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 361
sins. Thus God's goodness in life generally, and in the gospel of Christ, should lead men to see the evil of their ways and to repent of it. I. Goo's GOODNESS PRECEDES MAN'S REPENTANOE. The full enjoyment of that goodness _is not possible for those who are still _living in si_n. The prodigal son cannot enJoy the fatt…
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IV. TrIE BLOOD 011' THE 0ll'll'ERING MUST llE SPRINKLED. This essential part of the ceremonial was necessary that the completed sacrifices might be efficacious by the application of its results to the worshippers. Christ has made his great sacri lice of himself once for all. But now the benefits of his death have to be…
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HOMILIES BY VARIOUS AUTHORS. Vers. 14.-The glory of the Lord in the house. The glory of the house of God does not consist in its beauty and grandeur, but in the indwelling of the Eternal himself. When the tabernacle of witness reared in the wilderness was completed, when Moses had finished the work, "then the cloud…
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np a perpetual abode within his consecrated temple, and that those courts shall hence- forth be pure from every defilement, and shall be holy unto the Lord. I. TUE FA.OT OF THE DIVINE INDWELLING, It appears that this is set forth under two metaphors, both just and impressive, yet, even when taken together, inadequate …
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God. And to the spiritual apprehension, the orderly arrangement, the symmetrical proportions of the temple, and the provision made for all proper services, nil speak ol the Church of Christ, which is obviously symbolized by the sanctuary bcheld by the prophet in his vision. I. THE FACT OF DIVINE LAW m THE CHURCH, W…
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Vers. 1-9.-Sunshine after storm. The prophet of Jehovah has inspected all the plans of the second temple. In clearest vision he has seen all its parts arranged. Tho sacred edifice has grown to perfection before his eye. Court within court bas successively appeared. And now the great question arises, " Will the God of h…
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be a prophet is blessed thereby, and he learns the lesson of responsibility. To have at our disposal the well-being of many (if a man have the true prophet's spirit) elevates a man, and brings into activity all the best qualities of his nature, In every age God has thus dealt with men. V. Goo IS UNCHANGEABLE IN BIS…
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they be ashamed . . . show them the form of the house," etc. Right moral dispositions are essential to an understanding of God. "To the froward God will appear as froward." To the Jews of his day Jesus said," How can ye believe, who receive honour one of another, and seek not the honour that cometh from God only?" As…
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access to God, and interest with him. The priest must be, of all men, the least erring, His mis..sion must be marked as specially sacred. Every circumstance which can lend sanctity to his office must be provided, He must be mature in years, experienced in human needs. His person must be free from blemi~h. Frequent ablu…
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there came to be no converse between earth and heaven. Then the glory of the Lord had departed. But "in the fulness of time " God manifested himself to the world-he came in rl'deeming grace to raise and restore our fallen race. " The Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory" (John i. 14); we bad…
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Ver. 12.-" The law of the M'U,Se "-universal holiness. "The law of the house, what was pre-eminently entitled to be called the law, consisted in the whole region of the temple mount being most holy. Not, as hitherto, was this characteristic to be confined to a single apartment of the temple; it was to embrace the en…
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Vers. 13-21.-Purijication and preparation. Almost all the regulations pertaining to the sacrifices under the old economy bore upon the supreme question of sanctity. God would impress upon his people, by every means and in every way, that the Holy One of Israel must be approached by those only who were pure and holy;…
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lations to be observed in the maintenance entered in by it, therefore it ahall be of worship (oh. xlv.); and, thirdly, of certain shut. suppleIDente.ry orders for the prince, the Ver. S.-It is for the prince conveys an erroneous impression, as if the edict, e:x- people, and the priests, when engaged in oluding all f…
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even by the ldng; if, o.fter Keil, the second introduction into the sanctuary, while the view be preferred, the sense will amount to priests were engaged in sacrifice, of strangers this, that nuder the regulations of the futnre -aliens (Revised Version); literally, sons the prince should ho.ve the fo.vour accorded of a…
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"strangers " nbo,·c referre,l to, as keejlff'B Ver. 9.-Tke ordinance for the people. No of Jebovah's charge in his sanotuary for stranger (or, alien), unoiroumoised in heart, themselves, t'..r. to plee.se themselves, irre- nor unoircumoised in flesh, shall enter into spcctiYc altogether of J ebovah's enactments. my …
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babel to Jerusalem, and was by them traced allowed to do the office or • priest, i.e. ho.ck t.o pre-exilio times (see Keil, on Dent. approe.oh the altar to offer sacrifice, or to xviii. 1 ; Ourtiss's 'Levitioe.l Priests,' pp. enter into the holy place (ver. 13). Ia this 22, eto. ; Delitzsoh, in Lnthardt's 'Zeit- way…
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niok Keil Dclit.zsch, 1md others, that it Ezekiel may have felt there was no occa- goes' bnck 'to Zadok's fidelity to the throne sion for him to use other than the generio of David at the time of Absalom's rebellion term for" linen," which ,11;1~'!> (pishteh) seems (2 Sam. xv. 24-29), a fidelity exhibited to have be…
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mode in which the priests should wear their to.ined to the priests nnder the Law (Nnmb. hair. It should neither be she.ved nor v. 14-31; Deut. xvii. 8-13; xix. 17; xxi. worn long, thus nvoiding excess ou either 5), 11ntl was exercised in pre-exilic times side (compare for the first, Lev. xxi. 5; nnd (Hos. iv. 6; Mic…
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insecure a basis. Knobel remarks on Lev. offering (see Lev. vi. 25-29; vii. 6: Numb. xxi. 1-4 that "among the Greeks, priests xviii. 9, 10), and the tre■paBB (or, guiU) and priestesses remained at a distance from offering (comp. Lev. vii. 28-38), and every funerals (Pie.to, 'De Legg.,' xii. p. 947): dedioated (or, devo…
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HOMILETICS. Vers. 2, 3.-The shut gate. The" Golden Gate" at Jerusalem, on the eastern side of the temple area, looking towards the Mount of Olives, is now built up, so that it can only be traced by means of the form of the arches and carved work embedded in a line of wall, 'l'radition associates this now inaccessible …
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Ver. 6.-.A sufficiency of sin. I. OBSERVE IN WHAT THE BUFFICIENOY OF BIN CON- SISTS. All sin is in excess of what it should be, for no sin is permissible. How, then, can there be such a thing as a sufficiency of it? We may regard this as an ironical idea, or as a thought that is useful in the argwmentwm ad hominem. It …
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and his gospel is free to Gentile as well as Jew, to the uncircumcised as well as the circumcised (Gal. v. 6). Nevertheless, in spite of the new breadth of Christianity, the ideas rnggest~ by the old, narrow exclusiveness still obtain, though now only in spiritual relatwns. I. THE STRANGER TO Goo IS EXOLUDED FROM T…
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II. DEGRADED SERVANTS MAY BE PEBHI'l"l'ED TO DISCHARGE HUMBLER DUTIES, The Levites are not discharged; they are only put to lower offices. God inflicts no heavier penalties than are absolutely necessary, He bears no grudge against any of his servants. If we have failed in a more honourable position, we need not despair…
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distinction between sin and purity. We live too much by compromise. We need to learn more of the absolute claims of righteousness. Ver. 28.-Taking God as an Inheritance. The priests wero to have no share in the partition of the land. They were to be supported by means of the sacrificial offerings C1f the people; aad…
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but it seems to ha.ve been she.red by the prince, who, after the return from the Captivity, wa.s not only the representative of the consecrated people, but also the representative of the promised Messiah. Thie singular prerogative suggests to our minds certain principles which have a special application to a religious …
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Ver. 9.-The true circumcision and the true worshipper. Provisions such as this were no doubt of an educational character, and were intended to teach the Israelites the necessity and the duty of holiness. 'l'he consecrated nation was called to present to Jehovah a pure offering. The alien was denied the privileges ap…
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Vere. 15, 16.-Appointed ministrations. The priests were an essential element in the Mosaic system, and their duties were prescribed with a precise exactness. After the Captivity, they still fulfilled their appointed duties, although their relative importance was probably diminished, whilst the scribes became growingl…
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ministered in his sanctuary; he was their Inheritance. This declaration is suggestive of a wider truth, viz. that God is the Portion and Inheritance of all his people. I. THE LORD PROVIDES FOB ALL THE NEED1 BOTH TEMPORAL AND SPIRITUAL, o-, Tll0SE WHO TRUST IN Hllll. II. THE Loso lS THE Joy AND ColllFOBT OF THE HEARTS…
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house." High expectation of blessing should be raised. A state of mind free from Belli.ah care should be fostered. A.a the photographer carefully prepares hie plate to receive a faithful impression, ao equally concerned should we be to prepare our hearts for high and intimate converse with God. Nor should we be unmin…
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in the Cburch is responsibility. Example is contagious. Treaohe1·y by a military officer is a graver sin than treachery by a soldier in the ranks. Pollution at the fount is a greater evil than pollution in a branch-stream. Disease in the heart is a more serious matter than disease in the skin or at the extremities. …
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unto me, nor to come near to any of my holy things, in~the most holy place." They had put God far away from them; it was simple retribution that God should forbid them to come near to him, Sin always bears its own natural fruit. Still, judgment was tempered with mercy. They shall not be entirely superseded. They shall …
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he csn do M is the fact that he has done so on many occasions. It would be the height of folly to suppose that God ba.s not made the wisest possible arrangement for the well-heing of men. Yet if men abuse the arrangement and push God away from his rightful place, God can alter his system, and bring about his end by …
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a creaturl.'I, be dependent, le it better to depend on law or on the Lawgiver? on the cistern or on the Fount? on blind circumstances or on Omniscient Wisdom? on natural forces or on the all-creative God? My faith is founded in common sense. God undertakes to be my Friend-my Father. Then I am his child ; and " if a son…
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11nd do their work in the day of restoration (eee vers, 11, 14). In that klng<lom of God wherein we now stand we see illustrations of this Divine discrimination in- I. TaE DISPENSING oF THE DIVINE BOUNTY. God gives much to all his oreatures, to all his children; but he gives much more to some than he does to others.…
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iniquity I If we are asked to account for it, we suggest three powerful temptations which prove too strong for resistance. 1. The fascinations of novelty; the love of looking at things in new lights or of treading new paths. 2. The strength of the social current; the unconscious and (often) the wholly unreasonable defe…
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EXPOSITION. Vera. 1-8.-The portions of land that CHAPTER XLV. should be allotted to the sanctuary, the From the sustenance of the priests ( eh. city, and the prince. xliv. 29-31), the new Torah naturally Ver. 1.-Moreover, when ye sho.11 divide pe.sses in the present chapter to the main- by lot the land (literally…
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tradiction to oh. xliv. 28, omit to notice first been included in the holy terumah of ver. l· tho.t Jebovnh required some place on which Nor does this concession follow, as will his sanctuary might be erected, and the appear, from ver. 7. priests some ground on which to build Ver. 2.-0t this district, either 0£ 25,000 …
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they might dwell, and an holy plao~ !or the which should neither be con8soated by sanotuary, iu which they should mmJSter. kingly ro.paoity (comp. Jer. xxii. 13) nor Yer. 5.-A portion or simile.r dimensions invaded by individual and private Bppro- sb0uld likewise be marlted off for the prio.tion, but retained for the …
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1poil (comp. eh. vii. II, 23; viii. 17; Jer. without supposing either that an error vi. 7; xx. 8; Hau. i. 3) or by euotions- bas crept in through transcription, or that litere.lly, e:,;pulsiom, or drivings of persons the chronicler has employed the late Greek out of their possessions, such as had been style of recko…
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wheat, the sixth part of an ephah of (out, these generous offerings will bo witilheld; of, or from) an homer; i.e. the sixtieth part and perhaps all that is really signified by of an homer, equal to about one-tenth of a them is tl111t the liilerality of J ehovah's bushel (ver. 13). (2) Of barley, the so.me people in t…
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and in imitation of whioh the post-exilio corresponding to which the great Da.y of temple we.s dedicated, probe.bly on the first Atonement in the seventh month fell upon day of the yea.r (Ezre. vi. 16-22), Age.inst the tenth da.y (Lev. x.xiii. 27). In the Torah of Ezekiel, the ceremonies intro- the notion of a speoio.…
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.>,.~,j,17, and on tho ground that" the seventh of day, (o•i;i; nlll~lp lry). By o.lmost all day of (the same) month" would have been interpreters this is understood to mean "a in Hebrew l'°Jli~ ;,:ll~tr~, as in eh. i. 1; xxx. feast of a full week," the exuot dumtion of 20 ; at the s'ame • time admitting that the Fe…
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on the fifteenth after the Pasoh.e.l Iamb had day thirteen young bullocks, two rams, e.nd been ale.in and eaten (Lev. xxiii. 8). In fourteen lambs, e.nd so on, diminishing by the second place, the sin offering was to one bullock each de.y, till the seventh, when consist of e. bullock instead of a he-goat as seven bull…
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vmon, to be acting under special Divine Ezekiel would not have deviated so largely guidance (eh. xliii. 10, 11; xl.iv. 5). Canon as he has done from the rites prescribed in Driver (' An Introduction to the Literature the priests' code had these been in opemtiou of the Old Testament,' p. 183) admits that and invested …
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from him, only rendering to him what is his own. If we would measure Christ's claim upon llll, we must be able to tell how great was his condescension in coming to this world, how tremendous was his sacrifice in his death on the cross, and how glorious are the blessings which he bestowa on his people. Ver. 10.-'' Just…
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for obje0ts outside the range of their private expenses. But if the mouey to be cou- tributed for such objects were set aside from tbo first, it would be forthcoming, just as the rent money is forthcoming. Christ's portion is his due, and provision should certainly be made for this, whatever may remain over for other…
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V. THI!: BEHEDY FOB OPPRESSION. This is set forth in a very striking manner in the passage before us: "My princes shall no more oppress my people." The fact that both superior and foferior, both governors and subjects, are the Lord's, is adduced as the ~trongest argument against oppression. If both alike are the Lord's…
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I. THE UNITY OF THE CONSECRATED PEOPLE, Never could Israel have more impressively realized and displayed their oneness in political and religious life than when they together celebrated such festivals as those of the Passover and of Te.barnacles, both referred to by the prophet in this passa.ge. A grander unity disting…
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principles of honesty and truthfulness. It cares for the poorest and the meanest among men; inspires them with the spirit of industry; casts a halo of beauty ovet the lowliest lot. Nothing that appertains to man is too insignificant for the notice of true religion. For every stage in life, from childhood to old age, re…
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man that supposes God to be an austere Taskmaster ls a precipitant blunderer, He has grossly missed the truth. God does not require gigantic offerings. He requires gifts simply proportionate to our possessions. The gift of ten thousand pounds may be in the balance of righteousness only a paltry and selfish deed, 'l'…
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and ennobled. Our very tears of repentance must be washed. The fonntain of truth and piety must be kept sweet. IJJ. THI!: PUilIFIOATION OF TIIE BAN0TUABY DEMANDS THE FIRST MOMENTS OF OUR TIME. The holiest work must be the work first done. The dawn of the new year is the most fitting time for this sacred service. Just …
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"Man's inhumanity to man Makes countless ages mourn." I. ITS v Amous FORMS. These are: 1. Impressment. The children of Ismel were plainly and powerfully forewarned of this evil (1 Sam. viii. 11-17). 2. Taxation, It was not long before the land groaned beneath the weight of the sovereign's levies (2 Sam. x. 4). 3. …
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Oommone. Do what you undertake to do; bo what yon profess to be; be honest, 1incere, faithful in every sphere in which you move. II. THE DIVINE RllGARD. "The eyes of the Lord arc in every place, beholding the evil and the good;" but if they could overlook anything they would not fail to observe whether men did or did …
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and guard. Those on whom God has conferred greater power, and who oan conse- quently see more clearly where evil lies and where danger begins, should esteem it their most sacred and bounden duty to befriend, to preserve, to save, those who are feebler and more exposed. We have our powers, no doubt, that we may take …
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EXPOSITION. reach his ste.tion at the threshold of the CHAPTER XLVL inner gate, by the way of the porch of that This chapter falls into three divisions. (or, the) gate without; but whether this The first (vers. 1-15) gives supplementary signified the.t he should pass through the eastern ge.te of the outer court, e.…
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and, looking through it and the opened of the festal see.sons-not the high festivals inner ea.st gate, should pray before Jehovah." alone, such as the Passover e.nd the Feast This, however, is unnatural, even on the of Tabernacles, whioh are usually denomi• hypothesis that the prince should pass ne.ted c•~n, but the…
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var. 1), but, differently from what occurred prince. Smend thinks Ezekiel could hardly on the enbbnth, it should not remain open ho.ve had in view the year of jubilee (Lev. till the evening ( ver. 2), but should be shut xxv. 10; xxvii 24), else he would not have immediately the prince's offering was done. employed the …
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C!J:1~7:, which properly signifies "on both hat these were oourts joined of forty oubite sides;" but when applied to the tabernaole ong and thirty broad. The word "joined" (Exod. xxvi. 2S) or temple (1 Kings vi. 16), nl,l;IR) ho.s been variously translated: by olwa.ys describes the back part or rear. Gesenius (see '…
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II. THE PEOPLE OAR ENJOY WOBSHIP, When the heart is in it, no joy on earth can be more rich and full. "Lord, how delightful 'tie to see A 'IDhol.e e.ssembly worship thee!" The dreariness of Sunday just arises from the fact that so many people who go to church really take no part in the service. It must be wearisome t…
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highest is communion with Christ. In that most sacred act of worship, the Lord'i Supper, we seek especially for the living presence of Christ. For surely every Pro- testant must admit that there is a real Presence-not in the bread or wine-but in tho hearts of Christ's worshipping people. IV. CHRIST GOES WITH ms PEOPLE…
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Historical Christian writing; not Scripture.