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Divine Strength in the Face of Certain Opposition
v. 1. Moreover, He said unto me, Son of man, eat that thou findest, the book being something that he did not seek, but which was placed before him; eat this roll and go speak unto the house of Israel, to whom the first part of Ezekiel's prophecy is addressed.
v. 2. So I opened my mouth, and He caused me to eat that roll, the prophet's eating signifying his acceptance of the Lord's commission.
v. 3. And He said unto me, Son of man, cause thy belly to eat and fill thy bowels with this roll that I give thee, so that the Word of God contained in the roll would, as it were, become the very substance of his being. Then did I eat it; and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness, for, because its contents were the Word of God, expressed the will of Jehovah, Ezekiel delighted in them, painful though their import was with regard to his fellow-countrymen. Cf Psa_19:10; Psa_119:103. The taste of the roll in his mouth filled him with a cheerful alacrity. Cf 1Sa_14:29.
v. 4. And He said unto me, Son of man, go, get thee unto the house of Israel, the members of the prophet's own nation, and speak with My words unto them, the entire message being given by inspiration of God.
v. 5. For thou art not sent to a people of a strange speech and of an hard language, literally, "obscure of lip and difficult of tongue," that is, a nation whose language was unknown to him, whose entire trend of thought was obscure, whose interpretation would offer unusual difficulties, but to the house of Israel, in whose case the language, at least, would offer no insurmountable obstacle;
v. 6. not to many people of a strange speech and of an hard language, so that the learning of a number of languages and dialects would increase tile difficulties of communication and therefore of proclaiming the Lord's will, whose words thou canst not understand. Surely, had I sent thee to them, they, in spite of all the obstacles and hindrances just enumerated, would have hearkened unto thee, showing less obstinacy and thus a corresponding greater interest in the prophet's message than the members of his own people.
v. 7. But the house of Israel will not hearken unto thee, will show no interest in the prophet's message, will refuse to he obedient; for they will not hearken unto Me, as the history of the last centuries had shown; for all the house of Israel are impudent and hard-hearted, literally, "hard of forehead and stiff of heart are they," thoroughly obstinate and rebellious. There was need of unusual firmness in dealing with this situation, and this the Lord provided for His servant.
v. 8. Behold, I have made thy face strong against their faces, filling him with indomitable courage, and thy forehead strong against their foreheads, in unshakable determination.
v. 9. As an adamant, the diamond, hardest of precious stones, harder than flint have I made thy forehead; fear them not, neither be dismayed at their looks, blasphemous and hostile though they were, though they be a rebellious house. Cf.Ezekiel 2:4-6.
v. 10. Moreover, He said unto me, in further preparation for the work of his peculiar ministry, Son of man, all My words that I shall speak unto thee receive in thine heart and hear with thine ears, in perfect obedience, in ready acceptance, with a willing understanding, so that they would be translated into right action.
v. 11. And go, get thee to them of the captivity, unto the children of thy people, with whom the first part of his message was concerned, and speak unto them and tell them, Thus saith the Lord God; whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear. This is the attitude which ought to characterize the Lord's servants at all times: to preach the Word regardless of consequences. The plea of the need of pastoral tact which is often made by opportunists tends to make this a cloak to shield moral cowardice.