{"id":73765,"date":"2018-07-09T17:47:36","date_gmt":"2018-07-09T14:47:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wall\/wall-472\/"},"modified":"2023-11-27T15:23:30","modified_gmt":"2023-11-27T13:23:30","slug":"wall-472","status":"publish","type":"wall","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/wall\/wall-472\/","title":{"rendered":"chapter-Prophets-Ezekiel-20"},"parent":0,"template":"","acf":{"type":"chapter","wall_id":"472","date":"20270621","book":"Ezekiel","chapter":"20","chapter_main_number":"472","books_group":"Prophets","posts":[{"order":1,"id":"73607","color":"#f8ebe3","size":"1","name":"JPS Audio Bible - Ezekiel Chapter 20 ","post_title":"JPS Audio Bible - Ezekiel Chapter 20","slug":"jps-audio-bible-ezekiel-chapter-20","old_id":"73607","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":34686,"post_title":"Soundcloud","slug":"soundcloud","old_id":"34686","first_name":"","last_name":"","description":"","short_description":"","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":34656,"alt":"","title":"491","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","width":300,"height":300,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","medium_large-width":300,"medium_large-height":300,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","large-width":300,"large-height":300,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","1536x1536-width":300,"1536x1536-height":300,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","2048x2048-width":300,"2048x2048-height":300,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","post_full_size-width":300,"post_full_size-height":300,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/491-2.jpg","home_baner-width":300,"home_baner-height":300}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"472","type_929":"4","show_author_image":true,"old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"","post_main_content_content":"","post_main_content_image":"","post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"JPS Audio Bible","tile_main_caption":"Ezekiel Chapter 20","tile_main_caption_size":"2","tile_sub_caption":"Hear the daily chapter","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":"","tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"https:\/\/soundcloud.com\/user-753876298\/jps_audio_bible_ezekiel_chapter_20","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","old_create_date":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Ezekiel","chapter":"20","chapter_main_number":"472","date":"20270621","wall_id":"472"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":2,"id":"118948","color":"#f6edf6","size":"1","name":"Names, Language, Dress ","post_title":"Names, Language, Dress","slug":"names-language-dress","old_id":"118948","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":78133,"post_title":"Josh Blechner","slug":"josh-blechner","old_id":"78133","first_name":"Josh ","last_name":"Blechner ","description":"Josh first finished the Tanach during Yeshiva in Mevaseret Zion. He and his daughter studied the Tanach again for her bat mitzvah. Josh has taught many classes on Tanach throughout the years and currently in the New Rochelle 929 group. When not studying for 929, Josh works as an in-house lawyer in New Jersey.","short_description":"Josh has taught many classes on Tanach throughout the years and currently in the New Rochelle 929 group, and is an in-house attorney in New Jersey. ","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":78134,"alt":"","title":"josh blechner","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","width":276,"height":351,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner-236x300.jpg","medium-width":236,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","medium_large-width":276,"medium_large-height":351,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","large-width":276,"large-height":351,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","1536x1536-width":276,"1536x1536-height":351,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","2048x2048-width":276,"2048x2048-height":351,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","post_full_size-width":276,"post_full_size-height":351,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/josh-blechner.jpg","home_baner-width":276,"home_baner-height":351}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"472","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"Some observations on the Egyptian experience\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

An oft-repeated midrash explains that while the Israelites were in Egypt they kept their names, their language, and their dress. The problem is that this midrash does not exist. There are varying forms of this midrash, but they do not list this particular trio of things together. One source is from Leviticus Rabbah chapter 32:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

R\u2019 Huna said in the name of Bar Kapparah: Because of four things Israel was redeemed from Egypt: They didn\u2019t change their names or their language, they didn\u2019t speak <\/span>lashon ha-ra<\/em> <\/span>(gossip)<\/span>, <\/span><\/i>and none of them was promiscuous.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Another is from Minor Pesikta, Devarim (Ki Tavo) 41a:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

And there they became a nation \u2013 this teaches that the Israelites were distinct there, in that their clothing, food and language was different from the Egyptians\u2019. They were identified and known as a separate nation, apart from the Egyptians.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

There are a few other earlier sources that list different combinations of the following: kindness, circumcision, Hebrew language, not learning Egyptian, and not revealing secrets as the things kept sacred in Egypt. At some point, these midrashim became merged into one that listed specifically names, language, and their dress.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Chapter 20 of Ezekiel shows that not everything was positive in Egypt:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

I also said to them: Cast away, every one of you, the detestable things that you are drawn to, and do not defile yourselves with the fetishes of Egypt\u2014I the LORD\u00a0 am your God. But they did not listen\u2026\u201d (verses 7-8).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The people were deeply involved in idol worship in Egypt. As <\/span>we discussed in Exodus 32 <\/span><\/a>in the story of the Golden Calf, the involvement in Egyptian mythology and idol worship may have led to the misunderstanding of the sin of the Golden Calf. Aaron may have tried to persuade the people by using the image of the goddess of the sky without a rider to show that God was not corporeal and that the people did not need Moses to act as an intermediary. Instead, the people interpreted the image as an instruction to worship the goddess of the sky in order to connect to God.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

So how did the famous midrash that does exist come to be?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

