Chapter 4

We give first a brief survey of this interesting chapter before we take up a more analytical study. The parable of the abandoned child and Jehovah's love and mercy in taking her up, saving the perishing one from death and bestowing upon her such gracious labor and gifts, forms the first part of the chapter (verse 1-14). It is a most beautiful description of what Jehovah had done for Jerusalem. After this, the terrible ingratitude and fall of Jerusalem is uncovered. She, whom Jehovah lifted so high, upon whom He bestowed such love and grace, turned against Jehovah and became an abandoned prostitute. The idolatries of Jerusalem and corresponding moral degradations are vividlypictured in this second section of the chapter (verses 15-34). Then follows the announcement of the doom of Jerusalem. In this third section Samaria and her daughters, as well as Sodom and her daughters are introduced, and their return to the former estate with Jerusalem is announced.

These restoration promises are frequently used by teachers of the so-called "larger hope," who deny the eternal punishment of the wicked. It is claimed that Sodom and her daughters, all the inhabitants of wicked Sodom, who perished in the great judgment, will be raised from the dead and have another chance. We shall, in considering this portion of the chapter (verses 35-59), show the unscripturalness of this theory as well as the true meaning of the promise. The fourth section (verses 59-63) promises the establishment of Jehovah's covenant with Jerusalem.

I. The Parable of the Abandoned Child.

Again the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Son of man, cause Jerusalem to know her abominations, and say, Thus saith the Lord God unto Jerusalem; Thy birth and thy nativity is of the land of Canaan; thy father was an Amorite, and thy mother an Hittite. And as for thy nativity, in the day thou wast born thy navel was not cut, neither wast thou washed in water to supple thee; thou was not salted at all, nor swaddled at all. None eye pitied thee, to do any of these unto thee, to have compassion upon thee; but thou wast cast out in the open field, to the loathing of thy person, in the day that thou wast born. And when I passed by thee, and saw thee polluted in thine own blood, I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, Live; yea, I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, Live. I have caused thee to multiply as the bud of the field, and thou hast increased and waxen great, and thou art come to excellent ornaments: thy breasts are fashioned, and thine hair is grown, whereas thou wast naked and bare. Now when I passed by thee, and looked upon thee, behold, thy time was the time of love; and I spread my skirt over thee, and covered thy nakedness; yea, I sware unto thee, and entered into a covenant with thee, saith the Lord God, and thou becamest mine. Thenwashed I thee with water; yea, I thoroughly washed away thy blood from thee, and I anointed thee with oil. I clothed thee also with broidered work, and shod thee with badgers' skin, and I girded thee about with fine linen, and I covered thee with silk. I decked thee also with ornaments, and I put bracelets upon thy hands, and a chain on thy neck. And I put a jewel on thy forehead, and earrings in thine ears, and a beautiful crown upon thine head. Thus wast thou decked with gold and silver; and thy raiment was of fine linen and silk and broidered work; thou didst eat fine flour, and honey and oil; and thou wast exceeding beautiful, and thou didst prosper into a kingdom. And thy renown went forth among the heathen for thy beauty: for it was perfect through my comeliness, which I had put upon thee, saith the Lord God (verses 1-14).

In the beginning of the chapter the purpose of the parable is stated. "Son of Man, cause Jerusalem to know her abominations." To convict Jerusalem of all her guilt and wickedness the Lord shows first of all what He had done for her. While Jerusalem is specially mentioned, the parable has a wider application to the nation itself. The different dealings of the Lord with His people can be traced in this beautiful parable. First, Jerusalem's origin is mentioned. "Thy birth and thy nativity is of the land of Canaan; thy father was an Amorite and thy mother a Hittite." This does not mean Abraham and Sarah, from which the nation sprang, but it refers to the origin of the city itself, which was Canaanitish. The Amorites were the original possessors of Palestine, as we learn from Genesis xv:16. The name for Palestine in the cuneiform inscriptions is "Land of the Amorites." The Hittites are also mentioned in Genesis as the inhabitants of the land. (Genesis xxiii:3, 10; xxvii:46). Thus Jerusalem is described as coming from a base and unclean parentage. The Lord had mercy on her whose condition was like an abandoned child cast out into an open field. He passed by and spoke the word, which He alone could speak—Live! Then He beganHis work of mercy. He caused her to multiply as the bud of the field. He made her to increase. He entered into a covenant with her. "Yea, I swear unto thee, and entered into a covenant with thee, saith the Lord God, and thou becamest mine." Furthermore we read, "I washed thee with water"; "I anointed thee with oil"; "I clothed"; "I girded thee"; "I covered thee with silk." Ornaments were bestowed upon the beloved one. Bracelets upon the hands; a chain for the neck; a jewel for the forehead; earrings for the ears; decked with gold and silver; arrayed in fine linen and silk and broidered work, feeding on fine flour, honey and oil—such were Jehovah's gifts to Jerusalem. A beautiful crown was put upon her head. Jerusalem became exceedingly beautiful and prospered into a kingdom. Her renown went forth among the nations on account of her beauty. All this is a striking allegory of Jehovah's mercy to Jerusalem, and the culmination refers to the days of the glorious kingdom under Solomon. There is no need of applying every statement to some historical fact in the history of Jerusalem as it has been attempted by certain expositors. The purpose, as already stated, is to convict Jerusalem of her abominations, and for this reason Jehovah's goodness to her is so vividly described. Jehovah had done all for her and not a word is said about gratitude or love from the side of Jerusalem. All was done for her by Him. "It was perfect through my comeliness (magnificence), which I had put upon thee, saith the Lord God."

And this sweet parable illustrates, as few other portions in the Old Testament do, the grace which the Lord bestows upon the believer in the Gospel. Thy father an Amorite and thy mother a Hittite reminds us of what is true of all men, so tersely expressed in David's confession, "Behold I was shapen in iniquity and in sin did my mother conceiveme" (Psalm li:5). Like the child pictured in the parable, we are lost, perishing in the field (the world). What could that perishing child do to save itself? Even so we cannot do anything to save ourselves. The Lord passing by had compassion and spoke His Word of power—Live. He came from Heaven to this earth, into the field to seek and save what is lost. He found man in the vile and helpless condition so aptly pictured by the miserable child. And more than that, He died to save man. He gave His life so that we might live. The first thing He does for the believing sinner is to give him life. When the spiritual dead hear His voice they live. The washing with water, the anointing with oil (type of the Holy Spirit), the announcement "thou becamest mine," as well as the clothing, the beautifying and the crowning, all illustrates what His marvelous grace does for the trusting, believing sinner. It is all grace from start to finish, from the impartation of life in the new birth to the crowning in glory.

