Ezekiel 1:3
in Ezekiel 1the word of the LORD came directly to Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the River Kebar. And there the LORD’s hand was upon him.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
the word of Jehovah came expressly unto Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the river Chebar; and the hand of Jehovah was there upon him.
KJV
The word of the Lord came expressly unto Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the river Chebar; and the hand of the Lord was there upon him.
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This verse in Ezekiel 1
Commentary
7 notes on this verseon Ezekiel 1:2-3
The Holy Spirit descended on Christ and remained; he descends on people, assuredly, but does not remain. Furthermore, in the scroll of Ezekiel, who is properly a type of the Savior—no other prophet, I mean of the major prophets, is called, "Son of man"; the title is given strictly to Ezekiel.
This site's exposition
the heavens were opened
on Ezekiel 1:1-3
The date is doubled, the thirtieth year and the fifth year of Jehoiachin's captivity, and the readings on the first number are named rather than settled: many, following an old count, take Ezekiel's own age at thirty, the year a priest entered his office, while others count from a fixed point in Judah's recent history. The vision comes to a priest without an altar, by the river Chebar among the captives, the heavens opened over an exile rather than a temple. Keil reads the setting itself as a claim, that the glory once housed in Solomon's temple will now visit a man who has nothing left of Jerusalem but memory, and Henry notes that God's hand found the prophet in a strange land as readily as in his own.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(Verse 3) The word of the Lord came to Ezekiel, son of Buzi, the priest, in the land of the Chaldeans, by the river Chebar. And to Daniel and Ezekiel, who were in Babylon by the rivers, the mysteries of things to come are revealed upon the waters, indeed in the purest waters, so that the power of baptism may be shown. Otherwise, even the apostle Paul, when he was baptized by Ananias in the Lord, having his eyes covered with scales, was freed from blindness (Acts 9).
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
The word of the Lord came expressly,.... Or, "in being was" (d); which phrase denotes the reality, certainty, substantiality and evidence of the word of the Lord to him: unto Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi; which Buzi, some say, was Jeremiah.
The word - What was visions, ver. 1, is here the word, both as signifying and declaring the mind of God, what he would do, and as continuing his commands to Ezekiel and to the people. Ezekiel - He speaks of himself in a third person. Priest - He was of the priests originally; he was a prophet by an extraordinary call.
It was upon him (as upon St. John, Rev. i. 17 ), to revive and support him, that he might bear up, and not faint, under these discoveries, that he might neither be lifted up nor cast down with the abundance of the revelations. God's grace is sufficient for him, and, in token of that, his hand is upon him.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
Came expressly - The phrase marks that it was in truth a heaven-sent vision. The hand of the Lord - A phrase in all prophecy implying a “constraining” power, because the spirit “constrains” the prophet independently of his own will.
The words behind it
19 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| הָיֹ֣ה | hayoh | expressly <come> | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| הָיָ֣ה | hayah | it came | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| דְבַר־ | devar- | [the] word of | H1697 → | 1440 times |
| יְ֠הוָה | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
| אֶל־ | ʾel- | to | H413 → | 5510 times |
| יְחֶזְקֵ֨אל | yechezkel | Ezekiel | H3168 → | |
| בֶּן־ | ben- | [the] son of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| בּוּזִ֧י | buzi | Buzi | H941 → | |
| הַכֹּהֵ֛ן | hakohen | the priest | H3548 → | 750 times |
| בְּאֶ֥רֶץ | beeretz | in [the] land of | H776 → | 2504 times |
| כַּשְׂדִּ֖ים | kasdim | [the] Chaldeans | H3778 → | 80 times |
| עַל־ | ʾal- | at | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| נְהַר־ | nehar- | [the] river of | H5104 → | 119 times |
| כְּבָ֑ר | kevar | Kebar | H3529 → | 8 times |
| וַתְּהִ֥י | vatehi | and it was | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| עָלָ֛יו | ʾalav | on him | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| שָׁ֖ם | sham | there | H8033 → | 834 times |
| יַד־ | yad- | [the] hand of | H3027 → | 1618 times |
| יְהוָֽה׃ | yahweh | Yahweh | H3068 → | 6520 times |
הָיֹ֣הexpressly <come>
hayohH1961 →3559 times
הָיָ֣הit came
hayahH1961 →3559 times
דְבַר־[the] word of
devar-H1697 →1440 times
יְ֠הוָהYahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
אֶל־to
ʾel-H413 →5510 times
יְחֶזְקֵ֨אלEzekiel
yechezkelH3168 →
בֶּן־[the] son of
ben-H1121 →4930 times
בּוּזִ֧יBuzi
buziH941 →
הַכֹּהֵ֛ןthe priest
hakohenH3548 →750 times
בְּאֶ֥רֶץin [the] land of
beeretzH776 →2504 times
כַּשְׂדִּ֖ים[the] Chaldeans
kasdimH3778 →80 times
עַל־at
ʾal-H5921 →5755 times
נְהַר־[the] river of
nehar-H5104 →119 times
כְּבָ֑רKebar
kevarH3529 →8 times
וַתְּהִ֥יand it was
vatehiH1961 →3559 times
עָלָ֛יוon him
ʾalavH5921 →5755 times
שָׁ֖םthere
shamH8033 →834 times
יַד־[the] hand of
yad-H3027 →1618 times
יְהוָֽה׃Yahweh
yahwehH3068 →6520 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Ezekiel 3:14So the Spirit lifted me up and took me away, and I went in bitterness and in the anger of my spirit, with the strong hand of the LORD upon me.
it leads to
- Ezekiel 37:1
The hand of the LORD was upon me, and He brought me out by His Spirit and set me down in the middle of the valley, and it was full of bones.
Reached by 3 separate paths from here.
- 2 Kings 3:15
But now, bring me a harpist.” And while the harpist played, the hand of the LORD came upon Elisha
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Jeremiah 20:7–9
You have deceived me, O LORD, and I was deceived. You have overcome me and prevailed. I am a laughingstock all day long; everyone mocks me.
- Ezekiel 37:1
Through
1 Kings 18:46And the hand of the LORD came upon Elijah, and he tucked his cloak into his belt and ran ahead of Ahab all the way to Jezreel.
it leads to
- Ezekiel 3:14
So the Spirit lifted me up and took me away, and I went in bitterness and in the anger of my spirit, with the strong hand of the LORD upon me.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 2 Kings 9:1
Now Elisha the prophet summoned one of the sons of the prophets and said to him, “Tuck your cloak under your belt, take this flask of oil, and go to Ramoth-gilead.
- Ezekiel 3:14
Through
2 Kings 3:15But now, bring me a harpist.” And while the harpist played, the hand of the LORD came upon Elisha
it leads to
- 1 Samuel 16:23
And whenever the spirit from God came upon Saul, David would pick up his harp and play, and Saul would become well, and the spirit of distress would depart from him.
- Ephesians 5:18–19
Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to reckless indiscretion. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.
- 1 Samuel 10:5
After that you will come to Gibeah of God, where the Philistines have an outpost. As you approach the city, you will meet a group of prophets coming down from the high place, preceded…
- 1 Samuel 16:23
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies3
On this verse
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About Ezekiel
Who and where
1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Carl Friedrich Keil, Biblical Commentary on the Prophecies of Ezekiel; Jerome, HOMILIES ON MARK 75 (Mk 1:1-12); Jerome, Commentary on Ezekiel; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.