Ezekiel 14:4

4 For this cause say to them, These are the words of the Lord: Every man of Israel who has taken his false god into his heart, and put before his face the sin which is the cause of his fall, and comes to the prophet; I the Lord will give him an answer by myself in agreement with the number of his false gods;

Ezekiel 14:4 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 14:4

Therefore speak unto them, and say unto them
That is, speak unto them as a prophet, and as from the Lord, and say what follows; so the Targum,

``prophesy unto them and say unto them;''

thus saith the Lord God, every man of the house of Israel, that setteth
up his idols in his heart, and putteth the stumbling block of his
iniquity before his face;
let him be who he will, one in public office, an elder of Israel, or a private person; no respect will be had, no distinction made, nor favour shown; being an idolater in heart and practice, secretly and openly, he shall bear the punishment of his sin: and cometh to the prophet:
the Prophet Ezekiel, as the elders of Israel now did, or any other prophet of the Lord: the Vulgate Latin version adds, "inquiring of me by him"; expecting to have an answer, and one according to their wishes: I the Lord will answer him that cometh;
that cometh to the prophet; or, as the Targum,

``that cometh to ask instruction of me:''

here is a various reading, a "Keri" and a "Cetib"; we follow the Keri, or marginal reading, (ab) , "that cometh"; and so does the Targum; but the "Cetib", or written text, is (hb) , "in it", thus; "I the Lord will answer him in it" ^F20; in the question he puts to the prophet, or to the Lord by him; or in that time, immediately; but not with smooth things, as he expects, but with terrible things in righteousness; not in a way of grace and mercy, but in a way of judgment; not as he desires, but as he deserves: according to the multitude of his idols;
in proportion to the number of his gods, and his idolatrous actions, shall the answer or punishment be: or these words may be connected with the word cometh, and be read thus, "that cometh with the multitude of his idols" ^F21; with his heart full of idols, set up there; which is an instance of his hypocrisy, seen and detected by the Lord; and of his impudence, in daring to come unto him in such a manner; and of his folly, to expect a gracious answer from the Lord, this being his case. The Targum understands it quite otherwise, as if the answer the Lord would give would be a kind and agreeable one, paraphrasing this clause thus,

``although he is mixed (implicated or entangled) in the multitude of the worship of his idols.''

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FOOTNOTES:

F20 "Eodem ^Fo tempore", Piscator; "in ea re", Cocceius, Starckius.
F21 (wylwlg bwrb ab) "ipsi venienti in multitudine idolorum suorum", Pagninus, Montanus.

Ezekiel 14:4 In-Context

2 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

3 Son of man, these men have taken their false gods into their hearts and put before their faces the sin which is the cause of their fall: am I to give ear when they come to me for directions?

4 For this cause say to them, These are the words of the Lord: Every man of Israel who has taken his false god into his heart, and put before his face the sin which is the cause of his fall, and comes to the prophet; I the Lord will give him an answer by myself in agreement with the number of his false gods;

5 So as to take the children of Israel in the thoughts of their hearts, because they have become strange to me through their false gods.

6 For this cause say to the children of Israel, These are the words of the Lord: Come back and give up your false gods and let your faces be turned from your disgusting things.