Глава 7

Concluding the first section of prophetic speeches, this chapter complements previous speeches by considering the approaching catastrophe in relation to state and social institutions and generally depicting it more specifically. At the same time, the sweeping syllable of prophetic speech gives way to lyrics. The rise of feeling to lyrical pathos, striving to pour out in short unspoken sentences and rapidly alternating pictures of impending destruction and disaster, is explained, like the visionary nature of the last chapters, by the eschatological nature of the thought to which the prophet’s previous speeches gradually arrived, namely, that the end is coming; this position gives a theme that resonates throughout the chapter; the end is right before the eyes of the prophet. Being poetically measured, the chapter is divided into four parts-stanzas. The main idea of ​​the 1st stanza, ch. 2–9; the destruction of sinful Israel is inevitable; there are so many repetitions in this section of the chapter that every expression of v. 2–4 except 9b is repeated in verses 5–9, but repeated with significant additions; therefore, there is no need to recognize in Art. 2, 4 and 5–9 of two mechanically connected reviews: repetition is a feature of Ezekiel. Ezek.7:2. and you, son of man, [say]: Thus says the Lord God; The end of the land of Israel has come to the four corners of the earth. “Tell” is only in Greek, and in Hebrew. no, as in Ezek.39.17. - “The Land of Israel will end.” With the end of the Jewish theocracy, based on the principles of the Sinai legislation, Palestine ceased to be holy. land that was under the special influence of Providence; Wed Am 8.2; Lamentations 4.18. - “To the four corners of the earth.” Although the expression means the whole earth, it is of course only Palestine, as in Isaiah 24.4 (Palestine is called the universe) and maybe Matthew 27.45. Ezek.7:3. This is the end for you; And I will send My wrath upon you, and I will judge you according to your ways, and I will lay on you all your abominations. “The wrath of God” here seems to be hypostasized in the form of “evil angels” who come out, bringing disaster to the country: Job 20.23; Ps 77.49. – “Abominations” – that is, sins are represented as a burden that must be borne until they are atoned for (cf. Eze. 4.4). Ezek.7:4. And My eye will not spare you, neither will I have mercy, but I will repay you according to your ways, and your abominations will be with you, and you will know that I am the Lord. Art. 4a Ezek.5 .11b. “The end of you” - the third time. 4b, although it repeats the expressions of Article 3... but developing and explaining them: “I will judge according to the ways” means “I will reward according to the ways” (glorified, more precisely: “I will give your way to you”: guilt and punishment are in such a natural connection that the latter is actually only another form of the first); “I will place abominations on you” - “your abominations will be with you”, they will be visible to everyone. While the abomination is in the midst of the country, it remains unredeemed, as the blood cries out for vengeance until the earth opens to receive it. By “abomination” we mean, as Eze. 5.11 shows, idolatry; track. by “evil ways” is moral depravity. - “And you will know (in Greek and Peshito – singular) that I am the Lord.” The goal of all the punishing judgments of God in Ezekiel is always the same: knowledge of Jehovah; everything that happens is ultimately directed towards the glory of God (cf. Ezek. 6.7). Ezek.7:5. Thus says the Lord God: there is only one trouble, behold, trouble is coming. “The only trouble” is one that cannot have an equal (cf. Mt 24.21), or one after which another is impossible; Wed 1 Samuel 26:8. The brevity of the sentences and repetition well express the prophet's excitement at the sight of disasters. Ezek.7:6. The end has come, the end has come, it has come upon you; here I come, “I stood up to you (end)”, i.e. woke up (Vulg... vigilanit). The end, in fact, could and should have come a long time ago, since the measure of lawlessness has long been complete; but he was in a latent sleeping state. In euros pun: gakets gakits, reminiscent of Am 8.2. such a place in general seems to have been presented to Ezekiel here. - “Here it is.” J. b. the impersonal average may have meaning here. Ezek.7:7. The attack has come to you, inhabitant of the earth! the time is coming, the day of confusion is approaching, and not of joyful exclamations on the mountains. "Attack", Heb. tsefira, a word found in addition to this place and art. 10 is only found in Isaiah 28.5, where it is translated by everyone as “crown”; but this meaning does not apply here, which is why different interpreters give it many meanings here, the most likely of which is “attack” or, according to a similar Arabic root, “fate”, “fate”; Greek closer to Hebrew: πλυκη, slav. “weaving”, i.e. there must be a weaving of troubles. - “An inhabitant of the earth”, remaining peacefully in Judea. - “The time is coming,” i.e., “retribution for sins” (Targum). - “A day of confusion, not joyful exclamations on the mountains.” Of course there must be celebrations on the