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Ezekiel 28:9

in Ezekiel 28

Will you still say, ‘I am a god,’ in the presence of those who slay you? You will be only a man, not a god, in the hands of those who wound you.

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

Wilt thou yet say before him that slayeth thee, I am God? but thou art man, and not God, in the hand of him that woundeth thee.

KJV

Wilt thou yet say before him that slayeth thee, I am God? but thou shalt be a man, and no God, in the hand of him that slayeth thee.

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This verse in Ezekiel 28

Commentary

7 notes on this verse

This site's exposition

you regard your heart as the heart of a god

on Ezekiel 28:6-10

The sentence matches the crime clause for clause: strangers will draw their swords against the beauty of thy wisdom. The pit and the deaths of the uncircumcised name the shame, burial without the covenant sign. The strangers are Nebuchadnezzar's Babylon (26:7) and, in the older commentators' reading, Alexander after him.

This site's exposition

in the presence of those who slay you

The question sets the boast of verse 2 beside the moment of death. The word for man is adam, the creature made from the ground, and a wound proves the king belongs to that kind. Blood settles the question.

The record, by era

The Church Fathers1 voice

A commentator

Jerome

Commentary on Ezekiel · Written before 420.

proposed

(Chapter 28, Verse 1 onwards) 'The word of the Lord came to me, saying: Son of man, say to the prince of Tyre: Thus says the Lord God: Because your heart is lifted up, and you have said, 'I am a god, I sit in the seat of gods, in the heart of the seas,' yet you are a man, and not a god, though you set your heart as the heart of a god. Behold, you are wiser than Daniel! There is no secret that is hidden from you.

The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices

Wilt thou yet say before him that slayeth thee, I am God?....

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

proposed

As after the prediction of the ruin of Tyre ( ch. xxvi. ) followed a pathetic lamentation for it ( ch. xxvii. ), so after the ruin of the king of Tyre is foretold it is bewailed. This is commonly understood of the prince who then reigned over Tyre, spoken to,

The Nineteenth Century2 voices

A commentator

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

1802–1910

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)

proposed

yet say--that is, still say; referring to Eze 28:2. but, &c.--But thy blasphemous boastings shall be falsified, and thou shalt be shown to be but man, and not God, in the hand (at the mercy) of Him.

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase

A commentator

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible · Written before 1832.

proposed

Wilt thou yet say before him that slayeth thee - Wilt thou continue thy pride and arrogance when the sword is sheathed in thee, and still imagine that thou art self-sufficient and independent?

The words behind it

12 Hebrew words

Every 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.

  • הֶאָמֹ֤ר¿ really <to say>

    heamorH559 →5305 times

  • תֹּאמַר֙will you say

    tomarH559 →5305 times

  • אֱלֹהִ֣ים[am] a god

    ʾelohimH430 →2601 times

  • אָ֔נִיI

    ʾaniH589 →874 times

  • לִפְנֵ֖י<to> before

    lifneiH6440 →2123 times

  • הֹֽרְגֶ֑ךָkiller your

    horegekhaH2026 →167 times

  • וְאַתָּ֥הand you

    veatahH859 →1094 times

  • אָדָ֛ם[are] a human being

    ʾadamH120 →551 times

  • וְלֹא־and not

    velo'-H3808 →5168 times

  • אֵ֖לa god

    ʾelH410 →241 times

  • בְּיַ֥דin [the] hand of

    beyadH3027 →1618 times

  • מְחַלְלֶֽיךָ׃[those who] pierce you

    mechaleikhaH2490 →143 times

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

Related verses

18 in all, six open

The number beside each verse is how many compiled reference works tie it to this one. The strongest six stand open.

