PUBLIC-DOMAIN CHRISTIAN BOOK
The Pulpit Commentary — Ezekiel — Volume 2
Edward Hayes Plumptre [1821-1891] · 422,810 words · 476 reading sections
The Pulpit Commentary — Ezekiel — Volume 2 — Section 241
Energy springs from the new heart. It pulsates with the vigour of a glad, strong life. ( 4) Natural,, The heart is of flesh, not of some foreign angelic substance. Sin ia monstrous, goodness natural. The true Christian is natural ; be is intensely human. God's work in the soul brings a man into close sympathy with his …
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stain of guilt are gone. Still the sin is not undone. The restored penitent must feel that his was an evil past. God forgets his sin, but he cannot forget it himself. II. THE MEMORY OF PAST sm SHOULD NOT BECOME A HAMPERING BUBDE:i. It jg possible that it may be so in a morbid conscience. But if God has forgiven our Ri…
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HOMILIES BY VARIOUS AUTHORS. Vere. S--t2--Promise of revival, Ezekiel is inspired to foretell the-·confusion of the enemies of Israel who have brought about her calamities, and who delight in her humiliation, and in their contempt deride her sorrows. But this in itself is small con- solation. And he adds predictions o…
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the spring, the promise of the year, have not been delusive. "Herein," says Christ, "ie my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit." V. 'rnE MEASURE OF REVIVAL. "I will do better unto you than at your begin- nings." Such is the gracious assurance of the Almighty. Israel had known times of benediction and prosperi…
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he saved f~o~ the sin wh!ch was the occASion oC their calamities. They shall experi• ence a spmtual renovat10n-they shall be cleansed, renewed, and sanctified. The .change shall be within the spiritual nature, nnd it shall manifest itself in the outer life, -wh!ch sh~ll l~ _made a life of purity ~nd of ?bedience. Th…
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with all upon whom God has mercy. He puts his Spirit within them, and thus the life which would otherwise have been impracticable becomes the life deliberately chosen and consistently and perseveringly followed out.-T. Ver. 31.-Self-knowledge and self-loathing. It is instructive to observe that this assertion that Isr…
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to Israel; and then, afterwards, it is affirmed that, for this blessing, God requires that bis people should make supplication to him. The fact is that unless there be a basis for prayer in the explicit a~surances of G-o<l., although it may be a natural and instinc- tive, it can hardly be a reasonable, exercise. I.…
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Il. THE LAND OF CANAAN WAS AN IMPORTANT FACTOR IN IBBAEL'8 PAST RENOWll'. This land bad been specially selected by God as the most fitting scene for the training of the Hebrew nation. It was the glory of all lands, the envy of surrounding nations. Compared with the territory north, or east, or south, it was splendidly …
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revealing more clearly his active righteousness to Israel; and thia with a view to arouse their drugged and drowsy consciences. The equity and justice of his sceptre had been vividly portrayed. The keen edge of his judicial sword had been felt. Some movements of better feeling in the exiles were apparent. And now Go…
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severe that we prefer to keep aloof from him I" Such were the judgrnente of men. But this was the result of ignorance. This was derogatory to God. This prejudiced the public mind against just conceptions of God. Now, it had been God's high design to unveil gradually to mankind all the fulness of his nature-his strong a…
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is known, he will be admired, trusted, loved, served. If the soil of the heart be broken up and pulverized, the knowledge of God, like living seed, will grow and flourish and beRr a rich harvest of fruit. "They that know thy Name will puf-iheir trust in thee." This heart-knowledge of God brings eternal life. Misunde…
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They well knew his faithfolness. No word of his had ever failed, nor ever would. If he had fulfilled his threats of evil, much more would he fulfil his promises of good. III. Gon's GIFTS ABE SUSPENDED UPON HU.MAN PBAYEB. 1. This was an honour conferred _upon men. God takes imperfect men into partnership with himself. …
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was God who caused the children of Israel to lose their heritage and to be carried away as they were. Their sorrows were the penalty of their sin; it was the hand of the Lord that was laid upon them. Yet their distressing condition 'called forth the Divine compassion. It was in mercy, in true pity, that he saw them …
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-irreligion, disobedience, rebellion, degradation, ruin, death. We may well pray, "Hallowed be thy Name; n for aa men speak of God, and as they think of him and know him, so will they order their lives and construct their character and choose their destiny. We ought, similarly, to be concerned about our name. Not that …
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citizenship is to be in heaven (see Phil. iii. 20). <rt>d is to be our God, and we are tc be his people. All human and earthly relationships are to find their highest and best illustration in those which are '' in the heavens," which are spiritual and eternal. Communion between ourselves and our Father in heaven is to …
