Ezekiel 11:4
in Ezekiel 11Therefore prophesy against them; prophesy, O son of man!”
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Therefore prophesy against them, prophesy, O son of man.
KJV
Therefore prophesy against them, prophesy, O son of man.
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This verse in Ezekiel 11
Commentary
5 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
five and twenty men
on Ezekiel 11:1-4
The Spirit carries the prophet to the east gate and shows him twenty five men gathered at its door, named leaders among them Jaazaniah and Pelatiah, princes of the people rather than strangers off the street. Their counsel is given in the very next verse's own words, that Jerusalem is a safe caldron and they the meat inside it, a boast that the coming siege will only cook the flesh already gathered rather than touch the city's leaders. Henry notes the irony that these men sit at the gate where the glory itself will soon depart, plotting safety in the shadow of the throne's exit. The Lord orders Ezekiel to prophesy against them by name, the charge repeated twice for weight, before a single word of judgment is spoken.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(Verse 2 onwards) And behold, at the entrance of the gate were twenty-five men, and in their midst I saw Jaazaniah the son of Azzur, and Pelatiah the son of Benaiah, the princes of the people. And he said to me, Son of man, these men devise iniquity and give wicked counsel in this city, saying, 'The houses have been recently built. This is the pot, but we are the meat.' Therefore, prophesy against them, prophesy, son of man.
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
Therefore prophesy against them,....
But the prophet, being at a loss what to say to men that were hardened in sin, and that bade defiance to the judgments of God, the Spirit of the Lord fell upon him, to make him full of power and courage, and said unto him, Speak. Note, When sinners are flattering themselves into their own ruin it is time to speak, and to tell them that they shall have no peace if they go on.
A message of comfort to those who were carried captives into Babylon and were there in the depth of despondency, thinking they should never rise. And, as the former are assured that God has judgments in store for them notwithstanding their present security, so the later are assured that God has mercy in store for them notwithstanding their present distress,
The words behind it
6 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| לָכֵ֖ן | lakhen | <to> therefore | H3651 → | 771 times |
| הִנָּבֵ֣א | hinave' | prophesy | H5012 → | 115 times |
| עֲלֵיהֶ֑ם | ʾaleihem | on them | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| הִנָּבֵ֖א | hinave' | prophesy | H5012 → | 115 times |
| בֶּן־ | ben- | O son of | H1121 → | 4930 times |
| אָדָֽם׃ | ʾadam | humankind | H120 → | 551 times |
לָכֵ֖ן<to> therefore
lakhenH3651 →771 times
הִנָּבֵ֣אprophesy
hinave'H5012 →115 times
עֲלֵיהֶ֑םon them
ʾaleihemH5921 →5755 times
הִנָּבֵ֖אprophesy
hinave'H5012 →115 times
בֶּן־O son of
ben-H1121 →4930 times
אָדָֽם׃humankind
ʾadamH120 →551 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Isaiah 58:1“Cry aloud, do not hold back! Raise your voice like a ram’s horn. Declare to My people their transgression and to the house of Jacob their sins.
it leads to
- Titus 2:15
Speak these things as you encourage and rebuke with all authority. Let no one despise you.
- Hosea 8:1
Put the ram’s horn to your lips! An eagle looms over the house of the LORD, because the people have transgressed My covenant and rebelled against My law.
- Acts 20:26–27
Therefore I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all men.
- Ezekiel 3:17–21
“Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from My mouth, give them a warning from Me.
- Acts 7:51–52
You stiff-necked people with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You always resist the Holy Spirit, just as your fathers did.
- Titus 2:15
Through
Hosea 8:1Put the ram’s horn to your lips! An eagle looms over the house of the LORD, because the people have transgressed My covenant and rebelled against My law.
it leads to
- Hosea 6:7
But they, like Adam, have transgressed the covenant; there they were unfaithful to Me.
- Deuteronomy 28:49
The LORD will bring a nation from afar, from the ends of the earth, to swoop down upon you like an eagle—a nation whose language you will not understand,
- Jeremiah 4:13
Behold, he advances like the clouds, his chariots like the whirlwind. His horses are swifter than eagles. Woe to us, for we are ruined!
- Hosea 6:7
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies3
On this verse
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About Ezekiel
This page draws on Jerome, Commentary on Ezekiel; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.