’Son of man, set your face toward the mountains of Israel, and prophesy against them,
verse value 1544
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 32 letters. Notable word values: "to·them" (אֲלֵיהֶֽם) = 86, equal to Elohim. The shortest word is "put" (שִׂ֥ים, 3 letters) and the longest is "son·of·man" (בֶּן־אָדָ֕ם, 5 letters). 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "to·mountains·of" (root איל, 238x in Ezekiel); "to·them" (root אל, 204x in Ezekiel); "Israel" (root ישראל, 154x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Israel', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 2 words. Full calculation: בֶּן־אָדָ֕ם [son·of·man] (97) + שִׂ֥ים [put] (350) + פָּנֶ֖יךָ [your·face] (160) + אֶל־הָרֵ֣י [to·mountains·of] (246) + יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל [Israel] (541) + וְהִנָּבֵ֖א [and·prophesy] (64) + אֲלֵיהֶֽם [to·them] (86) = 1544.
Radak
“Son of man.” Because they were serving on the high mountains and on the hills to gods who were there, and under every green tree, which is in the ravines and in the valleys, He said that He would prophesy against them, meaning as if speaking against them, for the altars and the sacrificial altars and the sun-images that they built upon them will be destroyed and broken. And He coupled “your idols” with “those who serve them” on account of the deed performed by them, and He said: “Your high places, your altars, your sun-images, your slain, your idols, and your sword.” “Your sword” encompasses both the sword that kills the worshippers and the sword that shatters the sacrificial altars and the high places, for it is also called “sword,” namely the hammer, as it is said: “For your sword that you brandished against it will be broken” (Isaiah 10:15), and “with his swords” (Isaiah 10:15). The meaning of “your sun-images, your idols” is that they were made by the worshippers of the sun.
Metzudat David
"Set your face." Turn your face toward the mountains:
and say: You mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord Hashem: Thus says the Lord Hashem concerning the mountains and concerning the hills, concerning the ravines and concerning the valleys: Behold, I, even I, will bring a sword upon you, and I will destroy your high places.
verse value 6018
Insights
Verse structure: 21 words, 107 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יֱהֹוִ֑ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "mountains·of" (הָרֵי֙, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·to·the·valleys" (וְלַגֵּיאָי֗וֹת, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 271: word·of·the·Lord, to·the·channels. 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "and·to·the·valleys" ((ולגיאות)), "and·to·the·valleys" (וְלַגֵּיאָי֗וֹת), "and·perish" (וְאִבַּדְתִּ֖י). The root אמר appears 2 times in this verse. 15 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 427x in Ezekiel); "and·you·shall·say" (root אמר, 362x in Ezekiel); "upon·you" (root על, 272x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root הר ("mountains·of") in Ezekiel. First appearance of the root גבעה ("and·to·the·hills") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Hashem', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 15 words.
Rashi
And to the hills. The term denotes elevation:
And the valleys. The language of “valley”:
Radak
And regarding "ve-lagi'ot": The written text (ketiv) and the vocalized text (qere) read "ve-lagi'ot" and "ve-lagi'yot," respectively, and they are one and the same; rather, in the qere, the sign of the feminine letter heh is transformed into a yod, which appears.
Metzudat David
Sword. “Those who hold the sword” are those who are trained in warfare.
“Your high places.” The high places constructed for idolatrous worship that stand in all those locations.
Metzudat Zion
To the channels. It is a place where waters flow with great force, and similarly, “like channels in the Negev” (Psalms 126:4).
And to the valleys. The word is derived from *gai* and *emek* (valley):
“Your high places.” The word is derived from the root of “bamah” (high place), which is an altar of stones.
Malbim
"To the mountains and the hills": the hills are those surrounding the mountains and are smaller than them; between the mountains flow water channels, and between the hills there are valleys, which are your high places of individuals.
