Ezekiel 13:19 kjv
And will ye pollute me among my people for handfuls of barley and for pieces of bread, to slay the souls that should not die, and to save the souls alive that should not live, by your lying to my people that hear your lies?
Ezekiel 13:19 nkjv
And will you profane Me among My people for handfuls of barley and for pieces of bread, killing people who should not die, and keeping people alive who should not live, by your lying to My people who listen to lies?"
Ezekiel 13:19 niv
You have profaned me among my people for a few handfuls of barley and scraps of bread. By lying to my people, who listen to lies, you have killed those who should not have died and have spared those who should not live.
Ezekiel 13:19 esv
You have profaned me among my people for handfuls of barley and for pieces of bread, putting to death souls who should not die and keeping alive souls who should not live, by your lying to my people, who listen to lies.
Ezekiel 13:19 nlt
You bring shame on me among my people for a few handfuls of barley or a piece of bread. By lying to my people who love to listen to lies, you kill those who should not die, and you promise life to those who should not live.
Ezekiel 13 19 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Ezekiel 13:19 | "And have profaned me among my people for handfuls of barley and crumbs of bread, to slay the souls that should not die, and to save the souls alive that should not live, by your lying to my people that hear your lies." | Direct Statement |
| Jeremiah 14:14 | "Then the LORD said to me: 'The prophets prophesy falsely in my name. I have not sent them, commanded them, nor spoken to them. They prophesy to you a false vision, divination, a worthless thing, and the deceit of their heart.'" | False Prophets |
| Jeremiah 23:16 | "Do not listen to the words of the prophets who prophesy to you. They fill you with vain hope; they speak visions out of their own minds, not from the mouth of the LORD." | Vain Hope, Self-Originating Visions |
| Micah 3:11 | "Her leaders judge for a bribe, her priests teach for pay, and her prophets practice divination for money. Yet they lean on the LORD and say, 'Is not the LORD among us? No disaster can come upon us.'" | Materialistic Prophecy |
| Romans 1:25 | "because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen." | Exchanging Truth for Lie |
| 2 Thessalonians 2:9-10 | "The coming of the lawless one by the activity of Satan will be with all power and false signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth, so that they might be saved." | Deception and Perishing |
| Revelation 18:23 | "and the light of a lamp will shine in you no longer, and the voice of bridegroom and bride will be heard in you no longer, for your merchants were the great ones of the earth, and all nations were deceived by your sorcery." | Deception through Merchants/Sorcery |
| Isaiah 47:12-13 | "Stand fast in your enchantments and in your many sorceries which you have labored from your youth. Perhaps you will be able to profit, perhaps you can make an overthrow. You are wearied with your many counselors; let them stand and save you, those who divide the heavens, those who gaze at the stars, who at the new moons predict what shall befall you." | Sorcery, Astrology |
| Acts 16:16 | "As we were going to the place of prayer, we met a slave girl who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners much profit by fortune-telling." | Spirit of Divination |
| Leviticus 19:31 | "Do not turn to mediums or to necromancers; do not seek them out and so defile yourselves by them: I am the LORD your God." | Prohibition of Divination |
| Deuteronomy 18:10-12 | "There shall not be found among you anyone who burns his son or his daughter as an offering, anyone who practices divination or tells fortunes or interprets omens, or a sorcerer or a charmer or a medium or a necromancer or one who inquires of the dead. For whoever does these things is an abomination to the LORD. And because of these abominations the LORD your God is driving them out before you." | Abominable Practices |
| Jeremiah 6:13-14 | "For from the least to the greatest of them, everyone is greedy for gain, and from prophet to priest, everyone deals falsely. They have healed the wound of my people lightly, saying, 'Peace, peace,' when there is no peace." | False Peace |
| Ezekiel 13:22 | "Because you have disheartened the righteous with your vanity, when I have not saddened him, and you have strengthened the hands of the wicked, so that he has turned from his evil way by promising him life," | Strengthening the Wicked |
| Matthew 7:15 | "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves." | False Prophets |
| Matthew 24:24 | "For false christs and false prophets will arise and perform great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the elect." | False Signs and Wonders |
| Acts 20:30 | "and from among your own selves will arise men speaking twisted things, to draw away the disciples after them." | Twisted Teachings |
| 1 John 4:1 | "Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world." | Testing Spirits |
| Ezekiel 22:28 | "Her prophets have smeared whitewash for them, seeing false visions and divining lies for them, saying, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD,’ when the LORD has not spoken." | Whitewashed Lies |
| Romans 2:16 | "on the day when, according to my gospel, God judges the secrets of men by Christ Jesus." | God's Judgment |
| Psalm 52:5 | "But God will utterly break you down, he willremoveChild you; he will cast you out of your tent; he will root you out of the land of the living. Selah" | God's Destruction |
Ezekiel 13 verses
Ezekiel 13 19 Meaning
The verse describes God’s accusation against women who practice divination using false assurances. These women bind souls with deceitful words, claiming life for those who have no right to it. They offer a false sense of security to the innocent who are made to trust in lies, thereby leading them to spiritual peril.
