King James Version
Ezekiel 3
27 verses with commentary
Warning to Israel
Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, eat that thou findest; eat this roll, and go speak unto the house of Israel.
View commentary (3 sources)
KJV Study Commentary
God commands Ezekiel to "eat this roll" (scroll), a vivid metaphor for internalizing God's Word before proclaiming it. The Hebrew 'akal (אָכַל) means to consume completely, not merely taste. This symbolizes total assimilation—the prophet must be saturated with divine revelation before delivering it. Jeremiah similarly describes God's words as food bringing joy (Jeremiah 15:16). The act teaches tha...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
10. The tidings of God's interposition in behalf of Israel will arrest the attention of even the uttermost Gentile nations.
**He that scattered will gather--**He who scattered knows where to find Israel; He who smote can also heal.
**keep--**not only will gather, but keep safely to the end (Joh 13:1; 17:11).
**shepherd--**(Is 40:11; Eze 34:12-14).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 3
The faithful lament their calamities, and hope in God's mercies.
**Verses 1-20** The prophet relates the more gloomy and discouraging part of his experience, and how he found support and relief. In the time of his trial the Lord had become terrible to him. It was an affliction that was misery itself; for sin makes the cup of affliction a bitter cup. The struggle between unbelief an...
Read full commentary →So I opened my mouth, and he caused me to eat that roll.
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KJV Study Commentary
Ezekiel's immediate obedience—"he caused me to eat that roll"—demonstrates the prophet's submission to divine authority. The phrase "caused me to eat" emphasizes both divine initiative and human response. God provides the Word and enables its reception; Ezekiel cooperates willingly. This pattern reflects Reformed soteriology: God's effectual calling produces willing obedience. The opened mouth sig...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**11. ransomed ... from ... hand of ... stronger--**No strength of the foe can prevent the Lord from delivering Jacob (Is 49:24, 25).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 3
The faithful lament their calamities, and hope in God's mercies.
**Verses 1-20** The prophet relates the more gloomy and discouraging part of his experience, and how he found support and relief. In the time of his trial the Lord had become terrible to him. It was an affliction that was misery itself; for sin makes the cup of affliction a bitter cup. The struggle between unbelief an...
Read full commentary →And he said unto me, Son of man, cause thy belly to eat, and fill thy bowels with this roll that I give thee. Then did I eat it; and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness.
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KJV Study Commentary
After commanding Ezekiel to eat the scroll, God reports: 'Then did I eat it; and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness.' The act of eating symbolizes complete internalization of God's word—prophetic ministry requires digesting divine revelation before proclaiming it. The sweetness 'as honey' (kedavash lematok, כִּדְבַשׁ לְמָתוֹק) paradoxically contrasts with the scroll's content—'lamentations,...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(3) **It was in my mouth as honey for sweetness.**—That is, the first impression made upon him by his prophetic call was one of delight. Such it must always be to those whose high privilege it is to bear God’s message to their fellows. He does not expressly add, as St. John does (Revelation 10:10) after a similar first sensation, “as soon as I had eaten it my belly was “bitter;” but it may easily ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**12. height of Zion--**(Eze 17:23).
**flow--**There shall be a conflux of worshippers to the temple on Zion (Is 2:2; Mi 4:1).
**to the goodness of ... Lord--**(See Jr 31:14). Beneficence, that is, to the Lord as the source of all good things (Ho 3:5), to pray to Him and praise Him for these blessings of which He is the Fountainhead.
**watered garden--**(Is 58:11). Not merely for a time, but...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 3
The faithful lament their calamities, and hope in God's mercies.
**Verses 1-20** The prophet relates the more gloomy and discouraging part of his experience, and how he found support and relief. In the time of his trial the Lord had become terrible to him. It was an affliction that was misery itself; for sin makes the cup of affliction a bitter cup. The struggle between unbelief an...
Read full commentary →And he said unto me, Son of man, go, get thee unto the house of Israel, and speak with my words unto them.
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KJV Study Commentary
After consuming God's Word, Ezekiel receives his commission: "go, get thee unto the house of Israel, and speak with my words unto them." The sequence is crucial—internalization precedes proclamation. The phrase "my words" (not "about my words") emphasizes exact transmission of divine revelation. The Reformed principle of sola Scriptura appears: ministers must speak God's very words, not human phil...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**13. young ... old--**(Zec 8:4, 5).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 3
The faithful lament their calamities, and hope in God's mercies.
