Ezekiel (Ch 33-34)
Chapter 33 specifies the duty of watchman, and the people’s sins; contains a vindication of the justice of God; a threatening of destruction to those who remained in the land after the taking of the city; and in chapter 34, a hypocrisy of the prophets who choose to feed themselves than feed the flock. Earlier, we have established that although Ezekiel has his face set toward Jerusalem, this prophecy is meant for the house of Israel at the endtime “for many years to come” (Ezekiel 12:27). And, here, remember, the house of Israel is primarily the United States of America, and secondarily its European allies. . .
Ezekiel 33
1 Again the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,
2 “Son of man, speak to the children of thy people and say unto them: ‘When I bring the sword upon a land, if the people of the land take a man from their borders and set him as their watchman, and
3 if when he seeth the sword come upon the land, he blow the trumpet and warn the people, — if what he seeth the sword come upon the land…. or those that kill with the sword, as the Targum; as soon as he observes a body of armed men, more or less, marching towards the borders of the land with a manifest intention to enter and invade it;
— he blow the trumpet, and warn the people; warn the people by blowing the trumpet, the signal agreed on; by which they would understand that an enemy was at hand, or danger near; or warn them by word of mouth, as well as by the trumpet, where he could do it, and when it was necessary.
4 then whosoever heareth the sound of the trumpet and taketh not warning, if the sword come and take him away, his blood shall be upon his own head.
5 He heard the sound of the trumpet and took not warning: his blood shall be upon him. But he that taketh warning shall deliver his soul.
6 But if the watchman see the sword come and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned, if the sword come and take any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman’s hand.’ — but his blood will I require at the watchman’s hands; he shall be punished for not doing his duty, for not giving the due warning of danger, on which account the man was surprised with the enemy, and taken away unawares; and therefore his death shall be laid to the watchman, and he must be answerable for it.
7 “So thou, O son of man, I have set thee as a watchman unto the house of Israel. Therefore thou shalt hear the word at My mouth and warn them from Me. — this prophecy is meant for the house of Israel which is primarily the United States of America, and secondarily its European allies.
8 When I say unto the wicked, ‘O wicked man, thou shalt surely die,’ if thou dost not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand
9 Nevertheless, if thou warn the wicked of his way to turn from it, if he do not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul.
10 “Therefore, O thou son of man, speak unto the house of Israel: ‘Thus ye speak, saying, “If our transgressions and our sins be upon us and we pine away in them, how should we then live?”’ — “the house of Israel” reemphasizing a prophecy which is meant for the United States and its European allies.
11 Say unto them: ‘As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?’
12 Therefore, thou son of man, say unto the children of thy people: ‘The righteousness of the righteous shall not deliver him in the day of his transgression. As for the wickedness of the wicked, he shall not fall thereby in the day that he turneth from his wickedness, neither shall the righteous be able to live for his righteousness in the day that he sinneth.’
13 When I shall say to the righteous that he shall surely live, if he trust to his own righteousness and commit iniquity, all his righteousnesses shall not be remembered; but for his iniquity that he hath committed, he shall die for it.
14 Again, when I say unto the wicked, ‘Thou shalt surely die,’ if he turn from his sin and do that which is lawful and right,
15 if the wicked restore the pledge, give back that which he had robbed, walk in the statutes of life without committing iniquity, he shall surely live; he shall not die.
16 None of his sins that he hath committed shall be mentioned unto him. He hath done that which is lawful and right: he shall surely live.
17 “Yet the children of thy people say, ‘The way of the Lord is not equal.’ But as for them, their way is not equal. — instead of turning away and by repenting, the house of Israel complains even further; that His way is not according to the rules of justice and equity.
18 When the righteous turneth from his righteousness and committeth iniquity, he shall even die thereby.
19 But if the wicked turn from his wickedness and do that which is lawful and right, he shall live thereby.
20 Yet ye say, ‘The way of the Lord is not equal.’ O ye house of Israel, I will judge you every one according to his ways.” — still obstinately persisting in their false charges as their complaint repeated: “The way of the Lord is not equal.”
21 And it came to pass in the twelfth year of our captivity, in the tenth month, on the fifth day of the month, that one who had escaped out of Jerusalem came unto me, saying, “The city is smitten!” — that one that had escaped out of Jerusalem came unto me; as it was foretold and promised he should, Ezekiel 24:26;
— saying, the city is smitten; the city of Jerusalem; the walls were broken down, the houses burnt, and the whole destroyed.
