New King James Version
Ezekiel 21:16
16“Swords at the ready! Thrust right! Set your blade! Thrust left— Wherever your edge is ordered!
Ezekiel 21:16 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Go thee one way or other, either on the right hand, or on the left, whithersoever thy face is set.
- New International Version (NIV)Slash to the right, you sword, then to the left, wherever your blade is turned.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Cut sharply to the right; set yourself to the left, wherever your face is directed.
- New Living Translation (NLT)O sword, slash to the right, then slash to the left, wherever you will, wherever you want.
Context of Ezekiel 21:16
14“You therefore, son of man, prophesy, And strike your hands together. The third time let the sword do double damage. It is the sword that slays, The sword that slays the great men, That enters their private chambers. 15I have set the point of the sword against all their gates, That the heart may melt and many may stumble. Ah! It is made bright; It is grasped for slaughter: “Swords at the ready! Thrust right! Set your blade! Thrust left— Wherever your edge is ordered! 17“I also will beat My fists together, And I will cause My fury to rest; I, the Lord, have spoken.” 18The word of the Lord came to me again, saying:
Read all of Ezekiel 21Ezekiel 21:16 word by word
הִתְאַחֲדִ֥י הֵימִ֖נִי הָשִׂ֣ימִי הַשְׂמִ֑ילִי אָ֖נָה פָּנַ֥יִךְ מֻעָדֽוֹת׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Ezekiel 21:16
- Ezekiel 21:4Because I will cut off both righteous and wicked from you, therefore My sword shall go out of its sheath against all flesh from south to north,
- Ezekiel 14:17“Or if I bring a sword on that land, and say, ‘Sword, go through the land,’ and I cut off man and beast from it,
- Ezekiel 16:46“Your elder sister is Samaria, who dwells with her daughters to the north of you; and your younger sister, who dwells to the south of you, is Sodom and her daughters.
- Genesis 13:9Is not the whole land before you? Please separate from me. If you take the left, then I will go to the right; or, if you go to the right, then I will go to the left.”
Commentaries on Ezekiel 21:16
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 16Go thee one way or other - Thou shalt prosper, O sword, whithersoever thou turnest; against Ammon, or Judea, or Egypt.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 8-17Verses 8-17 The second word of judgment: the glittering and destroying sword. The passage may be called the “Lay of the Sword;” it is written in the form of Hebrew poetry, with its characteristic parallelism. Ezekiel 21:10 It contemneth the rod of my son, as every tree - The rod is the scepter of dominion, assigned to Judah Genesis 49:10. The destroying sword of Babylon despises the scepter of Judah; it despises every tree. Others render the verse, “Shall…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 14-17As the Lord's representative, Ezekiel was to clap his hands in a threatening way and wave the sword three times. This action symbolized the complete massacre to come. There would be no place to escape. No one could hide from the sword of judgment. When the Lord was ready to act, he would destroy his people. In this way, he would satisfy his fury (his burning anger). They would be filled with terror. Their courage would disappear.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1616. Apostrophe to the sword. Go ... one way--or, "Concentrate thyself"; "Unite thy forces on the right hand" [Grotius]. The sword is commanded to take the nearest route for Jerusalem, "whither their face was set," whether south or north ("right hand or left"), according to where the several parts of the Chaldean host may be. or other, ... on the left--rather "set thyself on the left." The verbs are well-chosen. The main "concentration" of forces was to be…Read the comment
Topics related to Ezekiel 21:16
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
New King James Version — © 1982 Thomas Nelson, Inc
Commentaries