Ezekiel 7:2. An end, the end is come upon the four corners of the land. The end is come at once on the whole land of Judea and of Israel. The crown is fallen from the heads of David's house: they shall no more be regal shepherds of my people, till he come whose right it is to wear the crown.
Ezekiel 7:5. An evil, an only evil, behold is come. The Hebrew reads, an evil, one evil; and a repetition in Hebrew generally denotes the superlative degree, or the consummation of evil.
Ezekiel 7:10. Behold the day, behold it is come. Yes, he adds, the morning rays shoot into all the chambers of the east. The Assyrian camp is breaking ground. They soon will scale the walls of Jerusalem, profane and burn the sanctuary, and spread themselves to all the four corners of the land. The rod hath blossomed. Though the root of this word is not found in Hebrew, the LXX have “rabdos,” which signifies the sceptre of Nebuchadnezzar, that budded with bitterness, blossomed with slaughter, and ripened into violence in all the four corners of the land.
Ezekiel 7:12. Let not the buyer of your lands rejoice, nor the seller mourn. The richer jews, by taking advantage of their poor neighbours, and by stretching the law, had gained possession of all the family estates, and in such sort, that when the trumpet of jubilee sounded there were no lands to be restored. Well; the vengeance of God shall settle those disputes; both the buyer and the seller that escapes the sword, shall die in captivity.
Ezekiel 7:19. They shall cast their silver in the streets, to appease if possible the bloody ferocity of the soldiers. But the phrase, stumbling-block of their iniquity, denotes household gods of gold and silver, gods now cast as dung into the streets. During our civil wars between the houses of York and Lancaster, and latterly between the king and the parliament, many hid their money, and those who were killed have left no traces to their treasures: yet a few have been found by the plow, and by the masons.
Ezekiel 7:22. They shall pollute my secret… Here is a pause in the Hebrew; the heart of the prophet swelled with grief, and he could not super-add the word which is wanting. What, pollute the Holy of Holies the throne of Jehovah! What, pollute the sanctuary where a voice was once heard, declaring that the king of Assyria should not come into this place: ”I will defend this city, for David my servant's sake.” Now, the glory departs.
REFLECTIONS.
Before the Chaldeans had time to invade the holy land, our prophet invades it by his sermons. It is rarely the way of heaven to strike without paternal warnings, and warnings in every form. Long and dark had been the night of apostasy and crime; but the morning of awful justice opened at last, and with the brilliancy of the glittering sword. The preachers of righteousness had long been despised, but now all believe in the ministers of vengeance.
Here is a mirror for the christian world. What are they about, buying land, and building houses; covering the seas with ships, and filling their warehouses with riches. For whom are all these preparations. Is not a recovery from the evils of the fall by genuine conversion, the first duty of man? Do they in the bustle of life forget the reckoning, while hoary time is counting the days, the hours, and the seconds.
Oh earth, earth! Earth hear the word of the Lord: hear this prophet. Neither their gold nor their silver shall save them in the day of visitation. These in the eyes of an offended God are but as the dung in the streets. How terrible are these words of a long-insulted God: “I will bring the worst of the heathen, and they shall possess their houses.” Ah, that is the day when fasts and mournings shall be of no avail. Then, to-day, if you would hear his sweet voice of mercy and love, harden not your hearts by a continuance in sin.