Ezekiel-Chapter-7
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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 7 is
a haunting, rhythmic proclamation of finality. It is unique in its poetic
structure, repeatedly sounding the alarm that “The End” (Ha-Ketz)
has arrived. Unlike previous chapters that dealt with the process of the siege
or specific locations, this chapter focuses on the imminence and totality of
the collapse. It describes a moment where the time for warning has passed and
the “day of tumult” has begun. The text emphasizes that neither wealth, nor
strength, nor ritual can provide a ransom once the
legal decree of the “end” has been set in motion.
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Below are the verses of Ezekiel Chapter 7:1-27: Whilst below the verses
are the Explanation’s. (Chapter is from JPS-1917
version of the Tanakh).
1. Moreover
the word of יְהוָה - the LORD came unto me, saying:
Explanation: The transmission of the word begins, marking a new and final
declaration regarding the fate of the land.
2. 'And thou, son of man, thus
saith אֱלֹהִים יְהוָה - the LORD Elohim concerning the
Explanation: The message is addressed to the “
3. Now is the end upon thee, and
I will send Mine anger upon thee, and will judge thee according to thy ways;
and I will bring upon thee all thine abominations.
Explanation: The “end” is now personal and direct. The
Divine will judge the nation according to its “ways” and will “recompense” them
for all their abominations, shifting from warning to the execution of justice.
4. And Mine eye shall not spare
thee, neither will I have pity; but I will bring thy ways upon thee, and thine
abominations shall be in the midst of thee; and ye shall know that I am יְהוָה - the LORD.
Explanation: A declaration of judicial sternness. There
will be no “sparing” or “pity”. The consequences of their actions will be
placed “in the midst” of them so that the source of the judgment, the Divine
becomes undeniable.
5. Thus saith אֱלֹהִים יְהוָה - the LORD Elohim: An evil, a singular evil, behold, it cometh.
Explanation: The disaster is described as an “evil, an
only evil”. It is a singular, unprecedented calamity that is now “coming” into
the physical realm.
6. An end is come, the end is
come, it awaketh against thee; behold, it cometh.
Explanation: The “end” is personified; it has “awaked”
against the nation. This suggests that while judgment seemed to slumber, it was
merely waiting for the cup of iniquity to be full.
7. The turn is come unto thee, O
inhabitant of the land; the time is come, the day of tumult is near, and not of
joyful shouting upon the mountains.
Explanation: The “doom” or the “morning” (the cycle of
time) has come upon the inhabitant of the land. The “day of trouble” is near,
and it is not the joyful shouting of harvest on the mountains, but the sound of
tumult.
8. Now will I shortly pour out My fury upon thee, and spend Mine anger upon thee, and will
judge thee according to thy ways; and I will bring upon thee all thine
abominations.
Explanation: The Divine “fury” and “anger” are about to be
poured out. This is the formal transition where the legal “recompense” for
their ways is applied to their current reality.
9. And Mine eye shall not spare,
neither will I have pity; I will bring upon thee according to thy ways, and
thine abominations shall be in the midst of thee; and ye shall know that I יְהוָה - the LORD do smite.
Explanation: A repetition of the principle from Verse 4.
The lack of pity serves to highlight that the judgment is a direct reflection
of the people’s own “ways” and “abominations”.
10. Behold the day; behold, it
cometh; the turn is come forth; the rod hath blossomed, arrogancy
hath budded.
Explanation: The day of judgment
is here. The “rod” has blossomed and “pride” has budded, meaning the arrogance
of the people has reached its full growth and is now ripe for the harvest of
destruction.
11. Violence is risen up into a
rod of wickedness; nought cometh from them, nor from their
tumult, nor from their turmoil, neither is there eminency among them.
Explanation: Violence has grown into a “rod of wickedness”
Nothing will remain of the people, their multitude, or their wealth; there will
be no “eminency” or beauty left among them.
12. The time is come, the day draweth near; let not the buyer rejoice, nor the seller
mourn; for wrath is upon all the multitude thereof.
Explanation: The social and economic order is suspended.
The buyer should not rejoice and the seller should not mourn, for “wrath” is
upon the entire multitude. Normal human transactions have lost their meaning.
13. For the seller shall not
return to that which is sold, although they be yet alive; for the vision is
touching the whole multitude thereof, which shall not return; neither shall any
stand possessed of the iniquity of his life.
Explanation: Even if a seller survives, they will not
return to their former possessions. The vision of wrath is “untouchable”, and
no one can strengthen their life through their own iniquity.
