mh_parser/vol_split/26 - Ezekiel/Chapter 24.xml

<div2 id="Ez.xxv" n="xxv" next="Ez.xxvi" prev="Ez.xxiv" progress="59.52%" title="Chapter XXIV">
<h2 id="Ez.xxv-p0.1">E Z E K I E L.</h2>
<h3 id="Ez.xxv-p0.2">CHAP. XXIV.</h3>
<p class="intro" id="Ez.xxv-p1" shownumber="no">Here are two sermons in this chapter, preached on
a particular occasion, and they are both from Mount Sinai, the
mount of terror, both from Mount Ebal, the mount of curses; both
speak the approaching fate of Jerusalem. The occasion of them was
the king of Babylon's laying siege to Jerusalem, and the design of
them is to show that in the issue of that siege he should be not
only master of the place, but destroyer of it. I. By the sign of
flesh boiling in a pot over the fire are shown the miseries that
Jerusalem should suffer during the siege, and justly, for her
filthiness, <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p1.1" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.1-Ezek.24.14" parsed="|Ezek|24|1|24|14" passage="Eze 24:1-14">ver. 1-14</scripRef>.
II. By the sign of Ezekiel's not mourning for the death of his wife
is shown that the calamities coming upon Jerusalem were too great
to be lamented, so great that they should sink down under them into
a silent despair, <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p1.2" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.15-Ezek.24.27" parsed="|Ezek|24|15|24|27" passage="Eze 24:15-27">ver.
15-27</scripRef>.</p>
<scripCom id="Ez.xxv-p1.3" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24" parsed="|Ezek|24|0|0|0" passage="Eze 24" type="Commentary"/>
<scripCom id="Ez.xxv-p1.4" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.1-Ezek.24.14" parsed="|Ezek|24|1|24|14" passage="Eze 24:1-14" type="Commentary"/><div class="Commentary" id="Ez.xxv-p1.5">
<h4 id="Ez.xxv-p1.6">The Parable of the Boiling Pot; The
Explanation of the Parable. (<span class="smallcaps" id="Ez.xxv-p1.7">b. c.</span> 590.)</h4>
<p class="passage" id="Ez.xxv-p2" shownumber="no">1 Again in the ninth year, in the tenth month,
in the tenth <i>day</i> of the month, the word of the <span class="smallcaps" id="Ez.xxv-p2.1">Lord</span> came unto me, saying,   2 Son of man,
write thee the name of the day, <i>even</i> of this same day: the
king of Babylon set himself against Jerusalem this same day.  
3 And utter a parable unto the rebellious house, and say unto them,
Thus saith the Lord <span class="smallcaps" id="Ez.xxv-p2.2">God</span>; Set on a
pot, set <i>it</i> on, and also pour water into it:   4 Gather
the pieces thereof into it, <i>even</i> every good piece, the
thigh, and the shoulder; fill <i>it</i> with the choice bones.
  5 Take the choice of the flock, and burn also the bones
under it, <i>and</i> make it boil well, and let them seethe the
bones of it therein.   6 Wherefore thus saith the Lord <span class="smallcaps" id="Ez.xxv-p2.3">God</span>; Woe to the bloody city, to the pot
whose scum <i>is</i> therein, and whose scum is not gone out of it!
bring it out piece by piece; let no lot fall upon it.   7 For
her blood is in the midst of her; she set it upon the top of a
rock; she poured it not upon the ground, to cover it with dust;
  8 That it might cause fury to come up to take vengeance; I
have set her blood upon the top of a rock, that it should not be
covered.   9 Therefore thus saith the Lord <span class="smallcaps" id="Ez.xxv-p2.4">God</span>; Woe to the bloody city! I will even make
the pile for fire great.   10 Heap on wood, kindle the fire,
consume the flesh, and spice it well, and let the bones be burned.
  11 Then set it empty upon the coals thereof, that the brass
of it may be hot, and may burn, and <i>that</i> the filthiness of
it may be molten in it, <i>that</i> the scum of it may be consumed.
  12 She hath wearied <i>herself</i> with lies, and her great
scum went not forth out of her: her scum <i>shall be</i> in the
fire.   13 In thy filthiness <i>is</i> lewdness: because I
have purged thee, and thou wast not purged, thou shalt not be
purged from thy filthiness any more, till I have caused my fury to
rest upon thee.   14 I the <span class="smallcaps" id="Ez.xxv-p2.5">Lord</span>
have spoken <i>it:</i> it shall come to pass, and I will do
<i>it;</i> I will not go back, neither will I spare, neither will I
repent; according to thy ways, and according to thy doings, shall
they judge thee, saith the Lord <span class="smallcaps" id="Ez.xxv-p2.6">God</span>.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Ez.xxv-p3" shownumber="no">We have here,</p>
<p class="indent" id="Ez.xxv-p4" shownumber="no">I. The notice God gives to Ezekiel in
Babylon of Nebuchadnezzar's laying siege to Jerusalem, just at the
time when he was doing it (<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p4.1" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.2" parsed="|Ezek|24|2|0|0" passage="Eze 24:2"><i>v.</i>
2</scripRef>): "<i>Son of man,</i> take notice, <i>the king of
Babylon,</i> who is now abroad with his army, thou knowest not
where, <i>set himself against Jerusalem this same day.</i>" It was
many miles, it was many days' journey, from Jerusalem to Babylon.