**Verses 1-20** The prophet relates the more gloomy and discouraging part of his experience, and how he found support and relief. In the time of his trial the Lord had become terrible to him. It was an affliction that was misery itself; for sin makes the cup of affliction a bitter cup. The struggle between unbelief an...
Read full commentary →For thou art not sent to a people of a strange speech and of an hard language, but to the house of Israel; of a: Heb. deep of lip, and heavy of tongue
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KJV Study Commentary
"For thou art not sent to a people of a strange speech and of an hard language, but to the house of Israel." God emphasizes that Ezekiel speaks to fellow Israelites who share language and culture, yet will prove harder-hearted than foreigners (verses 6-7). Covenant privilege brings greater accountability. Familiarity with truth can breed contempt rather than gratitude. Those raised in covenant com...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(5) **To a people of a strange speech.**—In Ezekiel 3:4-7 it is emphasised that Ezekiel’s immediate mission is to be, like that of his great Antitype, to “the lost sheep of the house of Israel; “and yet that they would not give the heed to him which men far below them in spiritual privilege would have gladly yielded. Similar facts are continually encountered in the Scriptures, whether in its histo...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**14. my goodness--**(Jr 31:12).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 3
The faithful lament their calamities, and hope in God's mercies.
**Verses 1-20** The prophet relates the more gloomy and discouraging part of his experience, and how he found support and relief. In the time of his trial the Lord had become terrible to him. It was an affliction that was misery itself; for sin makes the cup of affliction a bitter cup. The struggle between unbelief an...
Read full commentary →Not to many people of a strange speech and of an hard language, whose words thou canst not understand. Surely, had I sent thee to them, they would have hearkened unto thee. of a: Heb. deep of lip, and heavy of language Surely: or, If I had sent thee, etc. would they not have hearkened unto thee?
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KJV Study Commentary
"Not to many people of a strange speech and of an hard language, whose words thou canst not understand. Surely, had I sent thee to them, they would have hearkened unto thee." God asserts that foreigners would prove more receptive than covenant Israel. This shocking statement indicts Israel's hard-heartedness despite extraordinary privileges. Greater revelation brings greater responsibility and, wh...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**15. Ramah--**In Benjamin, east of the great northern road, two hours' **journey from Jerusalem. Rachel, who all her life had pined for children (Ge 30:1), and who died with "sorrow" in giving birth to Benjamin (Ge 35:18, 19, Margin; 1Sa 10:2), and was buried at Ramah, near Beth-lehem, is represented as raising her head from the tomb, and as breaking forth into "weeping" at seeing the whole land ...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 3
The faithful lament their calamities, and hope in God's mercies.
**Verses 1-20** The prophet relates the more gloomy and discouraging part of his experience, and how he found support and relief. In the time of his trial the Lord had become terrible to him. It was an affliction that was misery itself; for sin makes the cup of affliction a bitter cup. The struggle between unbelief an...
Read full commentary →But the house of Israel will not hearken unto thee; for they will not hearken unto me: for all the house of Israel are impudent and hardhearted . impudent: Heb. stiff of forehead, and hard of heart
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>But the house of Israel will not hearken unto thee; for they will not hearken unto me: for all the house of Israel are impudent and hardhearted.</strong> God warns Ezekiel that his prophetic ministry will face stubborn rejection. The Hebrew <em>lo yavu lishmoa</em> (לֹא־יָבוּא לִשְׁמֹעַ, "will not hearken") means refusing to listen with intent to obey. This wasn't mere incomprehension but ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(7) **All the house of Israel**—Means, of course, the people generally, as the word *all *is often used in Scripture and elsewhere. There were even then among them such saints as Jeremiah and Daniel.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**16. thy work--**thy parental weeping for thy children [Rosenmuller]. Thine affliction in the loss of thy children, murdered for Christ's sake, shall not be fruitless to thee, as was the case in thy giving birth to the "child of thy sorrow," Benjamin. Primarily, also, thy grief shall not be perpetual: the exiles shall return, and the land be inhabited again [Calvin].
**come again--**(Ho 1:11).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 3
The faithful lament their calamities, and hope in God's mercies.
**Verses 1-20** The prophet relates the more gloomy and discouraging part of his experience, and how he found support and relief. In the time of his trial the Lord had become terrible to him. It was an affliction that was misery itself; for sin makes the cup of affliction a bitter cup. The struggle between unbelief an...
