Jerusalem's Corruption and the Search for a Righteous Remnant
Ezekiel 22:1-31
Eze.22.1 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ויהי: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,m,sg
- דבר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אלי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- לאמר: INF,qal,infc
Parallels
- Jeremiah 1:4 (verbal): Uses the same prophetic formula in Hebrew (וַיְהִי דְבַר־יְהוָה אֵלַי לֵאמֹר), introducing Jeremiah’s call—same verbal marker of divine oracle.
- Ezekiel 7:1 (verbal): Within Ezekiel the exact phrase (וַיְהִי דְבַר־יְהוָה אֵלַי לֵאמֹר) recurs to introduce another oracle—same formulaic opening.
- Ezekiel 33:1 (verbal): Another instance in Ezekiel where the word of the LORD comes to the prophet with the same introductory wording, marking a new prophetic address.
- Jeremiah 7:1 (structural): A closely related structural introduction—'the word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD'—serves the same function of framing the following prophetic speech as divine revelation.
Alternative generated candidates
- And the word of the LORD came to me, saying:
- And the word of the LORD came to me, saying:
Eze.22.2 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ואתה: CONJ+PRON,2,m,sg
- בן: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אדם: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- התשפט: VERB,qal,imperfect,2,m,sg
- התשפט: VERB,qal,imperfect,2,m,sg
- את: PRT,acc
- עיר: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- הדמים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- והודעתה: VERB,hiph,imperf,2,m,sg+PRON,3,f,sg
- את: PRT,acc
- כל: DET
- תועבותיה: NOUN,f,pl,abs+PRON,3,f,sg
Parallels
- Ezekiel 16:2 (verbal): Nearly identical command: 'Son of man, make known to Jerusalem her abominations' — same prophetic formula to expose a city's sins.
- Ezekiel 8:6 (structural): Prophetic indictment scene—'Son of man... declare unto them their abominations'—similar imperative to inspect and announce hidden abominations in Israel.
- Isaiah 1:21 (thematic): Addresses a city turned to corruption ('faithful city become harlot') and announces judgment for its abominations, paralleling the theme of exposing urban sin.
- Jeremiah 7:1-7 (structural): Prophet commanded to stand at the temple gate and proclaim Judah's covenant-breaking and idolatry—comparable mode of publicly declaring a city's sins to bring judgment.
Alternative generated candidates
- And you, son of man, judge, judge the city of bloodshed; and declare to her all her abominations.
- And you, son of man, judge—judge the blood-stained city; declare to her all her abominations.
Eze.22.3 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ואמרת: CONJ+VERB,qal,impf,2,m,sg
- כה: ADV
- אמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- אדני: NOUN,m,sg,abs,1,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- עיר: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- שפכת: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- דם: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- בתוכה: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs+PRON,3,fs
- לבוא: VERB,qal,inf
- עתה: ADV
- ועשתה: VERB,qal,perf,3,f,sg
- גלולים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- עליה: PREP,3,f,sg
- לטמאה: VERB,qal,inf,3,f,sg
Parallels
- Isaiah 1:15-17 (thematic): Both condemn internal violence (‘hands full of blood’) and link bloodshed with ritual/address refusal and impending divine judgment and purification.
- Psalm 106:38 (thematic): Speaks of shedding innocent blood and the land being polluted—parallels Ezekiel’s charge that bloodshed defiles the city/land and provokes judgment.
- Genesis 4:10 (allusion): The image of blood ‘crying out’ for God’s reckoning echoes the idea that bloodshed within a community summons divine response.
- Numbers 35:33 (verbal): States that bloodshed pollutes the land and requires atonement; legally and theologically parallels Ezekiel’s linkage of shedding blood with defilement and punishment.
- Ezekiel 22:4 (structural): Immediate literary parallel in the same charge—continues the motif that the city’s bloodshed and abominations have defiled it, reinforcing the verse’s accusation and consequence.
