Ezekiel 24:15-27

Death of Ezekiel’s wife (24:15-27)

It came as a shock to Ezekiel to learn from God that his wife was about to die. He was told not to show any of the usual signs of mourning, but to go about his business as usual. Before his wife died, Ezekiel told the people what would happen (15-18).As expected, the people asked Ezekiel why he was not observing the usual mourning customs (19). Ezekiel explained that he was demonstrating how the exiles would react when they heard news of the destruction of their temple and the slaughter of their relatives. Being exiles in the land of the conqueror, they could hardly show public signs of mourning, though they would groan privately to one another in their unspeakable grief (20-24).When news of the fall of Jerusalem reached the exiles, the restrictions God had placed on Ezekiel’s speech and movements would be lifted. The people would at last realize the truth of his message and be prepared to listen to him (25-27; cf. 3:22-27; 33:21-22).