Chapter 11 of Yechezkel is a direct continuation of the great vision in which the Holy One, blessed be He, showed the prophet the abominations being committed in Yerushalayim. The prophet is carried from Babylon to the city, sees the elders and the leaders of the people, hears the mistaken reasoning of the inhabitants of Yerushalayim who put their trust in the wall and in their own might, and receives a two-fold prophecy: destruction for the inhabitants of Yerushalayim, and a remnant and redemption specifically for those who seemed distant - the exiles. At the end of the chapter, he sees the Shechinah departing from the city, and he is returned to the exile to relate to them everything that Hashem showed him.
Why He Now Sees Their Faces
(א) וַתִּשָּׂא אֹתִי רוּחַ וַתָּבֵא אֹתִי אֶל שַׁעַר בֵּית יְהֹוָה הַקַּדְמוֹנִי הַפּוֹנֶה קָדִימָה, וְהִנֵּה בְּפֶתַח הַשַּׁעַר עֶשְׂרִים וַחֲמִשָּׁה אִישׁ, וָאֶרְאֶה בְתוֹכָם אֶת יַאֲזַנְיָה בֶן עַזֻּר וְאֶת פְּלַטְיָהוּ בֶן בְּנָיָהוּ שָׂרֵי הָעָם. - "Then a spirit lifted me up and brought me to the eastern gate of the House of Hashem, which faces eastward; and behold, at the entrance of the gate were twenty-five men, and I saw among them Yaazanyah son of Azzur and Pelatyahu son of Benayahu, leaders of the people."
The Malbim explains that the opening verse of Chapter 11 continues what was mentioned in Chapters 8 and 9, where the Holy One, blessed be He, showed Yechezkel the abominations being committed in Yerushalayim. In Chapter 8, verse 16, it says: "And He brought me into the inner court of the House of Hashem, and behold, at the entrance of the Sanctuary of Hashem, between the Vestibule and the Altar, were about twenty-five men, with their backs toward the Sanctuary of Hashem and their faces toward the east, and they were prostrating themselves eastward toward the sun."
Here it is important to picture the scene accurately: the Kodesh HaKodashim (Holy of Holies) in the Beit HaMikdash was on the western side, contrary to what one might instinctively imagine. The entrance to the Kodesh HaKodashim faced east, toward the Mount of Olives. Someone coming from the direction of the Mount of Olives was meant to bow westward, toward the Kodesh HaKodashim. Yet those twenty-five men did the exact opposite: their backs were toward the Sanctuary of Hashem and their faces were turned eastward toward the sunrise, because they were sun-worshippers bowing down to the sun.
There, in Chapter 8, Yechezkel saw them from behind, so he could not identify who they were. Standing in the Sanctuary, he saw twenty-five backs. But here, the Malbim explains, the spirit lifts him to the eastern gate that faces forward - that is, he is brought outside to the eastern gate, outside the Sanctuary, and from there he stands directly facing them. Now he recognizes among them Yaazanyah son of Azzur and Pelatyahu son of Benayahu, who were prominent leaders of the people, part of those twenty-five wicked men who bowed to the sun with their backs to the Sanctuary of Hashem.
Those Who Devise Iniquity and Give Evil Counsel
(ב) וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלָי: בֶּן אָדָם, אֵלֶּה הָאֲנָשִׁים הַחֹשְׁבִים אָוֶן וְהַיֹּעֲצִים עֲצַת רָע בָּעִיר הַזֹּאת. - "And He said to me: 'Son of man, these are the men who devise iniquity and give evil counsel in this city.'"
What is the meaning of "these are the men"? The Radak explains: since they were princes and leaders of the city, of them it can truly be said that they are "the men" who devise iniquity and give evil counsel. The counsel lies in the hands of the leaders, the plans for what to do with the people are theirs, and the entire city depends upon them.
The Malbim links this to what was said earlier: "Is it too light a thing for the house of Yehudah... that they have filled the land with violence," and to what was said there, that they put the branch to their nose. As explained earlier based on the Malbim, this refers to a small knife shaped like pruning shears, a blade used for cutting branches. They would conceal this knife in their clothing, walk through the marketplace alongside someone, and upon reaching him, plunge the knife into his belly and keep walking. Suddenly people would see someone collapse, chaos would erupt, people would check on him and cry for help, while the perpetrator vanished. In this horrifying way, Heaven spare us, they would murder one another. This was the First Temple era, which was plagued by the three cardinal sins: idolatry, sexual immorality, and bloodshed. Menasheh had filled Yerushalayim with blood from end to end, and bloodshed was rampant. The Holy One, blessed be He, says to him: Come see how they put the pruning blade to destroy the people, and these are the leaders who devise iniquity and give evil counsel - know that it all begins and stems from them.
And what is the difference between "devise iniquity" (choshevei aven) and "give evil counsel" (yo'atzei atzat ra)? The Malbim explains: first a person thinks about something, and once he has an idea, he seeks counsel on how to execute it. Counsel always follows thought; thought is abstract, whereas counsel is operational, an idea for practical action. In Lashon HaKodesh, "ra" (evil) relates to deed, while "aven" (iniquity/scheming) relates to thought. Therefore, they "give evil counsel," because the counsel is already about execution, whereas thoughts are "thoughts of aven": "he devises aven," "his heart gathers aven," "if I saw aven in my heart." And explicitly: "those who devise aven and work ra" - "ra" refers to action, and "aven" to thought. That is why it says here: they devise aven in their wicked thoughts, and formulate counsel on how to carry them out, which is the aspect of actual ra.
