Ezekiel receives the EZEKIEL. roll of prophecy. CHAPTER III. This chapter contains more particular instructions to the prophet. It begins with repeating his appointment to his office, 1-3. Ezekiel is then informed that his commission is, at this time, to the house of Israel exclusively, 4-6; that his countrymen would pay little regard to him, 7; that he must persevere in his duty notwithstanding such great discouragement; and he is endued with extraordinary courage and intrepidity to enable him fearlessly to declare to a disobedient and gainsaying people the whole counsel of God, 8-11. The prophet is afterwards carried by the spirit that animated the cherubim and wheels, and by which he received the gift of prophecy, to a colony of his brethren in the neighbourhood, where he remained seven days overwhelmed with astonishment, 12-15. He is then warned of the awful importance of being faithful in his office, 16-21; commanded to go forth into the plain that he may have a visible manifestation of the Divine Presence, 22; and is again favoured with a vision of that most magnificent set of symbols described in the first chapter, by which the glorious majesty of the God of Israel was in some measure represented, 23. See also Isa. vi. 1–18; Dan. x. 5–19; and Rev. i. 10–16; iv. 1–11, for other manifestations of the Divine glory, in all of which some of the imagery is very similar. The prophet receives directions relative to his future conduct, 24-27. A. M. 3409. B. C. 595. OL. XLVI. 2. a MOREOVER he said unto me, Son of man, eat that Tarquinii Prisci, thou findest; eat this roll, and R. Roman., 22. go speak unto the house of Israel. 2 So I opened my mouth, and he caused me to eat that roll. 3 And he said unto me, Son of man, cause thy belly to eat, and fill thy bowels with this roll that I give thee. Then did I eat it; and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness. 4 And he said unto me, Son of man, go, get thee unto the house of Israel, and speak with my words unto them. d 5 For thou art not sent to a people of a strange speech and of a hard language, but to the house of Israel; 8 Behold, I have made thy face strong against their faces, and thy forehead strong against their foreheads. 9 As an adamant harder than flint have I made thy forehead: m fear them not, neither be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house. 10 Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, all my words that I shall speak unto thee, receive in thine heart, and hear with thine ears. 11 And go, get thee to them of the captivity, unto the children of thy people, and speak unto them, and tell them, Thus saith the Lord God; whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear. 12 Then the spirit took me up, and I heard g Matt. xi. 21, 23.- John xv. 20. Chap. ii, 4.- Heb. stiff of forehead, and hard of heart. Isa. 1. 7; Jer. i. 18; xv. 20; Mic. iii. 8.- Jer. i. 8, 17; chap. ii. 6.— Chap. ii. 5, 7; ver. 27.-0 Ver. 14; chap. viii. 3; see 1 Kings xviii. 12; 2 Kings ii. 16; Acts viii. 39. matter contained in God's word against sinners, which multitudes of them will turn to their endless confusion, must deeply afflict those who know any thing of the worth of an immortal spirit. Verse 5. Thou art not sent to a people of a strange speech] I neither send thee to thy adversaries, the Chaldeans, nor to the Medes and Persians, their enemies. Even these would more likely have hearkened unto thee than thy own countrymen. Verse 3. It was in my mouth as honey] It was joyous to me to receive the Divine message, to be thus let into the secrets of the Divine counsel, and I promised myself much comfort in that intimate acquaint- Verse 7. Impudent and hard-hearted.] "Stiff of ance with which I was favoured by the Supreme Be- forehead, and hard of heart."-Margin. The maring. In Rev. x. 10 we find St. John receiving a lit-ginal readings on several verses here are very nervous tle book, which he ate, and found it sweet as honey in his mouth, but after he had eaten it, it made his belly bitter, signifying that a deep consideration of the awful and very correct. Verse 12. Then the Spirit took me up] This, as Calmet remarks, has been variously understood. 1. He is carried by the A. M. 3409. B. C. 595. Anno CHAP. III. behind me a voice of a great Ol. XLVI. 2. rushing, saying, Blessed be Tarquinii Prisci, the glory of the LORD from his place. R. Roman., 22. 13 I heard also the noise of the wings of the living creatures that touched one another, and the noise of the wheels over against them, and a noise of a great rushing. 14 So the spirit lifted me up and took me away, and I went in bitterness, in the heat of my spirit; but the hand of the LORD was strong upon me. 15 Then I came to them of the captivity at Tel-abib, that dwelt by the river of Chebar, and I sat where they sat, and remained there astonished among them seven days. 16 And it came to pass at the end of seven PHeb. kissed. Heb. hot anger. 