Ezekiel 24:2 kjv
Son of man, write thee the name of the day, even of this same day: the king of Babylon set himself against Jerusalem this same day.
Ezekiel 24:2 nkjv
"Son of man, write down the name of the day, this very day?the king of Babylon started his siege against Jerusalem this very day.
Ezekiel 24:2 niv
"Son of man, record this date, this very date, because the king of Babylon has laid siege to Jerusalem this very day.
Ezekiel 24:2 esv
"Son of man, write down the name of this day, this very day. The king of Babylon has laid siege to Jerusalem this very day.
Ezekiel 24:2 nlt
"Son of man, write down today's date, because on this very day the king of Babylon is beginning his attack against Jerusalem.
Ezekiel 24 2 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Eze 24:1 | In the ninth year, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, the word of the LORD came to me... | Sets the exact date for V2's event. |
| 2 Kgs 25:1 | And in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon... came... and laid siege to it. | Historical confirmation of the siege's start. |
| Jer 52:4 | In the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon... came with all his army... and besieged it. | Another historical confirmation. |
| Jer 39:1 | In the ninth year of Zedekiah king of Judah, in the tenth month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and all his army came against Jerusalem and besieged it. | Context of the siege beginning. |
| Eze 12:21-28 | The word of the LORD came to me: "Son of man... say to them, ‘The days are at hand...’" | God refutes delays in prophetic fulfillment. |
| Isa 42:9 | "Behold, the former things have come to pass, and new things I now declare; before they spring forth I tell you of them." | God's foreknowledge of future events. |
| Isa 48:3 | "The former things I declared of old; they went out from my mouth... Then suddenly I did them, and they came to pass." | God's track record of prophecy fulfillment. |
| Amo 3:7 | "For the Lord GOD does nothing without revealing his secret to his servants the prophets." | Principle of divine revelation before action. |
| Rev 1:1-2 | The revelation of Jesus Christ... He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, who bore witness... | Command to record divine revelation. |
| Rev 1:19 | "Write therefore the things that you have seen, those that are and those that are to take place after this." | Similar prophetic command to write. |
| Hab 2:2 | And the LORD answered me: "Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so he may run who reads it." | Command to record prophecies clearly. |
| Dan 9:25 | "Know therefore and understand that from the going out of the word to restore and build Jerusalem..." | God's precise timing in prophetic decrees. |
| Psa 139:16 | Your eyes saw my unformed substance; in your book were written, every one of them, the days that were formed for me. | God's pre-ordained knowledge and record. |
| Acts 2:23 | This Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified... | God's plan encompassing even human wicked acts. |
| Zec 8:3-4 | Thus says the LORD: "I have returned to Zion... Old men and old women shall again sit in the streets of Jerusalem." | Promise of future restoration of Jerusalem. |
| Neh 1:3 | They said to me, "The remnant there... are in great trouble and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down..." | Post-destruction state of Jerusalem. |
| Lam 2:1-2 | How the Lord in his anger has set the daughter of Zion under a cloud!... He has thrown down from heaven to earth the splendor of Israel... | Lament over Jerusalem's fall. |
| Jer 25:9-11 | "Behold, I will send for all the tribes of the north... and Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon, my servant..." | Babylon as God's instrument of judgment. |
| Eze 17:12-14 | Say to the rebellious house, "Do you not know what these things mean?" Say: "Behold, the king of Babylon came to Jerusalem..." | Earlier prophecy of Babylonian conquest. |
| Matt 24:15 | "So when you see the abomination of desolation spoken of by the prophet Daniel, standing in the holy place..." | Later prophetic warnings of future destructions. |
| Luke 19:43-44 | "For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will build an embankment against you and surround you..." | Jesus' prophecy of Jerusalem's future destruction (AD 70). |
| Mark 13:30-32 | "Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place... concerning that day or that hour, no one knows..." | God's sovereign control over timing. |
| 2 Pet 3:8-9 | But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise... | God's perspective on time and prophetic fulfillment. |
Ezekiel 24 verses
Ezekiel 24 2 Meaning
Ezekiel 24:2 reveals a direct divine instruction to the prophet Ezekiel to record a precise date. On this specific day, as Ezekiel receives the vision and commandment in exile, the momentous event of the king of Babylon, Nebuchadnezzar, initiating the final siege against Jerusalem begins concurrently in Judah. This synchronization highlights God's sovereignty over historical events and the precision of His prophetic word, providing irrefutable evidence to the exiles of the imminent destruction of their homeland, just as God had warned.
