Ezekiel 12:19
And say unto the people of the land, Thus saith the Lord GOD of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and of the land of Israel; They shall eat their bread with carefulness, and drink their water with astonishment, that her land may be desolate from all that is therein, because of the violence of all them that dwell therein.
And say unto the people of the land,.... Of Chaldea, where the prophet now was; not the natives of the land, but the Israelites, who were captives in it; who were ready to murmur and repine at their own case, as miserable; and at that of the Jews at Jerusalem, as happy; and therefore they are taught by this sign, as well as by the following prophecy, that they were mistaken:
Thus saith the Lord GOD of the inhabitants of Jerusalem; or to them, or "concerning" them {y}; whom the captives in Chaldea thought lived so happily, and would continue so:
and of the land of Israel; or, "upon the land of Israel" {z}; inhabitants on it; to this sense the Targum and Septuagint Version interpret it, and also Kimchi:
They shall eat their bread with carefulness, and drink their water with astonishment; meaning at the siege of Jerusalem, when they could not eat and drink in peace; but, while they were eating and drinking, were disturbed and put into fear and surprise by the besiegers; and also, hearing that their provisions would not hold out, were careful how they ate and drank, and were frightened with the thoughts of being reduced to extreme want:
that her land may be desolate from all that is therein; or, "from its fulness" {a}; men and cattle, cities, towns, houses, vineyards, fields, fruits, and plenty of all good things. Jarchi expounds it of riches:
because of the violence of all them that dwell therein; not the violence of the Chaldeans, making a prey of all they met with, plundering cities and towns, and making forage of the fruits of the earth, by which means the land was desolate; but the rapine, oppression, and injustice of the Jews, which were the cause of all these calamities which came upon their country.
{y} Mlvwry ybvwyl "habitatoribus Hierosolymorum", Montanus, Starckius; "de habitatoribus", Piscator; "de habitantibus Hierosolymam", Cocceius.
{z} larvy tmda la epi thv ghv tou israhl, Sept. "super terram Israel", Calvin; "in terram Israelis", Junius & Tremellius, Polanus; so Ben Melech.
{a} halmm "a plenitudine sua", Pagninus, Montanus, Cocceius, Starckius.