Ezekiel 17

Ezekiel 17 LOWLY VINE AND STATELY CEDARIn ch 17, Ezekiel contrasts the current ruler in Jerusalem, with the future son of David who will lead god’s people. The former is compared to a lowly vine (Ezekiel 17:1-21), and the latter to a stately cedar (Ezekiel 17:22-24).

THE KING: A LOWLY VINE Ezekiel 17:1-21 King Zedekiah had committed an act of treachery against Nebuchadnezzar by breaking his solemn oath of allegiance to Babylon. He had sought military aid from Egypt. In this oracle, delivered shortly before 586 C., Ezekiel predicts the extinction of Zedekiah’s dynasty and the fall of Jerusalem. He first presents his parable (Ezekiel 17:1-10) and then makes an application of what he has said (Ezekiel 17:11-21).

Presentation of the Eagle Parable (Ezekiel 17:1-10) Introduction (Ezekiel 17:1-2): The word of the LORD came unto me, saying, (2) Son of man, put forth a riddle and speak a parable unto the house of Israel… Ezekiel is commissioned to put forth a riddle and speak a parable (Ezekiel 17:2). A riddle (hida) is a dark utterance, something put indirectly and in need of interpretation. A parable (masal) or allegory is the presentation of spiritual truths through physical forms. Here the two words are essentially synonymous. Riddles were used in international politics in the Near East. A king might lose his independence (or even his life) if he could not solve the riddle posed to him by another king. Here the heavenly king puts forth the riddle. King Zedekiah must solve it. If he does not, he will lose his independence to the agents of Yahweh.

First great eagle (Ezekiel 17:3-6) Description (Ezekiel 17:3 a): and say, Thus says the Lord GOD: A great eagle with great wings and long pinions, full of feathers of various colors… The great eagle is the mighty King Nebuchadnezzar who is king of kings, even as the eagle is the king of birds. Like the eagle, Nebuchadnezzar swooped down upon his prey to plunder and destroy. His great wings enabled him to fly long distances, and extend his influence over vast territories. The various colors (v 3) of this great bird may represent the many different nations that were subject to Nebuchadnezzar. These nations contributed to his military might. Removal of a cedar twig (Ezekiel 17:3-4): came unto Lebanon, and took the top of the cedar. (Ezekiel 17:4) He broke off the topmost of its twigs, and carried it unto a land of commerce. He set it in a city of merchants. Lebanon represents the land of Israel, and especially the kingdom of Judah. The cedar represents Jerusalem. The top of the cedar stands for the nobility of the city, especially the princes of the house of David. Nebuchadnezzar broke off the topmost of the twigs of the cedar. This twig clearly represents the youthful King Jehoiachin who was carried off by Nebuchadnezzar in 597 B.C. Jehoiachin was taken to a land of commerce, i.e., Chaldea, and a city of merchants, i.e., Babylon.

Implantation of a seed (Ezekiel 17:5): Moreover, he took from the seed of the land and set it in a fruitful field. He set it as a stalk alongside many waters, as a willow. Nebuchadnezzar set up the seed of the land, i.e., a member of the royal family. In place of Jehoiachin, Nebuchadnezzar appointed Zedekiah as king of Judah. The fruitful field in which the seed was planted must be Judah. Beside many waters (v 5) is probably a reference to Babylon (cf. Jeremiah 51:13). Although Nebuchadnezzar put Zedekiah on the throne, he was dependent on Babylon, like a stalk is dependent on the moisture of a near-by stream.

