Ezekiel 6:11 meaning summary explained with word-by-word analysis enriched with context, commentary and Cross References from KJV, NIV, ESV and NLT.
Ezekiel 6:11 kjv
Thus saith the Lord GOD; Smite with thine hand, and stamp with thy foot, and say, Alas for all the evil abominations of the house of Israel! for they shall fall by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence.
Ezekiel 6:11 nkjv
'Thus says the Lord GOD: "Pound your fists and stamp your feet, and say, 'Alas, for all the evil abominations of the house of Israel! For they shall fall by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence.
Ezekiel 6:11 niv
"?'This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Strike your hands together and stamp your feet and cry out "Alas!" because of all the wicked and detestable practices of the people of Israel, for they will fall by the sword, famine and plague.
Ezekiel 6:11 esv
Thus says the Lord GOD: "Clap your hands and stamp your foot and say, Alas, because of all the evil abominations of the house of Israel, for they shall fall by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence.
Ezekiel 6:11 nlt
"This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Clap your hands in horror, and stamp your feet. Cry out because of all the detestable sins the people of Israel have committed. Now they are going to die from war and famine and disease.
Ezekiel 6 11 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Lev 26:25-26 | "I will bring a sword against you... bread will be weighed and eaten." | War, famine, pestilence as judgment. |
| Deut 28:20-22 | "The Lord will send on you curses, confusion, and frustration... pestilence... consumption and fever..." | Consequences of disobedience, including disease and strife. |
| 1 Kin 8:37 | "If there is famine in the land, if there is pestilence, blight..." | King Solomon's prayer acknowledges these judgments. |
| 2 Chr 20:9 | "When disaster comes upon us, the sword, judgment, or pestilence, or famine..." | Recognition of divine judgment by Jehoshaphat. |
| Jer 14:12 | "When they fast, I will not hear their cry... by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence." | God refuses to accept pleas in light of sin. |
| Jer 21:7 | "Deliver Zedekiah... into the hand of Nebuchadnezzar... will strike them with the edge of the sword." | Prediction of judgment against Jerusalem's leaders. |
| Ez 5:12 | "A third of you shall die of pestilence and be consumed by famine... fall by the sword." | Prophecy of Jerusalem's division and judgment. |
| Ez 7:15 | "The sword is outside; pestilence and famine are inside." | Inescapable nature of the coming destruction. |
| Ez 8:6 | "Son of man, do you see what they are doing—the great abominations..." | God points out the specific idolatry in the temple. |
| Ez 9:4 | "Go through the city... and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and groan..." | God's sorrow over abominations, mark for preservation. |
| Ez 21:14 | "And you, son of man, prophesy, and clap your hands together..." | Ezekiel's similar symbolic action in another judgment. |
| Ez 25:6 | "Because you clapped your hands and stamped your feet..." | God's own symbolic act of judgment against Ammon. |
| Hos 9:10 | "They became an abomination like the thing they loved." | Israel became what they worshipped—idolatrous. |
| Lam 2:15 | "All who pass along the way clap their hands at you; they hiss and wag their heads..." | Nations gloating over Jerusalem's destruction (mocking Lament). |
| Joel 1:17 | "The seed shrivels under the clods... the grain is shamed." | Famine and desolation as a sign of God's displeasure. |
| Amos 8:10 | "I will turn your feasts into mourning and all your songs into lamentation." | Joy turning to sorrow and mourning for sin. |
| Zeph 2:15 | "This is the exultant city that lived securely... How she has become a desolation!" | Joy of wicked turning to desolation and dismay. |
| Mk 13:8 | "For nation will rise against nation... there will be earthquakes... famines. These are but the beginning..." | Eschatological woes, including famine and natural disasters. |
| Rev 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, wielding similar judgments in the end times. |
| Gal 6:7-8 | "Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap." | Principle of sowing and reaping applies to Israel's abominations. |
| Isa 6:11-12 | "Then I said, "How long, O Lord?" And he said: "Until cities lie waste..." | Isaiah's vision of national desolation due to sin. |
| Ex 7:5 | "The Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I stretch out my hand against Egypt." | Purpose of judgment: knowing God's identity and power. |
| Ps 106:37-38 | "They sacrificed their sons and their daughters to the demons... desecrated the land with blood." | The specific abomination of child sacrifice. |
Ezekiel 6 verses
Ezekiel 6 11 meaning
Ezekiel 6:11 declares a command from the Lord God to the prophet Ezekiel: perform a symbolic act of striking hands and stamping feet, accompanied by a lament ("Alas!"). This act signifies God's own grief, anger, and utter condemnation regarding the severe idolatry and detestable practices of the house of Israel. The pronouncement that follows reveals the inevitable consequence of these actions: the people of Israel will fall by the "sword, famine, and pestilence," which are the triad of God's most severe judgments, demonstrating their comprehensive and inescapable doom for their wickedness.
Ezekiel 6 11 Context
Ezekiel chapter 6 forms a crucial part of the prophet's early ministry in exile, addressing the impending and inevitable destruction of Judah and Jerusalem for its deep-seated idolatry. The previous chapter outlined the fate of Jerusalem's inhabitants. Chapter 6 specifically targets the "mountains of Israel" (Ez 6:2-3), a synecdoche for the land itself and, more significantly, the "high places" upon which the Israelites practiced detestable Canaanite cults, worshiping foreign gods, building altars to Baal, and setting up Asherah poles. God declares His intent to "bring a sword" against these high places (Ez 6:3), utterly destroy their idols, and strew the bones of the worshipers around their altars (Ez 6:4-5). This judgment serves the ultimate purpose of making them "know that I am the Lord" (Ez 6:7, 10, 13, 14), emphasizing God's unique sovereignty and their sin of abandoning Him. Verse 11, therefore, serves as a direct command to Ezekiel to mourn and condemn this idolatry and pronounces the threefold judgment (sword, famine, pestilence) that will justly befall the entire house of Israel for their widespread, abominable practices, ensuring total devastation.