Read full commentary →Behold, I have made thy face strong against their faces, and thy forehead strong against their foreheads.
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KJV Study Commentary
God's making Ezekiel's face 'strong against their faces' and forehead 'hard against their foreheads' demonstrates divine empowerment for difficult ministry. Ezekiel faces a rebellious house requiring supernatural boldness. The forehead represents determination and shamelessness—God removes fear of man, replacing it with prophetic courage. This parallels Jeremiah's fortified city (Jer. 1:18). Effec...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(8) **Thy face strong against their faces.**—The word *strong *is the same here as that rendered *impudent *(marg. *stiff*) in Ezekiel 3:7. Of course it must have a different shade of meaning in its application to the rebellious people and to the prophet; but the main thought is taken from the figure of horned animals in their contests, and God promises Ezekiel to make him in the struggle stronger...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**17. hope in ... end--**All thy calamities shall have a prosperous issue.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 3
The faithful lament their calamities, and hope in God's mercies.
**Verses 1-20** The prophet relates the more gloomy and discouraging part of his experience, and how he found support and relief. In the time of his trial the Lord had become terrible to him. It was an affliction that was misery itself; for sin makes the cup of affliction a bitter cup. The struggle between unbelief an...
Read full commentary →As an adamant harder than flint have I made thy forehead: fear them not, neither be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house.
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KJV Study Commentary
"As an adamant harder than flint have I made thy forehead: fear them not, neither be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house." God promises to strengthen Ezekiel against opposition through supernatural fortitude. The "adamant" (Hebrew shamir, שָׁמִיר) denotes the hardest substance known—perhaps diamond or emery. God makes His prophet's resolve exceed the people's resistance. Div...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(9) **An adamant harder than flint.**—*Adamant *is the diamond, as it is translated (Jeremiah 17:1). The people were as hard as flint, but as the diamond cuts flint, so Ezekiel’s words should be made by the Divine power to cut through all their resistance. Armed with this strength, he need not fear their obduracy, however great.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**18. Ephraim--**representing the ten tribes.
**bemoaning himself--**The spirit of penitent supplication shall at last be poured on Israel as the necessary forerunner of their restoration (Zec 12:10-14).
**Thou hast chastised me, and I was chastised--**In the first clause the chastisement itself is meant; in the second the beneficial effect of it in teaching the penitent true wisdom.
**bullo...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 3
The faithful lament their calamities, and hope in God's mercies.
**Verses 1-20** The prophet relates the more gloomy and discouraging part of his experience, and how he found support and relief. In the time of his trial the Lord had become terrible to him. It was an affliction that was misery itself; for sin makes the cup of affliction a bitter cup. The struggle between unbelief an...
Read full commentary →Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, all my words that I shall speak unto thee receive in thine heart, and hear with thine ears.
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KJV Study Commentary
"Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, all my words that I shall speak unto thee receive in thine heart, and hear with thine ears." God commands comprehensive reception—both heart and ears. Intellectual apprehension alone is insufficient; truth must penetrate the heart. This emphasizes that knowing God's Word requires more than academic study—it demands personal application and transformation. The...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**19. after that I was turned, I repented--**Repentance in the full sense follows, not precedes, our being turned to God by God (Zec 12:10). The Jews' "looking to Him whom they pierced" shall result in their "mourning for Him." Repentance is the tear that flows from the eye of faith turned to Jesus. He Himself gives it: we give it not of ourselves, but must come to Him for it (Ac 5:31).
**instru...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 3
The faithful lament their calamities, and hope in God's mercies.
**Verses 1-20** The prophet relates the more gloomy and discouraging part of his experience, and how he found support and relief. In the time of his trial the Lord had become terrible to him. It was an affliction that was misery itself; for sin makes the cup of affliction a bitter cup. The struggle between unbelief an...
Read full commentary →And go, get thee to them of the captivity, unto the children of thy people, and speak unto them, and tell them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear.
