Ezekiel 20:29 kjv
Then I said unto them, What is the high place whereunto ye go? And the name whereof is called Bamah unto this day.
Ezekiel 20:29 nkjv
Then I said to them, 'What is this high place to which you go?' So its name is called Bamah to this day." '
Ezekiel 20:29 niv
Then I said to them: What is this high place you go to?'?" (It is called Bamah to this day.)
Ezekiel 20:29 esv
(I said to them, 'What is the high place to which you go?' So its name is called Bamah to this day.)
Ezekiel 20:29 nlt
I said to them, 'What is this high place where you are going?' (This kind of pagan shrine has been called Bamah ? 'high place' ? ever since.)
Ezekiel 20 29 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Ezek. 16:20-21 | Took your male children and offered them to them as sacrifices... | Israel's sin of child sacrifice |
| Lev. 18:21 | You shall not give any of your children to dedicate them to Molek... | Prohibition against Molech worship |
| Deut. 18:10 | There shall not be found among you anyone who burns his son or his daughter as an offering... | Moses' warning against detestable practices |
| Ps. 106:37-38 | They sacrificed their sons and their daughters to the demons... | Israel's history of idolatry |
| 2 Kings 17:17 | They burned their sons and their daughters as offerings. | Northern Kingdom's sin leading to exile |
| 2 Kings 21:6 | He burned his son as an offering, and practiced sorcery and dealt with mediums and wizards. | Manasseh's wicked reign |
| Jer. 7:31 | They built the high places of Topheth, which is in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire, a thing that I commanded them not, nor did it enter into my heart. | Jeremiah prophesies against Jerusalem's apostasy |
| Jer. 32:35 | They built high places for Baal in the valley of the son of Hinnom to offer up their sons and daughters to Molech, which I did not command them, nor did it enter into my mind, that they should do this abomination, to make Judah to sin. | God's lament over Jerusalem's specific sin |
| Gal. 5:19-21 | Now the works of the flesh are evident: ... idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. | Warning against fleshly works, including idolatry |
| 1 Cor. 10:20 | No, I will not, that what they sacrifice they sacrifice to demons and not to God. To you I would not have you become sharers with demons. | Warning against sharing in idolatry |
| Rev. 21:8 | But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death. | Final judgment for idolaters |
| Deut. 29:17-18 | ...for you saw their detestable things, their offerings to them of wood and stone, of silver and gold, which were among them. Lest there be among you a man or woman, clan or tribe, whose heart turns away today from the LORD our God to go and serve the gods of those nations... | Covenant renewal, warning against foreign gods |
| Ezek. 5:11 | Therefore, thus says the Lord GOD: Because you have all been utter abominations... | God's pronouncement on Israel's abomination |
| Ezek. 8:5-6 | Then he said to me, “Son of man, lift up your eyes toward the north.” So I lifted up my eyes toward the north, and behold, north of the altar gate, in the entrance, was this image of jealousy. And he said to me, “Son of man, do you see what they are doing? The great abominations that the house of Israel is committing here, to drive me farther from my sanctuary!” | Vision of abominations in the Temple |
| Isa. 44:13-15 | He carves it with a chisel, spreads it with a compass, fashions it with planes, and marks it out with a dividers. He makes it in the form of a man, like a man, to dwell in a house. ... He makes a god and worships it; he makes it a graven image and falls down before it. | Description of idol making |
| John 17:3 | And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. | The one true God |
| Acts 7:42-43 | God turned and gave them up to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the book of the prophets: “Did you offer to me sacrifices and offerings during the forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel? You shall take up Sikkuth your king, and Kiyyun your gods, your images, the star of your god, which you made for yourselves; and I will exile you beyond Babylon.” | Stephen's discourse, citing Amos on idolatry |
| Rom. 1:21-23 | For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 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. | God's judgment on ungodliness, including idolatry |
| 1 Cor. 8:4-6 | Therefore, concerning the eating of food sacrificed to idols, we know that “an idol has no real existence,” and “there is no God but one.” For although there may be so-called gods in heaven or on earth—as indeed there are many “gods” and many “lords”— yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist, and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things and through whom we exist. | Understanding idols and the one true God |
| Hosea 2:4-5 | I will not show my steadfast love to the flock of my house, and I will not accept their male lambs. You have multiplied your whores, you have increased your harlotry... | God's response to Israel's spiritual adultery |
Ezekiel 20 verses
Ezekiel 20 29 Meaning
The verse describes the offering of children to idols in a time of spiritual corruption and exile. It highlights the emotional and spiritual anguish this practice brought, noting that the Lord "has not given them" and that the offerings defiled His sanctuary. This implies that the sacrifices were not of God's approval and ultimately served to desecrate His holy presence, leading to further divine judgment.
Ezekiel 20 29 Context
Ezekiel 20:29 occurs within a chapter where Ezekiel recounts God's history with Israel, highlighting their persistent rebellion and idolatry. This verse specifically addresses the sin of offering children to pagan deities like Molek, a practice prevalent during the pre-exilic period, especially in the Valley of Hinnom (Gehenna). The people are described as continuing this abominable act even in exile, in the places of their enforced settlement. God declares that by calling these places "Ayyumah" (meaning “my guilt” or “my iniquity”), they are inadvertently acknowledging their sin, a confession He acknowledges but which is juxtaposed with their continued apostasy. This verse serves to condemn the lingering sins of the past and demonstrate why judgment and exile were necessary and continuing.
