Ezekiel-Chapter-3
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of אֱלֹהִים - Elohim, having been corrected like it once was pre the “Masoretic Text”.
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Remember the following truth from our beloved Torah!
“Ye shall NOT ADD TO THE WORD which
I command you, NEITHER SHALL YE DIMINISH FROM
IT, that ye may keep the commandments of יְהוָה
אֱלֹהֵיכֶם - the LORD your Eloleichem, which I command you”. Davarim -
Deuteronomy 4:2. (JPS-1917).
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With
Rabbi, Dr. Reuven Ben Avraham-Goossens, PhD.
Introduction:
Chapter 3 serves as the final “digestive” stage of Ezekiel’s preparation. While Chapter 2 introduced the mission, Chapter 3 focuses on the internalization of the message and the grave weight of responsibility placed upon the prophet. It moves from a visionary encounter to a stark, physical reality: Ezekiel must live among the people he is meant to warn, feeling the full friction of their rebellion and the heavy hand of אֱלֹהִים - Elohim’s (God’s) constraint.
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Below are the verses of Ezekiel Chapter 3:1-27: Whilst below the verses are the Explanation’s. (Chapter is from JPS-1917 version of the Tanakh).
1. “And He said unto me: ‘Son of man, eat that
which thou findest; eat this roll, and go, speak unto
the house of
Explanation: The comand to “eat the scroll” is repeated. This is a metaphorical requirement for the prophet to fully assimilate the Divine word until it becomes part of his very being before he can go and speak.
2. So I opened my mouth, and He caused me to eat that roll.
Explanation: Ezekiel obeys, opening his mouth, and the Divine hand feeds him the scroll. This highlights that the message is not self-generated; it is entirely external in origin.
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’. Then did I eat it; and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness.
Explanation: Despite the scroll’s content of “lamentation and woe” from the previous chapter, Ezekiel finds it “sweet as honey” in his mouth. This signifies that even a message of judgment is sweet to the prophet because it represents the truth and the will of the Divine.
4. And He said unto me: ‘Son of man, go, get thee unto the house of
Explanation: The target audience is clarified. Ezekiel is not sent to a foreign nation with a “strange speech” or “hard language” (deep lip and heavy tongue), but to the House of Israel.
5. For thou art not sent to a people of an
unintelligible speech and of a slow tongue, but to the house of
Explanation: The irony of
his mission is revealed. Foreign nations would likely have listened to a
prophet, even if they didn't speak the same language.
7. But the house of
Explanation: The rejection
is not personal.
8. ‘Behold, I have made thy face hard against their faces, and thy forehead hard against their foreheads. 9. As an adamant harder than flint have I made thy forehead; fear them not, neither be dismayed at their looks, for they are a rebellious house’.
Explanation: To match their stubbornness, the Divine provides Ezekiel with “diamond-hard” resolve (making his forehead harder than flint). He is equipped to withstand their brazen defiance without being shattered.
10. Moreover He said unto me: ‘Son of man, all My words that I shall speak unto thee receive in thy heart, and hear with thine ears. 11. And go, get thee to them of the captivity, unto the children of thy people, and speak unto them, and tell them: Thus saith אֱלֹהִים יְהוָה - the LORD Elohim; whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear’.
Explanation: A final instruction before the spirit moves him: Ezekiel must receive the words “in his heart” first, then “hear with his ears”, and finally deliver them to the exiles at Tel-Abib, regardless of their reaction.
12. Then a spirit lifted me up, and I heard behind me the voice of a great rushing: ‘Blessed be the glory of יְהוָה - the LORD from His place’; 13. also the noise of the wings of the living creatures as they touched one another, and the noise of the wheels beside them, even the noise of a great rushing.
Explanation: The visionary chariot-throne (from Chapter 1) departs with a thunderous “rushing” sound. Ezekiel hears the wings of the living creatures and the wheels, accompanied by a voice declaring, “Blessed be the glory of יְהוָה - the LORD from His place”.
