Ezekiel 17:15

Ezekiel 17:15 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)But he rebelled against him in sending his ambassadors into Egypt, that they might give him horses and much people. Shall he prosper? shall he escape that doeth such things? or shall he break the covenant, and be delivered?
• New International Version (NIV)But the king rebelled against him by sending his envoys to Egypt to get horses and a large army. Will he succeed? Will he who does such things escape? Will he break the treaty and yet escape?
• English Standard Version (ESV)But he rebelled against him by sending his ambassadors to Egypt, that they might give him horses and a large army. Will he thrive? Can one escape who does such things? Can he break the covenant and yet escape?
• New King James Version (NKJV)But he rebelled against him by sending his ambassadors to Egypt, that they might give him horses and many people. Will he prosper? Will he who does such things escape? Can he break a covenant and still be delivered?

Context of Ezekiel 17:15

13He made an agreement with one man from the king of Israel's family. He made that man promise to serve Babylon's king. Then he could rule as king in Jerusalem. The king of Babylon also took away the leaders of Jerusalem as his prisoners. 14He wanted to make their kingdom weak. He did not want it to become strong enough to fight against him. He wanted them to obey his agreement with him. But the man from the king's family did turn against the king of Babylon. He sent his officers with a message to Egypt. He asked them to send a large army with horses to save Jerusalem. But that will not help him to be safe! He did not obey his agreement with the king of Babylon, so he will not escape! 16I promise you this, as surely as I live, says the AlmightyLord. That man that the king of Babylon made king in Jerusalem will die! He will die in Babylon because he did not obey the agreement he had made with the king of Babylon. He thought that his promise was not important. 17The king of Egypt has a great army and many soldiers. But he still will not be able to help him to fight against Babylon's army. Babylon's soldiers will build heaps of earth against Jerusalem's walls. They will attack the walls and go into the city. They will kill many people in Jerusalem.

Ezekiel 17:15 word by word

וַיִּמְרָד־בּ֗וֹ לִשְׁלֹ֤חַ מַלְאָכָיו֙ מִצְרַ֔יִם לָֽתֶת־ל֥וֹ סוּסִ֖ים וְעַם־רָ֑ב הֲיִצְלָ֤ח הֲיִמָּלֵט֙ הָעֹשֵׂ֣ה אֵ֔לֶּה וְהֵפֵ֥ר בְּרִ֖ית וְנִמְלָֽט׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• But he rebelledמָרַדmârad · to rebelH4775
• against him in sendingשָׁלַחshâlach · to send: departH7971
• his ambassadorsמַלְאָךְmal'âk · messengerH4397
• into Egyptמִצְרַ֫יִםmitsrayim · EgyptH4714
• that they might giveנָתַןnâthan · to give: giveH5414
• him horsesסוּסsûs sûs · horseH5483
• and muchרַבrab · manyH7227
• peopleעַם‛am · people: soldiersH5971
• Shall he prosperצָלֵחַtsâlach tsâlêach · to prosperH6743
• shall he escapeמָלַטmâlaţ · to escapeH4422
• that doethעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to make: doH6213
• or shall he breakפָּרַרpârar · to breakH6565
• the covenantבְּרִיתberîyth · covenantH1285

