12/20/2025 – Week 8 of 13 – Ezekiel study (Nov 1st thru Jan. 24th) – Chapters 25 – 28 / Post 1 of 2// Nov 1st thru Jan 24th / For introduction – See 10/14/2025 post
Four sources for my quoted commentary excerpts, so far in our Ezekiel study, I have added (*D) this week for one commentary in chapter 28:
(*A) – Apologetics Study Bible
(*B) – My personal standby for this study: “Be Reverent – Bowing Before Our Awesome God – OT Commentary Ezekiel” Warren W. Wiersbe / ISBN 978-1-4347-0050-6
(*C) – The Daily Study Guide Series (DSB) – “Ezekiel” by Peter C. Craigie / ISBM 0-664-21807-5
(*D) – The Evidence Study Bible NKJV – Commentary by Ray Comfort
Chapter 25
(*C):
“25: 1-7. At the end of the account of the death of Ezekiel’s wife, it is indicated that the prophet began a serious of silence , until the news was brought concerning the destruction of Jerusalem’s temple. The theme that is left off at the end of Chapter 24 is not resumed until Chapter 33; breaking the continuity of the narrative is a large section of the book (Chapters 25 – 32) containing oracles against various foreign nations. It is possible that this narrative is inserted at this point in the text to create, in a a literary sense, an awareness of the time of silence separating Chapters 24 and 33.
Chapters 25-32 form a self-contained unit, almost a separate little book, with the declaration of God’s word against foreign nations as their unifying theme. Despite the different in objective, these oracles are also from the prophet Ezekiel, though in a number of places his disciples may have made editorial additions to the original words of the prophet. The oracles shed new light on the thought and perspective of Ezekiel; whereas, in the preceding chapters, his primary focus had been on the chosen people, now the perspective is International. We begin to perceive that the prophet by by no means a narrow-minded man; he had quite a remarkable insight into the international affairs of his time. And another of the prophet’s gifts also becomes more evident in these chapters. Many of his oracles against foreign nations are poetic in form, and the poetry illustrates clearly Ezekiel’s gift of language…
The message in this oracle, as in the other oracles against foreign nations, is that God is sovereign over all nations, not only his chosen people. To take delight in the downfall of another at the hands of God, is to fail to recognize that God’s sovereignty extends not only over others, but all over oneself. If we are to avoid the error Ammon, we will learn not to take delight in the disaster that befalls our neighbor, but to feel compassion and grief. And if we are wise, we will seek to understand the cause of another’s fall, and avoid it in our practice of living.”
(*A):
“25:1ff The messages against the nations serve four purposes. First, God will judge nations that applauded the fall of Jerusalem. Second, foreign nations were not immune from judgment. Third, these messages were against false gods of nations Judah trusted. Fourth, all will know Yahweh as the one true God.”
“25: 1-7 Ezekiel’s messages against the nations are similar to those found in Isaiah 13:1 – 23:18; Jeremiah 46:1 – 51:64; and Amos 1: 3 – 2:3. They affirm that all nations who oppose God and His people will be judged. The Lord chose these nations for a particular reason. Each of the first three was a blood relative of the Israelites. Each had become bitter enemies of God and His people. The Ammonites (Ezekiel 25:2) were the dependents of Lot (Genesis 19:38) from an incestuous relationship with his younger daughter. The speech against them is a continuation of the previous message of Ezekiel 21: 28-32. The Ammonites were known for cruelty (Amos 1:3), idolatries (1 Kings 11:7,33), pride (Zephaniah 2: 9-10, and hatred for Israel (Deuteronomy 23: 3-4, Judges 3:13; 1 Samuel 11: 1-2; 2 Samuel 10: 1-14; 2 Kings 24:2; Nehemiah 4:3, 7-8).”
(*C):
“25: 8-17 “These three oracles addressed to Judah’s neighbor states illustrate still further the prophetic concept of God’s sovereignty in the realm of human history. From one perspective, the primary focus of the prophets
“25: 8-11. Moab was Lot’s son by his older daughter (Genesis 19:37). The Moabites introduced Baal worship to Israel (see Numbers 21:1 – 25.5) and participated in the sins of Ammon (Ezekiel 25: 1-8). Both Ammon and Moab would disappear from the family of nations. (Vv. 10-11).