The spreading vine (Ezekiel 17:6): It sprouted and became a spreading vine of low stature whose tendrils turned toward him, and whose roots were under him. So it became a vine. It brought forth branches, and put forth sprigs. The spreading vine of low stature must depict the Judean vassal state administered by Zedekiah. The tendrils of this vine turned toward (and the roots were under) the eagle (Nebuchadnezzar). Zedekiah was given only limited authority. As long as the vine maintained this posture it prospered, at least in a measure. Second great eagle(Ezekiel 17:7-8) Description (Ezekiel 17:7 a). There was another great eagle, with great wings and many feathers. The second great eagle is Pharaoh Hophra. Inclination of the vine (Ezekiel 17:7 b): Behold, this vine bent its roots unto him, and put forth its tendrils toward him to water it from the beds of its plantation. To Pharaoh Hophra the vine (Zedekiah) turned for military aid in an attempt to free itself from the influence of the first eagle (Nebuchadnezzar). This spreading toward the direction of the second eagle (Egypt) was unnatural and unnecessary.

Disappointment of the vine (Ezekiel 17:8): In a good field, by many waters it was planted that it might produce branches and bear fruit, that it might be a glorious vine. The vine should have prospered and even could have produced fruit— children of Zedekiah— to carry on the royal succession. The fate of the vine (Ezekiel 17:9-10): Say, Thus says the Lord GOD: Will it prosper? Will he not pull up its roots, and cut off its fruit that it wither, that it wither in all its sprouting leaves? Neither will great power nor many people be at hand when it is plucked up by its roots. (10) Behold, being planted, will it prosper? When the east wind touches it, will it not utterly wither?

In the beds where it sprouted, it will wither. The allegory concludes with four rhetorical questions. The repetition underscores the futility of Zedekiah’s duplicity. How could the vine (Zedekiah) prosper when it had tried to spread beyond its prescribed domain? The first great eagle will uproot the vine, cut off its fruit so that it will completely wither and die. Zedekiah’ s reign will be terminated.

All the heirs to the throne will be killed. The nobles of Judah will perish. No great power or army of soldiers will be at hand to thwart the great eagle in his vengeful attack (Ezekiel 17:9). That Judean vine will utterly wither right in the spot where it was planted when the scorching east wind (Babylonian empire) began to blow against it (Ezekiel 17:10). Explanation of the Eagle Parable (Ezekiel 17:11-15) Deportation of 597 B.C. (Ezekiel 17:11-12): Moreover, the word of the LORD came unto me saying, (Ezekiel 17:12) Say now to the rebellious house, Do you not know what these things mean? Say: The king of Babylon came to Jerusalem, and took its king and its princes. He brought them to him in Babylon. So that the meaning of his parable will be absolutely clear, Ezekiel was commanded to offer an interpretation of it to that rebellious house (the kingdom of Judah). He begins with a rhetorical question that is designed to rebuke the spiritual obtuseness of his hearers: Do you not know what these things mean? Nebuchadnezzar had carried away the princes of Judah (top of the cedar) and King Jehoiachin (the topmost of the twigs) to Babylon. Covenant with Zedekiah (Ezekiel 17:13-14): He took of the royal seed and made a covenant with him. He brought him under an oath; but the mighty of the land he took away. (Ezekiel 17:14) He made it a lowly kingdom, that it might not lift itself up, but that by keeping his covenant it might stand. After deposing the youthful Jehoiachin, Nebuchadnezzar took the seed royal, i.e., Zedekiah the son of Josiah and uncle of Jehoiachin, and placed him upon the throne in Jerusalem. Zedekiah was placed under a solemn oath taken in the name of God to be loyal to Nebuchadnezzar. The mighty of the land, i.e., influential leaders, were carried to Babylon (v 13) as hostages so as to guarantee Zedekiah’ s compliance to the terms of his oath. Nebuchadnezzar’ s purpose was to keep Judah weak and subservient (v 14). Rebellion of Zedekiah (Ezekiel 17:15): But he rebelled against him in sending his ambassadors to Egypt that he might give to him horses and much people. Will he prosper? Will the one who does these things escape? Will he break the covenant and escape? Disregarding his sacred oath, Zedekiah rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar by making overtures to Egypt (the second eagle). He sought military aid from Pharaoh. Three rhetorical questions underscore the futility of such a course. Announcement of Judgment (17:16-21)

