Ezekiel 33:22 Komentář

The prophet has now come off his circuit, which he went as judge, in God's name, to try and pass sentence upon the neighbouring nations, and, having finished with them, and read them all their doom, in the eight chapters foregoing, he now returns to the children of his people, and receives further instructions what to say to them. I. He must let them know what office he was in among them as a prophet, that he was a watchman, and had received a charge concerning them, for which he was accountable (Eze 33:1-9). The substance of this we had before, Eze 3:17, etc. II. He must let them know upon what terms they stand with God, that they are upon their trial, upon their good behaviour, that if a wicked man repent he shall not perish, but that if a righteous man apostatize he shall perish (Eze 33:10-20). III. Here is a particular message sent to those who yet remained in the land of Israel, and (which is very strange) grew secure there, and confident that they should take root there again, to tell them that their hopes would fail them because they persisted in their sins (Eze 33:21-29). IV. Here is a rebuke to those who personally attended Ezekiel's ministry, but were not sincere in their professions of devotion (Eze 33:30-33).

INTRODUCTION TO EZEKIEL 33 This chapter treats of the prophet's duty, 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 a detection of the hypocrisy of the prophet's hearers. The duty of a watchman in general is declared, Eze 33:1, an application of this to the prophet, Eze 33:7, the sum of whose business is to warn the wicked man of his wickedness; and the consequence of doing, or not doing it, is expressed, Eze 33:8, an objection of the people, and the prophet's answer to it, Eze 33:10, who is bid to acquaint them, that a righteous man trusting to his righteousness, and sinning, should not live; and that a sinner repenting of his sins should not die, Eze 33:12, the people's charge of inequality in the ways of God is retorted upon them, and removed from the Lord, and proved against them, Eze 33:17, then follows a prophecy, delivered out after the news was brought of the taking of the city, threatening with ruin those that remained in the land, confident of safety, and that for their sins, which are particularly enumerated, Eze 33:21, and the chapter is closed with a discovery of the hypocrisy of those that attended the prophet's ministry, Eze 33:30.

Son of man, they that inhabit those wastes of the land of Israel,.... The places which were laid waste by Nebuchadnezzar's army, going and returning, in and about Jerusalem, and in several parts of Judea; these were they that were left in the land after the destruction, to people and plant it; or who, having fled to distant parts, were now returned, and took possession of it, though it was in a wretched condition, a mere waste or desert; and yet they were lifted up with it, and proud and haughty, as their language shows: for thus they speak, saying, Abraham was one, and he inherited the land; he was but one, and had no child, when the promise of inheriting the land was made unto him; and he was but a single worshipper of God, and yet he had this favour and privilege: but we are many; the land is given us for inheritance: so they oppose themselves to Abraham, and argue from the lesser to the greater; that if a single person was vouchsafed to inherit it, then much more many, and those of his seed; and to whom the land was particularly given for an inheritance, and who were now in the possession of it, as Abraham never was; and, being many, were able to defend their right, and secure themselves in the enjoyment of it; all which reasoning shows their pride and vanity, though they were under such humbling circumstances; their land being waste, their numbers lessened, and the enemy had but just left it, having made dreadful devastations in it; and which had had no influence upon them to reform them, or bring them to repentance, as the following verses show.

(Verse 21, 22.) And it came to pass in the twelfth year, in the tenth month (the Vulgate is silent on the month), on the fifth day of the month of our transmigration (or captivity), that the one who had fled (or been saved) from Jerusalem came to me, saying, 'The city has been devastated (or captured).' But the hand of the Lord had been upon me in the evening before the one who had fled came; and He opened my mouth until the morning, and I no longer remained silent with my mouth open. In the eleventh year of the reign of Zedekiah, in the fifth month, the city of Jerusalem was captured. This prophecy, however, in the twelfth year, in the tenth month, on the fifth day of the month of captivity or exile, when Jehoiachin was captured, shows that one year, four months, and twenty-five days after the capture of Jerusalem, a citizen of Jerusalem came to Babylon to announce the captured and devastated city. But one day before he came, who was to narrate this, in the evening the hand of the Lord came upon the prophet Ezekiel, who opened his mouth which had been closed for a long time, and whatever he was going to say, this happened before he could speak: nor did he remain silent any longer, seeing his prophecy fulfilled by action, and without doubt the people who were in Babylon, or those who were taken captive by prophetic prediction. For then the mouth of the prophet is opened, when what he had previously announced, he shows by action: and he proclaims with total freedom, things that are not yet to come, but either present or already past. This according to the literal sense. However, according to the anagoge, if Ezekiel is interpreted as the strength of God: but Christ is the power and wisdom of God (I Cor. I, 24), this must be understood that with the capture and overthrow of Jerusalem, whoever could escape the perfidy of the Jews, such as the apostles and the remnants that were saved, he himself declares to Christ that all the ceremonies of the Jews have been overthrown, which some people still think should be observed today, not hearing the Apostle's words: You have fallen from grace, you who are trying to be justified by the Law (Galat. V, 4). And therefore, the defenders of the synagogues in the churches of Christ, what do they proclaim? Therefore, after Jerusalem was captured and destroyed, the mouth of the Lord was opened through the apostles and the apostolic men, who can say: My mouth is open to you, O Corinthians; and: A great and effective door has opened to me (2 Corinthians 6:11). And this: I opened my mouth and drew in the breath (Psalm CXVIII, 131), which will never be silent, nor be heard with Israel: Listen, Israel, and be silent: but it will resound throughout the whole world, and will reveal the Gospel of Christ to the Gentiles. Therefore, according to this meaning, the twelfth year is referred to the twelve tribes, and the tenth month to the time of the Jewish propitiation, which is called ἱλασμός in Greek: and the fifth day of the month to the carnal senses, which all, captured by Jerusalem, and with the succession of the Gospel, have been shown to have been destroyed and passed away: and in the evening, that is, at the end of the world, the hand of the Lord was accomplished for the true Ezekiel, who had sung of the future ruins of the city through the prophets, and showed them to have been fulfilled in the morning.