Perhaps the last intelligence they had from the army was that the
design was upon Rabbath of the children of Ammon and that the
campaign was to be opened with the siege of that city. But God
knew, and could tell the prophet, "<i>This day,</i> at this time,
Jerusalem is invested, and the Chaldean army has sat down before
it." Note, As all times, so all places, even the most remote, are
present with God and under his view. He tells the prophet, that the
prophet might tell the people, that so when it proved to be
punctually true, as they would find by the public intelligence in a
little time, it might be a confirmation of the prophet's mission,
and they might infer that, since he was right in his news, he was
so in his predictions, for he owed both to the same correspondence
he had with Heaven.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Ez.xxv-p5" shownumber="no">II. The notice which he orders him to take
of it. He must enter it in his book, <i>memorandum,</i> that <i>in
the ninth year</i> of Jehoiachin's captivity (for thence Ezekiel
dated, <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p5.1" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.1.2" parsed="|Ezek|1|2|0|0" passage="Eze 1:2"><i>ch.</i> i. 2</scripRef>,
which was also the ninth year of Zedekiah's reign, for he began to
reign when Jehoiachin was carried off), in the tenth month, on the
tenth day of the month, the king of Babylon laid siege to
Jerusalem; and the date here agrees exactly with the date in the
history, <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p5.2" osisRef="Bible:2Kgs.25.1" parsed="|2Kgs|25|1|0|0" passage="2Ki 25:1">2 Kings xxv. 1</scripRef>.
See how God reveals things to his servants the prophets, especially
those things which serve to confirm their word, and so to confirm
their own faith. Note, It is good to keep an exact account of the
date of remarkable occurrences, which may sometimes contribute to
the manifesting of God's glory so much the more in them, and the
explaining and confirming of scripture prophecies. <i>Known unto
God are all his works.</i></p>
<p class="indent" id="Ez.xxv-p6" shownumber="no">III. The notice which he orders him to give
to the people thereupon, the purport of which is that this siege of
Jerusalem, now begun, will infallibly end in the ruin of it. This
he must say <i>to the rebellious house,</i> to those of them that
were in Babylon, to be by them communicated to those that were yet
in their own land. A rebellious house will soon be a ruinous
house.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Ez.xxv-p7" shownumber="no">1. He must show them this by a sign; for
that stupid people needed to be taught as children are. The
comparison made use of is that of a <i>boiling pot.</i> This agrees
with Jeremiah's vision many years before, when he first began to be
a prophet, and probably was designed to put them in mind of that
(<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p7.1" osisRef="Bible:Jer.1.13" parsed="|Jer|1|13|0|0" passage="Jer 1:13">Jer. i. 13</scripRef>, <i>I see a
seething pot, with the face towards the north;</i> and the
explanation of it, <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p7.2" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.15" parsed="|Ezek|24|15|0|0" passage="Eze 24:15"><i>v.</i>
15</scripRef>, makes it to signify the besieging of Jerusalem by
the <i>northern</i> nations); and, as this comparison is intended
to confirm Jeremiah's vision, so also to confront the vain
confidence of the princes of Jerusalem, who had said (<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p7.3" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.11.3" parsed="|Ezek|11|3|0|0" passage="Eze 11:3"><i>ch.</i> xi. 3</scripRef>), <i>This city is
the caldron and we are the flesh,</i> meaning, "We are as safe here
as if we were surrounded with walls of brass." "Well," says God,
"it shall be so; you shall be boiled in Jerusalem, as the <i>flesh
in the caldron,</i> boiled to pieces; let the pot be set on with
water in it (<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p7.4" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.4" parsed="|Ezek|24|4|0|0" passage="Eze 24:4"><i>v.</i> 4</scripRef>);
let it be filled with the flesh of the <i>choice of the flock</i>
(<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p7.5" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.5" parsed="|Ezek|24|5|0|0" passage="Eze 24:5"><i>v.</i> 5</scripRef>), with the
choice pieces (<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p7.6" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.4" parsed="|Ezek|24|4|0|0" passage="Eze 24:4"><i>v.</i>
4</scripRef>), and the marrow-bones, and let the other bones serve
for fuel, that, one way or other, either in the pot or under it,
the whole beast may be made use of." A fire of bones, though it be
a slow fire (for the siege was to be long), is yet a sure and
lasting fire; such was God's wrath against them, and not like the
<i>crackling of thorns under a pot,</i> which has noise and blaze,
but no intense heat. Those that from all parts of the country fled
into Jerusalem for safety would be sadly disappointed when the
siege laid to it would soon make the place too hot for them; and
yet there was not getting out of it, but they must be forced to
abide by it, as the flesh in a boiling pot.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Ez.xxv-p8" shownumber="no">2. He must give them a comment upon this
sign. It is to be construed as a <i>woe to the bloody city,</i>
<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p8.1" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.6" parsed="|Ezek|24|6|0|0" passage="Eze 24:6"><i>v.</i> 6</scripRef>. And again
(<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p8.2" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.9" parsed="|Ezek|24|9|0|0" passage="Eze 24:9"><i>v.</i> 9</scripRef>), being
<i>bloody,</i> let it <i>go to pot,</i> to be boiled; that is the
fittest place for it. Let us here see,</p>
<p class="indent" id="Ez.xxv-p9" shownumber="no">(1.) What is the course God takes with it.