heights. Slav.: “not with rumors, lower with illnesses” (ωδινων, like Is 26.17 “groans during childbirth”); there will be no noise of life and joyfully heavy homelands; the word "mountain" in Hebrew gar LXX was read at the same time as the previous ged and it came out as “birth pangs.” Ezek.7:8. Behold, I will quickly pour out My wrath on you and bring My wrath upon you, and I will judge you according to your ways, and I will lay on you all your abominations. "Soon". Exactly after 3 years. “I do not predict your future and do not threaten distant people” (Blessed Jerome). LXX letters from euros “from near”, i.e. very soon; only here. Art. 8 tbsp. 3. Ezek.7:9. And My eye will not spare you, neither will I have mercy. I will repay you according to your ways, and your abominations will be with you; and you will know that I am the Lord, the punisher. Ezekiel 7 4th Art. Only “punisher” has been added. Thus, the repetition is not without further development of thought (as is the 8th article in relation to the 3rd article): the prophecy of Ezekiel, according to Ezekiel 2.5, has the immediate purpose only for the people to recognize the punishing hand of God in the coming disaster; Wed Ezek.25.7. Ezekiel 7:10–18 – form the second part (stanza) of this prophetic speech. The feeling of the prophet subsides and, starting from here, one can already follow his thoughts. The prophet begins to realize what exactly is being prepared for Judah, what awaits her. The impending evil fate, which with the necessity of nature grows out of the godlessness of the people, will put an end to all the abuses that, given the current lack of rights, make themselves felt so heavily, for under the terrible blows of war the state will be destroyed to the ground. In this section, one can even notice some chronological order in the description of the coming disaster, but a peculiar one, namely the reverse one - from end to beginning: the prophet is first struck by the sad consequences that the Chaldean conquest will leave in Judea (vv. 10-13); and then a terrible picture of the conquest itself looms before his eyes (vv. 14-18). Ezek.7:10. Here's the day! Here comes the attack! the rod grew, pride grew. "Day" . LXX add: “The Lord’s”; but what “day” itself means has been sufficiently known since Am 5.18. – “Rod” as an instrument of punishment; Vulgate successfully: virga, “scourge of God”; this is how the Assyrian kingdom is called in Ps 10.5, but here it should be the Chaldean kingdom. To this last d.b. The following clearly parallel expression also applies: “pride has grown”; Wed Jer 2.21 and Hab 1.6; Targum and Peshito understand the same. Indeed, the Chaldean monarchy grew almost before the eyes of the generation of that time and blossomed with the vigor and freshness of youth (glory: “prosper the rod”). Others attribute the last expression to Judea: its pride grew to the point that it caused the appearance of a rod that would punish her. Ezek.7:11. Power arises against the rod of wickedness; nothing will remain of them, and of their wealth, and of their noise, and of their pomp. “Strength” – Chaldea, “rod of wickedness” – Judea; the former is required by the context, and the latter is proved by the tribe being called a "rod" in Numbers 1.43; Nav 13.29. - It is further indicated how the pressure of this force will manifest itself on the wicked tribe of Judah: “nothing will remain of them” (lit.: “there is none of them,” i.e., none; slav.: “and they are not of them”) and from their wealth (more precisely from the Hebrew: “from the multitude,” i.e., the density of the population; slav.: “and not with clothing”, θορυβον, with noise, i.e. the destruction of Judea by the Chaldeans will happen without much military noise, easily) and from their splendor (the unknown Hebrew word Noag is translated this way based on Theodotion, Symmachus and the rabbis; famous “beauties”, ωραισμος). Ezek.7:12. The time has come, the day has come; he who buys do not rejoice, and he who sells do not weep; for wrath is upon all their multitude. The catastrophe will cause a complete distortion of normal relations and the cessation of industrial enterprises, for example, trade. - “Whoever bought it, do not rejoice.” Usually the seller is happier than the buyer; if here it’s the other way around, then it means a forced sale, at a loss, as in Isaiah 5.5; Mic 2.2. As the continuation of this thought in Art. 13: “for the one who sold will not return to what was sold”, of course, mainly real estate: lands, houses, and, they think, those that the aristocracy resettled in Babylonia with Jehoiachin and Ezekiel should have sold for next to nothing to those who remained in Judea (Smend): the prophet consoles these sellers for losses with the fact that their estates would have perished anyway during the upcoming final conquest of Judea; They have now gained at least something for the lost estate, while those who took advantage of their misfortune to buy the estate cheaply will soon lose both it and the money they paid. But perhaps here it is generally indicated that during the conquest the most valuable property will perish, the acquisition of which is met with joy, and the alienation