

Ver. 18.

souls.

loill die.

will

live,

surely

hand and done

taken in

him

/ my

there

will spread out snare,

break

all this

oath which he has despised,

covenant which he has broken,

Ver. 20.

him

siege-towers, to

;

Ver. 19. Therefore thus saith the Lord

he will not escape.

As I

And

act with

has despised an oath

the covenant, and, behold, he has given Ids

Jehovah,

and whose

Ver. 17.

Pharaoh

up a rampart and build

in the war, ichen they cast

Ver. 16.

and

will give

upon

and

his head.

net over him, so that he will he

will bring

him

Babel, and contend with

on account of his treachery which he has been guilty of

Ver. 21.

towards me.

And

all his fugitives in all his regiments,

by the sword will they fall, and those who remain will be scattered to all

19â&#x20AC;&#x201D;21 the threat contained

still

further expanded.

Kings

14)

3;nT,

The

whom

interpreted

name

Nebuchadnezzar took

and xxix.

1 = Tjb^n

The

EZEK.

and

riT,

king's

Kings

whom Nebuchadnezzar

of Zedekiah (2

Kings

(t^ = ''b^X,

(np?),

i.e.

xxiv. 17),

2 Kings xxiv. 15),

whom

took away to Babel, are not

the heads of tribes and families (2 Kings xxiv. 15) is

;

confirmed

he took an oath of fealty (2 Chron. xxxvi. 13).

strong of the land

expression

it.

have an account of the carry-

ver. 13, as in Jer. xli.

the

Jehoiachin, and his princes to Babel

Jehoiachin's uncle Mattaniah,

made king under and from

i.e.

2-10

in the parable

xxiv. 11 sqq., Jer. xxiv. 1,

seed (r\^h^r\ xi.

Jehovah have spoken

in vers.

ing away of the king, in 2

that

in vers.

and

; and ye shall see 12-17 the parable

winds vers.

;

but the

used in a wide sense for the several classes of

242

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

men

Kings

of wealth, wlio are grouped together in 2

under the one term

^^n

^niarb

{b]n ^tras,

Kings

xxiv.

xxiv. 16),

including masons, smiths, and carpenters (2 Kings xxiv. 14 and 16), whereas the heads of tribes

the court

(D^DnD, 2 Kings xxiv. 15) under the

officials

The

n^"!^ (princes) in ver. 12.

and families are classed with title

design of these measures was

make a lowly kingdom, which could not

raise itself,

i.e.

could not revolt, and to deprive the vassal king of the means of is

breaking thq

The

covenant.

suffix

attached to

â&#x20AC;˘^'i^yp

probably to be taken as referring to nappD rather than

W'la, although both are admissible, and \vould yield precisely

the same sense, inasmuch as the stability of the

dependent upon rebelled (2

kingdom was

But Zedekiah The Egyptian king who was to and much people, in other words, to come a powerful army of cavalry and fighting

the stability of the covenant.

Kings

xxiv. 20).

give Zedekiah horses to his assistance with

men, was Hophrah, the Apries of the Greeks, according Jer. xliv. 30 (see the

comm. on 2 Kings

points back to npvri in ver. rebellious king,

answer

but here

;

God

n>T.K}.

applied to the

The

^J1 tD^^'D..

confirmed by a

shall die in Babel, the capital of

the king,

placed him on the throne, and Pharaoh will not render

him any

effectual help (ver. 17).

act with him, that

inis

riK'y,

inexplicable manner. for the fact

itself,

to which, although

Jerusalem deans,

For

'li1

>mb

?ibK',

as in ch. xv. 59, to

come

to say, assist him,

refers to Zedekiah, not to Pharaoh, as

it,

explained in the clause

given in ver. 16 as a word of

solemn oath

who

and

xxiv. 19, 20).

to his help,

Ewald assumes

compare cb.

iv.

inis

;

and

Jer. xxxiv. 21, 22, and xxxvii. 5, according

an Egyptian army came to the rescue of

the time

when

was besieged by the Chal-

was repulsed by the Chaldeans who marched

meet

without having rendered any permanent assistance to the

besieged.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

In ver. 18, the main thought that breach of faith

can bring no deliverance

repeated for the sake of appending

the further expansion contained in vers. 19-21.

jnjj

243

CHAP. XVII. 11-21. his hand,

gave

king of Babel

to the

as Jehovah's oath

The

as a pledge of fidelity.

i.e.

Zedekiah swore

(''^??^),

oath which

designated in ver. 19

and the covenant made with him as

Jehovah's covenant, because the oath had been

Jehovah, and the covenant of

had thereby been made

fidelity

Jehovah Himself

implicite with

;

and covenant became a breach of

that the breakintr of the oath

Consequently the very same expres-

Jehovah.

faith towards

sworn by

towards Nebuchadnezzar

sions are used in vers. 16, 18,

and 19,

to designate this

breach

of oath, which are applied in ch. xvi. 59 to the treacherous

apostasy of Jerusalem (Israel) from Jehovah, the covenant

And

God.

punishment as the

same expressions are used

the

in ch. xii. 13, 14.

Jehovah regards the treacherous

xii. 7.

from Nebuchadnezzar as treachery against

revolt

construed with

iJiX 132*^3 is

thing respecting which he was to be

accusative of the

judged, as in 1 Sam.

describe the

7yo)

fidelity

Himself

not only because Zedekiah had sworn the oath of

;

by Jehovah, but

from the fact that Jehovah had

also

up His people and kingdom

delivered

the

into

power of

Nebuchadnezzar, so that revolt from him really became rebellion against is

ns before in^30"73

God.

used in the sense of guod adtinet ad,

2 Kings

vi. 5.

^Ot^'?>

his

therefore identified with

as,

nota accus., and for example, in

rendered both by the

^"^ fugitives, is

Chaldee and Syriac "

brave men," or "heroes," and

I'^'^^p (his

nor the parallel passage in ch.

chosen ones), which

But

reading in some manuscripts.

xii.

14,

the

neither these renderings

where

Vrin"'2p apparently

corresponds to it, will warrant our adopting this explanation, or

making any avTov

;

aurov

the Vulgate

;

Theodoret

toward

all

;

and therefore they

also yields a very suitable

some who remain, and who are

the winds,

versions have

iv irdaaL^i rat^ ^iryaBeiaLi;

omnesprofugi ejus

had the reading im30, which

The mention

The Greek

alteration in the text.

7racra9 <pi/<yaBeia(;

be scattered

not at variance with the statement that

the fugitives in the wings of the

army

all

meaning.

all

are to fall by the sword.

244

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

Tlie latter threat simply declares that no one will escape death

But

flight.

there

no necessity

men

as being simply fighting

be taken too

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

and the word "

;

all

The

from

all

the

" must not

planting of the trne twig of the stem of

And I

Ver. 22. Thus saith the Lord Jehovah,

take

who remain

literally.

Vers. 22-24.

David.

to take those

and

loill

from the topmost of its shoots will I pluck off a tender one, and will plant it upon a high and exalted mountain. Ver. 23. On the high mountain of Israel will I plant it, and it will put forth branches, and bear fruit, and become a splendid cedar, so that the top of the high cedar,

lofty tree,

lifted

the withered tree

have done

it.

low

the

tree,

become green.

it ;

under

will dwell

it.

And

Ver. 24.

branches will they dwell.

its

of the field will learn that

trees

and

plumage

birds of every

shade of

will set

the

all the

Jehovah have lowered the

made

the green tree wither,

Jehovah have said

and

it,

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Although the sprout of David, whom Nebuchad-

nezzar had made king, would lose the sovereignty because of his breach of

faith,

and bring about the destruction of the

kingdom of Judah, the Lord would not destroyed, but would

the seed of David. its

had given

off a

Babel

(ver. 13), so will

Jehovah Himself

from the top of the high cedar, and plant

The Vav to the

before

''^'^2?

the

As Nebuchadnezzar pluck

also it

it.

The

Vav consec, and

verb for the sake of emphasis

cedar, which

off

;

\3K

but in antithesis it

placed

the royal house of David,

the tender shoot which Jehovah breaks off and plants

kingdom

designated by the epithet rdmdh,

as rising above the other trees,

the Messianic

a shoot

upon a high moun-

to the acting of the eagle, as described in ver. 3,

after

this fulfilment takes

twig from the top of the cedar and brought

broke

appended

the promise which

fulfil

The announcement of

form from the preceding parable.

tain.

His kingdom be

let

and not

or sovereignty, so that Zerubbabel could

be included, but the Messiah Himself as " a distinct historical

personage" (Havernick).

The

predicate ^l, tender, refers to

CHAP. XVII.

Him

word

also the

;

not so

much

PpV,

245

22-24.

a sprout (Isa.

which indicates

2),

liii.

youthful age of the Messiah

the

(Hitzig)

the lowliness of His origin (compare Isa. xi. 1,

liii.

even when applied to David and Solomon, in 2 Sam. 1

Chron.

xxii.

xxix. 1, expresses not

and

;

iii.

39,

their youthfulness,

but their want of strength for the proper administration of

The high mountain,

such a government.

mountain of

as the high

and centre of the kingdom of God, which the Messiah above

The twig

etc.).

all

Lord

planted by the

into a cedar in the

figure,

will

grow there

ii.

into a

The Messiah kingdom founded by Him, in which birds will dwell.

all

and protection (under

compare Dan.

plumage

14, where

The

be exalted by

the inhabitants of the earth will find both food (from the

fruits of the tree)

the mountains of the earth (Isa.

glorious cedar, under which

grows

described in ver. 23

regarded as the seat

Israel, is Zion,

(cf. ch.

birds of

allusion

its

^??'''3 liSV, birds

iv. 8, 9.

xxxix. 4, 17),

and

lifts

vii.

every kind find shelter in Noah's ark.

men from

up the

this

of every kind

derived from Gen.

every kind of people and

this will all the trees of the field learn that

lofty

For

shadow).

lowly.

God

tribe.

lowers the

the cedar represents the royal

house of David, the trees of the

field

can only be the other

kings or royal families of the earth, not the nations outside the limits of the covenant.

the same time, the nations are

not to be entirely excluded because the figure of the cedars

embraces the idea of the kingdom, so that the trees of the

field

denote the kingdoms of the earth together with their kings.

The

clauses, " I bring

down the high

general thought, as in 1 Sam.

ii.

7, 8,

tree," contain

a purely

and the perfects are not

to be taken as preterites, but as statements of practical truths. It

true that the thought of the royal house of

previous greatness naturally suggests the high and green tree,

itself in

and that of Jehoiachin

with the dry tree (compare Jer. xxii. 30)

be absolutely

set aside.

the

same

;

David

in its

connection with in connection

and these are not

time, the omission of the

;

246

THE PROPHECIKS OF EZEKIEL. from

article

i!i"33

KJ^

and the objects which

show that the words are not

follow,

sufficient

be restricted to these parti-

cular persons, but are applicable to every high and green, or

withered and lowly tree

men

all

i.e.

;

not merely to kings alone, but to

common, and furnish a

The bows

of the mighty

men

parallel to 1

are broken

stumbled are girded with strength,"

;

Sam.

ii.

4-9,

and they that

etc.

CHAP. XVIII. THE RETRIBUTIVE JUSTICE OF GOD.

God

In the word of that

God

contained in this chapter, the delusion

the sins of fathers upon innocent children

visits

overthrown, and the truth

clearly set forth that every

bears the guilt and punishment of his

The

sins (vers. 1-4).

lighteous lives through his righteousness (vers. 5-9), but

cannot save

who

son

own

man

wicked son thereby

his

avoids the sins

through

own

his

(vers.

10-13); whilst the

and wickedness of

his father, will live

The man who own sin man who forsakes the way of

righteousness (vers. 14-20).

repents and avoids sin

not even charged with his

and, on the other hand, the

righteousness, and gives himself up to unrighteousness, will not

be protected from death even by his own former righteousness (vers.

his

21-29).

way

;

and

(vers. 30-32).

Thus it is

will

God judge

every

man

only by repentance that Israel

The

exposition of these truths

according to

can

itself is

live

closely con-

nected with the substance and design of the preceding and following prophecies.

had taken from

In the

earlier

fidence in the preservation of the

But

words of God, Ezekiel

rebellious Israel every support of false con-

kingdom from

destruction.

an impenitent sinner, even when he can no longer

evade the punishment of his possible to transfer the guilt forts himself with the

sins,

endeavours as

from himself

to others,

much

and com-

thought that he has to suffer for sins that

others have committed, and hardens himself against the chas-

tisement of

God through

such false consolation as

this

;

so even

247

CHAP. XVIII. 1-4.

among

the people of Israel,

when

the divine judgments burst

upon them, the delusion arose that the existing generation had If, then,

to suffer for the fathers' sins.

the

judgment were ever

bear the fruit of Israel's conversion and renovatfon, which

God

designed, the impenitent generation must be deprived even

of this pretext for covering over science,

by the demonstration of the

God

the government of Vers. 1-4.

And

The proverb and

live, is

justice

and

the sons

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

Ver.

Why

me, saying, Ver. 2.

the saying

are set on edge.

teeth

of the Lord Jehovah,

are mine; as the fathers

soul, so also

they are mine; the soul which sinneth,

compare

ch.

thinking

of, that

xii.

DD^'njD,

22. .

.? is

in the land of Israel (ch.

this

what

the soul

shall die. to you,

Ver.

all souls

the son,

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; On

ver.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; 2a

what are you

a question of amazement.

J^P1^~''i?,

22), not " concerning the land of

xii.

The proverb was we have not

Havernick assumes.

fathers have eaten sour grapes," for

not, " l-'^x,

The

as in

Jer. xxxi. 29, but I^^N', they eat, are accustomed to eat,

ninx has no article, because

proverb shall

Ver. 4. Behold,

used any more in Israel.

Israel," as

which characterized

word of God.

the

con-

its

proverb in the land of Israel, saying, Fathers

this

eat sour grapes,

As I

and quieting

His kingdom.

word of Jehovah came

the

do you use

not

its sins

and

who eat sour grapes. Job xvi. 33 (see the

applies to all

Baser, unripe, sour grapes, like beser in

comm. in loc). The meaning of the proverb is self-evident. The sour grapes which the fathers eat are the sins which they commit; the

setting of the children's teeth

sequence thereof,

i.e.

condemned

there also

it is

proverb

easily to

natural

man

suffering

the con-

the suffering which the children have to

The same proverb

endure.

on edge

quoted in Jer. xxxi. 29, 30, and

error.

The

origin of such a

be accounted for from the inclination of the

to transfer to others the guilt

upon himself, more

which has brought

especially as the law teaches that

the sins of the fathers are visited upon the children (Ex. xx. 5),

and the prophets announce that the Lord would put away

THE PKOPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

248

Judali from before His face on account of the sins of Manasseh (2

Kings

Lam.

xxiv. 3; Jer. xv. 4), while

Jeremiah complains

people are bearing the fathers'

V. 7 that the

most dangerous and

theless the proverb contained a

Never-

sins.

fatal error,

for which the teaching of the law concerning the visitation of

the sins of the fathers,

who

Jeremiah,

expressly mentions the doctrine of the law (Jer.

condemns

sxxii. 18),

was not accountable, and which

etc.,

who

walk in the footsteps of their

also

who

those

love

show mercy

God

as strongly as Ezekiel.

the sins of the fathers upon the children

who

will visit

Him, and

hate

fathers' sins;

Him, and keep His commandments,

The

to the thousandth generation.

but to

will

proverb, on

the other hand, teaches that the children would have to atone for their fathers' sins without

How

any

culpability of their

own.

remote such a perversion of the truth as to the trans-

mission of sins and their consequences, viz. their punishment,

was from the law of Moses,

mand

evident from the express com-,

in Dent. xxiv. 16, that the children were not to be put

to death with the fathers for the sins

which the

latter

had

own

sin.

committed, but that every one was to die for his

What God

here enjoins upon the judicial authorities must

own judgments.

apply to the infliction of His

what Ezekiel says delusion,

which

Consequently

in the following verses in opposition to the

this

proverb helped to spread abroad,

simply

a commentary upon the words, " every one shall die for his sin,"

that

and not a correction of the law, which

many have put upon

and Ezekiel. this 'ijl

In ver.

these prophetic utterances of Jeremiah

the

Lord

declares with an oath that

The

proverb shall not be used any more.

which

nin^ DN,

own

the interpretation

apodosis to

not expressed, would be an imprecation, so

God

that the oath contains a solemn prohibition.

will take

care that this proverb shall not be used any more in Israel, not so

much by

occasion to

the fact that

make

use of

He it,

will not give

them any further

by the way

convince them, through the judgments which

which

will

sends, of tlie

;

CHAP. XVIII.

His ways.

justice

paraphrase

The

following

Calvin's

admirable

" I will soon deprive you of this boasting of yours

made

for your iniquity shall be

may

249

1-4.

see that

manifest, so that

all

the world

you are but enduring just punishment, which you

yourselves have deserved, and that you cannot cast

you have hitherto attempted

your

fathers, as

same

time, this only gives one side

which

;

we must

also

upon

to do."

brought out so prominently in Jer. xxxi. 29

namely, that after the judgment

God

the

add the other, sqq,,

manifest His grace

will

so gloriously in the forgiveness of sins, that those

who

given will fully recognise the justice of the judgments

are for-

inflicted.

Experience of the love and compassion of the Lord, manifesting the forgiveness of sin, bows

itself in

down

that the pardoned sinner has no longer of the judgments of

such a proverb

"/n

God.

the heart so deeply

any doubt of the

IsraeV^

justice

added, to show that

opposed to the dignity of

Israel.

ver. 4,

the reason assigned for the declaration thus solemnly confirmed

by an oath commences with a general thought which contains the thesis for further discussion.

All souls are mine, the soul of

the father as well as that of the son, saith the Lord.

words, as Calvin has well said, "

God

In these

does not merely vindicate

His government or His authority, but shows that

with paternal affection toward the whole of the

human

which to

created and formed."

There

moved race

no necessity for God

punish the one for the other, the son for the father, say

because of the possibility that the guilty person might evade

Him

;

and as the Father of

different

manner from the

all.

cannot treat the one in a

other, but can only punish the one

by whom punishment has been deserved. sinneth shall die. for " man,"

ment.

K'QS'!) is

and niQ

" Death "

used here, as in

The soul that many other passages,

equivalent to suffering death as a punish-

used to denote the complete destruction

with which transgressors are threatened by the law, as in Deut. XXX. 15 (compare Jer. xxi. 8

;

Prov.

xi.

10).

This sentence

explained in the verses which follow (vers. 5-20).

250

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

The

Vers. 5-9.

a man

And

man

righteous

and doeth

righteous^

shall not die.

right

and

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver.

doth not eat vpon the mountains, and doth not the house

eyes to the idols

neighbour''s wife,

and doth

Ver.

ness,

his

defile his

not approach his wife in her unclean-

Oppresseth no one, restoreth his security

lift

and doth not

Israel,

righteousness^ Ver, 6.

debt-

(lit.

pledge), commiiteth no rohhei^, giveth his bread to the hungry,

and

covereth the naked with clothes, Ver. 8.

Doth not

usury, and taketh not interest, withholdeth his hand e.vecuteth

statutes,

and keepeth my

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; The exposition of

Lord " Jehovah.*^

God

the assertion, that

ness consists in the fulfilment of the :

only punishes the

not the innocent, commences with a picture of the

righteousness which has the promise of

law

rights to execute truth; he

righteous, he shall live, is the saying of the

sinner,

upon

judgment of truth between one and another, Ver.

Walketh in is

give

from wrong,

viz.

The righteouscommandments of the life.

(1) those relating to religious duties, such as the

avoidance of idolatry, whether of the grosser kind, such as eating upon the mountains,

and therefore

refined description,

look to them, or plication to

e.g.

make them

them

(cf.

done, and was doing to

i.e.

observing sacrificial festivals,

sacrificing to idols (cf. lifting

Deut.

xii.

2 sqq.), or of a

up the eyes to

idols, to

the object of trust, and offer sup-

Ps. cxxi. 1

still (cf.

;

Deut.

ch. vi. 13)

iv.

;

19), as Israel

and

had

(2) those relating

moral obligations, such as the avoidance of adultery (com-

pare Ex. XX. 14

Gen. xxxiv.

5),

;

Lev. xx. 10

;

Deut.

xxii.

;

and for

KKiUj

and of conjugal intercourse with a wife during

menstruation, which was a defilement of the marriage relation (cf.

Lev.

xviii. 19,

to a neighbour

any one (Ex. to a debtor

All these sins were forbidden in

xx, 18).

the law on pain of death.

these there are appended duties

(vers. 7 sqq.), viz. to abstain

xxii.

(Ex.

;

xxii.

Lev. xxv. 14, 17),

;

Deut. xxiv,

from oppressing

to restore the pledge 6,

sqq.).

2\n

hardly to be taken in any other sense than as in apposition to in^bn^ " his pledge,

which

debt," equivalent to his debt-pledge

CHAP. XVIII. or security, like nsT Hitzig, that nin

sense of debtor,

support in

the

The

in ch. xvi. 27.

supposition of

a participle, like Dip in 2 Kings xvi.

a far

the

7, in

natural one, and has no valid

less

rendering

free

The

6(j)ei'\ovTo<i.

'!J3"]1

251

10-13.

LXX.,

of the

ive^vpaa-fiov

further duties are to avoid taking unlawful

possession of the property of another (cf. Lev. v. 23); to feed

the hungry, clothe the naked Jas.

ii.

16)

15,

;

Ex.

37)

in judicial sentences, to

;

xxii.

and promote judgment of

draw back the hand from wrong,

truth,

—a sentence

lastly, to

accordance with

comm. on Zech.

the true nature of the case (see the and,

Matt. xxv. 26

;

24) and taking interest (Lev. xxv. 36,

cf.

from practising usury (Deut.

abstain

xxiii.

;

(cf. Isa. Iviii.

vii..9)

walk in the statutes and rights of the Lord,

expression which embraces, in conclusion,

the righteousness required by the law.

—

all

that

;

—an

essential to

This definition of the

idea of true righteousness, which preserves from death and destruction, vers.

and ensures

to the possessor,

life

followed in

10 sqq. by a discussion of the attitude which

God

sustains

towards the sons. Vers. 10-13. protect the

The

wicked,

IfJ however, he hegettelh a violent son,

defileth his

—

neighbour''s xoife,

taheth interest

should he

hath done all these abominations

blood shall be upon him.

righteous literally,

man

and

But he himself hath

Ver. 12. Oppresselh the suffering restore

his eyes to idols, committeth abomination,

and

10.

blood,

he even eateth upon the mountains, and

and poor, committeth robbery, doth not

usury,

—Ver.

who sheddeth

doeth only one of these things, Ver. 11. not done all this,

does not

righteousness of the father

unrighteous son from death.

— The

;

a pledge,

live f

breaking in or through,

(cf.

he shall be put

death

^s?,

;

his

the

ri3, violent,

rendered more emphatic by

Hos.

iv. 2).

"We regard ns

in the next clause as simj)ly a dialectically different

writing and pronouncing, for

shall not live

subject to ^ vi'll, in ver. 10,

described in the preceding verses.

the words " shedding blood "

lifteth

Ver. 13. Gioeth upon

" o"b'/' ^^^

^^^

form of

doeth only

252

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

one of these, the sins previously mentioned (vers. 6 sqq.). *insD, with a partitive connection

The

;

Lev.

as in

1??,

the form ^n^^O

nb'y

sense,

tive of the person to

whom

never construed with the accusa-

anything

done

6i the words to sins against a brother

connection.

Deut. xv.

and doeth one of these

neither warranted by the language nor com-

mended by the

used in a similar

it is

met with

also

Targum,

explanation given by the

to his brother,"

where

iv. 2, is

The next

nb^ N?

clause,

;

and the limitation

unsuitable in this

Nini,

which has

also

been variously rendered, we regard as an adversative circum-

and agree with Kliefoth in referring

stantial clause,

begetter (father)

any of these

"and

For

sins."

yields

intelligible sense to refer

this clause also to the son, since n?X"73

different things

from the preceding

cannot possibly refer to

and a man cannot

'"IPSD,

The

the same time both do and not do the same thing.

which follows

signifies

if,"

enumeration of particular example, Ex. xxi.

sins

1, 7, 17, etc.,

or cases

where is

it,

""S

compare, for

construed with the

may

occur.

followed by the perfect, because the

it is

(even) forms an antithesis to ^nxÂť of

;

to things that

The emphatic

enumerated are regarded as committed.

thosis

frequently the case in the

precepts

imperfect, because the allusion

Here, on the contrary,

to the

he (the father) has not committed

inasmuch as

D3 ^3

riN {"i]^),

or rather an epanor-

resumes and carries out

still

further the description of the conduct of the wicked son, which

was interrupted by the circumstantial clause; and that not only in a different form, but with a gradation in the thought.

The

thought, for instance,

righteous father, even

as follows

the violent son of a

he has committed only one of the sins

which the father has not committed, committed even the gross

sins

shall die.

named,

And

he has

viz. idolatry, adultery,

violent oppression of the poor, robbery, etc., should he then

continue to live

The

contains a question, that

immediately denied.

in is

""nj

introduces the apodosis, which

simply indicated by the tone, and

The antique form

'â&#x20AC;˘n

for

T\'r\^

pers.

;

CHAP. XVIII. peif .,

taken from the Pentateuch

The formulae

xxi. 8).

rinv ni»

from the language of the law father

he doeth

the idols

and

own

and

And

of Israel; he

sms which

riot

robbery

;

he shall

;

his eyes to

giveth his bread to the hungry,

Ver. 17.

statutes

;

holdeth back

usury and

the distressed one, taketh not

rights, walketh in

of his father

Ver. 15.

not

lifteth

And

Ver. 14.

oppresseth no one; he doth not ivithhold a

and committeth

—

dejileth not his neighbour's

covereth the naked with clothes.

doeth

sins.

seeth all his father s

the mountains,

the house

hand from

his

upon

Ver. 16.

wife,

pledge,

9, 11, 13, etc.).

he seeth them, and doeth not suck things.

;

eateth not

Num.

are also derived

avoids his father's sin will live

who

beholdj he begeiteth a son,

22 and

iii.

13 YD'i

Lev. xx.

for his

die

will

Gen.

(cf.

and

(cf.

The son who

Vers. 14-20.

but the

253

14-20.

interest,

not die for the sin

icill

Ver. 18. His father, because he

live.

hath practised oppression, committed robbery upon his brother,

and hath done

that which is not

good in

doth the son not help

the midst

die.

live.

son shall not help

righteous shall be

wicked shall be upon him.

forms the

antithesis

The

man

—The case the

The

read

one

subject to lyin in ver. 14

man who

righteousness

;

^4"^% kolL <f)o^r]6jj, et timuerit,

Septuagint and Vulgate

has been by the Masoretes, to

;

but

it is

nor

the apocopated form

a keeper of

not the righteous described immecommandments of is

not to be

has been by the transla-

ns^'l, as it

;

of the

the father

Chetib nti in the last clause of ver» 14

tors of the

ver,

shall

supposed in these verses

diately afterwards as a transgressor of the

The

the wickedness

preceding

described in ver. 15, but a

God.

and done

bear the fathers sin, and a father

upon him, and

Why

the son hath

statutes,

the transgressor in this instance, and the son the law.

his people;

Ver. 20. Tlie soul that sinneth,

shall not help to bear the sin of the son. the

do ye say,

But

bear the father s sin f

done right and righteousness, hath kept all

them; he shall

And

Ver. 19.

behold, he shall die for his sin.

is it

make

i<"i^,

be altered into it

accord with

as in the preceding

254

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

clause,

and the object

to be repeated

in the similar case

which we

and Hitzig propose

to alter

find in

The

but without the slightest necessity. this,

have both read and rendered the same sentences,

""^y

make

his

him (compare

countrymen

= isy

Pentateuch.

ver. 12)

VJSV ^ina, in the

a participle.

<^PJ} is

does the son not help to bear?" part of the people, but

;

distressed,

The

which the

God would

the sin of the fathers upon the sons in justification of their

Ezekiel cites this pretext for the purpose of meeting

proverb. it

Why

not a direct objection on the

people might offer on the ground of the law, that visit

midst of

question, "

to be taken as a pretext,

for the purpose

adopted from the language of the

'^'^^^, is

after

and Syriac

variations in par-

him

equivalent to abstaining from seizing upon of crushing

are not to be

and Ezekiel, when repeating

;

accustomed

LXX.

since the Chaldee

Holding back the hand from the

ticular words.

Ewald

in ver. 17 into 7\V0 after ver. 8,

^?Vl?

taken as an authority for

from what precedes, as

Ex. xx. 15 (18).

stating the reason

why

this does not occur.

Kfc'J,

carry, near or with, to join in carrying, or help to carry (cf.

Num.

xi. 17).

This proved the proverb to be

firmed the assertion

made

ver. Ab, to

and con-

false,

which the address

therefore returns (ver. 20).

The

man

upon the righteous man, namely,

will

come upon him,

i.e.

The

in its consequences.

righteousness of the righteous

righteous

man

ing of righteousness, but the unrighteous wickedness.

There

will receive the bless-

man

no necessity for the

the curse of his

article,

which the

Keri proposes to insert before V^n. Vers. 21-26. Turning to good leads to life; turning to evil

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver. 21.

man

iurneth

from all his sins which he hath committed, and keepeth

all mi/

followed by death.

statutes, die*

and doeth

right

and

But

if the wicked

righteousness, he shall live,

and not

Ver. 22. All his transgressions which he hath committed,

shall not be

remembered

him : for

ichich he hath done he icill live.

the sake of the righteousness

Ver. 23. Have

then pleasure

in the death of the wicked ? is the saying of Jehovah

and not

CHAP.

from

rather that he turn

man

the righteous ness,

and

ungodly

and

his ways,

man hath done,

should he

and for

he hath committed,

Hear now, from

turneth

the

the righteousness that

for his unfaithjulness that

his sin that he hath sinned, for these

And

Ver. 25.

All

live ?

ye say, " Tlie

house of Israel : 2s

his righteousness,

way of the Lord is my way not right ?

not

Ver. 26. i/ a righteous

not your ways that are not right ?

man

Ver. 24. But if

abominations which

the

all

he hath done shall not be remembered

rightr

live?

turn from his righteousness, and doeth wicked-

acteth according

he shall die.

255

XVril. 21-2G.

and doeth wickedness, and

dieth in consequence, he dieth for his wickedness that he hath done.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;The proof

that every one

must bear

his sin did not contain

an exhaustive reply to the question, in what relation the righteousness of

God

men ?

stood to the sin of

For

the cases sup-

posed in vers. 5-20 took for granted that there was a constant persistence in the course once taken, stances,

which are by no means changed.

life is entirely

rare,

still

and overlooked the

when a man's

in-

course of

remained, therefore, to take

notice of such cases as these, and they are handled in vers.

The ungodly man, who

21-26.

repents and turns, shall live;

and the righteous man, who turns "

the righteous man,

Every one

will

;

so the sinner,

live.

gracious,

God

not

who was once a

found"

for the pardon of the repenting sinner

given in ver. 23, in the declaration that

may

a sinner,

not supported by his early righteousness.

in the death of the wicked

of sin, shall die.

be judged in that state in which he

The motive

(Jerome). is

way

who was formerly

crushed down by his past sins righteous man,

to the

man, but

God

has no pleasure

desires his conversion, that

therefore not only just, but merciful and

and punishes none with death but those who either from evil, or will not persevere in the way of

will not desist

His commandments.

way (|3n^,

of the Lord, see

i.e.

comm. on

Consequently the complaint, that the

His conduct toward men, 1

Sam.

ii.

3),

altogether unfounded, and recoils

i.e.

not weighed

not just and right,

upon those who make

it.

256 is

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

not God's ways, but the sinner's, that are wrong (ver. 25).

The

proof of

made

declarations

which Hitzig overlooks,

this,

in vers.

23 and 26,

—

contained in the

viz. in

God

the fact that

does not desire the death of the sinner, and in His mercy forgives the penitent his charge

and

;

all his

and does not lay them

sins,

also in the fact that

way

turns from the

former

punishes the

He is

man who

of righteousness and gives himself

wickedness, on account of the sin which he commits

simply judges him according to his deeds.

the continuation of the infinitive

ait^,

and

— In

^nj is

so that

;

ver. 24, HK'yi

interrogatory,

as in ver. 13.

Vers. 27-32.

have formed a

The

vindication of the

ways of God might

But

fitting close to this divine oracle.

as the

prophet was not merely concerned with the correction of the

was current among the

error contained in the proverb which people, but

still

more with the rescue of the people themselves

from destruction, he follows up the refutation with another earnest call to repentance.

from

—Ver.

27. Jf a wicked

turneth

Ver. 28. If he seeth

righteousness, he will keep his soul alive.

and

man

which he hath done, and doeth right and

his wickedness

turneth from all his transgressions which he hath committed,

he shall

live

saith, Tlie

and

way

Ver. 30.

I judge

will

Jehovah.

may

Lord Is

house of Israel'? right?

Ver. 29.

not die.

of the

ways

not right,

that are not

every one according to his ways,

house of Israel,

Turn and

the house of Israel

Are my ways

not rather your

Tlierefore,

you^

And

not right.

the saying

of the

Lord

repent of all your transgressions, that

not become to you a stumbling -I loch to guilt.

Ver. 31.

Cast from you all your transgressions which ye have committed,

and make yourselves a new

why

heart

and a new

house of Israel?

will ye die,

no pleasure in the death of

And

spirit!

Ver. 32. For I have

the dying,

the saying

of the

— For

the

purpose of securing an entrance into their hearts for the

call

Lord Jehovah. to

repentance,

Therefore repent, that ye

the

may

live.

prophet not only repeats, in

vers.

CHAP. XVIII.

and 28, the truth declared in turns from his sin finds as he has already

The

are not right.

D??")"!!,

may

but

21 and 22, that he who

vers.

but refutes once more in ver. 29,

does not warrant our altering the plural

and that the meaning your own ways,

applies to just

measure therein."

and not yours, to his

way.

^n^5J' is

it is

" therefore,

etc.

summed up in my way

not right ;

there

;

" because

way,

judge you, every one according

ye would escape from death

rendered more emphatic by

In the

D3\33^ as in ch. xiv. 6.

all

what you say of

namely, "

Repent, therefore,

and destruction.

i2"'?'n,

last clause of ver. 30,

sc.

not

be taken as the subject of the sentence according to the

accents, but vii.

19 and

a genitive dependent upon

xiv. 3

preceding clause a.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

137,

this

right, I will

connected

be explained in a very simple manner, by

assuming that the ways of the people are one,

God's ways

ver. 25, the charge that

fact that the singular \^^\

plural Q3"'?")%

with the into

life,

done in

257

27-32.

;

that

and the subject it

(the sinning)

stumbling-block of iniquity,

which ye

fall into guilt

i.e.

The

ch.

be found in the

not become to you

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;The

appeal in ver.

xi. 18, 19.

^v*^'7, to cast

and punishment.

application of this

as in

a stumbling-block through

31 points back to the promise in ch.

away.

may

^'i^^^,

word

to transgressions

may be

explained from the fact that they consisted for the most part of idols

and idolatrous images, which they had made.

new

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

Make

man cannot, indeed, create either of these by his own power God alone But a man both can and should can give them (ch. xi. 19). come to God to receive them in other words, he can turn to

yourselves a

heart and a

spirit:" a

;

God, and

let

both heart and

be renewed by the Spirit of

spirit

God. And this God is willing to do for He has no pleasure non nioii, in the death of the dying one. In the repetition of ;

the assurance given in ver. 23, non tuted for

y^,

that

renewal that they can recover T

very appropriately substi-

to indicate to the people that while in sin they

are lying in death, and

EZEK

life

only by conversion and

again.

258

THE PROPHECIES OP EZEKIEL.

CHAP. XrX. LAMENTATION FOR THE PRINCES OF ISRAEL. Israel, the lioness,

brought up young

But when they showed

lions.

lions in the midst of

were

their leonine nature, they

taken captive by the nations and led away, one to Egypt, the

The mother

other to Babylon (vers. 1-9).

herself,

planted by the water with vigorous branches, soil,

and

so that her strong tendrils wither,

a dry land.

Fire, emanating

ruler's

sceptre

from a rod of the branches, has

10-14).

(vers.

torn from the

transplanted into

devoured the fruit of the vine, so that not a cane a

once a vine

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; This

is left

form

which

lamentation,

bewails the overthrow of the royal house and the banishment of Israel into exile, forms a finale to the preceding prophecies

of the overthrow of Judah,

and was well adapted

to annihilate

every hope that things might not come to the worst after

Vers.

Ver.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

1-9. Capture and Exile op the Princes. And do thou raise a lamentation for the princes of Israel^ And say, Why did thy mother, a lioness, lie down among

lionesses; bring

A nd she

up her whelps among young lions?

brought vp one of

and he learned

whelps

Iter

him; he was caught

Ver. 3.

became a young

prey ; he devoured man.

to take

nations heard of

Ver. 4.

their pit,

when she saw

that her hope

took one of her whelps,

walked among

take prey.

and

made

lionesses, he

;

lion.

became a young

and

the land

and

Ver.

waste, at the voice of his roaring.

their net

he was caught in their pit.

the cage

Babylon

And

he to

knew its

its

widows,

fulness became

Ver. 8. Then nations round

about from the provinces set up against him,

they

Ver.

and learned

Ver.

lion,

devoured man.

laid waste their cities

And

was exhausted, overthrown, she

a young

lion,

and

brought him with nose-rings into the land of Egypt.

A nd

all.

Ver.

and spread over him 9.

And

they put

him

with nose-rings, and brought him to the king of

brought him into a fortress, that his voice might not be

heard any more on the mountains of Israel.

CHAP. XIX.

The

as in ch.

(**^^5,

out in

pointed

vers.

xii.

the plural

the lamentation applies, are

whom

two of

10),

4 and

Jehoahaz and Jehoiachin.

9, that there

This fact alone

are so clearly-

no mistaking

protect

is sufficient to

against the arbitrary alteration into the singular

''^''^^

proposed by Houbigant and Hitzig, after the reading of

N''b'3,

the

whom

princes of Israel, to

the kings

259

1-9.

LXX.

The

lamentation

not addressed to one particular

prince, either Zedekiah (Hitzig) or Jehoiachin (E.os., Maurer),

but to Israel as a nation

and the mother

;

(ver.

fhe

national community, the theocracy, out of which the kings

were born, as

from

The words

indisputably evident from ver. 10.

form one sentence. It yields no good sense to separate ^S5^ no from '"IV?!? whether we adopt the rendering, " what is thy mother ? " or take no with N^3p and ^Q>5

render

"how

it,

nyn*!

thy mother a lioness?" unless, indeed,

supply the arbitrary clause " now, in comparison with what she

was before," or change the interrogative into a preterite has thy mother become a lioness ? "

which

The words have no

where Judah different

its

connection with Gen.

much

not so

among young

prey and devour men. the

young

prey.

lion,

^)i^\ is

grow up,

Why

has Israel ?

xlix. 9,

figure

the strength and courage

which

"iia

The mother

lions, so that

brings

they learn to take

the lion's whelp, catulus

old

enough

go out

;

"I'SS,

in search of

a HipJiil, in the tropical sense, to cause to spring

up, or

nations

" how among

wildness and ferocity that are the points of

resemblance in the passage before us. her young ones

The

depicted as a warlike lion.

one here.

of the lion as

lionesses,

down, are the other kingdoms, the Gentile

Israel lay

nations.

The

i.e.

Why,

The thought

to bring up.

entered then, has

into it

fellowship

put

itself

the following:

with the heathen

upon a

level with the

heathen nations, and adopted the rapacious and tyrannical nature of the powers of the world ? The question " whythen

when taken with what

follows, involves the reproof

that Israel has struck out a course opposed to

its

divine calling,

260 and

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL will

now have

to taste the bitter fruits of this assumption

The heathen

of heathen ways.

nations have taken captive

its

him away into heathen lands. V7K ^VpK^., they him (IvS for ivy). The fate of Jehoahaz, to which

king, and led iieard of ver.

related in 2

refers, is

Kings

31 sqq.

xxiii.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Vers.

5-7

refer to Jehoiachin, the son of Jehoiakim, and not to Zedekiah,

For the

as Hitzig imagines.

own accord

his

not at variance with the figure contained in rer.

which he was taken self

to the

went out of

fact that Jehoiachin

the king of Babylon (2 Kings xxiv. 12),

(as a lion) in a net.

according to

simply gave him-

king of Babylon because he was unable to escape

from the besieged

Moreover, Jehoaliaz and Jehoiachin

city.

are simply mentioned as examples, because they both

into

fell

the hands of the world-powers, and their fate showed clearly

enough " what the end must inevitably

be,

when

Israelitish

kings became ambitious of being

lions, like the

nations of the world" (Kliefoth).

Jehoiakim was not so

kings of the suit-

able an example as the others, because he died in Jerusalem. '^iJy^^}

which has been explained

different ways, w'e agree

with Evvald in regarding as the Niplial of 7n^ =:

the

b^n, in

sense of feeling vexed, being exhausted or deceived, like the

For even

Syriac ^^j^o], viribus defecit, desperavit. viii.

12, ?ni3

simply means to wait; and this

here, as waiting

change from hn or

to p^I

and renders

literal description

pursued by the king.

knew,

ver.

iii.

The

reads

j;i*l

But

rendering. ii.

9),

its

There

'?\n

the fifjurative

here instead of palaces

J?yn,

;

and

to break, or

never used for the

destruction of buildings; and niJDpN does not

but windows.

25, where

Le. dishonoured, its (Israel's,

The Targum

in pieces, e.g. a vessel (Ps.

(ni:D")S)j

inapplicable

of the ungodly course

accordingly, " he destroyed

Ewald has adopted the same smash

by Judg.

established

occurs in the sense of ?n\

the nation's) widows.

Gen.

not equivalent to waiting in vain.

language passes into a

jn^l,

mean

palaces

nothing in the use of the

261

CHAP. XIX. 10-14

word

in Isa. xiii.

support the meaning " palaces," because

the palaces are simply called 'almdnoth (widows) there, with a

and widowed

sarcastic side glance at their desolate

Other conjectures are as follows

much

Jehoiachin went

condition.

The thought

more inadmissible.

still

than Jehoahaz.

further

not only devoured men, but laid hands on defenceless

widows, and laid the land with

waste to such an extent that the

inhabitants became perfectly desolate through his

its

The

rapacity.

cities

description

no doubt equally applicable

to his

father Jehoiakim, in whose footsteps Jehoiachin walked, since

Jehoiakim

IJri^.

13 sqq. as a grievous

described in Jer. xxii.

despot and tyrant.

ver. 8 the object

QJJ'?'!

used in a general and indefinite manner

mountain-fortresses,

Vers. 10-14.

in one of

i.e.

them

(cf.

also belongs to

The

they set up and spread out their net. :

plural niYjfO

in lofty castles,

Judg.

xii. 7).

Destruction of the Kingdom, and BanishVer. 10. Thy mother was like a vine,

ment OF THE People.

—

planted hy the water in thy repose ; At became fruitful and rich

from many

in tendrils

clouds,

and

icas

and

;

visible

Ver. 12. Then

branches.

Ver. 11.

waters.

shoots for rulers' sceptres

its

height in the

was torn up

ground, and the east wind, dried up icere

broken

A nd now

off, is

and withered ;

And

its

multitude of

in fury^

fruit

;

upon will

it,

fruit,

fire devoured them.

that there is

no more a

—A

lamentation

lamentation.

transported

— From

Ver. 13.

its

branches,

strong shoot it

the lamentable

is,

and

which the

passes

lion-like rapacity of

preparing for "the kingdom and people.

resembled a vine planted by the water.

fate of the

Egypt and Babylon, the ode

description of the fate,

the princes

cast to the

planted in the desert, in a dry and thirsty land.

a sceptre for riding.

be for

princes to

its

strong shoots

its

Ver. 14. There goeth out fre from the shoot of devoureth

had strong

growth ascended among the

The

1013 we agree with Havernick and Kliefoth

difficult

Israel

word

in tracincr to the

262

THE PBOPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

vetb

HD'n, to rest

with

'*0'i3

and regard it as synonymous " in thy repose," i.e. in the time

(Jer. xiv. 1 7),

in Isa. xxxviii.

For neither of the other

of peaceful, undisturbed prosperity. renderings,

"in thy blood" and "in thy

meaning.

suitable

The

likeness," yields a

which originated

latter explanation,

with Raschi and Kimchi,

precluded by the fact that Ezekiel

always uses the word H^^^ to express the idea of resemblance.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;For

the figure of the vine, compare Ps. Ixxx. 9 sqq.

vine sent out strong shoots for rulers' sceptres

that

;

This to say,

brought forth powerful kings, and grew up to a great height, even into the clouds. ^''^^J? signifies " clouds," lit. thicket of

clouds, not only here, but in eh. xxxi. 3, 10, 14. The rendering " branches " or " thicket of foliage " is not suitable in any

of these passages. that of a

2 Sam.

new

xxiii.

The form

of the word

Ixxvii.

and

the plural of niay, an

simply transferred to

The

clouds.

clause

still

no such

This picture

alteration as Hitzig proposes.

any

particle of transition,

tion of the destruction of this vine.

the wrath of God, cast

down

used

T*y

xvii. 10).

nitSD (ver. 11);

suffix in ^i^nPiN is written in the singular

The

kingdom

this catastrophe is occasioned

by the

princes.

devours the fruit of the vine so that n''"^.?

nis^o^

The dry

soil in

which

According to ver. 14,

could not flourish.

more branches, emanates

this

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;in other words,

Babylon, so described as being a barren

God

W n^D

and the

on account of

in the transplanting of the people, Israel, into exile.

uprooting ends in the transplanting

of the vine into a waste, dry, unwatered land,

descrip-

in fury

to the ground, so that its fruit

collectively, as equivalent to

collective use of ntSD.

followed

by a

was torn up

withered (compare the similar figures in ch.

the

N^.^l,

further the glorious and vigorous growth, and needs

in ver. 12 sqq., without

land

'lJ^

appeared, was seen, or became visible, simply serves to

depict

which occurs in

18; but

up of the

the interlacing or piling it

not to be taken as

plural of ^^^V, the plural of 3y,

4 and Ps.

interlacing or thicket of foliage,

and

The

fire,

which

cannot send out any

from the shoot of

its

CHAP. XX.

branches, ntSD

from

i.e.

its

dliX

)a'l

branches, which are so prolific in shoots.

the shoot which grew into rulers' sceptres, Tiie reference

family of the nation.

i.e.

the royal

whose

to Zedekiah,

treacherous breach of covenant (ch. xvii. 15) led to the over-

The

throw of the kingdom and of the earthly monarchy. picture

from

ver. 12

the vine, and

onwards

prophetic.

up of

tearing

transplantation into a dry land, had already

its

commenced with the carrying away not completed

The

of Jeconiah

;

but

was

the destruction of Jerusalem and the carry-

till

ing away of Zedekiah, which were

still

time when these words were uttered.

in the future at the

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;The

clause

'u^

^'''7

na^p

does not contain a concluding historical notice, as Havernick supposes, but simply the Jinale of the lamentation, indicating

the credibility of the prediction which

contains,

^"^^l

prophetic, like the perfects from ^TjF^ in ver. 12 onwards

the meaning

is this

whole chapter; and

;

and

lamentation forms the substance of the will lead to

lamentation,

when

fulfilled.

CHAP. XX. THE PAST, PRESENT, AND FUTURE OF ISRAEL.

The

date given in ch. xx. 1 applies not only to ch. xx., but"

also to ch.

(compare ch. xxiv. 1)

xx.-xxiii.

utterances in these four chapters being

the prophetic

;

bound together

into a

group of connected words of God, both by their contents and by the threefold repetition of the expression, " wilt thou judge ?"

and

{vid. ch. XX. 4, xxii. 2,

which

xxiii.

36).

The formula

CiSB'nn,

only omitted from the threat of punishment contained

in ch. xxi., indicates at the

design of these words of God,

same time both the nature and

The prophet

to judge,

i.e.

hold up before the people once more their sinful abominations,

and

to predict the

which occasioned elders of Israel

The

occasion

consequent punishment. this

came

The circumstance

narrated in ch. xx. 1-3.

to the

Men

of the

prophet to inquire of the Lord.

therefore a similar one to that described in the

;

264

THE PBOPHECIES OP EZEKIEI. group

word from him

we have

for

;

had come

ch. xiv. 1, that elders

been

already

informed,

to the prophet to hear

God's

but they had not gone so far as to inquire.

;

Here, however (ch. xx.), they evidently address a question to

him

the prophet, and through of their inquiry

to the

the answer, which was given to

The ground

prophet.

fore essentially the

and

Lord

;

though the nature

not given, and can only be gathered from

them by the Lord through the

for the following

same

words of

God

there-

as for those contained in ch. xiv.—xix.

this serves to explain the relation in

which the two groups

stand to each other, namely, that ch. xx.-xxiv. simply contain

a further expansion of the reproachful and threatening addresses of ch. xiv.—xix.

In ch. XX. the prophet points out to the a historical survey,

how

Lord from the very desert

form of

had been towards the

even in Egypt (vers. 5-9) and the

first,

10-17 and 18-26), both the older and

(vers.

generations,

rebellions Israel

elders, in the

how they had sinned

through their idolatry, and how

against the

Lord

later

their

God

was only for His own name's

Lord had not destroyed them in His anger And as Israel hath not given up idolatry even (vers. 27-31). in Canaan, the Lord would not suffer Himself to be inquired sake that the

of by the idolatrous generation, but would refine

judgments among the nations

(vers.

by severe

32-38), and sanctify

thereby into a people well-pleasing to Him, and would then gather

again out of the dispersion, and bring

promised to the fathers, where fices

and

gifts

word of God

would serve

upon His holy mountain is

therefore a

(vers.

literal

into the land

Him

with sacri-

This

39-44).

repetition of the

allegorical description contained in ch. xvi.

Vers. 1-4. Date, occasion, and theme of the discourse which follows.

—Ver.

the fifth (moon),

of the elders of before me.

Ver.

And

came

to pass in the seventh year, in

on the tenth of the moon, there came men Israel, 2.

Then

inquire of Jehovah, the

and

down

sat

word of Jehovah came

me,

265

CHAP. XS. 1-4.

to the elders of Israel^ and Lord Jehovah, Have ye come to

Son of man, speak

saying, Ver. 3.

say to them, Thus saith the inquire of

by yon,

As I live,

me?

saying

the

thou judge them ?

known

suffer myself to be inquired of

of the Lord Jehovah.