Jerusalem, during the siege, is like a pot boiling over the fire,
all in a heat, all in a hurry. [1.] Care is taken to keep a good
fire under the pot, which signifies the closeness of the siege, and
the many vigorous attacks made upon the city by the besiegers, and
especially the continued wrath of God burning against them
(<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p9.1" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.9" parsed="|Ezek|24|9|0|0" passage="Eze 24:9"><i>v.</i> 9</scripRef>): <i>I will
make the pile for fire great.</i> Commission is given to the
Chaldeans (<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p9.2" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.10" parsed="|Ezek|24|10|0|0" passage="Eze 24:10"><i>v.</i> 10</scripRef>)
to <i>heap on wood, and kindle the fire,</i> to make Jerusalem more
and more hot to the inhabitants. Note, The fire which God kindles
for the consuming of impenitent sinners shall never abate, much
less go out, for want of fuel. <i>Tophet has fire and much
wood,</i> <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p9.3" osisRef="Bible:Isa.30.33" parsed="|Isa|30|33|0|0" passage="Isa 30:33">Isa. xxx. 33</scripRef>.
[2.] The meat, as it is boiled, is taken out, and given to the
Chaldeans for them to feast upon. "<i>Consume the flesh;</i> let it
be thoroughly boiled, boiled to rags. <i>Spice it well,</i> and
make it savoury, for those that will feast sweetly upon it. <i>Let
the bones be burnt.</i>" either the bones <i>under</i> the pot
("let them be consumed with the other fuel") or, as some think, the
bones <i>in</i> the pot—"let it boil so furiously that not only
the flesh may be sodden, but even the bones softened; let all the
inhabitants of Jerusalem be by sickness, sword, and famine, reduced
to the extremity of misery." And then (<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p9.4" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.6" parsed="|Ezek|24|6|0|0" passage="Eze 24:6"><i>v.</i> 6</scripRef>), "<i>Bring it out piece by
piece;</i> let every man be delivered into the enemy's hand, to be
either put to the sword or made a prisoner. Let them be an easy
prey to them, and let the Chaldeans fall upon them as eagerly as a
hungry man does upon a good dish of meat when it is set before him.
<i>Let no lot fall upon it;</i> every piece in the pot shall be
fetched out and devoured, first or last, and therefore it is no
matter for casting lots which shall be fetched out first." It was a
very severe military execution when David measured Joab with <i>two
lines to put to death and one full line to keep alive,</i>
<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p9.5" osisRef="Bible:2Sam.8.2" parsed="|2Sam|8|2|0|0" passage="2Sa 8:2">2 Sam. viii. 2</scripRef>. But here is
no line, no lot of mercy, made use of; all goes one way, and that
is to destruction. [3.] When all the broth is boiled away the pot
is set empty upon the coals, that it may burn too, which signifies
the setting of the city on fire, <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p9.6" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.11" parsed="|Ezek|24|11|0|0" passage="Eze 24:11"><i>v.</i> 11</scripRef>. The scum of the meat, or (as
some translate it) <i>the rust of the meat,</i> has so got into the
pot that there is no making it clean by washing or scouring it, and
therefore it must be done by fire; so let the filthiness be burnt
out of it, or, rather, <i>melted in it</i> and burnt with it. Let
the vipers and their nest be consumed together.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Ez.xxv-p10" shownumber="no">(2.) What is the quarrel God has with it.
He would not take these severe methods with Jerusalem but that he
is provoked to it; she deserves to be thus dealt with, for, [1.] It
is a bloody city (<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p10.1" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.7-Ezek.24.8" parsed="|Ezek|24|7|24|8" passage="Eze 24:7,8"><i>v.</i> 7,
8</scripRef>): <i>Her blood is in the midst of her.</i> Many a
barbarous murder has been committed in the very heart of the city;
nay, and they have a disposition to cruelty in their hearts; they
inwardly delight in blood-shed, and so it is <i>in the midst of
them.</i> Nay, they commit their murders in the face of the sun,
and openly and impudently avow them, in defiance of the justice
both of God and man. She did not <i>pour out</i> the blood she shed
<i>upon the ground, to cover it with dust,</i> as being ashamed of
the sin or afraid of the punishment. She did not look upon it as a
filthy thing, proper to be concealed (<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p10.2" osisRef="Bible:Deut.23.13" parsed="|Deut|23|13|0|0" passage="De 23:13">Deut. xxiii. 13</scripRef>), much less dangerous. Nay,
she poured out the innocent blood she shed upon a rock, where it
would not soak in, upon <i>the top of a rock,</i> in despite of
divine views and vengeance. They shed innocent blood under colour
of justice; so that they gloried in it, as if they had done God and
the country good service, so put it, as it were, <i>on the top of a
rock.</i> Or it may refer to the sacrificing of their children on
their high places, perhaps on the top of rocks. Now thus they
<i>caused fury to come up and take vengeance,</i> <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p10.3" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.8" parsed="|Ezek|24|8|0|0" passage="Eze 24:8"><i>v.</i> 8</scripRef>. It could not be avoided
but that God <i>must</i> in anger <i>visit for these things; his
soul must be avenged on such a nation as this.</i> It is absolutely
necessary that such a bloody city as this should have blood given
her to drink, for she is worthy, for the vindicating of the honour
of divine justice. And, the crime having been public and notorious,
it is fit that the punishment should be so too: <i>I have set her
blood on the top of a rock.</i> Jerusalem was to be made an
example, and therefore was made a spectacle, to the world; God
dealt with her according to the law of retaliation. It is fit that
those who <i>sin before all</i> should be <i>rebuked before
all;</i> and that the reputation of those should not be consulted
by the concealment of their punishment who were so impudent as not
to desire the concealment of their sin. [2.] It is a filthy city.
