‘Thus says the Lord Yahweh, “I will also take of the lofty top of the cedar, and will set it. I will crop off from the topmost of his young twigs a tender one, and I will plant it on a high and eminent mountain. In the mountain of the house of Israel will I plant it, and it will bring forth boughs, and bear fruit, and be a goodly cedar. And under it will dwell all fowl of every wing. They will dwell in the shadow of its branches.” '
In Ezekiel 17:4 the topmost of the young twigs represented Jehoiachin. Thus here we have a prophecy of the rise of the future expected Davidic king (Ezekiel 34:23; Ezekiel 37:24; Isaiah 9:6-7; Isaiah 11:1-5; Jeremiah 23:5-6), partially fulfilled in Zerubbabel, but only finding its final fulfilment in Jesus Christ. This young twig will be planted in the mountain of the house of Israel, thus he will grow from a nation of Israel again established in the land.
The fact that it comes from the top of a lofty cedar, and is planted on a high and eminent mountain stresses his greatness and pre-eminence. He will grow and prosper and achieve pre-eminence for he will bring forth boughs and bear fruit and be a goodly cedar. And all birds of every kind will dwell in his branches, a picture of all nations finding shelter in him. Compare Matthew 13:2 where this refers to the Kingly Rule of God introduced by Jesus.
It is significant that Ezekiel does not make the mountain of the house of Israel more specifically the mountain of Yahweh's house as earlier prophets do (Isaiah 2:2; Micah 4:1), as many commentators do here. But ‘the mountain' regularly means the hill country stretching from Galilee in the north to Judah in the south. The idea of the temple being central is deliberately avoided. It is the king who is central.