“But you, son of man, hear what I say to you. Do not be rebellious like that rebellious house. Open your mouth and eat what I give you.”
Now Ezekiel was made to recognise that what he was to do would not be naturally to his liking, but he was warned that if he refused he would become like ‘the rebellious house'. So he was warned to take heed and not to rebel at what was required. God often requires of us what we do not want to do. We too must beware of being rebels.
“Open your mouth and eat what I give you.” This was probably a very picturesque way of saying receive, read, mark, accept and inwardly digest. It may, however, have included actually digesting the scroll as a symbol of having received it, for the book of Ezekiel contains demanding, acted out symbols elsewhere, although as a heavenly book in a vision it may have been more edible than papyrus or leather.