Ezekiel 24 - ESV - Bible Reading / Study Notes

Ezekiel 24

The Siege of Jerusalem

24:1 In the ninth year, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, the word of the LORD came to me: 2 “Son of man, write down the name of this day, this very day. The king of Babylon has laid siege to Jerusalem this very day. 3 And utter a parable to the rebellious house and say to them, Thus says the Lord GOD:

  “Set on the pot, set it on;
    pour in water also;
4   put in it the pieces of meat,
    all the good pieces, the thigh and the shoulder;
    fill it with choice bones.
5   Take the choicest one of the flock;
    pile the logs¹ under it;
  boil it well;
    seethe also its bones in it.

6 “Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Woe to the bloody city, to the pot whose corrosion is in it, and whose corrosion has not gone out of it! Take out of it piece after piece, without making any choice.² 7 For the blood she has shed is in her midst; she put it on the bare rock; she did not pour it out on the ground to cover it with dust. 8 To rouse my wrath, to take vengeance, I have set on the bare rock the blood she has shed, that it may not be covered. 9 Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Woe to the bloody city! I also will make the pile great. 10 Heap on the logs, kindle the fire, boil the meat well, mix in the spices,³ and let the bones be burned up. 11 Then set it empty upon the coals, that it may become hot, and its copper may burn, that its uncleanness may be melted in it, its corrosion consumed. 12 She has wearied herself with toil;⁴ its abundant corrosion does not go out of it. Into the fire with its corrosion! 13 On account of your unclean lewdness, because I would have cleansed you and you were not cleansed from your uncleanness, you shall not be cleansed anymore till I have satisfied my fury upon you. 14 I am the LORD. I have spoken; it shall come to pass; I will do it. I will not go back; I will not spare; I will not relent; according to your ways and your deeds you will be judged, declares the Lord GOD.”

Ezekiel’s Wife Dies

15 The word of the LORD came to me: 16 “Son of man, behold, I am about to take the delight of your eyes away from you at a stroke; yet you shall not mourn or weep, nor shall your tears run down. 17 Sigh, but not aloud; make no mourning for the dead. Bind on your turban, and put your shoes on your feet; do not cover your lips, nor eat the bread of men.” 18 So I spoke to the people in the morning, and at evening my wife died. And on the next morning I did as I was commanded.

19 And the people said to me, “Will you not tell us what these things mean for us, that you are acting thus?” 20 Then I said to them, “The word of the LORD came to me: 21 ‘Say to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I will profane my sanctuary, the pride of your power, the delight of your eyes, and the yearning of your soul, and your sons and your daughters whom you left behind shall fall by the sword. 22 And you shall do as I have done; you shall not cover your lips, nor eat the bread of men. 23 Your turbans shall be on your heads and your shoes on your feet; you shall not mourn or weep, but you shall rot away in your iniquities and groan to one another. 24 Thus shall Ezekiel be to you a sign; according to all that he has done you shall do. When this comes, then you will know that I am the Lord GOD.’

25 “As for you, son of man, surely on the day when I take from them their stronghold, their joy and glory, the delight of their eyes and their soul’s desire, and also their sons and daughters, 26 on that day a fugitive will come to you to report to you the news. 27 On that day your mouth will be opened to the fugitive, and you shall speak and be no longer mute. So you will be a sign to them, and they will know that I am the LORD.”

Footnotes

[1] 24:5 Compare verse 10; Hebrew the bones
[2] 24:6 Hebrew no lot has fallen upon it
[3] 24:10 Or empty out the broth
[4] 24:12 The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain

Commentary

v1-2: See Jer 52.4, the beginning of Nebuchadnezzar's siege against Jerusalem. The ninth year is the ninth year of the reign of Zedekiah. This was no accident of history and politics, but the judgment of God on a rebellious people.

v3-5: Jerusalem, the pot full of meat, put on the fir to simmer. Another striking parable, echoing the language of chapter 11.

v6-8: The pot was left to simmer, boiling away the water, and burning the meat. The pot was now "encrusted," with the deposit of burned meat stuck on. The people were unwilling to repent, and to forsake their sins, see 22.17-31.

Jerusalem's guilt remained, the evidence of her sins remained. When a Jew slaughtered an animal, its blood ran on the ground, and was covered by the dust. But here, the blood lay on a rock, remaining as a testimony to their guilt.

v9-12: The pot left to be burned; picturing the punishment sent by the Lord. This time the meat is roasted on an open fire, rather than being boiled in a pot; either way, there is no cleansing. Jerusalem resisted the purifying works of the Lord.

v13-14: Again, leaving the parable, the Lord speaks directly of their failure to be cleansed, or purged. These verses explicitly interpret the parable, giving its meaning.

v15-18: Ezekiel's costly ministry. God took away "with one blow" his wife, the desire of his eyes. His ministry had to continue uninterrupted, with no opportunity for mourning.

v19-24: The application of the incident, as the people came to Ezekiel, asking the meaning of his actions. He is made a sign to Israel (compare Is 8.18). What happened to him would be fulfilled in the people.

The people trusted in the temple, 1 Sam 4.5; Jer 7.4, this was the stronghold of their pride, the delight of their eyes, the object of their affection. But theirs was a false security, since they lacked faith in God.

v25-27: A messenger was to come from Jerusalem to Babylon, bringing the message of the city's fall.

Ezekiel spoke no more words to Israel until news reached him of Jerusalem's fall, in 33.21-22. During this period, Ezekiel spoke messages for other nations.