22 Now the hand of the Lord was upon me in the evening before he that had escaped came, and He had opened my mouth until he came to me in the morning; and my mouth was opened, and I was no more dumb. — and had opened my mouth, until he came to me in the morning; the hand of the Lord, or the power of the Lord, had done it, as he promised he would, Ezekiel 3:26-27 so that he spoke freely and boldly.
23 Then the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,
24 “Son of man, they that inhabit those wastes in the land of Israel speak, saying, ‘Abraham was one, and he inherited the land. But we are many; the land is given us for inheritance.’ — ‘if Abraham, being only a single person, had the whole region of Judea and Samaria (and more) given him, there is much greater reason to conclude, that God will preserve the possession of more to us, who are a numerous part of Abraham’s posterity.’
25 Therefore say unto them, ‘Thus saith the Lord God: Ye eat meat with the blood, and lift up your eyes toward your idols, and shed blood. And shall ye possess the land?
26 Ye stand upon your sword, ye work abomination, and ye defile every one his neighbor’s wife. And shall ye possess the land?’
27 Say thou thus unto them, ‘Thus saith the Lord God: As I live, surely they that are in the wastes shall fall by the sword, and him that is in the open field will I give to the beasts to be devoured, and they that are in the forts and in the caves shall die of the pestilence. — and him that is in the open field will I give to the beasts to be devoured; a reminder of “so will I send upon you famine and evil beasts” Ezekiel 5:17.
Ezekiel 14:21“For thus saith the Lord God: How much more when I send My four sore judgments upon Jerusalem — the sword and the famine and the noisome beast and the pestilence — to cut off from it man and beast?
28 For I will lay the land most desolate, and the pomp of her strength shall cease; and the mountains of Israel shall be desolate, that none shall pass through.
29 Then shall they know that I am the Lord, when I have laid the land most desolate because of all their abominations which they have committed.’
30 “Also, thou son of man, the children of thy people still are talking against thee by the walls and in the doors of the houses, and speak one to another, every one to his brother, saying, ‘Come, I pray you, and hear what is the word that cometh forth from the Lord.’ — every man to his brother, saying, come, l pray you, and hear what is the word that cometh forth from the Lord; let us go perhaps we shall hear some new thing, which may be pleasing.
31 And they come unto thee as the people cometh, and they sit before thee as My people, and they hear thy words, but they will not do them; for with their mouth they show much love, but their heart goeth after their covetousness.
32 And lo, thou art unto them as a very lovely song of one that hath a pleasant voice and can play well on an instrument; for they hear thy words, but they do them not.
33 And when this cometh to pass — lo, it will come — then shall they know that a prophet hath been among them.” — and when this cometh to pass…. the prophecy before delivered out, concerning the desolations in the land of Israel, by the sword, pestilence, and wild beasts;
— lo, it will come; whatever is predicted by the Lord; in the mouth of his prophets, certainly comes to pass: then shall they know that a prophet hath been among them; that Ezekiel was one such prophet by the exact accomplishment of his predictions.
Ezekiel 34
In this chapter, God is against the shepherds of Israel, that is, their rulers, both in church and state, are called to an account, as having been very much accessory to the sin and ruin of Israel, by their neglect of the duties of their station.
1 And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,
2 “Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy and say unto them, ‘Thus saith the Lord God unto the shepherds: Woe be to the shepherds of Israel that feed themselves! Should not the shepherds feed the flocks?
3 Ye eat the fat, and ye clothe yourselves with the wool, ye kill the ones that are fed; but ye feed not the flock. — but ye feed not the flock; did not govern the people well, by doing justice and judgment among men, as became civil magistrates; did not deliver out words of faith and sound teachings, to feed the minds of men with, which is the duty of those that preside in the church of God.
4 The diseased have ye not strengthened, neither have ye healed that which was sick, neither have ye bound up that which was broken, neither have ye brought again that which was driven away, neither have ye sought that which was lost; but with force and with cruelty have ye ruled them.
5 And they were scattered because there is no shepherd, and they became meat to all the beasts of the field when they were scattered. — and they became meat to all beasts of the field when they were scattered; the Targum says, “and they were delivered to all the kingdoms of the people to be consumed;”
— such as the Assyrians, Babylonians, Ammonites, Moabites, and others; and may be applied to false teachers, those grievous wolves, which spare not the flock, into whose hands members of churches, professors of religion, fall, when neglected by their shepherds.
6 My sheep wandered through all the mountains and upon every high hill; yea, My flock was scattered upon all the face of the earth, and none did search or seek after them.
