Son
of man, you dwell in the middle of the rebellious house, who have eyes to see, and don’t see, who have ears to hear, and don’t hear; for they are a rebellious house.
Ezekiel 12:2
Ezekiel 11 [25.] Then I spoke to them of the captivity all the things that Yahweh had shown me.
Ezekiel 12 [1.] Yahweh’s word also came to me, saying, Son of man, you dwell in the middle of the rebellious house, who have eyes to see, and don’t see, who have ears to hear, and don’t hear; for they are a rebellious house. Therefore, you son of man, prepare your stuff for moving, and move by day in their sight; and you shall move from your place to another place in their sight: it may be they will consider, though they are a rebellious house. You shall bring out your stuff by day in their sight, as stuff for moving; and you shall go out yourself at even in their sight, as when men go out into exile.
Ezekiel 12 [5.] Dig through the wall in their sight, and carry your stuff out that way. In their sight you shall bear it on your shoulder, and carry it out in the dark; you shall cover your face, so that you don’t see the land: for I have set you for a sign to the house of Israel. I did so as I was commanded: I brought out my stuff by day, as stuff for removing, and in the even I dug through the wall with my hand; I brought it out in the dark, and bore it on my shoulder in their sight. In the morning, Yahweh’s word came to me, saying, Son of man, has not the house of Israel, the rebellious house, said to you, What are you doing?
Meaning:
Ezekiel was a priest who had been taken to Babylon with King Jehoiachin and thousands of others in 597 BC. Among the exiles, many still believed that Jerusalem would never fall and that they would soon go home. In this verse God explains to Ezekiel why his warnings were not being received: the problem was not a lack of evidence but a lack of willingness to see it.
- You dwell in the middle of the rebellious house
“Rebellious house” is one of Ezekiel’s favourite descriptions of Israel, and it appears twice in this single verse. The word speaks of open defiance, not innocent ignorance. Ezekiel was not sent to strangers but to live “in the middle” of his own people, sharing their exile while bearing a message they did not want to hear. His own life became part of his message.
- Who have eyes to see, and don’t see
The people were not physically blind or deaf. They had eyes and ears, and they had already seen judgment fall on Jerusalem once. Their blindness was moral and spiritual: a refusal to accept what God was saying. Jeremiah, Ezekiel’s older contemporary in Jerusalem, used the same picture for “foolish people” (Jeremiah 5:21), and Isaiah had been told that his hearers would see without perceiving (Isaiah 6:9-10).
There is a sobering background to this language. The psalm says that idols “have eyes, but they don’t see” and that “Those who make them will be like them” (Psalm 115:4-8). Israel had turned to idols, and now they were becoming like them: eyes that do not see, ears that do not hear.
- For they are a rebellious house
Because words alone were not being heard, God told Ezekiel to act out the coming exile. In the sight of the people he packed his belongings as for a journey, dug through the wall in the evening, and carried his bundle out on his shoulder, as the verses that follow describe. The phrase “it may be they will consider” shows God’s mercy: even for a rebellious house, he offered another chance to understand. Later in the chapter God declares that his word will no longer be delayed but fulfilled (Ezekiel 12:24-25). Jerusalem fell in 586 BC, just as Ezekiel had acted it out.
- Eyes that do not see in the Gospels
Jesus took up this prophetic language. He explained that he spoke in parables because people were “seeing” without perceiving (Matthew 13:13; Mark 4:12). Most strikingly, he used it to challenge his own disciples when they worried about bread after seeing two great feeding miracles: “Having eyes, don’t you see? Having ears, don’t you hear?” (Mark 8:17-19).
The Significance of Ezekiel 12:2
- Spiritual blindness is a choice before it is a condition
The rebellious house had all the information it needed. What it lacked was a willing heart. Repeatedly ignoring God’s word makes it harder to hear him. The remedy is humility: asking God to open our eyes to what we would prefer not to see.
- God keeps speaking
God did not stop sending Ezekiel because the people were stubborn. He found new ways to speak to them, and he still speaks to us through his Word and ultimately through his Son. His patience is an invitation to repent while there is time.
Cross-References:
Mark 8:18: "Having eyes, don’t you see? Having ears, don’t you hear? Don’t you remember?" Jesus applied Ezekiel’s words to his own forgetful disciples.
Jeremiah 5:21: "‘Hear now this, foolish people, and without understanding; who have eyes, and don’t see; who have ears, and don’t hear: Don’t you fear me?’" Jeremiah used the same picture for Judah in Jerusalem.
Psalm 115:8: "Those who make them will be like them; yes, everyone who trusts in them." People become like what they worship.
Isaiah 6:9: "Go, and tell this people, ‘You hear indeed, but don’t understand; and you see indeed, but don’t perceive.’" Isaiah’s commission warned of hearers who would not perceive.
Conclusion: God told Ezekiel that he lived among a rebellious house, people with eyes that did not see and ears that did not hear. Their blindness was not physical but a stubborn refusal to accept God’s word, and it led to the fall of Jerusalem. Jesus later used the same words to wake up his disciples. The verse calls us to listen humbly, to let God open our eyes, and to respond while he is still speaking.
PIB Scriptures are derived from the World English Bible