First divine oath (Ezekiel 17:16-18) Condemnation (Ezekiel 17:16-17): As I live (oracle of the Lord GOD), surely in the place where the king caused him to reign, whose oath he despised and whose covenant he broke, with him in the midst of Babylon he will die. (Ezekiel 17:17) Neither will Pharaoh with mighty army and great company assist him in the war, when they cast up mounds and build siege forts, to cut off many lives. Under oath (as I live), Yahweh answers his own three questions (cf. Ezekiel 17:15) with three statements. One could not break a sacred oath taken in the name of God and then expect any divine aid. The king against whom Zedekiah had committed treachery will haul him off to die in the midst of Babylon (Ezekiel 17:16). Aid from Pharaoh will not be forthcoming when the Babylonians built their siege mounds and forts at Jerusalem (Ezekiel 17:17). Egypt’s reputation as an unreliable ally is based on Isaiah 36:6; cf. Jeremiah 37:5-10).

Explanation (Ezekiel 17:18): Because he despised an oath by breaking a covenant (and, behold, he gave his hand), and has done all these things, he will not escape. Zedekiah will not escape. He had been required to take an oath by a heathen king. Therefore Zedekiah despised that oath and regarded it as non-binding. Nevertheless, he had given his hand as a pledge of faithful compliance with the terms of that oath (Ezekiel 17:18). Second divine oath (Ezekiel 17:19-21) Zedekiah condemned (Ezekiel 17:19): Therefore, thus says the Lord GOD: As I live, surely my oath that he despised, and my covenant that he broke, I will even bring it upon his head. Zedekiah had taken his oath to Babylon in the name of God. It was, therefore, God’ s oath that he broke. So God takes an oath (as I live is an oath formula) for the second time that he will bring down on the head of Zedekiah the punishment for this treachery.

Zedekiah captured (Ezekiel 17:20): I will spread my net over him. He will be taken in my snare. I will bring him to Babylon. I will plead with him there because of his treachery that he committed against me. The rebellious king will be caught in the net of divine retribution. He will be carried off to Babylon. There God will plead with him, i.e., make him conscious of the serious crime he had committed against God.

Zedekiah’s army destroyed (Ezekiel 17:21): All his mighty men in all his bands will fall by the sword. The rest will be scattered toward every wind; and you will know that I the LORD have spoken it. The royal bodyguard that might try to protect Zedekiah from this fate will be slain or scattered by the Babylonians. When all these specific predictions came to pass all the Jews will realize that it was truly God who had spoken through the mouth of the prophet to oppose the rebellion against Babylon.

MESSIAH: THE STATELY CEDAREze_17:22-24 Implantation (Ezekiel 17:22): Thus says the Lord GOD: Moreover I, even I, will take of the top of the lofty cedar, and set it. I will break off from the topmost of its young twigs, a tender one. I will plant it upon a high and eminent mountain. The message of doom in the preceding parable and application is tempered by a word of hope in Ezekiel 17:22-24. God in his sovereign grace is about to act. Nebuchadnezzar had cut a twig from the cedar.

He had removed it to far off Babylon (cf. Ezekiel 17:3 f.). God, however, will now cut a twig from that same royal cedar tree and plant it upon a high mountain (Ezekiel 17:22). The basic idea is that the Davidic dynasty will be reinstated and will achieve a prominence that it had not heretofore enjoyed. The messianic king of the house of David is in view here. Jesus of Nazareth now occupies the throne of God and rules over the New Israel of God. Exaltation (Ezekiel 17:23): In the mountain of the height of Israel will I plant it. It will bring forth boughs and produce fruit. It will be a glorious cedar. Under it will dwell every bird of every wing. In the shadow of its branches will they dwell. The messianic twig will be prominent, planted in the high mountain of Israel (cf.

