Ezekiel 4:1

1 "And you, O son of man, take a brick and lay it before you, and portray upon it a city, even Jerusalem;

Ezekiel 4:1 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 4:1

Thou also, son of man, take thee a tile
Or "brick" ^F26. The Targum renders it, a "stone"; but a tile or brick, especially one that is not dried and burned, but green, is more fit to cut in it the figure of a city. Some think that this was ordered because cities are built of brick; or to show the weakness of the city of Jerusalem, how easily it might be demolished; and Jerom thinks there was some design to lead the Jews to reflect upon their making bricks in Egypt, and their hard service there; though perhaps the truer reason may be, because the Babylonians had been used to write upon tiles. Epigenes ^F1 says they had celestial observations of a long course of years, written on tiles; hence the prophet is bid to describe Jerusalem on one, which was to be destroyed by the king of Babylon; and lay it before thee:
as persons do, who are about to draw a picture, make a portrait, or engrave the form of anything they intend: and portray upon it the city; [even] Jerusalem;
or engrave upon it, by making incisions on it, and so describing the form and figure of the city of Jerusalem.

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FOOTNOTES:

F26 (hnbl) "laterem", V. L. Pagninus, Montanus, Junius & Tremellius, Polanus. Piscator.
F1 Apud Plin. Nat. Hist. l. 7. c. 56.

Ezekiel 4:1 In-Context

1 "And you, O son of man, take a brick and lay it before you, and portray upon it a city, even Jerusalem;

2 and put siegeworks against it, and build a siege wall against it, and cast up a mound against it; set camps also against it, and plant battering rams against it round about.

3 And take an iron plate, and place it as an iron wall between you and the city; and set your face toward it, and let it be in a state of siege, and press the siege against it. This is a sign for the house of Israel.

4 "Then lie upon your left side, and I will lay the punishment of the house of Israel upon you; for the number of the days that you lie upon it, you shall bear their punishment.

5 For I assign to you a number of days, three hundred and ninety days, equal to the number of the years of their punishment; so long shall you bear the punishment of the house of Israel.