“I sought for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I would not destroy it; but I found no one.
Parallel Translations
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“I sought for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I would not destroy it; but I found no one.
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And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none.
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And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the breach before Me for the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found none.
Cross-references (8)
Passages linked to Ezekiel 22:30 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Isaiah 59:16 He saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor. Therefore his own arm brought salvation to him; and his righteousness sustained him.
- Jeremiah 5:1 “Run back and forth through the streets of Jerusalem, and see now, and know, and seek in its wide places, if you can find a man, if there is anyone who does justly, who seeks truth, then I will pardon her.
- Psalms 106:23 Therefore he said that he would destroy them, had Moses, his chosen, not stood before him in the breach, to turn away his wrath, so that he wouldn’t destroy them.
- Genesis 18:23-32 Abraham came near, and said, “Will you consume the righteous with the wicked? What if there are fifty righteous within the city? Will you consume and not spare the place for the fifty righteous who are in it? May it be far from you to do things like that, to kill the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous should be like the wicked. May that be far from you. Shouldn’t the Judge of all the earth do right?” Yahweh said, “If I find in Sodom fifty righteous within the city, then I will spare the whole place for their sake.” Abraham answered, “See now, I have taken it on myself to speak to the Lord, although I am dust and ashes. What if there will lack five of the fifty righteous? Will you destroy all the city for lack of five?” He said, “I will not destroy it if I find forty-five there.” He spoke to him yet again, and said, “What if there are forty found there?” He said, “I will not do it for the forty’s sake.” He said, “Oh don’t let the Lord be angry, and I will speak. What if there are thirty found there?” He said, “I will not do it if I find thirty there.” He said, “See now, I have taken it on myself to speak to the Lord. What if there are twenty found there?” He said, “I will not destroy it for the twenty’s sake.” He said, “Oh don’t let the Lord be angry, and I will speak just once more. What if ten are found there?” He said, “I will not destroy it for the ten’s sake.”
- Isaiah 63:5 I looked, and there was no one to help; and I wondered that there was no one to uphold. Therefore my own arm brought salvation to me. My own wrath upheld me.
- Ezekiel 13:5 You have not gone up into the gaps or built up the wall for the house of Israel, to stand in the battle in Yahweh’s day.
- Exodus 32:10-14 Now therefore leave me alone, that my wrath may burn hot against them, and that I may consume them; and I will make of you a great nation.” Moses begged Yahweh his God, and said, “Yahweh, why does your wrath burn hot against your people, that you have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? Why should the Egyptians talk, saying, ‘He brought them out for evil, to kill them in the mountains, and to consume them from the surface of the earth?’ Turn from your fierce wrath, and turn away from this evil against your people. Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, to whom you swore by your own self, and said to them, ‘I will multiply your offspring as the stars of the sky, and all this land that I have spoken of I will give to your offspring, and they shall inherit it forever.’ ” So Yahweh turned away from the evil which he said he would do to his people.
- Jeremiah 15:1 Then Yahweh said to me, “Though Moses and Samuel stood before me, yet my mind would not turn toward this people. Cast them out of my sight, and let them go out!
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (14 sources)
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Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain Which would show himself zealous in my cause by…
Which would show himself zealous in my cause by resisting vice, Isa. 59:16 and 63:5, and also pray unto me to withhold my plagues, Ps. 106:23.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Eze 22:30 And I sought for a man among…
Eze 22:30 And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none.
Ver. 30. And I sought for a man among them,] i.e., A competent company of holy men, as once at Sodom; {Gen 18:23-32} at Jerusalem. {Jer 5:1}
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That should make up the hedge.] Which sin had thrown down.
And stand in the gap.] By his piety and prayers. The Primum Mobile, say astronomers, turneth about with such swiftness, that but for the counter motion of the planets and other spheres all would be fired; so would this wicked world but for the saints, who keep a constant counter motion to the corrupt practices thereof.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain I sought, very earnestly and diligently; spoken of God…
I sought, very earnestly and diligently; spoken of God after the manner of man.
A man; any one.
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Amongst them; among princes, prophets, priests, or people.
That should make up the hedge; to repair the breach, and prevent further mischief.
Stand in the gap; that might interpose between a sinful, suffering people and their offended God, and entreat for mercy, that the land might not be destroyed.