Isaiah 2:2). The cedar— messianic Jerusalem, the church of Christ— will be stately, i.e., dignified. It will bear fruit. Messiah heads a royal family of kings and priests (1 Peter 2:9). Many birds (different nations) will place themselves under the protection of this messianic monarch. The prophet’s purpose in these eight chapters has been to reinforce the announcement of Jerusalem’ s judgment by refuting the notion that Jerusalem could never be destroyed.

Ezekiel addresses with seven false attitudes that are in some cases explicitly stated, and in other cases implied in the text. The chart below will serve as a review of the argument found in chs 12-17. REVIEW OF 12-17POPULAR Prophecies of doom have failed to materialize. God loves us too much to destroy us (12:22).This proverb will soon cease. The day is at hand (12:23).Judgments against Judah belong to some distant future age. No cause for alarm now (12:27).No more delay. The word will be fulfilled in your lifetime (12:25-28).Prophets and prophetesses have assured us this is a time of peace.The prophets are unreliable. They have received no message from the Lord (13:1-23).Righteous people still live in Jerusalem.

God will spare the place on their account.Even if Noah, Job or Daniel lived there, they will only be able to save themselves (14:12-23).Israel is God’ s choice vine. God should care for her.God had indeed continually cared for Israel; but throughout her history she continually had rebelled against Him (ch 16).This generation is being judged for crimes committed by previous generations.The present generation has rebelled by seeking aid and security from Egypt and breaking a solemn oath to Nebuchadnezzar (ch 17).If God punishes men for the sins of their fathers, of what value is repentance.Each man is responsible for his own deeds (ch 18). Ezekiel Chapter SeventeenVerse 1 THE PARABLE OF THE TWO EAGLESThe prophecy of this chapter was directed against another false hope of the house of Israel, namely, the national conviction that God’s promises to the house of David was an unconditional guarantee that the prosperity of Israel would continue forever, no matter what the moral and spiritual condition of the people was. “They thought that God could not fail toward Zedekiah without reversing his ancient promises to the house of David. Here, the prophet revealed that Zedekiah would receive the due reward of his evil deeds; and, that despite that, God would yet fulfill all of his glorious promises to the Chosen People, though, from human observation, all appeared to be lost, the kingdom of David would be exalted in latter times."[1]There would indeed be raised up one to sit upon the throne of David; but that spoke of Jesus’ resurrection from the grave, and his ascension to the right hand of God, those glorious events which far more than adequately fulfilled all of God’s promises to David (Acts 2:29-35). Concerning the date of the chapter, the last preceding date mentioned by Ezekiel was in Ezekiel 8:1, which was 592 B.C. and the next date mentioned by the prophet (Ezekiel 20:1) was eleven months later. “From Ezekiel 17:20, it is clear that this prophecy was uttered a year or two earlier than the date given in Ezekiel 20:1, say, about 590 B.C."[2]THE FIRST EAGLEEze_17:1-6"And the word of Jehovah came unto me, saying, Son of man, Put forth a riddle, and speak a parable unto the house of Israel; and say, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: A great eagle with great wings and long pinions, full of feathers, which had divers colors, came unto Lebanon and took the top of the cedar: he cropped off the topmost of the young twigs thereof, and carried it unto a land of traffic; he set it in a city of merchants. He took also of the seed of the land, and planted it in a fruitful soil; he placed it beside many waters; he set it as a willow tree. And it grew, and became a spreading vine of low stature, whose branches turned toward him, and the roots thereof were under him: so it became a vine, and brought forth branches, and shot forth twigs.“The analogy here is called both a riddle and a parable. Indeed, it is both. How the clipping from the cedar became, first “as a willow tree,” and later as a vine is not explained. “The first eagle here represents the king of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar."[3] “The great eagle’ mentioned here is from the Hebrew [~neser], which actually means the griffon vulture; and that is the basis for the Revised Standard Version rendition here."[4] It appears to us that a vulture is more in keeping with the personality of Nebuchadnezzar than an eagle! “The cedar of Lebanon …” (Ezekiel 17:3). is a reference to the land of Palestine. “The topmost of the young twigs thereof …” (Ezekiel 17:4). refers to the young king Jehoiachin.[5]“The seed of the land which was planted …” (Ezekiel 17:5). is a reference to Zedekiah."[6]“Fruitful soil … many waters, etc….” (Ezekiel 17:5). These express the beauty and fertility of Palestine. “Land of traffic … city of merchants …” (Ezekiel 17:5). These indicate Babylon, to which Jehoiachin and the first company of deportees were carried away. “And the roots thereof were under him …” (Ezekiel 17:6). “This means that Zedekiah’s dependence upon Babylon would not change."[7] The earlier statement here that “his branches turned toward him (the king of Babylon)” indicates the same thing. As long as Zedekiah remained true to his sworn allegiance to the king of Babylon, all went well with the kingdom; but his rebellion brought on the swift and total destruction of Jerusalem. Verse 7 THE OTHER EAGLEThe other eagle depicted here was, of course, another vulture, fitting emblem indeed of the king of Egypt; and the vine bending its roots toward Pharaoh and shooting forth its branches toward him are references to the treachery of Zedekiah against his suzerain overlord, the king of Babylon, as he attempted against all the advice of God’s prophets, to form an effective alliance with Egypt. God here stated the prophecy of the failure of such a maneuver by Zedekiah in the form of questions, the true meaning of which was summed up in Ezekiel 17:10, “It shall wither in the beds where it grew.” Beasley-Murray identified this second vulture as Pharaoh-Hophra (Jeremiah 44:30).