Bible Verses and Early Church Commentary | Historical Christian Faith

[AD 420] Jerome on Ezekiel 11:1

(Chapter XI — Verse 1) And the spirit lifted me up and brought me to the gate of the house of the Lord, which faces east and overlooks the rising sun. For the glory of the Lord had come out from the threshold of the temple and stood over the cherubim. And as the cherubim lifted their wings and rose from the ground, the glory of the Lord also stood at the entrance of the gate of the house of the Lord, facing east. And the prophet, unable to approach it himself, was lifted up by the spirit and taken to the same gate of the house of the Lord, which faces the sun of righteousness, as it is written: Behold the man whose name is the East (Zach. VI, 12), so that he would not remain in the temple, which was clouded by the veil of ignorance, but would stand at the gate of the house of the Lord facing east, where he could understand the sacred mysteries that follow.

Source: Commentary on Ezekiel

[AD 420] Jerome on Ezekiel 11:2-12

(Verse 2 onwards) And behold, at the entrance of the gate were twenty-five men, and in their midst I saw Jaazaniah the son of Azzur, and Pelatiah the son of Benaiah, the princes of the people. And he said to me, Son of man, these men devise iniquity and give wicked counsel in this city, saying, 'The houses have been recently built. This is the pot, but we are the meat.' Therefore, prophesy against them, prophesy, son of man. And the spirit of the Lord rushed upon me, and he said to me, speak: Thus says the Lord: So you have spoken, O house of Israel, and I know the thoughts of your heart. You have killed many in this city, and you have filled its streets with the slain. Therefore thus says the Lord God: Your slain whom you have laid in the midst of it, they are the meat, and this city is the pot, but you shall be brought out of the midst of it. You have feared the sword, and I will bring the sword upon you, declares the Lord God. And I will bring you out of the midst of it, and give you into the hands of foreigners, and execute judgments upon you. I will judge you with the sword of the Chaldeans; you shall know that I am the Lord. This will not be a pot for you, and you shall not be in the midst of it as flesh. I will judge you at the borders of Israel, and you shall know that I am the Lord. The following is not found in the Septuagint, but is added from the Hebrew: Because you have not walked in my commandments and have not kept my judgments, but have acted according to the judgments of the nations that surround you. The prophet is assumed according to what is written: The Lord raises the meek (Ps. 146:6); whether he is lifted up from the earth and brought into the eastern gate of the Lord's house, so that he may know the oaths of the twenty-five men who were at the entrance of the gate, and the sons of Jezaniah the son of Azur, and Paltheiah the son of Benaiah, the princes of the people. Therefore, those who were at the entrance of the eastern gate of the Lord's house, despairing of salvation and prepared for destruction by the consciousness of their crimes, and not desiring to correct their sins through repentance, say: Although recently houses have been rebuilt that had fallen, yet we know that this city is like a pot, and we are like the flesh in it, to be consumed and burned, according to what is written in Isaiah: If a tempest passes by, it will not harm us (Isa. 28:15). While they were saying these things, the spirit of the Lord rushed upon the prophet; and for a second time he commanded him to prophesy and say: Because you have spoken these things and the secrets of your hearts are not hidden from me, I will interpret for you how the city will be transformed into a cauldron, and you yourselves will be considered as meat: not according to the sense in which you spoke, but according to another sense which you do not fear. Indeed, the city is like a cauldron, but it will not be filled with your flesh; rather with the flesh of those whom you have killed. But you, who consider yourselves to be dying in this city, I will bring out from the midst of the city and deliver into the hands of the enemy. I will execute judgments against you. And when you have fallen by the sword, you shall not be in the city, nor outside the boundaries of Israel, but rather in the borders of your own province, then you will know that I am the Lord. And it is furthermore said: In the borders of Israel I will judge you, and you will know that I am the Lord. But you will endure all these things because you have not walked in my commandments, and you have not observed my judgments, but have committed the abominations of the surrounding nations. And when it is clear according to the literal sense of what is said, omitting for a moment the names of Jezoniah, Azur, Phaltiah, and Benaiah, which we reserve for another time, it must be said that even to this day in the Church, which is the house of the Lord, and before the gate, and at the entrance, or at the way of the gate, which signifies the Savior, through whom we enter to the Father, there are twenty-five men who represent everything concerning the senses. And as far as my memory serves me, I have never been able to find this number in a positive sense; although in Leviticus twenty-five years are chosen for the priestly ministry; for in Hebrew it does not have this number, which is said in the Seventy, but thirty, which is contained in the beginning of this prophet and the age of the Lord, when He came to the banks of the Jordan and was baptized by John (Luke 3). But in the Gospel there are found five wise virgins and five foolish ones (Matthew 25), let us know that this number is placed in the middle and can be applied to either the good or the bad, depending on the users. Therefore, these men, who refer everything to the senses and have two principles, as we mentioned above, are contained in the dual number, which divides unity, and in the number of the second day, does not seem to be from the Lord, according to the Hebrew truth. And in Noah's Ark, two by two unclean animals are brought in (Genesis 6). But the Lord, restricting division into one, made both one, and broke down the middle wall, condemning enmities in His flesh (Ephesians 2). Therefore, He speaks more augustly and sublimely: I and the Father are one (John 10:30), so that He may bring us from the Judaic duality into the unity of the Christian faith. Finally, with the priesthood of the Jews being lost, the Lord suffered not under one ruler, but under two, Annas and Caiaphas, to show the dividedness of their religion (False). There are many at the entrance of this gate in front of the house of the Lord of the East, who are compared to their own nations in vices, and in the conscience of sins despair of salvation, and say: The city in which we live is a cauldron, and we are all flesh, and we will be consumed by the burning Babylon, whose fiery arrows are: unwilling to repent and despairing of salvation; therefore they hear that they themselves are not the flesh of the past and lost city, but those whom they have scandalized and killed. And so the sword is drawn against them, so that after they have been judged not among the nations, but among Christians in the land of Israel, they may then know that He Himself is the Lord, according to what is read in the Psalms: When He killed them, they sought Him (Psalm 77:34), so that by the torments they may come to know Him whom they did not recognize through His blessings.

