Ezekiel 16:18 kjv
And tookest thy broidered garments, and coveredst them: and thou hast set mine oil and mine incense before them.
Ezekiel 16:18 nkjv
You took your embroidered garments and covered them, and you set My oil and My incense before them.
Ezekiel 16:18 niv
And you took your embroidered clothes to put on them, and you offered my oil and incense before them.
Ezekiel 16:18 esv
And you took your embroidered garments to cover them, and set my oil and my incense before them.
Ezekiel 16:18 nlt
You used the beautifully embroidered clothes I gave you to dress your idols. Then you used my special oil and my incense to worship them.
Ezekiel 16 18 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Deut 31:16 | "This people will rise up and play the harlot after the foreign gods of the land..." | Israel's spiritual harlotry foreseen. |
| Judges 2:17 | "They soon turned aside from the way in which their fathers had walked, obeying the commandments of the Lord, and they did not do so." | Departing from God's commands for idols. |
| Judges 8:27 | "Gideon made an ephod of it... and all Israel whored after it there." | Misuse of holy items for idolatry. |
| 1 Kings 14:9 | "You have done evil above all who were before you, and have gone and made for yourself other gods and metal images..." | Abandonment of God for idolatry. |
| Jer 2:13 | "They have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water." | Spiritual abandonment and seeking false security. |
| Jer 3:6 | "Have you seen what faithless Israel did? She went up on every high hill and under every green tree, and there she played the harlot." | Prostitution under every green tree (fertility rites). |
| Jer 5:7 | "How can I pardon you for this? Your children have forsaken me and sworn by gods that are no gods." | Idolatry involving the next generation. |
| Hos 1:2 | "Go, take to yourself a wife of whoredom and have children of whoredom, for the land commits great whoredom by forsaking the Lord." | Prophet Hosea's life as a parallel to Israel's unfaithfulness. |
| Hos 2:5 | "For their mother has played the harlot; she who conceived them has acted shamefully. For she said, ‘I will go after my lovers, who give me my bread and my water..." | Attributing God's blessings to false lovers. |
| Hos 4:12-13 | "My people inquire of a piece of wood... because a spirit of harlotry has led them astray..." | Seeking guidance from idols. |
| Amos 2:4 | "Because they despised the law of the Lord and have not kept his statutes..." | Rebellion through rejecting God's law. |
| Ezekiel 16:19 | "Also My bread which I gave you... you would even offer before them as a soothing aroma." | Further desecration using God's provisions as idol offerings. |
| Ezekiel 20:28 | "They also brought their sacrifices there and offered their provoking sacrifice there; they also offered their soothing aroma there and poured out their drink offerings there." | Sacrificing to idols in high places. |
| 2 Chron 33:3 | "For he rebuilt the high places which Hezekiah his father had broken down; he also erected altars for the Baals and made Asherim..." | Re-establishing pagan worship. |
| Psalm 78:58 | "For they provoked him with their high places; they moved him to jealousy with their carved images." | Provoking God through idolatry. |
| Isa 42:8 | "I am the Lord; that is my name; my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to carved idols." | God's exclusive claim to worship and glory. |
| Matt 6:24 | "No one can serve two masters..." | Serving God and idols is mutually exclusive. |
| Rom 1:22-23 | "Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things." | Humanity's rejection of God for idolatry. |
| 1 Cor 10:14 | "Therefore, my beloved, flee from idolatry." | Warning against participating in idol worship. |
| 1 Cor 10:20-21 | "What pagans sacrifice they offer to demons and not to God... You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons." | Demonic connection to pagan worship. |
| 2 Cor 6:16 | "What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God..." | Incompatibility of God's dwelling with idols. |
| Rev 17:1-6 | "Come, I will show you the judgment of the great prostitute who is seated on many waters... " | Figurative language of spiritual harlotry extended in the NT. |
Ezekiel 16 verses
Ezekiel 16 18 Meaning
Ezekiel 16:18 powerfully depicts Jerusalem's (representing Israel) profound spiritual harlotry and betrayal of God. After God adorned her with splendid garments and showered her with provisions, she desecrated these divine gifts. Instead of honoring Him, she took His embroidered garments to adorn pagan idols, symbolizing how Israel used God's blessings and resources to beautify and serve false deities. Furthermore, she presented God's own holy oil and incense—items designated for His worship—as offerings directly "before them" (the idols), a grave act of spiritual adultery and a direct affront to her covenant Husband. This act signifies her deepest treachery, using the very provisions of God to venerate false gods.