Wilt thou judge,

the abominations of their fathers to them.

pare the date given in ver. 1 with ch.

days after the one in chap. days after the

call of

and two years and

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

^If

Wilt

Make

we comshall find

five

viii.

cn-i^

to seek

first

;

Consequently

1).

falls

section of Ezekiel's prophetic

Jehovah,

The Lord's answer

from Him.

months before the blockading of Jeru-

almost in the middle of the nin^

five

two years, one month, and

;

Ezekiel to be a prophet (ch.

salem by the Chaldeans (ch. xxiv.

work,

viii.

man

word of God was uttered only eleven months and

that this

five

Ver.

son of

to ask a revelation

i.e.

in ver. 3

similar to that

Instead of giving a revelation concerning the

in ch. xiv. 3.

future, especially with regard to the speedy termination of the

penal sufferings, which the elders had, no doubt, come to the prophet

judge them,

i.e.

solicit,

following clause

as the

explains, not only in the passage before us, but also in ch. xxii. 3

and

xxiii. 36, to

of Israel.

hold up before

them

the sins

and abominations

in anticipation of the following picture of the

apostasy of the nation from time immemorial that the sins of

"No

the fathers are mentioned here. sinners, but chiding for their sins

;

and

may

that the sentence of refusal

live,'

(Jerome).

The

question

tsisiJ'nn,

given to the

adds the oath,

which

as I

all

the stronger"

repeated

with

emotion, " gives expression to an impatient wish, that the thing

The

interrogative

therefore adopted simply as a

more earnest

could have been done already " (Hitzig).

form of address

mode

of giving expression to the

thing. also

Hence the

literal

command

appended in the form of an imperative

prophet

go and do the

explanation of the word tOiSD'nn (Dy"'*]in).

to revert to the sins of the fathers, not

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; The

merely for

the purpose of exhibiting the magnitude of the people's guilt,

266

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

but also to hold up before the sinners themselves, the patience

and long-suffering which have hitherto been displayed by the Lord. Vers. 5-9. Election of Israel in Egypt.

Its resistance to

—

commandments of God. Ver. 5. And say to them, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah, In the day that I chose Israel, and lifted my hand to the seed of Jacob, and made myself known to them in the land of Egypt, and lifted my hand to thetn, saying, I the

God:

Jehovah, your

hand

land which

the

—

and honey to them.

do not

Ver.

that

day

lifted

them, to bring them out of the land of Egypt into

sought out for them, which ftoweth with milk

an ornament of

Cast away every

defile yourselves

your God.

Ver.

would not hearkeyi

man

all lands:

Ver.

the abominations

of his

But

me.

And

said

eyes,

and

I am

with the idols of Egypt.

Jehovah,

they were rebellious against me,

Not one of them threw away

and

the abo-

minations of his eyes, and they did not forsake the idols of Egypt.

Then 1 thought

pour out

wrath upon them,

accomplish

anger upon them in the midst of the land of Egypt.

But I did

faned before they

were,

my names

for

eyes of the

the

sake,

(ver. 6),

^"ina Di'3

(ver. 5)

and the sentence continued.

Kfe'XJ

Ninn ni»3

the construc-

tion with the infinitive passes over into the finite verb.

ing the hand,

sc. to

oath (see the

comm. on Ex.

heaven,

clause

The

Vi^^J (and made myself known)

and then the

lifting of the

substance of the oath

5 and 6 rest upon Ex.

hand mentioned again

Himself known Israel,

vi.

;

but the

previously inserted,

the importance of this act of divine grace. vers.

Lift-

a gesture employed in taking an

vi. 8).

introduced by the word ibN«l at the close of ver. 5 'iJI

—Vers. 5 and 6

resumed

With

of which

I had made myself known

them, to bring them out of the land of Egypt.

form one period,

Ver.

might not be pro-

nations, in the midst

whose eyes

before

that

The

2 sqq., where the

to indicate

contents of

Lord makes

Moses, and through him to the children of

according to the nature involved in the

name Jehovah,

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

in which

(Ex.

CHAP. XX. 5-8C HI 3

Â§^7

had not yet revealed Himself to the patriarchs Both nj ^nsb'J (I lifted my hand) and nin> >:s are

vi. 3).

taken from Ex.

The word

vi. 8.

^^y^,

from

"iw, to seek out,

explore, also belongs to the Pentateuch (compare Deut.

33)

;

and the same may be said of the description given of Canaan as " a land flowing with milk and honey " (vid. Ex. iii. 8, etc.).

But

''3V,

is first

ornament, as an epithet applied

namely, in vers. 6 and 15 of in

to the land of Israel,

employed by the prophets of the time of the captivity

Dan.

16, 41.

viii, 9, xi.

this chapter, in Jer.

The

the people of Jehovah, contained eo ipso the

tiie idols

of Egypt, although

of other gods was for the XX. 3), (cf.

first

and Egyptian idolatry

19,

and

was

command

to give

at Sinai that the worship

time expressly prohibited (Ex. only mentioned in Lev.

Ezekiel calls

Josh. xxiv. 14).

iii.

election of the Israelites to be

xvii.

the idols " abominations of

because, " although

eicecrable things, they

they were abominable and were looked upon with delight by them "

(Rosenmiiller).

true that there

their eyes,"

in the

the in

nothing expressly stated

Pentateuch as to the refusal of the

command

Israelites to

of God, or their unwillingness to give

Egypt; but

tained in Ex.

be inferred from the statements con-

9 and 12, to the effect that the Israelites did

vi.

not hearken

may

obey

idolatry

Moses when he communicated

determination of

God

more plainly from

to lead

them the

them out of Egypt, and

their relapse into

Egyptian

idolatry,

still

from

the worship of the golden calf at Sinai (Ex. xxxii.), and from their repeated desire to return to

the desert.^

Nor

Egypt while wandering

there anything said in the Pentateuch

concerning the determination of

God

pour out His wrath

*' ^ The remarks of Calvin upon this point are very good. do not learn directly from Moses," he says, " that they had been rebels against God, because they would not throw away their idols and superstitions; but

the conjecture

a very probable one, that they had always been so firmly way the hand of God

fixed in their abominations as to prevent in a certain

from bringing them relief. And assuredly, if they had embraced what Moses promised them in the name of God with promptness of mind, the

268

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

upon the

idolatrous people in Egypt.

assume on

need not indeed

account that Ezekiel derived his information

this

from some special traditional source, as Vitringa has done Observv.

ss.

263), or regard the statement as a revelation

made by God

and through him

to Ezekiel,

do not disclose to us either a particular fact or a of

God; they simply contain

The words

to us.

definite decree

a description of the attitude which

God, from His inmost nature, assumes towards sinners who rebel

commandments, and which

against His holy

jealous God,

who

words addressed Sinai,

them, and that I that

God

(Ex. xx.

visits iniquities

alone, that

wrath

displayed both

as a zealous, or

and

also in the

fell into

may wax

may consume them"

idolatry at

hot against

(Ex. xxxii. 10).

who would

" but I did

object explaining

out His wrath,

is to

might not profane

God had

what

for

did,

vii. 8,

vi.

12, v. 13.

The

name's sake."

^Vi^)

missing

namely, abstain from pouring

be gathered from what follows

For

not desist from idolatry.

the words themselves, compare ch.

Egypt

expresses here, His heart must have felt in

towards the people

(ver. 9),

5),

Moses when the people

Let me

made concerning Himself

in the declaration

" that I

This would have taken place

name."

destroyed Israel by pouring out His wrath

;

in other

words, have allowed them to be destroyed by the Egyptians.

The heathen might then have said to liberate xiv.

His people from

16 and Ex.

''nn (cf.

Lev.

xxxii. 12).

that

their

bnn

Jehovah had been unable

hand and power an

injin.

led them out oj the land of Egypt,

execution of

we may

Num.

xxi. 4).

Vers. 10-17. Behaviour of Israel in the desert.

And I

(cf.

Niphal of 7c^ for

tlie

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver.

10.

and brought them

promise would have been more prompt and swift. But it was their own obtuseness which hindered God from

learn that

stretching out His hand forthwith and actually fulfilling all that He had promised It was necessary, indeed, that God should contend with Pharaoh, that His power might be more conspicuously displayed but the people would not have been so tyrannically afflicted if they had not closed the door of divine mercy." ;

CHAP. XX.

live

I made known

they might be for that

Israel

may

live

desert

my hand

lifted

in the desert

them.

J had

led

whom He

God

man

them

Ver. 15.

out.

also

them into the

Ver. 16. Because they rejected

my statutes, and profaned my

in the desert.

Sabbaths,

my eye I did not destroy them, and God gave laws at Sinai to Ver. 17. But

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

had brought out of Egypt, through which

they were to be sanctified as His

God.

which

desert, not to bring

all lands,

not walk in

make an end of them

the house

they did not walk

which floweth unth milk and honey ;

looked with pity upon them, so that

Ver. 12

rejected,

for their heart went after their idols.

live before

them, that they might

my Sabbaths they greatly pour out my wrath upon them in Ver. 14. Bat I did it for my

them in the

an ornament of

the people

may

Sabbaths, that

Ver. 13. But

rights they

I had given (them),

my rights, did

might not be profaned before the eyes of the

nations, before whose eyes

land which

and my

do that he

through them, and

destroy

sake, that

me and

statuteSf

also gave them

hetioeen

Then 1 thought

profaned: the

and my

statutes,

man

sanctify them.

rebellious against

do, that he

names

gave them

them, which

a sign

IJehovah

was

Ver. 12,

through them.

know

And

Ver. 11.

info the desert;

right?

269

10-17.

own

people, that they

might

compare Deut. xxx. 16 and 19.

ver. 11

taken almost word for word from Ex. xxxi. 13, where

concludes the directions for His worship by urging upon

the people in the most solemn

manner

the observance of His

Sabbaths, and thereby pronounces the keeping of the Sabbath the kernel of all divine worship. are to understand

and not the

And

by the Sabbaths the actual weekly Sabbaths,

institutions of worship as a whole, so here

retain the literal signification of the word.

Sabbath recurring every week, and not of could be said

was a

that

all

we must

only of the

the fasts, that

was a sign between Jehovah and

sign, not as a token,

Israelites, as

know)

as in that passage

Israel.

who observed it were know (that they might

that they

Hitzig supposes, but to

Jehovah was sanctifying them, namely, by the

—

270

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

Sabbath

which

from attain

rest

—

all

works

Sabbaths here

God was

which the people of

comm. on Ex.

signification of the

tlie miiid, in

have a foretaste of that blessed resting

(see the

and elevation of

as a refreshing

was

Israel

ultimately to

from

this

deeper

Sabbath that the prominence given

to the

xx. 11).

when

exile,

and not from the outward

to be explained,

circumstance that in

the sacrificial worship

was

necessarily suspended, the keeping of the Sabbath was the only

bond which united the

Israelites, so far as

commandments

of Israel against the

the worship of

given in Ex. xxxii. 1-6 and

Num.

Ex.

cration of the Sabbath, in

xvi.

God

xxv. 1-3

27 and

in the desert are

and of the dese-

;

Num.

—Vers. 15

and 16 are not a

For

xv. 32.

the threat referred to in ver. 136, compare Ex. xxxii. 10 xiv. 11, 12.

God

Historical examples of the rebellion

was concerned (Hitzig).

;

Num. 13

repetition of ver.

(Hitzig) ; nor do they introduce a limitation of ver. 14 (Kliefoth).

They simply

relate

rebellion after

what

He had

else

God

did to put bounds to the

revoked the decree to cut Israel

the intercession of Closes

(Num.

xiv.

11—19).

(Num. xiv. 21 sqq.), that which had come out of Egypt should not come hand

to the oath

Canaan, but should

die

His

the generation into the land of

Therewith

the wilderness.

looked with pity upon the people, so that

off, at

lifted

did not

make an

end of them by following up the threat with a promise that the children should enter the land.

The generation

Vers. 18-26.

Ver. 18.

And I

the statutes

spake

to their

God; walk

And

in the desert.

Walk

sons in the desert, their rights,

not in

and do not

Jehovah your

my rights,

and do them,

Ver. 19. /

and keep

statutes,

sanctify

as in ch. xi. 13.

riB'y,

grew up

of your fathers^ and keep not

defile yourselves loith their idols.

Ver. 20.

^73

that

Sabbaths, that they

may

be for a sign

I am Jehovah your God. Ver. 21. But the sons were rebellious against me ; tliey walked not in my statutes, and did not keep my rights, to do them, which man should do that he may live through them; they probetween

me and

you, that ye

may know

that

CHAP.

faned

271

18-25.

Tlien I thought to pour out my wrath upon my anger upon them in the desert. Ver. 22. my hand and did it for my namis sake, that it

Sabbaths.

them, to accomplish

But

I turned

back

might not be profaned before the eyes of the nations, before whose eyes

I had them

the desert, to scatter

in the lands

despised

statutes,

which

profaned

of their fathers. loere not good,

And

Sabbaths,

Ver. 25.

and

The

and

their eyes

were

And I also

gave them

they did not

gifts, in that

I might

pass through, that

them with horror, that they might know that

them

rights,

and rights, through which

womb

them in

to disperse

defied them in their sacrificial

they caused all that openeth the fill

my hand

them among the nations, and

statutes,

Ver. 26.

live ;

also lifted

Ver. 24. Because they did not

;

after the idols

Ver. 23.

out.

I am

Jehovah.

sons acted like their fathers in the wilderness.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

Historical

proofs of this are furnished by the accounts of the Sabbath-

breaker

(Num

XV. 32 sqq.), of the rebellion of the

murmuring

Korah, and of the

Moses and Aaron

against

company (Num. threatened that

Num.

xvi.

and

after the xvii.).

company

destruction

In the

last

Korah's

two cases

would destroy the whole congregation

21 and

xvii.

of the whole congregation

God (cf.

10); and on both occasions the

Lord drew back His hand at the intercession of Moses, and his actual intervention (Num. xvi. 22 and xvii. 11 sqq.), and statements in vers. 216 and 22 rest upon these facts.

The The

would

did not destroy the whole nation for His name's sake.

words of ver. 23 concerning the oath of God, that scatter the transgressors

among

the heathen, are also founded

upon the Pentateuch, and not upon an independent or any special revelation from God.

Dispersion

tradition,

among

the

threatened in Lev. xxvi. 33 and Deut. xxviii. 64, there is no force in Kliefoth's argument that " these and

heathen

threats do not refer to the generation in the wilderness, but to a later age."

For

both chapters the blessings and curses

of the law are set before the people desert

;

and there

who were then

in the

not a single word to intimate that either

;

272

THE PKOPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

blessing or curse would only be fulfilled

of later times.

him

people assembled before

upon the generations

when Moses addressed

the contrary,

to the

concerning the

his last discourse

renewal of the covenant (Deut. xxix. and xxx.), he called upon to enter into the covenant, "

them

thee this day " (Deut. xxix. 12), this

covenant and do them.

which Moses

which Jehovah maketh with

and to keep

upon

It is

this

all

the words of

same

discourse, in

the threatenings of the law npx, an oath

calls

(Deut. xxix. 13), that "the lifting of the hand of swear," mentioned in ver. 23 of this chapter,

Moreover,

hand

to scatter

grown up

God

not stated in this verse that

among

God

also founded.

lifted

His

the heathen the generation which had

in the wilderness,

and

them

to disperse

in the lands

before their entrance into the land promised to the fathers;

but simply that

had

His hand

lifted

threaten the people with dispersion in

in the wilderness to

among

the heathen, without

any way defining the period of dispersion.

and threatenings of the law contained in Deut. xxviii.-xxx., the nation so that

no distinction

tions, for the

punishment

made between

which grew up

came out

who had

And

Ezekiel acts in

true that he distinguishes the

Egypt and was sentenced by

from the

in the wilderness

;

sons,

but the

fallen, the generation

i.e.

sive generations,

the generation

latter, or

all

the succes-

and embraces the whole under the common

of " fathers " to the generation living in his

fathers" ver. 27), as to the sentence

the sons

which was brought

Canaan, he regards as one with

into the land of

name

and

to die in the wilderness

of those

xxvi.

the successive genera-

one or the other.

same way.

generation which

God

Lev.

regarded as a united whole

purpose of announcing this particular blessing or

to either

precisely the

In the blessings

we may

clearly see

day (" your

from the turn given

which describes the apostasy of those who came

into the laud of

Canaan

('lii riNT

liy).

In thus embracing the

generation which grew up in the wilderness and was led into

Canaan, along with the generations which followed and lived

;

CHAP.

273

18-26.

Canaan, Ezekiel adheres very closely to the view prevailing in the Pentateuch, wheie the nation in

all its

successive genera-

regarded as one united whole.

The

threat of dispersion

tions

anions the heathen, which the Lord uttered in the wilderness to the sons of those

who were

not to see the land,

God

mentioned by Ezekiel as one which

upon the people who were wandering

For

he had understood

mentioned 'Ul

"Df

its

also

designed to execute

iu the desert at the time.

this

he would have

sense,

non-fulfilment also, and would have added a

\]}u? tJ'yxij

he has done in the case of the previous

threats (of. vers. 22,

and

14,

But we do not

9).

The

either in ver. 24. or ver. 26.

find this

omission of this turn clearly

shows that ver. 23 does not refer to a punishment which designed to

inflict,

among

but that the dispersion

the heathen, with which the

commandments were threatened by God

in the wilderness,

simply mentioned as a proof that

even in the wilderness the people, to lead

into

had obstinately

Israel its

whom God had

determined

Canaan, were threatened with that very punish-

ment which had now of

God

but did not execute for His name's sake

transgressors of His

when

not

actually

commenced, because

resisted the

rebellious

commandments and

rights

God.

These remarks are equally applicable to

vers.

25 and 26.

Tiiese verses are not to be restricted to the generation which

was born

in the wilderness

after its entrance into

and gathered

also, that is to say, to the fathers of

raries,

them

who were born and had

statutes

bring them

to its fathers not long

Canaan, but refer

to their descendants

our prophet's contempo-

God gave

died in Canaan.

which were not good, and rights which did not

life.

perfectly self-evident that

are not to

understand by these statutes and rights, which were not good, either the

Mosaic commandments of the ceremonial law, as

some of the Fathers and

earlier Protestant

commentators sup-

posed, or the threatenings contained in the law

needs no elaborate proof.

EZEK. L

The

ceremonial

;

so that this

commandments s

274

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

God were

given by

good, and had the promise attached to

them, that obedience to them would give hfe; whilst the threats of punishment contained in the law are never called

Those

D'tJBB'p.

D^ipn

good " the

of which did not bring life or blessing

ment

The

statutes only are called " not

and

second clause serves as an explanation of the

and

fulfil-

salvation.

The

first.

examples quoted in ver. 26 show what the words really mean, i'he defiling in their sacrificial gifts (ver. 26), for example,

womb

consisted in their causing that which opened the

through,

i.e.

points back to Ex.

passage,

ment given formula

xiii.

12; only

dedication of the first-born to limitation

not to the

Exodus

Jehovah

;

signifies

'^''^VJ}

and

E'Ka, ver. 31),

commandThis

idolatry.

(I.e.)

but

to denote

the

in ver. 13 this

man

introduced, that the first-born of

redeemed.

there, but to its perversion into

used in the book of

to pass

"^CB"?!) "l^ayn

which occurs in that

"^jn^?,

omitted, because the allusion

DHT

in the sacrifice of the first-born.

a dedication through

fire (="i^3j;n

adopted in the book of Exodus, where

it is

joined to "^py, in marked opposition to the Canaanitish custorn of dedicating children to

Moloch by febr nation

comm. on Ex.

The

xiii.

custom, and cites

12).

in fire (see the

prophet refers to this Canaanitish

as a striking example of the defilement of

make unclean, not That this custom also

the Israelites in their sacrificial gifts (N^P, to to declare unclean, or treat as unclean).

made

its

way among the

Israelites, is evident

from the repeated

prohibition against offering children through the fire to

(Lev.

xviii.

21 and Deut.

xviii.

10).

When,

Moloch

therefore,

it is

affirmed with regard to a statute so sternly prohibited in the

law of God, that Jehovah gave ness, the

word

103

judicial sentence,

Acts

vii.

ii.

to the Israelites in the wilder-

(give) can only be used in the sense of a

and must not be taken merely

ing divine permission like 2 Thess.

11 ("

;

in other words,

God

as indicat-

be understood,

sends them strong delusion ") and

42 (" God turned, and gave them up

worship the

host of heaven "), in the sense of hardening, whereby whoever

275

CHAP. XX. 27-31.

renounce idolatry

will not

so given

draws him deeper and deeper

This

in.

power, that

to its

God

with the statement in ver. 26 as the design of this

" that I might

them with horror

fill

;

i.e.

such horror and amazement in their minds, that

might be brought

to reflect

and

day has not given them up

to this

sins in

therefore

;

Therefore speak

Thus

them,

Lord Jehovah,

fathers blasphemed

which

land,

I had

them into

Thus

abominations to

saith the

this

of by you? will

ver.

not

by God is first

that

As I let

the

elders,

name

house of

Do ye defile youryour idols

and causing your sons

the

let

myself be inquired

saying of the

inquired of by you.

in ver.

its

to the

Lord Jehovah,

—

Tlie p^ in and answer given there the 30;

who had come

inquire of

Him,

communicated, after an express declaration of the fact

Israel

had continued

manner, even after in

myself be

resumed

A nd

and

said to

after their

;

and should I

live,

defile yourselves in all

fathers

And

there,

and go wlioring

day, by lifting up your gifts,

pass through the fire;

ye go^

Ver. 30. Therefore say

Lord Jehovah, What ?

Ver. 31.

;

and

their irritating gifts there,

Ver. 29. And.

to ichich

that

way of your

in the

selves

every thickly covered tree,

their drink-offerings there.

called Height to this day. Israel,

farther have your

Still

fragrance of their pleasant odour

WJiat height

not

then they

and gave

them,

will

—Ver. 27.

When I had brought my hand to give them,

and

poured out

also,

God

Ver. 28.

offered their sacrifices there, the

Canaan

lifted

looked out every high hill

and presented

God.

in this, with the faithlessness which they

have shoion toward me. the

their

son of man, and say to

house of Israel,

to the

saith the

might excite

Him.

allow the idolatrous generation to inquire of

in doing

possible they

Jehovah

to return to

committed these

Vers. 27-^31. Israel

keeping

in perfect

which

this is

done

its

idolatry

its

the

entrance into Canaan.

—nXT

Hiy,

still

most daring

But

further in this "

the form

—

understood as intimating that the conduct of the fathers of the existing generation,

and therefore not merely of those who

276

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

grew up

but also of those

in the wilderness,

Canaan, has already been described

who had

lived in

terms in the

in general

preceding verses, and that what follows simply adds another

But

novel feature.

can only be the case

this

are taken in the sense given above. *l^a

if vers.

23-26

an accusative

;

and

construed with the accusative both of the person and

The more

thing. '3

Dtit is

precise definition of riKt

not given in

D?yo3 at the end of the verse, but in the idolatry depicted in

ver. 28.

refers to the faithlessness involved in the breach

•'V?

of the covenant and in idolatry. tion

This

the general descrip-

whilst the idolatry mentioned in ver. 286 constituted one

;

particular feature, in

which the faithlessness appeared in the

form of blasphemy.

For the

on high vi.

13, xvi. 24,

fact itself, namely, the worship

which was practised on every hand, see ch.

places,

;

Kings

xiv.

2 Kings

;

the enumeration of the offerings, there in the position in which

xvii. 10.

something striking

oya stands, namely, between

Dia^i?

the slaughtered sacrifices (2''n?0 and the increase- and drinkofferings 'wi DB*

LXX.

and

;

«n»l

this

wrong

fices,

no doubt the reason why the clause

and even Hitzig proposes

;

Theodoret found is

omitted from the Cod. Vat. and Alex, of the

this

I3"ii? is

nilT'J

though in Ezek. offerings

embrace xl.

all

it is

xvi.

alone.

and Hitzig

The

meat-offerings

does not signify meatall

the

and meat-offerings, even

applied to the odour of the

And

the same

way does

t3")i?

the offerings, even the slain offerings, in Ezek.

harmony with Lev.

43, in

That

;

But

out.

used in the law for the odour of

offerings, both slaughtered sacrifices

bloodless

used in connection with sacri-

and drink-offerings.

are not expressly named, for offerings, but

strike

reading in the Alex. Version

in affirming that

meat-offerings,

ii.

and other passages.

used in this general signification here,

evident from

the introduction of the word oys, irritation or provocation of their gifts,

i.e.

their gifts

which provoked

irritation

of God, because they were offered to idols.

on the part

this sentence

277

CHAP. XX. 27-31.

applies to

all tlie sacrifices

(bloody and bloodless), so also does

^'>^''^%

which were burned upon the

altar,

the clause which follows,

refer to all the offerings

without regard

the

Consequently Ezekiel mentions only slain

material employed. offerings

'Wl

and drink-offerings, and, by the two clauses

in-

serted between, describes the offering of the slaughtered sacrifices as

a gift of irritation to God, and of pleasant fragrance to

who

the idolatrous worshippers

presented them.

does not

mention the meat-offerings separately, because they generally

and therefore

formed an accompaniment

to the slain offerings,

were included

But although God had

these.

called the

people to account for this worship on high places, they had not relinquished

meaning of

even "

ver.

The

different ways.

manner, that HDan

of the singular

this

day."

This

which has been

29,

no doubt the in very

interpreted

context shows, in the most conclusive to

be taken collectively, and that the use

be explained from the antithesis to the

one divinely appointed Holy Place in the temple, and not, as

Kimchi and Havernick suppose, from any particular

bdmdh

allusion

The

place at Gibeon."

question

contempt (Hitzig), but "

What

Who

one

>^^'2.i^

nÂť

not expressive of

founded upon the assumption that

they would have to give an account of their doings asks,

of peculiar distinction, viz. " the great high

and merely

;

kind of heights are those to which you are going

has directed you to go thither with your worship

(Kliefoth).

There

no need

to refute the trivial

fancy of J.

D. Michaelis, which has been repeated by Hitzig, namely, that Ezekiel has taken nÂť3 as a derivative from K3 and no. Again, the question does not presuppose a word addressed Israel,

which Ezekiel only has handed down

to us;

by God

but

a rhetorical mode of presenting the condemnation by

simply

God

the worship of the high places, to which both the law and the earlier prophets

their

name was

had given utterance. called

The next

Height" (high

place),

clause, is

" and

not to be

regarded as containing merely a historical notice of the

name

278

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

given to these idolatrous places of worship the

name

but the giving of

;

a proof of the continued existence of the thing

;

that the words affirm, that notwithstanding the condemnation

on the part of God, Israel had retained these high not abolished them to this day. transition

What

from the

first

God

part of this word of

from the time of

— had

facilitate the

to the second.

5-29 concerning the

has already been said in vers.

idolatry of the people,

places,

— Vers. 30 and 31

election onwards,

its

here expressly applied to the existing generation, and carries

with

the declaration to them, that inasmuch as they are

defiling themselves

idolatry, as their fathers did,

Jehovah

The thought

cannot permit Himself to be inquired of by them.

couched in the form of a question, to express astonishment

who

that thoSe

denied the Lord, and dishonoured

Him by

idolatry, should nevertheless imagine that they

revelations

The

from Him.

lifting

signifies the offering of sacrifices

For

places.

God

ver. 31&,

compare

from

(nxb',

upon the

ver. 3.

—

Nb'J) of gifts

altars of the

With

their

could obtain

high

this declaration

assigns the reason for the refusal to listen to idolaters,

which had already been given

God now

But

in ver. 3.

does not rest

them the thoughts of their own hearts, and announces to them that He will refine them by severe judgments, and bring them thereby

with this refusal.

proceeds to disclose to

to repentance of their sins, that

of the dispersion,

He may

and make them partakers of the promised

salvation as a people willingly serving

32-44

vers.

then gather them out

Him.

—In

this

way do

prophetic glance over the whole of the

cast a

future history of Israel.

Vers. 32-38.

among mind

The judgment

the heathen.

shall not

—

come

awaiting Israel of purification

Ver. 32. Aiid

that

to pass^ in that

which

heathen, like the families of the lands, to serve

Ver. 33. strong will

As I

live,

hand and with

I rule

over you.

the

saying of the

outstretched arm,

Ver. 34.

riseth

ye say,

your

will be like the

wood and

stone.

Lord Jehovah,

with

and with wrath poured

And I will bnng

you out of

outj

the

CHAP. XX.

and gather you

nations,

wrath poured

out of the lands in which ye have been

hand and with

scattered, with strong

And

Ver. 35.

out,

279

32-38.

outstretched arm,

you

will bring

of the nations, and contend with you there face

As J

and

tvith

into the desert

Ver. 36.

to face.

contended with your fathers in the desert of the land of

Egypt,

so loill

contend with you,

And I

Ver. 37.

Jehovah.

will

the saying

you

cause

Lord

the

of pass

through

under the rod, and bring you into the bond of the covenant. Ver. 38.

And I

who are

apostates

will

from you

will separate

from me ;

and

those

out of the land of their sojourning

lead them, out, but into the land of Israel shall they not

come; that ye may knoio that I

which

the rebellious,

rises

in the spirit,

What

the mind.

we will be like wood and stone

this

Jehovah.

—

n'»*i

?V 'Y^'^} that

the thought that springs up in

thought was

shown

in ver. 326, viz.

the heathen in the lauds of the earth, to serve that

;

to say,

will

become

This

heathen, pass into heathenism.

idolaters like the

shall not take place

;

God will rule over them as King with strong arm and fury. The words, " with strong hand and stretched-

the contrary,

out arm," are a standing expression in the Pentateuch for the

mighty

acts

by which Jehovah

liberated

His people from the

power of the Egyptians, and led them out of Egypt vi. 1,

6; Deut.

Ex.

vi.

iv.

6 with D^ina

are connected with

nonn, and are used in ver. 33 with

reference to the government of ver.

34 they are applied

midst of the heathen.

God

over Israel, whilst in

to the bringing out of Israel

By the

from the

introduction of the clause " with

fury poured out," the manifestation of the omnipotence of

which Israel experienced in still

to experience

amqng

Ex.

Here, on the contrary, they

D"'L22^'»ni.

na^Slp

(cf.

and are connected

34, v. 15, vii. 19, etc.),

its

dispersion,

the heathen,

and which

God was

described as an ema-

nation of the divine wrath, a severe and wrathful judgment.

The

leading

and gathering of

Israel

(ver. 34) is neither their restoration

out

the

nations

from the existing captivity

in Babylon, nor their future restoration to

Canaan on the con-

280

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

who were still hardened, and The former assumption would be

version of the people

God.

rejected by

csyn

therefore

decidedly

and Hiyisn p^ since Israel was dispersed only throughout one land and among one people at

at variance with both

the time of the Babylonian captivity.

assumptions

According

ver. 35.

Moreover, neither of the

reconcilable with the context,

especially with

to the context, this leading out is

divine anger, which Israel

is to feel

an act of

in connection therewith

and

;

cannot be affirmed of either the redemption of the people

this

out of the captivity in Babylon, or the future gathering of

from

Israel

duct those

its

dispersion.

who

According

to ver. 35,

God

will

con-

are brought out from the nations and gathered

together out of the lauds into the desert of the nations, and

contend with them there.

The "

desert of the nations "

not

the desert lying between Babylonia and Palestine, on the coastlands of the Mediterranean, through which the Israelites would

have

on their way home from Babylon (Rosen miiller,

to pass

Hitzig,

and

this should

For there

others).

no imaginable reason why

be called the desert of the nations in distinction

from the desert of Arabia, which several nations.

The

expression

also is

touched the borders of

doubtless a typical one, the

future guidance of Israel being depicted as a repetition of the earlier

also

guidance of the people from Egypt to Canaan in

Hos.

ii.

tion indicate this,

;

All the separate features in the descrip-

16,

especially vers.

36 and 37, where

impossible to overlook the allusion to the guidance of Israel in

the time of Moses.

The more

precise explanation of the words

must depend, however, upon the sense in which we are understand the expression,

Here to,

also the supposition that the

because

Why

Canaan?

Arabian desert

referred

touched the border of Egypt, does not furnish a

sufficient explanation.

well.

" desert of the land of Egypt."

touched the border of Canaan as

then did not Ezekiel

name

after the land of

Evidently for no other reason than that the time

spent by the Israelites in the Arabian desert resembled their

281

CHAP. XX. 32-38.

Egypt much more

sojourn in

closely than their settlement in

Canaan, because, while there, they were

and enjoyment of

And

Egypt.

the nations "

in a

nations,

from

its benefits,

much

manner corresponding

their possession

as in the land of

to this, the " desert of

a figurative expression applied to the world of

whom

they were indeed spiritually

outwardly they were suffer

just as

receiving their

still

and

training for their entrance into Canaan,

midst of them, and had to

in the

still

from their oppression.

distinct, whilst

Consequently the leading of

Israel out of the nations (ver. 34)

not a local and corporeal

deliverance out of heathen lands, but a spiritual severance from

the heathen world, in order that they might not be absorbed

God

or become inseparably blended with the heathen.

into

will

accomplish this by means of severe chastisements, by con-

tending with them as in the

Arabian

formerly contended with their fathers

God

contends with His people

when

charges them with their sin and guilt, not merely in words,

but also with deeds,

The words

i.e,

through chastening and punishments.

" face to face " point back to Deut.

you face

talked with the

desert.

to face in the

" Jehovah

mount, out of the midst of

Just as at Sinai the Lord talked directly with

fire."

and made known

nature, in so terrible a

the devouring

manner

that

all

fire

Israel,

own holy

of His

the people trembled and

entreated Moses to act the part of a mediator between them,

promising at the same time obedience to him (Ex. xx. 19) will the

Lord make Himself known

;

to Israel in the desert of

the world of nations with the burning zeal of His anger, that it

may

learn to fear

Him.

defined in vers. 37 and 38.

under

the' (shepherd's) rod.

This contending

precisely

I will cause you to pass through

shepherd

lets

his

sheep pass

through under his rod for the purpose of counting them, and seeing whether they are in good condition or not 13).

He His

The

figure

will cause

rod,

i.e.

His

here applied to God.

flock,

(vid. Jer. xxxiii.

Like a shepherd,

the Israelites, to pass through under

take them into His special care, and bring them

282

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

" into the bond of the covenant " (T^bOj not from but from

"ipSj for ^'ijo^'?,

a fetter)

Hieroz.

508), for this

Syriac version has rendered

that

say, not " I will

is to

me by a new

bind myself to you and you to I. p.

;

"IDO [Raschi],

covenant " (Bochart,

opposed to the context, but, as the

discipline of the covenant."

^Zoj^LoD

it,

this

disciplina),

" the

are not merely to

understand the covenant punishments, with which transgressors of the law are threatened, as Havernick does, but the covenant

promises must also be included.

For not only the

threats of

the covenant, but the promises of the covenant, are bonds by

God

which

trains

His people

;

and ipX

burdensome and crushing

fetters,

Song

6).

well (yid.

vii.

not only applied to

Kliefoth understands by the

covenant the Mosaic law, as being the means

fetter of the

employed by

of Sol.

but to the bonds of love as

God

to preserve the Israelites

from mixing with

the nations while placed in the midst of them, and to keep them to

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

" this law,

live,

they have

Himself, and adds the following explanation,

through which they should have been able to

now

wear as a

But however

fetter,

and to

may

correct the latter thought

hardly contained in the words,

lead

them

be in

itself, it

into the fetter (band)

Moreover, although the law did indeed preserve

of the law." Israel

feel the chastisement thereof."

from becoming absorbed into the world of nations, the

Jews were bound

fact that the

to the

law did not bring them

knowledge of the truth, or bring

to the

the rebellious

from among the people,

to pass the

which

purging of

ver.

refers.

All that the law accomplished in this respect in the case of those

who

ings and

lived

its

observance. people,

God but

among

the heathen was effected by

promises, and not by

its

statutes

its

threaten-

their faithful

This discipline will secure the purification of the

by severing from the nation the

will bring

will not

and

them

rebellious

and apostate.

forth out of the land of their pilgrimage,

bring them into the land of Israel.

D''"}^jp

the standing epithet applied in the Pentateuch to the land of

283

CHAP. XX. S9-44

Canaan, in which the patriarchs lived as pilgrims, without

coming

into actual possession of the land

xxviii. 4j xxxvi. 7

Ex.

;

(cf.

lead out,

was

xvii. 8,

This epithet Ezekiel has trans-

vi. 4).

ferred to the lands of Israel's exile, in which pilgrim-life until

Gen.

ripe for entering

was

to lead a

Canaan.

^''V^'"',

used here for clearing out by extermination, as the

following clause, " into the land of Israel shall they not come,"

The

plainly shows.

singular NU^

used distributively

not

one of the rebels will enter.

The

Vers. 39-44.

version to the Lord.

Lord Jehovah, Go

saith the

wards —

ultimate gathering of Israel, and

—Ver. 39.

name

upon

your

loith

Lord Jehovah,

and no longer

desecrate

there loill

there will all the house

ivill

the nations,

is the

of Israel

accept them

ask for your heave-offerings and the first-

fruits of your gifts in all that ye

pleasant odour

and yotir idols, Ver. 40. But

in the land; there will

con-

ye, serve every one his idols ! but after-

sacrificial gifts

serve me, the whole of

from

its

house of Israel, thus

holy mountain, upon the high mountain of Israel,

saying of the

;

then,

truly ye will hearken to me,

holy

gladly

make

accept you gladly,

and gather you

Ver. 41.

holy.

when I bring you out

out of the lands, in which you

have been scattered, and sanctify myself in you before the eyes of

Ver. 42.

the heathen nations.

Jehovah, when tohich

And

ye shall know that

I am

bring you into the land of Israel, into the land

I lifted up my hand to

there ye will think

give to your fathers

;

Ver. 43.

And

of your ways and your deeds, with which ye

have defiled yourselves, and will loathe yourselves

(lit.

experience

loathing before yourselves) on account of all your evil deeds

which ye have performed Jehovah, when to

your

evil

I deal

;

ivith

Ver. 44.

you for

ways and according

Israel, is the saying

the people that

of Jehovah.

And

ye will knoiv that

I am

name's sake, not according

your corrupt deeds,

house of

—After the Lord has declared

He will prevent its being absorbed into the heathen

world, and will exterminate the ungodly by severe judgments, the address passes on, with the direction henceforth to serve idols

284

THE PROPHECIES OP EZEKIEL and tlie restoration

only, to aprediction of theeventual conversion,

Canaan

every one

liis

do whatever they one of them

what precedes

idols," contains, after

God

ful appeal to repent.

sition will

The direction, " Go

of the purified nation.

it,

a power-

thereby gives up the impenitent to

having

will,

come

ye, serve

first

all

them that not

told

Canaan.

Their oppo-

not frustrate His plan of salvation.

The words

will

into the land of

which follow from inx^ onwards have been interpreted ferent ways.

connect inxi with for

does

1*13^,

(De Wette,

serve ye hereafter also

has not the force of the Latin et=.etiam^ and

signify

also, if

name no more"

will

what

For

to stand

The name

name

of the

sacrifices offered in external

God,

form

in the heart to idols, but also

by disobedience is

much

imported profaned

Jehovah and the word

better to take insi

to render the following particle, DN, as the ordinary

sign of an oath will

at the

Lord

and commandments of God.

were

Moreover, the antithesis between not being

ih.

arbitrarily into the text.

and

v^inri

would be preceded by ?ÂŤ

willing to hear and not profaning the

itself,

less

allow-

follows, in the sense of

would have

beginning of the sentence, or

not only by

etc.),

still

hearken to me, profane ye

(Rosenmiiller, Maurer).

used as an imperative, either

instead of

Nor

afterwards just as before."

able to connect inxv closely with

" and hereafter

in dif-

opposed to the usage of the language to

" but afterwards

hearken to

;

" that

{i.e.

in the future)

to say,

will

verily,

have been con-

verted from your idolatry through the severe judgments that

have fallen upon you.

duced

in ver.

The ground

40 by a reference

for this thought

intro-

to the fact that all Israel will

then serve the Lord upon His holy mountain.

""S

not " used

emphatically before a direct address" (Hitzig), but has a causal signification.

For

In the expression "

by the addition of

'B'''

Q^io in, see the

all Israel,"

which

n?3, there is

comm. on

ch. xvii. 23.

rendered more emphatic

an allusion

termination of the severance of the people of

to the eventual

God (compare

285

CHAP. XX. 39-44.

Then

xxxvii. 22).

cli.

them and

comm. on Ex.

the

broader sense of

all

Lord accept with

will the

their sacrificial

xxv. 2 and Lev.

9),

ii.

delight both

heave-offerings (see

riio^irij

gifts,

used here in the

the sacrificial gifts, along with which the

named.

gifts of first-fruits are specially

HiNB'Pj as applied to

holy offerings in the sense of avadrjfiara^ belongs to the later

usage of the language.

D3''Bni?"7Zi3j

secrated

as in

gifts.

D''?^i?.,

consisting of

Lev.

all

includes implicite the bringing back of Israel from

ment. it is

This

expressly mentioned in ver. 41

your con-

This promise

15.

xxii.

;

its

banish-

but even there

only introduced as self-evident in the subordinate clause,

whereas the cheerful acceptance of Israel on the part of constitutes the

leading thought.

nn"'3

f^'^'}^'^^

delight (3, the so-called Beth essentiae), will people.

niT'J

ri''7,

odour of

God

an odour of

God

accept His

satisfaction, is the technical expres-

sion for the cheerful (well-pleased) acceptance of the sacrifice,

or rather of the feelings of the worshipper presenting the sacrifice,

which ascend

comm. on Gen. ing

their

viii.

When God shall dispersion, He will

Him, and

God

direct all

in the sacrificial

The thought

21).

odour (see the

therefore

the follow-

eventually gather His people out of accept them as a sacrifice well-pleasing

His good pleasure towards them.

^ri'^'ni^JI

033 does not mean, I shall be sanctified through you, and

not to be explained in the same sense as Lev. xxii. 32 (Rosenmiiller), for

not equivalent to

sanctify myself on you," as in

other passages, where K^pi

tjina

Num.

but

;

signifies

" I will

xx. 13, Lev. x. 3,

construed with 3 pers.

xxviii. 25, xxxvi. 23, xxxviii. 16, xxxix.

(cf.

and

Ezek.

27), in the sense of

proving oneself holy, mostly by judgment, but here through

having made Israel into a holy nation by the refining Judgment, and one to which He can therefore grant the promised inheritance.

God

ver. 43,

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Vers. 42

sqq.

Then

will Israel also recognise its

His grace, and be ashamed of compare ch.

vi.

9 and xvi. 61.

former â&#x20AC;&#x201D;"With regard its

sins.

For to the

fulfilment, as Kliefoth has correctly observed, " in the predic-

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

286 tion

;

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL. 32-38, the whole of the searching

contained in vers.

judgments, by which

summed up

God would

lead Israel to conversion, are

in one, whicli includes not only the Babylonian

captivity, the nearest

and the

but the

first,

judgment, namely, the present dispersion present dispersion of Israel that

God

the wilderness of the nations, just as of Christ that its rebellious attitude as the

for

only in the

has really taken

was only

was

the nearer and

more remote

and more distant combined

what

;

And

fully manifested.

from among the heathen and hitherto

Christ,

beginnings. Israel, as

The

affirm with

The gathering

of Israel

will be fulfilled in its conversion to

has only taken place in very small

principal fulfilment

still

when With regard

to come,

a nation, shall be converted to Christ.

to the bringing

back of the people into " the land of

comm. on

this

so are both the nearer

vers.

regard to the ultimate fate of Israel."

into

in the rejection

prophecy of the state of punishment combines in

way both

see the

;

more remote

still

ch. xxx\ui.,

where

this

promise

Israel,"

fully

expanded.

PRO45 TO CHAP. XXI. 32 (HEB. CHAP. XXI.^). PHECY OF THE BURNING FOREST AND THE SWORD OF THE LORD.

CHAP. XX.

A fire kindled by the Lord (ch. XX. 45-48).

what

will

burn the

forest of the south

This figurative announcement

follows, in order that the divine threat

impression upon the people (ver. 49).

sword from

its

The Lord

explained

may make an will

draw His

scabbard, and cut off from Jerusalem and the

land of Israel both righteous and wicked (ch. xxi. 1-17) to say,

;

that

the king of Babylon will draw his sword against

In the Hebrew Bible the previous cliapter closes at ver. 44, and commences there. Keil has adhered to this division of chapters but for the sake of convenience we have followed the arrangement adopted in the English authorized version. Tb. *

ch. xxi.

;

CHAP. XX.

Ammon, and

Jerusalem and the sons of

end to the

kingdom

viz.

divides itself accordingly into

(2) the explanation of this prediction

;

Lord

the threat that the sword of the

Judah, which threat

ch. xxi. 1—7, 8-13,

and 14-17

said with regard to the

against Jerusalem

will smite all the inha-

(3) the application of

;

dom

Judah

taken by still

—

may

also be

the general announcement

viz. (a)

its

execution

his expedition against Jerusalem, to destroy tlie king-

Ammonites

the

what

sword to Nebuchadnezzar's expedition

of Nebuchadnezzar's design (vers. 18-23) and

divisible into three sections,

and the Ammonites, which

divided into three sections,

(b)

put an

Ammonites

(1) the prediction of the destruction of the

kingdom of Judah bitants of

will, first of all,

of Judah, and then destroy the

The prophecy

(vers. 18-32).

three parts

287

45-49.

(vers.

24-27)

(vers.

many

and

;

28-32).

his expedition against

first

four or five verses are

(c)

—The

connection with chap. xx.

;

and Kliefoth

maintains that they should be separated from what follows,

a second word of God.

But

neither ch. xx. 49 nor the formula in ch. xxl. 1, " the

word

and attached

to that chapter as

Jehovah came

me," warrants our separating the parabolic

45-48 from the

prediction in ch. xx.

interpretation in vers.

1—17.

And

so as to

form one single discourse, by the allusion

in vers.

the third part

also connected with

what precedes, to the

sword

19 and 28, and by the fact that the figure of the

resumed in vers. 31 and 32. And there is all the less ground for taking the formula, " and the word of Jehovah came

fire is

me," as determining the division of the several portions in

this particular instance,

(vers.

and

1—17) in which

in the

from the circumstance that the section it

occurs both at the

middle (vers. 1 and

8), is

commencement

obviously divided into the

minor sections or turns by the threefold occurrence of the verb Kaani ("

and prophesy

vers. 2, 9,

and 14).

Chap. XX. 45-49. The burning

forest.

—

tvord of JeJiovah came to me, saying^ Ver. 46. thy face toward the south,

and

trickle

down

Ver. 45.

And

Son of man,

the

direct

toivards the south^

288

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

and prophesy concerning Ver. 47.

And

of Jehovah

say

to the forest

Thus

;

of the field in the south land

the forest

of the south land, Hear

Lord Jehovah, Behold, I

saith the

which will consume in thee every green

fire in thee,

kindle a tree,

every dry tree: the blazing ^ame will not be extinguished,

faces from the south to the north will be burned thereby.

And all flesh

shall see that I, Jehovah, have kindled

say of me. Does he not speak in parables

of the field there,

16 and Mic.

—The prophet

The

6, 11.

ii.

distinction

quarter of the heavens;

the following

xxxvii. 17, is derived

and probably

parched land,

from

|0''n

"i^'n,

—The

forest of

appended

used here for a

fields in

Gen.

and

south land,

with the

Judah

the

23 and

to shine or emit streams of

(see the

;

3J3,

the dry,

comm. on Josh.

in the south

field

(333

a figure

in apposition to

precise definition).

•"I'lB'

n^^'!?, is

not ;

the sense of country or territory, as in

In ver. 47, 333n

the expression applied to the

ly^j forest of

same object

the

(333>7,

a geographical term for the southern portion

The

forest

or the mass of people. tree

a particular

distinguished from a city or a garden

xxxii. 3.

article, is

of Palestine).

as a

field, as

but for the xiv. 7

a standing epithet for the southern district of

denoting the kingdom of Judah is

Amos

literally

xxxiii.

signifies the brilliant quarter

Palestine and the land of XV. 21).

which only occurs in Ezekiel

Dl"i"i,

and Ecclesiastes, with the exception of Deut.

and

they

to turn

between the three

that which lies on the right hand, hence the south

Job

shall not

used for prophesying, as

^"'tsn is

epithets applied to the south

light,

all

Ver. 48.

toward the south, and prophesy concerning the forest

his face

vii.

and

And I said, Ah, Lord Jehovah!

Ver. 49.

be extinguished.

;

word

the

a figure signifying the population,

Individual

men

are trees.

The green

a figurative representation of the righteous man, and

compare Luke

the dry tree of the ungodly (ver.

The

the

fire

which Jehovah kindles

bination of the

synonyms

fire

of war.

xxjii. 31).

The com-

n?i^r^ '^??-> flame of the flaming

brightness, serves to strengthen the expression, and

equiva-

;

CHAP. XXI.

289

1-7.

lent to the strongest possible flame, the blazing all

human

faces are not

prophet would have dropped the figure generally the outside of things, which

which

single thing in the forest,

bdsar

In ver.

but pdnim denotes

;

the

to feel the

first

" All the faces " of the forest are every

force of the flame.

flame.

D"'33-?3j

fire.

faces or persons, in which case the

kol-pdnim

caught at once by the

(all faces)

interpreted

kol-

From south to north, i.e. through the whole land. From the terrible fierceness of the fire, be extinguished, every one will know that God that it has been sent in Judgment. The words

(all flesh).

length of the

which cannot has kindled

it,

of the prophet himself, in ch. xx. 49, presuppose that he has uttered these parabolic words in the hearing of the people, that they have ridiculed

them

(mdshdl

as obscure

and

used here in

the sense of obscure language, words difficult to understand, as irapa^okri also

in Matt.

xiii.

request

granted

and then

ch. xxi. 1-7,

Chap. effects.

and the

;

xxi. 1-7.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver.

Ver. 2. Son of man,

the

And

Behold,

I will

scabbard,

cut off

against all flesh

man,

sigh

disastrous

its

me, saying^

face toward Jerusalem^ and trickle

from

and

land of Israel,

the

will cut off

from

will

from

before their eyes I

sioord out of

and

sword go forth from Ver.

Ver.

and

And when

will sink,

the

scabbard

its

all flesh

out of

its

thou, son

icith bitter

of pain sigh

they say to thee, Where-

fore dost thou sigh ? say, Because of a report that

and every heart EZEK. I.

and

And

its

the wicked.

drawn my sword

the hips break ;

Ver.

thee the righteous

south to north.

shall not return again.

so that

draw

thee the righteous

that I, Jehovah, have it

Lord and

of the

and prophesy over

wicked, therefore shall

scabbard:

of all interpreted in

word of Jehovali came

deal with thee,

and

know

con-

This

say to the land of Israel, Thus saith Jehovah,

Ver. 4. Because

shall

first

be explained.

further expanded in vers. 8 sqq.

set thy

over the holy places,

Ver.

the same time,

may

they

simile

The sword

And

still

10).

tains within itself a request that

it is

coming

and all hands become powerless, and every

290

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL become

spirit will

cometh, and

and

dull,

all knees turn into

will happen, is the saying

water: Behold,

Lord Jehovah.

the

—

of In the preceding parable, the expression " forest of the field in the south," or " forest of the south-land," was enigmatical. it

This

explained to signify Jerusalem with

see comra.