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EXPOSITION. the bones are declared to be those, not of CHAPTER XXXVII. the whole family of man, bnt merely of the This cho.pter embraces, in its earlier seo- honse of Israel At the same time, thoso tion (vers. 1-14), the conoluding portion of interpreters are right who, like llengsten- the "word of God" begun at eh.…
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intensified inspiration is evident, not alone the natural and purely human consoiousnees from the contents of the vision, but also of the same," to whioh Israel's restoration from the language in which it is recorded. appeared e.s unlikely e.n ooourrenoe e.e the And carried me out in the Spirit of the Lord. reanimat…
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the reconstructed skelet.on : corresponding Spirit, in resuscitating Israel, wonld make to the two stage& into which the process of use of all the varied forces that were then man's original creation was divided (Gen. working in the world (Plumptre). The ii. 7). The result would be that the resur- designation of the…
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our hope, i.e., of ever again returning to Olll' NoTB.--On the above nine verses (6-14) own le.nd or regaining natione.l existence- Plumptre writes," We can soaroely fail to and we are out off for our pa.rta; literally, toe ar-e oul off for- oursel11es; which Gesenius find, in our Lord's words in John v., some- exp…
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Revised Versions), or" For Joseph and the the Revised Version margin, "And will put whole house of Israel" (Keil), or simply them together with it, unto [ or, 'to be'] the "For Joseph" (Ewald, Hiivernick, Smead), stick of Judah." Keil's rendering, "I will cannot be determined. Each interpreta- take the stick of Joseph …
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a people devoted to righteoUBDess. Viewed eternity (see on eh. xvi. 60 : and comp. Gen. in this light, their oom land 'was first xvii. 7: lee.. lv. 3; Jer. xxxii. 40): which Canaan, in eo far as after the exile it was guarantees the continuance between him cleansed from idolatry: now it is those and them of undying …
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HOMILETICS. Vera. 1-14.-The valley of dry bones. I. A VISION OF REBTOBATION, Undoubtedly, the restoration of Israel is the immediate thought in the mind of Ezekiel. He sees bis people stricken to death. 'l'be nation is virtually dead. The exiled citizens ot Jerusalem have lost all spirit and energy. But with the resto…
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hopc1ess confusion. Was there ever a scene of more perfect and utter deadness? Yet the prophet is _required ~ preach to these dry bones I St. Peter preaching to the fishes aud St. Francis prenchmg to the birds had at least living audiences, though soulless oues. But here we have a preacher to dry bones. What is most…
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the more naturally drawn together, Perhaps this result will give us one explanation of the mystery of sorrow. II. A COMMON BLESSING. The call to return is for all Israel. All men are called to share in the restoring mercies of Christ. Christians who have responded to the gracious invitation of the gospel and entered i…
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The whole tendenoy of life is towards absorption in things temporal, oonorete, visible- eating and drinking, clothing and building, merry-makino- and amusement&. Even in religion we tend to degenerate to the sensuous, and mus~ and pageantry threaten to supersede worship and meditation. The visible ritual endangers t…
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Ver. 27.-God's tabernacle. I. Goo Is IN TlIE MIDST OF ms PEOPLE. He is not a distant dlvinity seated on cloud-capped Olympus or hidden in remote heavenly regions. He visits the earth and even dwells there. We recognize his presence in the beauty of spring and the wealth of autumn ; we hear his voice in the thunderst…
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HOMILIES BY VARIOUS AUTHORS. Vers. 1-3.-The vcilley of d,ea,th. 'l'he picture so impressively presented in these verses is a picture of the Israelitish people in their Eastern captivity. 'l'be national life is for a period suspended. The people a.re dead and dry as bones scattered upon the surface of an open valley wh…
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that the bones of the dead, strewn upon a battle-field, should be restored to life and should become again an army of mighty warriors. To the mind that thinks deeply o.nd justly it will seem still more surprising that our humanity, sunk in the slumber and the death of sin, should awake to newness of life, should rec…
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ceremonial, but spiritual. Idolatry, at all events, was for ever abandoned; many of the temptations of former times were for ever outgrown. Some good was thus effected, and good of such a nature as to confer a real service and blessing upon mankind. V. THE GIVING OF GLORY TO WHOM IT wAB DUE. In two respects especial…
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Ver. 27.-The tabemack of God with men. There can be no question that one great purpose of the appointment, first of the tabernacle, and then of the temple, as the centre of t be national and religious life of Israel, was to familiarize the people with the thought of God's constant presence in the midst of them, as w…