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KJV Study Commentary
God commands: "get thee to them of the captivity, unto the children of thy people, and speak unto them." The phrase "them of the captivity" identifies Ezekiel's specific audience—Jewish exiles in Babylon. This demonstrates God's pastoral concern for His displaced people; He sends a prophet to minister in their affliction. The repetition "whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear" (from ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(11) **Get thee to them of the captivity.**—Ezekiel’s mission is now made more definite. In Ezekiel 3:10 he has been told in plain terms what had already been symbolically conveyed under the figure of the roll, and now he is further informed that his immediate mission to the house of Israel is limited to that part of it which, like himself, was already in captivity. At this time, and for several y...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**20. Is Ephraim my dear son? &c.--**The question implies that a negative answer was to be expected. Who would have thought that one so undutiful to His heavenly Father as Ephraim had been should still be regarded by God as a "pleasant child?" Certainly he was not so in respect to his sin. But by virtue of God's "everlasting love" (Jr 31:3) on Ephraim's being "turned" to God, he was immediatel...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 3
The faithful lament their calamities, and hope in God's mercies.
**Verses 1-20** The prophet relates the more gloomy and discouraging part of his experience, and how he found support and relief. In the time of his trial the Lord had become terrible to him. It was an affliction that was misery itself; for sin makes the cup of affliction a bitter cup. The struggle between unbelief an...
Read full commentary →Then the spirit took me up, and I heard behind me a voice of a great rushing, saying, Blessed be the glory of the LORD from his place.
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KJV Study Commentary
"Then the spirit took me up, and I heard behind me a voice of a great rushing, saying, Blessed be the glory of the LORD from his place." The Spirit's transport and the chorus praising God's glory indicate heavenly worship continuing perpetually. Earth's rebellion doesn't diminish heaven's adoration. While Israel rejected God, angels worshiped unceasingly. This provides perspective during discourag...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(12) **Then the spirit took me up.**—This also is to be understood as done in vision, as in Ezekiel 8:3; Ezekiel 11:1; Ezekiel 11:24. (Comp. Acts 8:39.) In the last case the “taking up” is expressly said to have been in vision. This closes one act, so to speak, of the prophet’s consecration, and now the vision which he has been seeing all along leaves him for a time. He hears the great voice of as...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**21. waymarks--**pillars to mark the road for the returning exiles. Caravans set up pillars, or pointed heaps of stones, to mark the way through the desert against their return. So Israel is told by God to mark the way by which they went in leaving their country for exile; for by the same way they shall return.
**highway--**(Is 35:8, 10).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 12-21** This mission made the holy angels rejoice. All this was to convince Ezekiel, that the God who sent him had power to bear him out in his work. He was overwhelmed with grief for the sins and miseries of his people, and overpowered by the glory of the vision he had seen. And however retirement, meditation, and communion with God may be sweet, the servant of the Lord must prepare to s...
Read full commentary →I heard also the noise of the wings of the living creatures that touched one another, and the noise of the wheels over against them, and a noise of a great rushing. touched: Heb. kissed
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KJV Study Commentary
The 'noise of the wings of the living creatures' touching each other creates an overwhelming auditory experience accompanying the visual glory. Wings touching in worship and coordinated motion produces sound testifying to God's presence. The description emphasizes the sensory totality of encountering divine glory—not merely visual, but auditory. Creation itself makes noise in worship, setting the ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**22. go about--**namely, after human helps (Jr 2:18, 23, 36). Why not return immediately to me? Maurer translates, as in So 5:6, "How long wilt thou withdraw thyself?" Let thy past backslidings suffice thee now that a new era approaches. What God finds fault with in them is, that they looked hither and thither, leaning on contingencies, instead of at once trusting the word of God, which promised ...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 12-21** This mission made the holy angels rejoice. All this was to convince Ezekiel, that the God who sent him had power to bear him out in his work. He was overwhelmed with grief for the sins and miseries of his people, and overpowered by the glory of the vision he had seen. And however retirement, meditation, and communion with God may be sweet, the servant of the Lord must prepare to s...