Great notice is taken, in this explanation of the comparison, of
the <i>scum of this pot,</i> which signifies the sin of Jerusalem,
working up and appearing when the judgments of God were upon her.
It is the pot <i>whose scum is therein</i> and has <i>not gone out
of it,</i> <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p10.4" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.6" parsed="|Ezek|24|6|0|0" passage="Eze 24:6"><i>v.</i> 6</scripRef>. The
<i>great scum</i> that <i>went not forth out of her</i> (<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p10.5" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.12" parsed="|Ezek|24|12|0|0" passage="Eze 24:12"><i>v.</i> 12</scripRef>), that stuck to the pot
when all was boiled away, and was <i>molten in it</i> (<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p10.6" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.11" parsed="|Ezek|24|11|0|0" passage="Eze 24:11"><i>v.</i> 11</scripRef>), some of this runs
over <i>into the fire</i> (<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p10.7" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.12" parsed="|Ezek|24|12|0|0" passage="Eze 24:12"><i>v.</i>
12</scripRef>), inflames that, and makes it burn the more
furiously, but <i>it shall all be consumed</i> at last, <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p10.8" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.11" parsed="|Ezek|24|11|0|0" passage="Eze 24:11"><i>v.</i> 11</scripRef>. When the hand of God
had gone out against them, instead of humbling themselves under it,
repenting and reforming, and accepting the punishment of their
iniquity, they grew more impudent and outrageous in sin, quarrelled
with God, persecuted his prophets, were fierce to one another,
enraged to the last degree against the Chaldeans, snarled at the
stone, gnawed their chain, and were like a wild bull in a net. This
as <i>their scum;</i> in their distress they <i>trespassed yet more
against the Lord,</i> like <i>that king Ahaz,</i> <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p10.9" osisRef="Bible:2Chr.28.22" parsed="|2Chr|28|22|0|0" passage="2Ch 28:22">2 Chron. xxviii. 22</scripRef>. There is little
hope of those who are made worse by that which should make them
better, whose corruptions are excited an exasperated by those
rebukes both of the word and of the providence of God which were
designed for the suppressing and subduing of them, or of those
whose scum boiled up once in convictions, and confessions of sin,
as if it would be taken off by reformation, but afterwards returned
again, in a revolt from their good overtures; and the heart that
seemed softened is hardened again. This was Jerusalem's case:
<i>She has wearied with lies,</i> wearied her God with purposes and
promises of amendment, which she never stood to, wearied herself
with her carnal confidences, which have all deceived her, <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p10.10" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.12" parsed="|Ezek|24|12|0|0" passage="Eze 24:12"><i>v.</i> 12</scripRef>. Note, Those that
follow after lying vanities weary themselves with the pursuit. Now
see her doom, <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p10.11" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.13-Ezek.24.14" parsed="|Ezek|24|13|24|14" passage="Eze 24:13,14"><i>v.</i> 13,
14</scripRef>. Because she is incurably wicked she is abandoned to
ruin, without remedy. <i>First,</i> Methods and means of
reformation had been tried in vain (<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p10.12" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.13" parsed="|Ezek|24|13|0|0" passage="Eze 24:13"><i>v.</i> 13</scripRef>): "<i>In thy filthiness is
lewdness;</i> thou hast become obstinate and impudent in it; thou
hast got a habit of it, which is confirmed by frequent acts. <i>In
thy filthiness</i> there is a rooted lewdness; as appears by this,
<i>I have purged thee and thou wast not purged.</i> I have given
thee medicine, but it has done thee no good. I have used the means
of cleansing thee, but they have been ineffectual; the intention of
them has not been answered." Note, It is sad to think how many
there are on whom ordinances and providences are all lost.
