God’s Word Translation
Ezekiel 20:23
23I raised my hand and swore an oath to them in the desert. I promised to scatter them among the nations and force them into other countries.
Ezekiel 20:23 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)I lifted up mine hand unto them also in the wilderness, that I would scatter them among the heathen, and disperse them through the countries;
- New International Version (NIV)Also with uplifted hand I swore to them in the wilderness that I would disperse them among the nations and scatter them through the countries,
- English Standard Version (ESV)Moreover, I swore to them in the wilderness that I would scatter them among the nations and disperse them through the countries,
- New King James Version (NKJV)Also I raised My hand in an oath to those in the wilderness, that I would scatter them among the Gentiles and disperse them throughout the countries,
Context of Ezekiel 20:23
21“ ‘But they rebelled against me. They didn’t live by my laws, and they didn’t obey my rules and follow them. If people obey them, they will live. They dishonored the days to worship me. So I was going to pour out my fury on them and unleash my anger on them in the desert. 22But I didn’t use my power so that my name would not be dishonored among the nations who had watched me bring the Israelites out ⌞of Egypt⌟. I raised my hand and swore an oath to them in the desert. I promised to scatter them among the nations and force them into other countries. 24They didn’t follow my rules, and they rejected my laws. They dishonored the days to worship me, and they looked to their ancestors’ disgusting idols for help. 25I also allowed them to follow laws that were no good and rules by which they could not live.
Read all of Ezekiel 20Ezekiel 20:23 word by word
גַּם־אֲנִ֗י נָשָׂ֧אתִי אֶת־יָדִ֛י לָהֶ֖ם בַּמִּדְבָּ֑ר לְהָפִ֤יץ אֹתָם֙ בַּגּוֹיִ֔ם וּלְזָר֥וֹת אוֹתָ֖ם בָּאֲרָצֽוֹת׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- I lifted upנָשָׂאnâώâ' nâsâh · to lift: vowH5375
- mine handיָדyâd · hand: vowH3027
- unto them also in the wildernessמִדְבָּרmidbâr · wildernessH4057
- that I would scatterפּוּץpûts · to scatterH6327
- them among the heathenגּוֹיgôy gôy · nationH1471
- and disperseזָרָהzârâh · to scatterH2219
- them through the countriesאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
Cross-references for Ezekiel 20:23
- Ezekiel 20:15I also swore an oath to them in the desert. I swore that I would not bring them into the land that I had promised to give them. This land is the most beautiful land, a land flowing with milk and honey.
- Deuteronomy 32:40I raise my hand toward heaven and solemnly swear: As surely as I live forever,
- Revelation 10:5The angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand to heaven.
- Leviticus 26:33I will scatter you among the nations. War will follow you. Your country will be in ruins. Your cities will be deserted.
- Deuteronomy 28:64Then the Lord will scatter you among all the people of the world, from one end of the earth to the other. There you will serve gods made of wood and stone that neither you nor your ancestors ever knew.
- Deuteronomy 32:26I said that I would cut them in pieces and erase everyone’s memory of them.
- Psalms 106:27kill their descendants among the nations, and scatter them throughout various lands.
- Jeremiah 15:4I will make these people a horrifying sight to all the kingdoms on the earth. This will happen because of what Judah’s King Manasseh, son of Hezekiah, did in Jerusalem.
Commentaries on Ezekiel 20:23
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 10-26Verses 10-26 The probation in the wilderness. The promise was forfeited by those to whom it was first conditionally made, but was renewed to their children. Ezekiel 20:11 The “statutes” were given on Mount Sinai, and repeated by Moses before his death (Exodus 20:1 ff; Deuteronomy 4:8). In them - Or, through them: and in Ezekiel 20:13. Ezekiel 20:12 See Exodus 31:13. The Sabbath was a sign of a special people, commemorative of the work of creation, and…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 10-26Verses 10-26 . The history of Israel in the wilderness is referred to in the new Testament as well as in the Old, for warning. God did great things for them. He gave them the law, and revived the ancient keeping of the sabbath day. Sabbaths are privileges; they are signs of our being his people. If we do the duty of the day, we shall find, to our comfort, it is the Lord that makes us holy, that is, truly happy, here; and prepares us to be happy, that is…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 23Israel had a long history of refusing to obey the Lord’s decrees and regulations. Because of this, God decided to scatter them among the nations. He sent them away from their land and spread them among many different peoples.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2323. It was to that generation the threat of dispersion was proclaimed (De 28:64; compare Eze 29:4).Read the comment
Topics related to Ezekiel 20:23
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Ezekiel 20
- 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
God’s Word Translation — © 1995 God’s Word to the Nations Bible Society
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