Ezekiel 6:4

Ezekiel 6:4 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And your altars shall be desolate, and your images shall be broken: and I will cast down your slain men before your idols.
• New International Version (NIV)Your altars will be demolished and your incense altars will be smashed; and I will slay your people in front of your idols.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Your altars shall become desolate, and your incense altars shall be broken, and I will cast down your slain before your idols.
• New King James Version (NKJV)Then your altars shall be desolate, your incense altars shall be broken, and I will cast down your slain men before your idols.

Context of Ezekiel 6:4

2‘Son of man, look towards the mountains of Israel. Tell them my message to warn them. 3Say, “You mountains of Israel, listen to this message from the Almighty Lord. This is what the Almighty Lord says to the mountains, the hills and the valleys: I am coming here to attack you. I will destroy the places where you worship false gods. I will destroy your altars for sacrifices and your altars for incense. I will kill the people who worship there and put them in front of their idols. 5The dead bodies of you people of Israel will lie in front of your idols. I will cause soldiers to throw your bones on the ground around the altars. 6In all the places that you live, soldiers will destroy your towns. They will also destroy the places where you worship false gods. They will break down the altars so that they become heaps of stones. They will break your idols into pieces. They will destroy the altars where you burn incense. They will remove all those things that you have made.

Ezekiel 6:4 word by word

וְנָשַׁ֙מּוּ֙ מִזְבְּח֣וֹתֵיכֶ֔ם וְנִשְׁבְּר֖וּ חַמָּֽנֵיכֶ֑ם וְהִפַּלְתִּי֙ חַלְלֵיכֶ֔ם לִפְנֵ֖י גִּלּוּלֵיכֶֽם׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And your altarsמִזְבֵּחַmizbêach · altarH4196
• shall be desolateשָׁמֵםshâmêm · be desolate: destroyedH8074
• and your imagesחַמָּןchammân · pillarH2553
• shall be brokenשָׁבַרshâbar · to breakH7665
• and I will cast downנָפַלnâphal · to fall: fallH5307
• your slainחָלָלchâlâl · slain: killedH2491
• beforeפָּנֶהpânîym · face: beforeH6440
• your idolsגִּלּוּלgillûl gillûl · idolH1544

Cross-references for Ezekiel 6:4

• Ezekiel 6:6In all the places that you live, soldiers will destroy your towns. They will also destroy the places where you worship false gods. They will break down the altars so that they become heaps of stones. They will break your idols into pieces. They will destroy the altars where you burn incense. They will remove all those things that you have made.
• 2 Chronicles 14:5He removed the altars on the hills. He also removed the altars in all Judah's cities where people burned incense. There was peace in his kingdom while he ruled.
• 2 Chronicles 34:4He told his men to knock down the altars where people worshipped the idols of Baal. He broke into pieces the altars for incense that were near the other altars. He destroyed the Asherah poles, the idols and the images. He broke them all into very small pieces. He threw the bits over the graves of the people who had offered sacrifices to those false gods.
• Jeremiah 43:13He will knock down the pillars of the temple where people worship their sun god. He will destroy all the temples of Egypt's gods.” ’
• Ezekiel 6:5The dead bodies of you people of Israel will lie in front of your idols. I will cause soldiers to throw your bones on the ground around the altars.
• Leviticus 26:30The Lord will destroy the places where they worship false gods. He will destroy their very bad incense altars. He will put their dead bodies round their idols. He will hate them.
• 1 Kings 13:2When he arrived at Bethel, he shouted the message that the Lord had given to him. He said, ‘Altar! Altar! This is what the Lord says to you: “Listen! One day, a son will be born in David's family. His name will be Josiah. On this altar, he will burn as sacrifices the priests who offer sacrifices on the hills. He will burn the bones of dead people on you!” ’
• 2 Kings 23:14Josiah broke the stone pillars that people worshipped into small pieces. He cut down the Asherah poles. He covered the ground where they had been with human bones.
• 2 Chronicles 34:5Josiah took the bones of the priests who had made sacrifices to the false gods. He burned the priests' bones on their own altars. That is how Josiah made Judah and Jerusalem clean again.
• Jeremiah 8:1The Lord says, ‘At that time, your enemies will open the graves of your leaders and they will remove their bones. They will remove the bones of Judah's kings and their officers, as well as the priests and prophets. They will also remove the bones of the ordinary people of Jerusalem.

Commentaries on Ezekiel 6:4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4Your images shall be broken - Literally, your sun images; representations of the sun, which they worshipped. See the margin.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4Images - See the margin and margin reference, and the Ezekiel 8:16 note. Idols - The Phoenicians were in the habit of setting up “heaps” or “pillars” of stone in honor of their gods, which renders the use of the word more appropriate.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4-7The corpses and bones of dead worshipers around an altar would make the altar ceremonially unclean and unfit for use. idols: The Hebrew word translated idols literally means “round things.” It may also sound like a word for dung (human or animal waste). When the prophets used this word, they were mocking the idols. It was a strong expression of disgust and rejection.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. images--called so from a Hebrew root, "to wax hot," implying the mad ardor of Israel after idolatry [Calvin]. Others translate it, "sun images"; and so in Eze 6:6 (see 2Ki 23:11; 2Ch 34:4; Is 17:8, Margin). cast your slain men before your idols--The foolish objects of their trust in the day of evil should witness their ruin.Read the comment

Topics related to Ezekiel 6:4

• Sun

In the dictionaries

• Appointment
• Living creatures
• Images
• Sun-Worship
• Zedekiah (2)

Commentaries on Ezekiel 6

• 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