12 She doted H5689 upon the Assyrians H1121 H804 her neighbours, H7138 captains H6346 and rulers H5461 clothed H3847 most gorgeously, H4358 horsemen H6571 riding H7392 upon horses, H5483 all of them desirable H2531 young men. H970
So Ahaz H271 sent H7971 messengers H4397 to Tiglathpileser H8407 king H4428 of Assyria, H804 saying, H559 I am thy servant H5650 and thy son: H1121 come up, H5927 and save H3467 me out of the hand H3709 of the king H4428 of Syria, H758 and out of the hand H3709 of the king H4428 of Israel, H3478 which rise up H6965 against me. And Ahaz H271 took H3947 the silver H3701 and gold H2091 that was found H4672 in the house H1004 of the LORD, H3068 and in the treasures H214 of the king's H4428 house, H1004 and sent H7971 it for a present H7810 to the king H4428 of Assyria. H804 And the king H4428 of Assyria H804 hearkened H8085 unto him: for the king H4428 of Assyria H804 went up H5927 against Damascus, H1834 and took H8610 it, and carried the people of it captive H1540 to Kir, H7024 and slew H4191 Rezin. H7526 And king H4428 Ahaz H271 went H3212 to Damascus H1834 to meet H7125 Tiglathpileser H8407 king H4428 of Assyria, H804 and saw H7200 an altar H4196 that was at Damascus: H1834 and king H4428 Ahaz H271 sent H7971 to Urijah H223 the priest H3548 the fashion H1823 of the altar, H4196 and the pattern H8403 of it, according to all the workmanship H4639 thereof. And Urijah H223 the priest H3548 built H1129 an altar H4196 according to all that king H4428 Ahaz H271 had sent H7971 from Damascus: H1834 so Urijah H223 the priest H3548 made H6213 it against king H4428 Ahaz H271 came H935 from Damascus. H1834 And when the king H4428 was come H935 from Damascus, H1834 the king H4428 saw H7200 the altar: H4196 and the king H4428 approached H7126 to the altar, H4196 and offered H5927 thereon. And he burnt H6999 his burnt offering H5930 and his meat offering, H4503 and poured H5258 his drink offering, H5262 and sprinkled H2236 the blood H1818 of his peace offerings, H8002 upon the altar. H4196 And he brought H7126 also the brasen H5178 altar, H4196 which was before H6440 the LORD, H3068 from the forefront H6440 of the house, H1004 from between the altar H4196 and the house H1004 of the LORD, H3068 and put H5414 it on the north H6828 side H3409 of the altar. H4196 And king H4428 Ahaz H271 commanded H6680 Urijah H223 the priest, H3548 saying, H559 Upon the great H1419 altar H4196 burn H6999 the morning H1242 burnt offering, H5930 and the evening H6153 meat offering, H4503 and the king's H4428 burnt sacrifice, H5930 and his meat offering, H4503 with the burnt offering H5930 of all the people H5971 of the land, H776 and their meat offering, H4503 and their drink offerings; H5262 and sprinkle H2236 upon it all the blood H1818 of the burnt offering, H5930 and all the blood H1818 of the sacrifice: H2077 and the brasen H5178 altar H4196 shall be for me to enquire H1239 by.
At that time H6256 did king H4428 Ahaz H271 send H7971 unto the kings H4428 of Assyria H804 to help H5826 him. For again the Edomites H130 had come H935 and smitten H5221 Judah, H3063 and carried away H7617 captives. H7628 The Philistines H6430 also had invaded H6584 the cities H5892 of the low country, H8219 and of the south H5045 of Judah, H3063 and had taken H3920 Bethshemesh, H1053 and Ajalon, H357 and Gederoth, H1450 and Shocho H7755 with the villages H1323 thereof, and Timnah H8553 with the villages H1323 thereof, Gimzo H1579 also and the villages H1323 thereof: and they dwelt H3427 there. For the LORD H3068 brought H3665 Judah H3063 low H3665 because of Ahaz H271 king H4428 of Israel; H3478 for he made H6544 Judah H3063 naked, H6544 and transgressed H4603 sore H4604 against the LORD. H3068 And Tilgathpilneser H8407 king H4428 of Assyria H804 came H935 unto him, and distressed H6696 him, but strengthened H2388 him not. For Ahaz H271 took away a portion H2505 out of the house H1004 of the LORD, H3068 and out of the house H1004 of the king, H4428 and of the princes, H8269 and gave H5414 it unto the king H4428 of Assyria: H804 but he helped H5833 him not. And in the time H6256 of his distress H6887 did he trespass H4603 yet more H3254 against the LORD: H3068 this is that king H4428 Ahaz. H271 For he sacrificed H2076 unto the gods H430 of Damascus, H1834 which smote H5221 him: and he said, H559 Because the gods H430 of the kings H4428 of Syria H758 help H5826 them, therefore will I sacrifice H2076 to them, that they may help H5826 me. But they were the ruin H3782 of him, and of all Israel. H3478
And Aholah H170 played the harlot H2181 when she was mine; H8478 and she doted H5689 on her lovers, H157 on the Assyrians H804 her neighbours, H7138 Which were clothed H3847 with blue, H8504 captains H6346 and rulers, H5461 all of them desirable H2531 young men, H970 horsemen H6571 riding H7392 upon horses. H5483
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Ezekiel 23
Commentary on Ezekiel 23 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 23
This long chapter (as before ch. 16 and 20) is a history of the apostasies of God's people from him and the aggravations of those apostasies under the similitude of corporal whoredom and adultery. Here the kingdoms of Israel and Judah, the ten tribes and the two, with their capital cities, Samaria and Jerusalem, are considered distinctly. Here is,
And all that is written for warning against the sins of idolatry, and confidence in an arm of flesh, and sinful leagues and confederacies with wicked people (which are the sins here meant by committing whoredom), is that others may hear and fear, and not sin after the similitude of the transgressions of Israel and Judah.
