Ezekiel 35:1-15

III. REMOVAL OF NATIONAL ENEMIES 35:1-15

(1) And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, (2) Son of man, set your face against mount Seir, and prophesy against it. (3) and say unto it: Thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I am against you, O mount Seir, and I will stretch out My hand against you, and I will make you an utter desolation. (4) I will lay waste Your cities, and you shall be desolate; and you shall know that I am the Lord. (5) Because you have had an ancient hatred, and you have given over the children of Israel to the power of the sword, in the time of their calamity, in the time of their iniquity of the end. (6) Therefore, as I live (oracle of the Lord GOD), surely I will prepare you for blood, and blood shall pursue you; surely you hate blood, and blood shall pursue you. (7) And I will make mount Seir an utter desolation, and I will cut off from it travelers.[456] (8) And I will fill his mountains with his slain; in your hills, your valleys and your streams those slain by the sword shall fall. (9) I will make you desolations forever, and you shall not inhabit your cities; and you shall know that I am the LORD. (10) Because you have said; these two nations and these two lands shall be mine, and I will possess it; while the LORD was there. (11) Therefore, as I live (oracle of the Lord GOD), I will do according to your anger, and according to your jealousy which you have done out of your hatred against them; and I will make Myself known among them when I shall judge you. (12) And you shall know that I the LORD have heard all of your blasphemies which you have said against the mountains of Israel, saying, They are desolate; they have been given to us to devour. (13) And you have magnified yourself against Me with your mouth, and you have multiplied your words against Me; I have heard it. (14) Thus says the Lord GOD: When the whole earth rejoices, I will make you a desolation. (15) Because you rejoiced over the inheritance of the house of Israel when it was desolate so will I do to you; you shall become a desolation, O mount Seir, and all of Edom, even all of it; and they shall know that I am the LORD.

[456] Literally, he that passes through and he that returns.

COMMENTS

The first obstruction to restoration has now been dealt with, that being the problem of corrupt leadership. Now Ezekiel deals with the second obstruction to Israel's golden age. All nations which oppressed God's people must be judged and destroyed. Mt. Seir,[457] i.e., Edom, the ancient archenemy of Israel is singled out for special condemnation here (Ezekiel 35:1-2). However, Edom is symbolic of every nation which had oppressed Israel.[458] Only when all the enemies of the Lord are destroyed is the deliverance of God's people complete.

[457] The original home of Edom was the mountainous country of Seir east of the Arabah. Here Mt. Seir is used of the entire territory occupied by the Edomites.

[458] In other passages Edom also figures as the symbol of all Israel's enemies (E. g. Isaiah 63).

In this oracle God immediately declares Himself to be in an adversary relationship to Edom. He would stretch out His hand against Edom, i.e., smite that country. That outstretched hand would mean the undoing and ultimate desolation of Edom (Ezekiel 35:3). The once proud cities of Edom would be laid waste. So thorough would the calamity be that the Edomites would detect in it the operation of God (Ezekiel 35:4). This divine judgment is in recompense for the ancient hatred of the Edomites toward the people of God, This bitter animosity most recently had been manifested in the aid which the Edomites had rendered to the Babylonian conquerors of Jerusalem. Captured Israelites were handed over to the invaders for execution. Thus the Edomites no less than the Chaldeans participated in the time of their (Judah'S) calamity, in the time of the iniquity of the end, i.e., the iniquity which completed Judah's full measure of guilt and brought about their destruction (Ezekiel 35:5).

God had prepared Edom unto blood, i.e., Edom would die a bloody death. Twice the prophet emphasizes that blood would pursue Edom. It is as though the blood of slain Israelites was demanding retribution, and that because Edom had hated his own blood, i.e., Israel those to whom Edom had blood-ties (Ezekiel 35:6). Those slain in the anticipated attack would be so numerous that Mt. Seir (Edom) would be desolate. No man would survive to traverse that land (Ezekiel 35:7). The dead bodies would be everywhere hills, valleys, and streams (Ezekiel 35:8). Edom would remain desolate forever. Such as might escape to neighboring lands would gradually realize that the hand of the great God of Israel had been against them.[459]

[459] Esau, ancestor of the Edomites, was the twin brother of Jacob, the ancestor of Israel (Genesis 25:25).

Not only had Edom betrayed his brother nation in the time of calamity (Ezekiel 35:5), he had also claimed the right to occupy the territory once occupied by Judah and Israel. But even though the two apostate nations had been ejected from the territory which had been assigned to them, yet the Lord was still there. True, His divine and holy presence had been seen earlier in a vision to depart from the land (cf. Ezekiel 11:23). But He was still there in the sense that the land was His, and He alone had the right to determine who would occupy it (Ezekiel 35:10). Therefore Edom must be recompensed for his anger and envy toward Israel. By punishing Edom God would make Himself known among Israel, i.e., He would show Himself still to be their protector and guardian (Ezekiel 35:11).

The omniscient God of Israel heard, i.e., was aware of, the blasphemies spoken by the children of Edom against the mountains of Israel. They were saying that since those mountains were now desolate, i.e., uninhabited, they had been given (by God?) to Edom (Ezekiel 35:12). This attitude on the part of Edom constituted an affront to God because He owned the territory which Israel had formerly occupied. To plan seizure of that territory was sinful pride which lifts itself up against God. God had heard Edom's proud boasts (Ezekiel 35:13).

The whole earth would rejoice when Edom became desolate (Ezekiel 35:14). Edom gloated when Israel's inheritance God's gift to His people was destroyed. Therefore, the punishment would correspond to the transgression. Edom would be made desolate. With the destruction of Edom, the enemy of God's people, the whole earth would realize that Yahweh is just and mighty in the defense of His honor and His people (Ezekiel 35:15).