XXIV. On the exact day on which Nebuchadnezzar invested Jerusalem the fact was revealed to the prophet in Chaldæa, and he was commanded to declare the fate of the city by a parable (Ezekiel 24:3). Afterwards the sudden death of his wife was foretold, and he was forbidden to make any outward sign of... [ Continue Reading ]
IN THE TENTH DAY OF THE MONTH. — Jehoiachin’s captivity (by which all these prophecies are dated) coincided with Zedekiah’s reign. The date here given is therefore the same as in Jeremiah 39:1; Jeremiah 52:4; 2 Kings 25:1, and was afterwards observed by the Jews as a fast (Zechariah 8:19). It was do... [ Continue Reading ]
WRITE THEE THE NAME. — It is evident that especial attention was to be called to the exact date, and a note made of it at the time. The words “has set himself against” would be more accurately rendered _has fallen upon._ The supposition that the reference is to some point on his march from which Neb... [ Continue Reading ]
UTTER A PARABLE. — What follows (Ezekiel 24:3) was not a symbolical action, but was simply a parable spoken to the people, although the language is just that which would describe action. SET ON A POT. — Rather, _the cauldron,_ the word being the same as in Ezekiel 11:3, and preceded by the definite... [ Continue Reading ]
THE PIECES THEREOF. — Literally, _its pieces,_ the pieces which pertain to the cauldron, the Jews, whose centre and capital is Jerusalem. This was the natural effect of Nebuchadnezzar’s campaign; the people from every side sought refuge in the city. (Comp. Jeremiah 35:11.) The mention of the “good p... [ Continue Reading ]
BURN ALSO THE BONES UNDER IT. — It is uncertain whether this is or is not the exact sense. The word for “burn” means, as is shown in the margin, _heap,_ and is a noun. This is taken by many with a verb implied, in the sense of “make a heap of wood to burn the bones.” On the other hand, the sense of... [ Continue Reading ]
SCUM. — This word, which occurs five times in these verses (Ezekiel 24:6; Ezekiel 24:11), is found nowhere else. Interpreters are agreed in the correctness of the old Greek version of it, _rust._ The thought is, that not only the inhabitants of the city are wicked, but that this wickedness is so gre... [ Continue Reading ]
(6-14) These verses contain the application of the parable in two distinct parts (Ezekiel 24:6), but in such wise that the literal and the figurative continually run together. A new feature, that of the rust on the cauldron, is also introduced. A somewhat similar figure may be found in Isaiah 4:4, b... [ Continue Reading ]
UPON THE TOP OF A ROCK. — Crimes of violence are continually charged upon Jerusalem (Ezekiel 22:12; Ezekiel 23:37, &c.)_,_ but here she is further reproached with such indifference to these crimes that she did not even care to cover them decently. It was required in the law that the blood even of th... [ Continue Reading ]
I HAVE SET. — Here God Himself is said to do that which has just been charged upon Jerusalem. There is no inconsistency between the statements; Jerusalem gloried in her crimes, and God made those crimes conspicuous as the cause of her punishment.... [ Continue Reading ]
SPICE IT WELL. — With Ezekiel 24:9 the second part of the application of the parable begins, and is marked by great energy of description. In this verse the sense of the word translated “spice” is doubtful. If this be its true meaning, the idea must be, Go on thoroughly with the cooking; but the wor... [ Continue Reading ]
SET IT EMPTY UPON THE COALS. — Keeping up the strong figure of the parable, after all the inhabitants have passed under judgment the city itself is to be purged by fire. It is unnecessary here to think of heat as removing the rust (scum) from the cauldron; the prophet’s mind is not upon any physical... [ Continue Reading ]
ALSO THE WORD. — What follows is distinctly separated from the utterance of the foregoing parable and its interpretation, yet Ezekiel 24:18 shows that it took place upon the same day. Ezekiel is warned of the sudden death of his wife, who is described as deeply beloved, and yet he is forbidden to ma... [ Continue Reading ]
THE TIRE OF THINE HEAD. — This might be either the covering for the head usually worn by the people (see Ezekiel 24:23), or the special “mitre of fine linen” (Exodus 39:28) provided for the priests; but as the peculiar priestly garments were worn only when the priests were on duty within the taberna... [ Continue Reading ]
IN THE MORNING: AND AT EVEN. — What the prophet “spake unto the people in the morning” was what he has recorded (Ezekiel 24:3). Shortly after this the warning of Ezekiel 24:15 must have come to him, and then his Wife died in the evening of the same day. Accordingly, on the following morning the stra... [ Continue Reading ]
THAT WHICH YOUR SOUL PITIETH. — In the margin _the pity of your soul._ The word rather means in this connection _love,_ in the sense of the object of love: “that which your soul loves.” The expression in the original is a difficult one, and is used by Ezekiel on account of the alliteration with the... [ Continue Reading ]
PROFANE MY SANCTUARY. — Not merely by its destruction, but by the manner of its destruction, the Gentiles being allowed to enter its most sacred precincts, and carry off in triumph its sacred vessels and treasures. It was in the confidence that God would protect this that the last hope of the Jews l... [ Continue Reading ]
YE SHALL PINE AWAY. — In the tumult, distress, and captivity of the approaching judgment there would be no opportunity for the outward display of grief; but all the more should it press upon them inwardly, and, according to the terrible threatening of Leviticus 26:39, they should “pine away in their... [ Continue Reading ]
SHALL THY MOUTH BE OPENED. — The close of the chapter (Ezekiel 24:25) tells the prophet that he shall be informed of the fall of Jerusalem by an escaped fugitive. After that his mouth shall again be opened to utter his prophecies to the captives. Meantime, for almost two years (comp. Ezekiel 24:1 wi... [ Continue Reading ]