(D''B^i5D,

on eh.

the kingdom of Judah.

Lord

kindled by the

Lord.

off

Israel, i.e.

the fire

this,

a figurative expression

for war, which brings with

and would be generally

death,

and the land of

24),

In accordance with

interpreted as being the sword of the

true that this

commonly used

vii.

holy places

its

but

The sword

intelligible.

both righteous and wicked.

;

devastation and

will cut

This applies to the outer side

of the judgment, inasmuch as both good and bad fall in war.

This

the only aspect brought into prominence here, since the

great purpose was to alarm the sinners, their security in ch. ix. existing.

who were

boasting of

but the distinction between the two, as described

sqq., is not therefore to

This sword

will not

be regarded as no longer

return,

sc.

into the scabbard,

has accomplished the result predicted in ver. 3

till it i.

;

Isa. Iv. 11).

passage, " the last slaughter in which, after the people

sword was returned to

(cf.

Sam.

Tremellius has aptly observed upon this

its

contrasted with the former ones,

had been chastened for a time, the In order

scabbard again."

to depict

the terrors of this judgment before the eyes of the people, the

prophet painful

is commanded to groan before their eyes in the most way possible (vers. 6 sqq.). D!'?nD pSK^^j with breaking

of the hips,

with pain sufficient to break the hips, the

i.e.

seat of strength in

mnnOj

bitterness,

i.e.

man (compare Nah. bitter anguish.

to assign to the questioners for this sighing

report that

coming,"

—an

(cf.

Gen.

the substance of

it is

realized.

of the sword

of the Lord,

4, etc.).

The

—that

The

Isa. xxi. 3). is

" on account of the

report comes

reference to say,

of the Chaldeans to destroy Jerusalem

;

reason which he

" on account of the

antiptosis for

coming report"

ii.

The

when

to the report

of the approach

and the kingdom of

CHAP. XXI.

The

Judah.

291

8-17.

make upon

impression which this disclosure will

All courage

the hearers will be perfectly paralyzing (ver. Ih).

and strength for offering resistance will be crippled and broken. 3^-b D»3 (cf. Nah. ii. 11) is strengthened by nvba nnna, every spirit will become dull, so that no one will know what counsel to give. (cf. ch. vii.

" behold,

the report,

The

17).

threat

i.e.

8-17

vers.

The sword

Vers. 8-17.

;

man, prophesy, and

say,

6, 7.

sharpened for slaying.

Thus

shall

in the

hand ;

give

into the

of man, for of Israel

the

flash

hand of

my people,

the thigh.

Lord Jehovah. the

threefold,

hands the

together,

sword of

Ver.

That the heart

gates:

may

have

and

Alas!

come

and

Ver. 16. Gather thyself up

smite

saying of

the

spoken

it.

—The

itself

sword of a Ver. 15.

and stumbling-blocks may be

to the

hands together, and quiet

made,

trial is

is the

sword shall double

the

sword against

into flashing,

ichithersoever thine edge is intended.

pnnces

my people

of man, prophesy

thou, son

drawing of

made

polished, to

goeih over all the

the pierced:

be dissolved,

set the

effect

son despiseth all

pierced one, of the great one, which encircles them.

multiplied,

to be polished, to take it

Ver. 13. For the

And

Ver. 14.

—

polished : or

they have fallen by the sword along with

upon

to vers.

Ver. 12. Cry and howl, son

the slayer.

goeth over

is ni'ioc*,

may

is it

sceptre of

has been given

if the despising sceptre shall not

and smite into

may

sharpened, the sword,

therefore smite

and what the

{saying),

rejoice

Ver. 11. But

wood?

Ver. 10. That

sharpened ; that

is it

'•'^1

Son of sword, a sword

me, saying, Ver.

saith Jehovah,

sharpened and also polished: slaughter

subject

—This threat

8-13 corresponding

vers.

word of Jehovah came

the

The

the substance of the report.

1-5, and vers. 14-17 to vers.

And

corresponds to Q^T^"^?

strengthened by the words,

cometh, and will take place."

expanded in

fully

2^3"ia"?3

i^^??'!'

'lJ1

drawn for

all their

slaying.

right hand, turn to the

Ver. 17.

wrath

description of the sword

And I I,

left,

also will

Jehovah, have

thrown into a

lyrical

292

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

form

(vers. 8-13),

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

a kind of sword-song, commemorating the be effected by the sword of the Lord.

terrible devastation to

The

repetition of yvn in ver. 9

fect

Hophal

to polish

l3"io,

ni3"jb

;

The

HD^np

the per-

the passive participle

(ver. 10), the participle Pual^ with

dropped, and Dagesh euphon. for ni^n.

irnn^n

emphatic,

of T]n, to sharpen.

â&#x20AC;˘T'n,

a rare form of the

infinitive

polishing gives to the sword a flashing brilliancy,

which renders the sharpness of

its

edge

The very

iK,

I agree with Schmieder

obscure words,

and Kliefoth

prophet in the

name

'lJ"i

regarding

K'*K'3

still

terrible.

a protest, interposed

by the

of the people against the divine threat of

the sword of vengeance, on the ground of the promises which

had been given to.the ducing an opposite

The words ibN?

'iJl

tribe of

case, or

^33 122^

Judah.

or perhaps; intro-

is,

an exception

what has been

be supplied in thought.

The

objection

taken from

the promise given in Jacob's blessing to the tribe of

"the

sceptre will not depart

^33 Vi2'^ points

from Judah" (Gen.

unquestionably to

this.

where the patriarch addresses Judah,

young

command which tribe of

Judah.

ruler's

staff,

This sceptre despises

bad wood.

taken from ver.

he compares

son

the

all

This view t33tt' is

wood,

i.e.

every other

not rendered a

construed as a feminine

construed as a masculine in every other

case; for this construction

and has many analogies tions that

whom

Judah

xlix. 10).

the patriarch holds out to view before the

doubtful one by the fact that here, whereas

""Ja is

Consequently the sceptre of

lion, as ^33.

said.

are to be taken as an objection, so that

unquestionable in ver. 7 (12),

in its favour.

All the other explana-

have been proposed are hardly worth mentioning,

say nothing of refuting, as they amount to nothing more than arbitrary conjectures

;

whereas the assumption that the words

are to be explained from Gen. xlix. 10

by the unquestionable which we is

find in ver.

naturally suggested

allusion to the prophecy in that passage,

27 of the present chapter.

to be taken adversatively, " but he gave

\il}''),

in ver.

(the sword) to be

—

293

CHAP. XXI. 8-17.

The subject to 1^1*5 is not Jehovah, but Is inde"one" {man, Angl. they), although it is actually God who has prepared the sword for the slaughter of Israel. The train of thought is the following: Do not think we have no sKarpened.**

finite,

reason to fear the sharply-ground sword of Jehovah, because

Judah has

received the promise that the sceptre shall not

depart from

Judah be

;

and

will not help

you

ground, not that

may be and

promise will certainly be

this

may be put

its

N"'n,

and

till

ver.

apposition to the subject It is not

to the words.

Consequently

doubt.

—

all

K^^,

nnn

who

stated

the

connection with ver. 12

no ground for rejoicing from a feeling of security and

This

but rather an occasion for painful lamentation.

the meaning contained in the

For the sword

and howl. princes. to y}X},

introduced to give emphasis

19 that

this is the

the people

the prophecy could be in

slayer is; but the hearers of

pride,

into 'the scabbard, but that

In the phrase l^n rrnmn

princes.

and

given to be

taken in the hand by a slayer, and smite

all

there

The sword

in this instance.

fulfilled,

The promise

victorious over every hostile power.

command

will

to the prophet to cry

come upon the nation and

the simplest rendering to take

n^n, to

N''n

its

as referring

be at a person, to fasten to him, to come upon

him, as in 1 Sam. xxiv. 14; 2 Sam. xxiv. 17.

'''}PP,

not from

l^i, but the passive participle of "IJ^ i^ ^^^ Pual, to overthrow, " fallen by the sword have they cast down (Ps. Ixxxix. 45) :

(the princes) become, along with

people."

The

perfects

are prophetic, representing that which will speedily take place as having already occurred.

— Smiting upon the thigh

of alarm and horror (Jer. xxxi. 19).

used impersonally

the

trial is

made.

a sign

perfect Pual, is

JHSj

The words

allude to

the victories gained already by Nebuchadnezzar, which have furnished tests of the sharpness of his sword.

The

question

which follows nci contains an aposiopesis: and what? if

Even

the despising sceptre shall not come, what will be the case

then

^DSb

d^b^,

according to ver. 10,

the sceptre of

—

294

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

Judah, which despises all other sceptres as bad wood, nw^ in this instance, is not " to be," in the sense of to remain, but to

The

become, to happen, to come (come to pass), to enter.

meaning

the sceptre of

is, if

Judah

address takes a

new

start, for

(cf. ch. vi.

multiply

itself,

strength, or

its

metically, as

Num.

;

into threefold

ver.

14 the still

Smiting the hands together

The sword

to double,

(nriB'^B', adverbial),

course this

has been by Hitzig, but

—With

a gesture expressive of violent emotion

xxiv. 10).

edge.

it.

the purpose of depicting

further the operations of the sword.

(smiting hand in hand)

prove

shall not display, or

the strength expected of

itself to possess,

i.e.

namely, in

its

not to be taken arithis

a bold paradoxical

statement concerning the terrible effect produced by the sword. It

not even to be understood as referring to three attacks

made

many

by the Chaldeans upon Jerusalem, as

at different times

The sword

commentators suppose.

of the

sword of pierced ones, because

•^^^n ^"y])

pierced or slain.

and Kliefoth

The

called

produces the

following words are rendered by Hitzig

But

the great sword of the slain.

apart from

the tautology which this occasions, the rendering can hardly be

defended on grammatical grounds. cannot see

why

the singular

^'^n

For, in the

should have been chosen,

the expression was repeated, instead of the plural D w^ secondly, l"in is

?i*l3n

cannot be an adjective agreeing with

a noun of the feminine gender, and

a feminine, as

ri'i'inn

clearly shows.

;

2"}!^^

and for

construed here as

«'n|'1'

we when

place,

first

in apposition to

" sword of a pierced man, the great one ; " and the great tCj man pierced is the king, as Ewald admits, in agreement with

Hengstenberg and Hiivernick.

The words

therefore affirm

that the sword will not only slay the mass of the people, but pierce the king himself.

Ver. 15a

a new thought,

God

(See also the comm. on ver. 25.)

not dependent upon what precedes, but introduces viz. for

what purpose the sword

has placed the flashing sword before

Israelites, in

order that (?

]Vo?^

all

sharpened.

the gates of the

pleonastic for

]Vi?^)

the heart

CHAP. XXI.

may

dissolve,

may

the inhabitants

lose all their courage for

defence, and to multiply offendicula^

The

the sword.

Xey. nn2N

air.

turning about of the sword

Mishna

!]Dn,

in the

not

mean smooth,

The

1]BN. i.e.

occasions to fall

i.e.

motion or

signifies the rapid

Gen.

(cf.

295^

18-22.

24)

iii.

;

n3N, related to

fem. of

air. Xey. "^J''?,

does

t3j?»,

sharpened, synonymous with

t3n», but,

according to the Arabic k«^, eduxit e vagina gladium, drawn

(from the scabbard).

commanded i.e.

to smite right

turn with

the verb

In ver. 16 the sword

all

1»''K>n

and

addressed,

easy to supply

interrogative, as in Josh.

gather thyself up,

ii.

left."

^^JS,

from the context,

whither, without an

n:si,

5 and Neh.

ii.

16.

'^^'IJ??,

form may be accounted for from a construction ad the gender regulating

The command

according to the

itself

the sword

from

The feminine

intended, ordered; not, directed, turned.

^^JB.

and

thy might toward the right (Tanchum).

" direct thine edge toward the

^y^,

left,

"•in^nrij

sensunij

addressed in

^"30

strengthened by the

explanation given by Jehovah in ver. 17, that

also (like the

prophet, ver. 14) will smite His hands together and cool His

wrath upon them Vers. 18-22.

(cf. ch. v. 13).

The sword

of the king of

Jerusalem, and then the Ammonites

also.

Babylon

—Ver.

will smite

18.

And

the

word of Jehovah came to me, saying, Ver. 19. And thou, son of man, make to thyself tioo ways, that the sword of the king of Babylon

may come

by them

;

out of one land shall they both

come forth, and draw a hand, at thou draw

it.

the cross

road of

Ver. 20. Make a way that the sword

the city

may come

the sons of Ammon, and to Judah into fortified JeruVer. 21. For the king of Babylon is stopping at the cross

Rabbah of salem.

road, at the parting of the two tvays, to practise divination.

shaking the arrows, inquiring of the teraphim, looking at the

Ver. 22. The divination falls tering-rams, to open the

with a war-cry,

to set

to his right

Jerusalem,

mouth with a death-cry,

battering-rams at the gates,

partj to build siege towers.

to lift to

—After the picture of the

lie is liver.

to set bat-

the voice

heap up a ramterrible devas-

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

296

which the sword of the Lord

tation

God

Jehovah

Ammonites

fall,

The

given (ver. 11)

will smite not only

Jerusalem and Judah

also.

whose hand

will smite.

whose hand the sharpened sword

the king of Babylon, and

the

whom

His sword, and

will place

slayer into

word

will produce, the last

in this prophecy answers the questions, in

Judah, but

be the

will

first to

and then the arch-enemy of the covenant nation, namely

Ammon,

will

succumb

to the strokes of the

in order that the embittered

may

people

sword of Jehovah,

enemies of the Lord and His

learn that the fall of Jerusalem

not, as they

fancy, a proof of the impotence, but rather of the omnipotence,

God.

its

this

way

does our prophecy expand into a

judgment which

prediction of the

enemies of the kingdom of

The

consideration here. of

Ammon

God

will fall

For

the world in hostility to God.

that the

parallel

upon the whole of only as the arch-

Ammonites come

into

between Israel and the sons

carried out in such a

way

as to give constant

prominence to the distinction between them. fall,

the ancient theocracy will be destroyed

who

will restore the right (vers.

Jerusalem

till

Ammon,

26 and 27).

will

he shall come on the

other hand, will perish, and not a trace be left (vers. 31, 32). exhibited to the eye

This prediction

The

prophet

make two ways,

i.e.

by means of a to prepare a

sign.

sketch

representing a road leading from a country, viz. Babylon, and dividing at a certain spot into two roads, one of which leads to

Rabbath-Ammon,

the capital of the

kingdom of the Ammonites,

the other to Judah, into Jerusalem.

coming

for the

(^^2^) of the

the fork of the road he K'la signifies in

hew (Ezek.

the Fiel to cut xxiii.

hard material.

was

tile (cf.

a hand,

i.e.

draw the ways

engrave a hand,

away

*ij,

i.e.

an index.

(Josh. xvii. 15, 18), to dig

47), here to engrave written characters in

The

to sketch the

brick or

sword of the king of Babylon.

selection of this

word shows that Ezekiel

ways upon some hard material, probably a

ch. iv. 1).

an index.

^"J'l

does not

{J'N'i,

mean

locus spatium, but

the beginning of the road,

i.e.

CHAP.

XXL

the fork of the road (ch. xvi. 25), it

called

explained in ver. 21, where

mother of the road, inasmuch as the roads

DX,

'^'}/\^

from the point of separation, and

start

297

18-22.

ning of the two roads.

bath-Ammon, which

T'V

'^1?.'!!,

\J^

D''?'^"^'!!

t^'^"",

begin-

For Rab-

the road to a city.

Amman, on

preserved in the rains of

the

Upper Jabbok (Nahr Amman), see the comm. on Deut. iii. 11. The road to Judah is still more precisely defined by d.^^'T'? nn^^fSj

into fortified Jerusalem, because the conquest of Jerusalem

The

was the purpose of Nebuchadnezzar's expedition. of the article before nniV3

may

be explained from the nature of

the participle, in which, even in prose, the article

out after a definite noun (cf. Ewald,

still,

or practise divination.

the practice itself

of divination at his

strictly,

Jerome

left is

halting

DDp Dbp, to take in hand,

to take.

means

shakes the arrows (more

and inquire

In order that he may proceed

avails himself of all the

He On

of Babylon

stop) to consult his oracles,

which of the two roads he he

ยง

may

The drawing

335a).

The king

explained in vers. 21 and 22. (loy, to stand

omission

safely,

command.

the quiver with the arrows).

writes as follows

consults

the oracle according to the custom of his nation, putting his

arrows into a quiver, and mixing them together, with the names of individuals inscribed or stamped upon them, to see whose

arrow

come

out,

and which

state shall

first

attacked."

consults the Teraphim, or Penates, worshipped as oracular

deities

and

will

and gods of good fortune

(see the

Biblical Archaeology, ยง 90).

cerning the

way

tlieir oracles.

which these

deities

examines the

liver.

comm. on Gen.

Nothing

xxxi. 19

known con-

were consulted and gave

The

practice of rjiraro-

The arrow-lot (jBelomantie) of the ancient Greeks (Homer, II. iii. 324, 182, 183) was similar to this; also that of the ancient Arabs (yid. Pococke, Specim. hist. Arab. pp. 827 sqq., and the passages from Nuweiri quoted by Reiske, Samml. einiger Arab. Sprichworter von den Stecken oder Staben, p. 21). Another kind, in which the lot was obtained by shooting off the arrows, was common according to the Fihrist el Ulum of En-Nedim among the Hananian Ssabians (see Chwolsohn, Ssabier, ii. pp. 26 and 119, '

vii.

200.

298

THE rftOPHECIES OF EZEKIEL. extispicium, in

<7/co7r/a,

which signs of good or bad luck, of the

success or failure of any enterprise, were obtained from the

was a

peculiar condition of the liver of the sacrificial animals, species of divination to

which great importance was attached

by both the Babylonians

{vid.

Diod. Sic.

ii.

29) and the

Romans

and of which traces were found, accord-

(Cicero, de divin. vi. 13),

ing to Barhebr. Chron. p. 125, as late as the eighth century Christian

of the

era

among

the Ssabians of Haran.

divination resulted in a decision for Jerusalem.

hand there came."

mean

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;The

i3^0"'3 is

not

" in his right hand was," but " into his right

to be translated

does not

n\i

.TH

ir^kvero

lot (Ges.),

connected with this

(LXX.),

h'ti}

(Chald.), DDp

but soothsaying, divination.

D v0T

a noun in

apposi-

the form of

The right The meaning of the words cannot be more precisely defined, because we are not acquainted with the kind of divination referred to even if we which indicated Jerusalem.

tion: the divination

hand

the more important of the two.

;

were

words as simply relating to the arrow in this an arrow with the inscription " Jerusalem " came

to take the

sense, that

into his right hand,

and thus furnished the

decision,

which was

afterwards confirmed by consulting the Teraphim and examining

But the circumstance

the liver.

itself,

that

is to say,

that the divination coincided with the purpose of

the fact

God, must

not be taken, as Havernick supposes, as suggesting a point of contact between Hebraism and the soothsaying of heathenism,

which was peculiar All that

to the rule

to Ezekiel or to the time of the captivity.

proved by this fact

is,

that even heathenism

vient to the accomplishment of the plans of

and His

salvation.

In the words,

subject

made subserboth His kingdom

and guidance of Almighty God, and

to set battering rams, etc.,

the substance of the oracle obtained by Nebuchadnezzar

a double one, showing what he

more to do

minutely given. :

It is

viz. (1) to set battering

of Jerusalem, as ver.se (ch. iv. 2)

still ;

rams,

i.e.

to proceed to the siege

further described in the last portion of the

and (2)

to raise the

war-cry for storming the

299

CHAP. XXI. 23-27.

city, that is to say, to

and

D^v*^

'li1

take

The two

by storm.

are synonymous

clauses

nhsp

'W1

they are not " pure tautology,"

;

however, as Hitzig affirms, but are chosen for the purpose of giving greater emphasis to the thought. The expression nyn3

some

creates

difficulty,

in caede " (Vulg.), to

inasmuch as the phrase "

open the mouth

murder or

operiat os

iit

ruin,

i.e.

put to death or lay in ruins, is a very striking one, and could hardly be justified as an " energetic expression for the battle-

mean "

3 does not

cry " (Havernick).

to,"

the less because n^na

and cannot indicate parallel to

Wi^iS,

the intention,

all

where nirnn

that in which the raising of the voice expresses

There

itself.

nothing

then but to take n^n in the sense

left

of field- or war-cry, and to derive this meaning either from nyn or,

per metathesin, from nnv.

Vers. 23-27. This announcement will appear to the Judaeans, indeed, to be a deceptive divination, but nevertheless verified.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver. 23. And

sacred oaths are theirs

(lit.

remembrance, that they saith the

it is like

may

them)

but he

;

will be

hnngs

;

the iniquity to

Ver. 24. Tlierefore thus

be taken.

Lord Jehovah, Because ye

bring your iniquity to remem-

made

brance, in that your offences are

deceptive divination in their eyes

manifest, so that your sins

appear in all your deeds, because ye are remembered ye shall be Ver. 25.

taken loith the hand.

of Israel,

whose day

Ver. 26. T'hus the

crown taken

off.

the lofty lowered.

will

I make

the right, to

it ;

come at

the time of the final transgression,

Lord Jehovah, The Uirban loill

This

not this

;

be removed,

the low will be lifted up,

and

Ver. 27. Overthrown, overthrown, overthrown

even this shall not be,

Him do I give it.

precisely defined

Judaeans.

saith the

And thou pierced one, sinner, prince

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;In

by ^iTyya,

ver.

till

cometh, to

(28), D^^,

whom

which

refers to the Israelites,

i.e.

the

This also applies to the following ^\h, whicli cannot

possibly be taken as referring to a different subject, say, for

example, the Chaldeans.

It is evident,

therefore, that

impossible to sustain the rendering given in Gesenius' Thesaurus (s.v.)

the obscure

words

r\)]}2^

''V.^'^j

viz.

qui juramenta

300

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

jurarunt

eis

(sc.

expounded thus

Maurer has modified and

Chaldaeis), which

" they will not fear these auguries

swear oaths to them (the Chaldeans), that

they will

;

to say,

according

to their usual custom, these truce-breakers will take fresh oaths,

hoping that the Chaldeans over, the thought itself

defiant attitude of

be conciliated thereby."

will

More-

an unsuitable one, inasmuch as " the

confidence with which they looked such

awfully threatening danger in the face must have had some

upon

other ground than a reliance

(Havernick).

credulity"

Kosenmiiller and Kliefoth uphold, are sworn explains

allies,

it,

and Chaldean

false oaths

The common

explanation,

wliich

" because the Chaldeans

is,

sworn confederates of theirs;" or as Kliefoth

" on account of the oath of fealty or vassalage

sworn by Zedekiah to Nebuchadnezzar, they have sworn confederates in the Chaldeans,

and relying upon

they are

this,

confident that they have no hostile attack to fear from them." Biit this

altogether untenable, not only because

perfectly

it is

arbitrary to supply " the Chaldeans," but still more for the reason adduced by Maurer. " How," he justly asks, " could the

Judaeans despise these auguries because the Chaldeans were

bound

them by an oath when they themselves had broken

When

faith I

a treaty has been violated by one party,

the other released from his oath?"

same explanation them),

i.e.

by God."

Havernick

They

" oaths of oaths are theirs (to

rely

upon that which God has solemnly sworn upon what

promise was con-

of God.

For the

fact

itself,

compare

ch. xx. 42,

The form ''J?3C' by very simple way from

passages as Ps. cv. 9 sqq., etc.

side of nii?3B^

may

be explained in a

relation of the construct state,

i.e.

from the endeavour

an obvious form for the construct case

this

namely, upon a faithful observance on their part of the

commandments and such

not

the most sacred oaths are (made) to them, namely,

to them, without considering ditional,

therefore adopt the

furnish

a well-founded

ness of our explanation.

state,

uses

CyBJ

the

to secure

and cannot

argument against the

As Ezekiel

the

any

correct-

for niK'Sa in ch.

CHAP. XXI.

xiii.

20, he

niyaK'.

may

have formed

also

801

23-27.

C^^F) ^7 *^^ s'^ÂŽ of

^''V^f

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; As they rely upon the promises of God without own breach

ing upon their

of covenant,

God

upon whose oaths they

rely.

Jehovah,

N^ni is

must not be

|iy

bring their

will

remembrance through His judgment.

sin to

reflect*

restricted to

Zedekiah's breach of covenant, 'since ver. 24 clearly shows that it is

the wrong-doing of

Judah

generally.

'^'^^>}f

also to be understood of the whole nation,

For

taken and punished by the king of Babylon.

made

introduces the reason for the statement

God must

of ver. 23 (28). their iniquity it

sins

committed without any shame, and

|iy i^??"?

slayer.

ci3ii,

God

to cause the sinners to be grasped

from

which

remember them,

by the hand of the

therefore explained by

indefinite in itself, points

used in ver. 24 (29) in a different sense

23 (28), and

ver.

24 (29)

in the last clause

put the people in remembrance of

thereby have, so to speak, compelled

and

ver.

by inflicting punishment, because they have called

remembrance by

24 (29)

in ver.

which

11 (16), and receives from that

its

back to

more exact

'1J1

riipana.

in ver.

3"?.in

definition.

With ver. 25 the address turns to the chief sinner, the godless King Zedekiah, who was bringing the judgment of destruction upon the kingdom by his faithless breach of oath. The words

^^Hj yahj

are asyndeta^ co-ordinate to one

^^''"^^

'K'^

mean profane

not

p^^ does

another,

LXX.),

and

but simply pierced,

retained here.

This

of the language, but also

that Zedekiah

or infamous

This meaning

demanded not only by the

both to ver. 14 and to

slain.

by the

D^i'C'n "hhn

relation in in ver.

{fie^rfke^ is

to be

fixed usage

which ??n stands

29 (34).

was not pierced by the sword either

true

at that time

or afterwards, but was simply blinded and led in captivity to

Babylon, where he died. 7?n

to death

;

and Zedekiah

announcing fate.

But

all

that follows from this

is,

that

used here in a figurative sense, given up to the sword,

in a

so designated for the purpose of

more energetic manner the

The selection

i.e.

of the terra ?^n

certainty of his

the more natural, because

302

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

throughout the whole prophecy the description of the judg*

ment

takes

As God

character from the figure of the sword of Jehovah.

its

does not literally wield a sword, so ?^^

actual slaying with the sword.

Si2)\

struction (cf. 1 Sara. xxvi. 10), or of the

time of the

its

end,

i.e. its

wickedness brings the end, for

destruction,

to the prince,

come,

i.e.

and

understand the

connection in

and

to take the

sinners, princes of Israel,"

to the entire tion that .

body of

fact that the end, the

announced

way, which

this

in ver.

whole nation.

naturally

it is

words as

the king

who

collective,

and to understand them

rulers, including the priests,

completely upset by the words

addressed

" ye slaughtered

N''K'3

as referring

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;an

explana-

npiN (thou

which are so entirely opposed to the collective Again, the remark that " what follows in ver. 26, viz.

prince),

view.

the statement to be

made

to the ^V^, has really nothing to do

with him, since the sweeping affect

when the

get rid of the objection, which led

Kliefoth to question the fact that in ver. 25a,

The

in his person to the

suggested by ver. 25^,

the transgres-

destruction (cf. ch. xxxv. 5, and

close at hand,

i.e. is

when

completion, but the time

in this sense, ch. vii. 2, 3).

Yi?.

no proof of

day of his de-

judgment upon him. The

not the time

final transgression is

sion reaches

his day, is the

away

of the priesthood did not

Zedekiah personally " (Kliefoth),

conclusive.

For

ver.

neither correct nor

26 contains an announcement not only of

the abrogation of the priesthood, but also of the destruction of the kingdom, which did affect Zedekiah both directly and per-

Moreover, we must not

sonally.

isolate the

king addressed,

even as an individual, from the position which he occupied, at

any

rate,

which he ought

or,

have occupied as a theocratic

monarch, so as to be able to say that the abrogation of the priesthood did not affect him.

fundamental

pillars

The

priesthood was one of the

of the theocracy, the removal of which

would necessarily be followed by the state,

Hence

collapse

and therefore by the destruction of it

of the divine

the

that the abolition of the priesthood

monarchy. mentioned

; ;

first.

Dnn

The

infinitives

23-27.

absolute

(not

803 imperatives)

and

l''Dn

are selected for the purpose of expressing the truth in

manner

the most emphatic D''';n,

CHAP. XXL

to lift up,

as in Isa.

14; Dan.

Ivii.

royal diadem, like

;

and the verbs are synonymous.

not to elevate, but to take away, to abolish,

i.e.

^''3^

viii.

nS3>*0 does

11.

the

does in every instance in the Pentateuch, from

priest, as it

moyn

which Ezekiel has taken the word,

The diadem

of the priest

the king's T T T O crown. and the regal crown are the insignia

of the offices of high priest

removal

mean

not

but the tiara of the high

in Isa. Ixii. 3,

and king

and consequently

;

their

the abolition of both high-priesthood and monarchy.

These words contain the sentence of death upon the theocracy,

and the Davidic monarchy

of which the Aaronic priesthood constituted the foundations. .

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; They predict not

merely a tem-

porary, but a complete abolition of both offices and dignities

and

their fulfilment took place

when

The

was destroyed by the king of Babylon. of the house of

kingdom of Judah

the

earthly sovereignty

David was not restored again

and the high-priesthood of the

after the captivity

restoration,

the second

temple, was only a shadowy outline of the glory and essential features of the high-priesthood of Aaron.

the ark with the

Shechinah, or the gracious presence of God, was wanting in the

temple of Zerubbabel

;

so were the

Urim and Thummim want-

ing to the high-priesthood, and these were the only means by

which the high

priest could really

between the Lord and

carry out the mediation

nxr N^ nst (this

the people,

does not refer to the tiara (mitre) and crown.

and therefore construed with the masculine and crown) continue,

will not

it will

Kliefoth).

be this (n^n

over with

all

this there is

HNt

i.e.

lowered.

of the words

Hssn and

same sense

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;the low

?"'2^'n

neuter,

will not

(Havernick, Maurer, and

appended the further thought, that

a general inversion of things will take place.

meaning

not this)

This (mitre

>^l\}.

prophetic),

will

lifted up,

This

and the

the

lofty

are infinitives, and are chosen in the

as in the first hemistich.

The form

â&#x20AC;˘iPSE'rij

with n

304

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

without the tone,

masculine

the

;

n—

to give greater fulness to the form,

—This

nearly to Hbsn.^

definitely in ver. 27a.

njjjj

and the

;

26 (31).

rJNT in ver.

which

will I

and crown,

as Kliefoth supposes,

This shows that

Even

or, as

The

rest,

on account of the

It is generally

clauses,

it is

men-

itself

not so

this

" nowhere

Gen.

xlix.

there

till

the

" (Hengsten-

acknowledged that the words to

overthrow upon over-

things are in a state of flux

an allusion

erit

much

N3'^J?

10, Ki3^ ^3

'^V

only by a false interpretation of the preceding

wrung from the words by an

the text, that Hitzig ^

which

neque haec conditio

it,

main thought

all

;

and

back

the thing last

coming of the great Restorer and Prince of peace

nT^

n^y,

into destruction, or utterly

riNT relates to

The thought

nowhere security

berg).

still

cannot also refer to the tiara

following f^3"lV attaches

will ensue.

expressed

repeated twice to give

the overthrow, shall have no durability;

this,

this last clause as to the

throw

riNT

Tanch. has correctly expressed

durahilis.

correspond

a noun derived from

make

But the following

tioned.

suffix in •^I^^K'N points

overthrow.

it.

make

This, the existing state, the high-priest-

hood and the monarchy,

precedes

general thought

greater emphasis to the thought, inversion, overthrow

probably serving merely

and

arbitrary alteration of

able to set this connection aside.

Hitzig has given a most preposterous exposition of this verse.

Taking

the words "iiDn and Dt^in as antithetical, in the sense of removing and exalting or sustaining in an exalted position, and regarding the clauses as questions signifying, " Shall the high-priesthood be abolished, and the on the contrary, remain untouched ? " be finds the answer to

real dignity,

these questions in the words DXT

flNT (this, not this).

They

contain,

in his opinion, an affirmation of the former and a negation of the latter. tell us how nxT ih HNT without a verb can possibly mean, " the former (the abrogation of the high-priesthood) will take place, but the latter (the exaltation of the monarchy) will not occur." And, finally, the last clause, " the low shall be lifted up," etc., is said to contain simply a watchword, which is not for the time being to be followed by any result. Such trifling needs no refutation. We simply observe, therefore, that there is no ground for the assertion, that Cin without cannot

But he does not

possibly signify to abolish.

305

CHAP. XXI. 28-32. the same time, tSBB'Dn iP'iB'^

of course not to be taken as a

philological explanation of the

word

''^"'^,

but

simply a theo-

logical interpretation of the patriarchal prophecy, with direct

reference to the predicted destruction of the existing relations in

consequence of the ungodliness and unrighteousness of the

leaders of the theocracy rightful claim to the mitre sense, as belonging to

this right belongs,

Messiah,

whom

and crown, but right (Deut.

17),

and

whom God

the prophets from

not the

an objective

and entrusted by God

government as His representative.

to the earthly

whom

God

CBB'sn

that time.

will give

the

then, to it, is

the

times of David

onwards have prophesied as the founder and restorer of perfect right on earth (cf. Ps. Ixxii.

The

xxxiii. 17).

;

Isa. ix. 6, xlii» 1

;

accusative, referring to DBB'jp (cf. Ps. Ixxii. 1).

necessity to mention the person again

give the right, as

had already been designated

drawn

divine lying to thee,

And

Ammon, and concerning their scorji, it may devour, that

sword,

shall lay

hy the necks of

thee

may

while they

to thee,

sinners

tlie

whose day cometh at the time of the final transgression.

slain,

Ver. 30. Put

in its scabbard again.

toast created, in the

And

—Ver. 28.

to slay, polished, that

Ver. 29. While they prophesy deceit

in the pre-

of man^ prophesy and say. Thus saith the Lord Jehovah,

concerning the sons of sioord,

but an

There was no

whom God would

Vers. 28-32. Overthrow of the Ammonites.

flash

xxiii. 5,

^^ IK'K.

vious expression

thoUj son

Jer.

suffix attached to Vnrii is not a dative,

pour

out,

against thee,

and

land of thy birth will

anger upon

thee, kindle the fire

of destruction.

devour

;

thy blood shall remain in the midst of the land

remembered no more

As Judah

;

Jerusalem will

Babylon, contrary to

all

for fall

;

Jehovah have spoken

thou it.

—

by the sword of the king of

expectation

;

so will the

Ammonites

be punished for their scorn with utter extermination.

EZEK.

wrath

hand of foolish men, of Ver. 32. Thou shall be for the fire to

give thee into the

smitlts

shall be

At the place lohere thou I judge thee, Ver. 31.

n|"in is

306

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

scorn at the overthrow of Israel (cf. ch. xxv. 3, 6, and Zeph. ii.

The sword

8).

already drawn against them.

nnop

taken out of the scabbard, as in Ps. xxxvii. 14.

7'3n7 with nDiiD.

and

This

required by the correspondence of

regarded as a derivative of

?^^[} is

much

b^3

by Ewald

ad sustinendum, according

others, in the sense of

city, i.e. as

But

as possible.

to capa-

the adverbial rendering

opposed to the context, and cannot be sustained from

Moreover,

32.

xxiii.

goblets

and other

explains blind.

to contain,

f«i3,

vessels,

—

i.e.

open to the objection that the form ?^3n

this is

namely, that there

;

and

also to a

still

greater

nothing in the Hebrew usage to

suggest the use of ^^2 in such a sense as this, and even

were used

Hitzig therefore

to blunt («c. the eyes),

points to the verb bl3 rather than P?3 one,

ch.

enough

applicable

but not to a sword.

from the Arabic J.£=,

But

with nmnSj notwithstanding the accents, and

be connected

the clauses.

Pimns,

in the sense of blunting,

trary to supply D^3^y

and

;

lastly,

if it

would be perfectly arbi-

that even the flashing of the

sword does not suggest the idea of blinding, but

intended to

heighten the terror occasioned by the sharpness of the sword.

therefore adhere to the derivation of

regard in 2

as a

Sam.

20), and

defective

xix. 14, ^n^ as

tnn^ for

TriNJRl

to eat or devour,

i.e.

P"J3 }y»^, literally,

issue therefrom

place)

thee;

so that the

parenthesis,

syncopated form for

in 2

Sam.

xx. 9

make

for the

fit

;

-'ax,

^iJ?n for

^''^^\},

from

?[}^\

and

itosn

(Isa. xiii.

literally, to

cause

work of devouring.

for the sake of the lightning (flash) that shall

(cf.

also

form for

?''^[}

ver. 10).

— In

ver.

29 (34), nn? (to lay, I'ln, drawn to lay

dependent upon nmns first

either to

half

the verse

inserted as a

indicate the occasion for bringing the

sword into the land (Hitzig), or to introduce an attendant circumstance, according to the sense in which the 3 in nitna taken.

The

parenthetical clause

commentators

understood by most of the

as referring to deceptive oracles of

Ammonitish

307

CHAP. XXI. 28-32.

soothsayers,

Hitzig supposes ites

Ammon, as the Ammon-

which either determined the policy of (cf.

Jer. xxvii. 9, 10), or inspired

with confidence, that they had nothing to fear from the Kliefoth, on the other hand, refers the words to

Chaldeans.

the oracles consulted by Nebuchadnezzar, according to ver. 23.

" These oracles, which directed the king not to the Ammonites, but

march

according to ver. 29, to be deceptive prophesying to the ites,

inasmuch as they

against

Jerusalem, proved themselves,

against

by the sword

also afterwards fell

Ammon;

just as,

according to ver. 23, they proved themselves to be genuine so far as the Israelites were concerned, inasmuch as they were

This view

really the first to be smitten."

one,

if it

hard

to believe that the

hood

to thee," are

proves

a very plausible

But

only answered in any degree to the words.

itself to

words, " while

meant

Ammonites any

prophecy

wliile its

Moreover, Nebuchadnezzar oracle, either false or true,

the circumstance that his divination at the cross-road led to decide in favour of the

march

did in consequence was to

Ammonites, but not

it is

(one) prophesies false-

be equivalent to "

be false to thee."

did not give the

Jerusalem

for all that he

;

postpone his designs

to relinquish

them.

him

upon the

cannot under-

stand the words in any other sense, therefore, than as relating to oracles,

their

own.

which the Ammonites received from soothsayers of

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

Hitzig takes offence at the expression, " that

may

(the sword)^ slain,"

lay thee

(to) the

because colla cannot stand for corpora decoUata, and

consequently proposes to alter

But by

sword) to the necks. less striking

meaning, and

into nnix, to put

this conjecture

(the

he gets the not

;

a thing which would be perfectly un-

ver.

The sinners The words point

therefore not generally done.

are the Judaeans

back to

"^nix

thought, that the sword was to be put to the necks

of those already slain

slain

necks of the sinners

who have

fallen.

25, the second half of which is repeated here,

and predict the same

fate to the

to supply 3"^n to '"^"^V^"^^ 2^'n

;

Ammonites.

put the sword into

It its

easy

scabbard

308

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

Ammonites

Tliese words can only be addressed to the

again.

;

not to the Chaldeans, as Kliefoth imagines, for the latter does

way with what

not harmonize in any

thy birth

will I

God

judge thee.

ment independently

does not execute the judg-

medium

of the Chaldeans, but through the

The

of their sword.

follows, viz. in the place of

words as referring

occasioned by taking

difficulties

Ammonites

to the

the

are not so great as to

necessitate an alteration of the text (Hitzig), or to call for the

arbitrary explanation

put

The

scabbard (Kliefoth).

Patach for

now

or for the present into the

use of the masculine SK'n (with

3K'n, as in Isa. xlii. 22), if

the side of the feminine ^HiN,

may

Ammon

addressed by

be explained in a very simple

way, from the fact that the sword

carried by men, so that

here the thought of the people, the warriors,

predominant,

and the representation of the kingdom of the Ammonites

woman

The

into the background.

falls

as a

objection that the

suffix in nnyri

can only refer to the sword (of the Chaldean)

mentioned in

ver. 28,

inasmuch

as the scabbard presupposes a sword,

has a scabbard, the suffix thing

itself,

may be

and every sword

fully accounted for

as the words, " put the sword into

would lead any hearer

For

plausible than conclusive-

to think at once of the

its

from the

scabbard,"

sword of the

person addressed, without considering whether that particular

sword had been mentioned before or not.

words

is this

still

figure of the sword

God introduced

will

For

thee.

This judgment

of the

every attempt to defend thyself with the sword

and avert destruction

God judge

The meaning

In thine own land

be in vain.

^^rt")DD, see

the

comm. on

will

ch. xvi. 3.

further explained in ver. 31, where the

dropped, and that of the

in its place.

n^SK

K'NS,

fire

of the wrath

we render

" the

my wrath I blow (kindle) against thee," after Isa. liv. 16, and not " with the fire ... do I blow, or snort, against thee,"

fire of

as others

have done

;

because blowing with the

fire is

an un-

natural figure, and the interpretation of the words in accordance

with Isa.

I.e. is all tlie

natural, that in the closing words of

309

CHAP. XXII. "'Bnn,

the verse, n^n^J'b

and

it is

the allusion to that passage

indisputable,

only from this that the combination of the two words

can be accounted

Isa. XXX.

for.

—

Different explanations have been given

Some render

of C'lys.

this sense.

and

ardentes,

Nor can the rendering

in accordance

But 1^3

burning with wrath.

men"

" scorching

with

never used in (Kliefoth)

be sustained, for lys, to burn, only occurs in connection with things which are combustible,

e.g.

fire,

word must be explained from Ps. always bearing in mind that the

The

pitch, coals, etc.

xcii.

Hebrew

" brutish," foolish,

associated the idea of

godlessness with folly, and that cruelty naturally follows in train.

—

Ver.

Thus

32.

sword, and even the

compare ch. xv. in

Ammon

will

its

perish through fire and

memory of it be obliterated. For ver. 32a The words, " thy blood will be p.^n iiins

the midst of the land," can hardly be understood in any

other sense than " thy blood will flow over the rendering

all

the land."

For

proposed by Ewald, " remain in the midst of

the earth, without thy being mentioned," like that given

Kliefoth, " thy blood will the earth drink," does not harmonize

with ch. xxiv.

where

n^n •'^3in3 PiDT

aflSrmed of blood,

which cannot penetrate into the earth, or be covered with dust.

For

''13W, see ch.

dom

God

Ammon

xxv. 10.

will utterly perish,

as the

enemy

of the king-

leaving no trace behind, and

without any such hope of restoration as that held out in ver.

to the

kingdom

Judah

or the people of Israel.

CHAP. XXII. THE SINS OF JERUSALEM AND ISRAEL.

To the

prediction of the

judgment

in ch. xxi. there is

appended

another description of the sins of Jerusalem and Israel, by

which

this

judgment

three words of

occasioned.

substance and design,

viz. (1)

of Jerusalem accelerate the will

The chapter

contains

God, which are connected together both in

The

blood-guiltiness

and idolatry

coming of the days when the

be an object of scorn to

all

the world

(vers.

city

1-16);

310 (2)

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

The house

become

of Israel has

kingdom

— prophets,

and

dross,

in the fire of tribulation (vers. 17-22)

;

and people

priests, princes,

be melted

(3) All ranks of the

—

are thoroughly

judgment burst upon them

corrupt, therefore has the

(vers.

23-31). Vers. 1-16. Blood-guiltiness of Jerusalem and the burden of its

Vers. 1-5 contain the principal accusation relating

sins.

and idolatry; and

to bloodshed

6-16 a further account of

vers.

the sins of the people and their rulers, with a brief threatening

of punishment.

—Ver.

saying, Ver. 2.

And

judge the

Ver.

the

of blood-guiltiness

city

word of Jehovah came

man,

show

f then

Ver.

for defilement.

toithin itself

may

that her time

it,

thou hast shed hast thou

made

and hast come

City,

come,

those

far off from

rich in confusion.

which sheddeth

and maketh

and through

to thy years ; therefore

Ver.

expression

'u^ '^BK'rin

thine

and hast drawn

thyself,

1 make thee a 5.

Those near

thee shall ridicule thee as defiled in

—The

idols

Through thy blood which

scorn to the nations, and ridicule to all lands.

and

me,

all its abominations,

thyself guilty,

which thou hast made hast thou defiled

thy days near,

judge? wilt thou

wilt thou

And say. Thus saith the Lord Jehovah,

blood in the midst of

idols

And

thou, son of

name,

proves this ad-

dress to be a continuation of the reproof of Israel's sins, which

commenced

The

in ch. xx. 4.

as in ch. xxiv. 6, 9 (compare

The

Nah. iii.

commences with

apodosis

(rniDN^).

nriV

may come

epithet city of blood-guiltiness,

i^wjnini,

KUP, that her time,

^^V, like

ioi'

i.e.

1), is

and

t<13^,

continued in ver. 3

her time of punishment,

in ch. xxi. 30.

tinuation of the infinitive

explained in ver. 3.

*^'^'P'V\

not a con-

but of the participle naSB'.

which different renderings have been given, does not " mean over itself," i.e. as a burden with which it has laden itself ifys, of

(Havernick)

;

never has, but with

it,

less

literally

were,

thy days, that to,

still

" for

itself

" upon,"

''^''lipril,

" (Hitzig), a meaning which bv i.e.

thou hast brought near, brought on

to say, the days of

arrived at thy years,

sc.

in itself, covering the city

judgment, and hast come

the years of visitation and punish-

;

CHAP. XXII.

ment

(cf.

Jer.

the context.

name,

xi.

QK'n

311

6-12.

This meaning

23).

nSDD,

defiled,

readily supplied

unclean with regard to the

having forfeited the name of a holy city through

i.e.

capital crimes

and other

no^no

sinful abominations,

Amos

confusion, both moral and religious, as in

internal

iii.

(cf.

Ps.

10-12).

Iv.

vers.

6-12 there follows an enumeration of a multitude of

which had been committed

sins

in Jerusalem.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver.

Beholdy

the 'princes of Israel are every one^ according to his arm^ in thee to

shed blood.

Ver.

Father and mother they despise in thee

toicard the fo) dyner they act violently in the midst of thee

and widows

Ver.

they oppress in thee.

holy things, and desecratest in thee to shed blood,

and

upon

the

orphans

;

Tliou despisest

Ver.

Sabbaths.

they eat

they practise lewdness in thee.

Slanderers are

mountains in thee

Ver. 10. They uncover the father's

nakedness in thee ; they ravish the defiled in her uncleanness in thee.

Ver. 11.

bour's wife,

and

And

one committeth abomination with his neigh-

and another

Ver. 12. They take usury thou

and thou

takest,

incest,

and overreachest thy neighbours with

forgettest me, is the saying

12), the enumeration

which are placed

the

embraces

form of a

sins

violence,

Lord Jehovah. blood (vers.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

6, 9,

divided into three groups of sins,

in the category of blood-guiltiness

that they are preceded after the

and

thee to shed blood; interest

gifts in

the repetition of the refrain, to shed

and

defileth his daughter-in-law

the third ravisheth his sister, his father's daughter in thee.

this sentence

The

by the

fact

and the repetition of group

(vers.

6-8)

which are committed in daring opposition

to all

refrain.

the laws of morality.

the

first

princes of

understand primarily the profligate kings,

Israel

are to

who caused innocent

persons to be put to death, such, for example, as Jehoiakim (2

Kings

xxiv. 4),

The words vn

Manasseh

iy'irp C'^K

Kings

xxi. 16),

and

others.

are rendered by Hitzig and Kliefoth,

they were ready to help one another dering they appeal to Ps.

Ixxxiii. 9.

;

and

But

in support of the renin that case

S'ih'h {^"'N

312

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

would Stand for ^v:

J)""irf»,

^i6 yiiT B'^K,— a substituNor can they be taken in the

or rather for

which cannot be sustained.

tion

sense proposed by Hiivernick, every one relying i.e.

looking

physical

according to his arm,

force

upon

his

arm,

but simply every one

alone,

according to his strength or violence,

i.e.

Vn does not require anything

be supplied, any more than in the similar combination in ver.

are they in thee.

this case

Followed by ]VuP with an

means

infinitive, it

making an attempt,

the intention of doing anything, or

direct his efforts to a certain end.

princes

who

compare Ex.

all

xxii.

insolence

tempt of

ver. 7

sqq.

;

In the reproofs which

Lev.

xix.

holy.

For

^?pn

follow,

Deut. xxiv. 14 sqq.

;

and violence toward men there

that

i.e.

not the

are the subject, but the ungodly in general.

the opposite of 133 (Ex. xx. 12).

With

to be there witli

associated con-

ver. 86, see ch. sx. 13.

—In the

second group, vers. 9-11, in addition to slander and idolatry, the crimes of lewdness and incest are the principal sins for

which the people are reproved

and

xviii.

xix. is

;

and here the

The

very obvious.

allusion to Lev.

reproof of slander also

points back to the prohibition in Lev. xix.

Slander to

16.

shed blood, refers to malicious charges and false testimony in a

For eating upon

court of justice (vid. 1 Kings xxi. 10, 11).

the mountains, see ch.

xviii.

The

specifically described in vers.

itself,

compare Lev.

K'^K in ver.

xviii. 7, 8, xix.

11 does not

practice of

mean every

15 and

12,

clause,

composed of

which

threefold

Ex.

xxiii.

;

third

and

group,

For the

first

for the second,

reproof finishes with forgetfulness of God,

The Lord is enraged

will interfere,

among

closely allied to covetousness.

Vers. 13-16.

The

—The

sins of covetousness.

compare the prohibition

ch. xviii. 8, 13.

The

one, but one, another,

the third, as the correlative injn shows. ver.

zimmdh

For the thing

10 and 11.

and put an end

the heathen.

—

such abominable doings.

them by

Ver. 13. And, beholdj

because of thy gain which thou hast made,

scattering

smite

Judah

my hand

and over thy blood-

CHAP. XXII.

313

17-22.

of thee. Ver. 14. Will thy heart thy hands he strong for the day when I

guiltiness wliich is in the midst

indeed stand firm, or

icill

1 Jehovah have spoken

shall deal with thee f

and

it^

also

it.

Ver. 15. 1 will scatter thee among the nations, and disperse thee in the lands,

Ver. IQ.

and

And

from

will utterly remove thine uncleanness

thee.

thou wilt be desecrated through thyself before the eyes

of the nations, and know that

I am

Jehovah.

—Ver. 13

closely

This serves to explain the

connected with the preceding verse.

God

fact that the only sins mentioned as exciting the wrath of

and

are covetousness xi. 5)3

blood-guiltiness.

12 clearly shows,

^S"?,

Kings

H? a contracted expression for ^3 nan

7K (ch. xxi. 19), and the smiting of the hands together

For the form

gesture indicative of wrathful indignation. contracted from "n!?% see the leads

comm. on

ch. xvi. 45.

on to the threatening of judgment, so does

in anticipation to the terrible nature of the

The question, "

will

TiniK nfe'^j as in ch. xvi.

ripTO,

59 and

(cf. ch. xii. 15, xx. 23),

DOJ^, to

vii.

Niphal of

not from ?^}, as

}p, to

connected with

many

i.e.

cii.

27).

will scatter

take completely away.

D^iJ

as in ch. xx. 9,

V.''?^^,

who

follow the Sep-

in thyself,

te,

through thy sinful conduct and

sin,

Dnn^

(cf. Isa. iv. 4).

of the commentators

tuagint and Vulgate suppose. ^3, not in thee,

(cf . Ps.

The Lord

27.

and remove the uncleanness of

cause to cease, with />?n,

itself.

(cf. ch. xxi. 12),

away

namely, by purifying the people in exile

from

ver.

14 point

judgment

the opposite of D»3

as standing forms the antithesis to passing

them

ver.

thy heart stand firm?" involves a warning

lOV

against security.

— As

^^"i,

its

but through

consequences.

Vers. 17-22. Refining of Israel in the furnace of besieged

Jerusalem. ing,

—Ver.

17.

And

the

word of Jehovah came

me, say-

Ver. 18. Son of man, the house of Israel has become

as dross

;

they are all brass,

and

tin,

and

iron,

furnace; dross of silver have they become. thus saiih the

I gather you

gather together silver^

and

all

together in Jerusalem.

and

brass,

and

lead in the

Ver. 19. Therefore

Lord Jehovah, Because ye have

therefore, behold,

men

iron,

and

become dross,

Ver. 20. lead,

and

As tin

314

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL upon it for melting^ so loill I my anger and my wrath^ and put you in Ver. 21. And I will collect you together^ and blow

into the furnace^ to blow the fire

gather (you) together in

and melt you.

my wrath upon youy that ye may As silver is melted in the furnace, so

the fire of

be melted therein.

Ver. 22.

shall ye be melted

therein

(viz.

Jerusalem), and shall learn that

have poured out

wrath upon you.

no doubt upon the figure

rests

or dirt of sin

but

;

the dispersion of Israel

God, from

ver.

Jehovah

second word of

Tliis

God

in ver. 156, of the uncleanness

not an exposition of the removal of the

it is

For

predicted there.

dirt, as

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

that

among

was

be effected through

the nations, whereas the word of

17 onwards, represents the siege awaiting Jeru-

God

salem as a melting process, through wliich

will separate

the silver ore contained in Israel from the baser metals mingled

with

it.

ver. 18

commences with a

It has turned to dross,

existing condition of Israel. clearly a perfect,

and

by the clause yield

'131

nvn

not only precluded

in ver. 19, but could only be

made

an admissible sense by taking the middle clause of the

them brass and

verse,

Israel

had become, or

}y*

not to be taken as a prophetical future,

Such a rendering

as Kliefoth proposes.

description of the

all

Hebrew

tin," etc., as

a statement of what

as a preterite in opposition to all the rules

syntax, inasmuch as this clause merely furnishes

which only occurs here, for

an explanation of

3iD7"^\"i.

3^p signifies dross,

not smelting-ore (Kliefoth),

a^D,

literally,

rece-

danea, the baser ingredients which are mixed with the silver,

and separated from where

directly afterwards

brass, tin, iron,

and

*lp3, dross of silver,

of silver.

kind, the it

by smelting.

lead, i.e.

This

interpreted

and then

still

brass, tin, iron,

and

tin in

here,

consisting of

lead, with a

mixture

silver-dross of this

together in Jerusalem, to smelt

there as in a smelting furnace; just as

brass, iron, lead,

meaning

further defined as Cap

and

Because Israel had turned into

Lord would gather

the

men

gather together

a furnace to smelt them, or rather

to separate the silver contained therein,

fjoa nifnp, literally, a

CHAP. XXII.

315

23-31.

collection of silver, etc., for " like a collection."

The 3

simil. is

probably omitted for the sake of euphony, to avoid the discord occasioned by prefixing

Ezekiel mentions the silver

to nynjp.

some

as well, because there is

silver contained in the brass,

nomen

from

iron, etc., or the dross is silver-dross.

^I^n,

^03 in the Iliphil, smelting

as the smelting of silver

literally,

;

The smelting

takes place in the furnace.

verbale,

treated here simply

and consequently

as a figurative representation of punishment,

the result of the smelting, namely, the refining of the silver by the removal of the baser ingredients, further, as

the last siege of Jerusalem

Vers. 23-31. is

not referred to any

22, 25; Jer. vi.

The

its

Thou

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

Ver. 23.

it ;

widows within

unholy,

and

a roaring

it.

lion,

holy things

Ver. 26. ;

they

and do not teach

they hide their eyes

among them. toolves,

make no

from my

with cement, seeing what

distinction between holy

Sabbaths,

Ver. 28. is

they crush the loretched

and

Ver. 30.

man who

and

might build a

icall

behalf of the land, that

may

are

shed blood,

and divining

for

lies

when Jehovah hath offer violence

the poor,

and

and oppress

/ seek among

them for a

step into the breach before

anger

I find none. upon them; I destroy

I might not destroy

Ver. 31. Therefore 1 pour out

and

and unclean,

And its prophets plaster

worthless,

the foreigner against right.

its

and I am profaned

Ver. 29. The common people ;

law and pro-

Ver. 27. Its princes in the midst of

not spoken.

the difference between clean

which rend prey in pieces, that they

theft

prophets

they multiply

;

Its priests violate

them, saying, " T7ius saith the Lord Jehovah,"

commit

its

which rends in pieces the prey, they

destroy souls, to acquire gain. it

the

Son of maUj say upon

Ver. 25. Conspiracy of

devour souls, take possessions <znd money

fane

And

art a land which is not shined upon, nor rained

in the day of anger.

within

the kingdom

all classes in

destruction.

loord of JeJiovah came to me, saying, Ver. 24. it,

Israel in

by the Chaldeans.

corrupt state of

the immediate cause of

27-30; Mai.

This smelting process was experienced by

2, 3.

iii.

the case in Isa.

it,

but

316

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

them in the fire of head,

necessity

word of God contained

the third tion

way upon their show the

give their

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; To more

still

clearly,

a descrip-

in this chapter

deep corruption among

given of the spread of

classes of the people,

dom

predicted judgment

the

for

wraths

of the Lord Jehovah.

saying

the

all

and the impossibility of saving the king-

The words

plainly shown.

n7""iDN,

say unto her," are

taken by most of the commentators as referring to Jerusalem, the abominations of which the prophet

But although the

unquestionably be

made

commanded

" thou art a land,"

clause,

harmonize with

of ver. 30, " I sought for a

to declare.

etc. (ver. 24), this,

man who might

could

yet the words

stand in the gap

before Jehovah for the land," indicate most unquestionably that

word of God

this

consequently

pronoun

follows, the

which

city of

directed against the land of Judah, and

in this case

Num.

refers, as in

as in the preceding

was not the

kingdom

which

allusion to the

word of God the object referred

but the house of Israel, or the nation

city,

the Sept.,

nnnbp

here

The meaning

Judah.

N^^

question.

which

made

of ver.

to the land, or

a disputed

rendered ^ ov ^pexof^ivi] in taken by most of the expositors to mean, " it is not

cleansed," the form

iib^

But

being correctly rendered as a parti-

'"inn'cp

Fual of in^-

ciple

Any

xxiv. 17.

generally, from which a transition

the

referring to

being placed before the noun

Jerusalem would therefore be somewhat out of place,

inasmuch to

R^ must be taken as

this

rendering does not furnish any

appropriate sense, unless the following words HD^a N7 are taken as a threat

upon

in the

there shall not be rain, or

day of wrath.

with the form of the word, pointing with as a

noun

DK^a

But

this

i^^^-?)

view

shall not is

according to the Masoretic

Mappik

in the n, is evidently

= DK'3.

In that

to contain a threat,

iT'n^.

be rained

hardly reconcilable

case, if the

meant

be taken

words were intended

ought not to be omitted.

But without

a verb the

words contain a statement in harmony with what

precedes.

regard the Chetib

riDtf'J

the perfect Pual

CHAP. XXII.

And

no^'3.

verb

not be objected to this that the Pual of this

let it

not met with elsewhere, for the form of the noun

with the

sound does not occur anywhere

Pual, ncE'J N?

nnnbo

S^^

^17

23-31.

else.

D^'3

a perfect

a simple continuation of the participial clause

n?, containing

an aflSrmation, and cannot

like this

But " not be taken as a threat or prediction. " cleansed " and " not rained upon do not agree together, as

possibly

rain

idea.

not a means of purification according to the Hebrew It

of rain

true that in the law the withdrawal or suspension

threatened as a punishment from God, and the pour-

ing out of rain if

promised as a theocratical blessing.

But even

the words are taken in a tropical sense, as denoting a with-

drawal of the blessings of divine grace, they will not harmonize

with the other clause, " not cleansed."

n^nbD

in the sense of

therefore take

" shined upon by the light," or provided

with brightness; a meaning which

where tohar occurs

kindred word tzohar,

light.

sustained by Ex. xxiv. 10,

the sense of

this

splendour, and by the

way we

obtain the suitable

thought, land which has neither sunlight nor rain in the day of

wrath,

but

i.e.

does not enjoy a single trace of the divine blessing,

given up to the curse of barrenness.

tlireat is

The

given in vers. 25 sqq., where a picture

moral corruption of

all

ranks;

reason for this

drawn of the

of the prophets (ver. 25),

viz.

the priests (ver. 26), the princes (ver. 27), and the

people (ver. 29).

There

common

something very striking in the

much because they are may be accounted for on

allusion to the prophets in ver. 25, not so

mentioned again

in ver. 28,

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

for this

the ground that in the latter passage they are simply introduced as false advisers of the princes,

made concerning them

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

on account of the statement

in ver. 25, namely, that, like lions tear-

ing their prey, they devour souls, etc.; a description is

not given either in chap.

fore proposes to alter dcprjyovfxevot text,

or elsewhere.

into

H''?*''??

given by the

which confines

xiii.

^'^''^'3,

LXX.

itself to

which

Hitzig there-

after the rendering

This alteration of the

a single letter,

rendered very

318

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL. by the

plausible

fact that almost the

same

affirmed of the

persons mentioned in ver. 25 as of the princes in ver. 27, and that in the passage in Zephaniah to the

one

mind, the princes

The

prophets and the priests.

crown

so similar

D^')K'

in his

would correspond to

to the D^osy.

According

would indicate primarily the members of

family, possibly including the chief officers of the

and the

;

which

(rfosb') are called the

CX^K'J here

the n'"!f of Zephaniah, and the

the royal

3, 4),

and the judges

{y}''^^)

to ver. 6, the D''XY^3

(iii.

Ezekiel appears to have had

before us, that

D^"!*^

27) would be the heads of

(ver.

tribes,

of families, and of fathers' houses, in whose hands the national

administration of justice principally lay (cf. Ex.

Deut.

13-18; and

Bibl. Arclidol.

ii.

Â§

xviii.

19sqq.

I therefore

149).

prefer this conjecture, or correction, to the Masoretic reading,

although the latter

Chaldee with

its

supported by ancient witnesses, such as the

rendering xn'iQp, scribes, and the version of

For the statement which the verse contains

Jerome.

applicable to prophets,

Masoretic text

not

and the best explanation given of the

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;namely, that

by Michaelis, " they have made

a compact with one another as to what kind of teaching they

would or would not give

and

;

in order that their authority

may continue undisturbed, they persecute even to who do not act with them, or obey them, but rather

blood those contradict

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; does not do justice to the words, but weakens their sense. is

not a predicate to

but

'li is

a genitive.

*33,

" they are

the same time, there

to take IK'? in the sense of "

The

cannot be sustained.

comparison to lions subject*,

fact that in

'li1

*"1N3

first

from the comparison

(they are like, etc.)

to a lion,

in its blood, in

no necessity

follows,

where the

(D^S^iJ'j)

are the

clause also these

There

be linked on to the following clause.

has captured

what

introduced, the D^N^33

simply proves that in the

^"^"i},

;

company," a rendering which

actually form the prominent idea.

plying

iK'i?

form) a conspiracy

{i.e.

men

no ground for sup-

;

but the simile

^^3X B'W

which devours the prey that

which

be explained it

the soul, or nephesh (Gen.

319

CHAP. XXII. 23-31.

ix.

;

tiable

Lev.

xvii.

sqq.).

The thought is this in their insamen and put them to death, number of victims (for the fact, see :

greed for riches they sacrifice

and thereby multiply the chap. xix.

What

7).

stated in

first

two clauses occur word for word

;

26 concerning the

ver.

priests is simply a further expansion of

Zeph.

for

iii.

B''ip

where the

Zephaniah

The

desecra-

tion of the holy things consisted in the fact that they

made no

really equivalent to

holy things and deeds.

between sacred and profane, clean and unclean.

distinction

For the

''B'li?,

compare Lev.

fact,

x. 10,

Their covering their

11.

eyes from the Sabbaths showed itself in their permitting the

Sabbaths to be desecrated by the people, without offering any opposition

Jer. xvii.

(cf.

(sdrim) to ravening wolves

27).

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;The comparison of

taken from Zeph.

following clause, compare ver. 12 and ch. souls to acquire gain

inasmuch yv?.

as,

men

For the

Destroying

xviii. 21,

the judges were to hate

affirmed in ver. 28 of the conduct of the false

repeated for the most part verbatim from ch.

10, 9, and 7.

10.

the rulers

perfectly applicable to unjust judges,

according to Ex.

All that

prophets

xiii.

iii.

DHp,

which points back

xiii.

to the three classes

already mentioned, and not merely to the sdrim, the

who support the which assured them

prophets are represented as helpers of those

ungodly

in their

of prosperity. spiritual

and

^V (ver. 29), as distinguished from the

secular rulers of the nation, signifies the

With

people.

wicked ways, by oracles

Yl.^'}

reference to

ch. xviii. 7, 12, 18

;

and

their

for the

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;The corruption

and wickedness, see

command

the poor and foreigners, compare xxiv. 17.

sins

Ex.

common

against oppressing

xxii. 20,

so universal, that not a

;

Deut.

man

be found who could enter into the gap as a righteous man, or avert the

judgment of destruction by

refers not merely to the prophets,

gap according mentioned.

to ch.

xiii. 5,

who

but to

At the same time,

all

his intercession.

Dnp

did not enter into the

the classes previously

does not follow from

this,

that

entering into the gap by means of intercession cannot be the

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

'320

The

thing intended, as Hitzig supposes.

This

P.?'^ clearly refers to intercession.

expression ^J'3 '3S?

apparent from the

simple fact that, as Hitzig himself observes, the intercession of

Abraham the

mind

Sodom (Gen.

for

xviii.

13 sqq.) was floating before

of Ezekiel, since the concluding words of the verse

contain an obvious allusion to Gen.

Lord does not

find a single righteous

for the land,

man, who might intercede

pours out His anger upon

With

inhabitants thereof.

Because the

28.

xviii.

reference

to destroy the

it,

the

separate words employed, compare ch. xxi. 36, xi.

21,

and

It does not follow

xvi. 43.

fact

and the

vii.

4, ix. 10,

from the word

^SK'KJ,

For

that Ezekiel "is speaking after the catastrophe" (Hitzig).

although

'iis?'*?j

a righteous

expresses the consequence of Jehovah's seeking

man and

not finding one,

by no means follows

from the occurrence of the preterite ""nsyD S71 that ^SK'XJ also a preterite,

consequence

;

and

"ipf^]

simply connected with

in both verbs the

sequence of thought, and not of time.

Vav

^\?,'^^)

as a

consec. expresses the

The

seeking, therefore,

with the result of not having found, cannot be understood in a chronological sense,

i.e.

an event belonging

to the past, for

the simple reason that the preceding words do not record the chronological order of events.

merely depicts the existing

moral condition of the people, and ver. 30 sums up the result

was no one

of the description in the thought that there

found who could enter in the gap before God.

we cannot determine from

to be

Consequently

the imperfect with Vav consec. either

the time of the seeking and not finding, or that of the pouring out of the wrath.

CHAP. XXIII. OHOLAH AND OHOLIBAH, THE HARLOTS

SAMARIA AND JERUSALEM. Samaria and Jerusalem, as the of the two

kingdoms

Israel

capitals

and representatives

and Judah, are two

sisters,

who

have practised whoredom from the days of Egypt onwards

CHAP. XXIII.

(vers.

2-4).

&21

1-4.

Samaria has carried on

this

whoredom with

Assyria and Egypt, and has been given up by

power of the Assyrians

But Jerusalem,

as a consequent

(vers. 5-10).

more grievously with Assyria and

still

the Chaldeans, and, last of

In consequence of

all,

the

this,

make war upon them, and

with Egypt again (vers. 11-21).

Lord to

will

permit the Chaldeans to

plunder and put them to shame,

punishment for their whoredom and

fulness of God, they

may,

shown once more, and

their forget-

in the fullest measure, experience

In conclusion, both kingdoms

Samaria's fate (vers. 22-35). are

punishment

into the

instead of allowing this to serve as a warning,

committed fornication

so that, as a

God

severer terms, the guilt of

still

their idolatry (vers. 36-44), whilst the infliction of the punish-

ment In

for both adultery its

and murder

foretold (vers. 45-49).

word of God

general character, therefore, this

ordinate with the two preceding ones in ch. xxi. and setting forth once

the punishment allegory,

in a

comprehensive way the sins and

But

of Israel.

this is

which closely resembles in

allegorical

description in ch. xvi.

details, it possesses

;

done in the form of an

and

ment and execution

of the whole.

figures,

but

and the future

;

still

in the arrange-

allegory in ch. xvi.

Lord

in the past, the

but in the chapter before

us, the guilt

drawn between Jerusalem and show that the punishment of destruction, which

Samaria has brought upon

itself

through

course with the heathen, will inevitably

and Judah

own, not only in

Israel stand in the foreground of the picture

throughout, so that a parallel

Samaria, to

its

The

depicts the attitude of Israel towards the

and punishment of

general features the

its

though, in the particular

a character peculiarly

certain original turns

present,

co-

xxii.,

its

adulterous inter-

fall

upon Jerusalem

also.

Vers. 1-4.

The

sisters

Oholah and Oholibah.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver.

And

word of Jehovah came to me, saying^ Ver. 2. Son of man^ two womenj daughters of one mother were they, Ver. 3. They committed whoredom in Egypt, in their youth they committed EZEK. I. X

the

322

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

whoredom

;

there

the greater,

bare sons

and Oholibah her

formed from nn

"â&#x20AC;˘pns,

Ver.

sister

;

But

and daughters.

and Jerusalem

Oholah,

men

were their breasts pressed^ and there

handled their virgin bosom.

Their names are Oholahy

and

their

Oholibah.

and

they became mine,

names are: Samaria

name

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; The

tent in her

;

"^^.n??

and, accordingly,

" her tent," and not to be be derived from npnx tt:|t7 regarded as an abbreviation of na n^nx, " her tent in her," as n?nK TTtiT

Hitzig and Kliefoth maintain.

There

no ground for

assumption, as " her tent," in contrast with "

this

tent in her,"

expresses the thought with sufficient clearness, that she had a tent of her own,

come

and the place where her tent was does not

into consideration.

own

sanctuary,

Samaria and Jerusalem, as the kingdoms,

represent

the sanctuary

toward the Lord.

to their attitude

salem had the sanctuary of Jehovah

hand, had her

both

These names characterize the two

tabernacle and temple.

kingdoms according

The " tent "

Israel

;

Jeru-

Samaria, on the other

one invented by herself.

i.e.

historical

of the

ten

names of the two and Judah.

tribes

Oholah and Oholibah are daughters of one mother, because they were the two halves of the one Israel called

;

and they are

women, because Jehovah had married them

Oholah

called

elder, see the

the great,

'^^i"'2i],

comm. on

i.e.

ch. xvi. 46)

;

(ver. 4).

greater sister (not the

because ten

the

tribes,

Judah They committed whoredom even in Egypt in their youth, for even in Egypt the Israelites defiled themselves with Egyptian idolatry (see the comm. on ch. xx. 7).

greater portion of Israel, belonged to Samaria, whereas

had only two

tribes.

"nVD, to press, to crush

handling. tractare,

the Fual

used here to denote lewd

In a similar manner the Piel

nfe'j;

used to signify

contrectare mammas, in an obscene sense.

Vers. 5-10. Samaria's whoredom and punishment.â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver. 5.

And

Oholibah played the harlot under me, and burned towards

her lovers, even as far

as Assyna,

standing near

;

Ver.

Clothed in purple, governors and oncers, all of them choice

men

CHAP. XXIII.

323

5-10.

of good deportment, horsemen riding vpon she directed her whoredom toward them, to of Assyria

all

and with

of them,

all

with all their idols she defiled herself.

Ver.

horses.

the choice

And

the sons

towards

whom

Ver.

Also her whoredom

she hurned,

from Egypt she did not give up ; for they had lain with her in her youth, and they had handled her virgin bosom, and had poured Ver.

out their lust upon her. the

hand of her

whom took

she

lovers, into the

Therefore

I have

given her into

hand of the sons of Assyria, towards

Ver. 10. They uncovered her nakedness,

was inflamed.

away her

and her daughters, and slew her with

sons

the

sword, so that she became a legend among the women, and executed

judgments upon

her.

and Egypt denote

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Coquetting

reh'gious

and

and whoring with Assyria

political leaning

towards and

connection with these nations and kingdoms, including idolatry

and the formation of is to 3JJ^,

alliances with them, as in chap. xvi.

be interpreted in accordance with

'^^'^'^

HK'^X nnri (ch. xvi. 32).

which only occurs in Ezekiel and once

Jeremiah, denotes

the eager desire kindled by passionate love towards any one.

the words

">lls^X"7S

the lovers are more precisely defined.

without an article

W'yr\\>

not an adjective, belonging to

rfanso, but in apposition, which

continued in the next verse.

In these appositions the particular features, which excited the ardent passion towards the lovers, are pointed out.

not

3111? is

to be taken in an outward or local sense, but as signifying

inward or spiritual nearness

standing near,

inwardly related, as in Ps. xxxviii. 12

;

Job

equivalent xix.

14.

The

description given of the Assyrians in ver. 6 contains the thought

that Israel, dazzled by Assyria's splendour, and overpowered

the might of that kingdom, had been drawn into intercourse

with the Assyrians, which led her astray into idolatry. predicate, clothed in purple, points to the splendour

of this imperial power of

its

military force.

grades

(cf. Jer.

li.

;

the other predicates, to the magnitude

^''^JPI niriQ

57).

The

and glory

are rulers of higher and lower

" Here the expression

a general

one, signifying the different classes of office-bearers in the

824

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

With regard

kingdom" (Havernick). on Hag.

;

and for

ing upon horses"

I3D,

see Delitzsch

added

my comm.

to nnSj see

" Rid-

Isa. xli. 25.

C^Jna to denote

the noblest

horsemen, in contrast to riders upon asses and camels

In ver. lb

Isa. xxi. 7).

and defines more precisely the

nniVj

witli all

towards

whom

cf.

733

instigation to pollution

she burned in love, namely, with

The thought

(the lovers') idols.

(

Dn'7i1'r732i is in apposition to "^SJ'K

follows

was not

all their

merely through her intercourse with the Assyrians that Israel defiled herself, but also

through their

Samaria did not give up the idolatry which Egypt.

idols. it

had derived from

was from Egypt that the worship of God under the

The words

image of the golden calves had been imported.

much

them

too strong for us to understand

defiled themselves with

in ver. 8b.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Vers.

Egypt

7, that even in

observed at ch. xx.

9, 10.

Egyptian

are

as relating simply

to political intercourse, as Hitzig has done.

had

same time,

the

have already the Israelites

itself

idolatry, as

a punishment for

this,

also stated

God gave

Samaria into the power of the Assyrians, so that they executed

judgment upon the from the figure

harlot.

to the fact.

La ver. 106 the prophecy passes

The uncovering

of the nakedness

and daughters,

consisted in the transportation of the sons

the population of Samaria, into exile by the Assyrians,

the

woman

the

kingdom

of Samaria.

for

women

that

herself with the sword

;

Thus

to say, her

;

Havernick supposes D^LJBB' (cf. ch. xvi.

Vers. 11-21. Oholibah saw

it,

who slew

in other words, destroyed

name among

did Samaria become a

name was

the nations, her fate became an ridicule to the nations, not " a

i.e.

circulated

object of conversation and

nickname for the

(vid. ch. xxxvi. 3).

nations,^' as

Cp^SB*, a later foi"m for

41).

Whoredom of Judah. and

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver.

carried on her coquetry

11.

And her sister

still

more wantonly

than she had done, and her whoredom more than the whoredom of her

sister.

Ver. 12. She was injlamed with lust towards the sons

of AsshuTj governors and

officers,

standirtg

near,

clotlied

CHAP. XXIII.

•perfect beauty,

horsemen riding upon

men of good

Jiorses, choice

And I saw that she had defiled herself; way. Ver. 14. And she carried her whoredom

Ver. 13.

deportment.

they both went one

men engraved upon

further; she saw

still

S2S

11-21.

the wall, figures

Chaldeans engraved with red ochre, Ver. 15. Girded about the hips with girdles, loith overhanging caps upon their heads, all of

them knights in appearance, resembling the sons of Babel, the land of whose birth

Chaldea

And

Ver. 16.

she

with lust toward them, xchen her eyes saw them,

to her to the

dom ; and when itself

bed of

had

she

sent messen-

Ver. 17. Tlien the sons of Babylon

gers to them to Chaldea.

came

was inflamed

and

away from them.

and

love,

defiled her with their whore-

defiled herself with them, her soul tore

And when she uncovered her my soul tore itself away

Ver. 18.

whoredom, and uncovered her nakedness,

from

her,

Ver. 19.

And

had torn

soul

itself

she increased her ichoredom, so that she

bered the days of her youth, when the

paramours, who have members

they of

The

Thou

lookest after

she played the

And

Ver. 20.

land of Egypt.

Ver. 21.

thought in these verses

sinful intercourse with Assyria,

had done, but

remem-

harlot

and heat

horses.

lewdness of thy youth, when

Egypt handled thy bosom because of thy

train of

sister.

she burned toward their

like asses

the

went much further than Samaria.

latter

away from her

virgin breasts.

the following

—

—Judah

It not only indulged in

which led on

also allowed

to idolatry as the

be led astray by

itself to

the splendour of Chaldea, to form alliances with that imperial

power, and to defile

became

itself

with her idolatry.

tired of the Chaldeans,

with the Egyptians, as sojourn in Egypt.

The

had done once before during and

and

i'ilP^iD

''V27

The former expression, which occurs must really mean the same as riPan '2^,

''^27.

again in ch. xxxviii. 4, it

its

except that some of the

predicates are placed in a different order,

But

description of the Assyrians in ver. 12

coincides with that in vers. 5

substituted for npDn

And when

formed impure connections

does not follow from this that ?'02p signifies purple, as

326

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

The

Hitzig maintains.

used of the clothing,

true

meaning

rendering, evirapv^aj with a beautiful border,

a variegated one,

— merely

ver.

—There

;

—more

14 as to the way in which Judah was seduced

work, or sculpture).

from 7?9»

Pi^n,

engraved

These figures were pictures of Chaldeans,

an adjective form

cloth,

to cultivate

She saw men engraved or

a participle Pual of

(p^JI}^,

engraved (drawn) with "•^i^n,

is "i»3 ^B'a!',

great obscurity in the statement in

intercourse with the Chaldeans.

drawn upon the wall

especially

expresses the sense, but not the

The Chaldee rendering

actual meaninc; of ^v30. perfecte induti.

and when The Septuagint

perfection

signifies perfect beauty.

red ochre, a bright-red colour.

iti'B',

"liJn,

wearing a

Dy^^D, coloured

girdle.

colour; here, according to the context, n^iD,

variegated head -bands or turbans.

The

used here of the cap.

reference

the

overhanging,

the tiarae tinctae

is to

(Vulgate), the lofty turbans or caps, as they are to be seen

upon the monuments of ancient Nineveh. warriors, but knights

tristataey the

after the regal dignity"

and 2 Sam.

xlv. 7

xxiii. 8).

(Jerome.

The

D"'C'v^,

name

not chariot-

of the second grade

See the comm. on Ex.

description of these engrav-

ings answers perfectly to the sculptures upon the inner walls of the Assyrian palaces in the

and Kouyunjik

monuments

(see Layard's

Vaux, Nineveh and Persepolis).

Nimrud, Khorsabad,

Nineveh and

The

its

Remains, and

pictures of the Chaldeans

are not mythological figures (Havernick), but sculptures depict-

ing war-scenes, triumphal processions of Chaldean rulers and warriors, with

which the Assyrian palaces were adorned.

have not to look for these sculptures This cannot be inferred from ch. poses

;

nor established by

must have been

viii.

Jerusalem or Palestine. 10, as

Havernick sup-

Hitzig's argument, that the

in circumstances to see

woman The

such pictures.

intercourse between Palestine and Nineveh, which

was carried

on even in Jonah's time, was quite sufficient to render possible for the pictures to be seen. to

When

Israelites travelled

Nineveh, and saw the palaces there, they could easily make

32r

CHAP. XXIir. 11-21.

acquainted with

people

the

of Nineveh by

the glory

accounts they would give on their return. this,

to state that the

woman

the

no reply

does not send ambassadors

afterwards (ver. 16), as Hitzig argues; for

Judah

till

am-

sent

bassadors to Chaldea not to view the glories of Assyria, but to

form alliances with the Chaldeans, or to sue for their favour.

Such an embassy,

for example,

was sent

kiah (Jer. xxix. 3); and there Ezekiel has this in his mind.

Babylon by Zede-

no doubt that

Others

may have

in ver.

166

preceded

this,

concerning which the books of Kings and Chronicles are Just as silent as they are concerning that of Zedekiah.

in these verses

made by

therefore the following

The thought

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;The acquaintance

(Judah) with the imperial splendour of the

Israel

Chaldeans, as exhibited in the sculptures of their palaces, incited

Judah

to cultivate political

and mercantile intercourse

with this imperial power, which led to in

the heathen ways

and

Chaldeans themselves came and

filled it

becoming entangled

with disgust,

all this

The

conse-

Judah

instead of returning to the Lord,

Judah

Lord became

turned to the other power of the world, namely, to Egypt in the tiqie of

Zedekiah renewed

its

which the Keri

The form

also gives in ver. 18, has

a feminine termination (not the cohortative

Prov. D''K'3?3

20,

viii.

1 {vid. Delitzsch,

a/j),

idolatry.

The

nasyril

taken ah as

Job, pp. 117 and 268).

are scorta mascula here (Kimchi),

Egyptian

and

like nahn in

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;a

drastically sarcastic

epithet applied to the sdrisim, the eunuchs, or courtiers. figurative epithet answers to the

;

ancient coquetry with that

nation (vers. 19-21 compared with ver. 8). in ver. 20,

in-

tired of

was, that the

For

(vers. 17, 18).

Judah with heathenism, because it was brought

thereby into dependence upon the Chaldeans.

quence of

The

the Chaldeans.

laid the foundation for

tercourse which led to the pollution of

and afterwards

its

idolatry of

The

licentious character of the

sexual heat both of horses and asses

referred to by Aristotle, Hist. anim. vi. 22, and Columella,

de re rust,

vi,

27; and that of the horse has already been

;

828

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

applied to the idolatry of the people IB'3, as ia ch. xvi. 26.

V. 8).

anything,

search for

i.e.

;

by Jeremiah

(vid. Jer.

(ver. 21), to look

*ii?s

not to miss

about for

as Hiivernick

it,

imagines.

Vers. 22-35. Punishment of the harlot Jerusalem.

raise

up thy

itself

away, and cause them

lovers against

from whom

thee,

come upon

Ver. 23. The sons of Babel, and

and

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver. 22.

Lord Jehovah, Behold, I

Oholibah, thus saith the

Therefore,

thy soul has torn

thee

from

every side

;

all the Chaldeans, rulers, lords,

of Assyria with them: chosen men of

nobles, all the sons

graceful deportment, governors and ojicers together, knights and

upon

all riding

counsellors,

come upon

host of peoples

and

target

;

against thee round about they

that

And I

may judge

direct

and

last

and I commit

nose

;

and

and thy

no more

thy lift

them the judgment,

ears will they cut off

Ver. 25.

whoredom from

from

clothes

from

thee,

and

of Egypt:

hand of

from whom thy

those

whom

thee

naked and bare

;

thou hatest, into the

and

away

to thee,

way of

that thy whorish

sister

And

they

and

leave

shame may be uncovered, Ver. 30.

defiling thyself with their idols.

thy sister hast thou walked ; therefore

into thy hand.

of thy

Ver. 29.

t/iee

those

This shall

because thou goest whoring after the nations,

on account of thy the

I give

hand of

take all thy gain,

and thy lewdness and thy whoredom. happen

from

may est

and no longer remember Egypt.

soul has torn itself

shall deal with thee in hatred,

take thy

that thou

Ver. 28. For thus saith the Lord Jehovah, Behold, into the

thee

they will take thy sons

will abolish thy lewdness

the land

thine eyes to them,

deal

eliall

one will be consumed by fire,

last

Ver. 27.

splendid jewellery.

and

will they direct

thee according to their rights.

Ver. 26. They will strip off thy

thee,

they will

and with a

wheels,

and helmet

one shall fall by the sword

thy daughters

and

jealousy against thee, so that they

with thee in wrath

and thy

shield

And

Ver. 24.

horses.

thee with weapons, chariots,

and

Ver. 31. In

I give

her cup

Ver. 32. Thus saith the Lord Jehovah, The cup

thou shall drink, the deep and broad one

; it will

CHAP. XXIII.

he for laughter

and for

321^

22-85.

because

derision^

contains so much.

Ver. 33. Thou wilt become full of drunkenness and misery

and

of desolation

Ver. 34. Thou wilt drink ments,

and

up and drain

tear thy breasts (therewith)

saying of the

a cup

devastation is the cup of thy sister Samaria.

Lord Jehovah.

Lord Jehovah, Because

and gnaw

its

frag-

I have spoken it,

is the

it,

for

;

Ver. 35. Therefore thus saith the

thou hast forgotten me,

and hast

cast

behind thy back, thou shalt also bear thy lewdness and thy whore-

— As

Jerusalem has given herself up to whoredom,

sister

Samaria, she shall also share her

The

dom. her

whom

paramours, of

The Chaldeans

against her as enemies. their

her.

God

will

will bring

come with

all

might, and execute the judgment of destruction upon

—For

the purpose of depicting their great and powerful

enumerates in vers. 23 and 24 the peoples and

forces, Ezekiel

their

sister's fate.

she has become tired,

equipment

military

viz.

the sons of Babel,

inhabitants of Babylonia, the Chaldeans,

the empire at that time,

— and

all

the

i.e.

— the ruling people of

the sons of Asshur,

the

i.e.

inhabitants of the eastern portions of the empire, the former

There

rulers of the world. yipl

^VA

^^p^,

mously taken

Ewald

Chaldean empire. ;

for the

words

in the

also

adopts this view,

words are in apposition to

as the omission of the copula is

some obscurity

be the names of different tribes in the

certainly incorrect

This

which the older theologians have almost unani-

before ^ip^

confirmed by the fact that

JrttJ'

but

sufficient to

show.

used, in Isa. xxxii. 5

and Job xxxiv. 19, in the sense of the man of high rank, tinguished for his prosperity, which the passage before us.

quite in

Consequently lipQ

be sought in the verb

and the abstract oversight

vision, or lead

;

or ruler,

an equivalent to

T'p3.

Rabbins, the Vulgate, and others, nobles.

The

''psi,

predicates in ver.

harmony with 21

;

but the

to exercise super-

used for overseer,

Lastly, J?^P

dis-

not to be taken in

the sense of visitation or punishment, after Jer.

meaning

D''"nb'3-!?rilj

according to

signifies

princes,

236 are repeated from

vers.

330 and

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL. and

12,

alone

CNl""!?

This

added.

a word taken from

the Pentateuch, wliere the heads of the tribes and families, as

being members of the council of the whole congregation of are called

Israel,

summoned

>y^VJ} ''Knip

to the meeting

(Num.

*lVio i.

persons called or

''*?'iii?,

16, xvi. 2).

Michaelis

has aptly observed, " he describes them sarcastically in the very

same way

whom

^€7. nfn,

—

—There

also either

{vh,

—

?pi) 33t

would seem

air.

as regards not only

The

position in the sentence.

its

associated with

the

a difficulty in explaining the

which many MSS. read

for

meaning, but

its is

which he had previously described those upon

she doted."

fact that

to indicate that l^h

an implement of war or some kind of weapon.

same time, the words cannot be the subject

the expression

which

D"*J3y ^>}\^^\

to ^N^^

but as

;

clearly shows, they

follows,

simply contain a subordinate definition of the manner in which, or the things with which, the peoples mentioned in vers. 23, 24 will

come, while they are governed by the verb in the freest

way.

The

remove the

Ewald and Hitzig have made

attempts which difficulty,

extremely improbable. place before them)

^\}''?P?

^^^^, I give

V.?? \^^j as in 1

;

Kings viii. 46,

or give a thing into a person's hand or power.' this sense in

Gen.

xiii.

9 and xxiv. 51.

execution of the judgment

— In

as the earlier expositors suppose,

them

(not, I

to deliver up,

\jS? is

used in

vers. 25, 26, the

depicted in detail.

" they take away thy nose and ears," are not

among

The

words,

be interpreted,

from the custom prevalent

the Egyptians and other nations of cutting off the nose

of an adulteress

;

but depict, by one particular example, the

mutilation of prisoners captured by their enemies. posterity,

which by no means

n"'"inN

comm. on Amos

iv.

employed in the

first

second clause, the

last

taking

away

;

not

suits the last clause of the verse,

and cannot be defended from the usage of the language the

by means of conjectures, are forced and

but the

last,

(see

according to the figure

clause, the trunk;

or,

following the

thing remaining in Jerusalem, after the

of the sons and daughters,

i.e.

after the slaying

CHAP. XXIII.

and the deportation of the inhabitants,

For of Egypt"

—

compare ch.

ver. 26,

831

22-35.

xvi. 39.

—

viz.

the empty houses.

In ver. 27, "from the land

Egypt;"

not equivalent to "dating from

for

according to the parallel ^SO, from thee, this definition does not

belong to ^nWT, " thy whoredom," but to

whoredom

Egypt"

cease from

ver. 29, see vers.

25 and 26, and ch.

back to ver. 13; and ver. 31 &

Judah

32-34.

judgment of God, cup, compare Isa.

exhausts is

—For —

ver.

all its

still

further expanded in

cup of the wrathful

For the

Samaria has done.

li.

28a,

and for

Ver. 31 looks

xvi. 39.

drink the

shall

17 and Jer. xxv. 15.

32 as deep and wide,

in ver.

(Hitzig).

" I cause thy

ch. xvi. 37; for ver. 28J, vid. ver. 17 above;

compare

vers.

''J^??''?,

figure of the

This cup

described

very capacious, so that whoever

i.e.

contents

must be thoroughly

intoxicated.

HMJn

but

the subject is n3"i»j

and not

The

the third person

;

Di3.

greatness or breadth of the cup will be a subject of laughter

and

ridicule.

read

will

very arbitrary to supply "

even yield a suitable meaning, since nations

to iliee" so as to

be for laughter and ridicule to thee, which does not

who laugh

at the

second person, thou wilt become in the gender, as the masculine

not

Judah but

Others regard

cup.

the

as the

"Tinn

but apart from the anomaly

;

would stand for the feminine,

Hitzig has adduced the forcible objection, that according to this

view the words would not only anticipate the explanation

given of the figure

consequences of the

the next verse, but would announce the |il3?'

jiJ^l.

mentioned there.

fore proposes to erase the words

and

to alter

"I^IP into

But

capacious.

there

critical violence as this. it

'"IS"]^

from

"'•nJ?

Hitzig there-

to 3P?i as a gloss,

which contains much,

very

not suflicient reason to warrant such

Although the form

i^S"}? is air. Xe7.,

not to be rejected as a nomen suhst.; and

take

yyrb nanp, the magnitude to hold, as the subject of the sentence,

contains a

still

further description of the cup,

which does not anticipate what follows, even though the cup will

be an object of laughter and

ridicule, not so

much

for

its

—

332

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL. because of

size, as

empty.

being destined

be drunk completely

misery, being added to

lamentation,

|i3),

its

33 the figure and the fact are combined,

ver.

drunkenness,

lilSK',

and the cup being designated a cup of devastation.

into the

expanded

in the boldest

of the breasts with the fragments.

judgment

the

For

women.

wilt thou

summary

—Ver.

caused

and

;

For

pass through

them

sanctuary the same day

acted thus in the midst of

self

their

loud noise became

their hands,

incense

whoredom

her

itself

table

to the

of the

who was

came

And

into

was spread before them, Ver. 42.

oil.

men

desert,

upon

go whoring, Ver. 44. ;

sent,

didst seat thy-

And

the

out of the multitude

and

they "put armlets

their heads.

debilitated for adultery.

her as they go in to a tchore

them according

sanctuary

them was a message

and my

glorious crowns

Oholibah, the lewd women.

thou didst bathe thyself, paint

and

still thereat,

and

they have

Ver. 40. Yea, they have

house.

whom

there icere brought topers out

shall judge

they

idols,

desecrate it; and, behold, they have

upon a splendid cushion, and a

Then I said

and

Ver. 39. When

Sabbaths.

and put on ornaments, Ver. 41.

thou didst lay thereon

upon

me, Son of

Ver. 38. Yea

they have defiled

men coming from afar ;

and, behold, they came, for thine eyes,

punishment to

they bare to

devoured.

to be

me ;

their sons

they slaughtered

her

whom

same day, and have desecrated

even sent to

Jehovah said

52 and 58.

they have committed adidtei'i/j

their sons also

morCy they have done this to the

of the sins and

And

36.

xvi.

hands ; and they have committed adultery with

in their

their idols

35 the picture of

ver.

judge Oholah and Oholibah, then show them their

abominations ; Ver. 37. is

— In

compare ch.

ver. 356,

Vers. 36-49. Anotlier of the two

blood

The

in ver.

closed witli a repetition of the description of

the nation's guilt.

man,

manner

34 gnawing of the fragments of the cup, and the tearing

figure of drinking

And

Ver. 43.

Now

will

they will go in to

so did they go in to Oholah

and

Ver. 45. But righteous meuj these to

the

judgment of adulteresses and

according to the judgment of murderesses

;

for they are adulter'

CHAP. XXIII.

and

esses,

the

Lord

and

sons

; their

their houses with fire.

from

the land, that all

upon yoUy and ye

I am

the

and

Ver. 47.

cut them in pieces with

their daughters shall they kill,

Ver. 48. Thus will

women may

And

Ver. 49.

lewdness like you.

that

up against them an assembly,

will hiring

the assembly shall stone them,

swords

their

them up for maltreating and for booty.

deliver

And

Ver. 46. For thus saith

there is blood in their hands.

Jehovah,

333

SC-49.

take

eradicate lewdness

warning and not practise

they shall bring your lewdness

shall bear the sins

Lord Jehovah.

and burn

of your

idols,

and

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; The introductory words

shall learn tSiSK-'fin

'lJ1

point back not only to ch. xxii. 2, Lut also to ch. xx. 4, and show that this section

group is

really a

The

(ch. XX. 23).

summary of

the contents of the whole

actual subject-matter of these verses

closely connected with ver. 16,

especially in the desig-

nation of the sins as adultery and bloodshed (compare vers. 37

and 45 with ch.

xvi. 38).

'â&#x20AC;˘^'^X ^XJ, to

commit adultery

w^itli

the idols, whereby the idols are placed on a par with Jehovah as the

husband of Israel (compare Jer.

iii.

8 and

ii.

For

27).

the Moloch-worship in ver. 375, compare ch. xvi. 20, 21, and

The

ch. XX. 31.

minutely

desecration of the sanctuary (ver. 38a)

so offended the

LXX.

K^nn Di'3 in ver. 38, which has

defined in ver. 39.

and Hitzig that

former, while the latter proposes to strike

is it

omitted by the

out as a gloss,

added for the purpose of designating the profanation of the sanctuary as contemporaneous with the Moloch-worship ver. 376, as

evident from ver. 39.

pare 2 Kings xxi. 4,

5, 7.

in ch. XX. 13, 16.

For

words are not children to after they

fact itself,

desecration of the Sabbaths, as

ver. 39a,

compare ch.

xvi. 21.

sacrificed children to

Moloch, they went into the

and thus placed Jehovah upon a par with Moloch.

vers.

The

in the temple, but simply that immediately

temple of Jehovah, that there they might worship Jehovah

a profanation

com-

be understood as signifying that they sacrificed

Moloch

had

The

For the

('>?'?)

40-44 the

also,

This was

His sanctuary. allusion

not to actual idolatry, but to

334

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL. ungodly alliance into which Judah

the

Judah

Chaldea.

had entered with'

sent ambassadors to Chaldea,

and for the

woman

purpose of receiving the Chaldeans, adorned herself as a

would do

upon a splendid divan, and

self

have offered to Jehovah.

This

which Kliefoth has correctly given of ^3

emphatic ence

to a

H^l in ver.

oil

that she

the explanation

40 and 41.

The

show that the

refer-

vers.

sufficient to

new crime deserving

was a

in front of this there

upon which stood the incense and the

table spread,

ought

She seated her-

for the reception of her paramours.

This cannot

of punishment.

be idolatry, because the worship of Moloch has already been

mentioned in

38 and 39 as the worst of

vers.

Moreover, sending for (or

abominations.

the idolatrous

all

to)

men who come

from afar does not apply

to idolatry in the literal sense of the

whom

the harlot sent messengers to invite

word; for men

them

come

The

distant land.

allusion

and, according to ver. 42,

who

the former

There

objection, namely, that the one

woman

their being sent for

to a

rather to Assyrians or Chaldeans,

here (compare Isa. xxxix. 3).

are referred to

no force

in Hitzig's

sent to these, and that

and coming have already been disposed of

For the singulars

in ver. 16.

which she sent

to her could not be idols for

that even here only one

in the last clause of ver.

woman

said to

40 show

have sent for the men.

Again, njnpK'n might even be the third person singular, as this

form does sometimes take the termination and Ges.

ยง 47,

Anm.

3).

nj (^vid,

Ewald,

the same time, there

ยง

191c,

nothing in

the fact that the sending to Chaldea has already been

men-

tioned in ver. 16 to preclude another allusion to the

same

circumstance from a different point of view.

The woman men

adorned herself that she might secure the favour of the for

whom

she had sent.

?n3

(not lay

ix.

30.

fact itself, see the

She then seated

down upon a bed

and in front of

the Arabic J^j^^, to paint the

For the

eyes with stibium (kohol).

on 2 Kings

;

this there

herself

for ^^^ does not

was a

table,

remarks

upon a cushion

mean

to lie

down),

spread with different

;

CHAP. XXIII.

335

36-49.

kinds of food, upon which she placed incense and suffix to

n""?!;

and

refers to inp^',

suits the table as a thing, whilst in?^ generally takes the

which

In ver. 41, Ewald and Havernick

termination nS in the plural.

and of the

detect a description of the lectisteiiiia

But

worship of the Babylonian Mylitta.

upon a cushion (divan), nor the

(SK'^)

woman

and that with the men for is

cf.

Ps.

incense and

xxiii. 5),

her, she evidently intends to dine,

whom

(Amos

6; Prov.

vi.

and

oil

His

have devoted

given to her by service, .

ii.

was the

The

10). gift of

oil,

it,

Jehovah

;

money with which Judah

or the goods bartered for

Such renderings

tiidinis exultantis in

and although incense was not a pro-

God, Jehovah could also call obscure.

but had xvi.

as the produce of the land of Palestine,

duction of Palestine, yet as the

purchased

"My

and the incense for burning."

squandered upon herself and her foreign friends (cf ch.

Hos.

The

she has adorned herself.

oil" are the incense

God, which she ought

by the

As Hitzig has

this.

meant for anointing at meal-time

17;

neither the sitting

she has taken her seat upon a cushion,

and has a table spread before

oil

licentious

position taken

behind the table, harmonizes with

correctly observed, "

xxi.

The

oil.

to be taken as a neuter,

it,

were the

His incense.

of the

Ver. 42

clause as

first

gifts of

very

vox multi-

ea (Vulg.), and " the voice of a careless

multitude within her" (Havernick), can hardly be sustained.

In every other passage

which

t''^^

occurs,

^ip

does not sig-

nify the voice of a multitude, but a loud tumult; compare Isa. xiii. 4, xxxiii. 3, is

Dan.

x. 6,

and 1 Sam.

used as synonymous with

pon

ni?J?sn pip.

used for a multitude,

tumultuous crowd.

iv.

14,

Even

where

in cases

and

Consequently

does not

mean

where

denotes a noisy, boisterous,

cannot be taken as an

adjective connected with iiOHj because a quiet tumult tradiction,

li^^i^n 7\\>

a con-

either exulians or recklessly

breaking loose (Havernick), but simply living in quiet, peaceful

and contented.

pen

?ip; the

vE'

must therefore be the predicate

sound of the tumult or the loud noise was (or

336

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

became)

quiet,

^3, thereat (neuter, like H3, thereby,

still.

The words which

xxiv. 14).

follow,

'«^ D^B'JK

Gen.

h^\ are not to

be taken with the preceding clause, as the connection would

They belong to what follows. Dis 21D men who came from afar (ver. 40). In

no sense.

yield

can only be the

tion to these, there

from the

were broujzht,

The

desert.

K3D, drinkers, topers of the

The

Kal

D''t?3,

i.e.

Chetib D^KliD

no doubt a is

participle of

chosen instead

for the sake of the paronomasia, with D^KaiD.

p^^X

V?»

the Chaldeans (723

\33j

former, therefore, can only be the Assyrians

and

vers. 5

7), the latter (the topers)

The

ver. 15).

epithet drinkers

the sons of Babylon

maxime

lonians as

addi-

induced to come, topers

and the Hophal D^N3^D

;

D'B'JK

The phrase "from

;

a very appropriate one for

as Curtius (ver. 1) describes the

mnwfn

quae ebrietatem sequuntur

Babyeffusi.

home

the desert" cannot indicate the

these men, although isisi? corresponds to pn")^D in ver. 40, but

simply the place from which they came to Judah, namely, from the desert of Syria and Arabia, which separated Palestine from

These peoples decorated the arms of the

Babylon.

harlots

with clasps, and their heads with splendid wreaths (crowns).

