Ezekiel 23:44 kjv
Yet they went in unto her, as they go in unto a woman that playeth the harlot: so went they in unto Aholah and unto Aholibah, the lewd women.
Ezekiel 23:44 nkjv
Yet they went in to her, as men go in to a woman who plays the harlot; thus they went in to Oholah and Oholibah, the lewd women.
Ezekiel 23:44 niv
And they slept with her. As men sleep with a prostitute, so they slept with those lewd women, Oholah and Oholibah.
Ezekiel 23:44 esv
For they have gone in to her, as men go in to a prostitute. Thus they went in to Oholah and to Oholibah, lewd women!
Ezekiel 23:44 nlt
And that is what they did. They had sex with Oholah and Oholibah, these shameless prostitutes.
Ezekiel 23 44 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Ezek 16:63 | "that you may remember and be ashamed, and never again open your mouth because of your disgrace, when I provide atonement for you for all that you have done, declares the Lord GOD." | Judgment for sin, divine atonement |
| Jer 3:8 | "She saw that for all the adulteries of faithless Israel, I had sent her away and given her a writ of divorce, yet her treacherous sister Judah did not fear, but also went and played the harlot." | Judah's greater culpability |
| Rev 17:5 | "And on her forehead was written a name of mystery: BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HORLOTS AND THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH." | Symbolic harlotry, apostasy |
| Hos 2:2-5 | "Contend with your mother, contend, for she is not my wife, and I am not her husband. Let her put away her whoredoms from her sight, and her adulteries from between her breasts, lest I strip her naked and expose her as on the day she was born..." | Divine rejection of unfaithfulness |
| Isa 1:21 | "How the faithful city has become a harlot! Once full of justice, righteousness lodged in it, but now murderers." | Jerusalem's fall into sin |
| Nah 3:4 | "because of the many harlotries of the well-favored harlot, the mistress of sorceries, who sells nations into her harlotry, and families into her sorceries." | Divine judgment on wickedness |
| Ezek 23:45 | "And righteous judges shall judge them by the standard of adulteresses and by the standard of women who shed blood, because they are adulteresses, and blood is on their hands." | Standard of judgment for apostasy |
| Ezek 16:38 | "And I will judge you as adulteresses are judged and as women who shed blood are judged; I will bring upon you the punishment of blood and the outpouring of wrath." | Parallel punishment for Oholibah |
| Ezek 16:41 | "And they shall execute judgment upon you according to the judgment of adulteresses and of women who shed blood, and by the blood of vengeance and jealousy." | Judgment by adultery and bloodshed |
| Rev 18:24 | "And in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints, and of all who have been slain on earth." | Judgment for bloodshed |
| 2 Pet 2:14 | "They have eyes full of adultery; they never cease from sin. They entice unsteady souls. They have hearts trained in greed. Accursed children!" | Continuing sin and enticeance |
| Gal 5:19-21 | "Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God." | Consequences of sin |
| Rom 1:29-32 | "having been filled with all lawlessness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless." | Listing of sins leading to judgment |
| Ezek 20:37 | "And I will bring you out from the peoples and gather you out of the countries among which you are scattered by a strong hand and an outstretched arm, and with wrath poured out." | Divine gathering and judgment |
| Isa 59:2-3 | "but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear." | Separation from God due to sin |
| Lam 1:18 | "The LORD is in the right, for I have rebelled against his word; hear, you peoples, and behold my suffering..." | Acknowledgment of divine justice |
| Zech 1:4 | "Therefore say to them, Thus says the LORD of hosts: Turn back to me, declares the LORD of hosts, and I will turn back to you, declares the LORD of hosts." | Call to repentance |
| Matt 5:32 | "but I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery..." | Concept of adultery |
| John 8:11 | "She said, ‘No one, Lord.’ And Jesus said, ‘Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.’" | Mercy for the repentant |
| Rom 6:23 | "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." | Consequence and gift of God |
| Ezek 16:60 | "But I will remember my covenant with you in the days of your youth, and I will establish with you an everlasting covenant." | Promise of covenantal faithfulness |
Ezekiel 23 verses
Ezekiel 23 44 Meaning
This verse vividly illustrates the divine judgment against the unfaithful Samaria and Jerusalem, depicted as harlots. It describes the retribution they will face for their defilement and idolatry. The severity of their punishment reflects the depth of their betrayal and spiritual fornication.