One theory is that later Hasidic rabbis wanted to emphasize the need for their communities to maintain separation from the forces of modernity and secularization around them. They focused on the three areas that were essential to them: keeping their unique dress instead of adopting contemporary dress, keeping Yiddish as their language and avoiding local dialects, and keeping their Jewish names. From here the message moved into the mainstream through the various Haggadah texts. While the content was altered the message is still the same through all of these sources. In order for the people to survive in exile it was important to maintain some unique traits, even if they shed others.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

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As I entered into judgment with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so will I enter into judgment with you\u2014declares the Lord GOD. I will make you pass under the shepherd\u2019s staff, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant. I will remove from you those who rebel and transgress against Me; I will take them out of the countries where they sojourn, but they shall not enter the land of Israel. Then you shall know that I am the LORD. (36-8)<\/span><\/p>\r\n

The timing of this ominous warning, which Ezekiel delivered to the elders of Israel \u201cin the 7<\/span>th<\/span> year on the 10<\/span>th<\/span> day of the 5<\/span>th<\/span> month\u201d (1), is of singular import. Assuming, as we stipulated in Chapter 1, that Ezekiel\u2019s chronological era began with the exile of Jehoiachin in 597, this gathering took place on 10 Av 591 BCE, four years to the day before the Temple would be destroyed (See Jeremiah 52:12.).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Medieval exegetes filled this coincidence with significance. As Radak wrote:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Each year God would give him a prophecy to rebuke them. Even though there were other prophecies, too, there was one particular one that was granted him in a particular year in which he was accompanied by the exiles or their elders. The first was in the 5<\/span>th<\/span> year of Jehoiachin\u2019s exile (1:2), another in the 6<\/span>th<\/span> year when \u201cthe elders of Judah sat before me\u201d (8:1), and, now, in the 7<\/span>th<\/span> year\u2026 The itemization of the month and day allude to the fact that on that date Jerusalem would be destroyed. God\u2019s intent was that the elders should approach the prophet to hear his rebuke on that day because it was on account of their sins and those of their ancestors that the Temple would be destroyed.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

It would appear, then, that the elders had come to pray that the Temple not be destroyed, but Ezekiel was told that God would resist their entreaties. Why? Malbim, relying on Abrabanel, replied by way of a close reading of the texts. The elders in 8:1 are designated \u201cthe elders of Judah\u201d while these elders are \u201cthe elders of Israel.\u201d According to this interpretation, the former is a designation reserved for righteous elders; therefore, the elders of this chapter had no virtue to rely on.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

* \u201cThreat of a Second Exodus\u201d - This is how our chapter is entitled in Moshe Greenberg: <\/span>Ezekiel<\/span><\/i> (Anchor Bible). I chose to feature it on account of the coincidence that finds me writing these comments during Chol Hamoed Pesach.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":73333,"alt":"","title":"ez8-exile","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez8-exile.jpg","width":1024,"height":683,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez8-exile-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez8-exile-300x200.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":200,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez8-exile-768x512.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":512,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez8-exile-1024x683.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":683,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez8-exile.jpg","1536x1536-width":1024,"1536x1536-height":683,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez8-exile.jpg","2048x2048-width":1024,"2048x2048-height":683,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez8-exile.jpg","post_full_size-width":1024,"post_full_size-height":683,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez8-exile-630x420.jpg","home_baner-width":630,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"Threat of a Second Exodus","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"In the 7th year on the 10th day of the 5th month - an ominous warning","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":73333,"alt":"","title":"ez8-exile","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez8-exile.jpg","width":1024,"height":683,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez8-exile-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez8-exile-300x200.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":200,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez8-exile-768x512.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":512,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez8-exile-1024x683.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":683,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez8-exile.jpg","1536x1536-width":1024,"1536x1536-height":683,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez8-exile.jpg","2048x2048-width":1024,"2048x2048-height":683,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez8-exile.jpg","post_full_size-width":1024,"post_full_size-height":683,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/ez8-exile-630x420.jpg","home_baner-width":630,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Ezekiel","chapter":"20","chapter_main_number":"472","date":"20270621","wall_id":"472"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":4,"id":"74104","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"Ezekiel The Historiographer ","post_title":"Ezekiel The Historiographer","slug":"ezekiel-the-historiographer","old_id":"74104","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":73524,"post_title":"Yaakov Beasley","slug":"yaakov-beasley","old_id":"73524","first_name":"Yaakov ","last_name":"Beasley ","description":"Yaakov Beasley is the Tanakh Coordinator at Yeshivat Hesder Lev haTorah, the host of the TanachTalks podcast, and the author of Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah: Lights in the Valley (Maggid Press, 2020). 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","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":73525,"alt":"","title":"yaakov beasley","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/yaakov-beasley.jpg","width":409,"height":484,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/yaakov-beasley-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/yaakov-beasley-254x300.jpg","medium-width":254,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/yaakov-beasley.jpg","medium_large-width":409,"medium_large-height":484,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/yaakov-beasley.jpg","large-width":409,"large-height":484,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/yaakov-beasley.jpg","1536x1536-width":409,"1536x1536-height":484,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/yaakov-beasley.jpg","2048x2048-width":409,"2048x2048-height":484,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/yaakov-beasley.jpg","post_full_size-width":409,"post_full_size-height":484,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/yaakov-beasley-355x420.jpg","home_baner-width":355,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"472","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"The three movements of Israel\u2019s history\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

