7.23 Make a chain may refer to the fetters worn by the people as they were led away to exile (Nah 3.10).
7.24–27 Though the people of the land (v. 27) will suffer, special attention is devoted to prominent functionaries (priest, prophet, elders, king, prince), who are characterized by the arrogance of the strong (v. 24). Cf. Isa 3.2–3; Jer 4.9 for similar lists of prominent officials in a city.
EZEKIEL 8
Abominations in the Temple
1In the sixth year, in the sixth month, on the fifth day of the month, as I sat in my house, with the elders of Judah sitting before me, the hand of the Lord GOD fell upon me there. 2I looked, and there was a figure that looked like a human being;a below what appeared to be its loins it was fire, and above the loins it was like the appearance of brightness, like gleaming amber. 3It stretched out the form of a hand, and took me by a lock of my head; and the spirit lifted me up between earth and heaven, and brought me in visions of God to Jerusalem, to the entrance of the gateway of the inner court that faces north, to the seat of the image of jealousy, which provokes to jealousy. 4And the glory of the God of Israel was there, like the vision that I had seen in the valley.
5Then Godb said to me, “O mortal, lift up your eyes now in the direction of the north.” So I lifted up my eyes toward the north, and there, north of the altar gate, in the entrance, was this image of jealousy. 6He said to me, “Mortal, do you see what they are doing, the great abominations that the house of Israel are committing here, to drive me far from my sanctuary? Yet you will see still greater abominations.”
7And he brought me to the entrance of the court; I looked, and there was a hole in the wall. 8Then he said to me, “Mortal, dig through the wall” and when I dug through the wall, there was an entrance. 9He said to me, “Go in, and see the vile abominations that they are committing here.” 10So I went in and looked; there, portrayed on the wall all around, were all kinds of creeping things, and loathsome animals, and all the idols of the house of Israel. 11Before them stood seventy of the elders of the house of Israel, with Jaazaniah son of Shaphan standing among them. Each had his censer in his hand, and the fragrant cloud of incense was ascending. 12Then he said to me, “Mortal, have you seen what the elders of the house of Israel are doing in the dark, each in his room of images? For they say, ‘The LORD does not see us, the LORD has forsaken the land.’” 13He said also to me, “You will see still greater abominations that they are committing.”
14Then he brought me to the entrance of the north gate of the house of the LORD; women were sitting there weeping for Tammuz. 15Then he said to me, “Have you seen this, O mortal? You will see still greater abominations than these.”
16And he brought me into the inner court of the house of the LORD; there, at the entrance of the temple of the LORD, between the porch and the altar, were about twenty-five men, with their backs to the temple of the LORD, and their faces toward the east, prostrating themselves to the sun toward the east. 17Then he said to me, “Have you seen this, O mortal? Is it not bad enough that the house of Judah commits the abominations done here? Must they fill the land with violence, and provoke my anger still further? See, they are putting the branch to their nose! 18Therefore I will act in wrath; my eye will not spare, nor will I have pity; and though they cry in my hearing with a loud voice, I will not listen to them.”
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a Gk: Heb like fire
b Heb he
8.1–11.25 Second vision report: visions at the temple and God’s response.
8.1–18 Acts of religious impropriety in and around the temple.
8.1–4 Vision introduction.
8.1 The sixth year, 592 BCE; see note on 1.2. Leaders of the community consult with Ezekiel (cf. also 14.1; 20.1; 33.31), an important glimpse into exilic life. The hand of the Lord GOD. See note on 1.3.
8.2 The figure is described using vocabulary from the first vision, 1.4, 26–27.
8.3 Visions of God, visions enabled by God by means of which Ezekiel is about to see and experience Jerusalem via visionary transport.
8.4 In the valley alludes to 3.22–23, where Ezekiel also perceived the glory.
8.5–6 The first scene of religious impropriety. Ezekiel is told to look north. From where he was located, the gate of the inner temple courtyard (v. 3; 10.5 refers to an outer court), his gaze is directed toward the image of jealousy, probably an image of a god or goddess that made the Lord “jealous.” This object was doubly inappropriate since it violated the command against making images (Deut 4.15–18). The scene concludes with formulaic question and response, which are repeated with slight variations in vv. 13, 15, 17.
8.5 Either the figure (v. 2) or God speaking to Ezekiel.
8.6 Drive me far from my sanctuary. The prophet alludes to the ultimate effect of these indictments—God will leave the temple (described in ch. 10). Abominations, a favorite term of Ezekiel for describing ritual sin.
8.7–13 A second scene of religious impropriety. The prophet is commanded to dig and discover a secret area. The prophet sees wall art (engravings or paintings) of various animals and more idols termed as of the house of Israel. Moreover, representatives of the Judahite community, including Jaazaniah (who belonged to a prominent family; Shaphan, his father, is mentioned in 2 Kings 22), perform an incense ritual. This second scene is “worse” than the first since it depicts people actively disregarding Israelite traditions. Here the people attempt to justify their behavior by asserting that the LORD has forsaken the land (v. 12).
8.14–15 Ezekiel is now apparently closer to the temple itself. This third and briefest scene of impropriety is even worse than the second since the name of another deity appears. Tammuz (also known as Dumuzi) was worshiped in Mesopotamia as early as the third millennium BCE. Since he was thought to die and be held captive in the underworld, lamentation rites belonged to his worship. Ritual weeping by women (cf. 32.16) would be natural, especially as a part of the annual cycle of vegetation. Plant growth and fertility were associated with the life power of Tammuz, harvest and drought with his death. Veneration of Tammuz was probably incorporated in the worship of Canaanite gods, especially Baal, who was also associated with vegetation and time in the underworld.
8.16–17 The fourth and most heinous scene of impropriety, probably because it occurs at the temple’s doorway. Judahites were bowing down to worship the sun. Veneration of the sun god Shamash (associated with wisdom and law) was prominent in Mesopotamia. Worship of Yahweh, however, had also been associated with the sun (e.g., Ps 84.11; 2 Kings 23.11).
8.17 The focus shifts from abominations at the temple complex to violence throughout the land. Putting the branch to their nose is obscure, since there is no obvious connection between this image and the veneration of the sun.
8.18 If vv. 5–17 provide indictment, v. 18 constitutes the sentence. God promises radical justice with no possibility for intercession by the prophet or for mercy by God.
EZEKIEL 9
The Slaughter of the Idolaters
1Then he cried in my hearing with a loud voice, saying, “Draw near, you executioners of the city, each with his destroying weapon in his hand.” 2And six men came from the direction of the upper gate, which faces north, each with his weapon for slaughter in his hand; among them was a man clothed in linen, with a writing case at his side. They went in and stood beside the bronze altar.
3Now the glory of the God of Israel had gone up from the cherub on which it rested to the threshold of the house. The LORD called to the man clothed in linen, who had the writing case at his side; 4and said to him, “Go through the city, through Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of those who sigh and groan over all the abominations that are committed in it.” 5To the others he said in my hearing, “Pass through the city after him, and kill; your eye shall not spare, and you shall show no pity. 6Cut down old men, young men and young women, little children and women, but touch no one who has the mark. And begin at my sanctuary.” So they began with the e
lders who were in front of the house. 7Then he said to them, “Defile the house, and fill the courts with the slain. Go!” So they went out and killed in the city. 8While they were killing, and I was left alone, I fell prostrate on my face and cried out, “Ah Lord GOD! will you destroy all who remain of Israel as you pour out your wrath upon Jerusalem?” 9He said to me, “The guilt of the house of Israel and Judah is exceedingly great; the land is full of bloodshed and the city full of perversity; for they say, ‘The LORD has forsaken the land, and the LORD does not see.’ 10As for me, my eye will not spare, nor will I have pity, but I will bring down their deeds upon their heads.”
11Then the man clothed in linen, with the writing case at his side, brought back word, saying, “I have done as you commanded me.”
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9.1–11 Execution in Jerusalem.
9.1–2 Executioners of the city, individuals who have been given the task of executing those in the city. Although the text defines these persons as men, Israelite tradition normally attributed this punitive role to minor deities or angels, e.g., Ex 12.23 (“the destroyer”); 2 Sam 24.16; 2 Kings 19.35. Ezekiel presents the first instance in which multiple individuals carry out this task; cf. Rev 15.6. Among them, lit. “in their midst.” A man clothed in linen, probably a priest, since priests normally wore linen garments (Ex 28.39; in Dan 10.5, however, an angel wears a linen garment). Writing case, implements of a scribe; Egyptian writing cases included, minimally, brushes and various inks. All seven men positioned themselves near the bronze altar, which belonged to the Solomonic temple, but which had been repositioned by Ahaz (2 Kings 16.14), i.e., they were in the northern area of the temple courtyard.
9.3 As alluded to in 8.6, the glory of the God of Israel begins to leave the temple. God was understood to be enthroned above the cherubim. At this point, the glory moves to the temple doorway; cf. 10.4.
9.3b–6 God’s charge to the seven men.
9.3b–4 God commands the scribe to place a mark on those who sigh and groan over all the abominations. The Hebrew word translated mark is a vocalization of the last letter of the Hebrew alphabet, taw, which would have been written as an X. One might think that the individuals so designated were to be spared (cf. the protective marking of Passover, Ex 12.23), but the remainder of the vision does not explicitly report that any individuals were marked and spared (although cf. v. 11).
9.5–6 Then the six are authorized to kill everyone whom they encounter, regardless of gender or age. They begin at the temple (at my sanctuary), where they are now located, so that it could not offer sanctuary to those under attack and because abominations at the temple itself had just been identified. The first to be slain, the elders, are probably those men indicted in 8.11, 16.
9.7 Defile the house, corpse defilement (Num 19) in the temple complex (cf. 6.4–5). Since God is leaving the temple, it is possible for that structure to become impure.
9.8 Ezekiel attempts to intercede on behalf of Israel. Cf. 11.11; Isa 6.11; Am 7.1–6.
9.9–10 To Ezekiel’s question, God responds in the negative, affirming again (see 8.18; 9.5) that the destruction will occur without pity. However, unlike earlier language in this vision, God speaks of more than just the city: the house of Israel and Judah, the land. The vast geographic scope of wrongdoing appears to justify radical punishment. The quotation of the people in v. 9 revises a similar statement in 8.12. There is a play on the motif of God seeing. The people think the LORD does not see, but God responds, my eye will not spare.
9.11 The scribe accomplished his work, just as the executioners performed their task (v. 7).
EZEKIEL 10
God’s Glory Leaves Jerusalem
1Then I looked, and above the dome that was over the heads of the cherubim there appeared above them something like a sapphire,a in form resembling a throne. 2He said to the man clothed in linen, “Go within the wheelwork underneath the cherubim; fill your hands with burning coals from among the cherubim, and scatter them over the city.” He went in as I looked on. 3Now the cherubim were standing on the south side of the house when the man went in; and a cloud filled the inner court. 4Then the glory of the LORD rose up from the cherub to the threshold of the house; the house was filled with the cloud, and the court was full of the brightness of the glory of the LORD. 5The sound of the wings of the cherubim was heard as far as the outer court, like the voice of God Almightyb when he speaks.
6When he commanded the man clothed in linen, “Take fire from within the wheelwork, from among the cherubim,” he went in and stood beside a wheel. 7And a cherub stretched out his hand from among the cherubim to the fire that was among the cherubim, took some of it and put it into the hands of the man clothed in linen, who took it and went out. 8The cherubim appeared to have the form of a human hand under their wings.
9I looked, and there were four wheels beside the cherubim, one beside each cherub; and the appearance of the wheels was like gleaming beryl. 10And as for their appearance, the four looked alike, something like a wheel within a wheel. 11When they moved, they moved in any of the four directions without veering as they moved; but in whatever direction the front wheel faced, the others followed without veering as they moved. 12Their entire body, their rims, their spokes, their wings, and the wheels—the wheels of the four of them—were full of eyes all around. 13As for the wheels, they were called in my hearing “the wheelwork.” 14Each one had four faces: the first face was that of the cherub, the second face was that of a human being, the third that of a lion, and the fourth that of an eagle.
15The cherubim rose up. These were the living creatures that I saw by the river Chebar. 16When the cherubim moved, the wheels moved beside them; and when the cherubim lifted up their wings to rise up from the earth, the wheels at their side did not veer. 17When they stopped, the others stopped, and when they rose up, the others rose up with them; for the spirit of the living creatures was in them.
18Then the glory of the LORD went out from the threshold of the house and stopped above the cherubim. 19The cherubim lifted up their wings and rose up from the earth in my sight as they went out with the wheels beside them. They stopped at the entrance of the east gate of the house of the LORD; and the glory of the God of Israel was above them.
20These were the living creatures that I saw underneath the God of Israel by the river Chebar; and I knew that they were cherubim. 21Each had four faces, each four wings, and underneath their wings something like human hands. 22As for what their faces were like, they were the same faces whose appearance I had seen by the river Chebar. Each one moved straight ahead.
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a Or lapis lazuli
b Traditional rendering of Heb El Shaddai
10.1–22 God’s glory leaves the temple.
10.1 Ezekiel perceives the divine throne (cf. 1.26), but this time there is nothing seated above the throne. Cherubim have replaced the living creatures of ch. 1. (There are important and complex similarities and differences between the imagery in ch. 10 and that in ch. 1.)
10.2–8 The man clothed in linen receives a new task.
10.2 This verse continues the narrative of 9.11. Go within the wheelwork and 1.16 suggest that the wheels comprise a structure large enough to enter. The location of the wheelwork is unclear; presumably it is outside the temple (v. 3). The man is charged with gathering some burning coals; cf. 1.13, which refers to something that looked like burning coals. What was a simile now becomes literal. Since priests normally manipulated the coals of the altar fire, there is additional reason for thinking that this man was a priest. Such coals could function in different ways. According to Isa 6.6, coals purify the prophet. Here, however, they are to be scattered over the city, presumably to start a fire that would destroy the city. By implication, Jerusalem is as sinful as Sodom and Gomorrah (cf. Gen 19).
10.4–5 The glory of the LORD begins to move, as do certain of the cherubim. The biblical writer is careful to note that the glory moves from the c
herub, since this sole cherub was affixed to the ark. Other cherubim were part of the divine retinue and depart from the temple. The cloud could represent God’s presence (Ex 19.9; 1 Kings 8.10–11).
10.6–7 The man is given burning coals by one of the cherubim because, for some unknown reason, he does not himself approach the coals.
10.8–14 The author provides a detailed description of the cherubim vis-à-vis the wheelwork similar to that in 1.4–21.
10.15–17 As if to underline the similarity between chs. 1 and 10, the author mentions the river Chebar again (see 1.3). Mobility is the hallmark of the cherubim wheelwork. The structure rises up with cherubim wings beating and with wheels turning.
10.18–19 The glory of the LORD moves from the threshold of the house (cf. v. 4) and is located above the cherubim, which are themselves moving. The glory is at its accustomed position, namely, enthroned above cherubim, but now they are movable. East gate, the main ceremonial entrance into the temple complex, known elsewhere as “the gate of the LORD”(Ps 118.20).
10.20–22 Ezekiel reaffirms the identity of the living creatures as cherubim. Three times in short compass (vv. 15, 20, 22) he states that he perceived them while by the river Chebar. This repetition verifies Ezekiel’s ability to experience God while he is in exile.
EZEKIEL 11
Judgment on Wicked Counselors
1The spirit lifted me up and brought me to the east gate of the house of the LORD, which faces east. There, at the entrance of the gateway, were twenty-five men; among them I saw Jaazaniah son of Azzur, and Pelatiah son of Benaiah, officials of the people. 2He said to me, “Mortal, these are the men who devise iniquity and who give wicked counsel in this city; 3they say, ‘The time is not near to build houses; this city is the pot, and we are the meat.’ 4Therefore prophesy against them; prophesy, O mortal.”
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