II. Jerusalem's Idolatries and Moral Degradation.

But thou didst trust in thine own beauty, and playedst the harlot because of thy renown, and pouredst out thy fornications on every one that passed by; his it was. And of thy garments thou didst take, and deckedst thy high places with divers colors, and playedst the harlot thereupon: the like things shall not come, neither shall it be so. Thou hast also taken thy fair jewels of my gold and of my silver, which I had given thee, and madest to thyself images of men, and didst commit whoredom with them. And tookest thy broidered garments, and coveredst them: and thou hast set mine oil and mine incense before them. My meat also which I gave thee, fine flour, and oil, and honey, wherewith I fed thee, thou hast even set it before them for a sweet savor: and thus it was, saith the Lord God. Moreover thou hast taken thy sons and thy daughters, whom thou hast borne unto me, and these hast thou sacrificed unto them to be devoured. Is this of thy whoredoms a small matter. That thou has slain my children, and delivered them to cause them to pass through the fire for them? And in allthine abominations and thy whoredoms thou hast not remembered the days of thy youth, when thou wast naked and bare, and wast polluted in thy blood. And it came to pass after all thy wickedness, (woe, woe unto thee! saith the Lord God,) That thou hast also built unto thee an eminent place, and hast made thee a high place in every street. Thou hast built thy high place at every head of the way, and hast made thy beauty to be abhorred, and hast opened thy feet to every one that passed by, and multiplied thy whoredoms. Thou hast also committed fornication with the Egyptians thy neighbors, great of flesh; and hast increased thy whoredoms, to provoke me to anger. Behold, therefore, I have stretched out my hand over thee, and have diminished thine ordinary food, and delivered thee unto the will of them that hate thee, the daughters of the Philistines, which are ashamed of thy lewd way. Thou hast played the whore also with the Assyrians, because thou wast unsatiable; yea, thou hast played the harlot with them, and couldest not be satisfied. Thou hast moreover multiplied thy fornication in the land of Canaan unto Chaldea; and yet thou wast not satisfied herewith. How weak is thine heart, saith the Lord God, seeing thou doest all these things, the work of an imperious whorish woman; in that thou buildest thine eminent place in the head of every way, and makest thine high place in every street; and hast not been as a harlot, in that thou scornest hire; but as a wife that committeth adultery, which taketh strangers instead of her husband! They give gifts to all whores: but thou givest thy gifts to all thy lovers, and hirest them, that they may come unto thee on every side of thy whoredom. And the contrary is in thee from other women in thy whoredoms, whereas none followeth thee to commit whoredoms: and in that thou givest a reward, and no reward is given unto thee, therefore thou art contrary (verses 15-34).

Upon the beautiful background of Jehovah's love and mercy, there is now written the dark picture of Jerusalem's whoredoms, symbolical of her wicked idolatries. "But thou didst trust in thine own beauty, and played the harlot because of thy renown, and pouredst out thy fornications on every one that passed by; his it was" (verse 15). It started all with pride. Jerusalem did not acknowledge the giver, who had made her great. Instead of worshippingin Jehovah's appointed way, they established the "high places" and conformed to all the wicked Canaanitish practices. The wickedness of the Amorites and Hittites, from which she came, were reproduced in her. Their little ones were given to Moloch as a sacrifice. "Moreover thou hast taken thy sons and thy daughters, whom thou hast borne unto me, and these hast thou sacrificed unto them to be devoured. Is this of thy whoredoms a small matter, that thou hast slain thy children, and delivered them to pass through the fire for them?" (verses 20-21). From the Second Book of Kings we learn that Ahaz was the first king who committed this atrocity. "He made his son pass through the fire, according to the abominations of the heathen whom the Lord cast out from before the children of Israel" (2 Kings xvi:3). And Manasseh, the wicked son of a pious father, also followed the same horrible practice (2 Kings xxi:6). The historical books of Second Kings and Second Chronicles must be read to understand more fully the symbolical language used by Ezekiel and to learn the idolatry and degradation of Jerusalem. All Jehovah had given and bestowed upon her was devoted to practice this spiritual fornication. What Jehovah had done for her was forgotten.

"And in all thine abominations and thy whoredoms thou hast not remembered the days of thy youth, when thou wast naked and bare, and wast polluted in thy blood" (verse 22). But worse than that followed. Not enough that Jerusalem had her high places and revived the practices of the Canaanitish natives, she began to have also idolatrous intercourse with the idol-gods of Egypt, Assyria and Chaldea (verses 23-34). She sought them out and courted them all to increase her harlotry. So great became Jerusalem's abominations that the daughters of the Philistines became ashamed of her lewd way (verse 27). And while such wasthe religious degradation of Jerusalem in following the basest and most corrupt idolatries, a corresponding moral degradation was linked with it. All the rites of the Canaanites and the other nations consisted in the grossest immoralities. The most shameless and the vilest things of the flesh were practiced in the midst of the idolatrous city. "How is the faithful city become a harlot!" (Isaiah i:21). In the next section the Lord addresses her by that title and once more her judgment doom is announced. "Wherefore, O harlot, hear the word of the Lord" (verse 35).

The spiritual adultery which characterizes the end of the present age is even greater than that of Jerusalem. The apostacy of Jerusalem is overshadowed by the rising tide of an approaching, final apostasy in which Satan's man and masterpiece will demand and receive the worship which belongs to the Lord. Antichrist, yet to come, his shadow cast so sharply in our days, will be the consummation of the greatest departure from God and defiance of God the world has ever seen. And therefore the coming judgment will also be greater.

After the beautiful parable of the abandoned child, from which we learned Jehovah's grace and mercy shown to Jerusalem, and the description of Jerusalem's idolatries and moral degradation, we find her judgment doom announced once more. In connection with this the prophet beholds the time when Sodom and her daughters and Samaria and her daughters, as well as Jerusalem and her daughters, will return to their former estate.

III. The Doom of Jerusalem on account of Her Wickedness.

Wherefore, O harlot, hear the word of the Lord: Thus saith the Lord God; Because thy filthiness was poured out, and thy nakedness discovered through thy whoredoms with thy lovers, and with all the idols of thy abominations, and by the blood of thy children,which thou didst give unto them; Behold, therefore I will gather all thy lovers, with whom thou hast taken pleasure, and all them that thou hast loved, with all them that thou hast hated; I will even gather them round about against thee, and will discover thy nakedness unto them, that they may see all thy nakedness. And I will judge thee, as women that break wedlock and shed blood are judged; and I will give thee blood in fury and jealousy. And I will also give thee into their hand, and they shall throw down thine eminent place, and shall break down thy high places: they shall strip thee also of thy clothes, and shall take thy fair jewels, and leave thee naked and bare. They shall also bring up a company against thee, and they shall stone thee with stones, and thrust thee through with their swords. And they shall burn thine houses with fire, and execute judgments upon thee in the sight of many women: and I will cause thee to cease from playing the harlot, and thou also shalt give no hire any more. So will I make my fury toward thee to rest, and my jealousy shall depart from thee, and I will be quiet, and will be no more angry. Because thou hast not remembered the days of thy youth, but hast fretted me in all these things; behold, therefore I also will recompense thy way upon thine head, saith the Lord God: and thou shalt not commit this lewdness above all thine abominations.Behold, every one that useth proverbs shall use this proverb against thee, saying, As is the mother, so is her daughter. Thou art thy mother's daughter, that loatheth her husband and her children; and thou art the sister of thy sisters, which loathed their husbands and their children: your mother was an Hittite, and your father an Amorite. And thine elder sister is Samaria, she and her daughters that dwell at thy left hand: and thy younger sister, that dwelleth at thy right hand is Sodom and her daughters. Yet hast thou not walked after their ways, nor done after their abominations: but, as if that were a very little thing, thou wast corrupted more than they in all thy ways. As I live, saith the Lord God, Sodom thy sister hath not done, she nor her daughters, as thou hast done, thou and thy daughters. Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fulness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. And they were haughty, and committed abomination before me: therefore I took them away as I saw good. Neither hath Samaria committed half of thy sins; but thou hast multiplied thine abominations more than they, and hast justifiedthy sisters in all thine abominations which thou hast done. Thou also, which hast judged thy sisters, bear thine own shame for thy sins that thou hast committed more abominable than they: they are more righteous than thou: yea, be thou confounded also, and bear thy shame, in that thou hast justified thy sisters. When I shall bring again their captivity, the captivity of Sodom and her daughters, and the captivity of Samaria and her daughters, then will I bring again the captivity of thy captives in the midst of them: That thou mayest bear thine own shame, and mayest be confounded in all that thou hast done, in that thou art a comfort unto them. When thy sisters, Sodom and her daughters, shall return to their former estate, and Samaria and her daughters shall return to their former estate, then thou and thy daughters shall return to your former estate. For thy sister Sodom was not mentioned by thy mouth in the day of thy pride. Before thy wickedness was discovered, as at the time of thy reproach of the daughters of Syria, and all that are round about her, the daughters of the Philistines, which despise thee round about. Thou hast borne thy lewdness and thine abominations, saith the Lord. For thus saith the Lord God; I will even deal with thee as thou hast done, which hast despised the oath in breaking the covenant (verses 35-59).