Alternative generated candidates
- And say, Thus says the Lord GOD: O city, you have poured out blood within you; now you come to make yourself unclean with idols.
- And say, Thus says the Lord GOD: O city that pours out blood in your midst, come now—have you not made idols upon yourself to defile you?
Eze.22.4 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- בדמך: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs,suff:2f
- אשר: PRON,rel
- שפכת: VERB,qal,perf,2ms
- אשמת: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ובגלוליך: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs,2ms
- אשר: PRON,rel
- עשית: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- טמאת: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- ותקריבי: VERB,qal,impf,2fs
- ימיך: NOUN,m,pl,abs+2ms
- ותבוא: VERB,qal,impf,3,f,sg
- עד: PREP
- שנותיך: NOUN,f,pl,abs,2ms
- על: PREP
- כן: ADV
- נתתיך: VERB,qal,perf,1,?,sg+PRON,2,m,sg
- חרפה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- לגוים: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs
- וקלסה: CONJ+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- לכל: PREP
- הארצות: NOUN,f,pl,def
Parallels
- Ezekiel 22:2-3 (structural): Immediate context: lists the same charges—bloodshed, idolatry and defilement—that lead to the punishment and reproach described in 22:4.
- Ezekiel 16:52-54 (thematic): Jerusalem’s abominations make her a shame and reproach among the nations (similar cause–effect of sin leading to disgrace before the nations).
- Deuteronomy 28:37 (thematic): As a covenant curse for disobedience Israel will become a byword and reproach among the nations—parallels the outcome in Ezek. 22:4 of being a taunt to all lands for guilt and idolatry.
- Isaiah 1:15-17 (verbal): Isaiah condemns hands full of blood, injustice and false worship and warns of national defilement and judgment—language and charges echo Ezekiel’s indictment of bloodshed and idols.
- Jeremiah 7:9-15 (thematic): Jeremiah links theft, murder, idolatry and other offenses to God’s departing judgment and the city’s destruction—similar moral charges and the resulting national humiliation and exile.
Alternative generated candidates
- By your blood which you have shed you are guilty, and by your idols which you have made you are defiled; and you have brought your days near and the years of your iniquity have come. Therefore I have made you a reproach to the nations and a derision to all the lands.
- By your blood that you have shed you are guilty, and by your idols that you have made you have made yourself unclean; you have brought your days near and have come to your years—therefore I have given you up to reproach among the nations and a taunt to all the countries.
Eze.22.5 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- הקרבות: NOUN,f,pl,def
- והרחקות: CONJ+NOUN,f,pl,def
- ממך: PREP+PRON,2,m,sg
- יתקלסו: VERB,hitpael,impf,3,pl
- בך: PREP+PRON,2,m,sg
- טמאת: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- השם: NOUN,m,sg,def
- רבת: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- המהומה: NOUN,f,sg,def
Parallels
- Ezekiel 16:25-30 (verbal): Describes Israel's prostitution and 'abominations' with language and imagery of harlotry that closely parallels Ezek.22:5's charge of harlots and defilement.
- Ezekiel 23:3-5,9-12 (thematic): The two-sisters allegory expands the theme of national prostitution and sexual/ritual impurity found in Ezek.22:5 (harlots, abominations, outcry).
- Leviticus 18:24-25 (verbal): Speaks of the land being 'defiled' by abominations and the resulting divine visitation—language echoed in Ezek.22:5's mention of increased defilement of the land.
- Isaiah 1:21-23 (thematic): Isaiah depicts Zion as a 'harlot' whose corruption brings outcry and judgment, paralleling Ezek.22:5's motifs of prostitution, abomination, and public uproar.
Alternative generated candidates
- Your offerings and the things set apart are treated with contempt because of you; your uncleanness is great, and tumult rises in you.
- Those near and those far from you shall be appalled at you; you have become a defilement, the shame of the land and a great tumult.