"It Is the Cauldron and We Are the Meat" - Two Explanations
(ג) הָאֹמְרִים: לֹא בְקָרוֹב בְּנוֹת בָּתִּים, הִיא הַסִּיר וַאֲנַחְנוּ הַבָּשָׂר. - Who say: "It is not near; build houses! It is the pot, and we are the meat."
There are two entirely different approaches and explanations here. Rashi explains that one should place a comma: "Who say: It is not near" - all the frightening things the prophets warn about, all the tribulations they speak of, will not come anytime soon. And since that is so - "Build houses!" You have nothing to worry about, go ahead and build houses. After all, if we were about to go into exile soon, who would build a house? Rather, they reassure the people and say: Do not fear the words of the prophets, nothing will happen, and we will not be exiled from this place. And what is meant by "it is the pot and we are the meat"? Just as meat does not leave the pot until it has finished cooking, so too we will not leave here until we die - until one hundred and twenty. In short, we are not going to leave Jerusalem.
The Malbim expands on this. Nebuchadnezzar arrived, and there were people who wanted to make peace with him so that he would not cause distress to Israel, and as the Holy One, Blessed be He, commanded - not to wage war against him. But there were militant factions, like the Zealots, who refused under any circumstances to accept Hashem's decree and make peace with Nebuchadnezzar. They failed to realize that the decree was from Hashem, and that Nebuchadnezzar was Hashem's servant, destined to carry out the Divine will. Consequently, they rebelled against him, including Tzidkiyahu, who rebelled against Nebuchadnezzar contrary to the Divine command. When the prophets spoke of exile, these leaders would tell the people: You have nothing to worry about; we have a wall, and the wall will protect us. They therefore compared the wall to a pot, as it is written in Yirmiyahu, "I see a seething pot," and as written later in chapter 24, "Set the pot on the fire, set it on." Just as a pot protects the meat from the fire, so will the wall protect us so that the enemy's fire does not prevail over us, and Nebuchadnezzar will be able to do nothing to us.
Based on this, the Malbim offers an innovative explanation of "It is not near" (reading lo bekarov as "not in close proximity"). If you place meat right against the side of the pot and turn up the fire, the meat will burn. What protects it? The broth, the water that keeps it away from the pot's sides, through which it cooks rather than burns. Thus, if you bring the meat close to the pot's walls, it burns. And this is what they are saying: "Not in close proximity build houses" - do not build houses right up against the city wall, for that is like pressing meat against the wall of the pot, where it will burn. Anyone who builds his home adjacent to the wall risks being harmed, since the wall is about to endure a fierce battle. Therefore, build houses - but further inward. And why is this enough? "For it is the pot and we are the meat" - we have the walls of the pot, the city wall that protects us, and beyond that nothing more needs to be done.
Prophesy Against Them - and the Knowledge of What Arises in the Spirit
(ד) לָכֵן הִנָּבֵא עֲלֵיהֶם, הִנָּבֵא בֶּן אָדָם. - Therefore prophesy against them, prophesy, son of man.
Since they are so self-assured and unconcerned about the enemy, even though the Holy One, Blessed be He, sends prophets to forewarn of the coming catastrophe, Hashem says to him: Prophesy against them. And the repetition, "Prophesy, prophesy," serves to urge him on with urgency, because the catastrophe is near.
(ה) וַתִּפֹּל עָלַי רוּחַ יְהֹוָה וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלַי: אֱמֹר כֹּה אָמַר יְהֹוָה, כֵּן אֲמַרְתֶּם בֵּית יִשְׂרָאֵל, וּמַעֲלוֹת רוּחֲכֶם אֲנִי יְדַעְתִּיהָ. - And the spirit of Hashem fell upon me, and He said to me: Say, Thus said Hashem: So have you said, O House of Israel, and what arises in your spirit, I know it.
"So have you said" - with your mouths; "and what arises in your spirit" - also that which rises in your spirit, what you think in your hearts, that you rely on the wall. And so it says in Yeshayahu 22: "And you broke down the houses to fortify the wall," and "Yet you looked not to its Maker" - you do not look at Who brings about the decree, and you are certain that an iron wall will protect you.
Notice that things have not changed. In the past, people relied on an iron wall; today they rely on the Iron Dome, on nuclear weapons, on fighter planes, and on arsenals of weaponry. In every generation, there have been the material, physical means that those lacking faith rely upon. But people of faith know that "Unless Hashem watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain," they know that "Not by might nor by power, but by My spirit, said Hashem," and they know that "and wars I have waged." This mentality is a distorted mindset, which unfortunately has always served to strengthen and harden the hearts of the wicked so that they do not repent: We have a wall, we have the strength to confront the enemy. Therefore, the Holy One, Blessed be He, tells them, "I know it" - do you think I do not know what is in your heart? I know what is in your heart as well, and know that your plans will not come to pass.
You Have Multiplied Your Slain - The Killing of Those Seeking Peace
(ו) הִרְבֵּיתֶם חַלְלֵיכֶם בָּעִיר הַזֹּאת, וּמִלֵּאתֶם חוּצֹתֶיהָ חָלָל. - You have multiplied your slain in this city, and you have filled its streets with the slain.
Many wanted to make peace with Nevuchadnetzar, as we mentioned, and those who were displeased by this would murder them. This is just like what happened with the murder of De Haan: when there were Zionist leaders here who found it intolerable that someone was about to make peace, someone who wanted to put an end to the conflict, they sent people to murder him. Years later the penny dropped, and today those very same elements seek every way to make peace, even willing to murder us for the sake of peace, willing to bring terrorists here from Tunis and give them everything for peace. But back then, there was someone poised to make peace and they murdered him. So it was in our chapter: against those who sought to reach an arrangement with Nevuchadnetzar - they fought against them and murdered them.
And so it was during the Second Temple era as well. Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai was terrified to go out and speak with the Roman emperor lest they harm him, and they even wanted to stab him when they saw the bier being carried out, refraining only because "people will say they stabbed their master." There, too, an effort was made to negotiate with the enemy so that members of the Jewish people would not perish, yet those militant elements among us refused under any circumstances, and whoever was prepared to do so - they went and murdered him. This is the meaning of "You have multiplied your slain in this city."
And what is the meaning of "and filled its streets with corpses"? The Malbim explains throughout that the term chutz refers to the area behind the houses, whereas rechovot are the open plazas in front of the houses, which is why the two terms often appear together. Here as well: you filled the chutzot - the areas behind the houses - with corpses. In places where you were afraid to kill openly, you murdered in secret, without anyone knowing and without leaving a visible trace.
The Pot Will Protect Only the Slain
(ז) לָכֵן כֹּה אָמַר אֲדֹנָי יֱהֹוִה: חַלְלֵיכֶם אֲשֶׁר שַׂמְתֶּם בְּתוֹכָהּ הֵמָּה הַבָּשָׂר וְהִיא הַסִּיר, וְאֶתְכֶם הוֹצִיא מִתּוֹכָהּ. - Therefore, so says the Lord God: Your slain whom you have laid in its midst, they are the meat and it is the pot; but as for you, He shall bring you out of its midst.
As for your claim that the city will be like a pot whose sides shield the meat inside, and that the city walls will likewise shield you - that is not so. Know that this pot will serve as a shield only for the slain within it; the only ones who will remain in the pot are the dead, but not you. "And as for you, He shall bring you out of its midst" - phrased this way, it means: I will initiate an action that will draw you out of it; I will see to it that you are removed.
(ח) חֶרֶב יְרֵאתֶם, וְחֶרֶב אָבִיא עֲלֵיכֶם, נְאֻם אֲדֹנָי יֱהֹוִה. - You feared the sword, and a sword I will bring upon you, says the Lord God.
"You feared the sword" - out of fear of the sword you turned to the king of Egypt for assistance, as is written regarding Tzidkiyahu, "And he rebelled against him by sending his emissaries to Egypt," as we will see later in chapter 17. You went to make an alliance with Egypt to thwart the counsel of Hashem, who had sent Nevuchadnetzar. The Holy One, blessed be He, says to them: "And a sword I will bring upon you" - neither the wall nor the pot will protect you from the sword of the enemy.
And I Will Deliver You into the Hands of Strangers
(ט) וְהוֹצֵאתִי אֶתְכֶם מִתּוֹכָהּ, וְנָתַתִּי אֶתְכֶם בְּיַד זָרִים, וְעָשִׂיתִי בָכֶם שְׁפָטִים. - And I will bring you out of its midst, and deliver you into the hands of strangers, and execute judgments upon you.
It will not be as you imagine, that you will remain there until your dying day; rather, I will bring you out of its midst. And the Malbim adds: Do not assume that once I take you out from its midst, you will be able to flee wherever you wish and remain free. Indeed, we see that Tzidkiyahu attempted to flee by night between the walls, and he even had an underground tunnel for that purpose. Yet God tells them: "And I will deliver you into the hands of strangers, and execute judgments upon you." And that is precisely what happened to Tzidkiyahu: "And they overtook Tzidkiyahu in the plains of Yericho," where it is written, "and he pronounced judgments upon him" - they put out his eyes and slaughtered his sons. Here is a prophecy warning: do not think you can contend against Hashem's decree except through teshuvah; any other path is doomed to failure.
(י) בַּחֶרֶב תִּפֹּלוּ, עַל גְּבוּל יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶשְׁפּוֹט אֶתְכֶם, וִידַעְתֶּם כִּי אֲנִי יְהֹוָה. - By the sword you shall fall; upon the border of Israel I will judge you, and you shall know that I am the Lord.
There are two explanations here. Rashi interprets "at the border of Israel" as being at the edge of the border, referring to Riblah in the land of Hamath, which is Antioch, where Tzidkiyahu was judged by Nebuchadnezzar, and where he slaughtered his sons and gouged out his eyes. The Malbim explains that "by the sword you shall fall" parallels what is written: "and the king of Babylon struck them down in Riblah," and "at the border of Israel I will judge you" means that this was literally on the border of Israel, right on the border. We will soon see why he emphasizes the matter of the border.
(יא) הִיא לֹא תִהְיֶה לָכֶם לְסִיר, וְאַתֶּם תִּהְיוּ בְתוֹכָהּ לְבָשָׂר, אֶל גְּבוּל יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶשְׁפֹּט אֶתְכֶם. - "It shall not be a pot for you, nor shall you be flesh within it; at the border of Israel I will judge you."
You think that the wall will be a pot protecting the choice cuts until the cooking is complete, meaning that nothing will happen to you. He tells them: "and you will be flesh within it" - like cut pieces of meat inside a cooking pot, like meat in a cauldron. And what is meant by "at the border of Israel I will judge you"? According to Rashi, it means at the border of Israel, but on the outside, not within it. According to the Malbim, it means within the border of Israel, for He does not take you out past the border, but rather you remain as if within it. In other words: you think you will have protection, but Hashem tells you that you will ostensibly remain inside and be like meat being cooked that wastes away inside the pot. The pot will not protect you, for even there inside you will ultimately fall into the hands of the enemy.
Like the Most Corrupt Among Them
(יב) וִידַעְתֶּם כִּי אֲנִי יְהֹוָה אֲשֶׁר בְּחֻקַּי לֹא הֲלַכְתֶּם וּמִשְׁפָּטַי לֹא עֲשִׂיתֶם, וּכְמִשְׁפְּטֵי הַגּוֹיִם אֲשֶׁר סְבִיבוֹתֵיכֶם עֲשִׂיתֶם. - "And you shall know that I am the Lord, whose statutes you did not follow and whose ordinances you did not perform; but you have acted according to the ordinances of the nations around you."
You will know that I am Hashem, when I punish you because you did not follow My statutes, for when Hashem exacts retribution from the wicked, then "they shall know that I am the Lord." "And according to the ordinances of the nations around you you have acted" - like their corrupt practices. This seems puzzling at first glance, for we also find the verse stating: "nor have you acted according to the ordinances of the nations." Chazal explain: you did not act like the upright among them, but rather like the corrupt among them. If you want to learn from the nations, it would be one thing if you adopted both their proper laws and their corrupt practices - at least then you would simply be seeking to emulate the nations. But if you learn only the corrupt things from the gentiles, and their good etiquette and decent practices you do not learn from them, that is the indictment! And this is what is written here, "according to the ordinances of the nations you have acted" - their evil practices; whereas "nor have you acted according to the ordinances of the nations" refers to their equitable laws, the areas where they do not act wickedly, which you failed to adopt. The Radak explains this: to serve idols as they serve them, and to spill innocent blood as they spill it. The corrupt ways of the nations you embraced eagerly.
The Death of Pelatyahu and the Prophet's Cry
(יג) וַיְהִי כְּהִנָּבְאִי וּפְלַטְיָהוּ בֶן בְּנָיָה מֵת, וָאֶפֹּל עַל פָּנַי וָאֶזְעַק קוֹל גָּדוֹל וָאֹמַר: אֲהָהּ אֲדֹנָי יֱהֹוִה, כָּלָה אַתָּה עֹשֶׂה אֵת שְׁאֵרִית יִשְׂרָאֵל. - "And it came to pass, as I prophesied, that Pelatyahu the son of Benayah died. Then I fell upon my face, and cried with a loud voice, and said: 'Ah, Lord God! Will You make a full end of the remnant of Israel?'"
On the surface, this is difficult to understand: over whose death is he crying out? After all, Pelatyahu the son of Benayah was one of those twenty-five men bowing with their backs to the Temple of Hashem and their faces eastward toward the sun! If he was among the wicked and the covenant-breakers, why cry out "Ah," why mourn? "Will You make a full end of Israel?" Is this Israel? This is an erev rav (mixed multitude). Are you in pain over his death?
The Radak explains: he saw how suddenly one of the nation's leaders died in an instant, and this frightened him, because he believed that all the prophecy and rebuke were meant to lead them to do teshuvah and change their ways, and he believed that this man would repent. Yet here he saw the Holy One, Blessed be He, immediately beginning, as it were, targeted strikes. Regarding this he asks: Are You making a full end of Israel? I thought You sent me to prophesy so that they would mend their ways and repent, yet I see that You are not giving this a chance, but are immediately beginning to annihilate Israel! He is not in pain over the death of Pelatyahu himself, but rather fears that total destruction has been decreed upon all of Israel, that the Holy One, Blessed be He, is starting with him, without waiting for everyone to repent.
The Malbim explains differently. Initially, Yechezkel thought that what Hashem told him, "by the sword you shall fall," was prophesied regarding those twenty-five men whom he saw bowing to the sun, and that the prophecy was directed at them alone: "You have feared the sword, and the sword I will bring upon you," "by the sword you shall fall" - an explicit prophecy that their death would be by the sword, and not the entirety of Judah, but only them, the rebels against Hashem. But then he saw that Pelatyahu did not die by the sword, but rather died inside Jerusalem even before the enemy arrived and conquered the city. If so, he understood that the prophecy "by the sword you shall fall" was not spoken regarding those twenty-five, and that the prophecy would not be fulfilled in that manner; rather, a decree of death had been issued against all the inhabitants of Jerusalem. For if it had been said about the twenty-five, it would not have been fitting for him to die here in the Land of Israel, but rather by the sword, not inside the pot, but later on. From this he realized that the prophecy applied to the entire nation, and Pelatyahu was merely the symptom, and soon a plague would come and wipe everyone out. Frightened by this, he cried out: "Will You make a full end of the remnant of Israel?" - meaning, there is a death decree against the inhabitants of Jerusalem, who are the last remnant of all Israel.
Your Brethren, Your Brethren, the Men of Your Redemption
(יד) וַיְהִי דְבַר יְהֹוָה אֵלַי לֵאמֹר. - And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:
(טו) בֶּן אָדָם, אַחֶיךָ אַחֶיךָ אַנְשֵׁי גְאֻלָּתֶךָ וְכָל בֵּית יִשְׂרָאֵל כֻּלֹּה, אֲשֶׁר אָמְרוּ לָהֶם יֹשְׁבֵי יְרוּשָׁלַיִם: רַחֲקוּ מֵעַל יְהֹוָה, לָנוּ הִיא נִתְּנָה הָאָרֶץ לְמוֹרָשָׁה. - Son of man, your brothers, your brothers, the men of your redemption, and all the house of Israel, all of them, to whom the inhabitants of Jerusalem said: Distance yourselves from the Lord; to us has the land been given as an inheritance.
Hashem says to him: The remnant and survivors of Israel will not come from the people of Jerusalem; those remaining here will perish. We have seen this in other prophecies as well, in the parable of the two baskets of figs shown to Yirmeyahu, "like the rotten figs." Know that those who will endure are the exiles, those who were exiled to Babylon with Yechonyah - from them will come a remnant, from them will come survivors, and from them the Jewish people will later be rebuilt. This is the meaning of "your brothers, your brothers": your true brothers are those in the Babylonian exile. After all, this entire prophecy began in Babylon, where Yechezkel was taken from and brought to Eretz Yisrael so that Hashem could show him all that was happening here, and later we will see that along the very same path they brought him, along it they also returned him. So who are "your brothers"? Those who are with you in Babylon. They will mend their ways; they are "the men of your redemption" - what you prophesied regarding redemption was spoken of them, not of those remaining here in Jerusalem.
"And all the house of Israel, all of them" - this includes the Ten Tribes who were exiled by Sancheirev, who were exiled first. From them, too, there will be a remnant and survivors. For even though they were not redeemed during the Second Temple era - since those who returned in the Second Temple era were only from the Babylonian exiles and not from those who went to Chalach and Chavor along the Gozan River - know that they will return at the End of Days. And even though the people of Jerusalem treat them as having distanced themselves from Hashem because they are on foreign soil, claiming that they will never return and saying, "to us has the land been given as an inheritance," that we will inherit the land while their hope is lost - the Holy One, blessed be He, says to him: Do not pay attention to what they say. True endurance will belong to those in exile, both the people in Babylon and those in the other places exiled by Sancheirev. And when I spoke of a remnant, I was not speaking of those dwelling here in Jerusalem.
And I Became for Them a Little Sanctuary
(טז) לָכֵן אֱמֹר כֹּה אָמַר אֲדֹנָי יֱהֹוִה: כִּי הִרְחַקְתִּים בַּגּוֹיִם וְכִי הֲפִיצוֹתִים בָּאֲרָצוֹת, וָאֱהִי לָהֶם לְמִקְדָּשׁ מְעַט בָּאֲרָצוֹת אֲשֶׁר בָּאוּ שָׁם. - Therefore say, so said the Lord God: Though I have cast them far off among the nations, and though I have scattered them among the lands, yet I became for them a little sanctuary in the lands where they arrived.
Countering the haughtiness and pride of the inhabitants of Jerusalem - "We are still here; they have already been exiled; they have distanced themselves from Hashem" - Hashem tells him: Tell them that, on the contrary, Hashem is actually close to them. Even though I have cast them far off among the nations and scattered them among the lands, they are not far from Me; they are far from Jerusalem, not from Me. "Yet I became for them a little sanctuary" - even though they lack the Great Sanctuary, they have a little sanctuary, and I will be a little sanctuary for them there in exile. Even though the Shechinah will not rest openly, revealed to all, it will still rest in concealment: the Holy One, blessed be He, will protect them and accompany them with Divine Providence even there in exile. This is what Chazal teach: "'Yet I became for them a little sanctuary' - these are the synagogues and study halls." The shuls and batei midrash in the lands of their dispersion are the little sanctuary, and the Holy One, blessed be He, will continue to rest His Shechinah upon them there.
And indeed, so it was throughout all the days of Israel's exile: "And yet for all that, when they are in the land of their enemies, I will not reject them, neither will I abhor them, to destroy them utterly, and to break My covenant with them." The Holy One, blessed be He, watched over the Jewish people in the lands of their dispersion and accompanied them with Divine Providence; otherwise, "we would have been almost like Sodom, we would have resembled Gomorrah," and nothing would have remained of them. How the Jewish people - the only nation that leaves historians utterly dumbfounded - could be so widely scattered among the nations and yet preserve its identity, still united as one person and one body, and ultimately, after two thousand years, return to its land, has no parallel in any historical precedent. Some have even termed this "an accident of history." We have previously cited the words of Mark Twain and others who stood amazed at the supernatural existence of the Jewish people. The Holy One, blessed be He, says: How do you think they survive? "Yet I became for them a little sanctuary in the lands where they arrived." If so, there is no place whatsoever for the haughty attitudes of the residents of Jerusalem who claim, "Distance yourselves from the Lord"; on the contrary, to them I am close and they will return, whereas those you see here in Jerusalem are destined to perish.
