‘And the word of Yahweh came to me saying, “Son of man, speak to the children of your people and say to them, When I bring the sword on a land, if the people of the land take a man from among them and set him for their watchman, if when he sees the sword come on the land he blows the horn and warns the people, then whoever hears the sound of the horn and does not take warning, if the sword comes and takes him away, his blood will be on his own head. He heard the sound of the horn and did not take warning. His blood will be on him. Whereas if he had taken warning he would have delivered his life. But if the watchman sees the sword come, and does not blow the horn, and the people are not warned, and the sword comes and takes any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity, but his blood will I require at the watchman's hand.” '
‘And the word of Yahweh came to me saying.' Once again Ezekiel receives a direct word from Yahweh. ‘Son of man.' A continual reminder to Ezekiel that he is but a mortal man, and yet also bordering on a title by its constant use. It thus also designates him in its use as one chosen of God.
First a general principle is stated. The setting of watchmen to watch for the enemy was a common occurrence. Every border would have its watchtowers, every city its watchmen. And, as soon as an enemy was seen to be approaching, the long curved horns the watchmen carried would be sounded as a warning to the people, and would go on being sounded until they were sure that the people had heard. This gave those in the fields the opportunity to flee within the walled cities for refuge, and enabled the defending troops to ready themselves.
The responsibility was a great one, and they would use men with sharp eyes. The safety of the people would depend on their early warning. But once they had given their warning their task was done. It was then up to others to take notice of the warning and implement what was necessary for deliverance, and for those in the fields to seek refuge. Any failure then would not be the responsibility of the watchman, but of those who heard the warning.
But if the watchman saw the enemy coming and did not give warning, then their blood would rest on him. He would have failed in his duty and would be to blame for all that followed. It was an awesome responsibility. They would be blood guilty in the eyes of the relatives of the dead, and in the eyes of God.
‘When I bring a sword on the land.' In a sense every invader is under the hand of Yahweh. Nothing happens without His say so. But this also implies guilt on the part of the invaded nation. For some reason they are receiving punishment.
‘He is taken away in his iniquity.' The punishment is being exacted on this person. But if it is the watchman's fault, the watchman must also bear the blame. This is a hint of the application to follow. Note that in the illustration God has spoken of a land against which He has ‘brought the sword', therefore it is a blameworthy land and its people sinful. But they might have been spared if the watchman had done his duty. Thus we are prepared for the fact that a watchman of Yahweh is to be looked for, to turn men to repentance so that they may escape punishment.