Ezekiel 31:5
in Ezekiel 31Therefore it towered higher than all the trees of the field. Its branches multiplied, and its boughs grew long as it spread them out because of the abundant waters.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
Therefore its stature was exalted above all the trees of the field; and its boughs were multiplied, and its branches became long by reason of many waters, when it shot them forth.
KJV
Therefore his height was exalted above all the trees of the field, and his boughs were multiplied, and his branches became long because of the multitude of waters, when he shot forth.
⋯
This verse in Ezekiel 31
Commentary
5 notes on this verseThis site's exposition
a cedar in Lebanon
on Ezekiel 31:3-6
Assyria was a cedar in Lebanon, fed by waters that ran to every tree of the field. Gill and Clarke both take the image from Assyria's river-fed empire, the Tigris standing behind the waters that made him great. The allegory is chosen because Egypt's own strength runs on a river.
This site's exposition
it towered higher than all the trees
The word therefore ties the tree's height to the waters of verse 4. Assyria's growth is credited to what it was given, and verse 9 will name the Giver. The pride charged in verse 10 forgets that source.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers1 voice
(Chapter 31.) And it came to pass in the eleventh year, in the third month, on the first day of the month, that the word of the Lord came to me, saying: Son of man, speak to Pharaoh king of Egypt and to his people: Whom are you like in your greatness? Behold, Assyria was like a cedar (or cypress) in Lebanon, beautiful in branches and dense with foliage, towering in height, and its top was among the thick foliage (or in the midst of clouds).
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
and 7 ); his root was by great waters, which seemed to secure it that its leaf should never wither ( Ps. i. 3 ), that it should not see when heat came, Jer. xvii.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase+unbalanced-parens
Therefore his height was exalted above all the trees of the field,....
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| עַל־ | ʾal- | there- | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| כֵּן֙ | ken | -fore | H3651 → | 771 times |
| גָּבְהָ֣א | gaveha' | it was tall | H1361 → | 34 times |
| קֹמָת֔וֹ | komato | height its | H6967 → | 45 times |
| מִכֹּ֖ל | mikol | more than all | H3605 → | 5413 times |
| עֲצֵ֣י | ʾatzei | [the] trees of | H6086 → | 328 times |
| הַשָּׂדֶ֑ה | hasadeh | the field | H7704 → | 334 times |
| וַתִּרְבֶּ֨ינָה | vatirbeinah | and they became great | H7235 → | 227 times |
| סַֽרְעַפֹּתָ֜יו | sarapotav | boughs its | H5634 → | |
| וַתֶּאֱרַ֧כְנָה | vateerakhnah | and they became long | H748 → | |
| פֹארֹתָ֛יו | forotov | branches its | H6288 → | 7 times |
| מִמַּ֥יִם | mimayim | from waters | H4325 → | 581 times |
| רַבִּ֖ים | rabim | many | H7227 → | 454 times |
| בְּשַׁלְּחֽוֹ׃ | beshalecho | when sent out it | H7971 → | 845 times |
עַל־there-
ʾal-H5921 →5755 times
כֵּן֙-fore
kenH3651 →771 times
גָּבְהָ֣אit was tall
gaveha'H1361 →34 times
קֹמָת֔וֹheight its
komatoH6967 →45 times
מִכֹּ֖לmore than all
mikolH3605 →5413 times
עֲצֵ֣י[the] trees of
ʾatzeiH6086 →328 times
הַשָּׂדֶ֑הthe field
hasadehH7704 →334 times
וַתִּרְבֶּ֨ינָהand they became great
vatirbeinahH7235 →227 times
סַֽרְעַפֹּתָ֜יוboughs its
sarapotavH5634 →
וַתֶּאֱרַ֧כְנָהand they became long
vateerakhnahH748 →
פֹארֹתָ֛יוbranches its
forotovH6288 →7 times
מִמַּ֥יִםfrom waters
mimayimH4325 →581 times
רַבִּ֖יםmany
rabimH7227 →454 times
בְּשַׁלְּחֽוֹ׃when sent out it
beshalechoH7971 →845 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
Daniel 4:11The tree grew large and strong; its top reached the sky, and it was visible to the ends of the earth.
it leads to
- Daniel 4:21–22
whose foliage was beautiful and whose fruit was abundant, providing food for all, under which the beasts of the field lived, and in whose branches the birds of the air nested—
- Deuteronomy 9:1
Hear, O Israel: Today you are about to cross the Jordan to go in and dispossess nations greater and stronger than you, with large cities fortified to the heavens.
- Matthew 11:23
And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to heaven? No, you will be brought down to Hades! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would…
- Genesis 11:4
“Come,” they said, “let us build for ourselves a city with a tower that reaches to the heavens, that we may make a name for ourselves and not be scattered over the face of…
- Daniel 4:21–22
Through
Ezekiel 17:5He took some of the seed of the land and planted it in fertile soil; he placed it by abundant waters and set it out like a willow.
it leads to
- Isaiah 44:4
They will sprout among the grass like willows by flowing streams.
- Deuteronomy 8:7–9
For the LORD your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks and fountains and springs that flow through the valleys and hills;
- Isaiah 44:4
Through
Isaiah 36:4The Rabshakeh said to them, “Tell Hezekiah that this is what the great king, the king of Assyria, says: What is the basis of this confidence of yours?
it leads to
- 2 Kings 18:19–37
The Rabshakeh said to them, “Tell Hezekiah that this is what the great king, the king of Assyria, says: What is the basis of this confidence of yours?
- Proverbs 16:18
Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.
- 2 Kings 18:19–37
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About Ezekiel
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Carl Friedrich Keil, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: Ezekiel; Jerome, Commentary on Ezekiel; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible and Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset and David Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible.