"And the word of Hashem came to me, saying." The Malbim explains that after Hashem informed him about the siege that would befall Jerusalem, He also informed him about the destruction of the Beit Hamikdash. There are three prophecies here that correspond to the three prophecies we saw in chapter 21. He told him "set your face toward the south," this was about Jerusalem. The prophecy about the boiling pot, where He told him that the lot did not fall upon it, but rather it came straight to Jerusalem. And corresponding to what He told him "prophesy against the land of Israel," that is the prophecy we saw in chapter 23. And corresponding to "preach against the sanctuaries," meaning that the Beit Hamikdash too would be destroyed, this prophecy now comes. At the beginning He speaks in a parable, and the prophet says that the people were saying about him that he speaks in parables. Therefore at first he spoke without a parable, and afterward he went back over each and every matter and gave a parable. Now we will see the parable he is speaking about. "Son of man, behold, I take from you the delight of your eyes with a plague. And you shall not mourn nor weep, nor shall your tears come." "Son of man, behold, I take from you the delight of your eyes." The delight of your eyes is his wife, as we will see further on. "With a plague," the meaning is that no illness preceded it beforehand, but rather it happened in a single moment. And this comes to hint that so too their calamity will come suddenly, in a single moment the Beit Hamikdash will be destroyed. And He tells him, "you shall not mourn nor weep." He commands him not to eulogize nor weep over the death of his wife, and this too comes to serve them as a sign and to hint that so they will do out of the abundance of troubles, that they will not be able to weep. "Nor shall your tears come," the meaning is you shall not let tears fall from your eyes, that is the meaning of "your tears shall not come" upon your cheeks.
"Sigh in silence, make no mourning for the dead. Bind your headdress upon you, and put your shoes on your feet, and do not cover your upper lip, and do not eat the bread of men." "Sigh," the Malbim explains that a sigh is in silence, that a person does not hear. "Sigh in silence, make no mourning for the dead." What is meant by "mourning for the dead"? The Malbim explains, like the mourning of the dead. That is the meaning of "mourning for the dead." The mourning of the dead you shall not make. Like "the firstborn of his ox," meaning like an ox that is a firstborn, that is "the firstborn of his ox." Yes. A sigh, the Malbim explains, this is "sigh in silence," it is like silence and sound. It is composed of sound and silence. And here it will be composed of a sigh, as we said a sigh, this is a cry in a silent voice, meaning not in a loud voice, the sigh will be in a whisper. So this is what He tells him, "sigh," and this sighing will be "in silence." This sigh will be quiet, will be in silence. "Bind your headdress upon you." Now He tells him, you shall not make mourning for the dead, but rather everything that mourners were accustomed to do, meaning over a dead person, you shall refrain from. He tells him to walk with a hat on the head, since their custom was that mourners would sit wrapped up. The only ones who still do this to this day are the Yemenites. When they sit in the house of mourning, you will see them sitting with talleisim, wrapped up like mourners. This remained among the Yemenites, who preserved the practices of mourning from the time of the Gemara. So you will see them sitting in mourning, sitting with a tallis on his head. This is the matter of wrapping, the wrapping of mourners. So the first thing He tells him is, "bind your headdress upon you." There will be a hat on your head, not in the manner of mourners who are wrapped. Another matter, Chazal also say, and by the way from this we learn the laws of the practices of mourning, from this pasuk. Chazal also derive from here: since Hashem told him what he should do, we understand that this is what a mourner does not do. Another matter, "your headdress," Chazal say, refers to the verse forbidding the mourners of Zion, giving them beauty (pe'er) instead of ashes. Pe'er, the pe'er (glory) of the people of Israel is the tefillin. So "bind your headdress upon you," from here you understand that other mourners do not have their headdress bound upon them. Therefore on the first day of the death, the mourner does not put on tefillin. Also even before the dead is buried, this is not connected to the matter of aninut. On the first day of death, the mourner does not put on tefillin at all. This is learned from here. "Your headdress you shall bind upon you," but other mourners do not have their headdress bound upon them. Likewise, "and put your shoes on your feet." Not like other mourners who remove their shoes. "And do not cover your upper lip," the meaning is he shall not cover his upper lip, as mourners let their mustaches and hair grow. "And do not eat the bread of men." "Do not eat the bread of men," the meal of consolation (seudat havra'ah), it is customary to eat a meal that people bring from outside. The person himself does not prepare for himself the first meal upon returning from the house of mourning, but rather other people prepare for him the meal of consolation, which is usually made from lentils, eggs and the like. It needs to be a real meal with bread. In any case, this is called "the bread of men." The bread that people bring him from outside. By the way, many err and confuse the meal of consolation with the meal at the conclusion of the shiva. That is not, it is not about that at all. The meal of consolation is the first meal fed to the mourners when they return from the cemetery. This is called the meal of consolation, and it is not connected at all to the meal that is made at the conclusion of the shiva, for that meal has no source at all.
"And I spoke to the people in the morning, and my wife died in the evening. And I did in the morning as I was commanded." "And I spoke to the people," Yechezkel spoke the words to the people in the morning, and on that very day, in the evening, his wife died. And in the morning afterward, meaning the next morning, which is the time of burial and the beginning of mourning, then it is written "and I did in the following morning as I was commanded." So for example he spoke to them on Sunday morning, his wife passed away on Sunday night, and afterward on Monday morning, this is what he describes, "and I did in the morning as I was commanded," meaning I began the practice of mourning, or rather non-mourning, as I was commanded. All the things Hashem told him to do were the opposite of what mourners do. And as for why he stated this in advance at the outset, the purpose in this was to verify his prophecy. So that they would know that it had already been made known to him beforehand about the death of his wife. And through this they would not slander the prophet, saying that he speaks things out of lack of knowledge or that he fabricates things from his heart. Behold, you see that he told you what was destined to be, and as he said, so it truly was. And the people indeed accept and understand the message, "and the people said to me: Will you not tell us what these things mean to us, that you do so?" Surely everything you did, "what these things," is for us. Surely all these things were meant to give us a message. Some sort of sign and prophecy for us. What does it indicate to us? "And I said to them: The word of Hashem came to me, saying." All these things I did not do of my own accord, but rather all of them came by the word of Hashem. And as I told you that a prophecy came that my wife would die and Hashem commanded me not to mourn over her, and if you want to know what it signifies for you, what was said in that word of Hashem and what you should conclude, "Say to the house of Israel: Thus says Hashem Elokim, behold, I am about to profane My sanctuary, the pride of your strength, the delight of your eyes and the yearning of your soul. And your sons and your daughters whom you have left behind shall fall by the sword." "Behold, I am about to profane My sanctuary, the pride of your strength." "Behold, I am about to profane," the meaning is not by Myself, but rather as the Radak says, I will bring upon it strangers who will profane it. Yes, as it is written, "and robbers shall enter it and profane it." Regarding the Beit Hamikdash here it has several titles. "The pride of your strength, the delight of your eyes, the yearning of your soul." "The pride of your strength," as it is written, "for pride He set it." For the pride of Israel, their glory, was the Beit Hamikdash. It is also called their strength and their splendor, for in it the glory of Hashem was seen in the cloud, in the fire that would descend. "The delight of your eyes," for it was beautiful in its building and its arrangement. The First Beit Hamikdash was most magnificent. "And the yearning of your soul," like a person who has compassion on the thing he loves. And they were every day, the Radak says, looking forward and hoping to return to the Beit Hamikdash, as the false prophets in Bavel would always reassure them, that behold immediately you are already returning back to the Beit Hamikdash and Hakadosh Baruch Hu is returning to redeem you. So this is considered "the yearning of your soul," like a person who has compassion on the thing beloved and precious to him. He tells them, "and your sons and your daughters whom you have left behind shall fall by the sword." "Your sons and your daughters whom you have left behind," that they were exiled, those who were exiled with Yehoyachin, the Radak says, they left their sons and daughters behind in Jerusalem. That is to say, he did not take all of them. So it could sometimes be that he took the parents and left the children there. About this He says to those now present in Bavel, your sons and daughters whom you left behind where? There in Jerusalem, they will fall by the sword. And they too are included in "the yearning of their soul." So it turns out that what is written "and the yearning of your soul" refers both to what is above and to what is below. Both the Beit Hamikdash which is "the yearning of your soul," and "the yearning of your soul and your sons and your daughters," that is your sons and daughters who are also the yearning of your soul, they too are ones on whom a person has compassion. And here in essence He tells them, this is the analogue to what I showed you earlier, what I demonstrated to you earlier. I told you that my wife would die and so it truly was, so the analogue of the death of Yechezkel's wife is that so too the holy Shechinah was cleaving to the people of Israel in a cleaving of love like the love of a man and his wife, and now the Mikdash will be destroyed. That is to say, this bond will now be severed. Certainly Hakadosh Baruch Hu did not abandon the people of Israel, Hashem will not forsake His people, but certainly also not at the same level as before, in the resting of the Shechinah in the House of Hashem here in the Land.
"And you shall do as I have done. You shall not cover your upper lip, and you shall not eat the bread of men." Why did Hashem tell me not to cover the upper lip, not to conduct myself in all those practices of mourning? Because it is a hint and a sign of what is coming to you. And when you do as I have done, Rashi and also the Malbim explain along the same line, you will not eulogize. And why? This is out of fear of the Kasdim (Chaldeans). As is known, when enemies would arrive, they would kill among the people, they would not permit holding eulogies and large funerals and so forth. Because these things were gatherings of the public that could incite against the conquering nation. Therefore they would always say to bury quietly, quickly, without noise, without commotion. Just as today every demonstration in Gaza turns into some kind of heating up of the atmosphere against Israel. So too, always when the nations would strike the nation they were fighting, they did not permit holding mass funerals, they did not permit holding eulogies and assemblies and so forth, because all these things would stir up the people against the conquering nation. So He says, "you shall not cover your upper lip and you shall not eat the bread of men," you will not eulogize out of fear of the Kasdim. And there is also another matter, who will eulogize and who will comfort after everyone is a mourner? In such a reality where everyone is a mourner, no one has the presence of mind to eulogize and comfort. And this is the parable here of the plague. "And your headdresses shall be upon your heads, and your shoes upon your feet. You shall not mourn nor weep, but you shall melt away in your iniquities, and you shall moan one to another." "And you shall melt away," this is like what is written, as Moshe said, "and they shall melt away in their iniquity." And the meaning of "you shall melt away" or "they shall melt away" is you will be dissolving in troubles. And these troubles will be as recompense for your iniquities. That is the meaning of "and you shall melt away in your iniquities." And as we have explained more than once, "your evil will chastise you." The meaning of the matter is that what afflicts a person is his own transgressions. "The folly of man perverts his way, and his heart rages against Hashem." His folly is what perverts his way and he asks Hashem why did You do this to me. It is not why did I do to you, why did you do to yourself. This is that when you committed a transgression, you created a Rottweiler, and this Rottweiler, if they merely sent it to you for some small lick, you would die. So Hakadosh Baruch Hu has mercy on us and feeds the destroyers we create. But in any case, let us know, the one who harms a person is he himself who created it. So He says then, "and you shall melt away in your iniquities." What causes you that melting, that dissolving in troubles, is your own iniquities. "And you shall moan one to another." "And you shall moan," the meaning is like a person who roars with his mouth and moans over the evil that he did. According to what the Radak explains here, this moaning is an aspect of teshuvah, of grief over what we did. As it is brought in Mishlei chapter 5, verse 11, "and you shall moan at your end, when your flesh and your body are consumed, and you shall say: How I hated discipline, and my heart spurned reproof." This is a moaning that means regret, you will grieve over what you did. So it is worthwhile for you to awaken already now, Yechezkel tells them, for you see what a harsh prophecy was stated here. "And Yechezkel shall be a sign for you, according to all that he has done you shall do. When it comes, you shall know that I am Hashem Elokim." Here the prophet is essentially speaking, as it were, in the language of Hashem yitbarach. As if Hashem is telling them, this is what is called a quotation from Hashem. For Yechezkel says "and Yechezkel shall be," rather the meaning is, thus Hashem told me to tell you. "And Yechezkel shall be," what