¹ sn The name “Tel Abib” is a transliteration of an Akkadian term meaning “mound of the flood,” i.e., an ancient mound. It is not to be confused with the modern city of Tel Aviv in Israel.

² tn Or “canal.”

³ sn A similar response to a divine encounter is found in Acts 9:8-9.

⁴ tn Or “abominable idols.”

⁵ tc This first sentence, which explains the meaning of the last sentence of the previous verse, does not appear in the LXX and may be an instance of a marginal explanatory note making its way into the text.

⁶ tn The meaning of the Hebrew term is primarily emotional: “to pity,” which in context implies an action, as in being moved by pity in order to spare them from the horror of their punishment.

⁷ tn Heb “their way on their head I have placed.” The same expression occurs in 1 Kgs 8:32; Ezek 11:21; 16:43; 22:31.

⁸ tn The word הִנֵּה (hinneh, traditionally “behold”) indicates becoming aware of something and has been translated here as a verb.

⁹ tn Or “like a dome.” See 1:22-26.

¹⁰ tn Heb “That was the living creature.”

¹¹ tn The Hebrew verb is feminine plural, indicating that it is the false prophetesses who are addressed here.

¹² tn Heb “place it on his head.”

¹³ sn Ezekiel’s contemporary, Jeremiah, also stressed the importance of obedience to the Sabbath law (Jer 17).

¹⁴ tn Heb “to become a sign between me and them.”

¹⁵ tn Or “set them apart.” The last phrase of verse 12 appears to be a citation of Exod 31:13.

¹⁶ tn Heb “my eye pitied.”

¹⁷ tn Heb “I lifted up my hand.”

¹⁸ sn Though the Pentateuch does not seem to know of this episode, Ps 106:26-27 may speak of God’s oath to exile the people before they had entered Canaan.

¹⁹ tn This is the same Hebrew verb used to describe the passing of the children through the fire.

²⁰ sn The metaphor may be based in Lev 27:32 (see also Jer 33:13; Matt 25:32-33). A shepherd would count his sheep as they passed beneath his staff.

²¹ tn Heb “A ruin, a ruin, a ruin I will make it.” The threefold repetition of the noun “ruin” is for emphasis and draws attention to the degree of ruin that would take place. See IBHS 233 §12.5a and GKC 431-32 §133.k. The pronominal suffix (translated “it”) on the verb “make” is feminine in Hebrew. The probable antecedent is the “turban/crown” (both nouns are feminine in form) mentioned in verse 26. The point is that the king’s royal splendor would be completely devastated as judgment overtook his realm and brought his reign to a violent end.

²² tn Heb “Also this, he was not, until the coming of the one to whom the judgment belongs and I have given it.” The Hebrew text, as it stands, is grammatically difficult. The pronoun “this” is feminine, while the following negated verb (“was not”) is masculine. Some emend the verb to a feminine form (see BHS). In this case the statement refers to the destiny of the king’s turban/crown (symbolizing his reign). See the previous note. The preposition translated “when” normally means “until,” but here it seems to refer to the period during which the preceding situation is realized, rather than its termination point. See L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:19, 21. The second part of the statement, though awkward, probably refers to the arrival of the Babylonian king, to whom the Lord had assigned the task of judgment (see 23:24). Or the verse may read “A total ruin I will make, even this. It will not be until the one comes to whom is (the task of) judgment and I have assigned it.”

²³ tn Heb “the sons of Ammon.”

²⁴ tn Heb “I will cut off from you.”

²⁵ tn Heb “all who aid her are broken.”

²⁶ sn The judgments of vv. 27-29 echo the judgments of Lev 26:22, 25.

²⁷ sn The messianic king (“David”) is called both “king” and “prince” in 37:24-25. The use of the term “prince” for this king facilitates the contrast between this ideal ruler and the Davidic “princes” denounced in earlier prophecies (see 7:27; 12:10, 12; 19:1; 21:25; 22:6, 25).

²⁸ tc The translation reads with some manuscripts לְשִׁמְמָה וּמְשַׁמָּה (lÿshimmah umÿshammah, “desolate ruin”) as in verse 3 and often in Ezekiel. The majority reading reverses the first mem (מ) with the shin (שׁ) resulting in the repetition of the word desolate: לְשִׁמְמָה וּשְׁמָמָה (lÿshimmah ushÿmamah).

²⁹ tn Or “kill.”

³⁰ sn The Lord here uses a metaphor from the realm of ritual purification. For the use of water in ritual cleansing, see Exod 30:19-20; Lev 14:51; Num 19:18; Heb 10:22.

³¹ tn Or “in the midst of you.” The word “you” is plural.

³² tn Heb “and I will do that which in my statutes you will walk.” The awkward syntax (verb “to do, act” + accusative sign + relative clause + prepositional phrase + second person verb) is unique, though Eccl 3:14 contains a similar construction. In the last line of that verse we read that “God acts so that (relative pronoun) they fear before him.” However, unlike Ezek 36:27, the statement has no accusative sign before the relative pronoun.

³³ tn Heb “and my laws you will guard and you will do them.” Jer 31:31-34 is parallel to this passage.

³⁴ sn This promise reflects the ancient covenantal ideal (see Exod 6:7).

³⁵ tn The word הִנֵּה (hinneh, traditionally “behold”) indicates becoming aware of something and has been translated here as a verb.

³⁶ tn Heb “came up.”

³⁷ tn Or “spirit.”

³⁸ sn See Ezek 11:19; 37:14.

³⁹ sn See Num 18:20; Deut 10:9; 18:2; Josh 13:33; 18:7.