the Week of Proper 25 / Ordinary 30
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Bishop's Bible
Ezekiel 21:21
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The king of Babylon has come to where the two roads separate. He uses magic to learn which way to go: He shakes his arrows, he asks his family idols, and he looks at the liver from an animal he has killed.
The king of Babylon now stands at the fork, uncertain whether to attack Jerusalem or Rabbah. He calls his magicians to look for omens. They cast lots by shaking arrows from the quiver. They inspect the livers of animal sacrifices.
"For the king of Babylon stands at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination; he shakes the arrows, he consults the household idols, he looks at the liver.
The king of Babylon has come to where the road divides, and he is using magic. He throws lots with arrows and asks questions of his family idols. He looks at the liver of a sacrificed animal to learn where he should go.
For the king of Babylon stands at the fork in the road at the head of the two routes. He looks for omens: He shakes arrows, he consults idols, he examines animal livers.
For the king of Babylon stood at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to tell his fortune: he shook the arrows to and fro, he consulted the talismans, he looked in the liver.
For the king of Babylon stood at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination; he made [his] arrows bright, he consulted with images, he looked in the liver.
"For the king of Babylon stands at the parting of the way, at the fork of the two ways, to use divination. He shakes the arrows, he consults the teraphim (household idols), he looks at the liver [of an animal for an omen].
For the king of Babylon stands at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination. He shakes the arrows; he consults the teraphim; he looks at the liver.
For the king of Babylon stood at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination: he shook the arrows back and forth, he consulted the teraphim, he looked in the liver.
For the king of Babiloyne stood in the meeting of twey weies, in the heed of twei weies, and souyte dyuynyng, and medlide arowis; he axide idols, and took councel at entrails.
For the king of Babylon stood at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination: he shook the arrows to and fro, he consulted the teraphim, he looked in the liver.
For the king of Babylon stands at the fork in the road, at the junction of the two roads, to seek an omen: He shakes the arrows, he consults the idols, he examines the liver.
When the Babylonian king stands at that signpost, he will decide which way to go by shaking his arrows, by asking his idols, and by carefully looking at the liver of a sacrificed animal.
For the king of Babylon stood at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination: he shook the arrows to and fro, he consulted the teraphim, he looked in the liver.
For the king of Babylon took his place at the parting of the ways, at the top of the two roads, to make use of secret arts: shaking the arrows this way and that, he put questions to the images of his gods, he took note of the inner parts of dead beasts.
"Sword! Slash to the right; destroy to the left, whichever way your edge is aimed!
For the king of Babylon standeth at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination: he shaketh [his] arrows, he inquireth of the teraphim, he looketh in the liver.
Go thee one way to the right, or direct thyself to the left; whither is thy face set?
For the king of Babylon stood at the parting of the way, at the head of the two wayes, to vse diuination: he made his arrowes bright, he consulted with images, he looked in the liuer.
For the king of Babylon stands where the road divides in two to use strange secret powers. He shakes the arrows and speaks with false gods, and looks at the liver.
For the king of Babylon stands at the parting of the way, at the fork in the two roads, to use divination; he shakes the arrows, he consults the teraphim, he inspects the liver.
And the King of Babel stoode at the parting of the way, at the head of the two wayes, consulting by diuination, and made his arrowes bright: hee consulted with idoles, and looked in the liuer.
For the king of Babylon stands at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination; he shoots an arrow, he inquires of his idol, he sees his triumph.
For the king of Babylon hath come tea stand At the parting of the way. At the head of the two ways To divine a divination:He hath shaken with arrows He hath asked of the household gods, He hath inspected the liver.
For the king of Babylon stood in the highway, at the head of two ways, seeking divination, shuffling arrows: he inquired of the idols, and consulted entrails.
For the king of Babylon stands at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination; he shakes the arrows, he consults the teraphim, he looks at the liver.
For the king of Babylon shall stand on the old way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination, to make bright the arrow, and to enquire of the graven images, and to examine the victims.
