Ezekiel 3:7

7 Mais la maison d'Israël ne voudra pas t'écouter, parce qu'elle ne veut point m'écouter; car toute la maison d'Israël a le front dur et le cœur obstiné.

Ezekiel 3:7 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 3:7

But the house of Israel would not hearken unto thee
"They are not willing" F12; they have no desire, no inclination, to hear and hearken; but the reverse; they were capable of hearing and understanding his speech and language, and though he was sent unto them by the Lord: and indeed the reason why they did not hearken to him was not because they rejected him and his words, but because they rejected the Lord and his words; they were the words of the Lord, and his reproofs; and therefore they would not hearken to them as follows: for they will not hearken unto me;
and which is an argument why the prophet should bear with patience their disregard to him and his words, and their neglect and contempt of them; for, seeing they would not hear the Lord, how could he exact they should hear him? and therefore he should not be uneasy at it; see ( John 15:20 ) ; for all the house of Israel [are] impudent and hardhearted;
or, "strong of front, and hard of heart" F13; they had a whore's forehead, an impudent face, that could not blush and be ashamed; and hearts of stone, like a rock, and harder than the nether millstone, on which no impressions, could be made by all the admonitions and reproofs given them; see ( Ezekiel 2:4 ) ; and this was the case of all of them in general, excepting some very few; which shows the sad degeneracy of this people.


FOOTNOTES:

F12 (wbay al) "non cupient", Montanus; "non volunt", Cocceius; "non illi volentes", Starckius.
F13 (bl yvqw xum yqzx) "obfirmati fronte et duri corde", Polanus, Starckius; "obfirmati frontis et duri cordis", Piscator.

Ezekiel 3:7 In-Context

5 Car ce n'est point vers un peuple au parler inintelligible et à la langue barbare que je t'envoie, mais vers la maison d'Israël.
6 Ce n'est point vers de nombreux peuples, au parler inintelligible et à la langue barbare, et dont tu ne puisses pas entendre les paroles, que je t'envoie; ceux-là, certes, ils t'écouteraient, si je t'envoyais vers eux.
7 Mais la maison d'Israël ne voudra pas t'écouter, parce qu'elle ne veut point m'écouter; car toute la maison d'Israël a le front dur et le cœur obstiné.
8 Voici j'endurcirai ta face pour que tu l'opposes à leurs faces, et j'endurcirai ton front pour que tu l'opposes à leurs fronts.
9 Je rendrai ton front semblable au diamant, plus dur que le roc; ne les crains donc pas et ne t'effraie point de leurs visages, bien qu'ils soient une maison rebelle.
The Ostervald translation is in the public domain.