Ezekiel 33:25

(25) Ye eat with the blood.—The people who remained in the land went on as before in their course of sin. The crimes here charged upon them (Eze_33:25-26) are the same as those all along alleged against them, and Jeremiah gives a sad picture of their open rebellion against the express commands of God (Jeremiah 42, 43). This particular sin of eating flesh with the blood had been repeatedly forbidden, first to Noah (Gen_9:4), and again under the Law (Lev_3:17; Lev_7:26; Lev_17:10-14; Deu_12:16).

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Eze 33:25 Wherefore say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Ye eat with the blood, and lift up your eyes toward your idols, and shed blood: and shall ye possess the land?

Ver. 25. Ye eat with the blood.] Which wicked Saul would not do, {1Sa 14:32-34} much less would righteous Abraham have done it, since it was against the light and letter of the law. {Gen 9:4 Lev 7:26 Deu 12:16} Nay, ye do worse things; and are you Abraham’s children, and heirs of the promised land, together with that faithful patriarch? I think not. See a like manner of reasoning, Mic 2:7 Joh 8:39. So the learned Linaker, having read our Saviour’s sermon in the mount, and considering how little it is lived among us, broke out into these words, Certainly either this is not gospel, or we are not right gospellers.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Eze 33:25-26. Say unto them, Thus saith the Lord — Remove from them this destructive carnal confidence, and show them what they do, and how far they are from being Abraham’s genuine seed. Ye eat with the blood — Which was expressly forbidden in the Jewish law, as appears from Lev 7:26, as well as that more ancient law ordained to all mankind, Gen 9:4; and lift up your eyes toward your idols — Offer up your prayers unto your fictitious gods; and shed blood — That is, commit murders; and shall ye possess the land? — When you do not perform the conditions on which the land was given, namely, that of being a holy people, can you think that you shall continue to enjoy it? Ye stand upon your sword — You make your strength the law of justice, and, confiding in that, you do whatsoever your inclinations lead you to, whether right or wrong; according to the character given of ungodly men, Wis 2:11, who say, “Let our strength be the law of justice, for that which is feeble is found to be nothing worthy” &c. Houbigant translates the clause, You stand in your high way, or the corners of your streets, and commit your abominations, considering the words as referring to their public and open profession of idolatry. Dr. Spencer (De Legib. Hebrew, lib. 2. cap. 11) thinks that the expression alludes to a custom of the heathen, “who put the blood of their sacrifices into a vessel, or pit, in order to call up and consult evil spirits, and then stood with their swords drawn, to keep the demons off from doing them any harm.” Ye defile every one his neighbour’s wife — Ye universally commit adultery; and shall ye possess the land? — The question implies a peremptory denial. Thus the prophet shows how vain and ill-grounded their expectations were of being continued in the possession of Judea, since they did those things which were contrary to the divine law, and which consequently excluded them from any right to the land.

Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Contrary to the Law, Lev. 17:14.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

eat with the blood--in opposition to the law (Lev 19:26; compare Gen 9:4). They did so as an idolatrous rite.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 25. Ye eat with the blood] Abraham was righteous, ye are unrighteous. Eating of blood, in any way dressed, or of flesh from which the blood had not been extracted, was and is in the sight of God abominable. All such practices he has absolutely and for ever forbidden. Let the vile blood-eaters hear and tremble. See Clarke on Ac 15:20, and the passages in the margin.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

25. The claim of the remnant is repudiated by Ezek. with indignation. They persist in the sins for which their country fell, and the same judgment shall overtake them.

ye eat with the blood] i.e. eat flesh slaughtered in such a way that the blood remains in it. According to the law animals had to be slaughtered in such a way as to drain away the blood, which was poured into the ground, where not dashed upon the altar. An example of a prohibited way of slaughtering was breaking the neck, Isa_66:3. Cf. Lev_17:10; Lev_19:26; Deu_12:16; 1Sa_14:32. See on Eze_18:6; Eze_18:11; Eze_18:15, Eze_22:9.

