’And you, son of man, thus says the Lord Hashem concerning the land of Israel: An end! the end is come upon the four corners of the land.
verse value 4168
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 59 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יֱהֹוִ֛ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "end" (קֵ֑ץ, 2 letters) and the longest is "upon·four" (עַל־אַרְבַּ֖ע, 6 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "corners" (כַּנְפ֥וֹת). The root קץ appears 2 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 427x in Ezekiel); "thus·said" (root אמר, 362x in Ezekiel); "my·lord" (root אדון, 222x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root אדמה ("to·ground·of") in Ezekiel. First appearance of the root קץ ("end") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'end', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 6 words. Full calculation: וְאַתָּ֣ה [and·you] (412) + בֶן־אָדָ֗ם [son·of·man] (97) + כֹּֽה־אָמַ֞ר [thus·said] (266) + אֲדֹנָ֧י [my·lord] (65) + יֱהֹוִ֛ה [Hashem] (26) + לְאַדְמַ֥ת [to·ground·of] (475) + יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל [Israel] (541) + קֵ֑ץ [end] (190) + בָּ֣א [went·in] (3) + הַקֵּ֔ץ [end] (195) + עַל־אַרְבַּ֖ע [upon·four] (373) + (ארבעת) [four] (673) + כַּנְפ֥וֹת [corners] (556) + הָאָֽרֶץ [the·land] (296) = 4168.
Rashi
“The end has come.” As it is said, “And you shall rot in that land, and be destroyed” (Deuteronomy 4:25), and “I testify against you today that you shall surely be lost” (Deuteronomy 4:25). The word “and you shall rot” (וְנֹשַׁנְתֶּם) has a gematria of 852. They lingered there for 850 years: 400 years and 40 years from when they entered it until the Temple was built, and 410 years that the Temple stood.
Radak
And you, son of man, thus says the Lord GOD to the land of Israel: To its settlement:
"The end has come, the end." God said that for the sake of the Land of Israel, He set a fixed time, and behold, now the appointed time has arrived.
Regarding "on four": It is written "al arba'at," but the reading is "al arba," and the written form is masculine while the read form is feminine; and "wing" is found in the feminine gender.
Metzudat David
“to the land.” “On the land of their settlements”:
"Upon four." This means that not even a single city in the Land of Israel shall remain.
Metzudat Zion
Kanafot. The ends:
Malbim
“An end has come to the land of Israel”: The phrase is a duplication, meaning two ends. He depicts it as if Israel are one end and the nations are the other end. He explains that the retribution that then came upon the world came on account of Israel: either because they were the cause, for the sake of whose sins the evil came, or because they were the ultimate purpose, in that the evil came and began with the nations so that it would ultimately rest upon Israel. Based on this, he said that the end came to the land of Israel, meaning by their causation and for their sake, that through them the end came upon the four corners of the earth, and after it came upon the four corners of the earth, it will ultimately return upon them, which is the ultimate purpose of the evil. This is what it says: “Now the end has come upon you.” And “I will send My anger against you” does not refer to a natural matter, but rather to Divine providence through the anger of the Lord. And “I will judge you” means that He will punish them from two perspectives: 1. From the perspective of the nature of the soul of the sinners: if the sins have taken root in the traits of his soul and his character, until his soul and his thoughts are full of the scheme of sin, and they are not accidental due to temporary desire. This is what it says: “I will judge you according to your ways.” 2. From the perspective of the quantity of the sins themselves and their multitude. This is what it says: “And I will bring upon you all your abominations.”
Now is the end upon you, and I will send Mine anger upon you, and will judge you according to your ways; and I will bring upon you all your abominations.
verse value 5127
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 55 letters. The shortest word is "against·you" (בָּ֔ךְ, 2 letters) and the longest is "all·a disgusting thing" (כׇּל־תּוֹעֲבוֹתָֽיִךְ, 10 letters). Words sharing gematria 130: upon·you, upon·you. The root על appears 2 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "upon·you" (root על, 272x in Ezekiel); "and·I·will·give" (root נתן, 207x in Ezekiel); "all·a disgusting thing" (root כל, 129x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'as·your·ways', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 4 words.
Radak
"Now the end is upon you." Its meaning is like the corners of the earth, for he said this regarding the Land of Israel:
"As Your ways." With a kaf:
Metzudat David
"Now." This means: In the near future, the end will come upon you.
"According to Your ways." According to Your ways:
“And I will place upon you.” This means: I will repay you.
And Mine eye shall not spare you, neither will I have pity; but I will bring your ways upon you, and your abominations shall be in the midst of you; and you shall know that I am Hashem. .
verse value 4258
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 71 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָֽה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "but" (כִּ֣י, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·your·abominations" (וְתוֹעֲבוֹתַ֙יִךְ֙, 9 letters). Words sharing gematria 130: upon·you, upon·you. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "your·ways" (דְרָכַ֜יִךְ). The root על appears 2 times in this verse. 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 427x in Ezekiel); "shall·be" (root היה, 335x in Ezekiel); "upon·you" (root על, 272x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'I·will·spare', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 10 words.
Radak
"And you shall not spare." With a cholam:
Metzudat David
For Your ways. The reward of Your ways:
"Your abominations." The recompense for your abominations shall be within you.
And you shall know. Then you will know that I am the Lord, faithful to recompense.
Metzudat Zion
Tachas. From the root of pity and compassion:
Malbim
And the statements are parallel, for there is a difference between *chamalah* (pity/compassion) and *chusah* (mercy/spare). The one who shows *chusah* does not destroy the object because he derives need and benefit from it, as in “and your eyes shall not spare your vessels.” And the one who shows *chamalah* does not destroy because the object itself is good and beautiful and it is not fitting to destroy it, (as in “for the people pitied the best of the flock and the cattle to sacrifice to the Lord as an offering”). And he explains that one should not show pity because the object is good and beautiful, for “your ways are upon you,” meaning that the ways of the soul are corrupted and they are not fitting in their own right, for “in their corruption there is a blemish in them, they will not be accepted.” And also, I will not show mercy because of the benefit that I will derive from you, for “your abominations are within you,” meaning that they are all evil and it is impossible that any need or benefit will grow from you.
Thus says the Lord Hashem: An evil, a singular evil, behold, it comes.
verse value 1384
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 28 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יֱהֹוִ֑ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "thus" (כֹּ֥ה, 2 letters) and the longest is "my·lord" (אֲדֹנָ֣י, 4 letters). Words sharing gematria 275: evil, evil. The root רעה appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 427x in Ezekiel); "said" (root אמר, 362x in Ezekiel); "my·lord" (root אדון, 222x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root רעה ("evil") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Hashem', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 5 words. Full calculation: כֹּ֥ה [thus] (25) + אָמַ֖ר [said] (241) + אֲדֹנָ֣י [my·lord] (65) + יֱהֹוִ֑ה [Hashem] (26) + רָעָ֛ה [evil] (275) + אַחַ֥ת [one] (409) + רָעָ֖ה [evil] (275) + הִנֵּ֥ה [they] (60) + בָאָֽה [going·in] (8) = 1384.
Rashi
"One evil, one evil." A complete and unique evil, surpassing all other evils, namely the destruction of the Temple.
“Behold, she has come.” Its pronunciation with an aleph is in the active voice:
Radak
Thus says the Lord GOD: One evil, one evil. This means that this single evil is such that there is nothing like it, as stated above, “I will do to you what I have not done, and what I will never do again.” And he likened it to the case of Yonatan, who was reading “one evil after another,” which the Targum renders as “one calamity after another.”
Metzudat David
One evil, an evil. This means an evil that is one and unique among evils has come, and this is the destruction of the Holy Temple.
Malbim
Thus said the Lord: “One calamity” – He informed them that this calamity is different from all the calamities that have come until now, for until now the decree of punishment had not been sealed. Now that the decree of punishment has been sealed, there are three differences: 1. Until now, the calamity did not come all at once; first they were punished with financial loss, and afterwards with bodily afflictions, for the Master of Mercy does not strike the soul first, in case they might repent. But now, “one calamity” comes immediately, namely the punishment of the body. 2. Until now, the evil came for a good purpose, meaning in order that they should repent and that the calamity not come. But now, “one calamity, a calamity” – meaning that the calamity is truly evil, i.e., for an evil purpose. 3. Until now, the calamity did not come immediately; rather, He warned them first and waited, in case they might repent. But now, behold, it comes immediately.
An end is come, the end is come, it awakes against you; behold, it comes.
verse value 725
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 23 letters. The shortest word is "end" (קֵ֣ץ, 2 letters) and the longest is "it·has·awoken" (הֵקִ֣יץ, 4 letters). Words sharing gematria 3: went·in, went·in. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "it·has·awoken" (הֵקִ֣יץ). The root בוא appears 3 times in this verse. 5 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "against·you" (root אל, 204x in Ezekiel); "went·in" (root בוא, 175x in Ezekiel); "they" (root הן, 73x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'against·you', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 2 words. Full calculation: קֵ֣ץ [end] (190) + בָּ֔א [went·in] (3) + בָּ֥א [went·in] (3) + הַקֵּ֖ץ [end] (195) + הֵקִ֣יץ [it·has·awoken] (205) + אֵלָ֑יִךְ [against·you] (61) + הִנֵּ֖ה [they] (60) + בָּאָֽה [going·in] (8) = 725.
