Ezekiel35

The word of the LORD came to Ezekiel, commanding him to prophesy against Mount Seir. God declared His opposition to Seir, vowing to make it utterly desolate due to its perpetual hatred and shedding of Israelite blood during their time of calamity. Furthermore, Seir's desire to possess Israel's land and its blasphemies against God would result in its complete and perpetual ruin, so that they might know the LORD.

Prophecy Against Mount Seir

1
Moreover the LORD’s word came to me, saying,
2
Son of man, set your face against Mount Seir, and prophesy against it, ​
3
and tell it, Thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I am against you, Mount Seir, and I will stretch out my hand against you, and I will make you a desolation and an astonishment.
4
I will lay your cities waste, and you shall be desolate; and you shall know that I am the LORD.

Edom's Perpetual Hatred

5
Because you have had a perpetual hostility, and have given over the children of Israel to the power of the sword in the time of their calamity, in the time of the iniquity of the end; ​
6
therefore, as I live, says the Lord GOD, I will prepare you for blood, and blood shall pursue you: since you have not hated blood, therefore blood shall pursue you. ​
7
Thus will I make Mount Seir an astonishment and a desolation; and I will cut off from it him who passes through and him who returns.
8
I will fill its mountains with its slain: in your hills and in your valleys and in all your watercourses shall they fall who are slain with the sword.
9
I will make you a perpetual desolation, and your cities shall not be inhabited; and you shall know that I am the LORD. ​

Edom's Boast and Final Desolation

10
Because you have said, These two nations and these two countries shall be mine, and we will possess it; whereas the LORD was there: ​
11
therefore, as I live, says the Lord GOD, I will do according to your anger, and according to your envy which you have shown out of your hatred against them; and I will make myself known among them, when I shall judge you. ​
12
You shall know that I, the LORD, have heard all your insults which you have spoken against the mountains of Israel, saying, They are laid desolate, they have been given us to devour. ​
13
You have magnified yourselves against me with your mouth, and have multiplied your words against me: I have heard it.
14
Thus says the Lord GOD: When the whole earth rejoices, I will make you desolate.
15
As you rejoiced over the inheritance of the house of Israel, because it was desolate, so will I do to you: you shall be desolate, Mount Seir, and all Edom, even all of it; and they shall know that I am the LORD. ​

Study Notes for Ezekiel 35

Verse 2

Mount Seir is the mountainous territory of Edom (descendants of Esau), located southeast of the Dead Sea. This oracle against Edom is a common feature in prophetic literature (e.g., Obadiah), symbolizing the ultimate removal of forces hostile to God’s people.

Verse 5

The core charge against Edom is 'perpetual hatred' (Hebrew: *'eybat 'olam*). This refers to their consistent hostility toward Israel, culminating when Jerusalem fell in 586 BC, the 'time of their calamity.' The phrase 'when their iniquity had an end' refers to the completion of Israel’s punishment by God.

Verse 6

This verse invokes the principle of *lex talionis* (retribution). Because Edom actively sought bloodshed against God's people, God promises that violence will be their inevitable and perpetual fate. 'Sith' means 'since' or 'seeing that.'

Verse 9

The promise of 'perpetual desolations' contrasts sharply with the future restoration promised to Israel in the subsequent chapters (Ezekiel 36-37). Edom’s judgment is final and irrevocable.

Verse 10

The 'two nations and these two countries' are Judah and Israel. Edom saw Israel’s exile as an opportunity to seize the Promised Land, completely disregarding the divine covenant. The phrase 'whereas the LORD was there' is critical, emphasizing that the land belongs to Yahweh, not to Israel or Edom.

Verse 11

God’s judgment against Edom is an act of self-revelation. By judging Edom’s hatred and envy, God makes himself known to Israel and the surrounding nations as the sovereign Lord of history.

Verse 12

Edom’s words against the 'mountains of Israel' (the land) are interpreted as blasphemy against the Lord himself. Their arrogance was not merely political but theological, challenging God’s control over his own inheritance.

Verse 15

'Idumea' is the Greek/later name for the territory of Edom. This verse confirms the scope of the judgment: the entire region will suffer the same fate they wished upon Israel, emphasizing divine justice.

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