Ezekiel 7

REVIEW QUESTIONS

What factors made the sin of Judah so grievous?

In what sense was Jerusalem in the midst of the nations (Ezekiel 5:5)?

What horrible barbarisms would accompany the fall of Jerusalem?

In what sense would a sword continue to pursue the refugees even on foreign soil?

What would be necessary before the righteous anger of God could be satisfied?

What are the evil arrow’s of famine which God would send against Jerusalem?

In what ways had the Jews defiled God’s sanctuary in Jerusalem?

Why was Ezekiel told to prophesy against the mountains of Israel?

In what ways does Ezekiel in this section indicate the futility of idolatry?

How many times does the expression you shall know that I am the Lord occur in the book? What does this expression reveal about the purpose of God?

What hopeful picture of a remnant did Ezekiel paint?

How does Ezekiel describe the anguish which God experiences over the apostasy of His people?

Why the clapping of the hands and stamping of the feet in Ezekiel 6:11?

Ezekiel says that those who sell land would never be able to reclaim it. How can this be reconciled with the prediction of Jeremiah (Jeremiah 32:15; Jeremiah 32:17; Jeremiah 32:43) that land would once again be bought and sold in Canaan?

Why did Ezekiel make a chain in Ezekiel 7:23?

How does Ezekiel describe the Chaldeans who would over throw Jerusalem?

How would the coming calamity affect the spiritual leaders of the nation?

Ezekiel 7:1-9

III. CHAOS AND CALAMITY 7:1-27

Chapter 7 is a sermon in the form of a lamentation. It is characterized by frequent repetitions designed to underscore the certainty and severity of the coming calamity. The chapter is written in what has been called poetic prose. The sentences are choppy, broken, and oozing with emotion. Division of the material into discussion units is admittedly arbitrary. But it would seem that the prophet first announces the coming calamity (Ezekiel 7:1-9) and then describes it (Ezekiel 7:10-27).

A. The Calamity Announced 7:1-9

TRANSLATION

(1) And the word of the LORD came to me, saying: (2) And as for you, son of man, thus says the Lord GOD concerning the land of Israel: An end! the end has come upon the four ends of the land. (3) Now is the end upon you, and I will unleash My anger against you, and I will judge you according to your ways; and I will bring upon you all of your abominations. (4) And My eye shall not have pity upon you, nor shall I have compassion; but your ways I shall bring upon you while your abominations shall be in your midst; and you shall know that I am the LORD. (5) Thus says the Lord GOD: A disaster, a unique disaster, behold it comes. (6) An end has come, the end has come! It has awakened against you; behold, it comes. (7) The turn has come upon you, O inhabitant of the land; the time has come, the day of tumult is near, and not joyous shouting upon the mountains. (8) Now I will shortly pour out My wrath upon you and I will finish My anger against you when I have judged You according to your ways; and I will bring upon you all your abominations. (9) My eye will not pity, nor will I have compassion; I will bring upon you according to your ways, and your abominations shall be in your midst; and you shall know that I the LORD am a smiter.

COMMENTS

Echoing the prophetic declaration of Amo 8:2 regarding the Northern Kingdom, Ezekiel announces that an end has come to the land of Israel. Since the nation Israel had long since been destroyed, Ezekiel must be using the term Israel in its ancient sense of the theocratic people. In this period of history the land of Israel was equivalent to the Kingdom of Judah. The end or destruction would come upon the four ends of the land, i.e., the devastation would be geographically total. No city or village would escape (Ezekiel 7:2).

Ezekiel contends that now is the end upon you. The anticipated destruction is close at hand (Ezekiel 7:3). Doubtlessly the prophet refers to the destruction of Jerusalem in 587 B.C. This destruction would not be a mere accident of history. It would be a manifestation of the anger of God (Ezekiel 7:3). God would unleash His anger. The destruction would be a just act of retribution. The people would be judged according to their ways, i.e., their conduct. God would bring upon them all their abominations; i.e., He would hold them accountable for their association with abominable idols (Ezekiel 7:3-4; Ezekiel 7:8).

In this destructive judgment God would not manifest mercy or compassion toward the nation of Judah (Ezekiel 7:4). The meaning is that God would carry out His pre-announced intention to destroy Jerusalem and He would not relent. There is, of course, mercy for the remnant of the nation as other passages clearly show. In a sense the exercise of justice was itself an act of mercy, since its aim was purification from sin and restoration or harmony between God and man.[184]

[184] Fisch, .SBB, p. 34.

The judgment would fall on Jerusalem while their abominations (idols) were still in the midst of the city (Ezekiel 7:4). They would cling to their idols to the bitter end. No further evidence need be presented to prove that the actions of God were justified.