of which is decided with tears and under the influence of extreme need (cf. Lev. 25.25). - “For wrath is upon all their multitude.” A large number of those doomed to destruction will not stop the punishment; God's wrath cannot be overcome by mercy. Ezek.7:13. For the one who sold will not return to the one who was sold, even if they remain alive; for the prophetic vision of their entire multitude will not be canceled, and no one will strengthen his life by his iniquity. One can understand the return of sold estates to their former owners in the jubilee year. It is possible that here, as noted in the explanation of article 12, it is said about the prophet’s fellow captives that they will never (even in the year of jubilee) return to the sold estates (why you shouldn’t cry that they were sold cheaply), since the Babylonian captivity will not end in this generation. Although jubilee years, as can be seen from Jeremiah 34, were often not observed, the Babylonian conquest would make it impossible to observe them even if desired. Is it really possible that in this way the laws of theocracy, unchangeable as the will of God itself, will cease to operate on earth? Yes, the prophet answers this later in the verse. No less invariable (“will not return,” i.e., back to God unfulfilled, cf. Isa. 55:11, 45:23) is the prophetic vision. “Vision” is often called every revelation to a prophet: Isa 1.1 etc.; here, probably, the immediate predictions about the destruction of the kingdom and 70 years of captivity are meant. “Above all their multitude”, next. both over selfish buyers and over distressed sellers; see the explanation of the parallel expression in v. 12. - “No one will strengthen his life by his iniquity.” A profitable purchase of land will not serve the future, because it was made with sin, and sin destroys life; this new sin, taking advantage of someone else's misfortune, will further increase retribution. - Slav. “The one who has previously attracted the seller will not return to him and is still living,” that is, he will not make other equally profitable purchases throughout the entire subsequent, already short life (or as Blessed Theodoret: “wishing to change the bill of sale”), because he will perish along with the entire multitude of Jews. “A man in the midst of life (instead of “avon”, “sin” LXX they read “ayin”, “eye”) his own self will not be strengthened”: when life, thanks to such a profitable purchase, just began to smile at him, imminent death awaits him with general destruction. Ezek.7:14. The trumpet will be blown, and everything will be prepared, but no one will go to war: for My wrath is upon all their multitude. The description of the conquest begins with a strong poetic phrase: “blow the trumpet”; rus. contrary to Heb. and LXX (slav.: “blow the trumpet”) puts will express. mood: “to sound the trumpet.” In response to the call of the military commanders (with a trumpet) for general armament (“and everything is being prepared” so that everything is prepared; glorified: “all judge”; think over the plan, warriors), everyone tries to evade military service: God in anger will deprive everyone of their courage, strike the people with cowardice just for this fateful time (Lev. 26.17; Deut. 28.25). Ezek.7:15. Outside the house there is a sword, but in the house there is pestilence and famine. He who is in the field will die by the sword; and whoever is in the city will be devoured by famine and pestilence. Battles on the open field end in complete defeat, the cities are unable to withstand the severity of the siege and are forced to surrender by famine and epidemic. Of course, not the entire population will die; hyperbole here. The expressions are reminiscent of Matthew 24.16–18; Mark 13.15–16. “They will be devoured by hunger” is an oxymoron (a combination of contradictory concepts). Ezek.7:16. And the survivors of them will run away and will be on the mountains, like doves of the valleys; they will all groan, each for his own iniquity. The only salvation will be in flight to the inaccessible Palestinian mountains (cf. 1 Mac 2.28; Matthew 24.16). But what a pitiful picture these fugitives present: like “doves of the valleys,” they must be domesticated, they “moan” pitifully (the ancients considered the cooing of doves to be a groan of pain: Virgil, Eclog: I, 56), realizing only now and so late each of their sins. Ezek.7:17. Everyone's hands will drop, and everyone's knees will tremble like water. The fear of the inhabitants (or, in particular, the fugitives of v. 16) for their lives will be so strong that it will manifest itself externally: their hands will hang helplessly, powerless to take hold of anything, and their legs will refuse to serve, trembling like water (cf. Joshua 7.5; Ps 21:15, 109.24; Job 4.4); glav.: “and the whole thigh is scalded with wetness” (urinary incontinence). Ezekiel 7:18. Then they will gird themselves with sackcloth, and trembling will come over them; and everyone will have shame on their faces, and everyone will have bald spots on their heads. Continuing to depict the mental state of the inhabitants of Judea during the Chaldean conquest, which is a mixture of grief, fear