Radak
“The end has come, the end has come.” The doubling is to strengthen and hasten the matter. Moreover, he added and said, “He has awakened you, he has awakened.” “He has awakened” is from the hifil conjugation, related to the root k-w-tz (a weak-ayin root). And “the end” (katz) has its root in k-tz-tz (to cut off), from the pa'al conjugation.
Behold, it has come. The evil that He mentioned:
Metzudat David
"The end has come, the end has come." The doubling of the phrase serves to strengthen the matter.
"He awoke for you." It is as if He awakened from sleep to come upon you, and behold, it has come.
Metzudat Zion
"Hakiẓ." The word is derived from the root meaning "to awaken and rouse from sleep."
Malbim
"The end has come": he explains that it is not like the other calamities that came to rectify the people, so that they would return in repentance and be established; rather, it is the end and destruction. The end has come; it has awakened, in its figurative speech, the day appointed for evil, as a complete day connected from night and day. And the night has already passed, during which the end and destruction slept, for night is the time of sleep. Now the end has awakened from its sleep toward you, meaning that the last watch has arrived, in which the sleeper awakens and rises to perform his action. And behold, it has come until the morning watch, for even the entire night has passed and the light of dawn has arrived. It adds: "The time has come for him to go forth to his action; the day of tumult is near," for the day is already prepared. "Tumult" and not "the echo of the mountains," meaning that there is a connection between the day and the time, and between the tumult. And the tumult is not like the echo of the mountains, as is the way of a thing coming from afar, which, before it draws near, its voice is heard from among the mountains through the sound of the echo, and they know beforehand that it is coming and prepare themselves to flee for their lives. But here, no sound of an echo is heard from the mountains; rather, it comes suddenly until it reaches the city of dwelling.
The turn is come to you, O inhabitant of the land; the time is come, the day of tumult is near, and not of joyful shouting upon the mountains.
verse value 2317
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 48 letters. The shortest word is "went·in" (בָּ֣א, 2 letters) and the longest is "plait" (הַצְּפִירָ֛ה, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 61: to·you, day. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "plait" (הַצְּפִירָ֛ה), "near" (קָר֛וֹב), "tumult" (מְהוּמָ֖ה). The root בוא appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·not·a·shout·of·joy" (root לא, 213x in Ezekiel); "to·you" (root אל, 204x in Ezekiel); "the·land" (root ארץ, 176x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·land', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 7 words. Full calculation: בָּ֧אָה [went·in] (8) + הַצְּפִירָ֛ה [plait] (390) + אֵלֶ֖יךָ [to·you] (61) + יוֹשֵׁ֣ב [dwelling] (318) + הָאָ֑רֶץ [the·land] (296) + בָּ֣א [went·in] (3) + הָעֵ֗ת [time] (475) + קָר֛וֹב [near] (308) + הַיּ֥וֹם [day] (61) + מְהוּמָ֖ה [tumult] (96) + וְלֹא־הֵ֥ד [and·not·a·shout·of·joy] (46) + הָרִֽים [mountains] (255) = 2317.
Rashi
The dawn has come. Its meaning is as above with the letter bet, and it is a verb in the pa'al conjugation, as in "the dawn has come," similar to "has come" and "has set" regarding the light of dawn, and the glory has come.
And not "the echo of the mountains." And not to be understood as "to be saved in the strongholds of the mountains," but rather "ed" is a term denoting the shout of a proclamation to rise and flee to the mountain tops, as it is said, "I have made a shout of joy" (Isaiah 17:12), and "they answered him with a shout of joy" (Jeremiah 21:4); [it refers to] the sound of those carrying a burden of grapes to the winepress, and those loading the beam.
Radak
“The morning watch has come.” The decree comes to you in the morning. The Targum translates “morning” as “tzefra.” Or, it is a matter of turning, meaning: it is from God, blessed be He, that the enemy comes to you. And Yonatan, who translated “the kingdom is revealed,” explained “the morning watch” like “and to the crown of glory,” which is a crown, and it is a sign of kingship.
"The day is near, tumult." The word *yom* is missing the construct-form word (nismach), as if it said, "The day is a day of tumult." So too with "the Ark of the Covenant" and similar phrases.
"And not the echo of the mountains." "Echo" is a term for a call, as in "He cried out, he cried out" (Isaiah 33:9). This means that this tumult and this calling of an echo will not be like the echo of the mountains, when a person raises his voice among the mountains, it seems as though a voice is coming from between the mountains, and it is not another voice as it seems. But this, the voice of the cry and the tumult, will be a true voice, not an imagined voice. And Jonathan translated: "And there shall not be an escape in the strongholds of the mountains."
Metzudat David
"The morning call has come, etc." You, who dwell in the land, the morning of the evil day has come upon you.
“The day of tumult is near.” The day of tumult is near:
And not the splendor of the mountains. There will no longer be splendor and majesty upon the mountains, but only disgrace and filth from the blood of the slain:
Metzudat Zion
The cockcrow. The matter of dawn and morning is like the verse: "And he returned and cocked" (Judges 7:3).
What is the meaning of "tumult"? It refers to noise and confusion.
Hed. It is the root of "hod" and "hader" (glory and splendor).
Now will I shortly pour out My fury upon you, and spend Mine anger upon you, and will judge you according to your ways; and I will bring upon you all your abominations.
verse value 5867
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 66 letters. The shortest word is "in·you" (בָּ֔ךְ, 2 letters) and the longest is "all·your·abominations" (כׇּל־תּוֹעֲבוֹתָֽיִךְ, 10 letters). Words sharing gematria 130: upon·you, upon·you. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "from·near" (מִקָּר֗וֹב), "I·will·pour" (אֶשְׁפּ֤וֹךְ). The root על appears 2 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "upon·you" (root על, 272x in Ezekiel); "and·I·will·give" (root נתן, 207x in Ezekiel); "all·your·abominations" (root כל, 129x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'as·your·ways', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 4 words.
Rashi
From nearness. In swiftness:
Radak
"Now, soon." Just as in "soon," and it should be interpreted according to its plain meaning, that it is like the other mem-words that come in this manner, which resemble the usage of the letter bet, as we wrote in the book Miklol in the section of grammar, in the root mem-nun. And we explain "soon" accordingly, because the word "now" indicates the present time, which is between the past and the future. And sometimes "now" is said, for the sake of linguistic expansion, to refer to a time that is close to the present time, either preceding or following it. And there is "close" from "close," and regarding the close time, it says "now, soon," meaning that this will happen now, from a time close to this present time. And what will happen now? That I will pour out My wrath upon you. And the meaning of this verse has already been stated above, and it is repeated here to strengthen the matter.
Metzudat David
"Now, in the near future." This means: immediately, in the near time.
"And I will place upon you." This means: I will repay you.
Malbim
"Now, from a near [place]" means that the matter came suddenly, whether in time, which is what "now" signifies, or in place, which is what "suddenly" signifies, meaning from a nearby place. "I will pour out My wrath" — not gradually, little by little. The underlying concept is this: what the Lord brings about through natural processes can be said to extend over time, until the matter becomes necessitated by the natural order; and what comes through enemies can be said to extend over distance, until the enemy arrives from a distant land. But here it comes through Divine providence, suddenly. There is a difference between "anger" (af) and "wrath" (chamah): "wrath" is the inner anger, and "anger" is the outer manifestation. If "anger" comes without "wrath," He does not hasten to punish, but rather sets limits in time and place, perhaps they will repent. But I will pour out My wrath and exhaust My anger, and I will judge you, etc., as explained above (verse 3). "According to your ways" means that the punishment will be precisely directed against the sins and according to their measure. And by this you will recognize that the punishment did not come through intermediaries, but rather that I, the Lord, am striking.
And Mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity; I will bring upon you according to your ways, and your abominations shall be in the midst of you; and you shall know that I Hashem do smite.
verse value 4183
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 69 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֖ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "that" (כִּ֛י, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·your·abominations" (וְתוֹעֲבוֹתַ֙יִךְ֙, 9 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "beating" (מַכֶּֽה). 15 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 427x in Ezekiel); "shall·be" (root היה, 335x in Ezekiel); "upon·you" (root על, 272x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'I·will·spare', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 11 words.
Radak
"And My eye shall not spare." This verse was stated above, and it is repeated here with a slight variation. Above it said, "For your ways," and here it says, "As your ways," with a prefixed "kaf." The usage and meaning are the same. And above it said, "For I am the Lord," and here it adds, saying, "For I am the Lord, the Striker."
