Ezekiel — Chapter 2

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1“Son of man,” He said to me, “stand up on your feet and I will speak to you.”

2And as He spoke to me, the Spirit entered me and set me on my feet, and I heard Him speaking to me.

3“Son of man,” He said to me, “I am sending you to the Israelites, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against Me. To this very day they and their fathers have rebelled against Me.

4They are obstinate and stubborn children. I am sending you to them, and you are to say to them, ‘This is what the Lord GOD says.’

5And whether they listen or refuse to listen—for they are a rebellious house—they will know that a prophet has been among them.

6But you, son of man, do not be afraid of them or their words. Do not be afraid, though briers and thorns surround you, and you dwell among scorpions. Do not be afraid of their words or dismayed by their presence, though they are a rebellious house.

7But speak My words to them, whether they listen or refuse to listen, for they are rebellious.

8And you, son of man, listen to what I tell you. Do not be rebellious like that rebellious house. Open your mouth and eat what I give you.”

9Then I looked and saw a hand reaching out to me, and in it was a scroll,

10which He unrolled before me. And written on the front and back of it were words of lamentation, mourning, and woe.

1And he said unto me, Son of man, stand upon thy feet, and I will speak unto thee.

2And the spirit entered into me when he spake unto me, and set me upon my feet, that I heard him that spake unto me.

3And he said unto me, Son of man, I send thee to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation that hath rebelled against me: they and their fathers have transgressed against me, even unto this very day.

4For they are impudent children and stiffhearted. I do send thee unto them; and thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD.

5And they, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear, (for they are a rebellious house,) yet shall know that there hath been a prophet among them.

6And thou, son of man, be not afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns be with thee, and thou dost dwell among scorpions: be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house.

7And thou shalt speak my words unto them, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear: for they are most rebellious.

8But thou, son of man, hear what I say unto thee; Be not thou rebellious like that rebellious house: open thy mouth, and eat that I give thee.

9And when I looked, behold, an hand was sent unto me; and, lo, a roll of a book was therein;

10And he spread it before me; and it was written within and without: and there was written therein lamentations, and mourning, and woe.

1And he said unto me, Son of man, stand upon thy feet, and I will speak with thee.

2And the Spirit entered into me when he spake unto me, and set me upon my feet; and I heard him that spake unto me.

3And he said unto me, Son of man, I send thee to the children of Israel, to nations that are rebellious, which have rebelled against me: they and their fathers have transgressed against me even unto this very day.

4And the children are impudent and stiffhearted: I do sent thee unto them; and thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah.

5And they, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear, (for they are a rebellious house,) yet shall know that there hath been a prophet among them.

6And thou, son of man, be not afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns are with thee, and thou dost dwell among scorpions: be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they are a rebellious house.

7And thou shalt speak my words unto them, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear; for they are most rebellious.

8But thou, son of man, hear what I say unto thee; be not thou rebellious like that rebellious house: open thy mouth, and eat that which I give thee.

9And when I looked, behold, a hand was put forth unto me; and, lo, a roll of a book was therein;

10And he spread it before me: and it was written within and without; and there were written therein lamentations, and mourning, and woe.

1He said to me, “Son of man, stand on your feet and I will speak with you.”

2As he spoke to me, a wind came into me and stood me on my feet, and I heard the one speaking to me.

3He said to me, “Son of man, I am sending you to the house of Israel, to rebellious nations who have rebelled against me; both they and their fathers have revolted against me to this very day.

4The people to whom I am sending you are obstinate and hard-hearted, and you must say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says.’

5And as for them, whether they listen or not—for they are a rebellious house—they will know that a prophet has been among them.

6But you, son of man, do not fear them, and do not fear their words. Even though briers and thorns surround you and you live among scorpions—do not fear their words and do not be terrified of the looks they give you, for they are a rebellious house!

7You must speak my words to them whether they listen or not, for they are rebellious.

8As for you, son of man, listen to what I am saying to you: Do not rebel like that rebellious house! Open your mouth and eat what I am giving you.”

9Then I looked and realized a hand was stretched out to me, and in it was a written scroll.

10He unrolled it before me, and it had writing on the front and back; written on it were laments, mourning, and woe.

1He said to me, “Son of man, stand on your feet, and I will speak with you.”

2The Spirit entered into me when he spoke to me, and set me on my feet; and I heard him who spoke to me.

3He said to me, “Son of man, I send you to the children of Israel, to a nation of rebels who have rebelled against me. They and their fathers have transgressed against me even to this very day.

4The children are impudent and stiff-hearted. I am sending you to them, and you shall tell them, ‘Thus says the Lord Yahweh.’

5They, whether they will hear, or whether they will refuse, for they are a rebellious house, yet they will know that there has been a prophet among them.

6You, son of man, don’t be afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns are with you, and you do dwell among scorpions. Don’t be afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they are a rebellious house.

7You shall speak my words to them, whether they will hear, or whether they will refuse; for they are most rebellious.

8But you, son of man, hear what I tell you. Don’t be rebellious like that rebellious house. Open your mouth, and eat that which I give you.”