[8]“When the east wind toucheth it …” (Ezekiel 17:10). “The hot, east wind blowing across the desert here was the armies of Babylon, led by Nebuchadnezzar."[9]Verse 11 “Moreover the word of Jehovah came unto me, saying, Say now to the rebellious house, know ye not what these things mean? tell them, Behold, the king of Babylon came to Jerusalem, and took the king thereof, and the princes thereof, and brought them to him in Babylon. And he took of the seed royal, and made a covenant with him; he also brought him under an oath, and took away the mighty of the land; that the kingdom might be base, that it might not lift itself up, but that by keeping his covenant it might stand. But he rebelled against him in sending his ambassadors into Egypt, that they might give him horses and much people. Shall he prosper? shall he escape that doeth such things? shall he break the covenant, and yet escape? As I live, saith the Lord Jehovah, surely in the place where the king dwelleth, that made him king, whose oath he despised, and whose covenant he brake, even with him in the midst of Babylon he shall die.“GOD THE MEANINGThis heavenly explanation of what the story of the two vultures really meant is crystal clear, and there can be no further doubt of the destruction and death of Zedekiah, accompanied by the total ruin of Jerusalem. “He took of the seed royal, and made a covenant with him …” (Ezekiel 17:13). The person mentioned here was, “An uncle of Jehoiachin, named Mattaniah, whom Nebuchadnezzar made king of Judah under the name of Zedekiah (2 Kings 24:17), and from whom he took an oath."[10]Verse 17 “Neither shall Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company help him in the war, when they cast up mounds and build forts, to cut off many persons. For he hath despised the oath by breaking the covenant; and, behold, he hath given his hand, and yet hath done all these things; he shall not escape. Therefore, thus saith the Lord Jehovah: As I live, surely mine oath that he hath despised, and my covenant that he hath broken, I will even bring it upon his own head. And I will spread my net upon him, and he shall be taken in my snare, and I will bring him to Babylon, and will enter into judgment with him there for his trespass that he hath trespassed against me. And all his fugitives in all his bands shall fall by the sword, and they that remain shall be scattered toward every wind: and ye shall know that I, Jehovah, have spoken it.““Mine oath he hath despised … and my covenant he hath broken …” (Ezekiel 17:19). Here is the declaration that it was not merely his oath and covenant with the king of Babylon that Zedekiah had violated and despised, it was the oath and covenant of Jehovah himself. How was this? “The indignant passion that breathes through this oracle is aroused by the fact that Zedekiah’s perfidy toward Nebuchadnezzar was in reality perfidy toward Yahweh himself, whose name he had solemnly invoked when had taken the oath of allegiance to the king of Babylon."[11]This certainly constituted the ultimate aggravation of Zedekiah’s shameful guilt. “When Nebuchadnezzar formed that vassal treaty with Zedekiah, he was required to swear loyalty to him in the name of Jehovah. The oath may have been confirmed by the change of names from Mattaniah to Zedekiah (2 Kings 24:17). Mattaniah means gift of God'; "and Zedekiah means righteousness of Jehovah.’"[12]Up to this point in this chapter, the message has been simple and clear enough. God will indeed punish the treacherous Zedekiah, along with his evil advisers and the rebellious city; but the final three verses speak of something glorious yet in store for Israel. Verse 22 “Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: I will take of the lofty top of the cedar, and will set it; I will crop off from the topmost of its young twigs a tender one, and I will plant it upon a high and lofty mountain: in the mountain of the height of Israel will I plant it; and it shall bring forth boughs and bear fruit, and be a goodly cedar: and under it shall dwell all birds of every wing; in the shade of the branches thereof shall they dwell. And all the trees of the field shall know that I, Jehovah, have brought down the high tree, have exalted the low tree, have dried up the green tree, and have made the dry tree to flourish: I, Jehovah, have spoken and have done it.““This prophecy was fulfilled only in a Messianic sense."[13] “We have here a striking prediction of the kingdom of Messiah."[14] May noted that this scripture corresponds, “with the common designation of the Messiah as the Branch."[15]There is actually another parable here, using the same figures with different interpretations from the same figures in the first part of the chapter. “The `tender one’ taken from the topmost twigs is the Messiah of the house of David (Jeremiah 23:5 f; Jeremiah 33:15)."[16] Other Biblical examples of kingdoms sheltering beasts and birds are in Ezekiel 31:6; Ezekiel 31:12; Daniel 4:12; Daniel 4:21; and Mark 4:32. The promise here revealed that God would indeed honor all of the sacred promises to David, but that he would do so with entirely different personnel from that of the apostate Israel as represented by the unfaithful and treacherous Zedekiah. “All the trees of the field” (Ezekiel 17:24). “These are the rulers of the world and the nations governed by them."[17] The world-wide acceptance of Christ in his Messianic rule is indicated by this, but not in the sense that “the nations” shall be incorporated into God’s kingdom.