Behold, every one that useth proverbs shall use this proverb against thee, saying, As is the mother, so is her daughter. Thou art thy mother's daughter, that loatheth her husband and her children; and thou art the sister of thy sisters, which loathed their husbands and their children: your mother was an Hittite, and your father an Amorite. And thine elder sister is Samaria, she and her daughters that dwell at thy left hand: and thy younger sister, that dwelleth at thy right hand is Sodom and her daughters. Yet hast thou not walked after their ways, nor done after their abominations: but, as if that were a very little thing, thou wast corrupted more than they in all thy ways. As I live, saith the Lord God, Sodom thy sister hath not done, she nor her daughters, as thou hast done, thou and thy daughters. Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom, pride, fulness of bread, and abundance of idleness was in her and in her daughters, neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. And they were haughty, and committed abomination before me: therefore I took them away as I saw good. Neither hath Samaria committed half of thy sins; but thou hast multiplied thine abominations more than they, and hast justifiedthy sisters in all thine abominations which thou hast done. Thou also, which hast judged thy sisters, bear thine own shame for thy sins that thou hast committed more abominable than they: they are more righteous than thou: yea, be thou confounded also, and bear thy shame, in that thou hast justified thy sisters. When I shall bring again their captivity, the captivity of Sodom and her daughters, and the captivity of Samaria and her daughters, then will I bring again the captivity of thy captives in the midst of them: That thou mayest bear thine own shame, and mayest be confounded in all that thou hast done, in that thou art a comfort unto them. When thy sisters, Sodom and her daughters, shall return to their former estate, and Samaria and her daughters shall return to their former estate, then thou and thy daughters shall return to your former estate. For thy sister Sodom was not mentioned by thy mouth in the day of thy pride. Before thy wickedness was discovered, as at the time of thy reproach of the daughters of Syria, and all that are round about her, the daughters of the Philistines, which despise thee round about. Thou hast borne thy lewdness and thine abominations, saith the Lord. For thus saith the Lord God; I will even deal with thee as thou hast done, which hast despised the oath in breaking the covenant (verses 35-59).

The Word of the Lord is now addressed not to the beloved city, but to the harlot. She had committed the most awful spiritual fornication, with which she had insulted Jehovah, and utterly rejected His love and mercy. All the idols of abominations were found in her. The different nations which surrounded the land were given to the most degrading idolatries, and Jerusalem had not alone taken up this wicked idol worship, but she became worse than the heathen which practised these things. "They did after the abominations of the heathen which the Lord had cast out before the children of Israel" (2 Kings xxi:2). Graven images were set up in Jerusalem. Moloch service (sacrifice of children) became general. Sorceries and demon-cults flourished. The vilest immoralities were linked with all this false worship. Jerusalem had become a harlot in the fullest sense of the word, a sink of iniquity. And her lovers,the nations, whose idolatries she had accepted, would now be gathered against her to be used in her judgment (verse 37). Her judgment would be "as a woman that breaks wedlock," that is, an adulteress—"and I will give thy blood in fury and jealousy" (verse 38). Stoning was the judgment for a woman who committed adultery (Lev. xx:10; John viii:5). Therefore the Lord said, "They shall also bring up a company against thee, and they shall stone thee with stones and thrust thee through with their swords" (verse 40). The judgment would be exhaustive upon her and she would be caused to cease playing the harlot—"thou shalt also give no hire any more" (verse 41). Without following the description of her doom and Jehovah's scathing condemnation in detail, we turn to that which is of much importance and interest. Samaria is mentioned and her daughters as the elder sister of Jerusalem, and Sodom and her daughters as her younger sister (verse 46). And though the corruption of Samaria and Sodom were so great, yet Jerusalem "was corrupted more than they" in all her ways. "As I live, saith the Lord God, Sodom thy sister hath not done, she nor her daughters, as thou hast done, thou and thy daughters" (verse 48). Samaria is called the elder sister, because the northern kingdom was the larger; and Sodom is called the younger, because her territory was smaller. The daughters mentioned in connection with each has reference to the allied towns of Jerusalem, Samaria and the region south of Jerusalem, where Sodom was the chief city. Then Sodom's sin is mentioned. Pride stands first (verse 49); luxurious living, and then followed abomination, and God took them away. After the sins of Samaria are briefly rehearsed we find in this chapter the following words: "When I shall bring again their captivity, the captivity of Sodom and her daughters, and the captivity of Samaria and her daughters, then willI bring again the captivity of thy captives in the midst of them" (verse 53). And again we read: "When thy sisters, Sodom and her daughters, shall return to their former estate, and Samaria and her daughters shall return to their former estate, then thou and thy daughters shall return to your former estate" (verse 55). These two statements are used by a certain class of teachers to back up their unscriptural theory of a future restitution of the wicked dead. They say that these two passages predict a restoration of Sodom and the other wicked cities which perished in judgment by fire (Gen. xix), and also a restoration of Samaria as well as Jerusalem, and upon this they built their hope that all the wicked dead will be raised up and restored to a place of blessing. They make therefore much of a restoration of the wicked dead by resurrection.[13]Besides these two passages they also use the following Old Testament scriptures to confirm their theory: Eze. xxxvii:1-14; Hosea xiii:14; Jere. xlviii:47; Is. xxv:7-8, and others. These passages are applied by these teachers to a restitution of the wicked dead by resurrection. But this is the wrong interpretation. They have nothing to do with the resurrection of the physical dead. They refer to national resurrection and restoration. Three facts will show the error of making the Old Testament teach the restoration of the wicked dead:

I. The Old Testament is not that part of the divine Revelation where teachings and doctrines about the future state are given.

This is a most important fact. The Old Testament shows man as upon the earth, on this side of death, and not beyond death. The future of Israel on the earth, theirsupremacy and destiny of glory amidst the nations of the earth, the judgments of God in the earth, as well as the future blessings for the nations inhabiting the earth during the coming age, are all clearly revealed in the Old Testament. The state after death, that which is beyond this life, is shrouded in mystery in the Old Testament Scriptures. That great judgment, the great white throne judgment, is nowhere mentioned in the Old Testament, nor do we read a word there of "the second death." Resurrection of the dead, no doubt, was known to individual saints of Old Testament times; the Spirit of God revealed it to their hearts, but as a doctrine, resurrection is not found in the Old Testament. In Psalm xvi is revealed the hope of resurrection of the body, and there is a prophecy of the resurrection of our Lord.

II. Should we find anything in the Old Testament concerning the future state, the state of the righteous and the unrighteous after death, such a hint or statement can only be rightly understood and interpreted by the great doctrine concerning the future state as revealed in the New Testament.

By this, of course, we do not say that the Old Testament needs correction by the revelation of the New, nor do we say that the Old is inferior to the New; allisthe Word of God. However, as the Old Testament does not show man's condition after death, any passage which appears to relate to such a condition must be interpreted by the full light as given in the New Testament.

III. If such passages as Ezekiel xvi:53 and Ezekiel xxxvii:1-14, etc., teach the restitution of the wicked by resurrection for another chance, we must then find such a doctrine of the restoration of the wicked dead for another chance to accept salvation most clearly and fully revealed as one of the great doctrines of the New Testament.

