3<\/strong>. set up their idols in<\/em> ] Lit. have laid their idols upon their heart<\/em>, which appears to mean, laid them on their minds, busied their thoughts and filled their affections with them.<\/p>\n stumblingblock of their iniquity<\/em> ] The reference is still to the idols. Stumblingblock of iniquity is that over which one falls and commits iniquity, see on ch. Eze 7:19<\/span>.<\/p>\n before their face<\/em> ] i.e. have placed them in their view, or, so as to follow them; cf. Eze 14:6<\/em><\/span> “turn away your faces from all your abominations;” Psa 16:8<\/span>; Psa 101:3<\/span>. The language is figurative, and does not imply literal setting-up of idols.<\/p>\n should I be inquired of<\/em> ] Or, shall I let myself be inquired of? that is, shall I give an answer (through the prophet)? cf. Isa 65:1<\/span>, where “inquired of” is parallel to “was found.”<\/p>\n Verse 3<\/span>. These men have set up their idols in their heart<\/B><\/I>] Not only in their houses; in the streets<\/I>; but they had them in their hearts<\/I>. These were stumbling-blocks<\/I> of iniquity; they fell over<\/I> them<\/I>, and broke the neck of their souls. And should God be inquired of by such miscreants as these?<\/P> <\/p>\n These men; who probably were come from Jerusalem, sent by Zedekiah, and mentioned by Jeremiah, Jer 51:59<\/span>; some of the courtiers, who, more out of curiosity than religion, give a visit to this famous prophet. <\/P> Have set up their idols in their heart; resolved idolaters, their heart was totally addicted to their idolatrous worship and ceremonies, immersed in it. <\/P> The stumbling-block of their iniquity; their idols, so expressed, because they were both the object of their sin, and occasion of their ruin. They account these idols to be gods, and worship, fear, trust in, and plead for them; this is their sin, and ere long this shall bring ruin on them. Can these men seriously consult me? Is it fit I should give counsel to obstinate, resolved sinners, who come to inquire, but will not hearken? Should I help them in their distress, who depend on idols which I hate? <\/P> <\/p>\n 3. heart . . . face<\/B>The heart<\/I>is first corrupted, and then the outward manifestation<\/I> ofidol-worship follows; they set their idols before their eyes.<\/I>With all their pretense of consulting God now, they have not even putaway their idols outwardly;<\/I> implying gross contempt of God.”Set up,” literally, “aloft”; implying that theiridols had gained the supreme ascendancy<\/I> over them. <\/P> stumbling-block of . . .iniquity<\/B>See Pro 3:21<\/span>;Pro 3:23<\/span>, “Let not them(God’s laws) depart from thine eyes,<\/I> then . . . thy foot shallnot stumble.<\/I>” Instead of God’s law, which (by being keptbefore their eyes) would have saved them from stumbling, they set uptheir idols before their eyes, which proved a stumbling-block,causing them to stumble (Eze 7:19<\/span>).<\/P> inquired of at all<\/B>literally,”should I with inquiry be inquired of” by such hypocritesas they are? (Psa 66:18<\/span>; Pro 15:29<\/span>;Pro 28:9<\/span>).<\/P><\/p>\n Son of man, these men have set up their idols in their heart<\/strong>,…. Though they look so grave and demure, seem so devout and religious, and hear with so much attention and reverence, and express such a desire of consulting me by thee, they are no other than idolaters; and though they are at such a distance from their native place, and have not their idols with them, yet they have them in their fancy and imagination, and their hearts are after them, and are set upon them; these engross their affections, they are near and dear unto them, notwithstanding all their pretensions: or, they “have caused their idols to ascend upon their heart” p; their hearts are the altars on which they worship them, and the throne on which they have placed them; they are held in the highest esteem by them, and have the greatest honours done them, and have the ascendant over them; even their “dunghill” gods, as the word q signifies; though they are but dung, filthy and abominable, these they lay upon their hearts; and what else is man’s righteousness, when made an idol of, trusted to, and depended on? it is no other, as the apostle says, than “loss” and “dung”, Php 3:8<\/span>; and so every carnal lust that is gratified and indulged is no other than an idol, or a dunghill god, set up in the heart:<\/p>\n and put the stumbling block of their iniquity before their face<\/strong>; whenever they had an opportunity of so doing; for their hearts were not only inwardly affected to idols, but they outwardly worshipped them; set them before them, and bowed the knee to them, and prayed: and these idols are called “the stumbling block of their iniquity”, because by worshipping these they fell into sin, and so into ruin; they were the occasion of their sin, and of their punishment; they stumbled at them, and fell, even though they were before their eyes; nay, they set them themselves before their face, which shows their obstinacy and resolution to continue in idolatry, though it would be their ruin:<\/p>\n should I be inquired of at all by them<\/strong>? suffer them to come near me, and put a question to me, or be consulted by them through thee? no, I will not: or, “am I seriously inquired of by them?” so some r render the words; no, I am not; or, “being asked, shall I answer them?” so the Targum and Vulgate Latin version: or, “answering shall I answer them” s? no, I wilt not, they deserve no answer from me; they shall have none other of me than such an one as follows.