Ezekiel 28 – “Rebuke for the Prince of Tyre; A Lament for Tyre; Doom for Sidon; God’s Vow to the Israelites”

Hebrew-English Text
I. Summary
God reprimands the prince of Tyre, laments the fall of that city, promises to destroy Sidon, and vows to return Israel to its land.

II. Photo
Tyre once enjoyed an abundance of riches: “Every precious stone was your adornment: Carnelian, chrysolite, and amethyst; Beryl, lapis lazuli, and jasper; Sapphire, turquoise, and emerald.” (v. 13)

III. Important Verses
2, 7-9: O mortal, say to the prince of Tyre: Thus said the Lord GOD: Because you have been so haughty and have said, “I am a god; I sit enthroned like a god in the heart of the seas,” whereas you are not a god but a man, though you deemed your mind equal to a god’s… I swear I will bring against you Strangers, the most ruthless of nations. They shall unsheathe their swords Against your prized shrewdness, And they shall strike down your splendor. They shall bring you down to the Pit; In the heart of the sea you shall die The death of the slain. Will you still say, “I am a god” Before your slayers, When you are proved a man, not a god, At the hands of those who strike you down?
13: You were in Eden, the garden of God; Every precious stone was your adornment: Carnelian, chrysolite, and amethyst; Beryl, lapis lazuli, and jasper; Sapphire, turquoise, and emerald; And gold beautifully wrought for you, Mined for you, prepared the day you were created.
15: You were blameless in your ways, From the day you were created Until wrongdoing was found in you.
19: All who knew you among the peoples Are appalled at your doom. You have become a horror And have ceased to be forever.
25-26: Thus said the Lord GOD: When I have gathered the House of Israel from the peoples among which they have been dispersed, and have shown Myself holy through them in the sight of the nations, they shall settle on their own soil, which I gave to My servant Jacob, and they shall dwell on it in security. They shall build houses and plant vineyards, and shall dwell on it in security, when I have meted out punishment to all those about them who despise them. And they shall know that I the LORD am their God.

IV. Outline

1-10. Oracle #1
    1-2a. Introduction
    2b. The prince of Tyre compared himself to God
    3-5. The prince’s wisdom has brought him great wealth
    6-10. The prince’s mortality will be proven when foreigners kill him
11-19. Oracle #2
    10-12a. Introduction
    12b-. Lament for Tyre
        12b. Tyre’s perfection
        13. The precious stones of Tyre
        14. Tyre was like a cherub
        15. Tyre was blameless
        16. Tyre’s lawlessness and punishment
        17. Tyre’s pride led to its downfall
        18. God burned Tyre for its thievery
        19. Tyre has become a byword for destruction
20-24. Oracle #3
    20-22a. Intro
    22b-23. God will wreak havoc upon the city of Sidon
    24. Israel will benefit from Tyre’s downfall
25-26. Oracle #4
    25-26. God will let Israel prosper in its land

V. Comment
No comment today. Stay tuned.

VI. Works Used
(see “Commentaries” page)
Allen, Leslie C. “Ezekiel 1-19” Word Biblical Commentary vol. 28 (Waco, Texas: Wordbook, 1994).
Collins, John J. “Introduction to the Hebrew Bible,” (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2004).
Hals, Ronald M. “Ezekiel” The forms of the Old Testament Literature vol. 19 (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Eerdmans, 1989)
Photo taken from http://lilacjewelry.com/images/semi-precious.jpg

Ezekiel 27 – “Doom for Tyre – Part II”

Hebrew-English Text
I. Summary
Tyre, a wealthy center of international trade, will be mourned by the sailors that once traded in its port.

