“You!
O son of man!
Take a sharp sword!
Use it
As a barber’s razor!
Run it over your head!
Run it over your beard!
Then take the balances
For weighing!
Divide the hair!”
Yahweh gave Ezekiel, the son of man, a series of commands to do another symbolic action. Ezekiel was to take a sharp sword and use it as a barber’s razor on his head and beard. It must have been common for men to have a full beard with a full head of hair. Then Ezekiel was to weigh all his hair and divide it up.
“While gentle silence enveloped all things,
Night in its swift course was now half gone.
Your all powerful word leaped from heaven.
He leaped from the royal throne,
Into the midst of the land that was doomed.
He was a stern warrior.
He carried the sharp sword of your authentic command.
He stood.
He filled all things with death.
He touched heaven
While standing on the earth.”
That night in silence, the all powerful word of God (ὁ παντοδύναμός σου λόγος) leapt from heaven (ἀπ᾿ οὐρανῶν). In the original Exodus story in chapters 11-12, it is God, Yahweh himself, who kills the infants at midnight. Here it is the word of God who came from his royal throne (ἐκ θρόνων βασιλειῶν) as a stern warrior with a sharp sword. He was the one who killed all the first born children while still touching heaven (οὐρανοῦ) here on earth (γῆς).
“God will send forth his steadfast love!
God will send forth his faithfulness!
I lie down among lions.
They greedily devour human prey.
Their teeth are spears and arrows.
Their tongues are sharp swords.
Be exalted!
O God!
Above the heavens!
Let your glory
Be over all the earth!”
Sandwiched in between 2 praises of God is David with the lions. There was no specific mention of this in any of the stories of David. This might be a metaphor for his enemies and foes. David lies down among the lions that were looking for human prey. The lion’s teeth were like spears and arrows, while their tongue was like a sharp sword. David was sure the God would show him his steadfast love and faithfulness. In response, David was going to give glory to God all over the earth.
Eugene Finnegan Bible Project 