Lectionary Calendar
Monday, September 8th, 2025
the Week of Proper 18 / Ordinary 23
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Read the Bible

Bible in Basic English

Ezekiel 21:2

Son of man, let your face be turned to Jerusalem, let your words be dropped in the direction of her holy place, and be a prophet against the land of Israel;

Bible Study Resources

Dictionaries:

- Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Sanctuary;   Charles Buck Theological Dictionary - Repentance;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Ezekiel;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Gospels;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
“Son of man, face Jerusalem and preach against the sanctuaries. Prophesy against the land of Israel,
Hebrew Names Version
Son of man, set your face toward Yerushalayim, and drop [your word] toward the sanctuaries, and prophesy against Eretz-Yisra'el;
King James Version
Son of man, set thy face toward Jerusalem, and drop thy word toward the holy places, and prophesy against the land of Israel,
English Standard Version
"Son of man, set your face toward Jerusalem and preach against the sanctuaries. Prophesy against the land of Israel
New American Standard Bible
"Son of man, set your face against Jerusalem, and speak prophetically against the sanctuaries and prophesy against the land of Israel;
New Century Version
"Human, look toward Jerusalem and speak against the holy place. Prophesy against the land of Israel.
Amplified Bible
"Son of man, set your face toward Jerusalem, and direct your [prophetic] word against the sanctuaries; prophesy against the land of Israel
World English Bible
Son of man, set your face toward Jerusalem, and drop [your word] toward the sanctuaries, and prophesy against the land of Israel;
Geneva Bible (1587)
Sonne of man, set thy face toward Ierusalem, and drop thy word toward the holy places, and prophecie against the land of Israel.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
"Son of man, set your face toward Jerusalem, and speak against the sanctuaries and prophesy against the land of Israel;
Legacy Standard Bible
"Son of man, set your face toward Jerusalem and speak, dripping out words against the sanctuaries and prophesy against the land of Israel
Berean Standard Bible
"Son of man, set your face against Jerusalem and preach against the sanctuaries. Prophesy against the land of Israel
Contemporary English Version
Ezekiel, son of man, condemn the places in Jerusalem where people worship. Warn everyone in Israel
Complete Jewish Bible
"Human being, turn your face southward, preach to the south and prophesy to the scrublands of the Negev;
Darby Translation
Son of man, set thy face against Jerusalem, and drop [words] against the holy places, and prophesy against the land of Israel,
Easy-to-Read Version
"Son of man, look toward Jerusalem and speak against their holy places. Speak against the land of Israel for me.
George Lamsa Translation
Son of man, set your face toward Jerusalem and look at their holy places, and prophesy against the land of Israel.
Good News Translation
"Mortal man," he said, "denounce Jerusalem. Denounce the places where people worship. Warn the land of Israel
Lexham English Bible
"Son of man, set your face toward Jerusalem, and preach to the sanctuaries, and prophesy to the land of Israel.
Literal Translation
Son of man, set your face against Jerusalem and drop a word toward the holy places, and prophesy against the land of Israel.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Thou sonne of man, set thy face towarde Ierusalem, speake agaynst the Sanctuary, & prophecie agaynst the londe of Israel, saye to the lode of Israel:
American Standard Version
Son of man, set thy face toward Jerusalem, and drop thy word toward the sanctuaries, and prophesy against the land of Israel;
JPS Old Testament (1917)
'Son of man, set thy face toward the South, and preach toward the South, and prophesy against the forest of the field in the South;
King James Version (1611)
Sonne of man, set thy face toward Ierusalem, and drop thy word toward the holy places, and prophecie against the land of Israel,
Bishop's Bible (1568)
Thou sonne of man, set thy face towarde Hierusalem, and drop [thy worde] towarde the holy places, and prophecie agaynst the lande of Israel.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
Therefore prophesy, son of man, set thy face steadfastly toward Jerusalem, and look toward their holy places, and thou shalt prophesy against the land of Israel,
English Revised Version
Son of man, set thy face toward Jerusalem, and drop thy word toward the sanctuaries, and prophesy against the land of Israel;
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
and he seide, Thou, sone of man, sette thi face to Jerusalem, and droppe thou to the seyntuaries, and profesie thou ayens the erthe of Israel.
Update Bible Version
Son of man, set your face toward Jerusalem, and drop [your word] toward the sanctuaries, and prophesy against the land of Israel;
Webster's Bible Translation
Son of man, set thy face towards Jerusalem, and drop [thy word] towards the holy places, and prophesy against the land of Israel,
New English Translation
"Son of man, turn toward Jerusalem and speak out against the sanctuaries. Prophesy against the land of Israel
New King James Version
"Son of man, set your face toward Jerusalem, preach against the holy places, and prophesy against the land of Israel;
New Living Translation
"Son of man, turn and face Jerusalem and prophesy against Israel and her sanctuaries.
New Life Bible
"Son of man, look toward Jerusalem and speak against the holy places. Speak against the land of Israel.
New Revised Standard
Mortal, set your face toward Jerusalem and preach against the sanctuaries; prophesy against the land of Israel
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Son of man Set thy face against Jerusalem, And drop thy word against the holy places And prophesy against the so of Israel.
Douay-Rheims Bible
Son of man, set thy face toward Jerusalem, and let thy speech flow towards the holy places, and prophesy against the land of Israel:
Revised Standard Version
"Son of man, set your face toward Jerusalem and preach against the sanctuaries; prophesy against the land of Israel
Young's Literal Translation
`Son of man, set thy face unto Jerusalem, and prophesy unto the holy places, and prophesy unto the ground of Israel;