II. Photo
Tyre is likened to a rowing ship: “The inhabitants of Sidon and Arvad were your rowers; Your skilled men, O Tyre, were within you, they were your pilots.” (v. 8 )

III. Important Verses
9b: All the ships of the sea, with their crews, Were in your harbor To traffic in your wares.
13-25: Javan, Tubal, and Meshech — they were your merchants; they trafficked with you in human beings and copper utensils. From Beth-togarmah they bartered horses, horsemen, and mules for your wares. The people of Dedan were your merchants; many coastlands traded under your rule and rendered you tribute in ivory tusks and ebony. Aram traded with you because of your wealth of merchandise, dealing with you in turquoise, purple stuff, embroidery, fine linen, coral, and agate. Judah and the land of Israel were your merchants; they trafficked with you in wheat of Minnith and Pannag, honey, oil, and balm. Because of your wealth of merchandise, because of your great wealth, Damascus traded with you in Helbon wine and white wool. Vedan and Javan from Uzal traded for your wares; they trafficked with you in polished iron, cassia, and calamus. Dedan was your merchant in saddlecloths for riding. Arabia and all Kedar’s chiefs were traders under your rule; they traded with you in lambs, rams, and goats. The merchants of Sheba and Raamah were your merchants; they bartered for your wares all the finest spices, all kinds of precious stones, and gold. Haran, Canneh, and Eden, the merchants of Sheba, Assyria, and Chilmad traded with you. These were your merchants in choice fabrics, embroidered cloaks of blue, and many-colored carpets tied up with cords and preserved with cedar — among your wares. The ships of Tarshish were in the service of your trade. So you were full and richly laden On the high seas.
29-31: And all the oarsmen and mariners, All the pilots of the sea, Shall come down from their ships And stand on the ground. They shall raise their voices over you And cry out bitterly; They shall cast dust on their heads And strew ashes on themselves. On your account, they shall make Bald patches on their heads, And shall gird themselves with sackcloth. They shall weep over you, brokenhearted, With bitter lamenting.

IV. Outline
1-3a. Introduction
3b-25. Tyre’s wealth, power, and international trade
26-28. Tyre will sink
29-32a. The seamen of the world will lament
32b-36. The sailors’ lament

V. Comment
No comment today. Stay tuned.

Ezekiel 26 – “Doom for Tyre”

Hebrew-English Text
I. Summary
God vows to annihilate the island of Tyre.

II. Photo
God vows to raze the island: “I will scrape her soil off her and leave her a naked rock – she shall be in the heart of the sea a place for drying nets!” (vv. 4b-5a)

III. Important Verses
3b-5a: I am going to deal with you, O Tyre! I will hurl many nations against you, As the sea hurls its waves. They shall destroy the walls of Tyre And demolish her towers; And I will scrape her soil off her And leave her a naked rock. She shall be in the heart of the sea A place for drying nets; For I have spoken it — declares the Lord GOD.
7: For thus said the Lord GOD: I will bring from the north, against Tyre, King Nebuchadrezzar of Babylon, a king of kings, with horses, chariots, and horsemen — a great mass of troops.
13-14: I will put an end to the murmur of your songs, And the sound of your lyres shall be heard no more. I will make you a naked rock, You shall be a place for drying nets; You shall never be rebuilt. For I have spoken — declares the Lord GOD.
17-18: And they shall intone a dirge over you, and they shall say to you: ¶ How you have perished, you who were peopled from the seas, O renowned city! Mighty on the sea were she and her inhabitants, Who cast their terror on all its inhabitants. Now shall the coastlands tremble On the day of your downfall, And the coastlands by the sea Be terrified at your end.

IV. Outline
1. Introduction
2. Tyre is destroyed
3-6. Nations will attack Tyre and destroy it
7-12. Nebuchadrezzar will destroy Tyre
13-14. Tyre will never be rebuilt
15-17a. Rulers will tremble upon hearing Tyre’s fate
17b-18. The lament of the foreign rulers
19-21. Summary: Tyre will never be rebuilt

V. Comment
Chapter 26 begins a tirade against the city of Tyre. It is interesting to note that Tyre, which is now a peninsula, was once an Island (the causeway was built in the summer of 332 BCE). This fact is attested to in Ezek 27:32 which says, “Who was like Tyre when she was silenced In the midst of the sea?” and vv. 4b-5a of our chapter: “I will scrape her soil off her and leave her a naked rock – she shall be in the heart of the sea a place for drying nets!” Before Hiram’s time (ca. 960 BCE), Tyre was actually two islands, but he combined the two (this was one of his many building projects). (See Katzenstein, H. J. “Tyre (Place)” in Anchor Bible Dictionary, Vol. VI, pp. 686-692)

Ezekiel 25 – “God Vows to Punish Israel’s Neighbors”

Hebrew-English Text
I. Summary
God vows to destroy Israel’s neighbors for reveling in Jerusalem’s downfall.

