15 Also the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
16 Son of man, behold, I take away from thee the desire of thine eyes with a stroke: yet neither shalt thou mourn nor weep, neither shall thy tears run down.
17 Forbear to cry, make no mourning for the dead, bind the tire of thine head upon thee, and put on thy shoes upon thy feet, and cover not thy lips, and eat not the bread of men.
18 So I spake unto the people in the morning: and at even my wife died; and I did in the morning as I was commanded.
19 And the people said unto me, Wilt thou not tell us what these things are to us, that thou doest so?
20 Then I answered them, The word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
21 Speak unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I will profane my sanctuary, the excellency of your strength, the desire of your eyes, and that which your soul pitieth; and your sons and your daughters whom ye have left shall fall by the sword.
22 And ye shall do as I have done: ye shall not cover your lips, nor eat the bread of men.
23 And your tires shall be upon your heads, and your shoes upon your feet: ye shall not mourn nor weep; but ye shall pine away for your iniquities, and mourn one toward another.
24 Thus Ezekiel is unto you a sign: according to all that he hath done shall ye do: and when this cometh, ye shall know that I am the Lord GOD.
15 Also the word H1697 of the LORD H3068 came unto me, saying, H559
16 Son H1121 of man, H120 behold, I take away H3947 from thee the desire H4261 of thine eyes H5869 with a stroke: H4046 yet neither shalt thou mourn H5594 nor weep, H1058 neither shall thy tears H1832 run down. H935
17 Forbear H1826 to cry, H602 make H6213 no mourning H60 for the dead, H4191 bind H2280 the tire of thine head H6287 upon thee, and put on H7760 thy shoes H5275 upon thy feet, H7272 and cover H5844 not thy lips, H8222 and eat H398 not the bread H3899 of men. H582
18 So I spake H1696 unto the people H5971 in the morning: H1242 and at even H6153 my wife H802 died; H4191 and I did H6213 in the morning H1242 as I was commanded. H6680
19 And the people H5971 said H559 unto me, Wilt thou not tell H5046 us what these things are to us, that thou doest H6213 so?
20 Then I answered H559 them, The word H1697 of the LORD H3068 came unto me, saying, H559
21 Speak H559 unto the house H1004 of Israel, H3478 Thus saith H559 the Lord H136 GOD; H3069 Behold, I will profane H2490 my sanctuary, H4720 the excellency H1347 of your strength, H5797 the desire H4261 of your eyes, H5869 and that which your soul H5315 pitieth; H4263 and your sons H1121 and your daughters H1323 whom ye have left H5800 shall fall H5307 by the sword. H2719
22 And ye shall do H6213 as I have done: H6213 ye shall not cover H5844 your lips, H8222 nor eat H398 the bread H3899 of men. H582
23 And your tires H6287 shall be upon your heads, H7218 and your shoes H5275 upon your feet: H7272 ye shall not mourn H5594 nor weep; H1058 but ye shall pine away H4743 for your iniquities, H5771 and mourn H5098 one H376 toward another. H251
24 Thus Ezekiel H3168 is unto you a sign: H4159 according to all that he hath done H6213 shall ye do: H6213 and when this cometh, H935 ye shall know H3045 that I am the Lord H136 GOD. H3069
15 Also the word of Jehovah came unto me, saying,
16 Son of man, behold, I take away from thee the desire of thine eyes with a stroke: yet thou shalt neither mourn nor weep, neither shall thy tears run down.
17 Sigh, but not aloud, make no mourning for the dead; bind thy headtire upon thee, and put thy shoes upon thy feet, and cover not thy lips, and eat not the bread of men.
18 So I spake unto the people in the morning; and at even my wife died; and I did in the morning as I was commanded.
19 And the people said unto me, Wilt thou not tell us what these things are to us, that thou doest so?
20 Then I said unto them, The word of Jehovah came unto me, saying,
21 Speak unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I will profane my sanctuary, the pride of your power, the desire of your eyes, and that which your soul pitieth; and your sons and your daughters whom ye have left behind shall fall by the sword.
22 And ye shall do as I have done: ye shall not cover your lips, nor eat the bread of men.
23 And your tires shall be upon your heads, and your shoes upon your feet: ye shall not mourn nor weep; but ye shall pine away in your iniquities, and moan one toward another.
24 Thus shall Ezekiel be unto you a sign; according to all that he hath done shall ye do: when this cometh, then shall ye know that I am the Lord Jehovah.
15 And there is a word of Jehovah unto me, saying,
16 `Son of man, lo, I am taking from thee the desire of thine eyes by a stroke, and thou dost not mourn, nor weep, nor let thy tear come.