and shame, the prophet either looks into their souls (2nd and 3rd sentences), then observes the external manifestation of feelings (1st and 4th), and the description goes from head to toe; they are girded with sackcloth as a sign of sorrow, Heb. “sak”, a coarse hairy material that was used to wrap the body above the waist; how clothes cover them trembling, trembling with fear; blush appears on the face from shame, perhaps for defeat; all heads are shaved as a sign of grief for relatives killed in the war (cf. Micah 1.16). Ezekiel 7:19–22. The insignificance of everything that was hoped for will be revealed: wealth (see 19), idols (20-21) and the church itself (v. 22). Ezek.7:19. They will throw their silver into the streets, and their gold will be neglected. Their silver and their gold will not save them much in the day of the wrath of the Lord. They will not satisfy their souls with them and fill their bellies; for it was the occasion of their iniquity. Silver and gold have no price during a famine, since it is impossible to buy bread with them; like rubbish, precious metals will be thrown into the street, which so bitterly disappointed the hopes of their owners and were the cause of many sins (luxury, etc., but not because idols were made from them, which will be discussed separately), and the next. and real punishment. Ezek.7:20. And in their red outfits they turned him into pride, and made from him images of their vile idols; therefore I will make him unclean to them; Ezekiel 7:21. And I will give it into the hands of strangers as a spoil, and to the wicked of the land as a spoil, and they will defile it. “What I gave for the decoration of clothes, they turned their wealth (gold and silver) into pride” (Blessed Jerome). This ingratitude was joined by an even more offensive one: they began to make idols from precious metals, this best gift of God, adding to pride, this deification of oneself, the deification of metals. God will deprive these images, vile for God, but sacred for admirers, of holiness in the eyes of admirers, an essential feature of these images, through the desecration to which idols will be subjected, falling into the unclean hands of conquerors, everywhere; famous for their disrespect for native shrines. Ezekiel 7:22. And I will hide My face from them, and they will defile My hidden things; and robbers will come there and defile it. The third, apparently the strongest and most reliable support of the perishing kingdom will be destroyed - the church, which will cease to be a church (shrine) when it is desecrated by the fact that the unclean will enter into parts inaccessible to the faithful ("they will come there") and plunder its vessels, inviolable for the laity ("robbers", LXX: "not dangerous", i.e. they will enter the church harmless to yourself). The church here is called by a word that is not named anywhere, but which breathes the deep sorrow of God for its destruction: “My hidden”, i.e. either “inaccessible-hidden”, or “My treasure” (LXX: “My guard”, επισκοπην - a place of observation and management of the holy people); In view of the rarity of such a name for a church, they think without sufficient reason that what is meant here is not a church, but either a sanctuary, or the treasures of a church, or, finally, the saint himself. city. The desecration of the church will be possible only due to the fact that God will “turn away” “His face” from the Jews (an expression often found in Ezekiel, but found only once in this speech), as if he would not look at this difficult sight for him; While the church existed, Jehovah mercifully turned His face towards the people; now He will leave the country and people. It is remarkable that neither here nor in Chapters VIII-XI. Ezekiel does not predict the destruction of the church, but only its desecration and abandonment by God: the church, not completely burned by Nebuchadnezzar, was soon rebuilt; therefore, for prophetic contemplation, it was not destroyed materially, but only spiritually, which was even more terrible. Ezekiel 7:23–27. The measure of sins was fulfilled, and God pronounced his judgment, which will soon be carried out by the worst and most cruel peoples of the earth. The proud city will fall blow by blow, no one will give advice or help, and dull despair will take possession of both high and low society - this is required by the justice of Jehovah, Who wants to finally reveal Himself in His true being. Thus, the prophet, in his review of the future fall of Jerusalem, going from the end of the catastrophe to its beginning, in this section of the speech reaches its first moments, when the news of the invasion of the cruel conqueror first reached Jerusalem and stunned everyone. Ezekiel 7:23. Make a chain, for this land is filled with bloody atrocities, and the city is full of violence. “Make a chain” as a sign of captivity. The imperative mood hardly has its own meaning here, but some other one, as in Am 9.1; Moreover, the authenticity of the expression is doubtful: in Heb. stands “rattok” - which means not a chain, but a chain; ancient translations do not confirm the Hebrew. readings: LXX: “they will create a rebellion” (i.e., before