Ezekiel 22:2

Now, thou son of man, wilt thou judge, wilt thou judge the bloody city? yea, thou shalt shew her all her abominations.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(2) Wilt thou judge.—The same expression as in Ezekiel 20:4. (See Note there.) The sense of the margin, “plead for,” is not appropriate here.

Bloody city.—In Ezekiel 22:2-6 crimes of bloodshed and idolatry are dwelt upon, between which there seems always to have been a close connection. The same words are used in Ezekiel 24:6; Ezekiel 24:9, and in Nahum 3:1.

Benson Commentary

Ezekiel 22:2-5. Wilt thou judge, wilt thou judge the bloody city? — Wilt thou plead for it? Or rather, Wilt thou not judge? see note on Ezekiel 20:4. The expression is doubled to awaken the prophet more fully, and to quicken him to his work. Jerusalem is termed the bloody city, Hebrew, עיר הדמים, the city of bloods, because of the blood of innocent persons, of children sacrificed to Moloch, and of prophets and righteous men shed in her, and that by courts of justice under colour of law. Yea, thou shalt show her — Make her know; all her abominations — That I may be justified in all the desolations which I have brought, and shall still more fully bring upon her. The city sheddeth blood in the midst of it — Openly and impudently; that her time may come — The time of her destruction, as the consequence of her having filled up the measure of her iniquities; and maketh idols against herself — To her own ruin. Thou hast caused thy days to draw near — The days of thy sorrows and sufferings; and art come even to thy years — To the end of thy years of trial, so that thou shalt be borne with no longer. Therefore have I made thee a reproach unto the heathen — Have exposed thee to their contempt and scorn; and a mocking to all countries — A proverb, and a by-word, and cause of astonishment to all people, according to the prediction of Moses, (Deuteronomy 28:37,) and the solemn warning given by the Lord to Solomon, when he appeared to him after the dedication of the temple, 1 Kings 9:7. Those that are near — And are eye-witnesses of thy apostacy and degeneracy, as the Edomites, Ammonites, Moabites, and Philistines; and those that be far from thee — The Medes, Persians, Hyrcanians, &c., to whom thou shalt be carried captive; shall mock thee, which art infamous — Of a most infamous name; and much vexed — Afflicted, empoverished, and ruined: or rather, who art full of tumult and trouble, as רבת המהומה more properly signifies: that is, in which there are continually confusion and disorder, by the commission of acts of violence.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

22:1-16 The prophet is to judge the bloody city; the city of bloods. Jerusalem is so called, because of her crimes. The sins which Jerusalem stands charged with, are exceeding sinful. Murder, idolatry, disobedience to parents, oppression and extortion, profanation of the sabbath and holy things, seventh commandment sins, lewdness and adultery. Unmindfulness of God was at the bottom of all this wickedness. Sinners provoke God because they forget him. Jerusalem has filled the measure of her sins. Those who give up themselves to be ruled by their lusts, will justly be given up to be portioned by them. Those who resolve to be their own masters, let them expect no other happiness than their own hands can furnish; and a miserable portion it will prove.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

The fourth word of judgment Ezekiel 22:1-16. The sins which have brought ruin upon Jerusalem are the sins which disgraced the pagan inhabitants of Canaan, whom the Israelites were to cast out (compare Leviticus 18). The commission of like sins would insure like judgment.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

2. See Eze 20:4; that is, "Wilt thou not judge?" &c. (compare Eze 23:36).

the bloody city—literally, "the city of bloods"; so called on account of murders perpetrated in her, and sacrifices of children to Molech (Eze 22:3, 4, 6, 9; 24:6, 9).

Matthew Poole's Commentary

Some would have the prophet here to be questioned, whether he would, and why he would, plead for such a city. Others, that God doth forbid him to plead for it, or be solicitous about it. I rather think God doth awake: him to more vigorous reproving of this sinful people, and threatening them for sin. The question is doubled to awaken the prophet more fully, and to quicken him to his work.