<i>Secondly,</i> It is therefore resolved that no more such methods
shall be used: <i>Thou shalt not be purged from thy filthiness any
more.</i> The fire shall no longer be a refining fire, but a
consuming fire, and therefore shall not be mitigated and shortened,
as it has been, but shall be continued in extremity, till it has
done its destroying work. Note, Those that will not be healed are
justly given up and their case adjudged desperate. There is a day
coming when it will be said, <i>He that is filthy, let him be
filthy still. Thirdly,</i> Nothing remains then but to bring them
to utter ruin: <i>I will cause my fury to rest upon thee.</i> This
is the same with what is said of the later Jews, that <i>wrath has
come upon them to the uttermost,</i> <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p10.13" osisRef="Bible:1Thess.2.16" parsed="|1Thess|2|16|0|0" passage="1Th 2:16">1
Thess. ii. 16</scripRef>. They deserve it: <i>According to thy
doings they shall judge thee,</i> <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p10.14" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.14" parsed="|Ezek|24|14|0|0" passage="Eze 24:14"><i>v.</i> 14</scripRef>. And God will do it. The
sentence is bound on with repeated ratifications, that they might
be awakened to see how certain their ruin was: "<i>I the Lord have
spoken it,</i> who am able to make good what I have spoken; <i>it
shall come to pass,</i> nothing shall prevent it, for <i>I will do
it</i> myself, <i>I will not go back</i> upon any entreaties; the
decree has gone forth, and <i>I will not spare</i> in compassion to
them, <i>neither will I repent.</i>" He will neither change his
mind nor his way. Hereby the prophet was forbidden to interceded
for them, and they were forbidden to flatter themselves with hopes
of an escape. God hath said it, and he will do it. Note, The
declarations of God's wrath against sinners are as inviolable as
the assurances he has given of favour to his people; and the case
of such is sad indeed, who have brought it to this issue, that
either God must be false or they must be damned.</p>
</div><scripCom id="Ez.xxv-p10.15" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.15-Ezek.24.27" parsed="|Ezek|24|15|24|27" passage="Eze 24:15-27" type="Commentary"/><div class="Commentary" id="Ez.xxv-p10.16">
<h4 id="Ez.xxv-p10.17">The Death of the Prophet's Wife; A Sign of
Jerusalem's Ruin. (<span class="smallcaps" id="Ez.xxv-p10.18">b. c.</span> 590.)</h4>
<p class="passage" id="Ez.xxv-p11" shownumber="no">15 Also the word of the <span class="smallcaps" id="Ez.xxv-p11.1">Lord</span> came unto me, saying,   16 Son of man,
behold, I take away from thee the desire of thine eyes with a
stroke: yet neither shalt thou mourn nor weep, neither shall thy
tears run down.   17 Forbear to cry, make no mourning for the
dead, bind the tire of thine head upon thee, and put on thy shoes
upon thy feet, and cover not <i>thy</i> lips, and eat not the bread
of men.   18 So I spake unto the people in the morning: and at
even my wife died; and I did in the morning as I was commanded.
  19 And the people said unto me, Wilt thou not tell us what
these <i>things are</i> to us, that thou doest <i>so?</i>   20
Then I answered them, The word of the <span class="smallcaps" id="Ez.xxv-p11.2">Lord</span> came unto me, saying,   21 Speak unto
the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord <span class="smallcaps" id="Ez.xxv-p11.3">God</span>; Behold, I will profane my sanctuary, the
excellency of your strength, the desire of your eyes, and that
which your soul pitieth; and your sons and your daughters whom ye
have left shall fall by the sword.   22 And ye shall do as I
have done: ye shall not cover <i>your</i> lips, nor eat the bread
of men.   23 And your tires <i>shall be</i> upon your heads,
and your shoes upon your feet: ye shall not mourn nor weep; but ye
shall pine away for your iniquities, and mourn one toward another.
  24 Thus Ezekiel is unto you a sign: according to all that he
hath done shall ye do: and when this cometh, ye shall know that I
<i>am</i> the Lord <span class="smallcaps" id="Ez.xxv-p11.4">God</span>.   25
Also, thou son of man, <i>shall it</i> not <i>be</i> in the day
when I take from them their strength, the joy of their glory, the
desire of their eyes, and that whereupon they set their minds,
their sons and their daughters,   26 <i>That</i> he that
escapeth in that day shall come unto thee, to cause <i>thee</i> to
hear <i>it</i> with <i>thine</i> ears?   27 In that day shall
thy mouth be opened to him which is escaped, and thou shalt speak,
and be no more dumb: and thou shalt be a sign unto them; and they
shall know that I <i>am</i> the <span class="smallcaps" id="Ez.xxv-p11.5">Lord</span>.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Ez.xxv-p12" shownumber="no">These verses conclude what we have been
upon all along from the beginning of this book, to wit, Ezekiel's
prophecies of the destruction of Jerusalem; for after this, though
he prophesied much concerning other nations, he said no more
concerning Jerusalem, till he heard of the destruction of it,
almost three years after, <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p12.1" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.33.21" parsed="|Ezek|33|21|0|0" passage="Eze 33:21"><i>ch.</i>
xxxiii. 21</scripRef>. He had assured them, in the former part of
this chapter, that there was no hope at all of the preventing of
the trouble; here he assures them that they should not have the
ease of weeping for it. Observe here,</p>
<p class="indent" id="Ez.xxv-p13" shownumber="no">I. The sign by which this was represented
to them, and it was a sign that cost the prophet very dear; the
more shame for them that when he, by a divine appointment, was at
such an expense to affect them with what he had to deliver, yet
they were not affected by it.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Ez.xxv-p14" shownumber="no">1. He must lose a good wife, that should
suddenly be taken from him by death. God gave him notice of it
before, that it might be the less surprise to him (<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p14.1" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.16" parsed="|Ezek|24|16|0|0" passage="Eze 24:16"><i>v.</i> 16</scripRef>): <i>Behold, I take
away from thee the desire of thy eyes with a stroke.</i> Note, (1.)
A married state may very well agree with the prophetical office; it
is <i>honourable in all,</i> and therefore not sinful in ministers.
(2.) Much of the comfort of human life lies in agreeable relations.
No doubt Ezekiel found a prudent tender yoke-fellow, that shared
with him in his griefs and cares, to be a happy companion in his
captivity. (3.) Those in the conjugal relation must be to each
other not only a <i>covering of the eyes</i> (<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p14.2" osisRef="Bible:Gen.20.16" parsed="|Gen|20|16|0|0" passage="Ge 20:16">Gen. xx. 16</scripRef>), to restrain wandering looks
after others; but a <i>desire of the eyes,</i> to engage pleasing
looks on one another. A beloved wife is the <i>desire of the
eyes,</i> which find not any object more grateful. (4.) That is
least safe which is most dear; we know not how soon the desire of
our eyes may be removed from us and may become the sorrow of our
hearts, which is a good reason why those that <i>have wives</i>
should be <i>as though they had none,</i> and those <i>who
rejoice</i> in them <i>as though they rejoiced not,</i> <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p14.3" osisRef="Bible:1Cor.7.29-1Cor.7.30" parsed="|1Cor|7|29|7|30" passage="1Co 7:29,30">1 Cor. vii. 29, 30</scripRef>. Death is a
stroke which the most pious, the most useful, the most amiable, are
not exempted from. (5.) When the desire of our eyes is taken away
with a stroke we must see and own the hand of God in it: <i>I take
away the desire of thy eyes.</i> He takes our creature-comforts
from us when and how he pleases; he gave them to us, but reserved
to himself a property in them; and <i>may he not do what he will
with his own?</i> (6.) Under afflictions of this kind it is good
for us to remember that we are <i>sons of men;</i> for so God calls
the prophet here. If thou art a <i>son of Adam,</i> thy wife is a
daughter of <i>Eve,</i> and therefore a dying creature. It is an
affliction which the children of men are liable to; and <i>shall
the earth be forsaken for us?</i> According to this prediction, he
tells us (<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p14.4" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.18" parsed="|Ezek|24|18|0|0" passage="Eze 24:18"><i>v.</i> 18</scripRef>),
<i>I spoke unto the people in the morning;</i> for God sent his
prophets, <i>rising up early</i> and sending them; then he thought,
if ever, they would be disposed to hearken to him. Observe, [1.]
Though God had given Ezekiel a certain prospect of this affliction
coming upon him, yet it did not take him off from his work, but he
resolved to go on in that. [2.] We may the more easily bear an
affliction if it find us in the way of our duty; for nothing can
hurt us, nothing come amiss to us, while we keep ourselves in the
love of God.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Ez.xxv-p15" shownumber="no">2. He must deny himself the satisfaction of
mourning for his wife, which would have been both an honour to her
and an ease to the oppression of his own spirit. He must not use
the natural expressions of sorrow, <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p15.1" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.16" parsed="|Ezek|24|16|0|0" passage="Eze 24:16"><i>v.</i> 16</scripRef>. He must not give vent to his
passion by <i>weeping,</i> or letting <i>his tears run down,</i>
though tears are a tribute due to the dead, and, when the body is
sown, it is fit that it should thus be watered. But Ezekiel is not
allowed to do this, though he thought he had as much reason to do
it as any man and would perhaps be ill thought of by the people if
he did it not. Much less might he use the customary formalities of
mourners. He must dress himself in his usual attire, must bind his
turban on him, here called the <i>tire of his head,</i> must <i>put
on his shoes,</i> and not go barefoot, as was usual in such cases;
he must not <i>cover his lips,</i> not throw a veil over his face
(as mourners were wont to do, <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p15.2" osisRef="Bible:Lev.13.45" parsed="|Lev|13|45|0|0" passage="Le 13:45">Lev.
xiii. 45</scripRef>), must not be of a <i>sorrowful countenance,
appearing unto men to fast,</i> <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p15.3" osisRef="Bible:Matt.6.18" parsed="|Matt|6|18|0|0" passage="Mt 6:18">Matt.
vi. 18</scripRef>. He must not <i>eat the bread of men,</i> nor
expect that his neighbours and friends should send him in
provisions, as usually they did in such cases, presuming the
mourners had no heart to provide meat for themselves; but, if it
were sent, he must not eat of it, but go on in his business as at
other times. It could not but be greatly against the grain to flesh
and blood not to lament the death of one he loved so dearly, but so
God commands; and <i>I did in the morning as I was commanded.</i>
He appeared in public, in his usual habit, and looked as he used to
do, without any signs of mourning. (1.) Here there was something
peculiar, and Ezekiel, to make himself a sign to the people, must
put a force upon himself and exercise an extraordinary piece of
self-denial. Note, Our dispositions must always submit to God's
directions, and his command must be obeyed even in that which is
most difficult and displeasing to us. (2.) Though mourning for the
dead be a duty, yet it must always be kept under the government of
religion and right reason, and we must not <i>sorrow as those that
have no hope,</i> nor lament the loss of any creature, even the
most valuable, and that which we could worst spare, as if we had
lost our God, or as if all our happiness were gone with it; and, of
this moderation in mourning, ministers, when it is their case,
ought to be examples. We must at such a time study to improve the
affliction, to accommodate ourselves to it, and to get our
acquaintance with the other world increased, by the removal of our
dear relations, and learn with holy Job <i>to bless the name of the
Lord</i> even when he takes as well as when he gives.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Ez.xxv-p16" shownumber="no">II. The explication and application of this
sign. The people enquired the meaning of it (<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p16.1" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.19" parsed="|Ezek|24|19|0|0" passage="Eze 24:19"><i>v.</i> 19</scripRef>): <i>Wilt thou not tell us what
these things are to us that thou doest so?</i> They knew that
Ezekiel was an affectionate husband, that the death of his wife was
a great affliction to him, and that he would not appear so
unconcerned at it but for some good reason and for instruction to
them; and perhaps they were in hopes that it had a favourable
signification, and gave them an intimation that God would now
comfort them again according to the time he had afflicted them, and
make them look pleasant again. Note, When we are enquiring
concerning the things of God our enquiry must be, "What are those
thing <i>to us?</i> What are we concerned in them? What conviction,
what counsel, what comfort, do they speak to us? Wherein do they
reach our case?" Ezekiel gives them an answer <i>verbatim—word for
word</i> as he had received it from the Lord, who had told him what
he must <i>speak to the house of Israel.</i></p>
<p class="indent" id="Ez.xxv-p17" shownumber="no">1. Let them know that as Ezekiel's wife was
taken from him by a stroke so would God take from them all that
which was dearest to them, <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p17.1" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.21" parsed="|Ezek|24|21|0|0" passage="Eze 24:21"><i>v.</i>
21</scripRef>. If this was <i>done to the green tree, what shall be
done to the dry?</i> If a faithful servant of God was thus
afflicted only for his trial, shall such a generation of rebels
against God go unpunished? By this awakening providence God showed
that he was in earnest in his threatenings, and inexorable. We may
suppose that Ezekiel prayed that, if it were the will of God, his
wife might be spared to him, but God would not hear him; and should
he be heard then in his intercessions for this provoking people?
