Ezek. 5:1 And thou, son of man, take thee a sharp knife, take thee a barber’s razor, and cause it to pass upon thine head and upon thy beard: then take thee balances to weigh, and divide the hair.
Ezek. 5:2 Thou shalt burn with fire a third part in the midst of the city, when the days of the siege are fulfilled: and thou shalt take a third part, and smite about it with a knife: and a third part thou shalt scatter in the wind; and I will draw out a sword after them.
Ezek. 5:3 Thou shalt also take thereof a few in number, and bind them in thy skirts.
Ezek. 5:4 Then take of them again, and cast them into the midst of the fire, and burn them in the fire; for thereof shall a fire come forth into all the house of Israel.
This chapter leads directly into the next object lesson. Ezekiel is told to take a barber’s razor and shave his head and his beard. Again, this is unlawful for a priest to do and would require great humility and submission on the part of Ezekiel.
Lev. 21:5 They shall not make baldness upon their head, neither shall they shave off the corner of their beard, nor make any cuttings in their flesh.
Before gathering up the hair and utilizing the scales to divide it into three equal parts, he is to take a few hairs and bind them in the hem of his garment. The hair is going to be used to illustrate the results of the siege. A third of the hair represents those that will die in Jerusalem during the siege (cf v12). A third of the people will be killed by the enemy. Another third will be driven into exile. The few hairs bound in Ezekiel’s garment appear to represent the remnant that God is ever preserving of believing Israel. Because it is addressing the remnant, my first thoughts upon reading verse 4 is that this is picturing a refining fire that gets rid of impurities.
Ezek. 5:5 Thus saith the Lord GOD; This is Jerusalem: I have set it in the midst of the nations and countries that are round about her.
Ezek. 5:6 And she hath changed my judgments into wickedness more than the nations, and my statutes more than the countries that are round about her: for they have refused my judgments and my statutes, they have not walked in them.
At this point the LORD is explaining the accountability that accompanied Israel’s position as His chosen people among the nations. It was no secret among the surrounding nations that Israel claimed a privileged position in relationship to Almighty God. In essence, I think the LORD is saying that because Israel claimed relationship with Him and then proceeded to boldly reject Him in disobedience, she had positioned herself to be judged more harshly than those nations that had never accepted the LORD to begin with. Jesus utilized this same thought process.
Matt. 11:21-24 Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works, which were done in you, had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment, than for you. And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. But I say unto you, That it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for thee.
Utley had a different perspective: “This verse affirms the purposeful plan of God to place His people where they must depend on His care and protection. They were not a large, powerful people (cf. Deut. 7:7), but their land was at the crossroads of the major Near Eastern powers of Babylon, Assyria, Anatolia, and Egypt. God wanted to use His people planted in such a prominent place to educate and draw the surrounding peoples (i.e., "the nations) to Himself….”
Deuteronomy 7:7 “The LORD did not set his love upon you, nor choose you, because ye were more in number than any people; for ye were the fewest of all people….”
Ezek. 5:7 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because ye multiplied more than the nations that are round about you, and have not walked in my statutes, neither have kept my judgments, neither have done according to the judgments of the nations that are round about you;
This verse continues the thoughts from the last verses. Because of the context, I believe the multiplication is a reference to their wicked practices. The last part of verse seven indicates that the wickedness of Israel now exceeded the wickedness of the nations around her.
This generates in my mind a comparison of America to the nations around her. Our nation was founded on Christian principles with a clear recognition of God’s authority as the Creator of the universe. I’m sure the nations around us are confused when they hear us referenced as a Christian nation. Our actions reflect a far inferior commitment to our “God” than do the actions of those who follow false gods. We have chosen wickedness in rejection of God just as publicly as Israel did, and I am sure our judgment as a nation is just a certain.
Ezek. 5:8 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I, even I, am against thee, and will execute judgments in the midst of thee in the sight of the nations.
Because of Israel’s blatant rejection of God’s authority, He is going to punish her in the sight of those before whom she dishonored Him. It’s like the LORD is saying that in spite of the fact they act as though He is non-existent, He is going to declare Himself in judgment against them.
Ezek. 5:9 And I will do in thee that which I have not done, and whereunto I will not do any more the like, because of all thine abominations.
Ezek. 5:10 Therefore the fathers shall eat the sons in the midst of thee, and the sons shall eat their fathers; and I will execute judgments in thee, and the whole remnant of thee will I scatter into all the winds.
Ezekiel is stating that God’s judgment on Israel that is to come will be far more severe than they have ever experienced in the past. The severity of this judgment will cause the people to turn to cannibalism among each other. They were dispersed as captives among the nations, and that would be repeated once more after Rome conquered Jerusalem in 70 AD.
