New International Version
Ezekiel 24:17
17Groan quietly; do not mourn for the dead. Keep your turban fastened and your sandals on your feet; do not cover your mustache and beard or eat the customary food of mourners.”
Ezekiel 24:17 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Forbear to cry, make no mourning for the dead, bind the tire of thine head upon thee, and put on thy shoes upon thy feet, and cover not thy lips, and eat not the bread of men.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Sigh, but not aloud; make no mourning for the dead. Bind on your turban, and put your shoes on your feet; do not cover your lips, nor eat the bread of men."
- New King James Version (NKJV)Sigh in silence, make no mourning for the dead; bind your turban on your head, and put your sandals on your feet; do not cover your lips, and do not eat man’s bread of sorrow.”
- New Living Translation (NLT)Groan silently, but let there be no wailing at her grave. Do not uncover your head or take off your sandals. Do not perform the usual rituals of mourning or accept any food brought to you by consoling friends.”
Context of Ezekiel 24:17
15The word of the Lord came to me: 16“Son of man, with one blow I am about to take away from you the delight of your eyes. Yet do not lament or weep or shed any tears. Groan quietly; do not mourn for the dead. Keep your turban fastened and your sandals on your feet; do not cover your mustache and beard or eat the customary food of mourners.” 18So I spoke to the people in the morning, and in the evening my wife died. The next morning I did as I had been commanded. 19Then the people asked me, “Won’t you tell us what these things have to do with us? Why are you acting like this?”
Read all of Ezekiel 24Ezekiel 24:17 word by word
הֵאָנֵ֣ק׀ דֹּ֗ם מֵתִים֙ אֵ֣בֶל לֹֽא־תַֽעֲשֶׂ֔ה פְאֵֽרְךָ֙ חֲב֣וֹשׁ עָלֶ֔יךָ וּנְעָלֶ֖יךָ תָּשִׂ֣ים בְּרַגְלֶ֑יךָ וְלֹ֤א תַעְטֶה֙ עַל־שָׂפָ֔ם וְלֶ֥חֶם אֲנָשִׁ֖ים לֹ֥א תֹאכֵֽל׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Forbearדָּמַםdâmam · to silence: silentH1826
- to cryאָנַק'ânaq · to groanH602
- makeעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to makeH6213
- no mourningאֵ֫בֶל'êbel · mourningH60
- for the deadמוּתmûth · to dieH4191
- bindחָבַשׁchâbash · to saddle/tieH2280
- the tire of thine headפְּאֵרpe'êr · headdressH6287
- upon thee, and put onשׂוּםώûm ώîym · to set: putH7760
- thy shoesנַ֫עַלna‛al na‛ălâh · sandalH5275
- upon thy feetרֶ֫גֶלregel · footH7272
- and coverעָטָה‛âţâh · to enwrapH5844
- lipsשָׂפָםώâphâm · mustacheH8222
- and eatאָכַל'âkal · to eatH398
- not the breadלֶ֫חֶםlechem · food: breadH3899
- of menאֱנוֹשׁ'ĕnôsh · humanH582
Cross-references for Ezekiel 24:17
- Psalms 37:7Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; do not fret when people succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes.
- Psalms 39:9I was silent; I would not open my mouth, for you are the one who has done this.
- Psalms 46:10He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”
- Amos 8:3“In that day,” declares the Sovereign Lord, “the songs in the temple will turn to wailing. Many, many bodies—flung everywhere! Silence!”
- Habakkuk 2:20The Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth be silent before him.
- Jeremiah 16:4“They will die of deadly diseases. They will not be mourned or buried but will be like dung lying on the ground. They will perish by sword and famine, and their dead bodies will become food for the birds and the wild animals.”
- Ezekiel 24:23You will keep your turbans on your heads and your sandals on your feet. You will not mourn or weep but will waste away because of your sins and groan among yourselves.
- Leviticus 10:6Then Moses said to Aaron and his sons Eleazar and Ithamar, “Do not let your hair become unkempt and do not tear your clothes, or you will die and the Lord will be angry with the whole community. But your relatives, all the Israelites, may mourn for those the Lord has destroyed by fire.
- Leviticus 21:10“ ‘The high priest, the one among his brothers who has had the anointing oil poured on his head and who has been ordained to wear the priestly garments, must not let his hair become unkempt or tear his clothes.
- 2 Samuel 15:30But David continued up the Mount of Olives, weeping as he went; his head was covered and he was barefoot. All the people with him covered their heads too and were weeping as they went up.
- Ezekiel 24:22And you will do as I have done. You will not cover your mustache and beard or eat the customary food of mourners.
- Leviticus 13:45“Anyone with such a defiling disease must wear torn clothes, let their hair be unkempt, cover the lower part of their face and cry out, ‘Unclean! Unclean!’
- Micah 3:7The seers will be ashamed and the diviners disgraced. They will all cover their faces because there is no answer from God.”
- Hosea 9:4They will not pour out wine offerings to the Lord, nor will their sacrifices please him. Such sacrifices will be to them like the bread of mourners; all who eat them will be unclean. This food will be for themselves; it will not come into the temple of the Lord.
- Jeremiah 16:7No one will offer food to comfort those who mourn for the dead—not even for a father or a mother—nor will anyone give them a drink to console them.
Commentaries on Ezekiel 24:17
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 17Make no mourning - As a priest, he could make no public mourning, Leviticus 21:1, etc. Bind the tire of thine head - This seems to refer to the high priest's bonnet; or perhaps, one worn by the ordinary priests: it might have been a black veil to cover the head. Put on thy shoes upon thy feet - Walking barefoot was a sign of grief. Cover not thy lips - Mourners covered the under part of the face, from the nose to the bottom of the chin. Eat not the bread…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 16-27Verses 16-27 The death of Ezekiel‘s wife took place in the evening of the same day that he delivered the foregoing prophecy. This event was to signify to the people that the Lord would take from them all that was most dear to them; and - owing to the extraordinary nature of the times - quiet lamentation for the dead, according to the usual forms of mourning, would be impossible. Ezekiel 24:17 The priest in general was to mourn for his dead (Leviticus 21:1…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 15-27Verses 15-27 Though mourning for the dead is a duty, yet it must be kept under by religion and right reason: we must not sorrow as men that have no hope. Believers must not copy the language and expressions of those who know not God. The people asked the meaning of the sign. God takes from them all that was dearest to them. And as Ezekiel wept not for his affliction, so neither should they weep for theirs. Blessed be God, we need not pine away under our…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 15-17Nowhere do we see a prophet so deeply involved in his message as in this event. God took the life of Ezekiel’s wife. Yet Ezekiel was not allowed to mourn her openly, even though she was very precious to him. Ezekiel was a priest (Ezekiel 1:3). Priests had strict rules about mourning. When people mourned, they often tore their clothes and left their hair uncombed. These public signs of grief made a person ceremonially unclean (not fit for worship). Priests…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1717. Forbear to cry--or, "Lament in silence"; not forbidding sorrow, but the loud expression of it [Grotius]. no mourning--typical of the universality of the ruin of Jerusalem, which would preclude mourning, such as is usual where calamity is but partial. "The dead" is purposely put in the plural, as referring ultimately to the dead who should perish at the taking of Jerusalem; though the singular might have been expected, as Ezekiel's wife was the…Read the comment
Topics related to Ezekiel 24:17
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Ezekiel 24
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- 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
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