And your altars shall become desolate, and your sun-images shall be broken; and I will cast down your slain men before your idols.
verse value 2645
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 49 letters. The shortest word is "to·face·of" (לִפְנֵ֖י, 4 letters) and the longest is "your·altars" (מִזְבְּח֣וֹתֵיכֶ֔ם, 9 letters). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "to·face·of" (root פנים, 150x in Ezekiel); "your·slain" (root חלל, 67x in Ezekiel); "and·I·will·cast·down" (root נפל, 58x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root מזבח ("your·altars") in Ezekiel. First appearance of the root חלל ("your·slain") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'your·sun-images', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְנָשַׁ֙מּוּ֙ [and·shall·be·deserted] (402) + מִזְבְּח֣וֹתֵיכֶ֔ם [your·altars] (533) + וְנִשְׁבְּר֖וּ [and·they·will·be·broken] (564) + חַמָּנֵיכֶ֑ם [your·sun-images] (168) + וְהִפַּלְתִּי֙ [and·I·will·cast·down] (531) + חַלְלֵיכֶ֔ם [your·slain] (138) + לִפְנֵ֖י [to·face·of] (170) + גִּלּוּלֵיכֶֽם [your·fetishes] (139) = 2645.
Rashi
"Your images": A type of figurine, namely the statues of the nations' idols that are placed on rooftops to face the sun.
Metzudat David
And they shall be desolate. They shall become a desolation, for there will no longer be anyone who will come to burn incense there.
"Your suns." They made for themselves an image in the form of the sun, because they served the sun. And similarly it is stated: "And he removed... which the kings of Judah had given to it" (II Kings 23).
Before your idols. In the place of the wicked, the punishment is placed:
Metzudat Zion
And they will be desolated. The word is from the root of "shemon" (desolation).
"Your sun-pillars." The word is derived from the root "chamah" (sun/heat).
"Your idols": The image of idolaters is as loathsome as a ball of dung.
Malbim
And your altars, which are those of the many, shall be laid desolate, and your sun-images, which are in the form of the sun and to which they served, shall be broken down.
And I will lay the carcasses of the children of Israel before their idols; and I will scatter your bones round about your altars.
verse value 5180
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 61 letters. The shortest word is "son" (בְּנֵ֣י, 3 letters) and the longest is "your·bones" (אֶת־עַצְמ֣וֹתֵיכֶ֔ם, 10 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "the·carcasses·of" (אֶת־פִּגְרֵי֙), "your·bones" (אֶת־עַצְמ֣וֹתֵיכֶ֔ם). 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·I·will·give" (root נתן, 207x in Ezekiel); "Israel" (root ישראל, 154x in Ezekiel); "to·face·of" (root פנים, 150x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root פגר ("the·carcasses·of") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'their·idols', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְנָתַתִּ֗י [and·I·will·give] (866) + אֶת־פִּגְרֵי֙ [the·carcasses·of] (694) + בְּנֵ֣י [son] (62) + יִשְׂרָאֵ֔ל [Israel] (541) + לִפְנֵ֖י [to·face·of] (170) + גִּלּוּלֵיהֶ֑ם [their·idols] (124) + וְזֵרִיתִי֙ [and·I·will·scatter] (633) + אֶת־עַצְמ֣וֹתֵיכֶ֔ם [your·bones] (1077) + סְבִיב֖וֹת [round·about] (480) + מִזְבְּחוֹתֵיכֶֽם [your·altars] (533) = 5180.
Radak
And I will give, and I will scatter. Both are accented on the final syllable, with one pashta.
Metzudat David
“And I will give…” – This means that they shall be there and not buried.
Metzudat Zion
"Corpses." So is the body of a slain person called.
And I will scatter. I will scatter:
Malbim
“And I will lay your carcasses” — after the slaughter, they will remain lying before the idols; and even the bones will be scattered there, just as they used to slaughter animals before the idols, and the bones of the sacrifices would lie before the altars. Thus far, the matter concerns the uninhabited mountains. Now it will say, “and in all your dwelling places,” meaning that even in places that were inhabited, the cities will be destroyed so that the high places will be desolate. The ultimate purpose of the destruction is “that your altars may be destroyed and become guilty,” so that through their destruction, they will know that they were guilty before the Lord. “And broken and cease” means that through their being broken, your idols will thereby cease, and you will no longer make idols. And through your sun-images being cut down, your works will thereby be erased, and you will no longer continue to make them.
