Ezekiel 20:7

5 “Say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “On the day when ^aI chose Israel and raised My hand in an oath to the descendants of the house of Jacob, and made Myself ^bknown to them in the land of Egypt, I raised My hand in an oath to them, saying, ^c‘I am the Lord your God.’

6 On that day I raised My hand in an oath to them, ^ato bring them out of the land of Egypt into a land that I had searched out for them, ^b‘flowing with milk and honey,’ ^cthe glory of all lands.

7 Then I said to them, ‘Each of you, ^athrow away ^bthe abominations which are before his eyes, and do not defile yourselves with ^cthe idols of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.’

8 But they rebelled against Me and would not¹ obey Me. They did not all cast away the abominations which were before their eyes, nor did they forsake the idols of Egypt. Then I said, ‘I will ^apour out My fury on them and fulfill My anger against them in the midst of the land of Egypt.’

9 ^aBut I acted for My name’s sake, that it should not be profaned before the Gentiles among whom they were, in whose sight I had made Myself ^bknown to them, to bring them out of the land of Egypt.

10 “Therefore I ^amade them go out of the land of Egypt and brought them into the wilderness.

Commentaries:

Forerunner Commentary
What is the Forerunner Commentary?

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What Does Ezekiel 20:7 Mean?

Ezekiel 20:1-7

Ezekiel 20:1 reveals that while the Jews were in their captivity, the elders came to seek answers from God. What were their questions? They can be ascertained only by God's reply. Overall, the questions seem to have been something similar to, "Why are we having all this trouble?" "What is the problem?" "When can we expect to return to Jerusalem?"

God's answer begins to take shape in verse 7, "Each of you, throw away the abominations which are before his eyes." The last phrase literally means "the delight of the eyes." "His eyes" must refer to the typical Israelite's eyes. Recall that the Israelites did what seemed right or pleasurable to them but not necessarily what was delightful to God. Since God commanded them to throw away what was a delight to them, we must understand, then, that "the delight of their eyes" was to God idolatry and rebellion.

That brief phrase contains two contrasting perspectives. It identifies what God had against them: their idolatry. The delight of their eyes was the idol that they looked at and gave their devotion to.

John W. Ritenbaugh
The Fourth Commandment

Ezekiel 20:3-8

Perhaps no other chapter in the Bible shows as clearly as Ezekiel 20 the critical importance for the people of God to keep the Sabbath. Ezekiel does not record the question or questions the elders asked of God, but we can ascertain them from God's reply. They seem to have been something like, "Why are we having all this trouble? Why are we in captivity? When can we expect to return to Jerusalem?" God specifically names part of the problem when He says that He commanded them to get rid of "the abominations which were before their eyes." These things, obviously abominations to God, were a delight to the Israelites because they did not cast them away.

God clearly shows that part of the answer is that they were committing idolatry. In Ezekiel 20:12-13, He involves the Sabbath in their problems. Six times in this one chapter, God links idolatry and breaking the Sabbath as causes of their captivity. It is accurate to understand Sabbath breaking as just another form of idolatry. God gave the Sabbath to Israel and to us that we might know the true God, be sanctified, fulfill our purpose in witnessing of Him before the world, and be changed and inherit His Kingdom. Israel failed utterly. God cut them off, and they went back into slavery and captivity.

John W. Ritenbaugh
The Fourth Commandment (Part One) (1997)

Other Forerunner Commentary entries containing Ezekiel 20:7:

Exodus 20:8-11
Joshua 23:14

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What Does Ezekiel 20:7 Mean?

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