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7. The End Has Come

¹ The word of the LORD came to me: ² “Son of man, this is what the Sovereign LORD says to the land of Israel:

   “‘The end! The end has come
   upon the four corners of the land!
³ The end is now upon you,
   and I will unleash my anger against you.
I will judge you according to your conduct
   and repay you for all your detestable practices.
⁴ I will not look on you with pity;
   I will not spare you.
I will surely repay you for your conduct
   and for the detestable practices among you.

“‘Then you will know that I am the LORD.’

⁵ “This is what the Sovereign LORD says:

   “‘Disaster! Unheard-of Most Hebrew manuscripts; some Hebrew manuscripts and Syriac Disaster after disaster!
   See, it comes!
⁶ The end has come!
   The end has come!
It has roused itself against you.
   See, it comes!
⁷ Doom has come upon you,
   upon you who dwell in the land.
The time has come! The day is near!
   There is panic, not joy, on the mountains.
⁸ I am about to pour out my wrath on you
   and spend my anger against you.
I will judge you according to your conduct
   and repay you for all your detestable practices.
⁹ I will not look on you with pity;
   I will not spare you.
I will repay you for your conduct
   and for the detestable practices among you.

“‘Then you will know that it is I the LORD who strikes you.

    ¹⁰ “‘See, the day!
   See, it comes!
Doom has burst forth,
   the rod has budded,
   arrogance has blossomed!
¹¹ Violence has arisen, Or The violent one has become
   a rod to punish the wicked.
None of the people will be left,
   none of that crowd—
none of their wealth,
   nothing of value.
¹² The time has come!
   The day has arrived!
Let not the buyer rejoice
   nor the seller grieve,
   for my wrath is on the whole crowd.
¹³ The seller will not recover
   the property that was sold—
   as long as both buyer and seller live.
For the vision concerning the whole crowd
   will not be reversed.
Because of their sins, not one of them
   will preserve their life.

    ¹⁴ “‘They have blown the trumpet,
   they have made all things ready,
but no one will go into battle,
   for my wrath is on the whole crowd.
¹⁵ Outside is the sword;
   inside are plague and famine.
Those in the country
   will die by the sword;
those in the city
   will be devoured by famine and plague.
¹⁶ The fugitives who escape
   will flee to the mountains.
Like doves of the valleys,
   they will all moan,
   each for their own sins.
¹⁷ Every hand will go limp;
   every leg will be wet with urine.
¹⁸ They will put on sackcloth
   and be clothed with terror.
Every face will be covered with shame,
   and every head will be shaved.

    ¹⁹ “‘They will throw their silver into the streets,
   and their gold will be treated as a thing unclean.
Their silver and gold
   will not be able to deliver them
   in the day of the LORD’s wrath.
It will not satisfy their hunger
   or fill their stomachs,
   for it has caused them to stumble into sin.
²⁰ They took pride in their beautiful jewelry
   and used it to make their detestable idols.
They made it into vile images;
   therefore I will make it a thing unclean for them.
²¹ I will give their wealth as plunder to foreigners
   and as loot to the wicked of the earth,
   who will defile it.
²² I will turn my face away from the people,
   and robbers will desecrate the place I treasure.
They will enter it
   and will defile it.

    ²³ “‘Prepare chains!
   For the land is full of bloodshed,
   and the city is full of violence.
²⁴ I will bring the most wicked of nations
   to take possession of their houses.
I will put an end to the pride of the mighty,
   and their sanctuaries will be desecrated.
²⁵ When terror comes,
   they will seek peace in vain.
²⁶ Calamity upon calamity will come,
   and rumor upon rumor.
They will go searching for a vision from the prophet,
   priestly instruction in the law will cease,
   the counsel of the elders will come to an end.
²⁷ The king will mourn,
   the prince will be clothed with despair,
   and the hands of the people of the land will tremble.
I will deal with them according to their conduct,
   and by their own standards I will judge them.

“‘Then they will know that I am the LORD.’”

