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Coke's Commentary on the Holy Bible

Ezekiel 21:23

It shall be unto them as a false divination— Houbigant renders this; But he [Nebuchadrezzar] seems to them [the Jews] as divining vain things, as boasting empty execrations: Nevertheless he shall call to remembrance the impiety [the falsehood and infidelity of their king Zedekiah], that they may be taken. The verse is extremely difficult; and the passage especially, To them that have sworn oaths, has not yet been decidedly understood by any commentator. Archbishop Secker supposes the oaths to have been false oaths which the Jews had sworn to the Chaldeans.

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See also Ezekiel 21:23 in other biblical comments:

  • Adam Clarke Bible Commentary

    Verse Ezekiel 21:23. _TO THEM THAT HAVE SWORN OATHS_] To Zedekiah and his _ministers_, who had bound themselves by the oath of the Lord to be faithful to the Chaldeans, and to pay them the promised t...

  • Albert Barnes' Bible Commentary

    The third word of judgment. The king of Babylon’s march upon Judaea and upon the Ammonites. Destruction is to go forth not on Judah only, but also on such neighboring tribes as the Ammonites (compare...

  • Annotated Bible by A.C. Gaebelein

    Ezekiel 21:1. A solemn message is given to the prophet: “Behold I am against thee, and will draw forth my sword out of its sheath, and will cut off from thee the righteous and the wicked.” It was to b...

  • Arthur Peake's Commentary on the Bible

    EZEKIEL 20:45 TO EZEKIEL 21:32. THE TERRIBLE SWORD OF NEBUCHADREZZAR. Here again, as shortly before (chs. 18f.), a piece of theological oratory is followed by a poem this time a wild irregular dithyra...

  • Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes

    THEM: i.e. Zedekiah and the rulers in Jerusalem. sworn oaths. Referring to Zedekiah's reacherous breach of faith with the king of Babylon. See Ezekiel 17:11. INIQUITY. treachery. Hebrew. _'avdh_. App...

  • Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

    _to them … sworn oaths_ The words are obscure and wanting in LXX., and possibly are not original. Whether a gloss or no their purpose appears to be to explain why Israel considered this divination of...

  • Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

    Ezekiel 20:45 to Ezekiel 21:32. The avenging sword of the Lord The passage Ezekiel 20:45-49 belongs to ch. 21 (as in Heb.). The time to which the chapter is to be assigned is the early period of Nebu...

  • Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

    He who is, or who wields, the sword, the king of Babylon. The verses furnish the interpretation of the preceding passage. The prophet is commanded to represent a way which parts into two ways. At the...

  • College Press Bible Study Textbook Series

    C. The Sword of the King of Babylon 21:18-27 TRANSLATION (18) And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, (19) Now as for you, son of man, make for yourself two ways, that the sword of the king of...

  • Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible

    And it shall be unto them as a false divination in their sight, to them that have sworn oaths: but he will call to remembrance the iniquity, that they may be taken. AND IT SHALL BE UNTO THEM AS A FAL...

  • Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible

    The people of Jerusalem would make light of Nebuchadrezzar's omens. THAT HAVE SWORN OATHS] This may refer to the broken oaths of allegiance to Babylon (see Ezekiel 17:13), or perhaps to the covenant t...

  • Dummelow's Commentary on the Bible

    3, 4. THE RIGHTEOUS AND THE WICKED] corresponding to the green tree and the dry in the parable (Ezekiel 20:47). In spite of his strict theory of retribution in Ezekiel 18, Ezekiel recognised the fact...

  • EasyEnglish Bible Commentaries

    EZEKIEL: ‘THEY SHALL KNOW THAT I AM GOD’ THE *SIN OF JUDAH AND THE JUDGEMENT OF GOD EZEKIEL CHAPTER S 1 TO 24 _IAN MACKERVOY_ CHAPTER 21 * This chapter describes how the king of Babylon and his...

  • Ellicott's Commentary On The Whole Bible

    AS A FALSE DIVINATION IN THEIR SIGHT. — The divination of the Babylonians seemed false to the Jews, primarily, because they were determined not to believe it; yet, doubtless, there was mingled with th...

  • ETCBC data on Hebrew bible

    _[Ezekiel 21:28]_ וְ הָיָ֨ה לָהֶ֤ם _כִּ_†_קְסָם_†...

  • Expositor's Bible Commentary (Nicoll)

    THE SWORD UNSHEATHED Ezekiel 21:1 THE date at the beginning of chapter 20 introduces the fourth and last section of the prophecies delivered before the destruction of Jerusalem. It also divides the f...

  • G. Campbell Morgan's Exposition on the Whole Bible

    The commission was then repeated in terms of explanation. Ezekiel was to set his face against Jerusalem, and prophesy against the land of Israel, declaring that Jehovah would draw His sword out of its...