Through the horrible destruction the surviving Jews would come to realize that it was truly Yahweh, God of covenant and redemption, who had made these dire threats (Ezekiel 7:4).

The disaster facing Judah was unique and unprecedented (lit., one disaster). The one catastrophe which overshadowed all the rest was the destruction of the Temple (Ezekiel 7:5). This disaster would not only be an end, it would be the end (Ezekiel 7:6).

The judgment is described as the turn in Ezekiel 7:7. The meaning of the noun tsephira is uncertain. Modern translations seem to prefer to render it doom.[185] However, the basic idea here may be something round,[186] hence a cycle or turn. The turn of events had come to Judah. To use a modern idiom, the tables were about to be turned. Judgment inevitably follows sin as day follows night.

[185] RSV, NASB. This translation is based on a cognate Arabic noun. The KJV translates it morning.

[186]Cf. Isaiah 28:5 where tsephira is rendered crown.

The predicted end would awaken. The long dark night of prophetic threat was about over; the day of the Lord was about to dawn. A play on words here in the Hebrew cannot be reproduced in English. The end (hakets) has awakened (hekits; Ezekiel 7:6).

That coming day would be a day of tumult, i.e., clamor and confusion (Ezekiel 7:7). This tumult would not be the joyous shouting upon the mountains that one might hear in connection with a harvest festival (Isaiah 16:10; Jeremiah 25:30) or idolatrous worship. This tumult would be the din and confusion of military invasion. In the popular mind the day of the Lord was a day of triumph over national enemies. Beginning with Amos, the prophets blasted away at this concept. The day of the Lord more properly referred to God’s triumph over all unrighteousness whether in Israel or among the Gentiles.

Ezekiel 7:8-9 are virtually a repetition of Eze 7:3-4 with some variation to give added emphasis to the warning. God’s anger against Judah would be complete once he had recompensed them for their ways (Ezekiel 7:8). No compassion or mercy would be shown toward the nation in the day (Ezekiel 7:9).

They would come to know, i.e., realize by personal experience, that Yahweh is a God who smiles. The shallow theological notion of an indulgent deity would have to be abandoned in that day (Ezekiel 7:9).

Ezekiel 7:10-13

B. The Calamity Described 7:10-27

In describing Judah’s coming day of visitation Ezekiel stresses four points (1) the social disruption (Ezekiel 7:10-13); (2) the military dismay (Ezekiel 7:14-18); (3) the economic distress (Ezekiel 7:19-22); and (4) the political disorder (Ezekiel 7:23-27).

1. Social disruption (7:10-13)

TRANSLATION

(10) Behold the day! Behold it comes; the turn has come forth; the rod has blossomed, arrogance has budded. (11) Violence has risen up for a rod of wickedness; none of them (shall remain) and none of their multitude, and none of their wealth nor any wailing among them. (12) The time has come, the day has arrived; as for the buyer, let him not rejoice, and as for the seller, let him not mourn; for wrath is upon all its multitude. (13) For the seller shall not return unto that which is sold, although they be yet alive; for the vision concerns the whole multitude which shall not return; neither shall they strengthen themselves, a man whose life is in his iniquity.

COMMENTS

The judgment rod of God Babylon had blossomed into an arrogant superpower (Ezekiel 7:10).[187] The violence practiced by the Jews had risen up for a rod of wickedness; i.e., the evil practices of the Jews had created the rod which will smite them.[188] In that day the whole population would be affected. None would escape. They would either perish or be carried away into exile. Nothing would remain of the multitude of the people or their wealth.[189] So great would be the loss that survivors would not wail[190] over the dead (Ezekiel 7:11).

[187] Others think the rod in Ezekiel 7:10 is the royal house of Judah which had blossomed and budded with arrogance.

[188] Cf. Isaiah 10:5 where Assyria is called the rod of God’s anger; and Jeremiah 50:31 which underscores the arrogance of Babylon.

[189] KJV nor any of theirs, i.e., none of their offspring would be left alive. This translation is possible but not preferable.

[190] Some recent versions render the Hebrew noah as eminency. It is best to follow the older commentators in relating the word to nehi, = wailing.

That coming day would result in a complete socio-economic upheaval. Selling an inherited piece of property was normally an occasion of deep grief in the Old Testament world. But the seller of real estate would no longer be concerned with such sentimentality. On the other hand, the one who purchased that property would have no reason to rejoice. In the day of God’s wrath land holdings would be immaterial. Both the wealthy land buyer and the poverty-stricken seller would be faced with deprivation and death (Ezekiel 7:12). Never would the land seller be able to repossess his inheritance even though he might live through the judgment (lit., though their life be yet among the living). Jubilee observance where all property reverted to original owners would not be possible in the land of exile. According to the vision which Ezekiel had received, the Jews would be driven from their homes never to return during their lifetime (Ezekiel 7:13).

