John Calvin Commentary Ezekiel 11:13

"And it came to pass, when I prophesied, that Pelatiah the son of Benaiah died. Then fell I down upon my face, and cried with a loud voice, and said, Ah Lord Jehovah! wilt thou make a full end of the remnant of Israel?" — Ezekiel 11:13 (ASV)

It is undoubtedly true that this Pelatiah died at the same time the vision was offered to God’s servant. We shall see at the end of the chapter that the Prophet was always in exile; but then it seemed to him that he was caught up into the temple, and he also seemed to behold Pelatiah dead.

Yet it is possible that he died at his own home, and not in the entrance or threshold of the temple. But we know that the vision was not limited to places. Since, therefore, Ezekiel was in the temple only by vision, so also he saw the death of Pelatiah; and in this way God began by a kind of prelude to show that the slaughter of the city was at hand.

For Pelatiah was one of the chief rulers, as was said in the first verse of this chapter, and was undoubtedly a man of good reputation. Therefore, his death was an omen of a general destruction. This led to the Prophet's exclamation: Ah Lord God, will you utterly consume the remnant of Israel? For now only a small number out of an immense multitude remained.

Pelatiah is seized, and in this way, God shows that destruction hangs over the whole people. Consequently, the Prophet fell upon the earth astonished and exclaimed that it was in no way consistent with God’s promises to destroy the remnant of Israel.

For some remnant should remain, as we often see in other places. Even in the general slaughter of the whole people, God always gave some hope that He would not abolish His covenant. For this reason, the Prophet now exclaims.

Prayer:

Grant, Almighty God, since we do not cease to provoke Your anger every day, that, being admonished by the prophecies which Your ancient people could not despise without punishment, we may at least be touched with a true sense of penitence. May we so submit ourselves to You that we willingly humble and renounce ourselves. And not only mitigate the punishments that otherwise hang over us, but also show Yourself a merciful and gracious Father towards us, until at length we enjoy the fullness of Your fatherly love in Your heavenly kingdom, through Christ our Lord. — Amen.

[Exposition continues from previous day's lecture]

In the last lecture, the Prophet’s complaint and lamentation on account of the death of Pelatiah was described. Indeed, he had heard by the Spirit that Pelatiah and others like him were impious despisers of God and corrupters of His entire worship; yet he exclaims when he sees him dead, as if all things were lost.

But we must remember that the Prophet did not speak from his own perspective. He also regarded the reputation and dignity of Pelatiah, for undoubtedly Pelatiah excelled the other elders, as most of the people thought their own stability depended on his counsel and prudence. Therefore, since almost all thought Pelatiah was the support of the city and kingdom, it is not surprising that the Prophet, reflecting the common opinion, asks with wonder whether God is about to consume every remnant of the people.

And he alludes to the man’s name, for פלט, phelet, means “to escape”; from which פליטים (phelitim) is the name for survivors, and those who escape from any danger or slaughter. Therefore, since Pelatiah carried in his very name something of this kind—namely, that if there was any hope of safety for them, it rested in his person—for this reason the Prophet asks whether God will destroy the remnant of His people.