Ezekiel 14:1

1 Then came certain of the elders of Israel to me, and sat before me.

Ezekiel 14:1 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 14:1

Then came certain, of the elders of Israel unto me
The Syriac version adds, "to consult the Lord"; by the prophet. These, according to Kimchi, were the elders of the captivity, the heads of the captives that were now in Babylon with Ezekiel: but there are others that think they were some that came from Jerusalem to Babylon on some business or another; and having heard much of the prophet, came to visit him, and to hear his prophecies, and inquire of the Lord by him: and sat before me;
silent and pensive, as persons in anxiety and distress; or as hearers of him, for sitting is a hearing gesture; they sat and heard with great attention, gravity, and seriousness, with seeming affection and reverence; and all this was not in a visionary way, but was a real fact; see ( Ezekiel 33:31 Ezekiel 33:32 ) .

Ezekiel 14:1 In-Context

1 Then came certain of the elders of Israel to me, and sat before me.

2 The word of Yahweh came to me, saying,

3 Son of man, these men have taken their idols into their heart, and put the stumbling block of their iniquity before their face: should I be inquired of at all by them?

4 Therefore speak to them, and tell them, Thus says the Lord Yahweh: Every man of the house of Israel who takes his idols into his heart, and puts the stumbling block of his iniquity before his face, and comes to the prophet; I Yahweh will answer him therein according to the multitude of his idols;

5 that I may take the house of Israel in their own heart, because they are all estranged from me through their idols.