The bloody city; Jerusalem, which is guilty of the murders of innocent ones, of prophets and holy men.

Show her; make her know, at least tell her by writing; for the prophet was at Babylon now, and could not speak to then at Jerusalem, but he might and must send word to then what their abominations were.

All her abominations; all the kinds, not all individual acts of them.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

Now, thou son of man, wilt thou judge, wilt thou judge the bloody city?.... Or, "city of bloods" (y)? the city of Jerusalem, in which was shed the blood of the prophets sent unto her; the doubling of the word denotes the vehemency with which it was expressed: wilt thou plead for and excuse such a city as this? surely no; so some: or wilt thou do thy work and office as a prophet? hast thou courage enough to do it? will thou rebuke and reprove? as the Targum; wilt thou examine her case, judge truly, and condemn her, as thou oughtest to do? hast thou an inclination to take this affair in hand? then be directed to it, as follows:

yea, thou shalt show her all her abominations; lay them before her; convict her of them; show her the evil of them, and the punishment they deserve; every kind of sin she was guilty of; for, as for particular acts, it was impossible to reckon them; those sins that were the most flagrant, and most frequently committed, and which were abominable to the Lord, and rendered her so in his sight, are intended.

(y) "civitatem sanguinum", V. L. Munster, Montanus.

Geneva Study Bible

Now, thou son of man, wilt thou {a} judge, wilt thou judge the bloody city? yea, thou shalt show her all her abominations.

(a) Are you ready to execute your charge, which I commit to you against Jerusalem that murders the prophets and them that are godly?

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

2. wilt thou judge] See on ch. Ezekiel 20:4, cf. Ezekiel 23:36.

yea, thou shalt shew] Rather: then thou shalt cause her to know … Ezekiel 22:3 and thou shalt say.

Ezekiel 22:2

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

Blood-guiltiness of Jerusalem and the burden of its sins. Ezekiel 22:1-5 contain the principal accusation relating to bloodshed and idolatry; and Ezekiel 22:6-16 a further account of the sins of the people and their rulers, with a brief threatening of punishment. - Ezekiel 22:1. And the word of Jehovah came to me, saying, Ezekiel 22:2. And thou, son of man, wilt thou judge? wilt thou judge the city of blood-guiltiness? then show it all its abominations, Ezekiel 22:3. And say, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah, City, which sheddeth blood in the midst of it, that her time may come, and maketh idols within itself for defilement. Ezekiel 22:4. Through thy blood which thou hast shed hast thou made thyself guilty, and through thine idols which thou hast made hast thou defiled thyself, and hast drawn thy days near, and hast come to thy years; therefore I make thee a scorn to the nations, and ridicule to all lands. Ezekiel 22:5. Those near and those far off from thee shall ridicule thee as defiled in name, rich in confusion. - The expression 'התשׁפּט וגו proves this address to be a continuation of the reproof of Israel's sins, which commenced in Ezekiel 20:4. The epithet city of blood-guiltiness, as in Ezekiel EZechariah 24:6, Ezekiel 24:9 (compare Nahum 3:1), is explained in Ezekiel 22:3. The apodosis commences with והודעתּהּ, and is continued in Ezekiel 22:3 (ואמרתּ). לבוא עתּהּ, that her time, i.e., her time of punishment, may come: עתּהּ, like יומו in Ezekiel 21:30. ועשׂתּה is not a continuation of the infinitive לבוא, but of the participle שׁפכת. עליה, of which different renderings have been given, does not mean "over itself," i.e., as a burden with which it has laden itself (Hvernick); still less "for itself" (Hitzig), a meaning which על never has, but literally "upon," i.e., in itself, covering the city with it, as it were. ותּקריבי, thou hast brought near, brought on thy days, that is to say, the days of judgment, and hast come to, arrived at thy years, sc. the years of visitation and punishment (cf. Jeremiah 11:23). This meaning is readily supplied by the context. טמאת ה, defiled, unclean with regard to the name, i.e., having forfeited the name of a holy city through capital crimes and other sinful abominations. מהוּמה is internal confusion, both moral and religious, as in Amos 3:9 (cf. Psalm 55:10-12).