Ezekiel 16 18 Context
Ezekiel chapter 16 is an extended allegorical lament and indictment from God to Jerusalem, portraying the city as an unfaithful wife or prostitute. God recounts her history, starting from her desolate, abandoned state as a newborn (v. 1-5). He then describes how He adopted her, cleansed her, caused her to grow, and lavishly adorned her with costly garments, jewelry, and riches, elevating her to a queenly status (v. 6-14). These blessings symbolize God's covenant love, provision, and distinction granted to Israel. However, the verse directly preceding 16:18, verses 15-17, begins the tragic turn, revealing Jerusalem's unfaithfulness. She became arrogant due to her beauty, prostituting herself to every passerby and using the very materials God gave her (fine clothes) to adorn her high places and construct male images for worship. Verse 18 further details this spiritual treachery by showing how Jerusalem continued to use God's most precious and personal gifts—the "embroidered garments," "My oil," and "My incense"—not only for pagan worship but directly as offerings to her idols, demonstrating a total inversion and desecration of divine grace.
Ezekiel 16 18 Word analysis
- And you took (וַתִּקְחִי, vattikchi): Emphasizes Jerusalem's active, deliberate choice in her betrayal. It's not passive temptation but an intentional action.
- your embroidered garments (בִּגְדֵי רִקְמָה, bigde riqma): These were splendid, variegated, multi-colored clothes (cf. Ezek 16:10, 13). They represent God's gift of dignity, beauty, and even royal status. The term riqma denotes intricate needlework or brocade, signifying great value and skill, suitable for royalty or a bride. That these were hers from God's giving intensifies the betrayal.
- and covered them,: Refers to the idols (implied from verses 16-17). This act is a form of dressing or adorning idols, a common practice in pagan worship to enhance their appearance and status. It's a clear dedication of God's gifts to false deities.
- and you set (וַתִּתְּנִי, vattitni): Another active verb, denoting presentation or offering. It’s an intentional placement of an offering.
- My oil (שַׁמְנִי, shamni): The suffix "-i" (my) signifies direct divine ownership. Oil was a highly valued commodity used for food, light, anointing (priests, kings, cultic objects), and medicinal purposes. Holy anointing oil and oil for temple lamps (Ex 27:20, 30:22-33) were sacred and specifically reserved for God's service. To offer His oil to idols is a deep insult.
- and My incense (וּקְטָרְתִּי, u'q'torati): Again, "My" emphasizes divine ownership. Incense (קְטֹרֶת, qetoret) was central to Israelite worship, associated with prayer and rising to God (Ps 141:2, Rev 5:8). There was a specific holy incense (Ex 30:34-38) exclusively for YHWH's worship in the Tabernacle/Temple, and its use elsewhere or for profane purposes was strictly forbidden. Offering it to idols is an act of spiritual treason.
- before them. (לִפְנֵיהֶם, lifnehem): This prepositional phrase means "in front of them" or "in their presence." "Them" refers to the male images, idols, or high places mentioned in preceding verses. This placement signifies a ritual act of veneration and sacrifice, publicly acknowledging the false gods and making offerings to them. It underscores the public and intentional nature of Jerusalem's idolatry.
- your embroidered garments and covered them: This phrase signifies the act of taking items that were God's gracious provision for His bride and using them to physically clothe and beautify the idols, essentially dressing idols in royal attire intended for Israel's divine relationship. It highlights the reversal and profanity of sacred gifts.
- My oil and My incense before them: This is an outright act of offering sacred substances, belonging exclusively to God, directly to idols. This action is a quintessential act of apostasy, demonstrating spiritual infidelity where gifts meant for worship of the divine Giver are redirected to false, inanimate objects. It emphasizes the direct and egregious nature of the affront to God's holiness and His rightful claim to exclusive devotion.
Ezekiel 16 18 Bonus section
This verse contains a direct polemic against ancient Near Eastern idolatrous practices. Pagans would often clothe their deity statues in splendid attire, anoint them, and offer incense to them. By showing Israel engaging in these same actions using God's own provisions, the text highlights the absolute abomination of her conduct. This desecration would have been deeply shocking to the original audience, who understood the sanctity of items belonging to God. It underscores the concept of jealousy (קִנְאָה, qina'ah) often associated with God when His people turn to other gods (Deut 32:21; Ex 34:14), emphasizing that YHWH will not share His glory or His consecrated items with any rival. The emotional intensity conveyed by God calling them "My oil" and "My incense" stresses the personal offense and profound breach of loyalty.
Ezekiel 16 18 Commentary
Ezekiel 16:18 powerfully reveals the depth of Israel's covenant unfaithfulness. God had taken Jerusalem from destitution and elevated her to unparalleled splendor, providing royal clothing, precious oils, and fragrant incense as symbols of His lavish love, grace, and provision. Yet, Jerusalem perverted these very blessings. She did not merely fall into idolatry; she actively used God's personal, sacred gifts to enhance and serve false gods. The "embroidered garments," originally a sign of her divinely bestowed dignity, became adornments for mute idols. "My oil" and "My incense," which were holy substances intended for YHWH's exclusive worship, were defiantly offered to pagan deities. This was an extreme act of ingratitude and spiritual treason, not just neglecting God but taking what was rightfully His and prostituting it to rival powers. It speaks to the devastating consequences of pride and a forgetfulness of divine origin, leading to a profane misuse of blessings and a complete betrayal of sacred vows.