In all your dwelling-places the cities shall be laid waste, and the high places shall be desolate; that your altars may be laid waste and made desolate, and your idols may be broken and cease, and your sun-images may be hewn down, and your works may be blotted out.
verse value 6806
Insights
Verse structure: 17 words, 101 letters. The shortest word is "in·them·of" (בְּכֹל֙, 3 letters) and the longest is "your·settlements" (מוֹשְׁב֣וֹתֵיכֶ֔ם, 9 letters). Words sharing gematria 139: your·fetishes, and·they·will·be·cut. 8 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "your·settlements" (מוֹשְׁב֣וֹתֵיכֶ֔ם), "and·the·high·places" (וְהַבָּמ֖וֹת), "they·will·ruin" (תִּישָׁ֑מְנָה). The root חרב appears 2 times in this verse. 16 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "in·them·of" (root כל, 129x in Ezekiel); "they·will·be·waste" (root חרב, 102x in Ezekiel); "the·cities" (root עיר, 62x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root מושב ("your·settlements") in Ezekiel. First appearance of the root אשם ("and·they·will·offend") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'they·will·ruin', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 11 words.
Rashi
“And they were guilty.” They will be conspicuous through their guilt.
Radak
"They shall be desolate" (in all [things]). Its root is *yasam*, the matter of *shamem* [to lay waste], *yasam*, and *shamem* [to desolate] are all in one sense.
יחרבו. With a segol under the yod and the het, the matter is one of destruction.
"And they were guilty." In the word "were guilty," there is a shva under the aleph, and the matter is one of desolation; the meaning is "in order that," "because," "for," since the sin of the high places is the altars and the idols.
Metzudat David
"For they shall be laid waste." This means that the destruction will be so great that your altars and so forth will be demolished and desolate, and all your works will be obliterated and ruined.
Metzudat Zion
Tacharvenah. From the word churban:
“Teishmanu.” The verb is derived from the root sh-m-m, meaning “to be desolate” or “to make desolate.”
“Lema’an.” Its meaning is like “in such a way” and its example is “so that your ox and your donkey may rest” (Exodus 23:12), and its interpretation is “in such a way that they may rest.”
יחרבו. The word is from the root of חורבן (destruction):
And they were guilty. The word is from the root of "desolation" (sh-m-m-n).
"And they shall be still." The meaning is cessation, as in the word "still" in Isaiah 14:
"And they were cut off." The matter of cutting off is like that of "sycamores are cut down" (there, chapter 9).
And they were blotted out. The meaning of the term "maseh" (blotting out) and destruction is similar to [the verse] "And He blotted out all existence" (Genesis 7:23):
And the slain shall fall in the midst of you, and you shall know that I am Hashem.
verse value 1369
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 28 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָֽה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. Verse gematria: 1369 = 37². The shortest word is "slain" (חָלָ֖ל, 3 letters) and the longest is "in·your·midst" (בְּתוֹכְכֶ֑ם, 6 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "and·will·fall" (וְנָפַ֥ל). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 427x in Ezekiel); "that·I" (root אני, 166x in Ezekiel); "in·your·midst" (root תוך, 111x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·your·midst', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 3 words. Full calculation: וְנָפַ֥ל [and·will·fall] (166) + חָלָ֖ל [slain] (68) + בְּתוֹכְכֶ֑ם [in·your·midst] (488) + וִידַעְתֶּ֖ם [and·you·shall·know] (530) + כִּֽי־אֲנִ֥י [that·I] (91) + יְהֹוָֽה [Hashem] (26) = 1369.
Radak
And a corpse fell. According to the general rule:
Metzudat David
"And a fallen one shall fall." "A great many fallen ones shall fall among you."
"And you shall know." Then you will know that I am the Lord, and that everything is in My hands.
Malbim
“And he shall fall”—and through his falling, a slain person shall fall among you; thereby you shall know that I am the Lord; you shall recognize that there is a God who judges in the land.