Chapter 20 begins with Ezekiel recounting how \u201ccertain of the elders of Israel came to inquire of the Lord and sat before me.\u201d Most of the commentators suggest that they weren't pious \u2013 rather, they were looking for an excuse from Ezekiel to justify the cancellation of the covenant (from the people's perspective), just as a divorced wife is no longer responsible for her husband's welfare (Rashi). God uses the opportunity not only to upbraid the elders for their dishonesty, but to argue that this deception began in the earliest stages of Israel's history.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Here begins one of the most fascinating exercises in historiography in all of the prophets.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Ezekiel opens with the beginning of the Jewish people, which he dates to their becoming a nation in Egypt. He describes a specific pattern of behavior, beginning with the people and followed by God's response. Ezekiel describes three movements of Israel's history:<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    \r\n\t
  1. Israel in Egypt (v. 5-9)<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
  2. The first generation in the desert (v. 10-17)<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
  3. The second generation in the desert (vv. 18-26)<\/span><\/li>\r\n<\/ol>\r\n

    The larger pattern is as follows \u2013 God establishes laws for the people (or reminds or rebukes them regarding statutes that were given), inevitably followed by the Jewish people violating the statutes. This leads to a period of Divine anger and God planning to annihilate the nation, but ultimately God chooses to forgo the full punishment for the sake of His Name.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    In the first cycle, God chooses Israel, and chooses for them a bountiful land for them to live in \u2013 on the condition that they reject their idolatry: \" So says the Lord God, On the day I chose Israel \u2026 to bring them out of the land of Egypt, to a land that I had sought out for them, flowing with milk and honey; it is the glory of all the lands\" (v. 5-6). Yet, the people refuse to forsake their idols.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    In the second cycle, Ezekiel emphasizes the greatness of the laws that God gave them at Sinai, laws that \"if a man perform [them], he shall live through them\" (v. 11). Yet, the people rebel again. Despite this, God chooses not to finish them in the desert \"For the sake of His Great Name.\"\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    The final cycle is addressed to the following generations: \u201cDo not follow the statutes of your parents\u201d (v. 18). Again, Ezekiel emphasizes the greatness of the laws \u2013 yet Israel rejects God again.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    This speech is significant not only for Ezekiel's negative portrayal of the Jewish people, who continually violate God\u2019s laws and are unworthy of redemption. But more importantly, Ezekiel reveals the secret of their survival \u2013 the lowly state of the Jewish people is a <\/span>chillul Hashem \u2013 <\/span><\/i>a desecration of God's name. So too, suggests Ezekiel, the future redemption is not dependent on the righteousness of the people but the need to restore honour to God's name.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":74105,"alt":"","title":"ez20-triangle","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-triangle.jpg","width":1920,"height":1472,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-triangle-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-triangle-300x230.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":230,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-triangle-768x589.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":589,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-triangle-1024x785.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":785,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-triangle.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1178,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-triangle.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1472,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-triangle-1200x920.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":920,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-triangle-548x420.jpg","home_baner-width":548,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"Ezekiel The Historiographer","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"The three movements of Israel\u2019s history","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":74105,"alt":"","title":"ez20-triangle","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-triangle.jpg","width":1920,"height":1472,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-triangle-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-triangle-300x230.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":230,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-triangle-768x589.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":589,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-triangle-1024x785.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":785,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-triangle.jpg","1536x1536-width":1536,"1536x1536-height":1178,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-triangle.jpg","2048x2048-width":1920,"2048x2048-height":1472,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-triangle-1200x920.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":920,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-triangle-548x420.jpg","home_baner-width":548,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Ezekiel","chapter":"20","chapter_main_number":"472","date":"20270621","wall_id":"472"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":5,"id":"74111","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"\u2018You Shall Live by Them\u2019: Assimilation Threatens Israel\u2019s National Existence ","post_title":"\u2018You Shall Live by Them\u2019: Assimilation Threatens Israel\u2019s National Existence","slug":"you-shall-live-by-them-assimilation-threatens-israels-national-existence","old_id":"74111","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":38322,"post_title":"James A. Diamond","slug":"james-a-diamond","old_id":"38322","first_name":"James ","last_name":"Diamond ","description":"Prof. James A. Diamond holds the Joseph and Wolf Lebovic Chair of Jewish Studies at the University of Waterloo. His most recent book is \u201cJewish Theology Unbound\u201d published by Oxford University Press. ","short_description":"Prof. James A. Diamond holds the Joseph and Wolf Lebovic Chair of Jewish Studies at the University of Waterloo.","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":38323,"alt":"","title":"James Diamond","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/James-Diamond-e1534858914913.jpg","width":1186,"height":1386,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/James-Diamond-e1534858914913-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/James-Diamond-e1534858914913-257x300.jpg","medium-width":257,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/James-Diamond-e1534858914913-768x898.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":898,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/James-Diamond-e1534858914913-876x1024.jpg","large-width":876,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/James-Diamond-e1534858914913.jpg","1536x1536-width":1186,"1536x1536-height":1386,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/James-Diamond-e1534858914913.jpg","2048x2048-width":1186,"2048x2048-height":1386,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/James-Diamond-e1534858914913-1027x1200.jpg","post_full_size-width":1027,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/James-Diamond-e1534858914913-359x420.jpg","home_baner-width":359,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"472","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"You call that living!?\u00a0\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

