3:12 Then a wind lifted me up 1 and I heard a great rumbling sound behind me as the glory of the Lord rose from its place, 2 3:13 and the sound of the living beings’ wings brushing against each other, and the sound of the wheels alongside them, a great rumbling sound. 3:14 A wind lifted me up and carried me away. I went bitterly, 3 my spirit full of fury, and the hand of the Lord rested powerfully 4 on me.
Then the vision I had seen went up from me.
37:1 The hand 11 of the Lord was on me, and he brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and placed 12 me in the midst of the valley, and it was full of bones.
40:1 In the twenty-fifth year of our exile, at the beginning of the year, on the tenth day of the month, in the fourteenth year after the city 15 was struck down, on this very day, 16 the hand 17 of the Lord was on me, and he brought me there. 18
“‘The fathers eat sour grapes
And the children’s teeth become numb?’ 21
2:1 He said to me, “Son of man, 22 stand on your feet and I will speak with you.”
1 sn See note on “wind” in 2:2.
2 tc This translation accepts the emendation suggested in BHS of בְּרוּם (bÿrum) for בָּרוּךְ (barukh). The letters mem (מ) and kaph (כ) were easily confused in the old script while בָּרוּךְ (“blessed be”) both implies a quotation which is out of place here and also does not fit the later phrase, “from its place,” which requires a verb of motion.
3 tn The traditional interpretation is that Ezekiel embarked on his mission with bitterness and anger, either reflecting God’s attitude toward the sinful people or his own feelings about having to carry out such an unpleasant task. L. C. Allen (Ezekiel [WBC], 1:13) takes “bitterly” as a misplaced marginal note and understands the following word, normally translated “anger,” in the sense of fervor or passion. He translates, “I was passionately moved” (p. 4). Another option is to take the word translated “bitterly” as a verb meaning “strengthened” (attested in Ugaritic). See G. R. Driver, Canaanite Myths and Legends, 152.
4 tn Heb “the hand of the Lord was on me heavily.” The “hand of the Lord” is a metaphor for his power or influence; the modifier conveys intensity.
5 tn The Hebrew term is normally used as an architectural term in describing the pattern of the tabernacle or temple or a representation of it (see Exod 25:8; 1 Chr 28:11).
6 tn Or “spirit.” See note on “wind” in 2:2.
7 map For the location of Jerusalem see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.
8 tn Or “image.”
9 tn Or “spirit.” See note on “wind” in 2:2.
10 tn Heb “to Chaldea.”
11 tn Or “power.”
12 tn Heb “caused me to rest.”
13 tn The expression introduces the three major visions of Ezekiel (1:1; 8:3; 40:2).
14 tn The reference to a very high mountain is harmonious with Isa 2:2.
15 sn That is, Jerusalem.
16 tn April 19, 573
17 tn Or “power.”
18 sn That is, to the land of Israel (see v. 2).
19 sn The poor and needy are often mentioned together in the OT (Deut 24:14; Jer 22:16; Ezek 14:69; Ps 12:6; 35:10; 37:14).
20 tn Heb “lifts up his eyes.”
21 tn This word only occurs here and in the parallel passage in Jer 31:29-30 in the Qal stem and in Eccl 10:10 in the Piel stem. In the latter passage it refers to the bluntness of an ax that has not been sharpened. Here the idea is of the “bluntness” of the teeth, not from having ground them down due to the bitter taste of sour grapes but to the fact that they have lost their “edge,” “bite,” or “sharpness” because they are numb from the sour taste. For this meaning for the word, see W. L. Holladay, Jeremiah (Hermeneia), 2:197.
22 sn The phrase son of man occurs ninety-three times in the book of Ezekiel. It simply means “human one,” and distinguishes the prophet from the nonhuman beings that are present in the world of his vision.
23 tn BDAG 189 s.v. γάρ 2 indicates that under certain circumstances γάρ (gar) has the same meaning as δέ (de).
24 sn Note that the response to the gospel is rejoicing (joy, cf. Acts 11:23; 13:48).