No, it is determined: <i>God will take away the desire of your
eyes.</i> Note, The removal of the comforts of others should awaken
us to think of parting with ours too; for <i>are we better than
they?</i> We know not how soon the same cup, or a more bitter one,
may be put into our hands, and should therefore weep with those
that weep, as being ourselves also in the body. God will <i>take
away that which their soul pities,</i> that is, of which they say,
What a pity is it that it should be cut off and destroyed! That
<i>for which your souls are afraid</i> (so some read it); you shall
lose that which you most dread the loss of. And what is that? (1.)
That which was their public pride, the temple: "<i>I will profane
my sanctuary,</i> by giving that into the enemy's hand, to be
plundered and burnt." This was signified by the death of a wife, a
dear wife, to teach us that God's sanctuary should be dearer to us,
and more <i>the desire of our eyes,</i> than any creature-comfort
whatsoever. Christ's church, that is his spouse, should be ours
too. Though this people were very corrupt, and had themselves
profaned the sanctuary, yet it is called <i>the desire of their
eyes.</i> Note, Many that are destitute of <i>the power of
godliness</i> are yet very fond of <i>the form</i> of it; and it is
just with God to punish them for their hypocrisy by depriving them
of that too. The sanctuary is here called the <i>excellency of
their strength;</i> they had many strong-holds and places of
defence, but the temple excelled them all. It was the <i>pride of
their strength;</i> they prided in it as their strength that they
were <i>the temple of the Lord,</i> <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p17.2" osisRef="Bible:Jer.7.4" parsed="|Jer|7|4|0|0" passage="Jer 7:4">Jer. vii. 4</scripRef>. Note, The church-privileges that
men are proud of are profaned by their sins, and it is just with
God to profane them by his judgments. And with these God will take
away, (2.) That which was their family-pleasure, which they looked
upon with delight: "<i>Your sons and your daughters</i> (which are
the dearer to you because they are but few left of many, the rest
having perished by famine and pestilence) shall <i>fall by the
sword</i> of the Chaldeans." What a dreadful spectacle would it be
to see their own children, pieces, pictures, of themselves, whom
they had taken such care and pains to bring up, and whom they loved
as their own souls, sacrificed to the rage of the merciless
conquerors! This, this, was the punishment of sin.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Ez.xxv-p18" shownumber="no">2. Let them know that as Ezekiel wept not
for his affliction so neither should they weep for theirs. He must
say, <i>You shall do as I have done,</i> <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p18.1" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.22" parsed="|Ezek|24|22|0|0" passage="Eze 24:22"><i>v.</i> 22</scripRef>. <i>You shall not mourn nor
weep,</i> <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p18.2" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.23" parsed="|Ezek|24|23|0|0" passage="Eze 24:23"><i>v.</i> 23</scripRef>.
Jeremiah had told them the same, that men <i>shall not lament for
the dead nor cut themselves</i> (<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p18.3" osisRef="Bible:Jer.16.6" parsed="|Jer|16|6|0|0" passage="Jer 16:6">Jer.
