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Texts -- Ezekiel 22:4-31 (NET)

Context
22:4 you are guilty because of the blood you shed and defiled by the idols you made . You have hastened the day of your doom ; the end of your years has come. Therefore I will make you an object of scorn to the nations , an object to be mocked by all lands . 22:5 Those both near and far from you will mock you, you with your bad reputation , full of turmoil . 22:6 “‘See how each of the princes of Israel living within you has used his authority to shed blood . 22:7 They have treated father and mother with contempt within you; they have oppressed the foreigner among you; they have wronged the orphan and the widow within you. 22:8 You have despised my holy things and desecrated my Sabbaths ! 22:9 Slanderous men shed blood within you. Those who live within you eat pagan sacrifices on the mountains ; they commit obscene acts among you. 22:10 They have sex with their father’s wife within you; they violate women during their menstrual period within you. 22:11 One commits an abominable act with his neighbor’s wife ; another obscenely defiles his daughter-in-law ; another violates his sister – his father’s daughter – within you. 22:12 They take bribes within you to shed blood . You engage in usury and charge interest ; you extort money from your neighbors . You have forgotten me, declares the sovereign Lord . 22:13 “‘See , I strike my hands together at the dishonest profit you have made , and at the bloodshed they have done among you. 22:14 Can your heart endure , or can your hands be strong when I deal with you? I , the Lord , have spoken , and I will do it! 22:15 I will scatter you among the nations and disperse you among various countries ; I will remove your impurity from you. 22:16 You will be profaned within yourself in the sight of the nations ; then you will know that I am the Lord .’” 22:17 The word of the Lord came to me: 22:18 “Son of man , the house of Israel has become slag to me. All of them are like bronze , tin , iron , and lead in the furnace ; they are the worthless slag of silver . 22:19 Therefore this is what the sovereign Lord says : ‘Because all of you have become slag , look out!– I am about to gather you in the middle of Jerusalem . 22:20 As silver , bronze , iron , lead , and tin are gathered in a furnace so that the fire can melt them, so I will gather you in my anger and in my rage . I will deposit you there and melt you. 22:21 I will gather you and blow on you with the fire of my fury , and you will be melted in it . 22:22 As silver is melted in a furnace , so you will be melted in it, and you will know that I , the Lord , have poured out my anger on you.’” 22:23 The word of the Lord came to me: 22:24 “Son of man , say to her: ‘You are a land that receives no rain or showers in the day of my anger .’ 22:25 Her princes within her are like a roaring lion tearing its prey ; they have devoured lives . They take away riches and valuable things ; they have made many women widows within it. 22:26 Her priests abuse my law and have desecrated my holy things . They do not distinguish between the holy and the profane , or recognize any distinction between the unclean and the clean . They ignore my Sabbaths and I am profaned in their midst . 22:27 Her officials are like wolves in her midst rending their prey – shedding blood and destroying lives – so they can get dishonest profit . 22:28 Her prophets coat their messages with whitewash . They see false visions and announce lying omens for them, saying , ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says ,’ when the Lord has not spoken . 22:29 The people of the land have practiced extortion and committed robbery . They have wronged the poor and needy ; they have oppressed the foreigner who lives among them and denied them justice . 22:30 “I looked for a man from among them who would repair the wall and stand in the gap before me on behalf of the land , so that I would not destroy it, but I found no one. 22:31 So I have poured my anger on them, and destroyed them with the fire of my fury . I hereby repay them for what they have done, declares the sovereign Lord .”

Pericope

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Bible Dictionary

  • Sin

    [nave] SIN. Index of Sub-Topics Miscellany of Minor Sub-Topics; Unclassified Scriptures Relating to, Defining, and Illustrating; Confession of; Consequences of, Entailed Upon Children; Conviction of; Forgiveness of; Fruits of; Kn...

  • Jerusalem

    [nave] JERUSALEM Called Jebus, Josh. 18:28; Judg. 19:10; Zion, 1 Kin. 8:1; Zech. 9:13; City of David, 2 Sam. 5:7; Isa. 22:9; Salem, Gen. 14:18; Psa. 76:2; Ariel, Isa. 29:1; City of God, Psa. 46:4; City of the Great King, Psa. 48:2;...

  • Israel

    [nave] ISRAEL 1. A name given to Jacob, Gen. 32:24-32; 2 Kin. 17:34; Hos. 12:3, 4. 2. A name of the Christ in prophecy, Isa. 49:3. 3. A name given to the descendants of Jacob, a nation. Called also Israelites, and Hebrews, Gen. 4...