9When I looked, behold, a hand was stretched out to me; and, behold, a scroll of a book was in it.

10He spread it before me. It was written within and without; and lamentations, mourning, and woe were written in it.

Summary
Authorship & Background
Commentary
Videos
Articles
Reflection

Summary

God commissions Ezekiel as a prophet, sending him to a rebellious, obstinate Israel whether or not they listen, since even their refusal will prove a prophet has been among them (vv. 1-5). God tells him not to fear the people or their hostility, comparing them to briers, thorns, and scorpions (vv. 6-7). He then shows Ezekiel a scroll covered with writing on both sides, full of lament and mourning and woe, and commands him to eat it before he speaks (vv. 8-10).

Authorship & Background

Author: Ezekiel son of Buzi (see Chapter 1 notes for full details).
Classification: Prophetic Call Narrative — The Commission
Key Themes: "Son of man" as divine address, sent to a rebellious people, success not guaranteed (just faithfulness), don't fear faces, the scroll of lamentation eaten
Historical Context: Following the overwhelming throne-vision (ch.1), Ezekiel receives his commission. The address "son of man" (Hebrew "ben adam") appears 93 times in Ezekiel — emphasizing the prophet's humanity before God's overwhelming glory. The commission is stark: you're sent to rebels. They're "impudent" (hard-faced) and "stiffhearted." They probably won't listen. But preach anyway — so they'll know a prophet was among them. The scroll symbolizes God's message: Ezekiel must internalize it (eat it) before externalizing it (preaching it). The scroll contains only "lamentations, mourning, and woe" — Ezekiel's first message is entirely judgment.
Son of Man, and the Spirit That Set Him on His Feet (vv.1-2): The address used here will be used ninety-three times in the book, and in Hebrew it means simply human being, mortal. Set against the throne of the previous chapter it functions as a counterweight, and the two verses make the point structurally as well: he is told to stand upon his feet, and he cannot do it until the spirit entered into me, and set me upon my feet. The commission begins with a man who has to be stood up before he can be spoken to.
The Commission to a Rebellious House (vv.3-5): The terms are stated without optimism. I send thee to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation, and the description is stacked, impudent children and stiffhearted, or in the Hebrew idiom hard of face and hard of heart. Then the clause that separates this commission from a mission statement, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear. Success is redefined so that it does not depend on the audience at all, yet shall know that there hath been a prophet among them. That is the standard the whole book is written to.
Briers, Thorns and Scorpions (vv.6-7): Twice in two verses he is told not to be afraid, once of their words and once of their looks, be not dismayed at their looks. The imagery is of a man walking through ground that will tear at him, briers and thorns and scorpions. And the instruction is repeated verbatim from the previous section, thou shalt speak my words unto them, whether they will hear or forbear, which is this book's method: it says a thing, and then says it again in the same words, until the reader stops expecting a different outcome.
The Roll Written Within and Without (vv.8-10): A hand appears holding the roll of a book, and it is spread before him. Two details are given about it. It was written within and without, that is, on both sides, which for a scroll means there is no space left for anything else. And there was written therein lamentations, and mourning, and woe. Before the prophet has said anything, the content of his message has been shown to him and it is all of one kind. He is also told to eat it, which is where chapter 3 begins.

Commentary

  • Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com
  • Jamieson-Fausset-Brown (1871): blueletterbible.org A critical and explanatory commentary on the whole Bible, more concise than Matthew Henry and closer to the Hebrew and Greek, with attention to historical and geographical detail. Public domain.
  • Matthew Henry's Exposition (1710): blueletterbible.org A devotional verse-by-verse commentary in the Puritan tradition, still among the most widely read three centuries on. Public domain.

Videos

Ezekiel 1-3 | The Prophet of New Creation | Bible Study
Spoken Gospel

Eat Your Bible - Ezekiel 2:6-3:3
David Guzik

Ezekiel 2 - Called to Speak to a Rebellious, Stubborn People
David Guzik

Articles

  • GotQuestions.org: gotquestions.org On the whole book: an overview of the book of Ezekiel -- who wrote it, when, why, and how it fits the rest of Scripture.

Links open on the publisher's own site. Nothing here is reproduced on this page.

Reflection

  • Raised From the Floor to Serve (v.1) — After Ezekiel collapses before God's glory, the Spirit sets him on his feet before commissioning him to speak. Worship comes first, but it isn't the end point — are you willing to get up and serve after an encounter with God?
  • Sent Regardless of the Response (v.5) — God sends Ezekiel to a rebellious people whether or not they will listen, simply so they'll know a prophet has been among them. Do you measure your faithfulness by results, or by whether you obeyed what God asked?
  • Refusing to Fear a Hostile Reception (v.6) — God tells Ezekiel not to fear the people's words or looks, even though he'll be surrounded like briers, thorns, and scorpions. What hostile reactions are you letting silence you from saying what needs to be said?
  • Internalizing the Word Before Speaking It (v.10) — The scroll Ezekiel is told to take in is filled with lamentation, mourning, and woe, a hard message he must absorb before he ever preaches it. Are you willing to sit with a difficult truth long enough to let it shape you before passing it on?