Yet will I leave a remnant, in that you shall have some that escape the sword among the nations, when you shall be scattered through the countries.
verse value 3339
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 43 letters. The shortest word is "to·you" (לָכֶ֛ם, 3 letters) and the longest is "when·you·are·scattered" (בְּהִזָּרוֹתֵיכֶ֖ם, 9 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "refugees·of" (פְּלִ֥יטֵי), "when·you·are·scattered" (בְּהִזָּרוֹתֵיכֶ֖ם). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "when·being" (root היה, 335x in Ezekiel); "in·the·lands" (root ארץ, 176x in Ezekiel); "sword" (root חרב, 102x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root יתר ("and·I·will·leave") in Ezekiel. First appearance of the root פליט ("refugees·of") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'among·the·nations', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 2 words. Full calculation: וְהוֹתַרְתִּ֗י [and·I·will·leave] (1027) + בִּהְי֥וֹת [when·being] (423) + לָכֶ֛ם [to·you] (90) + פְּלִ֥יטֵי [refugees·of] (139) + חֶ֖רֶב [sword] (210) + בַּגּוֹיִ֑ם [among·the·nations] (61) + בְּהִזָּרוֹתֵיכֶ֖ם [when·you·are·scattered] (690) + בָּאֲרָצֽוֹת [in·the·lands] (699) = 3339.
Radak
"And I will spare some of you" – meaning, I will spare some among you, so that you will not all fall by the sword.
"Behazrotechem" ("When you scatter"): The root appears with a yod in the plural form, because the root resembles the divine Name; so too in "b'banoteichem" ("your daughters") and "g'vach" ("your back").
Metzudat David
"And I will leave survivors among them." But I will leave some of them, so that there will be among the nations men who are survivors of the sword, when you are scattered among the lands of the nations.
Metzudat Zion
And I will leave over. The word is derived from the root meaning "to remain" (natar).
"Those who escaped." The meaning of "escape" is like "and the survivor came" (ibid. 14:
"When you scatter." The meaning of "scattered":
Malbim
"And I will leave survivors" – meaning, thus I shall have a surplus and profit through the punishments with which I will punish you, for by this means, when you have survivors of the sword among the nations:
And they that escape of you shall remember Me among the nations whither they shall be carried captives, how that I have been anguished with their straying heart, which has departed from Me, and with their eyes, which are gone astray after their idols; and they shall loathe themselves in their own sight for the evils which they have committed in all their abominations.
verse value 9398
Insights
Verse structure: 24 words, 118 letters. The shortest word is "which" (אֲשֶׁ֣ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "their·abominations" (תּוֹעֲבֹתֵיהֶֽם, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 501: which, that, which. 12 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "and·they·will·remember" (וְזָכְר֨וּ), "your·refugees" (פְלִיטֵיכֶ֜ם), "were·taken·captive·there" (נִשְׁבּוּ־שָׁם֒). The root אשר appears 4 times in this verse. 18 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "which" (root אשר, 341x in Ezekiel); "from·Me" (root על, 272x in Ezekiel); "to·the·evils" (root איל, 238x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root שבה ("were·taken·captive·there") in Ezekiel. First appearance of the root זנה ("that·commits·fornication") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'their·idols', dividing the verse into phrases of 17 and 7 words.
Rashi
“And the survivors of you shall remember Me” – My kindness and My mercy, with which I showed mercy to them when they were in their crookedness before Me in their land.
“Whose heart I have broken”: That I humbled Myself among them. Even though their heart was adulterous and turned away from Me, I sought through My prophets that they return to Me, and I would heal them, but they refused.
"And they shall loathe themselves." Menachem associates it with "I saw traitors, and I will quarrel" (Psalm 119:119), [meaning] they will quarrel with themselves because they did not listen to Me. And the Targum [renders it] "ve-yidankun, and they shall see"; and so he rendered "those who groan (ha-ne'enakim)" as "di-medankin," and "weeping and groaning" as "medankan" — "demoniier" in Old French.
Radak
"And they remembered." "That I was broken by their whoring heart"—some commentators say that this is like "I broke," and so Jonathan [ben Uzziel] translated it: "I have broken." But this is not correct, for it would be a Nifal construction with an explicit object, and its meaning should stand as it appears: "et" is like "from," as in "as I went out from the city." Thus, God says metaphorically: "I was broken from their harlotrous heart," following the pattern of "and it grieved His heart."
