Ezekiel 23 45

Ezekiel 23:45 kjv

And the righteous men, they shall judge them after the manner of adulteresses, and after the manner of women that shed blood; because they are adulteresses, and blood is in their hands.

Ezekiel 23:45 nkjv

But righteous men will judge them after the manner of adulteresses, and after the manner of women who shed blood, because they are adulteresses, and blood is on their hands.

Ezekiel 23:45 niv

But righteous judges will sentence them to the punishment of women who commit adultery and shed blood, because they are adulterous and blood is on their hands.

Ezekiel 23:45 esv

But righteous men shall pass judgment on them with the sentence of adulteresses, and with the sentence of women who shed blood, because they are adulteresses, and blood is on their hands."

Ezekiel 23:45 nlt

But righteous people will judge these sister cities for what they really are ? adulterers and murderers.

Ezekiel 23 verses

Ezekiel 23 45 Meaning

Ezekiel 23:45 pronounces a divine decree of judgment against Israel and Judah, personified as Oholah and Oholibah. God declares that righteous men, acting as His instruments, will judge them with the severe punishment due to both adulteresses and women guilty of shedding blood. This verse underscores the twin transgressions of profound spiritual infidelity through idolatry and grave moral corruption through violence and injustice, explicitly stating that these are the reasons for their impending, just retribution.

Ezekiel 23 45 Context

Ezekiel chapter 23 continues the detailed and graphic allegory introduced earlier in the book, where Samaria (Oholah) and Jerusalem (Oholibah) are depicted as two sisters who become prostitutes, symbolizing the spiritual apostasy of the kingdoms of Israel and Judah. The chapter meticulously catalogues their increasing infidelity to God through political alliances with foreign powers (Egypt, Assyria, Babylon) and the adoption of pagan idolatry. These illicit "lovers" eventually turn on them, bringing devastation and shame. The narrative builds to this verse, which acts as the legal verdict after the exhaustive description of their spiritual and moral transgressions. Historically, this prophecy directly precedes and justifies the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BC, paralleling the earlier fall of Samaria to Assyria, making it clear that their suffering is a direct consequence of their unfaithfulness and egregious sin against the covenant with Yahweh.

Ezekiel 23 45 Word analysis

• "But" (וְ - wě): A conjunction introducing a consequence or a strong contrast. Here, it shifts the narrative from the description of the transgressions to the announcement of the resulting judgment.
• "righteous men" (צַדִּיקִים - tzaddiqim):
  • Literally means "just ones" or "upright ones." In this context, these men are not necessarily inherently morally perfect but are functionally "righteous" because they act as God's instruments, executing His just judgment. They are God-appointed agents of divine wrath, typically referring to the pagan armies (like the Babylonians) whom God used to bring punishment upon His people. This highlights that the judgment, though severe, is just and legitimate in God's eyes.
• "shall judge them" (יִשְׁפְּטוּ אוֹתָם - yishpeṭū ’ōthām):
  • From the root shaphat, meaning "to judge, govern, execute justice." It implies a formal, legal process, including the delivery of a verdict and the execution of a sentence. This isn't arbitrary punishment but a judicial act.
• "with the judgment of adulteresses" (מִשְׁפַּט נֹאֲפוֹת - mishpaṭ nō’ăfōth):
  • Mishpaṭ refers to judgment, justice, or the manner of judgment. Nō’ăfōth means "adulteresses" (plural feminine). This signifies that their spiritual infidelity – abandoning their covenant with Yahweh for idolatry and foreign alliances – is equated to the severe crime of adultery in the Mosaic Law, which typically carried the death penalty (e.g., stoning). It underscores the gravity of their covenant breaking.
• "and with the judgment of women who shed blood" (וּמִשְׁפַּט שׁוֹפְכוֹת דָּם - ūmishpaṭ shōfěkhōth dām):
  • Shōfěkhōth dām literally means "women who pour out blood" or "shed blood." This extends their culpability beyond spiritual unfaithfulness to encompass actual physical violence, murder, oppression, social injustice, and abhorrent practices like child sacrifice that defiled the land and incurred God's wrath. The penalty for shedding innocent blood was also capital.
• "because they are adulteresses" (כִּי נֹאֲפוֹת הֵנָּה - kî nō’ăfōth hēnnāh):
  • Provides the explicit justification for the judgment, reiterating their primary spiritual transgression. There is no doubt about their guilt.
• "and blood is on their hands" (וְדָם בִּידֵיהֶן - wědām bīdeyhen):
  • A powerful idiom signifying culpability for murder, violence, or severe injustice. Their hands are morally defiled, stained by the atrocities they have committed. This confirms their guilt of physical and moral transgressions alongside their spiritual ones.

• "But righteous men shall judge them": This phrase asserts God's ultimate authority over the judgment and reveals that even through seemingly unrighteous instruments, God executes a just and righteous sentence against His rebellious people.
• "with the judgment of adulteresses and with the judgment of women who shed blood": This parallelism highlights the two cardinal sins for which Israel and Judah are condemned: spiritual infidelity (idolatry, covenant breaking) and moral corruption (violence, injustice, human sacrifice). The severity of their judgment directly corresponds to the extreme nature of these transgressions in God's eyes.
• "because they are adulteresses, and blood is on their hands": This forms the clear and unvarnished justification for the judgment, reinforcing the twin charges. It leaves no ambiguity as to why they face such devastation, directly linking their actions to their consequences.

Ezekiel 23 45 Bonus section

• The intensely graphic and sexualized language used throughout Ezekiel 23, including the description of Oholah and Oholibah as harlots, was intentionally shocking. It served to underscore the horrific nature of Israel and Judah's idolatry and spiritual promiscuity from God's perspective, vividly conveying the profound shame and defilement associated with their actions to an ancient audience.
• This verse not only confirms the moral necessity of the impending judgment but also asserts God's sovereignty even over the pagan nations who serve as His executioners. They may act out of their own political or military ambitions, but ultimately, they fulfill God's righteous decrees.
• The judgment here for adultery and bloodshed implies a public, devastating, and irreversible penalty, much like the communal stoning for capital offenses under the law. This accurately foreshadows the complete destruction and exile faced by Jerusalem.

Ezekiel 23 45 Commentary

Ezekiel 23:45 delivers a profound and severe indictment. It is not merely a statement but a legal verdict against Israel and Judah. God, through the prophet Ezekiel, declares that "righteous men"—His chosen instruments of judgment, often referring to the Babylonians who, in carrying out God's will, act righteously in that specific function—will mete out a punishment commensurate with two of the most egregious offenses known to Mosaic Law: adultery and bloodshed. The comparison to "adulteresses" encapsulates Israel's profound spiritual idolatry, their breaking of the exclusive covenant marriage with Yahweh by pursuing alliances and gods of other nations. This was the ultimate betrayal of divine love. The further condemnation of "women who shed blood" highlights their moral corruption, which manifested in actual violence, social injustice, the oppression of the poor, and horrific acts like child sacrifice, polluting the land. The verse explicitly links these sins to the coming destruction, signifying that their suffering is not arbitrary but a just, divinely ordained consequence. This emphasizes God's holiness, His intolerance for covenant unfaithfulness, and the certain recompense for those who persist in both spiritual and moral defilement. The harshness of the judgment serves as a stark reminder of the sanctity of the covenant and the severe implications of breaking it.