II. Photo
God vows to annihilate an Ammonite city: “I will make Rabbah a pasture for camels!” (v. 5a)

III. Important Verses
3-4: Say to the Ammonites: Hear the word of the Lord GOD! Thus said the Lord GOD: Because you cried “Aha!” over My Sanctuary when it was desecrated, and over the land of Israel when it was laid waste, and over the House of Judah when it went into exile — assuredly, I will deliver you to the Kedemites as a possession. They shall set up their encampments among you and pitch their dwellings in your midst; they shall eat your produce and they shall drink your milk.
6-7: For thus said the Lord GOD: Because you clapped your hands and stamped your feet and rejoiced over the land of Israel with such utter scorn — assuredly, I will stretch out My hand against you and give you as booty to the nations; I will cut you off from among the peoples and wipe you out from among the countries and destroy you. And you shall know that I am the LORD.
8-9: Thus said the Lord GOD: Because Moab and Seir said, “See, the House of Judah is like all other nations” — assuredly, I will lay bare the flank of Moab, all its towns to the last one — Beth-jeshimoth, Baal-meon, and Kiriathaim, the glory of the country.
12-13: Thus said the Lord GOD: Because Edom acted vengefully against the House of Judah and incurred guilt by wreaking revenge upon it — assuredly, thus said the Lord GOD: I will stretch out My hand against Edom and cut off from it man and beast, and I will lay it in ruins; from Tema to Dedan they shall fall by the sword.

IV. Outline
1. Introduction
2-7. The Ammonites will be conquered by the Kedemites
8-11. Moab and Seir (Edom) will suffer the fate of the Ammonites
12-14. The Israelites will destroy Edom
15-17. God will wipe out the Philistines

V. Comment
No comment today. Stay tuned.

Ezekiel 24 – “God Vows to Cleanse Jerusalem; The Death of Ezekiel’s Wife”

Hebrew-English Text
I. Summary
God vows to purge Jerusalem of its sins and commands Ezekiel not to mourn the death of his wife.

II. Photo
Jerusalem is likened to a dirty pot: “Woe to the city of blood — A cauldron whose scum is in it, whose scum has not been cleaned out!” (v. 6)

III. Important Verses
2: O mortal, record this date, this exact day; for this very day the king of Babylon has laid siege to Jerusalem.
9-13: Assuredly, thus said the Lord GOD: Woe to the city of blood! I in turn will make a great blaze. Pile on the logs, Kindle the fire, Cook the meat through And stew it completely, And let the bones be charred. Let it stand empty on the coals, Until it becomes so hot That the copper glows. Then its uncleanness shall melt away in it, And its rust be consumed. It has frustrated all effort, Its thick scum will not leave it — Into the fire with its scum! For your vile impurity — because I sought to cleanse you of your impurity, but you would not be cleansed — you shall never be clean again until I have satisfied My fury upon you.
16-17: O mortal, I am about to take away the delight of your eyes from you through pestilence; but you shall not lament or weep or let your tears flow. Moan softly; observe no mourning for the dead: Put on your turban and put your sandals on your feet; do not cover over your upper lip, and do not eat the bread of comforters.”

IV. Outline

1-14. Oracle #1
    1. Introduction
    2. The king of Babylon lays siege to Jerusalem
    3-8. Metaphor: Israel is like a grimy pot with choice meats
    9-13. God will burn the grime off the pot with fire
    14. God has made up his mind and will not relent
15-27. Oracle #2
    15. Introduction
    16-17. God tells Ezekiel not to mourn when his wife dies
    18a. Ezekiel does not mourn when his wife dies
    18b-19. The people ask about Ezekiel’s behavior
    20-23. God will destroy the temple and the people will not mourn their dead
    24-27. A fugitive will come to Ezekiel on the day of destruction

V. Comment
No comment today. Stay tuned.

Ezekiel 23 – “Jerusalem and Samaria: Two Whoring Sisters”

Hebrew-English Text
I. Summary
God likens Jerusalem and Samaria to two sisters killed for their whoring.

