Ezekiel 24:5

5 take the choicest of the flock, and also pile the bones under it; {boil it vigorously}; indeed, its bones boiled in the midst of it." '"

Ezekiel 24:5 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 24:5

Take the choice of the flock
King, princes, nobles, magistrates, priests and rulers of the people: and burn also the bones under it:
or, "put a pile of bones under it" {u}; the bones of them that are slain in it; denoting the great slaughter of them; or the bones of the innocent that had been murdered in it; which were the cause of these judgments coming upon them; and caused the wrath of God to burn the more hotly against them; or the bones of the wicked: and make it boil well;
the pot; that the water may be very hot and boiling; denoting the severity of the judgments of God in the city, to the destruction of many by sword, famine, and pestilence: and let them seethe the bones of it therein;
that the strongest among them may be weakened and destroyed by the length and severity of the siege, and the judgments attending it. The Targum is,

``bring near the kings of the people, and even join auxiliaries with them; hasten the time of it yea, let her slain be cast in the midst of her.''

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FOOTNOTES:

F21 (hytxt Mymueh rwd) "pyram ossium sub ipsa", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Starckius. (rwd) "rogus, strues materiae combustibililis rotunda", Stockius, p. 223.

Ezekiel 24:5 In-Context

3 And {deliver a proverb} to {the rebellious house}, and you must say to them, 'Thus says the Lord Yahweh: "Place the pot! Place [it] and also pour water into it.

4 Gather its pieces to it, every good piece, thigh and shoulder, fill it [with] choice bones;

5 take the choicest of the flock, and also pile the bones under it; {boil it vigorously}; indeed, its bones boiled in the midst of it." '"

6 Therefore thus says the Lord Yahweh: "Woe [to] the city of bloodguilt! A pot that [has] its rust in it; {its rust did not go out from it}. Bring it out {piece by piece}; {one is as good as another}.

7 For her blood was in the midst of her; {she put it on a bare rock}; she [did] not pour it on the ground to cover it [with] dust.

Footnotes

• [a] Or possibly "logs"; the difference is one letter in Hebrew
• [b] Literally "boil its boiling"
• [c] Or "also"