Read full commentary →So the spirit lifted me up, and took me away, and I went in bitterness, in the heat of my spirit; but the hand of the LORD was strong upon me. in bitterness: Heb. bitter heat: Heb. hot anger
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KJV Study Commentary
"So the spirit lifted me up, and took me away, and I went in bitterness, in the heat of my spirit; but the hand of the LORD was strong upon me." Ezekiel experiences conflicting emotions—bitterness and anger alongside divine compulsion. The phrase "heat of my spirit" suggests frustration or distress. Yet "the hand of the LORD was strong" indicates sovereign enabling transcending natural emotions. T...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(14) **I went in bitterness, in the heat of my **prophet now begins to realise the sorrow and the trial of the task laid upon him. The command of the Lord was sweet (Ezekiel 3:3), its performance is bitter. “But the hand of the Lord was strong*” *upon him, and he could not forbear. Compare the similar experience of Jeremiah (Jeremiah 20:8-9; see also Amos 3:8), when in his discouragement he had al...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
23. Jerusalem again shall be the metropolis of the whole nation, the seat of "justice" (Psa 122:5-8; Is 1:26), and of sacred worship ("holiness," Zec 8:3) on "Mount" Moriah.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 12-21** This mission made the holy angels rejoice. All this was to convince Ezekiel, that the God who sent him had power to bear him out in his work. He was overwhelmed with grief for the sins and miseries of his people, and overpowered by the glory of the vision he had seen. And however retirement, meditation, and communion with God may be sweet, the servant of the Lord must prepare to s...
Read full commentary →Then I came to them of the captivity at Telabib, that dwelt by the river of Chebar, and I sat where they sat, and remained there astonished among them seven days.
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KJV Study Commentary
"Then I came to them of the captivity at Telabib, that dwelt by the river of Chebar, and I sat where they sat, and remained there astonished among them seven days." Ezekiel identifies with the exiles' condition—sitting where they sat, sharing their circumstances. The seven days of astonished silence demonstrates empathy: feeling the weight of their suffering before speaking. This models incarnatio...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(15) **I came to them of the captivity at Telabib.**—Ezekiel now leaves the place where he had been, and comes to Tel-abib, which is described as still by the same “river of Chebar,” and which signifies the “mound of ears (of grain),” and was probably a place of especial fruitfulness, but which cannot be further identified. It appears to have been the central place of the captivity.
**I sat where ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**24. Judah ... cities ... husbandmen ... they with flocks--**Two classes, citizens and countrymen, the latter divided into agriculturists and shepherds, all alike in security, though the latter were to be outside the protection of city walls. "Judah" here stands for the country, as distinguished from its cities.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 12-21** This mission made the holy angels rejoice. All this was to convince Ezekiel, that the God who sent him had power to bear him out in his work. He was overwhelmed with grief for the sins and miseries of his people, and overpowered by the glory of the vision he had seen. And however retirement, meditation, and communion with God may be sweet, the servant of the Lord must prepare to s...
Read full commentary →And it came to pass at the end of seven days, that the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
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KJV Study Commentary
"And it came to pass at the end of seven days, that the word of the LORD came unto me, saying..." After seven days of silent identification, God speaks. The timing demonstrates that understanding precedes proclamation. Ministers must first grasp people's contexts before delivering messages. The pattern appears throughout Scripture: observation, then revelation, then proclamation. This guards again...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(16) **At the end of seven days.**—A fresh Divine communication comes to the prophet, designed especially to impress upon him the responsibility of his office (Ezekiel 3:16-21). In Ezekiel 33:1-20 the same charge is repeated with some amplification, and there Ezekiel 3:2-6 are taken up with describing the duties of the military sentinel, upon which both these figurative addresses are founded. The ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
25. The "weary, sorrowful," and indigent state of Israel will prove no obstacle in the way of My helping them.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 12-21** This mission made the holy angels rejoice. All this was to convince Ezekiel, that the God who sent him had power to bear him out in his work. He was overwhelmed with grief for the sins and miseries of his people, and overpowered by the glory of the vision he had seen. And however retirement, meditation, and communion with God may be sweet, the servant of the Lord must prepare to s...
Read full commentary →Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me.
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KJV Study Commentary
God appoints Ezekiel as 'watchman unto the house of Israel' (tsopheh, צֹפֶה), a military metaphor describing a sentinel posted on city walls to warn of approaching danger. This watchman role appears throughout Ezekiel (3:17, 33:7) and other prophets (Isaiah 21:11-12, Jeremiah 6:17, Hosea 9:8). The watchman's responsibility is to relay the warning faithfully—if he sees danger and remains silent, bl...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
26. The words of Jeremiah: Upon this (or, By reason of this) announcement of a happy restoration, "I awaked" from the prophetic dream vouchsafed to me (Jr 23:25) with the "sweet" impression thereof remaining on my mind. "Sleep" here means dream, as in Psa 90:5.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 12-21** This mission made the holy angels rejoice. All this was to convince Ezekiel, that the God who sent him had power to bear him out in his work. He was overwhelmed with grief for the sins and miseries of his people, and overpowered by the glory of the vision he had seen. And however retirement, meditation, and communion with God may be sweet, the servant of the Lord must prepare to s...
