Ezekiel 21:20

Ezekiel 21:20 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Appoint a way, that the sword may come to Rabbath of the Ammonites, and to Judah in Jerusalem the defenced.
• New International Version (NIV)Mark out one road for the sword to come against Rabbah of the Ammonites and another against Judah and fortified Jerusalem.
• English Standard Version (ESV)Mark a way for the sword to come to Rabbah of the Ammonites and to Judah, into Jerusalem the fortified.
• New Living Translation (NLT)one road going to Ammon and its capital, Rabbah, and the other to Judah and fortified Jerusalem.

Context of Ezekiel 21:20

18The word of the Lord came to me again, saying: 19“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. Appoint a road for the sword to go to Rabbah of the Ammonites, and to Judah, into fortified Jerusalem. 21For the king of Babylon stands at the parting of the road, at the fork of the two roads, to use divination: he shakes the arrows, he consults the images, he looks at the liver. 22In his right hand is the divination for Jerusalem: to set up battering rams, to call for a slaughter, to lift the voice with shouting, to set battering rams against the gates, to heap up a siege mound, and to build a wall.

Ezekiel 21:20 word by word

דֶּ֣רֶךְ תָּשִׂ֔ים לָב֣וֹא חֶ֔רֶב אֵ֖ת רַבַּ֣ת בְּנֵֽי־עַמּ֑וֹן וְאֶת־יְהוּדָ֥ה בִירוּשָׁלִַ֖ם בְּצוּרָֽה׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Appointשׂוּםώûm ώîym · to set: makeH7760
• a wayדֶּ֫רֶךְderek · way: roadH1870
• that the swordחֶ֫רֶבchereb · swordH2719
• may comeבּוֹאbô' · to come (in): comeH935
• to Rabbathרַבָּהrabbâh · RabbahH7237
• of the Ammonitesעַמּוֹן‛ammôn · AmmonH5983
• of the Ammonitesבֵּןbên · son: descendant/peopleH1121
• and to Judahיְהוּדָהyehûdâh · JudahH3063
• in Jerusalemיְרוּשָׁלִַ֫ם, יְרוּשְׁלֵםyerûshâlaim yerûshâlayim · JerusalemH3389
• the defencedבָּצַרbâtsar · to gather/restrain/fortifyH1219

Cross-references for Ezekiel 21:20

• Ezekiel 25:5And I will make Rabbah a stable for camels and Ammon a resting place for flocks. Then you shall know that I am the Lord.”
• Deuteronomy 3:11“For only Og king of Bashan remained of the remnant of the giants. Indeed his bedstead was an iron bedstead. (Is it not in Rabbah of the people of Ammon?) Nine cubits is its length and four cubits its width, according to the standard cubit.
• 2 Samuel 12:26Now Joab fought against Rabbah of the people of Ammon, and took the royal city.
• Jeremiah 49:2Therefore behold, the days are coming,” says the Lord, “That I will cause to be heard an alarm of war In Rabbah of the Ammonites; It shall be a desolate mound, And her villages shall be burned with fire. Then Israel shall take possession of his inheritance,” says the Lord.
• Amos 1:14But I will kindle a fire in the wall of Rabbah, And it shall devour its palaces, Amid shouting in the day of battle, And a tempest in the day of the whirlwind.
• 2 Samuel 5:9Then David dwelt in the stronghold, and called it the City of David. And David built all around from the Millo and inward.
• 2 Chronicles 26:9And Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem at the Corner Gate, at the Valley Gate, and at the corner buttress of the wall; then he fortified them.
• 2 Chronicles 32:5And he strengthened himself, built up all the wall that was broken, raised it up to the towers, and built another wall outside; also he repaired the Millo in the City of David, and made weapons and shields in abundance.
• 2 Chronicles 33:14After this he built a wall outside the City of David on the west side of Gihon, in the valley, as far as the entrance of the Fish Gate; and it enclosed Ophel, and he raised it to a very great height. Then he put military captains in all the fortified cities of Judah.
• Psalms 48:12Walk about Zion, And go all around her. Count her towers;
• Psalms 125:1Those who trust in the Lord Are like Mount Zion, Which cannot be moved, but abides forever.
• Isaiah 22:10You numbered the houses of Jerusalem, And the houses you broke down To fortify the wall.
• Lamentations 4:12The kings of the earth, And all inhabitants of the world, Would not have believed That the adversary and the enemy Could enter the gates of Jerusalem—

Commentaries on Ezekiel 21:20

• 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. 2020. Rabbath of the Ammonites--distinct from Rabbah in Judah (2Sa 12:26). Rabbath is put first, as it was from her that Jerusalem, that doomed city, had borrowed many of her idols. to Judah in Jerusalem--instead of simply putting "Jerusalem," to imply the sword was to come not merely to Judah, but to its people within Jerusalem, defended though it was; its defenses on which the Jews relied so much would not keep the foe out.Read the comment

Topics related to Ezekiel 21:20

• Ammonites
• Rabbah

In the dictionaries

• Jerusalem
• Judah
• Judah, kingdom of Judah
• Judea, Judah
• Magic
• Parting
• Privy
• Groan
• Rabbah
• Zedekiah (2)

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