II. Photo
Jerusalem will suffer the same fate as Samaria: “The cup of your sister Samaria — you shall drink it and drain it, and gnaw its shards!” (vv. 33b-34a)

III. Important Verses
2-4: O mortal, once there were two women, daughters of one mother. They played the whore in Egypt; they played the whore while still young. There their breasts were squeezed, and there their virgin nipples were handled. Their names were: the elder one, Oholah; and her sister, Oholibah. They became Mine, and they bore sons and daughters. As for their names, Oholah is Samaria, and Oholibah is Jerusalem.
22-23: Assuredly, Oholibah, thus said the Lord GOD: I am going to rouse against you the lovers from whom you turned in disgust, and I will bring them upon you from all around — the Babylonians and all the Chaldeans, [the people of] Pekod, Shoa, and Koa, and all the Assyrians with them, all of them handsome young fellows, governors and prefects, officers and warriors, all of them riding on horseback.
32-34: Thus said the Lord GOD: You shall drink of your sister’s cup, So deep and wide; It shall cause derision and scorn, It holds so much. You shall be filled with drunkenness and woe. The cup of desolation and horror, The cup of your sister Samaria — You shall drink it and drain it, And gnaw its shards; And you shall tear your breasts. For I have spoken — declares the Lord GOD.
36-39: Then the LORD said to me: O mortal, arraign Oholah and Oholibah, and charge them with their abominations. For they have committed adultery, and blood is on their hands; truly they have committed adultery with their fetishes, and have even offered to them as food the children they bore to Me. At the same time they also did this to Me: they defiled My Sanctuary and profaned My sabbaths. On the very day that they slaughtered their children to their fetishes, they entered My Sanctuary to desecrate it. That is what they did in My House.

IV. Outline

1. Introduction
2-3. God’s two virgin cities cheated with Egypt
4-10. Samaria was destroyed for cheating with Assyria
11-21. Jerusalem cheated with Assyria and then returned to Egypt
22-35. Jerusalem will suffer the same fate as Samaria
36-39. The specific sins of the cities
    36. Condemnation
    37a. Adultery
    37b. Murder
    37c. Idolatry
    38d. Child sacrifice
    38a. Defiling the sanctuary
    38b. Sabbath desecration
    39. Defiling the sanctuary
40-49. The cities will be punished for their cheating

V. Comment
No comment today. Stay tuned.

Ezekiel 22 – “God’s Fury”

Hebrew-English Text
I. Summary
God enumerates the people’s many sins and promises to punish them accordingly.

II. Photo
God promises to punish the people: “As silver, copper, iron, lead, and tin are gathered into a crucible to blow the fire upon them, so as to melt them, so will I gather you in My fierce anger and cast you [into the fire] and melt you!” (v. 20)

III. Important Verses
6-12: Every one of the princes of Israel in your midst used his strength for the shedding of blood. Fathers and mothers have been humiliated within you; strangers have been cheated in your midst; orphans and widows have been wronged within you. You have despised My holy things and profaned My sabbaths. Base men in your midst were intent on shedding blood; in you they have eaten upon the mountains; and they have practiced depravity in your midst. In you they have uncovered their fathers’ nakedness; in you they have ravished women during their impurity. They have committed abhorrent acts with other men’s wives; in their depravity they have defiled their own daughters-in-law; in you they have ravished their own sisters, daughters of their fathers. They have taken bribes within you to shed blood. You have taken advance and accrued interest; you have defrauded your countrymen to your profit. You have forgotten Me — declares the Lord GOD.
18-20: O mortal, the House of Israel has become dross to Me; they are all copper, tin, iron, and lead. But in a crucible, the dross shall turn into silver. Assuredly, thus said the Lord GOD: Because you have all become dross, I will gather you into Jerusalem. As silver, copper, iron, lead, and tin are gathered into a crucible to blow the fire upon them, so as to melt them, so will I gather you in My fierce anger and cast you [into the fire] and melt you.
25-27: Her gang of prophets are like roaring lions in her midst, rending prey. They devour human beings; they seize treasure and wealth; they have widowed many women in her midst. Her priests have violated My Teaching: they have profaned what is sacred to Me, they have not distinguished between the sacred and the profane, they have not taught the difference between the unclean and the clean, and they have closed their eyes to My sabbaths. I am profaned in their midst. Her officials are like wolves rending prey in her midst; they shed blood and destroy lives to win ill-gotten gain.

