What is the meaning of Ezekiel 35:7? I will make Mount Seir • The speaker is the LORD Himself, once again confronting Edom, the nation that occupied Mount Seir (Genesis 36:8). • By taking personal responsibility—“I will make”—God shows that this judgment is neither random nor merely natural; it is His deliberate response to Edom’s unrelenting hostility toward Israel (Ezekiel 35:5; Obadiah 1:10–15). • Scripture consistently presents God as sovereign over the nations: He “raises up kings and deposes them” (Daniel 2:21) and “does as He pleases with the powers of heaven and the peoples of the earth” (Daniel 4:35). • The prophecy echoes earlier warnings: “I have laid waste Esau’s mountains” (Malachi 1:2–4) and “I will stretch out My hand against Edom” (Isaiah 34:5–6). These passages establish a pattern of divine action that underscores the certainty of what Ezekiel announces here. a desolate waste • “Desolate” stresses emptiness and devastation. God is not talking about a temporary setback but a condition so severe that the land would be rendered uninhabitable, mirroring language used for Sodom and Gomorrah (Jeremiah 49:18). • Historically, the once–strategic trade routes through Seir were eventually abandoned, fulfilling the imagery of a barren landscape (compare Jeremiah 49:17). • The same phrase appears in Ezekiel 6:14, where Judah faced judgment; now Edom receives identical treatment, proving that God’s standards are consistent regardless of national identity. • Isaiah 34:9–15 describes ruined Edom as a haunt for desert creatures, reinforcing the literal reality of the desolation Ezekiel foretells. and will cut off from it those who come and go • The expression points to the elimination of daily life—no residents, no travelers, no caravans. Commerce, diplomacy, and ordinary movement all grind to a halt. • In Ezekiel 29:11 the LORD says of Egypt, “No man or beast will pass through it,” a near-parallel that highlights the totality of the disruption. • To “cut off” signifies decisive action; just as the LORD “cut off the chariot from Ephraim” (Zechariah 9:10), He will now sever every line of activity in Seir. • Obadiah 1:7 predicted Edom’s allies would deceive and overpower her, leaving her isolated. The phrase here shows that God ultimately enforces that isolation. • Nahum 3:19 speaks of Assyria’s wound with “no easing,” indicating finality; Ezekiel applies the same finality to Edom—there will be no resurgence. summary Ezekiel 35:7 delivers a three–fold promise from God: He Himself will act, He will turn Mount Seir into a barren ruin, and He will erase every sign of normal life from it. The verse highlights divine sovereignty, the certainty of judgment for persistent sin, and the completeness of God’s sentence. History confirms that Edom faded into obscurity, validating the literal fulfillment of the prophecy and reminding believers that God’s word stands firm. |
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