Ezekiel 23 44 Context
Ezekiel 23 is a powerful and graphic prophecy condemning Jerusalem and Samaria, represented by the sisters Oholah (Samaria) and Oholibah (Jerusalem). They are portrayed as adulterous women who have abandoned their covenant with God for idolatrous alliances with various nations. Verse 44 specifically refers to the judgment that will be meted out to these apostate cities. Historically, this chapter addresses the periods of the Assyrian and Babylonian captivities, where both kingdoms succumbed to foreign influences and oppressive rulers due to their spiritual unfaithfulness. The prophet uses the imagery of sexual immorality to condemn their political and religious harlotry, highlighting their engagement in forbidden idolatrous practices and alliances.
Ezekiel 23 44 Word Analysis
- וּלְמַעַן (ul-ma'an): "and for the sake of" or "and moreover." This conjunction introduces an additional reason or purpose for the subsequent action. It links this specific verse's consequence to the broader pattern of sin described in the chapter.
- הַבְלֵי (hav-lei): "the vanity" or "the nothingness." This term carries the sense of futility, worthlessness, or the absence of true substance. It highlights the emptiness and lack of genuine power in the idols and alliances they pursued. The pursuit of these things was a vain endeavor leading to destruction.
- הֶחָטְאוּ (hech-a-te'u): "they caused to sin" or "they have made sinful." This verb in the hiphil (causative) conjugation indicates that the women actively led others into sin. It points to their influence in propagating idolatry and disobedience, not just personal failing.
- מֵאֹת (me'ot): "from." A preposition indicating origin or separation. Here, it signifies the source of their guilt and the grounds for their judgment.
- נַאֲפוּפַיִךְ (na'a-fu-fa-yech): "your adulteries." This is the plural of "na'af," meaning adultery or sexual unfaithfulness. It directly refers to their spiritual adultery – their unfaithfulness to God by pursuing other "lovers" (idols and foreign nations).
- וְאֶת (ve'et): "and the." A conjunctive particle and the direct object marker.
- דְּמֵי (de-mei): "the bloods" or "the blood of." The plural form emphasizes the widespread and possibly multiple instances of bloodshed or culpability for the shedding of innocent blood, likely through their actions or support of ungodly practices.
- אֲשֶׁר (a-sher): "which" or "that." A relative pronoun introducing a subordinate clause.
- בִּידַיִךְ (bi-ya-dai-yech): "in your hands" or "on your hands." This idiom signifies responsibility or guilt. Their hands were stained with blood, indicating their active participation in or accountability for the violence and bloodshed associated with their idolatry and disloyalty.
Words Group Analysis:
- "For the sake of the vanity they have caused to sin": This phrase encapsulates their active participation in leading others into sinful practices, driven by worthless and deceitful things (idols, false gods, political alliances). It’s not passive sin but active promulgation of wickedness.
- "from your adulteries and the bloods which are in your hands": This directly links their spiritual unfaithfulness (adulteries) with actual deeds of violence and sin (bloodshed), showing a complete perversion where sin becomes pervasive and manifest in their actions and character. Their unfaithfulness to God directly led to corruption and violence.
Ezekiel 23 44 Bonus Section
The judgment described in this verse is not merely punitive but also forensic. God, as the supreme Judge, upholds the law. The sins of "adultery" (spiritual unfaithfulness to the covenant) and "bloods" (innocent bloodshed due to injustice and violence) are the charges. The judgment is by these same standards. This principle is echoed in other parts of Scripture, where God deals with His people according to the covenant. For instance, the consequences of breaking the Mosaic Covenant involved curses, including disease, conquest, and scattering. This verse is part of a broader prophetic pattern of judgment that, while severe, also carries a hope for future restoration in other prophetic passages for a remnant. The stark imagery of women being judged for adultery and bloodshed was readily understood by the ancient Near Eastern audience, where social order was deeply tied to loyalty to deities and leaders.
Ezekiel 23 44 Commentary
Ezekiel 23:44 serves as a pronouncement of definitive judgment upon Israel and Judah. The phrase "for the vanity they have caused to sin" underscores their active role in leading others astray, emphasizing that their spiritual infidelity was not a private matter but a public contagion. The "adulteries" are their spiritual betrayals of God, paralleled with the "bloods" on their hands, signifying the inevitable consequence of such profound disobedience—violence, injustice, and bloodshed. God judges them by the very standards they violated: adultery (spiritual infidelity) and bloodshed (injustice and violence). This verse illustrates a core theological principle: apostasy and unfaithfulness to God result in moral and social disintegration, bringing severe, divinely ordained judgment. The imagery is stark and meant to evoke the shame and devastation their sinfulness warrants.