“25: 12-14 The Edomites were descendants of Esau (Genesis 25:25) who foolishly sold his birthright to Jacob and held the promises of God in contempt. (Genesis 25: 29-34). He was a profane person (Hebrews 12:16) who despised his birthright and despised God’s promises (Genesis 25: 25: 29-34). His descendants were bitter enemies of the Jews. Edom would be laid waste (Isaiah 34: 5-17; Jeremiah 49: 7-22; Amos 1: 9-12; Obadiah Chapter 18).”
“25: 15-17 The Philistines, a seafaring people, were condemned because of their constant opposition to the Israelites during the period of settlement in Canaan. Their threat gave impetus to the Israelites’ desire for a king to lead them in warfare. They captured the ark of the covenant (1 Samuel 4-5) and were a source of tension from he time of the Judges (Judges 3:31; 10:7; 13:1-16:31) until the reign of Saul. They were judged because they “took revenge with deep contempt, destroying because of their ancient hatred” (Ezekiel 25:15.”
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Chapter 26:
(*A):
“26:1 – 28-26. Ezekiel devoted chapters 26 – 28 to the judgment of Tyre, the “rock” and principal city-state of Phoenicia. A massive rock fortress guarded the harbor of this great commercial and shipping center. Ezekiel predicted that many nations would come against this city, its walls would be destroyed, the supposedly impregnable island fortress would be rubble, and the city plundered (vv 1-6; cp. Isaiah 23: 1-18; Joel 3: 4- 6; Amos 1: 9-10; Zechariah 9: 2-4).
(*C):
“26: 1 – 14. The city state of Tyre was situated on the Mediterranean coast, about 100 miles north-west of Jerusalem. Although in geographical terms it was relatively small state, it was immensely rich and exerted considerable influence by virtue of its involvement in international trade. It was, at that time, the wealthiest of the Phoenician city-states, and it saw Jerusalem as a competitor in terms of trade and political influence in Syria and Palestine. Tyre was also something of a political agitator in that part of the world at the beginning of the 6th century B.C. it had been involved briefly in a revolt against Babylon in 594 B.C.; and by virtue of encouraging Jerusalem’s rebellion, it precipitated the speedy end of the holy city. To an extent, Tyre’s self-confidence was based upon the defensive capacities of its geographical location. The city was in two parts; one part lay on the mainland, and the other on a small rocky island just off-shore. Each part of the. city had a port and, for much of its history, the two parts of the city were joined by a causeway. Thus, it was both a gateway to maritime trade, and concurrently a gateway to the overland trading routes. And, from a military perspective, it had an immense advantage: the island was difficult to capture from the sea, but if a land-based military force threatened the city its inhabitants could retreat in safety to the city’s insular port.
The prophecy against Tyre is dated; though there are some problems with the Hebrew text, it is generally agreed that the date of the prophecy was early in 586 B.C., probably the month of February. Set in a larger context, the prophecy was delivered after the downfall of Jerusalem, and after the news of that tragic event had reached Ezekiel in exile.
The sin for which Tyre is condemned is its selfish delight at the fall of Jerusalem. Instead of grief for a city that had been an ally, the Tyrians saw only the selfish advantage that they could reap from its devastation…. But their selfish ambition evoked the divine opposition: “Behold, I am against you, O Tyre” (verse 3).” …”
(*B):
Destruction announced (26: 1 – 6).
“…. Tyre was able to survive the Assyrian assault, but when Babylon came to power, Nebuchadnezzar besieged the coastal city for fifteen years (586- 571 BC) and overcame it, but he did not conquer the island city. In 322 BC, Alexander the Great besieged Tyre for seven months, built a causeway to the island, and was able to conquer the city.”
Destruction forever (26: 19-21).
“… Note the statements the Lord makes about His actions toward the city of Tyre: He would make them desolate, cover them with water, bring them down into the pit, bring them terrors, and remove them from the earth. On the other hand, He promised Israel, their enemies, future glory and blessing.”
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Chapter 27:
(*C):
“27: 1-25a. “…Excellence is a goal worth striving for; Tyre labored toward that goal and achieved it in extraordinary measure. And we would miss the point of this chapter if we thought that a wreck, of which the description follows, was a consequence of excellence and massive strength. Greatness does not invite judgement.
But fame and strength, if they can be achieved bring their own temptations. As goals, they may sometimes bring out the best qualities, those of destruction and hard work. Once achieved, the greatness that was noble goal may become a debilitating disease, of which the symptoms include pride and arrogance. And thus all those who would honestly seek to achieve excellence in its variety of forms, whether for an individual or a nation, must prepare themselves for the more difficult task of living with the achievement, if it is attained. The temptation to pride is enormous, precisely because of the great work and skill that went into attaining the goal. But, like rot in the hull of a great ship, pride will eventually lead eventually to shipwreck, and it is of this that the prophet speaks in the later part of this poem.”
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Chapter 28:
(*D)
“28:2 This has been man’s desire ever since Satan. tempted Adam and Eve that they could “be like God” (see Genesis 3:5). Mormonism teaches that you can become a god, the New Age teaches that you are god, and Hinduism teaches that you become part of the Universal Consciousness. However, there is only one true God, the Creator of all things. See Deuteronomy 4:35; Isaiah 40:25; 43:10; 44:6; 45:21, 22; 46:9. (*)
(*) – Comment – So, by extension, the statement that I have even heard from even self professed christians over the years has got to go on the list of all – time absurd statements on the face of it: “Basically, all religions are the same!’ (say what???)
(*B)
Judgment on the king of Tyre (vv. 11-19).
“… That Satan wants to control nations and their leaders is clear from 1 Chronicles 21 and Daniel 9, and Matthew 4: 8-10 states that he has delegated authority to dispose of the nations.
The use of the word cherub (Ezekiel 28: 14,16) suggest that we’re dealing here with an angelic creature, also the fact that he had been “upon the holy mountain of God” (v. 14). This sounds a great deal like the description in Isaiah 14:12ff. Satan began as an obedient angel but rebelled against God and lead a revolt to secure God’s throne. The text describes his great beauty and names nine jewels that were a party of that beauty. All of this jewels were also found in the breastplate of the Jewish high priest (Exodus 28: 17-20). This suggests that in “Eden, the garden of God” and upon “God’s holy mountain,” this person had special priestly functions to perform for the Lord. The settings and mountings for these jewels were of the finest gold. His pride and selfish ambitions led him into sin, and God judged him by casting him out. While the original description refers to the ruler of Tyre, it certainly applies to the god of this age, Satan, the enemy of the Lord.
… Satan’s boast was, “I will be like the most High” (Isaiah 14:14), and his promise to Eve was, “You will be like God” (Genesis 3:5 NKJV)… The nations would be appalled at the judgment of the prince of Tyre and his city, but they had no idea that Satan was behind the city’s success and Jehovah was behind the city’s destruction. It reminds us of the ministry of the apostles in Luke 10: 1-24. God used the apostles to head the sick, cast out demons, and proclaim the message of the kingdom, but Jesus saw in their victories the fall of Satan (vv. 18-19).”
THE PROMISES TO ISRAEL (28:20-26)
The regathering of Israel (vv 25-26)
“One of the major themes of this book is the deliverance of the Jewish exiles from Babylon and the future regathering and reuniting of the nation. After the seventy years of exile and the Persian conquest of Babylon, God id cause Cyrus to allow the Jewish people to return to the land and rebuild the temple (2 Chronicles 36: 22-23; Ezra 1). But the return of about fifty thousand people (2: 64-65) in 538-537 BC didn’t completely fulfill the promises in Ezekiel, for they have an application in the end times. Certainly the Jewish remnant that returned with Zerubbabel didn’t “dwell safely” (Ezekiel 28:26), because they had all kinds of problems with the people in the land. Furthermore, Ezekiel mentioned “nations” (plural) and not just the one nation of Babylon, where the Jews were in exile.
There is coming a time when God will call His chosen people together into their own land, judge them, cleanse them, and establish His glorious kingdom (Zechariah 10: 8-12; 12: 9-13:1; Matthew 24:31). God gave the land of Palestine to Abraham and his descendants (Genesis 13: 14-18; 15: 7-17), and He renewed the promise to Jacob (28: 10-15; 35:12; Psalm 105: 8-11). The Jews owned the land because God gave it to them, but they possessed the land only when they obeyed the terms of the covenant God gave them. During the exile in Babylon, they were out of the land because they had rebelled against the Lord.
Ezekiel will have more to say about Israel’s future in chapters 37-48, but this brief promise must have brought encouragement to the faithful remnant among the exiles, just as the sure promise of Christ’s return brings encouragement to His people today.”
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This coming week we will read and study Lesson 9: “Egypt Will Fall! (Ezekiel 29 – 32).
Soli Deo Gloria!