Read full commentary →When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand.
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KJV Study Commentary
This verse establishes prophetic accountability: "When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning...his blood will I require at thine hand." The Hebrew phrase "his blood will I require" uses legal language of judicial responsibility. Ezekiel functions as a watchman (3:17) whose duty is warning, not converting. The wicked man's death results from his own sin, but ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
27. He shows how a land so depopulated shall again be peopled. God will cause both men and beasts in it to increase to a multitude (Eze 36:9-11; Ho 2:23).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 12-21** This mission made the holy angels rejoice. All this was to convince Ezekiel, that the God who sent him had power to bear him out in his work. He was overwhelmed with grief for the sins and miseries of his people, and overpowered by the glory of the vision he had seen. And however retirement, meditation, and communion with God may be sweet, the servant of the Lord must prepare to s...
Read full commentary →Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul.
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KJV Study Commentary
God promises the faithful watchman: "if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness...thou hast delivered thy soul." The Hebrew phrase "delivered thy soul" (hitzalta et-nafsheka, הִצַּלְתָּ אֶת־נַפְשֶׁךָ) means "rescued yourself" or "saved your life." The prophet's responsibility is proclamation, not conversion. Faithful warning frees the messenger from guilt regardless of the hearer...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
28. (Jr 44:27). The same God who, as it were (in human language), was on the watch for all means to destroy, shall be as much on the watch for the means of their restoration.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 12-21** This mission made the holy angels rejoice. All this was to convince Ezekiel, that the God who sent him had power to bear him out in his work. He was overwhelmed with grief for the sins and miseries of his people, and overpowered by the glory of the vision he had seen. And however retirement, meditation, and communion with God may be sweet, the servant of the Lord must prepare to s...
Read full commentary →Again, When a righteous man doth turn from his righteousness, and commit iniquity, and I lay a stumblingblock before him, he shall die: because thou hast not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteousness which he hath done shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at thine hand. righteousness which: Heb. righteousnesses
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KJV Study Commentary
God warns that even a righteous man can fall: "when a righteous man doth turn from his righteousness, and commit iniquity...he shall die in his sin." This sobering warning addresses the danger of apostasy. The Hebrew shub (שׁוּב, "turn") indicates deliberate departure, not momentary lapse. The phrase "his righteousness which he hath done shall not be remembered" doesn't negate past grace but empha...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(20) **When a righteous man doth turn from his **righteousness.—Quite independently of any theological question, it is undeniable that the Scripture here, as often elsewhere, represents the upright man as exposed to temptation, and in danger of falling into sin. The duty of the prophet, therefore, is not only to seek to turn the wicked from his evil way, but also to warn the righteous against fall...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**29. In those days--**after their punishment has been completed, and mercy again visits them.
**fathers ... eaten ... sour grape ... children's teeth ... on edge--**the proverb among the exiles' children born in Babylon, to express that they suffered the evil consequences of their fathers' sins rather than of their own (La 5:7; Eze 18:2, 3).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 12-21** This mission made the holy angels rejoice. All this was to convince Ezekiel, that the God who sent him had power to bear him out in his work. He was overwhelmed with grief for the sins and miseries of his people, and overpowered by the glory of the vision he had seen. And however retirement, meditation, and communion with God may be sweet, the servant of the Lord must prepare to s...
Read full commentary →Nevertheless if thou warn the righteous man, that the righteous sin not, and he doth not sin, he shall surely live, because he is warned; also thou hast delivered thy soul.
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KJV Study Commentary
God promises blessing for warning even the righteous: "if thou warn the righteous man, that the righteous sin not, and he doth not sin, he shall surely live...also thou hast delivered thy soul." This emphasizes ongoing pastoral care, not just evangelism to the lost. The phrase "warn the righteous man, that the righteous sin not" recognizes that even believers need exhortation to persevere in holin...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
30. (Ga 6:5, 7).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 12-21** This mission made the holy angels rejoice. All this was to convince Ezekiel, that the God who sent him had power to bear him out in his work. He was overwhelmed with grief for the sins and miseries of his people, and overpowered by the glory of the vision he had seen. And however retirement, meditation, and communion with God may be sweet, the servant of the Lord must prepare to s...
