Ezekiel 13:20

20 "`Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I am against your pillows, wherewith ye there hunt the souls to make them fly; and I will tear them from your arms and will let the souls go, even the souls whom ye hunt to make them fly.

Ezekiel 13:20 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 13:20

Wherefore thus saith the Lord God, behold, I [am] against
your pillows
Not only had an abhorrence of them, but was determined to destroy them, detect their fallacies, and expose the folly of such actions, and them to shame and contempt: wherewith ye there hunt the souls to make [them] fly;
to the places where they prophesied; into the toils and nets they spread for them, in order to catch them with their divinations and prophecies, and make a gain of them: or, "into the gardens", or "groves" F15; there to commit idolatry, ( Isaiah 65:3 ) ; and I will tear them from your arms;
by which it seems that those pillows were not only put under the arms of those that came to inquire of these female prophets or fortune tellers; but they put them under their own arms, and lay upon them as if they were asleep, and in a trance or ecstasy; and so the kerchiefs or veils were upon their heads, which covered their faces, to show that they were quite retired from the world, and wholly attentive to the visions and revelations they pretended were made them by the Lord; and which they gave out, in this superstitious way, to the credulous people that flocked about them: and will let the souls go, [even] the souls that ye hunt to make [them]
fly;
which were captivated with their superstitions; drawn into their nets and snares; decoyed into the gardens, where they were prevailed upon to sacrifice to idols, and were taken with their soothsaying and lying divinations; these the Lord promises to break the snare for them, and set them at liberty, and preserve them from that ruin and destruction they were ready to come into; see ( Psalms 124:7 ) .


FOOTNOTES:

F15 (twxrpl) "in floralia", Junius & Tremellius, Polanus, Starckius; "in floridis hortis", Piscator.

Ezekiel 13:20 In-Context

18 and say, `Thus saith the Lord GOD: Woe to the women who sew pillows to all armholes and make kerchiefs upon the head of those of every stature to hunt souls! Will ye hunt the souls of My people, and will ye save the souls alive who come unto you?
19 And will ye pollute Me among My people for handfuls of barley and for pieces of bread, to slay the souls who should not die and to save the souls alive that should not live, by your lying to My people who hear your lies?
20 "`Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Behold, I am against your pillows, wherewith ye there hunt the souls to make them fly; and I will tear them from your arms and will let the souls go, even the souls whom ye hunt to make them fly.
21 Your kerchiefs also will I tear and deliver My people out of your hand, and they shall be no more in your hand to be hunted; and ye shall know that I am the LORD.
22 Because with lies ye have made the heart of the righteous sad, whom I have not made sad, and strengthened the hands of the wicked, that he should not return from his wicked way by promising him life,
Third Millennium Bible (TMB), New Authorized Version, Copyright 1998 by Deuel Enterprises, Inc., Gary, SD 57237. All rights reserved.