6 In all your dwellings the cities are laid waste, And the high places are desolate, So that waste and desolate are your altars, And broken and ceased have your idols, And cut down have been your images, And blotted out have been your works.
And it hath come to pass, in that day, An affirmation of Jehovah of Hosts, I cut off the names of the idols from the land, And they are not remembered any more, And also the prophets and the spirit of uncleanness I cause to pass away from the land.
And all her graven images are beaten down, And all her gifts are burnt with fire, And all her idols I make a desolation, For, from the hire of a harlot she gathered, and unto the hire of a harlot they return.
And I say, `Till when, O Lord?' And He saith, `Surely till cities have been wasted without inhabitant, And houses without man, And the ground be wasted -- a desolation,
And desolated have been your altars, And broken your images, And I have caused your wounded to fall before your idols,
Thus said the Lord Jehovah: And -- I have destroyed idols, And caused vain things to cease from Noph, And a prince of the land of Egypt there is no more, And I give fear in the land of Egypt.
I have cut off nations, Desolated have been their chief ones, I have laid waste their out-places without any passing by, Destroyed have been their cities, Without man, without inhabitant. I have said: Only, ye do fear Me, Ye do accept instruction, And her habitation is not cut off, All that I have appointed for her, But they have risen early, They have corrupted all their doings.
I utterly consume all from off the face of the ground, An affirmation of Jehovah. I consume man and beast, I consume fowl of the heavens, and fishes of the sea, And the stumbling-blocks -- the wicked, And I have cut off man from the face of the ground, An affirmation of Jehovah, And stretched out My hand against Judah, And against all inhabiting Jerusalem, And cut off from this place the remnant of Baal, The name of the idolatrous priests, with the priests, And those bowing themselves On the roofs to the host of the heavens, And those bowing themselves, Swearing to Jehovah, and swearing by Malcham, And those removing from after Jehovah, And who have not sought Jehovah, nor besought Him.
What profit hath a graven image given That its former hath graven it? A molten image and teacher of falsehood, That trusted hath the former on his own formation -- to make dumb idols?
Therefore, for your sake, Zion is ploughed a field, and Jerusalem is heaps, And the mount of the house `is' for high places of a forest!
And destroyed have been high places of Aven, the sin of Israel. Thorn and bramble go up on their altars, And they have said to hills, Cover us, And to heights, Fall upon us.
Nor do they mutter through their throat, Like them are their makers, Every one who is trusting in them.
And I have given thee into their hand, And they have thrown down thine arch, And they have broken down thy high places, And they have stript thee of thy garments, And they have taken thy beauteous vessels, And they have left thee naked and bare.
O My mountain in the field -- thy strength, All thy treasures -- for a prey I give, Thy high places for sin in all thy borders.
A voice of a report, lo, it hath come, Even a great shaking from the north country, To make the cities of Judah a desolation, A habitation of dragons.
And I make Jerusalem become heaps, A habitation of dragons, And the cities of Judah I make a desolation, Without inhabitant.
Against him roar do young lions, They have given forth their voice, And make his land become a desolation, His cities have been burnt without inhabitant.
Over the ground of my people thorn -- brier goeth up, Surely over all houses of joy of the exulting city, Surely the palace hath been left, The multitude of the city forsaken, Fort and watch-tower hath been for dens unto the age, A joy of wild asses -- a pasture of herds;
Therefore by this is the iniquity of Jacob covered, And this `is' all the fruit -- To take away his sin, in His setting all the stones of an altar, As chalkstones beaten in pieces, They rise not -- shrines and images.
