Ezekiel 33:1-6

Ezekiel Appointed as a Watchman and His Responsibility

1 And the word of Yahweh {came} to me, {saying},
2 "Son of man, speak to {your people}, and you must say to them, 'A land, if I bring over it a sword and the people of the land take a man, one from their number, and they appoint him for them as a watchman,
3 and he sees the sword coming against the land, and he blows on the horn and he warns the people,
4 and {anyone who listens} hears the sound of the horn and {he does not take warning} and [the] sword comes and it takes him, his blood will be on his [own] head.
5 [For] he heard the sound of the horn and he did not take warning; his blood will be on him. But [if] he took warning, he saved his life.
6 And [as for] the watchman, if he sees the sword coming and {he does not blow} the horn, and the people [are] not warned, and [the] sword comes and it takes {their lives}, he will be taken through his guilt, but his blood from the hand of the watchman I will seek.'

Ezekiel 33:1-6 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO EZEKIEL 33

This chapter treats of the prophet's duty, and the people's sins; contains a vindication of the justice of God; a threatening of destruction to those who remained in the land after the taking of the city; and a detection of the hypocrisy of the prophet's hearers. The duty of a watchman in general is declared, Eze 33:1-6, an application of this to the prophet, Eze 33:7: the sum of whose business is to warn the wicked man of his wickedness; and the consequence of doing, or not doing it, is expressed, Eze 33:8,9, an objection of the people, and the prophet's answer to it, Eze 33:10,11, who is bid to acquaint them, that a righteous man trusting to his righteousness, and sinning, should not live; and that a sinner repenting of his sins should not die, Eze 33:12-16, the people's charge of inequality in the ways of God is retorted upon them, and removed from the Lord, and proved against them, Eze 33:17-20, then follows a prophecy, delivered out after the news was brought of the taking of the city, threatening with ruin those that remained in the land, confident of safety, and that for their sins, which are particularly enumerated, Eze 33:21-29, and the chapter is closed with a discovery of the hypocrisy of those that attended the prophet's ministry, Eze 33:30-33.

Footnotes 8

  • [a]. Literally "was"
  • [b]. Literally "to say"
  • [c]. Or "mortal," or "son of humankind"
  • [d]. Literally "the children of your people"
  • [e]. Literally "the listening"
  • [f]. Literally "not he takes warning"
  • [g]. Literally "and not he blows on"
  • [h]. Literally "it takes from them a life"
Scripture quotations marked (LEB) are from the Lexham English Bible. Copyright 2012 Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software.