Ezekiel 25:15–17

Ezekiel 25 has a special character. The nations around Israel's land, and those living inside it, rejoiced at the ruin of Jerusalem and of the sanctuary. So God would carry out judgment on them. Ammon, Moab, Edom, and the Philistines are the objects of this prophecy… It is easy to see why they appear here. These nations were to share the same fate, and this judgment includes them because they are all on Israel's territory.

The first three of these nations were related to God's people by blood. When Israel took possession of Palestine at God's command under Joshua, they did not conquer Philistia. It was a strip of land about forty miles long and ten to twenty miles wide. It lay on the sea coast between Joppa and Gaza, west of the tribes of Dan and Simeon. Because of this failure on Israel's part, the Philistines were always thorns in their sides, and sometimes their masters… These four nations were allies in opposing God's chosen people. God now marks them out as special objects of His vengeance, for if you touch God's people, you touch Him.

Had the strangers come from Crete and settled inside the land of Palestine to harass and oppress Israel? Did they rise up to avenge their old grudges, even if they could not do it in their old grandeur? God did not forget… Here the threat of divine judgment is very strong. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God when He avenges His people on their proud and spiteful enemies.

If God finds it necessary to chasten His people, He does so for their good. It is always wrong to rejoice over the troubles that come on God's people, even if they deserve the chastening.

No doubt God can chastise His people, for He must make His own character clear. But the malice of their enemies brings His judgment on them as well.

One point in this series of prophecies is important. It begins with the judgment of Jerusalem, the centre of the former system of nations. God carries out these judgments to make all these nations know Jehovah… Ezekiel 25:15-17 marks out His special vengeance on the Philistines… So these prophecies show us Jehovah's power in general. They make Him known to all by the judgments He carried out. Nebuchadnezzar's conquests have realised part of this already, but its full accomplishment comes later, in Israel's favour.

The Philistines matter a great deal in this history, because they act as the power of the enemy. To me they represent the power of the enemy working inside the circle of God's people. They lived in Israel's own territory, inside the land… They were not enemies from outside, like the Egyptians or Assyrians. They were always hostile to Israel… and all the more dangerous because they were close at hand and claimed the country as theirs.

They were intruders into a land promised to Israel, though they were convinced the prior right was theirs. They have given their name to the whole land — Palestine, from Philistia — and they claim it, though they have never been able to take more than its lowest border. As Philistines they are "immigrants," but never Hebrews — that is, "passengers" or "pilgrims."

Ezekiel 25 has a special character. The nations around Israel, and those inside its territory, rejoiced at the destruction of Jerusalem and of the sanctuary. Therefore God would carry out judgment on them. Ammon, Moab, Edom, and the Philistines are the objects of this prophecy... So by the judgment falling on them, these nations would know that, although Jerusalem had not been a faithful witness, Jehovah alone is God.

Ammon and Moab had an unhappy and humiliating origin, which gave them a kind of false relation to Israel. Edom had a nobler descent, but was no nearer spiritually — rather the bitterest of foes. The Philistines had no such connection at all. Their peculiar lot was to hang on the south-western edges of the land. Though they were Gentiles and the most cruel of Israel's oppressors, they stayed there until David put them down.

Inhabitants of the southern parts of Philistia. 1 Samuel 30:14; Ezekiel 25:16; Zephaniah 2:5. In the last two passages the Septuagint reads "Cretans." It is supposed that they were people from Crete who had settled on the coast of Palestine.

Only one class of these Philistines is specially noticed here: the Cherethites, the "cutters off"... Many take the Cherethites, at least in certain passages, to mean "executioners." Philistinism has always distinguished itself in this form of cutting off. No doubt many who sacrificed the deepest feelings of their nature in this way have thought they were doing God service... Philistia will perish in the day of God, and all who are with God will only rejoice over the judgment.

When Israel took possession of Palestine by God's command under Joshua, Philistia was not subdued (see Joshua 14:2). It was a strip of land about forty miles long and ten to twenty broad, lying between Joppa and Gaza on the sea coast, west of the tribes of Dan and Simeon. Because of this failure on Israel's part, the Philistines were always thorns in their sides, and sometimes their masters... These four nations joined together against God's chosen people. So now God marks them out as special objects of divine vengeance. If you touch God's people, you touch Him.

Had the stranger come from Crete and settled inside the land of Palestine to harass and oppress Israel? Did they rise up to avenge their old grudges, if they could no longer act in their old greatness? God did not forget... Here the threat of divine judgments is extremely strong. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God when He avenges His people on their proud and spiteful enemies.

God carries them out to make them all know Jehovah. Only in Israel's case there is something more: the understanding and the special verification of prophecy. See Ezekiel 25:15-17, special vengeance on the Philistines... In general these prophecies display Jehovah's power. They make Him known to all by the judgments He carried out. This was already realised in part in the conquests of Nebuchadnezzar, but it will be fully accomplished later on, in Israel's favour.

The final paragraph concerns the Philistines (verses 15-17)... The vengeance of the Lord fell on the coast of Philistia, the Philistines, and they experienced the fury of the Lord. He dealt with those who had corrupted His people. And so God will deal in due time with all His enemies.

The nations around Israel rejoiced when Jerusalem and the temple fell. Some of them even lived inside its land. So God would carry out judgment on them. Ammon, Moab, Edom, and the Philistines are the objects of this prophecy... The judgment falling on them would teach these nations one thing. Jerusalem had not been a faithful witness, but Jehovah alone is God.

These strangers had come from Crete and settled in Palestine to harass and oppress Israel. They could no longer act with their old power, so they rose up to pay off their old grudges. God had not forgotten... Here the threat of God's judgment could hardly be stronger. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. That is what these proud and spiteful enemies met when He avenged His people.

God commanded Israel, under Joshua, to take the land. Philistia was never conquered. It was a coastal strip about forty miles long and ten to twenty miles wide, west of the tribes of Dan and Simeon... Because Israel failed here, the Philistines were always a thorn in their side. Sometimes they even ruled over them... All four nations stood together against God's chosen people. So God marks them out for His vengeance. Touch God's people, and you touch Him.

God carries out these prophecies so that all of them may know Jehovah. Israel's case has more: understanding, and prophecy confirmed... So these prophecies display Jehovah's power. His judgments make Him known to all. Some of this already happened in Nebuchadnezzar's conquests. The rest comes later, for Israel's sake.

So they come to know Jehovah by the judgment itself, not by any spiritual knowledge of Him that follows... It will be through judgment that all the nations will know that Jehovah is God.

They forced their way into a land promised to Israel, sure that it was theirs first. The whole land is named after them — Palestine comes from Philistia. They claim it all, though they never held more than its lowest edge... We have seen many such pictures elsewhere: people who are not spiritual pushing into spiritual things. Their name means "immigrants." They are never "Hebrews," a name that means people passing through, like pilgrims.

The Lord's vengeance fell on the coast of Philistia. The Philistines felt His fury. He dealt with those who had corrupted His people. And so God will deal in due time with all His enemies.