Ezekiel 6 11 Word analysis
- Thus says the Lord God: This is an authoritative prophetic formula, unique in its combination of "Adonai" (אֲדֹנָי - master, owner) and "Yahweh" (יְהוִה - the personal, covenant-making God). It underscores God's absolute sovereignty and faithful yet just engagement with His covenant people. In Ezekiel, it appears frequently, emphasizing the divine origin and power behind the messages.
- Strike: (Heb. hakeh, הַכֵּה, from nakah - to strike, smite). An imperative verb, commanding a forceful, decisive action. Here, striking the hands together is a gesture of alarm, lament, despair, or even vehement condemnation and applause for a deserved judgment.
- your hands together: A physical gesture. In various biblical contexts, hand-clapping can express joy, derision, agreement, or, as here, deep grief and shock at calamity or utter condemnation. It signifies an emotional reaction to the dire situation, both by the prophet on God's behalf and metaphorically by the universe at Israel's judgment.
- and stamp: (Heb. w'rak-l’regel’kha, וּרְקַע בְּרַגְלְךָ, from raqa‘ - to beat, to stamp flat, to stretch out by hammering). An imperative, signifying an act of intense emotional distress, sorrow, horror, or emphatic disapproval. It portrays a dramatic, visceral reaction to the profound wickedness and its inevitable consequence.
- your feet: Complementary to striking hands; combined, these form a complete bodily expression of lament and condemnation. This specific prophetic action emphasizes the severe consequences.
- and cry 'Alas!': (Heb. Ha! הָא!). An interjection expressing woe, lamentation, disgust, or severe distress. It encapsulates the deep pain and regret over the disastrous state of affairs caused by Israel's sin, underscoring the severity of the impending judgment.
- because of all the evil abominations: (Heb. ʿal kol toʿăvot עַל כָּל תּוֹעֲבֹות). This is the stated reason for the judgment. "Abominations" (toʿăvot) is a strong biblical term used for actions that are inherently detestable and repugnant to God, particularly idolatry, pagan worship practices, child sacrifice, and sexual perversions explicitly forbidden in the Torah. "All the evil" emphasizes the widespread and egregious nature of these sins.
- of the house of Israel: Refers to the collective nation of God's covenant people, specifically the kingdom of Judah still residing in the land. The judgment is not just for a few, but for the entire corrupt system.
- For they shall fall by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence: This is a recurring triad of divine judgments in the Old Testament, often referred to as "God's three dread judgments" or "three scourges."
- sword: Refers to war and violent death, particularly from foreign invasion.
- famine: Resulting from siege, destruction of crops, and disruption of food supply, leading to starvation.
- pestilence: Plagues and diseases, often following famine, war, or directly sent as divine judgment.
- Together, these signify comprehensive, inescapable, and utterly devastating judgment that would spare no one and leave nothing untouched. They illustrate the thoroughness of God's punishment for persistent unfaithfulness and idolatry.
Ezekiel 6 11 Bonus section
- Performative Prophecy: Ezekiel's symbolic actions are a significant feature of his ministry. Unlike purely verbal prophecy, these bodily expressions ("sign-acts") make the message tangible and powerfully impress its meaning upon the audience, conveying divine emotion and intent in a non-verbal, unforgettable manner.
- Echoes of Creation: The Hebrew root for "stamp" (raqa') is also used in Gen 1:6 for God's "expanse" (raqia'), pounded out or spread forth like a dome. This subtle connection might highlight a cosmic reversal: the creative order, once brought forth by divine power, now groans and suffers judgment due to human rebellion, and even God's own actions carry the force of a cosmic reversal.
- The Problem of the Heart: While this verse focuses on external actions (idolatry), it implicitly speaks to the internal condition—a heart turned away from God. The physical acts of striking and stamping reflect the anguish over the spiritual adultery committed by God's chosen people.
- Didactic Purpose of Judgment: Despite its severity, the judgment's underlying purpose, repeatedly stated in Ezekiel 6 (Ez 6:7, 10, 13, 14), is for Israel to "know that I am the Lord." The destruction serves to cleanse, refine, and ultimately lead them back to acknowledging the one true God, exposing the futility of their idols.
Ezekiel 6 11 Commentary
Ezekiel 6:11 presents a vivid prophetic dramatization and declaration of God's righteous judgment against Israel's pervasive idolatry. The prophet's commanded actions—striking hands and stamping feet, uttering a cry of "Alas!"—symbolize God's own lament, horror, and vehement condemnation of Israel's "evil abominations," primarily their engagement with Canaanite worship on high places. These gestures serve to underscore the absolute gravity of the situation and prepare the audience for the severe pronouncement. The subsequent declaration of falling by "sword, famine, and pestilence" is not a casual threat but a resolute decree. This triad represents the most extreme and comprehensive forms of divine chastisement, ensuring complete desolation and proving that God will not tolerate the profaning of His name through the worship of false gods. It emphasizes that consequences are proportional to sin, and ultimately, even through devastating judgment, God's holiness and sovereignty will be unmistakably revealed to His rebellious people and surrounding nations.