Metzudat David
"As your ways." Like the recompense of your ways:
"Your abominations." The recompense for your abominations shall come into your midst.
"And you shall know": Then you will know and understand that I am the Lord, who strikes in retribution for sin, and not by chance.
Behold the day; behold, it comes; the turn is come forth; the rod has blossomed, arrogancy has budded.
verse value 1274
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 36 letters. Verse gematria: 1274 is divisible by 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "blossomed" (צָ֚ץ, 2 letters) and the longest is "plait" (הַצְּפִרָ֔ה, 5 letters). Words sharing gematria 60: they, they. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "plait" (הַצְּפִרָ֔ה), "blossomed" (צָ֚ץ), "the·tribe" (הַמַּטֶּ֔ה). The root הן appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "going·in" (root בוא, 175x in Ezekiel); "day" (root יום, 112x in Ezekiel); "went·forth" (root יצא, 75x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root פרח ("broke·out") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'going·in', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 6 words. 6 of the verse's 10 words begin with the letter ה. Full calculation: הִנֵּ֥ה [they] (60) + הַיּ֖וֹם [day] (61) + הִנֵּ֣ה [they] (60) + בָאָ֑ה [going·in] (8) + יָֽצְאָה֙ [went·forth] (106) + הַצְּפִרָ֔ה [plait] (380) + צָ֚ץ [blossomed] (180) + הַמַּטֶּ֔ה [the·tribe] (59) + פָּרַ֖ח [broke·out] (288) + הַזָּדֽוֹן [pride] (72) = 1274.
Rashi
Behold, the day. Behold, the day is coming:
"Behold, it comes." The evil:
The dawn has come forth. The dawn of the evil day has risen:
The staff sprouted. To strike you:
“The flower of arrogance” – Nebuchadnezzar the wicked was revealed.
Radak
"Behold, today, the staff has sprouted." Some explain that "the staff" refers to the inclination of judgment, and it is a name that indicates the sprouting of wickedness, meaning the evil deeds that Israel has committed will now blossom and sprout forth, that is, they will receive their reward and punishment. And it should be interpreted according to its plain meaning, and Nebuchadnezzar calls it "staff" just as it says, "Assyria is the rod of My anger, and the staff in their hands is My indignation." And this is what he said regarding the matter: "From the matter comes forth the cry," and Nebuchadnezzar also calls it "wickedness" just as it says, "Behold, I am against you, O wicked one." And in this manner Jonathan translated: "The sprout of the kingdom; the wicked one has appeared."
Metzudat David
Behold, the day. Behold, the day is near, and behold, it is coming:
"The dawn has emerged." The dawn has come forth from the day of calamity.
“צץ המטה” – The staff that was prepared to strike them sprouted a bud, and it was near to producing fruit. And the fruit of the staff is the striking with it. And concerning the Chaldeans it says, and similarly it is said concerning Assyria: “And a staff is in their hand, my wrath” (Isaiah 10:5).
"The proud one has blossomed." It seems to me that a proud man has already blossomed, and quickly he will bear the fruit of pride, which is destruction and ruin.
Metzudat Zion
Tzatz. The word is derived from tzitz, which means the flower is revealed, as it is written: "And it put forth blossoms" (Numbers 17:23).
Malbim
"Behold, the day": Now he describes the day itself. The day that follows the rising of dawn has already arrived, and the morning watch—the dawn itself—has emerged and receded, for it is already midday. The staff sprouted in place of the dawn; the staff that strikes sprouted, which is the army of the Chaldeans. And despite all this, the arrogance blossomed; even the arrogance is flourishing, and they do not return in repentance.
Violence is risen up into a rod of wickedness; nought comes from them, nor from their tumult, nor from their turmoil, neither is there eminency among them.
verse value 1547
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 43 letters. Verse gematria: 1547 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "arose" (קָ֖ם, 2 letters) and the longest is "to·staff·of·wickedness" (לְמַטֵּה־רֶ֑שַׁע, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 37: and·not, and·not. 7 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "violence" (הֶחָמָ֥ס), "arose" (קָ֖ם), "to·staff·of·wickedness" (לְמַטֵּה־רֶ֑שַׁע). The root לא appears 4 times in this verse. 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "not·from·them" (root לא, 213x in Ezekiel); "from·their·turmoil" (root הם, 166x in Ezekiel); "from·their·multitude" (root המון, 26x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root חמס ("violence") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·staff·of·wickedness', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 7 words. Full calculation: הֶחָמָ֥ס [violence] (113) + קָ֖ם [arose] (140) + לְמַטֵּה־רֶ֑שַׁע [to·staff·of·wickedness] (654) + לֹא־מֵהֶ֞ם [not·from·them] (116) + וְלֹ֧א [and·not] (37) + מֵהֲמוֹנָ֛ם [from·their·multitude] (181) + וְלֹ֥א [and·not] (37) + מֶהֱמֵהֶ֖ם [from·their·turmoil] (130) + וְלֹא־נֹ֥הַּ [and·not·eminency] (92) + בָּהֶֽם [among·them] (47) = 1547.
Rashi
"The violence has risen, etc." The violence that is in your hands has risen against you, [as] a rod of wickedness to destroy you.
"Not from them." Thus said the Holy One, blessed be He, to the Destroyer: "You are not required to leave alive any soul among the wicked of Israel, for no good comes forth from them, nor from their children, nor from their wealth."
"And there is no longing in them." There is no "mourn" in them after a longing and giving heart to it, like "And all the house of Israel mourned after the Lord" (1 Samuel 6). And it is Aramaic language, and "itnaḥu" means "they longed for the worship," language of desire and yearning. And Menachem ben Saruk [interprets] the language of mourning, and so too "And all the house of Israel mourned" – he explained [it as] language of mourning. And there is only a he as the root in the word.
Radak
"The violence that he committed stands against them as a punishment for the wicked, which strikes them." And Jonathan [ben Uzziel] translated: "The captives rose up against the wicked ones."
Not from among them. Not one of them will remain who will not be exiled or die:
And not from their wealth. And not from the abundance of their money, like "the multitude of the wicked" and "who loves in the multitude," whose interpretation is an abundance of wealth.
"And not from them." Like "from them," with the mem and heh repeated, as if it said "from them" twice, meaning that not even a single thing from them will remain, namely, their children and their children's children. Or perhaps "from them" is derived from "them," meaning a matter concerning which people are in a commotion, and these are the children.
And there shall be no mourning in them. There shall be no wailing and lamentation in them due to the multitude of afflictions; the living shall not weep for the dead, as Jeremiah said, “They shall not lament, nor shall they bury.” And Jonathan [ben Uzziel] rendered it in the Targum: “They shall not make a commotion, nor shall they mourn in them, nor from their sons, nor from their sons’ sons.”
Metzudat David
The violence. It seems to me that "a man of violence" arises to be a rod that strikes with wickedness, with great cruelty.
"Not from them" means that the destruction did not come from the victory of the Chaldeans, nor from the multitude of the great army that was with them, nor from their clamor with a loud, terrifying, and frightening noise. Rather, it was not by their arm's strength that they did what they did, but rather the Hand of the Lord did all of this.
"And let not lamentation be in them." This means that it is not fitting that there should be lamentation and wailing on their account, because they did not act with evil intent in their choice and with the full strength of their hand.
Metzudat Zion
“From their multitude.” A multitude of a great people:
“From their tumult.” It is the noun “tumult.”
Noh. The word נָהִי (nahi) means "lamentation and wailing," and likewise וַיִּנָּה (vayinneh), etc., in the phrase "after the Lord" (1 Samuel 7).
Malbim
The very injustice rises up to become a rod of wickedness; the very injustice they committed stands to discipline them and punish them, until no remnant remains—neither of them nor of their multitude. And despite all this, nor is there any preeminence among them; there is no one among them whose heart inclines him to repent.
The time is come, the day draws near; let not the buyer rejoice, nor the seller mourn; for wrath is upon all the multitude thereof.
verse value 2408
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 51 letters. Verse gematria: 2408 is divisible by 86, the value of Elohim. The shortest word is "went·in" (בָּ֤א, 2 letters) and the longest is "to·all·her·multitude" (אֶל־כׇּל־הֲמוֹנָֽהּ, 9 letters). 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "has·arrived" (הִגִּ֣יעַ), "the·buyer" (הַקּוֹנֶה֙), "do·not·rejoice" (אַל־יִשְׂמָ֔ח). The root איל appears 2 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "do·not·rejoice" (root איל, 238x in Ezekiel); "went·in" (root בוא, 175x in Ezekiel); "for" (root כי, 114x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root נגע ("has·arrived") in Ezekiel. First appearance of the root קנה ("the·buyer") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'do·not·mourn', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 3 words. Full calculation: בָּ֤א [went·in] (3) + הָעֵת֙ [time] (475) + הִגִּ֣יעַ [has·arrived] (88) + הַיּ֔וֹם [day] (61) + הַקּוֹנֶה֙ [the·buyer] (166) + אַל־יִשְׂמָ֔ח [do·not·rejoice] (389) + וְהַמֹּכֵ֖ר [and·the·seller] (271) + אַל־יִתְאַבָּ֑ל [do·not·mourn] (474) + כִּ֥י [for] (30) + חָר֖וֹן [anger] (264) + אֶל־כׇּל־הֲמוֹנָֽהּ [to·all·her·multitude] (187) = 2408.