Ezekiel 17:1-2

Ezekiel 17:1-2. Riddle and parable are used for the same story. The distinction is slight, but the latter merely me.ans a comparison, while the former indicates that the story will be somewhat puzzling. The parable has to do with the affairs of God’ s people in connection with the Babylonians and Egyptians. The Biblical history that corresponds with it iB in 2 Kings 24, 25.

Ezekiel 17:3

Ezekiel 17:3. The great eagle was Babylon, Lebanon was Jerusalem and the cedar was composed of the leading men or princes of the city. Of course all of these terms were used figuratively and will be referred to by tlieir proper names before the chapter is finished. Since Babylon was represented under the figure of an eagle, in describing its greatness the use of corresponding figures would naturally be maintained. A flying creature that could soar from the region of the Euphrates and arrive so successfully at the distant point of Jerusalem, would require the kind of wings described.

Ezekiel 17:4

Ezekiel 17:4. This verse is a prediction of the captivity that was soon to be effected over the leading citizens of Jerusalem. Land of traffic was literally true of Babylon. Situated at the Euphrates and Tigris, and also not far from the gulf, she was in a position to deal with the merchants of the world.

Ezekiel 17:5

Ezekiel 17:5. When Nebuchadnezzar first made his attack upon Palestine he did not entirely destroy the capital and other cities. He took charge of the country and allowed the Jews still to have a king of their own peo- pel. He also permitted some of these chief men to occupy places of importance in Jerusalem, and the kingdom of Judah continued to reign in its own land. Fruitful field and great waters are figures of speech to indicate the favorable situation that the nation was allowed to enjoy even though the king of Babylon was over the whole realm.

