Ezekiel 2:6 - Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible

Thou, son of man; thou a prophet, sent by him whose throne is highest, whom thou sawest as the appearance of a man in glory, and provided with power to protect thee. Be not afraid of them; cast away discouraging fear, be not dismayed at their persons; rulers, priests, and pretended prophets will oppose, but yet in the delivery of thy message fear none of them. Words, Heb. will bear counsels, or words, misreports, accusations, threats, flouts, or whatever else an envious and malicious heart can suggest to the tongue. Briers: here two words in the Hebrew are used, the first used only in this place, though frequently used in the Chaldee paraphrase, where it expresseth contumacy, as Exodus 7:14, of Pharaoh refusing to let Israel go, and Jeremiah 5:3, obstinate refusing to learn. But our translators, guided by the proper signification of the other word, have rendered it briers, which usually run up among thorns, and are a very fit emblem of the frowardness and keenness of sinners against God and his prophet, and of the sure destruction which will befall these briers and thorns when God shall send his judgments like fire amongst them. With thee; against thee. Scorpions: some say this is an herb which, because it is every way armed with sharp, pricking stings, hath this name given it; but if we retain the more common interpretation, it speaks the rage and heat, the poisonous malice, and the sly lurking craft and irreconcilableness, of these apostate Jews, and of all other contemners of God and religion. These men, like scorpions, undiscerned, wound, torment, and kill. Be not afraid; the admonition against sinful fear is repeated; lest Ezekiel should forget, or we in like case should fail of our duty, it is four times given in charge.