Source: Commentary on Ezekiel

[AD 420] Jerome on Ezekiel 11:13

(Verse 13) And it came to pass, while I was prophesying, that Phaltias son of Banajae died. And I fell on my face, crying out with a loud voice, and I said, Alas, alas, alas, Lord God, are you making an end of the remnant of Israel? As the prophet prophesied, one of the two chief princes, Phaltias son of Banajae, dies. He is interpreted as falling ruin, and he is the son of a builder or mason, for οἰκοδόμος cannot be translated into our language otherwise. Another prince is preserved unharmed, Jezonias son of Azur. Jezonias serves as his ears, that which is subaudible to the soul. Azur, on the other hand, serves as his support or help. Therefore, he who falls away from the Lord, and was in a state of very bad construction, falls rightly, as prophesied by him, whom God strengthened. But he who obeys the commands of God, and is sustained and supported by his help, rightly remains in the leadership of the people. We read in Exodus (Chapter II), after Pharaoh, the king of Egypt, died, the sons of Israel groaned from the works of mud, straw, and bricks, and cried out to the Lord, whom they could not cry out to while he was alive. Isaiah also (Chapter VI), after the death of King Uzziah, who was leprous, saw the Lord sitting on a high and lofty throne, and the Seraphim standing around him; and understanding that his lips were unclean, and he dwelt among a people with unclean lips, he deserved to have a hot coal sent from the altar, and his lips were cleansed of impurity. In this situation, with the strength of God prophesying, the prince who had turned away from the service of the Lord falls in order to be elevated by Christ. For if the resurrection is of the Lord, then the downfall is of the devil. In this, it is sought how it is spoken of the Savior. Behold, here He is placed in ruin, and the resurrection of many in Israel (Luke II, 34). In the ruin of those who were standing wickedly, and in the resurrection of those who had fallen. When the prophet saw this, he fell on his face, not by the merit of sinning, but by the affection of lamenting; and with a loud voice, which came from great fervor of faith, he cried out three times, and said, Alas, alas, alas, O Lord God, are you bringing about the consummation of the remnant of Israel? And there is this understanding: Even the remnants themselves, which seemed to exist in the people, are destroyed when you are displeased.

