6 Behold, the princes of Israel, every one were in thee to their power to shed blood.
7 In thee have they set light by father and mother: in the midst of thee have they dealt by oppression with the stranger: in thee have they vexed the fatherless and the widow.
8 Thou hast despised mine holy things, and hast profaned my sabbaths.
9 In thee are men that carry tales to shed blood: and in thee they eat upon the mountains: in the midst of thee they commit lewdness.
10 In thee have they discovered their fathers' nakedness: in thee have they humbled her that was set apart for pollution.
11 And one hath committed abomination with his neighbour's wife; and another hath lewdly defiled his daughter in law; and another in thee hath humbled his sister, his father's daughter.
12 In thee have they taken gifts to shed blood; thou hast taken usury and increase, and thou hast greedily gained of thy neighbours by extortion, and hast forgotten me, saith the Lord GOD.
13 Behold, therefore I have smitten mine hand at thy dishonest gain which thou hast made, and at thy blood which hath been in the midst of thee.
14 Can thine heart endure, or can thine hands be strong, in the days that I shall deal with thee? I the LORD have spoken it, and will do it.
15 And I will scatter thee among the heathen, and disperse thee in the countries, and will consume thy filthiness out of thee.
16 And thou shalt take thine inheritance in thyself in the sight of the heathen, and thou shalt know that I am the LORD.
6 Behold, the princes H5387 of Israel, H3478 every one H376 were in thee to their power H2220 to shed H8210 blood. H1818
7 In thee have they set light H7043 by father H1 and mother: H517 in the midst H8432 of thee have they dealt H6213 by oppression H6233 with the stranger: H1616 in thee have they vexed H3238 the fatherless H3490 and the widow. H490
8 Thou hast despised H959 mine holy things, H6944 and hast profaned H2490 my sabbaths. H7676
9 In thee are men H582 that carry tales H7400 to shed H8210 blood: H1818 and in thee they eat H398 upon the mountains: H2022 in the midst H8432 of thee they commit H6213 lewdness. H2154
10 In thee have they discovered H1540 their fathers' H1 nakedness: H6172 in thee have they humbled H6031 her that was set apart H5079 for pollution. H2931
11 And one H376 hath committed H6213 abomination H8441 with his neighbour's H7453 wife; H802 and another H376 hath lewdly H2154 defiled H2930 his daughter in law; H3618 and another H376 in thee hath humbled H6031 his sister, H269 his father's H1 daughter. H1323
12 In thee have they taken H3947 gifts H7810 to shed H8210 blood; H1818 thou hast taken H3947 usury H5392 and increase, H8636 and thou hast greedily gained H1214 of thy neighbours H7453 by extortion, H6233 and hast forgotten H7911 me, saith H5002 the Lord H136 GOD. H3069
13 Behold, therefore I have smitten H5221 mine hand H3709 at thy dishonest gain H1215 which thou hast made, H6213 and at thy blood H1818 which hath been in the midst H8432 of thee.
14 Can thine heart H3820 endure, H5975 or can thine hands H3027 be strong, H2388 in the days H3117 that I shall deal H6213 with thee? I the LORD H3068 have spoken H1696 it, and will do H6213 it.
15 And I will scatter H6327 thee among the heathen, H1471 and disperse H2219 thee in the countries, H776 and will consume H8552 thy filthiness H2932 out of thee.
16 And thou shalt take thine inheritance H2490 H5157 in thyself in the sight H5869 of the heathen, H1471 and thou shalt know H3045 that I am the LORD. H3068
6 Behold, the princes of Israel, every one according to his power, have been in thee to shed blood.
7 In thee have they set light by father and mother; in the midst of thee have they dealt by oppression with the sojourner; in thee have they wronged the fatherless and the widow.
8 Thou hast despised my holy things, and hast profaned my sabbaths.
9 Slanderous men have been in thee to shed blood; and in thee they have eaten upon the mountains: in the midst of thee they have committed lewdness.
