11:7 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Your slain whom ye have laid in the midst of it, they [are] {c} the flesh, and this [city is] the caldron: but I will bring you forth out of the midst of it.
(c) Contrary to their vain confidence he shows in what sense the city is the caldron: that is, because of the dead bodies that have been murdered in it, and so lit as flesh in the caldron.
11:7 Bring you forth - Not in mercy, but in wrath, by the conquering hand of Babylon.
11:1-13 Where Satan cannot persuade men to look upon the judgment to come as uncertain, he gains his point by persuading them to look upon it as at a distance. These wretched rulers dare to say, We are as safe in this city as flesh in a boiling pot; the walls of the city shall be to us as walls of brass, we shall receive no more damage from the besiegers than the caldron does from the fire. When sinners flatter themselves to their own ruin, it is time to tell them they shall have no peace if they go on. None shall remain in possession of the city but those who are buried in it. Those are least safe who are most secure. God is often pleased to single out some sinners for warning to others. Whether Pelatiah died at that time in Jerusalem, or when the fulfilment of the prophecy drew near, is uncertain. Like Ezekiel, we ought to be much affected with the sudden death of others, and we should still plead with the Lord to have mercy on those who remain.
