Ezekiel 22:9
in Ezekiel 22Among you are slanderous men bent on bloodshed; within you are those who eat on the mountain shrines and commit acts of indecency.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Slanderous men have been in thee to shed blood; and in thee they have eaten upon the mountains: in the midst of thee they have committed lewdness.
KJV
In thee are men that carry tales to shed blood: and in thee they eat upon the mountains: in the midst of thee they commit lewdness.
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This verse in Ezekiel 22
Commentary
9 notes on this verseIn thee are men that carry tales to shed blood,.... Innocent blood, as the Targum; such who go from house to house, as pedlars do, with their wares or spices, as the word (a) signifies; hence the Syriac version renders it "merchants"; and carry tales and lies of innocent persons, and stir up others against them to wrath and revenge, and shed their blood; or that go to the courts of judicature, and there accuse innocent persons, and bear false witness against them, to the taking away of their lives.
This site's exposition
the princes of Israel, every one were in thee to their power to shed blood
on Ezekiel 22:6-12
The list runs through every rank and relation the covenant law protected. Wesley reads the list as a point by point breach of the commandments. Gill notes the closing count, usury and extortion practiced on neighbours, and hast forgotten me, ties every social sin back to the same forgetting.
This site's exposition
slanderous men bent on bloodshed
Gill notes that the Hebrew word for these slanderous men describes a peddler going from house to house, carrying tales that end in shed blood. Leviticus 19:16 forbids such tales in the same verse that guards a neighbor's life. Naboth died by such tales.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(Chapter 22, Verses 1 onwards) And the word of the Lord came to me, saying: And you, son of man, do you not judge the city of blood, and show her all her abominations? And say: Thus says the Lord God: The city that sheds blood within herself, so that her time may come, and that has made idols against herself to defile herself. In your blood that was shed, you have sinned, and you have defiled yourself with your idols that you have made.
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
Note, Those who, by giving invidious characters and telling ill-natured stories of their neighbours, sow discord among brethren, will be accountable for all the mischief that follows upon it; as he that kindles a fire will be accountable for all the hurt it does. (3.) There were those who took gifts to shed blood (
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens
); lewdness goes bare-faced, though in the most scandalous instances, as that of a man's having his father's wife, which is the discovery of the father's nakedness (
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation
Carry tales - Informers, or persons that for money, give in false witness against the innocent. They eat - Offer sacrifice on the mountains and feast there, in honour of their idols.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
men that carry tales--informers, who by misrepresentations cause innocent blood to be shed (Le 19:16). Literally, "one who goes to and fro as a merchant."
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
1 more voice on this verse
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
In thee are men that carry tales - Witnesses that will swear any thing, even where life is concerned. They eat upon the mountains - Sacrifice to idols, and celebrate their festivals.
The words behind it
14 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| אַנְשֵׁ֥י | ʾanshei | people of | H582 → | 566 times |
| רָכִ֛יל | rakhil | slander | H7400 → | |
| הָ֥יוּ | hayu | they have been | H1961 → | 3559 times |
| בָ֖ךְ | vakh | in you | ||
| לְמַ֣עַן | lemaan | so as | H4616 → | 272 times |
| שְׁפָךְ־ | shefokh- | to shed | H8210 → | 114 times |
| דָּ֑ם | dam | blood | H1818 → | 360 times |
| וְאֶל־ | veel- | and to | H413 → | 5510 times |
| הֶֽהָרִים֙ | heharim | the mountains | H2022 → | 546 times |
| אָ֣כְלוּ | ʾakhelu | they have eaten | H398 → | 810 times |
| בָ֔ךְ | vakh | in you | ||
| זִמָּ֖ה | zimah | licentiousness | H2154 → | 29 times |
| עָשׂ֥וּ | ʾasu | they have done | H6213 → | 2628 times |
| בְתוֹכֵֽךְ׃ | vetokhekh | in [the] midst of you | H8432 → | 418 times |
אַנְשֵׁ֥יpeople of
ʾansheiH582 →566 times
רָכִ֛ילslander
rakhilH7400 →
הָ֥יוּthey have been
hayuH1961 →3559 times
בָ֖ךְin you
vakh
לְמַ֣עַןso as
lemaanH4616 →272 times
שְׁפָךְ־to shed
shefokh-H8210 →114 times
דָּ֑םblood
damH1818 →360 times
וְאֶל־and to
veel-H413 →5510 times
הֶֽהָרִים֙the mountains
heharimH2022 →546 times
אָ֣כְלוּthey have eaten
ʾakheluH398 →810 times
בָ֔ךְin you
vakh
זִמָּ֖הlicentiousness
zimahH2154 →29 times
עָשׂ֥וּthey have done
ʾasuH6213 →2628 times
בְתוֹכֵֽךְ׃in [the] midst of you
vetokhekhH8432 →418 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
Leviticus 19:16You must not go about spreading slander among your people. You must not endanger the life of your neighbor. I am the LORD.
it leads to
- Exodus 23:1
“You shall not spread a false report. Do not join the wicked by being a malicious witness.
- Exodus 23:7
Stay far away from a false accusation. Do not kill the innocent or the just, for I will not acquit the guilty.
- Proverbs 20:19
He who reveals secrets is a constant gossip; avoid the one who babbles with his lips.
- Proverbs 11:13
A gossip reveals a secret, but a trustworthy person keeps a confidence.
- Jeremiah 9:4
“Let everyone guard against his neighbor; do not trust any brother, for every brother deals craftily, and every friend spreads slander.
- Exodus 23:1
Through
Hosea 4:10They will eat but not be satisfied; they will be promiscuous but not multiply. For they have stopped obeying the LORD.
it leads to
- Micah 6:14
You will eat but not be satisfied, and your hunger will remain with you. What you acquire, you will not preserve; and what you save, I will give to the sword.
- Haggai 1:6
You have planted much but harvested little. You eat but never have enough. You drink but never have your fill. You put on clothes but never get warm. You earn wages to put into…
- Micah 6:14
Through
Hosea 4:2Cursing and lying, murder and stealing, and adultery are rampant; one act of bloodshed follows another.
it leads to
- Hosea 6:9
Like raiders who lie in ambush, so does a band of priests; they murder on the way to Shechem; surely they have committed atrocities.
- Hosea 6:9
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About Ezekiel
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; 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 Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.