10 In thee have they uncovered their fathers' nakedness; in thee have they humbled her that was unclean in her impurity.
11 And one hath committed abomination with his neighbor's wife; and another hath lewdly defiled his daughter-in-law; and another in thee hath humbled his sister, his father's daughter.
12 In thee have they taken bribes to shed blood; thou hast taken interest and increase, and thou hast greedily gained of thy neighbors by oppression, and hast forgotten me, saith the Lord Jehovah.
13 Behold, therefore, I have smitten my hand at thy dishonest gain which thou hast made, and at thy blood which hath been in the midst of thee.
14 Can thy heart endure, or can thy hands be strong, in the days that I shall deal with thee? I, Jehovah, have spoken it, and will do it.
15 And I will scatter thee among the nations, and disperse thee through the countries; and I will consume thy filthiness out of thee.
16 And thou shalt be profaned in thyself, in the sight of the nations; and thou shalt know that I am Jehovah.
6 Lo, princes of Israel -- each according to his arm Have been in thee to shed blood.
7 Father and mother made light of in thee, To a sojourner they dealt oppressively in thy midst, Fatherless and widow they oppressed in thee.
8 My holy things thou hast despised, And My sabbaths thou hast polluted.
9 Men of slander have been in thee to shed blood, And on the mountains they have eaten in thee, Wickedness they have done in thy midst.
10 The nakedness of a father hath one uncovered in thee, The defiled of impurity they humbled in thee.
11 And each with the wife of his neighbour hath done abomination, And each his daughter-in-law hath defiled through wickedness, And each his sister, his father's daughter, hath humbled in thee.
12 A bribe they have taken in thee to shed blood, Usury and increase thou hast taken, And cuttest off thy neighbour by oppression, And Me thou hast forgotten, An affirmation of the Lord Jehovah!
13 And lo, I have smitten My hand, Because of thy dishonest gain that thou hast gained, And for thy blood that hath been in thy midst.
14 Doth thy heart stand -- are thy hands strong, For the days that I am dealing with thee? I, Jehovah, have spoken and have done `it'.
15 And I have scattered thee among nations, And have spread thee out among lands, And consumed thy uncleanness out of thee.
16 And thou hast been polluted in thyself Before the eyes of nations, And thou hast known that I `am' Jehovah.'
6 Behold, the princes of Israel have been in thee to shed blood, each according to his power.
7 In thee have they made light of father and mother; in the midst of thee have they dealt by oppression with the stranger; in thee have they vexed the fatherless and the widow.
8 Thou hast despised my holy things, and hast profaned my sabbaths.
9 In thee there have been slanderous men to shed blood; and in thee have they eaten upon the mountains; in the midst of thee they have committed lewdness;
10 in thee have they discovered their fathers' nakedness; in thee have they humbled her that was unclean in her separation.
11 And one hath committed abomination with his neighbour's wife; and another hath lewdly defiled his daughter-in-law; and another in thee hath humbled his sister, his father's daughter.
12 In thee have they taken gifts to shed blood; thou hast taken usury and increase, and thou hast overreached thy neighbours by oppression, and hast forgotten me, saith the Lord Jehovah.
13 And behold, I have smitten mine hand at thine overreaching which thou hast done, and at thy bloodshed which hath been in the midst of thee.
14 Shall thy heart endure, shall thy hands be strong, in the days that I shall deal with thee? I Jehovah have spoken, and will do [it].
15 And I will scatter thee among the nations, and disperse thee through the countries, and will consume thy filthiness out of thee.
16 And thou shalt be polluted through thyself in the sight of the nations, and thou shalt know that I [am] Jehovah.
6 Behold, the princes of Israel, everyone according to his power, have been in you to shed blood.
7 In you have they set light by father and mother; in the midst of you have they dealt by oppression with the foreigner; in you have they wronged the fatherless and the widow.
8 You have despised my holy things, and have profaned my Sabbaths.
9 Slanderous men have been in you to shed blood; and in you they have eaten on the mountains: in the midst of you they have committed lewdness.