At first sight this prophecy seems to contradict Jeremiah 32:15; Jeremiah 32:37; Jeremiah 32:43 which states that properties would be bought and sold in Judah again following the exile. However, Ezekiel is speaking of his contemporaries. They would not live to reclaim their family inheritances. The men who lived a life of iniquity would not be able to strengthen themselves so as to withstand punishment (Ezekiel 7:13). Those driven out would not return, and those who remained in the land would die in their sins.

Ezekiel 7:14-18

2.* The military dismay (7:14-18*)

TRANSLATION

(14) They have blown the trumpet and all is made ready, but none is going to the battle; for My wrath is against all its multitude. (15) The sword is without and the pestilence and the famine within; the one who is in the field shall die by the sword, and the one who is in the city, famine and pestilence shall consume him. (16) And should fugitives escape, they shall be upon the mountains like doves of the valleys, all of them moaning, each in his iniquity. (17) All hands shall droop, and all knees shall run with water. (18) And they shall gird themselves with sackcloth, and terror shall cover them; shame shall be upon every face, and baldness upon all their heads.

COMMENTS

Organized resistance to the coming invasion would fail. Sin had destroyed the moral courage of the nation, the will to resist. Preparation for war had been made, but the troops had not the strength nor courage to withstand the enemy. The alarm trumpet sounded, but the terrified troops refused to enter into battle (Ezekiel 7:14 a). God’s wrath saps their powers of resistance. Courage flees before the forces of God. Their fear is justified, however, because the wrath of God had gone forth against all its multitude, i.e., army. Death would stalk the whole land. The sword of the Chaldean army would cut off all escape beyond the walls of Jerusalem. Within the city itself famine and pestilence (disease) would take their toll (Ezekiel 7:15).

The no escape of Eze 7:15 is immediately qualified in the following verse. The few refugees who would escape the city would take to the mountains to escape death. Like doves of the valley, they would occupy the lofty heights and deep ravines. There they would bemoan their fate as they realized that the disaster was the result of their iniquity (Ezekiel 7:16). Despair would render the fugitives helpless. All hands shall droop in dismay and helpless exasperation. The knees would run with water, i.e., because of their fear those refugees would not be able to control their kidney functions.[191] (Ezekiel 7:17).

[191] Others interpret the phrase metaphorically as expressive of complete paralysis of strength. Still others think the reference is to sweat caused by fear.

The refugees would openly manifest their dismay. Sackcloth would be worn upon the body, but they would act as though they were covered with terror (pallatsut). Heads would be shaved. Shame (busha) would be etched on every face shame because of what had happened; greater shame because of why it had happened (Ezekiel 7:18).

Ezekiel 7:19-22

3. The economic distress (7:19-22)

TRANSLATION

(19) They shall cast their silver into the streets, and their gold shall become an unclean thing; their silver and their gold shall not be able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of the LORD; they shall not satisfy nor shall they fill their inward parts; because their iniquity has become a stumblingblock. (20) And as for their beautiful adornments, they appointed them for their pride; and they made the images of their abominations, their detestable things with it; therefore I have given it to them for an unclean thing. (21) And I will place it in the hand of strangers for spoil, and to the wicked of the earth for booty; and they shall profane it. (22) And I shall turn My face from them, and they shall profane My secret place, and robbers shall come into it and they shall defile it.

COMMENTS

Worldly wealth would be worthless in that day. Silver and gold came to be regarded as an unclean thing, (lit., something defiled by menstrual impurity, Leviticus 20:21). The precious metal only proves cumbersome to those who are fleeing for their lives. In that day of Yahweh’s wrath men would not be able to purchase deliverance, nor food for their bellies (Ezekiel 7:19).

Worthless wealth! How tragic! Yet how appropriate. Silver and gold had proved to be iniquity and a stumbling block to the nation (Ezekiel 7:19). Their wealth had been the cause of their sin (cf. Hosea 2:10). These precious metals and their beautiful adornments (I. E., jewelry) they had fashioned into objects of pride and images of their abominable and detestable gods. They had committed the same sin as the Sinai generation in fashioning a graven image of their jewelry. Because they had so abused God’s gifts, the Lord would bring them into circumstances in which these precious substances would be regarded as filthy and unclean (Ezekiel 7:20),

The wealth of Judah would become the possession of strangers, i.e., the invading army. In the hands of the wicked of the earth these riches, once devoted to sacred, albeit illegitimate, services would be profaned (Ezekiel 7:21).