Lo, Jehovah is emptying the land, And is making it waste, And hath overturned `it on' its face, And hath scattered its inhabitants. And it hath been -- as a people so a priest, As the servant so his master, As the maid-servant so her mistress, As the buyer so the seller, As the lender so the borrower, As the usurer so he who is lifting `it' on himself. Utterly emptied is the land, and utterly spoiled, For Jehovah hath spoken this word: Mourned, faded hath the land, Languished, faded hath the world, Languished have they -- the high place of the people of the land. And the land hath been defiled under its inhabitants, Because they have transgressed laws, They have changed a statute, They have made void a covenant age-during. Therefore a curse hath consumed the land, And the inhabitants in it are become desolate, Therefore consumed have been inhabitants of the land, And few men have been left. Mourned hath the new wine, languished the vine, Sighed have all the joyful of heart. Ceased hath the joy of tabrets, Ceased hath the noise of exulting ones, Ceased hath the joy of a harp. With a song they drink not wine, Bitter is strong drink to those drinking it. It was broken down -- a city of emptiness, Shut hath been every house from entrance. A cry over the wine `is' in out-places, Darkened hath been all joy, Removed hath been the joy of the land. Left in the city `is' desolation, And `with' wasting is the gate smitten.
In that day doth man cast his idols of silver, And his idols of gold, That they have made for him to worship, To moles, and to bats,
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible » Commentary on Ezekiel 6
Commentary on Ezekiel 6 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
CHAPTER 6
Eze 6:1-14. Continuation of the Same Subject.
2. mountains of Israel—that is, of Palestine in general. The mountains are addressed by personification; implying that the Israelites themselves are incurable and unworthy of any more appeals; so the prophet sent to Jeroboam did not deign to address the king, but addressed the altar (1Ki 13:2). The mountains are specified as being the scene of Jewish idolatries on "the high places" (Eze 6:3; Le 26:30).
3. rivers—literally, the "channels" of torrents. Rivers were often the scene and objects of idolatrous worship.
4. images—called so from a Hebrew root, "to wax hot," implying the mad ardor of Israel after idolatry [Calvin]. Others translate it, "sun images"; and so in Eze 6:6 (see 2Ki 23:11; 2Ch 34:4; Isa 17:8, Margin).
cast your slain men before your idols—The foolish objects of their trust in the day of evil should witness their ruin.
5. carcasses … before … idols—polluting thus with the dead bones of you, the worshippers, the idols which seemed to you so sacrosanct.
6. your works—not gods, as you supposed, but the mere work of men's hands (Isa 40:18-20).
7. ye shall know that I am the Lord—and not your idols, lords. Ye shall know Me as the all-powerful Punisher of sin.
8. Mitigation of the extreme severity of their punishment; still their life shall be a wretched one, and linked with exile (Eze 5:2, 12; 12:16; 14:22; Jer 44:28).
9. they that escape of you shall remember me—The object of God's chastisements shall at last be effected by working in them true contrition. This partially took place in the complete eradication of idolatry from the Jews ever since the Babylonian captivity. But they have yet to repent of their crowning sin, the crucifixion of Messiah; their full repentance is therefore future, after the ordeal of trials for many centuries, ending with that foretold in Zec 10:9; 13:8, 9; 14:1-4, 11. "They shall remember me in far countries" (Eze 7:16; De 30:1-8).
I am broken with their whorish heart—Fairbairn translates, actively, "I will break" their whorish heart; English Version is better. In their exile they shall remember how long I bore with them, but was at last compelled to punish, after I was "broken" (My long-suffering wearied out) by their desperate (Nu 15:39) spiritual whorishness [Calvin], (Ps 78:40; Isa 7:13; 43:24; 63:10).
loathe themselves—(Le 26:39-45; Job 42:6). They shall not wait for men to condemn them but shall condemn themselves (Eze 20:43; 36:31; Job 42:6; 1Co 11:31).
11. Gesticulations vividly setting before the hearers the greatness of the calamity about to be inflicted. In indignation at the abominations of Israel extend thine hand towards Judea, as if about to "strike," and "stamp," shaking off the dust with thy foot, in token of how God shall "stretch out His hand upon them," and tread them down (Eze 6:14; Eze 21:14).
12. He that is far off—namely, from the foe; those who in a distant exile fear no evil.
he that remaineth—he that is left in the city; not carried away into captivity, nor having escaped into the country. Distinct from "he that is near," namely, those outside the city who are within reach of "the sword" of the foe, and so fall by it; not by "famine," as those left in the city.
14. Diblath—another form of Diblathaim, a city in Moab (Nu 33:46; Jer 48:22), near which, east and south of the Dead Sea, was the wilderness of Arabia-Deserta.