“And they shall be cut off in their own sight.” With a dagesh in the letter tet, and its root is q-t-t, meaning a matter of cutting off; similarly, the root q-w-t is from this same sense. “And you shall be cut off before your own eyes”—the phrase “before you” is explained according to its Targumic rendering, “and they shall be seen,” in the manner of the verse “his eyes shall see” (Isaiah 53:11).
"אל הרעות" – Just as it says "upon," so too does it say "upon the mountains," it did not eat.
Metzudat David
“Your refugees shall remember Me.” The refugees from among them shall remember Me while you are among the nations where they were exiled. And He returns to explain that they shall remember that I was broken and grieved from their harlotrous heart. And for further clarification, He said, “who have turned away from Me.”
"And their eyes." This means: from their eyes that strayed after idolatry. This means: then they will remember the distress that was before their heart that strayed and their eyes that strayed.
"And they shall loathe themselves in their faces." They shall cut them off in their own eyes; that is to say, they themselves shall judge the excision upon themselves for the evils that they did, to add to all their abominations which they had done from of old.
Metzudat Zion
They were captured. The word is from the root *shavah* (to capture).
"I am broken." Its meaning is a breaking of spirit and sorrow:
"their heart." From their heart. And similarly, "and their eyes," just as in "when I have gone out of the city" (Exodus 9:29), and its meaning is "out of the city."
"The harlot." This refers to the matter of turning away, and therefore the adulteress is called a "harlot" because she has turned away from the ways of modesty.
And "ve-nakotu." The meaning of "karet" is like "ve-nikatem" (below, 20):
“Al ha-ra’ot.” “Al ha-ra’ot” means: because of the evils.
Malbim
“And the survivors of your exile will remember Me among the nations to which they have been carried captive,” meaning that those who remain of you, who will remain in exile, will set it upon their heart, gain understanding, and remember the Lord. “For I was broken after I broke their heart and their eyes”—that is, because the heart and the eye are the two agents of sin: the eye sees and the heart covets. But when these are broken, they will no longer pursue after their heart and their eyes, after which they were straying. Then, “they will loathe themselves because of the evils they committed, for all their abominations.” This means that then they will see that it was through their abominations that the evils came upon them, to the extent that they themselves brought upon themselves the evils that befell them through the abominations they committed, and they will greatly repent over this.
And they shall know that I am Hashem; I have not said in vain that I would do this evil to them.
verse value 2563
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 42 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֑ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "not" (לֹ֤א, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·they·shall·know" (וְיָדְע֖וּ, 5 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "for·nothing" (אֶל־חִנָּם֙), "the·evil" (הָרָעָ֥ה). 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 427x in Ezekiel); "for·nothing" (root איל, 238x in Ezekiel); "to·do" (root עשה, 214x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Hashem', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 7 words. Full calculation: וְיָדְע֖וּ [and·they·shall·know] (96) + כִּֽי־אֲנִ֣י [that·I] (91) + יְהֹוָ֑ה [Hashem] (26) + לֹ֤א [not] (31) + אֶל־חִנָּם֙ [for·nothing] (129) + דִּבַּ֔רְתִּי [have·spoken] (616) + לַעֲשׂ֥וֹת [to·do] (806) + לָהֶ֖ם [to·them] (75) + הָרָעָ֥ה [the·evil] (280) + הַזֹּֽאת [this] (413) = 2563.
Radak
“And they shall know that I have not spoken in vain” – just as “in vain” implies that what I have spoken will be fulfilled, so too: “And you shall place the testimony in the ark” – just as “in the ark” [implies placement within it].
Metzudat David
And they shall know. Then they shall pay attention to know that I am the Lord, faithful in the payment of the reward of deeds.
"Not without cause, etc." – This means that He acts in accordance with the recompense of the deed.
Metzudat Zion
"not for nothing." "For nothing" is similar to [the phrase] "and to the ark" (Exodus 25):
Malbim
“And they shall know, and even then they shall know, that I am the Lord, to give reward and punishment.” And if so, after I will have this advantage from the punishments—that by means of them they will return in repentance and know the Lord—then I did not speak in vain to do this evil to them; that is to say, the bringing of the punishments is not a futile action or a matter of vanity without purpose, for I will achieve through this decree, which I pronounced upon them as evil, the desired end that is pleasing to Me.