The king of Babylonia stands by the signpost at the fork of the road. To discover which way to go, he shakes the arrows; he consults his idols; he examines the liver of a sacrificed animal.
For the king of Babylon stands at the split in the road, at the fork of the two roads, to practice divination: he shakes the arrows, consults the idols, and observes the liver.
For the king of Bavel stood at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination: he shook the arrows back and forth, he consulted the terafim, he looked in the liver.
For the king of Babylon stood at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination: he made his arrows bright, he consulted with images, he looked in the liver.
For the king of Babylon stands at the fork of the road at the head of the two roads to practice divination. He shakes the arrows, he inquires with the teraphim, he examines the liver.
For the king of Babylon shall stand at the mother of the way, at the head of the two ways to practice divination. He shall shake arrows, he shall ask household idols; he shall look at the liver.
For stood hath the king of Babylon at the head of the way, At the top of the two ways, to use divination, He hath moved lightly with the arrows, He hath asked at the teraphim, He hath looked on the liver.
For the kinge of Babilon shall stonde in the turnynge of the waye, at the heade of the two stretes: to axe councell at the soythsayers, castinge the lottes with his arowes, to axe councell at the Idols, and to loke in the lyuer.
For the king of Babylon stands at the parting of the road, at the fork of the two roads, to use divination: he shakes the arrows, he consults the images, he looks at the liver.
"For the king of Babylon stands at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination; he shakes the arrows, he consults the household idols, he looks at the liver.
For the king of Babylon stands at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination; he shakes the arrows; he asks the household idols; he looks at the liver.
Contextual Overview
Bible Verse Review
from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge
the king: Proverbs 16:33, Proverbs 21:1
parting: Heb. mother
to use: Numbers 23:28, Deuteronomy 18:10, 1 Samuel 15:23, Proverbs 16:10, Acts 16:16
he made: Or, as the Vulgate, "he mingled his arrows:" "They wrote on several arrows," says Jerome, "the names of the cities they intended to assault; and then putting them altogether promiscuously in a quiver, they drew then out thence as lots are drawn; and that city whose name was written on the arrow first drawn, was the city they first made war on."
arrows: or, knives
images: Heb. teraphim, Genesis 31:19, Genesis 31:30, Judges 17:5, Judges 18:14, Judges 18:18, Judges 18:20, Judges 18:24, 2 Kings 23:24, Hosea 3:4, Hosea 4:12, Zechariah 10:2
Reciprocal: Judges 18:5 - Ask counsel Esther 3:7 - they cast Pur Joel 3:9 - Prepare Micah 5:1 - he hath
Cross-References
And Abraham called his sonnes name that was borne vnto him, whiche Sara bare hym, Isahac.
And Abraham circumcised his sonne Isahac, when he was eyght dayes olde, as God commaunded him.
And Abraham soiourned in the Philistines lande a long season.
And the children of Israel toke their iourney out of the desert of Sinai, and the cloude rested in the wildernesse of Pharan.
And afterwarde the people remoued from Hazeroth, and pitched in the wyldernesse of Pharan.
And Moyses at the commaundement of the Lorde, sent foorth out of the wyldernesse of Pharan, suche men as were all heades of the chyldren of Israel.
And they went, and came to Moyses and Aaron, and vnto all the multitude of the chyldren of Israel in the wyldernesse Pharan to Cades, and brought them worde, and also vnto all the congregation, and shewed them the fruite of the lande.
And he came vp, and told his father and his mother, & said: I haue sene a woman in Thamnath of the daughters of the Philistines: & nowe geue me her to wyfe.
And Samuel died, and all the Israelites gathered together, and lamented him, and buried him in his owne house at Rama. And Dauid arose, & went downe to the wildernesse of Pharan.
So then he that ioyneth his virgin in maryage, doth well: but he that ioyneth not [his virgin] in mariage, doth better.