The

plural suffixes indicate that the words apply to both

and

this is

ver. 44.

confirmed by the fact that they are both

The

the pn"!Sp

subject to ^^n^

I^^B'JK

not merely the

The thought

in ver. 40.

and Judah had attained

named

2'''<3iD,

but also

simply that Samaria

and earthly glory through

to wealth

their intercourse with these nations

women,

;

the very gifts with which,

according to ch. xvi. 11 sqq., Jehovah Himself had adorned

His people. in

its

The meaning

of the verse, therefore,

connection, appears to be the following:

when taken

—When

the

Assyrians began to form alliances with Israel, quiet was the

immediate

result.

The Chaldeans were

afterwards added to

these, so that through their adulterous intercourse with both

these nations Israel and

Judah acquired both wealth and

God

The

sentence which

that

Judah had sunk

pronounced upon

this

glory.

conduct was,

so deeply into adultery that

would be

—

CHAP. XXIII. impossible for

dom."

where

ix. 4, 5,

who was

n?3j

feminine of

ri?3,

This

sin.

the

way

ver. 43, connecting D''SN3 rb^b with-

I said concerning her

example, Josh. is

ever to desist from the

we understand

in which "J0N1

337

30-40.

debilitated with whore-

used up, it

worn out;

for

see,

applied to clothes; here

transferred to persons decayed, debilitated, in which sense

the verb occurs in Gen.

xviii. 12.

has been exhausted, but

which

C"?^??

co-ordinated

means by which the strength

with n73, does not indicate the

an accusative of direction or refer-

ence, debilitated with regard to adultery, so as no longer to be

capable of practising is

it.^

the subject to njr,

and the

erroneous,

the object to

^}iV,

In the next clause

and the Chetib

so that the

n^ntiTn is the subject, there is

Ewald

still

(§

the masculine foraa.

The (

Hos.

all its

iv.

this,

or take

whoredom

easily be preceded

N^^1 gives

but also to the noun

sin of

D^n^J?^,

the subject,

on the other hand,

whether we

as a singular,

259a) has done, inasmuch as in either case

an abstract, which might

suffix,

if,

no necessity for

regard the word as a plural, from as

If n^niitn were

woman would be But

riy, n'^nijrn

the Keri being

is correct,

result of false exposition.

should have the feminine n^Tn.

npr

'lil

it is

by the verb in

greater force, not only to the

— and that even she (her whoredom). personified, or regarded as

12), as a propensity to

Jvn

D''J^3T

whoredom, which continues

force after the capacity of the

woman

herself

gone.

Ver. 44 contains the result of the foregoing description of the adulterous conduct of the two vers.

women, and

this is followed in

45 sqq. by an account of the attitude assumed by God, and

the punishment of the sinful subject, they (jnan, one)

women.

went

Ki3Jl,

to her.

with an indefinite

1^"'^^,

the one

woman,

^ The proposal of Ewald to take D''aX3 n?3? as an independent clause, " adultery to the devil," cannot be defended by the usage of the language and that of Hitzig, " the withered hag practises adultery," is an unnatural invention, inasmuch as p, if taken as nota dativi, would give this meaning

the hag has (possesses) adultery as her property indicate that

EZEK.

— and there

nothing to

should be taken as a question.

;

338

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

extended to both women.

44 which does

of ver.

what has

It is only in the apodosis that

Oholibah. is

This

be said

the only interpretation

justice both to the verb Ni3)l (imperfect

with Vav consec. as the historical tense) and the perfect ^X3.

The

anywhere

plural niyx does not occur

therefore alter

into the singular, as "

fine the attribute to Oholibah,

who

and

in the first clause of the verse,

Hitzig woultl

else.

unheard

of,"

and con-

the only one mentioned

also in vers. 43, 40,

The judgment upon the two sisters is to be eous men (ver. 45). The Chaldeans are

and 41.

executed by rightnot designated as

righteous in contrast to the Israelites, but as the instruments of

God

the punitive righteousness of

in this particular instance,

executing just judgment upon the sinners for adultery and blood-

shed

The

(vid. ch. xvi. 38).

infinitives <VVi}

For other

stand for the third person future.

commentary on

ch. xvi.

and pnj

points,

niyp

The formula

40 and 41.

in ver.

compare the }ri3

derived from Deut. xxviii. 25, and has been explained in the exposition of that passage.

meaning of the word,

judgment desist

all

from

see the

women,

idolatry.

N"]j1 is

comm. on

l"iD|i3

the Niphal and Hithpael, for (see the

comm.

punishment as

still

in loc).

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;For

announced

For the

inf. abs. Plel.

From

ch. xxi. 24.

nations, are to take

all

i.e.

the

mixed form, compounded of

^''B^r''?,

Deut.

like "ISS? in

ver. 49, vid. ch. xvi. 58.

to both the

in the future, although

women,

Israel

xxi.

to be

and Judah,

Oholah (Samaria) had been

found in the allegory itself,

both kingdoms are represented as being

and

may

also

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Tiie The

overtaken by the judgment a considerable time before. explanation of this

this

warning to

sisters of

which

one mother

be defended on the ground that the approach-

ing destruction of Jerusalem and the kingdom of Judah affected the remnants of the kingdom of the ten tribes, which were to

be found in Palestine

ment was not

;

whilst,

restricted to the destruction of the

but also embraced the later judgments which entire nation.

still

on the other hand, the judg-

two kingdoms, fell

upon the

CHAP. XXIV.

339

CHAP. XXIV. PREDICTION OP THE DESTRUCTION OP

JERUSALEM BOTH IN PARABLE AND BY

On God

the day on which the king of Babylon

and blockade of Jerusalem,

siege

on the Chaboras

to Ezekiel

commanded

this event

(vers. 1

SIGN.

commenced

and 2)

its

and he was

;

to predict to the people tlirough the

parable the fate of the city and

the

was revealed by

medium

inhabitants (vers. 3-14).

of a

God

then foretold to him the death of his own wife, and commanded

him

show no sign of mourning on account of

it.

His wife

died the following evening, and he did as he was

commanded.

When

this,

he was asked by the people the reason of

he ex-

plained to them, that what he was doing was symbolical of the

way

which they were

The

15-24). fugitive,

fall

to act

when Jerusalem

would be announced

fell

to the prophet

(vers.

by a

and then he would no longer remain mute, but would

speak to the people again (vers. 25-27).

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

Apart, therefore, from

the last three verses, this chapter contains two words of God, the first

of which unfolds in a parable the approaching calamities,

and the (vers.

siege of Jerusalem

result of the

1-14)

;

by the Chaldeans

whilst the second typifies by means of a sign the

pain and mourning of Israel, namely, of the exiles at the destruction of the city with

its

sanctuary and

its

inhabitants.

These two words of God, being connected together by their contents, were addressed to the prophet that, as the introduction (vers. 1

on the same day, and

and 2) expressly observes, the

day on which the siege of Jerusalem by the king of Babylon began.

Ver.

And

the

word of Jehovali came

in the ninth

year, in the tenth month, on the tenth of the month, saying^

Ver. 2. Son of man, this

salem

this

icrite

for thyself the name of the day,

The king of Babylon has fallen upon JeruThe date given, namely, the tenth day same day.

same day!

of the tenth

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

month of the ninth year

of Jehoiachin (ch.

2), or

what

after the carrying

away

the same thing, of the

840

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

who was

reign of Zedekiah,

mentioned

appointed king in bis stead,

in Jer. Hi. 4, xxxix. 1,

and 2 Kings xxv.

day on which Nebuchadnezzar blockaded the

by throwing up a rampart

and

;

was thus taking place

Jerusalem

city of

after the captivity this

kept as a fast-day in consequence (Zech.

still

viii.

as the

day was

What

19).

Jerusalem was revealed to Ezekiel on

the Chaboras the very same day; and he was instructed to

announce

" that they and the besieged might

to the exiles,

learn both from the time and the result, that the destruction of

the city was not to be ascribed to chance or to the power of the

Him who

Babylonians, but to the will of that,

had long ago foretold

on account of the wickedness of the inhabitants, the city

would be burned with because even when

fire

;

and that Ezekiel was a true prophet,

Babylon, which was at so great a

dis-

known and had publicly announced the state of The definite character of this jjrediction cannot

tance, he had

Jerusalem."

be changed into a vaticiniurn post eventum, either by arbitrary explanations of the words, or by the unfounded hypothesis

down in name of The reason

proposed by Hitzig, that the day was not set finite

form

after the event.

till

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Writing

the

this de-

the day

equivalent to making a note of the day.

given in ver. 2b, namely, because Nebuchadnezzar had fallen

upon Jerusalem on that very day. hold up (his hand) the

meaning

;

^^D

signifies to support,

and hence both here and

in Ps. Ixxxviii. 8

The

upon anything.

to press violently

for this

rendering

" to draw near," which has been forced upon the word from the Syriac (Ges., Winer,

and

others), cannot be sustained.

Parable of the Pot with the Boiling

Vers. 3-14.

Pieces.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver.

and say

them,

And

Thus

relate

a parable

saith the

on and also pour water into flesh into

it,

choice bones,

pile of

all the

Ver.

good 5.

Lord it.

pieces,

Take

wood underneath for

the

to the rebellious house,

Jehovah, Set on the pot,

Ver. 4. Gather

its

haunch and shoulder, choice

the bones ;

the flock,

make

set

pieces

Jill it

and

with

also

boil well, also

CHAP. XXIV.

cooh

its

Ver.

bones therein.

Woe !

Jehovah,

whose rust doth not depart from the lot hath not fallen

upon

Ver.

upon

Therefore thus saith the

might cover

vengeance,

of murders

Heap up

I also

wood,

the

will

make

stir the fire,

may

broth boil, that the bones

And

set

empty upon

become hot and

rust pass away.

it, its

pains,

and her great

cause icilt

might not be covered.

Woe

thee.

also be cooked away.

coals thereof,

that its

Ver. 12.

I icill

it ;

According

thy ways,

from her ; is

thee, is the

The

brass

may

melt

into the fire with

not cease, nor spare, nor

saying of the

the

Ver. 11.

abomination

and thou hast not become

and according

make

hath exhausted the

till

Ver. 14. 1 Jehovah have spoken

and I icill do judge

Ver. 10.

the flesh thoroughly,

rust doth not go

cleansed thee,

to the city

of icood great.

no more become clean from thy uncleanness,

fury upon

with dust.

have made her

Jehovah,

Ver. 13. In thine uncleanness

I have

gloiving, that the uncleanness thereof

within

her rust

the

the pile

Lord

out,

is in the

naked rock ; she hath

the

blood come upon the naked rock, that

Ver.

For her blood

upon

to take

piece hy piece fetch

the ground, that they

To bring up fury,

pot in which

! it ;

Ver.

it.

midst of her ; she hath placed not poured

Lord rust, and

Therefore, thus saith the

of murders

city

341"

3-14.

;

be-

clean, thou

I quiet my

it; it cometh,

let it

repent me.

thy deeds, shall they

Lord Jehovah.

contents of these verses are called ^^^, a proverb or par-

able; and Ezekiel

the prophet

communicate them

is to

It follows

generation.

from

commanded

this that the

to perform,

to the refractory

ensuing

act,

which

not to be regarded as

a symbolical act which he really carried out, but that the act

forms the substance of the mdshdl, in other words, belongs to the

parable

itself.

parable in vers. actually done.

which are

salem with

Consequently the interpretation of the

10 sqq.

The

be boiled in its

clothed in the form of a thing

pot with the pieces of flesh and the bones, it

inhabitants.

boiled, is the fire of war,

and boiled away, represents Jeru-

The

and the

fire,

with which they ate

setting of the pot

upon the

342

THE PBOPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

fire is

the

commencement

tion of the city

a pot.

used, as in

riQC'" is

by which the populaaway like the flesh and bones in 2 Kings iv. 38, to signify the setting

of a pot by or upon the together.

J^s

'^V^h

of the siege,

to be boiled

^ibx

'l3l

fire.

pieces of flesh,

These are defined

the cooking-pot.

i.e.

put in

pieces all

its

the pieces belonging to

still

more minutely

as the

and of these the thigh (haunch) and

best of the pieces of flesh,

shoulder are mentioned as the most important pieces, to which tiie still

choicest of the bones are to be added.

more emphatic by the further

The

of the flock in addition to these.

This

especially the bones, a large fire

l^i

ver.

for

away, more

This

requisite.

indicated

wood underneath for the which nnnp is substituted in and occurs in

ver. 9, signifies a pile of wood,

XXX. 33, from

D^osyn

but simply a

a heap of bones, on account of the

pile of

wood

for the (previously mentioned)

bones, namely, for the purpose of boiling

pay attention that Ezekiel

to the article,

was

to place a

alteration proposed

it is

context.

wood which If

them away.

see that the supposition pot,

and the

by Bottcher, Ewald, and Hitzig of D^oyyn

Even

wood, but simply

pile of

fact that

shall

heap of bones under the

into D^'y, are alike untenable.

mean a

this sense in

to lay round, to arrange, pile up.

n^^,

yn cannot mean

article,

the

ablest portion

boil these pieces

the words, " and also a pile of

bones."

Isa.

rendered

choicest pieces of flesh

and the pieces of bone denote the strongest and of the population of the city.

instruction to take the choice

D^O^'yn

strues,

piled

in itself does not

an irregular heap, the apparent enough from

had grown out of

D''Vy

through a

corruption of the text, under the influence of the preceding D^DVy,

would not have had an

proposes to alter

â&#x20AC;˘^''^ni

into

'^"'nri3,

article prefixed.

Hitzig also

though without any necessity.

The fact that D'nrn does not occur again proves nothing at all. The noun is added to the verb to intensify its force, and is 'Ul w3"D3 is dependent plurale tant. in the sense of boiling. upon the previous clause

C3 taking the place

of the copula-

343

CHAP. XXIV. 3-14

live

on Ex. In

xii. 9.

6-8 the interpretation of the parable

vers.

that in two trains of thought introduced

The

comm.

7^3j to be cooked, thoroughly done, see the

reason for

commencing with

may

therefore,

|37,

and

given,

|5^ (vers. 6

and

9).

be found

in the fact that in the parable contained in vers. 3 sqq., or

correctly in the blockade of Jerusalem,

which furnished

the occasion for the parable, the judgment about to burst upon

Jerusalem following: to

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

The

plainly indicated.

train of thought

Because the judgment upon Jerusalem

commence, therefore woe

so great that she

two strophes,

vers.

6-8 and

and the

so distributed in the

itself.

twofold

ing to

â&#x20AC;˘^''nn? is,

several pieces,

its

the suffix attached to "Âť''P,

piece

piece, bring

difiicult,

7 before the

be taken distributively

i.e.

The

accord-

But

out.

cannot be taken as referring to

ris"'>'in

Kliefoth proposes, for this does not yield a suitable

meaning. of flesh,

Ver. 66

in various ways.

no doubt,

and the

Because Jeru-

resembles a pot on which there

are spots of rust that cannot be removed.

and has been expounded

not

thereby appropriately extended.

in the explanation of the parable the figure

a city of murders,

namely, the rust upon the pot,

fact pass repeatedly the one into the other.

salem

the

;

account for the

a circumstance introduced which

in the parable itself,

figure of the pot

Moreover,

vers. 9-13, that the first strophe

second, of the punishment of the city

mentioned

But the punishment

punishment of the inhabitants of Jerusalem

latter feature, there is

the

now about

to her, for her blood-guiltiness

must be destroyed.

answering to the magnitude of the guilt

treats of the

One would

not say

when nothing more

pieces of flesh out of

removed by giving

bring out the pot by

the pot.

to N''Xin the

And

meaning

apart from the fact that there

upon the

fire,

pieces

this

difficulty is

to reach hither.

not For,

nothing in the usage of the

language to sustain the meaning, reach of setting

its

meant than the bringing of the

hither for the purpose

one would not say

reach hither

844

THE PEOPDECIES OP EZEKIEL.

piece,

was meant was, bring hither the pot

filled

the pot according to

when

that

all

with pieces of (i*V)>

i-^'

several pieces of flesh, piece

its

The

flesh.

population,

its

and not

really adhered,

suffix to HS'Vin refers to the city

" to which the blood-guiltiness

to its collection of houses " (Hitzig). suffix to n^nnj

appearance also that the

It is only in

the pot; actually

refers to the city,

refers to

whole of

to the

i.e.

its

population, the different individuals in which are the separate

The meaning

pieces of flesh.

by no means doubtful in

Jerusalem

upon another,

lot,

fall

upon one and not

There

upon the pot and the bringing out of the

that are cooking within

that

which would

not be cast upon her.

will

all

;

it,

and

to take the

pot,

were

to the

pieces of flesh

words as signifying

by the

rust

be taken out and thrown away (Haver-

but through the allusion to the rust the interpretation

The

already passes beyond the limits of the figure. flesh are to

boiled, to

pieces of

be brought out, after they have been thoroughly

empty the

pot, that it

may

then be set upon the

again, to burn out the rust adhering to

no necessity

the pieces, which had been rendered useless

upon the nick)

and that without any excep-

any causal connection between the reference

to seek for

rust

to be brought out,

inasmuch as the

tion,

of the instructions therefore

the whole of the population to be found

(ver. 11).

fire

There

force in Kliefoth's objection, that this exposition does not

agree with the context, inasmuch

and

clause of ver. 5

vers.

as,

according to the last

10 and 11, the pieces of

by a strong

fire

;

and the pot

away

become empty not by the

fact that the pieces of flesh are taken out

but by

and

flesh

even the bones are not to be taken out, but to be boiled

and thrown away,

the pieces being thoroughly boiled away, first to broth

and then to nothing." found in the

text,

For "

boiling

away

to nothing"

thoroughly done, so as to turn into the softness of far as the fact

not

but simply that even the bones are to be

concerned,

we cannot

jelly.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; So

follow the majority of

commentators, who suppose that the reference

simply to the

CHAP. XXIV.

345

3-14.

Bringing the

carrying away of the inhabitants into exile.

pieces of flesh out of the pot, denotes tlie sweeping

by death

inhabitants fi'om the city, whether

their being carried

away

of naen in consequence of

Babylon.

which

(vid. ch. xi. 7) or

The

city

poured out upon a hard rock, which the stone cannot

God

absorb, and which cries to

covered

(cf.

thought

Gen. this

iv.

;

Job

for vengeance, because

xvi.

and

;

she has sinned in an insolent and shameless

sin.

This has

all

has shown no

sin,

been ordered by God.

caused the blood that was shed to it

un-

The

repentance or atonement, by which she might have

got rid of her

that

it is

Isa. xxvi. 21).

manner, and has done nothing to cover her

lias

has shed blood,

not covered with earth, but has been left uncovered,

like blood

sign of

be emptied

city is to

given in vers. 7 and 8, where

depicted.

of the

being blockaded by the king of

its

Tlie reason of this

the guilt of Jerusalem

The

captive.

away

might

lie

uncovered, and

fall

upon a bare

might be able

He rock,

to execute

vengeance for the crime.

The second turn in the address (ver. 9) commences in just same manner as the first in ver. 6, and proceeds with a

the

further picture of the execution of punishment. the guilt,

God

will

make

the pile of

wood

large,

To avenge

and

stir

up a

The development of this thought is given in ver. 10 in the form of a command addressed to the prophet, to put much wood underneath, and to kindle a fire, so that both flesh and bones may boil away. Dnn, from D^n, to finish, complete fierce fire.

;

with

"i|'3,

to cook thoroughly.

meaning of

as to the true

times given to

ni?"i,

There are differences of opinion

â&#x20AC;˘T^iJI^'^ ni^in

namely, to

;

but the rendering some-

spice, is at all events unsuitable,

and cannot be sustained by the usage of the language. true that in Ex. xxx. 25 sqq. the verb npn

paration of the anointing

oil,

different ingredients that

but

it is

referred

to,

It is

used for the pre-

not the mixing of the

but in

all

probability

the thorough boiling of the spices, for the purpose of extracting their essence, so that "

thorough boiling "

no doubt the true

346

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL. In Job

meaning of the word. boiling unguent-pot.

become

red-hot,

consumed.

to be

23 (31),

xli.

nniJno

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Ver.

and bones have thus been thoroughly

11.

When

The emptying

burned away by the heat.

by pouring out the

The uncleanness Aramaean an form

j>assed over as self-evident.

rust

upon

it.

DfiJ?

to be

may

of the pot or kettle

which has been boiled

flesh,

"i^n, to

the flesh

boiled, the pot

placed upon the coals empty, that the rust upon

the

a cohortative Hiphil, from

^IH"'. is

to broth,

of the pot for

the

= DFin.

Di^J?

Michaelis has given the true explanation of the words

civi-

bus caesis etiam urhs consumetur " (when the inhabitants are slain, the city itself will

reason

be destroyed).^

given, which rendered

exterminating judgment. the figure, but iu ver. 13

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;In

vers. 12 sqq. the

necessary to

In ver. 12 the address it

inflict

still

(Q''?^'!',

air.

this

keeps to

passes over to the actual fact.

(the pot) has exhausted the pains ver.

Xex), namely, as

13 clearly shows, the pains, or wearisome exertions, to make

clean by milder means, and not (as Hitzig erroneously infers

from the following clause) extreme heat. form, which

ri^?Pi!},

fell into

eat

away the

third pers. Hiphil of ns7,

rust is

by such

the earlier

almost entire disuse in later times {vid.

1 Hitzig diacovera a Hysteronproteron in this description, because the cleaning of the pot ought to have preceded the cooking of the flesh in it, and not to have come afterwards, and also because, so far as the actual

fact ia concerned, the rust of sin adhered to the people of the city,

to the city itself as a collection of houses.

But neither

and not

of these objections

to prove what Hitzig wants to establish, namely, that the untenable character of the description shows that it is not really a prophecy nor is there any force in them. It is true that if one intended to boil

is sufficient

;

purpose of eating, the first thing to be done would be to cleah the pot itself. But this is not the object in the present instance. The flesh was simply to be thoroughly boiled, that it might be destroyed and thrown away, and there was no necessity to clean the pot for this

flesh in a pot for the

purpose.

And

so far as the second objection

concerned, the defilement

no doubt adhere to man, though not, as Hitzig assumes, to man According to the Old Testament view, it extends to things as well alone. Thus leprosy, for example, did not pollute (uid. Lev. xviii. 25, xxvii. 28). men only, but clothes and houses also. And for the same reason judgments were not restricted to men, but also fell upon cities and lands. of sin does

;

CHAP. XXIV. 15-24

Ges.

Â§ 75,

Anm.

1).

Hitzig, Havernick,

The

and

words of

last

it,

its

rust

addressed,

all

with

ver. 11, I agree

others, in taking as

Because the pot has exhausted

347

the efforts

an exclamation.

made

to cleanse

is to go into the fire. In ver. 13 Jerusalem is and nDT is not a genitive belonging to Tjnxo^a, " on

account of thy licentious uncleanness" (Ewald and Hitzig),

but a predicate, " in thine uncleanness

(there lies)

an abomination deserving of death" (see Lev.

HEiT, i.e.

17 and

xviii.

XX. 14, where the fleshly sins, which are designated as zimmdhf

The

are ordered to be punished with death).

God had

cleansings which

attempted, but without Jerusalem becoming clean,

consisted in the endeavour, which preceded the Chaldean judg-

ment of

destruction, to convert the people

from

their

sinful

ways, partly by threats and promises communicated through the prophets {pid. 2 Cliron. xxxvi. 15), and partly by

For non

chastisements. is

summary

see eh. v. 13.

n'^in^

the whole, which

ver.

means of 14 there

brings the threat to a

close.

The Sigx of

Vers. 15-24.

silent

THE Destruction of Jerusaleji. of Jehovah came

Sorrow concerning 15. And the word

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver.

me, saying, Ver. 16. Son of man, behold,

from thee thine eyei delight hy a stroke, and thou shalt mourn nor weep, and no tear shall come from thee. Ver. take

Sigh in silence

;

thee,

and put

and do not cover thy beard, and

eat

And I spake to the people in my wife died, and I did in the

thy shoes

not

the

upon thy

morning, and in the

the

evening

morning as

Ver. 19. Tlien the people said

And I said

this signifies to

to them.

Ver. 21. Say

to the

your

icas

com-

me, Wilt thou not

us that thou doest so ?

Ver. 20.

The word of Jehovah has come to me, saying, house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah,

Behold, I will profane the delight of

feet,

bread of men.

Ver. 18.

show us what

17.

lamentation for the dead thou shalt not make

hind thy head-attire upon

manded.

not

eyes,

sanctuai^y, the pride

and

the desire

of your strength,

of your soul ; and your

343

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL. and your daughters, ichom ye have

sons

Ver. 22. Then will ye do as

sioord,

cover the beard, nor eat the bread of

will fall by the

left,

have done, ye will not

men ; Ver.

And ye

23.

will

have your head-attire upon your heads, and your shoes upon your

moum

feet; ye will not

and

iniquity,

sigh one

Ezekiel be a sign it

cometh, ye will

the statements

nor weep, but will pine away in your

you

as he hath done will ye do

;

know

that

ver.

18,

Thus

Ver. 24.

toioard another.

the

Lord am Jehovah.

the effect

tliat

tlie

;

icill

when

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;From prophet

spoke to the people in the morning, and then in the evening

and then again

his wife died,

command

according to the in

answer

did,

grief,

and

people explained to them the

to the inquiry of the

meaning of what he

morning,

(following)

the

God, he manifested no

evident that the word of

God

contained in this section came to him on the same day as the

preceding one, namely, on the day of the blockade of Jeru-

salem

day

what he

for

;

(ver. 18)

said to the people

on the morning of

diately after

announced

him the approaching death

this

Immehim, God also

the prophecy contained in vers. 3-14.

had made

this revelation to

of his wife, together

with the significance which this event would have to the people

The

generally.

(ver. 18) "^2303

God

{yid.

death, he

delight of

by a

Num.

stroke,

the eyes (ver.

i.e.

16)

by a sudden death

xiv. 37, xvii, 13).

his

neither to allow of any loud lamentings, nor to

?3S does not stand for

D^n!?

ÂŤX, but

The literal rendering would be make an object of mourning, i.e. thou :

mourning for the dead, explained the words.

iii.

shalt not

7).

have any

as Storr {Observv. p. 19) has correctly

occasions of

go barefoot (2 Sam. xv. 30;

(Mic.

the dead shalt thou

mourning

uncover the head and strew ashes upon

beard, that

O'^riD

the words are both accu-

satives.

tomary

the occurrence of her

manifest any sign of grief, but simply to sigh in silence.

not

wife

inflicted

Isa. xx. 2),

and

was cus-

(Isa. Ixi. 3),

to cover the

to say, the lower part of the face as far as the nose

Ezekiel

not to do any of these things, but

—

CHAP. XXIV.

to arrange his head-attire

which

the head-attire generally, or

(">??3,

turban, vid. ver. 23 and Isa. priests,

349

15-24.

Ixi. 3,

and not

specially that of the

mean panis

miserorunij cibus lugentium^ in which case

CK'JX would be equivalent to the people, that

but bread of men,

2''r3Sj

to say, according to the context,

sympathy and

of death, to manifest their

and refresh the mourners,

—a

custom which gave

mentioned in the Old Testament

xxvi. 14, Hos. ix. 4,

When

and Jer.

mourning to console

rise in

clearly referred to in Deut.

xvi. 7 (see also 2 Sara.

mourning on the death

the

but the sending of bread or

;

Ezekiel thus abstained from

sign of

These are not

course of time to that of formal funeral meals.

food to the house of mourning

i.e.

bread which

the people were accustomed to send to the house of in cases

C^JN on?

put on his shoes, and also to eat no mourning bread. does not

and

called njJaiQn '•nsj in Ex. xxxix. 28),

all

iii.

35).

lamentation and outward

of his dearest one, the people

conjectured that such striking conduct must have some significance,

and asked him what

thereby.

20—24).

so should

its

was that he intended

his dearest one, his wife,

God

then announced to them the word of

had been taken from him,

dearest object, the holy temple, be taken

from the

When

nation by destruction, and their children by the sword. this occurred,

show (vers.

then would they act as he was doing

would not mourn and weep, but simply

in their

now

;

they

gloomy sorrow

sigh in silence on account of their sins, and groan one toward

The

another.

through

its

profanation

(''sO)

destruction (cf. ch.

vii.

of the sanctuary 24).

of the loss, the worth of the temple is

The temple

because Israel based

its

effected

in the eyes of the nation

dwelt upon in the following clauses.

Lev. xxvi. 19.

To show the magnitude D3?y

|iN2 is

called the pride of

might and strength upon

taken from

your strength, it

as the scene

of the gracious presence of God, living in the hope that the

Lord would not

give

up His sanctuary

to the

heathen to be

destroyed, but would defend the temple, and therewith Jeru-

salem and

its

inhabitants also (cf. Jer.

vii.

4).

C3L"'d3 ijJ^no,

350

THE PROPHECIES OF EZKKIEL.

the desire or longing of the soul (from ferri

The

ad aliquam rem).

are the relatives

i'Dn, in

Arabic, desiderio

sons and daughters of the people

whom

and countrymen

obliged to leave behind in Canaan.

the exiles had been

—The

explanation of this

lamentation and mournint; on account of the destruction of the

sanctuary and death of their relations, antithesis

found

to be

will pine or languish

away

in the in

your

iv. 17 and Lev. xxvi. 39). Conse" to imagine either " stolid indifference

(compare ch.

iniquities

quently

'iV^ Dri'ppj^,

we have not

(Eichhorn and Hitzig), or "stolid impenitence" (Ewald), but

overwhelming tion,

which there were no

grief, for

tears,

no lamenta-

but only deep inward sighing on account of the sins which

had occasioned so

terrible a calamity.

growl, like the bears (Tsa.

groan.

One toward

11)

lix.

one another by deep sighs

i.e.

deep

manifesting the grief to

not " full of

;

to utter a

lit.

here to sigh or utter a deep

;

another,"

DHJ,

murmuring and

seek-

ing the sin which occasioned the calamity in others rather than in themselves,"

as Hitzig supposes.

entirely at variance with the context.

sumes the bodily strength, leads sin,

and

to regeneration

latter exposition

This grief, which con-

to a clear perception of the

also to true repentance,

atonement

The

and through penitence and

and newness of

And

life.

thus will

they attain to a knowledge of the Lord through the catastrophe

which bursts upon them sign, see the

(cf.

comm. on Ex.

Lev. xxvi. 40

iv.

sqq.).

For

nsio, a

21.

Sequel OF the Destruction of Jerusalem TO THE Prophet himself. Ver. 25. And thouj son of many Vers. 25-27.

—

behold, in the

day when

take

from them their mighty and the desire of their

glorious joy^ the delight of their eyes their sons

fugitive that

their to

Ver. 26. In that day

daughters,

thee,

tell

thine

day will thy mouth he opened with

wilt speak,

sign

and

come

and no

longer he

them that they

ears.

that

loill

and thou

shalt thou he

I am

Yqt. 27. In

the fugitive,

mute; and thus

may know

their soul,

Jehovah.

—As

CHAP. XXIV.

351

25-27.

the destruction of Jerusalem would exert a powerful influence

upon the future history of the be followed by most important

on the Chaboras, and

exiles

results, so

was

also to

be a

turning-point for the prophet himself in the execution of his

Havernick has thus correctly explained the connection

calling.

between these closing verses and what precedes, as indicated by

nriK^ in ver. 25.

when

the people only at other times

27)

;

Ezekiel up to this time was to speak to

Lord gave him a word

the

was to remain

silent

and dumb

for them, (ch.

him the

26 and

iii.

from the day on which a messenger should come

and

to bring

and the temple,

tidings of the destruction of Jerusalem

to open his mouth, and not continue dumb any longer. The execution of this word of God is related in ch. xxxiii. 21, 22. The words, " when I take from them their strength," etc., are

he was

be understood in accordance with ver. 21.

CjyD

the sanctuary, which

The

through the destruction of Jerusalem. follow

down

U*D3 N'B'O,

(Nb'J),

D'^'SJ

which

for

synonvmous with

t/D3

soul

(cf. ver. lifts

itself

21).

cherishes a desire or longing; hence

TOno

are attached ao-i/ySerw?.

which resumes the words etc.) in ver. 25, is

Israelites

predicates which

kU'Âť refer to the temple

an object toward which the

i.e.

Consequently

was taken from the

The

in ver. 21.

sons and daughters

N^^n Di'3 (in that day), in ver. 'lJ^

""^np

Di""!!

(in the

2(),

day when I take

not the day of the destruction of the temple,

but generally the time of this event, or more precisely, the day

on which the tidings would reach the prophet. generic article, a fugitive (vid. Gen. xiv. 13).

cause the ears to hear

(it), i.e.

to relate

ears of the prophet, whereas he

from God. tive Hiphil.

niycc'n, a verbal

it,

ysn, with the

D^^IX niyCK'npj to

namely

to the bodily

had already heard

in spirit

noun, used instead of the

tivSHTlS, with the escaped one,

i.e.

time " with the mouth of the fugitive " (Hitzig).

infini-

same nx expresses at the

association, or so far as the fact is concerned, simultaneousness.

The

words, " then wilt thou speak, and no longer be dumb," do

not imply that

was only from that time forward that Ezekiel

ÂŁ52

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

was

keep

silence

from

there,

silence,

but point back to eh.

imposed upon

iii.

very commencement of

tlie

comparison with

tliat

26 aud 27, where

with the exceptions mentioned

liim,

liis

ministry; and in

simply involve

passage,

imjylicite

the

thought that the silence imposed upon him then was to be observed in the strictest manner from the present time until the receipt of the intelligence of the

mouth would be opened once more.

God"

that were given to

Lord had now

of Jerusalem, when Through the " words

fall

his

His prophet

(ch. iv.-xxiv.), the

said to the people of Israel all that

had

say concerning the approaching catastrophe for them to consider

and lay

ledge their

might be brought

acknow-

and turn with sorrow and repentance

to their

to heart, that they

sin,

Therefore was Ezekiel from this time forward to keep

God.

perfect silence toward Israel, and to let

by His

was not

was

acts till

after the

still

Lord speak

which he behaved

his

mouth

further announcements (vid.

tliereby to

27 from that which they have

by the way to

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ezekiel was

become a sign

These words have a somewhat

Israelites.

the

judgment had commenced that

be opened again for

ch. xxxiii. 22).

ver.

God

and the execution of His threatening words.

different

in ver. 24. at the

to the

meaning

There, Ezekiel,

death of his wife, was

be a sign to the people of the manner in which they were to

act

when

the judgment should

fall

upon Jerusalem

;

whereas

here (ver. 27), naiop refers to the whole of the ministry of the prophet, his silence hitherto, and that which he was observe, as well as his future words.

he was to exhibit himself to silence, speech,

meaning

his

and action were

to them,

and

ledge of the Lord, the

all

Through both

still

of these

countrymen as a man whose alike marvellous

and

full of

designed to lead them to the know-

God

of their salvation.

;

CHAP. XXV.-XXXII.

Chap.

353

XXV.-XXXII.â&#x20AC;&#x201D;PEEDICTI0:NS OF JUDGMENT

UPON THE HEATHEN NATIONS. While the

Lord

directed

mouth was

prophet's

him

them the judgment

foretell to

mute

to be

to Israel, the

to speak against the heathen nations, and to

not be lifted up by the

fall

but miglit recognise in the

of destruction, that they might

kingdom of God,

of the people and

judgment upon

work

Israel a

of the

omnipotence and righteousness of the Lord, the Judge of the

There are seven heathen nations whose destruc-

whole earth.

Ammon

tion Ezekiel foretells in this section of his book, viz. (1)

(2)

Moab

(3)

;

Edom

;

(4) the Philistines (ch.xxv.)

;

(5)

Tyre,

and (7) Egypt (ch. xxix.-xxxii.). These prophecies are divided into thirteen words of God by the (6)

Sidon (ch. xxvi.-xxviii.)

introductory formula, "

;

The word

Jehovah came

me," the

Ammon, Moab, Edom, and the Philistines, being all comprehended in one word of God whereas there are four separate words of God directed against Tyre, one against utterances against

;

Sidon, and seven against Egypt. the seven words of to

God

In the seven nations and

directed against

Egypt we cannot

fail

discover an allusion to the symbolical significance of the

Sidon, which had lost

number.

its

commanding

position

and

become dependent upon Tyre long before the time of Ezekiel, is

evidently selected for a special

word of God only

And

purpose of making up the number seven.

make

the

for the

in order to

more apparent that the number has been chosen

on account of

its

significance, Ezekiel divides his

of the

judgment upon the seventh people

God.

the basis of Gen.

i.,

selects seven nations

and

utters seven

words of

the

number denoting

When,

therefore, Ezekiel

seven

the completion of the works of God.

announcement

into seven

words of

God

concerning

the principal nation, namely Egypt, he evidently intends to indicate thereby that the

judgment predicted

and completed upon the heathen world and EZEK. T.

its

will

be executed

peoples through

354

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

the word and acts of God.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;The predictions of

Judgment upon

these seven heathen nations are divisible, accordingly, into two

Ammon, Moab, Edom,

groups.

form one group, while the second is

certainly the

way

Philistia,

Tyre, and Sidon

Egypt

treats of

This

alone.

which the cycle of these prophecies

to be divided rather than the plan ordinarily adopted, according to

which the nations included

in ch. xxv., as representatives of

the one phase of the world-power, are placed in contrast with the other phase of heathenism represented

The

Egypt.

by Tyre, Sidon, and

latter is the opinion entertained

by Hiivernick,

for example, with regard to the " beautiful and symmetrical

" First of

arrangement " of these prophecies.

" the prophet shows in one series of nations

judgment of God was

realized in the

which rose up in direct and open

how

says he,

all,"

the idea of the

case of those nations

hostility to the theocracy,

and thereby represented the might of heathenism

as turned

away from God and engaged in downright rebellion against Him (ch. XXV.). The prophecies concerning Tyre and Sidon contemplate heathenism in a second aspect (ch. xxvi.-xxviii.).

Tyre we have an exhibition of pride or carnal

sin

security,

away from God, and plunges deeper and deeper

looks

and worthlessness of the natural

which

into the

Both aspects are

life.

then finally combined in Egypt, that ancient foe of the cove-

nant nation, which had grown into a world-power, and while displaying in this capacity unbending arrogance and pride, was

now, of

like all the rest,

its

about to be hurled down from the summit

ancient glory into a bottomless deep."

pretation

is,

more than one

with the substance of the prophecies. place, to the antithesis

which

But

this inter-

respect, manifestly at variance

This applies, in the

said to exist

first

between the nations

threatened in ch. xxv. on the one hand, and Tyre and Sidon

on the other.

In the case of

Ammon, Moab, Edom, and

Philistines, for example, the sins

the

mentioned as those for which

they would be overthrown by the judgment are their malicious delight at the fall of Israel,

and

their revengeful, hostile beha-

855

CHAP. XXV.-XXXII. viour towards the covenant nation

And

involved

itself in guilt

xxv. 3, 8, 12, 15).

(cli.

same way, according

in the

Tyre had

ch. xxvi. 2,

by giving utterance

to its delight at the

destruction of Jerusalem, which inspired the hope that every-

thing would

nothing

now

flow into

own

its

store.

the other hand,

Pharaoh and Egypt about mali-

said in the case of

cious pleasure, or hostility, or enmity towards Israel or the

kingdom saying

God

the Nile

fact that

but Pharaoh has rendered himself guilty by

;

mine, I have

Egypt had become a

staff of

which broke when they sought According

made it for myself

to lean

;

and by the

reed to the house of Israel,

upon

(ch. xxix. 3, 6, 7).

to these obvious explanations, Ezekiel

reckoned Tyre

and Sidon among the nations that were inimically disposed towards Israel, even though the hostile attitude of the Phoeni-

was dictated by

cians

from those of

different motives

Edom

and the other nations mentioned in ch. xxv.; and the heathen nations are arranged in two groups, and not in three. established beyond

all

when we observe

doubt,

two groups terminates with a promise for of

mise

and there

shall

them

;

cause

ously in His land, inasmuch as all

to dwell safely

will

the prediction of judgment upon

phecy uttered concerning

them who

gather Israel from

shall

its

and prosper-

execute judgment upon

round about them who despise them

And

the threat

appended the pro-

that are round about

all

and when the Lord

dispersion, then will

be no more for Israel a malicious briar

and smarting thorn from despise

Israel.

judgment uttered against Sidon there

This

that each of these

(ch. xxviii. 24.-26).

Egypt

this land, in the

in the last pro-

twenty-seventh year

of the captivity (ch. xxix. 17), closes in a similar manner, with

the promise that at the time spoil

to the king of Babylon,

when

the

Lord

will cause a

the house of Israel (ch. xxix. 21).

The

gives

Egypt

horn to grow to

fact that these

two

prophecies correspond to each other would not have been overlooked by the commentators

which was

the prophecy concerning Egypt,

really the last in order of time,

had been placed in

85G its

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

proper chronological position in the book of Ezekiel, namely,

at the close of the words of

The

God

directed against that land.

date of the great mass of these propliecies falls within

the period of the last siege of Jerusalem by the Clialdeans, that is

between ch. xxiv. and ch.

to say, in the interval

the chronological data in the headings plainly affirm.

word concerning Tyre

xxxiii., as

The

first

from the eleventh year of the captivity

of Jehoiachin (ch. xxvi. 1).

tlie

prophecies against Egypt,

the one in ch. xxix. 1-16 dates from the tenth month of the

tenth year; that in ch. xxx. 20-26, from the eleventh year

that in ch. xxxi., from the third

;

same year; the two twelfth

month

first

month

of the

month

of the

and 17sqq,, from the

in ch. xxxii. 1 sqq.

of the twelfth year; and lastly, the brief utter-

ance in ch. xxix. 17-21, from the twenty-seventh year of the

There are no chronological data attached

captivity.

others.

But the

the

threatening words against the

sliort,

Am-

monites, Moabites, Edomites, and Philistines in ch. xxv. belong to the time immediately succeeding the fall of Jerusalem, since

they presuppose

having occurred.

its

utterances concerning Tyre

The

in ch. xxvii.

as well as that concerning Sidon in

cli.

second and third

and

ch. xxviii. 1-19,

xxviii. 20sqq., are closely

connected, so far as their contents are concerned, with the

word of

God

against

the captivity.

Egypt

And

Tyre belonging lastly,

first

to the eleventh year of

the threatening word concerning

in ch. xxx. 1-19, to which no definite chronological

data are attached, appears to stand nearer in point of time to ch.

xxix.

1-16 than

arrangement

to ch. xxix.

17â&#x20AC;&#x201D;21.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Consequently

the

based upon the subject-matter of the prophecies,

and the chronological sequence

kept subordinate to

tliis,

rather to the comparative importance of the several nations in relation to the theocracy.

These prophecies evidently

rest 'upon

the

predictions

the earlier prophets against the same nations, so far as their contents are concerned

Tyre and Egypt, more

;

and

especially,

the threats directed asainst

many

of the thoughts con-

857

CHAP. XXV.-XXXII.

anJ

tained ia the prophecies of Isaiah (Isa. xxiii.

But notwithstanding

reproduced and expanded.

upon the utterances of

earlier prophets,

against the heathen nations

manner from

xix.) are

this

Ezekiel's

resting

prophecy

distinguished in a characteristic

that of the other prophets,

by the

fact that

does not say a word about the prospect of these nations being ultimately pardoned, or of the remnant of to the

them being converted

Lord, but stops with the announcement of the utter

destruction of the earthly and temporal condition of

turn

will

its

captivity,

and gather

together again,

only an apparent and not a real exception to this

turning of the judgment

Egypt

13â&#x20AC;&#x201D;16, to the effect that after forty years of chastise-

ment God is

these

The prophecy concerning Egypt

kingdoms and nations. ch. xxix.

all

to its

the future

;

for this

not to bring about a restoration of

former might and greatness or but, according to vers.

its

glorification in

simply to restore

sqq., is

a lowly and impotent kingdom, which will offer no inducement to Israel to rely

upon

its

Through

strength.

therefore, the threat of complete destruction

modified, but

by no means withdrawn.

The

this promise,

only somewhat

only thing which

Ezekiel positively holds out to view before the seven heathen nations

is,

that in consequence of the

God

they will learn that

judgment

falling

Jehovah, or the Lord.

regularly returns in the case of

all

upon them,

This formula

the nations (vid. ch. xxv. 5,

7, 11, 17, xxvi. 6, xxviii. 22, 23, xxix. 6, 9, xxx. 8, 19, 25, 26,

xxxii. 15)

;

and we might take

judgment of nations will

And

their

come

destruction

mean, that through the temporal respect, these

to the knowledge of the

with this interpretation

to the salvation,

in a

which

will flourish in

the judgment, in the case of those tion.

If,

case of

however,

Edom

God

would contain a

of salvation. slight allusion

consequence of and after

who have escaped

destruc-

consider, on the one hand, that in the

(ch. xxv. 14) the

formula takes a harsher form,

namely, not that they shall know Jehovah, but that they shall experience His vengeance; and, on the other hand, that the

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

358 mighty Tyre

repeatedly threatened with destruction, even

eternal extinction (eh. xxvi. 20, 21, xxvii. 36, xxviii. 19),

and

that the whole cycle of these prophecies closes with a funeraldirge on the descent of (ch. xxxii. 17-32),

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;we

all

the heathen nations into Sheol

formula in question

shall see that the

cannot be taken in the sense indicated above, as Kliefoth maintains,

but must be understood as signifying that these nations

will discern in their destruction the punitive righteousness of

God, so that

presents no prospect of future salvation, but

There

simply increases the force of the threat. this distinction,

however,

to establish a

Ezekiel and the earlier prophets

;

on account of their

kingdom of God, and their

own might, and

nothing in

discrepancy between

for Ezekiel simply fixes his

eye upon the judgment, which will nations, partly

fall

upon the heathen

hostile attitude towards the

partly on account of their deification of to the salvation

silent as

accrue even to them out of the judgment the least degree denying

it.

The

itself,

which

will

but without in

reason for his doing this

not that the contemplation of the particular features, which

form the

details of the

avert his eye from the

future

;

immediate fulfilment, has led him

more comprehensive survey

but that the proclamation of the spread of salvation

among the heathen

lay outside the limits of the calling which

he had received from the Spirit of God. sion of Ezekiel

nation, which lieatheu. ^

of the entire

was

restricted to the

was carried this

into exile,

remnant he was

The

prophetic mis-

remnant of the covenant and scattered among the

to foretell the destruction

Drechsler (in his commentary on Isa. xxiii.) has given the following

explanation of the distinction to be observed between the prophecies of Isaiah and those of Ezekiel concerning Tyre,

Isaiah the spirit of prophecy invests totality, in

its

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;namely, that in the case of

utterances with the character of

accordance with the position assigned to this prophet at the

entrance upon a

new

era of the world, embracing the entire future even

to the remotest times, and sketching with grand simplicity the ground-

plan and outline of the whole such as Jeremiah and Ezekiel,

whereas in the case of the later prophets, the midst of the historical execution, the survey of the whole gives place to the contemplation of ;

who were living in

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

CHAP. XXV.-XXXIL

kingdom

of the

359

and after the occurrence of that

of Judali,

catastrophe the preservation and eventual restoration of the

kingdom of God

in a

renewed and

glorified form.

With

this

commission, which he had received from the Lord, there was associated,

it is

true, the

announcement of judgment upon the

heathen, inasmuch as such an announcement was well fitted to preserve from despair the Israelites,

who were pining under

oppression of the heathen, and to revive the hope of the

ment

the

fulfil-

of the promise held out before the penitent of their future

redemption from their state of misery and restoration to the position of the people of

God.

But

this

would not apply to

the prophecies of the reception of the heathen into the renovated

kingdom of God,

as they contained

special element of con-

solation to the covenant people in their depression.

In connection with

this

we have

the equally striking circum-

Babylon among the

that Ezekiel does not mention

stance,

heathen nations.

This

may

also be explained, not

merely from

the predominance of the idea of the judgment upon Israel and

Jerusalem, w'hich the Chaldeans were to execute as " righteous

men"

(ch. xxiii. 45), so that they only

came before him

such righteous men, and not as a world-power also (Kliefoth), but chiefly from the fact that, for the reason described above, Ezekiel's prophecy of the stricted

those

judgment upon the heathen

re-

nations which had hitherto cherished and

displayed either enmity or false friendship toward Israel, and

the Chaldeans were not then reckoned

among

the number.

For the further development of the prophecy concerning the future of the whole heathen world, the

Lord had

called the

particular features belonging to the details of the immediate fulfilment.

But

this explanation

not satisfactory, inasmuch as Jeremiah, notwith-

standing the fact that he lived in the midst of the execution of the judg-

ment, foretold the turning of judgment into salvation at least in the case of some of the heathen nations. For example, in ch. xlviii. 47 he prophesies to the Moabites, and in ch, xlix. 6 to the Ammonites, that in the future time Jehovah will turn their captivity ; and in ch. xlvi. 26 he says, concerning Egypt, that after the judgment it will be inhabited as in the days of old.

360

TnE proPHEciES of ezekiel

prophet Daniel at the same time as Ezekiel, and assigned him his post at the seat of the existing heathen imperial power.

CHAP. SXV. AGAINST AMMON, MOAB, EDOM, AND THE PHILISTINES.

The '^

word

8-11),

prophecies, comprehended in the heading (ver. 1) in one of the Lord," against

Ammon

(vers. 1-7),

Edom

and the

Philistines (vers. 15-17),

(vers. 12-14),

Moab

(vers.

those four border-nations of Israel, are very concise, the judg-

ment of destruction being lines, partly

few forcible

foretold to them, in a

on account of their scorn

at the fall of the people

and kingdom of God, and partly because of actual

The

manifested toward them. given in the heading of Jerusalem

;

date of these utterances

but in vers.

3, 6,

that they cannot have been delivered

tliy

the

came

And

say

to the

Aha!

A mmon,

sons of

Lord Jehovah! Thus

say est.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver.

concerning

saith the

it is

laid waste

ing the house of Judah,

that they have gone

I loill give

;

and ye

saith the

shall

Ver.

the sons

know

;

and concerncaptivity

into

that

tent-villages in thee,

JRahhah will

and maJce

of Amnion a resting-place for

I am

Lord Jehovah, Because

And

;

of the east

in thee ; they shall eat thy fruits,

they shall drinJc thy milk.

Jlocks

thou

profaned; and

thee to the sons

for a possession, that they may pitch their erect tlieir dwellings

ye the word of

Lord Jehovah, Because

sanctuary, that

Ver. 4. Therefore, behold,

a camel-ground, and

the

and prophesy against them,

Ammon, Hear

concerning the land of Israel, that

and

And

me, saying^ Ver. 2. Son of man, direct

face towards the sons of

Ver.

after this catastrophe.

till

Against the Ammonites.

xcord of Jeliovah

not

and 8 the destruction

presujiposed as having already occurred, so

Vers. 1-7.

hostility

For

thus

thou hast clapped thy hand,

and

Jehovah.