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aspirations are dead. 'l'L.e hope of immortality is dead. Departing from God, men become "earthly, sensual, devilish." The captivity of the grave aptly symbolizes their estate. The high design of their being is frustrated. Severance from God is followed by the rupture of social ties, mutual discords, and mutual hate…
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on a 111,rger and nobler scale. Time is a picture of eternity. What was really good in the past shall reappear in the future. Israel's passage through the Red Sea was a symbol of later deliverances. The royal life of David shall be reproduced. As the secret principle of D1tvid's power and David's prosperity was that…
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"That they all may be one, that the world may believe that thou didst send me." It is little short of a miracle that the kingdom of our Lord should be maintained, much less grow, when so much division exists. That man contracts no light sin who uses his influence in keeping Christians apart. Ilea\ schism is a monstrous…
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III. TH& BLESSED ISSUE IN NEWNESS OF LIFE. "'l'hey lived, and stood up . . . an exceeding great army [or 'force 'l" (ver. 10). The glorious issue of this agency, human and Divine, is (1) life,-life in God's view, life in God, life unto God, life now and ever- more with God; it is (2) largely extended life,-an exceeding…
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far Greater than David is he (see homily on eh. :nxiv. 23, 24). He will have no rival in the day of the Lord, when all the Churches of Christ shall know and love the truth, and exalt him in the eyes of the world. II. ITS UNITY. (Vers. 21, 22.) The time will come when the Divine Head of the Church will look down upo…
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Ver. 1.-The word of the Lord came unto oomo into contact with these Soythie.n tribes, me. Although this oracle is unaccompanied either e.s part of Nobuchadnezze.r's e.rm101 by any note of time, it wa.s obviously delivered by a journey on his part into the rog1on1 before the twenty-fifth year of the Captivity north of A…
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o.long with Mesech o.nd Tube.I, is mentioned ' Herodotus,' vol. iii. p. 34, note 6). All of e. third nation, Tira8, which Von Ho.mmer them olothed with all sorts of armour, better, hus nttempted to connect with Rosh; while ilothed with perfectum, i.e. splendidly attired, Schroclersees in Rosh (o.llied to '1'088, "hor…
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late, that Gog, who i1;1~nd~ to visit Israel, 16; and comp. Jer. iv.13). Ta.ken together, should himself be v1&1ted, ID the sense of the images eugge.st that Gog'e inrnsion being punished. In support of the former should burst forth suddenly, rage violenLly, rendering appeal is ta.ken to Neh. vii. l ; spread quickly, a…
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not the" o.utborities" of Te.rsbisb, as Hitzig The former opinion, though countenanced suggests, but its smo.ller tro.desmen who by Ewald, Kuenen, and Smend, is less pro- were equally rapa.cioas with its lo.rger bable than the latter, which expositors both merchants. All a.re depicted as following e.nclent and modem fe…
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trembling of the whole earth, with all the or, "rock-clefts" (Ewald), such elevations creatures, before the Lord, who comes to as can only be ascended by means of steps judgment, as in Joel iv. 16 and Zech. xiv. as by a ladder (comp. Cant. ii.14), and walla 4, 5, since the locality in which this con- (comp. Jer. xv. 20…
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more must there be a judgment of Israel; if the savages of Africa must give an account of the deeds done in the body, much more must the Christians of Europe appear before the judgment-seat of God, IV, CHRISTIANITY BRINGS A GOSPEL OF SALVATION AND UNION FOB ALL NATIONS, It even includes Gog and Magog in its gracious …
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after many days more these best blessings of God will still endure. The things which are not seen are eternal (2 Cor. iv. 18). No moth nor rust corrupt the heavenly trea.5ures. When all things on earth fade these shall abide, the everlasting inheritance of God's people. Ver. 10.-" An evil thought." I. AN EVIL THOUGHT …
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Heaven is a eafe place, and its blessed inhabitante dwell there secnrely. Their security, indeed, is sound and enduring; while ours on earth may be but brief and treacherous, like the calm on a mountain lake, which may be broken at any moment by a sudden 114uall. Still, while we enjoy the peace we may be thankful for…
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Ver. 21.-Mutual antagonism. I. MUTUAL ANTAGONISM IS OOMMON. In primitive times it was well-nigh universal. Pre-historic man seems to have lived in a state of perpetual warfare; and in the present day savages are often at war one with another; they maintain continuous feuds-tribe against tribe, clan against clan, family…
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HOMILIES BY VARIOUS AUTHORS. Vere. 1-18.-The inva.,ion of those who dwell secure. Tho occurrenco in this place of this e.nd the following chapters is somewhat perplexing. 'fhe events hero propheti- cally described take place after the restoration of tbo Israelites from their Eastern captivity. Yet they are altogether …