    Ezekiel\u2019s prophetic critique of Israel\u2019s increasingly undeserved reputation as a champion of God\u2019s \u201cname\u201d in this chapter stands out in two ways. The first is the thrice repeated breach of God\u2019s laws (<\/span>chukim<\/span><\/em>) and rules (<\/span>mishpatim<\/span><\/em>) by which the people \u201clive\u201d (<\/span>ve\u2019chai ba\u2019hem<\/span><\/em>) (v. 11, 13, 21). This is a rare prophetic recitation of its original formulation in Lev. 18:5 where God identifies His <\/span>chukim<\/span><\/em> and <\/span>mishpatim<\/span><\/em> as comprising the framework \u201cby which man shall live.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    In typical biblical \u2018measure for measure\u2019 justice, those practices by which the people assimilated to foreign cultures, turned into laws and rules \u201cby which they could not live\u201d (v.25).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    The second is specifying Israel\u2019s desecration of the Sabbath. Ezekiel outdoes other prophets in his repeated accentuation of Sabbath violation as an irreparable rupture in the relationship between God and Israel, reprimanding the people no less than six times for this transgressive conduct. Perhaps the number six reflects Israel\u2019s deteriorating worldview informed by six weekdays-an exclusively profane life as opposed to a sacred life the number seven represents.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    Yet the question remains as to why Ezekiel singles out Sabbath violation. The answer resides in the integral connection between the Law\u2019s role as a code to \u201clive by\u201d and the Sabbath. One of the most crucial rabbinic reforms was their ingenious reading of Lev. 18:5: <\/span>Shall live by them<\/span><\/i>, the verse commands, \u201cand not die by them\u201d the rabbis added. That innocent extrapolation - not the simple sense of the verse - generated the supreme halakhic principle that the value of life supersedes God\u2019s law. Violating law is mandated, not just permitted, when fulfillment endangers life (<\/span>pikuach nefesh<\/span><\/em>). So paramount is this that Maimonides requires the greatest of Israel\u2019s sages to perform the \u2018violation\u2019 \u201cin order not to minimize Sabbath\u2019s importance\u201d- affirming its sanctification rather than desecration.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    This biblical stricture \u201cto live by them\u201d reflects another dimension of Jewish life. God did not reveal simply a religion but a comprehensive code of conduct ensuring the coherent life of a nation. In addition to rabbinic consideration of Sabbath as the paradigmatic example of the principle \u201cyou shall live by them\u201d (<\/span>Yomah<\/span><\/i> 85b), the earliest recorded historical enactment of this principle was the Maccabees\u2019 decision to defend against Greek attacks on the Sabbath for if \u201cwe fight not for our lives and laws against the heathen, they will now quickly root us out of the earth.\u201d(1<\/span>Maccabees<\/span><\/i> 2:43) Note the two-pronged argument. Breaking the Sabbath guaranteed its principal aims- perpetuating a legal system reflecting a unique culture and survival of individual and national life.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    Sabbath was the most distinctive mark of Israel\u2019s national life among its neighbours. Violating it then was not simply a \u2018religious\u2019 affront to God, but an overt expression of assimilation to \u201cbecome like the nations\u201d(v.32). In this case the people\u2019s rejection of the Sabbath strategically undermined the directive \u201clive by them\u201d, forming part of a concerted effort at destroying Israel\u2019s distinct national life and identity.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":74116,"alt":"","title":"ez20-Assimilation-300x289","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-Assimilation-300x289.jpg","width":300,"height":289,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-Assimilation-300x289-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-Assimilation-300x289-300x289.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":289,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-Assimilation-300x289.jpg","medium_large-width":300,"medium_large-height":289,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-Assimilation-300x289.jpg","large-width":300,"large-height":289,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-Assimilation-300x289.jpg","1536x1536-width":300,"1536x1536-height":289,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-Assimilation-300x289.jpg","2048x2048-width":300,"2048x2048-height":289,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-Assimilation-300x289.jpg","post_full_size-width":300,"post_full_size-height":289,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-Assimilation-300x289.jpg","home_baner-width":300,"home_baner-height":289}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"\u2018You Shall Live by Them\u2019: Assimilation Threatens Israel\u2019s National Existence","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"You call that living!?\u00a0","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":74116,"alt":"","title":"ez20-Assimilation-300x289","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-Assimilation-300x289.jpg","width":300,"height":289,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-Assimilation-300x289-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-Assimilation-300x289-300x289.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":289,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-Assimilation-300x289.jpg","medium_large-width":300,"medium_large-height":289,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-Assimilation-300x289.jpg","large-width":300,"large-height":289,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-Assimilation-300x289.jpg","1536x1536-width":300,"1536x1536-height":289,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-Assimilation-300x289.jpg","2048x2048-width":300,"2048x2048-height":289,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-Assimilation-300x289.jpg","post_full_size-width":300,"post_full_size-height":289,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/ez20-Assimilation-300x289.jpg","home_baner-width":300,"home_baner-height":289}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Ezekiel","chapter":"20","chapter_main_number":"472","date":"20270621","wall_id":"472"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":6,"id":"74107","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"2","name":"Changing God\u2019s Decrees For The Better ","post_title":"Changing God\u2019s Decrees For The Better","slug":"changing-gods-decrees-for-the-better","old_id":"74107","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":34250,"post_title":"Sarah Rudolph","slug":"sarah-rudolph","old_id":"34250","first_name":"Sarah ","last_name":"Rudolph","description":"Sarah Rudolph is a freelance Jewish educator, writer, and editor. She has been sharing her passion for Jewish texts of all kinds for over 15 years, with students of all ages. Sarah\u2019s essays have been published in a variety of internet and print media, including Times of Israel, Kveller, Jewish Action, OU Life, The Lehrhaus, TorahMusings, and more. Sarah lives in Cleveland with her husband and four children, but is privileged to learn online with students all over the world through www.TorahTutors.org and www.WebYeshiva.org. \r\n\r\n","short_description":"Sarah Rudolph is a freelance Jewish educator, writer, and editor.","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":34251,"alt":"","title":"Sarah R","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Sarah-R.jpg","width":2824,"height":4246,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Sarah-R-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Sarah-R-200x300.jpg","medium-width":200,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Sarah-R-681x1024.jpg","medium_large-width":681,"medium_large-height":1024,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Sarah-R-681x1024.jpg","large-width":681,"large-height":1024,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Sarah-R.jpg","1536x1536-width":1022,"1536x1536-height":1536,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Sarah-R.jpg","2048x2048-width":1362,"2048x2048-height":2048,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Sarah-R-798x1200.jpg","post_full_size-width":798,"post_full_size-height":1200,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/Sarah-R-279x420.jpg","home_baner-width":279,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"472","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"Despite Israel\u2019s extensive rap sheet, and their extensive hypocrisy, there will be forgiveness and return\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