xvi. 6</scripRef>); not that there shall be any such merciful
circumstance without, or any such degrees of wisdom and grace
within, as shall mitigate and moderate the sorrow; but they
<i>shall not mourn,</i> for, (1.) Their grief shall be so great
that they shall be quite overwhelmed with it; their passions shall
stifle them, and they shall have no power to ease themselves by
giving vent to it. (2.) Their calamities shall come so fast upon
them, one upon the neck of another, that by long custom they shall
be <i>hardened in their sorrows</i> (<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p18.4" osisRef="Bible:Job.6.10" parsed="|Job|6|10|0|0" passage="Job 6:10">Job vi. 10</scripRef>) and perfectly stupefied, and
moped (as we say), with them. (3.) They shall not dare to express
their grief, for fear of being deemed disaffected to the
conquerors, who would take their lamentations as an affront and
disturbance to their triumphs. (4.) They shall not have hearts, nor
time, nor money, wherewith to put themselves in mourning, and
accommodate themselves with the ceremonies of grief: "You will be
so entirely taken up with solid substantial grief that you will
have no room for the shadow of it." (5.) Particular mourners shall
not need to distinguish themselves by <i>covering their lips,</i>
and laying aside their ornaments, and <i>going barefoot;</i> for it
is well known that every body is a mourner. (6.) There shall be
none of that sense of their affliction and sorrow for it which
would help to bring them to repentance, but that only which shall
drive them to despair; so it follows: "<i>You shall pine away for
your iniquities,</i> with seared consciences and reprobate minds,
and <i>you shall mourn,</i> not to God in prayer and confession of
sin, but <i>one towards another,</i>" murmuring, and fretting, and
complaining of God, thus making their burden heavier and their
wound more grievous, as impatient people do under their afflictions
by mingling their own passions with them.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Ez.xxv-p19" shownumber="no">III. An appeal to the event, for the
confirmation of all this (<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p19.1" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.24" parsed="|Ezek|24|24|0|0" passage="Eze 24:24"><i>v.</i>
24</scripRef>): "<i>When this comes,</i> as it is foretold, when
Jerusalem, which is this day besieged, is quite destroyed and laid
waste, which now you cannot believe will ever be, <i>then you shall
know that I am the Lord God,</i> who have given you this fair
warning of it. Then you will remember that Ezekiel was to you a
sign." Note, Those who regard not the threatenings of the word when
they are preached will be made to remember them when they are
executed. Observe,</p>
<p class="indent" id="Ez.xxv-p20" shownumber="no">1. The great desolation which the siege of
Jerusalem should end in (<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p20.1" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.25" parsed="|Ezek|24|25|0|0" passage="Eze 24:25"><i>v.</i>
25</scripRef>): <i>In that day,</i> that terrible day, when the
city shall be broken up, <i>I will take from them,</i> (1.) That
which they depended on—<i>their strength,</i> their walls, their
treasures, their fortifications, their men of war; none shall stand
them in stead. (2.) That which they boasted of—the <i>joy of their
glory,</i> that which they looked upon as most their glory, and
which they most rejoiced in, the temple of their God and the
palaces of their princes. (3.) That which they delighted in, which
was the <i>desire of their eyes,</i> and on which they <i>set their
minds.</i> Note, Carnal people set their minds upon that on which
they can set their eyes; they look at, and dote upon, <i>the things
that are seen;</i> and it is their folly to <i>set their minds</i>
upon that which they have no assurance of and which may be taken
from them in a moment, <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p20.2" osisRef="Bible:Prov.23.5" parsed="|Prov|23|5|0|0" passage="Pr 23:5">Prov. xxiii.
5</scripRef>. <i>Their sons and their daughters</i> were all
this—<i>their strength, and joy, and glory;</i> and these shall go
into captivity.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Ez.xxv-p21" shownumber="no">2. The notice that should be brought to the
prophet, not be revelation, as the notice of the siege was brought
to him (<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p21.1" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.2" parsed="|Ezek|24|2|0|0" passage="Eze 24:2"><i>v.</i> 2</scripRef>), but
in an ordinary way (<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p21.2" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.26" parsed="|Ezek|24|26|0|0" passage="Eze 24:26"><i>v.</i>
26</scripRef>): "<i>He that escapes in that day</i> shall, by a
special direction of Providence, <i>come to thee,</i> to bring thee
intelligence of it," which we find was done, <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p21.3" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.33.21" parsed="|Ezek|33|21|0|0" passage="Eze 33:21"><i>ch.</i> xxxiii. 21</scripRef>. The ill-news came
slowly, and yet to Ezekiel and his fellow-captives it came too
soon.</p>
<p class="indent" id="Ez.xxv-p22" shownumber="no">3. The divine impression which he should be
under upon receiving that notice, <scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p22.1" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.24.27" parsed="|Ezek|24|27|0|0" passage="Eze 24:27"><i>v.</i> 27</scripRef>. Whereas, from this time to
that, Ezekiel was thus far dumb that he prophesied no more against
the land of Israel, but against the neighbouring nations, as we
shall find in the following chapters, then he shall have orders
given him to <i>speak again to the children of his people</i>
(<scripRef id="Ez.xxv-p22.2" osisRef="Bible:Ezek.33.2 Bible:Ezek.33.22" parsed="|Ezek|33|2|0|0;|Ezek|33|22|0|0" passage="Eze 33:2,22"><i>ch.</i> xxxiii. 2,
22</scripRef>); then <i>his mouth shall be opened.</i> He was
suspended from prophesying against them in the mean time, because,
Jerusalem being besieged, his prophecies could not be sent into the
city,—because, when God was speaking so loudly by the rod, there
was the less need of speaking by the word,—and because then the
accomplishment of his prophecies would be the full confirmation of
his mission, and would the more effectually clear the way for him
to begin again. It being referred to that issue, that issue must be
waited for. Thus Christ forbade his disciples to preach openly that
he was Christ till after his resurrection, because that was to be
the full proof of it. "But then <i>thou shalt speak</i> with the
greater assurance, and the more effectually, either to their
conviction or to their confusion." Note, God's prophets are never
silenced but for wise and holy ends. And when God gives them the
opening of the mouth again (as he will in due time, for even the
witnesses that are <i>slain</i> shall <i>arise</i>) it shall appear
to have been for his glory that they were for a while silent, that
people may the more certainly and fully <i>know</i> that <i>God is
the Lord.</i></p>
</div></div2>