What is the meaning of Ezekiel 21:6? But you, son of man • The address reminds Ezekiel of his role as a representative of humanity under divine authority, echoing Ezekiel 2:1 and 3:17. • God singles him out to stand apart from the rebellious house (Ezekiel 2:3–5), underscoring personal responsibility in delivering God’s message (Ezekiel 33:7–9). • Like Jeremiah (Jeremiah 15:16–17), Ezekiel must personally embody the word he proclaims. Groan! • The command is emphatic—Ezekiel must let audible anguish spill out. • Prophets often voiced God’s grief: see Jeremiah 4:19 and Amos 8:10. • Groaning signals that divine judgment is not cold or detached; it is laden with sorrow over sin’s consequences (Isaiah 63:9). Groan before their eyes • The sign-act is public, similar to Ezekiel’s earlier street-corner dramas (Ezekiel 4:1–3; 5:1–4). • By witnessing the prophet’s pain, the exiles are confronted with coming judgment they still refuse to believe (Ezekiel 12:22–25). • God uses visible symbols—like Hosea’s marriage (Hosea 1:2) or Isaiah’s sackcloth (Isaiah 20:2)—to jolt hardened hearts. With a broken heart • The grief is not staged; it flows from genuine compassion, paralleling Psalm 34:18 and Lamentations 2:11. • A “broken heart” mirrors God’s own sorrow over sin (Genesis 6:6; Hosea 11:8). • Authentic lament gives moral weight to the warning (Joel 2:12–13). And bitter grief • “Bitter” intensifies the emotion, recalling Jeremiah 6:26 and Zephaniah 1:14. • The bitterness anticipates the sword coming against Judah (Ezekiel 21:3–5). • True prophetic ministry often entails tasting the bitterness of judgment before the people do (Revelation 10:9–10). summary Ezekiel 21:6 calls the prophet to display raw, public sorrow that mirrors God’s own heartbreak over Judah’s impending judgment. By commanding Ezekiel to groan aloud, the Lord makes the prophet’s personal grief a living sign to a stubborn audience, showing that divine warnings are delivered with compassionate urgency rather than detached indifference. |
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