Christian Standard Bible
Ezekiel 21:3
3and say to it, ‘This is what the Lord says: I am against you. I will draw my sword from its sheath and cut off from you both the righteous and the wicked.
Ezekiel 21:3 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And say to the land of Israel, Thus saith the Lord; Behold, I am against thee, and will draw forth my sword out of his sheath, and will cut off from thee the righteous and the wicked.
- New International Version (NIV)and say to her: ‘This is what the Lord says: I am against you. I will draw my sword from its sheath and cut off from you both the righteous and the wicked.
- English Standard Version (ESV)and say to the land of Israel, Thus says the Lord: Behold, I am against you and will draw my sword from its sheath and will cut off from you both righteous and wicked.
- New King James Version (NKJV)and say to the land of Israel, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Behold, I am against you, and I will draw My sword out of its sheath and cut off both righteous and wicked from you.
Context of Ezekiel 21:3
1The word of the Lord came to me again: 2“Son of man, face Jerusalem and preach against the sanctuaries. Prophesy against the land of Israel, and say to it, ‘This is what the Lord says: I am against you. I will draw my sword from its sheath and cut off from you both the righteous and the wicked. 4Since I will cut off both the righteous and the wicked, my sword will therefore come out of its sheath against all humanity from the south to the north. 5So all humanity will know that I, the Lord, have taken my sword from its sheath — it will not be sheathed again.’
Read all of Ezekiel 21Ezekiel 21:3 word by word
וְאָמַרְתָּ֞ לְאַדְמַ֣ת יִשְׂרָאֵ֗ל כֹּ֚ה אָמַ֣ר יְהוָ֔ה הִנְנִ֣י אֵלַ֔יִךְ וְהוֹצֵאתִ֥י חַרְבִּ֖י מִתַּעְרָ֑הּ וְהִכְרַתִּ֥י מִמֵּ֖ךְ צַדִּ֥יק וְרָשָֽׁע׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And sayאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- to the landאֲדָמָה'ădâmâh · land: soilH127
- of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
- the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- against thee, and will draw forthיָצָאyâtsâ' · to come out: sendH3318
- my swordחֶ֫רֶבchereb · swordH2719
- out of his sheathתַּ֫עַרta‛ar · razorH8593
- and will cut offכָּרַתkârath · to cut: eliminateH3772
- from thee the righteousצַדִּיקtsaddîyq · righteousH6662
- and the wickedרָשָׁעrâshâ‛ · wickedH7563
Cross-references for Ezekiel 21:3
- Ezekiel 5:8therefore, this is what the Lord God says: See, I myself am against you, Jerusalem, and I will execute judgments within you in the sight of the nations.
- Ezekiel 26:3therefore this is what the Lord God says: See, I am against you, Tyre! I will raise up many nations against you, just as the sea raises its waves.
- Jeremiah 21:13Beware! I am against you, you who sit above the valley, you atop the rocky plateau — this is the Lord’s declaration — you who say, “Who can come down against us? Who can enter our hiding places?”
- Jeremiah 50:31Look, I am against you, you arrogant one — this is the declaration of the Lord God of Armies — for your day has come, the time when I will punish you.
- Jeremiah 51:25Look, I am against you, devastating mountain. This is the Lord’s declaration. You devastate the whole earth. I will stretch out my hand against you, roll you down from the cliffs, and turn you into a charred mountain.
- Nahum 2:13Beware, I am against you. This is the declaration of the Lord of Armies. I will make your chariots go up in smoke, and the sword will devour your young lions. I will cut off your prey from the earth, and the sound of your messengers will never be heard again.
- Nahum 3:5I am against you. This is the declaration of the Lord of Armies. I will lift your skirts over your face and display your nakedness to nations, your shame to kingdoms.
- Ezekiel 21:9“Son of man, prophesy, ‘This is what the Lord says! ’ You are to proclaim, ‘A sword! A sword is sharpened and also polished.
- Ezekiel 5:12A third of your people will die by plague and be consumed by famine within you; a third will fall by the sword all around you; and I will scatter a third to every direction of the wind, and I will draw a sword to chase after them.
- Ezekiel 14:17“Or suppose I bring a sword against that land and say, ‘Let a sword pass through it,’ so that I wipe out both people and animals from it.
- Exodus 15:9The enemy said: “I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the spoil. My desire will be gratified at their expense. I will draw my sword; my hand will destroy them.”
- Leviticus 26:25I will bring a sword against you to execute the vengeance of the covenant. Though you withdraw into your cities, I will send a pestilence among you, and you will be delivered into enemy hands.
- Deuteronomy 32:41when I sharpen my flashing sword, and my hand takes hold of judgment, I will take vengeance on my adversaries and repay those who hate me.
- Psalms 17:13Rise up, Lord! Confront him; bring him down. With your sword, save me from the wicked.
- Isaiah 10:5Woe to Assyria, the rod of my anger — the staff in their hands is my wrath.
- Isaiah 34:5When my sword has drunk its fill in the heavens, it will then come down on Edom and on the people I have set apart for destruction.
Commentaries on Ezekiel 21:3
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3Behold, I am against thee - Dismal news! When God is against us, who can be for us? And will draw forth my sword - War. And will cut off from thee - The land of Judea. The righteous and the wicked - All shall be removed from thee. Some shall be cut off - removed by the sword; shall be slain in battle, or by the pestilence; and some shall be cut off - die by the famine; and some shall be cut off - removed from the land by captivity. Now, among the two…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3-5The Lord himself was the true enemy Israel needed to fear. He was about to bring a complete judgment against them. Normally, people expect the righteous to escape judgment and the wicked to receive it. This contrast is like the green tree and the dry tree in the parable (Ezekiel 20:47–48). God’s judgment on sin would be like a very hot fire. It would burn everything it touched.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. righteous ... wicked--not contradictory of Eze 18:4, 9 and Ge 18:23. Ezekiel here views the mere outward aspect of the indiscriminate universality of the national calamity. But really the same captivity to the "righteous" would prove a blessing as a wholesome discipline, which to the "wicked" would be an unmitigated punishment. The godly were sealed with a mark (Eze 9:4), not for outward exemption from the common calamity, but as marked for the secret…Read the comment
Topics related to Ezekiel 21:3
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Ezekiel 21
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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