Ezekiel 17:6

Ezekiel 17:6. This verse is a picture of the relative prosperity of Judah under the domination of the great eagle which represented Babylon. Vine of low stature means it prospered as a spreading vine, but was not permitted to raise its head to the equal of Babylon, Turned toward him. means that Judah had to look to Babylon as a superior.

Ezekiel 17:7

Ezekiel 17:7. The great eagle was Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who would have come to the side of Judah had he been able; this fact is also re-vealed in 2 Kings 24 : It may be seen also that Judah would have been eager to have the support of Egypt, which is the meaning of branches toward him in this verse.

Ezekiel 17:8

Ezekiel 17:8. This verse shows the prosperous state of Egypt and what that country could have done for Judah had the Lord not interfered.

Ezekiel 17:9

Ezekiel 17:9. The central idea in this verse is similar to the preceding one. In spite of the many natural resources of Pharaoh’s kingdom, that monarch would not be able to save Judah from her overthrow when God decreed it to be otherwise.

Ezekiel 17:10

Ezekiel 17:10. Maintaining the figurative form of a vine for Egypt, the writer predicted that the plant would not prosper, which means it would not succeed in the plans for coming to the aid of Judah.

Ezekiel 17:11-12

Ezekiel 17:11-12. The king of Babylon corresponds with great eagle of verse 3; Jerusalem is to identify Lebanon of that verse, and princes was called the cedar. The events pictured are recorded in the closing chapters of 2 Kings.

Ezekiel 17:13

Ezekiel 17:13. King’ s seed is indefinite and refers to the leading men in Jerusalem whom the king of Babylon pressed into service. However, among these leading men there was one (Zedekiah) who was appointed to sit as acting ruler in Jerusalem.

Ezekiel 17:14

Ezekiel 17:14. Kingdom be base denotes that the realm of Judah was to be subject to the rule of Babylon even though the acting king was suffered to remain in Jerusalem.

Ezekiel 17:15

Ezekiel 17:15. Zedekiah thought he could get help from Egypt against the king of Babylon. He sent ambassadors into Egypt according to this verse, and the same is recorded in Jeremiah 37:7 as a bit of history included in that prophetic hook.

Ezekiel 17:16

Ezekiel 17:16. King dwelleth that made him king refers to the king of Babylon, for in 2 Kings 24:17 we have the record of that appointment. This verse predicts that Zedekiah was to die in the very land of him who had given him his appointment as king.

Ezekiel 17:17

Ezekiel 17:17. It was predicted that the attempted alliance with Egypt would prove disappointing. When God decrees that his people are to receive some chastisement for their unfaithfulness, it is useless for them to think they can avoid it by calling for help from others, for numbers and other might count nothing against Him.

Ezekiel 17:18

Ezekiel 17:18. Zedekiah had made an agreement with the king of Babylon to serve him while remaining on the throne in Jerusalem. He broke that convenant by calling on Egypt for help, and such an act was against the will of God. for it was the divine wili that Babylon be given possession of Jerusalem and her people.

Ezekiel 17:19

Ezekiel 17:19. The oath that Zedekiah made with Nebuchadnezzar was the same as if it had been made with the Lord, since He had decreed that the Babylonians were to conquer.

Ezekiel 17:20

Ezekiel 17:20. Spread my net refers to the pursuit and capture of Zedekiah when he sought to escape by fleeing in the night (2 Kings 25:4-7),

Ezekiel 17:21

Ezekiel 17:21. Some of Zedekiah’ s men tried to escape with him, but they were captured and taken f)‘om their king. This event is recorded in 2 Kings 25:5.

Ezekiel 17:22-24

Ezekiel 17:22-24. These verses should he grouped in a bracket and given a twofold interpretation. The first is a prediciton of the return of God’ s people from captivity. The second is a prediction of Christ as King and Redeemer over all earth spiritually.