17 Cease to groan, `for' the dead thou dost make no mourning, thy bonnet bind on thee, and thy shoes thou dost put on thy feet, and thou dost not cover over the upper lip, and bread of men thou dost not eat.'
18 And I speak unto the people in the morning, and my wife dieth in the evening, and I do in the morning as I have been commanded.
19 And the people say unto me, `Dost thou not declare to us what these `are' to us, that thou art doing?'
20 And I say unto them, `A word of Jehovah hath been unto me, saying:
21 Say to the house of Israel: Thus said the Lord Jehovah: Lo, I am polluting My sanctuary, The excellency of your strength, The desire of your eyes, and the pitied of your soul, And your sons and your daughters whom ye have left, by sword they do fall.
22 And ye have done as I have done, On the upper lip ye are not covered, And bread of men ye do not eat.
23 And your bonnets `are' on your heads, And your shoes `are' on your feet, Ye do not mourn nor do ye weep, And ye have wasted away for your iniquities, And ye have howled one unto another.
24 And Ezekiel hath been to you for a type, According to all that he hath done ye do; In its coming in -- ye have known that I `am' the Lord Jehovah.
15 And the word of Jehovah came unto me, saying,
16 Son of man, behold, I take away from thee the desire of thine eyes with a stroke; yet thou shalt not mourn nor weep, neither shall thy tears run down.
17 Sigh in silence, make no mourning for the dead; bind thy turban upon thee, and put thy sandals upon thy feet, and cover not the beard, and eat not the bread of men.
18 -- And I spoke unto the people in the morning; and at even my wife died. And I did in the morning as I was commanded.
19 And the people said unto me, Wilt thou not tell us what these things are to us, which thou doest?
20 And I said to them, The word of Jehovah came unto me, saying,
21 Say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Behold, I will profane my sanctuary, the pride of your strength, the desire of your eyes, and your soul's longing; and your sons and your daughters whom ye have left behind shall fall by the sword.
22 And ye shall do as I have done: ye shall not cover the beard, neither eat the bread of men;
23 and your turbans shall be upon your heads, and your sandals upon your feet: ye shall not mourn nor weep; but ye shall waste away in your iniquities and moan one toward another.
24 Thus Ezekiel shall be unto you a sign; according to all that he hath done shall ye do: when it cometh, then ye shall know that I [am] the Lord Jehovah.
15 Also the word of Yahweh came to me, saying,
16 Son of man, behold, I take away from you the desire of your eyes with a stroke: yet you shall neither mourn nor weep, neither shall your tears run down.
17 Sigh, but not aloud, make no mourning for the dead; bind your headdress on you, and put your shoes on your feet, and don't cover your lips, and don't eat men's bread.
18 So I spoke to the people in the morning; and at even my wife died; and I did in the morning as I was commanded.
19 The people said to me, Won't you tell us what these things are to us, that you do so?
20 Then I said to them, The word of Yahweh came to me, saying,
21 Speak to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord Yahweh: Behold, I will profane my sanctuary, the pride of your power, the desire of your eyes, and that which your soul pities; and your sons and your daughters whom you have left behind shall fall by the sword.
22 You shall do as I have done: you shall not cover your lips, nor eat the bread of men.
23 Your tires shall be on your heads, and your shoes on your feet: you shall not mourn nor weep; but you shall pine away in your iniquities, and moan one toward another.
24 Thus shall Ezekiel be to you a sign; according to all that he has done shall you do: when this comes, then shall you know that I am the Lord Yahweh.
15 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying,
16 Son of man, see, I am taking away the desire of your eyes by disease: but let there be no sorrow or weeping or drops running from your eyes.
17 Let there be no sound of sorrow; make no weeping for your dead, put on your head-dress and your shoes on your feet, let not your lips be covered, and do not take the food of those in grief.
18 So in the morning I was teaching the people and in the evening death took my wife; and in the morning I did what I had been ordered to do.
19 And the people said to me, Will you not make clear to us the sense of these things; is it for us you do them?
20 Then I said to them, The word of the Lord came to me, saying,
21 Say to the people of Israel, The Lord has said, See, I will make my holy place unclean, the pride of your strength, the pleasure of your eyes, and the desire of your soul; and your sons and daughters, who did not come with you here, will be put to the sword.
22 And you will do as I have done, not covering your lips or taking the food of those in grief.
23 And your head-dresses will be on your heads and your shoes on your feet: there will be no sorrow or weeping; but you will be wasting away in the punishment of your evil-doing, and you will be looking at one another in wonder.
