Cast ye away every man the abominations of his eyes The idols to which your eyes are lifted up. One of the chief allurements to the worship of images is, that by way of indulgence to men's imagination, they exhibit a visible object of adoration. This was what the Israelites were so fond of, when they said to Aaron, Make us gods to go before us, Exodus 32:1. And defile not yourselves with the idols of Egypt It is generally supposed that the Israelites, while they dwelt in Egypt, learned the idolatry of that country: the fact indeed is not recorded in the books of Moses; but it may be collected from their proneness to that sin in the wilderness. But they rebelled against me The history of the rebellions of the children of Israel begins as early as their beginning. So does the history of man's apostacy from his Maker. No sooner have we read the story of his creation than we meet with that of his rebellion. So we see here it was with Israel; a people designed to represent the body of mankind, both in their dealings with God, and in God's dealings with them. Then I said, I threatened, I will pour out my fury upon them Such a threatening as this is nowhere recorded in the Scriptures no more than that which follows Eze 20:23 of this chapter. Without question God might have justly cut them off in Egypt for their idolatries and other sins which they had committed, and never exerted his power for their deliverance. But I wrought for my name's sake For the glory of my mercy and faithfulness. That it should not be polluted before the heathen Reproached and blasphemed. This is elsewhere assigned as the reason why God did not punish the Israelites according to their deserts, namely, because it would have turned to God's dishonour in the judgment of the heathen world, as if he had not been able to make good those promises which he had given them. This was a proper consideration to check the vain presumption of the Jews, who imagined that God's gracious dealings with them were owing to their own merits.
Related Commentaries of Ezekiel 20:7
Ezekiel 20:7-9
7 Then said I unto them, Cast ye away every man the abominations of his eyes, and defile not yourselves with the idols of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.
8 But they rebelled against me, and would not hearken unto me: they did not every man cast away the abominations of their eyes, neither did they forsake the idols of Egypt: then I said, I will pour out my fury upon them, to accomplish my anger against them in the midst of the land of Egypt.
9 But I wrought for my name's sake, that it should not be polluted before the heathen, among whom they were, in whose sight I made myself known unto them, in bringing them forth out of the land of Egypt.