Darby Bible
Ezekiel 8:16
16And he brought me into the inner court of Jehovah's house, and behold, at the entry of the temple of Jehovah, between the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the temple of Jehovah and their faces toward the east; and they worshipped the sun toward the east.
Ezekiel 8:16 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And he brought me into the inner court of the Lord’s house, and, behold, at the door of the temple of the Lord, between the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the temple of the Lord, and their faces toward the east; and they worshipped the sun toward the east.
- New International Version (NIV)He then brought me into the inner court of the house of the Lord, and there at the entrance to the temple, between the portico and the altar, were about twenty-five men. With their backs toward the temple of the Lord and their faces toward the east, they were bowing down to the sun in the east.
- English Standard Version (ESV)And he brought me into the inner court of the house of the Lord. And behold, at the entrance of the temple of the Lord, between the porch and the altar, were about twenty-five men, with their backs to the temple of the Lord, and their faces toward the east, worshiping the sun toward the east.
- New King James Version (NKJV)So He brought me into the inner court of the Lord’s house; and there, at the door of the temple of the Lord, between the porch and the altar, were about twenty-five men with their backs toward the temple of the Lord and their faces toward the east, and they were worshiping the sun toward the east.
Context of Ezekiel 8:16
14And he brought me to the entry of the gate of Jehovah's house that was toward the north; and behold, there sat women weeping for Tammuz. 15And he said unto me, Seest thou, son of man? Thou shalt yet again see greater abominations than these. And he brought me into the inner court of Jehovah's house, and behold, at the entry of the temple of Jehovah, between the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the temple of Jehovah and their faces toward the east; and they worshipped the sun toward the east. 17And he said unto me, Seest thou, son of man? Is it a light thing to the house of Judah to commit the abominations which they commit here, that they yet fill the land with violence, and keep provoking me afresh to anger? And behold, they put the branch to their nose. 18And I also will deal in fury: mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity; and though they cry in mine ears with a loud voice, I will not hear them.
Read all of Ezekiel 8Ezekiel 8:16 word by word
וַיָּבֵ֣א אֹתִ֗י אֶל־חֲצַ֣ר בֵּית־יְהוָה֮ הַפְּנִימִית֒ וְהִנֵּה־פֶ֜תַח הֵיכַ֣ל יְהוָ֗ה בֵּ֤ין הָֽאוּלָם֙ וּבֵ֣ין הַמִּזְבֵּ֔חַ כְּעֶשְׂרִ֥ים וַחֲמִשָּׁ֖ה אִ֑ישׁ אֲחֹ֨רֵיהֶ֜ם אֶל־הֵיכַ֤ל יְהוָה֙ וּפְנֵיהֶ֣ם קֵ֔דְמָה וְהֵ֛מָּה מִשְׁתַּחֲוִיתֶ֥ם קֵ֖דְמָה לַשָּֽׁמֶשׁ׃Read the interlinear
- broughtבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
- innerפְּנִימִיpenîymîy · innerH6442
- courtחָצֵרchâtsêr · courtH2691
- houseבַּ֫יִתbayith · house: templeH1004
- porchאוּלָם'ûlâm 'ûlâm · PorticoH197
- altarמִזְבֵּחַmizbêach · altarH4196
- fiveחָמֵשׁchâmêsh chămishshâh · fiveH2568
- twentyעֶשְׂרִים‛eώrîym · twentyH6242
- menאִישׁ'îysh · manH376
- backsאָחוֹר'âchôr 'âchôr · backH268
- facesפָּנֶהpânîym · face: beforeH6440
- eastקֵ֫דֶםqedem qêdmâh · eastH6924
- sunשֶׁ֫מֶשׁshemesh · sunH8121
Cross-references for Ezekiel 8:16
- Ezekiel 10:3And the cherubim stood on the right side of the house, when the man went in; and the cloud filled the inner court.
- Ezekiel 40:28And he brought me into the inner court by the south gate; and he measured the south gate according to these measures:
- Ezekiel 43:5And the Spirit lifted me up, and brought me into the inner court; and behold, the glory of Jehovah filled the house.
- Ezekiel 45:19And the priest shall take of the blood of the sin-offering, and put it upon the posts of the house, and upon the four corners of the settle of the altar, and upon the posts of the gate of the inner court.