14. They have blown the horn, and
have made all ready, but none goeth to the battle; for My
wrath is upon all the multitude thereof.
Explanation: The trumpet has blown to prepare for war, but
“none goeth to the battle “sword” is outside the walls, and “pestilence and
famine” are within. Wherever a person turns, the specific judgment assigned to
that location finds them.
15. The sword is without, and the
pestilence and the famine within; he that is in the field shall die with the
sword, and he that is in the city, famine and pestilence shall devour him.
Explanation: There is no escape:
the “sword” is outside the walls, and “pestilence and famine” are within.
Wherever a person turns, the specific judgment assigned to that location finds
them.
Explanation: The few who escape to the mountains will be
like “doves of the valleys”, moaning and mourning for their own iniquity. Their
survival is characterized by sorrow rather than relief.
17. All hands shall be slack, and all
knees shall drip with water.
Explanation: A description of total physical and
psychological collapse. All hands will be “feeble and all knees will "run
with water” (a sign of extreme fear and weakness).
18. They shall also gird
themselves with sackcloth, and horror shall cover them; and shame shall be upon
all faces, and baldness upon all their heads.
Explanation: The people will gird themselves with
sackcloth, covered by “horror” and “shame”. The shaving of their heads
(baldness) is a sign of ultimate mourning and the loss of their dignity.
19. They shall cast their silver
in the streets, and their gold shall be as an unclean thing; their silver and
their gold shall not be able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of יְהוָה - the LORD; they shall not satisfy their souls, neither fill their bowels;
because it hath been the stumbling block of their iniquity.
Explanation: Their silver and gold, the source of their
pride, will be thrown into the streets as “unclean things”. Wealth cannot
satisfy their hunger or save their souls, as it was the very “stumbling-block
of their iniquity”.
20. And as for the beauty of their
ornament, which was set for a pride, they made the images of their abominations
and their detestable things thereof; therefore have I made it unto them as an
unclean thing.
Explanation: The beauty of their ornaments, which they
used to create “detestable things” (idols), will be turned into an “unclean
thing” by the Divine. What they valued most will become a source of revulsion.
21. And I will give it into the
hands of the strangers for a prey, and to the wicked of the earth for a spoil;
and they shall profane it.
Explanation: The Divine will give their wealth and “holy”
things into the hands of “strangers” and the “wicked of the earth” as spoil,
who will then profane it.
22. I will also turn My face from them, and they shall profane My secret place;
and robbers shall enter into it, and profane it.
Explanation: The Divine will “turn His face” away, allowing
the “secret place” (the Sanctuary) to be entered and profaned by robbers. The
ultimate protection is withdrawn.
23. Make the chain; for the land
is full of bloody crimes, and the city is full of violence.
Explanation: Ezekiel is told to “make the chain”,
symbolizing the upcoming captivity. The land is “full of bloody crimes” and the
city is “full of violence”, making the chains of exile a legal necessity.
24. Wherefore I will bring the
worst of the nations, and they shall possess their houses; I will also make the
pride of the strong to cease; and their holy places shall be profaned.
Explanation: The “worst of the nations” will be brought in
to possess the houses of
25. Horror cometh; and they shall
seek peace, and there shall be none.
Explanation: “Destruction cometh”. The people will seek “peace” (Shalom), but
there will be none. The time for reconciliation has expired.
26. Calamity shall come upon
calamity, and rumour shall be upon rumour; and they shall seek a vision of the
prophet, and instruction shall perish from the priest, and counsel from the
elders.
Explanation: Calamity will follow calamity. The people
will seek a “vision” from the prophet, “instruction” from the priest, and
“counsel” from the elders, but all spiritual and civil guidance will vanish.
27. The king shall mourn, and the
prince shall be clothed with appalment, and the hands
of the people of the land shall be enfeebled; I will do unto them after their
way, and according to their deserts will I judge them; and they shall know that
I am יְהוָה - the LORD.
Explanation: The king will mourn and the prince will be clothed with desolation. The Divine will deal with them “after their way” and judge them “according to their deserts”, resulting in the final acknowledgment: “they shall know that I am יְהוָה - the LORD”.
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My Concluding Message:
Chapter 7 is
the Final Accounting. It presents a world where the structures of ‘human
security’, ‘wealth’, ‘military power’, and even ‘institutional religion’
evaporate in an instant. The repeated emphasis on “the end” teaches that there
is a limit to Divine patience and that iniquity eventually creates its own
“rod” of punishment. The most striking lesson is the futility of silver and
gold in the face of spiritual collapse; when the “end” comes, only the reality
of one’s “ways” remains.
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