Ezekiel 16:38
in Ezekiel 16And I will sentence you to the punishment of women who commit adultery and those who shed blood; so I will bring upon you the wrath of your bloodshed and jealousy.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And I will judge thee, as women that break wedlock and shed blood are judged; and I will bring upon thee the blood of wrath and jealousy.
KJV
And I will judge thee, as women that break wedlock and shed blood are judged; and I will give thee blood in fury and jealousy.
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This verse in Ezekiel 16
Commentary
7 notes on this verseBlood - Thou gavest the blood of thy children to idols in sacrifice; I will give thee thine own blood to drink.
This site's exposition
O prostitute, hear the word of the LORD
on Ezekiel 16:35-39
“I will surely gather all the lovers with whom you found pleasure,” and they become her judges, for “they will see you completely naked.” She receives “the punishment of women who commit adultery and those who shed blood.” The stripping undoes the clothing of verses 10 to 13.
This site's exposition
those who shed blood
Two crimes meet two penalties. Adultery and murder both carried death under the law, at Leviticus 20:10 and Genesis 9:6. Wesley ties the sentence to the blood of the children given to idols.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(Verse 35 and following) Therefore, prostitute, listen to the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord God: Because your bronze has been poured out, and your disgrace has been revealed in your fornication (in your adulteries), with your lovers, and with the idols of your abominations, in the blood of your sons, whom you have given to them.
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
), and those two crimes were punished with death, with an ignominious death. "Thou hast shed blood, and therefore I will give thee blood; thou hast broken wedlock, and therefore I will give it thee, not only in justice, but in jealousy, not only as a righteous Judge, but as an injured and incensed husband, who will not spare in the day of vengeance, " Prov. vi.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
And I will judge thee as women that break wedlock,....
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
judge thee, as women that break wedlock-- (Le 20:10; compare Eze 16:2). In the case of individual adulteresses, stoning was the penalty (Joh 8:4, 5). In the case of communities, the sword.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
The words behind it
9 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וּשְׁפַטְתִּיךְ֙ | ushefatikh | and I will judge you | H8199 → | 202 times |
| מִשְׁפְּטֵ֣י | mishpetei | judgments of | H4941 → | 422 times |
| נֹאֲפ֔וֹת | noafot | adulteresses | H5003 → | 31 times |
| וְשֹׁפְכֹ֖ת | veshofekhot | and [women who] shed | H8210 → | 114 times |
| דָּ֑ם | dam | blood | H1818 → | 360 times |
| וּנְתַתִּ֕יךְ | unetatikh | and I will put on you | H5414 → | 2011 times |
| דַּ֥ם | dam | blood of | H1818 → | 360 times |
| חֵמָ֖ה | chemah | rage | H2534 → | 125 times |
| וְקִנְאָֽה׃ | vekinah | and jealousy | H7068 → | 43 times |
וּשְׁפַטְתִּיךְ֙and I will judge you
ushefatikhH8199 →202 times
מִשְׁפְּטֵ֣יjudgments of
mishpeteiH4941 →422 times
נֹאֲפ֔וֹתadulteresses
noafotH5003 →31 times
וְשֹׁפְכֹ֖תand [women who] shed
veshofekhotH8210 →114 times
דָּ֑םblood
damH1818 →360 times
וּנְתַתִּ֕יךְand I will put on you
unetatikhH5414 →2011 times
דַּ֥םblood of
damH1818 →360 times
חֵמָ֖הrage
chemahH2534 →125 times
וְקִנְאָֽה׃and jealousy
vekinahH7068 →43 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
Genesis 9:6Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man his blood will be shed; for in His own image God has made mankind.
it leads to
- Leviticus 24:17
And if a man takes the life of anyone else, he must surely be put to death.
- Matthew 26:52
“Put your sword back in its place,” Jesus said to him. “For all who draw the sword will die by the sword.
- Revelation 13:10
“If anyone is destined for captivity, into captivity he will go; if anyone is to die by the sword, by the sword he must be killed.” Here is a call for the perseverance and…
- Numbers 35:33
Do not pollute the land where you live, for bloodshed pollutes the land, and no atonement can be made for the land on which the blood is shed, except by the blood of the…
- Exodus 21:12–14
Whoever strikes and kills a man must surely be put to death.
- Leviticus 24:17
Through
Leviticus 20:10If a man commits adultery with another man’s wife—with the wife of his neighbor—both the adulterer and the adulteress must surely be put to death.
it leads to
- John 8:4–5
and said, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery.
- Deuteronomy 22:22–24
If a man is found lying with another man’s wife, both the man who slept with her and the woman must die. You must purge the evil from Israel.
- John 8:4–5
Through
Genesis 38:24About three months later, Judah was told, “Your daughter-in-law Tamar has prostituted herself, and now she is pregnant.” “Bring her out!” Judah replied. “Let her be burned to death!”
it leads to
- Leviticus 21:9
If a priest’s daughter defiles herself by prostituting herself, she profanes her father; she must be burned in the fire.
- Leviticus 21:9
Where this verse is studied
About Ezekiel
This page draws on Carl Friedrich Keil, Biblical Commentary on the Prophecies of Ezekiel; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jerome, Commentary on Ezekiel; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.