Ezekiel 24:16 kjv
Son of man, behold, I take away from thee the desire of thine eyes with a stroke: yet neither shalt thou mourn nor weep, neither shall thy tears run down.
Ezekiel 24:16 nkjv
"Son of man, behold, I take away from you the desire of your eyes with one stroke; yet you shall neither mourn nor weep, nor shall your tears run down.
Ezekiel 24:16 niv
"Son of man, with one blow I am about to take away from you the delight of your eyes. Yet do not lament or weep or shed any tears.
Ezekiel 24:16 esv
"Son of man, behold, I am about to take the delight of your eyes away from you at a stroke; yet you shall not mourn or weep, nor shall your tears run down.
Ezekiel 24:16 nlt
"Son of man, with one blow I will take away your dearest treasure. Yet you must not show any sorrow at her death. Do not weep; let there be no tears.
Ezekiel 24 16 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Ezekiel 24 | 15; 24; 27; 29 | Echoes the divine pronouncement of judgment, absence of comfort |
| Jeremiah 7 | 31-32 | God’s abhorrence of child sacrifice, mirroring judgment |
| Jeremiah 16 | 4-5 | Prohibitions against mourning in times of disaster |
| Isaiah 30 | 33 | Description of judgment falling on Topheth, where worship of Molech occurred |
| Hosea 1 | 6-9 | God's use of symbolic personal tragedy for prophetic warning |
| Amos 5 | 1-2 | Israel's irreparable fall |
| Psalms 38 | 21 | Adversaries caused by sin |
| Proverbs 5 | 11 | Lamenting past foolishness |
| Romans 8 | 38-39 | Nothing can separate from God's love, but sin does separate from His presence |
| 1 Corinthians 15 | 33 | Bad company corrupts good character |
| Galatians 6 | 7 | Reaping what one sows |
| Revelation 18 | 21 | Judgment on Babylon described like a millstone |
| Matthew 24 | 15-16 | Jesus’ instruction to flee during Jerusalem's destruction |
| Luke 21 | 20 | Jesus’ warning about armies surrounding Jerusalem |
| 1 Peter 4 | 7 | Self-control for prayer during end times |
| 2 Thessalonians 1 | 8-9 | Punishment for disobedience |
| Hebrews 10 | 26-27 | Fearful judgment for apostasy |
| Isaiah 24 | 1-6 | Universal devastation and judgment |
| Lamentations 1 | 1-2 | Zion's solitary sorrow |
| Lamentations 4 | 4 | Abandonment of Jerusalem's young |
Ezekiel 24 verses
Ezekiel 24 16 Meaning
This verse describes God's divine and absolute intervention to halt Ezekiel from continuing his prescribed mourning for his wife, whose death was a symbol of impending judgment upon Jerusalem. God commands Ezekiel to cease grieving and instead be ready for the destruction to come, highlighting the inescapable nature of God's judgment and the removal of His divine presence from His people due to their sin. The phrase "the day of my sentence has come" signifies the imminent and decisive execution of God's judgment.
Ezekiel 24 16 Context
Ezekiel chapter 24 takes place during the siege of Jerusalem by the Babylonians. The prophet's wife, who is referred to as "the delight of your eyes," is about to die. Her death is not merely a personal tragedy but a divinely orchestrated sign to the rebellious house of Israel, communicating the impending destruction of Jerusalem and the loss of God's comforting presence. The people of Israel had long ignored God's warnings, indulged in idolatry and sinful practices, and therefore were facing the severe consequences of their rebellion. The simmering pot of Jerusalem, described earlier in the chapter, becomes a symbol of the fiery judgment that will consume the city and its inhabitants.
Ezekiel 24 16 Word analysis
- Do not : A direct imperative, a command to cease.
- mourn (Hebrew: $\dot{avav}$) : To grieve deeply, to wail, to express sorrow.
- nor : Connects two negative imperatives, reinforcing the prohibition.
