Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Ezekiel 47:21
So shall ye divide this land unto you according to the tribes of Israel.
21 23. The land so bounded shall be divided equally among the tribes; and strangers sojourning in Israel shall inherit just as those born in the land. The stranger shall have his inheritance among the members of the tribe in which he sojourns.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
This land, now bounded.
According to the tribes of Israel; into twelve parts or tribes, to which all, but what is allotted to prince, priests, Levites, and the city. This, as holy, must be reserved; and when reserved, a very fair portion is left to the twelve tribes, if you measure the holy portion by cubits, and not by reeds.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
So shall ye divide this land unto you,…. As thus bounded, east, west, north, and south:
according to the tribes of Israel; [See comments on Eze 47:13].
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
‘ “So shall you divide this land to you according to the tribes of Israel. And it shall be that you will divide it by lot for an inheritance to you, and to the strangers who live among you, who will beget children among you. And they will be to you as the home born among the children of Israel, they will have inheritance with you among the tribes of Israel. And it will be that in whatever tribe the stranger lives, there you will give him his inheritance”, says the Lord Yahweh.’
So the land would be divided up among the tribes of Israel, but there was now no need to evict strangers as long as they were willing to become a part of the covenant and worship Yahweh (there were now no Canaanites as such). This was in accordance with Lev 19:34; Lev 24:22; Num 15:29; Isa 56:3-8. It is a clear indication that the land was now open to all who were willing to serve Yahweh. The new Israel was to be inclusive and not exclusive. ‘Yet will I gather others to him, besides his own who are gathered’ (Isa 56:8). Here we have the seeds of the worldwide expansion of the true Israel by the incorporation of the Gentiles. Gentiles who respond in faith to God and enter the covenant become one among the tribes of Israel.
The fact that it was to be divided by lot (compare Eze 45:1; Jos 14:1-2) does not fit well with specific allocation of the land. One is saying that the land became theirs in accordance with Yahweh’s will as in the days of Joshua, the other is saying that it was by divine fiat. But if the whole picture is idealistic and not literal then both can be true.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Eze 47:21 So shall ye divide this land unto you according to the tribes of Israel.
Ver. 21. So shall ye divide. ] Epilogus est. There is one and the same “inheritance of the saints in light.”
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Eze 47:21-23
21So you shall divide this land among yourselves according to the tribes of Israel. 22You shall divide it by lot for an inheritance among yourselves and among the aliens who stay in your midst, who bring forth sons in your midst. And they shall be to you as the native-born among the sons of Israel; they shall be allotted an inheritance with you among the tribes of Israel. 23And in the tribe with which the alien stays, there you shall give him his inheritance, declares the Lord God.
Eze 47:22 aliens This is the one section of the book that seems to be inclusive instead of exclusive. This is similar to Isa 56:3-8 and follows the pattern of Lev 24:22 and Num 15:29.
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley
Reciprocal: Eze 45:1 – shall divide by lot
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Eze 47:21. Eze 47:13 said twelve tribes and this says tribes without stating any number. That is because two and a half tribes had taken their possessions on the east side of the Jordan, and the outline described in this chapter is all west of it.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Eze 47:21-23. The Law of the Alien.For the purposes of the allotment, resident aliens who had families were to be reckoned as native Israelites.
Fuente: Peake’s Commentary on the Bible
The Israelites were to divide the land in this way for the tribes of Israel by lot (cf. Eze 45:1). It was not to be for Israelites alone, however. Aliens who permanently lived among them could dwell in this region too. Under the Mosaic economy, resident aliens were non-Israelites who had adopted the religion and laws of the Hebrews; they had become converts to Yahweh worship. The Israelites were to regard these alien peoples as equals with themselves concerning their rights within the land. The reference to these aliens bearing children marks them as having mortal bodies in contrast to believers with immortal (resurrected) bodies who will also have access to the millennial earth (cf. Mat 22:30; Rev 20:4). These aliens were to inherit portions of land in the tribal allotments just like the Israelites who lived there (cf. Eze 14:7; Eze 22:7; Lev 19:34; Lev 24:22; Num 15:29; Isa 56:3-8).