1.- Job ii. 13; Ver. 12; chap. viii. 3.- Heb. bitter. - 2 Kings iii. 15; chap. i. 3; viii. 1 ; xxxvii. Psa. exxxvii. 1. An impetuous wind carried him to the place where his brethren sojourned. 2. The Holy Spirit, which filled his heart, transported him in a moment to the place where the captives were. 3. Or, he was so transported with heavenly ardour in his mind, that he ran immediately off, and seemed to fly to the place where God commanded him to go. The promptitude and impetuosity of his spirit seemed to furnish him with wings on the occasion. However this may be understood, the going to the captives was real. A voice of a great rushing] This was the noise made by the wings of the living creatures that formed the chariot of Jehovah. See the notes on chap. i. and x. Blessed be the glory of the Lord] Probably the acclamation of the living creatures: "Let God be blessed from the throne of his glory! He deserves the praises of his creatures in all the dispensations of his mercy and justice, of his providence and grace." Verse 13. A great rushing.] All the living creatures and the wheels being then in motion. Verse 14. I went in bitterness] Being filled with indignation at the wickedness and obstinacy of my people, I went, determining to speak the word of God without disguise, and to reprove them sharply for their rebellion; and yet I was greatly distressed because of the heavy message which I was commanded to deliver. Verse 15. I came to them of the captivity] Because the hand of the Lord was strong upon him and supported him, he soon reached the place. Tel-abib] "a heap of corn." So the Vulgate: acervum novarum frugum, "a heap of new fruits." A letola chib, "to the hill Chib," or the hill of grief.—Syriac. Spirit to Tel-abib. days, that the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, W A. M. 3409. B. C. 595. Ol. XLVI. 2. Anno Tarquinii Prisci, R. Roman., 22. 17 Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me. 18 When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand. 19 Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul. bably been employed in his work as soon as he had gained the place of labour. Verse 17. I have made thee a watchman] The care and welfare of all this people I have laid on thee. Thou must watch for their safety, preach for their edification, and pray for their eternal welfare. And that thou mayest be successful, receive the word at my mouth, and warn them from me. God is particularly jealous lest any words but his own be taught for Divine doctrines. He will not have human creeds, no more than TRADITIONS, taught instead of his own word. No word can be successful in the salvation of sinners but that which comes from God. Every minister of the Gospel should be familiar with his Maker by faith and prayer; God will then hold communion with his spirit; otherwise, what he preaches will be destitute of spirit and life, and his hackneyedtexts and sermons, instead of being the bread from heaven, will be like the dry mouldy Gibeonitish crusts. Verse 18. Thou shall surely die] That is, If he turn not from his wickedness, and thou givest him not warning, as above, he shall die in his iniquity, which he should not have committed; but his blood will I require at thy hand—I will visit thy soul for the loss of his. O how awful is this! Hear it, ye priests, ye preachers, ye ministers of the Gospel; ye, especially, who have entered into the ministry for a living; ye who gather a congregation to yourselves that ye may feed upon their fat, and clothe yourselves with their wool; in whose parishes and in whose congregations souls are dying unconverted from day to day, who have never been solemnly warned by you, and to whom you have never shown the way of salvation, probably because ye know nothing of it yourselves! O what a perdition awaits you! To have the blood of every soul that has died in your parishes or in your Seven days.] Perhaps God kept him all this time without an immediate revelation, that the bitterness and heat of spirit of which he speaks above might be sub-congregations unconverted laid at your door! To dued, and that he might speak God's words in God's own Spirit. Had he gone in a better spirit he had pro suffer a common damnation for every soul that perishes through your neglect! How many loads of endless Ezekiel receives directions A. M. 3409. Ol. XLVI. 2. EZEKIEL. from the Lord. 20 Again, When a 2 righteous stood there, as the glory which man doth turn from his righte- I saw by the river of Chebar : Tarquinii Prisci, ousness, and commit iniquity, and I fell on my face.、 R. Roman., 22. and I lay a stumbling-block before him, he shall die: because thou hast not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteousness which he hath done shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at thine hand. 21 Nevertheless if thou warn the righteous man, that the righteous sin not, and he doth not sin, he shall surely live, because he is warned; also thou hast delivered thy soul. Chap. xviii. 