Ezekiel 21:23

Ezekiel 21:23 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And it shall be unto them as a false divination in their sight, to them that have sworn oaths: but he will call to remembrance the iniquity, that they may be taken.
• New International Version (NIV)It will seem like a false omen to those who have sworn allegiance to him, but he will remind them of their guilt and take them captive.
• English Standard Version (ESV)But to them it will seem like a false divination. They have sworn solemn oaths, but he brings their guilt to remembrance, that they may be taken.
• New King James Version (NKJV)And it will be to them like a false divination in the eyes of those who have sworn oaths with them; but he will bring their iniquity to remembrance, that they may be taken.

Context of Ezekiel 21:23

21Slash to the right, turn to the left—wherever your blade is meeting! 22I also will clap My hands together. So I will satisfy My wrath. I, Adonai, have spoken.’” The word of Adonai came to me saying: 24“Now you, son of man, mark two ways for the sword of the king of Babylon to come. Both of them should originate from the same land. Mark a signpost; cut it out at the start of the road to the city. 25You are to mark out a way, so the sword can come to Rabbah of the children of Ammon and to Judah in fortified Jerusalem.

Ezekiel 21:23 word by word

וְהָיָ֨ה לָהֶ֤ם כִּקְסָם שָׁוְא֙ בְּעֵ֣ינֵיהֶ֔ם שְׁבֻעֵ֥י שְׁבֻע֖וֹת לָהֶ֑ם וְהֽוּא־מַזְכִּ֥יר עָוֹ֖ן לְהִתָּפֵֽשׂ׃ פRead the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And it shall be unto them as a falseשָׁוְאshâv' shav · vanity: falseH7723
• divinationקָסַםqâsam · to divineH7080
• in their sightעַ֫יִן‛ayin · eye: appearanceH5869
• to them that have swornשָׁבַעshâba‛ · to swearH7650
• oathsשְׁבוּעָהshebû‛âh · oathH7621
• but he will call to remembranceזָכַרzâkar · to rememberH2142
• the iniquityעָוֺן‛âvôn ‛âvôn · iniquity: guiltH5771
• that they may be takenתָּפַשׂtâphaώ · to captureH8610

Cross-references for Ezekiel 21:23

• Ezekiel 11:3who say, ‘This is not the time to build houses! This city is the cooking pot and we are the meat!’
• Ezekiel 12:22“Son of man, what is that proverb you people have in the land of Israel saying, ‘The days are prolonged and every vision fails?’
• Isaiah 28:14Therefore hear the word of Adonai, you scoffers, who rule this people who are in Jerusalem:
• Ezekiel 17:13He took one of the royal offspring, cut a covenant with him, putting him under oath. He also took away the leading men of the land,
• 2 Chronicles 36:13He also rebelled against King Nebuchadnezzar who had made him take an oath by God. He also stiffened his neck and hardened his heart so as not to turn to Adonai, the God of Israel.
• 2 Kings 24:20For through the anger of Adonai it came to a point in Jerusalem and Judah that He finally banished them from His presence. Then Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.
• 2 Kings 25:1Now it came to pass in the ninth year of Zedekiah’s reign, on the tenth day of the tenth month, that King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and his entire army advanced against Jerusalem, set up camp by it, and built a siege wall all around it.
• Jeremiah 52:3Because of Adonai’s anger it came to the point in Jerusalem and Judah that He had them cast out of His presence. So Zedekiah rebelled against the king of Babylon.
• Ezekiel 21:24“Now you, son of man, mark two ways for the sword of the king of Babylon to come. Both of them should originate from the same land. Mark a signpost; cut it out at the start of the road to the city.
• Ezekiel 29:16It will no longer be as security for the house of Israel, bringing to mind the iniquity of their turning after them. So they will know that I am Adonai.”
• Numbers 5:15“Then he should take his wife to the kohen. He must also bring a tenth of an ephah of barley flour as an offering for her. He is not to pour oil or put incense on it, because it is an offering for jealousy, a reminder offering drawing attention to guiltiness.
• 1 Kings 17:18So she said to Elijah, “What do I have to do with you, man of God? Have you come to me to remind me of my sin and kill my son?”
• Revelation 16:19Then the great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations collapsed. Babylon the great was remembered before God, to force her to drink the cup of the wine of His furious wrath.

Commentaries on Ezekiel 21:23

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 23To them that have sworn oaths - To Zedekiah and his ministers, who had bound themselves by the oath of the Lord to be faithful to the Chaldeans, and to pay them the promised tribute. The oaths may refer, farther, to the alliances formed with the Egyptians, Ammonites, and others. They will not believe that Nebuchadnezzar shall succeed against them, while they expect the powerful assistance of the Egyptians.Read the comment
• 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. 23-24A treaty with the Babylonians would not save the people of Jerusalem because they had broken its terms. The king of Babylon would remind them of their rebellion. He would show in public that rebelling against a covenant overlord (a powerful ruler who made a binding agreement) brings serious consequences. If rebellion against their Babylonian ruler brought punishment, how much more would rebellion against the Lord bring judgment?Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 2323. Unto the Jews, though credulous of divinations when in their favor, Nebuchadnezzar's divination "shall be (seen) as false." This gives the reason which makes the Jews fancy themselves safe from the Chaldeans, namely, that they "have sworn" to the latter "oaths" of allegiance, forgetting that they had violated them (Eze 17:13, 15, 16, 18). but he, &c.--Nebuchadnezzar will remember in consulting his idols that he swore to Zedekiah by them, but that…Read the comment

In the dictionaries

• Parting
• Privy
• Crime; Crimes
• Groan
• 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