Ezekiel 47:9 - Exposition

The nature of the healing is next described as an impartation of such celebrity to the waters that everything that liveth, which moveth —better, every living creature which swarmeth (comp. Genesis 1:20 , Genesis 1:21 ; Genesis 7:21 )— whitherseover the rivers (literally, the two rivers ) shall come, shall live . The meaning cannot be that everything which liveth and swarmeth in the sea whither the rivers come shall live, because the Dead Sea contains no fish (see above), but whithersoever the rivers come, there living and swarming creatures of every kind shall spring into existence, shall come to life and flourish. The dual form, נַחֲלַיִם , has been accounted for by Maurer, as having been selected on account of its resemblance to מַיִם ; by Hävernick and Currey, as pointing to the junction of another river, the Kedron (Hävernick), the Jordan (Currey), with the temple-stream before the latter, should fall into the sea; by Kliefoth, as alluding to a division of the river waters after entering the sea; by Neumann and Schroder, as referring to the waters of the sea and the waters of the river, which should henceforth be united; and by Hengstenberg, with whom Keil and Plumptre agree, as a dual of intensification (as in Jeremiah 1:1-19 :21), signifying "double river," with allusion to its greatness, or the strength of its current. None of these interpretations is free from objection; though probably, in default of better, the last is best. Ewald changes the dual into נַחְלָם , a singular with a suffix, while Hitzig makes of it a plural; but neither of these devices is satisfactory. As a further evidence that the waters of the sea should be healed by the inflowing into them of the waters of the river, it is stated that the sea should thereafter contain a very great multitude of fish (literally, and the fish will be very many ), of which previously it contained none. The next clauses supply the reason of this abundance of fish, because these waters (of the river) shall —or, are (Revised Version) come thither —(into the waters of the sea), for (literally, and) they , the latter, shall be (or, are ) healed, and everything shall live (or, connecting this with the foregoing clause, and everything shall be healed , and live ) whithersoever the river cometh —the river, namely, that proceedeth from the temple.