IV. Outline

1-16. Oracle #1
    1. Introduction
    2-4a. The city has become murderous and idolatrous
    4b-5. God will destroy the city
    6-. The city’s sins
        6. Bloodshed
        7. Social wrongs
        8. Violation of holy days
        9. Murder and idolatry
        10. Incest and violation of niddah
        11. Sexual sins
        12. Monetary sins
    13-16. God will smite the people and disperse them
17-22. Oracle #2
    17. Introduction
    18-22. God will treat Israel like metal in a crucible
23-31. Oracle #3
    23. Introduction
    24. The land is dirty
    25. The prophets are like lions
    26a. The priests have sinned
    26b. The people have violated the holy days
    27. The leaders are like wolves
    28. False prophecies
    29. Robbery
    30. There are no righteous people
    31. God will punish the people

V. Comment
No comment today. Stay tuned.

Ezekiel 21 – “God Vows to Punish the Edomites, Israelites, and Ammonites”

Hebrew-English Text
I. Summary
God vows to set fire to the Edomite lands and to bring his sword upon the Israelites and Ammonites.

II. Photo
God will punish the south: “I am going to kindle a fire in you, which shall devour every tree of yours, both green and withered. Its leaping flame shall not go out, and every face from south to north shall be scorched by it!” (v. 3b)

III. Important Verses
3-4: Say to the brushland of the Negeb: Hear the word of the LORD. Thus said the Lord GOD: I am going to kindle a fire in you, which shall devour every tree of yours, both green and withered. Its leaping flame shall not go out, and every face from south to north shall be scorched by it. Then all flesh shall recognize that I the LORD have kindled it; it shall not go out.
8-10: Say to the land of Israel: Thus said the LORD: I am going to deal with you! I will draw My sword from its sheath, and I will wipe out from you both the righteous and the wicked. In order to wipe out from you both the righteous and the wicked, My sword shall assuredly be unsheathed against all flesh from south to north; and all flesh shall know that I the LORD have drawn My sword from its sheath, not to be sheathed again.
11-12: And you, O mortal, sigh; with tottering limbs and bitter grief, sigh before their eyes. And when they ask you, “Why do you sigh?” answer, “Because of the tidings that have come.” Every heart shall sink and all hands hang nerveless; every spirit shall grow faint and all knees turn to water because of the tidings that have come. It is approaching, it shall come to pass — declares the Lord GOD.
24-26: And you, O mortal, choose two roads on which the sword of the king of Babylon may advance, both issuing from the same country; and select a spot, select it where roads branch off to [two] cities. Choose a way for the sword to advance on Rabbah of the Ammonites or on fortified Jerusalem in Judah. For the king of Babylon has stood at the fork of the road, where two roads branch off, to perform divination: He has shaken arrows, consulted teraphim, and inspected the liver.

IV. Outline

1-5. God’s message to the south
    1-3a. God sends Ezekiel to speak to the peoples of the south
    3b-4. God will burn the south
    5. Ezekiel’s rejoinder
6-12. God’s message to Israel
    6-8a. God sends Ezekiel to speak to the Israelites
    8b-10. God will kill the righteous along with the wicked
    11-12. God tells Ezekiel to sigh in front of the people
13-22. A prophesy of doom
    13-14a. Introduction
    14b-22. A sword is coming to punish the people
23-37. The sword of Babylon
    23. Introduction
    24-27. The king of Babylon chooses to attack Jerusalem
    28-32. Jerusalem will be punished
    33-37. God will punish the Ammonites

V. Comment
No comment today. Stay tuned.

Ezekiel 20 – “A History of Israel”

Hebrew-English Text
I. Summary
God relates that the people’s ancestors were punished for sinning.