Thus says the Lord Hashem: Smite with your hand, and stamp with your foot, and say: Alas! because of all the evil abominations of the house of Israel; for they shall fall by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence.
verse value 5317
Insights
Verse structure: 18 words, 77 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יֱהֹוִ֗ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. Verse gematria: 5317 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "because·of" (אֶ֛ל, 2 letters) and the longest is "all·abominations·of" (כׇּל־תּוֹעֲב֥וֹת, 8 letters). 7 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "strike" (הַכֵּ֨ה), "and·beat" (וּרְקַ֤ע), "in·your·foot" (בְּרַגְלְךָ֙). The root אמר appears 2 times in this verse. 17 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 427x in Ezekiel); "thus·said" (root אמר, 362x in Ezekiel); "for" (root אשר, 341x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Israel', dividing the verse into phrases of 13 and 5 words.
Rashi
"Vayirke'a" – its meaning is that he struck the ground with his foot and flattened the clay; this is a custom of mourning.
And it is said: “Alas.” [The verse states:] “A cry of sorrow and woe.”
Radak
Thus says the Lord: "Strike palm against palm." "Palm against palm" is like "and he clapped his hands" or "strike palm against thigh," like "I struck my thigh."
“And you shall tread with your foot.” When a person strikes with his foot upon the foot [of another], it is as if he were hammering and flattening the earth beneath him.
And it says, “Ach.” Its meaning is “Woe and alas!” and so too does the Targum render it as “Vai.”
“Concerning all the abominations of the house of Israel.” A verse adjacent to another verse, and similar to it, is the enumeration of the census of the people: “Rivers of honey and butter,” and the like.
"asher becherev": "asher" refers to the punishment of the abominations, by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence they shall fall.
Metzudat David
“Strike palm against palm.” Palm against palm, as the professional mourners do.
"And you shall tread with your foot." Kick your foot into the ground, for then it will appear as though you are treading and flattening the earth, and this signifies distress and mourning.
And it says, "Ah!" This is to be understood as one who laments, saying "Ah!" over all the abominable evils that the House of Israel committed, because of which they will fall by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence.
Metzudat Zion
"וְרָקַע" – The meaning is stretching out and flattening, as it says, "silver that is beaten out" (Jeremiah 10:9).
"Ach." Like "ha'ach," and it is used to express both joy and sorrow:
Malbim
Thus says the Lord: Accordingly, the Lord said to me: "Strike your palm," the sense of the verse being: "Strike your palm and stamp your foot" at the evil abominations of the House of Israel, and say "Aha!"—over those who shall fall by sword and by famine. That is, he shall strike palm and stamp foot upon the ground out of his anger at the evil abominations of the House of Israel; but on the other hand, he shall say "Aha!" with joy over the fact that the Lord will punish them, and they will fall by sword, famine, and pestilence.
He that is far off shall die of the pestilence; and he that is near shall fall by the sword; and he that remains and is besieged shall die by the famine; thus will I spend My fury upon them.
verse value 4265
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 59 letters. The shortest word is "in·them" (בָּֽם, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·near" (וְהַקָּרוֹב֙, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 456: will·die, will·die. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "far" (הָרָח֞וֹק), "and·near" (וְהַקָּרוֹב֙), "will·fall" (יִפּ֔וֹל). The root מות appears 2 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "in·the·sword" (root חרב, 102x in Ezekiel); "pestilence" (root דבר, 101x in Ezekiel); "will·fall" (root נפל, 58x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root רחוק ("far") in Ezekiel. First appearance of the root קרוב ("and·near") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'will·die', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 3 words. Full calculation: הָרָח֞וֹק [far] (319) + בַּדֶּ֣בֶר [pestilence] (208) + יָמ֗וּת [will·die] (456) + וְהַקָּרוֹב֙ [and·near] (319) + בַּחֶ֣רֶב [in·the·sword] (212) + יִפּ֔וֹל [will·fall] (126) + וְהַנִּשְׁאָר֙ [and·what·remains] (562) + וְהַנָּצ֔וּר [and·the·besieged] (357) + בָּרָעָ֖ב [in·the·famine] (274) + יָמ֑וּת [will·die] (456) + וְכִלֵּיתִ֥י [and·I·will·spend] (476) + חֲמָתִ֖י [My·wrath] (458) + בָּֽם [in·them] (42) = 4265.