Ver.

stamped with thy foot, and hast rejoiced in soul with tempt concerning the house of Israel, Ver.

all thy con-

Therefore, behold,

CHAP. XXV.

booty,

my hand against thee, and give thee to

out

icill stretch

thee offfrom the peoples, and

and cut

lands; Iicill destroy

—In

xxi.

cli.

S61

1-7.

thou mayst learn that

thee, that

when

sqq.,

the nations for

exterminate thee from the

lam Jehovah. Nebu-

predicting the expedition of

chadnezzar against Jerusalem, Ezekiel had already foretold the destruction of the

Ammonites,

so that these verses are simply a

In the

resumption and confirmation of the earlier prophecy. passage ii.

mentions their reviling of the people of

8, 10),

sin for

Zephaniah before him (Zeph.

referred to, Ezekiel, like

God

as the

which they are to be punished with destruction.

reviling, in

which

found vent, was the radical of Judah's

fall, it

tion of the temple (a is

Ammon.

sin of

rose even to contemptuous

the occasion

and malicious joy

sanctuary of Jehovah by the destruc-

at the profanation of the

that this

This

their hatred of the divine calling of Israel

comparison with ch. xxiv. 21 will show

?™

the sense in which

is to

be understood), at the

devastation of the land of Israel, and at the captivity of Judah,

—

in other words, at the destruction of the religious

existence of Israel as the people of

the sanctuary

mentioned

to Israel, manifested

presented its

much

see the

their land, with

3).

a punishment for

4 and

5),

The

8),

had

tliis,

they

but to be cut

off

The Lord

productions, for a possession to

according to Gen. xxv. 13-18, to the

i.e.,

Arabs, the Bedouins (for i.

its

ii.

antagonism

of the nations (vers. 6 and 7).

the sons of the east,

and Job

comm. on Zeph.

in national antipathies, as in

are not only to lose their land (vers.

will give

political

to intimate that the hostility

first,

to the sacred calling of Israel.

from the number

and

profanation of

by the Ammonites on every occasion that

itself (for proofs,

roots not so

The

God.

Piel

D^i^

'•33,

l^tS''',

see the

comm. on Judg.

vi.

although only occurring here,

3 is

not to be rejected as critically suspicious, and to be changed into Kal, as Hitzig proposes.

The Kal would be

because the subject of the sentence can only be not Dn^rih"'p

For

;

and

y^^\

niTtPj tent-villages

in the

Kal has an

unsuitable

D7.i? \^?,

and

intransitive sense.

nomads, see the comm. on Gen.

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

3G2 XXV.

D^?2f?, dwellings, are the separate

16.

In the

shepherds.

sake of emphasis

nan

last clauses of ver. 4,

and Hitzig's opinion, that the

;

sponds to the subject in the clause

'w^

^^'fW,

the

tents

repeated for the

nan corre-

first

the second to that

be rejected as a marvellous flight of imagination,

in ^njl, is to

which approaches absurdity in the assertion that H^^l signifies the folds,

i.e.

the fruit of the land,

the produce of the

i.e.

mentioned as a production of pastoral

food of nomads.

The words

vi.

capital will also share the fate of the land.

the

comm. on Deut.

iii.

waste spot where camels

11)

down and

lie

ruins of

men, and Seetzen found Arabs with {yid.

von Raumer, Palestine^

their land.

reiterates with it,

6 and

vers.

Ammonites

nation of the

still

268).

feed.

Ammdn

19^'f"''33

in the soul,

cherish.

The Keri xxvi. 5)

i.e.

the

Tliis has

their camels not far off

In the

parallel clause, the

Lord announces

with

all

l^'s:3

with

all

sequently 3?

thy contempt

33j>

occasions

some

the ancient versions have adopted

might be a

Israel's

the contempt which thy soul could difficulty.

has substituted n?, for booty to the nations all

to the

the destruction that awaits them, and

ver. 7 the air. \&y.

and

;

been

stronger emphasis the sin which occasioned

strengthened by

(see

are deserted by

namely, the malicious delight they had manifested at

fall.

suffix.

Rahhah

the Ammonites, are mentioned instead of

i.e.

— In

become a camel-ground, a

will

The

fulfilled.

sons of Amnion,

addressed

are

kingdom, and hence the feminine

as a land or

also

and the principal

The

almost literally

milk

soil,

the wealth of the Ammonites in flocks

and herds, see Judg.

Ainmon,

life,

'1?

Along with

the animals, of the land.

copyist's error for T3;

and

(cf. ch.

this.

Con-

in support

of this the circumstance might be adduced, that in ch. xlvii. 13,

where

na stands for HT,

of 5 for

explained

But

—as

we have unquestionably a

the Cheiib

substitution

be correct, the word

to be

has been by Benfey {Die Montasnamen^ p. 194)

and Gildemeister

(in

MorgenlandeSj

1, p.

iv.

Lassen's Zeitschrift fur die

213

sqq.)

— from

Kunde

des

the Sanscrit Ihdga,

;

CHAP. XXV.

36|k

8-11.

pars^ portio, and has passed into the Semitic languages from

the Aryan, like the Syriac ].^t-^} esca, which P. Boetticher

(Horae aram. coquere.

21) has correctly traced to the Sanscrit bhaj,

—The executors God

the threat that

of the

judgment are not named

for

;

up the land of the Ammonites to

will give

the Bedouins for their possession, does not imply that they are to exterminate the

Ammonites.

of this passage with

the

Ammonites

Amos

the contrary, a comparison

13-15 and Jer.

where

xlix. 1-5,

are threatened not only with the devastation of

their land, but also with transportation into exile, will

that the Chaldeans are

be thouMit of as executinor the

(See the comm. on ver. 11.)

judgment.

Vers. 8-11.

Against the Moabites.

the

Lord Jehovah, Because Moah,

all

other nations is the house of

behold,

I will

open the shoulder of

even to the

cities

show

last, the

—Ver.

Judah

Ver.

Moab from

Thus

saith

Behold^

like Seir^ saithy

Therefore,

the cities,

from

its

ornament of the land, Beth-hay eshimoth,

Baal-meon, and as far as Kiryathaim, Ver. 10. To the sons of the east, together with the sons of Ammon, and will give it for a

Ammon may

possession, that the soJis of

bered

among

judgments

;

the nations.

and

Ver. 11. Upon

they shall learn that

become guilty of the same God,

Ammon,

when Judah was overthrown, the house of Judah was like say,

will

Jehovah.

execute

— Moab has

Judah, the people of

namely, of misunderstanding and despising

the divine election of Israel.

is to

I am

sin against

no more be remem-

Moab

Ammon

gave expression to

this,

in the malicious assertion that all

the heathen nations,

—that

had no pre-eminence over them, and shared the same

fate as they.

There

something remarkable in the allusion to

Edom, in connection with Moab, inasmuch as no reference is made to it in the threat contained in vers. 9-11 Seir,

and

i.e.

in vers. 12, 13, there follows a separate prediction con-

cerning

Edom.

Hitzig therefore proposes to follow the example

364

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

LXX.,

of the

and erase

from the text as a

but without

gloss,

being able in the smallest degree to show in what way

probable that such a gloss could have found admission into an Seir

obviously unsuitable place.

Moah

mark the

Edom

springing, like the enmity of

and envy of the

mentioned along with

be given up,

Moab

towards Israel, from hatred

spiritual birthright of Israel,

prerogatives in sacred history.

was

feeling expressed in the words of

i.e.

Ammon,

to the

peculiar

its

a punishment for

this, Ikloab

Bedouins for their

possession, and the people of the Moabites were to disappear

from the number of the nations.

Vers. 9 and 10 form one 10 being governed by nnb in ver. 9.

period, Dli^ V.?r in ver.

The

shoulder of

Moab

the side of the Moabitish land.

the application of the word ^ri3 to lands or provinces, regard

had

to the

body, but without reference to the elevation of the

We find

an analogy to

direction, "

^'1>*i5'?

from the

reckoning to the very

all

;

''"'^V?)

cities

last,"

^nvj^p, as in Isa. Ivi. 11, first

'l3T

privative sense, for ni''np

the more emphatic

district.

this in the use of ^ina in connection with

the sides of a building. in a

position of the shoulder in relation to the whole

D"'"}ynDj

the

for neither the article ^^IVv' "°^'

allows this

;

but

onwards," " from

— that

Gen.

cannot be taken,

is to

indicates the

its cities

onwards,

whole extent.

say, in its

This tract of land

xix. 4, etc.

designated as a glorious land, with reference to

worth as a possession on account of the excellence of

its

soil

xxxii. 4),

and

comm. on Num.

for the rearing of cattle (see the

is its

then defined with geographical minuteness by the introduction of the

names

some of

its

cities.

house of wastes (see the comm. on

Beth-IIayeshimoth,

Num.

xxii. 1),

i.e.

has probably

been preserved in the ruins of Siiaime, which F. de Saulcy discovered on the north-eastern border of the farther inland p.

315).

(Josh. is

xiii.

{yid.

Sea, a

Voyarje en terre sainte, Paris 1865,

Baal-Meoiij 17),

Dead

— when

little t.

written fully, Beth-Baal-Meon

— contracted into

Beth-Meon

be sought for to the south-east of

in Jer. xlviii. 23,

this, in

the ruins of

CHAP. XXV.

365

8-11.

Myiin, three-quarters of an hour's journey to the south of

Heshbon was

Num.

comra. on

(see the

xxxii.

Kiryathaim

88).

farther south, probably on the site of the ruins of

still

Teym (see the comra. on Gen. xiv. 5 and Num. xxxii. 37). The Chetib \\'ori''\'i> is based upon the form Q^nip^ a secondary CJ^nnpj like

form of vi.

The

13.

cities

\Tp\^

a secondary form of T^h^ in 2 Kings

named were

situated to the north of the

Arnon, in that portion of the Moabitish land which had been taken from the Moabites by the Amorites before the entrance

Canaan (Num.

of the Israelites into

given to the tribe of Eeuben for

xxi.

its

of the Amoritish kings by the Israelites

when

and was

13, 26),

inheritance after the defeat ;

and then,

still

later,

the tribes beyond the Jordan were carried into captivity

by the Assyrians, came again, as

into the

possession of the Moabites

evident from Isa. xv. and xvi., and Jer.

where these

cities are

the Moabites.

This

xlviii. 1,

mentioned once more among the

naming

will explain not only the

23,

cities

of this

particular district of the Moabitish country, but the definition,

" from

its

For the

cities."

in the passage before us

belonged to the xxxiii. 49,

Josh.

fact

upon which the

is,

according to

Israelites,

xii. 2, 3, xiii.

20, 21,

of the trans-Jordanic tribes

;

xxxii. 37, 38,

was there-

after the deportation

and the thought

judgment would burst upon Moab from

that

this,

this land

tlie

and these

and they would thereby be destroyed (Havernick and

Kliefoth).

liSFV.a

bv.,

not " over the sons of

addition to the sons of land,

Num.

and that

fore unlawfully usurped by the Moabites

cities,

stress is laid

that the land in question rightfully

Ammon."

had already been promised

In addition

to this, they are

Ammon,"

They, that

but " in

to say, their

to the sons of the east (ver. 4).

now

to receive

Moab

for their

Thus will the Lord execute Ver. 11 sums up what is affirmed

possession (Hitzig and Kliefoth).

judgments upon Moab. concerning

Moab

in vers. 9

judgments of God upon

and 10,

this people.

in the one idea of the

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;The execution

of these

judgments commenced with the subjugation of the Ammonites

366

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

and Moabites by Nebuchadnezzar,

five years after

and M. von

tion of Jerusalem {vid. Jqsephus, Antt. x. 9. 7,

Niebuhr,

Assurs,

Gesch.

etc.,

Nevertheless

215).

the destruc-

the

Ammonites continued to exist as a nation for a long time after the captivity, so that Judas the Maccabaean waged war against them of

Mace.

v. 6,

30—43)

;

and even Justin Martyr speaks

AfifiaviTOiv vvv TToXv ifkrj6o<i (Dial. Tri/ph. p. 272).

—But

Origen includes their land in the general name of Arabia in Job).

extinct

The name of the Moabites appears After the at a much earlier pei'iod.

only in Ezra

ix. 1,

Neh.

xiii. 1,

and Dan.

any notice of them as a people. Josephus in the Antiq. Jud.

iii.

which

3. 3.

xiii.

14. 2,

and xv.

(lib.

have become

captivity,

41, that

find

mentioned by

and in the

Bell.

—A further fulfilment by the Messianic judgment,

referred to in Zeph.

xi.

Their land

words of Ezekiel

;

ii.

10,

not indicated in these

but judging from the prophecy concerning

the Edomites (see the

comm. on

ver.

14),

not to be

excluded.

—Ver.

Against the Edomites. Lord Jehovah, Because Edom acteth

Vers. 12-14. the

upon them, Ver. 13. Therefore, thus icill stretch

from

Thus

my hand

out

and make

over

saith the

Edom, and

desert

saith

towards

of Judah, and hath been very guilty in avenging

the house

it,

12.

o^evengefully

itself

Lord Jehovah, I

cut off

man and

beast

from Teman, and unto Dedan

Ver. 14. And I loill inflict Edom by the hand of my people Israel, that they may do to Edom according to my anger and my wrath; and they shall experience my vengeance, is the saying

they

shall fall

by the sword.

vengeance upon

—

of the Lord Jehovah. Whilst the Ammonites and the Moabites are charged with nothing more than malicious pleasure at the fall

of Israel,

and disregard of

its

divine calling, the Edomites

are reproached with revengeful acts of hostility towards the

house of Judah, and threatened with extermination in consequence.

The

niby, doing or acting of

Edom,

pre-

CHAP. XXV. cisely defined as

0ip^3,

'lil

i.e.

367

12-14.

as consisting in the taking of

vengeance, and designated as very guilty, QiK^N

'"i^Vj

'"^f ^.).

Edom had

followed by 3 with an infinitive, as in ch. xvii. 17.

sought every opportunity of acting thus revengefully towards Israel

Obad.

(vid.

11 sqq.

vers.

Amos

;

against

For

Israel.

this

11),

ch. XXXV. 5 Ezekiel speaks of the " eternal

we must

reason

so that

enmity " of

Edom

not restrict the

reproach in ver. 12 to particular outbreaks of this revenge at the time of the devastation and destruction of

Judah by the

Chaldeans, of which the Psalmist complains in Ps. cxxxvii., and

God upon Edom. Man Edom in consequence, and the Temhn to Dedan. These names

for which he invokes the vengeance of

and beast are

be cut

off

from

land to become a desert from

denote not

but

cities,

Teman

districts.

the southern portion

comm. on Amos i. 12) and Dedan is therefore the northern district. Dedan is probably not the Cushite tribe mentioned in Gen. x. 7, but the tribe of the same

Idumaea

(see the

;

name which sprang from (Gen. XXV.

3),

the sons of

and which

Edom.

ni*!"!

connection with

Abraham by Keturah

mentioned in Jer.

also

xlix.

8 in

has n local with Seghol instead

of Kametz, probably on account of the preceding a (vid. Ewald, ยง 216c).

There

no necessity

connect

i9''^0

with the

following clause, as Hitzig and Kliefoth have done, in opposi-

The two geographical names, which are a periphrasis for Idumaea as a whole, are distributed through the parallelismus memhrorum between the two

tion to the accents.

used as equally

clauses of the sentence, so that they belong to both clauses, so

far as the sense

from Teman

Dedan will

are to fall

its

by the sword.

be executed by

ment

Edom

concerned.

Dedan, and

become a desert

Teman

This judgment of vengeance

God through His

of this threat, no doubt,

inhabitants from

people Israel.

commenced with

of the Edomites by the Maccabees

;

but

it is

to that event, as Rosenmiiller, Kliefoth,

The

fulfil-

the subjugation

not to be limited

and others suppose,

although the foundation was thereby laid for the disappearance

368

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL For

of the national existence of Etlom.

people Israel."

Amos

are to take possession of

David

raised

impossible with

"my

tliat

the fallen tabernacle of

which

in the Messianic times,

i.e.

God

sqq., that the people of

Edom, when

again,

prophecies point back to

have their

the ground, therefore, of the proj)hecies in

12 and Obad. vers. 17

ix.

do justice to the emphatic expression,

this limitation to

Balaam

Num.

God

promise of

roots, as this also lias, in the

and

xxiv. 18,

con-

cerning the twin sons of Isaac, " the elder shall serve the

younger" (Gen. xxv.

we must

23),

seek for

fulfilment in the victories of the people of foes,

God

the complete

over

all their

among whom Edom from time immemorial had taken the when the kingdom of God is per-

leading place, at the time

For even here Edom

fected.

was peculiarly

single nation that

not introduced merely as a

but

hostile to Judali,

also as

a type of the implacable enmity of the heathen world towards

kingdom

the people and

God,

as in ch. xxxv., Isa. xxxiv. 63,

The vengeance, answering

etc.

Jehovah, which

upon Edom,

Israel,

consists not

national existence of effect

the anger and wrath of

God,

as the people of

Edom, which John Hyrcanus

by compelling the subjugated Edomites

cision (see the

execute

merely in the annihilation of the

comm. on Num.

carried into

to adopt

circum-

xxiv. 18), but chiefly in the

wrathful judgment which Israel will execute in the person of Christ,

upon the arch-enemy of the kingdom of God by

its

complete extinction.

Vers. 15-17. saith the

and avenge everlasting

Ver. 16.

L will stretch

cut off the Cretans^

shore.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver.

Thus

15.

the Philistines act with revenge,

themselves with contempt in the soul to destroy in

enmity,

Jehovah, Behold,

and

Against the Philistines.

Lord Jehovah, Because

Ver. 17.

Therefore thus out

my hand

and destroy

And L

ivill

them through chastisements of

the

execute

ivrath,

saith

the

Lord

over the Philistines,

remnant ly

the sea-

great vengeance

and

they shall

hiow

upon that

CHAP. XXV.

/ am The

Jehovah, token

vengeance

upon them.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

the Edomites and

Ammonites

bring

Philistines resembled

369

15-17.

the former in

their disposition towards the covenant nationj

their thirst for revenge, the latter in their malicious rejoicing

For

at Israel's fall.

by Isaiah

this

14) with

(xi.

reason they had already been classed

Edom, Moab, and

Ammon

as enemies,

who would be successfully attacked and overcome by Israel, when the Lord had gathered it again from its dispersion. In the description of its sin towards Israel we have a combination of elements taken (vers.

soul

12 and

ending

;

Edom

Ammon

and

in the

as in ver. 6), with the intention to destroy

^^'^,

(5J'?i?3

(JT'riL'W) Israel

from the conduct of

They execute revenge with contempt

6).

and

this

revenge springs from eternal, never-

The Lord

hostility.

the whole of the

will cut off

people of the Pliilistines for this.

^''^7.3,

Cretans, originally a

branch of the Philistian people, settled in the south-west of

Canaan.

The name

used by Ezekiel for the people, as

had already been by Zephaniah paronomasia with

The

"Ji'l^i?.

name

origin of the

in obscurity, as the current derivation

very doubtful combination

(cf. Stark,

5), for the sake of the

(ii.

from Creta

involved

rests

upon a

Gaza, pp. 6Q and 99 sqq.).

the " remnant of the sea-coast,"

i.e.

the remnant of the

inhaibitants of the coast of the Mediterranean, in other w^ords,

of the Philistines, the destruction of which

Amos

predicted by (xlvii. 4),

(i.

8),

Isaiah

(xiv.

had already been

30),

and Jeremiah

are to understand the whole nation to the very

was

comm. on Amos i. 8). The execution of the vengeance threatened by God began in the Chaldean period, in which Gaza was attacked last

man,

all

that

still

left of the Philistines (see the

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

by Pharaoh, and, judging from Jer.

xlvii.,

the whole of Philistia

was laid waste by the Ciialdeans (see the fuller comments on this in the exposition of Jer. xlvii.).

ment

But

the ultimate fulfil-

will take place in the case of Philistia also,

Messianic judgment, in tary on Zeph.

EZEK.

ii.

the manner described

through the

in the

commen-

10. f

370

TOE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

CHAP. XXVL-XXVIIL—AGAINST TYRE AND SIDON.

The

greater portion of these three chapters

occupied with

the prophecy concerning Tyre, which extends from ch. xxvi. 1

The prophecy against Sidon The reason for this is, that

to ch. xxviii. 19.

ch. xxviii. 20-26.

and importance of Phoenicia were concentrated

limited to

the grandeur

at that time in

the power and rule of Tyre, to which Sidon had been obliged

hegemony, which

to relinquish the

The prophecy

over Phoenicia.

words of God, of which the of

destruction

(ch.

xxvii.),

Tyre

against

consists of four

(ch. xxvi.) contains the threat

first

the city and

had formerly possessed

of Tyre

state

a lamentation over

the second

;

this destruction

(ch. xxviii. 1-10), the threat against the

the

;

third

king of Tyre; the

fourth (ch. xxviii. 11—19), a lamentation over his

fall.

CHAP. XXVI. THE FALL OP TYRE. In four

sections,

commencing with the formula, " thus

the Lord," Tyre, the mistress of the destruction.

In the

threat of

destruction

its

(vers. 7-14), the

first

enemy

as a powerful one

;

strophe (vers. 2-6) there

by a host of is

saith

threatened with

sea, is

a general

In the second

nations.

mentioned by name, and designated

and the conquest and destruction emanating

from him are circumstantially described.

In the third (vers.

15-18), the impression which this event would produce

upon

the inhabitants of the islands and coast-lands

And

in the fourth (vers. 19-21), the threat

manner, and the prophecy This word of

God

thereby rounded

the

depicted.

off.

bears in the introduction the date of

delivery to the prophet and enunciation

came

repeated in an energetic

to pass in the eleventh year^

word of Jehovah came

on the

by him.

first

me, saying.

—

Ver.

its

1. It

of the month, that

—The eleventh year of

the exile of Jehoiachin was the year of the conquest and destruction of Jerusalem (Jer.

lii.

12), the occurrence of

which

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; ;

CHAP. XXVI.

presupposed in ver. 2

number

omission of the 17, as the

something striking in the

month both here and

of the

day of the month

words {Jnhp

in the

There

also.

371

2-6.

in ch. xxxii.

The attempt

given.

to discover

an indication of the number of the

infc?3

month, by understanding ^nhp as signifying the first month of the year: the

"on

first

and

the

first

as regards the month," equivalent to,

month, on the

others),

particular

first

as forced

month

"in

day of it" (LXX., Luther, Kliefoth,

and untenable

as the notion that that

intended which had peculiar significance

for Ezekiel, namely, the

month

The

quered and destroyed.

which Jerusalem was con-

explanation

first

proved to be

erroneous by ver. 2, where the destruction of Jerusalem, which

occurred in the fifth

month of the year named, is assumed to The second view is open to the objec-

have already happened.

Jerusalem happened in the fourth

tion that the conquest of

month, and the destruction in the it

fifth (Jer. Hi.

cannot be affirmed that the conquest was of

Ezekiel than the destruction. sion, therefore, that the

number of

through a corruption of the

text,

;

and

importance to

cannot esdSpe the conclu-

the

month has been dropped

which has occurred

but in that case we must give up

all

in copying

hope of being able to de-

termine what the month really was.

by Ewald and Hitzig, that one of the is

6 and 12)

less

The

conjecture offered

last

months of the year

known

intended, because Ezekiel could not have

before then

what impression the conquest of Jerusalem had made upon Tyre, stands or

falls

with the naturalistic view entertained by

these writers with regard to prophecy.

Vers. 2â&#x20AC;&#x201D;6. Tyre shall be broken and utterly destroyed.

Ver.

Son of man, because Tyre

" Aha, the door of the nations shall become full; she is laid

saith concerning Jerusalem^

broken

the

Tyre,

and

will bring

its

up against

waves.

;

thee

will

many

me ; I

turneth to

waste;" Ver.

Lord Jehovah, Behold, I

saith

bringing

Therefore thus

come upon

thee,

nations, as the sea

Ver. 4. They will destroy the walls

of TyreJ and throw down her

tovjers ;

and I

will sweep

away

;

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

572

her dust from her, and make her a hare rock.

Vcr.

She shall

become a place for the spreading of nets in the midst of the

I have

for

spoken

it,

is the

saying of the

which are in the shall learn

they

phecy of Isaiah

Lord Jehovah

Ver.

shall become booty for the nations.

And

land shall be slain with

I am

that

(ch. xxiii.),

Tvpa

the mainland, ^ iraXai

sicord ;

and

as in the pro-

name upon

not the city of that

or JlaXatTvpo^,

and she

her daughters

the

Jehovah. â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Tyre,

;

sea,

Old Tyre,

whicli

was taken by Shaltnaneser and destroyed by Alexander Marsh, Vitringa, J. D.

Perizon.,

(as

and Eichhorn

IMichaelis,

supposed), but Insular Tyre, which was three-quarters of a

mile farther north, and only 1200 paces from the land, being built

upon a small

island,

no great depth

strait of

and separated from the mainland by a (vid.

Movers, Phoenizier,

and was

rians (Josephus, Antt. ix. 14. 2),

at that time the

market of the nations ; and in Ezekiel's day

summit of

had reached the

greatness as mistress of the sea and the centre of

its

commerce of the world.

our prophecy

That

chit fly directed,

according to whicli Tyre

against this

field, i.e.

on the mainland

Tyre that

evident from vers. 5 and 14,

become a bare rock

of the sea, and from the allusion to the daughter

the

288

This Insular Tyre had -successfully resisted the Assy-

sqq.).

the

II. p.

in the

midst

cities, "TH^^, in

as contrasted with

(in ver. 6),

the position occupied by Tyre upon a rocky island in the sea and, lastly, from the description given in ch. xxvii. of the mari-

time trade of Tyre with attained, I.e.

inasmuch

as vers. 6, 8,

made

and

may

This

p. 176).

all

nations, to

which Old Tyre never

possessed no harbour (vid. Movers,

easily be reconciled with

ch. xxvii., xxviii., in

to the continental Tyre,

such passages

which reference

also

and the conquest of Tyre

depicted as the conquest of a land-city (see the exposition of these yerses).

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; The

threat against

Tyre commences,

as in the

case of the nations threatened in ch. xxv., with a brief description of

its

sin.

Tyre

Jerusalem, because

.gave expression to

hoped

its

to derive profit

joy at the fall of

therefrom through

CHAP. XXVI.

the extension

373:

2-6.

commerce and increase of

its

words put into the mouth of Tyre. is

The

broken in pieces."

plural

its

The door

of the nations

indicates the folding

T\Srh'=\

doors which formed the gate, and are mentioned in

Jerusalem

the door of the nations, and

to the current opinion of expositors, because

the

commerce of the

nothing

known

nations,

wealth.

meaning of the

Different explanations have been given of the

stead.

its

so called according

was the centre of

as a place of trade.

i.e.

But

warrant the idea that Jerusalem was ever

able to enter into rivalry with

Tyre

as a

commercial

city.

The

importance of Jerusalem with regard to other nations was to

be found, not in

which

its

occupied for trade, in support of which Havernick

refers to Herodotus,

but in

its

commerce, nor in the favoui'able situation

and Hitzig

iii.'S,

to Ezekiel xxiii. 40, 41,

sanctuary, or the sacred calling which

for the whole world of nations.

had received

Kliefoth has therefore decided

That Jerusalem

in favour of the followincr view:

gate of the nations, not because

called a

had hitherto been open

the nations for free and manifold intercourse, but for the very opposite reason, namely, because the gate of Jerusalem hitherto been closed

now broken

had

and barred against the nations, but was

in pieces through the destruction of the city,

thereby opened to the nations.

and

Consequently the nations, and

notably Tyre, would be able to enter

now

and from

;

this fact

the Tyrians hoped to derive advantage, so far as their com-

mercial interests were concerned.

harmony with the

text.

But

broken in pieces, and one

by breaking the door (Gen.

may

view

this

Although a gate

not in

opened by being

force an entrance into a house

xix. 9), yet the expression

the nations" cannot signify a door which bars

all

" door of

entrance on

the part of the nations, inasmuch as doors and gates are not

made of

and is

to secure

men and in.

houses and

cities

against the forcible entrance

it possible for them to go out Moreover, the supposition that " door of the nations "

nations, but to render

equivalent to shutting against the nations,

not in harmony

374

THE PBOPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

with the words

turned to me," or

napj which follow. is

nations would turn

has

turned to me, has no meaning unless

away from Jerusalem had turned

fore that hitherto the nations

the 3d pers. perf. Niphal of 33D, for

analogy of DÂť3,

ad sensum

through the breaking of the door the stream of the

signifies that

expression "

The

etc.

nana

to Jerusalem,

"^SDJ,

formed after the

missing subject to n3p3

D'l?>Vn ninp"!.

and there-

to Tyre,

not the door

to be

found

but the

itself,

entrance and streaming in of the nations, which had previously

been directed towards Jerusalem, and would now turn to Tyre.

There

necessity, therefore, for Hitzig's conjecture, that

nspsx should be altered into subject.

J^^^^,

and the

latter taken as the

Consequently we must understand the words of the

Tyrians as signifying that they had regarded the drawing of the nations to Jerusalem,

i.e.

the force of attraction which

Jerusalem had hitherto exerted upon the nations, as the seat of the divine revelation of mercy, or of the law and judgment of the Lord, as interfering with their endeavour to draw to themselves

and gain them over

all

to their purposes,

nations

and that

they rejoiced at the destruction of Jerusalem, because they

hoped that henceforth they would be able to themselves

to attract the nations

and enrich themselves with

possessions.

their

This does not require that we should accredit the Tyrians with

any such insight lie

beyond

into the spiritual calling of Jerusalem as

The

their heathen point of view.

stance, that the position occupied

would

simple circum-

by Jerusalem in

relation to

the world apparently interfered with the mercantile interests of

the Tyrians, would be quite sufficient to excite a malignant

God The

pleasure at the fall of the city of God, as the worship of

and the worship of

Mammon

are irreconcilably opposed.

source from which the envy and the enmity manifesting in this malicious pleasure took their rise,

words

" I shall

fill

indicated in the last

myself, she (Jerusalem)

laid waste,"

which Jerome has correctly linked together thus deserta

est,

idcirco ego implebor.

itself

N^"?, to be

filled

quia

ilia

with mer-

CHAP. XXVI.

and wealth, as in ch.

cliandise

375

7-14.

xxvii. 25.

account of this

toward the kingdom of God, which led Tyre to

disposition

expect an increase of power and wealth from

Lord God would smite it llvV, behold, I will come upon

the

Nah. iii.

God will

shall destroy its walls

thee, as in ch. xiii. 8

Instead of the army, "

and towers.

is to

many

hoping to attract

fulfilled,

though

in a different

The comparison

Tyre intended.

sense from that which

advancing army to the advancing waves of the sea

when

significant

to itself in consequence of the destruction of

This hope

Jerusalem.

Jer.

;

''J3n

army against Tyre, which

lead a powerful

nations" are mentioned, because Tyre

more nations

destruction,

its

with ruin and annihilation.

the situation of Tyre

subject to niPi^ns, and the Hiphil

very

Djn is the

considered.

of the is

construed with.p instead of

the accusative (compare Ewald, § 292c with § 211e).

Accord-

and Curtius,

Insular

to Arrian,

Tyre was

ii.

18. 3,

fortified all

iv. 2. 9, 12,

round with

lofty walls

and

3. 13,

and towers, which

were certainly in existence as early as Nebuchadnezzar's time.

Even

the dust of the demolished buildings

sweep away

^n^np,

the city,

the site on which

i.e.

Xey.^ with

air.

bare and barren rock (y?D

n''ny,

a play upon

had

stood,

—would In

that

would become a

where

" Her daughters "

the towns dependent upon Tyre, " on the

the open country,

field," i.e.

God would

innK'), so

as in ch. xxiv. 7), a place

fishermen would spread out their nets to dry. also, that is to say,

("^"^SJ?)

— in other words, their inhabitants,

be slain with the sword.

vers.

7-14 the threat

thus saith the

carried

Lord Jehovah,

still

Behold,

further.

I will

—Ver.

For

bring against Tyre

Nebuchadnezzar, the king of Babylon, from the north, the king of kings,

loith horses,

of much people.

and

Ver.

with the sword, and he throio

Ver.

chariots,

Thy

toill erect

up a rampart against 9.

And

direct his

and horsemen, and a multitude

daughters in the field he will slay

thee,

siege-towers against thee,

and

set

battering-rams against thy walls,

throw down thy towers with his swords.

and

shields against thee,

Ver. 10.

From

and the

376

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

multitude of his horses their dust will cover thee the horsemen^ wheels^

and

;

from

the noise

chariots, thy walls will shake

when

he shall enter into thy gates, as they enter a city broken open.

Ver. 11. With the hoofs of his horses he will tread down all thy streets

thy people he will slay loith the sword,

;

of thy

possessions,

and thy glorious

Ver. 12. They will make booty

pillars will fall to the ground.

and plunder thy merchandise,

destroy thy walls,

and throw down thy splendid mansions, and

sink thy stones, thy

wood, and thy dust in the water.

to the

Ver. 13.

heard no more.

Ver. 14.

make

will

thee

nets,

for 1 Jehovah have

Lord Jehovah.

—

this

verses,

put an end

a bare rock; thou

shah be a place for the spreading of ;

will

sound of thy songs, and the music of thy harps shall be

— Nebuchadnezzar,

it,

and be

the

built

the

saying

the great king of Babylon,

the meaning of the rhetorical description in these

—

spoken

will

come with a powerful army

(ver. 7), smite with

the sword the inland cities dependent upon

pare ver. 6), then walls and

commence

towers (vers.

86 and

Tyre

(vei*. 8,

com-

the siege of Tyre, destroy 9), enter with his

army

its

the city

in which breaches have been made, put the inhabitants to death (vers.

ings,

10 and 11), plunder the treasures, destroy walls and buildand cast the ruins into the sea (ver. 12). Nebuchadrezzar,

name

or Nebuchadnezzar (for the xxiv. 1),

see the

called king of kings, as the

comm. on

Kings

supreme ruler of the

Babylonian empire, because the kings of conquered provinces

and lands were subject Isa. X. 8).

His army

him

a great multitude of infantry. far as the rhetorical style

subordinate to sisted of

the

^nj?,

syny.

comm. on

as vassals (see the

consists of war-chariots,

^'^~W[

are co-ordinate, so

concerned; but in reality iVDj;

as in ch. xxiii. 24,

^T}\i

comm. on

and cavalry, and

inasmuch

as the 7^!^ con-

the siege-works mentioned in ver. 86, see

ch. iv. 2.

nay

U''\>t\

signifies the construction of

a roof with shields, by which the besiegers were accustomed to

defend themselves from the missiles of the defenders of the city wall while

pursuing their labours.

Herodotus repeatedly

;

CHAP. XXVI.

377

7-14.

mentions such shield-roofs as used by the Persians

61. 99,

(ix.

102), though, according to Layard, they are not to be found

upon the Assyrian monuments There

no doubt that

^ni?, literally,

be pointed either

Hooght and

(the form i?3P^ adopted

i^^i?

H. Michaelis

res opposita, that

which

opinion of others, ?5P

but there

opposite

hence

;

1?3p Tio, the thrust-

nothing in the usage of the language to sustain

tion of his defence."

very aptly rendered

The

it.

The number

entering the city they cover

his irons," as

may be

simile

peculiar situation of Insular Tyre.

enter

as they

march

'30 "fV ^^i^??,

embankment

made

or dam.

a city taken by

i.e.

explained from the

means

that the

into a land-fortress into

breach has been made by force. the besieger has

hyper-

on their

with dust, and the walls shake

the marchings into a broken city,

The

that

great,

with the noise of the horsemen and chariots.

storm, generally are.

Ewald has

description in ver. 10

horses

by Havernick, "destruc-

his swords, used figuratively for

^"'^'^i^lC,

weapons or instruments of war, "

literally, as

In the

an instrument employed in besieging

either this explanation or that adopted

Avill

v. d.

opposed to the grammatical

ing or demolishing of that which stands opposite.

bolical.

been explained by Gesenius and others as signifying

rules), has

his

6).

TOp, from /^p, to

thrusting or smiting.

i'Pfip

ii.

the battering-ram,

signifies

though the meaning of the words

called 13 in ch. xxi. 27,

disputed,

on Nah.

(see the coram,

v>^\^^ ""np

The words

enemy

which a

presuppose that

a road to the city by throwing up an ^?y

J^i^sro,

the memorial pillars of thy

might, and the pillars dedicated to Baal, two of which are

mentioned by Herodotus Hercules

(ii.

44) as standing in the temple of

Tyre, one of gold, the other of emerald

of gods, but pillars, as symbols of Baal.

;

not images

These sink or

fall to

the ground before the overwhelming might of the foe (compare Isa. xlvi. 1, xxi. 9,

and 1 Sam.

the inhabitants and the treasures begins,

fall

v. 3).

After the slaughter of

of the gods, the plundering of the

and then follows the destruction of the

city.

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

378 n^pn

^ri3

are not pleasure-houses (" pleasure-towers, or garden-

houses of the wealthy merchants," as

Ewald

supposes), for there

was not space enough upon the island for gardens (Strabo, 2. 23),

but the lofty, magnificent houses of the

mentioned in Isa.

xxiii.

and that

destroyed,

so completely that they will

to the exultation

Isa. xiv. this

Amos

11 and

sea.

—Thus

the

will

and rejoicing in Tyre v. 23).

xvi.

the palaces

Yea, the whole city shall be

13.

wood, and rubbish into the

end

city,

(ver.

sweep

stones,

Lord put an 13

compare

;

—The picture of the destruction of

powerful city closes with the repetition of the thought from

Tyre

ver. 5, that

shall

be turned into a bare rock, and

shall

never be built again.

The

Vers. 15-18.

tidings of the destruction

produce great commotion in connected with her.

—Ver. 15.

Tyre

will

her colonies and the islands

all

Thus

sailh the

Lord Jehovah

Will not the islands tremble at the noise of thy fall, at the

Tyre,

groaning of the wounded, at the slaughter in the midst of thee

And

Ver. 16.

embroidered

the princes

all

and

their thrones,

the sea will

will lay aside their robes

clothes,

and

come down from

and

and they

thee.

Ver. 17. They will raise a lamentation for

to thee

hast thou perished, thou

out of the sea, thou renowned city, she sea, she

and her

fear of her of thy

fall,

departure.

n73D

?ip,

—

inhabitants,

Ver. 18.

who

Now

fall

and

the islands in

^''lI,

lionne,

the

thee,

and say

who wast inhabited from whd was mighty upon the

inspired all her*inhabitants with

the sea are

confounded at thy

has the force of a direct affirmation.

the noise of the

takes place, as

upon

do the islands tremble on the day

fall,

stands for the tidings of the

noise, since the noise itself could not

The

sit

moment, and be astonished

earth,

How

take off their

dress themselves in terrors,

will tremble every

be heard upon the islands.

added for the purpose of depicting

the terrible nature of the event, at or amidst the groaning of

the wounded, and the slaughter in the midst of thee.

J'lna is

the infinitive Niphal, with the accent drawn back on account of the following Milel, and should be pointed

i"}.'"??-

^^^ word

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

CHAP. XXVI. D^^N, Islands, is

379

15-18.

frequently used so as to embrace the coast lands

of the Mediterranean Sea

;

we have

therefore to understand

here as applied to the Phoenician colonies on the islands and

The " princes

coasts of that sea.

of the sea " are not kings of

the islands, but, according to Isa. xxiii. 8, the merchants pre-

who resembled

siding over the colonies of Tyre,

not royal thrones, but chairs, as in 1 Sam. picture of their it is

mourning

princes,

ni^'ip?,

The

iv. 13, etc.

recalls the description in

not derived from that passage, however, but

Jonah

iii.

;

an indepen-

dent description of the mourning customs which commonly

among

prevailed

striking one

The

princes.

antithesis introduced

in the place of the robes of state

which they have

(see the similar trope in ch. vii. 27). still

a very

clothing themselves in terrors, putting on terrors

by the

forcible

The thought

laid aside

rendered

closing sentences of the verse

they

by moments, i.e. as the moments return, therefore, " every moment " {vid. Isa. xxvii. 3).â&#x20AC;&#x201D; In

tremble

D^Vi"^?,

actually,

the lamentation which they raise (ver. 17), they give pro-

minence

to the alarming revolution of all things, occasioned

the fact that the mistress of the seas, once so renowned, has

now become an

object of

horror and

This

inhabited from the seas.

alarm.

C'S^P

^r^'^'^^,

not to be taken as equivalent

far as the seas," in the sense of, whose inhabitants

"as

spread over the seas and

Havernick suppose

;

settle there, as

for being inhabited

sending the inhabitants abroad.

Gesenius is

(^Thes.)

and

the very opposite of

If ip were to be taken in the

geographical sense of direction or locality, the meaning of the expression could only be, whose inhabitants spring from the seas, or

have migrated thither from

all

seas; but this

would

not apply to the population of Tyre, which did not consist of

men

of all nations under heaven.

interpretation, namely,

had

Hitzig has given the correct sea, or

out of the seas, which

were ascended as an inhabited

of the sea.

who

from the

not easy to explain the

city out of the

bosom

last clause of ver.

inspired all her inhabitants with their terror, or with teiTor

380

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

them

(of themselves)

for if the relative

;

connection with the preceding

inhabitants,

Ewald, Kliefoth, and

inhabitants of the sea,

it is

But

Djrij all

this is

the

open

masculine gender, but

extremely harsh to take the same suffix attached to the two

n"'3B'*

as referring to different subjects.

take the relative to

D^ of the

themselves,

as referring to

her colonies.

i.e. all

the objection, that not only

n''3Bn"'

i.e.

have therefore proposed

otliers,

to take the suffix in the second

taken in

Kimchi, Kosen-

with their terror, or terror of themselves. miiller,

the thought arises that the

>}''^^\

Tyre inspired her

inhabitants of

l^"t<

<}''^^^'^)

^^r'

itJ'N

and the

the city with

inhabitants with fear of

suffix in

its

must therefore

DiTrnn as both referrinc

population inspired

This

itself.

all its

several

not to be understood,

however, as signifying that the inhabitants of Tyre kept one another in a state of terror and alarm its

population, through

but that the city with

power upon the

its

several inhabitants with fear of this distinction

;

of the city and

its

sea, inspired all

population was reflected upon

This explanation of the words

every individual citizen.

firmed by the parallel passages in ch. xxxii. 24 and 26.

had come

city

appalling an end, that

The two

trembled thereat.

the

might, inasmuch as the

all

con-

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;This

the islands

hemistichs in ver. 18 are synony-

mous, and the thought returns by way of conclusion to ver. 15. ^!^'

has the

Aramaean form

of the plural, which

met with even

in the earlier poetry {vid.

departure,

destruction.

i.e.

Vers. 19-21.

Thus

will

make

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; Ver. 19.

For

thee a desolate city^

habited,

when I cause

waters cover

thee,

177a).

like the

Lord Jehovah^ When I

cities ivhich

are no longer in-

the deep to rise over thee, so that the

to the

nxv,

and vanish for ever from

thus saith the

Ver. 20. / cast

gone into the grave,

Â§

sometimes

Tyre, covered by the waves of the

sea, sink into the region of the dead,

the earth.

Ewald,

thee

down

to those

many

who have

people of olden time, and cause thee to

dwell in the land of the lower regions, in the ruins from the olden time, with those

who have gone

into the grave, that thou

muyest be

381

CHAP. XXVI. 19-21.

no longer inhabitedj and 1 create that which land of the art

and

come upon Tyre, but

desolation

the region of the

whole threat

dead.

summed

this

The

up.

thee

glorious in the

terror,

and find

thee,

Lord Jehovah.

saying of the

ever, is the

/ make

Ver. 21.

living.

no more; they will seek

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Not

only will ruin

will sink for

and thou

no more for

thee

ever into

concluding thought the

infinitive clauses of ver.

recapitulate the leading thoughts of the previous strophes, for

the purpose of appending the closing thought of banishment to

the rising of the deep

stand, according to ver. 12, that the city in

its

ruins will be

those

who go down

the under-world.

sunk

"lU

into the depths of the sea.

"""ili^j

They

into the pit or grave, are the dead.

are to under-

are described

still

further as ^AV Dy, not " those wdio are sleeping the long sleep of death," or the generation of old

whom

must

all

join

people of the "old world" before the flood (2 Pet.

were buried by the waters of the

Job

xxii. 15,

world, and xliv.

where

to describe

5),

who

analogy of the use of Dpiy Dy in Isa. the

human

In harmony with

race

as existing

this, opiJ??

Tyre

shall not only

down

in Sheol, but be thrust

*^^ÂŽ

adds emphasis to the idea of "^n niV, so also does

pS.

from time

^^^^H ^^^

of the primeval world wdiich perished in the flood.

to that of ni'nnri

ii.

accordance with

D?iy denotes the generations of the primeviil

after the

immemorial.

flood, in

but the

;

ruins

a7Sv

DJ?

C?ii?p ^^^"^na

descend to the dead

to the people of the dead,

who

were sunk into the depths of the earth by the waters of the

and

flood,

among

there

shall

the flood, beside ni'nnrij

receive

its

tliat

dwelling-place

everlasting

the ruins of the primeval world which

was destroyed by

godless race of the olden time,

land of the lowest places

(cf. ch. xxxii.

18, 24),

periphrasis for Sheol, the region of the dead (compare iv. 9,

" the lower parts of the earth ").

has observed with perfect correctness ing as the

first

Athnach (*)

On " If

'l3^

^3^

^nriJI

Eph.

Hitzig

retain the point-

person, with which the place assigned to the

coincides,

we must

any rate not regard the

382

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

clause as

dependent upon

still

continued.

pendent and affirmative,

But

have done."

lyOj*,

and the force of the ^b

and the Targum

as the accentuators

as this

would give

a discrepancy

rise to

between the two halves of the verse, Hitzig proposes to into the second person

governed by

t*?

should then have to take the clause as inde-

''^Jnj"!,

so that the clause

But the want

\Vu?.

alter

would

''^103

still

of agreement between the

two halves of the verse does not warrant an alteration of the especially if

text,

lead to nothing better than the forced

rendering adopted by Hitzig, " and thou no longer shinest with glory in the land of the living," which there

language to

And

justify.

nothing in the

even the explanation proposed by

Havernick and Kliefoth, " that I no longer produce anything glorious from thee (Tyre) in the land of the living," this objection, that " from thee "

the text

and

;

have added person

upon

open to

arbitrarily interpolated into

were what Ezekiel meant, he would either

if this

or written

'H^

^'''iina.

Moreover, the change of

a sufficient objection to our taking ^rnj as dependent

jyo?,

and supplying

tinuation of

^''ria^'ini.

^finJI is

N7.

And

evidently a simple con-

nothing but the weightiest objec-

up a view which

so naturally

objections exist.

Neither the

want of harmony between the two halves of the

verse, nor the

tions should

suggests

context,

lead us to give

But no such

itself.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

according to which Tyre and

its

destruction

referred to both before and immediately after,

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; forces

are

us to

the adoption of explanations at variance with the simple mean-

ing of the words.

pretation of the words, "

of the living

;

therefore adhere to the natural inter-

and I

set (establish) glory in the land

" and understand by the land of the

living,

not

the theocracy especially, but the earth, in contrast to the region of the dead.

and

The words

after the overthrow of the glory of the

the world.

will create that

to endure for ever

contain the general thought, that on

His kingdom.

;

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

and

this

which

ungodly power of

glorious on the earth

really does

by the

establishing

Tyre, on the contrary, shall become, through

383

CHAP. XXVII. 1-11.

its fate,

tion,

an object of terror, or an example of sudden destruc-

and pass away with

For

behind.

ver. 21b,

all

not leaving a trace

glory,

its

compare

12 and Ps. xxxvii. 36.

Isa. xli.

imperf. Pual, has Chateph-patach between the two w, to

'•E'ipnni,

indicate emphatically that the syllable is only a very loosely

closed one (vid. Ewald, § 315, p. 95).

CHAP. XXVII. LA3IENTATI0N OVER THE FALL OF TYRE.

The lamentation commences with the city of Tyre,

its

and defences

tary strength

a picture of the glory of

situation, its architectural beauty, its mili-

commercial relations

(vers.

3-11), and

(vers,

its

wide-spread

12-25); and then passes into mourn-

ful lamentation over the ruin of all this glory (vers. 26-36).

Vers. 1-11. Introduction and description of the glory and

might of Tyre.

—

saying, Ver. 2.

over Tyre, Ver.

Ver. 1. And the word of Jehovah came to me, And do thou, son of man, raise a lamentation 3. And say to Tyre, Thou who dwellest at the

approaches of the sea, mercliant of the nations

Lord Jehovah,

thus saith the beauty.

Ver.

the heart

builders have

made

built all double-plank-ivorkfor thee

thy beauty perfect.

make a mast upon

thee.

Ver.

;

they took cedars

from

Ver.

blue

Ver.

Chittaeans.

Egypt was thy

and red purple from 8.

T7ie inhabitants

Tlie elders

repair thy leaks

;

of Gebal and

all the ships

thine

box

for a banner

its

tlvy

;

sailors.

men were with thee to and their mariners were

skilful

of the sea

Ver. 10. Persian and Lydian and

army, thy menofioar

hung up in thee; they gave

;

ofElishah was thine awning.

of Sidon and Arvad were thy roioers

in thee to barter thy goods.

Libyan were in

set in

Byssus in em-

Tyre, were in thee, they were

thy skilful men,

Ver. 9.

sail, to serve thee

the islands

thy

Ver. 6. They made thine

made of ivory

broidery from

;

Out of cypresses

oars of oaks of Bashan, thy benches they the islands of the

islands,

perfect in

the seas is thy territory

of Senir they of Lebanon

many

I am

Tyre, thou sayest,

;

shield

brilliancy to thee.

and helmet they

Ver. 11. The sons

384

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

of Arvad and thine army were upon thy walls round about, and brave

men were upon

towers

thy

upon thy walls round about

The

;

hung up

they

;

shields

their

made thy beauty perfect.

they have

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

lamentation commences with an address to Tyre, in which

favourable situation for purposes of trade, and the perfect

its

beauty of which she was conscious, are placed in the fore-

ground

Tyre

(ver. 3).

D^ riNUip,

of the sea.

or dwelling, at the approaches

sitting,

approaches or entrances of the

sea, are

liarboars into which ships sail

and from which they depart, just

as "i^VO ^^^^> the gate of the

city,

This description does not point to

Old Tyre, but answers exactly harbours.^

'^^r^'^^

both entrance and

tiie city

to Insular

with the connecting

Tyre with

which

its

feminine pronoun, and has therefore been marked as superfluous {vid.

of n?3h with

meaning go

D^^X

may

to travel

^Tl-,

to the nations

itself

?N!