The Malbim notes with precision: The verse says, "I have cast them far off among the nations (goyim)" and "scattered them among the lands (aratzot)." Wherever "nations" and "lands" appear as parallel terms in the book, "lands" always refers to places further away than "nations." At first they were exiled among the nations and were already distant, and subsequently they moved even further away and were scattered into lands, which are much more distant countries.
"I Will Assemble and I Will Gather" - Two Stages in the Redemption
(יז) לָכֵן אֱמֹר כֹּה אָמַר אֲדֹנָי יֱהֹוִה: וְקִבַּצְתִּי אֶתְכֶם מִן הָעַמִּים וְאָסַפְתִּי אֶתְכֶם מִן הָאֲרָצוֹת אֲשֶׁר נְפֹצוֹתֶם בָּהֶם, וְנָתַתִּי לָכֶם אֶת אַדְמַת יִשְׂרָאֵל. - Therefore say, so said the Lord God: I will assemble you from the peoples and gather you from the lands where you have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel.
In contrast to what the inhabitants of Jerusalem say to the Ten Tribes, "to us has the land been given as an inheritance," assuming that those cast off there are completely lost and will never return, Hashem tells them: On the contrary, "I will assemble you from the peoples" - from the nearby peoples I will assemble them, which took place in the redemption of the Second Temple, when the Babylonian exiles were gathered and returned to the land. "And I will gather you from the lands" - this refers to the future, in the complete Redemption speedily, when I will gather the Ten Tribes who are in the distant lands and did not return during the Second Temple, but are still there. "And I will give you the land of Israel" - not as the people of Jerusalem claimed, "to us it has been given," but to you; you will receive the land as an inheritance, and not those dwelling here who are destined to perish.
The Malbim explains the distinction in Lashon HaKodesh between osef (gathering from afar) and kibetz (assembling together). "To gather" (le'esof) refers to something that was far away and is brought here, as in "He gathers the outcasts," "he shall be gathered home," "he gathered up his feet into the bed" - something that was distant and has been brought close. In contrast, "to assemble" (lekabetz) means to form a collective from individual parts, joining them and uniting them together. The distant lands are far beyond the neighboring nations, and in those distant lands they were far more scattered; in all the far-off places, the dispersal was much greater. This makes sense: when you throw something, there is a greater concentration nearby, while far away there are only isolated individuals. So it was in reality: when they were exiled to nearby places, they remained in large communities, but when they were exiled to farther places, they existed as scattered individuals rather than intact communities. As it is written: "And I will scatter them among the nations and disperse them through the lands" - scattering (ve-hefizoti) means dispersing, while zeritim denotes an even greater scattering, like winnowing to the wind. Thus, among the nations they were merely scattered, whereas in the distant lands there was true winnowing. Therefore it says here, "from the lands where you have been scattered" - there you are truly dispersed, so in those lands one must not only assemble what is scattered but also gather them, for gathering means collecting the isolated individuals. As it is written: "He will gather the outcasts of Israel and assemble the dispersed of Judah" - on the one hand, gathering from afar, and on the other hand, assembling the individuals into a complete collective.
Removing the Detestable Things and Abominations
(יח) וּבָאוּ שָׁמָּה, וְהֵסִירוּ אֶת כָּל שִׁקּוּצֶיהָ וְאֶת כָּל תּוֹעֲבוֹתֶיהָ מִמֶּנָּה. - "And they will come there, and they will remove from it all its detestable things and all its abominations."
The exiles will return to Jerusalem and remove its detestable things. And to what period does this refer? The Malbim explains: "And they will remove from it all its detestable things" refers to the redemption of the Second Temple, for the Men of the Great Assembly eradicated the yetzer hara for idolatry (yitzra de-avodah zarah), and consequently in the Second Temple era there were no detestable idols. However, "and all its abominations from it" - even today, not all its abominations have been removed, and therefore this refers to the future redemption, when the Ten Tribes will also return. In the future redemption, all abominations will be removed as well: the yetzer for forbidden relations, all other abominations, pride parades - none of this will exist. All of its abominations will depart in the future, when Mashiach arrives and purifies the Land of Israel.
One Heart and a New Spirit - The Two Hearts
(יט) וְנָתַתִּי לָהֶם לֵב אֶחָד וְרוּחַ חֲדָשָׁה אֶתֵּן בְּקִרְבְּכֶם, וַהֲסִרֹתִי לֵב הָאֶבֶן מִבְּשָׂרָם וְנָתַתִּי לָהֶם לֵב בָּשָׂר. - "And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh."
Here the Malbim explains the inner workings of human thought and emotion. The spirit (ruach) is what elevates imaginations and mental images from the animal soul (nefesh) to the heart (lev). Until now, the causes of sin were the spirit and the heart: the spirit draws up images and fantasies from the depths of the nefesh to the surface of the heart, and most of the heart's images and imaginations incline toward evil - envy, arrogance, vengeance, grudge-bearing, and the like, as it is written: "For the inclination of man's heart is evil from his youth." The heart is the ruling faculty within the soul, and therefore a struggle rages within it, for there is another force acting upon it: the images of the intellect (sechel), contemplation, and thought, which incline toward the good. In his intellect, a person knows full well what is good to do; the problem is the heart, where the spirit arrives and brings up all the images and fantasies of the nefesh to pull it and sway it toward the soul's cravings for jealousy, pride, revenge, and lust.
It emerges, then, that man stands, as it were, between two hearts: one heart that receives images from the nefesh through the ruach, which is an attraction toward evil; and a second heart that receives from the intellect and understanding (sechel and binah), which is an attraction toward good. This is a state of a divided heart. The heart is always the ruling force, the master within, yet the ruling force itself is divided - it feels a pull toward evil and a pull toward good, and it must decide which direction to take.
In the future to come, however, this will no longer be the case. Instead, "I will give them one heart": the ruling force in the soul, which is the heart, will be awakened solely toward the good. It will follow only the counsel of the intellect and understanding, and not the counsel of the spirit that dredges up evil imaginations and thoughts from the soul. "And I will put a new spirit within you" - the spirit will no longer bring forth wicked images and fantasies, but only matters of holiness, love of Hashem, the service of Hashem, and fear of Heaven. And through this, "I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh": what is the problem with a heart of stone? It is hard to engrave impressions upon it, hard to effect change in it; it is as hard as stone, unwilling to absorb Divine impressions and the teachings of mussar and wisdom. This is the stiff-necked person who remains unmoved by anything. In contrast, "and give them a heart of flesh" - a soft heart ready to receive the inscription of God and the impressions of holiness and spirituality, a heart that is stirred, that is deeply moved by sacred matters, a soft heart quick to yield.
When a person has a heart of stone, you can speak words of mussar, you can show things that would terrify any heart - yet the heart remains stone, nothing affects it, nothing moves it, and it is no longer stirred by anything. As we have discussed several times, we live in this reality of a heart of stone: a person finds it hard to be inspired in prayer, in Torah study; it is hard to feel emotionally stirred in the service of Hashem. The holy books teach that toward the arrival of Mashiach, the souls that will descend stem from the heel of Adam HaRishon, and the least sensitive part of the human body is the heel. We therefore live in an emotionally numb generation, a generation in which it is exceedingly difficult to awaken feeling, to be inspired in the service of Hashem and the study of Torah, to attain genuine fervor and excitement in His service, blessed be He. The heart is missing; we have a heart of stone instead of a heart of flesh. And the Holy One, blessed be He, says: I will place within you a heart of flesh - a heart that, through prayer, through the service of Hashem, through Torah study, through a shiur, a concept, or a novel insight, will experience genuine awakening, fervor, and a holy flame in His service, blessed be He.
(כ) לְמַעַן בְּחֻקֹּתַי יֵלֵכוּ וְאֶת מִשְׁפָּטַי יִשְׁמְרוּ וְעָשׂוּ אֹתָם, וְהָיוּ לִי לְעָם וַאֲנִי אֶהְיֶה לָהֶם לֵאלֹהִים. - "So that they may walk in My statutes and keep My ordinances and do them; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God."
All this is so that the yetzer hara will no longer hinder them. When the yetzer hara turns the heart to stone, it is difficult for people to walk in His statutes, observe His ordinances, and fulfill them. But when the heart turns to flesh, a person accepts rebuke and amends his ways, and consequently "they will keep My ordinances and do them; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God" - I will rest My Shechinah upon them.
"And Unto the Heart of Their Detestable Things" - A Return to the Rebuke
(כא) וְאֶל לֵב שִׁקּוּצֵיהֶם וְתוֹעֲבוֹתֵיהֶם לִבָּם הֹלֵךְ, דַּרְכָּם בְּרֹאשָׁם נָתַתִּי, נְאֻם אֲדֹנָי יֱהֹוִה. - "And as for those whose heart walks toward the heart of their detestable things and their abominations, I have set their way upon their own head, says the Lord Hashem."
The Malbim explains that here the prophet returns to what he spoke earlier in verse 12: "And you shall know that I am Hashem, for you have not walked in My statutes, nor executed My ordinances, but have done according to the ordinances of the nations that are round about you." There, he cut his words short and recounted: "And it came to pass, when I prophesied, that Pelatyahu the son of Benayahu died," being astonished to see the decree seemingly begin to unfold immediately upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and he asked Hashem, "Will You make a full end?" Hashem answered him from verse 14 onward: "Son of man, your brothers, your brothers, the men of your redemption," etc. Up to this point was Hashem's response, and from here on, he returns to the rebuke of verse 12: you did not walk in My statutes, and "toward the heart of their detestable things and their abominations their heart walks" - they go to cling to idolatry, which is termed a "detestable thing" (shikkutz), as it is written that they placed in Jerusalem a "desolating abomination," and they go to cling to forbidden sexual relations, which are termed an "abomination" (to'evah).
Therefore, "I have set their way upon their own head" - I repay them according to their way, and they themselves are to blame for it. In simple terms: when trouble befalls a person, "The foolishness of a man perverts his way, and his heart frets against Hashem" (Mishlei 19:3); he turns to Hashem and asks, "Why are You doing this to me?" Did I do this to you? You brought it upon yourself. Do not put your hand in the fire - and it will not get burned. This is not an external punishment, but rather "Your own wickedness shall correct you" (Yirmeyahu 2:19): the evil that man himself creates through the transgressions he commits, the corruption he causes, and the destructive forces he engenders - they are what afflict him.
