THE RIDDLE EXPLAINED. ‘And the word of Yahweh came to me saying, “Son of man, set your face towards Jerusalem, and drop your word towards the sanctuaries, and prophesy against the land of Israel, and say to the land of Israel, ‘Thus says Yahweh, behold I am against you and will draw out my sword fr... [ Continue Reading ]
“Seeing then that I will cut off from you the righteous and the wicked, therefore will my sword go forth out of its sheath against all flesh from the south to the north. And all flesh shall know that I Yahweh have drawn forth my sword out of its sheath. It shall not return any more.” This time the... [ Continue Reading ]
“Sigh, therefore, you son of man. You will sigh with the breaking of your loins and with bitterness before their eyes. And it will be when they say to you, ‘Why do you sigh?', that you will say, ‘Because of the tidings, for it comes.' And every heart will melt, and all hands will be feeble, and ever... [ Continue Reading ]
THE SONG OF THE SWORD. This song is intermingled with comments in prose and therefore its original form is difficult to work out. It may well originally have accompanied preparation for and march into battle. ‘And the word of Yahweh came to me saying, “Son of man, prophesy, and say, ‘Thus says the... [ Continue Reading ]
“Should we then make mirth? The rod of my son it condemns every tree.” Having revealed the warlike picture God now challenged Israel. In spite of the warnings of Jeremiah and Ezekiel they continued to enjoy life and make mirth, confident in their security as though they had no care in the world. Bu... [ Continue Reading ]
“And the sword is given to be polished that it may be handled, “It is sharpened, yes, it is polished, to give it into the hand of the slayer.” The exultant warsong goes on. The purpose in sharpening and polishing it is so that it might be handled, used in the hand of the slayer. God's final war on... [ Continue Reading ]
“Cry and howl, son of man, for it (the sword) is against my people, it is against all the princes of Israel. They are delivered over to the sword with my people. Smite therefore on your thigh. For there is a trial. And what if it condemn even the rod? It will be no more, (or alternately ‘what if eve... [ Continue Reading ]
A VIVID PICTURE OF THE SEVERITY OF THE JUDGMENT. “You therefore, son of man, prophesy, and smite your hands together, and let the sword be doubled the third time (or ‘be doubled, yes tripled'), the sword for those to be mortally wounded. It is the sword of the great one for those to be mortally wou... [ Continue Reading ]
“I also will smite my hands together, and I will satisfy my fury, I Yahweh have spoken it.” In Ezekiel 21:14 it was Ezekiel who smote his hands at what was to be. Here it is Yahweh Himself. For the set purposes of God were going forward and in the light of His final purposes His true people must fe... [ Continue Reading ]
THE SWORD OF THE KING OF BABYLON. ‘The word of Yahweh came to me again, saying, “Also you son of man, appoint two ways that the sword of the king of Babylon may come. Those two shall come forth out of one land. And mark out a place, mark it out at the head of the way to the city.” ' The theme of t... [ Continue Reading ]
“You will appoint a way for the sword to come to Rabbah of the children of Ammon, and to Judah, to Jerusalem the defenced.” The watchers wait in suspense as they see what has been mapped out before them, and are aware of the decision that has to be made as to which rebel city will be advanced on fi... [ Continue Reading ]
“For the king of Babylon stood at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination.” Ezekiel slowly and deliberately depicts the king of Babylon as reaching the fork in the road and then stopping to determine by divination which route he would take. Every watcher must have had... [ Continue Reading ]
“In his right hand was the divination for Jerusalem, to set battering rams, to open the mouth for the slaughter, to lift up the voice with shouting, to set battering rams against the gates, to cast up mounts, to build forts.” Ezekiel drew attention to the divination ‘in his right hand' (which proba... [ Continue Reading ]
“And it will be to them as vain divination in their sight, who have sworn solemn oaths to them (literally ‘oaths of oaths to them'). But he brings iniquity to remembrance that they might be taken.” The point here would seem to be that the waiters and watchers in Jerusalem would dismiss what was hap... [ Continue Reading ]
‘Therefore thus says the Lord Yahweh, “Because you have made your iniquity to be remembered, in that your transgressions are discovered, so that in all your doings your sins appear, because you are come to remembrance you will be taken with the hand.” The brief statement at the end of Ezekiel 21:23... [ Continue Reading ]
“And you, Oh wicked one marked for death (literally ‘Oh slain wicked one'), the prince of Israel whose day is come, in the time of the iniquity of the end, thus says the Lord Yahweh, ‘Remove the turban, and take off the crown, things will not be the same, exalt what is low and abase what is high. A... [ Continue Reading ]
“And you, son of man, prophesy and say, Thus says the Lord Yahweh concerning the children of Ammon, and concerning their reproach.” God now turns His attention on the children of Ammon and the way they will reproach and deride defeated Jerusalem, and plan to inflict misery on them. They too will su... [ Continue Reading ]
“While they portend (‘see') vain things for you, while they divine lies to you, to lay you on the necks of the wicked who are mortally wounded, whose day is come, in the time of the iniquity of the end.” The Ammonites have resorted to divination and have ‘seen' lying prophecies and false visions whi... [ Continue Reading ]
“Cause it to return to its sheath. In the place where you were created, in the land of your birth, I will judge you. And I will pour out my indignation on you, and I will blow on you with the fire of my wrath, and I will deliver you into the hand of brutish men, skilful to destroy. You will be for f... [ Continue Reading ]