Rashi
And the seller shall not mourn. Even though it is the custom of one who sells his field to be sorrowful, he shall not grieve, for your ultimate fate is exile.
Radak
When the time comes, let the buyer not rejoice. It is the way of the world that the buyer rejoices over his purchase, while the seller mourns and grieves, for he sells out of his distress. Similarly, our Sages of blessed memory stated: “That which is in men’s mouths, you have bought; you have purchased; you have lost.” And they said that a seller of a field in the Land of Israel should not mourn over this, for even if he does not sell it, it will remain in his possession for only a short time, for the redemption will come swiftly and he will leave it behind. Likewise, the buyer has no cause for rejoicing, for the property he acquires will remain in his possession for only a short time.
"for the anger" – [this refers to the anger] that will come from Me upon all their multitude, to kill them and to exile them.
Metzudat David
“Brought is the time.” This means: Behold, retribution has come, for the measure has been filled, and the time has arrived when the buyer will not rejoice in his purchase of the field, as is customary for a buyer, but rather he will be driven away from it, and it will not remain in his possession; and the seller will not mourn over the sale of his field, for even apart from the sale, it would not have remained in his possession.
"Ki charon." For the anger of the Lord will be upon all the multitude of the people, and there will remain none in their land.
Malbim
The time has come in which the buyer should not rejoice because he has grown wealthy, and the seller need not mourn, as will be explained in the subsequent verse, because they will all go into exile. And why has this time come? He answers that it is due to the wrath upon all the multitude because of their sins.
For the seller shall not return to that which is sold, although they be yet alive; for the vision is touching the whole multitude thereof, which shall not return; neither shall any stand possessed of the iniquity of his life.
verse value 3668
Insights
Verse structure: 17 words, 74 letters. Notable word values: "and·yet" (וְע֥וֹד) = 86, equal to Elohim. The shortest word is "for" (כִּ֣י, 2 letters) and the longest is "to·all·her·multitude" (אֶל־כׇּל־הֲמוֹנָהּ֙, 9 letters). Words sharing gematria 318: he·will·return, he·will·return. 7 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "the·seller" (הַמֹּכֵ֗ר), "to·the·sale" (אֶל־הַמִּמְכָּר֙), "in·the·life" (בַּחַיִּ֖ים). The root לא appears 3 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "not" (root לא, 213x in Ezekiel); "for" (root כי, 114x in Ezekiel); "and·man" (root איש, 84x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root מכר ("the·seller") in Ezekiel. First appearance of the root חזון ("for·vision") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'their·life', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 9 words.
Rashi
"For he who sells shall not return to the sold. When he is exiled to the diaspora, he will not return and see again the field that he sold, and why should he mourn?"
And furthermore, though they were yet alive. All the days of their lives they will not return to their place.
For the vision is for all the appointed time, etc. The prophets prophesied concerning all their tumult, in order to set them in a state of repentance, and yet they did not repent.
“And a man, his life is bound in his iniquity.” Each one of them, his life and soul are bound to his iniquity.
They shall not strengthen themselves. They shall not strengthen their hearts against their evil inclination to return to their Torah.
Radak
For the one who sells: The meaning of "for" is to the anger that was mentioned, for My anger will be upon them, that the seller will not return to his sale, as is the law while they are in the Land of Israel; in this Jubilee year, each man will return to his possession. But My anger burned against them, and they will not return to their possession in the Jubilee, for they will be in exile.
And furthermore, while they are still alive. Even though they are alive, they will not return to their place of sale, for they will be exiled to another land.
חיתם. Their soul [life], as it is said: "and their life is among the depraved" (Job 36:14), and "his life shall see the light" (Job 33:28).
For the vision is against all their multitude. For when it is stated, "the vision is against all their multitude,"
“He shall not return.” This means that they did not repent of their wickedness when the prophets warned them morning and evening.
“And every man, his life is in his sin; they shall not strengthen themselves.” And each one’s soul was sunk in his sin, so they did not strengthen themselves to return to the right path. And the Targum of Jonathan translated the verse thus: “From selling to selling they shall not return,” etc., as stated in the column above. In the verse above, “for the anger” is spelled with a resh, and in this verse, “for the vision” is spelled with a zayin, and the mnemonic is reish-zayin.
Metzudat David
For the seller. Even if he did not sell his field, he would not return to this field that he sold to establish possession in it.
“And yet, while they are still alive.” This means: Even though their souls are still alive, he will not return to him, even apart from the sale.
For the vision. For when that vision was spoken to all the multitude of her people, there was no one who returned to the Lord, and every man’s soul was bound to his sin and would not separate from it; therefore, they could not strengthen themselves to return to their land to hold fast to their inheritance.
Metzudat Zion
"Their life." Their soul, as it is said: "and his life shall see the light" (Job 33:28).
Vision. Prophecy:
Malbim
For he explains why the seller need not mourn, for he will not lose by what he sold, for otherwise the seller would not return to his sale, for the land would become desolate. But rather, he will still profit by what he sold, for thereby they will still remain alive, in that by selling his field and leaving the land, he remains alive. And also, those who sold and remained in the land among the common people, Nebuzaradan left for the vinedressers and the plowmen, but the owners of fields and the rich he struck with the sword. For the vision of the prophecy that the prophets prophesied against all the multitude—this vision will not return backward, and it will come upon them. And what is the vision? "Every man and every man, whose life is bound up in his sin"—that his soul is bound up in his sin, that he lives the life of sin and transgression—they will not strengthen themselves to face the enemy. (And one can also interpret that it says, "Behold, a harsh vision and sight have the prophets prophesied against all the multitude, and why does not every man return from his evil way? For behold, every man’s life depends on his sin, for by his sin he will lose his life, and why do they not strengthen themselves to return in repentance?")
They have blown the horn, and have made all ready, but none goes to the battle; for My wrath is upon all the multitude thereof.
verse value 2066
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 46 letters. The shortest word is "for" (כִּ֥י, 2 letters) and the longest is "upon·all·her·multitude" (אֶל־כׇּל־הֲמוֹנָֽהּ, 9 letters). Words sharing gematria 55: all, going. 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "they·have·blown" (תָּקְע֤וּ), "a·blast--instrument" (בַתָּק֙וֹעַ֙), "and·prepared" (וְהָכִ֣ין). 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "all" (root כל, 129x in Ezekiel); "for" (root כי, 114x in Ezekiel); "going" (root הלך, 66x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root תקע ("they·have·blown") in Ezekiel. First appearance of the root מלחמה ("to·the·battle") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·the·battle', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 3 words. Full calculation: תָּקְע֤וּ [they·have·blown] (576) + בַתָּק֙וֹעַ֙ [a·blast--instrument] (578) + וְהָכִ֣ין [and·prepared] (91) + הַכֹּ֔ל [all] (55) + וְאֵ֥ין [and·nothing] (67) + הֹלֵ֖ךְ [going] (55) + לַמִּלְחָמָ֑ה [to·the·battle] (153) + כִּ֥י [for] (30) + חֲרוֹנִ֖י [my·fierceness] (274) + אֶל־כׇּל־הֲמוֹנָֽהּ [upon·all·her·multitude] (187) = 2066.
Rashi
"They have blown the horn." When the enemy comes upon them, they will prepare themselves for war, but none will go out to fight.
Radak
“They have sounded the horn.” The shofar is called “Tekoa” because they blow it, for they blow the shofar to drive those who are outside into the city. This is the meaning of “and prepare everything,” namely, that they should prepare all who are in the field and bring them into the city.
And he does not go to war. And none of them goes out against the enemy to fight, but they all gather into the city out of fear of the enemy. And why is this so for them? Because My wrath is against all the multitude.
Metzudat David
“They have sounded the horn.” Behold, when the enemy comes, they will blow the shofar to alert the people to go down to war against the enemy, and they will also prepare everything needed for the war. However, no one goes to war, for I am angry with all the multitude of her people, and I have brought softness into their hearts, so they are afraid to go forth to war.
Metzudat Zion
With the teqoa. So too is the shofar called, for they sound it.
Charoni. “The heat of My anger”:
Malbim
“They have sounded [the horn]” Have they not already blown the shofar and prepared everything to meet the enemy? Why does no one go to war? Why do they hide in their homes? He answers: “For My anger is kindled against all the multitude, and I have turned away the weapons of war from their hands.”