Read full commentary →And the hand of the LORD was there upon me; and he said unto me, Arise, go forth into the plain, and I will there talk with thee.
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KJV Study Commentary
The 'hand of the LORD' upon Ezekiel signals divine initiative and empowerment for prophetic mission. God's hand throughout Scripture represents His power, guidance, and claim on His servants (cf. Ezra 7:6; Luke 1:66). The command to 'arise, go forth into the plain' demonstrates that divine vision must lead to obedient action. Receiving revelation requires response—knowledge demands movement. The p...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(22) **The hand of the Lord was there upon me.**—The prophet’s week of silent meditation being past, and the charge of responsibility given, the constraining power of God again comes upon him, and sends him forth to the final act of preparation for his work.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**31. the days ... new covenant with ... Israel ... Judah--**The new covenant is made with literal Israel and Judah, not with the spiritual Israel, that is, believers, except secondarily, and as grafted on the stock of Israel (Ro 11:16-27). For the whole subject of the thirtieth and thirty-first chapters is the restoration of the Hebrews (Jr 30:4, 7, 10, 18; 31:7, 10, 11, 23, 24, 27, 36). With the...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 22-27** Let us own ourselves for ever indebted to the mediation of Christ, for the blessed intercourse between God and man; and a true believer will say, I am never less alone than when thus alone. When the Lord opened Ezekiel's mouth, he was to deliver his message boldly, to place life and death, the blessing and the curse, before the people, and leave them to their choice.
Then I arose, and went forth into the plain: and, behold, the glory of the LORD stood there, as the glory which I saw by the river of Chebar: and I fell on my face.
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KJV Study Commentary
The 'glory of the LORD' appearing to Ezekiel in the plain mirrors his earlier vision by Chebar, confirming divine consistency. God's glory manifests wherever He chooses, not confined to temple or territory. Ezekiel's falling on his face represents appropriate creature response to Creator glory—worship, awe, and recognition of unworthiness. The repetition of the earlier vision validates its reality...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(23) **Went forth into the plain.**—As he was now again to see the same vision as at the first, it was fitting that he should leave the thickly-peopled Tel-abib and seek a place of solitude, and in that solitude God promises him, “I will there talk with thee.” The vision reappeared; again the prophet fell on his face, and again the Spirit set him upon his feet, and talked with him.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**32. Not ... the covenant that I made with ... fathers--**the Old Testament covenant, as contrasted with our gospel covenant (He 8:8-12; 10:16, 17, where this prophecy is quoted to prove the abrogation of the law by the gospel), of which the distinguishing features are its securing by an adequate atonement the forgiveness of sins, and by the inworking of effectual grace ensuring permanent obedien...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 22-27** Let us own ourselves for ever indebted to the mediation of Christ, for the blessed intercourse between God and man; and a true believer will say, I am never less alone than when thus alone. When the Lord opened Ezekiel's mouth, he was to deliver his message boldly, to place life and death, the blessing and the curse, before the people, and leave them to their choice.
Then the spirit entered into me, and set me upon my feet, and spake with me, and said unto me, Go, shut thyself within thine house.
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KJV Study Commentary
The Spirit entering Ezekiel and setting him on his feet demonstrates the Holy Spirit's empowering work—transforming prostrate weakness into standing strength. Divine glory humbles; divine Spirit strengthens. This pattern recurs: encounter with God's holiness produces humility, followed by Spirit-empowerment for service. The standing position represents readiness to receive divine commission. God d...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(24) **Go, shut thyself within thine house.**—The prophet’s consecration being now complete, he is to enter upon his actual work; yet, in view of the disposition of the people, he is to begin his prophecies in a private way, shut up in his house. Or it may be that this should be understood of a period of absolute silence and meditation preparatory to entering upon his work. Moreover, fresh warning...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**33. will be their God--**(Jr 32:38).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 22-27** Let us own ourselves for ever indebted to the mediation of Christ, for the blessed intercourse between God and man; and a true believer will say, I am never less alone than when thus alone. When the Lord opened Ezekiel's mouth, he was to deliver his message boldly, to place life and death, the blessing and the curse, before the people, and leave them to their choice.
