Ezekiel 18:6

6 and on the mountains he [does] not eat and he [does] not lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, and the wife of his neighbor he [does] not defile and he [does] not approach a woman of menstruation,

Ezekiel 18:6 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 18:6

[And] hath not eaten upon the mountains
Where temples and altars were built for idols, and sacrifices offered up to them; and where feasts were kept to the honour of them, and the sacrifices to them eaten; see ( Ezekiel 6:13 ) ; for otherwise it was not unlawful to eat common food on mountains, as well as on other places; but here it denotes idolatrous practices; and the Targum is,

``and hath not served idols on the mountains:''

neither hath lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel;
their "dunghill gods" ^F4 as the word signifies; as not to the idols of the Gentiles, so not to those of Israel, as the calves at Dan and Bethel; these he does not worship, nor pray unto, or invoke, nor even give a pleasant and favourable look unto; but turned from them with abhorrence and contempt: neither hath defiled his neighbour's wife;
been guilty of adultery, by lying with another man's wife; or by marrying one divorced, not having committed fornication; which divorces were common among the Jews, and marrying such so divorced, ( Matthew 19:19 ) ; neither hath come near to a menstruous woman:
a woman in her monthly courses, even his own wife; who, according to the law, was set apart for her uncleanness for a certain term of time; during which she was not to be touched, nor anything she sat or lay upon; and all conjugal acts to be abstained from, ( Leviticus 15:19-24 ) ( 18:19 ) ( 20:18 ) .

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FOOTNOTES:

F4 (ylwlg la) "ad stercoreos deos", Junius & Tremellius, Polanus; "ad stercora", Piscator, Cocceius.

Ezekiel 18:6 In-Context

4 Look! {All lives are mine}. {The lives of father and son alike are mine}. The person sinning will die.

5 And if a man is righteous and does justice and righteousness,

6 and on the mountains he [does] not eat and he [does] not lift up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, and the wife of his neighbor he [does] not defile and he [does] not approach a woman of menstruation,

7 and he oppresses {no one} [and] he returns [a] pledge for his loan {and he commits no robbery} [and] he gives his bread to [the] hungry and he covers a naked person [with] a garment,

8 [and] {he does not charge interest} and he takes no usury, [and] he holds back his hand from injustice [and] he executes [a] judgment of fairness between {persons},

Footnotes

• [a] Or "in"