Ezekiel 13 19

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 verses

Ezekiel 13 19 Meaning

Ezekiel 13:19 denounces the false prophets of Israel for their egregious corruption and profound disrespect towards God and His people. It reveals that these prophets engaged in their deceitful practices for trivial material gain—mere "handfuls of barley and pieces of bread." Their false messages caused despair and death for the righteous, whom God intended to preserve, while offering false hope and life to the wicked, whom God intended to judge. This practice directly profaned God's holy name and His established order among His chosen people, highlighting their blatant lies and the people's willingness to embrace them.

Ezekiel 13 19 Context

Ezekiel 13 is a stern oracle primarily directed at the false prophets and prophetesses among the exiled Jews in Babylon and the remnant in Judah. God, through Ezekiel, condemns them for speaking their own imaginations and presenting them as divine words, all while the people faced imminent national judgment and upheaval. They promised "peace" (šālôm) and well-being where God had decreed disaster. The chapter earlier describes them as "foolish prophets" (v. 3) who "followed their own spirit, and have seen nothing" (v. 3). They are likened to builders who daub a flimsy wall with whitewash (vv. 10-12), implying that their superficial messages conceal underlying weakness and impending collapse. Verse 19 specifically targets their motivation (avarice for meager offerings) and the perverse effect of their false messages: they overturn God's justice by comforting the wicked and discouraging the righteous. Historically, this period was characterized by political instability and spiritual confusion, making the people highly susceptible to reassuring, albeit false, prophecies.

Ezekiel 13 19 Word analysis

• And will you pollute me: The Hebrew is וְתַחֲלֶלְנִי (wetaḥaləlānī), meaning "and you will profane/defile Me." This is a profound charge. It indicates that the prophets' actions directly assaulted God's holiness and honor. To "pollute" God implies desacralizing His name and character in the eyes of His own people and the nations, making light of divine authority for personal gain. This profanation impacts God's reputation.
• among my people: This specifies the locus of the offense. The profanation and deception are not just abstract but occur within the covenant community, the very people God chose and among whom He intended His holiness to be known. It represents a betrayal of trust within the divine-human relationship.
• for handfuls of barley: The Hebrew is בְּשַׁעֲלֵי בַּר (bəšaʿalēy bar). Barley was considered a low-value grain, often consumed by the poor or used as animal feed. "Handfuls" emphasizes the minuscule quantity. This highlights the base avarice of the prophets; they cheapened God's word for minimal, almost worthless, compensation. It shows the extreme depth of their greed and the low estimation they had for spiritual truth.
• and for pieces of bread: The Hebrew is וּפִתֵּי לָחֶם (ûfittēy laḥem). Similar to barley, pieces of bread denote basic, often inadequate sustenance. This phrase reinforces the idea that these prophets were motivated by the most fundamental and meager material desires, rather than a genuine call from God or concern for the people's welfare.
• to slay souls who should not die: The Hebrew phrase is לְהָמִית נְפָשׁוֹת אֲשֶׁר לֹא תָמוּתְנָה (ləhāmît nəfāšôt ʾašer lōʾ tāmûtnâ). This means "to cause to die souls which should not die." These are the righteous, or those whom God had appointed to live and whose hearts He might turn to repentance. By condemning them, leading them into despair, or subjecting them to the same fate as the wicked, the false prophets directly countered God's will, effectively "killing" those He would spare. They crush the spirit of the faithful.
• and to keep alive souls who should not live: The Hebrew is וּלְהַחֲיוֹת נְפָשׁוֹת אֲשֶׁר לֹא תִחְיֶנָה (ûləhaḥªyôt nəfāšôt ʾašer lōʾ tiḥyenâ), meaning "and to cause to live souls which should not live." These are the wicked, or those appointed for judgment by God due to their impenitence. By promising them peace, prosperity, or continued life despite their sins, the false prophets gave them false security, hindering repentance, and effectively "keeping alive" those God intended to bring to judgment.
• by your lying: The Hebrew is בְּכַזֶּבְכֶם (bəkhazzavəkem), referring directly to their falsehood and deception. Lying is presented as the primary means by which they accomplished these destructive acts. It exposes the foundation of their ministry as inherently dishonest.
• to my people who listen to lies: The Hebrew is לְעַמִּי שֹׁמְעֵי שָׁוְא (ləʿammî šōmʿê šāwʾ). "שָׁוְא" (šāwʾ) can mean emptiness, vanity, or falsehood. This phrase implicates the audience. God's people, though victims of deceit, are also willing participants, actively choosing to heed reassuring falsehoods rather than difficult truths from legitimate prophets. Their receptiveness to deception enabled the false prophets' nefarious work.

• "pollute me...for handfuls of barley and for pieces of bread": This phrase grouping strikingly juxtaposes the sacred (God's holiness) with the profane and contemptibly trivial (minimal material gain). It emphasizes the severity of the prophets' sin: they willingly desecrate the divine for base, personal greed, demonstrating a complete inversion of values and a sacrilegious contempt for God's glory.
• "to slay souls who should not die, and to keep alive souls who should not live": This powerful parallelism illustrates the core blasphemy of the false prophets—usurping God's exclusive authority over life and death (Deut 32:39, 1 Sam 2:6). They misapply divine judgment, bringing unwarranted condemnation to the righteous and false assurance to the unrighteous, thereby disrupting divine justice and moral order. They effectively pronounce peace on the wicked and terror on the innocent, directly contrary to God's ways.

Ezekiel 13 19 Bonus section

The concept of "profaning" God among His people is highly significant, reflecting God's jealous concern for His honor (Lev 22:32). This isn't just an external offense but an internal undermining of faith and worship within the community that is meant to bear His name. The reference to "barley" can also subtly allude to ritual contexts; barley offerings were often simpler and associated with lower social status or specific purifications (Num 5:15 for jealousy offering). The use here for profit highlights a spiritual regression and a disregard for genuine piety. This entire prophetic critique resonates throughout the biblical narrative, emphasizing that authentic spiritual leadership flows from devotion to God, not self-interest or the desire to appease a crowd. The false prophets offered a counterfeit 'gospel' of comfort without conviction, an ongoing temptation in all generations for both leaders and congregants.

Ezekiel 13 19 Commentary

Ezekiel 13:19 pierces to the heart of the false prophets' corruption, revealing their base motivations and devastating impact. They profaned the Holy One of Israel by selling divine messages for negligible sums, debasing the sacred to the level of mere subsistence. This avarice led them to distort truth: bringing despair to the righteous, whose hearts God desired to revive, and fostering false security for the wicked, whom God intended to humble through judgment. Their lies inverted divine justice, confusing moral categories and leading God's people further astray, a betrayal amplified by the people's eagerness to believe pleasant deceptions over harsh realities. This act was a profound sacrilege, not just against God's commands, but against His very character, executed among the very community He called His own. The passage underscores the severe consequences of valuing personal gain above divine truth and righteous counsel.