Deep Dive

Ezekiel 23:17

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Then the Babylonians came to her, to the bed of love, and in their lust they defiled her. But after she had been defiled by them, she turned away in disgust.

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Commentaries

Excerpts gathered from published commentaries to ground the reading.

Matthew Henry Bible Commentaryv. 17

This long chapter (as before ch. 16 and 20) is a history of the apostasies of God's people from him and the aggravations of those apostasies under the similitude of corporal whoredom and adultery. Here the kingdoms of Israel and Judah, the ten tribes and the two, with their capital cities, Samaria and Jerusalem, are considered distinctly. Here is, I. The apostasy of Israel and Samaria from God (Eze 23:1-8) and their ruin for it (Eze 23:9, Eze 23:10). II. The apostasy of Judah and Jerusalem from God (Eze 23:11-21) and sentence passed upon them, that they shall in like manner be destroyed for it (Eze 23:22-35). III. The joint wickedness of them both together (Eze 23:36-44) and the joint ruin of them both (Eze 23:45-49). And all that is written for warning against the sins of idolatry, and confidence in an arm of flesh, and sinful leagues and confederacies with wicked people (which are the sins here meant by committing whoredom), is that others may hear and fear, and not sin after the similitude of the transgressions of Israel and Judah.

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Original language

The Hebrew and Greek words behind this passage, with Strong's numbers — from openscriptures (CC BY-SA).

Strong's Concordancev. 17

בֵּן (bên, H1121) — a son (as a builder of the family name), in the widest sense (of literal and figurative… בָּבֶל (Bâbel, H894) — Babel (i.e. Babylon), including Babylonia and the Babylonian empire בּוֹא (bôwʼ, H935) — to go or come (in a wide variety of applications) מִשְׁכָּב (mishkâb, H4904) — a bed (figuratively, a bier); abstractly, sleep; by euphemism, carnal intercourse דּוֹד (dôwd, H1730) — (figuratively) to love; by implication, a love-token, lover, friend; specifically an uncle טָמֵא (ṭâmêʼ, H2930) — to be foul, especially in a ceremial or moral sense (contaminated) תַּזְנוּת (taznûwth, H8457) — harlotry, i.e. (figuratively) idolatry נֶפֶשׁ (nephesh, H5315) — properly, a breathing creature, i.e. animal of (abstractly) vitality; used very widely in… יָקַע (yâqaʻ, H3363) — properly, to sever oneself, i.e. (by implication) to be dislocated; figuratively, to…

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Cross-references

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Ezekiel 23:22rank 3

Therefore, Oholibah, this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘I will incite your lovers against you, those from whom you turned away in disgust. And I will bring them against you from every side—

Ezekiel 23:28rank 3

For this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Surely I will deliver you into the hands of those you hate, from whom you turned away in disgust.

II Samuel 13:15rank 2

Then Amnon hated Tamar with such intensity that his hatred was greater than the love he previously had. “Get up!” he said to her. “Be gone!”

Genesis 10:10rank 2

His kingdom began in Babylon, Erech, Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar.

Genesis 11:9rank 2

That is why it is called Babel, for there the LORD confused the language of the whole world, and from that place the LORD scattered them over the face of all the earth.

Ezekiel 16:37rank 2

therefore I will surely gather all the lovers with whom you found pleasure, all those you loved and all those you hated. I will gather them against you from all around and expose you before them, and they will see you completely naked.

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