Ezekiel 3:27 Explained in Context

Read It With

• Ezekiel 3:22–27

Read Ezekiel 3:27 with 3:22–27. By itself, “But when I speak with thee, I will open thy mouth, and thou shalt say unto them, Thus…” can be detached from the speaker, addressee, date, exilic horizon, visionary movement, or outcome that gives it force. The complete unit establishes: The hand of the LORD leads Ezekiel to the plain, glory appears again, the Spirit raises him, and he is confined and alternately silenced or enabled to speak.

Why This Verse Appears Here

Within the same chapter, this unit advances from “The Watchman Must Warn the Wicked and the Righteous” into “Glory, Confinement, and Restricted Speech Prepare the Signs.” Its non-interchangeable contribution is: The hand of the LORD leads Ezekiel to the plain, glory appears again, the Spirit raises him, and he is confined and alternately silenced or enabled to speak. This verse's placement is specific: The narrated sign act and its explanation turns or qualifies the movement with “But when I speak with thee, I will open thy mouth, and thou shalt say unto them, Thus…” at Ezekiel 3:27 inside “Glory, Confinement, and Restricted Speech Prepare the Signs.”