Source: Commentary on Ezekiel

[AD 420] Jerome on Ezekiel 11:14-16

(Verse 14 onwards) And the word of the Lord came to me, saying: Son of man, your brothers, your brothers: the men near you and all the house of Israel, all of whom the inhabitants of Jerusalem have said: Depart far from the Lord: to us the land has been given as possession. Therefore, thus says the Lord God: because I have removed them far off among the nations, and because I have scattered them among the lands, I will be a small sanctification for them in the lands which they have come to. LXX: And the word of the Lord came to me, saying: Son of man, your brothers and the men of your captivity, and all the house of Israel is consumed; to whom the inhabitants of Jerusalem have said: You are far off from the Lord; to us is given the land in possession. Therefore say: Thus saith the Lord God: Because I will remove them far off among the nations, and because I will disperse them in the countries, and will be to them a little sanctuary in the countries where they shall come. First, we must discuss the variety of interpretations. Because in the Hebrew it says, 'the men who are near to you' (for this is the meaning of 'Goolathach'), the LXX translated it as 'the men of your captivity'. Then it follows: 'all whom the inhabitants of Jerusalem told'; instead of 'all', they put 'those' due to the ambiguity of the letters and the word. 'Chullo', which Aquila, Symmachus, and Theodotion translated as 'all', they rendered as 'consummated', which does not make any sense at all in terms of the meaning. Therefore, the word of the Lord came to Ezekiel, who had said: Alas, alas, alas, O Lord God, are you bringing to an end the remnant of Israel? Specifically, through the death of Phaltiel and those who were killed with him, because those were not the remnants that the prophet thought were in Jerusalem, but rather those who appeared to be captive in Babylon. And the meaning is this: O son of man, your brothers, who were born of the same lineage as you, your brothers, I say, to whom the inhabitants of Jerusalem said, you have turned away from the Lord because you are captives, and you have given yourselves to Jechoniah, but to us the land of Israel has been given as an eternal possession. So tell them that though I have sent them far away from the land of Israel and scattered them among the nations and commanded them to be in foreign lands, because they have obeyed my command, I will be with them even in foreign and hostile places for a small sanctification. As long as there are some among them who do not submit their necks to idolatry but remember God's commandments, like Daniel and the three young men, it is to be believed that there were others like them, in the likeness of such great rulers that Scripture now recalls (Dan. III). From all these things we learn that we should not insult those who have been handed over to punishment by the judgment of God, nor reproach a person who has turned away from their sins, nor should we ever say to those who repent and leave the Church: 'You have gone far away from the Lord; the land has been given to us as a possession.' For thus says the Lord: Although I have temporarily separated them from my Church and scattered them among the nations, I will still be for them a sanctification, as long as they remember their sins and hasten to return to their former dwelling places due to repentance.

