Ezekiel 6:12
in Ezekiel 6He who is far off will die by the plague, he who is near will fall by the sword, and he who remains will die by famine. So I will vent My fury upon them.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
He that is far off shall die of the pestilence; and he that is near shall fall by the sword; and he that remaineth and is besieged shall die by the famine: thus will I accomplish my wrath upon them.
KJV
He that is far off shall die of the pestilence; and he that is near shall fall by the sword; and he that remaineth and is besieged shall die by the famine: thus will I accomplish my fury upon them.
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This verse in Ezekiel 6
Commentary
8 notes on this verseA commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
He that is far off--namely, from the foe; those who in a distant exile fear no evil. he that remaineth--he that is left in the city; not carried away into captivity, nor having escaped into the country. Distinct from "he that is near," namely, those outside the city who are within reach of "the sword" of the foe, and so fall by it; not by "famine," as those left in the city.
This site's exposition
Clap your hands, stomp your feet
on Ezekiel 6:11-13
Ezekiel is to “Clap your hands, stomp your feet, and cry out.” The judgments are set by distance: “He who is far off will die by the plague, he who is near will fall by the sword.” They will know the LORD when their slain lie among their idols.
This site's exposition
He who is far off will die by the plague
No one escapes by distance or by staying put. The one far off dies by plague, the one near falls by the sword, and the one left in the besieged city dies by famine. Jerome reads the far off as those who fled the siege into the desert.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(Verse 12.) Whoever is far away will die from the plague; whoever is near will fall by the sword, and whoever is left and surrounded by famine will die, and I will fulfill my wrath upon them. Whoever escapes the siege of the city and migrates to the desert will die from the plague; whoever is near will fall by the enemy's sword. And whoever is surrounded by the enemy's army will perish from famine and lack: in all of these, the wrath of God will be fulfilled, so that those who remain may know that He is the Lord.
The Puritans and the Awakening4 voices
High places - The places of your idolatrous worship. Cast down - Before the altars of your idols, which you fly to for refuge. And - Thus the idols were upbraided with their inability to help their worshippers, and the idolaters, with the folly of trusting in them.
He that is so cautious as not to venture out, but remains in the city, shall there die by the famine, the saddest death of all. Thus will God accomplish his fury, that is, do all that against them which he had purposed to do. They shall read their sin in their punishment; for their slain men shall be among their idols, round about their altars, as was threatened before,
) that he would draw a sword after those who were scattered, that destruction should pursue them in their dispersion; but here is mercy remembered in the midst of that wrath, and a promise that some of the Jews of the dispersion, as they were afterwards called, should escape the sword.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — leading-punctuation+unbalanced-parens
He that is far off shall die of the pestilence,....
How the passage was read
What the Jewish commentators add
and who is in the siege Heb. והנצור, one who is gathered into the city when they besiege it.
1 more on this passage, in their own words ▾
and stamp Its context implies that it means to stamp one’s foot on the ground to flatten out the mud, and this is a custom of a mourner.
This section is reception history: how the passage was read and kept in the Jewish tradition. Where a reading parts from an essential of the Christian faith, the section says so at that point.
Texts and citation data: Sefaria; each excerpt follows its version’s licence. 4 further sources are cited on this chapter that carry no English text this site may quote or only restate the verse.
The words behind it
13 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| הָרָח֞וֹק | harachok | the distant [person] | H7350 → | 84 times |
| בַּדֶּ֣בֶר | badever | by the pestilence | H1698 → | 49 times |
| יָמ֗וּת | yamut | he will die | H4191 → | 839 times |
| וְהַקָּרוֹב֙ | vehakarov | and the near [person] | H7138 → | 77 times |
| בַּחֶ֣רֶב | bacherev | by the sword | H2719 → | 413 times |
| יִפּ֔וֹל | yipol | he will fall | H5307 → | 435 times |
| וְהַנִּשְׁאָר֙ | vehanishar | and the [one who] is left alive | H7604 → | 133 times |
| וְהַנָּצ֔וּר | vehanatzur | and the [one who] is preserved | H5341 → | |
| בָּרָעָ֖ב | baraav | by <the> famine | H7458 → | 101 times |
| יָמ֑וּת | yamut | he will die | H4191 → | 839 times |
| וְכִלֵּיתִ֥י | vekhileiti | and I will complete | H3615 → | 208 times |
| חֲמָתִ֖י | chamati | rage my | H2534 → | 125 times |
| בָּֽם׃ | bam | on them |
הָרָח֞וֹקthe distant [person]
harachokH7350 →84 times
בַּדֶּ֣בֶרby the pestilence
badeverH1698 →49 times
יָמ֗וּתhe will die
yamutH4191 →839 times
וְהַקָּרוֹב֙and the near [person]
vehakarovH7138 →77 times
בַּחֶ֣רֶבby the sword
bacherevH2719 →413 times
יִפּ֔וֹלhe will fall
yipolH5307 →435 times
וְהַנִּשְׁאָר֙and the [one who] is left alive
vehanisharH7604 →133 times
וְהַנָּצ֔וּרand the [one who] is preserved
vehanatzurH5341 →
בָּרָעָ֖בby <the> famine
baraavH7458 →101 times
יָמ֑וּתhe will die
yamutH4191 →839 times
וְכִלֵּיתִ֥יand I will complete
vekhileitiH3615 →208 times
חֲמָתִ֖יrage my
chamatiH2534 →125 times
בָּֽם׃on them
bam
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 40:2“Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that her forced labor has been completed; her iniquity has been pardoned. For she has received from the hand of the LORD double for all her…
it leads to
- Zechariah 9:12
Return to your stronghold, O prisoners of hope; even today I declare that I will restore to you double.
- Isaiah 61:7
Instead of shame, My people will have a double portion, and instead of humiliation, they will rejoice in their share; and so they will inherit a double portion in their land, and everlasting joy…
- Hosea 2:14
“Therefore, behold, I will allure her and lead her to the wilderness, and speak to her tenderly.
- Jeremiah 33:8–9
And I will cleanse them from all the iniquity they have committed against Me, and will forgive all their sins of rebellion against Me.
- Revelation 18:6
Give back to her as she has done to others; pay her back double for what she has done; mix her a double portion in her own cup.
- Zechariah 9:12
Through
Lamentations 4:22O Daughter of Zion, your punishment is complete; He will not prolong your exile. But He will punish your iniquity, O Daughter of Edom; He will expose your sins.
it leads to
- Isaiah 40:2
“Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that her forced labor has been completed; her iniquity has been pardoned. For she has received from the hand of the LORD double for all her…
- Isaiah 40:2
Through
Lamentations 4:11The LORD has exhausted His wrath; He has poured out His fierce anger; He has kindled a fire in Zion, and it has consumed her foundations.
it leads to
- Jeremiah 7:20
Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: Behold, My anger and My fury will be poured out on this place, on man and beast, on the trees of the field and the produce…
- Jeremiah 7:20
Through
Daniel 9:7To You, O Lord, belongs righteousness, but this day we are covered with shame—the men of Judah, the people of Jerusalem, and all Israel near and far, in all the countries to which You…
it leads to
- Deuteronomy 4:27
Then the LORD will scatter you among the peoples, and only a few of you will survive among the nations to which the LORD will drive you.
- Deuteronomy 4:27
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; 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.