the invasion, there will be a rebellion in the country, which will make it easier for the enemy to conquer); Vulg.: “make a conclusion” - to speech. The sins of Judah are here, as in Ezek.9.9; Ezek.11.6 cf. Ezek.8.17 indicates something different than in ch. V, VI, VIII “this land is filled with bloody atrocities, and the city is full of violence.” Of course, there are probably all kinds of bloodshed and violence that were caused by the complete perversion of all relations after the resettlement of Jehoiachin; Wed Ezek. 7:12, 26:18; Ezek. 22; Ezek.24; esp. Ezek.22:25, 27 Wed. c Lamentations 4.12–15. The second reproach seems weaker than the first; but there could not have been as many murders in the city as throughout the entire state. Ezekiel 7:24. I will bring the wickedest of the nations, and they will take possession of their houses. And I will put an end to the arrogance of the mighty, and their holy things will be profaned. The enemies that God will bring against Judah will correspond in their degree of ferocity to the guilt of the country. This was Ezekiel's opinion of the Babylonian conquerors; Wed in Art. 21: “the wicked of the earth.” For violence against the poor, the Jews themselves will lose during the invasion not only all their property, but also their shelter; for “bloody atrocities” (v. 23), taking away from a person God’s most precious gift to him - life, “their shrines”, glory: “holy”, that is, the sanctuary, the church, which the Jews treasured so much, will be desecrated. – “I will put an end to their arrogance” is unanimously understood to mean the destruction of the church, which was the pride (glory: “the majesty of the fortress”, cf. Lev. 26.11; Isa. 13.11) of the Jews (“strong”, considering themselves strong because of the possession of the church; but it is better to read with LXX “strength”, “fortress”, and not “strong”). Ezek.7:25. Destruction is coming; They will seek peace and will not find it. Having indicated the immediate cause of the impending disasters and their nature, the prophet returns to describing them. “Destruction” - kefada - απ λεγ, which may be more correctly translated by the newest interpreters in connection with the following verses: “fear”, “fear”, glory. “praying”, εξιλασμος, repentance (later!). - “Peace” - salvation. Ezek.7:26. Trouble will follow trouble and message after message; and they will ask the prophet for a vision, and there will be no teaching from the priest or advice from the elders. “Trouble... after trouble.” Heb. Gova LXX is translated by interjection (grief), οδαι επι ουαι. Blazh. Jerome contrasts with what is said to the saints: “Rejoice and rejoice.” – “Message after message” (in German Hiobpost - “Job’s post”). Terrible news about the arrival and cruelty of the invading troops will come one after another from all sides. – The following describes the confusion of the previously arrogant spiritual leaders of the people, of whom 5 classes are indicated (with the people themselves 6): prophets, priests, elders, king and princes. “They will ask the prophet for a vision,” that is, through him, the revelation of God (v. 13) about whether there is still a means left to avoid the threatening disasters; Zedekiah did so according to Jeremiah 38.14. Since there will be no more prophets due to abandonment by God, revelation will be sought in vain. There may, of course, be false prophets. “And there will be no teaching (lit. “law”, “torah”) with the priest.” The priests will not be able to give guidance from the law regarding the course of action. This remark about the priest deserves attention: “not as performers of sacrifices, but as persons giving instructions, priests appear here in terms of their significance in the spiritual sphere of life, and the law, the Torah, is a living force that responds to every occasion and does not renounce before it” (Wellhausen, Proll. 3rd ed. 414). - “Elders” is not a social class (elders, the heads of clans, which are discussed in the next verse), but an age rich in life experience. Ezekiel 7:27. The king will lament, and the prince will be clothed with horror, and the hands of the people of the earth will tremble. I will deal with them according to their ways, and according to their judgments I will judge them; and they will know that I am the Lord. “The king will lament”, slav.: “will cry”, instead of leading the repulse to the enemy, while this is easier to do. Ezekiel usually calls Zedekiah “prince” “our,” the word that now comes next, which is why some LXX codices do not read this sentence. - “Prince”, i.e. all the heads of clans and rulers who, with their presence of mind, could compensate for the cowardice of the king; and they will be more confused than him. “The people of the earth”, the common people (cf. 2 Kings 21:24, 23:30. According to Bertholet, Ezekiel’s aristocratic origin is read between the lines) “the hands will tremble”, they will not be able to hold weapons that could protect them and correct the matter spoiled by unworthy leaders (cowardice of the army). All this cowardice, like the previously calculated disasters, will be the work of a punishing God. You might be interested in: