The Pulpit Commentary — Ezekiel — Volume 2 — Section 16

things, God oft sent sweeping and fierce judgments amongst them, famine, sword pestilence; and notwithstanding all these, they returned not to the Lord, but the Jana' that is, the people of it, did remain uncleansed, they were like a land wherein wa~ nothing but weeds, nettles, briars, and thorns." 2. In its pernicioUll activity amongst f!Il classes_. (1) The prop~ets•. These shonld have been ~ealous by word. and example m cleansmg the land of its sins ; but they were prominent in evil-domg. Several forms of this are mentioned by Ezekiel. (a) Their guilty subservience to wicked rulers. ,, "Her prophets have daubed for. them [ i.e. the princesJ with untempered morta'.\ etc. (v~r. 28~. The clauses_ of this v~e h~ve come under our notice already (eh. xm. 10, 6, , ; xx1. 29). The pnnces were msat1ably covetous, grossly dishonest, and ruthlessly cruel; and these false prophets who should have rebuked their wicked- ness, countenanced their procedure, encouraged their practices, and assured them that their ways were approved by God. (b) Their scandalous cupidity. "They take treasure and precious things " (ver. 25). They extorted from the people their valued possessions as the price of their prophesying. They did not forcibly despoil them of their treasures, but they obtained them by arts and devices which disgraced the sacred office whose functions they bad assumed. " The dogs are greedy, they can never have enough; •.. they have all turned to their own way, each one to his gain, from every quarter" (Isa. lvi. 11). (c) Their grievous cruelty. "Like a roaring lion ravening the prey : they have devoured souls ; . . . they have made her widows many in the midst thereof" (ver. 25). "The false prophets," says Hengstenberg, "rob the goods and devour the souls, in so far as they stand by to help forward the robbing and murdering acts of the great (ver. 27), and sharpen not, but rather soothe their con- science by saying, Peace, peace, when there is no peace. Thus they are accomplices in the robbing and murdering course of the great, who have them in their pay. They deport themselves as smooth and peaceful men, and present themselves as men of tenderness, in contrast with the rough preachers of repentance, the true prophets; but when examined in the light they are thieves and murderers." (d) 'l'heir shameful combination. "There is a conspiracy of her prophets in the midst thereof." They were solemnly banded together for the accomplishment of their atrocious designs. They h&d entered into a compact to prophesy the same things, and "were careful not to contradict each other's lies." (2) The priests. Two principal charges are brought against them. (a) Misinterpretation of God's Law. "Her priests have done violence to my Law." "To violate the Law is to break it--to offer violen~ to the Law is to misinterpret it." The latter is the charge which is here preferred against the priests. They perverted the holy Law to make it harmonize with the inclinations of a sinful people, and with their own wicked practices. (b) Profanation of God's institutions. ".And have profaned mine holy things: they have put no difference between the holy and the co=on," etc. (ver. 26). We have noticed God's holy things in dealing with ver. 8. "It was the special office of the priests to keep up the distinction between holy and unholy, clean and unclean," consecrated and common things (cf. Lev. x. 10; xxii. 1-13). They "should have instructed the people what meats were lawful for them, what not; what sacrifices were fit to be brought to the Lord, and what not; who were worthy, and who not, to eat of the holy things and to approach unto the holy God" (Greenhill). But this they had not done. "The law of the sabba.th," as Hengstenberg remarks, "is given as an example. This they rob of its deep spiritual import, and limit it to the external rest, as if it were given for animals, and not for men who a.re to serve God in spirit" (cf. ver. 8). By these doings they profaned God himself. "And I am profaned among them." The priests had degraded his infinitely holy and exalted character in the estimation of the people (cf. Mai. i. 6, 7). (3) The princes a.re charged with: (a) Cupidity. They sought" to get dishonest gain." They had their own resources and revenues; but. not conte1:1t with these, they coveted other and larger resources, and resorted to oppression t? obtain them, imposing burdensome taxes upon the people. (b) Cruelty. "Her princes ID the midst thereof are like wolves ravening the prey; to shed blood," etc. (ver. 27; and cf. vers. 6, 7; Zeph. ill. 3). The covetousness of King Ahab led to the murder of Naboth the Jezreelite. (4) The people. "The people of the land have used oppres- sion, and exercised robbery," etc. (ver. 29). The prophet charges them with oppression by force and fraud. They deceived and cheated and robbed those whom they dared so 011 . xxm. 1-49.] THE BOOK OF THE PROPHET EZEKIEL. 17