14. So a spirit lifted me up, and took me away; and I went in bitterness, in the heat of my spirit, and the hand of יְהוָה - the LORD was strong upon me. 15. Then I came to them of the captivity at Tel-abib, that dwelt by the river Chebar, and I sat where they sat; and I remained there appalled among them seven days.
Explanation: Transported by the Spirit, Ezekiel arrives at Tel-Abib in a state of “bitterness” and “heat of spirit”. He sits among the exiles for seven days in a state of stunned, desolate silence (mashmim), overwhelmed by the weight of the vision and the task ahead.
16. And it came to pass at the end of seven days.
 that the word of יְהוָה - the LORD came unto me, saying: 17. ‘Son of man, I have appointed thee a watchman unto
the house of
Explanation: After the seven days of silence, the word comes again, designating Ezekiel as a Watchman (Tzopheh). His role is likened to a sentry on a city wall whose only duty is to blow the trumpet at the sight of danger.
18. When I say unto the wicked: Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity, but his blood will I require at thy hand. 19. Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul.
Explanation: The “bloodguilt” clause: If Ezekiel sees a wicked man and fails to warn him, the man will die for his sin, but Ezekiel is held legally responsible for that death. If he warns the man and is ignored, Ezekiel is absolved.
20. Again, when a righteous man doth turn from his righteousness, and commit iniquity, I will lay a stumblingblock before him, he shall die; because thou hast not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteous deeds which he hath done shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at thy hand. 21. Nevertheless if thou warn the righteous man, that the righteous sin not, and he doth not sin, he shall surely live, because he took warning; and thou hast delivered thy soul’.
Explanation: The principle also applies to the “righteous” who turn toward sin. Even they must be warned. The prophet’s duty is the warning itself, ensuring that no one wicked or righteous stumbles without a clear alarm being sounded.
22. And the hand of יְהוָה - the LORD came there upon me; and He said unto me: ‘Arise, go forth into the plain, and I will there speak with thee’. 23. Then I arose, and went forth into the plain; and, behold, the glory of יְהוָה - the LORD stood there, as the glory which I saw by the river Chebar; and I fell on my face.
Explanation: Ezekiel is commanded to go out to “the valley” where the Glory of יְהוָה - the LORD appears again, mirroring the initial vision by the river. Once again, the sheer majesty causes him to fall on his face.
24. Then spirit entered into me, and set me upon my feet; and He spoke with me, and said unto me: ‘Go, shut thyself within thy house.
Explanation: The Spirit enters him, stands him up, and gives a surprising new command: “Go, shut yourself inside your house”.
25. But thou, son of man, behold, bands shall be put upon thee, and thou shalt be bound with them, and thou shalt not go out among them;
Explanation: He is warned that he will be “bound with cords” (symbolically or literally by the people's rebellion), preventing him from moving freely among the crowd.
26. and I will make thy tongue cleave to the roof of thy mouth, that thou shalt be dumb, and shalt not be to them a reprover; for they are a rebellious house. 27. But, when I speak with thee, I will open thy mouth, and thou shalt say unto them: Thus saith אֱלֹהִים יְהוָה - the LORD Elohim; he that heareth let him hear, and he that forbeareth, let him forbear; for they are a rebellious house”.
Explanation: Finally, Ezekiel is struck mute. His tongue will cleave to the roof of his mouth, and he will not be able to offer rebukes on his own. He will only speak when the Divine “opens his mouth” for a specific oracle. This ensures that every word he utters is a focused, Divine message, leaving the choice to the listener: “He who hears, let him hear; and he who refuses, let him refuse”.
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My Concluding Message:
Chapter 3 shifts the narrative from the content of the message to the accountability of the messenger. The “Watchman” metaphor introduces a radical concept of individual responsibility: the prophet is not responsible for the nation’s survival, but he is strictly accountable for the clarity of his alarm. By imposing silence and isolation at the end of the chapter, the text emphasizes that truth is not a conversation but a declaration. The prophet's very presence, silent or speaking becomes a mirror of the people’s own spiritual state.
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