Ezekiel 13 19 Context
Ezekiel chapter 13 is a strong rebuke against false prophets and prophetesses in Israel, particularly within Judah, during the Babylonian exile. These individuals are accused of misleading the people by offering comforting but false prophecies of peace and restoration, ignoring the impending judgment due to sin. They prophesize visions derived from their own imagination rather than from God.
The specific verse, Ezekiel 13:19, targets women who engage in manipulative spiritual practices, likened to "handfuls of barley and crumbs of bread." This imagery suggests cheap, worthless means used to achieve significant, yet deceitful, spiritual outcomes. They falsely assure souls of life and safety, thereby absolving the guilty from accountability and discouraging the righteous. This contrasts with God's true prophetic word which calls for repentance and upholds justice. This practice is a direct offense against God, profaning His name among His people by associating His authority with deceitful divination and the manipulation of souls.
Ezekiel 13 19 Word Analysis
- And (וְ wə-): A common conjunction, linking clauses, indicating continuation.
- have profaned (חִלַּ֖לְתֶּ֥נָה ḥillaltɛnnāh): From root חָלַל (ḥālal), meaning to pierce, profane, desecrate, begin. Here it implies defiling or desecrating something holy, in this case, God’s name and people through false prophecy. The intensive Piel form indicates a severe or thorough profanation.
- me (־ִי -î): Possessive suffix, referring to God.
- among my people (בְּעַמִּ֑י bəʿammî): In the midst of God's chosen community, where His name should be revered.
- for (בְּ bə-): For, with, by means of.
- handfuls of barley (גֻּלְשֵׁ֤י שְׂעֹרִים gōlšê śəʿōrîm): “Gōlɛš” is a rare word, likely meaning a handful or sheaf. “Śəʿōrîm” means barley. This refers to very small, insignificant amounts, highlighting the mercenary and contemptible nature of their practice – cheap gains for spiritual deception.
- and (וְ wə-): And.
- and (וְ wə-): And.
- crumbs of bread (פְּתֵ֤י לֶ֙חֶם֙ ptê læḥɛm): “Pətî” can mean fragments or pieces. “Læḥɛm” is bread. Again, signifying paltry payment for profound spiritual deceit.
- to slay (לְמוֹתֵ֣ת ləmōtêṯ): Infinitive of MWTH, to cause to die.
- the souls (נְפָשִׁ֑ים nəp̄āšîm): Hebrew word for souls, or lives. Refers to the people.
- that should not die (אֲשֶׁ֛ר לֹא־יָמֻ֥וּת ’ăšɛr lō-yāmūṯ): People who were not appointed to die at that time, yet were spiritually killed or harmed.
- and (וּלְחַיּ֖וֹת wə·ḥ·ḥay·yō·wṯ): Infinitive Hifil of CHY, to cause to live.
- to save alive (to give life to): The phrase is awkward; it should likely be “to kill those who should not die, and to keep alive those who should not live.” The intention is clear: they wrongly manipulate life and death.
- the souls (נְפָשִׁ֑ים nəp̄āšîm): Souls or lives.
- that should not live (אֲשֶׁר לֹא־יִחְיוּ ’ăšɛr lō-yiḥ·yū): People who deserved judgment and death, but are falsely kept alive through their false prophecies.
- by your lying (בְּשַׁקְּרְכֶ֣ם bə·šaq·qər·kɛm): With your falsehoods, deceit, or treachery.
- to my people (לְעַמִּ֣י lə·ʿam·mî): Directed at the inhabitants of Israel/Judah.
- that hear your lies (הַשֹּׁמְעִ֥ים לִשְׁקָרִֽים hā·šō·mə‘îm ·li·šə·qā·rîm): The listeners who readily accept their deceptive messages.
Group of Words Analysis:
- "handfuls of barley and crumbs of bread": This vivid idiom signifies cheapness and scarcity. It implies that these prophetesses operated for minimal material gain, but their spiritual impact was immense and destructive. They sold worthless spiritual reassurance for almost nothing, corrupting God's prophetic role for petty profit.
- "to slay the souls that should not die, and to save the souls alive that should not live": This paradox highlights the extreme perversion of their spiritual ministry. They were wrongly assigning destinies, granting false hope to the doomed and condemning the righteous, all through their deceptive pronouncements which claimed divine authority.
Ezekiel 13 19 Bonus Section
The description of "spirit of divination" seen in other parts of scripture (Acts 16:16) connects to these practices. Such spirits are manipulative and seek to exploit individuals and bring profit through deceit. The motivations here are mercenary, but the spiritual consequences are catastrophic, turning God's people away from authentic faith and accountability before Him. The phrase "profaned Me among My people" signifies that the true identity and character of God were misrepresented and degraded in the eyes of those who heard these false prophecies.
Ezekiel 13 19 Commentary
These women are condemned for acting as false prophetesses who manipulate people's spiritual destinies for trivial rewards. They profane God's name by associating His authority with their cheap divinations, trading "handfuls of barley and crumbs of bread" for falsely promising life or security. They thus misguidedly protect the wicked by giving them a false sense of peace and falsely condemn or disheartened the righteous by removing God-ordained warnings or disciplines. Their actions led people to trust in lies rather than God's truth, resulting in spiritual death. This practice, rooted in seeking personal gain through deceit, is an abominable perversion of true prophecy, which should reflect God's justice and lead people to repentance.