II. Photo
The people are drawn to idolatry: “We will be like the nations, like the families of the lands, worshiping wood and stone!” (v. 32b)

III. Important Verses
5-9: Say to them: Thus said the Lord GOD: On the day that I chose Israel, I gave My oath to the stock of the House of Jacob; when I made Myself known to them in the land of Egypt, I gave my oath to them. When I said, “I the LORD am your God,” that same day I swore to them to take them out of the land of Egypt into a land flowing with milk and honey, a land which I had sought out for them, the fairest of all lands. I also said to them: Cast away, every one of you, the detestable things that you are drawn to, and do not defile yourselves with the fetishes of Egypt — I the LORD am your God. But they defied Me and refused to listen to Me. They did not cast away the detestable things they were drawn to, nor did they give up the fetishes of Egypt. Then I resolved to pour out My fury upon them, to vent all My anger upon them there, in the land of Egypt. But I acted for the sake of My name, that it might not be profaned in the sight of the nations among whom they were. For it was before their eyes that I had made Myself known to Israel to bring them out of the land of Egypt.
19-20: I the LORD am your God: Follow My laws and be careful to observe My rules. And hallow My sabbaths, that they may be a sign between Me and you, that you may know that I the LORD am your God.
25-26: Moreover, I gave them laws that were not good and rules by which they could not live: When they set aside every first issue of the womb, I defiled them by their very gifts — that I might render them desolate, that they might know that I am the LORD.
29: Then I said to them, “What is this shrine which you visit?” (Therefore such [a shrine] is called bamah to this day.)

IV. Outline

1. The elders inquire with God
2-3a. Introduction to the oracle
3b-4. God rejects the inquiry
5-44. Oracle
    5-38. God’s version of Israel’s history
        5-9. Israel’s first sin
            5-6. God’s vow to bring the people from Egypt to Israel
            7. Stipulation: the people must rid themselves of idolatry
            8. Israel’s disobedience and God’s anger
            9. God brought Israel out of Egypt for the sake of his name
        10-17. Israel’s second sin
            10-12. God gave Israel his laws
            13. Israel’s disobedience and God’s anger
            14-17. God vowed not to destroy the Israelites
        18-26. Israel’s third sin
            18-20. God reiterated his rules to the next generation
            21. Israel’s disobedience and God’s anger
            22. God vowed not to destroy the Israelites
            23-24. God vowed to disperse the Israelites
            25-26. God regrets the law of tithes
        27-29. Israel’s fourth sin
            27-28. The Israelites committed idolatry in the land
            29. Etymological explanation for the word “bamah”
        30-38. God warns the people about the repercussions of idol worship
    39-40. God wants to be worshiped on his mountain and nowhere else
    41-44. God will gather the people for his name’s sake

V. Comment
No comment today. Stay tuned.

Ezekiel 19 – “Two Metaphors for Israel”

Hebrew-English Text
I. Summary
God gives two metaphors for Israel, one about a lioness losing her cubs and the other about a tree being uprooted.

II. Photo
Israel is like a misplaced tree: “Now she is planted in the desert, In ground that is arid and parched.” (v. 13)

III. Important Verses
2-4: What a lioness was your mother Among the lions! Crouching among the great beasts, She reared her cubs. She raised up one of her cubs, He became a great beast; He learned to hunt prey — He devoured men. Nations heeded [the call] against him; He was caught in their snare. They dragged him off with hooks To the land of Egypt.
9: With hooks he was put in a cage, They carried him off to the king of Babylon And confined him in a fortress, So that never again should his roar be heard On the hills of Israel.
10-14: Your mother was like a vine in your blood, Planted beside streams, With luxuriant boughs and branches Thanks to abundant waters. And she had a mighty rod Fit for a ruler’s scepter. It towered highest among the leafy trees, It was conspicuous by its height, By the abundance of its boughs. But plucked up in a fury, She was hurled to the ground. The east wind withered her branches, They broke apart and dried up; And her mighty rod was consumed by fire. Now she is planted in the desert, In ground that is arid and parched. Fire has issued from her twig-laden branch And has consumed her boughs, She is left without a mighty rod, A scepter to rule with.

IV. Outline
1. Introduction
2-4. A mother loses her first cub to Egypt
5-9. A mother loses her second cub to Babylon
10-14a. Israel’s mother is like an uprooted tree
14b. Conclusion

V. Comment
No comment today. Stay tuned.