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III. IT IS VARIOUSLY EXEROIBED. Sometimes God controls the foe by natural causes and instrumentalities. The destroying angel comes down upon the camp and smites the host; pestilence decimates the bands of the enemy; an earthquake opens the prison-doors; the storm scatters the invader's fleet. Sometimes God controls the…
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their own craftiness," their wisdom is seen to be but folly, "In quietness and in confi• dence shall be your strength;" "The Lord shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your peace." The enemy may devise; but he will not be suffered to execute his devices.-T. Vers. 14-22.-The invader discomfited. .Although it woulcl be…
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granted to the prophet. God anticipates the gravest evil. He reveals to his people that this criminal conspiracy will end in complete disaster to its originators, and that Israel's triumph will oo complete e.nd perpetual. Ezekiel's face was set firmly against Gog, because God's face was against him. I. GOD'S KINGDO…
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Thus God dealt with Pharaoh at the Red Sea, and thus he purposes to deal with the unscrupulous monarch of the north. Their disastrous fortunes should leave on all surviving minds the vital lesson that Jehovah is the Supreme King, and that he is worthy of universal homage. I. WIOKED MEN ARE THE DUPES OF SLENDEREST T…
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contest God will address himself to the minds and hearts of the people. "I will magnify myself." Impossible I God cannot. magnify himself. He cannot be greater than he is. But he will make his greatness known. By such mighty deeds he will reveal to men bis invisible power, his matchless skill, his various excellences, …
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seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death" (Prov. xiv. 12). There are p.'iths that attract us, that we enter upon with keen expectanoy, that we pursue with pleasure, but that, in time, we find to be wrong ; then is it best to turn back, and to " return on our way " a,t once. I. MISTAKEN PA…
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see that it is not invaded and defiled. That it may be preserved in its purity and integrity it becomes him : 1. To recognize the strength of ,he enemy. To remember and to realize that the adversaries of his soul are many, subtle, and strong; they are such as these-covetousness, passion, pride, intemperance, worldlines…
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EXPOSITION. CHAPTER XXXIX. ravenous birds of every ■ort; or, wing. The language depicts an army on the Of the two me.in divisions of this chapter, me.roh, followed by jackals, vultures, and the first (vers. 1-20) depicts the greatness other birds of prey, ready to feast upon of the overthrow of Gog; the second (ve…
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of Gog's destruction and of Israel's de- modem designation Lejun ( Legio), in all pro- livero.noe. Tho.t the whole delinee.tion is bo.bility contains e. reminiscence of the present symbolice.l o.ppeo.rs from the number of passage. It is, however, open to the obvious years the weapons are so.id to serve for objections t…
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derived its designation, after tlie event, from through, that remain-upon the fe.oe of the the passing through it or through the land land. Here, ago.in, the old play upon the of the searchers, in which case the stopping word "passengers" recurs, e.nd with it two of the passengers can only have alluded to or three d…
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Ver.16.-Ae o.notber mark to distinguish know. The speoial lesson for them should Gog'e tomb, a oity should arise in its vi- be not so muoh teaching concerning God's cinity, bearing the name Hamonah, or" Mul- supremacy over them, or concerning their titude" (comp. lee.. :rix. 18, "the city of relation to Israel, as c…
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tivity and the Restoration, the driving on, assailant ,of the latter times - Gog, whioh and the bringing in, should complete their discovers itself to be an ideal name, if by conversion to Jehovah, and seoure their perpetual enjoyment of Jehovah'& favour. nothing elae by the manner in whioh it has Ver. 29.-I have p…
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HOMILETICS. Ver. 8.-God'apurpose accomplisMd. The prophet does not dream dreams of idle fancy, build castles in the air, or terrify men with nightmares of unreal judgment& The Word of God comes true. The predicted day arrives, the promised action is per- formed-" It is come, and it is done.' L IN CREATION. God spake…
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Il, Goo HAS MEANS FOR SPREADING HIS GLORY AMONG THE HEATHEN, 1, In jiidgments. 'l'his seems to be the method suggested in the chapter now under con- sideration. The restoration of Israel and the accompanying overthrow of her enemies will strike disruRy into the host of the enemy, and so impress them with the might …
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from me" (Pe. li. 11). All joy and hope vanish from the Christian life when the sweet vision of God is darkened by sin, 2. Fearful ezternal ruin. "And gave them intQ the hand of their enemies: so fell they all by the sword." If men do not care for the present spiritual consequences of sin, other more easily recognized …
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Public domain historical Pulpit Commentary. Source page identifies the volume as Public Domain; text extracted from its historical PDF.
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Historical Christian writing; not Scripture.