But thou, O son of man, behold, they shall put bands upon thee, and shall bind thee with them, and thou shalt not go out among them:
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KJV Study Commentary
The prophecy that people will 'put bands' on Ezekiel, binding him, represents opposition to prophetic ministry. Yet this binding comes with divine permission—'thou shalt not go out among them'—suggesting God sometimes limits ministry scope sovereignly. The restraint may be literal (imprisonment) or metaphorical (ministry restrictions). God's servants must accept imposed limitations as part of divi...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(25) **They shall put bands upon thee.**—Ezekiel’s contemporary prophet, Jeremiah, was actually thrown into prison in Judæa, and even into a foul dungeon (Jeremiah 37:21; Jeremiah 38:6); but nothing of this kind is to be understood here. There is no trace of such treatment throughout the book, nor is it likely that it would have been suffered by Nebuchadnezzar among his captives, or possible under...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
34. True, specially of Israel (Is 54:13); secondarily, true of believers (Joh 6:45; 1Co 2:10; 1Jo 2:20).
**forgive ... iniquity ... remember ... no more--**(Jr 33:8; 50:20; Mi 7:18); applying peculiarly to Israel (Ro 11:27). Secondarily, all believers (Ac 10:43).
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 22-27** Let us own ourselves for ever indebted to the mediation of Christ, for the blessed intercourse between God and man; and a true believer will say, I am never less alone than when thus alone. When the Lord opened Ezekiel's mouth, he was to deliver his message boldly, to place life and death, the blessing and the curse, before the people, and leave them to their choice.
And I will make thy tongue cleave to the roof of thy mouth, that thou shalt be dumb, and shalt not be to them a reprover : for they are a rebellious house. a reprover: Heb. a man reproving
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KJV Study Commentary
God making Ezekiel's 'tongue cleave to the roof of thy mouth' represents divinely-imposed silence—the prophet becomes 'dumb' (mute) except when God specifically commands speech. This judgment on Israel removes the blessing of prophetic intercession. The phrase 'thou shalt not be to them a reprover' indicates cessation of covenant mediator role. When people persist in rebellion, God sometimes withd...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(26) **I will make thy tongue cleave to the roof of thy mouth.**—Here, under another figure, this enforced silence is attributed, not to “the rebellious house,” by whom it was immediately brought about, but to God Himself, whose providence was the ultimate cause by which the prophet was placed in such circumstances. It is a way of expressing strongly the difficulties under which he was to exercise...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**35. divideth ... sea when ... waves ... roar ... Lord of hosts ... name--**quoted from Is 51:15, the genuineness of which passage is thus established on Jeremiah's authority.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 22-27** Let us own ourselves for ever indebted to the mediation of Christ, for the blessed intercourse between God and man; and a true believer will say, I am never less alone than when thus alone. When the Lord opened Ezekiel's mouth, he was to deliver his message boldly, to place life and death, the blessing and the curse, before the people, and leave them to their choice.
But when I speak with thee, I will open thy mouth, and thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; He that heareth, let him hear; and he that forbeareth, let him forbear: for they are a rebellious house.
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KJV Study Commentary
God declares He will open Ezekiel's mouth at specific times to deliver messages, while at other times the prophet will be silent. The phrase 'He that heareth, let him hear; and he that forbeareth, let him forbear' (shomea yishma vehechadel yechdal, שֹׁמֵעַ יִשְׁמָע וְהֶחָדֵל יֶחְדָּל) acknowledges human freedom in responding to divine revelation. God's word divides hearers into two categories: tho...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(27) **When I speak with thee, I will open thy mouth.**—To this Ezekiel evidently refers in Ezekiel 24:27; Ezekiel 33:22, when, after the destruction of Jerusalem, his mouth should no longer be shut. But until then, although he should be greatly restrained in his ordinary utterances by the opposition of the people, yet there would be times when God would give him a message with such power that he ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**36. a nation--**Israel's national polity has been broken up by the Romans. But their preservation as a distinct people amidst violent persecutions, though scattered among all nations for eighteen centuries, unamalgamated, whereas all other peoples under such circumstances have become incorporated with the nations in which they have been dispersed, is a perpetual standing miracle (compare Jr 33:2...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 22-27** Let us own ourselves for ever indebted to the mediation of Christ, for the blessed intercourse between God and man; and a true believer will say, I am never less alone than when thus alone. When the Lord opened Ezekiel's mouth, he was to deliver his message boldly, to place life and death, the blessing and the curse, before the people, and leave them to their choice.