And as for me also ,.... As they have not spared the poor and the needy, the widow and the fatherless, but have perverted their judgment, and shed innocent blood: mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity, but I will recompence their way upon their head ; deal with them by the law of retaliation, and reward them according to their deserts; see Ezekiel 7:4 . read more
Mine eye shall not spare - They say, the Lord seeth not: this is false; I have seen all their iniquities, and do see all their abominations; and I will bring deserved judgment upon them, and then that eye which now sees will neither pity nor spare. read more
Verse 10 Now God pronounces the Jews to be so obstinate in their malice as to have cut off from themselves all hope of pardon. For when he now says, that he would be hostile to them without pity, he shows the necessity of taking vengeance, because their impiety had penetrated even heaven, so that he could not spare them without denying himself. And abrupt speech increases vehemence, as if God pronounced that he had changed his plans. Now then we understand the meaning of this answer, that the... read more
The intercession of the prophet and the answer of the Lord. "And it came to pass, while they were slaying them, and I was left," etc. This intercession helps us to understand why the Lord showed to Ezekiel the secret abominations of the people, and called upon him to consider them ( Ezekiel 8:7-12 ). In dealing with that vision, we suggested that he was called upon to consider it in order that he might be qualified to estimate correctly the righteousness of God's treatment of the wicked.... read more
Human intercession. In every age good men have felt an internal constraint to intercede for the guilty. Love to God always produces love to men. I. INTERCESSION FOR THE GUILTY IS PRAISEWORTHY . Ezekiel felt that, though surrounded by the slain, his own life had been spared. A proper sense of God's compassion to us awakens similar compassion for others. It is a noble sentiment, and God does not discourage it. It sheds a blessing in the breast of him who cherishes it.... read more
The inexorable God. We are so accustomed to dwell upon the forbearance, long suffering, and merciful disposition of God, that the inexorable character of his righteousness is not sufficiently considered. There are conditions in which he cannot show mercy. I. GOD WILL NOT SPARE THE IMPENITENT . He pardons on condition of repentance. "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins" ( 1 John 1:9 ). But if we will not humble ourselves to admit our... read more
Ezekiel 9:9-10. Then said he, The iniquity of the house of Israel, &c., is exceeding great Here we have God’s denial of the prophet’s request for a mitigation of the judgment, and the justification of himself in that denial. 1st, Nothing could be said in extenuation of their guilt. God was as willing to show mercy as the prophet could desire, but here the case would not admit of it: it was such that mercy could not be granted without injuring justice; and it was not fit that one... read more
Execution of the sinners (9:1-11)God’s punishment of Jerusalem was illustrated by a vision in which God sent his executioners to carry out his work of judgment on the sinful people. First, however, he sent a special servant to put a mark on those who opposed the city’s wickedness, so that they might be preserved through the coming bloodshed (9:1-4). The first place where the judgment fell was the temple, where the nation’s leaders had led the people astray with their wickedness and idolatry.... read more
Mine eye, &c. See note on Ezekiel 5:11 ; Ezekiel 5:7 , Ezekiel 5:4 ; Ezekiel 8:18 . according as . Some codices, with three early printed editions, read "according to all which". read more
Get Bible verse every day in your inbox
Read on Mobile
Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Ezekiel 9:5-11
In these verses we have, I. A command given to the destroyers to do execution according to their commission. They stood by the brazen altar, waiting for orders; and orders are here given them to cut off and destroy all that were either guilty of, or accessory to, the abominations of Jerusalem, and that did not sigh and cry for them. Note, When God has gathered his wheat into his garner nothing remains but to burn up the chaff, Matt. 3:12. 1. They are ordered to destroy all, (1.) Without... read more