24 And Ezekiel will be a sign to you; everything he has done you will do: when this takes place, you will be certain that I am the Lord.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible » Commentary on Ezekiel 24
Commentary on Ezekiel 24 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
CHAPTER 24
Eze 24:1-27. Vision of the Boiling Caldron, and of the Death of Ezekiel's Wife.
1, 2. Ezekiel proves his divine mission by announcing the very day, ("this same day") of the beginning of the investment of the city by Nebuchadnezzar; "the ninth year," namely, of Jehoiachin's captivity, "the tenth day of the tenth month"; though he was three hundred miles away from Jerusalem among the captives at the Chebar (2Ki 25:1; Jer 39:1).
2. set himself—laid siege; "lay against."
3. pot—caldron. Alluding to the self-confident proverb used among the people, Eze 11:3 (see on Eze 11:3), "This city is the caldron and we be the flesh"; your proverb shall prove awfully true, but in a different sense from what you intend. So far from the city proving an iron, caldron-like defense from the fire, it shall be as a caldron set on the fire, and the people as so many pieces of meat subjected to boiling heat. See Jer 1:13.
4. pieces thereof—those which properly belong to it, as its own.
every good piece … choice bones—that is, the most distinguished of the people. The "choice bones" in the pot have flesh adhering to them. The bones under the pot (Eze 24:5) are those having no flesh and used as fuel, answering to the poorest who suffer first, and are put out of pain sooner than the rich who endure what answers to the slower process of boiling.
5. burn … bones—rather, "pile the bones." Literally, "Let there be a round pile of the bones."
therein—literally, "in the midst of it."
6. scum—not ordinary, but poisonous scum, that is, the people's all-pervading wickedness.
bring it out piece by piece—"it," the contents of the pot; its flesh, that is, "I will destroy the people of the city, not all at the same time, but by a series of successive attacks." Not as Fairbairn, "on its every piece let it (the poisonous scum) go forth."
let no lot fall upon it—that is, no lot, such as is sometimes cast, to decide who are to be destroyed and who saved (2Sa 8:2; Joe 3:3; Ob 11; Na 3:10). In former carryings away of captives, lots were cast to settle who were to go, and who to stay, but now all alike are to be cast out without distinction of rank, age, or sex.
7. upon the top of a rock—or, "the dry, bare, exposed rock," so as to be conspicuous to all. Blood poured on a rock is not so soon absorbed as blood poured on the earth. The law ordered the blood even of a beast or fowl to be "covered with the dust" (Le 17:13); but Jerusalem was so shameless as to be at no pains to cover up the blood of innocent men slain in her. Blood, as the consummation of all sin, presupposes every other form of guilt.
8. That it might cause—God purposely let her so shamelessly pour the blood on the bare rock, "that it might" the more loudly and openly cry for vengeance from on high; and that the connection between the guilt and the punishment might be the more palpable. The blood of Abel, though the ground received it, still cries to heaven for vengeance (Ge 4:10, 11); much more blood shamelessly exposed on the bare rock.
set her blood—She shall be paid back in kind (Mt 7:2). She openly shed blood, and her blood shall openly be shed.
9. the pile for fire—the hostile materials for the city's destruction.
10. spice it well—that the meat may be the more palatable, that is, I will make the foe delight in its destruction as much as one delights in well-seasoned, savory meat. Grotius, needlessly departing from the obvious sense, translates, "Let it be boiled down to a compound."
11. set it empty … that … brass … may burn, … that … scum … may be consumed—Even the consumption of the contents is not enough; the caldron itself which is infected by the poisonous scum must be destroyed, that is, the city itself must be destroyed, not merely the inhabitants, just as the very house infected with leprosy was to be destroyed (Le 14:34-45).
12. herself—rather, "she hath wearied Me out with lies"; or rather, "with vain labors" on My part to purify her without being obliged to have recourse to judgments (compare Isa 43:24; Mal 2:17) [Maurer]. However, English Version gives a good sense (compare Isa 47:13; 57:10).
13. lewdness—determined, deliberate wickedness; from a Hebrew root, "to purpose."
I have purged thee—that is, I have left nothing untried which would tend towards purging thee, by sending prophets to invite thee to repentance, by giving thee the law with all its promises, privileges, and threats.
thou shalt not be purged … any more—that is, by My gracious interpositions; thou shalt be left to thine own course to take its fatal consequences.
14. go back—desist; relax [Fairbairn].
15. Second part of the vision; announcement of the death of Ezekiel's wife, and prohibition of the usual signs of mourning.