And what is meant by "the heart of their detestable things" - for there are detestable things, and then there is the heart of detestable things? The Malbim explains: the "heart" of a detestable thing is the core of the matter, its very center. A person can serve idols merely following the custom of his ancestors, a commandment of men learned by rote; or a person can serve idols whole-heartedly, with full enthusiasm, devoted and deeply attached to it. The Holy One, blessed be He, says: with you it was not something superficial; "toward the heart of their detestable things and their abominations their heart walks" - they make this into the very heart and core; they cling to the idolatry itself and feel part of it.
The Departure of the Shechinah from the City
(כב) וַיִּשְׂאוּ הַכְּרוּבִים אֶת כַּנְפֵיהֶם וְהָאוֹפַנִּים לְעֻמָּתָם, וּכְבוֹד אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל עֲלֵיהֶם מִלְמָעְלָה. - "Then the cherubim lifted up their wings, with the wheels beside them, and the glory of the God of Israel was over them above."
After Hashem finished His words to him, He, as it were, departs. The prophet sees the Shechinah traveling from the city, and the glory of Hashem moving further away.
(כג) וַיַּעַל כְּבוֹד יְהֹוָה מֵעַל תּוֹךְ הָעִיר, וַיַּעֲמֹד עַל הָהָר אֲשֶׁר מִקֶּדֶם לָעִיר. - "And the glory of Hashem ascended from the midst of the city, and stood upon the mountain that is on the east side of the city."
We saw earlier that from the gate of the House of Hashem, the glory of Hashem moved into the midst of the city, and from there, from above the city, it ascends and stands upon the mountain east of the city. And which mountain lies to the east of the city? Har HaZeitim (the Mount of Olives), as the Targum translates: "and it rested upon the Mount of Olives." The prophet sees before his eyes how the Shechinah rises higher and higher, as it says, "and they were lifted up from the earth before my eyes," standing above the midst of the city and then upon the mountain east of the city.
Return to the Exile and Words of Consolation
(כד) וְרוּחַ נְשָׂאַתְנִי וַתְּבִאֵנִי כַשְׂדִּימָה אֶל הַגּוֹלָה בַּמַּרְאֶה בְּרוּחַ אֱלֹהִים, וַיַּעַל מֵעָלַי הַמַּרְאֶה אֲשֶׁר רָאִיתִי. - "And a spirit carried me and brought me into Chaldea, to the exile, in a vision by the spirit of God; and the vision that I had seen went up from upon me."
Then it appears to him - so he perceives in his prophetic vision - that the spirit that brought him to Jerusalem is what carries him back to the exile, and the Shechinah accompanies him. There he sees the vision ascend from above him - "and the vision that I had seen ascended from upon me," referring to the Glory of Hashem that had spoken with him previously.
(כה) וָאֲדַבֵּר אֶל הַגּוֹלָה אֵת כָּל דִּבְרֵי יְהֹוָה אֲשֶׁר הֶרְאָנִי. - "And I spoke to the exile community all the words of Hashem that He had shown me."
Since Hashem had brought him to Jerusalem to show him all this, and now returned him to the exile, all these matters were intended to serve as rebuke for the people. Therefore he says: I spoke to the exile community all the words of Hashem that He had shown me. The Malbim explains that the primary focus of what he told them was words of consolation: to comfort them, to tell them that the Shechinah is with them, and that the Holy One, blessed be He, promised him that they will be redeemed and return to their land, and that the Ten Tribes will return as well. These are the main things of concern to them. There was no purpose in telling the people in Babylon what would happen to the inhabitants of Jerusalem; that would only break their spirit. They likely had relatives there, and it would depress them, and what benefit would that bring? A prophecy of doom is told to people who need to hear it so that they will repent, but why should the people of Babylon need to hear the details of Jerusalem's doom? Therefore, "And I spoke to the exile community" - to them I spoke words of consolation that mattered to them, things that pertained directly to them: that you are destined to return to Jerusalem and Hashem will redeem you.
In summary:
The chapter opens by exposing the identity of the wicked leaders of the people, who devise iniquity in thought and counsel evil advice in deed, trusting in the city wall like a pot protecting the meat. The Holy One, blessed be He, inverts their parable: the pot will protect only the corpses with whom they themselves filled the city, whereas them He will deliver into the hands of foreigners and judge with the sword on the border of Israel, as indeed occurred to Tzidkiyahu. The death of Pelatyahu alarms the prophet, and Hashem responds to him that the true remnant and redemption do not lie with the arrogant inhabitants of Jerusalem, but rather with his brethren in the exile and with the Ten Tribes: "Yet I will be to them as a small sanctuary" - synagogues and study halls, and individual Divine providence throughout the lands of their dispersion. And finally: an ingathering from among the nations and an assembling from the lands, the removal of detestable things during the Second Temple era and abominations in the ultimate future, and a single heart and a new spirit that will remove the heart of stone and grant a heart of flesh. From here comes the moral lesson for our generation: neither an iron wall nor an Iron Dome provides an answer to a decree, for "unless Hashem guards a city, the watchman stays awake in vain," and the only way to confront the decree is repentance - and seeking a heart of flesh in place of a heart of stone.