  • Crime

    [nave] CRIME. Partial Lists of Ezek. 22:8-12, 27-30; Hos. 4:1, 2; Matt. 15:19 Mark 7:21, 22. Rom. 1:24, 29-32; Rom. 3:14-18; Rom. 13:9; 1 Cor. 5:11; Gal. 5:19-21 See under terms by which various crimes are known, Adultery; Arson;...

  • Tin

    [ebd] Heb. bedil (Num. 31:22; Ezek. 22:18, 20), a metal well known in ancient times. It is the general opinion that the Phoenicians of Tyre and Sidon obtained their supplies of tin from the British Isles. In Ezek. 27:12 it is said...
    [isbe] TIN - tin (bedhil): Tin is mentioned with brass, iron and lead in Nu 31:22; Ezek 22:18,20. Ezekiel mentions tin along with silver, iron and lead as being imported into Tyre from Tarshish (see METALS ). The tin must have been...
    [smith] Among the various metals found in the spoils of the Midianites, tin is enumerated. (Numbers 31:22) It was known to the Hebrew metal-workers as an alloy of other metals. (Isaiah 1:25; Ezekiel 22:18,20) The markets of Tyre were...
    [nave] TIN, Num. 31:22; Ezek. 22:18, 20; 27:12.

  • Lead

    [isbe] LEAD - led (`ophereth): Lead was one of the first metals to be used in the free state, probably because it was so easily obtained from its ores. Lead was found in ancient times in Egypt and the Sinaitic peninsula. There is n...
    [nave] LEAD A mineral, Ex. 15:10. Purified by fire, Num. 31:22; Jer. 6:29; Ezek. 22:18, 20. Used in making inscriptions on stone, Job 19:24. Lead-founder, Jer. 6:29; Ezek. 22:18, 20. Trade in, Ezek. 27:12. Used for weighing, Z...

  • Wicked

    [nave] WICKED Compared with: Abominable branches, Isa. 14:19; ashes under the feet, Mal. 4:3; bad fishes, Matt. 13:48; beasts, Psa. 49:12; 2 Pet. 2:12; the blind, Zeph. 1:17; Matt. 15:14; bronze and iron, Jer. 6:28; Ezek. 22:18; br...

  • MINES, MINING

    [smith] A highly-poetical description given by the author of the book of Job of the operations of mining as known in his day is the only record of the kind which we inherit from the ancient Hebrews. (Job 28:1-11) In the Wady Magharah...

  • IRON (1)

    [isbe] IRON (1) - i'-urn (barzel; sideros): It is generally believed that the art of separating iron from its ores and making it into useful forms was not known much earlier than 1000 BC, and that the making of brass (bronze) anted...

  • Silver

    [nave] SILVER From Tarshish, Ezek. 27:12; refining of, Prov. 17:3; 25:4; 26:23; Ezek. 22:18-22; Jer. 6:29, 30; Zech. 13:9; Mal. 3:3. See: Refining. Used for money, Gen. 13:2; 17:12; 20:16; 23:13-16; Amos 8:6; Matt. 10:9; 26:15; M...

  • REFINER; REFINING

    [isbe] REFINER; REFINING - re-fin'-er, re-fin'-ing: Two Hebrew words have been translated "refine": (1) tsaraph, literally, to "fuse" (Zec 13:9; Isa 48:10; Mal 3:2,3, etc.). The same word is rendered also "tried" (Ps 66:10); "melt"...

  • Dross

    [isbe] DROSS - dros (sigh): The refuse of smelting of precious metal (Prov 25:4; 26:23); used figuratively of what is base or worthless (Isa 1:22,25; Ezek 22:18,19; Ps 119:119).
    [nave] DROSS. Figurative Psa. 119:119; Prov. 25:4; 26:23; Isa. 1:22; Ezek. 22:18, 19.

  • Wolf

    [ebd] Heb. zeeb, frequently referred to in Scripture as an emblem of treachery and cruelty. Jacob's prophecy, "Benjamin shall ravin as a wolf" (Gen. 49:27), represents the warlike character of that tribe (see Judg. 19-21). Isaiah ...
    [isbe] WOLF - woolf ((1) ze'ebh (Gen 49:27; 11:6; 65:25; Jer 5:6; Ezek 22:27; Hab 1:8; Zeph 3:3; also as proper name, Zeeb, prince of Midian, Jdg 7:25; 8:3; Ps 83:11); compare Arabic dhi'b, colloquial dhib, or dib; (2) lukos (Mt 7:...
    [smith] There can be little doubt that the wolf of Palestine is the common Canis lupus , and that this is the animal so frequently mentioned in the Bible. (The wolf is a fierce animal of the same species as the dog, which it resemble...
    [nave] WOLF, ravenous, Gen. 49:27; Jer. 5:6; Ezek. 22:27; Zeph. 3:3; John 10:12. Figurative Of the enemies of the righteous, Matt. 7:15; 10:16; John 10:12; Acts 20:29. Of the reconciling power of the gospel, Isa. 11:6.

