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Commentary Index | Return to PrayerRequest.com | DownloadPaul Kretzmann Commentary - Ezekiel 12:17 - 12:28
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The Sign of Bread and Water
v. 17. Moreover, the word of the Lord came to me, saying,
v. 18. Son of man, eat thy bread with quaking and drink thy water with trembling and with carefulness, his entire bearing, as he partook of his scanty meal, of the barest necessaries of life, being one of anxiety in the presence of an impending calamity;
v. 19. and say unto the people of the land, the Jews among the captives of Chaldea, Thus saith the Lord God of the inhabitants of Jerusalem and of the land of Israel, of all the people who were still left in their native country, They shall eat their bread with carefulness, with anxiety, and drink their water with astonishment, with worry and pain, that her land may be desolate from all that is therein, stripped of both its inhabitants and the abundance of all its products, because of the violence of all them that dwell therein, since they had become guilty of wickedness in such an unusual degree.
v. 20. And the cities that are inhabited shall be laid waste, and the land shall be desolate, the entire country sharing the fate of the capital city; and ye shall know that I am the Lord, whose words are not spoken in vain.
v. 21. And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,
v. 22. Son of man, what is that proverb that ye have in the land of Israel, saying, The days are prolonged, more and more time is passing, and every vision faileth? that is, the prophecy threatening destruction is not fulfilled. Cf 2Pe_3:3-4. That is a common saying of mocking blasphemers, that none of the divine threats come true, that they are spoken merely to frighten men into submission.
v. 23. Tell them therefore, Thus saith the Lord God, I will make this proverb to cease, making an end of its blasphemous mockery, and they shall no more use it as a proverb in Israel; but say unto them, The days are at hand, the time of the fulfillment of the Lord's words, and the effect of every vision, so that every predicted word would be realized.
v. 24. For there shall be no more any vain vision, the false prophets being confounded by the fulfillment of the true prediction, nor flattering divination within the house of Israel, for the false prophets tried to gain credence for their falsehoods by predictions and statements of smooth flattery.
v. 25. For I am the Lord; I will speak, and the word that I shall speak shall come to pass, it shall be no more prolonged, literally, "For I, Jehovah, will speak that which I will speak, and it shall come to pass, it shall be no more drawn out"; for in your days, during their lifetime, O rebellious house, will I say the word and will perform it, saith the Lord God. He has uncontrolled power to speak, and He possesses almighty power to carry out his threats.
v. 26. Again the word of the Lord came to me, saying,
v. 27. Son of man, behold, they of the house of Israel, again those dwelling in exile in Chaldea, say, The vision that he seeth is for many days to come, and he prophesieth of the times that are far off, thus refusing to believe that the catastrophe was near at hand.
v. 28. Therefore say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God, There shall none of My words be prolonged any more, that is, their fulfillment put off indefinitely, but the word which I have spoken shall be done, saith the Lord God, the sovereign God of the covenant. It is true also in our days that the Lord may delay the fulfillment of some word, but He will eventually bring every one of His predictions to pass.