Ezekiel 17

Parable of Two Eagles and a Vine

1 And the word of Yahweh {came} to me, {saying},

2 "Son of man, tell a riddle and quote a proverb to the house of Israel,

3 and you must say, 'Thus says the Lord Yahweh: "{The great eagle with great wings and long feathers} [and] {full of variegated plumage} came to Lebanon and he took the treetop of the cedar.

4 He plucked the top of its new plant shoot, and he brought it to the land of Canaan [and] put it in a city of merchants,

5 and he took from the seed of the land and placed it in {fertile soil} on many waters; [like] a willow he planted it.

6 And it sprouted, and {it became a vine spreading out}, low of height, turning its branches to him, and its roots were under it, and {it became a vine}, and it made branches, and it sent out foliage.

7 " '"And there was another great eagle, great of wings and [with] abundant plumage, and look! This vine stretched out its roots toward him and extended its branches to him to water it from the garden bed {where it was planted}.

8 It was planted in [a] good field by many waters to produce branches and to bear fruit to become {a beautiful vine}." '

9 Say, 'Thus says the Lord Yahweh: "Will it prosper? Will he not tear out its roots, and will he not make its fruit scaly, and it will wither, and all of the freshness of its vegetation will dry up? And to lift it from its roots {will not require great strength or many people}.

10 And look! [Though] it is planted, will it prosper? {When the east wind strikes it}, will it not dry up completely? On the garden bed of its vegetation it will dry up!" '"

11 And the word of Yahweh {came} to me, {saying},

12 "Say now to the rebellious house of Israel, 'Do you not know what these [are]?' Say, 'Look! The king of Babylon will come [to] Jerusalem, and he will take its king and its officials, and he will bring them to himself, [to] Babylon.

13 And he took from the seed of the kingship, and he made with him a covenant, and {he brought him under oath}, and he took the rulers of the land,

14 so that [they would] be a humble kingdom and not lift itself up to keep his covenant {in order for it to stand}.

15 But he rebelled against him by sending his messengers [to] Egypt to give to him horses and a large army. Will he succeed? Will he escape doing these [things], and can he break [the] covenant and escape?

16 {As I live},' {declares} the Lord Yahweh, '{surely} in the place of the king {who made} him king, who despised his oath and who broke his covenant with him--in the midst of Babylon he will die.

17 And not with a great army and with a great crowd will Pharaoh work with him in the war, at the pouring out of a siege ramp and the building of siege works to destroy many lives.

18 And he despised [the] oath to break covenant. And, look, he gave his hand [in pledge], and [yet] he did all of these [things]. He will not escape.'

19 Therefore thus says the Lord Yahweh: '{As I live}, {surely} my oath that he despised and my covenant that he broke I will return upon his head.

20 And I will spread my net over him, and he will be caught in my hunting net, and I will bring him [to] Babylon, and I will enter into judgment with him there [about] his infidelity that he displayed against me.

21 And all of his choice troops, among all of his troops, they will fall by the sword, and [those who] [are] remaining, they will be scattered to all [the directions of the] wind, and you will know that I, Yahweh, I have spoken.'

22 Thus says the Lord Yahweh: 'And I will take, [even] I, from the treetop of the high cedar, and I will plant [it], from the head of its new plant shoot I will pluck a tender one, and I will plant [it], [even] I, on a high and lofty mountain.

23 On the height of the mountain of Israel I will plant [it], and it will carry branches, and it will bear fruit, and {it will become a noble cedar}, and all of the birds of all wings will dwell under it in the shade of its branches.

24 And all of the trees of the field will know that I, Yahweh, I will bring low a high tree, [and] I will exalt a low, fresh tree, and I will make a dry tree flourish. I, Yahweh, I have spoken, and I will do [it].'"

Ezekiel 17 Commentary

Chapter 17

A parable relative to the Jewish nation. (1-10) to which an explanation is added. (11-21) A direct promise of the Messiah. (22-24)

Verses 1-10 Mighty conquerors are aptly likened to birds or beasts of prey, but their destructive passions are overruled to forward God's designs. Those who depart from God, only vary their crimes by changing one carnal confidence for another, and never will prosper.

Verses 11-21 The parable is explained, and the particulars of the history of the Jewish nation at that time may be traced. Zedekiah had been ungrateful to his benefactor, which is a sin against God. In every solemn oath, God is appealed to as a witness of the sincerity of him that swears. Truth is a debt owing to all men. If the professors of the true religion deal treacherously with those of a false religion, their profession makes their sin the worse; and God will the more surely and severely punish it. The Lord will not hold those guiltless who take his name in vain; and no man shall escape the righteous judgment of God who dies under unrepented guilt.

Verses 22-24 The unbelief of man shall not make the promise of God of none effect. The parable of a tree, used in the threatening, is here presented in the promise. It appears only applicable to Jesus, the Son of David, the Messiah of God. The kingdom of Satan, which has borne so long, so large a sway, shall be broken, and the kingdom of Christ, which was looked upon with contempt, shall be established. Blessed be God, our Redeemer is seen even by the ends of the earth. We may find refuge from the wrath to come, and from every enemy and danger, under his shadow; and believers are fruitful in him.

Footnotes

• [a]. Literally "was"
• [b]. Literally "to say"
• [c]. Or "mortal," or "son of humankind"
• [d]. Literally "the eagle the great great of [the] wings long of [the] feather"
• [e]. Literally "full of [the] plumage which [is] for him [the] variegated"
• [f]. Literally "a field of seed"
• [g]. Or "by"
• [h]. Literally "he was to vine spreading out"
• [i]. Literally "and it was to a vine"
• [j]. Or "sprouted"
• [k]. Literally "from the garden bed of its planting"
• [l]. Or "to"
• [m]. Or "to"
• [n]. Hebrew "water"
• [o]. Hebrew "branch"
• [p]. Hebrew "be"
• [q]. Literally "to a vine of splendor"
• [r]. Literally "not with strong arm and with many people"
• [s]. Literally "at striking her/it the wind of the east"
• [t]. Literally "was"
• [u]. Or "mean"
• [v]. Or "take"
• [w]. Hebrew "him"
• [x]. Literally "and he brought him in[to] oath"
• [y]. Literally "to standing her"; or "to let her stand"
• [z]. Literally "live I"
• [aa]. Literally "declaration of"
• [ab]. Literally "if not"
• [ac]. Literally "who [he was] making"
• [ad]. Or "help/aid"
• [ae]. Literally "live I"
• [af]. Literally "if not"
• [ag]. Or "left over"
• [ah]. Or "bear"
• [ai]. Hebrew "branch"
• [aj]. Literally "he will be to a cedar noble"
• [ak]. Or "kinds"

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO EZEKIEL 17

Under the simile of two eagles and a vine are represented the kings of Babylon and Egypt, and the condition of the Jews, who are threatened with ruin for their perfidy; and yet a promise is made of the raising up of the house of Judah, and family of David, in the Messiah. The prophet is bid to deliver a riddle or parable to the house of Israel, Eze 17:1,2. The riddle or parable is concerning two eagles and a vine, which is delivered, Eze 17:3-10; and the explanation of it is in Eze 17:11-15; and then the destruction of the Jews is threatened for their treachery to the king of Babylon, Eze 17:16-21; and the chapter is closed with a promise of the Messiah, and the prosperity of his kingdom, Eze 17:22-24.