Utley re “the fathers shall eat their sons”: “This is one of the horrors of siege warfare. It was foretold in Lev. 26:29 and Deut. 28:53. The cannibalism is predicted in Jer. 19:9 and fulfilled in Lam. 2:20 and 4:10. Flavius Josephus also tells us of the same horrendous acts occurring in the siege of Jerusalem by Titus in A.D. 70.”
Leviticus 26:27–29 “And if ye will not for all this hearken unto me, but walk contrary unto me; Then I will walk contrary unto you also in fury; and I, even I, will chastise you seven times for your sins. And ye shall eat the flesh of your sons, and the flesh of your daughters shall ye eat.”
Deuteronomy 28:53 “And thou shalt eat the fruit of thine own body, the flesh of thy sons and of thy daughters, which the LORD thy God hath given thee, in the siege, and in the straitness, wherewith thine enemies shall distress thee….”
Jeremiah 19:9 “And I will cause them to eat the flesh of their sons and the flesh of their daughters, and they shall eat every one the flesh of his friend in the siege and straitness, wherewith their enemies, and they that seek their lives, shall straiten them.”
The phrase “will execute judgments” (plural) also leaves room for me to think that the prophet is referencing the whole of time encompassed from the time of the prophecy until Jesus establishes His throne in Jerusalem. Prophecy often referenced gaps in the times being referenced. One of my favorite examples is regarding Jesus’ reading of Isaiah 61. He declared His fulfillment of part of that prophecy, but stopped in the middle of it since it referenced His coming to set up His earthly kingdom.
Is. 61:1-4 The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, [this is where He stopped] and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified.
Ezek. 5:11 Wherefore, as I live, saith the Lord GOD; Surely, because thou hast defiled my sanctuary with all thy detestable things, and with all thine abominations, therefore will I also diminish thee; neither shall mine eye spare, neither will I have any pity.
God’s anger was intensified because the people had defiled the temple. This was a subject addressed by the prophet Isaiah.
Is. 1:11-13 To what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me? saith the LORD: I am full of the burnt offerings of rams, and the fat of fed beasts; and I delight not in the blood of bullocks, or of lambs, or of he goats. When ye come to appear before me, who hath required this at your hand, to tread my courts? Bring no more vain oblations; incense is an abomination unto me; the new moons and sabbaths, the calling of assemblies, I cannot away with; it is iniquity, even the solemn meeting.
The Hebrew for sanctuary states “a consecrated thing or place, especially, a palace, sanctuary (whether of Yhwh or of idols) or asylum…”
At first read it seems as though they had even taken their idols into the temple. After doing a bit of searching, I found that Manasseh had erected altars in the temple courts at one point.
2Kings 21:3-5 For he built up again the high places which Hezekiah his father had destroyed; and he reared up altars for Baal, and made a grove, as did Ahab king of Israel; and worshipped all the host of heaven, and served them. And he built altars in the house of the LORD, of which the LORD said, In Jerusalem will I put my name. And he built altars for all the host of heaven in the two courts of the house of the LORD.
I think this reference extends beyond the temple to include the city. The people were practicing idol worship in Jerusalem, the place that God had set apart on planet earth as His.
1Kings 11:36 And unto his son will I give one tribe, that David my servant may have a light alway before me in Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen me to put my name there.
The LORD is very clear that He is jealous for the honor of His name.
Is. 48:10-11 Behold, I have refined thee, but not with silver; I have chosen thee in the furnace of affliction. For mine own sake, even for mine own sake, will I do it: for how should my name be polluted? and I will not give my glory unto another.
Scripture also declares His jealousy for Jerusalem in particular.
Zech. 1:14 So the angel that communed with me said unto me, Cry thou, saying, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; I am jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion with a great jealousy.
The last part of this verse is a statement that the judgment to come is sure.
Ezek. 5:12 A third part of thee shall die with the pestilence, and with famine shall they be consumed in the midst of thee: and a third part shall fall by the sword round about thee; and I will scatter a third part into all the winds, and I will draw out a sword after them.
This verse is an explanation of verses 2-4 above. I think it is significant to note that the Jews have experienced the sword of their enemies throughout the past 2,000 years.
Ezek. 5:13 Thus shall mine anger be accomplished, and I will cause my fury to rest upon them, and I will be comforted: and they shall know that I the LORD have spoken it in my zeal, when I have accomplished my fury in them.
The good news in this verse is that the time of judgment will have an end point, a time when God’s wrath will be spent. The Hebrew for zeal is a reference to jealousy or envy. This ties in with the thoughts about the honor of His name above. The LORD is described as jealous in many scriptures.
Ex. 34:14 For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God….
Deut. 4:24 For the LORD thy God is a consuming fire, even a jealous God.
Nah. 1:2 God is jealous, and the LORD revengeth; the LORD revengeth, and is furious; the LORD will take vengeance on his adversaries, and he reserveth wrath for his enemies.