10 In you have they uncovered their fathers' nakedness; in you have they humbled her who was unclean in her impurity.
11 One has committed abomination with his neighbor's wife; and another has lewdly defiled his daughter-in-law; and another in you has humbled his sister, his father's daughter.
12 In you have they taken bribes to shed blood; you have taken interest and increase, and you have greedily gained of your neighbors by oppression, and have forgotten me, says the Lord Yahweh.
13 Behold, therefore, I have struck my hand at your dishonest gain which you have made, and at your blood which has been in the midst of you.
14 Can your heart endure, or can your hands be strong, in the days that I shall deal with you? I, Yahweh, have spoken it, and will do it.
15 I will scatter you among the nations, and disperse you through the countries; and I will consume your filthiness out of you.
16 You shall be profaned in yourself, in the sight of the nations; and you shall know that I am Yahweh.
6 See, the rulers of Israel, every one in his family, have been causing death in you.
7 In you they have had no respect for father and mother; in you they have been cruel to the man from a strange land; in you they have done wrong to the child without a father and to the widow.
8 You have made little of my holy things, and have made my Sabbaths unclean.
9 In you there are men who say evil of others, causing death; in you they have taken the flesh with the blood for food; in your streets they have put evil designs into effect.
10 In you they have let the shame of their fathers be seen; in you they have done wrong to a woman at the time when she was unclean.
11 And in you one man has done what was disgusting with his neighbour's wife; and another has made his daughter-in-law unclean; and another has done wrong to his sister, his father's daughter.
12 In you they have taken rewards as the price of blood; you have taken interest and great profits, and you have taken away your neighbours' goods by force, and have not kept me in mind, says the Lord.
13 See, then, I have made my hands come together in wrath against your taking of goods by force and against the blood which has been flowing in you.
14 Will your heart be high or your hands strong in the days when I take you in hand? I the Lord have said it and will do it.
15 And I will send you in flight among the nations and wandering among the countries; and I will completely take away out of you everything which is unclean.
16 And you will be made low before the eyes of the nations; and it will be clear to you that I am the Lord.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible » Commentary on Ezekiel 22
Commentary on Ezekiel 22 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
CHAPTER 22
Eze 22:1-31. God's Judgment on the Sinfulness of Jerusalem.
Repetition of the charges in the twentieth chapter; only that there they were stated in an historical review of the past and present; here the present sins of the nation exclusively are brought forward.
2. See Eze 20:4; that is, "Wilt thou not judge?" &c. (compare Eze 23:36).
the bloody city—literally, "the city of bloods"; so called on account of murders perpetrated in her, and sacrifices of children to Molech (Eze 22:3, 4, 6, 9; 24:6, 9).
3. sheddeth blood … that her time may come—Instead of deriving advantage from her bloody sacrifices to idols, she only thereby brought on herself "the time" of her punishment.
against herself—(Pr 8:36).
4. thy days—the shorter period, namely, that of the siege.
thy years—the longer period of the captivity. The "days" and "years" express that she is ripe for punishment.
5. infamous—They mockingly call thee, "Thou polluted one in name (Margin), and full of confusion" [Fairbairn], (referring to the tumultuous violence prevalent in it). Thus the nations "far and near" mocked her as at once sullied in character and in actual fact lawless. What a sad contrast to the Jerusalem once designated "the holy city!"
6. Rather, "The princes … each according to his power, were in thee, to shed blood" (as if this was the only object of their existence). "Power," literally, "arm"; they, who ought to have been patterns of justice, made their own arm of might their only law.
7. set light by—Children have made light of, disrespected, father … (De 27:16). At Eze 22:7-12 are enumerated the sins committed in violation of Moses' law.
9. men that carry tales—informers, who by misrepresentations cause innocent blood to be shed (Le 19:16). Literally, "one who goes to and fro as a merchant."
10. set apart for pollution—that is, set apart as unclean (Le 18:19).
12. forgotten me—(De 32:18; Jer 2:32; 3:21).
