Thou also, son of man, take thee a tile, and lay it before thee, and pourtray upon it the city, even Jerusalem: TAKE THEE A TILE - a sun-dried brick, such as are found in Babylon, covered with cuneiform inscriptions, often two feet long, one broad.... [ Continue Reading ]
And lay siege against it, and build a fort against it, and cast a mount against it; set the camp also against it, and set battering rams against it round about. BUILD A FORT AGAINST IT - rather, a watch-tower () wherein the besiegers could watch the movements of the Besieged (Gesenius). A wall o... [ Continue Reading ]
Moreover take thou unto thee an iron pan, and set it for a wall of iron between thee and the city: and set thy face against it, and it shall be besieged, and thou shalt lay siege against it. This shall be a sign to the house of Israel. AN IRON PAN - symbolically representing the divine decree as... [ Continue Reading ]
Lie thou also upon thy left side, and lay the iniquity of the house of Israel upon it: according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon it thou shalt bear their iniquity. LIE THOU ALSO UPON THY LEFT SIDE - another symbolical act, performed at the same time as the former, in vision, n... [ Continue Reading ]
For I have laid upon thee the years of their iniquity, according to the number of the days, three hundred and ninety days: so shalt thou bear the iniquity of the house of Israel. THREE HUNDRED AND NINETY DAYS. The 390 years of punishment appointed for Israel, and forty for Judah, cannot refer to... [ Continue Reading ]
And when thou hast accomplished them, lie again on thy right side, and thou shalt bear the iniquity of the house of Judah forty days: I have appointed thee each day for a year. EACH DAY FOR A YEAR - literally, a day for a year, a day for a year. Twice repeated, to mark more distinctly the refere... [ Continue Reading ]
Therefore thou shalt set thy face toward the siege of Jerusalem, and thine arm shall be uncovered, and thou shalt prophesy against it. THINE ARM SHALL BE UNCOVERED - to be ready for action, which the long Oriental garment usually covering it would prevent (). THOU SHALT PROPHESY AGAINST IT - t... [ Continue Reading ]
And, behold, I will lay bands upon thee, and thou shalt not turn thee from one side to another, till thou hast ended the days of thy siege. I WILL LAY BANDS UPON THEE - () i:e., a constraint or restriction. THOU SHALT NOT TURN THEE FROM ONE SIDE TO ANOTHER - to imply the impossibility of their... [ Continue Reading ]
Take thou also unto thee wheat, and barley, and beans, and lentiles, and millet, and fitches, and put them in one vessel, and make thee bread thereof, according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon thy side, three hundred and ninety days shalt thou eat thereof. TAKE THOU ALSO UNTO... [ Continue Reading ]
And thy meat which thou shalt eat shall be by weight, twenty shekels a day: from time to time shalt thou eat it. THY MEAT SHALL BE BY WEIGHT TWENTY SHEKELS ie little more than ten ounces A scant measure to THY MEAT ... SHALL BE BY WEIGHT, TWENTY SHEKELS - i:e., little more than ten ounces. A sca... [ Continue Reading ]
Thou shalt drink also water by measure, the sixth part of an hin: from time to time shalt thou drink. THOU SHALT DRINK ALSO WATER BY MEASURE, THE SIXTH PART OF AN HIN - about a pint and a half.... [ Continue Reading ]
And thou shalt eat it as barley cakes, and thou shalt bake it with dung that cometh out of man, in their sight. THOU SHALT BAKE IT WITH DUNG - as fuel; so the Arabs use beasts' dung, wood-fuel being scarce. But to use human dung so implies the most cruel necessity. It was in violation of the law... [ Continue Reading ]
And the LORD said, Even thus shall the children of Israel eat their defiled bread among the Gentiles, whither I will drive them. EVEN THUS SHALL THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL EAT THEIR DEFILED BREAD AMONG THE GENTILES - implying that Israel's special distinction was to be abolished, and that they were... [ Continue Reading ]
Then said I, Ah Lord GOD! behold, my soul hath not been polluted: for from my youth up even till now have I not eaten of that which dieth of itself, or is torn in pieces; neither came there abominable flesh into my mouth. AH LORD GOD! BEHOLD, MY SOUL HATH NOT BEEN POLLUTED; FOR FROM MY YOUTH UP,... [ Continue Reading ]
Then he said unto me, Lo, I have given thee cow's dung for man's dung, and thou shalt prepare thy bread therewith. I HAVE GIVEN THEE COW'S DUNG FOR MAN'S DUNG - a mitigation of the former order (); no longer "the dung of man;" still the bread so baked is "defiled;" to imply that, whatever partia... [ Continue Reading ]
Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, behold, I will break the staff of bread in Jerusalem: and they shall eat bread by weight, and with care; and they shall drink water by measure, and with astonishment: I WILL BREAK THE STAFF OF BREAD - bread by which life is supported, as a man's weight is by... [ Continue Reading ]
That they may want bread and water, and be astonied one with another, and consume away for their iniquity. THAT THEY MAY ... BE ASTONIED ONE WITH ANOTHER - mutually regard one another with astonishment - i:e., with the stupefied look of despairing want. Remarks: (1) Ezekiel by a vivid representat... [ Continue Reading ]