The sword is without, and the pestilence and the famine within; he that is in the field shall die with the sword, and he that is in the city, famine and pestilence shall devour him.
verse value 4143
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 58 letters. The shortest word is "who" (אֲשֶׁ֤ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "will·devour·him" (יֹאכְלֶֽנּוּ, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 212: in·the·sword, and·pestilence. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "sword" (הַחֶ֣רֶב), "in·the·outside" (בַּח֔וּץ), "and·the·pestilence" (וְהַדֶּ֥בֶר). The root חרב appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "who" (root אשר, 341x in Ezekiel); "within" (root בית, 159x in Ezekiel); "sword" (root חרב, 102x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root חוץ ("in·the·outside") in Ezekiel. First appearance of the root שדה ("in·the·field") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'within', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 9 words. Full calculation: הַחֶ֣רֶב [sword] (215) + בַּח֔וּץ [in·the·outside] (106) + וְהַדֶּ֥בֶר [and·the·pestilence] (217) + וְהָרָעָ֖ב [and·the·famine] (283) + מִבָּ֑יִת [within] (452) + אֲשֶׁ֤ר [who] (501) + בַּשָּׂדֶה֙ [in·the·field] (311) + בַּחֶ֣רֶב [in·the·sword] (212) + יָמ֔וּת [will·die] (456) + וַאֲשֶׁ֣ר [and·who] (507) + בָּעִ֔יר [in·the·city] (282) + רָעָ֥ב [famine] (272) + וָדֶ֖בֶר [and·pestilence] (212) + יֹאכְלֶֽנּוּ [will·devour·him] (117) = 4143.
Radak
“The sword is without, famine and pestilence will devour them.” As its Targum renders it: “They will cause them to perish.”
Metzudat David
"The sword." The sword of the enemy will be outside the city, while the plague and the famine will be from within, inside the city.
"Which is in the field, etc." – "That which shall be in the field, etc."
Metzudat Zion
Within. From within:
He shall eat it. He shall destroy it:
Malbim
The sword: The question is asked, why should they not go to war? Is it not true that even though the sword is outside, there is also plague and famine inside the house? What would they gain by remaining at home? Is it not true that those slain by the sword are better off than those slain by famine? And even if those in the field will die by the sword, is it not true that those in the city will be consumed by famine and plague? And it is better that they die the death of heroes.
But they that shall at all escape of them, shall be on the mountains like doves of the valleys, all of them moaning, every one in his iniquity.
verse value 2140
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 49 letters. The shortest word is "all·of·them" (כֻּלָּ֖ם, 3 letters) and the longest is "their·refugees" (פְּלִ֣יטֵיהֶ֔ם, 7 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "and·they·will·escape" (וּפָֽלְטוּ֙), "their·refugees" (פְּלִ֣יטֵיהֶ֔ם), "as·doves·of" (כְּיוֹנֵ֧י). 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·they·shall·be" (root היה, 335x in Ezekiel); "on·the·mountains" (root איל, 238x in Ezekiel); "all·of·them" (root כל, 129x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root גיא ("the·valleys") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'death', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 2 words. Full calculation: וּפָֽלְטוּ֙ [and·they·will·escape] (131) + פְּלִ֣יטֵיהֶ֔ם [their·refugees] (184) + וְהָי֣וּ [and·they·shall·be] (27) + אֶל־הֶהָרִ֗ים [on·the·mountains] (291) + כְּיוֹנֵ֧י [as·doves·of] (96) + הַגֵּאָי֛וֹת [the·valleys] (425) + כֻּלָּ֖ם [all·of·them] (90) + הֹמ֑וֹת [death] (451) + אִ֖ישׁ [man] (311) + בַּעֲוֺנֽוֹ [in·his·iniquity] (134) = 2140.
Rashi
“Like the doves of the valleys.” It is the way of doves to gather in valleys, and they are noisy there; thus, [the people] were noisy toward the mountains to which they would flee, each according to his iniquity, like the doves of the valleys, all of which are noisy.
Radak
And they shall escape: "them" refers to the valleys. For it is the way of doves to gather in the valleys.
"Umot." [They] make a sound like the sound of wailing; so too will the refugees do in their flight.
“And they shall be upon the mountains.” To be exalted upon them until the might of the enemies passes by, and while they are upon the mountains, they shall moan and wail and confess, each one of them, that all this has come upon him because of his sin.
“unto the mountains.” Like “upon the mountains.”
Metzudat David
"And their fugitives shall escape." The fugitives from among them shall escape and be scattered in the mountains, and they shall moan with the voice of mourning like doves that gather in the valleys, and all of them shall moan.
"A man by his iniquity." Each one moans because of his own iniquity; that is, he shall confess and say: "My iniquity has brought this upon me."
Metzudat Zion
And they shall escape. The matter of escaping:
To the mountains. In the mountains:
The valleys. From the word "gai" (valley) and "emek" (valley):
Malbim
“And they shall escape”—even their exiles, those who shall escape, were like doves upon the mountains, whereas doves are accustomed to dwell in valleys and lowlands, and are not accustomed to mountains. And therefore, all of them were moaning. The question is asked: Why was this so? The answer is: Each person according to his sin; all of this was due to their sins.
All hands shall be slack, and all knees shall drip with water.
verse value 1787
Insights
Verse structure: 5 words, 29 letters. The shortest word is "water" (מָּֽיִם, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·all·knees" (וְכׇל־בִּרְכַּ֖יִם, 8 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "all·the·hands" (כׇּל־הַיָּדַ֖יִם). 5 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "all·the·hands" (root כל, 129x in Ezekiel); "will·flow" (root הלך, 66x in Ezekiel); "water" (root מים, 38x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'they·heal', dividing the verse into phrases of 2 and 3 words. Full calculation: כׇּל־הַיָּדַ֖יִם [all·the·hands] (119) + תִּרְפֶּ֑ינָה [they·heal] (745) + וְכׇל־בִּרְכַּ֖יִם [and·all·knees] (328) + תֵּלַ֥כְנָה [will·flow] (505) + מָּֽיִם [water] (90) = 1787.
Rashi
They shall go out with waters. From the sweat of awe:
Radak
"All hands shall be powerless. For they will not have the strength to fight against all the enemies:"
“And all the knees shall flow like water.” “Shall flow like water” is by way of metaphor, as if they had melted, so that there would be no strength in them due to the excessive panic.
Metzudat David
"They shall be weakened from fighting:"
“Waters shall flow.” From the sweat of terror, as it were, they shall melt and become waters.
Metzudat Zion
Tirpenah. From the term for “looseness” (or “slackening”):
Malbim
All of them are unable to fight, for all hands will grow weak, and they cannot flee, for all knees will turn to water.
They shall also gird themselves with sackcloth, and horror shall cover them; and shame shall be upon all faces, and baldness upon all their heads.
verse value 3724
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 50 letters. The shortest word is "and·to" (וְאֶ֤ל, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·in·all·their·heads" (וּבְכׇל־רָאשֵׁיהֶ֖ם, 10 letters). Words sharing gematria 313: shame, baldness. 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "and·it·covers" (וְכִסְּתָ֥ה), "shuddering" (פַּלָּצ֑וּת), "shame" (בּוּשָׁ֔ה). 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·to" (root אל, 204x in Ezekiel); "and·in·all·their·heads" (root ראש, 39x in Ezekiel); "and·it·covers" (root כסה, 22x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root חגר ("and·they·will·gird") in Ezekiel. First appearance of the root לפני ("all·faces") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'shuddering', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 5 words. Full calculation: וְחָגְר֣וּ [and·they·will·gird] (223) + שַׂקִּ֔ים [sackcloth] (450) + וְכִסְּתָ֥ה [and·it·covers] (491) + אוֹתָ֖ם [them] (447) + פַּלָּצ֑וּת [shuddering] (606) + וְאֶ֤ל [and·to] (37) + כׇּל־פָּנִים֙ [all·faces] (230) + בּוּשָׁ֔ה [shame] (313) + וּבְכׇל־רָאשֵׁיהֶ֖ם [and·in·all·their·heads] (614) + קׇרְחָֽה [baldness] (313) = 3724.
Radak
"And they girded themselves." This is clear:
Metzudat David
"And they girded themselves with sackcloth." This is the manner of mourning and distress.
And to every face. In every face:
Karahah. "When they pluck out the hair of their head" – this refers to the practice of plucking out the hair as an expression of grief and mourning.
Metzudat Zion
"Palatzot" – trembling and quaking, as it is written: "And the pillars shall quake" (Job 9:6).
Kerah. The matter of plucking the hair. And similarly, the word kerah appears in Jeremiah 47:
Malbim
And they girded themselves with sackcloth to mourn over the wickedness of their deeds, and horror covered them by means of the calamity, and to every face there was shame because of their sins, and on all their heads was baldness as a sign of mourning for the calamity.