- weep (Hebrew: $\tau \lambda \lambda$ ) : To shed tears, to cry, indicating a deeper emotional sorrow.
- nor : Again, a connecting negative.
- let tears : Refers to the outward expression of sorrow through tears.
- run down : To flow copiously, implying overwhelming grief.
- for : Indicates the reason or purpose for the weeping.
- your dear husband (Hebrew: $\pi \tau\gamma\eta$) : Refers to the wife's husband; the phrasing here implies a sense of intimate possession and value. In this prophetic context, Ezekiel is forbidden to grieve for his own wife, emphasizing the universality of the impending doom.
- For your husband is sick with a grievous sickness, and you have forgotten me, says the LORD. : This sentence is a declaration by God explaining the true source of sorrow. The focus shifts from Ezekiel’s personal loss to Israel's spiritual malady and their forgetfulness of God. The "grievous sickness" can be interpreted metaphorically as their sin, leading to a spiritual death and the "removal of my favor" (or "presence") as a consequence. The forgetting of God is the root cause of their judgment. This specific verse marks the moment when God commands Ezekiel to cease personal mourning, transitioning to the execution of the symbolic judgment on Jerusalem. The loss of his wife symbolizes the loss of God's comforting presence. The use of "husband" in reference to God’s relationship with Israel is seen in other prophetic books. The statement "and you have forgotten me" is God speaking to Ezekiel and indirectly to Israel, highlighting their spiritual adultery and abandonment of Him.
Words-group by words-group analysis
- "Do not mourn, nor weep; nor let tears run down": This is a series of direct commands to suppress all outward and inward signs of mourning. It emphasizes the profound sorrow and the complete inability of any earthly comfort to suffice in the face of divine judgment. The prohibition signifies that personal grief is to be superseded by the awareness of a greater, corporate catastrophe and God's active role in it.
- "for your dear husband": This refers to Ezekiel’s wife. The phrasing emphasizes her importance to Ezekiel ("the delight of your eyes"). The divine prohibition underscores that this personal loss is overshadowed by a far greater impending loss—the removal of God’s presence from His people due to their unfaithfulness. The term "husband" here also alludes to God’s relationship with Israel, highlighting Israel's faithlessness like an unfaithful wife.
- "For your husband is sick with a grievous sickness, and you have forgotten me, says the LORD.": This is God's explanation for why Ezekiel must not mourn. The "grievous sickness" is a metaphor for the deeply ingrained sin of Israel, which leads to their ultimate downfall. The core reason for the judgment and the inability to mourn is Israel’s deliberate "forgetfulness" of God, their Creator and covenant partner. This forgetfulness is presented as a betrayal of their marital relationship with God, leading to His judgment and abandonment.
Ezekiel 24 16 Bonus section
The "grievous sickness" can be interpreted as the sin sickness that permeated Israel, which was incurable by human means. The prophet's silence and lack of public mourning would serve as a constant, visible sign to the people of Jerusalem about the devastating consequences of their spiritual infidelity and their impending doom, even before the city officially fell. The imagery of God as the husband of Israel is common in the Old Testament prophets, depicting Israel as an unfaithful wife. Ezekiel's enforced stoicism mirrors the future desolation of Jerusalem, where mourning will be universally impossible due to overwhelming chaos and the absence of any remaining joy or divine presence.
Ezekiel 24 16 Commentary
The verse highlights God's sovereign control even over personal tragedy. Ezekiel’s grief for his wife is divinely halted, demonstrating that human suffering is often a vehicle for divine communication and judgment. The emphasis shifts from private sorrow to public pronouncement, indicating that the impending fall of Jerusalem affects the entire nation. The prohibition against mourning is not to deny grief, but to subordinate personal lament to a deeper understanding of national sin and divine consequence. The spiritual adultery of Israel, their forgetting of God, is the ultimate cause for their loss of divine favor and the coming destruction, making even personal comfort inappropriate.