But I found none; all were corrupted, not one but obstinately went on to sin and provoke me.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain And I sought for a man among them,.... among…
And I sought for a man among them,.... among the princes, priests, prophets, and people of the land, who acted the part as above described; for otherwise, no doubt, there were good people in the land, as Jeremiah, Baruch, and others, but not among these:
that should make up the hedge; that was broken down by the transgressions of the people, who exceeded all bounds of law and justice; one that would restrain them from sinning, and reform them, and set them a good example; one, as the Targum has it,
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"whose works were good;''
a good man, that would endeavour by his influence to stop the breaking in of sin, and the consequences of it:
and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it; in the gap that sin had made, at which the Lord was entering as a man of war to destroy the transgressors; one that should present himself to the Lord on the behalf of the people; seek mercy for them, as the Targum; interpose between God and them, and act the part of an intercessor; pray for them, as Moses did for the people of Israel, that he would not destroy them; see Psa 106:23,
but I found none; no reformer of them, no repairer of the breach, nor restorer of paths, to dwell in; no intercessor for them, as Abraham for Sodom, Moses for Israel; or any, like Aaron, that stood between the living and the dead to stay the plague.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain I sought - God speaks after the manner of…
I sought - God speaks after the manner of men. A man - Any one, among princes, prophets, priests, or people, to repair the breach. And stand - Interpose between a sinful people, and their offended God, and intreat for mercy. But - All were corrupted.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 30. I sought for a man] I saw…
Verse 30. I sought for a man] I saw that there was a grievous breach made in the moral state and feeling of the people, and I sought for a man that would stand in the gap; that would faithfully exhort, reprove and counsel, with all long-suffering and doctrine. But none was to be found!
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain None like Abraham, Moses, &c. (Calmet) --- The prayers…
None like Abraham, Moses, &c. (Calmet) --- The prayers of the just are very powerful; and God wishes them to exert themselves for sinners. (St. Jerome) (Worthington)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain the hedge--the wall (see on Eze 13:5); image for…
the hedge--the wall (see on Eze 13:5); image for leading the people to repentance.
the gap--the breach (Psa 106:23); image for interceding between the people and God (Gen 20:7; Exo 32:11; Num 16:48).
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I found none-- (Jer 5:1) --not that literally there was not a righteous man in the city. For Jeremiah, Baruch, &c., were still there; but Jeremiah had been forbidden to pray for the people (Jer 11:14), as being doomed to wrath. None now, of the godly, knowing the desperate state of the people, and God's purpose as to them, was willing longer to interpose between God's wrath and them. And none "among them," that is, among those just enumerated as guilty of such sins (Eze 22:25-29), was morally able for such an office.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 30. There is universal apostasy. There is not left…
30. There is universal apostasy. There is not left in the city even one man who can plead for it as Abraham for the Sodomites, or as Moses for the people in the wilderness (<19A623>Psa_106:23). If only one such man could be found Jehovah would listen. (See notes Eze_13:5, and compare Jer_5:1; Isa_58:12; Isa_59:16.)
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 30. All classes (Eze_22:25-29) are alike corrupt; a man…
30. All classes (Eze_22:25-29) are alike corrupt; a man to stand in the breach in behalf of the people is looked for in vain, cf. Jer_5:1.
For “hedge” better fence, cf. on Eze_13:5. A “man” here is not a man to intercede, but a man to interpose, to stem the tide of ruin and turn the fortunes of the people. The moral energies of the nation were wholly exhausted; it could no more put forth out of itself a saviour to retrieve its fortunes. Cf. Isa_59:16, “and he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was none to interpose” (Isa_63:5).
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (30) Make up the hedge, is only another form…
(30) Make up the hedge, is only another form of “stand in the gap,” added for the sake of emphasis. Both refer to intercession for the people (see Psa_106:23). It is not meant that there was not a single godly man, but not one of such a pure, strong, and commanding character that his intercessions might avert the threatened doom.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain And I sought for a man, etc. (For the…
And I sought for a man, etc. (For the imagery that follows, (Eze_13:5; Psa_106:23) The fact stated, as in Jer_5:1, is that there was no one in all Jerusalem righteous enough to be either a defender or an intercessor, none to be a "repairer of the breach". (Isa_58:12) Nothing was left but the righteous punishment proclaimed in Ver. 31.
A man to stand in the gap.
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The nation of the Jews is in a desperate condition. Their defense is broken down, and God is ready to rush in through the breach with devastating vengeance. But he is loath to do so, and, though his is the threatening power, yet in a wonderful clemency God looks for some one to fill the gap and so to save the devoted nation. Unhappily, no such man is to be found.