Gill's Notes on the Bible
For the king of Babylon stood at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways,.... That is, he would stand there; the prophet knew that it was certain it should be, and therefore represents it as if it was; he had, by a spirit of prophecy, seen, that when the king of Babylon was come to such a place, on the borders of the desert of Arabia, where the road from Babylon parted, where two ways met, the one leading to Jerusalem on the right, and the other to Rabbath on the left, he should make a full stop with his army, and consider which way he should take, whether that which led to Jerusalem, or that which led to Rabbath. It is very probable, when he came out of Babylon, his scheme was to make an attempt on both these important places, and take them; but be had not determined which to attack first, and was still doubtful; and now being come to the two roads, which led to the one and the other, it was necessary to make a halt, consider, and conclude, which course to steer; to determine which, he thought proper "to use divination", which was performed in the following manner:
he made his arrows bright; being made of iron or steel; in the brightness of which diviners looked, and made their observations, and accordingly directed what was to be done; as they did by looking into the brightness of a man's nails, as David Kimchi observes; though his father, Joseph Kimchi, was of opinion that the word has the signification of casting of arrows, or causing them to fly in the air; and supposes that Nebuchadnezzar cast up arrows into the air, and observed on which side they fell, and so judged which way to take; to this agrees the Targum,
"with a bow he cast out arrows;''
so the Syriac and Arabic versions b. Jerom says the way of divining by arrows was this: arrows, with the names of the cities inscribed upon them, were put into a quiver, and mixed together; and the city upon the arrow which came out first was first attacked. To this agrees the Vulgate Latin version, which renders the words, "mingling the arrows"; and Dr. Pocock c prefers this sense of the word, which he observes so signifies in the Arabic language; and who gives an account of the use of divination by arrows among the Arabians, who much used it; though forbidden by Mahomet, as Schultens d observes. Their custom was this; when a man was about to marry a wife, or go a journey, or do any business of importance, he put three arrows into a vessel; on one was inscribed,
"my lord hath commanded me;''
on another,
"my lord hath forbid me;''
the third had nothing on it. If the first he took out had the command upon it, then he proceeded with great alacrity: but if it had the prohibition, he desisted; and if that which had nothing inscribed on it, he laid it by, till one of the other two was taken out; and there is to this day a sort of divination by arrows used by the Turks; it is commonly for the wars, though it is also performed for all sorts of things; as to know whether a man should undertake a voyage, buy such a commodity, or the like. The manner of doing it, as Monsieur Thevenot e relates, is this; they take four arrows, and place them with their points against one another, giving them to be held by two persons; then they lay a naked sword upon a cushion before them, and read a certain chapter of the Alcoran; with that the arrows fight together for some time, and at length the one fall upon the other: if, for instance the victorious have been named Christians (for two of them they call Turks, and the other two by the name of their enemy), it is a sign that the Christians will overcome; if otherwise, it denotes the contrary. The Jews f say, that in the present case of Nebuchadnezzar, that when he or his diviner cast the arrow for Antioch, or for Tyre, or for Laodicea, it was broke; but when he cast it for Jerusalem, it was not broke; by which he knew that he should destroy it. This is that sort of divination which is called "belomancy": he consulted with images; or "teraphim"; images in which, as Kimchi says, they saw things future; Heathen oracles, from whence responses were made; these were images for private use, such as were the "lares" and "penates" with the Romans; these Laban had in his house in which Rachel stole from him; and are supposed to be such as are made under certain constellations, and their influences capable of speaking; see Zechariah 10:2, as Aben Ezra on
Genesis 31:34 observes, with which men used to consult about things future or unknown; and this is thought to be one reason why Rachel took away these images from her father, that he might not, by consulting with them, know which way Jacob fled g with such as these the king of Babylon consulted, that he might know which way he should take:
he looked in the liver; of a beast slain, and made observations on that to direct him; as used to be done by the Aruspices among the Romans. This is that sort of divination which is called "hepatoscopy", or inspection into the liver; for though the Aruspices or Extispices, so called from their looking into the entrails of a beast, and making their observations on them, used to view the several inward parts, yet chiefly the liver, which they called the head of the intestines; and if this was wanting, or the head in it, the chief part of it, it was an ill omen; thus, in the month that Claudius Caesar was poisoned, the head of the liver was wanting in the sacrifice; or if the liver was livid, vicious, had any pustules upon it, or any purulent matter in it; or was touched, cut and wounded with the knife of the sacrificer, it foreboded great evils and misfortunes; or if the extreme part of the liver, which is called the fibre, was so placed, that from the lowest fibre the livers were replicated, or there was a double liver, this was a token for good, and portended joy and happiness h: moreover, they used to divide the bowels or entrails into two parts, and so the liver; the one they called "familiaris", by which they judged what would befall themselves and their friends; the other "hostilis", what concerned their enemies; according to the habit, colour, and position they were in, they concluded what would befall the one and the other i. Lucan k and Seneca l particularly have respect to this: and the king of Babylon here having two people to deal with, the Ammonites and the Jews, he inspects the liver of a creature slain for sacrifice, that he might judge which was best and safest for him to attack; which was less threatening, and more easy to be overcome m: this divination used to be made with calves, kids, and lambs n.
b So R. So. Urbin. Ohel Moed, fol. 25, 2, interprets the word. c Specimen Arab. Hist. p. 327. d Animadv. in Job, p. 169, 170. e Travels, par. 1. B. 1. ch. 6. p. 36. f Midrash Tillim in Psal. lxxix. 1. g See Godwin's Moses and Aaron, l. 4. c. 9. h Vid. Alex. ab flex. Genial. Dier. l. 5. c. 25. & Plin. Nat. Hist. l. 11. c. 37. i Vid. Valtrinum de Re Militari Roman. l. 1. c. 6. p. 27. Liv. & Ciceron. in ib. k "Cernit tabe jecur madidum, venasque minaces, Hostili de parte videt", &c. Pharsal. l. 1. l "Hostile valido robore insurlit latus." Oedipus, Act. 2. m Vid. Lydium de Re Militari, l. 1. c. 3. p. 9, 10. n Pausanias, l. 6. p. 345.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible
The third word of judgment. The king of Babylon’s march upon Judaea and upon the Ammonites. Destruction is to go forth not on Judah only, but also on such neighboring tribes as the Ammonites (compare Jeremiah 27:2-3).
Ezekiel 21:19
Appoint thee - Set before thee.
Choose thou a place, choose it - Rather, “mark a spot, mark it,” as upon a map, at the head of the two roads, one leading to Jerusalem, the other to Ammon. These were the two roads by one or other of which an invading army must march from Babylon to Egypt.
Ezekiel 21:21
The Chaldaean king is depicted standing at the entrance of the holy land from the north, meditating his campaign, using rites of divination that really belonged to the Akkadians, a primitive race which originally occupied the plains of Mesopotamia. The Accadians and the Etruscans belong through the Finnish family to the Turanian stock; this passage therefore shows a characteristic mode of divination in use among two widely separated nations; and as the Romans acquired their divination from the conquered Etruscans, so the Chaldaeans acquired the same art from the races whose soil they had occupied as conquerors.
He made his arrows briqht - Rather, he shook his arrow; a mode of divination much in practice with the Arabians. It was usual to place in some vessel three arrows, on one of which was written, “My God orders me;” on the other, “My God forbids me;” on the third was no inscription. These three arrows were shaken together until one came out; if it was the first, the thing was to be done; if the second, it was to be avoided; if the third, the arrows were again shaken together, until one of the arrows bearing a decided answer should come forth.
Images - Teraphim (Genesis 31:19 note).
He looked in the liver - It was the practice both of the Greeks and the Romans (derived from the Etruscans) to take omens from the inspection of the entrails (especially the liver) of animals offered in sacrifice.
Ezekiel 21:22
The divination for Jerusalem - The lot fixing the campaign against Jerusalem.
Ezekiel 21:23
It shalt be unto them - The Jews in their vain confidence shall look upon the hopes gathered from the divinations by the Babylonians as false and groundless.
To them that have sworn oaths - According to some, “oaths of oaths are theirs;” i. e., they have the most solemn oaths sworn by God to His people, in these they trust, forgetful of the sin which broke the condition upon which these promises were given. More probably the allusion is to the oaths which the Jews had sworn to Nebuchadnezzar as vassals Ezekiel 17:18-19; therefore they trust he will not attack them, forgetting how imperfectly they had kept their oaths, and that Nebuchadnezzar knew this.
But he will call to remembrance the iniquity - The king of Babylon will by punishment remind them of their perjury 2 Kings 25:6-7; 2 Chronicles 36:17.
Ezekiel 21:25
Profane - Rather, “wounded,” - not dead but - having a death-wound. The prophet, turning from the general crowd, addresses Zedekiah.
When iniquity shall have an end - i. e., at the time when iniquity shall be closed with punishment. So in Ezekiel 21:29.
Ezekiel 21:26
The diadem (“the mitre,” the unique head-dress of the high priest) shall be removed, and the crown taken off (this shall not be as it is), the low exalted, and the high abased. Glory shall be removed alike from priest and king; the present glory and power attached to the government of God’s people shall be quite removed.
Ezekiel 21:27
It shall be no more - Or, “This also shall not be;” the present state of things shall not continue: all shall be confusion “until He come” to whom the dominion belongs of right. Not Zedekiah but Jeconiah and his descendants were the rightful heirs of David’s throne. Through the restoration of the true line was there hope for Judah (compare Genesis 49:10), the promised King in whom all power shall rest - the Son of David - Messiah the Prince. Thus the prophecy of destruction ends for Judah in the promise of restoration (as in Ezekiel 20:40 ff).
Ezekiel 21:28
The burden of the Song of the Sword, also in the form of poetry, is again taken up, directed now against the Ammonites, who, exulting in Judah’s destruction, fondly deemed that they were themselves to escape. For Judah there is yet hope, for Ammon irremediable ruin.
Their reproach - The scorn with which they reproach Judah (marginal references).
The sword ... the glittering - Or, “the sword is drawn for the slaughter; it is furbished that it may detour, in order that it may glitter.” In the Septuagint (and Vulgate) the sword is addressed; e. g., Septuagint, “Arise that thou mayest shine.”
Ezekiel 21:29
Whiles ... unto thee - A parenthesis. The Ammonites had their false diviners who deluded with vain hopes.
To bring thee upon the necks of them that are slain - To cast thee (Ammon) upon the heap of slaughtered men.
Shall have an end - Shall have its final doom.
Ezekiel 21:30
Shall I cause it to return ... - Or, Back to its sheath! The work of the sword is over.
Clarke's Notes on the Bible
Verse Ezekiel 21:21. For the king of Babylon stood at the parting of the way — He was in doubt which way he should first take; whether to humble the Ammonites by taking their metropolis, Riblath, or go at once against Jerusalem. In this case of uncertainty, he made use of divination. And this was of three kinds: 1. By arrows. 2. By images or talismans. 3. By inspecting the entrails of a sacrifice offered on the occasion.
1. He made bright his arrows. This might be after the manner in which the divination is still practiced among the Arabs. These arrows were without head or wing. They took three. On one they wrote, Command me, Lord. On the second, Forbid me, Lord. The third was blank. These were put in a bag, and the querist put in his hand and took one out. If it was Command me, he set about the business immediately; if it was Forbid me, he rested for a whole year; if it was the blank one, he drew again. On all occasions the Arabs consulted futurity by such arrows. See D'Herbelot, under the word ACDAH.
2. As to the images, the Hebrew calls them תרפים teraphim. Genesis 31:19.
3. And as to the liver, I believe it was only inspected to see whether the animal offered in sacrifice were sound and healthy, of which the state of the liver is the most especial indication. When the liver is sound, the animal is healthy; and it would have been a bad omen to any who offered sacrifice, to find that the animal they had offered to their gods was diseased; as, in that case, they would have taken for granted that the sacrifice was not accepted.