  • Geneva Study Bible Commentary

    And it shall be to them (s) as a false divination in their sight, to them that have sworn oaths: (t) but he will call to remembrance the iniquity, that they may be taken. (s) Because there was a leag...

  • George Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary

    _Vain. They shall think that Nabuchodonosor is wasting his time. --- Sabbaths. Hebrew, "they have people who swear to them;" false prophets, or the Egyptians, on whom they depend. Septuagint, "and cou...

  • Hawker's Poor man's commentary

    Perhaps by the two ways is intended the double attack which the king of Babylon made on Jerusalem and the chief city of the Ammonites; but concerning which, as this scripture represents, he stood unde...

  • John Darby's Synopsis

    THE FOLLOWING COMMENTARY COVERS CHAPTER S 20 AND 21. Chapter 20 begins a new prophecy, which, with its subdivisions, continues to the end of chapter 23. It will have been remarked that the general div...

  • John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible

    AND IT SHALL BE UNTO THEM AS A FALSE DIVINATION IN THEIR SIGHT,.... That is, the Jews shall laugh at this divination as a vain thing, as a Heathenish practice, and of which nothing would come; and eve...

  • John Trapp Complete Commentary

    _And it shall be unto them as a false divination in their sight, to them that have sworn oaths: but he will call to remembrance the iniquity, that they may be taken._ Ver. 23. _And it shall be to the...

  • Joseph Benson’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

    _And it shall be as a false divination to them that have sworn oaths_ That is, the Jews, when they shall hear of it, shall deride and despise it as a vain, lying divination, and so shall consider them...

  • Kretzmann's Popular Commentary of the Bible

    THE SWORD OF BABYLON UPON JUDAH AND UPON AMMON...

  • Kretzmann's Popular Commentary of the Bible

    And it shall be unto them, namely, to the Jews, who were prone to yield to false hopes, AS A FALSE DIVINATION IN THEIR SIGHT, they refused to believe that matters would come to such a pass, TO THEM TH...

  • Marginal Notes in the King James Version (1611)

    TO THEM THAT HAVE SWORN OATHS: Or, for the oaths made unto them...

  • Matthew Henry Commentary on the Whole Bible

    18-27 By the Spirit of prophecy Ezekiel foresaw Nebuchadnezzar's march from Babylon, which he would determine by divination. The Lord would overturn the government of Judah, till the coming of Him wh...

  • Matthew Poole's Concise Commentary On The Bible

    UNTO THEM; the Jews, who shall either not believe that Nebuchadnezzar did so consult, or else that it is a vain, false, and lying divination, which will delude him that believes it, but never hurt the...

  • Patchworkid's Personal Study Bible Notes

    Ezekiel 21:23 false H7723 divination H7080 (H8800) eyes H5869 sworn H7650 (H8803) oaths H7621 bring H2142 iniquit

  • Peter Pett's Commentary on the Bible

    “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.” Th...

  • Summarized Bible Commentary

    CONTENTS: Parable of the sighing prophet, and of the sword of God. No king for Israel until Messiah comes to reign. CHARACTERS: God, Christ, Ezekiel, King of Babylon. CONCLUSION: When the sword is u...

  • Sutcliffe's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

    Ezekiel 21:2. _Son of man, set thy face toward Jerusalem, and drop thy word toward the holy places._ In the Latin bibles, this chapter begins at 21:45 of the preseding, which preserves unity in the su...

  • The ESV Global Study Bible's Study Notes

    EZEKIEL—NOTE ON EZEKIEL 21:18 In v. Ezekiel 21:11 the sword was committed to the “hand of the slayer,” identified here as THE KING OF BABYLON. Ezekiel performs

  • The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary

    EXEGETICAL NOTES.— Ezekiel 21:23. Though this announcement of God’s judgments will appear to the people of Judea as a deceptive divination, yet it will surely come to pass. The prophet, however, sees...

  • The Pulpit Commentaries

    EXPOSITION EZEKIEL 21:2, EZEKIEL 21:3 The opening words, reproducing those of Ezekiel 20:46, indicate that the interpretation of that parable is coming. So the

  • Through The Bible C2000 Serie by Chuck Smith

    Shall we turn now in our Bibles to Ezekiel 21, the twenty-first chapter of Ezekiel. Now the prophets of God were often very colorful persons. And because people would not always listen to the Word of...

  • Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

    1 Kings 17:18; 2 Chronicles 36:13; 2 Kings 24:20; 2 Kings 25:1;...

  • Wesley's Explanatory Notes

    Them — The Jews. That have sworn — Zedekiah, his princes, and nobles, who swore allegiance to the king of Babylon, these perjured persons will contemn all predictions of the prophet. He — Nebuchadnezz...

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