Ezekiel 3:5

5 For thou shalt not be sent to a people of high word, and of unknown language; thou shalt be sent to the house of Israel,

Ezekiel 3:5 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 3:5

For thou [art] not sent to a people of a strange speech
"Deep of lip" ^F7, or "speech"; difficult to be got at and understood: and of a hard language:
or "heavy of tongue" ^F8 of a barbarous and unknown language, whom he could not understand, nor they him; and so would have been barbarians to one another; and consequently it could not be thought his prophesying among them, could have been of any use. This may be considered, either by way of encouragement to the prophet to go on his errand to such a people; since as he could understand them, and they him he might hope to meet with success; or, however he could deliver his message so as to be understood: or as an aggravation of the impiety perverseness and stupidity of the Israelites; that though the prophet spoke to them in their own language, yet they would not hear nor receive his words: [but] to the house of Israel;
who were a people of the same speech and language with the prophet; all spoke and understood the language of Canaan; nor were the things he delivered such as they were altogether strangers to being the same, for substance, which Moses, and the other prophets, had ever taught.

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FOOTNOTES:

F7 (hpv yqme) "profundi labii", Vatablus; "profundorum labio", Polanus, Cocceius; "profundi sermonis", Starkius.
F8 (Nwvl ydbk) "graves linguae", Montanus; "gravium lingua", Polanus.

Ezekiel 3:5 In-Context

3 And he said to me, Son of man, thy womb shall eat, and thine entrails shall be filled with this volume, which I give to thee. And I ate it, and it was made as sweet honey in my mouth. (And he said to me, Son of man, make thy womb to eat, and thy bowels to be filled with this book/with this scroll, which I give thee. And I ate it, and it was made as sweet as honey in my mouth.)

4 And he said to me, Son of man, go thou to the house of Israel, and thou shalt speak my words to them.

5 For thou shalt not be sent to a people of high word, and of unknown language; thou shalt be sent to the house of Israel,

6 neither to many peoples of high word, and of unknown language, of which thou mayest not hear the words. And if thou were sent to them, they should hear thee. (nor to great peoples of difficult and unknown languages, of which thou cannot understand the words. Though if thou had been sent to them, they would have listened to thee.)

7 But the house of Israel will not hear thee, for they will not hear me. For all the house of Israel is of defouled, either of unshamefast, forehead, and of hard heart. (But the house of Israel will not listen to thee, for they will not listen to me. For all the house of Israel is of defiled, or of defiant, face, and of hard, or stubborn, heart.)