Eze 23:1-10
God had often spoken to Ezekiel, and by him to the people, to this effect, but now his word comes again; for God speaks the same thing once, yea, twice, yea, many a time, and all little enough, and too little, for man perceives it not. Note, To convince sinners of the evil of sin, and of their misery and danger by reason of it, there is need of line upon line, so loth we are to know the worst of ourselves. The sinners that are here to be exposed are two women, two kingdoms, sister-kingdoms, Israel and Judah, daughters of one mother, having been for a long time but one people. Solomon's kingdom was so large, so populous, that immediately after his death it divided into two. Observe,
Eze 23:11-21
The prophet Hosea, in his time, observed that the two tribes retained their integrity, in a great measure, when the ten tribes had apostatized (Hos. 11:12, Ephraim indeed compasses me about with lies, but Judah yet rules with God and is faithful with the saints; and this was justly expected from them: Hos. 4:15, Though thou Israel play the harlot, yet let not Judah offend); but this lasted not long. By some unhappy matches made between the house of David and the house of Ahab the worship of Baal had been brought into the kingdom of Judah, but had been by the reforming kings worked out again; and at the time of the captivity of the ten tribes, which was in the reign of Hezekiah, things were in a good posture: but it lasted not long. In the reign of Manasseh, soon after the kingdom of Judah had seen the destruction of the kingdom of Israel, they became more corrupt than Israel had been in their inordinate love of idols, v. 11. Instead of being made better by the warning which that destruction gave them, they were made worse by it, as if they were displeased because the Lord had made that breach upon Israel, and for that reason became disaffected to him and to his service. Instead of being made to stand in awe of him as a jealous God, they therefore grew strange to him, and liked those gods better that would admit of partners with them. Note, Those may justly expect God's judgments upon themselves who do not take warning by his judgments upon others, who see in others what is the end of sin and yet continue to make a light matter of it. But it is bad indeed with those who are made worse by that which should make them better, and have their lusts irritated and exasperated by that which was designed to suppress and subdue them. Jerusalem grew worse in her whoredoms than her sister Samaria had been in her whoredoms. This was observed before (ch. 16:51), Neither has Samaria committed half of thy sins.
Eze 23:22-35
Jerusalem stands indicted by the name of Aholibah, for that she, as a false traitor to her sovereign Lord the God of heaven, not having his fear before her eyes, but moved by the instigation of the devil, had revolted from her allegiance to him, had compassed and imagined to shake off his government, had kept up a correspondence had joined in confederacy with his enemies, and the pretenders to a deity, in contempt of his crown and dignity. To this indictment she has pleaded, Not guilty: I am not polluted; I have not gone after Baalim. But it is found against her by the notorious evidence of the fact, and she stands convicted of it, nor has any thing material to offer why judgment should not be given and execution awarded according to law. In these verses, therefore, we have the sentence.
Eze 23:36-49
After the ten tribes were carried into captivity, and that kingdom was made quite desolate, the remains of it by degrees incorporated with the kingdom of Judah, and gained a settlement (many of them) in Jerusalem; so that the two sisters had in effect become one again; and therefore, in these verses, the prophet takes those to task jointly who were thus conjoined: "Wilt thou judge Aholah and Aholibah together? v. 36. Wilt thou go about to frame an excuse for them? Thou seest the matter is so bad as not to bear an excuse.' Or, rather, "Thou shalt now be employed, in God's name, to judge them, ch. 20:4. The matter is rather worse than better since the union.'