Ezekiel 5:16 kjv
When I shall send upon them the evil arrows of famine, which shall be for their destruction, and which I will send to destroy you: and I will increase the famine upon you, and will break your staff of bread:
Ezekiel 5:16 nkjv
When I send against them the terrible arrows of famine which shall be for destruction, which I will send to destroy you, I will increase the famine upon you and cut off your supply of bread.
Ezekiel 5:16 niv
When I shoot at you with my deadly and destructive arrows of famine, I will shoot to destroy you. I will bring more and more famine upon you and cut off your supply of food.
Ezekiel 5:16 esv
when I send against you the deadly arrows of famine, arrows for destruction, which I will send to destroy you, and when I bring more and more famine upon you and break your supply of bread.
Ezekiel 5:16 nlt
"I will shower you with the deadly arrows of famine to destroy you. The famine will become more and more severe until every crumb of food is gone.
Ezekiel 5 16 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Ezekiel 5:16 | "When I send against them the deadly arrows of famine, arrows to destroy, which I will send to destroy you; I will increase the famine upon you and will break your staff of bread." | Direct Judgment, Famine and Destruction |
| Leviticus 26:26 | "When I break your supply of bread, ten women will bake your bread in one oven, and they will give back your bread by weight..." | Consequences of Disobedience |
| Deuteronomy 28:53 | "And you shall eat the fruit of your body, the flesh of your sons and of your daughters, whom the LORD your God has given you, in the siege and in the distress with which your enemies shall distress you." | Dire Famine during Siege |
| Jeremiah 14:13 | "Then I said, 'Alas, Lord GOD! Behold, the prophets say to them, "You shall not see the sword, nor shall you have famine, but I will give you true peace in this place."'" | False Prophecies Exposed |
| Jeremiah 19:9 | "and I will make them eat the flesh of their sons and the flesh of their daughters, and each shall eat the flesh of his neighbor in the siege and in the distress with which their enemies and those who seek their life shall distress them." | Utter Destruction and Cannibalism |
| Lamentations 4:9 | "More blessed were those slain by the sword than those slain by hunger, for these pines away, stricken as if by want of the fruits of the field." | Greater Misery of Hunger |
| 2 Kings 6:25 | "And there was a great famine in Samaria, and behold, they besieged it until a donkey's head was worth eighty pieces of silver, and a pigeon's dung was worth five pieces of silver." | Extreme Famine in Samaria |
| Isaiah 3:1 | "For behold, the Lord GOD of hosts will take away from Jerusalem and from Judah support and supply, all support of bread, and all support of water," | Lord's Judgment on Jerusalem |
| Luke 21:11 | "There will be great earthquakes, and in various places famines and pestilences. And there will be terrors and great signs from heaven." | Signs of the End Times |
| Revelation 6:8 | "And I looked, and behold, a pale horse; and its rider's name was Death; and Hades followed him. And they were given authority over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword and with famine and with pestilence and by wild beasts of the earth." | The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse |
| Ezekiel 4:16 | "And he said to me, 'Son of man, behold, I am going to break the staff of bread in Jerusalem. They shall eat bread by weight and with anxious concern, and they shall drink water by measure and with dreadful anticipation.'" | Direct parallel to Ezekiel 5:16 |
| Jeremiah 15:2 | "When they say to you, ‘Where shall we go?’ you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the LORD: Those to death, to the sword, and to the famine; those to captivity, to the captivity; and those to the sword, to the sword.’” | Diverse Forms of Destruction |
| Deuteronomy 32:24 | "They shall be gaunt with hunger, devoured by plague and by poisonous pestilence; and I will send the teeth of beasts against them, with the venom of things that crawl upon the ground." | Devouring Judgment |
| Isaiah 11:15 | "And the LORD will utterly destroy the tongue of the Sea of Egypt; and will wave his hand over the river with his scorching wind, and smite it into seven channels, and he will cause men to walk dry-shod." | God's Power over Natural Forces |
| Proverbs 30:15 | "The leech has two daughters: Give, Give! Three things are never satisfied; four never say, 'Enough': Sheol, the barren womb, the land never satisfied with water, and the fire that never says, 'Enough.'" | Insatiable Hunger |
| Joel 1:4 | "What the locust has left, the gnawing locust has eaten; what the gnawing locust has left, the hopping locust has eaten; and what the hopping locust has left, the devourer locust has eaten." | Destructive Locusts |
| Acts 5:1-11 | The story of Ananias and Sapphira and their judgment by God. | Divine Judgment |
| 1 Corinthians 11:30 | "For this reason many are weak and ill among you, and many have died." | Consequences of Unworthy Communion |
| Zechariah 8:10 | "for before these days there was no wage for man or woman, nor any wage for beast, nor was there any safety from the enemy for him who went out or came in, for I had set all people against one another." | Disorder and Lack of Security |
| Matthew 24:7 | "For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and pestilences and earthquakes in various places." | Signs of End Times, similar context |
Ezekiel 5 verses
Ezekiel 5 16 Meaning
When the days of famine and pestilence arrive, accompanied by the sword of the enemy, hunger and distress will spread throughout the land. A remnant will survive, but they too will face great suffering and consequences for their sins and the sins of their ancestors. This verse signifies a severe judgment upon Jerusalem and its people, leading to widespread desolation and individual hardship.