Cross-references for Ezekiel 17:15

• Ezekiel 17:7There was also another great eagle. It had strong wings and many feathers. Now the vine turned its roots and its branches towards this eagle. It wanted to get more water in the ground where it was growing.
• 2 Kings 24:20All this trouble happened to Jerusalem and to Judah because the Lord was very angry with them. In the end, the Lord sent them away from himself. This is what happened when King Zedekiah turned against the king of Babylon.
• 2 Chronicles 36:13King Nebuchadnezzar had made Zedekiah promise in God's name that he would be faithful to Nebuchadnezzar. But Zedekiah turned against Nebuchadnezzar. He was very proud and he refused to change. He refused to turn back to the Lord, Israel's God.
• Jeremiah 52:3All this trouble happened to Jerusalem and to Judah because the Lord was very angry with them. In the end, the Lord sent them away from himself. This is what happened when King Zedekiah turned against the king of Babylon.
• Deuteronomy 17:16A king must not get a lot of horses for himself. He must not send his people back to Egypt to buy more horses. The Lord has said to you, ‘Never return to Egypt for any reason!’
• Isaiah 30:1The Lord says, ‘It will be very bad for you, my children who have turned against me. You have decided what to do, but you did not ask me about it. You have made an agreement with Egypt, but without my Spirit's help. In that way, you continue to do more and more sins.
• Isaiah 31:1It will be very bad for those people who expect that Egypt will help them. They think that Egypt's many horses and chariots will keep them safe. They trust the power of Egypt's strong soldiers who ride on horses. But those people do not trust the Holy God of Israel. They do not ask the Lord to help them.
• Isaiah 36:6Yes, you think that Egypt is strong enough to help you. But you should not trust Pharaoh, the king of Egypt. He is like a weak stick. If you use it to walk with, it will break! A broken piece of stick will make a hole through your hand and give you much pain! That is the trouble that the king of Egypt brings to everyone who trusts him to help them.
• Jeremiah 37:5The army of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, had marched out of Egypt. Babylon's soldiers who were attacking Jerusalem heard news about that. So they went away from Jerusalem.
• Ezekiel 17:9Then say to Israel's people, “The Almighty Lord says this: Do you think that the vine will continue to grow well? No, the first eagle will surely pull its roots out of the ground! He will destroy its grapes. All its leaves and branches will become dry and die. It would be easy to pull it out of the ground. It would not need a strong man or a large army to do that.
• Deuteronomy 29:12You are standing here to agree to the covenant that the Lord your God is making with you today. You must promise to obey it.
• Jeremiah 22:29Listen, people of this land! Listen, people of Judah! Listen to the Lord's message!
• Ezekiel 17:18Judah's king did not obey his agreement with the king of Babylon. He had promised to serve Babylon's king but instead he turned against him. He did not do what he had promised to do, so he will not escape.
• Ezekiel 21:25I say this to you, wicked king of Israel. The time for your final punishment has now arrived.
• Proverbs 19:5If you tell lies in court, the judge will certainly punish you. You will not go free!
• Jeremiah 32:4Zedekiah, king of Judah, will not escape from Babylon's army. They will take him to the king of Babylon. Zedekiah will have to stand in front of the king of Babylon and answer his questions.

Commentaries on Ezekiel 17:15

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 15Sending his ambassadors into Egypt - Zedekiah must have sent his ambassadors into Egypt, between the sixth month of his sixth year, and the fifth month of his seventh year. Compare Ezekiel 8:1, with Ezekiel 20:1. - See Newcome.Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 11-21Verses 11-21 The parable is explained, and the particulars of the history of the Jewish nation at that time may be traced. Zedekiah had been ungrateful to his benefactor, which is a sin against God. In every solemn oath, God is appealed to as a witness of the sincerity of him that swears. Truth is a debt owing to all men. If the professors of the true religion deal treacherously with those of a false religion, their profession makes their sin the worse…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 11-18The first eagle represents Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon. The cedar sprig represents Jehoiachin, whom Nebuchadnezzar took away to Babylon. The plant that later grew into a low vine represents Zedekiah. The second eagle represents Egypt. Zedekiah asked Egypt for help because he wanted to break free from Babylon’s rule. The hot east wind represents judgment from Babylon. This wind pulled up and dried out Jerusalem. In other words, Babylon destroyed the…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1515. he rebelled--God permitted this because of His wrath against Jerusalem (2Ki 24:20). horses--in which Egypt abounded and which were forbidden to Israel to seek from Egypt, or indeed to "multiply" at all (De 17:16; Is 31:1, 3; compare Is 36:9). Diodorus Siculus [1.45] says that the whole region from Thebes to Memphis was filled with royal stalls, so that twenty thousand chariots with two horses in each could be furnished for war. Shall he prosper?--The…Read the comment

Topics related to Ezekiel 17:15

• Alliances
• Ambassadors
• Citizens
• Covenant
• Egyptians
• Falsehood
• Horse
• Pharaoh
• Zedekiah

In the dictionaries

• Egypt
• Ambassador
• Riddle
• Wither
• Covenant, in the Old Testament
• Ezekiel
• Judah, Kingdom of
• Zedekiah (2)
• Pharaoh
• Zedekiah

Commentaries on Ezekiel 17

• 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