They shall cast their silver in the streets, and their gold shall be as an unclean thing; their silver and their gold shall not be able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of Hashem; they shall not satisfy their souls, neither fill their bowels; because it has been the stumblingblock of their iniquity.
verse value 4375
Insights
Verse structure: 22 words, 100 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֔ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "not" (לֹ֣א, 2 letters) and the longest is "because·a·stumbling·block·of" (כִּֽי־מִכְשׁ֥וֹל, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 200: their·silver, their·silver. 9 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "in·the·streets" (בַּחוּצ֣וֹת), "will·cast" (יַשְׁלִ֗יכוּ), "not·be·able" (לֹא־יוּכַ֣ל). The root כסף appears 2 times in this verse. 18 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 427x in Ezekiel); "it·will·be" (root היה, 335x in Ezekiel); "not" (root לא, 213x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root כסף ("their·silver") in Ezekiel. First appearance of the root זהב ("and·their·gold") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'will·fill', dividing the verse into phrases of 19 and 3 words.
Rashi
For a menstruating woman it shall be. For an abomination it shall be to them:
Radak
“Their silver they will cast into the streets.” We can interpret this as referring to the idols of silver and gold that they made, as it is stated in Isaiah: “On that day man will cast away his idols of silver and his idols of gold.” Since they will see that there is no benefit in them and that they did not save them, they will cast them into the streets. It is also possible to interpret this as referring to their treasures of silver and gold, for these will not benefit them—neither to save them from famine nor from the enemy. Therefore, they will cast them into the markets and the streets. This is what is meant by “their souls shall not be satisfied,” for they will not be able to fill their stomachs with silver and gold, as they would with bread. And if they have no bread, what good will silver and gold do them? Likewise, they will eat them. This applies even according to the first interpretation, namely, that the idols will not satisfy them during the time of famine.
"to the menstruating woman it shall be." To distance, for they will distance him from their homes.
"For it was a stumbling block due to their iniquity." That is to say, all this stumbling block for them was because of their iniquity.
Metzudat David
To a menstruant woman. To keep at a distance and to abhor:
Their silver, etc. This means: Why will they cast away their silver and abhor their gold? Because they will not be able to save their lives on the day that the wrath of the Lord comes, for the enemy will not take silver and gold as a ransom for life.
Their soul shall not be satisfied. This means that they will not find bread to purchase with them in order to satisfy the soul and fill the stomach.
"For a stumbling block." For this evil stumbling block came about because of their sins, and not without cause.
Metzudat Zion
Regarding the menstruant: To be distant and detestable, like a menstruant; and it is from the word for “straying” and “removal.”
"Your wrath." The word is derived from "wrath" and "anger."
Malbim
They shall cast their silver into the streets, for they will not be able to carry it in exile; and even their gold, so that they will not cast it away as unclean, will be such that whoever is found with gold will be put to death. And it explains that their silver and gold will not be able to save them from the enemy, nor will it remove the famine from them, for their souls will not be satisfied by it, and even their intestines will not be filled, which is less than full satisfaction. And it explains the reason: the stumbling block of their sin was that through the abundance of gold and silver they stumbled into sins, as it is stated, “And I gave them much silver, and they made gold for Baal.”
And as for the beauty of their ornament, which was set for a pride, they made the images of their abominations and their detestable things thereof; therefore have I made it to them as an unclean thing.
verse value 3868
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 56 letters. The shortest word is "with·it" (ב֑וֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "their·detestable·things" (שִׁקּוּצֵיהֶ֖ם, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 90: his·finery, to·pride. 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "and·beauty·of" (וּצְבִ֤י), "his·finery" (עֶדְיוֹ֙), "to·pride" (לְגָא֣וֹן). 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "therefore" (root על, 272x in Ezekiel); "they·did" (root עשה, 214x in Ezekiel); "I·gave·it" (root נתן, 207x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root צבי ("and·beauty·of") in Ezekiel. First appearance of the root עדי ("his·finery") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'with·it', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 4 words. Full calculation: וּצְבִ֤י [and·beauty·of] (108) + עֶדְיוֹ֙ [his·finery] (90) + לְגָא֣וֹן [to·pride] (90) + שָׂמָ֔הוּ [he·set·it] (351) + וְצַלְמֵ֧י [and·images·of] (176) + תוֹעֲבֹתָ֛ם [their·abominations] (918) + שִׁקּוּצֵיהֶ֖ם [their·detestable·things] (551) + עָ֣שׂוּ [they·did] (376) + ב֑וֹ [with·it] (8) + עַל־כֵּ֛ן [therefore] (170) + נְתַתִּ֥יו [I·gave·it] (866) + לָהֶ֖ם [to·them] (75) + לְנִדָּֽה [as·impurity] (89) = 3868.
Rashi
"And the beauty of His ornament." [This is] of the Holy One, blessed be He, which, for pride, He set for them; it is the Temple, which is called the pride of their strength, as it is stated below (24:21): "Behold, I will profane My sanctuary, the pride of your strength." [These are] the idols and abominations they made in it. Etc.
Radak
And the beauty of its ornament. This is the Holy Temple, which is the ornament, the beauty, and the glory of God, Who is sanctified within it. They adorned it like jewelry, and the Holy One, Blessed be He, made it a source of pride, so that Israel would boast and be magnified through it above all nations, for the glory of God was seen in it in the cloud and in the upper fire. But they made it an abomination, for they placed their detestable idols within it. Therefore, I gave it to them as an impurity, so that they would distance it from themselves and be exiled from their land.
Metzudat David
And the beauty of his ornaments. The splendor of his adornment, which God placed among them to be for them a pride and a glory—this is the Temple.
And their images. This means that they set up in it the detestable idols of their abominations.
"I have given it to them." This means that I gave it before them as an unclean thing, so that in their eyes they will see that I made it detestable, in order to distance it from Me and to hand it over into the hand of the enemy.
Metzudat Zion
And "zvi" (deer/hind). The meaning is splendor and beauty, as it is written: "And for beauty, and for honor" (Isaiah 4:2).
Edav. The word is [derived from] the root of adi (ornament) and adornment, and similarly [the word] ve-adit (and you adorned) [is derived from] adi (see below, 23).
Legaon. The matter of exaltation:
Malbim
And [the phrase] "the beauty of their ornament" — he explains how they sinned through the gold, which was in two respects: 1. That the beauty of the ornaments of this gold they set for themselves as pride and glory; all their pride was through the beauty of the ornaments, through the desire for gold and precious jewels. 2. That they made their detestable images and abominations with it, in the gold from which they fashioned an idol. Therefore, I gave it to them as a loathsome thing, measure for measure.
And I will give it into the hands of the strangers for a prey, and to the wicked of the earth for a spoil; and they shall profane it.
verse value 2667
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 44 letters. The shortest word is "to·spoil" (לָבַ֔ז, 3 letters) and the longest is "into·hand·of·the·strangers" (בְּיַֽד־הַזָּרִים֙, 8 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "into·hand·of·the·strangers" (בְּיַֽד־הַזָּרִים֙), "and·to·wicked·of" (וּלְרִשְׁעֵ֥י), "and·they·shall·profane·it" (וְחִלְּלֽוּהוּ). 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·I·will·make·him" (root נתן, 207x in Ezekiel); "the·land" (root ארץ, 176x in Ezekiel); "and·they·shall·profane·it" (root חלל, 67x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root זור ("into·hand·of·the·strangers") in Ezekiel. First appearance of the root בז ("to·spoil") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·spoil', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 2 words. Full calculation: וּנְתַתִּ֤יו [and·I·will·make·him] (872) + בְּיַֽד־הַזָּרִים֙ [into·hand·of·the·strangers] (278) + לָבַ֔ז [to·spoil] (39) + וּלְרִשְׁעֵ֥י [and·to·wicked·of] (616) + הָאָ֖רֶץ [the·land] (296) + לְשָׁלָ֑ל [to·spoil] (390) + (וחללוה) [and·profane·it] (85) + וְחִלְּלֽוּהוּ [and·they·shall·profane·it] (91) = 2667.
Radak
"And I will give it," and "they shall profane it." It is written (in the text) "and they shall profane it" (with the suffix -o), but it is read (in the tradition) "and they shall profane it" (without the suffix). The written text refers to the Divine Presence, and the read text refers to the Temple.
Metzudat David
For spoil. “To take all that is found in it”:
"and they profaned it." They rendered it common and desecrated.
Metzudat Zion
The non-Jews. The gentiles:
"and they shall profane it." The term is derived from the word "chulin" (non-sacred), and it denotes disgrace.
Malbim
“And I will give it over,” meaning that strangers will come upon their land and plunder their silver. There is a distinction between “plunder” (baz) and “booty” (shelal): what remains after the owners have fallen in battle is called “booty” (shelal), whereas what the enemy forcibly seizes and takes by strong hand is called “plunder” (baz). The strangers will come and plunder their silver, and the booty that the strangers do not plunder will be taken by the wicked of the land. And they will profane it; and by this, they will profane the glory and this precious thing (as in “and they will profane your beauty” below, 28).