  • Bribery

    [isbe] BRIBERY - brib'-er-i (shochadh, "a gift," in a corrupt sense, "a bribe"): The Hebrew law condemns everything that would tend to impair the impartial administration of justice, particularly the giving and receiving of gifts o...
    [nave] BRIBERY. Ex. 23:8; Deut. 16:18, 19; Deut. 27:25; 1 Sam. 8:1, 3; Job 15:34; Psa. 26:9, 10; Prov. 15:27; Prov. 17:8, 23; Prov. 18:16; Prov. 21:14; Prov. 25:14; Prov. 28:21; Prov. 29:4; Eccl. 7:7; Isa. 1:23; Isa. 5:22, 23; Isa...

  • Furnace

    [ebd] (1.) Chald. attun, a large furnace with a wide open mouth, at the top of which materials were cast in (Dan. 3:22, 23; comp. Jer. 29:22). This furnace would be in constant requisition, for the Babylonians disposed of their de...
    [nave] FURNACE Uses of: For refining silver, Ezek. 22:22; Mal. 3:3; gold, Prov. 17:3. For melting lead and tin, Ezek. 22:20. For capital punishment, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego cast into, by Nebuchadnezzar, Dan. 3:6-26. Fig...

  • Adultery

    [nave] ADULTERY. Gen. 20:3; 2 Sam. 12:14; Job 24:15-17 v. 18.; Job 31:1, 9-12; Prov. 2:16, 18, 19 v. 17.; Prov. 5:3, 4 vs. 5-22.; Prov. 6:24-29, 32, 33; Prov. 7:5-23; Prov. 9:13-18; Prov. 22:14; Prov. 23:27, 28; Prov. 29:3; Prov. ...

  • Minister

    [nave] MINISTER, a sacred teacher. Index of Sub-topics Miscellany of Minor Sub-topics; Call of; Character and Qualifications of; Charge Delivered to; Courage of; Duties of; Duties of the Church to; Emoluments of; Faithful, Instanc...

  • PROFANE

    [isbe] PROFANE - pro-fan' (verb chalal, adjective chalal, chol; bebeloo, bebelos): From profanus, "before (i.e. outside) the temple," therefore unholy, polluted, secular, is of frequent occurrence (verb and adjective) in both the O...

  • RAVEN; RAVIN

    [isbe] RAVEN; RAVIN - rav'-n, rav'-in: "Raven" (verb) is from "rapine," "violent plundering, used for Taraph, in Gen 49:27; Ps 22:13; Ezek 22:25,27, while "ravin" (noun) is the object ravened, in Nah 2:12 the torn carcasses (Tereph...

  • MOCK; MOCKER; MOCKING

    [isbe] MOCK; MOCKER; MOCKING - mok, mok'er, mok'-ing (hathal, la`agh, empaizo): To mock is the translation of hathal, "to play upon," "mock," "deride" (Jdg 16:10,13,15; 1 Ki 18:27, "Elijah mocked them"; Job 13:9 twice, the Revised ...
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Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