13. smitten mine hand—in token of the indignant vengeance which I will execute on thee (see on Eze 21:17).
14. (Eze 21:7).
15. consume thy filthiness out of thee—the object of God in scattering the Jews.
16. take thine inheritance in thyself—Formerly thou wast Mine inheritance; but now, full of guilt, thou art no longer Mine, but thine own inheritance to thyself; "in the sight of the heathen," that is, even they shall see that, now that thou hast become a captive, thou art no longer owned as Mine [Vatablus]. Fairbairn and others needlessly take the Hebrew from a different root, "thou shalt be polluted by ('in,' [Henderson]) thyself," &c.; the heathen shall regard thee as a polluted thing, who hast brought thine own reproach on thyself.
18. dross … brass—Israel has become a worthless compound of the dross of silver (implying not merely corruption, but degeneracy from good to bad, Isa 1:22, especially offensive) and of the baser metals. Hence the people must be thrown into the furnace of judgment, that the bad may be consumed, and the good separated (Jer 6:29, 30).
23. From this verse to the end he shows the general corruption of all ranks.
24. land … not cleansed—not cleared or cultivated; all a scene of desolation; a fit emblem of the moral wilderness state of the people.
nor rained upon—a mark of divine "indignation"; as the early and latter rain, on which the productiveness of the land depended, was one of the great covenant blessings. Joel (Joe 2:23) promises the return of the former and latter rain, with the restoration of God's favor.
25. conspiracy—The false prophets have conspired both to propagate error and to oppose the messages of God's servants. They are mentioned first, as their bad influence extended the widest.
prey—Their aim was greed of gain, "treasure, and precious things" (Ho 6:9; Zep 3:3, 4; Mt 23:14).
made … many widows—by occasioning, through false prophecies, the war with the Chaldeans in which the husbands fell.
26. Her priests—whose "lips should have kept knowledge" (Mal 2:7).
violated—not simply transgressed; but, have done violence to the law, by wresting it to wrong ends, and putting wrong constructions on it.
put no difference between the holy and profane, &c.—made no distinction between the clean and unclean (Le 10:10), the Sabbath and other days, sanctioning violations of that holy day. "Holy" means, what is dedicated to God; "profane," what is in common use; "unclean," what is forbidden to be eaten; "clean," what is lawful to be eaten.
I am profaned among them—They abuse My name to false or unjust purposes.
27. princes—who should have employed the influence of their position for the people's welfare, made "gain" their sole aim.
wolves—notorious for fierce and ravening cruelty (Mic 3:2, 3, 9-11; Joh 10:12).
28. Referring to the false assurances of peace with which the prophets flattered the people, that they should not submit to the king of Babylon (see on Eze 13:10; Eze 21:29; Jer 6:14; 23:16, 17; 27:9, 10).
29. The people—put last, after the mention of those in office. Corruption had spread downwards through the whole community.
wrongfully—that is, "without cause," gratuitously, without the stranger proselyte giving any just provocation; nay, he of all others being one who ought to have been won to the worship of Jehovah by kindness, instead of being alienated by oppression; especially as the Israelites were commanded to remember that they themselves had been "strangers in Egypt" (Ex 22:21; 23:9).
30. the hedge—the wall (see on Eze 13:5); image for leading the people to repentance.
the gap—the breach (Ps 106:23); image for interceding between the people and God (Ge 20:7; Ex 32:11; Nu 16:48).
I found none—(Jer 5:1)—not that literally there was not a righteous man in the city. For Jeremiah, Baruch, &c., were still there; but Jeremiah had been forbidden to pray for the people (Jer 11:14), as being doomed to wrath. None now, of the godly, knowing the desperate state of the people, and God's purpose as to them, was willing longer to interpose between God's wrath and them. And none "among them," that is, among those just enumerated as guilty of such sins (Eze 22:25-29), was morally able for such an office.
31. their own way … recompensed upon their heads—(Eze 9:10; 11:21; 16:43; Pr 1:31; Isa 3:11; Jer 6:19).