Ezekiel 1:3

1:3 the word of the Lord came to the priest Ezekiel ¹  the son of Buzi, ²  at the Kebar River in the land of the Babylonians. ³  The hand ⁴  of the Lord came on him there).

Ezekiel 3:12

Ezekiel Before the Exiles

3:12 Then a wind lifted me up ⁵  and I heard a great rumbling sound behind me as the glory of the Lord rose from its place, ⁶ 

Ezekiel 3:15

3:15 I came to the exiles at Tel Abib, ⁷  who lived by the Kebar River. ⁸  I sat dumbfounded among them there, where they were living, for seven days. ⁹ 

Psalms 137:1

Psalm 137 ¹⁰ 

137:1 By the rivers of Babylon

we sit down and weep ¹¹ 

when we remember Zion.

[1:3]  ¹ sn The prophet’s name, Ezekiel, means in Hebrew “May God strengthen.”

[1:3]  ² tn Or “to Ezekiel son of Buzi the priest.”

[1:3]  ³ tn Heb “Chaldeans.” The name of the tribal group ruling Babylon, “Chaldeans” is used as metonymy for the whole empire of Babylon. The Babylonians worked with the Medes to destroy the Assyrian Empire near the end of the 7th century b.c. Then, over the next century, the Babylonians dominated the West Semitic states (such as Phoenicia, Aram, Moab, Edom, and Judah in the modern countries of Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, and Israel) and made incursions into Egypt.

[1:3]  ⁴ tn Or “power.”

[3:12]  ⁵ sn See note on “wind” in 2:2.

[3:12]  ⁶ 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.

[3:15]  ⁷ sn The name “Tel Abib” is a transliteration of an Akkadian term meaning “mound of the flood,” i.e., an ancient mound. It is not to be confused with the modern city of Tel Aviv in Israel.

[3:15]  ⁸ tn Or “canal.”

[3:15]  ⁹ sn A similar response to a divine encounter is found in Acts 9:8-9.

[137:1]  ¹⁰ sn Psalm 137. The Babylonian exiles lament their condition, vow to remain loyal to Jerusalem, and appeal to God for revenge on their enemies.

[137:1]  ¹¹ tn Heb “there we sit down, also we weep.”