7 “‘Therefore, ye shepherds, hear the word of the Lord:
8 As I live, saith the Lord God, surely because My flock became a prey and My flock became meat to every beast of the field because there was no shepherd, neither did My shepherds search for My flock, but the shepherds fed themselves and fed not My flock,
9 therefore, O ye shepherds, hear the word of the Lord.
10 Thus saith the Lord God: Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require My flock at their hand and cause them to cease from feeding the flock, neither shall the shepherds feed themselves any more. For I will deliver My flock from their mouth, that they may not be meat for them. — thus saith the Lord, Behold, I am against the shepherds; they have made me their enemy by their negligence and abuse of their power, and I will appear and act as such; they have been enemies to my sheep, though pretending to be their shepherds;
— I will be an open enemy to them; and will require my flock at their hands; I will require a severe account from their kings and princes, their priests and prophets.
11 “‘For thus saith the Lord God: Behold I, even I, will both search My sheep and seek them out.
12 As a shepherd seeketh out his flock on the day that he is among his sheep that are scattered, so will I seek out My sheep and will deliver them out of all places where they have been scattered on the cloudy and dark day.
13 And I will bring them out from the people and gather them from the countries, and will bring them to their own land, and feed them upon the mountains of Israel by the rivers and in all the inhabited places of the country.
14 I will feed them in a good pasture, and upon the high mountains of Israel shall their fold be; there shall they lie in a good fold, and in a fat pasture shall they feed upon the mountains of Israel.
15 I will feed My flock, and I will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord God.
16 I will seek that which was lost and bring back that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken and will strengthen that which was sick. But I will destroy the fat and the strong: I will feed them with judgment. — I will feed them with judgment; I will judge, chastise, and punish them.
17 “‘And as for you, O My flock, thus saith the Lord God: Behold, I judge between cattle and cattle, between the rams and the hegoats. — behold, I judge between cattle and cattle, between the rams and the he goats: between the smaller and weaker cattle, the sheep and the lambs; now, the Lord, as he observed a difference between them, he would make this manifest, and take the part of the one against the other; even the part of the weaker against the stronger.
— the Targum says, “behold, judge between man and man, sinners and the ungodly.”
18 Seemeth it a small thing unto you to have eaten up the good pasture, but ye must tread down with your feet the residue of your pastures? And to have drunk of the deep waters, but ye must foul the residue with your feet?
19 And as for My flock, they eat that which ye have trodden with your feet, and they drink that which ye have fouled with your feet.
20 “‘Therefore thus saith the Lord God unto them: Behold I, even I, will judge between the fat cattle and between the lean cattle. — behold, I, even I, will judge between the fat cattle and between the lean cattle. The Targum says, “between the rich man and the poor man.”
21 Because ye have thrust with side and with shoulder, and pushed all the diseased with your horns till ye have scattered them abroad,
22 therefore will I save My flock, and they shall no more be a prey; and I will judge between cattle and cattle.
23 And I will set up one Shepherd over them, and He shall feed them, even My servant David. He shall feed them, and He shall be their Shepherd. — perhaps this indicates the reunion of the Northern and Southern kingdoms of the old and new Israel.
24 And I, the Lord, will be their God, and My servant David a prince among them. I, the Lord, have spoken it.
25 “‘And I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will cause the evil beasts to cease out of the land; and they shall dwell safely in the wilderness and sleep in the woods.
26 And I will make them and the places round about My hill a blessing, and I will cause the shower to come down in his season; there shall be showers of blessing.
27 And the tree of the field shall yield her fruit and the earth shall yield her increase, and they shall be safe in their land and shall know that I am the Lord, when I have broken the bands of their yoke and delivered them out of the hand of those that served themselves by them.
28 And they shall no more be a prey to the nations, neither shall the beast of the land devour them; but they shall dwell safely, and none shall make them afraid.
29 And I will raise up for them a plant of renown, and they shall be no more consumed with hunger in the land, neither bear the shame of the nations any more.
30 Thus shall they know that I, the Lord their God, am with them, and that they, even the house of Israel, are My people, saith the Lord God.
31 And ye My flock, the flock of My pasture, are men, and I am your God, saith the Lord God.’” — these words at the conclusion of the chapter, explain the metaphor which runs through the whole of it; namely, that what was said of a flock and its shepherds, is to be understood of men and their governors;
— and of God’s people, whom their ecclesiastical ministers misled and oppressed, but whom God watches over, provides for, and takes care as a shepherd does. This too lays an obligation upon civil princes and magistrates, to govern faithfully and justly the people committing their trust.
Joel Huan
The Mystery of Ephraim 
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