Ezekiel 24

Chapter 24 of Ezekiel is the last chapter of the book's first section (chapters 1–24), which deals with the judgment of Jerusalem. After Ezekiel 23 indicts the sins of Israel and Judah through the allegory of the two sisters Oholah and Oholibah, the siege of Jerusalem finally begins in this chapter. Beginning with Ezekiel 25, the book turns to prophecies against the neighboring nations.

Outline

• Verses 1–2 On the tenth day of the tenth month of the ninth year, Ezekiel is commanded to record the date, the very day on which the king of Babylon drew near to Jerusalem.
• Verses 3–5 A parable is given: pour water into a pot, put in choice pieces of meat and bones, and boil them.
• Verses 6–14 Jerusalem is called a "rusted pot" whose corrosion has not been removed and a "bloody city." Because the city did not cover the blood it shed but left it exposed on the bare rock, God declares that He will heap on more fuel and heat the pot to burn away its corrosion, and that He will not relent.
• Verses 15–18 God tells Ezekiel that He will take away "the desire of thine eyes" and that he must not mourn openly. That evening Ezekiel's wife dies, and he does as he was commanded.
• Verses 19–24 When the people ask what this means, Ezekiel tells them that God will profane the sanctuary, their delight, and that when their sons and daughters fall by the sword, they too will be unable to mourn but will look at one another and groan. Ezekiel thus becomes a sign to them.
• Verses 25–27 God says that on that day, when a fugitive comes to bring the news, Ezekiel's mouth will be opened and he will no longer be silent.

Key Verses

• Ezekiel 24:2 "Write thee the name of the day, even of this same day" — This verse fixes the date on which the siege of Jerusalem began. The same date appears in 2 Kings 25:1.
• Ezekiel 24:16 "Behold, I take away from thee the desire of thine eyes with a stroke" — In this scene the prophet's personal life itself becomes the message.
• Ezekiel 24:24 "Thus Ezekiel is unto you a sign" — This verse sums up the nature of the "sign-acts" that recur throughout the book.

People and Places

• Ezekiel: A prophet who ministered among the exiles in Babylon. God addresses him as son of man.
• Ezekiel's wife: She is not named, and she dies in this chapter.
• The king of Babylon: He is not named in the text but is commonly identified as Nebuchadnezzar.
• Jerusalem: The city likened to a rusted pot.
• Temple in Jerusalem: The sanctuary called "the desire of your eyes."

Points for Reflection

• The headdress, sandals, covering of the lips, and bread of mourners in verse 17 are understood to relate to the mourning customs of the time. The covering of the lips also appears in Leviticus 13:45 and Micah 3:7.
• The scene in which God takes the prophet's wife raises weighty theological questions. For this reason, many interpreters read it as a sign that foreshadows the loss the people will suffer. The text presents her death as God's doing but offers no explanation beyond its purpose as a sign.
• The promise in verse 27 that Ezekiel's mouth will be opened is fulfilled in Ezekiel 33:21–22, when a fugitive brings word of Jerusalem's fall. This connects with the silence that began in Ezekiel 3:26.
• In Judaism there is a tradition of commemorating the day the siege began in connection with "the fast of the tenth month" (Zechariah 8:19).
• Scholars differ on how the title "son of man" used for Ezekiel relates to the title "Son of man" that Jesus uses of Himself in the Gospels. Daniel 7 is commonly regarded as the more direct background.