    In Ezekiel 14 and again in chapter 20, elders of Israel visit the prophet in order to seek God.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    On both occasions, God responds with derision. In 14:3, He asks the prophet rhetorically, \u201cshall I be sought by them?\u201d In 20:3, He instructs Ezekiel to say to the elders directly, \u201cAre you coming to seek Me? As I live, I will not be sought by you!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    Why reject them so forcefully? A quest to find God sounds like a noble goal, even an act of repentance that should serve to reopen any lines of connection broken by past sins. As Deuteronomy 4:29 proclaims, after describing a fall into idolatry, \u201cBut\u2026 you will find Him, if you seek Him with all your heart and soul.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    But perhaps these elders aren\u2019t truly seeking Him with all their hearts and souls. Both Radak and Rashi stress in their comments on 14:1 that while the elders pretended to seek God, their true intent was evil. Rabbi <\/span>Yechiel Tzvi Moskowitz offers a slightly softer characterization: Perhaps they honestly want the prophet \u201cto seek God on their behalf\u201d \u2013 but they hypocritically refuse to abandon their idolatrous ways.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    Something, however, seems to change between chapters 14 and 20. While previously it was an inference (and a pretense), in chapter 20 the prophet states explicitly that these elders \u201ccame to seek God\u201d (v. 1). This time, Radak asserts, \u201cthese elders came to seek God, and they were righteous.\u201d Perhaps the imminence of Jerusalem\u2019s destruction inspired their newfound sincerity; perhaps, as Moskowitz suggests, their efforts now included a [reasonable] claim based on God\u2019s ancient promises to His people.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    Even with the claim of those ancient promises, however, it is not so easy. Much of chapter 20 is then devoted to reminding these bold elders of Israel\u2019s extensive rap sheet, sins from ancient times right up to their own day \u2013 and given all that, once again, \u201cshall I be sought by you? By My life\u2026 I shall not be sought by you!\u201d (20:31).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    And yet \u2013 there is indeed an ancient promise to uphold, and so the prophecy begins to make a subtle shift: Despite (or through) the anger palpable in most of the chapter, somehow it ends with the ingathering of Israel\u2019s exiles (\u201c\u2026 with overflowing fury\u2026 gather you from the lands where you are scattered\u201d \u2013 vs. 33-34) and their eventual repentance (\u201cto the country that I swore to give to your fathers\u2026There you will recall your ways\u201d \u2013 vs. 42-43). Rejection is complicated; the quest for God can still succeed, at least \u201cfor My Name\u2019s sake\u201d (v. 44).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    Rashi notes in his comment on 20:3 that although God declares He will not be sought by these evil hypocrites, a later verse expresses His commitment to do exactly that: \u201cI will yet for this be sought by the house of Israel, to do for them\u201d (36:37) \u2013 for even God\u2019s own decrees can always be changed for the better.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":"","post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"Changing God\u2019s Decrees For The Better","tile_main_caption":"Despite Israel\u2019s extensive rap sheet, and their extensive hypocrisy, there will be forgiveness and return","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":"","tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Ezekiel","chapter":"20","chapter_main_number":"472","date":"20270621","wall_id":"472"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":7,"id":"74033","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"The Special Status Of Shabbat ","post_title":"The Special Status Of Shabbat","slug":"the-special-status-of-shabbat","old_id":"74033","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":72948,"post_title":"Tova Ganzel","slug":"tova-ganzel","old_id":"72948","first_name":"Tova ","last_name":"Ganzel ","description":"Dr. Tova Ganzel is the Director of the Midrasha at Bar-Ilan University, and is one the first trained women\u2019s halakhic advisors (Yoatzot Halacha). She received her PhD from Bar-Ilan\u2019s Department of Bible Studies, and teaches at the Institute for Advanced Torah Studies at Bar-Ilan University. Her work is mainly on the Hebrew Bible in the context of the larger ancient Near Eastern world. \r\n","short_description":"Dr. Tova Ganzel is the Director of the Midrasha at Bar-Ilan University, and is one the first trained women\u2019s halakhic advisors (Yoatzot Halacha).","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":72949,"alt":"","title":"tova ganzel","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tova-ganzel.jpg","width":892,"height":1000,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tova-ganzel-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tova-ganzel-268x300.jpg","medium-width":268,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tova-ganzel-768x861.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":861,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tova-ganzel.jpg","large-width":892,"large-height":1000,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tova-ganzel.jpg","1536x1536-width":892,"1536x1536-height":1000,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tova-ganzel.jpg","2048x2048-width":892,"2048x2048-height":1000,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tova-ganzel.jpg","post_full_size-width":892,"post_full_size-height":1000,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/04\/tova-ganzel-375x420.jpg","home_baner-width":375,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"472","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"Ezekiel gives a new interpretation\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