The mouth of the prophet is opened when he is shown that what he had foretold has in fact happened, and he proclaims it with complete freedom.

The prophet, after having addressed several other nations, returns now to his own; previously to which he is told, as on a former occasion, the duty of a watchman, the salvation or ruin of whose soul depends on the manner in which he discharges it. An awful passage indeed; full of important instruction both to such as speak, and to such as hear, the word of God, Eze 33:1-9. The prophet is then directed what answer to make to the cavils of infidelity and impiety; and to vindicate the equity of the Divine government by declaring the general terms of acceptance with God to be (as told before, chap. 18) without respect of persons; so that the ruin of the finally impenitent must be entirely owing to themselves, Eze 33:10-20. The prophet receives the news of the destruction of Jerusalem by the Chaldeans, about a year and four months after it happened, according to the opinion of some, who have been led to this conjecture by the date given to this prophecy in the twenty-first verse, as it stands in our common Version: but some of the manuscripts of this prophet consulted by Dr. Kennicott have in this place the Eleventh year, which is probably the genuine reading. To check the vain confidence of those who expected to hold out by possessing themselves of its other fastnesses, the utter desolation of all Judea is foretold, Eze 33:21-29. Ezekiel is informed that among those that attended his instructions were a great number of hypocrites, against whom he delivers a most awful message. When the Lord is destroying these hypocrites, then shall they know that there hath been a prophet among them, Eze 33:30-33.

My mouth was opened - They had now the fullest evidence that I had spoken from the Lord. I therefore spoke freely and fully what Good delivered to me, Eze 24:27.

RENEWAL OF EZEKIEL'S COMMISSION, NOW THAT HE IS AGAIN TO ADDRESS HIS COUNTRYMEN, AND IN A NEW TONE. (Eze. 33:1-33) to the children of thy people--whom he had been forbidden to address from Eze 24:26-27, till Jerusalem was overthrown, and the "escaped" came with tidings of the judgment being completed. So now, in Eze 33:21, the tidings of the fact having arrived, he opens his heretofore closed lips to the Jews. In the interval he had prophesied as to foreign nations. The former part of the chapter, at Eze. 33:2-20, seems to have been imparted to Ezekiel on the evening previous (Eze 33:22), being a preparation for the latter part (Eze 33:23-33) imparted after the tidings had come. This accounts for the first part standing without intimation of the date, which was properly reserved for the latter part, to which the former was the anticipatory introduction [FAIRBAIRN]. watchman-- Eze 33:1-9 exhibit Ezekiel's office as a spiritual watchman; so in Eze 3:16-21; only here the duties of the earthly watchman (compare Sa2 18:24-25; Kg2 9:17) are detailed first, and then the application is made to the spiritual watchman's duty (compare Isa 21:6-10; Hos 9:8; Hab 2:1). "A man of their coasts" is a man specially chosen for the office out of their whole number. So Jdg 18:2, "five men from their coasts"; also the Hebrew of Gen 47:2; implying the care needed in the choice of the watchman, the spiritual as well as the temporal (Act 1:21-22, Act 1:24-26; Ti1 5:22).

in the evening--(see on Eze 33:2). Thus the capture of Jerusalem was known to Ezekiel by revelation before the messenger came. my mouth . . . no more dumb--that is, to my countrymen; as foretold (Eze 24:27), He spake (Eze. 33:2-20) in the evening before the tidings came.