Ezekiel 19

Lament for the Leaders of Israel

1 "And you, raise a lament about the leaders of Israel,

2 and you must say, 'What a lioness [was] your mother among [the] lions. She lay down in the midst of young lions, [and] she reared her lion cubs.

3 And she raised up one from her cubs; he became a fierce lion, and he learned to tear prey; he ate humans.

4 And nations heard about him; in their pit he was caught, and they brought him with hooks to the land of Egypt.

5 And she saw that she was waiting [in vain]; her hope was destroyed, and she took one from her cubs, [and] she made him a fierce lion.

6 And he walked about in the midst of lions; he became a fierce lion, and he learned to tear prey; he ate humans.

7 And he knew their widows, and he devastated their cities, and [the] land was appalled, and {everyone in it} at the sound of his roar.

8 And nations set out against him {from the surrounding provinces}, and they spread their net over him, and he was caught in their pit.

9 And they put him in a collar with hooks, and they brought him to the king of Babylon; they brought him into a prison, so that his voice [would] not be heard {any longer} on the mountains of Israel.

10 Your mother [was] like the vine in your vineyard; planted {fruitfully} beside water, and it was full of branches from many waters.

11 And {she produced branches of strength} to scepters of rulers; its height became tall between thick foliage, and it was seen because of its tallness among the abundance of its branches.

12 But it was uprooted in rage; it was thrown to the earth, and the east wind dried up its fruit; they were stripped off, and its strong branch dried up; fire consumed it.

13 And now [it is] planted in the desert, in a {dry and thirsty land}.

14 And [so] fire has gone out from the stem of its branches; its fruit it has consumed, and [there] was not in it {a strong branch}, a scepter for ruling.'" This [is] a lament, and {it will be used as a lament}.

Ezekiel 19 Commentary

Chapter 19

A parable lamenting the ruin of Jehoahaz and Jehoiakim. (1-9) Another describing the desolation of the people. (10-14)

Verses 1-9 Ezekiel is to compare the kingdom of Judah to a lioness. He must compare the kings of Judah to a lion's whelps; they were cruel and oppressive to their own subjects. The righteousness of God is to be acknowledged, when those who have terrified and enslaved others, are themselves terrified and enslaved. When professors of religion form connexions with ungodly persons, their children usually grow up following after the maxims and fashions of a wicked world. Advancement to authority discovers the ambition and selfishness of men's hearts; and those who spend their lives in mischief, generally end them by violence.

Verses 10-14 Jerusalem was a vine, flourishing and fruitful. This vine is now destroyed, though not plucked up by the roots. She has by wickedness made herself like tinder to the sparks of God's wrath, so that her own branches serve as fuel to burn her. Blessed be God, one Branch of the vine here alluded to, is not only become a strong rod for the sceptre of those that rule, but is Himself the true and living Vine. This shall be for a rejoicing to all the chosen people of God throughout all generations.

Footnotes

• [a]. Or "over"
• [b]. Or "devoured"
• [c]. Hebrew "human"
• [d]. Or "realized"
• [e]. Or "devoured"
• [f]. Hebrew "human"
• [g]. Or "ravished/raped"; or "he ravaged their strongholds"
• [h]. Literally "its fullness"
• [i]. Literally "all around from [the] provinces"
• [j]. Hebrew "in"
• [k]. Literally "longer"
• [l]. Or "in the vineyard"
• [m]. Literally "fruitful"
• [n]. Or "from waters abundant/many"
• [o]. Literally "they became to her branches/rods of strength"
• [p]. Or "for"
• [q]. Or "among"
• [r]. Or "visible"
• [s]. Literally "a land of dryness and thirst"
• [t]. Literally "a branch of strength"

Chapter Summary

INTRODUCTION TO EZEKIEL 19

The subject matter of this chapter is a lamentation for the princes and people of the Jews, on account of what had already befallen them, and what was yet to come, Eze 19:1. The mother of the princes is compared to a lioness, and they to lions; who, one after another, were taken and carried captive, Eze 19:2-9; again, their mother is compared to a vine, and they to branches and rods for sceptres, destroyed by an east wind, and consumed by fire, Eze 19:10-14.