  • 22:1-20 Moab had not attacked Israel as the people of God had moved north along Moab's eastern border. In fact the Moabites sold the Israelites bread and water (Deut. 2:29). The Moabites probably counted on Sihon, who had for...
  • Ezekiel ministered to the Jews in exile. He probably wrote this book for the benefit of the exiles and the other Jewish communities of his day and beyond his day. In some of his visions (e.g. chs. 8 and 11) the Lord carried t...
  • There are two major structural peculiarities that set Ezekiel off as distinctive.First, the book is a collection of prophecies arranged in almost consistent chronological order. No other prophetical book is as consistently ch...
  • Ezekiel began prophesying when he was 30 years old, and he had gone into captivity five years before that. Thus Ezekiel was familiar with Jeremiah's preaching and ministry. Ezekiel shows quite a bit of similarity to Jeremiah ...
  • I. Ezekiel's calling and commission chs. 1-3A. The vision of God's glory ch. 11. The setting of the vision 1:1-32. The vision proper 1:4-28B. The Lord's charge to Ezekiel chs. 2-31. The recipients of Ezekiel's ministry 2:1-52...
  • This pericope contains 10 commands, and it is the center of the chiasm in chapters 1-3."The Lord's charge to Ezekiel emphasized the absolute necessity of hearing, understanding, and assimilating God's message prior to going f...
  • ". . . the focus of chap. 6 is on the individual responsibility of the people and prepares the way for the subsequent spoken messages."1216:1-2 The Lord directed Ezekiel to pronounce an oracle of judgment against "the mountai...
  • 13:1-3 The Lord gave Ezekiel a message for the prophets who were devising messages for the Jews from their own hearts and calling them prophecies from Yahweh. He was using the word "prophet"ironically; these were not true pro...
  • 16:44-47 Other people would quote the proverb, "Like mother, like daughter,"in regard to Jerusalem. She was like her Hittite "mother"who was also idolatrous and selfish. And she was like her older (larger) sister, Samaria, an...
  • 21:8-10 Another of Ezekiel's messages was to be poetic. He was to announce that a sword had been sharpened and polished and was now ready to go to work slaughtering people quickly."A sword, a veritable Excalibur with a life o...
  • The Lord now clarified one of the primary reasons for the sword that was fast approaching Jerusalem and Judah. This reason was the sins of the present generation of Judahites, especially its leaders. In chapter 20 the prophet...
  • 22:1-2 Another message came from the Lord instructing Ezekiel to remind the residents of the bloody city of Jerusalem about all their abominations (cf. 20:4). A list of specific sins was necessary for him to pronounce judgmen...
  • 22:17-20 The Lord also compared the present Judahites to the base metals that separate from silver in the refining process. He planned to gather them in Jerusalem, His crucible, and subject them to a trial by fire, as refiner...
  • "Often the prophets are inspired to compose attacks on the leadership of Israelite society. The reason for this phenomenon is clear enough: the nation could never have become sufficiently corrupt to merit the outpouring of Go...
  • This chapter is the final climactic one in Ezekiel's collection of messages that condemn Israel's defective leadership (chs. 20-23).Both chapters 16 and 23 describe Israel as a prostitute, but there are significant difference...
  • This final message brings Oholah and Oholibah back together and passes judgment on all Israel. It is a summary oracle for the section that indicts Israel's leaders (chs. 20-23).23:36-37 The Lord called Ezekiel to pass judgmen...
  • 24:6 Ezekiel was then to announce woe on the bloody city (no longer the holy city) of Jerusalem (cf. Nah. 3:1), which the pot represented (cf. 11:3, 7, 11; Jer. 1:13-14). The pot had rust (Heb. hel'ah) in it that evidently st...
  • It is appropriate that this section appears at this point in Ezekiel, between the messages announcing judgment on Judah and Jerusalem for sin (chs. 4-24) and the messages announcing future blessings for Israel (chs. 33-48). I...
  • "This last major division of the book focuses on the restoration of Israel's blessing. Israel would be judged for her sin (chaps. 1-24) as would the surrounding nations (chaps. 25-32). But Israel will not remain under judgmen...
  • Since this message is undated, it may have come to Ezekiel about the same time as the previous two in chapter 32, namely, in the last month of 585 B.C. If so, Ezekiel received it about two months after God gave him the six me...
  • This part of Ezekiel's message of warning to the exiles is similar to 3:16-21. Yahweh recommissioned Ezekiel to his prophetic task (cf. chs. 2-3)."Now that Ezekiel's original ministry of judgment was completed, God appointed ...
  • The Book of Ezekiel begins with a vision of God's glory (ch. 1), records the departure of God's glory (chs. 8-11), and ends with another vision of God's glory (chs. 40-48). This is the longest vision outside the Book of Revel...
  • 44:15-16 The Levites from Zadok's branch of the priestly family, however, would have special privileges since Zadok and his sons had served the Lord faithfully in the past (cf. 40:46; 1 Sam. 2:35; 2 Sam. 8:17; 15:24-29; 1 Kin...
  • The Lord next gave Ezekiel directions for the division of some of the Promised Land in the future. Revelation about apportioning the rest of the land follows later (47:13-48:35). These descriptions do not coincide with any di...
  • Ackroyd, Peter R. Exile and Restoration. Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1968.Alexander, Ralph H. Ezekiel. Everyman's Bible Commentary series. Chicago: Moody Press, 1976._____. "Ezekiel."In Isaiah-Ezekiel. Vol. 6 of The Expo...
  • That another oracle is in view is clear from the question and answer format that begins this pericope, as it does the others. Verse 17 contains the question and answer, and the discussion follows in 3:1-6. The Israelites' cha...
  • 7:15 Jesus here sounded a warning that the Old Testament prophets also gave about false prophets (cf. Deut. 13; 18; Jer. 6:13-15; 8:8-12; Ezek. 13; 22:27; Zeph 3:4). He did not explain exactly what they would teach, only that...
  • The writer pointed out the consequences of not pressing on to maturity to motivate his readers to pursue spiritual growth diligently.Christians have interpreted this passage in many different ways. Some believe that those who...
  • James proceeded to explain in 1:26-2:13 what a doer of works (1:25) does.1:26 "Religious"(Gr. threskos, used here only in the New Testament) describes someone who fears or worships God. In particular, it refers to the outward...
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