Ezekiel 24

Ezekiel 24:1

Break in pieces - The sense of all these three verses is the same; that God had made use, and was still making use of the Babylonians to destroy many nations, to spoil much people, wasting their goods, routing their armies, killing all sorts of their inhabitants.

Ezekiel 24:3

Mountain - Babylon was very high for its power, and greatness, and had very high walls and towers, that it looked at a distance like an high rocky mountain. They had destroyed many people. Burnt - Thy cities and towers which appear like a mountain shall be burnt.

Ezekiel 24:5

As caterpillars - The Median horses are compared to their insects, either with respect to their numbers, or in regard of the terror caused by them when they came, being a great plague to the places which they infected.

Ezekiel 24:7

The land - Babylon, or the land of Chaldea.

Ezekiel 24:9

At one end - Cyrus entered the city at one end, by the channel of the river, which he had drained, and surprized Belshazzar in the midst of his feast.

Ezekiel 24:10

The passages - The passages over the river Euphrates, and all the other passages by which the Babylonians might make their escape, were guarded with soldiers. Reeds - On the border of the river Euphrates were vast quantities of great and tall reeds, which with the mud in which they stood, were as another wall to the city; but the Medes had burnt them so as the way was open.

Ezekiel 24:11

Threshing floor - Babylon had been a threshing instrument, by which, and a threshing - floor in which God had threshed many other nations; God now intended to make it as a threshing - floor wherein he would thresh the Chaldeans. Tread her - So they used to prepare their threshing - floors against the time of harvest. The time - The harvest which the justice of God would have from the ruin of the Chaldeans.

Ezekiel 24:12

Me - The prophet speaks this in the name of the Jews. Cast me out - As beasts of prey eat what they please of other beasts they have preyed upon, and leave the rest in the field.

Ezekiel 24:14

Dry up - Alluding to what Cyrus did.

Ezekiel 24:16

They - The Babylonians, upon the taking of their city.

Ezekiel 24:17

Heat - When they shall grow hot with wine, I will make them a feast of another nature. Interpreters judge that Belshazzar, Daniel 5:1, made a feast to a thousand of his Lords, when he and his wives, and concubines, drank wine in the vessels belonging to the temple, during which feast the city was taken. And not awake - While they were merry with their wine, they fell into a sleep which they never awoke out of.

Ezekiel 24:19

Sheshach - A name given to the city of Babylon.

Ezekiel 24:20

The sea - A multitude of enemies.

Ezekiel 24:22

Bel - Bel was the principal Babylonian idol. Bring forth - All the vessels of the temple, 2 Chronicles 36:7, and whatever gifts the Babylonians had presented to him. The wall - And the city of Babylon shall be also ruined.

Ezekiel 24:23

Go out of her - At all hazards escape for your lives.

Ezekiel 24:26

Then - All the creatures in heaven and earth shall rejoice at the vengeance which God shall take upon Babylon.

Ezekiel 24:27

Of all the earth - This term must be understood in a restrained sense; the Chaldeans coming up from all parts of Chaldea to help Babylon, were slain there, as by the means of Babylon the Israelites were slain that came from all parts of Judea to help Jerusalem.