Ezekiel 33:2

2 "Son of man, speak to your people and tell them: Suppose I bring the sword against a land,^[a] and the people of that land select a man from among them, appointing him as their watchman,

Ezekiel 33:2 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 33:2

Son of man, speak to the children of thy people
The Jews, of whom the prophet was; and designs those who were with him in the captivity; and who, having behaved so ill, the Lord will not own them for his people, but calls them the prophet's people, and the children of them: and say unto them, when I bring the sword upon a land;
a foreign enemy with an army to invade it, or any other judgment; for there is no public calamity whatever that comes upon a people, but what is by the order, direction, or permission of the Lord. The Targum is,

``those that kill with the sword;''

an army of men that enter into a land sword in hand, with an intent to conquer and destroy: if the people of the land take a man of their coasts: that lives upon their borders, and so is acquainted with all the places where it is most likely an enemy should enter; or a man out of the midst of them, as the Targum; so this phrase sometimes signifies, ( Genesis 47:2 ) , one of their own people, who might be thought to have their good and safety at heart, and might be trusted: and set him for their watchman:
on some place of eminence; on the walls, or in a tower of a frontier town, from whence he might descry the enemy coming at a distance.

Ezekiel 33:2 In-Context

1 The word of the Lord came to me:

2 "Son of man, speak to your people and tell them: Suppose I bring the sword against a land, and the people of that land select a man from among them, appointing him as their watchman,

3 and he sees the sword coming against the land and blows his trumpet to warn the people.

4 Then, if anyone hears the sound of the trumpet but ignores the warning, and the sword comes and takes him away, his blood will be on his own head.

5 [Since] he heard the sound of the trumpet but ignored the warning, his blood is on his own hands. If he had taken warning, he would have saved his life.

Footnotes

• [a] Ezk 21:8-12