Forbear to cry, make no mourning for the dead, bind the tire of thine head upon thee, and put on thy shoes upon thy feet, and cover not thy lips, and eat not the bread of men.
Forbear to cry - or, 'Lament in silence;' literally, 'sigh (or groan), be silent:' thus God forbids not sorrow, but the loud expression of it (Grotius).
Make no mourning for the dead - typical of the universality of the ruin of Jerusalem, which would preclude mourning, such as is usual where calamity is but partial. "The dead" is purposely put in the plural, as referring ultimately to the dead who should perish at the taking of Jerusalem; though the singular might have been expected, as Ezekiel's wife was the immediate subject referred to: "make no mourning," such as is usual "for the dead, and such as shall be hereafter in Jerusalem," (Jeremiah 16:5-7, "Both the great and the small shall die in this land: they shall not be buried, neither shall men lament for them, etc.)
Bind the tire of thine head upon thee - thy head-dress (Fairbairn). Jerome explains, 'thou shalt retain the hair which is usually cut in mourning.' The fillet, binding the hair about the temples like a chaplet, was laid aside at such times. Uncovering the head was an ordinary sign of mourning in priests; whereas others covered their heads in mourning (2 Samuel 15:30, "David ... wept as he went up (Olivet), and had his head covered"). The reason was, the priests had their head-dress of fine twined linen given them for ornament, and as a badge of office. The high priest, as having on his head the holy anointing oil, was forbidden in any case to lay aside his head-dress. But the priests might do so in the case of the death of the nearest relatives (Leviticus 10:6-7, wherein Aaron, Eleazar, and Ithamar are directed "not to uncover their heads" at the death of Nadab and Abihu; 21:2-3,10); they then put on inferior attire, sprinkling also on their heads dust and ashes.
Put on thy shoes upon thy feet - whereas mourners went "barefoot" (2 Samuel 15:30).
Cover not thy lips - rather, the upper lip, together with the moustachio. It was usual in mourning to put a covering upon the upper lip and the moustachio: so the leper was directed to do (Leviticus 13:45; Micah 3:7).
Eat not the bread of men - the bread usually brought to mourners by friends in token of sympathy. So the "cup of consolation" similarly brought, Jeremiah 16:7. "Of men" means such as is usually furnished by men. So Isaiah 8:1, "a man's pen;" Revelation 21:17, "according to the measure of a man."