In vain, however, do we look in the New Testament forsuch a restoration—second probation doctrine. Such a doctrine is not even hinted at in the New. However, the New Testament gives the fullest revelation concerning resurrection and the future state. It tells us that there is indeed a resurrection of the body for every human being. This revelation of resurrection as contained in the New Testament leaves no room whatever for the Sodomites and all the wicked idolatrous Israelites, to be raised up for another chance. Our Lord in John v:29 reveals a two-fold resurrection, a resurrection unto life and a resurrection unto damnation. The human race, those who have died, are therefore in resurrection divided into two classes: they must come forth either unto life or unto damnation; there is no middle class. Later the New Testament teaches a first resurrection, an out resurrection from the dead. Only those who have believed and died in Christ will have a share in this resurrection. Both Old and New Testament saints belong to it, but none have a part in it who died in their sins. The rest of the dead, meaning of course, the wicked dead, are not raised up till after the thousand years. This is a second resurrection and this takes place not when the Lord comes the second time, but after His millennial reign (Rev. xx). The subjects of this second resurrection appear before the great white throne and are cast into the lake of fire. Now, these teachers claim that the return of Sodom and Samaria to their former estate means their resurrection for another chance when the Lord comes. But as these departed wicked people are wicked still, how can they have part in the first resurrection when the Lord comes, which is the resurrection of the righteous?

They surely cannot belong to this resurrection. And there is nowhere in the New Testament a word about another special resurrection in which all the wicked are raised from dead for another chance. After the resurrectionof the righteous dead there is but one more resurrection, the resurrection of the wicked unto damnation. In the light of these facts the flimsy theory built upon misapplied texts of the Old Testament, texts which relate to national restoration and blessing, breaks down completely. And now having seen what the statements in this chapter of Ezekiel do not mean, let us see what is their meaning. While these statements cannot mean the resurrection of individuals, they mean anationalrestoration. There is promised in many passages of the Old Testament a national restoration of Israel. The ten tribes are to be brought back to their former possessions. Historically they have been lost.[14]But they are not lost to God. He knows where they are. He has kept track of them, and in His own time He will make good the promises of their restoration and will bring back the remnants of the house of Israel, now scattered still among the nations. The Jews will also be restored to their territory. Repeatedly this national restoration of the ancient people is promised under the picture of a resurrection. But to other nations there is also promised such a national restoration in the days to come, when the Lord comes and begins His Kingdom reign over the earth. Such a national revival is beyond a doubt promised for a future day to Moab, Ammon, Assyria and Egypt. Edom and Babylon, however, are doomed as nations and no revival whatever is promised to them.

We do not know of course how God will accomplish these promises of restoration and national revivals, and how He will gather the remnants of these former nations from the great sea of nations. We can leave this and other difficulties with Him who will see to the fulfillment of all these things.

And so there is promised not alone a return of Samaria to her former estate, but also to Sodom and the cities which were wiped out by judgment. Here is the difficulty which is used to prove that a literal resurrection of the wicked Sodomites must be meant. Were they not all totally destroyed? How then can there be a national restoration when they all perished? But while it is true that all who were in Sodom and the other cities perished, we do not know how many of the inhabitants of these prosperous cities, thickly populated, no doubt, happened to be away from home, on journeys or outside of the doomed district, and thus escaped the fate of others. God knows all this and keeps track of all. There is certainly promised a healing for the territory occupied by Sodom and her sister cities. The vision of the stream issuing from the temple (Ex. xlvii) is seen emptying into the sea, which is the Dead Sea, "and the waters shall be healed and everything shall live whithersoever the river cometh." See also Zechariah xiv:8. And what else it may mean we do not know. But of one thing we can be assured, it doesnotmean the resurrection of the wicked Sodomites for a second chance, for we know that they are "suffering the vengeance of eternal fire" (Jude 7).

IV. The Covenant Remembered and Established.

The closing paragraph of this interesting chapter is the divine assurance that the covenant made in the days of Israel's youth is to be remembered.

Nevertheless I will remember my covenant with thee in the days of thy youth, and I will establish unto thee an everlasting covenant. Then thou shalt remember thy ways, and be ashamed, when thou shalt receive thy sisters, thine elder and thy younger: and I will give them unto thee for daughters, but not by thy covenant. And I will establish my covenant with thee; and thou shalt know that I am the Lord; that thou mayest remember, and be confounded, and never open thy mouth any more because of thy shame, when I am pacified toward thee for all that thou hast done, saith the Lord God (verses 60-63).

The covenant will be remembered and established as an everlasting covenant. Then Jerusalem will receive the elder and younger sister, Samaria and Sodom, not as sisters, but as daughters. They will be added in the coming days of blessing to Jerusalem. This, however, will not be done "by thy covenant," which means the law covenant but by "His covenant," the covenant of promise and of grace (xvi:8). "And I will establish my covenant with thee, and thou shalt know that I am the Lord." Of this great restoration and blessing in store for Jerusalem we shall hear much in the closing visions of Ezekiel.

The Prophet is once more commanded to speak in a parable to the house of Israel. In this parable there is again portrayed the sin of Jerusalem, and the treacherous character of corrupt Zedekiah. Like the sixteenth chapter it ends with another restoration promise, which will find its future fulfilment when God in sovereign grace exalts the branch of David. This will take place when Messiah will be King and rules in righteousness.

I. The Parable of the Two Eagles.

And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Son of man, put forth a riddle, and speak a parable unto the house of Israel: And say, Thus saith the Lord God; A great eagle with great wings, long-winged, full of feathers, which had divers colors, came unto Lebanon, and took the highest branch of the cedar: He cropped off the top of his young twigs, and carried it into a land of traffick; he set it in a city of merchants. He took also of the seed of the land, and planted it in a fruitful field; he placed it by great waters, and set it as a willow tree. And it grew, and became a spreading vine of low stature, whose branches turned toward him, and the rootsthereof were under him: so it became a vine, and brought forth branches, and shot forth sprigs. There was also another great eagle with great wings and many feathers: and behold, this vine did bend her roots toward him, and shot forth her branches toward him, that he might water it by the furrows of her plantation. It was planted in a good soil by great waters, that it might bring forth branches, and that it might bear fruit, that it might be a goodly vine. Say thou, Thus saith the Lord God; Shall it prosper? shall he not pull up the roots thereof, and cut off the fruit thereof, that it wither? It shall wither in all the leaves of her spring, even without great power or many people to pluck it up by the roots thereof. Yea, behold, being planted, shall it prosper? shall it not utterly wither, when the east wind toucheth it? It shall wither in the furrows where it grew (verses 1-10).

The great eagle mentioned first is Nebuchadnezzar, the King of Babylon. "For thus saith the Lord: Behold he shall fly as an eagle, and shall spread his wings over Moab" (Jer. xlviii:40). "Behold, he shall come up and fly as the eagle, and spread his wings over Bozrah" (Jer. xlix:22). When Daniel saw the Babylonian Empire rising out of the sea it was in the form of a lion with eagle's wings (Daniel vii:1-2). Nebuchadnezzar had been constituted by God the first great monarch of the times of the Gentiles after the complete apostasy of Israel. Thus Jeremiah had announced it (Jer. xxvii:5, etc.), and Daniel also told the King, "Thou, O King, art a King of Kings, for the God of heaven hath given thee a Kingdom, power, and strength and glory" (Dan. ii:37). Ezekiel's parable describes him as a great eagle with great wings and long-winged, denoting his great power and the vast dominion which belonged to him. "Full of feathers" pictures the multitude of his subjects and the "divers colors" the different nations of his empire.

