Ezekiel 4:3

Ezekiel 4:3 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Moreover take thou unto thee an iron pan, and set it for a wall of iron between thee and the city: and set thy face against it, and it shall be besieged, and thou shalt lay siege against it. This shall be a sign to the house of Israel.
• New International Version (NIV)Then take an iron pan, place it as an iron wall between you and the city and turn your face toward it. It will be under siege, and you shall besiege it. This will be a sign to the people of Israel.
• English Standard Version (ESV)And you, take an iron griddle, and place it as an iron wall between you and the city; and set your face toward it, and let it be in a state of siege, and press the siege against it. This is a sign for the house of Israel.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Moreover take for yourself an iron plate, and set it as an iron wall between you and the city. Set your face against it, and it shall be besieged, and you shall lay siege against it. This will be a sign to the house of Israel.

Context of Ezekiel 4:3

1‘Son of man, take a large brick and put it in front of you. On the brick, draw a picture of the city, Jerusalem. 2Show that soldiers are ready to attack the city. Build heaps of earth around it so that nobody can escape. Put heavy pieces of wood around the city that the enemy could use to break its walls. Then you must do this. Take a flat plate of iron and put it between you and the brick. It will be like a wall between you and the city. Look towards the city. Show that soldiers are around the city and they are ready to attack it. Nobody can escape. This will be a picture to show Israel's people what will happen to them. 4Then lie down on your left side. Show that you are receiving the punishment for the sins of the Israelites. You will suffer like that for 390 days. It will show the number of years that I have decided to punish Israel's people. Each day that you suffer will show one year of their punishment.

Ezekiel 4:3 word by word

וְאַתָּ֤ה קַח־לְךָ֙ מַחֲבַ֣ת בַּרְזֶ֔ל וְנָתַתָּ֤ה אוֹתָהּ֙ קִ֣יר בַּרְזֶ֔ל בֵּינְךָ֖ וּבֵ֣ין הָעִ֑יר וַהֲכִינֹתָה֩ אֶת־פָּנֶ֨יךָ אֵלֶ֜יהָ וְהָיְתָ֤ה בַמָּצוֹר֙ וְצַרְתָּ֣ עָלֶ֔יהָ א֥וֹת הִ֖יא לְבֵ֥ית יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃ סRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Moreover takeלָקַחlâqach · to take: takeH3947
• thou unto thee an ironבַּרְזֶלbarzel · ironH1270
• panמַחֲבַתmachăbath · griddleH4227
• and setנָתַןnâthan · to give: putH5414
• a wallקִירqîyr qir qîyrâh · wallH7023
• between thee and the cityעִיר‛îyr ‛âr ‛âyar · cityH5892
• and setכּוּןkûn · to establish: establishH3559
• thy faceפָּנֶהpânîym · faceH6440
• against it, and it shall be besiegedמָצוֹרmâtsôr mâtsûr · siegeH4692
• and thou shalt lay siegeצוּרtsûr · to confineH6696
• a signאוֹת'ôth · sign: indicatorH226
• to the houseבַּ֫יִתbayith · house: householdH1004
• of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478

Cross-references for Ezekiel 4:3

• Leviticus 2:5He must not use yeast if he cooks his cake on a flat plate. He must make it with flour and oil.
• Ezekiel 12:6Put your bag of things on your shoulder while the people watch you. Carry it out when it starts to become dark. Cover your face so that you cannot see the ground. I want you to do this so that it warns Israel's people about danger.’
• Ezekiel 24:24Ezekiel is an example to you. You must do the same as he has done when his wife died. When this happens, you will know that I am the Almighty Lord.”
• Isaiah 8:18Look! Here I am, with the children that the Lord has given to me. We are messages from the Lord Almighty who lives on Mount Zion. We are messages to Israel's people.
• Isaiah 20:3After three years, the Lord said, ‘My servant Isaiah has walked without clothes and without shoes for three years. That is a sign to warn Egypt and Cush about what will happen to them.
• Luke 2:34Then Simeon asked God to be good and kind to Mary and to Joseph. After that, he spoke to Mary, the mother of Jesus. He said to her, ‘God has chosen this baby. Many people in Israel will become worse because of him. And many of them will become better again because of him. He will be like a sign that points to God. But many people will speak against him.
• Hebrews 2:4God himself also showed clearly that what these people said is true. He did many miracles and powerful things which showed that he was with them. He also helped them with gifts from the Holy Spirit, in the way that he wanted.

Commentaries on Ezekiel 4:3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 3Take thou unto thee an iron pan - מחבת machabath, a flat plate or slice, as the margin properly renders it: such as are used in some countries to bake bread on, called a griddle or girdle, being suspended above the fire, and kept in a proper degree of heat for the purpose. A plate like this, stuck perpendicularly in the earth, would show the nature of a wall much better than any pan could do. The Chaldeans threw such a wall round Jerusalem, to prevent the…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 3An iron pan - Another figure in the coming siege. On Assyrian sculptures from Nimroud and Kouyunjik there are sieges of cities with “forts, mounts, and rams;” and together with these we see a kind of shield set up on the ground, behind which archers are shooting. Such a shield would be represented by the “flat plate” (margin). Ezekiel was directed to take such a plate (part of his household furniture) and place it between him and the representation of the…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3The prophet was to take on the role of God in this dramatic scene. The iron griddle set up between him and the city showed that Jerusalem had separated itself from God. Meanwhile, the prophet was to face the city with determination, showing that God was still focused and firmly resolved to destroy Jerusalem in the upcoming siege.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 33. iron pan--the divine decree as to the Chaldean army investing the city. set it for a wall of iron between thee and the city--Ezekiel, in the person of God, represents the wall of separation between him and the people as one of iron: and the Chaldean investing army. His instrument of separating them from him, as one impossible to burst through. set ... face against it--inexorably (Psa 34:16). The exiles envied their brethren remaining in Jerusalem, but…Read the comment

Topics related to Ezekiel 4:3

• Instruction
• Iron
• Pantomime
• Symbols and Similitudes

In the dictionaries

• Israel
• Israel, Israelites
• Jacob, Israel
• Care
• Cherub
• Living creatures
• Pan
• Agabus
• Bread
• Hosea

Commentaries on Ezekiel 4

• 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