Ezekiel 24 2 Context
Ezekiel 24 marks a pivotal moment in the prophet's ministry and in the history of Judah. Up to this point, Ezekiel had been prophesying impending judgment and destruction to the exiles in Babylon, but there remained a hope, however faint, among some that Jerusalem would somehow be spared. Chapter 24 crushes that hope. Verse 1 gives the exact date: "the ninth year, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month," corresponding to January 15, 588 BC. Verse 2 immediately reveals what occurred on this very day. This precise dating connects Ezekiel's prophecy directly and simultaneously with the actual event unfolding hundreds of miles away in Jerusalem, confirming God's omnipresence and perfect timing. The verses that follow (Eze 24:3-14) present the "Boiling Pot" parable, symbolizing Jerusalem's siege and the judgment within it, immediately followed by the shocking personal sign of the sudden death of Ezekiel's wife (Eze 24:15-27), symbolizing the unbearable grief and loss that Jerusalem's inhabitants would soon experience, from which they would not be allowed to mourn in customary ways due to the overwhelming catastrophe. The immediate historical context is the final siege of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar, which eventually led to the city's destruction and the second wave of exile. For the original audience (exiles in Babylon), this exact correlation of prophetic word and historical event would solidify their understanding of God's unswerving justice and the absolute truth of Ezekiel's messages, preparing them for the devastating news of Jerusalem's fall.
Ezekiel 24 2 Word analysis
- Son of man (בֶן־אָדָם, ben-ʾāḏām): A consistent title used by God when addressing Ezekiel (over 90 times), emphasizing his humanity in contrast to God's divine authority. It reminds the prophet, and the audience, that he is a mortal messenger delivering a divine message, while also foreshadowing the later Messianic title in Daniel and the Gospels.
- write down (כְּתָב־לְךָ, kəṯāḇ-ləḵā): An imperative command to record. This stresses the importance, permanence, and verifiable nature of the prophecy. It wasn't just spoken to a live audience; it was to be documented for future reference and for those not present.
- the name of the day (אֶת־שֵׁם הַיּוֹם, ʾeṯ-šēm hayyōwm): More profound than just "the date." It refers to the identity or character of the day, suggesting that this day is uniquely marked by God and given a specific designation due to the momentous event occurring within it. It’s a day to be remembered.
- this very day (עֶצֶם הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה, ʿeṣem hayyōwm hazzêh): This phrase is repeated in the verse, strongly emphasizing immediacy, simultaneity, and precision. ʿeṣem (עֶצֶם) literally means "bone," "substance," or "essence." Used temporally, it highlights the very "essence" or "selfsame" day, underscoring that at the precise moment God speaks to Ezekiel, the event unfolds in Jerusalem.
- The king of Babylon (מֶלֶךְ־בָּבֶל, meleḵ-bāḇel): Specifically refers to Nebuchadnezzar. He is named not just as a historical figure but as God's unwitting instrument of judgment, highlighting God's sovereign control over nations and their rulers.
- has laid siege to Jerusalem (סָמַךְ אֶל־יְרוּשָׁלַיִם, sāmaḵ ʾel-yərušālayim): The verb sāmaḵ (סָמַךְ) can mean "to lean upon," "to support," or "to set in place." Here, it clearly denotes the act of establishing a siege against the city, surrounding it with military forces.
- this very day (עֶצֶם הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה, ʿeṣem hayyōwm hazzêh): The repetition reinforces the synchronization. Ezekiel is to record this specific day because this specific day is when the siege begins. This double emphasis solidifies the divine pinpointing of time.
Words-group analysis:
- "write down the name of the day, this very day": This imperative instruction coupled with the intense temporal marker ("this very day") underscores the prophetic command's urgency and historical exactitude. God mandates not just announcement but durable record-keeping of a specific, identifiable historical moment.
- "The king of Babylon has laid siege to Jerusalem this very day": This declaration immediately validates the preceding command, demonstrating God's real-time, precise knowledge and control over unfolding geopolitical events, even when Ezekiel is physically distant from Jerusalem. The synchronicity between revelation and reality proves the truthfulness and immediacy of God's word.
Ezekiel 24 2 Bonus section
The dating in Ezekiel 24:1 ("ninth year, tenth month, tenth day") provides crucial chronological alignment with secular historical records and other biblical accounts (e.g., 2 Kgs 25:1; Jer 52:4), demonstrating the historicity and reliability of the prophetic word. The precision here is a polemic against any notion that God's power is limited to a particular geographical location or that events occur outside His knowledge or control. The God of Israel is presented as the sovereign ruler of all nations and time itself. The term "Son of Man," consistently applied to Ezekiel, is significant because it would later be a self-designation for Jesus Christ in the New Testament, linking the humble human prophet delivering God's message of judgment and future hope to the ultimate Prophet and Messiah who fully embodied both humanity and divinity.
Ezekiel 24 2 Commentary
Ezekiel 24:2 serves as a foundational anchor for the ensuing prophecies of judgment against Jerusalem. It marks the day the final siege began, simultaneously experienced by the exiles through prophetic revelation and by those in Judah through harsh reality. This verse strikingly portrays God's precise timing, His sovereign control over seemingly secular world powers (Nebuchadnezzar as His "servant" though not named here, as in Jeremiah), and the absolute reliability of His prophetic word. For the exiles, hearing this prophecy confirmed that God truly sees, knows, and acts according to His declarations, removing any lingering doubt about Jerusalem's impending doom and affirming Ezekiel's legitimacy as His spokesman. It demonstrates that judgment is not arbitrary or delayed but follows a divine timetable. The recording of the exact date ensures future verification, solidifying the faith of future generations in God's promises and warnings alike.