This eagle, Nebuchadnezzar, came to Lebanon and took the highest branch of the cedar. He cropped off the top of his young twigs, and carried it into a land of traffic; he set it in a city of merchants. The cedar of Lebanon is thesymbol of the royal house of David, which was conquered by the eagle. The top of his young twigs, whom Nebuchadnezzar cropped off and carried into the city of merchants, Babylon, describes Jehoiakim and his captivity (2 Kings xxiv:1-5) (2 Chron. xxxvi:6-7). Then Nebuchadnezzar made Mattaniah, the youngest son of Josiah, King over Judah, and changed his name to Zedekiah. This action of the King of Babylon is described in verse 5. And Zedekiah might have done well if he had held to the King who had set him into the place of authority. He was placed like a willow tree beside great waters, so that he became a spreading vine of low stature; his roots were under him, which means, he was dependent upon Nebuchadnezzar (2 Kings xxiv:17). The other great eagle, whom Ezekiel mentions in his parable, is Hophra, the King of Egypt. To this king Zedekiah turned for help: "This vine bent her roots towards him." Zedekiah rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar. Verse 8 describes the opportunity which had been given to Zedekiah and verses 9-10 announces his judgment. The sin and treacherous dealings of Zedekiah is shown in the next verses.

II. The Interpretation and Application of the Parable.

Moreover the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Say now to the rebellious house, Know ye not what these things mean? tell them, Behold, the king of Babylon is come to Jerusalem, and hath taken the king thereof, and the princes thereof, and led them with him to Babylon; and hath taken of the king's seed, and made a covenant with him, and hath taken an oath of him: he hath also taken the mighty of the land. That the kingdom might be base, that it might not lift itself up, but that by keeping of his covenant it might stand. But he rebelled against him in sending his ambassadors into Egypt, "that they might give him horses and much people. "Shall he prosper? shall he escape that doeth such things? or shall he break the covenant and be delivered? As I live, saith the Lord God, surely in the place where the king dwelleth that made him king, whose oath he despised, and whose covenant he brake, even with him in the midst of Babylon he shall die. Neithershall Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company make for him in the war, by casting up mounts and building forts, to cut off many persons. Seeing he despised the oath by breaking the covenant, when, lo, he had given his hand, and hath done all these things he shall not escape. Therefore, thus saith the Lord God; As I live, surely mine oath that he hath despised, and my covenant that he hath broken, even it will I recompense upon his own head. And I will spread my net upon him, and he shall be taken in my snare, and I will bring him to Babylon, and will plead with him there for his trespass that he hath trespassed against me. And all his fugitives with all his bands shall fall by the sword, and they that remain shall be scattered toward all winds: and ye shall know that I the Lord have spoken it (verses 11-21).

We have next the divine interpretation and application of this parable. After the statement that the great eagle, the King of Babylon, had come to Jerusalem and taken the King and the princes captive, Zedekiah is mentioned. Nebuchadnezzar had made him King and had made a covenant with him and had taken an oath of him. Nebuchadnezzar had made him swear by God (2 Chron. xxxvi:13). Nebuchadnezzar had entered into a solemn covenant with Zedekiah and the name of God was used to make that covenant binding. Then Zedekiah, who had less regard for the name of God than Nebuchadnezzar, rebelled. Ambassadors from Edom, Moab, Ammon, Tyre and Sidon, came to Jerusalem to see King Zedekiah (Jere. xxvii:1-2). A combined revolution was evidently contemplated. He also sent ambassadors to Egypt. He expected great help from Pharaoh, who was a grandson of Necho, named Hophra. He advanced through Phoenicia and obliged the Chaldean army to abandon the siege of Jerusalem (Jere. xxxvii: 5-7). The joy over this event in Jerusalem was great, for the wicked, treacherous King Zedekiah expected that the Egyptian army would be the deliverer. But the relief was of a short duration. The Egyptian army had to retire and the Chaldeans resumed the siege. His great sin was that he had despised the oathand broken the covenant. Ezekiel announced therefore in the name of Jehovah his coming doom. "Therefore thus saith the Lord God; as I live, surely mine oath that he hath despised, and my covenant that he hath broken, even it will I recompense upon his own head. And I will spread my net upon him, and he shall be taken in my snare, and I will bring him to Babylon, and will plead with him there for his trespass that he hath trespassed against me." He tried to escape from Jerusalem, but he and his household were taken captives and carried to the headquarters of Nebuchadnezzar at Riblah. Zedekiah was arraigned and sentenced. His daughters were set free, while his sons were slain before him. This was the last thing the oath-despising, covenant-breaking Zedekiah saw. His eyes were put out and he was bound with double fetters of brass and carried to Babylon, where he died a prisoner (Jere. lii:11). He had despised the name of Jehovah and brought dishonor upon the name by violating the covenant with Nebuchadnezzar. The Gentile King had a higher esteem of that Name than the Jewish King. And then Jehovah in His righteous dealings used the Gentile to mete out the well-deserved retribution upon Zedekiah. Thus the Gentile King was used in punishing a faithless Jew. It foreshadows the judgment which came upon the whole nation when they despised and rejected more than a covenant. Ever since they rejected their own Messiah and King, the Lord Jesus Christ, the Gentiles have trodden down Jerusalem and the nation is blinded.

III. The Promise of the Future.

Thus saith the Lord God; I will also take of the highest branch of the high cedar, and will set it; I will crop off from the top of his young twigs a tender one, and will plant it upon an high mountain and eminent: In the mountain of the height of Israel will I plant it: and it shall bring forth boughs, and bear fruit, and be a goodly cedar: and under it shall dwell all fowl of every wing; in the shadowof the branches thereof shall they dwell. And all the trees of the field shall know that I, the Lord, have brought down the high tree, have exalted the low tree, have dried up the green tree, and have made the dry tree to flourish: I the Lord have spoken and have done it (verses 22-24).

And now once more Israel's hope and Israel's future comes into view. The allegory of the parable is continued. The cedar is the royal house of David. God in His Sovereignty promises to take "of its young shoots a tender one and I will plant it upon a high and eminent mountain." This tender one is the Messiah, the Son of David. It is the same promise as given in the Prophet Isaiah. "And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots" (Is. xi:1). "For He shall grow up before him as a tender plant and as a root out of a dry ground" (Is. liii:2). The high and eminent mountain typifies Mount Zion and the Kingdom of Messiah is pictured in the closing verses of the chapter. The high tree which is brought low, the green tree which is dried up is the symbol of Gentile world-power. The low tree which is exalted and the dry tree which is made to flourish stands for the restoration of the Kingdom to Israel when the Son of David, our Lord, comes again. Then the high tree will be cut down and the now flourishing Gentile dominion will dry up; Israel the low tree will be exalted and the long, dry and barren nation will bring its blessed fruit.

Again the Word of the Lord came unto the Prophet. The contents of this chapter are, therefore, not "the reasonings and expostulations of Ezekiel," but another great message to the stubborn nation, which constantly tried to justify itself. Judgments heavy and severe had comeupon them. Instead of bowing under them and confessing their guilt and the justice of all these punitive dealings of a righteous God, they accused Him of injustice, as if He were punishing them, not for their own sins, but for the sins of their fathers. They said, "the way of the Lord is not equal"; and the Lord proves to them that His way is equal, but their way is unequal (verse 25). It is a great and interesting controversy, ending with the sublime declaration and appeal, "I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord God, wherefore turn yourselves and live."

I. The False Accusation and the Divine Answer.

The word of the Lord came unto me again, saying. What mean ye, that ye use this proverb concerning the land of Israel, saying, The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge. As I live, saith the Lord God, ye shall not have occasion any more to use this proverb in Israel. Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die (verses 1-4).