Ezekiel seems here too verbose; for he repeats the same sentiments almost in the same words. But the reason which I have brought forward must be marked, if God had only uttered his commands shortly, when the people were not only slow to believe but of a perverse disposition, his message had proved cold and ineffectual. With this design he uses, as we have seen, many words, and now repeats the same: he now changes his expression, because he ought by all means to stimulate that sloth, or rather sluggishness, under which the people labored. Another thing to be noted is, that he came not once only by God’s command to preach to the people, but. that he was often sent to stir up their minds. For if he had included in one context what God had enjoined, the Israelites might for the time have thought of God’s judgment, but a prophecy once uttered would have easily escaped them. Besides, when Ezekiel testifies that he was sent by God, and afterwards returns and affirms that he brings new commands, this was more effectual to influence their minds. Now we see the meaning of the phrase, the word was given by Jehovah For this prophecy is distinguished from the former, and yet the matter is the same, without any difference, as it seems to weave in with the same discourse: this, indeed, is true, but he ought to be sent twice, that the people may understand that not once only, but twice and perpetually, what he heard from God’s mouth was to be repeated: since it was sufficiently clear, that God was anxious for their safety, since he never ceased to exhort them. Thus, therefore, says the Lord Jehovah concerning the land of Israel: an end is coming, an end upon the four corners of the land Here God seems to regard the moderate punishments which he had already inflicted on the kingdom of Israel. For we know that they often felt God’s hand, but when some relaxation was afforded them, they thought themselves escaped, so they forgot their wickedness and went on in it so carelessly that it was very clear that they despised God, unless when he oppressed them with his dreadful power. This seems the meaning of the word end, and it is emphatically repeated: an end is coming, an end upon the four corners of the land He puts, indeed, wings, but intends it metaphorically for four different regions. God, therefore, reproves the Israelites for their obstinacy, because though often chastised they did not cease to transgress, through not supposing that any thing more grievous could happen. He puts therefore the word end, as if he said, hitherto I have treated you moderately. And surely God had displayed a remarkable specimen of clemency in punishing the Israelites so lightly when he might utterly have cut them off. Since, therefore, he had so refrained himself in punishing, the sluggishness of the people was on that account the less tolerable, since they thought all was over as soon as God had withdrawn his hand. An end, says he, an end is come, that is, after this you must not hope for any moderation. I see there is no hope of repentance in you, and so I shall utterly consume you; and he adds, on the four corners of the land, as he had just said, in all your dwellings. Again, therefore, he teaches, that no part of the earth should be free from the slaughter which he predicts. It follows —

Ezekiel 7:3

3. Now is the end come upon thee, and I will send mine anger upon thee, and will judge thee according to thy ways, and will recompense upon thee all thine abominations.

3. Nune finis super to: et mittam indignationem meam in to, et judicabo to secundum vias tuas: et ponam super to cunctas abominationes tuas.

He puts the word end a third time, and repeats it even a fourth and a fifth time. Whence we collect, that those miserable ones, although admonished more than enough both by teaching and experience, were yet like brute animals, so that they always promised themselves something to fly to, and were not impressed with the fear with which the Prophet would strike them. They did not think that an end was really coming, but said, Oh! something will remain, some will escape; and this therefore was their pride. Hence the Prophet does not inculcate the same word in vain: now, says he, the end is come When he says the end has come, he signifies that the Israelites vainly and foolishly trusted in the future, because they had not yet experienced extreme rigor. God, as he had said, had been lenient with them as to punishment. What then did they do? When they perceived such forbearance in God they thought, that it would always be so. Hence the Prophet marks the difference between the past and future, as if he should say, that God’s vengeance as they had formerly known it, was moderate, but now nothing else remained but that God should utterly tear them up and consume them. Now, therefore, there is an end concerning thee He had spoken in the third person, but he was directing his discourse to the whole land of Israel, and he had said upon the four corners of the land, now, says he, the end cometh upon thee Then, I will send my indignation upon thee God indeed had given signs of his anger, but he had not been so severe that the Israelites ceased from flattering themselves. When, therefore, he speaks of his own indignation, he doubtless signifies that he was so offended that he would not restrain himself as he had formerly done. This too is the sense of what follows, I will judge thee according to thy ways. They had been judged formerly, but only in part; for God had given them time for repentance had they been curable: but now, when he compares their judgment with their sins, he means, that nothing was wanting to extreme severity. And he explains that more clearly at the end of the verse, I will put upon thee all thine abominations, that is, I will cast thine own burden upon thee. For although God had begun to exact just punishment. for their superstitions, yet they had not suffered a greater burden than they deserved. Hence God now pronounces that all their abominations should come upon their own heads, so that they should be utterly buried. It follows —