24; xxxiii. 12, 13. a Heb. righteousnesses. b Ver. 14; chap. i. 3. Chap. viii. 4. Chap. i. 28. •Chap. i. 1.- Chap. i. 28.- - Chap. ii. 2. wo must such have to bear! Ye take your tithes, your stipends, or your rents, to the last grain, and the last penny; while the souls over whom you made yourselves watchmen have perished, and are perishing, through your neglect. O worthless and hapless men! better for you had ye never been born! Vain is your boast of apostolical authority, while ye do not the work of apostles! Vain your boast of orthodoxy, while ye neither show nor know the way of salvation! Vain your pretensions to a Divine call, when ye do not the work of evangelists! The state of the most wretched of the human race is enviable to that of such ministers, pastors, teachers, and preachers. But let not this discourage the faithful minister who teaches every man, and warns every man, in all wisdom, that he may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus. If after such teaching and warning they will sin on, and die in their sins, their blood will be upon themselves; but thou, O man of God, hast delivered thine own soul. Verse 20. When a righteous man doth turn from his righteousness] Which these words plainly state he may do, and commit iniquity, and die in his sin; and consequently die eternally, which is also here granted; if he have not been warned, though he die in his sin, the blood-the life and salvation, of this person also will God require at the watchman's hand. Pastor hunc occidit, quia eum tacendo morti tradidit. "This man the pastor kills; for in being silent, he delivers him over to death."-GREGORY. From these passages we see that a righteous man may fall from grace, and perish everlastingly. Should it be said that it means the self-righteous, I reply, this is ab434 A. M. 3409. B. C. 595. Ol. XLVI. 2. Anno Tarquinii Prisci, R. Roman., 22. 24 Then the spirit entered into me, and set me upon my feet, and spake with me, and said unto me, Go, shut thyself within thine house. h 25 But thou, O son of man, behold, they shall put bands upon thee, and shall bind thee with them, and thou shalt not go out among them: 26 And I will make thy tongue cleave to the roof of thy mouth, that thou shalt be dumb, and shalt not be to them k a reprover: for they are a rebellious house. 27 m But when I speak with thee, I will open thy mouth, and thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; he that heareth, let him hear; and he that forbeareth, let him forbear: for they are a rebellious house. h Chap. iv. 8.- Chap. xxiv. 27; Luke i. 20, 22.Heb. a man reproving. Chap. ii. 5, 6, 7.— Chap. xxiv. 27; xxxiii. 22. Ver. 11. Ver. 9, 26; chap. xii. 2, 3. surd; for self-righteousness is a fall itself, and the sooner a man falls from it the better for himself. Real, genuine righteousness of heart and life is that which is meant. Let him that standeth take heed lest he fall. And I lay a stumbling-block before him] That is, I permit him to be tried, and he fall in the trial. God is repeatedly represented as doing things which he only permits to be done. He lays a stumbling-block, i. e., he permits one to be laid. Into a Verse 22. Arise, go forth into the plain] place remote from observation and noise; a place where the glory of God might have sufficient room to manifest itself, that the prophet might see all its movements distinctly. Verse 24. The spirit—said unto me, Go, shut thyself within thine house.] Hide thyself for the present. The reason is immediately subjoined. Verse 25. They shall put bands upon thee] Thy countrymen will rise up against thee; and, to prevent thy prophesying, will confine thee. Verse 26. I will make thy tongue cleave to the roof of thy mouth] I will not give thee any message to deliver to them. They are so rebellious, it is useless to give them farther warning. Verse 27. I will open thy mouth] When it is necessary to address them again, thou shalt sum up what thou hast said in this one .speech: Thus saith the Lord, "He that heareth, let him hear; and he that forbeareth, let him forbear." Let him who feels obedience to the voice of God his interest, be steadfast. Let him who disregards the Divine monition go in his own way, and abide the consequences. ( 28 ) The siege of Jerusalem CHAP. IV. CHAPTER IV. pourtrayed on a tile. A. M. 3409. Ezekiel delineates Jerusalem, and lays siege to it, as a type of the manner in which the Chaldean army should surround that city, 1-3. The prophet commanded to lie on his left side three hundred and ninety days, and on his right side forty days, with the signification, 4-8. The scanty and coarse provision allowed the prophet during his symbolical siege, consisting chiefly of the worst kinds of grain, and likewise ill-prepared, as he had only cow's dung for fuel, tended all to denote the scarcity of provision, fuel, and every necessary of life, which the Jews should experience during the siege of Jerusalem, 9-17. 