Ezekiel 28:2“Son of man, tell the ruler of Tyre that this is what the Lord GOD says: Your heart is proud, and you have said, ‘I am a god; I sit in the seat of gods in the heart of the sea.’ Yet you are a man and not a god, though you have regarded your heart as that of a god.11 worksProverbs 18:12Before his downfall a man’s heart is proud, but humility comes before honor.6 works2 Thessalonians 2:4He will oppose and exalt himself above every so-called god or object of worship. So he will seat himself in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God.6 worksIsaiah 31:3But the Egyptians are men, not God; their horses are flesh, not spirit. When the LORD stretches out His hand, the helper will stumble, and the one he helps will fall; both will perish together.5 worksIsaiah 10:15Does an axe raise itself above the one who swings it? Does a saw boast over him who saws with it? It would be like a rod waving the one who lifts it, or a staff lifting him who is not wood!4 worksZephaniah 2:15This carefree city that dwells securely, that thinks to herself: “I am it, and there is none besides me,” what a ruin she has become, a resting place for beasts. Everyone who passes by her hisses and shakes his fist.4 works
The other 12 cross-references, with their words ▾
Psalms 82:7But like mortals you will die, and like rulers you will fall.”3 worksEzekiel 16:49Now this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed, and complacent; they did not help the poor and needy.3 worksGenesis 3:5“For God knows that in the day you eat of it, your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”3 worksIsaiah 37:23Whom have you taunted and blasphemed? Against whom have you raised your voice and lifted your eyes in pride? Against the Holy One of Israel!3 worksActs 12:23Immediately, because Herod did not give glory to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died.3 worksActs 12:22–23And they began to shout, “This is the voice of a god, not a man!”2 worksDaniel 5:23–30Instead, you have exalted yourself against the Lord of heaven. The vessels from His house were brought to you, and as you drank wine from them with your nobles, wives, and concubines, you praised your gods of silver and gold, bronze and iron, wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or understand. But you have failed to glorify the God who holds in His hand your very breath and all your ways.2 worksDaniel 4:31–32While the words were still in the king’s mouth, a voice came from heaven: “It is decreed to you, King Nebuchadnezzar, that the kingdom has departed from you.2 worksDaniel 7:4The first beast was like a lion, and it had the wings of an eagle. I watched until its wings were torn off and it was lifted up from the ground and made to stand on two feet like a man, and given the mind of a man.2 worksPsalms 9:20Lay terror upon them, O LORD; let the nations know they are but men. Selah2 worksJeremiah 13:21What will you say when He sets over you close allies whom you yourself trained? Will not pangs of anguish grip you, as they do a woman in labor?2 worksJeremiah 4:30And you, O devastated one, what will you do, though you dress yourself in scarlet, though you adorn yourself with gold jewelry, though you enlarge your eyes with paint? You adorn yourself in vain; your lovers despise you; they want to take your life.2 works

The walk

8 stops

Each 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

    Ezekiel 28:2

    “Son of man, tell the ruler of Tyre that this is what the Lord GOD says: Your heart is proud, and you have said, ‘I am a god; I sit in the seat of…

    it leads to

    • Psalms 9:20

      Lay terror upon them, O LORD; let the nations know they are but men. Selah

      Reached by 2 separate paths from here.

    • 2 Thessalonians 2:4

      He will oppose and exalt himself above every so-called god or object of worship. So he will seat himself in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God.

    • Isaiah 14:13–14

      You said in your heart: “I will ascend to the heavens; I will raise my throne above the stars of God. I will sit on the mount of assembly, in the far reaches of…

    • Isaiah 31:3

      But the Egyptians are men, not God; their horses are flesh, not spirit. When the LORD stretches out His hand, the helper will stumble, and the one he helps will fall; both will perish…

  • Through

    Psalms 82:7

    But like mortals you will die, and like rulers you will fall.”

    it leads to

    • Psalms 49:12

      But a man, despite his wealth, cannot endure; he is like the beasts that perish.

    • Ezekiel 31:14

      This happened so that no other trees by the waters would become great in height and set their tops among the clouds, and no other well-watered trees would reach them in height. For they…

  • Through

    Isaiah 31:3

    But the Egyptians are men, not God; their horses are flesh, not spirit. When the LORD stretches out His hand, the helper will stumble, and the one he helps will fall; both will perish…

    it leads to

    • Isaiah 9:17

      Therefore the Lord takes no pleasure in their young men; He has no compassion on their fatherless and widows. For every one of them is godless and wicked, and every mouth speaks folly. Despite…

    • Ezekiel 20:33–34

      As surely as I live, declares the Lord GOD, with a strong hand, an outstretched arm, and outpoured wrath I will rule over you.

Where this verse is studied

About Ezekiel

Ezekiel’s Vision of the Valley of Dry Bones, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
Ezekiel’s Vision of the Valley of Dry Bones, Gustave Doré, 1866. Public domain.
Ezekiel: the study guide →Read Ezekiel 28 →

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; 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) and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.

Read on in Ezekiel 28 →