{"id":74223,"date":"2020-05-04T15:53:04","date_gmt":"2020-05-04T12:53:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/?p=74223"},"modified":"2020-05-04T15:53:04","modified_gmt":"2020-05-04T12:53:04","slug":"of-swords-and-fires","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/of-swords-and-fires\/","title":{"rendered":"Of Swords And Fires"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"entry-content\"><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[281],"tags":[],"acf":{"old_id":"74223","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":73524,"related_cahpter":"473","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content":{"description":"And parables, and the morals of the stories\r\n\r\n","content":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Chapter 21 begins with an enigmatic riddle \u2013 Ezekiel is asked to face south and prophesy to a forest about an upcoming destructive fire that will consume all the trees within. The rest of the chapter contains several other parables. While the commentators attempt to decipher the parable&#8217;s details, Rashi&#8217;s words on verse 18 are representative: \u201dI have heard various interpretations of it\u2026 but to my mind they do not resolve the text.\u201d At this point in time, Ezekiel plaintively complains that the people call him &#8220;a riddler&#8221; \u2013 which causes God to speak more succinctly with a clearer prophecy that leaves the people no excuse to claim that they didn&#8217;t understand the message. Verses 6-10 interpret beautifully what God intended by the first riddle about the forest fires.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The verse \u201cset your face toward the south; speak out against Darom, and prophesy against the brushland of the Negev\u201d (v. 2) is paralleled by \u201cset your face toward Jerusalem, speak out against her sanctuary, and prophesy against the land of Israel\u201d (v. 7). The three verbs in each verse are the same. Thus, Ezekiel referred to Jerusalem as &#8220;the south&#8221;, the sanctuary as Darom, and Israel as Negev. The verse <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0\u201cI am going to kindle a fire in you, which shall devour every tree of yours, both green and withered. Its leaping flame shall not go out, and every face from south to north shall be scorched by it&#8221; (v. 3) is paralleled by\u00a0 \u201cI will wipe out from you both the righteous and the wicked. In order to wipe out from you both the righteous and the wicked, My sword shall assuredly be unsheathed against all flesh from south to north\u201d <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(v. 8-9). Finally, both sets of verses conclude &#8220;<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> And all flesh shall know that I am the Lord&#8221;.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The major difference between the two sections is the replacement of the fire with a sword. This clarifies both God&#8217;s behavior, as well as what the people may have felt was occurring. Fires are both natural phenomena and they can burn indiscriminately, moving wherever the wind blows it. Once started, fires take on lives of their own. This is not true with a sword. Unless the sword is unsheathed, it can&#8217;t cause damage; and even when unsheathed, it still only causes damage with the intent of its holder who is directing its movement. The people may have felt that Babylonia had the force of a natural phenomenon. Empires arise, they conquer, they fall. This is the nature of history. No, says Ezekiel. Do not misinterpret the complete destruction that will occur as a natural event like a forest fire burning out of control. 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