Source: Commentary on Ezekiel

[AD 420] Jerome on Ezekiel 11:17-21

(Verse 17 and following) Therefore, speak and say, 'Thus says the Lord God: I will gather you from the peoples and assemble you from the countries where you have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel. And they shall go there and remove all offenses and all abominations from it. And I will give them one heart (or I will give them a new heart) and put a new spirit within them; I will remove the heart of stone from their flesh and give them a heart of flesh, so that they may walk in my statutes and keep my ordinances and do them; then they shall be my people, and I will be their God.' But as for those whose heart follows their detestable things and abominations, I will bring their way upon their own heads," declares the Lord God. This is a divine message to those who were captive in the land of Babylon, to the brothers of the prophet Ezekiel, and to the near ones to whom the inhabitants of Jerusalem (or Israel) said: 'You have gone far from the Lord, the land has been given to us as a possession.' But these are the words that follow: 'I will gather you from the peoples and give you the land of Israel.' And when you have entered, you shall remove all idols, because of which you have offended God, and I will give you a unified heart of fear and servitude to God, so that you may not serve diverse idols, or any other than what you had before. And I will give a new spirit in your midst, according to what is written: Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me (Psalm 51:12). And I will remove from you a heart of stone, that is, a hard heart, according to what Stephen, the first martyr in Christ, spoke: Stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart (Acts 7:51). And the heart of Pharaoh was hardened, and he would not let the people of Israel go (Exod. VII). And I will give them a heart of flesh, a soft and tender heart, that they may receive the commandments of God, so that they may be written on the tablets of their carnal hearts. Therefore, a soft heart is given and a hard heart is taken away, so that they may walk in my precepts, keep my judgments, and be a people of God. And the Lord, who was previously an adversary, shall be their God. But those who do not correct their previous sins with repentance, but follow after their abominations, I will repay them according to what they deserve, so that their ways may be upon their heads. These things are believed by many to have happened under Zerubbabel, the son of Salathiel, and under Jesus, the son of Josedec, the high priest, and under Ezra and Nehemiah, to the tribe of Judah, and to those who returned with them. The inhabitants of Jerusalem, who were taken captive under King Zedekiah of Judah, or who fled with Jeremiah to Egypt, are believed to have been dispersed into all lands and not to have returned to the city of Jerusalem. But the full conversion of those who were captive and the remnant of Israel is understood in Christ, when the remnant was saved, and three thousand believed in one day, and again five thousand (Acts 2); and others, of whom James speaks to the apostle Paul: Do you see, brother, how many thousands of Jews have believed? hi, all the imitators of the Law are. But even the proud daily inhabitants of the city of Jerusalem, whose hearts walk after their stumbling blocks and abominations, deserve the offense of God, but those who were outside, with their stony heart removed and a very soft heart accepted, return to the Church through repentance, and they walk in the precepts of the Lord and keep His judgments, and they become the people of the Lord, and the Lord, whom they formerly offended, becomes their God.

Source: Commentary on Ezekiel

[AD 132] Epistle of Barnabas on Ezekiel 11:18-20

[God] says in another prophet, “I will take the stony heart out of their flesh and give them a heart of flesh” (that is, from those whom the spirit of the law foresaw) … because Christ himself was going to be manifested in the flesh and dwell among us.

Source: EPISTLE OF BARNABAS 6:14

[AD 253] Origen of Alexandria on Ezekiel 11:18-20

This might lead one to suppose that it was God who gave the power to walk in his commandments and to keep his judgments, if it was he who removed the stony heart, which hindered them from keeping the commandments, and who implanted in them the better and more sensitive one, which is here called a heart of flesh.

Source: ON FIRST PRINCIPLES 3:1.7

[AD 253] Origen of Alexandria on Ezekiel 11:18-20

Now this is what is said by those who wish to prove by the authority of Scripture that nothing lies within our own power. We shall reply to them that these words must not be understood in that sense but as follows. It is as if an uneducated and uninstructed person becoming conscious of the disgrace of his condition, whether by being stirred at the exhortation of another or by a desire to rival those who are wise, should entrust himself to one by whom he is confident that he can be carefully trained and competently instructed. If then he, who had formerly hardened himself in ignorance, entrusts himself, as we have said, with full purpose of mind to a master and promises to obey him in everything, the master, on seeing clearly his purpose and determination, will on his part undertake to take away from him his lack of education and to implant in him education, not promising, however, to do this if the disciple withholds his assent and co-operation but only if he offers and pledges himself to entire obedience.

Source: ON FIRST PRINCIPLES 3:1.15

[AD 420] Jerome on Ezekiel 11:18-20

I will gather you from the peoples, and I will return the land of Israel to you. When you have entered and taken away all the idols that caused offences to God, I will give you one heart, to fear and serve the Lord, so that you stop serving any kind of idols, even if they are different from the ones you had; and I will put a new spirit in your innermost being.

Source: COMMENTARY ON EZEKIEL 3:11.17-21

[AD 430] Augustine of Hippo on Ezekiel 11:18-20

For by the heart of flesh and the fleshy tables is not meant a carnal understanding: but as flesh feels, whereas a stone cannot, the insensibility of stone signifies an unintelligent heart, and the sensibility of flesh signifies an intelligent heart.

Source: AGAINST FAUSTUS, A MANICHAEAN 15:4

[AD 430] Augustine of Hippo on Ezekiel 11:18-20

If God is not able to remove from the human heart even its obstinacy and hardness, he would not say, through the prophet, “I will take from them their heart of stone and will give them a heart of flesh.” … Now can we possibly, without extreme absurdity, maintain that there previously existed in any person the good merit of a good will, to entitle him to the removal of his stony heart, when all the while this very heart of stone signifies nothing else than a will of the hardest kind and such as is absolutely inflexible against God?

Source: ON GRACE AND FREE WILL 29

[AD 430] Augustine of Hippo on Ezekiel 11:18-20

Those and other divine testimonies, which it would take too long to enumerate, show that God by his grace takes away the stony heart from unbelievers and forestalls merit in people of good will in such a way that their will is prepared by prevenient grace, but not that grace is given through prevenient merit of the will. This is shown both by thanksgiving and by prayer: prayer for unbelievers; thanksgiving for believers. Prayer is to be made to him that he may do what we ask; thanksgiving is to be offered when he has done it.

Source: LETTER 217

[AD 430] Augustine of Hippo on Ezekiel 11:18-20

Flesh is not mentioned in this passage in order to signify carnal desire but rather in the way in which the prophet says that a heart of stone is taken away from the people and a heart of flesh is given them.

Source: ON GENESIS AGAINST THE MANICHAEANS 2:12.17

[AD 430] Augustine of Hippo on Ezekiel 11:18-20

This grace, which from divine generosity is bestowed secretly in human hearts, is rejected by no one, no matter how hard-hearted he may be. For it is given so that hardness of the heart may first be taken away. Therefore, when the Father is heard within and teaches, so that one may come to the Son, he takes away the heart of stone and bestows a heart of flesh, as he promised by the word of the prophet. For it is thus that he makes them children of the promise and vessels of mercy that he has prepared for glory.

Source: PREDESTINATION OF THE SAINTS 8:13

[AD 435] John Cassian on Ezekiel 11:18-20

Quite obviously all this teaches us that the first good stirring of the will in us comes under the Lord’s inspiration. He brings us along the road to salvation, either himself or by way of the exhortation of some person or through necessity. And our virtues are perfected also as a gift from him. Our task is, whether laxly or zealously, to play a role that corresponds to his grace, and our reward or our punishment will depend on whether we strove or neglected to be at one, attentive and obedient, with the kindly dispensation of his providence toward us.

Source: CONFERENCE 3:19

[AD 435] John Cassian on Ezekiel 11:18-20

In all these Scriptures there is a declaration of the grace of God and the freedom of our will, because even if by our own volition we can be led to the quest of virtue, we always stand in need of the help of the Lord.

Source: CONFERENCE 13:9

[AD 458] Theodoret of Cyrus on Ezekiel 11:18-20

He calls it a new heart, as a force in the soul for honorable things. When they are disposed to contrary things, they refer to a change toward better things as a new spirit. Just as he spoke of another heart and did not mean a change in nature, but a disposition towards better things, so this is shared through a new spirit.

Source: COMMENTARY ON EZEKIEL 3:11

[AD 649] Sahdona the Syrian on Ezekiel 11:18-20

Truly great and mighty is the power of God’s word. For the word of God has changed the “offspring of vipers” into children of God. So let us constantly sow it within the hard soil of our heart, waiting for [the word] to soften [our heart] so that the wheat ear of life may sprout up in it. For the word of God is at the same time the seed and the water; and even though we have a “heart like stone,” it will be softened and split up by the water of the Spirit, so that it can bring forth holy fruit that is pleasing to God.Therefore let no one neglect meditation on the divine words or the labor of reading the appointed measure. As our honored teacher said, from such meditation the soul acquires great benefit and finds salvation.