Rashi
And the besieged. The one who has gathered into the city, and they besiege him.
“And I will exhaust My anger.” I will pour out all My fury and My desire for their evil.
Radak
“The distant one.” One who distances himself from the enemies and flees to foreign lands will die there by pestilence; and the near one, whom the enemies will catch, will fall by the sword.
"And the remnant, and the preserved." "The remnant" refers to those remaining in Jerusalem, who are besieged there and will die of famine. "And the preserved" is a passive participle from the root נוצר, as in the fig (תאנה), meaning that they are kept safe within the city. Alternatively, it pertains to the concept of a siege, deriving from its root, and it is in the nifal conjugation, written with a shureq (vav), as in "they are confused in the land" (נבוכים הם בארץ), and similarly "as a besieged city" (כעיר נצורה). And so Targum Jonathan translated it: "And the preserved in the walled cities" (ודיעול לכרכי צירא).
Metzudat David
"The distant one" — one who distances himself from the battle and flees to the lands of the nations to escape there — behold, he will not escape from the matter and will die there.
And the one who is near. The one who offers himself for battle will fall by the sword of the enemy.
"And the remnant, and the besieged." "The remnant" refers to those who remain within the city, which is under siege, for the enemies are besieging it; behold, they will die of starvation due to the lack of bread.
"And I will spend them." I will complete in them all My wrath:
Metzudat Zion
"The besieged." From the language of siege:
Malbim
“The distant one” — he who is in the desert, far from the enemy, will die by the plague; and “the near one” — he who is near the city, where the enemy will stand, will fall by the sword of the enemy; and “the one remaining in the city” — he who will be besieged by a siege, will fall by famine. Regarding all this, you should say, “Aha! with joy,” for thereby they will gain two things: 1. That thereby, “I will exhaust My anger against them,” — through their receiving their punishment, the anger that I had against them will be exhausted. 2. That thereby, “you shall know that I am the Lord,” — you will recognize the Lord who oversees and punishes. And this: 1. You will recognize this through the fact that “their dead bodies will be among their idols,” and they will be in the place where they sinned and offered a pleasing aroma to all their idols, and through this they will know that the punishment came upon them because of the sin. 2. You will recognize this through what is said, “I will stretch out My hand against them, and I will make the land desolate, and it will be more desolate than the wilderness of Diblatah, which was very desolate,” and this will be in the places of their dwellings, in that the place that was more inhabited will have its destruction grow even more, and through this they will know that I am the Lord.
And you shall know that I am Hashem, when their slain men shall be among their idols round about their altars, upon every high hill, in all the tops of the mountains, and under every leafy tree, and under every thick terebinth, the place where they did offer sweet savour to all their idols.
verse value 8774
Insights
Verse structure: 28 words, 130 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֔ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "upon" (אֶל֩, 2 letters) and the longest is "their·altars" (מִזְבְּחוֹתֵיהֶ֑ם, 9 letters). Words sharing gematria 814: and·under, and·under. 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "their·slain" (חַלְלֵיהֶ֗ם), "their·altars" (מִזְבְּחוֹתֵיהֶ֑ם), "leafy" (רַֽעֲנָן֙). The root כל appears 3 times in this verse. 24 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 427x in Ezekiel); "which" (root אשר, 341x in Ezekiel); "when·being" (root היה, 335x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root רום ("rising") in Ezekiel. First appearance of the root ריח ("scent") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'their·altars', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 19 words.
Rashi
"These." Plentzon in the foreign tongue:
“Avatah.” This is the language of “a thick tree” (below, 20), whose branches are numerous.
Radak
"And you shall know" – to every hill. Like "upon" and like it, there are many [such cases].
“On all the tops of the mountains.” The conjunctive vav is missing, and it is equivalent to “and on all.” Similarly, one writes “sun, moon, Reuben, Simeon,” and the like.
“עבתה” – The word is derived from the root עבות (thick/dense). Just as one says “מן אדום אדמה” (from redness, earth), so too here it says “מן עבות עבתה” – that is, from thickness, she became thick. The verb is in the feminine form, with a dagesh in the letter ת (tav), analogous to the construction “מן אדום אדמה.”