3 Moreover take thou unto thee an iron pan, and set it for a wall of iron between thee and Tarquinii Prisci, 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: B. C. 595. Ol. XLVI. 2. THOU also, son of man, take thee a tile, and lay it before Tarquinii Prisci, thee, and pourtray upon it the city, even Jerusalem: R. Roman., 22. 2 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 a battering rams against it round about. a Or, chief leaders; chap. xxi. 22.―b Or, a flat plate, or slice. Verse 1. Take thee a tile] A tile, such as we use in covering houses, will give us but a very inadequate notion of those used anciently; and also appear very insufficient for the figures which the prophet was commanded to pourtray on it. A brick is most undoubt edly meant; yet, even the larger dimensions here, as to thickness, will not help us through the difficulty, unless we have recourse to the ancients, who have spoken of the dimensions of the bricks commonly used in-building. Palladius, De Re Rustica, lib. vi. c. 12, is very particular on this subject :-Sint vero lateres longitudine pedum duorum, latitudine unius, altitudine quatuor unciarum. "Let the bricks be two feet long, one foot broad, and four inches thick." Edit. Gesner, vol. iii. p. 144. On such a surface as this the whole siege might be easily pourtrayed. There are some brick-bats before me which were brought from the ruins of ancient Babylon, which have been made of clay and straw kneaded together and baked in the sun; one has been more than four inches thick, and on one side it is deeply impressed with characters; others are smaller, well made, and finely impressed on one side with Persepolitan characters. These have been for inside or ornamental work; to such bricks the prophet most probably alludes. But the tempered clay out of which the bricks were made might be meant here; of this substance he might spread out a sufficient quantity to receive all his figures. The figures were, 1. Jerusalem. 2. A fort. 3. A mount. 4. The camp of the enemy. 5. Battering rams, and such like engines, round about. 6. A wall round about the city, between it and the besieging army. A. M. 3409. B. C. 595. Ol. XLVI. 2. Anno R. Roman., 22. 4 Lie thou also upon thy left side, and lay e Chap. xii. 6, 11; xiv. 24, 27. suddenly letting it loose, it struck with great force against the wall which it was intended to batter and bring down. This machine was not known in the time of Homer, as in the siege of Troy there is not the slightest mention of such. And the first notice we have of it is here, where we see that it was employed by Nebuchadnezzar in the siege of Jerusalem, A. M. 3416. It was afterwards used by the Carthaginians at the siege of Gades, as Vitruvius notes, lib. x. c. 19, in which he gives a circumstantial account of the invention, fabrication, use, and improvement of this machine. It was for the want of a machine of this kind, that the ancient sieges lasted so long; they had nothing with which to beat down or undermine the walls. Verse 3. Take thou unto thee an iron pan] and machabath, a flat plate or slice, as the margin properly renders it: such as are used in some countries to bake bread on, called a griddle or girdle, being suspended above the fire, and kept in a proper degree of heat for the purpose. A plate like this, stuck perpendicularly in the earth, would show the nature of a wall much better than any pan could do. The Chaldeans threw such a wall round Jerusalem, to prevent the besieged from receiving any succours, and from escaping from the city. This shall be a sign to the house of Israel.] This shall be an emblematical representation of what shall actually take place. It ap Verse 4. Lie thou also upon thy left side] pears that all that is mentioned here and in the following verses was done, not in idea, but in fact. The prophet lay down on his left side upon a couch to which he was chained, ver. 5, for three hundred and - Verse 2. Battering rams] D carim. This is ninety days; and afterwards he lay in the same manthe earliest account we have of this military engine. ner, upon his right side, for forty days. And thus was It was a long beam with a head of brass, like the head signified the state of the Jews, and the punishment and horns of a ram, whence its name. It was hung that was coming upon them. 1. The prophet himself by chains or ropes, between two beams, or three legs, represents the Jews. 2. His lying, their state of deso that it could admit of being drawn backward and pression. 3. His being bound, their helplessness and forward some yards. Several stout men, by means of captivity. 