John Calvin Commentary Ezekiel 8:6

"And he said unto me, Son of man, seest thou what they do? even the great abominations that the house of Israel do commit here, that I should go far off from my sanctuary? but thou shalt again see yet other great abominations." — Ezekiel 8:6 (ASV)

Now God complains through His prophet; and we must always note the object and consider God’s purpose, because at the end of the chapter we will see how severe a vengeance God was about to inflict on the people.

Therefore, the Prophet prevents those clamorous reproaches with which the people heaped upon him out of envy, when he chastised them as they deserved.

For this reason, he undoubtedly wished the exiles to be persuaded of what they could hardly conceive: namely, that the destruction of Jerusalem was near.

For we have said that those who had been taken into captivity had displeased Him and wished to return to their country. Since, therefore, their condition was too grievous and severe, God wished to declare to them that the final overthrow of Jerusalem was near.

He does this by showing the great abominations which prevailed in the very temple, from which the Almighty must necessarily appear as the avenger of His glory and worship. The rest tomorrow.

Prayer:

Grant, Almighty God, since You have treated us so indulgently, and when provoked by our iniquities, have yet shown Yourself a propitious Father to us, that we may no longer abuse Your patience, but return directly to Your way and submit ourselves to You — and, being humbled by a true sense of penitence, grant that we may be so dissatisfied with our sins, that we may devote ourselves to You with our whole heart and follow the direction of Your holy calling; until after finishing the pursuits of this life, we may arrive at that happy repose which Your only-begotten Son has acquired for us by His blood. — Amen.

[Exposition continues from previous day's lecture]

We stopped yesterday at that clause when God asks His prophet, whether he saw the abominations which the sons of were perpetrating in the very temple: by which words He not only cites His servant as a witness, but constitutes him in some sense a judge, so that all should know that the coming vengeance was not only just but must be immediate.

This is the reason why God asks, whether he saw the abominations. For if a mortal is compelled to pass an opinion, surely God, who sees much further than human eyes, cannot be ignorant of their crimes, when they had come to such a degree of obstinacy that His patience could no longer endure.

Now the adverb of place is used, which seems to be used emphatically, because He refers to the temple, from which all filth and defilements should be removed. Since, therefore, God complains that abominations were committed there, He magnifies the people’s wickedness, because even the temple did not remain pure.

He adds, for retreating: some refer this to the people and derive this meaning, that those who so pervert God’s worship withdraw from His sanctuary, because they no longer have anything in common with God. But I rather interpret it concerning God Himself, who is compelled to depart from His sanctuary, as we will see later.

For while they so defiled the temple with their sacrilege, they yet thought God was included there. He now renounces the temple and says that He left the place empty and void, because He could not bear to dwell amid that sordid defilement. The meaning is that God would depart from His temple, because the complete worship which He had commanded under the law did not flourish there.

And this passage is worthy of note, because we gather from it that God could not bear the profanation of His worship, but will leave those who pervert His law by their fictions, as we see the Jews did. In our day we know how haughtily the Papists pride themselves in their figments, but the more they accumulate fictitious ceremonies the more they provoke God’s anger.

Therefore, it happens that they vainly boast that they have Him in their temples, as they think. For this principle will always remain fixed: that God cannot dwell in a profane place. Now, nothing sanctifies a place more than obedience and sincerity of faith. When men introduce their inventions, it immediately causes God to depart from them; this is the full meaning.

Now He adds, turn thyself, and thou shalt see great abominations. Some translate it as 'greater,' but because a question would arise as to why He calls the abomination first 'greater' and then 'different,' I interpret it simply that the Prophet should see other great abominations.

Afterwards, indeed, He will express another, for He will say גדלות מאלהתועבות, gedloth-maleh-thogn-both; but in my opinion, there is no comparison here between greater and less. מאלה, maleh, I simply interpret as “beyond others,” and I rather approve of this simplicity, because interpreters anxiously labor to show this last abomination to be more severe than all others, though the reason for it does not clearly appear.

But there is no need for us to create these difficulties, because the Prophet only speaks of great abominations. Let us go on —