Ezekiel 5 16 Context
This verse is part of a larger prophetic oracle delivered by Ezekiel concerning the impending destruction of Jerusalem and the people of Judah. Chapter 5 continues the theme of God's judgment on Jerusalem for its profound sins, particularly idolatry and disobedience. The preceding verses describe a vivid and severe judgment involving fire, sword, and pestilence. This specific verse details the impact of famine, a common consequence of siege and war, as one of the tools God will use to bring about his judgment. Historically, Jerusalem would later be besieged by the Babylonians, leading to widespread starvation and the ultimate fall of the city. The prophecy addresses the remnant who may believe they can escape, emphasizing that judgment will be inescapable and comprehensive.
Ezekiel 5 16 Word Analysis
- "When": Indicates a future condition or event.
- "I": Refers to God himself, highlighting his active role in orchestrating these judgments.
- "send": Implies direct agency and purpose. God is not merely observing but actively dispatching these calamities.
- "against them": Targets the specific people addressed in the prophecy – the inhabitants of Jerusalem and Judah.
- "the deadly arrows of famine": This is a powerful metaphor.
- "deadly" (Hebrew: "maveth"): Denotes death, mortality, a fatal quality. It underscores the lethal nature of the impending famine.
- "arrows" (Hebrew: "chittim"): Implies swiftness, piercing force, and targeting. Famine is portrayed as a weapon precisely aimed at their destruction. This imagery also resonates with divine retribution.
- "of famine" (Hebrew: "ra'ab"): Hunger, starvation.This phrase personifies famine as an instrument of divine warfare.
- "arrows to destroy": This is a Hebrew construct (e.g., chittim lishḥath) emphasizing the purpose and intent of these "arrows" – total annihilation or destruction.
- "to destroy" (Hebrew: "lishḥath"): To corrupt, spoil, lay waste, destroy. It suggests a thorough and complete ruin.
- "which I will send": Repetition of God's active involvement, reinforcing his sovereign control over the events.
- "to destroy you": Explicit statement of the ultimate consequence – the perishing of the people.
- "you": Plural, referring to the nation as a collective entity.
- "I will increase the famine upon you": Not only will famine be present, but it will intensify, becoming progressively worse and more severe. This indicates an escalating level of suffering.
- "and will break your staff of bread": This is another potent metaphor.
- "break" (Hebrew: "sha-bhar"): To break, shatter, make ineffectual.
- "staff of bread" (Hebrew: "shevet leḥem"): This phrase symbolizes sustenance, the primary support and foundation of life, represented by bread. The "staff" suggests that which props up or upholds. In this context, it refers to the essential supply of food. Breaking this staff means rendering their provision of food utterly insufficient and ineffective, leading to collapse. It represents the complete removal of life's necessities.
Group Analysis:
- The consistent use of "I" and active verbs like "send" emphasizes God's direct role in inflicting these judgments.
- The metaphor of "deadly arrows of famine" vividly illustrates famine not as a random occurrence but as a directed, lethal weapon of war used by God.
- The repetition of "destroy" underscores the totality of the impending ruin.
- The phrase "break your staff of bread" graphically portrays the complete and utter collapse of their sustenance, the fundamental support of life.
Ezekiel 5 16 Bonus Section
This verse continues the theme of divine discipline through specific judgments. The "staff of bread" is a critical idiom found also in Ezekiel 4:16, further reinforcing the severity and thoroughness of God's judgment upon Jerusalem. The breaking of this "staff" implies that even their rationed food would be insufficient, leading to a breakdown of social order and individual desperation, often resulting in cannibalism during extreme sieges, as described in other prophetic passages. This illustrates the depth of God's judgment when a covenant people turns away from him, as national identity and sustenance itself are targeted.
Ezekiel 5 16 Commentary
Ezekiel 5:16 graphically portrays God's severe judgment against Judah, employing famine as a formidable weapon. The imagery of "deadly arrows of famine" depicts starvation not as an accidental misfortune, but as a precisely aimed, lethal force dispatched by God. This judgment signifies the collapse of their very sustenance – their "staff of bread" – meaning their primary source of life support would be broken, rendering them weak and vulnerable. This intense suffering is a direct consequence of their deep-seated rebellion and idolatry. The verse serves as a stark warning that disobedience carries grave, life-threatening repercussions, affecting the fundamental necessities of existence. The people were facing the prospect of starvation so severe that their primary means of nourishment would fail entirely.