    This chapter illustrates the cyclical process of history going back to the slavery in Egypt: The nation of Israel violates God\u2019s laws and as a result is deemed unworthy of redemption \u2013 even survival. But nonetheless the nation is restored to its land to prevent God\u2019s Name from being desecrated in the eyes of the nations. The desecration of God\u2019s Name lies not only in the actual transgression of His laws, but also by how this betrayal is perceived by the nations. Thus the repair of this desecration \u2013 the sanctification of God\u2019s Name \u2013 must likewise also be \u201cbefore the nations\u201d: through the ingathering of the people of Israel from the places to which they have been scattered.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    The commandment of Shabbat enjoys a place of honor in the book of Ezekiel. What makes Ezekiel\u2019s attitude towards Shabbat special is not that he mentions it more often than the other prophets, but that he views Shabbat as a sign and symbol \u2013 not of the Creation of the world - but of the special sanctity of Israel.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    The testimony offered by the Shabbat that \u201cI am the Lord your God\u201d \u2013 is a concept unique to Ezekiel; there is no parallel to it elsewhere in the Torah. This accentuates the importance of Shabbat: through its observance, the nation not only expresses its sanctity, but also testifies to and calls to consciousness the fact that the Lord is their God. Conversely, the breach of Shabbat is testimony to the distance between the nation and their God.\u00a0 This ultimately led to the defiling of the Temple and its Destruction.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    Published in conjunction with hatanach.com. <\/span>See here for the full article<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    image:\u00a0Image: Renanim Synagogue, Heichal Shlomo, Jerusalem, Israel \/ 2014<\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":68274,"alt":"","title":"is56-shabbat","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/is56-shabbat.jpg","width":378,"height":470,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/is56-shabbat-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/is56-shabbat-241x300.jpg","medium-width":241,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/is56-shabbat.jpg","medium_large-width":378,"medium_large-height":470,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/is56-shabbat.jpg","large-width":378,"large-height":470,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/is56-shabbat.jpg","1536x1536-width":378,"1536x1536-height":470,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/is56-shabbat.jpg","2048x2048-width":378,"2048x2048-height":470,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/is56-shabbat.jpg","post_full_size-width":378,"post_full_size-height":470,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/is56-shabbat-338x420.jpg","home_baner-width":338,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"","tile_main_caption":"The Special Status Of Shabbat","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Ezekiel gives a new interpretation","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":68274,"alt":"","title":"is56-shabbat","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/is56-shabbat.jpg","width":378,"height":470,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/is56-shabbat-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/is56-shabbat-241x300.jpg","medium-width":241,"medium-height":300,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/is56-shabbat.jpg","medium_large-width":378,"medium_large-height":470,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/is56-shabbat.jpg","large-width":378,"large-height":470,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/is56-shabbat.jpg","1536x1536-width":378,"1536x1536-height":470,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/is56-shabbat.jpg","2048x2048-width":378,"2048x2048-height":470,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/is56-shabbat.jpg","post_full_size-width":378,"post_full_size-height":470,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/is56-shabbat-338x420.jpg","home_baner-width":338,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Ezekiel","chapter":"20","chapter_main_number":"472","date":"20270621","wall_id":"472"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":8,"id":"118943","color":"#f6edf6","size":"1","name":"The Tanakh Podcast-Ezekiel20 ","post_title":"The Tanakh Podcast-Ezekiel20","slug":"the-tanakh-podcast-ezekiel20","old_id":"118943","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":33692,"post_title":"Alex Israel","slug":"33692-2","old_id":"33692","first_name":"Alex","last_name":"Israel","description":"Alex Israel teaches Tanakh at the Pardes Institute, Yeshivat Eretz Hatzvi and Matan, Jerusalem. 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    The elders come to Ezekiel seeking guidance from God and God\u2019s answer, slightly paraphrased, is almost comically sarcastic: \u201cReally, you\u2019re coming to inquire about me? Well, I\u2019ve got something to tell you.\u201d And for the remainder of this chapter God enumerates the many times He tried to establish a relationship with the Jewish nation and was rejected. Each time they turned to idols and for each episode God reminds them that they \u201cdid not follow My decrees, they spurned My laws, and they desecrated my Sabbaths (20:13).\u201d Similar language is reiterated throughout this chapter.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    Why, of all the decrees and laws that God could use as an example does he specifically invoke \u201cMy sabbaths\u201d? And why \u201csabbaths\u201d in the plural? Abarbanel comments that the pluralized sabbaths refers to the seventh day of the week as well as the seventh year \u2013 the sabbatical year in which fields are left fallow, and the year after the seventh cycle of sabbaticals \u2013 the jubilee year in which again, no agricultural work is done. All these rest periods are granted to the nation as times for setting aside the physical world and reflecting on and strengthening our relationship with God.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    This unique status of sabbath is reflected in the ten commandments in which only one ritual practice is included: the fourth commandment, to keep the sabbath. Rabbi Yosef Kara explains that \u201cwhen Israel observes Shabbat, they testify that God created the world in six days.\u201d The Radak comments that the special nature of Shabbat transforms it into a symbol for all commandments.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    That is precisely what God is trying to impress upon the nation when He repeatedly, throughout Tanach says, \u201cFollow My law, observe My rules and sanctify My sabbaths, that they may be a sign between Me and you, that you may know that I the Lord am your God (20:19-20).\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    It is the breach of the sabbaths that signals to God that His people have pulled away from Him. If they cannot acknowledge God\u2019s providence, then ultimately, they will gravitate towards other transgressions, including idol worship. 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","post_title":"What Is This So-Called High Place?","slug":"what-is-this-so-called-high-place","old_id":"74005","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":54356,"post_title":"Robert Alter","slug":"robert-alter","old_id":"54356","first_name":"Robert ","last_name":"Alter","description":"Robert Alter is the Class of 1937 Professor of Hebrew and Comparative Literature at the University of California at Berkeley, where he has taught since 1967. He has written over twenty books, focusing on such topics as the European novel from the 18th century to the present, contemporary American fiction, and modern Hebrew literature. He has also written extensively on the literary aspects of the Bible. His most recent work is his monumental three volume translation of the entire Hebrew Bible - The Hebrew Bible, W. W. Norton & Co., 2019 - from which the selections in 929 are taken. 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Norton & Co., 2019.","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":54357,"alt":"","title":"robert alter","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","width":184,"height":275,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","medium-width":184,"medium-height":275,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","medium_large-width":184,"medium_large-height":275,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","large-width":184,"large-height":275,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","1536x1536-width":184,"1536x1536-height":275,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","2048x2048-width":184,"2048x2048-height":275,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","post_full_size-width":184,"post_full_size-height":275,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/robert-alter.jpg","home_baner-width":184,"home_baner-height":275}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"472","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"A derisive etymology\r\n\r\n","post_main_content_content":"