<\/p>\n p “ascendere fecerunt idola sua in, [vel] super cor suum”, Pagninus, Montanus, Calvin. q “stercoreos deos suos”, Junius Tremellius, Piscator “stercora sua”, Cocceius; “stercora ipsorum”, Starckius. r “an [igitur serio] interrogor ab eis?” Piscator. s “An respondeudo respondebo illis?” Starckius. So Sept. Ar.<\/p>\n (3) Have set up their idols in their heart.<\/strong>It was not the open idolatry of Juda which is reproved among these elders of the captivity; that had already passed away, but still their heart was not right. Like Lots wife, they longed for that which they dared not do. With such a disposition, they were in the greatest danger, putting the stumbling-block of their iniquity, the temptation to sin, directly before them. And not only so, but they kept themselves in a state of alienation from God, so that it was idle to imagine He would allow Himself to be enquired of by them. The question implies the negative answer which is fully expressed in the following verses.<\/p>\n Eze 14:3<\/span><\/em><\/strong>. <\/strong>These men have set up their idols<\/em><\/strong><\/strong> They are not only inclined to idolatry in their hearts, but have actually set up idols, and worshipped them. However, the prophet shews plainly, that their idolatries consisted not in intirely deserting, but in polluting the religion of Moses with foreign worship. Div. Leg. vol. 4: p. 47. <\/p>\n Eze 14:3 Son of man, these men have set up their idols in their heart, and put the stumblingblock of their iniquity before their face: should I be enquired of at all by them?<\/p>\n Ver. 3. These men have set their idols in their hearts.<\/strong> ] Though they would seem to abhor idols, yet the devil is at inn with them, and their hearts are no better than so many idol temples, as thou wouldst easily perceive hadst thou but my fiery eyes, and couldst see their insides as I do. Sustulerunt stercoreos deos suos super cor suum,<\/em> a<\/em> they have laid their dungy deities upon their very hearts; a place where I only should be by right, for it is the bridal bed. <\/p>\n <\/p>\n And put the stumblingblock of their iniquity,<\/strong> ] i.e., <\/em> They are impudent sinners, as the scholiast b<\/em> interprets it, and resolved of their course whatever comes of it. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n Should I be inquired of c<\/em> at all by them?] q.d., <\/em> No, never; I scorn the motion, I abhor such ludibrious devotion as this is. Away with it. Piscator rendereth the words, An ergo serio interrogor ab eis?<\/em> Thinkest thou that I am seriously sought unto by these? q.d., <\/em> Nothing less. <\/p>\n<\/p>\n a<\/em> Piscator. <\/p>\n b<\/em> One who writes explanatory notes upon an author; esp. an ancient commentator upon a classical writer. D <\/p>\n c<\/em> Hoc significat crassum Dei contemptum et quasi professam rebellionem.<\/em> <\/p>\n Son of man. See note on Eze 2:1. <\/p>\n men. Hebrew, plural of ‘enosh. App-14. <\/p>\n idols = manufactured idols. <\/p>\n iniquity = perversity. Hebrew ‘dvah. App-44. <\/p>\n before their face. Instead of God’s law, according to Deu 6:8; Deu 11:18; and Pro 3:21-23. <\/p>\n these men: Eze 14:4, Eze 14:7, Eze 6:9, Eze 11:21, Eze 20:16, Eze 36:25, Jer 17:1, Jer 17:2, Jer 17:9, Eph 5:5 <\/p>\n and put: Eze 3:20, Eze 7:19, Eze 44:12, Jer 44:16-18, Zep 1:3, 1Pe 2:8, Rev 2:14 <\/p>\n should: Eze 20:3, 1Sa 28:6, 2Ki 3:13, Psa 66:18, Psa 101:3, Pro 15:8, Pro 15:29, Pro 21:27, Pro 28:9, Isa 1:15, Isa 33:15, Jer 7:8-11, Jer 11:11, Jer 42:20, Jer 42:21, Zec 7:13, Luk 20:8 <\/p>\n Reciprocal: 1Sa 14:37 – he answered 1Ki 14:6 – why feignest 1Ki 22:5 – Inquire 1Ki 22:23 – the Lord 2Ki 4:31 – neither voice 2Ki 22:13 – inquire 1Ch 10:14 – inquired 2Ch 18:22 – the lord hath Job 31:7 – mine heart Jer 21:2 – Inquire Jer 27:15 – that I Jer 42:1 – came Eze 2:1 – Son Eze 20:31 – and shall Eze 36:37 – I will yet Hos 4:8 – set their heart on their iniquity Joh 4:21 – saith Act 8:21 – hast Rom 14:13 – put 1Co 8:9 – a stumblingblock<\/p>\n INSINCERE PRAYERS<\/p>\n Should I be enquired of at all by them?<\/p>\n Eze 14:3<\/p>\n I. Certain elders of Israel came seeking the prophet of Jehovah.They wanted him to inquire for them of God concerning some matter of grave public importance. Now, at first sight, all looks well. They ought to come thus to the prophet, for he was the proper medium of communication in that day between God and His people. So far as appears in the narrative, they came reverently, and they sat patiently to hear what God the Lord should say unto them. Now nothing could look better than this, and we seem to feel quite sure that kindly answers will be returned to them. But God searcheth the hearts, and trieth the reins of the sons of men, and these elders cannot stand the operation.<\/p>\n II. They are found out, and the secrets of their hearts are revealed, and it is made quite plain to them, that they are themselves putting hindrances in the way of the acceptance of their own prayers. This is the message that comes from God to them, through His prophet: Therefore speak unto them and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God: Every man of the house of Israel that setteth up his idols in his heart, and putteth the stumbling-block of his iniquity before his face, and cometh to the prophet; I the Lord will answer him that cometh according to the multitude of his idols. Should I be enquired of at all by them?