The same proverb, "the fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge" is also mentioned by the Prophet Jeremiah. "In those days they shall say no more, the fathers have eaten a sour grape, his teeth shall be set on edge" (Jer. xxxi:29). And Jeremiah adds in a brief sentence what is more fully given through Ezekiel: "But every one shall die for his own iniquity; every man that eateth the sour grape, his teeth shall be set on edge." What they meant by this proverb is that their forefathers had committed sin and now they were bearing the results of their iniquities, while they, the children, were innocent. "Our fathers have sinned and are not; and we have borne their iniquities" (Lam. v:7). This was a false and unjust accusation. No doubt they rested their proverb upon Exodus xx:5 and xxxiv:7. But doing this they deniedtheir own guilt and refused to repent and be converted. And now the Lord answers the proverb to show its injustice so that it should no more be used in Israel: "Behold all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine; the soul that sinneth it shall die." He will judge the individual, father or son, according to conduct. All belong to Him, which means, He is the Creator of all and He will deal with each individually. If the sins of the fathers come upon the children, it is because the children follow the wickedness of the fathers. "Every man shall be put to death for his own sin" (Deut. xxiv:16). The person that sins shall die for his own sins. "The soul that sinneth it shall die."

II. The Conditions of Life.

But if a man be just, and do that which is lawful and right. And hath not eaten upon the mountains, neither hath lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, neither hath defiled his neighbor's wife, neither hath come near to a woman in her separation. And hath not oppressed any, but hath restored to the debtor his pledge, hath spoiled none by violence, hath given his bread to the hungry, and hath covered the naked with a garment: He that hath not given forth upon usury, neither hath taken any increase, that hath withdrawn his hand from iniquity, hath executed true judgment between man and man. Hath walked in my statutes, and hath kept my judgments, to deal truly; he is just, he shall surely live, saith the Lord God (verses 5-9).

This paragraph and the next two begin with an "if." They are, therefore, supposed cases "if a man be just." It shows what God requires as the conditions for life. However, it must be understood that the promise of life, "he shall surely live," has nothing whatever to do with eternal life. This is not at all in view in these paragraphs. It is the natural life. Eternal life was never promised to be bestowed upon man as the result of doing what is lawful and right. Neither righteousness nor eternal life can come bythe works of the law. Here negatively and positively God's demands are stated. In the sixth verse false worship is in view. Eating upon the mountains, the high places, was the false worship; the idols of the house of Israel were the calves which Jeroboam had set up (1 Kings xii:25-33). This demand for true worship covers the first part of the decalogue, "Thou shalt have no other gods besides Me." With this spiritual fornication, an idolatrous worship, there was connected the grossest lusts of the flesh. These are mentioned here as well as sins against the neighbor. Thus the commandments in the second part of the decalogue are made prominent. "Thou shalt not kill," "Thou shalt not commit adultery," "Thou shalt not steal." This is followed by the divine demand of practical righteousness. He that hath withdrawn his hand from iniquity hath executed true judgment between man and man, hath walked in God's statutes, to keep His judgments and deals truly, is pronounced just and shall therefore surely live. His life would be spared.

III. The Conditions which bring Death.

If he beget a son that is a robber, a shedder of blood, and that doeth the like to any one of these things. And that doeth not any of those duties, but even hath eaten upon the mountains, and defiled his neighbor's wife, Hath oppressed the poor and needy, hath spoiled by violence, hath not restored the pledge, and hath lifted up his eyes to the idols, hath committed abomination, Hath given forth upon usury, and hath taken increase: shall he then live? he shall not live: he hath done all these abominations; he shall surely die; his blood shall be upon him (verses 10-13).

Here then is the second supposed case of a son who had a righteous father. This son lives in wickedness and defies God's laws. He does not follow his father's piety, but is unjust in every sense of the word. The question then is asked, "Shall he live?" Can the merits of his father savehim? And the divine answer is, "He shall not live—he shall surely die." Physical death would come upon him and he would be cut off in judgment.

IV. The Son does not Die for his Father's Sins.

Now, lo, if he beget a son, that seeth all his father's sins, which he hath done, and considereth, and doeth not such like. That hath not eaten upon the mountains, neither hath lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, hath not defiled his neighbour's wife. Neither hath oppressed any, hath not withholden the pledge, neither hath spoiled by violence, but hath given his bread to the hungry, and hath covered the naked with a garment. That hath taken off his hand from the poor, that hath not received usury nor increase, hath executed my judgments, hath walked in my statutes; he shall not die for the iniquity of his father, he shall surely live. As for his father, because he cruelly oppressed, spoiled his brother by violence, and did that which is not good among his people, lo, even he shall die in his iniquity. Yet say ye, Why? doth not the son bear the iniquity of the father? When the son hath done that which is lawful and right, and hath kept all my statutes, and hath done them, he shall surely live. The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him (verses 14-20).

Still another case is considered so that the proverb of the people might be completely answered and refuted. A wicked father has a son who does righteously and follows not in the wicked ways of his father. Such was the case with several Kings of Judah. Ahaz was a wicked man and Hezekiah, his son, was a God-fearing king; Josiah was also the pious son of a wicked father. In such a case "the son shall not die for the iniquity of his father; he shall surely live." The father dies on account of his own iniquity. This statement was in answer to their question, "Why does not the son bear the iniquity of the father?" This foolish reasoning from their side that the son could suffer for the father's sin was a wicked invention to sustain them in theirimpenitent state and in their sins. They claimed no guilt of their own, but charged their sufferings to the wickedness of the fathers. But we have seen how perfectly the proverb "the fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge," is answered in these paragraphs.

V. The Perfect Equity of God.

But if the wicked will turn from all his sins that he hath committed, and keep all my statutes, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall surely live, he shall not die. All his transgressions that he hath committed, they shall not be mentioned unto him: in his righteousness that he hath done he shall live. Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die? saith the Lord God: and not that he should return from his ways, and live? But when the righteous turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and doeth according to all the abominations that the wicked man doeth, shall he live? All his righteousness that he hath done shall not be mentioned: in his trespass that he hath trespassed, and in his sin that he hath sinned, in them shall he die. Yet ye say, The way of the Lord is not equal. Hear now, O house of Israel; Is not my way equal? are not your ways unequal? When a righteous man turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and dieth in them: for his iniquity that he hath done shall he die. Again, when the wicked man turneth away from his wickedness that he hath committed, and doeth that which is lawful and right, he shall save his soul alive. Because he considereth, and turneth away from all his transgressions that he hath committed, he shall surely live, he shall not die. Yet saith the house of Israel, The way of the Lord is not equal. O house of Israel, are not my ways equal? are not your ways unequal? Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, saith the Lord God, Repent and turn yourselves from all your transgressions; so iniquity shall not be your ruin. Cast away from you all your transgressions, whereby ye have transgressed; and make you a new heart and a new spirit: for why will ye die, O house of Israel? For I have no pleasure in the death of him that dieth, saith the Lord God: wherefore turn yourselves, and live ye (verses 21-32).