Ezekiel 20 29 Word Analysis
So when ye enter (Hebrew: וּבָבֹאכֶם, uvovokhem): "And in your coming," or "Upon your arrival." This indicates the act occurs upon entering the land, suggesting a continuation of pagan practices even within their restored or established settlements.
ye the land (Hebrew: הָאָרֶץ, ha'aretz): "the land." Refers to the land of Israel or any place they might have settled, emphasizing their continued unfaithfulness wherever they are.
bring up (Hebrew: הַעֲלוֹת, ha'alot): "to cause to go up." Refers to the act of ascending, often associated with offerings and sacrifices made on altars.
your offerings (Hebrew: אֶת־קָרְבַּנְכֶם, et-korbankhem): "your gifts" or "your sacrifices." Refers to the offerings they presented, specifically mentioning children in the preceding verses, indicating the nature of these offerings was an abomination.
and your fire offerings (Hebrew: וְאֶת־מַעֲלֵי־אֵשׁ, v'et-ma'alei-'esh): "and your ascensions of fire." This emphasizes the burnt offerings and sacrificial fires, directly linked to the child sacrifice, showing these abominable acts were presented to God.
to your voluntary offerings (Hebrew: לִנְדָרֵיכֶם, lintareychem): "your vows" or "your voluntary offerings." Suggests offerings made out of free will or in fulfillment of vows, highlighting that even free-will acts were perverted into idolatry.
and I will reject you (Hebrew: וּמָאַסְתִּי, ume'astti): "and I will reject" or "I will despise." A strong term indicating God's abhorrence and refusal of these actions and the people connected to them.
says the LORD GOD (Hebrew: נְאֻם־יְהוָה אֱלֹהִים, ne'um-Adonai Elohim): "says the Lord GOD." The divine declaration, adding authority and weight to the pronouncement of rejection.
that it shall come to pass (Hebrew: כִּי־הִנֵּה, ki-hinneh): "For, behold." Introduces an emphatic statement of what will happen.
in the place (Hebrew: בַּמָּקוֹם, bamakoam): "in the place." Refers to where the offerings are made, indicating the site itself becomes a point of divine judgment due to the sacrilege.
where they enter (Hebrew: אֲשֶׁר־בָּבֹאוּ, asher-vov'u): "where they entered." Reinforces the idea of transgression within their own assumed legitimate space.
there you shall fall (Hebrew: שָׁמָּה, shamah): "there." A direct consequence of their actions.
by the sword (Hebrew: בַּחֶרֶב, bacherb): "by the sword." Denotes violent death as the punishment.
you shall fall (Hebrew: תִּפְּלוּ, ti'p'lu): "you shall fall." Repeated emphasis on their doom.
by offerings of idolatry and sin (Hebrew: עַל־מִנְחָה וַחֲטָאָה, al-minchah vachata'ah): "upon the offering and the sin." This phrasing is a significant part of the verse's critique. The offerings were meant to be an atonement or act of worship, but because they were directed towards idols or involved sinful acts (like child sacrifice), they become synonymous with sin itself. God is rejecting these actions because they are intrinsically sinful, not because He rejects all offerings. The irony is that their attempts at "worship" through these defiled offerings are themselves their sin and downfall.
and I will reject you (Hebrew: וּמָאַסְתִּי, ume'astti): "and I will reject you." This repeated phrase underlines the absolute severance from God that their actions precipitate.
Ezekiel 20 29 Bonus Section
The concept of "fire offerings" (מַעֲלֵי־אֵשׁ, ma'alei-'esh) is deeply linked to burnt offerings in Leviticus, where the entire sacrifice was consumed by fire, symbolizing complete devotion or atonement. However, when applied to the context of child sacrifice, it signifies the ultimate perversion of devotion – offering what is most precious to God (children, representing lineage and future) to false gods. The people are essentially taking God's appointed means of worship and turning them into instruments of abomination, which naturally provokes His utter rejection and judgment. The phrase "a thing that I commanded them not, nor did it enter into my heart" from Jeremiah 7:31 and 32:35 resonates powerfully here, emphasizing that such acts were so contrary to God's nature and will that He had never even conceived of them as a possibility for His people's worship.
Ezekiel 20 29 Commentary
Ezekiel 20:29 is a stark condemnation of Israel's ingrained idolatry, particularly child sacrifice. Even as they were in a state of divine chastisement, they continued to defile any place they inhabited with these detestable acts. The verse is not merely reporting a historical sin but is explaining the persistent, damning nature of apostasy. God declares that their offerings, which are in fact sin-laden acts of illicit worship, will lead to their ruin. The places they thought would bring them favor or continuation of their perverted cult would become sites of their demise by the sword. This underscores that corrupted worship ultimately leads to destruction, not blessing. The true worship and fellowship with God are broken by such profound rebellion, leaving them exposed to judgment.