16. desire of … eyes—his wife: representing the sanctuary (Eze 24:21) in which the Jews so much gloried. The energy and subordination of Ezekiel's whole life to his prophetic office is strikingly displayed in this narrative of his wife's death. It is the only memorable event of his personal history which he records, and this only in reference to his soul-absorbing work. His natural tenderness is shown by that graphic touch, "the desire of thine eyes." What amazing subjection, then, of his individual feeling to his prophetic duty is manifested in the simple statement (Eze 24:18), "So I spake … in the morning; and at even my wife died; and I did in the morning as I was commanded."
stroke—a sudden visitation. The suddenness of it enhances the self-control of Ezekiel in so entirely merging individual feeling, which must have been especially acute under such trying circumstances, in the higher claims of duty to God.
17. Forbear to cry—or, "Lament in silence"; not forbidding sorrow, but the loud expression of it [Grotius].
no mourning—typical of the universality of the ruin of Jerusalem, which would preclude mourning, such as is usual where calamity is but partial. "The dead" is purposely put in the plural, as referring ultimately to the dead who should perish at the taking of Jerusalem; though the singular might have been expected, as Ezekiel's wife was the immediate subject referred to: "make no mourning," such as is usual, "for the dead, and such as shall be hereafter in Jerusalem" (Jer 16:5-7).
tire of thine head—thy headdress [Fairbairn]. Jerome explains, "Thou shalt retain the hair which is usually cut in mourning." The fillet, binding the hair about the temples like a chaplet, was laid aside at such times. Uncovering the head was an ordinary sign of mourning in priests; whereas others covered their heads in mourning (2Sa 15:30). The reason was, the priests had their headdress of fine twined linen given them for ornament, and as a badge of office. The high priest, as having on his head the holy anointing oil, was forbidden in any case to lay aside his headdress. But the priests might do so in the case of the death of the nearest relatives (Le 21:2, 3, 10). They then put on inferior attire, sprinkling also on their heads dust and ashes (compare Le 10:6, 7).
shoes upon thy feet—whereas mourners went "barefoot" (2Sa 15:30).
cover not … lips—rather, the "upper lip," with the moustache (Le 13:45; Mic 3:7).
bread of men—the bread usually brought to mourners by friends in token of sympathy. So the "cup of consolation" brought (Jer 16:7). "Of men" means such as is usually furnished by men. So Isa 8:1, "a man's pen"; Re 21:17, "the measure of a man."
19. what these things are to us—The people perceive that Ezekiel's strange conduct has a symbolical meaning as to themselves; they ask, "What is that meaning?"
21. excellency of your strength—(compare Am 6:8). The object of your pride and confidence (Jer 7:4, 10, 14).
desire of … eyes—(Ps 27:4). The antitype to Ezekiel's wife (Eze 24:16).
pitieth—loveth, as pity is akin to love: "yearned over."
Profane—an appropriate word. They had profaned the temple with idolatry; God, in just retribution, will profane it with the Chaldean sword, that is, lay it in the dust, as Ezekiel's wife.
sons … daughters … left—the children left behind in Judea, when the parents were carried away.
22. (Jer 16:6, 7). So general shall be the calamity, that all ordinary usages of mourning shall be suspended.
23. ye shall not mourn … but … pine away for your iniquities—The Jews' not mourning was to be not the result of insensibility, any more than Ezekiel's not mourning for his wife was not from want of feeling. They could not in their exile manifest publicly their lamentation, but they would privately "mourn one to another." Their "iniquities" would then be their chief sorrow ("pining away"), as feeling that these were the cause of their sufferings (compare Le 26:39; La 3:39). The fullest fulfilment is still future (Zec 12:10-14).
24. sign—a typical representative in his own person of what was to befall them (Isa 20:3).
when this cometh—alluding probably to their taunt, as if God's word spoken by His prophets would never come to pass. "Where is the word of the Lord? Let it come now" (Jer 17:15). When the prophecy is fulfilled, "ye shall know (to your cost) that I am the Lord," who thereby show My power and fulfil My word spoken by My prophet (Joh 13:19; 14:29).
25, 26. "The day" referred to in these verses is the day of the overthrow of the temple, when the fugitive "escapes." But "that day," in Eze 24:27, is the day on which the fugitive brings the sad news to Ezekiel, at the Chebar. In the interval the prophet suspended his prophecies as to the Jews, as was foretold. Afterwards his mouth was "opened," and no more "dumb" (Eze 3:26, 27; compare Eze 24:27; 33:21, 22).