Hashem did to me, Yechezkel, so too shall be for you. When? "When it comes, you shall know that I am Hashem." When the evil report comes that the Beit Hamikdash was destroyed, then you shall know that I am Hashem, for behold My words have been fulfilled. "And you, son of man, will it not be that on the day I take from them their stronghold, the joy of their splendor, the delight of their eyes and the object of their souls' longing, their sons and their daughters? On that day the fugitive will come to you to make it heard to the ears." "And you, son of man, will it not be that on the day I take from them their stronghold," as we saw above, "behold, I take from you the delight of your eyes," so He uses exactly the same language regarding the Beit Hamikdash, for this is essentially the analogue. "On the day I take from them their stronghold," and I take from them also "the joy of their splendor," which is the cause of joy and rejoicing in Hashem. And this is "the object of their souls' longing," meaning that same thing upon which they raise up their souls. And what is "the object of their souls' longing"? Here too, one can explain "the object of their souls' longing" as referring back to the Beit Hamikdash, and one can explain that it refers immediately also to what is written after it. "The object of their souls' longing, their sons and their daughters." That is to say, what is the object of their souls' longing? It is their sons and their daughters. Now, if I say that "the object of their souls' longing" refers to the Beit Hamikdash, then one cannot say "their sons and their daughters," since then you are speaking here about something separate. "The object of their souls' longing" is about the Beit Hamikdash, "their sons and their daughters" is something in its own right. So the Radak says then, if we say that "the object of their souls' longing" refers back to what came before, to the Beit Hamikdash, then "their sons and their daughters" needs an added "and." And then in essence it is as if it is written, I take from them their stronghold, the joy of their splendor, the delight of their eyes and the object of their souls' longing, period, the Beit Hamikdash. And their sons and their daughters. In addition to that I also take their sons and their daughters. So even though a "and" is missing here, do not be surprised, the Radak brings this proof many times, as it is written "the sun and moon stood still in their habitation," which means the sun and the moon. Many times the verses omit the "and" that is called the connective vav, yes, which serves as an addition. So it is as if it is written here, "the object of their souls' longing and their sons and their daughters." The Malbim explains that here he essentially clarifies for him the analogue. And what He tells him, say this to the people in the morning, before the death of his wife, so it will also be exactly regarding the report of the Beit Hamikdash. For as we explained, he for the sake of the matter for example said this on Sunday morning, and his wife died on Sunday night. So that is to say, Hashem asked him to announce this beforehand. The matter is also in order to tell them that so it will be regarding the report of the Beit Hamikdash. That when the fugitive comes to report this matter that the Beit Hamikdash was destroyed, meaning the fugitive will come from Eretz Yisrael in order to tell them the Beit Hamikdash was destroyed, the hand of Hashem was upon him in the evening, the evening before the coming of the fugitive. That is to say, he will already receive the prophecy beforehand, about the destruction of the Beit Hamikdash. And he will announce this 12 hours earlier, as we will see further on in chapter 33, "and He opened my mouth." That is to say, there was here a prophecy prior to the destruction of the Beit Hamikdash, even before the fugitive, in short, even before the news arrived from Eretz Yisrael to Bavel, he already knew that so it was destined to be by a prophecy from Hashem, and this was precisely the matter of the death of his wife, that Hashem informed him of the matter beforehand. And this is what He says, "on the day the fugitive comes to you to make it heard to the ears," the meaning is the fugitive will come to you to make it heard to your ears, you will already earlier, you will already know this prophecy from what I will convey to you. There is a bit of difficulty in the pasuk, "on that day the fugitive will come to you to make it heard to the ears," since it implies from this that on the day of the destruction the fugitive will come. And Rashi already addresses this, Rashi says it is impossible for the fugitive to come on the day of the destruction. There is some distance between Eretz Yisrael and Bavel. So how is it possible that on the day of the destruction the fugitive would come to you? And back then not everyone was connected to the news, so how did he know that very day, "that very day the fugitive will come to you"? Therefore Rashi explains that the meaning of "on the day," on the day the fugitive comes, does