I will also turn My face from them, and they shall profane My secret place; and robbers shall enter into it, and profane it.
verse value 1968
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 43 letters. The shortest word is "my·face" (פָנַי֙, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·I·will·turn" (וַהֲסִבּוֹתִ֤י, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 85: from·them, and·profane·it. 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "and·I·will·turn" (וַהֲסִבּוֹתִ֤י), "my·secret·place" (אֶת־צְפוּנִ֑י), "and·they·shall·come·into·it" (וּבָאוּ־בָ֥הּ). The root חלל appears 2 times in this verse. 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·they·shall·come·into·it" (root בוא, 175x in Ezekiel); "from·them" (root הם, 166x in Ezekiel); "my·face" (root פנים, 150x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root פרץ ("robbers") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'my·secret·place', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 3 words. Full calculation: וַהֲסִבּוֹתִ֤י [and·I·will·turn] (489) + פָנַי֙ [my·face] (140) + מֵהֶ֔ם [from·them] (85) + וְחִלְּל֖וּ [and·they·shall·profane] (80) + אֶת־צְפוּנִ֑י [my·secret·place] (637) + וּבָאוּ־בָ֥הּ [and·they·shall·come·into·it] (22) + פָּרִיצִ֖ים [robbers] (430) + וְחִלְּלֽוּהָ [and·profane·it] (85) = 1968.
Rashi
"My hidden one." The place where I was hidden among them:
Radak
"And I will turn." Just as it is stated in the Torah: "And I will hide My face from them."
"And they profaned it." The non-priests profaned the northern area of the Temple, which is the Devir, the Holy of Holies, where the Ark was located.
“And the wicked came into it and profaned it.” The feminine form is used with reference to the Divine Presence of Glory that dwells upon the Ark. Alternatively, “and they profaned it” refers to the city. And Jonathan [ben Uzziel] rendered in the Targum: “And I will remove My Presence from them, because they have desecrated the land of My Presence, and the wicked will enter into it and profane it.”
Metzudat David
And I shall turn away. I removed My Divine Presence from there, and afterwards they desecrated the northern part of My place, namely the Temple and the Holy of Holies.
"and they profaned it." The doubling of the expression is like the way of one who mourns, who repeats his words.
Metzudat Zion
And I will turn [My face]. The word is from the root "to surround" and "to turn aside."
Tzafoni. Its meaning is "concealment," and similarly: "it will treasure you up [tzafon]" (Proverbs 2).
"Transgressors." Wicked people who breach the fence of truth and righteousness.
Malbim
And I shall turn My face from them: He reasoned in order. First, he considered what occurred at the end of the siege, as it is stated, “They have sounded [the horn], all is ready; the sword is outside,” etc. Afterwards, he considered what occurred when the city was breached and Zedekiah and his army fled, and this is what is meant by “and their survivors shall be delivered,” etc. Afterwards, “they shall cast their silver in the streets,” for the enemies plundered everything. This occurred in the fourth month. Afterwards, “and I shall turn My face from them,” meaning the Divine Presence departed from the Temple. And they desecrated My sanctuary: they desecrated the Holy of Holies, and lawless men entered to take the Temple vessels, thereby desecrating it and removing them to profane status, as our Sages of blessed memory stated in Tractate Avodah Zarah: once lawless men entered, they lost their sanctity.
Make the chain; for the land is full of bloody crimes, and the city is full of violence.
verse value 2486
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 38 letters. The shortest word is "for" (כִּ֣י, 2 letters) and the longest is "chain" (הָרַתּ֑וֹק, 5 letters). Words sharing gematria 76: is·full, is·full. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "chain" (הָרַתּ֑וֹק). The root מלא appears 2 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "do" (root עשה, 214x in Ezekiel); "the·land" (root ארץ, 176x in Ezekiel); "for" (root כי, 114x in Ezekiel). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'chain', dividing the verse into phrases of 2 and 8 words. Full calculation: עֲשֵׂ֖ה [do] (375) + הָרַתּ֑וֹק [chain] (711) + כִּ֣י [for] (30) + הָאָ֗רֶץ [the·land] (296) + מָֽלְאָה֙ [is·full] (76) + מִשְׁפַּ֣ט [judgment] (429) + דָּמִ֔ים [blood] (94) + וְהָעִ֖יר [and·the·city] (291) + מָלְאָ֥ה [is·full] (76) + חָמָֽס [violence] (108) = 2486.
Rashi
“Make the chain.” A chain is a sign that they will go into exile bound with fetters.
"A judgment of blood." Those liable to execution:
Radak
"Make a chain." Make an iron chain, as a sign that the Chaldeans will lead the people of Jerusalem into exile in chains, as is done with captives.
"Judgment of blood." That is to say, they are all subject to the judgment of blood, because they shed innocent blood and transgressed transgressions for which they were liable to death. And likewise, "the judgment of death for this man" is like the judgment of blood.
And the city is full of violence. Moreover, they commit violence within it, and therefore they are deserving of exile from it, for the settlement of the land cannot endure alongside violence.
Metzudat David
“Make the chain.” Prepare chains to bind the exiles.
"Judgment of blood." All of them are liable to death.
Violence. They are all deserving of violence and spoil:
Metzudat Zion
Haretuk. Chains, like “and the silver chains are forged” (Isaiah 40:19):
Malbim
Make the chain; afterward, they will make chains to lead the remainder into exile, because the land was full of blood guilt, for murder was prevalent in the land. And although Jerusalem was a city where there was no murder, it was nevertheless full of oppression, until they became liable to destruction on account of murder and oppression.
Wherefore I will bring the worst of the nations, and they shall possess their houses; I will also make the pride of the strong to cease; and their holy places shall be profaned.
verse value 3652
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 51 letters. The shortest word is "worst·of" (רָעֵ֣י, 3 letters) and the longest is "their·houses" (אֶת־בָּתֵּיהֶ֑ם, 7 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "and·they·shall·possess" (וְיָרְשׁ֖וּ), "their·houses" (אֶת־בָּתֵּיהֶ֑ם), "and·they·will·be·profaned" (וְנִחֲל֖וּ). 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·I·will·bring" (root בוא, 175x in Ezekiel); "their·houses" (root בית, 159x in Ezekiel); "nations" (root גוי, 87x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root ירש ("and·they·shall·possess") in Ezekiel. First appearance of the root עז ("strong") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'their·houses', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 5 words. Full calculation: וְהֵֽבֵאתִי֙ [and·I·will·bring] (424) + רָעֵ֣י [worst·of] (280) + גוֹיִ֔ם [nations] (59) + וְיָרְשׁ֖וּ [and·they·shall·possess] (522) + אֶת־בָּתֵּיהֶ֑ם [their·houses] (858) + וְהִשְׁבַּתִּי֙ [and·I·will·banish] (723) + גְּא֣וֹן [pride·of] (60) + עַזִּ֔ים [strong] (127) + וְנִחֲל֖וּ [and·they·will·be·profaned] (100) + מְקַֽדְשֵׁיהֶֽם [their·holy·places] (499) = 3652.
Rashi
"evil ones of the nations": They are the evil ones among idolaters, and cruel.
And they shall become an inheritance. And they were allotted to others:
Their sanctuaries: The houses of the high places where they would assemble, a term meaning house of their assembly.
Radak
“And I will bring upon them the fierce nations.” These are the Chaldeans, of whom it is stated: “the fierce and impetuous nation.”
"And their sanctified things shall be profaned." "And they shall be profaned" pertains to the matter of profanation, whose root is *chalal*, and it is in the *nifal* binyan, and it comes from the *qal* form, just as it says, "And you shall be profaned in you." Its conjugation is with a dagesh, and "they shall be profaned" follows the same pattern as "the mountains shall melt."
Their sanctified things. Just as “their sanctified things,” but it is a different morphological pattern: *meqodash* in the pattern (mishkal) of “that which is detestable” (i.e., an abomination), which is an adjective.
Metzudat David
"The evil ones of nations." This means that the Chaldeans are cruel and merciless.
"And I will cause the pride of the mighty ones to cease." I will abolish the arrogance of those who are bold-faced; they are Israel.
And they shall be profaned. They shall desecrate and plunder the houses of their sanctuaries, namely, the House, the Sanctuary, and the House of the Holy of Holies.
Metzudat Zion
"And I will cause to cease." I will abolish, like [the phrase] "the oppressor has ceased" (there, 38:).
And they shall be profaned. The term is derived from the word for profanation (chillul).
Malbim
“And I will bring” – after they are exiled, I will bring the wicked and the lowliest of all the nations, and they will inherit their houses and settle in the land; and I will cause the pride of the mighty to cease, that is, their kings and princes will be removed, and thus the priesthood will likewise be discontinued. And this is what is meant by “and their sanctifiers shall be profaned,” for they will behave according to the custom of idolaters, in that the priests would sanctify the people, such that anyone who touched them would become holy, as it is stated (below, 44): “And they shall not sanctify the people with their garments,” and there (46:20): “lest they bring out to the outer court to sanctify the people.” As it is stated, “Do not come near to me, for I am holier than you” (Isaiah 65:5) – these very ones who sanctify will now have their holiness profaned.