Â§ 211^).

edifices.^

by the

The combination

thou

who

shores to carry on thy trade.

didst

Tyre

perfect in her beauty, partly on

account of her strong position in the

her splendid

of the

be accounted for from the primary

about as a merchant

many

considers that she

Ewald,

two

apparently

confounded here after the Aramaean fashion with the

Masora

exit.

on the mainland, or

sea,

and partly because of

In the description which follows of

this

possessed two

harbours, a northern one called the was on the Sidonian side, and one on the opijosite or south-eastern side, which was called the Egyptian harbour from the direcThe Sidonian was the more celebrated of the tion in which it pointed. two, and consisted of an inner harbour, situated within the wall of the city, and an outer one, formed by a row of rocks, which lay at a distance of about three hundred paces to the north-west of the island, and ran parallel to the opposite coast of the mainland, so as to form a roadstead in which Strabo, xvi. 2. 2o). This. northern ships could anchor (liJ. Arrian, ii. 20 harbour is still held by the city of Sw, whereas the Egyptian harbour with the south-eastern portion of the island has been buried by the sand driven against the coasts by the south winds, po that even the writers of the Middle Ages make no allusion to it. (See Movers, Phonizier, II. 1, ^

Insular Tyre

Sidonian, because

;

pp. 214 sqq.) ^ Curtius, iv. 2

Tyrus

Phoenicesqiie memorabilis.

et claritate et

magnitudine ante omnes urbes Syriae

(Cf. Strabo, xvi.

22.)

;

CHAP. XXVII.

beauty

and glory, from

385

l-Il.

4 onwards, Tyre

ver.

allegorically as a beautiful ship, splendidly built

throughout, and

its

destruction

depicted

and equipped

afterwards represented as a

The

shipwreck occasioned by the east wind (vers. 26 sqq.).^ words, " in the heart of the seas

territory " (ver. 4a), are

thy

equally applicable to the city of Tyre and to a ship, the build-

ing of which

Tyre

to a ship

The comparison

described in what follows.

was very naturally suggested by the situation of

the city in the midst of the sea, completely surrounded

water.

a ship,

must of necessity be

shipbuilders selected the finest kinds of

built of

wood

The

wood.

for the purpose

cypresses of Antilibanus for double planks, which formed the sides of the vessel,

and cedar of Lebanon for the mast,

according to Deut.

iii.

^nir,

was the Amoritish name of Hermon

or AntilibanuSf whereas the Sidonians called

Sirion.

other hand, S'nir occurs in 1 Chron. v. 23, and Sh'nir in of Sol.

iv. 8,

in connection with

Hermon, where they are used

to denote separate portions of Antilibanus.

uses Senir

own

SiS

time, whereas Sirion had possibly

9).

Ezekiel evidently

a foreign name, which had been retained to his

names had both the same meaning iii.

the

Song

The naming

become

(see the

obsolete, as the

comm. on Deut.

the places from which the several

materials were obtained for the fitting out of the ship, serve to

heighten the glory of ter to the picture.

its

construction and give an ideal charac-

All lands have contributed their produc-

tions to complete the glory

and might of Tyre.

Cypress-wood

was frequently used by the ancients for buildings and (according to Virgil, Georg. 1

Jerome recognised

follows: "

ii.

443) also for ships, because

this allegory,

and has explained

was

correctly as

(the prophet) speaks rpovtx.ug^ as though addressing a ship,

and points out its beauty and the abundance of everything. Then, after having depicted all its supplies, he announces that a storm will rise, and the south wind {auster) will blow, by which great waves will be gathered In all this he is referring to the overup, and the vessel will be wrecked. throw of the city by King Nabuchodonosor," etc. Raschi and others give the same explanation.

£Z£K.

•

2 B

386

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

exempt from the attacks of worms, and was almost and

yet very light (Theophr. Hist, plant, v. 8

Isa. xxii. 11, double-planks, used for the ship.

oiB'O

;

D'nh^, a dual form, like D^nbh in 2

xvi. 79).

imperisliable,

Plinii Hist. nat.

Kings xxv.

For oars they chose oaks of Bashan (OiU'a as well as in ver. 29 from OIB', to row), and the rowing benches (or Enp

deck) were of ivory inlaid in box.

tabernacle

;

here

it is

employed

used in Ex. xxvi.

15 sqq. for the boards or planks of the

wooden walls of the

in a collective sense, either for

the rowing benches, of which there were at least two,

sometimes three rows in a

vessel,

shetij

The

or ivory, inlaid in wood.

the most valuable material of

and

one above another, or more This was made

properly, for the deck of the vessel (Kitzig).

two side-walls of the

ivory

mentioned

first

the B^P, the object being

The

to picture the ship as possessing all possible splendour.

expression D^iE'X'na occasions some difficulty, partly on account of the use of the

meaning

word 03, and partly

much may be

of Q^")^^, although so

context, that the allusion is to ivory,

in connection with the

inferred from the

some kind of wood

inlaid with

and the custom of inlaying wood with ivory for the

purpose of decoration

attested

Virgil, Aen. x.

137

" Vel quale per artem Inclusum buxo, aut Oricia terebintho Lucet ehury

But the use of na does not harmonize with the relation of the wood to the ivory inserted in wood nor can it be defended by ;

the fact that in the quiver."

Lam.

iii.

According

3 an arrow

designated " the son of

to this analogy, the

ivory ought to

have been called the son of the Ashurim, because the ivory inserted in the wood,

and not the wood in the ivory .^

therefore adopt the solution proposed

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

by R. Salomo and

namely, that the Masoretic division of

words ^

h^til

founded upon a mistake, and that

The Targum has paraphrased "^li

i-e.

in this

way

others,

D'ttJ'XTia into it

We must two

should be read as

pc^aaD pjD^t^NT p3T

planks of box or pine inlaid with ivory.

CHAP. XXVII.

one word

ivory in

D''"ic'i<n3j

387

1-11.

sherbin-cedar

either

i.e.

D"'")^'^{rlJ

(according to more recent expositors), or box-wood, for which

The

Bochart {Phal. III. 5) has decided. Ix.

13 the

"I'ltJ'Kn

Lebanon, whereas here the from the islands of the

ment

to the contrary.

what

species of tree

D^Tk?"Nn

does not furnish a decisive argu-

cannot determine with certainty to,

and therefore

grew upon Lebanon

inhabitants of the port of Kiriov in Cyprus

Dfri3

and here,

are mentioned, in

Cyprus and other

islands

In 1 Mace.

and

Jer.

still

cannot be

then the Cyprians

;

where

10,

ii.

ta^^N

even Macedonia

D'*'iE'xn

reckoned as

Consequently the

belonging to the 7^ Xerreieifju or KltUcov.

were brought does not furnish

any conclusive proof that the Cyprian pine

referred

although this was frequently used for ship-building. just as

much ground

and we may appeal to

support of this to the fact that, according is

no place

vigorously than on the island of Corsica. it

to,

There

for thinking of the box, as Bochart does,

Theophrastus, there

mentions

of the

broader sense, inhabitants of

and coast-lands of the Mediterranean.

viii.

place from which the

and not upon

alone,

D'^3 are the Kirtet?, the

the islands of the Mediterranean.

;

coming

are described as

D*!]!?,

referred

affirmed that the tree

generally

fact that in Isa.

mentioned among the trees growing upon

as a very valuable kind of

not determine with certainty to what

from the place where

which

In any

wood

;

grows more case, Ezekiel

though we can-

wood he

refers, either

grew or from the accounts of the

ancients concerning the kinds of

wood that

The

a very simple one,

reason for this, however,

ship-builders used.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

namely,

that the whole description has an ideal character, and, as Hitzig

has correctly observed, " the application of the several kinds of

wood

to the different parts of the ship

evidently only

poetical."

The same may be to ver. 7, the sails

in party-coloured

said of the materials of which, according

and awning of the ship were made.

work

("^^i^"!,

see

comm. on Ex.

Byssus

xxvi. 36), Le.

3S8

PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

TJIE

woven

colours, probably not merely in

mixed

woven with

figures

and

flowers.^

weaving of Egypt was celebrated

From Egypt

stripes,

but

the byssus-

in antiquity, so that byssus-

linen formed one of the principal articles of export (vid. Movers, ut supra, pp. 317 sqq.).

tJ^sp, literally, spreading out, evidently

which we expect

signifies the sail,

to find

mentioned here, and

with which the following clause, " to serve thee for a banner,"

can be reconciled, inasmuch as the

sails

actual

flag,

those

The

included under the term

covering of the ship,

was put up above the deck

had no

Wilkinson's engraving, or that

being also extended

KnSD (Hitzig).

either that

banner, because the ships

also served for a

tiie flag (pi)

may be assumed

for protection

i.e.

the awning which

from the heat of the

sun, consisted of purple (n?3ri and t^jnx, see the

XXV. 4) from the islands of Elisliah,

i.e.

common Ex.

of the Grecian Pelopon-

nesus, which naturally suggests the Laconian purple so highly

valued in antiquity on account of Hist. nat.

ship

ix.

its

The account

36, xxi. 8).

splendid colour (Plin. of the building of the

followed by the manning, and the attention paid to

its

The words of ver. 8a may be taken as referring quite as much to the ship as to the city, which was in possession The reference of ships, and is mentioned by name in ver. 8b. condition.

to the Sidonians

and Arvad,

i.e.

to the inhabitants of Aradus, a

rocky island to the north of Tripolis, as rowers, is not at variance with the latter

;

since there

no need

understand by the

rowers either slaves or servants employed to row, and the

Tyrians certainly drew their rowers from the whole of the Phoenician population, whereas the chief

men

command

â&#x20AC;˘ See Wilkinson, Manners and Customs, III. PI. xvi., where engravings ara given of Egyptian state-ships with embroidered sails. On one ship a large square sail is displayed in purple-red and purple-blue checks, surrounded

by a gold border. The vessel of Antony and Cleopatra in the battle of Actium had also purple sails and in this case the purple sails were the ;

sign of the admiral's ship, just as in Ezekiel they serve as a tinction {D3)-

See Movers,

II. 3, p.

mark

of dis-

165, where the accotmts of ancient

writers concerning&uch state-ships are xjolleeted together.

389

CHAP. XXVII. 1-11.

the ships, the captain and pilot (Dvsh), were no doubt as a

The

rule citizens of Tyre.

Gebal,

the Byhlos of the Greeks, the present Jebail, between

i.e.

Tripolis

introduction of the inhabitants

and Berytus

(see the

comm. on Josh.

who were

xiii. 5),

noted even in Solomon*s time as skilful architects (1 Kings of the leak, decidedly favours the supposi-

V. 32), as repairers

tion that the idea of the ship

kept in the foreground

still

;

and by the naming of those who took charge of the piloting and condition of the

vessel, the

thought

expressed that

all

the cities of Phoenicia assisted to maintain the might and glory of Tyre, since

Tyre was supreme

in Phoenicia.

ver. 96 that the allegory falls into the

not

till

Tyre now

background.

appears no longer as a ship, but as a maritime city, into which all

the ships of the sea

merce.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Vers. 10, 11.

for

defence.

its

sail,

on and improve her com-

to carry

Tyre had

also

made

the best provision

maintained an army of mercenary troops

from foreign countries

protect

colonies

its

and extend

settlements,

and entrusted the guarding of the walls of the

to fighting

men

named

in ver.

an African

who had

The

hired

10 are Pharas, Lud, and

PJiut.

of Plioenicia.

tribe, in

its

city

troops specially DIQ

no doubt

Coptic Phaiatj the Libyans of the ancients,

spread themselves over the whole of North Africa as

far as Mauretania (see the

comm. on Gen.

x. 6).

not

the Semitic people of that name, the Lydians (Gen. x. 22),

but here, as in ch. xxx.

Hamitic people of

(Gen.

D""*]^?

Isa. Ixvi. 19, x. 13),

and Jer.

xlvi.

probably a general

name

for the whole of the Moorish tribes, since l^b (ch. xxx.

and t3^S

D''*i^7

(Jer. xliv.

as auxiliaries in the

are

the

mentioned in connection with

Egyptian army.

There

striking in the reference to D"i3, the Persians.

points to the early intercourse carried on

something

Havernick

by the Phoenicians

with Persia through the Persian Gulf, through which the

former would no doubt be able to obtain mercenary

was a general rule

for which

possible.

Hitzig objects to

this,

to select

tribes as

on the ground that

soldiers,

remote as tjiere is

390

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

proof that this intercourse with Persia through the Persian

Gulf was carried on it

in Ezekiel's time,

and that even

were,

if it

does not follow that there were any Persian mercenaries.

therefore proposes to understand by DiQ, Persians

But

settled in Africa in the olden time.

who had

this settlement can-

not be inferred with sufficient certainty either frojn Sallust, Jug.

from the occurrence of the African MuKai of

18, or

175, along with the Asiatic (Ptol.

Herodotus,

iv.

to take

as an

explanation of ona.

where Paras

xxxviii. 5,

mentioned

and Phut, Gomer and Togarmah,

vi.

we compare

14), ch.

connection with Cush

army

as auxiliaries in the

Gog, there can be no doubt that Asiatic Persians are intended there.

And we

have to take the word in the same sense here

;

for Hitzig's objections consist of pure conjectures which have no

conclusive force. of

Ezekiel evidently intends to give the names

from the

tribes

far-off

west,

east,

and south, who were

Hang-

enlisted as mercenaries in the military service of T^re.

ing the shields and helmets in the

ornament

city, to

its walls,

appears to have been a Phoenician custom, which Solomon also

introduced into Judah (1 Kings x. 16, 17;

and which (1

Mace.

mentioned again

iv.

57).

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;A

Song

of Sol.

distinction

drawn

in ver. 11 between

A radians,

the mercenary troops on the one hand, and the

and

'^T'!}j

on the

iv. 4),

Maccabees

in the times of the

thine army, the military corps consisting of Tyrians,

other.

The

latter

appear upon the walls of Tyre,

because native troops were employed to watch and defend the city, whilst

Xey. D^nea

the mercenaries had to

(Gammddim)

conclusively

signifies

march

into the field.

shown from the Syrian usage,

Gesenius' T/ies. p. 70 seq. native troops of Tyre.

It is therefore

in his

returning to

its

merce of Tyre with

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; With the words, " they (the troops) com-

starting-point in vers. 4

Vers. 12-25. This

Addenda

an epitheton of the

pleted thy beauty," the picture of the glory of off,

The utt.

brave men, as Roediger has

Tyre

and

rounded

followed by a description of the com-

all nations,

who

delivered their productions

;

CHAP. XXVII. in the

market of

391

12-25.

this metropolis of the

commerce of the world,

and received the wares and manufactures of this city in return.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver. of

all

Tarshish traded with thee for the multitude of goods

12.

kinds

;

with

silver^

iron^ tin,

and

lead they

Ver. 13. Javan, Tubal, and Meshech, they were thy mer-

sales.

chants

with souls of

;

Ver. 14.

barter.

riding-horses,

Dedan were

men and brazen

From the

and mules for thy

thy merchants

Ver. 16.

Aram

and

corals,

and

the

and

;

many

sales.

thy

Ver. 15. The sons of

islands were at thy thee in

hand for payment.

red purple, and embroidery, and byssus,

rubies they

paid for thy

Ver. 17. Judah

sales.

land of Israel, they were thy merchants ; with wheat of

Minnith and confectionery, and honey and

made

traded with thee for the multitude of thy produc-

loith carbuncle,

;

they

vessels

house of Togarmah they paid horses,

commerce ; ivory horns and ebony they brought

tions

paid for thy

thy barter.

oil,

and balsam they

Ver. 18. Damascus traded with thee in the

multitude of thy productions, for the multitude of goods of all kinds, with wine of Chelbon

and white wool.

Ver. 19. Vedan

and Javan from Uzal gave wrought iron for thy sales ; cassia and calamus ivere for thy barter. Ver. 20. Vedan was thy merchant in cloths spread for riding.

Ver. 21. Arabia and

all the

princes of Kedar, they were at thy hand for commerce; lambs

and rams and

he-goats, in these they traded with thee.

Ver. 22.

The merchants of Sheba and Ragmah, they were thy merchants with all kinds of costly spices and with all kinds of precious stones

and gold

they

paid for thy

sales.

Ver. 23. Haran, and

Canneh, and Eden, the merchants of Sheba, Asshur, Chilmad,

were thy merchants splendid

clothes,

;

Ver. 24. purple

treasures of twisted yarn, in

wares. trade, seas.

and embroidered

wound and

robes,

strong

and

cords for thy

Ver. 25. The ships of Ihrshish were thy caravans, thy

and thou wast

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; The

cities,

They were thy merchants

and

glorious

in the

heart of the enumeration of the different peoples, lands, and filled

which carried on trade with Tyre, commences with

Tarshish (Tartessus) in the extreme west, then turns to the

392

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

north, passes through the different lands of Anterior Asia

the Mediterranean to the remotest north-east,

mentioning Tarshish again, to round lands

and

peoples,

off

the

which are mentioned

and

and ends by

But the

list.

5-11 as

vers.

furnishing produce and manufactures for the building of Tyre, viz.

Egypt and the

tribes of

Northern Africa, are

left out.

—To

avoid wearisome uniformity in the enumeration, Ezekiel has

used interchangeably the synonymous words which the language possessed for trade, besides endeavouring to give life to the description

by a variety of turns of

and V' ni"?

(vers. 12, 16, 18), T^l^D (ver. 21), ^"iC

^yP

il^Jiaiy in?

19) with

''31,

(vers.

Tia-iJfD |ri3

•finsB'X n^B'n

from

different

and ^rb^y?

and

The words

731, signify

.\^n

;

(vers.

16,

and

inb, participle of ino, and

merchants, traders,

trade

literally,

— ^731, the female

(pluralet.) does not

(Gesenius and others)

;

3Ty, to leave, relinquish,

travel through literally,

;

^y^, the travelling

but according to literally,

on trade.

commercial town.

a place of trade, market,

Gusset, has correctly explained

the

then used as abstract

trader, a city carrying

ri>31», trade or a place of trade, a

mean

who ninb,

for concrete, the tradesman or merchant,

merchant.

and,

;

r\yyvp2 (ver. 19),

lands for purposes of trade,

and nVno,

(ver. 24)

^^Jiarya jna

22) or

12, 14,

(vers. 13, 17),

(ver. 15).

female trader

^^lO'^

(ver. 15), or

21), are interchanged with 'nv3T (vers. 13, 15,

(,^^^-

17, 22, 24), -^rhy^ (vers. 20, 23),

again,

Thus

expression.

its

and

Q^^STp profits

derivation from

leaving or giving up, and as

it,

" that which you leave with

another in the place of something else which he has given up to you."

Ewald, in accordance with

this explanation, has

adopted the very appropriate rendering Absatz, or "Jj^jnry,

with

or with a double accusative, literally, to

thy sale with something,

i.e.

pay or

thing as an equivalent for the sale

;

to give,

'3Ty3

for the sale, or the goods to be sold.

bartered with barter.

sale.

1^0, to

irij,

i.e.

to give

3"i]^,

iri3

make

pay, some-

something

barter,

goods

give bartered goo(is, or carry on trade by

—

CHAP. XXVII.

The

^^^,

393

12-25.

following are the countries and peoples enumerated

the Tyrian colony of Tarshish or Tartessus, in Hispania

which was celebrated for

Baetica,

X. 9), and,

and lead

iron, tin,

wealth in silver (Jer.

its

according to the passage before us, also supplied

xxxiv. 14 (41)

(vid. Pliu. Hist. nat.

iii.

3 (4),

xxxiii. 6 (31),

Further particulars con-

Diod. Sic. v. 38).

;

cerning Tarshish are to be found in Movers, Phoeniz. II. 2, pp. 588 sqq.,

and

Javan,

II. 3, p. 36.

i.e.

Jania, Greece or

Tubal and Meshech are the Tibareni and Mosclii of

Greeks.

the ancients between the Black

in brass.

vigorously by the lonians and Greeks (see Joel

which we learn that the Phoenicians them) lies

and the best

Movers,

slaves

II. 3, pp.

from the Pontus It

seq.).

Moschi, as the Colchian mountains

Euboea alone

;

Togarmah

(for proofs of this, see

were

also

paid,"

comm. on Gen. wealth of Armenia (i.

still

by the Tibareni and

contain an inexhaustible

and the only other rich mines were in Cyprus Ver. 14. " From the house 3, pp. 66, 67).

the

Herodotus

—

Movers, II.

Togarmah they

paid.

war

their largest sup-

In Greece, copper was found and wrought

quantity of copper.

{vid.

from

probable that the principal

supplies of brazen articles were furnished

iv.

sold prisoners of

and both Greeks and Romans drew

;

(see the

They supplied souls of men, i.e. slaves, The slave trade was carried on most

coram, on Gen. x. 2).

and things

and Caspian Seas

i.e.

they of the house of Togarmah

one of the names of the Armenians x. 3)

and Strabo (XI.

;

in horses, whilst that in asses

we may Ver. 15. The

194), so that

bred there.

—

*(see

14. 9) mentions the is

attested

safely infer that mules

sons of Dedan, or the

Dedanites, are, no doubt, the Dedanites mentioned in Gen. x. 7 as

descendants of Cush,

who conducted

the carrying trade

between the Persian Gulf and Tyre, and whose caravans are

mentioned in Dedanites,

who

inhabitants of ch. XXV.

Isa.

xxi.

13.

Their relation

the

are evidently intended in ver. 20, and

Dedan mentioned

13 and Jer.

xlix. 8, is

in connection with

Semitic

by the

Edom

involved in obscurity (see the

894

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

comm. on Gen. x. 7). The combination with CS"] 0"?^ and the commerce which they brought to Tyre, point to a

articles of

people of southern Arabia settled in the neighbourhood of the

The many C^X

Persian Gulf.

are the islands and coasts of

Arabia on the Persian Gulf and Erythraean Sea.^ the commerce of thy hand,

were ready This

term

the

hand

to thy

i.e.

pro

as abstr.

as merchants.

T)T JTihp,

concr.y those

who

ivory horns.

r^i^"?!?,

applied to the elephants' tusks {sheii) on

account of their shape and resemblance to horns, just as Pliny (^Hist. nat. xviii. 1) also

speaks of

cornua, are

more correctly

CJ^in,

(4), that

D^^an,

Keri

comua

elephantij although

an elephant's weapons, which Juba

says, in viii.

The

to be called denies.'^

signifies

Xey.

air.

The

ebony.

hebenum,

e)8ei/09,

calls

ancients obtained both productions partly from India, partly

from Ethiopia (Plin.

xii.

According

(8)).

to Dioscor.

the Ethiopian ebony was preferred to the Indian. to return

payment

(see the

comm. on Ps.

for on^^

LXX. and Pesh., because Aram did not lie in

the road

from Dedan and the

D"'^N

for

DHK

could arise

fact that the defective

and

to Israel (ver. 17),

ver. 18 that Ezekiel reaches D"iS

130,

10).t— In ver. 16,

Ixxii.

J. D. Michaelis, Ewald, Hitzig, and others read after the

"ISK'K y^*],

all

Aram. the

not

till

Moreover, the corruption

readily

from the simple

form DIN only occurs in Ezekiel (xxv. 14),

and 'is altogether an extraordinary one. doubtedly worthy of consideration

;

still

These reasons are unthey are not conclusive,

since the enumeration does not follow a strictly geographical * Movers (II. 3, pp. 303 sqq.) adduces stiU further evidence in addition to that given above, namely, that " unquestionable traces of the ancient

name have been

preserved in the region in which the ancient Dedanites

names Atiana, Attene, which have been modified according to well-known laws, the former, a commercial town on the Persian Gulf, visited by Roman merchants (Plin. are represented as living, partly on the coast in the

—

vi. 32, §

(Plin. 2

147)

I.e.

;

the latter, a tract of country opposite to the island of Tylos and partly in the islands of the Persian Gulf " (p. 304).

§ 49),

—

The Ethiopians

suppose that

it is

Hiob Ludolph,

also call ivory

Kama

nage,

i.e.

cornu elephanti, and

from horns, and not from tusks, that ivory comes

Hist. Aeth.

I. c.

10)

(rid.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

CHAP. XXVII.

order,

many

inasmuch

Damascus

;

S95

12-25.

followed in vers. 19 sqq. by

Aram

of the tribes of Southern Arabia, so that

might

Haveniick supposes, for Mesopotamian Aram, for

stand, as

which the

mentioned in ver. 16 would be quite as

articles

Edom, whose chief city Petra was an important commerce and emporium for goods. ^^.K'yo 2\ the

suitable as for

place of

multitude of thy works, thy manufactures.

commerce delivered by

Aramaean name

the articles of

the red purple, embroidery, and

D^i?.,

(the

Movers, to have originally denoted a species of cotton),

for byssus, which appears, according

favour Aram, particularly Babylonia, rather than Edom. the woven fabrics of

Movers,

earliest times (vid.

was

II. 3, pp.

stones (vid. Movers, p. 266).

^Si

nioN"!, corals or pearls {vid.

(ver. 17) delivered to xi.

Tyre wheat

Roman

Onojnast, four

and Babylon

the carbuncle (see the

splendour

Delitzsch on

Ammonitish

33, an

;

^^I?, probably the ruby

xxviii. 18).

case, a precious stone of brilliant

Judg.

sqq.)

and most important market for precious

also the oldest

comm. on Ex.

260

For

from the

Babylonia were celebrated

Job

;

any

{vid. Isa. liv. 12).

Judah

xxviii. 18).

of Minnith,

i.e.

according to

place, situated, according to the

miles from

Heshbon

in the direction of

Philadelphia.

That Ammonitis abounded

from 2 Chron.

xxvii. 5, although the land of Israel also sup-

plied the Tyrians with

the aTT. Xey. 333

and the Chaldee ra

e/c

evident

The meaning of The render-

founded upon the Aramaean

translation, K^?ip,

i.e.

p33, deliciari^

made from honey.

balsamum, after the fivpwv of the

in Hitzig's opinion,

Pannaga

Hesy-

KoKia, according to

fiiXiro^ TpcojaXiaj or sweetmeats

Jerome renders and

v. 25).

cannot be definitely ascertained.

ing confectionery

chius,

wheat (1 Kings

in wheat,

(literally,

a snake)

LXX. a

name

used in Sanscrit for a sweet-scented wood, which was employed in medicine as a cooling

(from bees) and 'i>'

balsam

;

oil

and strengthening drug

(?).

Honey

are well-known productions of Palestine.

whether resina or the true balsam grown in

gardens about Jericho {opohalsamum)^

it is

impossible to decide

396 (see

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

my Bihl.

Archdol.

I. p.

and Movers, II.

38,

Damascus supplied Tyre with wine of

many

sqq.).

p3^n

Chelbon.

HelbSn, a place with

exists in the village of

220

3, pp.

still

ruins, three

hours and a half to the north of Damascus, in the midst of a

same name, which

valley of the it

practicable,

wine of the country

Even

planted with vines wherever

from whose grapes the best and most is

made

wine was so celebrated,

in ancient times this

ing to Posidonius (in AtJien. Deipnos.

XV.

that, accord-

22), the kings of

Damascus

Persia drank only Chalybonian wine from Strabo,

costly

Robinson, Biblical Researches).

(yid.

{vid.

iny npy, wool of dazzling whiteness

3. 22).

;

or,

according to others, wool of Zachar, for which the Septuagint has epta

MiXt^tov, Milesian wool.^

e'/c

nations have been given of the altered into

I'l"^,

— Ver.

19. Various expla-

three words,

first

not to be

has been by Ewald, both arbitrarily and

unsuitably with ver. 20 immediately following

rendered " and DanJ*

;

nor

a decisive objection to

to be

this,

that

throughout the whole enumeration not a single land or people is

introduced with the copula

Num.

pared with the Vaheb of only once,

the

name

Javan

that

is also

the

Old Testament.

name

prising spirit to cross the land of

a place in

to be a

302)

(p.

Aden

(^;Ju:). ;

and,

Yemen.

Greek (Ionian)

into Southern Arabia.

this it

269), "ins

Arabian Javan from

more is

precisely, ?^Vp

the Sicharia of Aethicus

quae postea Nabathaea, nunciipatur, sil-> valde, ubi Ismaelitae eminiis, an earlier name for the land of the

(Cosm. § 108) vestris

(II. 3, p.

it is

Egypt

or in order to define

According to Movers

men-

had been led by their enter-

For the purpose of distinguishing

of an Arabian place or tribe

(Genesis, p. 210) supposes

itself,

Movers

the celebrated city

settlement, the founders of which

Greece

be com-

a place also mentioned

xxi. 14,

according to a notice in the Ramus,

Tuch

may

of a tribe and tract of land not

tioned elsewhere in the

conjectures

Vedan^ which

Nabathaeans,

Sicharia

who dwelt

regio^

—

olden

time between Palestine

Euphrates, and were celebrated for their wealth in flocks of sheep.

and the

—

;

397

CHAP. XXVIL 12-25.

appended, which proper name.

word

is,

the older translators have taken to be a

all

According to the Masoretic pointing

no doubt,

the sense of spun, from that

5*0,

''f

be regarded as a participle Pual of

But apart from

?]«, to spin.

would be a surprising thing

the

?1X,

the fact

spun goods men-

to find

tioned in connection with the trade of the Arabian tribes, the

explanation

languase

itself

idea that bts all ijTy

occurs

could not be sustained from the usage of the

for there

;

biy,

inasmuch as they have

(Aram.) and Jji (Arab.), and the Talmudic 7TK, texere^ first of all in the Gemara, and may possibly have been

derived in the

instance from the Rabbinical rendering of

first

our ^nso by "spun." with Shureh

and

nothincr in the dialects to confirm the

a softened form of

Even

the fact that the word

against this explanation rather than in

in all probability its origin is to

written

favour

its

be traced to the simple

circumstance, that in vers. 12, 14, 16 the articles of commerce are always mentioned before

would appear

by the word ing words

?n3

follow-

as the object of the first hemistich, since

the Masoretic accentuation is

in this verse they

But we can very properly take the

^TIXD.

ni'j'y

and

"H^^^^IV ^^^^J,

be omitted altogether, unless they are covered

founded upon the idea that 7nx»

We therefore regard

be taken as the object here.

-'f^XD

the only admissible pointing, and take ?|^X as a proper name, as in

Gen.

" from Uzal" the ancient name of Sanaa,

the subsequent capital of

Forged or wrought

bear this out. p.

The

Yemen.

productions mentioned

iron,

by which Tuch

Yemen

260) supposes that sword-blades from

intended, which were celebrated the Indian.

among

(I.e.

are chiefly

the Arabs as

much

comm. on Ex. xxx.

Cassia and calamus (see the

Yemen

23 and 24), two Indian productions,

India from the very earliest times.

Dedan

traded with

(ver.

20)

the

inland people of that name, living in the neighbourhood of

Edora

(cf.

ch. xxv. 13; see the

furnished C'Sh

most

"•'133,

tapetes

comm. on

straguli, cloths

likely costly riding-cloths, like the

ver.

15).

They

for spreading out,

middim of Judg.

v. 10.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

898

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL. and

y]V.

nomad

represent the

y^\>

For 2iy

Bedouins.

whole of Arabia

tribes of Central Arabia, the

never used in the Old Testament for the

but, according to

;

derivation from

its

nomads

steppe or desert, simply for the tribes living as desert (as in Isa.

Arab.

20; Jer.

iii.

tribe, living in the desert

in the

Ewald, Grammat.

cf.

between Arabia Petraea and

comm. on Gen. xxv.

Babylonia, the Cedreiof Pliny (see the

They

Kedar, descended from Ishmael, an Arabian

I. p. 5).

nomad

xiii.

f^^'JV,

and

supplied lambs, rams,

he-goats,

13).

from the abundance

of their flocks, in return for the goods obtained from Tyre.

Ver. 22. Next to these the merchants of Sheba and

Ragmah

They were Arabs of Cushite south-eastern Arabia (Oman) for ^^V1,

{p'W^^ ^^^ mentioned.

(Gen.

was

X. 7) in

in the

name

{Arabia

bay of the same

Their goods were

comm. on Ex.

most

likely the

kinds of

all

xxx. 23

perfumes (on ;

Song

of Sol.

genuine balsam, which grew in Yemen Diod. Sic.

felix), according to

and grows there

costly spices,

still

between Mecca and Medina, called to

in the

Db'a'pS CNi, the chief or best of all

this use of b^ni, see the

14),

Oman

precious stones, and gold, in which southern Arabia

abounded.

iv.

'Peyfia,

;

modern province of

in the Persian Gulf.

spices,

descent

;

45, along with other

iii.

for Forskal found a shrub

Abu sJiam, which he

believed

be the true balsam, and of which he has given a botanical

account in his Flora Aeg. pp. 79, 80 (as Amyris opobalsamum), as well as of

two other kinds.

rubies, agates,

Hadramaut

good rubies

and ;

and in Yemen

(yid.

Precious stones,

cornelians, are

also jaspers, crystals,

Niebuhr, Descript.

Zach's Monatl. Corresp. xix. p. 339).

Yemen

called in question (cf. is

Romans xi.

the wealth of writers to be

Bochart, Phal. II. 28), although this

mentioned.

in north-western

31),

and many

and Seetzen iu

lastly,

by ancient

not found there now.

trade with Mesopotamia

Gen.

p. 125,

And,

in gold is too strongly attested

precious metal

viz. onyx-stones,

found in the mountains

still

was situated

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;In

I^n,

Mesopotamia

vers. 23,

24 the

the Carrhae of the

(see

the

comm. on

at the crossing of the caravan-roads

CHAP, XXVn.

which intersect Mesopotamia

for

;

399

12-25.

was

at this point that the

two caravan routes from Babylonia and the

Delta of the

Persian Gulf joined the old military and commercial road to

Canaan (Movers, Tigris,

portant commercial city.

The western mentioned

eastern route ran along the

was the most im-

later KtesipJion,

tracted from np73 (see the

here called n33 (Canneh), con-

comm. on Gen.

Amos

10;

in ver. 235.

not the Syrian, but the Mesopo-

xix.

;

Isa. xxxvii. 12), the situation

which has not yet been determined, though Movers

has sought for

The

vi. 2).

route ran along the Euphrates, past the cities

tamian Eden (2 Kings of

The

p. 247).

where Calneh, the

in the Delta of the Euphrates

(p.

and

257)

Tigris.

singular circumstance that the merchants of Sheba should

be mentioned in connection with

localities

Mesopotamia,

which has given rise both to arbitrary alterations of the text and

various forced

Movers

(p.

explanations, has

247 compared with

in Pliny's Hist. nat.

xii.

17 (40), namely, that the Sabaeans,

the inhabitants of the spice country,

from the Persian Gulf yearly markets,

been explained by

139) from a notice of Juba

came with

their goods

Carrhae, where they held their

and from which they were accustomed

proceed to Gabba (Gabala in Phoenicia) and Palestinian Syria.

Consequently the merchants of Sabaea are mentioned as those

who

carried

on the trade between Mesopotamia and Tyre, and

are not unsuitably placed in the centre of those localities whicli

formed the most important

seats of trade

commercial roads of Mesopotamia.

we have

already observed, were on the western road which ran

along the Euphrates.

Bochart {Phal. i.

5. 10),

on the two great

Asshur and Chilmadj as

1073 has already been discovered by

18) in the Charmande of

and Sophaenetus

Xenophon (Anab.

(see Steph. Byz. s.v. XapfjudvSr)), a

large and wealthy city in a desert region " beyond the river

Euphrates."

The Asshur mentioned along with Chibnad,

midst of purely commercial

cities,

in the

cannot be the land of Assyria,

bat must be the emporium Sura (Movers,

p. 252), the present

;

400

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL. which stands upon the bank on

JEssurieh,

this

side of the

Euphrates above Thapsacus and on the caravan route, which runs from Palmyra past Rusapha {Rezeph^ Isa. xxxvii. 12 2 Kings xix. 12) to Nicephorium or Rakka, then in a northerly

Haran, and bending southwards, runs along the

direction to

bank

Chilmad or Charmande

of the river in the direction of

(Ritter,

The

Erdk. XI. pp. 1081 sqq.).

commerce

articles of

from these emporia, which were brought

Tyre by Sabaean

caravans, consisted of Dv?3^, literally, articles of perfect beauty, state-dresses

either

sion of the copula

former, as

we may

before 'Oi^JS infer

an explanatory apposition (QiP3

ch. xxiii. 12

''^30^

(cf.

and xxxiv.

4), or

The

omis-

generally, costly works of art (Havernick).

connected with

258

sqq.).

explained with certainty. 'nsi 'an is

appended

077303

'^(Xa/JLU^)

dery, for which Babylonia see Movers, pp.

from

decisive in favour of the

this that

'!>J3

cloaks

''l?i''3,

of hyacinth-purple and embroi-

was celebrated

(for proofs of this,

The words which All that

follow cannot be

evident

is,

that

CO^ia 7333 without a copula, as

Qy^n?

'l3l

^^yi^

and therefore, like the latter, an explanatory apposition. Dyan does not mean

intended as

either cloths or threads, but lines or cords.

bound or wound up

of several threads

wound

;

^V?!!! signifies

probably twisted,

together or spun

compact, from j^l, to be drawn together. 'i3i

intended as

in the first hemistich,

literally

nopni nban

Dy^30.

;

and

i.e.

formed

D''n**Âť

firm,

Consequently

^33

D^Dha can hardly have any other meaning than treasures of

spun yarns, threads.

assigned to D'Oina,

i.e.

For "

the most valuable yarns formed of different treasures "

the only

with any certainty on philological grounds, and

D"'t33

from D13,

*j},

contorsitf

several or various threads, or cloth

But

meaning which can be

either

yarn spun from

woven from such

the latter would not harmonize with Dy?D..

pp. 263

sqq.)

dence that

threads.

Movers

(II. 3,

adopts a similar conclusion, and adduces evi-

silk

yarn,

bombyx, and cotton came

Tyre

401

CHAP. XXVII. 26-36.

through the Mesopotamian trade, and were there dyed in the

woven

splendid Tyrian purples, and

dyeing complete.

sale with the

which have been given of these

and untenable viz. chests of

;

into cloths, or brought for

All the other explanations difficult

words are arbitrary

not only the Rabbinical rendering of D^pna

damask, but that of Ewald, " pockets of damask,"

and that proposed by Hartmann, Havernick, and In

girdles of various colours, ^wvat a-Kicorai. scription

rounded niiU'

wide trade.

'•tia,

off

others, viz.

ver.

25 the de-

with a notice of the lever of this world-

cannot mean " walls " in

Jer. v. 10, and like nniK' in

Job

this instance, as in

xxiv. 11, because the ships,

through which Tyre became so rich, could not be called walls. The word signifies " caravans," after "iW =jL (Isa. Ivii. 9), corresponding to the Aramaean as

"^1?"^^'?

^"^if.

an accusative of more precise definition

gard

to (for)

thy bartering trade.

;

might be regarded caravans, with re-

the same time

rhetorical to take '^TlV.^ as a second predicate trade,

i.e.

What

the carriers of thy trade.

for the emporia of trade

it is

they were thy

the caravans were

on the mainland, the ships of Tarshisli

were for Tyre, and these on the largest sea-going ships are

By means

mentioned instar omnium. filled

and

glorious.

Tyre with

— But

glory.

all its

brought thee into great waters heart of the seas.

and

rich

i.e.

a tempest from the east would destroy

Vers. 26-36. Destruction

tering wareSj thy

Tyre

of these vessels

with goods, and rendered weighty pss^),

was

of Tyre. :

the east

—Ver.

Ver. 27. Thy riches and thy

seamen and thy sailors,

the traders in thy wares,

and

Thy

26.

wind broke

thee

roicers

up in

the

sales j thy bar-

the repairers

all thy fighting

of thy leaks

men

in thee,

together with all the multitude of people in thee, fell into the heart

of the seas in the day of thy ci'y

fall.

of thy sailors the places tremble.

Ver. 28.

Ver. 29.

the noise

And

the

out of their

ships come all the oarsmen, seamen, all the sailors of the sea;

they come

upon

over thee,

and

EZEK.

the land,

Ver. 30.

ci-y bitterly,

And make

and put dust upon

their voice

heard

their heads,

2 C

and

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

402-

cover themselves with ashes

;

And

Ver. 31.

shave themselves bald

on thy account, and gird on sackcloth, and weep for

and lament over

grief a lamentation, like the

Who

tliee:

destroyed one in the midst of the sea

came forth out of

thy sales

thee in anguish

Ver. 32. They raise over thee in their

of soul a bitter wailing.

Tyre!

Ver. 33.

When

many

thou didst satisfy

the seas,

and

nations; with the abundance of thy goods

thy wares thou

Now

Ver. 34.

didst enrich kings of the earth.

that thou art

wrecked away from the seas in the depths of the watery thy

wares and

inhabitants

the

company are fallen

all thy

the

kings shudder greatly

among and

art gone for ever.

(cf.

5— 9a Ps.

wind

—Thfe

Tyre

;

renewal

ver. is

their

the

allegory

wrecked by the east wind

;

and

into

if it rises

damage on account of the commentary

generally causes great

serves

glory,

its

characterized by continued gusts

tempest,

and

In Palestine (Arabia and Syria) the east

xlviii. 8).

thee,

ships of Tarshish,

allusion to the

a ship, which

Ver. 36. The traders

thou hast become a tensor,

;

Tyre was indebted for

introduction vers.

amazed

are

the nations hiss over thee

which

islands

their faces quiver,

;

Ver. 35. All

in thee.

violence of the gusts (see Wetzstein in Delitzsch's

on Job xxvii.

Tyre with repetition

all

Like a ship broken

1). its

;

which

just as the enumeration of all the possesfall

with the ship into the heart of the sea,

the ship also perish with the cargo, repairers of

leaks

board, and the fighting

goods against pirates, in the ship. as

the vessel

also the

(calkers),

i.e.

sailors,

merchants on

the ship and

its

— the whole qdhdl, or gathering of people,

The difficult

thee, namely, in the

They who manned

—" the seamen,"

men who defended expression

an explanatory apposition to

When

The

3?3 in vers. 26 and 27 forms an effective

does to the wealth and glory in ver. 256.

rowers,

by the storm,

glory sinks into the depths of the sea.

D^t?!

contrast to ver. 25 sions of Tyre,

in pieces

'H?

"rj/^nipv^S

"i^^.

all

can only be taken

the

men who

multitude of people in thee.

are in

Ver. 28.

wrecked, the managers of the ship raise

;

403

CHAP. XXVIL 26-36.

KnJD

a cry that the migreshoth tremble.

sucli

used in

Num.

cities,

which

and

Ezek.

XXXV. 2 for the precincts around the Levitical

were

ground for the

set apart as pasture

;

ground surrounding the holy

xlv. 2, xlviii. 17, for the

Consequently

flocks

city.

cannot mean the suburbs of Tyre in the

riia'"i30

passage before us, but must signify the open places on the

mainland belonging

to Tyre,

the whole of

i.e.

the fields and villages contained therein.

with

its territory,

rendering "

The

fleet,"

which Ewald follows the Vulgate in adopting, has nothing support

it.

—

The

Vers. 29 sqq.

ful metropolis of the

greatest consternation

commerce of the world produces the

among

they forsake their ships, as

all

who

upon the

sail

V^^n

XV. 19, etc.

sea, so that

they were no longer safe in them,

and leaving them for the land, bewail the deepest lamentation.

ruin of this wealthy and power-

with

For the purpose

Tyre with

fall of

Ps. xxvi. 7

?ip3, as in

;

Chron.

of depicting the lamentation as

great and bitter in the extreme, Ezekiel groups together

all

the

things that were generally done under such circumstances, viz.

covering the head with dust

and Job not to bald

ii.

11 and

see the

(see ch. vii. 18

putting on sackcloth vii.

x. 1)

;

eorum ;

in lamento ch.

Syr.,

and eleven Codd.

The by

precisely defined

ii.

(On^in)

'3TV

12;

iv.

shaving a

nG)"n,

(vers.

Who

participle Pual, with the

assume that there was a noun

Job

sqq.).

(Jer. ix. 17, 18;

"'Hi

Theodot.,

2iTD3j

Tyre

lamenta-

raise the

like the destroyed

Anm.

unsuitable, as there

by Hitzig,

exclamation. •"'^'73,

16)

(K'Si "i»3, as in

seamen themselves

10, etc. (yid. Ges. § 52. 2,

weeping

contracted from

correction proposed

inappropriate.

of the sea.

''3

;

The reading adopted by the LXX.,

10).

allusion to sons, but the

The

10)

and the comm. on Mic.

and singing a mournful dirge

cf. ^n,

tion.

comm. on Mic.

loud, bitter

Dn''33^

ii.

6; 1 Sam.

vii.

12) and ashes (K'PSnn, to strew, or cover oneself,

roll oneself

place

Josh.

(cf.

altogether !

one in the midst

dropt, as in 2

Kings

6).

It is quite superfluous

«nK)"n

signifying destruction.

nx^3 has been aptly explained by Hitzig

" inasmuch as

404 tliy

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL. wares sprang out of the

sea, like

the plants and field-fruits

out of the soil" (the selection of the word l?V3bn also suggested this simile)

'' ;

not as being manufactured at Tyre, and there-

fore in the sea, but because the sea floated the goods to land for the people in the ships,

Tyre

purchasers." its

and they

satisfied peoples

satisfied the desire of the

and enriched kings

wares, not only by purchasing from

their productions with

money

that the Tyrians gave a

still

or barter, but also

only met with here.

treasures

The

and

its

by the

for fact

higher value to the raw material

by the labour which they bestowed upon them. plural

witli

them and paying

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver. 34.

^'3in in

the

But now Tyre with

its

inhabitants has sunk in the depths of the sea.

antithesis in

which

ver.

33 does

really stands to ver.

not warrant our altering ^7??'? ^^ ^"^^ ^"l?^? ^^, as Ewald and Hitzig propose, or adopting a different division of the second hemistich,

riy is

an adverbial accusative, as in ch.

xvi.

" at the time of the broken one away from the seas into the depth of the waters, thy wares and thy people have fallen, perished."

n"?3y^^ ^V,

intentionally selected

xxvi. 17.

kings,

and

i.e.

;

an antithesis

es.

Q"''???

be thrown into consternation at the

(ver. 36) the

merchants among the nations,

foreign nations, the rivals of

Tyre

laid waste, or C3''3S

much

in ch.

fall i.e.

the

in trade, will hiss thereat

in other words, give utterance to malicious joy.

^.?^'^

DVs^o '^'^^^

the inhabitants of the (coast of the) Mediterranean

and

ment.

ue.

Ver. 35. All the inhabitants of the islands and their

islands, will

its

Tyre

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

tempore quo fracta

OOB', to

thrown into perturbation with terror and amaze-

Dyn, to tremble or quiver in the face,

i.e.

to tremble

that the terror shows itself in the countenance.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; In

ver. 36/> Ezekiel brings the lamentation to a close in a similar

manner

to the threat contained in ch. xxvi. {yid. ch. xxvi, 21).

;

CHAP. XXV.

CHAP. XXVITI.

AGA'tNST

1-19.

the city of Tyre was

first

and then her

fall

(ch. xxvi.),

THE PEINCE OF TYRE.

all

threatened with destruction

was confirmed by a lamentation

(ch. xxvii.), so here the prince of

Tyre

composed thereon

Vers. 1-10.

Fall of the Prince of Tyre.

heart has lifted itself np,

Lord

and thou say est, "

seat of Gods, in the heart of the seas^^

and

not God,

and

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Ver.

And

cherishest a

mind

Jehovah, Because thy

lam a

God,

when thou

I sit upon man

art a

a God's mind, Ver.

Behold, thou art loiser than Daniel ; nothing secret thee ; Ver. 4.

me, saying, Ver. 2. Son of man, say

prince of Tyre, TIius saith the

to the

and then a lamentation

11-19),

(vers.

of Jehovah came

the loord

of all forewarned

is first

of his approaching death (vers. 1-10), is

405

1-10.

obscure

3. to

Through thy wisdom and thy understanding hast

thou acquired might, and put gold and silver in thy treasuries

Ver.

Through

the greatness

of thy might, Ver.

fore, behold,

nations

;

they will

the

draw

their

Ver.

hand of him

ment

it,

is the

Therethe

swords against the beauty of thy

Ver.

They

Wilt thou indeed say, thee,

will cast thee

I am a God, in 7iot God

when thou art a man and

that killeth thee f

Ver. 10. Thou wilt die the

death of the uncircumcised at the hand of foreigners

spoken

men of

mayest die the death of the slain in the

face of him that slayeth

in the

Lord Jehovah,

bring foreigners upon thee, violent

into the pit, that thou

heart of the seas.

np on account

a God^s mind, Ver.

wisdom, and pollute thy splendour.

down

lifted itself

Therefore thus saith the

Because thou cherishest a mind

I will

of thy wisdom hast thou increased

and thy heart has

thy might by thy trade,

saying of the

;

for

I have

Lord Jehovah.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D; This threat of judg-

same course

as those addressed to

follows in general the

other nations (compare especially ch. xxv.), namely, that the sin

mentioned

upon the *i'J3,

dux.

first (vers.

2-5), and then the punishment consequent

sin (vers. 6-10).

In ver. 12

In the use of the term

^^33

'^?0 ^^

used instead of

to desifjnate the kinij.

;

406

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL. an indication of the peculiar position occupied

Kliefotli detects

by the prince in the commercial

much

Tyre, which had been

state of

reared upon municipal foundations

;

inasmuch as he was not

a monarch, comparable to the rulers of Babylon or to

the Pharaohs, as the head of the great mercantile aristocracy.

This

harmony with the use His people

to be the ndgid over

of the tribes,

Sam.

(vid. 1

who

xiii.

prince of Tyre

also

;

of the

word T33

whom God

of Israel, David for example,

for the prince

chose and anointed

in other words, to

;

be the leader

formed an independent commonwealth 2 Sam.

vii.

The

8, etc.).

pride of the

described in ver. 2 as consisting in the fact

that he regarded himself as a God, and his seat in the island of

Tyre

as a God's seat.

calls his seat ^''>p^. 2*^'io,

not " be-

cause his capital stood out from the sea, like the palace of

from the ocean of heaven for, apart

from any other ground,

not suit the subse-

this does

quent description of his seat as God's mountain

God's holy mountain

God

" (Ps. civ. 3), as Hitzig supposes

(ver.

The God's

14).

(ver. 16),

seat

and

and God's

mountain are not the palace of the king of Tyre, but Tyre as a

state,

and that not because of

island, but as a

Sanchun.

ed. Orelli, p. 36), the

by myths

glorified

its

firm position

upon a rocky

holy island (ayia vrjaof, as Tyre

Movers, Phoenizier,

(vid.

