יחזקאל, פרק ל״ו, פסוק ה׳

Following the destruction of the land of Israel and the exile of the Israelites, neighboring nations seized the opportunity to exploit the tragedy. In response, God directs a severe oath, fueled by intense anger, toward the nations of the world [מצודת דוד, מצודת ציון]. Specifically, this fierce judgment targets the entirety of Edom [מצודת ציון, רד״ק, ביאור שטיינזלץ] as well as the Philistines. The Philistines are identified as a mere remnant because they had previously suffered a devastating military blow from Pharaoh [מלבי״ם]. These nations did not merely engage in standard territorial conquest; they deliberately took possession of the very land where God's presence dwells [רד״ק].

Their actions were driven by a burning hatred and a deep sense of disgust and contempt for the Israelites [מצודת דוד, מצודת ציון, מלבי״ם, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. The joy they felt in capturing the territory did not stem from the material gain of acquiring new land. Rather, it was a malicious joy, rooted entirely in gloating over the downfall and destruction of the Israelites [מלבי״ם, ביאור שטיינזלץ].

When examining the ultimate goal of these invading nations, commentators offer two distinct perspectives. One approach suggests that the nations watched the Israelites being driven from their homes and abandoned to plunder [רש״י]. In this view, the enemies were not acting for their own practical benefit. Their primary motivation was simply to ensure the Israelites were expelled and humiliated, allowing the invaders to loot the land once it was stripped of its inhabitants [מצודת דוד, מצודת ציון, רד״ק, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. Another perspective argues that the enemies had no intention of actually settling or rebuilding the conquered territory. Driven entirely by hatred, their goal was to strip the region bare, turning it into an empty, desolate space fit only for pillaging and disgrace [מלבי״ם].