Ezekiel 13:10

We have here more plain dealing with the false prophets, and some further articles of their doom. We have seen the people made ashamed of the false prophets (though sometimes they had been fond of them) and casting them away, as they shall do their false gods, with indignation; now here we find them as much ashamed of their false prophecies, which they had sometimes depended upon with much assurance. Observe, I. How the people are deceived by the false prophets. Those flatterers seduce them, saying, Peace, and there was no peace, Eze 13:10. They pretended to have seen visions of peace, Eze 13:16. But that could not be, for there was no peace, saith the Lord God. There was no prosperity designed for them, and therefore there could be no ground for their security; yet they told them that God was at peace with them, and had mercy in reserve for them, and that the war they were engaged in with the Chaldeans should soon end in an honourable peace, and their land should enjoy a happy repose and tranquillity. They told the idolaters and other sinners that there was neither harm nor danger in the way they were in. Thus they seduced God's people; they put a cheat upon them, led them into mistakes, and drew them aside out of that way of repentance and reformation which the other prophets were endeavouring to bring them into. Note, Those are the most dangerous seducers who suggest to sinners that which tends to lessen their dread of sin and their fear of God. Now this is compared to the building of a slight rotten wall, or, according to our Saviour's similitude, which is to the same purport with this (Mat 7:26), the building of a house upon the sand, which seems to be a shelter and protection for a while, but will fall when a storm comes. One false prophet built the wall, set up t…

13:10-16 The people’s “righteousness” was a flimsy wall in danger of collapse. Rather than doing the hard work of constructing their wall properly by calling the people to repentance, the false prophets were content to give it a coat of whitewash by telling the people that peace would come to Jerusalem. This external touch-up made the wall appear more solid than it was. Its true weakness would be exposed by a heavy rainstorm. Water would flow into the unsealed cracks, wash away the mortar, and allow the stones to fall away. In this case, the storm would be the great flood of God’s anger, which would destroy the people’s pretense to righteousness and the false prophets who had encouraged it. Meanwhile, they would have no peace.