Ezekiel 28:3

3 Look, are you wiser than Daniel, [so that] {no secret} is hidden [from] you?

Ezekiel 28:3 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 28:3

Behold; thou art wiser than Daniel
That is, in his own opinion; or it is ironically said. The Septuagint, Syriac, and Arabic versions, render it by way of interrogation, "art thou not wiser than Daniel?" who was now at the court of Babylon, and was famous throughout all Chaldea for his knowledge in politics, his wisdom and prudence in government, as well as his skill in interpreting dreams. The Jews have a saying, that

``if all the wise men of the nations were in one scale, and Daniel in the other, he would weigh them all down.''
And perhaps the fame of him had reached the king of Tyre, and yet he thought himself wiser than he; see ( Zechariah 9:2 ) , antichrist thinks himself wiser than Daniel, or any of the prophets and apostles; he is wise above that which is written, and takes upon him the sole interpretation of the Scriptures, and to fix the sense of them: there is no secret that they can hide from thee;
as he fancied; he had sagacity to penetrate into the councils of neighbouring princes, and discover all plots and intrigues against him; he understood all the "arcana" and secrets of government, and could counterwork the designs of his enemies. Antichrist pretends to know all mysteries, and solve all difficulties, and pass an infallible judgment on things; as if he was of the privy council of heaven, and nothing was transacted there but he was acquainted with it, and had full knowledge of the mind of God in all things.

Ezekiel 28:3 In-Context

1 And the word of Yahweh {came} to me, {saying},
2 "Son of man, say to the leader of Tyre, 'Thus says the Lord Yahweh: "Because your heart was haughty, and you said, 'I [am] a god; I sit [in the] seat of [the] gods, I sit in [the] heart of [the] seas!' But you are a human, not a god, and you gave your heart to be like [the] heart of a god.
3 Look, are you wiser than Daniel, [so that] {no secret} is hidden [from] you?
4 By your wisdom and by your understanding you have gained for yourself wealth, and you have amassed gold and silver in your treasuries.
5 By the abundance of your wisdom in your trading you [have] increased your wealth and your heart was proud in your wealth." '"

Footnotes 1

  • [a]. Literally "all of hidden/secret"
Scripture quotations marked (LEB) are from the Lexham English Bible. Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software.