Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
And thou profane wicked prince of Israel - Zedekiah, called here profane, because he had broken his oath; and wicked, because of his opposition to God and his prophet.
Whose day is come - Who in a short time shalt be delivered into the hands of thy enemies.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
profane--as having desecrated by idolatry and perjury his office as the Lord's anointed. HAVERNICK translates, as in Eze 21:14, "slain," that is, not literally, but virtually; to Ezekiel's idealizing view Zedekiah was the grand victim "pierced through" by God's sword of judgment, as his sons were slain before his eyes, which were then put out, and he was led a captive in chains to Babylon. English Version is better: so GESENIUS (Ch2 36:13; Jer 52:2).
when iniquity shall have an end-- (Eze 21:29). When thine iniquity, having reached its last stage of guilt, shall be put an end to by judgment (Eze 35:5).
John Gill Bible Commentary
I will overturn, overturn, overturn, it,.... The crown and kingdom of Judah; which being expressed three times, has not respect, as Kimchi thinks, to the three generations, in which the crown ceased after the captivity, as those of Asir, Shealtiel, Pedaiah; and in the fourth generation was restored to Zerubbabel; for he was no king, nor was there any of David's line after; nor were the Maccabees or Hasmoneans properly kings; but the phrase denotes the utter abolition of the kingly power, and the certainty of it, which could not be restored, notwithstanding the attempts made by Gedaliah and Ishmael; all their schemes were overturned, and so in successive ages and may also denote and include the troubles that were in the Jewish state, not only during the captivity, but from that time unto the Messiah's coming; there were nothing but overturnings, overturnings till that time came:
and it shall be no more; a kingdom governed by one of the seed of the then present family, or of the seed of David; there shall be no more a king of his race, as there was not till Shiloh came, intended in the next clause:
until he come whose right it is; the right of the crown and kingdom of Israel; which belongs to Jesus the Messiah, being descended from a race of kings of the house of Judah, and of the seed of David: or,
to whom the judgment is (s); to whom the Father hath committed all judgment, Joh 5:22 all power of judging both his church and people, and the whole world:
and I will give it him; the crown and kingdom, which is his right; put him in the possession of it, as he was at his resurrection and ascension; and which will more fully appear in the latter day, when all kingdoms will become his; especially he has, and will appear to have, the throne of his father David, and of his kingdom there will be no end, Luk 1:31. This is understood and interpreted of the Messiah, by R. Abendana (t), a modern Jew.
(s) "cujus est judicium", Pagninus, Starckius; "vel jus", Junius & Tremellius, Polanus, Piscator. (t) Not. in Ben Melech, Miclol Yophi in loc.
Tyndale Open Study Notes
21:25-27 This judgment would extend against Zedekiah, the corrupt and wicked prince of Israel, as well as against the people. Ezekiel identifies Zedekiah by title rather than by name, indicating that his office was also under judgment. He would be stripped of the emblems of royalty and brought low, while the Lord exalted the lowly. The old order would experience destruction. • the one appears who has the right to judge it: This coming judge is often understood to be the Messiah (cp. Gen 49:10). In this context, however, the Lord was handing Judah over to the Babylonians for judgment (see Ezek 23:24). Ezekiel was probably reshaping the traditional messianic oracle of Gen 49:10 into a message of imminent judgment by the hand of Nebuchadnezzar, acting as an agent of God. God temporarily took away the scepter from Judah because Israel’s rulers had sinned, but he would eventually give it back.