    20:29 \u201cAnd I said to them, What is the high place to which you come? And its name has been called <\/span>high place<\/span><\/i> to this day.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    The Hebrew exhibits a derisive false etymology: \u201chigh place\u201d is <\/span>bamah<\/span><\/em>; \u201cwhat\u201d is <\/span>mah<\/span><\/em>; the first syllable of \u201ccome\u201d is <\/span>ba<\/span><\/em>. (James Moffatt, with some ingenuity and a little strain, conveys this in English as: \u201cWhat is this high place you hie to?) The implication of the ad hoc etymology is that the very name <\/span>bamah<\/span><\/em> reflects the fact that it is something alien, scarcely comprehensible.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

    From: Robert Alter, The Hebrew Bible<\/em>, vol. 2: Prophets, W. W. Norton & Co., 2019, ad loc. By permission of the author.<\/span><\/p>","post_main_content_image":{"id":54890,"alt":"","title":"Alter-Cover","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","width":1200,"height":693,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-300x173.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":173,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-768x444.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":444,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-1024x591.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":591,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","1536x1536-width":1200,"1536x1536-height":693,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","2048x2048-width":1200,"2048x2048-height":693,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-1200x693.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":693,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-727x420.jpg","home_baner-width":727,"home_baner-height":420}},"post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"From Robert Alter's Bible Translation and Commentary","tile_main_caption":"What Is This So-Called High Place?","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"A derisive etymology","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":54890,"alt":"","title":"Alter-Cover","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","width":1200,"height":693,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-150x150.jpg","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-300x173.jpg","medium-width":300,"medium-height":173,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-768x444.jpg","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":444,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-1024x591.jpg","large-width":1024,"large-height":591,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","1536x1536-width":1200,"1536x1536-height":693,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover.jpg","2048x2048-width":1200,"2048x2048-height":693,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-1200x693.jpg","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":693,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/Alter-Cover-727x420.jpg","home_baner-width":727,"home_baner-height":420}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Ezekiel","chapter":"20","chapter_main_number":"472","date":"20270621","wall_id":"472"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":11,"id":"73623","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"A Lesson on the Daily Chapter- Ezekiel 20 ","post_title":"A Lesson on the Daily Chapter- Ezekiel 20","slug":"a-lesson-on-the-daily-chapter-ezekiel-20","old_id":"73623","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":40936,"post_title":"David Silber","slug":"david-silber-2","old_id":"40936","first_name":"David ","last_name":"Silber ","description":"Rabbi David Silber is the Founder and Dean of Drisha Institute for Jewish Education. 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    \u201cHow the prophets interpreted the Exodus for their generation\u201d<\/a> by Beni Romm: Exodus as a multi-generational lesson<\/p>\r\n

