The word of the Lord came unto me, saying. The word of prophecy, as the Targum; the vision of the cherubim being over, this, very likely, immediately followed upon the former; though the exact time of the prophecy cannot be fixed, because the date is not given; it must be between the sixth month of the sixth year of Jehoiachin's captivity, Ezekiel 8:1 ; and the fifth month of the seventh year, Ezekiel 20:1 . read more
Son of man, thou dwellest in the midst of a rebellious house ,.... The captives in Babylon, who murmured at their present condition and circumstances, and looked upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem to be in happy ones, and believed they would continue in them, as the false prophets persuaded them; not believing the prophets of the Lord; and encouraged them to stand out against the king of Babylon, repenting that they had surrendered to him, and hoped they should by their means be delivered see... read more
Which have eyes to see, and see not - It is not want of grace that brings them to destruction. They have eyes to see, but they will not use them. No man is lost because he had not sufficient grace to save him, but because he abused that grace. read more
Verse 1 Because God was about to give a command to his servant, he wished to inspire him with fortitude of mind, lest, when he saw that he was consuming his labor in vain, he should withdraw from his course. For we know how severe is that temptation to God’s servants when they speak to the deaf, and not only is their doctrine rejected but even refused with ignominy. They think, therefore, that nothing is better than silence, because where their word is so despised it only exposes the name of... read more
The word of the Lord, etc. This formula, so familiar in Isaiah and Jeremiah, appears for the first time in Ezekiel, but occurs repeatedly afterwards, especially in this chapter (verses 8, 17, 21, 26. and again Ezekiel 13:1 ; Ezekiel 14:2 , et al. ) . The teaching by "the visions of God" ceases, and that of direct message or symbolic acts is resumed. In each case the point aimed at was the same. The people who heard the one or saw the other were to be taught how utterly groundless... read more
The dramatic form of prophecy. It is of the first moment that men should have right and adequate impressions of the truth. A man's life is properly moulded through his intelligence. His intelligence moulds his tastes, feeds his emotions, inspires his purposes, directs his life. Clear convictions of truth and duty possess unspeakable value. I. MORAL OBTUSENESS IN MEN IS A GRIEF TO GOD . Eyes have been conferred for the sole reason that men may see; and ears, that they... read more
It parabolic appeal to a rebellious people. "The word of the Lord also came unto me, saying, Son of man, thou dwellest in the midst of a rebellious house," etc. "Now begin the amplifications," says Hengstenberg, "the marginal notes, so to speak, on the great text in ch. 8-11; which extend to Ezekiel 19:1-14 ; and these terminate in a song, corresponding to the song in the first group in Ezekiel 7:1-27 . The approaching catastrophe of Jerusalem forms the central point throughout. The... read more
Which have eyes to see, etc. We note the words in their relation both to like utterances in the past ( Isaiah 6:9 ; Isaiah 42:20 ), and by Ezekiel's contemporary ( Jeremiah 5:21 ), and in the future by our Lord ( Matthew 13:13 ), by St. John ( John 12:40 ), and lastly by St. Paul ( Acts 28:27 ). The thought and phrase were naturally as ever-recurring as the fact. read more
Blind eyes and deaf ears. I. ALL MEN HAVE ORGANS FOR PERCEIVING SPIRITUAL TRUTH . These blind Jews have eyes and the deaf have ears. Neither class is deformed or mutilated in respect of their organs of sense. Here is the paradox, the surprising situation. It is men with eyes and ears who are blind and deaf. It is no wonder that the lower animals should live without man's religion in a life of brutish appetite. But it is surprising that beings endowed with higher faculties... read more
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Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Ezekiel 12:1-16
Perhaps Ezekiel reflected with so much pleasure upon the vision he had had of the glory of God that often, since it went up from him, he was wishing it might come down to him again, and, having seen it once and a second time, he was willing to hope he might be a third time so favoured; but we do not find that he ever saw it any more, and yet the word of the Lord comes to him; for God did in divers manners speak to the fathers (Heb. 1:1) and they often heard the words of God when they did not... read more