God’s Word Translation
Ezekiel 21:19
19“Son of man, mark two roads that the king of Babylon and his sword can take. Both of these roads should start from the same country. Make a sign, and put it where the roads start to fork toward the cities.
Ezekiel 21:19 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Also, thou son of man, appoint thee two ways, that the sword of the king of Babylon may come: both twain shall come forth out of one land: and choose thou a place, choose it at the head of the way to the city.
- New International Version (NIV)“Son of man, mark out two roads for the sword of the king of Babylon to take, both starting from the same country. Make a signpost where the road branches off to the city.
- English Standard Version (ESV)"As for you, son of man, mark two ways for the sword of the king of Babylon to come. Both of them shall come from the same land. And make a signpost; make it at the head of the way to a city.
- New King James Version (NKJV)“And son of man, appoint for yourself two ways for the sword of the king of Babylon to go; both of them shall go from the same land. Make a sign; put it at the head of the road to the city.
Context of Ezekiel 21:19
17I will also clap my hands and rest from my fury. I, the Lord, have spoken.’ ” 18The Lord spoke his word to me. He said, “Son of man, mark two roads that the king of Babylon and his sword can take. Both of these roads should start from the same country. Make a sign, and put it where the roads start to fork toward the cities. 20Mark the road that the king and his sword can take to the Ammonite city of Rabbah, and mark the road that leads to Judah and the fortified city of Jerusalem. 21The king of Babylon will stop where the roads branch off, where there is a fork in the road. Then he will look for omens. He will shake some arrows, ask his household gods for help, and examine animal livers.
Read all of Ezekiel 21Ezekiel 21:19 word by word
וְאַתָּ֨ה בֶן־אָדָ֜ם שִׂים־לְךָ֣׀ שְׁנַ֣יִם דְּרָכִ֗ים לָבוֹא֙ חֶ֣רֶב מֶֽלֶךְ־בָּבֶ֔ל מֵאֶ֥רֶץ אֶחָ֖ד יֵצְא֣וּ שְׁנֵיהֶ֑ם וְיָ֣ד בָּרֵ֔א בְּרֹ֥אשׁ דֶּֽרֶךְ־עִ֖יר בָּרֵֽא׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Also, thou sonבֵּןbên · son: childH1121
- of manאָדָם'âdâm · manH120
- appointשׂוּםώûm ώîym · to set: makeH7760
- thee twoשְׁנַ֫יִםshenayim shettayim · twoH8147
- waysדֶּ֫רֶךְderek · way: roadH1870
- that the swordחֶ֫רֶבchereb · swordH2719
- of the kingמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
- of Babylonבָּבֶ֫ל, בָּבֶלbâbel · BabylonH894
- may comeבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
- shall come forthיָצָאyâtsâ' · to come out: comeH3318
- out of oneאֶחָד'echâd · oneH259
- landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
- and chooseבָּרָאbârâ' · to createH1254
- thou a placeיָדyâd · hand: monumentH3027
- at the headרֹאשׁrô'sh · head: topH7218
- to the cityעִיר‛îyr ‛âr ‛âyar · cityH5892
Cross-references for Ezekiel 21:19
- Ezekiel 4:1⌞The Lord said,⌟ “Son of man, take clay, put it in front of you, and draw a map of Jerusalem on it.
- Ezekiel 5:1⌞The Lord said,⌟ “Son of man, take a sharp blade, and use it as a barber’s razor to shave your head and beard. Take scales to weigh your hair and divide it ⌞into three even parts⌟.
- Jeremiah 1:10Today I have put you in charge of nations and kingdoms. You will uproot and tear down. You will destroy and overthrow. You will build and plant.”
Commentaries on Ezekiel 21:19
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 19Appoint thee two ways - Set off from Babylon, and lay down two ways, either of which thou mayest take; that to the right, which leads to Jerusalem; or that to the left which leads to Rabbath of the Ammonites, Ezekiel 21:20. But why against the Ammonites? Because both they and the Moabites were united with Zedekiah against the Chaldeans, (see Jeremiah 27:3;), though they afterwards fought against Judea, Ezekiel 12:6.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 18-32Verses 18-32 The third word of judgment. The king of Babylon‘s march upon Judaea and upon the Ammonites. Destruction is to go forth not on Judah only, but also on such neighboring tribes as the Ammonites (compare Jeremiah 27:2-3). Ezekiel 21:19 Appoint thee - Set before thee. Choose thou a place, choose it - Rather, “mark a spot, mark it,” as upon a map, at the head of the two roads, one leading to Jerusalem, the other to Ammon. These were the two roads…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 18-27Verses 18-27 By the Spirit of prophecy Ezekiel foresaw Nebuchadnezzar's march from Babylon, which he would determine by divination. The Lord would overturn the government of Judah, till the coming of Him whose right it is. This seems to foretell the overturnings of the Jewish nation to the present day, and the troubles of states and kingdoms, which shall make way for establishing the Messiah's kingdom throughout the earth. The Lord secretly leads all to…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 18-20The sword of the Lord was not just a symbol. It would become the sword of the king of Babylon. That king was Nebuchadnezzar. His army would carry out God’s judgment. Ezekiel showed this in a visual way. He drew a map to show the king’s two possible targets. One was Rabbah, the capital of Ammon. The other was Jerusalem, the capital of Judah.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1919. two ways--The king coming from Babylon is represented in the graphic style of Ezekiel as reaching the point where the road branched off in two ways, one leading by the south, by Tadmor or Palmyra, to Rabbath of Ammon, east of Jordan; the other by the north, by Riblah in Syria, to Jerusalem--and hesitating which way to take. Ezekiel is told to "appoint the two ways" (as in Eze 4:1); for Nebuchadnezzar, though knowing no other control but his own will…Read the comment
Topics related to Ezekiel 21:19
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Ezekiel 21
- 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
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