    \u201cLearning Torah as a Song\u201d<\/a> by Netanel Amar: A different approach to learning Torah<\/p>\r\n

     <\/p>","post_main_content_image":"","post_main_content_embedded_video":"","post_main_content_video_duration":"","post_main_content_show_fb_comments":"1","post_main_content_credit_media":"","tile_top_caption":"Go deeper into the chapter....","tile_main_caption":"Source Sheets - Ezekiel 20","tile_main_caption_size":"1","tile_sub_caption":"Links to learning resources","tile_preview_embedded":"","tile_preview_image":{"id":42232,"alt":"","title":"sefaria-words-sunburst","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","width":608,"height":395,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst-300x195.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":195,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","medium_large-width":608,"medium_large-height":395,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","large-width":608,"large-height":395,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","1536x1536-width":608,"1536x1536-height":395,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","2048x2048-width":608,"2048x2048-height":395,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","post_full_size-width":608,"post_full_size-height":395,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/10\/sefaria-words-sunburst.png","home_baner-width":608,"home_baner-height":395}},"tile_preview_video":"","tile_external_link":"","tile_tile_gallery_items":"","tile_credits":"Sefaria word sunburst visualization","alternate_tile_top_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption":"","alternate_tile_main_caption_size":"1","alternate_tile_sub_caption":"","alternate_tile_hide_media":"0","tile_group_preview_image_url":"","tile_group_main_caption":"","tile_group_sub_caption":"","tile_group_popup_package_extra_content":"","tile_group_read_time":"","home_color":"","home_gallery_top":"","home_gallery_middle":"","home_gallery_book":"","home_gallery_bottom":"","seo_seo_title":"","seo_seo_description":"","seo_seo_default_title":"","seo_seo_default_description":"","old_create_date":"","links":false,"chapter_info":{"books_group":"Prophets","book":"Ezekiel","chapter":"20","chapter_main_number":"472","date":"20270621","wall_id":"472"},"link_for_pay":false,"tags":false},{"order":13,"id":"74004","color":"#e2f4fa","size":"1","name":"Points to Ponder - Ezekiel 20 ","post_title":"Points to Ponder - Ezekiel 20","slug":"points-to-ponder-ezekiel-20","old_id":"74004","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":{"id":38102,"post_title":"929-English","slug":"929-english","old_id":"38102","first_name":"","last_name":"929-English","description":"","short_description":"","credit":"","image_url":"","hide_writer":false,"link_for_pay":false,"image":{"id":38333,"alt":"","title":"\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5","caption":"","description":"","mime_type":"image\/png","url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5.png","width":1513,"height":860,"sizes":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5-150x150.png","thumbnail-width":150,"thumbnail-height":150,"medium":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5-300x171.png","medium-width":300,"medium-height":171,"medium_large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5-768x437.png","medium_large-width":768,"medium_large-height":437,"large":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5-1024x582.png","large-width":1024,"large-height":582,"1536x1536":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5.png","1536x1536-width":1513,"1536x1536-height":860,"2048x2048":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5.png","2048x2048-width":1513,"2048x2048-height":860,"post_full_size":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5-1200x682.png","post_full_size-width":1200,"post_full_size-height":682,"home_baner":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/08\/\u05dc\u05d5\u05d2\u05d5-739x420.png","home_baner-width":739,"home_baner-height":420}},"tags":false},"related_cahpter":"472","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content_description":"","post_main_content_content":"

      \r\n\t
    1. A matter of time<\/em>. There is a date to this prophecy: \u201cIn the seventh year, on the tenth day of the fifth month\u201d (v. 1), which is essentially the 9th of Av in the seventh year of the exile of Jehoiachin. In about two years, the siege will begin; in four, the Temple will be destroyed. Ezekiel is already speaking of the return. But not in a very comforting way\u2026<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
    2. Bad laws<\/em>? According to verses 25-26, part of the punishment is God deliberately causing Israel to fail. This is not the first time this has happened in the Biblical text: that\u2019s how it was with Pharaoh (Exodus 7), and with the sons of Eli (I Sam. 2), and even according to Elijah (I Kings 18), that\u2019s what happened during Ahab\u2019s time. That might be what\u2019s happening now to the people. God has tricked the people with a law that he gave. According to the context, the issue was how to apply the law of the first-born - \u201cWhen they set aside every first issue of the womb, I defiled them by their very gifts\u201d (v. 26). Apparently the people interpret the law to mean sacrificing their children. And thus: \u201c I gave them laws that were not good and rules by which they could not live\u201d (v. 25). But there are also other interpretations.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
    3. There\u2019s a desert on the way<\/em>. The Exodus from Egypt led through a desert. The return from the Exile will also go through a desert, \u201cthe desert [or wilderness] of the peoples\u201d (v. 35). And just like in the generation of the previous desert, the sinners will not reach the promised land.<\/span><\/li>\r\n\t
    4. There are more right answers<\/em>. Why will Israel return from the Exile? According to this chapter, it\u2019s not because of merit - but the opposite. This is the way to deal with the deep sin, to judge the people, and only at the end of the long process, to achieve the necessary correction, and the awareness that \u201cI am the LORD.\u201d But that\u2019s not the only answer. We have already heard about the approach that speaks of love and mercy that accompany the redemption. Even Ezekiel will speak differently after the Destruction. 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