They had accused the Lord of injustice. "The way of theLord is not equal" (verse 25). And Jehovah answers, "Hear now, O house of Israel; Is not my way equal? are not your ways unequal?" He promises that the wicked is surely to live, if he turns from all his sins. Jehovah has no pleasure in the death of the wicked. He desires his return so that he might live. How then would He punish them for the sins of others, if He was ready no longer to mention even their own transgressions? But if the righteous abandons righteousness and committeth iniquity, then "in his sin that he hath sinned, in them shall he die." The latter case has often been used to defend the teaching that a truly converted and therefore saved person, may, by sinning, be lost. If only the Word of Truth were rightly divided such, and other misinterpretations, would cease. Here we are on the ground of the law dispensation, and, as already pointed out, the Lord answers Israel, who were in relation to Him through the law covenant and who refused to own their sins and their guilt. The dispensation of Grace, in which Grace reigns through righteousness has a different message. This is fully illustrated if we compare the call to repentance in verses 30-31 with the promise given in chapter xxxvi:26-17. The Lord pleads with them to acknowledge their sinfulness; He speaks to their conscience. "Repent, and turn yourselves from all your transgressions, so iniquity shall not be your ruin. Cast away from you all your transgressions, whereby ye have transgressed, and make you a new heart and a new spirit; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?" But in chapter xxxvi Grace speaks and promises to bestow, as a gift, what a righteous God demands. "A new heart also will I give you and a new spirit will I put within you; and I will take away the stony heart of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments and do them." The result of thisgift of grace, a new heart and His Spirit, is true repentance. "Thenshall ye remember your own evil ways, and your doings that were not good, and shall loathe yourselves in your own sight for your iniquities and for your abominations" (chap. xxxvi:21). It was Augustine who said, "Give what Thou requirest and then require what Thou will." All what God requires He bestows in His infinite Grace through Jesus Christ our Lord and then in possession of what Grace gives we can be what God requires. But the thirty-sixth chapter, where God no longer saith "make you a new heart," but promises to give a new heart to His people, awaits, as regards God's chosen people, its fulfilment. Here God pleads with them to convince them that they were a sinful people and that He is a just God.

In the last verse of this chapter the Lord answers the question of verse 23, "Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die?" His own answer is, "For I have no pleasure in the death of Him that dieth, saith the Lord God, wherefore turn yourselves and live." And yet all these gracious pleadings were not heeded.

This chapter ends that section of the book which began with the twelfth chapter. And it is a fitting conclusion, this great lamentation over the Princes of Israel, and over the land of Judah. The English translation does not do justice to the original Hebrew; the outburst of lamentation is written in a poetic form, some kind of an elegy. The lamentation has two sections.

I. The Lamentations over the Princes of Israel.

Moreover take thou up a lamentation for the princes of Israel. And say, What is thy mother? A lioness: she lay down amonglions, she nourished her whelps among young lions. And she brought up one of her whelps: it became a young lion, and it learned to catch the prey; it devoured men. The nations also heard of him; he was taken in their pit, and they brought him with chains unto the land of Egypt. Now when she saw that she had waited, and her hope was lost, then she took another of her whelps, and made him a young lion. And he went up and down among the lions, he became a young lion, and learned to catch the prey, and devoured men. And he knew their desolate palaces, and he laid waste their cities; and the land was desolate, and the fulness thereof, by the noise of his roaring. Then the nations set against him on every side from the provinces, and spread their net over him: he was taken in their pit. And they put him in ward in chains, and brought him to the king of Babylon: they brought him into holds, that his voice should no more be heard upon the mountains of Israel (verses 1-9).

The lamentation is not the lamentation of Ezekiel, as so many expositors state, but it is the lamentation of Jehovah, the same who later wept over the same city and lamented over her coming fate. The words of divine lament were put into the mouth of the Prophet.

The Princes are Jehoahaz and Jehoachin. King Jehoahaz and his fate, being carried away captive into Egypt (2 Kings xxiii:33) is lamented in verses 1-4. King Jehoiachin who was taken as a captive to Babylon is lamented in verses 5-9. In Ezekiel, however, the word King is not used; the Kings are always called princes. The second verse may be rendered as follows:

"Thy mother was like a lioness, among lions.She couched amid the young lions, she reared the whelps."

The mother is Judah. Of this Jacob had spoken in his prophecy. "Judah is a lion's whelp" (Gen. xlix:9). And Balaam in his prophetic utterances speaks in the same tones of the nation. "Behold, the people shall rise up as a great lion, and lift up himself as a young lion" (Num. xxiv:14). This prophecy will be fulfilled in the future when He appearsin power and glory to receive the Kingdom, for He is called "the lion of the tribe of Judah" (Rev. v:5). And the people will then be as a converted and restored people the same, what the lion is among the animals, the Kingly nation. In Isaiah xxix:1 Jerusalem is called "Ariel," which means "Lion of God." The whelps, the nations heard of, are the sons of the House of David. And Jehoahaz "devoured men" and did evil in the sight of the Lord and was carried away by Pharaoh Necho as a captive into Egypt. Some expositors think that the lioness is the wife of Josiah the mother of Jehoahaz, because she was a woman of much importance and great influence (Jer. xiii:18; 2 Kings ii:9; xxiv:12).

The other one of her whelps mentioned in verse 5, whom the lioness, Judah, made a young lion, that is a King, was Jehoiachin. Jehoiachin was made King, when all hope of a return of Jehoahaz was lost, and the new King also "devoured men," did evil in the sight of the Lord. "And he did that which was evil in the sight of the Lord, according to all that his fathers had done" (2 Kings xxiv:90). In verse 7 the word "palaces" should be changed to "widows." The verse describes the cruelties and wicked deeds of the King. Then judgment overtook him. Under him the first deportation to Babylon took place, in which the Prophet Ezekiel was included. "And he (Nebuchadnezzar) carried away Jehoiachin to Babylon, and the King's mother, and the King's wife, and his officers, and the mighty of the land, those carried he into captivity from Jerusalem to Babylon" (2 Kings xxiv:14). The correct rendering of the next part of verse 9 is: "And they put him in a cage with hooks and brought him to the King of Babylon." Both Kings deserved their fate. God had warned, and as they continued in wickedness judgment fell upon them. And it was a warning to Zedekiah who was soon to share the same fate. In view of the violence which is on the earth now, the wickedness which is seen on all sides,these judgments of the past may well be remembered. God is the same to-day as He was of old. He must deal in judgment with sin; in many parts of the holy Scriptures we read of the time when God will keep not silence, but deal with conditions on the earth according to His righteousness.

II. The Lamentation over the Land of Judah.

Thy mother is like a vine in thy blood, planted by the waters; she was fruitful and full of branches by reason of many waters. And she had strong rods for the sceptres of them that bare rule, and her stature was exalted among the thick branches, and she appeared in her height with the multitude of her branches. But she was plucked up in fury, she was cast down to the ground, and the east wind dried up her fruit; her strong rods were broken and withered; the fire consumed them. And now she is planted in the wilderness, in a dry and thirsty ground. And fire is gone out of a rod of her branches, which hath devoured her fruit, so that she hath no strong rod to be a sceptre to rule. This is a lamentation, and shall be for a lamentation (verses 10-14).

Judah typified by a vine is not a new figure in Ezekiel. See chapters xv:1-5; xvii:6-10. The statement here reminds us also of Psalm lxxx:8-11. Many were the blessings Judah enjoyed, like a vine planted by the waters, fruitful and full of branches. The eleventh verse describes the period of Judah's greatest prosperity under David and Solomon. Then the judgment which comes upon the land, the east wind is typical of the Chaldeans which swept from the East and spoiled the vine. The fire of divine wrath burned in their midst. Her exilic judgment is pictured in the next verse: "And now she is planted in the wilderness, in a dry and thirsty land." And the fire of judgment came out of a rod of her branches, that is, the judgment came upon them on account of their wicked Kings. Thus ends the sorrowful lamentation over the princes and the land of Judah. But there is a better future in store for the land and the people, a future which can only be realized in Him, who said, "I amthe true vine." Israel still is under the rod, but in God's own time the curse will give way to the promised blessing, for God's gifts and calling are without repentance.

