New King James Version
Ezekiel 24:17
17Sigh 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.”
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.
- New International Version (NIV)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.”
- 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 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
15Also the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 16“Son of man, behold, I take away from you the desire of your eyes with one stroke; yet you shall neither mourn nor weep, nor shall your tears run down. 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.” 18So I spoke to the people in the morning, and at evening my wife died; and the next morning I did as I was commanded. 19And the people said to me, “Will you not tell us what these things signify to us, that you behave so?”
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 37:7Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him; Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, Because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass.
- Psalms 39:9I was mute, I did not open my mouth, Because it was You who did it.
- Psalms 46:10Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!
- Amos 8:3And the songs of the temple Shall be wailing in that day,” Says the Lord God— “Many dead bodies everywhere, They shall be thrown out in silence.”
- Habakkuk 2:20“But the Lord is in His holy temple. Let all the earth keep silence before Him.”
- Jeremiah 16:4“They shall die gruesome deaths; they shall not be lamented nor shall they be buried, but they shall be like refuse on the face of the earth. They shall be consumed by the sword and by famine, and their corpses shall be meat for the birds of heaven and for the beasts of the earth.”
- Ezekiel 24:23Your turbans shall be on your heads and your sandals on your feet; you shall neither mourn nor weep, but you shall pine away in your iniquities and mourn with one another.
- Leviticus 10:6And Moses said to Aaron, and to Eleazar and Ithamar, his sons, “Do not uncover your heads nor tear your clothes, lest you die, and wrath come upon all the people. But let your brethren, the whole house of Israel, bewail the burning which the Lord has kindled.
- Leviticus 21:10‘He who is the high priest among his brethren, on whose head the anointing oil was poured and who is consecrated to wear the garments, shall not uncover his head nor tear his clothes;
- 2 Samuel 15:30So David went up by the Ascent of the Mount of Olives, and wept as he went up; and he had his head covered and went barefoot. And all the people who were with him covered their heads and went up, weeping as they went up.
- Ezekiel 24:22And you shall do as I have done; you shall not cover your lips nor eat man’s bread of sorrow.
- Leviticus 13:45“Now the leper on whom the sore is, his clothes shall be torn and his head bare; and he shall cover his mustache, and cry, ‘Unclean! Unclean!’
- Micah 3:7So the seers shall be ashamed, And the diviners abashed; Indeed they shall all cover their lips; For there is no answer from God.”
- Hosea 9:4They shall not offer wine offerings to the Lord, Nor shall their sacrifices be pleasing to Him. It shall be like bread of mourners to them; All who eat it shall be defiled. For their bread shall be for their own life; It shall not come into the house of the Lord.
- Jeremiah 16:7Nor shall men break bread in mourning for them, to comfort them for the dead; nor shall men give them the cup of consolation to drink for their father or their mother.
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
New King James Version — © 1982 Thomas Nelson, Inc
Commentaries