New English Translation
Ezekiel 20:4
4“Are you willing to pronounce judgment? Are you willing to pronounce judgment, son of man? Then confront them with the abominable practices of their fathers,
Ezekiel 20:4 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Wilt thou judge them, son of man, wilt thou judge them? cause them to know the abominations of their fathers:
- New International Version (NIV)“Will you judge them? Will you judge them, son of man? Then confront them with the detestable practices of their ancestors
- English Standard Version (ESV)Will you judge them, son of man, will you judge them? Let them know the abominations of their fathers,
- New King James Version (NKJV)Will you judge them, son of man, will you judge them? Then make known to them the abominations of their fathers.
Context of Ezekiel 20:4
2The word of the Lord came to me: 3“Son of man, speak to the elders of Israel, and tell them: ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says: Are you coming to seek me? As surely as I live, I will not allow you to seek me, declares the sovereign Lord.’ “Are you willing to pronounce judgment? Are you willing to pronounce judgment, son of man? Then confront them with the abominable practices of their fathers, 5and say to them: “‘This is what the sovereign Lord says: On the day I chose Israel I swore to the descendants of the house of Jacob and made myself known to them in the land of Egypt. I swore to them, “I am the Lord your God.” 6On that day I swore to bring them out of the land of Egypt to a land which I had picked out for them, a land flowing with milk and honey, the most beautiful of all lands.
Read all of Ezekiel 20Ezekiel 20:4 word by word
הֲתִשְׁפֹּ֣ט אֹתָ֔ם הֲתִשְׁפּ֖וֹט בֶּן־אָדָ֑ם אֶת־תּוֹעֲבֹ֥ת אֲבוֹתָ֖ם הוֹדִיעֵֽם׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Ezekiel 20:4
- Ezekiel 14:14Even if these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they would save only their own lives by their righteousness, declares the sovereign Lord.
- Ezekiel 22:2“As for you, son of man, are you willing to pronounce judgment, are you willing to pronounce judgment on the bloody city? Then confront her with all her abominable deeds!
- Ezekiel 23:36The Lord said to me: “Son of man, are you willing to pronounce judgment on Oholah and Oholibah? Then declare to them their abominable deeds!
- Isaiah 5:3So now, residents of Jerusalem, people of Judah, you decide between me and my vineyard!
- Jeremiah 7:16Then the Lord said, “As for you, Jeremiah, do not pray for these people! Do not cry out to me or petition me on their behalf! Do not plead with me to save them, because I will not listen to you.
- Jeremiah 11:14So, Jeremiah, do not pray for these people. Do not cry out to me or petition me on their behalf. Do not plead with me to save them. For I will not listen to them when they call out to me for help when disaster strikes them.”
- Jeremiah 14:11Then the Lord said to me, “Do not pray for good to come to these people!
- Jeremiah 15:1Then the Lord said to me, “Even if Moses and Samuel stood before me pleading for these people, I would not feel pity for them! Get them away from me! Tell them to go away!
- 1 Corinthians 6:2Or do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world is to be judged by you, are you not competent to settle trivial suits?
- Ezekiel 16:2“Son of man, confront Jerusalem with her abominable practices
- Matthew 23:29“Woe to you, experts in the law and you Pharisees, hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the graves of the righteous.
- Luke 11:47Woe to you! You build the tombs of the prophets whom your ancestors killed.
- Luke 13:33Nevertheless I must go on my way today and tomorrow and the next day, because it is impossible that a prophet should be killed outside Jerusalem.’
- Acts 7:51“You stubborn people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are always resisting the Holy Spirit, like your ancestors did!
Commentaries on Ezekiel 20:4
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4Wilt thou judge them - If thou wilt enter into any discussion with them, show them the abomination of their fathers. The whole chapter is a consecutive history of the unfaithfulness ingratitude, rebellion, and idolatry of the Jews, from the earliest times to that day; and vindicates the sentence which God had pronounced against them, and which he was about to execute more fully in delivering them and the city into the hands of the Chaldeans.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4Wilt thou judge them? - We should rather say, Wilt thou not judge them? i. e., wilt thou not pronounce sentence upon them? Compare Ezekiel 22:2.Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4-26The Lord refused to answer their question. But this did not mean he had nothing to say. Instead, God gave them a different message through Ezekiel. Ezekiel would describe the sinful and detestable actions of their ancestors. He would place these past sins clearly before the people.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. Wilt thou judge? ... judge--The emphatical repetition expresses, "Wilt thou not judge? yes, judge them. There is a loud call for immediate judgment." The Hebrew interrogative here is a command, not a prohibition [Maurer]. Instead of spending time in teaching them, tell them of the abomination of their fathers, of which their own are the complement and counterpart, and which call for judgment.Read the comment
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
New English Translation — © 1996-2016 Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C.
Commentaries