The words which Ezekiel Tyre may be explained,

puts into the as Kliefoth

which every

called in

pp. 637 sqq.).

mouth of the king

has well expressed

" from the notion lying at the foundation of gions, according to

founding of which has been

state, as the

all

of it,

natural reli-

production of

its

physical factors and bases personified as the native deities of

house and gods."

state, is

ment went hand religion. its

gods.

creation

regarded as a work and sanctuary of the

In Tyre especially the national and "

political develop-

hand with the spread and propagation of

The Tyrian

state

was the production and

He, the prince of Tyre, presided over and divine

seat

;

this

its

seat of

divine

therefore he, the prince, was himself

a god, a manifestation of the deity, having

its

work and home

CHAP. XXVIII. in the state of

All heathen rulers looked upon them-

Tyre."

selves in this light

so that the king of

;

a similar manner in Isa. xiv. 13, 14.

shown to be a delusion

nations,

37,

Babylon This

2b ; He who

in ver.

his heart like a God's heart,

the Gods.

407

1-19.

i.e.

addressed in

self-deification

only a

cherishes the

man makes

same thought

the heart, as the seat of the thoughts and imagi-

named

This

instead of the disposition.

carried out

further in vers. 3-5 by a description of the various sources

still

from which

imagination sprang.

this

cherishes a God's

mind, because he attributes to himself superhuman wisdom,

through which he has created the greatness, and might, and

The

wealth of Tyre.

words, " behold, thou art wiser," etc.

" art thou indeed

(ver. 3), are not to be taken as a question,

LXX.,

wiser?" as they have been by the

nor are they taken

ironical, as

literally,

Syriac,

Havernick supposes

namely, inasmuch as the prince of Tyre

art, i.e.

wafi

and divine wisdom.

serious in attributing to himself supernatural

Thou

and others;

but they are to be

;

thou regardest thyself as being, wiser than Daniel.

hidden thing

obscure to thee (2?V) ^ later word akin to The comparison with Daniel

the Aramaean, " to be obscure").

refers to the fact that Daniel surpassed

men

of Babylon in

dreams, since

wisdom through

God gave him an

the

all

magi and wise

his ability

to interpret

insight into the nature

and

development of the power of the world, such as no human

The wisdom

sagacity could have secured.

Tyre, on the other hand, consisted children of this world, which

in the

knows how

cleverness of the

to get possession of all

Through such wisdom

the good things of the earth.

had the Tyrian prince acquired power and possessions in the broader sense

of the prince of

;

riches.

riches

and treasures got by

in apposition to

The

fulness of

manner

^0|??'i'

its

which

^^?j

and

conducted

trade.

wisdom showed it

as this

might,

not merely riches, but the whole

of the might of the commercial state of Tyre, which

upon

?^n,

in^3">2i is

introduced as explanatory.

itself in its

it,

was founded

In ver. 5

commerce and the

whereby Tyre had become

408

TnE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL. and powerful.

rich

not

we reach

till

with the apodosis answering to

'Wl "^33

ver. 6 tbat

we meet

which has

in ver. 2,

]V'l

been pushed so far back by the intervening parenthetical sentences in vers. 2b-5.

Tyre 'lit

in deifying himself

inn

ment

For

of the punishment

Wild

ver. 7.

destroy

all

compare

(ver. 65,

this reason the sin of the prince of

briefly reiterated in the clause

introduced with a repetition of p? in

foes approaching with barbarous violence will

the king's resplendent glory, slay the king himself

down

with the sword, and hurl him

The enemies

man.

peoples,

army

—that

are called

into the pit as a godless T"}V> violent ones of the

0)13

composing the Chaldean

to say, the wild hordes

They drew

(cf . ch. xxx. 11, xxxi. 12).

the beauty

the construct state of

(^B"!,

"B^^.)

the sword " against

of thy wisdom,"

the beauty produced by thy wisdom, the beautiful

with

that

all

we meet with

king himself they hurl down into the

the same as xvi.

The

Q'5'13^ 'r)i».

4 {mortes)

Isa.

liii.

splendour

it as'

i.e.

itself, ;

it is

The

a noun.

grave, or the

pit, i.e. tiie

plural *nion

and

'riiD

here

a pluralis exaggerativus, a death so

painful as to be equivalent to dying

Tyre

the death of a pierced one, substan-

7?r] *rii»p,

nether world.

and Jer.

nys^j

contains (ch. xxvi. 3, 4).

only here and in ver. 17 that

tially

]Vl

which the announce-

ver. 2b), after

many

times (see the

comm.

In ver. 9 Ezekiel uses the Piel ^^np in the

9).

in the Piel occurs elsewhere only

place of the Poel ^T^^^y as

''^n

in the sense of profanare,

and

in Isa.

li.

9 the Poel

used for

But there is no necessity to alter the pointing in consequence,' as we also find the Pual used by Ezekiel in ch. The death xxxii. 26 in the place of the Poal of Isa. liii. 5.

piercing.

of the uncircumcised violent death.

The king

god, shall perish

such a death as godless of Tyre,

by the sword

who

men

die

—

looks upon himself as a

like a godless

man.

the same

time, the whole of this threat applies, not to the one king, ItJiobalf

who was

reigning at the time of the siege of Tyre by

the Chaldeans, but to the king as the founder and creator of

the might of Tyre (vers, 3-5),

i.e.

to the supporter of that

CHAP. XXVIII.

409

11-19.

royalty which was to perish along with

Tyre

itself.

—It

to the

king, as the representative of the might and glory of Tyre, and

not merely to the existing possessor of the regal dignity, that the following lamentation over his

Vers. 11-19.

fall refers.

Lamentation over the King of Tyre.

—

And the word of Jehovah came to me, saying, Ver. 12. Son of many raise a lamentation over the king of Tyre, and say to him, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah, Thou seal of a well-measured Ver. 11.

of wisdom and perfect in beauty.

building, full

Eden,

the

garden of God, wast thou

all kinds

;

Ver. 13. In

of precious stones

were thy covering, cornelian, topaz, and diamond, beryl,

and jasper,

of thy timbrels

service

day

sapphire, carbuncle,

that thou

and of thy women was with

the

in thee.

I made

thee

for

thou didst loalk in the

day on which thou wast created, until iniquity was found Ver. 16. On accoujit of the multitude of thy commerce,

and thou

thine inside teas filed with xorong,

therefore profane thee

destroy

the

on the

;

Ver. 15. Thou wast innocent in thy ways

midst of fiery stones.

from

God ;

wast on a holy mountain of

thee

Ver. 14. Thou

wast created, they were prepared.

wast a cherub of anointing, which covered, and it; thou

chrysolit'^,

and emerald, and gold :

away from

the

didst sin

mountain of

God

away from the fiery itself up because of thy

covering cherub,

thee,

Ver. 17. Thy heart has

lifted

will

;

and

stones I

beauty,

thou hast corrupted thy wisdom together with thy splendour: cast thee to the ground,

I give

thee

up for a

Ver. 18. Through the multitude of thy

sitis

trade thou hast profaned thy holy places to

;

in thine unrighteous

therefore cause fire

proceed from the midst of thee, zchich shall devour

thee into ashes

upon

the earth before the eyes of all

Ver. 19. All who know thee

thou hast

The lamentation

thee

among

become a terror, over the

fall of

spectacle before kings.

thee,

and make

who

see thee.

the peoples are aynazed at

and

art

gone for

the king of Tyre

ever.

—

commences

with a picture of the super-terrestrial glory of his position, so as to correspond to his self-deification as depicted in the fore-

410

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

going word of God.

In ver. 12 he

This does not mean, "

There

the

is all

more reason

a participle of Dnrij to seal.

i^^?"? ^f^9> ^^

altogether inap-

though Hitzig once more scents a

plicable to a signet-ring,

corruption of the text in consequence. off,

mean-

for adhering firmly to this

ing, that the following predicate,

weigh, or measure

does not

JT'??'?,

mean

from pn,

occurs,

ch.

xliii.

(Ewald),

perfection

beauty (Ges.), fa^on (Hitzig), or symmetry (Havernick) just as in

Onn

;" for

wrought signet-ring

artistically

does not stand for Dnhj but

addressed as n^Jan Dnh.

but

;

10, the only other passage in which

denotes the measured and well-arranged building of

the temple, so here

signifies a

well-measured and

arranged building, namely, the Tyrian state in

artistically its

artistic

combination of well-measured institutions (Kliefoth).

This

inasmuch as he imparts

to the

building

sealed

by the

state firmness, stability,

prince,

and long duration, when he possesses These are mentioned

the qualities requisite for a ruler.

wards, namely, " full of wisdom, perfect in beauty."

after-

If the

prince answers to his position, the wisdom and beauty manifest in the institutions of the state are simply the impress received

from the wisdom and beauty of

his

own mind.

The

prince of

Tyre possessed such a mind, and therefore regarded himself a

God

(ver.

2).

His place of abode, which

13 and 14, corresponded to his position.

vers.

described in

Ezekiel here

compares the situation of the prince of Tyre with that of the first

man

Paradise; and then, in vers. 15 and 16, draws a

comparison between his first

man was

and the

fall

was the prince of Tyre placed glory,

n?^ is

the proper

Adam.

the

the midst of paradisaical

shown, by the apposition

name

of Paradise

by the captious objection garden of God, but that

The

fall

placed in the garden of God, in Eden, so also

;

and

this

D^7?i<

view

of Hitzig, that

this

was situated

|3,

to be

used as

not to be upset

Eden was not the Eden (Gen. ii. 8).

fact that Ezekiel calls Paradise X)T\\ in

ch. xxxvi.

35,

proves nothing more than that the terms Eden and Garden of

;

CHAP. XXVIir.

God do

411

11-19.

not cover precisely the same ground, inasmuch as the

God

garden of

But

only occupied one portion of Eden.

not-

withstanding this difference, Ezekiel could use the two expressions as

synonymous, just as well

even

any one should

as Isaiah (Isa.

persist in pressing the difference,

would not follow that nV3 was corrupt Hitzig fancies, but simply that

X}V[

precisely

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

There

of Paradise.

D^nijx

this passage, as

p defined the idea of

in other words, restricted is,

And

3).

li.

to the

garden

however, another point to be observed

connection with this expression, namely, that the epithet

D\n^X p

used here and in ch. xxxi.

places, Paradise

called mn"" p (xnd. Isa.

;

li.

whereas, in other

3; Gen.

xiii.

10).

Ezekiel has chosen Elohim instead of Jehovah, because Paradise

brought into comparison, not on account of the

significance

which

bears to the

human

historical

race in relation to the

plan of salvation, but simply as the most glorious land in

The

the earthly creation.

all

prince of Tyre, placed in the plea-

sant land, was also adorned with the greatest earthly glory.

Costly jewels were his coverings, that

ornaments tion

of his attire.

to appear,

This feature in the

they formed the

pictorial descrip-

covering.

'"IS?^,

as a

a is

to the breastplate of the high priest.

the order of the stones

secondly, there are only nine stones lastly,

noun

air. Xey., signifies

no reference first place,

namely, in robes covered with precious

and gold.

In the enumeration of the precious stones, there

stones, pearls,

and

to say,

taken from the splendour with which Oriental rulers are

accustomed

For, in the

a different one here

named

;

instead of twelve

there would be no intelligible sense in such a refer-

ence, so far as

we can

perceive.

Both precious stones and

gold are included in the glories of

Eden

For the names

commentary on T^n nas^tpâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;which even the

Ex.

xxviii.

{vid.

Gen.

ii.

11, 12).

of the several stones, see the

17-20.

The words

'ui

early translators have entirely misunderstood,

and which the

commentators down to Hitzig and Ewald have made marvellous attempts to explain

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

present no peculiar difficulty, apart from

412

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

tlie plural

T3p3, which

timbrels, tambourins (adu^a), in 1

Sam.

the timbrels,

5 and Isa.

only met with here.

D^SJ^,

and

12 flutes are mentioned along with

has been supposed by some that

meaning

the

well established for

must

D*3i53

But there is nothing to support such a signify flutes here. rendering either in the Hebrew or in the other Semitic dialects. On the other hand, the meaning pala gemmarum (Vulgate), or ring-casket, has been quite arbitrarily forced

Jerome, Rosenmiiller, Gesenius, and with Hiivernick in regarding

many

upon the word by

others.

agree

as a plural of nnps (foeminae),

D^ni?3

formed, like a masculine, after the analogy of C^J, CJVipBj

and account for the choice of

this expression

from the

etc.,

allusion

The

service

(naspPj performance, as in Gen. xxxix. 11, etc.) of the

women

the history of the creation (Gen.

27).

the leading of the circular dances by the odalisks

the timbrels

" the harem-pomp of Oriental kings."

made ready for the king on the day of reign,

when

possession with

day of

harem

the

into his

Ezekiel calls this the

his creation, with special reference to the fact that

was God who appointed him king, and with an parallel,

Tyre and that of

next verse (ver. 14)

tion of fiN, nns, as in

184a).

allusion to the

underlying the whole description, between the position

of the prince of

ยง

not his

i.e.

came

of his predecessor

accompaniments.

all its

This was

became king, or commenced

birthday, but the day on which he his

his creation,

who beat

The

air.

Num. Xe7.

Adam

in Paradise.^

difficult one.

xi.

nt'pjp

;

Deut.

riK is

Tlie

an abbrevia(see

Ewald,

has been explained in very

different ways, but mostly according to the

Vulgate rendering,

Havernick has very appropriately which the following statement occurs with reference to Strato, the Sidonian king " Strato, with flute-girls, and female harpers and players on the cithara, made preparations for the festivities, and sent for a large number of hetaerae from the Peloponnesus, and many singing-girls from Ionia, and young hetaerae See also other from the whole of Greece, both singers and dancers." ^

In explanation of the fact alluded

to,

called attention to a passage of Athen. (xii. 8, p. 531), in

passages in Brissonius, de regio Pers. princ. pp. 142-3.

;

413

CHAP. XXVIII. U-19.

tu Chenib extentus et protegens, as signifying spreading out or

"with outspread wings" (Gesenius

extension, in the sense of

and many

others).

The

out or to extend. to anoint

But

riK'b

does not

and judging from

;

Num.

mean

either to spread

general meaning of the word

and

nriK'O

simply

Lev.

^HB'D, portio, off,

from which the

idea of extension cannot possibly be derived.

Consequently

vii.

35 and

xviii, 8, also to

the meaning "anointing"

measure

the only one that can be estab-

lished with certainty in the case of the

the form

word

riK^DO.

far as

concerned, H'^'op might be in the construct state

but the connection with

^iji^']?

anointing, or anointed one, of

A com-

the covering one, does not yield any admissible sense.

parison with ver. 16, where ^SiBL"

^''''?

occurs again, will show

that the nrop^ which stands between these two words in the

verse before us, must contain a

and therefore state

to be

precise definition of

3^">3,

connected with 3^13 in the construct

cherub of anointing,

i.e.

anointed cherub.

This

n^op

the

who has

rendering adopted by Kliefoth, the only commentator

given the true explanation of the verse,

the older

form, which has only been retained in a few words, such as Dp"ifp

in Isa. X. 6, together with the tone-lengthened a (yid.

Ewald,

The prince of Tyre is called an anointed Ephraem Syrus has observed, because he was a

160a).

ยง

cherub, as

king even though he had not been anointed. abstract noun, either here or in this

predicate

covered

(D''33iD)

points

Nah.

ii.

'ilr?iBn

back to Ex. xxv. 20, " the cherubim

the capporeth with their wings," and

explained accordingly.

not an

but a participle; and

Consequently the king of Tyre

called a cherub, because, as an anointed king, he covered or

overshadowed a sanctuary, the covenant.

What

remarks already made the king. sat, is to

this

like the

at ver. 2

If the " seat of

cherubim upon the ark of

sanctuary was

evident from the

concerning the divine seat of

God," upon which the king of Tyre

be understood as signifying the state of Tyre, then

the sanctuary which he covered or overshadowed as a cherub

414

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL be the Tyrian

will also

state,

with

its

In the next clause, T^r\y^

things.

holy places and sacred to be

taken by

itself

according to the accents, " and I have made thee (so)," and not to be connected with

tri'p

ina.

are precluded

adopting the combination which some propose

upon a holy mountain of

first

;

God "

thou wast a

of all describing the prince of

—

viz.

by the incongruity Tyre as a cherub, and

then immediately afterwards as a God, inasmuch

according

as,

to the Biblical view, the cherub, as an angelic being,

a creature

and not a God

from

set thee

simply

and the fanciful delusion of the

;

prince of Tyre, that he was an

(ver. 2), could not furnish

the least ground for his being addressed as Elohim by Ezekiel.

And

still

more are we precluded from taking the words

manner by the

in this

Jehovah

declaration contained in ver. 16, that

will cast

him out " from the mountain of Elohim," from which

we may

see that in the present verse also Eloliim belongs to

har,

and that

in ver. 16,

where the mountain of God

tioned again, the predicate cnp of brevity, just as of

"n?iE3'?

easily

nK'lorp is

men-

simply omitted for the sake

afterwards omitted on the repetition

Tlie missing but actual object to T^^^ can

^^"'?«

be supplied from the preceding clause,

an overshadowing cherub, had

God made

as king in paradisaical glory.

The

—namely,

this, i.e.

him, by placing him

words, " thou wast upon a

holy mountain of God," are not to be interpreted in the sense

suggested by Isa. xiv. 13, namely, that Ezekiel was thinking of the mountain of the gods (Alborj) logy, because

Hitzig and others suppose is

met with

in Asiatic

was there that the cherub had

entirely different

;

its

for the Biblical idea of the cherub

from the heathen notion of the

keeping guard over gold.

mytho-

home, as

true that

God

griffin

placed the

cherub as guardian of Paradise, but Paradise was not a mountain of

God, nor even a mountainous land.

mountain of God,

The

idea of a holy

being the seat of the king of Tyre, was

founded partly upon the natural situation of Tyre as

was upon one or two rocky

itself, built

islands of the Mediterranean,

CHAP. XXVIII.

415

11-19.

and partly upon the heathen notion of the sacredness of island as the seat of the Deity, to

the grandeur of their state.

which the Tyrians attributed

we may probably add a

this

Zion, upon which was the sanctuary, where

Mount

reference to

this

For

the presence of God.

the cherub covered the seat of

although the comparison of the prince of Tyre to a cherub

was primarily suggested by the description of Paradise, the epithet in the sanctuary

same

The

itself.

(among)

fire

also present to the prophet's

not understand by K^p

last clause,

fiery stones," is

mitted by nearly of

was

we must

time,

all

the

abode as

his

shows that the place of the cherub

^siB"!!

At the Mount Zion

mind.

"in

" thou didst walk in the midst of

very

difficult to explain.

It is ad-

more recent commentators, that " stones

cannot be taken as equivalent to " every precious

stone " (ver. 13), both because the precious stones could hardly

be called stones of

and

also

fire

on account of their

brilliant splendour,

being covered with precious stones

the midst of them.

Nor can we

not walking in

explain the words, as Haver-

nick has done, from the account given by Herodotus (II. 44) of the two emerald pillars in the temple of Hercules at Tyre,

which shone resplendently by night night are not stones of

temple between these

in the

Hofmann and

pillars.

ii.

for pillars shining

The

explanation given by

Kliefoth appears to be the correct one, namely,

that the stones of fire are to be

(Zech.

;

and the king of Tyre did not walk

fire,

regarded as a wall of

fire

9),

which rendered the cherubic king of Tyre unap-

proachable upon his holy mountain.

ver. 15, the

comparison of the prince of Tyre to

brought out

in Paradise

was created

sinless, so

more prominently.

still

Adam

As Adam

was the prince of Tyre innocent

in his

conduct in the day of his creation, but only until perverseness

was found

in him.

conferred upon

As Adam

him through

forfeit his glorious position

cause

God

to cast

forfeited

and

lost the

his fall, so did the

happiness

king of Tyre

through unrighteousness and

him from

his

sin,

and

eminence down to the ground.

416

TnE PROPHECIES OF EZEEIEL perverseness in consequence of the abundance of

fell into

Because

his trade (ver. 16a).

and power,

his heart

i^D for Ki^D in

lain ^70,

ch.

was

filled

with iniquity.

and

xli. 8,

him up

his trade lifted

15^3

for INK'3 in ch. xxxix. 26.

vO; and the

not the subject, but the object to

with an indefinite subject, " they

Hebrew,

the Aramaean, active combinations are preferred to

Np»

1286). (ch.

possible to adopt

it is

interior in a physical sense,

expression

the

As Adam

fall.

2946 and

^Wj the midst,

and not

in a spiritual

fill"

used for the

one

;

and the

chosen with an evident allusion to the histoiy of

tree, so did

Ewald,

(vid.

as in

passive

used by Ezekiel in the transitive sense "to

17 and xxx. 11).

viii.

them

plural

chosen in the

filled," is

place of the passive construction, because in the

whenever

wealth

^70 for 1N?», like

sinned by eating the forbidden fruit of the

the king of Tyre sin by

filling

himself with wicked-

God

ness in connection with trade (Flavernick and Kliefoth).

would therefore put him away from the mountain of God, and 7?n with jp

destroy him.

away from, 113KJ

§ 72c).

i.e.

a pregnant expression

to desecrate

to divest of his glory and thrust

away from.

a contracted form for "^1^^^}

—

Ewald,

(vid.

232A and

Vers. 17 and 18 contain a comprehensive description

of the guilt of the prince of Tyre, and the approaching judg-

ment

still

inys^ PV

further depicted,

account of thy splendour," thought, inasmuch as

for

this

cannot mean, "on

yields

no appropriate

was not the splendour

itself

which

occasioned his overthrow, but the pride which corrupted the

wisdom

requisite to exalt the

might of Tyre,

tempted the prince to commit iniquity

We therefore

increase his glory.

and ms"!

—

in other words,

in order to preserve

follow the

LXX.,

and

Syr., Eos.,

others, in taking py in the sense of inia cum, together with. is

infinitive form, like i^^r^a for nisi

(§ 238e) regards

the text.

HNi with 2

malicious pleasure. consisted (/)y

though Ewald

as so extraordinary that he proposes to alter is

used for looking upon a person with

'^U^^'} ^.J??

shows in what the guilt (PV)

the construct state of ^V).

The

sanctuaries

CHAP. XXVIII.

417

11-19.

(miqddsJiim) which the king of Tyre desecrated

by the unright-

eousness of his commerce, are not the city or the state of Tyre,

but the temples which

made Tyre a holy

These the

island.

king desecrated by bringing about their destruction through his

own

Several of the codices and editions read

sin.

the singular, and this

the reading adopted

^?r'^f?0

by the Chaldee,

If this were the true reading,

Syriac, and Vulgate versions.

the sanctuary referred to would be the holy mountain of itself

" I cause

apparently owes

In the from the midst of thee," ^?i^0 is

fire to issue

be understood in the same sense as l^in

issuing

from him, by which he

ashes.

All

compare

ch. xxvii. 36).

Tyre and

modern commentators

opinions of

assuming

king,

its

and

xxiii.),

that, after a thirteen years' siege,

Gesenius, Winer, Hitzig,

by Nebuchadnezzar, or

many

any

etc.

rate call

— deny the it

others,

Nebuchadnezzar

conquered the strong Island Tyre, and destroyed viz.

find the

Some, for example

divided.

Hengstenberg, Havernick, Drechsler (on Isa.

—

peoples will be astonished

proceed, in conclusion, to inquire into the fulfilment

of these prophecies concerning

others

fire

consumed and burned

who know him among the

at his terrible fall (ver. 19,

The

in ver. 16.

which the king has taken into himself becomes a

iniquity

God

origin simply to this interpretation of the words.

clause,

But the reading

14 and 16).

(vers. its

it;

while

conquest

in question;

and

of the earlier commentators suppose the prophecy to refer

Old Tyre, which stood upon the mainland.

of this dispute, see Hengstenberg,

(Berol. 1832); Havernick, OnEzekiel,

Phoenizier, II. 1, pp.

427

sqq.

— The

For the history

rebus Tyriorum comment.

pp.420

sqq.;

and Movers,

denial of the conquest of

Insular Tyre by the king of Babylon rests partly on the silence

which ancient

historians,

maintained as to

its

who mention

result

tained in Ezek. xxix. 17-20. is

;

the siege

itself,

have

and partly on the statement con-

—

All that Josephus {Antt. x. 11. 1) able to quote from the ancient historians on this point is the

following

EZEK.

— In the

first

place,

states,

on the authority of the

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL

418

book of the Chaldean history of Berosus, that when

third

the father of Nebuchadnezzar, on account of his

own age and

consequent infirmity, had transferred to his son the conduct of the war against the rebellious satrap in Egypt, Coelesyria, and

Phoenicia, Nebuchadnezzar defeated him, and brought the

whole country once more under his sway.

But

as the tidings

reached him of the death of his father just at the same time, after arranging affairs in his friends to lead into

Egypt, and giving orders

some of

Babylon the captives taken from among

the Judaeans, the Phoenicians, the Syrians, and the Egyptians, together with the heavy armed portion of the army, he him-

hastened through the desert to Babylon, with a small

self

number

of attendants, to assume the government of the empire.

Secondly, he

states,

on the authority of the Indian and Phoe-

nician histories of Philostratus, that

throne, Nebuchadnezzar besieged

when

Tyre

Ithobal was on the

for thirteen years.

The

accounts taken from Berosus are repeated by .Tosephus in his c.

Apion

(i.

ยง 19),

where he

their credibility, that there

of the Phoenicians

which

also adds (ยง 20), in confirmation of

were writings found in the archives tallied

with the statement made by

Berosus concerning the king of Chaldea (Nebuchadnezzar), " that he conquered

viz.

all

;

Syria and Phoenicia " and that

Philostratus also agrees with this, since he mentions the siege of

In (c.

Tyre

in his histories

addition

Ap.

this,

(fiefxvr)fiivo<i

for

t^? Tvpov irdkLopKiai).

synchronistic

purposes,

Joseph us

21) also communicates a fragment from the Phoe-

nician history, containing not only the account of the thirteen years' siege of

but also a

down

Tyre by Nebuchadnezzar

list

of the kings of

to the time of

Cyrus of

in the reign of Ithobal,

Tyre who followed

The

Persia.^

siege of

Ithobal,

Tyre

" In the reign of Ithobal the king, ^ The passage reads as follows Nebuchadnezzar besieged Tyre for thirteen years. After him judges were Ecnibalus, the son of Baslachus, judged for two months; appointed. Chelbes, the son of Abdaeus, for ten months Abbarus, the high priest, :

;

for three

months

;

Myttonus and Gerastartus, the sons of Abdelemus, for

CHAP. XXVIII. therefore mentioned three times of Phoenician histories

;

by Josephus, on the authority

but he never says anything of the

conquest and destruction of that

From this

by Nebuchadnezzar.

city

circumstance -the conclusion has been drawn, that

this

was

419

11-19.

all

he found there.

For

if, it

terminated with the conquest of the

said,

the siege had

city, this glorious result of

the thirteen years' exertions could hardly have been passed

over in silence, inasmuch as in Antt. x. 11. 1 the testimony of foreign historians

was " an

active

quoted to the effect that Nebuchadnezzar

man, and more fortunate than the kings that

But the argument

were before him." conclusive.

plausible than

bear in mind that Berosus simply relates the

account of a subjugation and devastation of the whole of Phoenicia,

without even mentioning the siege of Tyre, and that

only in Phoenician writings therefore that the latter to,

we cannot by any means

and with humiliation

was obliged

that he

ended gloriously

Nebuchadnezzar, or

to relinquish the attempt without success

after the strenuous exertions of thirteen years. trary, considering

same

it is

referred

conclude, from their silence as to

the result or termination of the siege, that for the Tyrians

how

all

the con-

the historians of antiquity show the

anxiety, if not to pass over in silence such events as were

unfavourable to their country, at

all

events to put

them

in as

favourable a light as possible, the fact that the Tyrian historians observe the deepest

thirteen years' siege of

clusion that

silence

to the result of

Tyre would rather

force us to the con-

was very humiliating to Tyre.

only be the case

Nebuchadnezzar

the end of thirteen years.

the

And

this could

really conquered

Tyre

If he had been obliged to relinquish

the siege because he found himself unable to conquer so strong a city, the Tyrian historians would most assuredly have related

after whom Balatorus reigned for one year. ; When he died, they sent for and fetched Merbalus from Babylon, and he reigned four years. At his death they sent for his brother Eiramus, who reigned twenty six years

years.

During his

reign,

Cyrus ruled over the Persians."

420

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

this termination of the thirteen years'

strenuous exertions of

the great and mighty king of Babylon.

The

silence of the

of Tyre

But Ezek.

Tyrian historians concerning the conquest

no proof, therefore, that xxix.

17-20 has

also

did not really take place.

been quoted as containing posi-

tive evidence of the failure of the thirteen years' siege

words, of the fact that the city was not taken. this passage, that

Nebuchadnezzar caused

his

;

in other

army

read in

perform

hard service against Tyre, and that neither he nor his army received any recompense for

him Egypt

to spoil

in the service of

infer

from

it.

and plunder

wages for

this

work of

Gesenius and Hitzig (on

Jehovah.

this, that

Jehovah would therefore give theirs

Isa. xxiii.)

Nebuchadnezzar obtained no recompense

for the severe labour of the siege, because he did not succeed

But Movers

in entering the city.

urged in reply to

{Lc. p.

448) has already

that " the passage before us does not

this,

imply that the city was not conquered any m6re than the opposite, but simply lays stress upon the fact that not plundered.

For nothing can be

does

was

clearer in this connection

than that what we are to understand by the wages, which

Nebuchadnezzar did not connected with his

Tyre

;

receive, notwithstanding the exertions

many

though Movers

years' siege, is simply the treasures of

of opinion that the passage contains

an intimation that the siege was brought to an end with a certain

compromise which

satisfied

the Tyrian s, and infers,

stress

being laid exclusively upon the neglected

plundering, that the

termination was of such a kind that

from the fact of

plundering might easily have taken place, and therefore that

Tyre was

either actually conquered, but treated mildly

from

wise considerations, or else submitted to the Chaldeans upon certain terms.

But

neither of these alternatives can

make

the

In Ezek. xxix. 20 it is expressly " as wages, for which he (Nebuchadnezzar) has

least pretension to probability.

stated that

worked, I give him the land of Egypt, because they (Nebuchadnezzar and his army) have done

for

me ;"

in other words,

CHAP, xxviir.

When,

have done the work for me.

421

11-19.

Jehovah pro-

therefore,

mises to give Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar as a reward or wages

work which has been done for

for the hard

Him

at Tyre, the

words presuppose that Nebuchadnezzar had really accomplished

him by God.

against Tyre the task entrusted to

committed to him not merely the

siege,

But God had

but also the conquest

Nebuchadnezzar must therefore

and destruction of Tyre.

have executed the commission, though without receiving the expected reward for the labour which he had bestowed

account God would compensate him

on that

was terminated, or the

rendered, on the condition that

Nebuchadnezzar treated the

he had taken possession.

Nebuchadnezzar would not have executed the

upon Tyre

in such a

manner

In either case will of

as to be able to put in

for compensation for the hard

city sur-

should not be plundered, but

also the idea that for wise reasons

city leniently after

and

This precludes not only the

with the treasures of Egypt. supposition that the siege

;

for his trouble

work performed.

Jehovah

any claim

The

only

thing that could warrant such a claim would be the circumstance, that after conquering

And

plunder.

of the passage ad litteram.

treasures to

which Jerome has given

" Nebuchadnezzar," he says, " being

when besieging Tyre,

unable,

Tyre he found no

this is the explanation

to bring

his battering-rams,

besieging towers, and vineae close to the walls, on account of the

surrounded by the

city being

men from

his

army

of earth, so as to

fill

sea,

employed a very large number

in collecting rocks

up the intervening

and piling up mounds sea,

and make a con-

tinuous road to the island at the narrowest part of the

And when plished,

strait.

the Tyrians saw that the task was actually accom-

and the foundations of the walls were being disturbed

by the shocks from the battering-rams, they placed whatever

articles of

in ships

value the nobility possessed in gold, silver,

clothing,

and household furniture, and transported them

islands;

so that

when

the city was taken,

found nothing to compensate him for

all

to the

Nebuchadnezzar his labour.

And

422

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

God

because he had done the will of after the conquest of Tyre, It

true that

we have no

in all this,

Egypt was given

historical testimony

some years

him by God."^

from any other

But we could not expect it in any of the writings which have come down to us, inasmuch as the Phoenician accounts extracted by Josephus simply conquarter to support this interpretation.

tain the fact of the thirteen years' siege,

concerning

its

progress and result.

and nothing

the greatest probability that this was the case.

nezzar really besieged the

city,

island in the sea, he could not

at all

the same time, there If

Nebuchad-

which was situated upon an have contented himself

M'ith

cutting off the supply of drinking water from the city simply

on the land to

Shalmanezer, the king of Assyria,

side, as

have done

taken steps to

(yid. fill

Josephus, Antt.

up the

14. 2), but

ix.

between the

strait

said

must have

and the main-

city

land with a mound, that he might construct a road for besieging

and assaulting the did.

And

walls, as

Alexander of Macedonia afterwards

the words of Ezek. xxix. 18, according to which

every head was bald, and the skin rubbed

with the severity of the

toil,

off

every shoulder

point indisputably to the under-

And

taking of some such works as these. really carried out their operations

upon the

the Chaldeans

city in this

way, as

the siege- works advanced, the Tyrians would not neglect any

precaution to defend themselves as far as possible, in the event of the capture of the city. sessions

They would certainly send the poscity by ship into the colonies,

and treasures of the

and thereby place them in security

;

just as,

according to

Curtius, iv. 3, they sent off their families to Carthage,

when

the city was besieged by Alexander.

This view of the termination of the Chaldean siege of Tyre receives a confirmation of no

little

weight from the fragment

Menander already

Tyre

there stated that after Ithobal, Baal reigned for ten years,

given, relating to the succession of rulers

after the thirteen years' siege

Cyrill. Alex, gives the

same explanation

by Nebuchadnezzar.

in his

commentary on

Isa. xxiii.

CHAP. XXVIII.

423

11-19.

that judges (suffetes) were then appointed, nearly

held office for a few months only

that

;

among

who reigned

there was also a king Balatorus,

whom

all

the last judges

for a year

after this, however, the Tyrians sent to Babylon,

that

;

and brought

thence Merbal, and on his death Hiram^ as kings, whose genuine

Tyrian names undoubtedly show that they were descendants This circumstance proves not

of the old native royal family.

only that Tyre became a Chaldean dependency in consequence of the thirteen years' siege

the Chaldeans had led

by Nebuchadnezzar, but

away the

royal family to Babylonia,

which would hardly have been the case

Tyre had submitted

Chaldeans by a treaty of peace.

to the If,

also that

however, after what has been

said,

no well-founded doubt

can remain as to the conquest of Tyre by Nebuchadnezzar, our

prophecy was not so completely

fulfilled thereby, that

became a bare rock on which fishermen spread threatened in ch. xxvi. 4, destroyed

walls,

its

and

14.

Even

wards,

it,

Tyre once more a splendid and powerful royal

it till

Alexander the Great was not able

after a siege of seven months, carried fleet

on with extra-

and army, the

from the mainland by means of a mound of

which had been thrown up with considerable

(Diod. Sic. xvii. 40 sqq.

Even

2-4).

was not

find

latter attacking

iv.

the contrary, two hundred and fifty years after-

ordinary exertions on the part of both the

earth,

so that

city, so strongly fortified, that

to take

Nebuchadnezzar

laid the city itself in ruins to a con-

siderable extent, he did not totally destroy restored.

Tyre

their nets, as

;

Arrian, Alex.

after this catastrophe

17 sqq.

ii.

rose once

difficulty ;

Curtius,

into a

distinguished commercial city under the rule of the Seleucidae

and afterwards of the Romans, who made Phoenicia.

It is

ment (Matt. describes

mentioned

XV. 21

as a

;

Acts

xxi. 3, 7)

;

the capital of

and Strabo

New

Testa-

(xvi. 2.

23)

busy city with two harbours and very lofty

houses.

But Tyre never recovered

the

centuries of the Christian era,

first

such a city in the

its

ancient grandeur. it

frequently men-

424

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEEIEL.

From

tioned as an archbishop's see.

636

a.d.

to A.D.

1125

was under the rule of the Saracens, and was so strongly that

tified,

was not

till

for-

after a siege of several months' duration

that they succeeded in taking visited

Benjamin of Tudela, who

it.

Tyre in the year 1060, describes

as a city of distin-

guished beauty, with a strongly fortified harbour, and surrounded

walls,

and with the best

glass

and earthenware in the East.

" Saladin, the conqueror of Palestine, broke his head against

Tyre

But

in the year 1189.

after

Acre had been taken by

storm in the year 1291 by the Sultan El-Ashraf, on the day following this conquest the city passed without resistance into the hands of the same Egyptian king

;

the inhabitants having

forsaken Tyre by night, and fled by sea, that they might not fall into the

When

power of such bloodthirsty soldiers " (Van de Velde).

came

fortifications

hands of the Saracens once more,

into the

Tyre has never

risen

from

its

long ceased to be an insular piled up,

its

were demolished; and from that time forward

grew

Moreover,

ruins again.

had

The mound which Alexander

city.

and firmer tongue of land

into a broader

consequence of the sand washed up by the sea, so that the island

The

was joined

present Sur

to the is

mainland, and turned into a peninsula.

situated

upon

it,

a market town of three or

four thousand inhabitants, which does not deserve the

a city or town.

The

name

houses are for the most part nothing but

huts; and the streets are narrow, crooked, and dirty lanes.

The

ruins of the old Phoenician capital cover the surrounding

country to the distance of more than half an hour's journey

from the present town

gate.

choked up with sand, and pillars

The of

and building

Tyre

and

;

filled

stones,

sea has swallowed

The harbour

so thoroughly

with the ruins of innumerable

that only small boats can enter.

up a considerable part of the greatness

and quite as large a portion of

fortifications lie buried in the earth.

feet the soil trodden at the present

day

splendid temples

its

To is

a depth of

one

solid

many

mass of

building stones, shafts of pillars, and rubbish composed of

CHAP. XXVIII.

marble, porphyry, and granite.

425

20-26.

Fragments of

pillars

of the

costly verde antiquo (green marble) also lie strewn about in

large quantities.

The

crust,

which forms the

soil

that

trodden

merely the surface of this general heap of ruins. actually become " a bare rock, and a place for the spreading of nets in the midst of sea ; " and " the dwellingto-day,

Thus has Tyre

places,

which are now erected upon a portion of

are not at variance with the terrible decree,

no more'" (compare Robinson's Travels).

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;

Thus has

Palestine,

former

its

and Van de Velde's

the prophecy of Ezekiel been completely

fulfilled,

though not directly by Nebuchadnezzar

prophecy

;

for

the

not a bare prediction of historical details, but

Nebuchadnezzar

To the prophet,

pervaded by the idea of the judgment of God.

site,

thou shalt be built

the instrument of the punitive righteousness

God, and Tyre the representative of the ungodly commerce Hence, as Havernick has already observed,

of the world.

Nebuchadnezzar's action prophet's esteem.

" In

more than an

isolated deed in the

his conquest of the city

he sees the

whole of the ruin concentrated, which history places before us as a closely connected chain.

The breaking

Tyre by Nebuchadnezzar stands out before ably connected with

by the

its

utter destruction.

glory out of

ness of

God

its

will pass

(ch. xxviii. 25, 26).

away

CHAP. XXVIII.

Jerusalem

its

relation

will rise again to

destruction through the covenant faithful-

world's commerce, which

The

view as insepar-

This was required

internal theocratic signification of the fact in

to the destruction of Jerusalem."

new

of the power of

his

But Tyre, the

city of the

rejoicing over the fall of Jerusalem,

for ever (ch. xxvi. 14, xxvii. 36).

20-2G.

PROPHECY AGAINST SIDON AND PROMISE FOR ISRAEL.

threatening word

against

Sidon

very brief, and

couched in general terms, because as a matter of fact the

prophecy against Tyre involved the announcement of the

fall

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL.

426

of Sidon, which was dependent upon

;

we have ah'eady

and, as

God

observed, Sidon received a special word of

simply for the

purpose of making up the number of the heathen nations

mentioned

number

to the significant

The word

seven.

God

against Sidon brings to a close the cycle of predictions of judg-

ment

which had given

directed against those heathen nations

expression to malicious pleasure at the overthrow of the king-

dom

There

Judah.

therefore appended a promise for

25, 2Q)f which is really closely connected with the threatening words directed against the heathen nations, and

Israel (vers.

for which the

ence of na

'â&#x20AC;˘riB'^pi

way

"riKnpj

The

prepared by ver. 24.

correspond-

be sanctified in her) in ver. 22 to

(I shall

them) in

(I shall be sanctified in

ver. 25, serves to

place the future fate of Israel in antithesis not merely to the

future fate of Sidon, but, as vers. 24 and 26 clearly show, to that of

all

the heathen nations against which the previous

threats have been directed.

Ver. 20.

And

word of Jehovah came

the

me, saying,

Ver. 21. Son of man, direct thy face towards Sidon, and prophesy

Ver. 22.

against

it,

Behold,

I will

the midst

upon

I will send pestilence fall in the midst of

And thorn

;

saith

;

and

it,

did before

which the word

I am

sanctify myself

and blood

Lord Jehovah, Jehovah, when

upon

it.

by the sword, which cometh upon

to the

from

sting

glorify

I am

Jehovah.

all

Ezekiel, evidently points).

judgments, through which the enemies of His people.

The

from,

who Lord Jehovah. Lord upon Sidon,

round about them,

I am

Himself as the

in ver. 22,

Ver. 24.

house of Israel a malignavt

the

upon Pharaoh (compare Ex. ''^']?33

Ver. 23.

into its streets ; slain will

but they shall learn that

will

the

Sidon, and will glorify myself in

they shall learn that

and smarting

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Jehovah He

and

it,

into

there shall he no

despise them

Thus

say.

of thee ; and they shall know that

execute judgments

every side

And

he against thee,

xiv. 4, 16, 17, to

an unusual expression for glorification

efrected

He proves Himself to be holy upon He executes the judgments through

CHAP. XXVIII.

pestilence disease

and blood

427

25, 2C.

(vid. ch. v. 17, xxxviii. 22),

and bloodshed occasioned by war.

so that

through

i.e.

men

fall, slain

we have the intensive form ''?S3, which is regarded by Ewald and Hitzig as a Through copyist's error, because it is only met with here. the Lord will liberate His people Israel from these judgments all round about, who increase its suffering by their contempt. These thoughts sum up in ver. 24 the design of God's judgments upon all the neighbouring nations which are threatened in ch. xxv.-xxviii., and thus prepare the way for the concluding promise in vers. 25 and 26. The figure of the sting and thorn by the sword

Instead of 723

(cf. ch. vi. 7).

Num. xxxiii. 55, where it is said that the whom Israel failed to exterminate would become

points back to

Canaanites thorns in

keep

eyes and stings in

its

God

nations,

caused

prostrate with

its

had given

the

Lord

The

wounds.

xvi.).

will heal

in ch.

ii.

the contrary, is

But

Israel

not to succumb to

His people of the wounds which

it.

r?D,

taken from Lev.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;For Onis

n"'t2SB'n,

xiii.

its

see ch. xvi.

1''!$5PP,

57 and xxv.

securely,

securely those

servant Jacob.

When I shall gather whom they have been

upon them before

the eyes

when

execute judgments ;

and

the

have

Ver. 26. TTiey will dwell there

and build houses and plant vineyards, and

round about them

heathen nations, and they will dwell in their land which given

comm. on the former

of the peoples among

shall sanctify myself

heathen

51 and xiv. 44, where

Ver. 25. Thus saith the Lord Jehovah, the house of Israel out scattered,

its

synonymous with

a word only found in Ezekiel.

applied to malignant leprosy (see the

passage).

Canaan, to which

sins of

the contrary, by destroying the heathen powers,

neighbours have inflicted upon ii5p

heathenism.

was now lying utterly

up, had occasioned the destruction of

itself

Jerusalem (chap.

wounds.

Israel did not

to feel these stings of

Having been deeply hurt by them, Israel

sides.

its

from the Canaanitish nature of the heathen

itself free

upon

will dwell

all icho despise

they shall learn that

them of

I Jehovah am

428 their

THE PROPHECIES OF EZEKIEL. God.

â&#x20AC;&#x201D;Whilst

the heathen nations succamb to the judg-

ments of God, Israel passes on

The Lord

will

to a time of blessed

peace.

gather His people from their dispersion

among

the heathen, bring patriarch Jacob, security,

them

into the land

which

gave to the

His servant, and give them in that land

and true prosperity.

ch. xi. 17, xs. 41, xxxvi.

(For the fact

22 sqq.)

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A BOOK OF HOUSEHOLD DEVOTION. By

VAN OOSTERZEE, D.D.

'A work of great value and interest. To the clergy these readings will be found full of suggestive hints for sermons and lectures; while for family reading or for private meditation they are most excellent. The whole tone of the work is thoroughly practical, and never becomes controversial.' Church Bells. ' The text is illustrated by apposite and thoughtful remarks, which will be found both convenient and profitable not only in the family circle, but also for private meditation.'

— Christian Observer.

' The very best religious exposition for every-day use that has ever fallen in our way.' BelFs Weekly Messenger.

The author's mind is deeply imbued with Scripture principles, and overflows with words, rich, warm, and devotional in their character.' Ecclesiastical Gazette. '

' This charming and practical book of household devotion will be welcomed on account of its rare intrinsic value, as one of the most practical devotional books ever published.'

—Standard. '

Massive of thought, persuasive, earnest, and eloquent.'

Simple, terse, and practical ; and will, by many.' Leeds Mercwy. '

Every page breathes a

spirit of

Literary Churchman.

are sure, be^ read with profit

deep piety and earnest

faith.'

and pleasure

Scotsman.

BY THE SAME AUTHOR. Just published, in crown 8vo, price

6s.,

MOSES: A BIBLICAL STUDY. Our author has seized, as with the instinct of a master, the great salient points in the and work of Moses, and portrayed the various elements of his character with vividThe work will at once take its place among' our ablest and most ness and skill. valuable expository and practical discourses.' Baptist Magazine. *

life

The

treatise is practical, not scientific

purposes. Review.

This

conducted with

;

is a study of character for spiritual elaboration, judgment, and piety.' Daily

the study

much

'Few men have proved themselves more competent to write such a life than Dr. On the oldest subjects he never writes platitudes ; on the most simple he never writes stupidly. He is always scholarly, scriptural, and devout.' Homilist. Oosterzee.

An original,

beautiful,

and striking work.'

Christian Treasury.

————

—

and

—

T. Clark's Publications.

Just published, in demy 8»o, price 12s.,

INTRODUCTION TO

THE PAULINE EPISTLES. By PATON Author of a

Critical

GLOAG,

D.D.,

and Exegetical Commentary on the Acts

of the

Apostles.' ' Those acquainted with the author's previous works will be prepared for something valuable in his present work ; and it will not disappoint expectation, but rather exceed it. The most recent literature of his subject is before him, and he handles it with ease and skill. ... It will be found a trustworthy guide, and raise its author's reputation in this important branch of biblical study.' Bntish and Foreign Evangelical Review.

merit. He must be a singularly accomplished divine to whose welcome and valuable addition.' Watchman. 'It will be found of considerable value as a handbook to St Paul's Epistles. The dissertations display great thought as well as research. The author is fair, learned, and calm, and his book is one of worth.' Church Bells. 'A capital book, full, scholarly, and clear. No diffieulty is shirked, but dealt with fairly, and in an evangelical spirit. To ministers and theological students the book will

'A work

uncommon

—

library this book is not a

Evangelical Magazine. stamp of study, and of calm, critical power. It is a good defence of the orthodox views, written in a style which combines dignity, strength, and clearness. It may be read with pleasure by any lover of theology, and will be a valuable addition to the book-shelf as a book of reference.' Glasgow Herald.

be of great value.' '

It bears the

Recently published, in demy Svo, price 14«.,

THE APOCALYPSE TRANSLATED AND EXPOUNDED. JAMES GLASGOW,

General Assembly's Professor of Oriental Languages,

Irish

D.D.,

book which sober scholars will not

highly value.

...

despise,

and which

etc. etc.

intelligent Christians will

has substantial merits, and cannot be read without great

profit.'

Watchman. A goodly volume, replete with the fruits of learning and profound research, characterized by independence of thought, originality and even singularity of view, and decision in grasping and enunciating results.' Evangelical Witness. 'A most elaborate work, the result of careful thought, wide reading, and patient '

industry.' '

the

English Independent.

The book meaning

very able, and

of the

Word of

well worthy the study of those Princeton Review.

Gk>d.'

who

are seeking to

know

— ——

—

Just published^ in demy Svo, price 10s.

6(/.,

DELIVERY AND DEVELOPMENT OF

CHRISTIAN ^i)e

dTtfti)

^txiti of

DOCTRINE. Cunnmsl^am

t{)e

By ROBERT RAINY,

%tctutti.

D.D.,

PBHTCIPAL AND PROFESSOR OF DIVINITY AND CHURCH HISTORY,

NEW

COLLEOB, EDINBCRGH,

We gladly

acknowledge their high excellence and the extensive learning which they are able to the last degree and the author has in an unusual measure the power of acute and brilliant generalization. He handles his array of multifarious facts with ease and elegance and we must needs acknowledge (and we do it willingly) that the Lectures are a real contribution to the settlement of the vast and obscure question with which they are occupied.' Literary Churchman. '

all display.

They

;

It is a rich

praise.' '

British

and nutritious book throughout, and in temper and and Foreign Evangelical Review. ,

The

and

spirit

subject is treated with a comprehensive grasp, keen logical power, learning, and in a devout spirit.' Evangelical Magazine.

In crown 8uo, Second Edition^ price

AIDS TO

beyond

all

dear analysis

45. 6<i,

THE STUDY OF

GERMAN THEOLOGY. By Rev. GEORGE MATHESON,

M.A., B.D.,

MINISTER OF INNELLAN. ' The writer of this treatise has formed to himself singularly clear conceptions, and he Besides serving as possesses in a remarkable degree the faculty of lucid exposition. an admirable introduction to the study of Grerman theology, this little volume will be valuable to the general reader, as furnishing an intelligible and inte-^sting account of the principal phases which theological speculation has assumed in Germany in modem times.' Scotsman. ' This little volume is a valuable and instructive introduction to a department of theological literature that every student is now compelled to examine.' British Quarterly Review. helpful little volume helpful to the student of German theology, and not less so to the careful observer of the tendencies of English religious thought.' Freeman. The writer or compiler deserves high praise for the clear manner in which he htw in a brief compass stated these opinions.' Christian Observer. .

—

University of Toronto

Library

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