With this chapter we enter upon the last prophecies given through the prophet before the fall of the City of Jerusalem. There is first an arraignment of the unfaithful nation. This is followed by the divine announcement that the sword of the Lord is now to be drawn to do its judgment work. The twenty-first chapter, in which this announcement is made, has been called the sword-song. In chapter xxii another arraignment of the people and the sins of Jerusalem is given and the corruption of all classes, prophets, priests, princes and the mass of people is described. Once more in chapter xxiii the wickedness and vileness of Samaria and Judah is uncovered, corresponding to the similar message in chapter xvi. The last prophetic message of this cycle was given on the day when the siege of Jerusalem began. On the same day Ezekiel's wife died; the prophet was commanded not to mourn. All this has a meaning in connection with Jerusalem's complete fall. Thus God waited and waited for the repentance of His people and sent these burning messages to them till at last there was no remedy and judgment had to come.

I. A Retrospect of the Nation's Sins.

And it came to pass in the seventh year, in the fifth month, the tenth day of the month, that certain of the elders of Israel came to enquire of the Lord and sat before me. Then came the word of the Lord unto me, saying, Son of man, speak unto the elders of Israel, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; Are ye come to enquireof me? As I live, saith the Lord God, I will not be enquired of by you. Wilt thou judge them, son of man, wilt thou judge them? cause them to know the abominations of their fathers: And say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; In the day when I chose Israel, and lifted up mine hand unto the seed of the house of Jacob, and made myself known unto them in the land of Egypt, when I lifted up mine hand unto them, saying, I am the Lord your God; In the day that I lifted up mine hand unto them to bring them forth of the land of Egypt into a land that I had espied for them, flowing with milk and honey, which is the glory of all lands; Then said I unto them, Cast ye away every man the abominations of his eyes, and defile not yourselves with the idols of Egypt: I am the Lord your God. But they rebelled against me, and would not hearken unto me: they did not every man cast away the abominations of their eyes, neither did they forsake the idols of Egypt: then I said, I will pour out my fury upon them, to accomplish my anger against them in the midst of the land of Egypt. But I wrought for my name's sake, that it should not be polluted before the heathen, among whom they were, in whose sight I made myself known unto them, in bringing them forth out of the land of Egypt (verses 1-9).

There is first a review of the nation's sin in Egypt. At the time given in the first verse the elders came to the prophet to enquire of the Lord. Outwardly it seemed as if these enquiring elders were sincere and came in the spirit of humility acknowledging the prophet's authority. But the Lord knoweth the heart; He read their innermost thoughts and knew that their inquiry was only a sham; the real heart exercise in true repentance was lacking. So He tells them through the prophet, "As I live—I will not be inquired of by you. Wilt thou judge them, son of man, wilt thou judge them? Cause them to know the abominations of their fathers." Instead of giving them a message of comfort and encouragement, Ezekiel, here addressed again as son of man, is commanded to judge them, that is to put before them their sins and to pronounce judgment upon the nation. The same phrase is found twice more in this section. "Now, thou son of man, wilt thou judge,wilt thou judge the bloody city? Yea thou shalt show her all her abominations" (xxii:2). See also xxiii:36. And first of all the prophet had to show them the nation's sins in Egypt. He had chosen them as a nation; He had made Himself known to them in Egypt and had lifted up His hand unto them saying, "I am the Lord your God." He had entered into covenant relations with Israel and pledged Himself to bring them out of Egypt into the land, which here is called "the glory of all lands." From verses 7 and 8 we learn that Israel was contaminated by the idol worship of Egypt and a holy God was ready to pour upon them His fury in the midst of the land of Egypt. But sovereign mercy prevailed and instead of making Himself known to the nation in judgment, He made Himself known in bringing them forth out of Egypt.

Wherefore I caused them to go forth out of the land of Egypt, and brought them into the wilderness. And I gave them my statutes, and showed them my judgments, which if a man do, he shall even live in them. Moreover also I gave them my sabbaths, to be a sign between me and them, that they might know that I am the Lord that sanctify them. But the house of Israel rebelled against me in the wilderness: they walked not in my statutes, and they despised my judgments, which if a man do, he shall even live in them; and my sabbaths they greatly polluted: then I said, I would pour out my fury upon them in the wilderness, to consume them. But I wrought for my name's sake, that it should not be polluted before the heathen, in whose sight I brought them out. Yet also I lifted up my hand unto them in the wilderness, that I would not bring them into the land which I had given them, flowing with milk and honey, which is the glory of all lands. Because they despised my judgments, and walked not in my statutes, but polluted my sabbaths: for their heart went after their idols. Nevertheless mine eye spared them from destroying them, neither did I make an end of them in the wilderness (verses 10-17).

In these verses we have the history of the first generation in the wilderness. His hand brought them out of the landof Egypt into the wilderness and there He gave them the law and the different sabbaths, the feasts of Jehovah. Their sins and failures in the wilderness are briefly sketched. They rebelled; they were disobedient; they despised His judgments and polluted His sabbaths. Then comes the statement that this first generation was not to enter into the land promised unto them. Again in sovereign mercy He spared them and did not make a complete end of them in the wilderness.

But I said unto their children in the wilderness, Walk ye not in the statutes of your fathers, neither observe their judgments, nor defile yourselves with their idols: I am the Lord your God; walk in my statutes, and keep my judgments, and do them; And hallow my sabbaths; and they shall be a sign between me and you, that ye may know that I am the Lord your God. Notwithstanding the children rebelled against me: they walked not in my statutes, neither kept my judgments to do them, which if a man do, he shall even live in them; they polluted my sabbaths: then I said, I would pour out my fury upon them, to accomplish my anger against them in the wilderness. Nevertheless I withdrew mine hand, and wrought for my name's sake, that it should not be polluted in the sight of the heathen, in whose sight I brought them forth. I lifted up mine hand unto them also in the wilderness, that I would scatter them among the heathen, and disperse them through the countries; Because they had not executed my judgments, but had despised my statutes, and had polluted my sabbaths, and their eyes were after their fathers' idols. Wherefore I gave them also statutes that were not good, and judgments whereby they should not live; And I polluted them in their own gifts, in that they caused to pass through the fire all that openeth the womb, that I might make them desolate, to the end that they might know that I am the Lord (verses 18-26).

And now the record of the second generation in the wilderness is brought to their notice. They were just as rebellious as their fathers, who fell in the wilderness. They also were worshippers of idols in the wilderness, besides offering sacrifices and offerings unto Jehovah (Amos v:25-27).The statement in verse 25 "wherefore I gave them also statutes that were not good, and judgments whereby they should not live," has been explained in different ways. It cannot mean the law, for that is holy, just and good. "The solution is due to the simple principle that God in His government chastens His guilty people retributively and calls the scourges His own, even when the instruments may be wholly foreign to His mind and heart." They were disobedient to His statutes and then in punishment for their sins He let them go into the terrible worship of Moloch, in casting their first-born into the fire as a sacrifice to the idol-god. It is the same principle here as in Romans i:26-28. God gave them up in every way after they had turned away from Him. It was a punishment for their sins.

II. Their Sins in the Land.

Therefore, son of man, speak unto the house of Israel, and say unto them. Thus saith the Lord God: Yet in this your fathers have blasphemed me, in that they have committed a trespass against me. For when I had brought them into the land, for the which I lifted up mine hand to give it to them, then they saw every high hill, and all the thick trees, and they offered there their sacrifices, and there they presented the provocation of their offering: there also they made their sweet savour, and poured out there their drink offerings. Then I said unto them, What is the high place whereunto ye go? And the name thereof is called Bamah unto this day. Wherefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord God; Are ye polluted after the manner of your fathers? and commit ye whoredom after their abominations? For when ye offer your gifts, when ye make your sons to pass through the fire, ye pollute yourselves with all your idols, even unto this day: and shall I be enquired of by you, O house of Israel? As I live, saith the Lord God, I will not be enquired of by you. And that which cometh into your mind shall not be at all, that ye say, We will be as the heathen, as the families of the countries, to serve wood and stone (verses 27-32).

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