I THE REACH IS MADE. The Jews have been already beaten in the war with Babylon. In the corresponding experience of souls the same lamentable condition is observable. The sinner sets himself against God with a brazen face, and makes the stoutest fence of worldly precautions wherewith to protect himself. But alas! this is a feeble structure. We have not to wait long before we discover that it has been broken through. Trouble has come. Misfortune has fallen on the self-complacent sinner. Or it may be he has suffered from severe sickness, that has weakened the energies of his body. Possibly his mental faculties have begun to fail. He receives unpleasant warning of his mortality. There is a breach in his hedge.
II GOD IS PREPARING TO COME THROUGH THE BREACH. He cannot disregard the sins of his people, for he is their King, and he must act justly. He might even make a breach at any moment, and in the awful crash of judgment sweep away the strongest fortifications of the soul as so much dust and rubbish. Much more, then, must the enfeebled soul, with ruined fences, stand open to the irresistible wrath of God! So long as we live in sin we are inviting God to come in vengeance through the ever-widening breaches in our paltry defenses.
III GOD WISHES THE BREACH TO BE FILLED. Here is the wonderful part of our subject. Though we deserve God"s vengeance, he is reluctant to wreak it upon us. While he is necessarily preparing to smite the sinner, he longs to spare him. When the soul is indifferent to its own danger, God grieves over it and looks out for a way of escape. God now longs to save us before we think of seeking for our deliverance.
IV A MAN IS NEEDED TO FILL THE BREACH. The Jews cannot do this for themselves. They do not see their danger, or they are too busily engaged upon the walls, or no one among them is strong and brave enough to take so perilous a position. We cannot mend the breach in our own lives. We cannot fortify our own souls against the wrath of God.
V NO MAN IS FOUND TO FILL THE BREACH. Jeremiah might have seemed the most likely savior in this time of extreme need; but even that great prophet was not able to stand alone against the inrushing army of vengeance. No man can save his neighbor from sin and ruin. The evil of the world is too great for all the good men in it to resist. The case of man is hopeless if it is left only to his fellow-man to save him.
VI GOD HAS SENT HIS SON TO FILL THE BREACH. God looked to see if there was any to save, and wondered that there was no man. Then his own arm brought salvation.
1. Christ came as a man. A man was wanted. God coming in wrath against mankind must be met by a representative man.
2. Christ came into the world. He stood in the breach and met the fury of the storm. He was "made sin for us," and faced the curse of the cross.
3. Christ came in the might of God.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 General Information:
General Information:
Yahweh compares the leaders of Jerusalem to a wall and himself to an invading army. (See: Metaphor)
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a man from them who would build up a wall
This speaks of a man who would take responsibility to pray for the people and to lead them to repentance as if that man were to build a wall to protect the people from Yahweh. AT: "a man from among them who would act like he built a wall" (See: Metaphor)
stand before me in its breach
Its "breach" refers to a gap in the wall. This speaks of the man defending the people before Yahweh as if he were a warrior standing in the breach to defend the city. (See: Metaphor)
for the land so I would not destroy it
Here the "land" represents the people who live there. AT: "for the people so that I would not destroy them" (See: Metonymy)
pour out my indignation upon them
This speaks of Yahweh punishing the people as if his indignation were a liquid that he poured out on them. AT: "I will punish the people because of my indignation for them" or "I will punish the people because of my anger against them" (See: Metaphor)
indignation
anger of a person who has suffered injustice
I will finish them with the fire of my indignation
This speaks of how harsh Yahweh's judgement is by comparing it to a fire. Here destroying the people is referred to as "finishing" them. AT: "I will destroy them with my wrath which is as intense as a blazing fire" or "I will destroy them with my wrath" (See: Metaphor and Euphemism)
set their way on their own heads
Setting something on a person's head refers to making them carry a burden or take responsibility for it. AT: "make them take responsibility for what they have done" (See: Synecdoche)
translationWords
head
Lord Yahweh
declare
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 22:30-31 In response to the sins of these former…
22:30-31 In response to the sins of these former community leaders, the Lord sought someone who would rebuild the wall and stand in the gap as a true prophet (see 13:5), someone who would intercede for the people, as Moses did after the people sinned with the gold calf (Exod 32). The Lord found no one to deflect his wrath, so his fury would now be poured out upon them in full measure (cp. Ezek 11:21).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.