- 2 Kings 16:14And the brazen altar which was before Jehovah, he brought forward from the forefront of the house, from between [his] altar and the house of Jehovah, and put it by the side of [his] altar on the north.
- 2 Chronicles 7:7And Solomon hallowed the middle of the court that was before the house of Jehovah; for there he offered the burnt-offerings, and the fat of the peace-offerings, because the brazen altar which Solomon had made was not able to receive the burnt-offerings and the oblations and the fat.
- Joel 2:17Let the priests, the ministers of Jehovah, weep between the porch and the altar, and let them say, Spare, O Jehovah, thy people, and give not thine inheritance to reproach, that they should be a byword of the nations. Wherefore should they say among the peoples, Where is their God?
- Ezekiel 11:1And the Spirit lifted me up, and brought me unto the east gate of Jehovah's house, which looketh eastward; and behold, at the door of the gate were five and twenty men; and I saw in the midst of them Jaazaniah the son of Azzur, and Pelatiah the son of Benaiah, princes of the people.
- Ezekiel 23:35Therefore thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Because thou hast forgotten me, and cast me behind thy back, therefore bear thou also thy lewdness and thy fornications.
- 1 Kings 8:29that thine eyes may be open upon this house night and day, upon the place of which thou hast said, My name shall be there: to hearken unto the prayer which thy servant prayeth toward this place.
- 2 Chronicles 29:6For our fathers have transgressed, and done evil in the sight of Jehovah our God, and have forsaken him and turned away their faces from the habitation of Jehovah, and have turned their backs.
- Jeremiah 2:27saying to a stock, Thou art my father; and to a stone, Thou hast brought me forth; for they have turned the back unto me, and not the face; and in the time of their trouble they will say, Arise, and save us!
- Jeremiah 32:33And they have turned unto me the back, and not the face; and though I taught them, rising early and teaching, they hearkened not to receive instruction.
- Deuteronomy 4:19and lest thou lift up thine eyes to the heavens, and see the sun, and the moon, and the stars, the whole host of heaven, and be drawn away and bow down to them and serve them, which Jehovah thy God hath assigned unto all peoples under the whole heaven.
- Deuteronomy 17:3and goeth and serveth other gods, and boweth down to them, either to the sun or to the moon, or to the whole host of heaven, which I have not commanded;
- 2 Kings 23:5And he abolished the idolatrous priests, whom the kings of Judah had ordained to burn incense on the high places in the cities of Judah, and the environs of Jerusalem; and them that burned incense to Baal, to the sun, and to the moon, and to the constellations, and to all the host of heaven.
Commentaries on Ezekiel 8:16
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 16Five and twenty men - These most probably represented the twenty-four courses of the priests, with the high priest for the twenty-fifth. This was the Persian worship, as their turning their faces to the east plainly shows they were worshipping the rising sun.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 16The inner court - The court of the priests. About five and twenty men - Rather, as it were five etc. This was the number of the heads of the 24 courses (shifts) with the high priest presiding over them. These then were the representatives of the priests, as the seventy were of the people. In the temple the seat of the Divine Majesty was at the west, perhaps appointed for this very purpose, to guard against the idolatrous adoration of the rising sun…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 13-18Verses 13-18 The yearly lamenting for Tammuz was attended with infamous practices; and the worshippers of the sun here described, are supposed to have been priests. The Lord appeals to the prophet concerning the heinousness of the crime; "and lo, they put the branch to their nose," denoting some custom used by idolaters in honour of the idols they served. The more we examine human nature and our own hearts, the more abominations we shall discover; and the…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 16The fourth and final act of idolatry took place in the very center of the temple complex. It happened in the inner courtyard of the temple of the Lord. This was as close as a person could come to the temple building without entering it. The 25 men worshiping the sun were likely priests, since only priests should have accessed this area. It is also possible that they were not priests and were openly breaking the rules. These men stood physically closer to…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 15-1615-16. The next are "greater abominations," not in respect to the idolatry, but in respect to the place and persons committing it. In "the inner court," immediately before the door of the temple of Jehovah, between the porch and the altar, where the priests advanced only on extraordinary occasions (Joe 2:17), twenty-five men (the leaders of the twenty-four courses or orders of the priests, 1Ch 24:18, 19, with the high priest, "the princes of the…Read the comment
Topics related to Ezekiel 8:16
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Ezekiel 8
- 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
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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