<\/p>\n III. We all agree that open sin must make prayer unacceptable.But do we take due count of the fact that cherished heart-sin is even a more effective hindrance to prayer? The Psalmist saw this clearly, for he said, If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me.<\/p>\n It may be that here is one of the great secrets of our unanswered prayers. Some of us prayed with our idols in our hearts. There was that pleasure loving; it must have been an idol to us, for we set it before Christ. There was that pride of intellect; it must have been our heart idol, for we made more of it than of Christ.<\/p>\n Can we read Christian experience and find out some of the subtle forms of evil, some of the soul-idolatries, which, almost unknown to us, may have set themselves up in our hearts, and become stumbling-blocks to our prayer? Shall we take due account of unsuitable habits, which have become so familiar that their mischievous influence is unrecognised? Or of easily besetting sins, which we have confessed so long and yet have failed to overcome, so that the confession of them has now become a mere formality, and the sin is eating into the souls life, as doth a cancer? Or the infirmities, as we call them, of which we really are somewhat proud?half feeling that these infirmities of temper and relationship are the marks of our individuality. Or the secret untrustfulnesses which are practical unbeliefs? Or the secret self-willedness, which persuades us that Gods way is exactly the way in which we wish to go?<\/p>\n Illustration<\/p>\n The man who sets up idols, always separates himself from God. It is the separation of things and people from God that makes them idols. Very often those who apparently are most devout, are most deeply under the spell of idolatry. There is room, therefore, for us all to ask that God would search us, and cast the dragons down before His ark.<\/p>\n The dearest idol I have known,<\/p>\n Whateer that idol be,<\/p>\n Help me to tear it from Thy Throne,<\/p>\n And worship only Thee.<\/p>\n Eze 14:3, These elders had come to the prophet on the pretence of wanting some information from God. The heart is the intelligent part of a man and from which the motives of his actions spring, (See Mat 15:19.) These men sitting before Ezekiel could not always have an idol present before them, but their heart was devoted to them and thus they had set up their idols in their heart. Should 1 he en- gtiired of by them means that such men had no right to seek any com-munication from God.<\/p>\n 14:3 Son of man, these men have set up their idols in their {b} heart, and put the stumblingblock of their iniquity before their face: should I be enquired of at all by them?<\/p>\n (b) They are not only idolaters in heart, but also worship their filthy idols openly which lead them in blindness, and cause them to stumble, so that he will not hear them when they call to him. See Geneva “Isa 1:15”<\/p>\n The Lord revealed to His servant that these elders (along with the elders in Jerusalem, cf. Eze 8:7-12) had been nursing idolatry in their hearts. The word translated "idols" in this passage is gillulim<\/span>, Ezekiel’s favorite term for idols. It means pellets of dung literally (cf. Eze 6:4-6; Eze 6:9; Eze 6:13; et al.). These elders had put right in front of them the very thing that caused them to stumble in sin. That is, instead of trying to avoid temptation (cf. 2Ti 2:22) they cherished the worship of other deities. In view of what follows, this appears to have included seeking false prophets and prophetesses to obtain guidance (Eze 14:4; Eze 14:7; Eze 14:9; cf. ch. 13). In the following verses it becomes clear that the prophets these elders consulted were false prophets (cf. Eze 14:9-10). Yahweh asked rhetorically whether He should respond to their requests in view of their trust in other gods (cf. Psa 66:18; 1Ki 18:21; Jas 1:8).<\/p>\n "This verse is important for those who come to Scripture seeking guidance. No true direction can be given to those who have erected idols in their hearts [cf. Psa 66:18]." [Note: Alexander, "Ezekiel," p. 805.] <\/span><\/p>\n Son of man, these men have set up their idols in their heart, and put the stumblingblock of their iniquity before their face: should I be inquired of at all by them? 3. set up their idols in ] Lit. have laid their idols upon their heart, which appears to mean, laid them on their … Continue reading “Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Ezekiel 14:3”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20745","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-commentary"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20745","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=20745"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20745\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20745"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20745"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20745"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible <\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Church Pulpit Commentary<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"