Source: BOOK OF PERFECTION 53-54

[AD 339] Eusebius of Caesarea on Ezekiel 11:22

It is possible for us to see this literally fulfilled in another way even today, since believers in Christ all congregate from all parts of the world, not as of old time because of the glory of Jerusalem or that they may worship in the ancient temple at Jerusalem; but they rest there that they may learn both about the city being taken and devastated as the prophets foretold and that they may worship at the Mount of Olives opposite to the city, whither the glory of the Lord migrated when it left the former city.

Source: PROOF OF THE GOSPEL 6:18

[AD 420] Jerome on Ezekiel 11:22

There is no doubt that the mount is the Mount of Olives, from which the Savior ascended to the Father, and the glory of the Lord, which had departed from the city of Jerusalem, stood on the Mount of Olives as a sign of resurrection and light.

Source: COMMENTARY ON EZEKIEL 3:11.22-23

[AD 420] Jerome on Ezekiel 11:22

It is wonderful that down to the present day the glory of the Lord, which had deserted the temple, stands on the Mount of Olives. Moving in the sign of a cross, it gazes at what was once the Jewish temple, destroyed in dust and ashes.

Source: COMMENTARY ON EZEKIEL 3:11.22-23

[AD 420] Jerome on Ezekiel 11:22-23

(Verse 22, 23.) And the Cherubim lifted their wings, and the wheels with them, and the glory of the God of Israel was above them. And the glory of the Lord ascended from the midst of the city: and stood upon the mountain, which is towards the east of the city. Gradually, the glory of the Lord departed from Jerusalem. First leaving the temple, it stood in the courtyard or at the threshold of the house, and afterwards at the entrance of the Eastern Gate; finally, with its wings and accompanying wheels lifted up, it stood upon the mountain, which is towards the east of the city, no doubt signifying the Mount of Olives, from where the Savior ascended to the Father. And the glory of the Lord stood and went from the city of Jerusalem over the Mount of Olives, as a sign of resurrection and light, so that from there it might behold Jerusalem about to perish and be consumed. And it says: 'The glory departs from the midst of the city' (John 14:31), in other words, the Lord speaks to his disciples: 'Rise, let us go from here' (Luke 13:35). And to the Jews: 'Your house will be left to you desolate' (Matthew 23). Josephus also reports the voice heard in the temple of angels and celestial powers that were previously in the city's defense: 'Let us go from these seats' (Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews). And to this present day, in a wondrous manner, the glory of the Lord, which abandoned the temple, stands upon the Mount of Olives, shining forth in the sign of the cross, gazing upon the once-Jewish temple, dissolved into ashes and rubble.

Source: Commentary on Ezekiel

[AD 420] Jerome on Ezekiel 11:24-25

(Verse 24, 25.) And the spirit lifted me up and brought me to Chaldea for the transmigration in a vision in the spirit of God, and the vision that I had seen was taken away from me. And I spoke to the transmigration all the words of the Lord that he had shown me. Because we have translated from the Hebrew truth: And the vision that I had seen was taken away from me, the LXX translated: And I ascended from the vision that I had seen. Both of which signify not that the prophet was physically transported from Jerusalem to Babylon, but in spirit, the vision that had led him in spirit to Jerusalem was taken away, and he returned to himself and spoke to the transmigration all that had been shown to him, namely, about those of whom it is written above: I was sitting in my house, and the elders of Judah were sitting beside me, and there the hand of the Lord God fell upon me, and I saw (Above, VIII, 1). And in a marvelous manner, while these people who had come to visit were seated, the prophet saw mystical visions and was absent from those who were sitting in front of him, present in body but without spirit. And everything happens so that those who were captive may receive consolation, because they will be brought back to the land of Israel and will walk in the commandments of the Lord, and they will be his people and he will be their God. But those who do not turn to repentance and continue to walk in their abominations will receive the consequences of their actions. But we often mention that words in the Holy Scriptures are often used for things.

Source: Commentary on Ezekiel

[AD 420] Jerome on Ezekiel 11:25

Everything took place so that the captives should receive consolation, because they had to return to the land of Israel, in order to walk in the precepts of the Lord, and for them to be people for him and he to be a God for them.

Source: COMMENTARY ON EZEKIEL 3:11.24-25