4. The days signify years, a day for a ropes, pulled it as far back as it could go; and then, year; during which they were to bear their iniquity, Great scarcity of A. M. 3409. B. C. 595. Anno EZEKIEL. · provisions foretold A. M. 3409. B. C. 595. Ol. XLVI. 2. Anno Tarquinii Prisci, the iniquity of the house of Israel to another, till thou hast ended Ol. XLVI. 2. upon it: according to the num- the days of thy siege. Tarquinii Prisci, ber of the days that thou shalt 9 Take thou also unto thee R. Roman., 22. lie upon it thou shalt bear their wheat, and barley, and beans, R. Roman., 22. iniquity. and lentiles, and millet, and h 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. d 5 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. 6 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. 7 Therefore thou shalt set thy face toward the siege of Jerusalem, and thine arm shall be uncovered, and thou shalt prophesy against it. 8 And, behold, I will lay bands upon thee, and thou shalt not turn thee from one side d Num. xiv. 34. Heb. a day for a year, a day for a year. or the temporal punishment due to their sins. 5. The three hundred and ninety days, during which he was to lie on his left side, and bear the iniquity of the house of Israel, point out two things: the first, The duration of the siege of Jerusalem. Secondly, The duration of the captivity of the ten tribes, and that of Judah. 6. The prophet lay three hundred and ninety days upon his left side, and forty days upon his right side, in all four hundred and thirty days. Now Jerusalem was besieged the ninth year of the reign of Zedekiah, 2 Kings xxv. 1, 2, and was not taken till the eleventh year of the same prince, 2 Kings xxv. 2. But properly speaking, the siege did not continue the whole of that time; it was interrupted; for Nebuchadnezzar was obliged to raise it, and go and meet the Egyptians, who were coming to its succour. This consumed a considerable portion of time. After he had defeated the Egyptians, he returned and recommenced the siege, and did not leave it till the city was taken. We may, therefore, conclude that the four hundred and thirty days only comprise the time in which the city was actually besieged, when the city was encompassed with walls of circumvallation, so that the besieged were reduced to a state of the utmost distress. The siege commenced the tenth day of the tenth month of the ninth year of Zedekiah; and it was taken on the ninth day of the fourth month of the eleventh year of the same king. Thus the siege had lasted, in the whole, eighteen months, or five hundred and ten days.. Subtract for the time that Nebuchadnezzar was obliged to interrupt the siege, in order to go against the Egyptians, four months and twenty days, or one hundred and forty days, and there will remain four hundred and thirty days, composed of 390+40=430. See Calmet on this place. See also at the end of this chapter. Verse 6. Forty days] Reckon, says Archbishop Newcome, near fifteen years and six months in the reign of Manasseh, two years in that of Amon, three Or, spelt. f Chap. iii. 25.- Heb. from thy side to thy side. months in that of Jehoahaz, eleven years in that of Jehoiakim, three months and ten days in that of Jehoiachin, and eleven years in that of Zedekiah; and there arises a period of forty years, during which gross idolatry was practised in the kingdom of Judah. Forty days may have been employed in spoiling and desolating the city and the temple. Verse 9. Take thou also unto thee wheat] In times of scarcity, it is customary in all countries to mix several kinds of coarser grain with the finer, to make it last the longer. This mashlin, which the prophet is commanded to take, of wheat, barley, beans, lentiles, millet, and fitches, was intended to show how scarce the necessaries of life should be during the siege. Verse 10. Twenty shekels a day] The whole of the above grain, being ground, was to be formed into one mass, out of which he was to make three hundred and ninety loaves; one loaf for each day; and this loaf was to be of twenty shekels in weight. Now a shekel, being in weight about half an ounce, this would be ten ounces of bread for each day; and with this water to the amount of one sixth part of a hin, which is about a pint and a half of our measure. All this shows that so reduced should provisions be during the siege, that they should be obliged to eat the meanest sort of aliment, and that by weight, and their water by measure; each man's allowance being scarcely a pint and a half, and ten ounces, a little more than half a pound of bread, for each day's support. Verse 12. Thou shalt bake it with dung] Dried ox and cow dung is a common fuel in the east; and with this, for want of wood and coals, they are obliged to prepare their food. Indeed, dried excrement of every kind is gathered. Here, the prophet is to prepare his bread with dry human excrement. And when we know that this did not come in contact with the bread, and was only used to warm the plate, (see ver. 3,) on which the bread was laid over the fire, it removes all |