6. (a) What two roles did Ezekiel act out at the same time? (b) What is indicated by God’s command to “weigh and divide the hair”?

⁶ The destruction of Jerusalem and its people. In this part of the prophetic enactment, Ezekiel acted out two roles at the same time. First, Ezekiel acted out what Jehovah would do. Jehovah told him: “Take a sharp sword for yourself to use as a barber’s razor.” (Read Ezekiel 5:1, 2.) Ezekiel’s hand that wielded the sword portrayed the hand of Jehovah​—his judgment—​as expressed through Babylon’s army. Second, Ezekiel acted out what the Jews would go through. Jehovah said to him: “Shave your head and your beard.” The shaving of Ezekiel’s head represented how the Jews would be attacked and wiped out. Furthermore, the command to “take scales to weigh and divide the hair into portions” implied that Jehovah’s judgment against Jerusalem would be carried out, not haphazardly, but deliberately and thoroughly.

7. Why did Jehovah tell Ezekiel to divide the hair in three portions and to treat each portion differently?

⁷ Why did Jehovah tell Ezekiel to divide his shaved-off hair into three portions and to treat each portion differently? (Read Ezekiel 5:7-12.) Ezekiel burned one portion of hair “inside the city” to demonstrate to onlookers that some inhabitants of Jerusalem would die in the city. Ezekiel struck a portion of hair with the sword “all around the city” to indicate that other inhabitants would be killed outside the city. He scattered the last portion of hair to the wind to illustrate that still other inhabitants would be scattered among the nations, but “a sword” would “chase after them.” Thus, wherever those survivors might end up living, they would find no peace.

8. (a) What hint of hope did Ezekiel’s enactment contain? (b) How did the prophetic statement about the “few strands” come true?

⁸ However, Ezekiel’s prophetic enactment also contained a hint of hope. Regarding the hair that Ezekiel had shaved off, Jehovah told the prophet: “Take a few strands . . . and wrap them up in the folds of your garment.” (Ezek. 5:3) That command indicated that a few of the Jews who would be scattered among the nations would be preserved. Some of those “few strands” would be among the exiles who were to return to Jerusalem after the 70-year-long captivity in Babylon. (Ezek. 6:8, 9; 11:17) Did that prophetic statement come true? Yes. A number of years after the end of the Babylonian captivity, the prophet Haggai reported that some of the scattered Jews had indeed returned to Jerusalem. They were the “old men who had seen the former house,” that is, Solomon’s temple. (Ezra 3:12; Hag. 2:1-3) Jehovah saw to it that pure worship was preserved, just as he had promised. More details about that restoration will be considered in Chapter 9 of this publication.​—Ezek. 11:17-20.

Ezekiel acted out events that would soon unfold in Jerusalem

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  “Shave”

  The Jews would be attacked and wiped out

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  “Weigh and Divide”

  The judgment would be deliberate and thorough

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  “Burn”

  Some would die in the city

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  “Strike”

  Some would be killed outside the city

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  “Scatter”

  Some would escape, but they would find no peace

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  “Wrap”

  Some exiles would return to Jerusalem, and pure worship would be preserved