A place where they gave. The word "place" is adjacent to the word "flavor" (ta'am). And similarly in the verse: "In a place where he did not know God."
Metzudat David
"And you shall know..." — When their corpses will be among their idols, in the place of the wicked, there is the judgment; then you will know that I am the Lord, faithful in the recompense of deeds.
"אל כל" – "To all." The fallen shall be upon every high hill and upon all the heights, etc.
"The leafy elah tree." A tree whose branches are numerous and intertwined with one another.
"An aroma of a sweet savor." The incense produces an aroma to serve as a pleasing fragrance. And He said this according to the thought of the worshippers:
Metzudat Zion
"High." Lofty:
Re’anan. The meaning is moisture and dampness, as in “with fresh oil” (Psalms 92:11–12):
"Elah." The name of a fruitless tree:
Avotah. Woven like a cord, as it is said: “and boughs of thick trees” (Leviticus 23:40).
A pleasing aroma. The word derives from the expression "na'at ruach," meaning a sense of delight or satisfaction.
And I will stretch out My hand upon them, and make the land desolate and waste, more than the wilderness of Diblah, throughout all their habitations; and they shall know that I am Hashem.’
verse value 5205
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 72 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָֽה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "in·them·of" (בְּכֹ֖ל, 3 letters) and the longest is "their·settlements" (מוֹשְׁבֽוֹתֵיהֶ֑ם, 9 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "Diblah" (דִּבְלָ֔תָה), "their·settlements" (מוֹשְׁבֽוֹתֵיהֶ֑ם). 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 427x in Ezekiel); "upon·them" (root על, 272x in Ezekiel); "and·I·will·give" (root נתן, 207x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root מדבר ("from·wilderness·of") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'their·settlements', dividing the verse into phrases of 11 and 3 words. Full calculation: וְנָטִ֤יתִי [and·I·will·stretch·out] (485) + אֶת־יָדִי֙ [My·hand] (425) + עֲלֵיהֶ֔ם [upon·them] (155) + וְנָתַתִּ֨י [and·I·will·give] (866) + אֶת־הָאָ֜רֶץ [the·land] (697) + שְׁמָמָ֤ה [devastation] (385) + וּמְשַׁמָּה֙ [and·devastation] (391) + מִמִּדְבַּ֣ר [from·wilderness·of] (286) + דִּבְלָ֔תָה [Diblah] (441) + בְּכֹ֖ל [in·them·of] (52) + מוֹשְׁבֽוֹתֵיהֶ֑ם [their·settlements] (809) + וְיָדְע֖וּ [and·they·shall·know] (96) + כִּֽי־אֲנִ֥י [that·I] (91) + יְהֹוָֽה [Hashem] (26) = 5205.
Rashi
Desolation. Without an inhabitant:
An astonishment. A wonder, that those who see it will marvel at it:
Radak
“And I will incline” – desolation and from desolation. The repetition is for emphasis.
From the wilderness of Diblathah. With a dalet, like "rebaltah" with a resh; and similarly, "De'uel" [is read as] "Re'uel." And this place is mentioned because it was there that Nebuchadnezzar was when his army besieged Jerusalem, and there they brought up Zedekiah, as it is written, "And they brought him up to the king of Babylon" (rebaltah).
Metzudat David
And I will incline, etc. To strike them:
And an astonishment. All will marvel at the magnitude of its destruction:
From the wilderness to Diblah. From there will begin desolate places, and so it will be in all their settlements:
And they shall know. Then they shall know that I, the Lord, am faithful to recompense.
Metzudat Zion
And an appallment. The matter of wonder:
Debleta. Like Rebleta with a resh, and similarly De‘uel for Re‘uel (Numbers 1:2). And it is the place where Nebuchadnezzar dwelt when Zedekiah was brought to him, as it is stated, “And they brought him up to the king of Babylon to Rebleta in the land of Hamath” (Jeremiah 52:9). And it is possible that it is Hamath the Great, which is in the north of the Land of Israel, and it is mentioned at the end of the book regarding the future borders of the Land of Israel.
Radak
Metzudat David