Discovery BoxEzekiel 3:14 
Context3:14 A wind lifted me up and carried me away. I went bitterly, 1 my spirit full of fury, and the hand of the Lord rested powerfully 2 on me.
Ezekiel 3:22
Context3:22 The hand 3 of the Lord rested on me there, and he said to me, “Get up, go out to the valley, 4 and I will speak with you there.”
Ezekiel 9:1
Context9:1 Then he shouted in my ears, “Approach, 5 you who are to visit destruction on the city, each with his destructive weapon in his hand!”
Ezekiel 11:9
Context11:9 ‘But I will take you out of the city. 6 And I will hand you over to foreigners. I will execute judgments on you.
Ezekiel 25:10
Context25:10 I will hand it over, 7 along with the Ammonites, 8 to the tribes 9 of the east, so that the Ammonites will no longer be remembered among the nations.
Ezekiel 28:10
Context28:10 You will die the death of the uncircumcised 10 by the hand of foreigners;
for I have spoken, declares the sovereign Lord.’”
Ezekiel 29:7
Context29:7 when they grasped you with their hand, 11 you broke and tore 12 their shoulders,
and when they leaned on you, you splintered and caused their legs to be unsteady. 13
Ezekiel 30:10
Context30:10 “‘This is what the sovereign Lord says:
I will put an end to the hordes of Egypt,
by the hand of King Nebuchadrezzar 14 of Babylon.
1 tn The traditional interpretation is that Ezekiel embarked on his mission with bitterness and anger, either reflecting God’s attitude toward the sinful people or his own feelings about having to carry out such an unpleasant task. L. C. Allen (Ezekiel [WBC], 1:13) takes “bitterly” as a misplaced marginal note and understands the following word, normally translated “anger,” in the sense of fervor or passion. He translates, “I was passionately moved” (p. 4). Another option is to take the word translated “bitterly” as a verb meaning “strengthened” (attested in Ugaritic). See G. R. Driver, Canaanite Myths and Legends, 152.
2 tn Heb “the hand of the Lord was on me heavily.” The “hand of the Lord” is a metaphor for his power or influence; the modifier conveys intensity.
sn In Ezekiel God’s “hand” being on the prophet is regularly associated with communication or a vision from God (1:3; 3:14, 22; 8:1; 37:1; 40:1).
3 tn Or “power.”
sn Hand in the OT can refer metaphorically to power, authority, or influence. In Ezekiel God’s hand being on the prophet is regularly associated with communication or a vision from God (1:3; 3:14, 22; 8:1; 37:1; 40:1).
4 sn Ezekiel had another vision at this location, recounted in Ezek 37.
5 tc Heb “they approached.” Reading the imperative assumes the same consonantal text but different vowels.
6 tn Heb “its midst.”
7 tn Heb “I will give it for a possession.”
8 tn Heb “the sons of Ammon” (twice in this verse).
9 tn Heb “the sons.”
10 sn The Phoenicians practiced circumcision, so the language here must be figurative, indicating that they would be treated in a disgraceful manner. Uncircumcised peoples were viewed as inferior, unclean, and perhaps even sub-human. See 31:18 and 32:17-32, as well as the discussion in D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 2:99.
11 tn The Hebrew consonantal text (Kethib) has “by your hand,” but the marginal reading (Qere) has simply “by the hand.” The LXX reads “with their hand.”
12 tn Or perhaps “dislocated.”
13 tn Heb “you caused to stand for them all their hips.” An emendation which switches two letters but is supported by the LXX yields the reading “you caused all their hips to shake.” See L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:103. In 2 Kgs 18:21 and Isa 36:6 trusting in the Pharaoh is compared to leaning on a staff. The oracle may reflect Hophra’s attempt to aid Jerusalem (Jer 37:5-8).
14 tn Heb “Nebuchadrezzar” is a variant and more correct spelling of Nebuchadnezzar, as the Babylonian name Nabu-kudurri-usur has an “r” rather than an “n.”