I think it is also important to note that the people will know that their judgment has come from YHWH, the covenant God of Israel.
Ezek. 5:14 Moreover I will make thee waste, and a reproach among the nations that are round about thee, in the sight of all that pass by.
Ezek. 5:15 So it shall be a reproach and a taunt, an instruction and an astonishment unto the nations that are round about thee, when I shall execute judgments in thee in anger and in fury and in furious rebukes. I the LORD have spoken it.
Both the people and the land will suffer under the judgment of God. The land will experience drought (waste) and the people will be disgraced/shamed (reproached). There is a verse in Jeremiah that seems to shed some light on the message.
Jer. 24:9 And I will deliver them to be removed into all the kingdoms of the earth for their hurt, to be a reproach and a proverb, a taunt and a curse, in all places whither I shall drive them.
This description of the attitude of the nations toward Israel has been true for centuries. The Hebrew for instruction is a reference to God’s purpose in this judgment—to chasten and correct them.
God’s judgment upon His own people should also serve as a message of warning to the church as well as individuals. God’s character never changes.
Mal. 3:6 For I am the LORD, I change not…
Heb. 13:8 Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.
He will just as surely judge those who claim His name today as He has demonstrated in His dealings with Israel in the past. He is still a jealous God, and the honor of His name is as precious to Him as ever.
Ezek. 5:16 When I shall send upon them the evil arrows of famine, which shall be for their destruction, and which I will send to destroy you: and I will increase the famine upon you, and will break your staff of bread:
Ezek. 5:17 So will I send upon you famine and evil beasts, and they shall bereave thee; and pestilence and blood shall pass through thee; and I will bring the sword upon thee. I the LORD have spoken it.
“When” – a statement of surety; judgment is coming.
There is a section in Deuteronomy that speaks of God’s arrows.
Deut. 32:23-25 I will heap mischiefs upon them; I will spend mine arrows upon them. They shall be burnt with hunger, and devoured with burning heat, and with bitter destruction: I will also send the teeth of beasts upon them, with the poison of serpents of the dust. The sword without, and terror within, shall destroy both the young man and the virgin, the suckling also with the man of gray hairs.
This is just another example of the consistency of God’s word. This is another case in which I wish I knew Hebrew because so many words are indicated as being understood or inserted. This message of judgment is addressed to Israel; these arrows are being used in judgment against Israel.
I do believe it is true that the nations can expect judgment in return for their treatment of Israel since that truth is declared in other parts of scripture, but I don’t believe that it is the context here.
Ironside: “Though God must deal with sin in His people, He never gives them up. Israel is still His by covenant, and in a coming day He will draw the remnant back to Himself and comfort them in their affliction. He will not keep His anger forever, but when they turn to Him in repentance He will own them once more as His elect and bring them again into blessing even greater than they have known in the past. Meantime, they are destined to be a desolation and a reproach among the nations as they have been for some twenty-five centuries of sad and awful affliction.”
Ezek. 6:1 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
Ezek. 6:2 Son of man, set thy face toward the mountains of Israel, and prophesy against them,
This seems to be introducing a new message from the LORD for Ezekiel to deliver to the people. The prophecy is regarding judgment to come upon Israel.
God is so patient and longsuffering. He continually gives warnings and opportunities for repentance before He judges.
“set thy face toward” – Note from Constable: To turn toward with hostile intention.
Ezek. 6:3 And say, Ye mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord GOD; Thus saith the Lord GOD to the mountains, and to the hills, to the rivers, and to the valleys; Behold, I, even I, will bring a sword upon you, and I will destroy your high places.
This prophecy includes the nation as a whole. The Northern tribes have already been taken into captivity, and the rest of Judah would soon follow. Even so, as depicted earlier, the Lord is preserving a remnant. God intends to eliminate idol worship among His people even if it requires killing them in great numbers in the process. The “high places” reference the preferred locations of altars dedicated to the worship of false gods.
Ezek. 6:4 And your altars shall be desolate, and your images shall be broken: and I will cast down your slain men before your idols.
Ezek. 6:5 And I will lay the dead carcases of the children of Israel before their idols; and I will scatter your bones round about your altars.
God is going to see to it that the altars to these false gods are destroyed and the idol images broken. The Hebrew for image references “sun-pillar,” which could be a reference to the sun god. The dead bodies of the people will be evidence of the impotence of these “gods” to intervene on behalf of their worshippers. In the places where they have offered sacrifice, they will be slain.
Ezek. 6:6 In all your dwellingplaces the cities shall be laid waste, and the high places shall be desolate; that your altars may be laid waste and made desolate, and your idols may be broken and cease, and your images may be cut down, and your works may be abolished.