Not only would the Jews be deprived of their material support, they would also be denied spiritual support. God would turn His face from them. The turning of God’s face from the people is the reverse of the priestly blessing which invoked God to make His face shine upon them (Numbers 6:25 f.). The Temple would provide no protection. The invader would profane God’s secret place, i.e., the holiest part of the Temple. The sacred precincts would be pillaged, plundered and defiled by these greedy thieves (Ezekiel 7:22). God had no desire to keep mere outward forms of worship when that worship had become perverted by the devices of wicked men.

The despoliation of Judah and the Temple were a necessary part of God’s plan for reclaiming a remnant of Israel. With material possession gone and the Temple in ruins the people of God were forced to cast themselves completely on the Lord. As it turned out, the death of material security turned out to be the resurrection of faith.[192]

[192] Blackwood, EPH, p. 70

Ezekiel 7:23-27

4. The political disorder (7:23-27)

TRANSLATION

(23) Make the chain; for the land is full of bloodshed, and the city is full of violence. (24) Therefore I have brought the worst of nations, and they shall possess their houses, and I shall make to cease the pride of the strong and their sanctuaries shall be profaned. (25) Horror is coming! and they shall seek peace and there is none. (26) Calamity upon calamity shall come, and rumor shall be upon rumor; and they shall seek a vision from the prophet, and instruction shall perish from the priest, and counsel from the elders, (27) The king shall mourn and the prince shall be clothed with astonishment, and the hands of the people of the land shall become feeble; according to their way I will deal with them, and according to their judgments I will judge them; and they shall know that I am the LORD.

COMMENTS

Apparently here Ezekiel performed yet another symbolic act. He made a chain[193] which symbolized the coming exile (Ezekiel 7:23).[194] This punishment is necessary because Judah was full of bloodshed and violence[195] (Ezekiel 7:23).

[193] The translation is uncertain. The Greek version reads they shall make confusion: the Syriac, they shall pass through the bricks.

[194] Cf. Jeremiah 27:2; Nahum 3:10.

[195] The Hebrew reads literally*, judgment of bloods,* which may mean capital crimes.

God would employ the worst of nations against Judah. This is one of the rare instances when Ezekiel speaks derogatorily of the Babylonians. In Ezekiel 28:7 and Ezekiel 30:11 he refers to the Babylonians as the terrible of the nations. But his language here is not so much intended to abuse the invaders as to show how low Israel had fallen. The people of God must indeed be wretched for God to send against them men who make no pretense of maintaining just and right behavior. The ruthless invaders would possess their houses. By means of this invader God would make to cease the pride of the strong, i.e., He would humble the proud rulers of Judah, especially the monarchy and priesthood. The sanctuaries of Judah, both the pagan and the proper, would be profaned by these invaders (Ezekiel 7:24).

Efforts to placate the foe and arrange some peaceful accommodation would fail. There would be no escape from this horrible fate (Ezekiel 7:25). The false prophets had assured them that peace was possible. They would now discover that those optimistic predictions were unfounded. The future judgment would become progressively worse. Calamity upon calamity and rumor upon rumor (Ezekiel 7:26). News of one blow will immediately be followed by news of another.

In their desperation people would turn at last to their spiritual leaders for guidance, but will find none (cf. Lamentations 2:9). The false prophets who had for so long misled the people with their made-to order visions would have nothing to say in that hour when their optimistic prognostications would prove to be false. The priests would have no instruction, the elders no useful political counsel in that day (Ezekiel 7:26). The crisis would leave them without direction from their religious and national leaders (cf. Jeremiah 18:18). If the reference in Ezekiel 7:26 is to faithful spiritual leaders, then the idea is this. They had for so long rejected the words of God’s spokesman. Now in the hour of judgment God would no longer communicate with them through these godly men.

The political as well as the spiritual leaders would be unable to cope with that day. The king would only be able to mourn as he saw his people suffering and his crown slipping from his grasp. Other members of the ruling class the prince would be clothed with astonishment; i.e., they would be dumbfounded in the face of what would transpire.

Without guidance from spiritual leaders and leadership from the royal family the people of the land[196] would be incapacitated by fear. They would be helpless to defend themselves, for their hands would become feeble (Ezekiel 7:27). The judgment would be a just recompense. God would deal with His people as they had dealt with others. He would judge them as unmercifully as they had judged one another.

[196] The phrase people of the land has various meanings in the Old Testament. Here the phrase probably refers to the general populace.

When all these predictions had come to pass all the survivors would know that Yahweh had really spoken these ominous words.