Contextual Overview

1 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 2 Son of man, let your face be turned to Jerusalem, let your words be dropped in the direction of her holy place, and be a prophet against the land of Israel; 3 And say to the land of Israel, These are the words of the Lord: See, I am against you, and I will take my sword out of its cover, cutting off from you the upright and the evil. 4 Because I am going to have the upright and the evil cut off from you, for this cause my sword will go out from its cover against all flesh from the south to the north: 5 And all flesh will see that I the Lord have taken my sword out of its cover: and it will never go back. 6 Make sounds of grief, son of man; with body bent and a bitter heart make sounds of grief before their eyes. 7 And when they say to you, Why are you making sounds of grief? then say, Because of the news, for it is coming: and every heart will become soft, and all hands will be feeble, and every spirit will be burning low, and all knees will be turned to water: see, it is coming and it will be done, says the Lord.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

set: Ezekiel 4:3, Ezekiel 4:7, Ezekiel 20:46, Ezekiel 25:2, Ezekiel 28:21, Ezekiel 29:2, Ezekiel 38:2, Ephesians 6:19

and drop: Deuteronomy 32:2, Amos 7:16, Micah 2:6, Micah 2:11, *marg.

against: Ezekiel 4:7, Ezekiel 6:2, Ezekiel 20:46, Ezekiel 36:1, Jeremiah 26:11, Jeremiah 26:12, Acts 6:13, Acts 6:14

Reciprocal: Deuteronomy 14:2 - General 2 Chronicles 8:11 - holy Ezekiel 7:2 - unto Ezekiel 7:24 - their holy places shall be defiled Ezekiel 11:4 - General Ezekiel 13:17 - set thy Ezekiel 35:2 - set

Cross-References

Genesis 17:19
And God said, Not so; but Sarah, your wife, will have a son, and you will give him the name Isaac, and I will make my agreement with him for ever and with his seed after him.
Genesis 17:21
But my agreement will be with Isaac, to whom Sarah will give birth a year from this time.
Genesis 18:10
And he said, I will certainly come back to you in the spring, and Sarah your wife will have a son. And his words came to the ears of Sarah who was at the back of the tent-door.
Genesis 18:14
Is there any wonder which the Lord is not able to do? At the time I said, in the spring, I will come back to you, and Sarah will have a child.
Genesis 21:16
And she went some distance away, about an arrow flight, and seating herself on the earth, she gave way to bitter weeping, saying, Let me not see the death of my child.
Genesis 21:17
And the boy's cry came to the ears of God; and the angel of God said to Hagar from heaven, Hagar, why are you weeping? have no fear, for the child's cry has come to the ears of God.
Genesis 21:24
And Abraham said, I will give you my oath.
Genesis 21:25
But Abraham made a protest to Abimelech because of a water-hole which Abimelech's servants had taken by force.
Luke 1:36
Even now Elisabeth, who is of your family, is to be a mother, though she is old: and this is the sixth month with her who was without children.
Acts 7:8
And he made with him the agreement of which circumcision was the sign. And so Abraham had a son, Isaac, and gave him circumcision on the eighth day; and Isaac had a son, Jacob, and Jacob was the father of the twelve heads of the families of Israel.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Son of man, set thy face toward Jerusalem,.... Which shows that this city was meant by "the south", Ezekiel 20:46:

and drop thy word toward the holy places; which also are meant by the south in the passage referred to, even the holy land, holy city, and holy temple; or the temple itself is only meant, with the courts adjoining to it; or as consisting of three parts, as Kimchi, the porch, the temple, and the oracle; or the outward court, the holy place, and the holy of holies; and it may respect all other places for sacred worship, as their synagogues, both in city and country; which were not to be spared any more than the temple, nor were they, Psalms 74:7. Jarchi thinks that the destruction both of the first and second temple is here intended; and which sense Kimchi also mentions.

And prophesy against the land of Israel: by which it appears that this is intended by the "forest of the south field": even the numerous inhabitants of it in general, as well as the city of Jerusalem,

Ezekiel 20:46.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

The first word of judgment Ezekiel 21:1-7. Ezekiel speaks first to the people of Israel, shows the universality of the coming destructions, and indicates by a sign (that of sighing) the sadness of the calamity.

The words and order of words are identical with Ezekiel 20:45-46, except that for “south,” there are substituted:

(1) “Jerusalem;”

(2) “the holy place,” i. e., the temple and its various parts;

(3) “the land of Israel.”

No subterfuge is left for the people to pretend misunderstanding.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Ezekiel 21:2. Set thy face toward Jerusalem — This is a continuation of the preceding prophecy; and in this chapter the prophet sets before them, in the plainest language, what the foregoing metaphors meant, so that they could not complain of his parables.


 
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