All of Israel was to experience God’s judgment. The cities would be destroyed, the altars to false gods destroyed, the idols proven worthless, the images of the idols destroyed and the people’s acts of worship of these false gods will be abolished, wiped out.
The prophets often speak using a lot of repetition. It’s like God is saying that I am going to repeat this message to the point that you will never be able to claim ignorance as to why and how you are going to be judged. The response of the people was such that you couldn’t help but wonder if they were hearing it. I can think of many times when I have been talking to my children only to learn that they were zoned out and wanted me to repeat what I had said. God is so loving that He goes to the nth degree to make sure His people get the message.
Ezek. 6:7 And the slain shall fall in the midst of you, and ye shall know that I am the LORD.
Sadly, the LORD is going to have to take the lives of many to make them understand that He is YHWH, God Almighty, the covenant God of Israel.
Ezek. 6:8 Yet will I leave a remnant, that ye may have some that shall escape the sword among the nations, when ye shall be scattered through the countries.
Though judgment is necessary, God is not forgetting His covenants with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and David. He is faithful to preserve a remnant that has the opportunity to turn back to Him in faith and repentance. The largest part of that remnant will be scattered among the Gentile nations.
Ezek. 6:9 And they that escape of you shall remember me among the nations whither they shall be carried captives, because I am broken with their whorish heart, which hath departed from me, and with their eyes, which go a whoring after their idols: and they shall lothe themselves for the evils which they have committed in all their abominations.
The remnant that is preserved among the nations will remember YHWH. They will realize how they have grieved Him by worshipping worthless idols instead of keeping covenant with God Almighty Who had proven His power and authority in so many ways throughout their history. A “whorish heart” is a reference to spiritual adultery. These memories will cause them to grieve for their wicked practices in worship of false gods.
The Hebrew for the word “broken” implies brokenhearted. How often do we think about the truth that we can grieve Almighty God—cause Him to have a broken heart?
I can’t help but think that this prophecy reaches into the future to the Millennial Kingdom. Yes, there was a group that returned from the Babylonian captivity and reestablished temple worship, but Israel has never remained truly obedient to God as a nation to the current time.
Ezek. 6:10 And they shall know that I am the LORD, and that I have not said in vain that I would do this evil unto them.
When God speaks, it is with purpose; He is not using empty words. He is careful to make them understand that the judgment to come is because He has decreed it and is causing it. It’s not just evil men doing their evil deeds and exerting their will upon others; it is God using these men as instruments of judgment in His hand.
Ezek. 6:11 Thus saith the Lord GOD; Smite with thine hand, and stamp with thy foot, and say, Alas for all the evil abominations of the house of Israel! for they shall fall by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence.
God instructs the prophet to strike his hands together and stomp his feet to demonstrate that the judgment to come would be violent. God is angry with their “evil abominations,” their wicked disgusting ways. Because of their wickedness, the majority of them will be killed by the enemy, or through starvation, or through pestilence (e.g., the black plague).
Ezek. 6:12 He that is far off shall die of the pestilence; and he that is near shall fall by the sword; and he that remaineth and is besieged shall die by the famine: thus will I accomplish my fury upon them.
God’s people needn’t think they were safe just because they weren’t living in Israel; they are evidently going to be afflicted with pestilence/plague. Those who were in the land would be more likely to be killed by the enemy. Those who survived the first onslaught of the enemy and were left to experience the siege would more likely die from starvation.
God is adamant that His wrath will be appeased when judgment has run its course.
Ezek. 6:13 Then shall ye know that I am the LORD, when their slain men shall be among their idols round about their altars, upon every high hill, in all the tops of the mountains, and under every green tree, and under every thick oak, the place where they did offer sweet savour to all their idols.
Multitudes of dead bodies will cover the land in the midst of their broken idols, land that they defiled by worshiping false gods.
Ezek. 6:14 So will I stretch out my hand upon them, and make the land desolate, yea, more desolate than the wilderness toward Diblath, in all their habitations: and they shall know that I am the LORD.
God’s judgment will be thorough. The judgment will result in the land being devastated and laid to waste, even worse than the wilderness toward Diblath. After looking several places, it would seem that the “wilderness toward Dilath” is referencing a desert area on the way to Diblath, a city of Moab on the eastern side of the Dead Sea.
I can’t help but be reminded of the condition of Israel prior to their becoming a nation again in 1948. Trees were scarce and the land was desolate. I have often come across a quote by Mark Twain after visiting Israel in 1867. He described it as: “ ...[a] desolate country whose soil is rich enough, but is given over wholly to weeds-a silent mournful expanse....A desolation is here that not even imagination can grace with the pomp of life and action....We never saw a human being on the whole route....There was hardly a tree or a shrub anywhere. Even the olive and the cactus, those fast friends of the worthless soil, had almost deserted the country.” (Mark Twain, The Innocents Abroad)