not mean the day on which the destruction takes place, but rather on the day the fugitive comes, even if it will be 15 days later, and soon we will see that it will be much later, He says on the same day the fugitive comes, you will receive the knowledge from Hashem earlier. But it does not refer to the day of the destruction itself. The Radak also says thus, for he says "on that day," the meaning is "on the day I take," that is the day of the destruction that He mentioned before, that is the plain meaning. But the Radak says it is not possible. For the destruction was on the tenth of Av, and the fugitive came on the fifth of Tevet. That is to say, we understand that a period of time passed from when the Beit Hamikdash was destroyed until the fugitive arrived. And if so it turns out that a period of time passed. And indeed this matter creates a difficulty, and the difficulty is, as the Radak asks, aside from the question of how can you say "on that day," rather "on that day" the meaning, the Radak explains, is "at that time." That is the meaning of "on the day," it does not refer to a specific day. According to Rashi it is on the same day the fugitive comes, not on the day it was destroyed but on the day he arrives. In contrast, according to the Radak the meaning is "at that time." But as I said this creates another difficulty, and the difficulty is how is it possible that the fugitive arrived five months later? For the army of the Kasdim conquered Eretz Yisrael, and to travel from Eretz Yisrael to Bavel we know is 15 days. This was the span of time that the pilgrims of Bavel would return after they went up for the festival. And if so, how did it happen here, the Radak asks, that five months passed until the fugitive reached Bavel? The Radak says, it is very possible that the army of the Kasdim went to conquer another place with the captives among them, before their coming to Bavel. They had several stops along the way, in short. The Kasdim did not come straight with the fugitives from Jerusalem straight to Bavel, but rather they went to more wars and more other conquests, and only afterward came. And then it turns out that this does give us an explanation for the time gap of those five months. "On that day your mouth shall be opened with the fugitive, and you shall speak and be silent no more. And you shall be a sign for them, and they shall know that I am Hashem." "On that day your mouth shall be opened with the fugitive." What is "with the fugitive"? "With the fugitive" means together with the fugitive. Like "Yaakov, each man and his household came," the meaning is with Yaakov. So together with the fugitive who will come, then your mouth will be opened. You will say to the exiles, behold you see, as I prophesied to you and you did not listen and did not believe, behold now you will have an opening to speak. Behold now they will see that what you said is true, behold the fugitive came and announced the terrible tidings that the Beit Hamikdash was destroyed. And then "you shall speak and be silent no more." Since if they see that the prophecies you spoke were fulfilled, you will now have an opening to speak before them, and they will not have an opening to shut your mouth. They will not be able to say that you are merely frightening, that you say untrue things. Behold, you saw that what I said was fulfilled one to one. And the expression here "and you shall be silent no more," since we see that in the prophecy there where Hashem revealed Himself to him in the valley, He told him there, "and I will make your tongue cleave to your palate, and you shall be mute and not be a reprover to them." Here now He tells him "and you shall be silent no more." Rather the meaning is you will indeed be able to reprove them, and you will indeed have an opening to speak, for behold they will see that you said the things in advance. And the Malbim explains, what is written here "your mouth shall be opened with the fugitive," the meaning is even before the fugitive. So the Malbim explains. "Your mouth shall be opened," for the Malbim explained that he will receive the knowledge 12 hours before the fugitive comes. So this is what is written "your mouth shall be opened," you will speak your words even before the fugitive comes, 12 hours earlier. And only afterward the fugitive will come, and then it is much more powerful, that behold not only did you foresee the destruction of the Beit Hamikdash, but now you are also announcing to them that the Beit Hamikdash was destroyed, when no one yet knows this, and only after 12 hours the fugitive will come, and this will be a sign and a wonder to them that you are a prophet of Hashem and your word is true, and through this you will be trustworthy to them and your mouth will be opened and they will accept your words. All of this He hinted to him in the matter of the death of the wife who died, and he announced her death 12 hours earlier, this too will be the hint to the destruction of the Beit Hamikdash, that he will announce its destruction 12 hours before the fugitive comes.