12 "Say now to the rebellious house , 'Do you not know what these things mean?' Say , 'Behold , the king of Babylon came to Jerusalem , took its king and princes and brought them to him in Babylon . 13 'He took one of the royal family and made a covenant with him, putting him under oath . He also took away the mighty of the land , 14 that the kingdom might be in subjection , not exalting itself, but keeping his covenant that it might continue . 15 'But he rebelled against him by sending his envoys to Egypt that they might give him horses and many troops . Will he succeed ? Will he who does such things escape ? Can he indeed break the covenant and escape ? 16 'As I live ,' declares the Lord GOD , 'Surely e in the country of the king who put him on the throne , whose oath he despised and whose covenant he broke , in Babylon he shall die . 17 ' Pharaoh with his mighty army and great company will not help him in the war , when they cast up ramps and build siege walls to cut off many lives . 18 'Now he despised the oath by breaking the covenant , and behold , he pledged his allegiance , yet did all these things ; he shall not escape .' " 19 Therefore , thus says the Lord GOD , "As I live , surely e My oath which he despised and My covenant which he broke , I will inflict on his head .
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Ezekiel 17:12-19
Commentary on Ezekiel 17:11-21
(Read Ezekiel 17:11-21)
The parable is explained, and the particulars of the history of the Jewish nation at that time may be traced. Zedekiah had been ungrateful to his benefactor, which is a sin against God. In every solemn oath, God is appealed to as a witness of the sincerity of him that swears. Truth is a debt owing to all men. If the professors of the true religion deal treacherously with those of a false religion, their profession makes their sin the worse; and God will the more surely and severely punish it. The Lord will not hold those guiltless who take his name in vain; and no man shall escape the righteous judgment of God who dies under unrepented guilt.