lift up your eyes] See Eze_18:6. On “shed blood” Eze_22:6; Eze_22:9.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Say thou thus unto them, thus saith the Lord God,.... Send or write unto them in the name of the Lord, after this manner,

as I live, which is the form of an oath; the Lord swears by himself his life, because he could swear by no greater, and for the confirmation of what follows:

surely they that are in the wastes shall fall by the sword; by their own sword, falling out one with another; or by the sword of Ishmael Jer 41:2 or by the sword of the Chaldeans, who revenged the death of Gedaliah and others; even such who dwelt amidst the ruins of the city of Jerusalem, and other places, that were become desolate through the ravages of the enemy:

and him that is in the open field will I give to the beasts to be devoured; of which it may be supposed there were the greater numbers, since the land was so depopulated: and they that be in the forts, and in the caves, shall die of the pestilence; such as were in fortified cities, or in caverns of the earth, dug in rocks and mountains, where, in neither of them, men and beasts could easily come at them; here the Lord would send his arrow, the plague, that flies by day, and reach them, and destroy them; none can escape his hands; these are three of the Lord's sore judgments, the sword, pestilence, and noisome beasts.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

To them. Grabe marks to ver. 27., Thus saith, &c., as wanting in the Septuagint, though not in the Alexandrian copy. St. Jerome reckons eight verses or lines omitted. (Haydock) --- The Complutensian and Theodoret read them with some variations. --- The blood. It must be carefully extracted, Genesis ix. 4., and Leviticus vii. 26. --- Uncleannesses; idols, in which you trust.

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

Say unto them; remove them from this dangerous carnal confidence, and show them what they do, and by that what they are, how far from Abraham’s seed, his genuine seed.

Ye eat with the blood: whatever might be the reason why, it is most certain this was forbidden, Gen 9:4; Lev 17:14; 19:26; they sinned by violating this law.

Lift up your eyes; honouring, praying, depending on, and committing yourselves to the protection and guidance of those dumb idols: see Eze 18:6. Shed blood, innocent blood, ye are murderers.

Shall ye possess the land, polluted with such and many other heinous sins? and what colour of hope can you have, that you shall possess the land? The question includes a peremptory denial.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Ye eat with the blood. It is characteristic of Ezekiel that the first offence which he names with horror should be a sin against a positive commandment. He felt, as it were, a sense of loathing at what seemed to him a descent into the worst form of pollution, forbidden, not to the Jews (Lev_17:10 Lev_19:26; Deu_12:16) but to mankind; (Gen_9:4) compare the scene in 1Sa_14:32. The same feeling shows itself in Zec_9:7 and Act_15:20, Act_15:29. The prohibition of blood took its place, in later Judaism, as among the precepts of Noah, which were binding even on the proselytes of the gate, upon whom, as distinct from the proselytes of righteousness, the rite of circumcision was not enforced; and as such were accepted by the council at Jerusalem, as binding also among Christian converts. Not for such as these was the inheritance of Israel, and the prophet asks indignantly, after naming yet. more hateful offenses, Shall ye possess the land?

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

General Information:

Yahweh continues speaking to Ezekiel about the people who were living in the ruins of Israel.

You eat blood

It is implied that they eat blood by eating meat that still has blood in it. Yahweh had commanded them to drain out the blood. AT: "You eat meat with blood in it" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)

you lift up your eyes towards your idols

"you look to your idols" This is an idiom. AT: "you worship your idols" (See: Idiom)

you pour out people's blood

Here "blood" represents a person's life. To pour out blood is an idiom that means to murder. AT: "you murder people" (See: Metonymy and Idiom)

Should you really possess the land?

Yahweh used this question to rebuke the people. AT: "You should not possess this land!" or "You do not deserve this land!" (See: Rhetorical Question)

You have depended on your swords

Here "swords" represent doing violent things. AT: "You have committed violent acts with your swords to get what you want" (See: Metonymy)

done disgusting things

"done things that I hate very much"

each man defiles his neighbor's wife

It is implied that they defile their neighbor's wives by sleeping with them. AT: "each man sleeps with his neighbor's wife" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)

translationWords

Lord Yahweh

blood

false god

sword

defile

neighbor

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

You eat on the blood, etc., and you should inherit the land This is a rhetorical question. If you were commanded [many commandments], you do not keep [them]. You eat on the blood: you eat delicacies through murder, for you slay those who have money and take away their money.

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.