In Ezekiel 22:6-12 there follows an enumeration of a multitude of sins which had been committed in Jerusalem. - Ezekiel 22:6. Behold, the princes of Israel are every one, according to his arm, in thee to shed blood. Ezekiel 22:7. Father and mother they despise in thee; toward the foreigner they act violently in the midst of thee; orphans and widows they oppress in thee. Ezekiel 22:8. Thou despisest my holy things, and desecratest my Sabbaths. Ezekiel 22:9. Slanderers are in thee to shed blood, and they eat upon the mountains in thee; they practise lewdness in thee. Ezekiel 22:10. They uncover the father's nakedness in thee; they ravish the defiled in her uncleanness in thee. Ezekiel 22:11. They take gifts in thee to shed blood; interest and usury thou takest, and overreachest thy neighbours with violence, and thou forgettest me, is the saying of the Lord Jehovah. - By the repetition of the refrain, to shed blood (Ezekiel 22:6, Ezekiel 22:9, and Ezekiel 22:12), the enumeration is divided into three groups of sins, which are placed in the category of blood-guiltiness by the fact that they are preceded by this sentence and the repetition of it after the form of a refrain. the first group (Ezekiel 22:6-8) embraces sins which are committed in daring opposition to all the laws of morality. By the princes of Israel we are to understand primarily the profligate kings, who caused innocent persons to be put to death, such, for example, as Jehoiakim (2 Kings 24:4), Manasseh (2 Kings 21:16), and others. The words אישׁ are rendered by Hitzig and Kliefoth, they were ready to help one another; and in support of the rendering they appeal to Psalm 83:9. But in that case אישׁ לזרעו would stand for לזרע אישׁ rof dnat, or rather for אישׁ זרוע לאישׁ, - a substitution which cannot be sustained. Nor can they be taken in the sense proposed by Hvernick, every one relying upon his arm, i.e., looking to physical force alone, but simply every one according to his arm, i.e., according to his strength or violence, are they in thee. In this case היוּ does not require anything to be supplied, any more than in the similar combination in Ezekiel 22:9. Followed by למען with an infinitive, it means to be there with the intention of doing anything, or making an attempt, i.e., to direct his efforts to a certain end. In Ezekiel 22:7 it is not the princes who are the subject, but the ungodly in general. הקלּוּ is the opposite of כּבּד (Exodus 20:12). In the reproofs which follow, compare Exodus 22:20.; Leviticus 19:13; Deuteronomy 24:14. With insolence and violence toward men there is associated contempt of all that is holy. For Ezekiel 22:8, see Ezekiel 20:13. - In the second group, Ezekiel 22:9-11, in addition to slander and idolatry, the crimes of lewdness and incest are the principal sins for which the people are reproved; and here the allusion to Leviticus 18 and 19 is very obvious. The reproof of slander also points back to the prohibition in Leviticus 19:16. Slander to shed blood, refers to malicious charges and false testimony in a court of justice (vid., 1 Kings 21:10-11). For eating upon the mountains, see Ezekiel 18:6. The practice of zimmâh is more specifically described in Ezekiel 22:10 and Ezekiel 22:11. For the thing itself, compare Leviticus 18:7-8; Leviticus 19:15 and Leviticus 19:9. The threefold אישׁ in Ezekiel 22:11 does not mean every one, but one, another, and the third, as the correlative רעהוּ shows. - The third group, Ezekiel 22:12, is composed of sins of covetousness. For the first clause, compare the prohibition in Exodus 23:2; for the second, Ezekiel 18:8, Ezekiel 18:13. The reproof finishes with forgetfulness of God, which is closely allied to covetousness.