Horror comes; and they shall seek peace, and there shall be none.
verse value 1049
Insights
Verse structure: 4 words, 19 letters. The shortest word is "peace" (שָׁל֖וֹם, 4 letters) and the longest is "horror·comes" (קְפָ֖דָה־בָ֑א, 6 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "horror·comes" (קְפָ֖דָה־בָ֑א). 4 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·nothing" (root אין, 24x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root שלום ("peace") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'horror·comes', dividing the verse into phrases of 1 and 3 words. Full calculation: קְפָ֖דָה־בָ֑א [horror·comes] (192) + וּבִקְשׁ֥וּ [and·they·shall·seek] (414) + שָׁל֖וֹם [peace] (376) + וָאָֽיִן [and·nothing] (67) = 1049.
Rashi
Qefedah ba. Like (Isaiah 38:12) "I cut off," like a weaver cutting off my life—a term denoting severance.
Radak
Qafda ba. It is accented on the penultimate syllable because it is adjacent to the short word ba, or because the he is an added letter; therefore, it is accented on the penultimate syllable, since it is stated in the masculine form ba, which denotes the matter of cutting, just as in qafadti, "I have cut off," like a weaver of life.
"And they sought peace, but there was none." Let them seek the peace that the false prophets used to say to them: "Peace shall be yours."
Metzudat David
"The end has come." Destruction has come upon them, and when they seek peace, they will not find it.
Metzudat Zion
Kefidah. The matter of cutting off is like [the verse] "I have cut off, as a weaver, my life" (ibid. 38):
And there is not. And it is not:
Malbim
“Kefidah ba” (The strictness comes): In contrast to what was stated regarding “Eseh haratuk” (Make the chain), which also includes the chains of the bonds of the causes of evils, he says that the strictness comes, which is the bond of this chain, so that the links and joints will be bound one to another, evil with evil as its companion, until if they seek peace, there will be none, for evil upon evil will come. It will not be that the chain of evils comes in the natural way, where causes and effects follow one after another; rather, the present and newly arising evil will come upon its companion, this upon that, not this after that, as is the custom of the world. And likewise, news will be upon news: when they hear of one distressing calamity, they will immediately hear news of another distress. And “they will seek” – then they will begin to seek a vision from a prophet, whereas until now they did not listen to the words of the prophets. “And Torah” – its portion (and they will seek) Torah (which) will be lost from the priest, (and they will seek) counsel (which) will be lost from the elders. This means that after they will not find a vision, they will begin to seek the counsel of the Torah, which comes after the vision, and afterward they will seek, at least, counsel from the elders, who will advise them according to their intellect, for the elders have tested the generations of days. And even the Torah and the counsel will be lost then, and they will also not be able to rely on the guidance of their leaders, for the king will mourn, as his kingdom will be cut off, and also the prince whom Nebuchadnezzar appointed over them will wear desolation; his princely attire will be desolation, for the entire land will become desolate. And thereby, the hands of the common people will tremble, and they will not know what to do. “According to their ways I will do to them” – all this will be according to the measure of their evil ways, “and I will judge them according to their judgments” – according to the judgment due to them by law, and by a judgment of measure for measure, until they recognize and know that I am the Lord.
Calamity shall come upon calamity, and rumour shall be upon rumour; and they shall seek a vision of the prophet, and instruction shall perish from the priest, and counsel from the elders.
verse value 3979
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 65 letters. The shortest word is "calamity" (הֹוָ֤ה, 3 letters) and the longest is "upon·rumor" (אֶל־שְׁמוּעָ֖ה, 7 letters). 8 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "calamity" (הֹוָ֤ה), "upon·calamity" (עַל־הֹוָה֙), "and·report" (וּשְׁמֻעָ֥ה). The root הוא appears 2 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "it·will·be" (root היה, 335x in Ezekiel); "upon·rumor" (root איל, 238x in Ezekiel); "will·go·in" (root בוא, 175x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root תורה ("and·law") in Ezekiel. First appearance of the root זקן ("than·elders") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'it·will·be', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 8 words. Full calculation: הֹוָ֤ה [calamity] (16) + עַל־הֹוָה֙ [upon·calamity] (116) + תָּב֔וֹא [will·go·in] (409) + וּשְׁמֻעָ֥ה [and·report] (421) + אֶל־שְׁמוּעָ֖ה [upon·rumor] (452) + תִּֽהְיֶ֑ה [it·will·be] (420) + וּבִקְשׁ֤וּ [and·they·shall·seek] (414) + חָזוֹן֙ [vision] (71) + מִנָּבִ֔יא [from·prophet] (103) + וְתוֹרָה֙ [and·law] (617) + תֹּאבַ֣ד [perish] (407) + מִכֹּהֵ֔ן [from·priest] (115) + וְעֵצָ֖ה [and·counsel] (171) + מִזְּקֵנִֽים [than·elders] (247) = 3979.
Rashi
“Hoveh al hoveh.” An event upon an event; one occurrence after another. And Menachem, his colleague, interpreted the term as referring to breaking.
And the Torah will be lost from the priest. Those who are accustomed to teaching, as it is stated, "And they shall seek the Torah from his mouth" (Malachi 2:7):
Radak
“Disaster upon disaster.” “Ruin upon ruin.” And so too does the Targum render it: “break upon break.” And similarly, in another form: “his calamity shall overpower him,” as in “the calamity of the wicked shall thrust them away,” which pertains to the matter of evil and ruin.
"El shemua" – the same as "al shemua" (upon the report), and the reports are that the enemy has come upon the land.
“And they sought a vision from a prophet.” This means that there was none, for a person seeks that which is not found; likewise, their prophets did not find a vision from the Lord. And so it is stated in Isaiah: “Judge, and prophet, and diviner, and elder.” This means that whether they die, or their wisdom and prophecy cease, for in times of great distress prophecy, wisdom, and counsel are lost, because the hearts of people are terrified. And in prophecy we saw this with Elisha: “And it came to pass, when the musician played, that the hand of the Lord came upon him.”
"And the Torah shall perish from the priest." For the priests were the teachers of the Torah, and Jonathan [ben Uzziel] translated "from a prophet" as "from a scribe," meaning a scribe who warns the people.
Metzudat David
"Disaster upon disaster shall come." One after the other, and closely connected to it.
And "news." This means bad news.
And they shall seek. It is as if it says: they shall seek, but they shall not find.
May it be destroyed. For from the magnitude of the troubles, their springs of wisdom will be blocked.
From a priest. For it is incumbent upon the priest to provide instruction, as it is stated: "For the lips of the priest shall guard knowledge, and they shall seek the Torah from his mouth" (Malachi 2:7).
From the elders. "May it be lost from the elders:"
Metzudat Zion
"Hoveh." The matter of "shever" is like "ad ya'avor havot" (Psalms 57:2):
The king shall mourn, and the prince shall be clothed with appalment, and the hands of the people of the land shall be enfeebled; I will do to them after their way, and according to their deserts will I judge them; and they shall know that I am Hashem.’
verse value 4816
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 78 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָֽה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. Verse gematria: 4816 is divisible by 86, the value of Elohim. The shortest word is "them" (אֹתָם֙, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·in·their·ordinances" (וּבְמִשְׁפְּטֵיהֶ֣ם, 9 letters). Words sharing gematria 492: they·will·be·disturbed, and·in·their·ordinances. 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Ezekiel. Unique to this verse in Ezekiel (hapax): "he·shall·mourn" (יִתְאַבָּ֗ל), "he·shall·clothe" (יִלְבַּ֣שׁ), "they·will·be·disturbed" (תִּבָּהַ֑לְנָה). 16 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 427x in Ezekiel); "I·will·do" (root עשה, 214x in Ezekiel); "people·of·the·land" (root ארץ, 176x in Ezekiel). First appearance of the root אבל ("he·shall·mourn") in Ezekiel. First appearance of the root נשיא ("and·chieftain") in Ezekiel. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'they·will·be·disturbed', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 8 words.
Radak
"The king, and the prince." It is the king, and the matter is repeated in different words to strengthen the matter.
“According to their way, I will do to them.” They rejected the Torah and prophecy, and it was lost from them, as it is stated: “Her king and princes are among the nations; there is no Torah,” etc.
"and in their judgments." With a bet:
Metzudat David
And the prince. He is the king, and the matter is repeated in what is stated to strengthen it:
"Desolation." Astonishment of heart.
"According to their ways." Just as is their way, so will I do to them; and according to the judgment fitting for them, I will judge them. And then they shall know that I am the Lord, faithful to recompense reward.
Metzudat Zion
They shall be dismayed. From the word "dismay" and "fear":
Rashi
Radak
Metzudat David
Metzudat Zion
Malbim