Eze.22.6 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- הנה: PART
- נשיאי: NOUN,m,pl,const
- ישראל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- איש: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לזרעו: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,suffix-3ms
- היו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- בך: PREP+PRON,2,m,sg
- למען: PREP
- שפך: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- דם: NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Micah 3:9-11 (thematic): Condemns leaders who corrupt justice and ‘build Zion with blood’—direct thematic parallel accusing rulers of violence and exploitation of the people.
- Isaiah 1:23 (thematic): Accuses rulers of being rebels and companions of thieves who fail to defend the vulnerable—parallels Ezekiel’s charge against princes who shed blood and abuse their office.
- Ezekiel 22:25-27 (structural): Immediate chapter parallel: princes, priests, and prophets are blamed for profaning the sanctuary and shedding blood—repeats and expands the same indictment against Israel’s leaders.
- Ezekiel 34:2-4 (thematic): Shepherd/leader imagery condemning shepherds who feed themselves and harm the flock—another Ezekiel critique of leaders who abandon and exploit the people.
- Jeremiah 5:26-28 (thematic): Describes the wickedness of influential men who lie in wait and enrich themselves while harming others—echoes the theme of leaders instrumental in violence and exploitation.
Alternative generated candidates
- Behold, the princes of Israel were in you—each for his own lineage—to shed blood.
- Behold, the princes of Israel each one by his clan were in you for the purpose of shedding blood.
Eze.22.7 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- אב: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ואם: CONJ
- הקלו: VERB,hiph,perf,3,pl
- בך: PREP+PRON,2,m,sg
- לגר: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- עשו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- בעשק: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- בתוכך: PREP,2,m,sg
- יתום: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ואלמנה: CONJ+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- הונו: VERB,hiph,perf,3,pl
- בך: PREP+PRON,2,m,sg
Parallels
- Exodus 22:22-24 (thematic): Commands not to mistreat widows and orphans; parallels Ezekiel's indictment of oppression of the widow and fatherless.
- Deuteronomy 24:17 (verbal): Forbids perverting justice for the sojourner and the fatherless—language and theme closely echoed in Ezekiel's charge against injustice to the ger, orphan, and widow.
- Isaiah 1:23 (verbal): Accuses leaders of taking bribes and failing to defend the orphan and widow—an explicit parallel to Ezekiel's condemnation of exploitation and failure to protect vulnerable groups.
- Psalm 82:3-4 (thematic): Calls on judges to defend the weak and fatherless and rescue the needy from the wicked—reflects the prophetic expectation that society protect orphans and widows.
- Jeremiah 7:6 (allusion): Promises blessing if the people do not oppress the sojourner, the fatherless, or the widow—echoes the same covenantal concern for these vulnerable groups voiced by Ezekiel.
Alternative generated candidates
- In you they dealt lightly with father and mother; the sojourner was wronged in you; the fatherless and the widow were oppressed in you.
- The father and mother treated lightly in you; the sojourner was robbed in your midst; the orphan and the widow were wronged in you.
Eze.22.8 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- קדשי: NOUN,m,pl,cons
- בזית: PREP,dem,f,sg
- ואת: CONJ
- שבתתי: NOUN,f,sg,abs+PRON,1,sg
- חללת: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
Parallels
- Ezekiel 20:13 (verbal): Uses nearly identical language about profaning the LORD's Sabbaths—Ezekiel elsewhere repeats the accusation that they 'profaned my Sabbaths.'
- Ezekiel 22:26 (verbal): Same chapter expands the charge: priests and leaders 'have violated my law and profaned my holy things,' echoing the theme of desecration of sacred things.
- Leviticus 19:30 (allusion): Commands to keep the Sabbaths and revere the sanctuary—Ezekiel’s charge reverses this ideal, accusing Israel of failing to hallow the sabbath and holy things.
- 2 Chronicles 36:14-16 (structural): Describes priests and people who 'profaned the house of the LORD' and 'treated the commandments lightly,' a narrative parallel linking sacrilege and impending judgment/exile.
- Jeremiah 17:21, 27 (thematic): Warnings about keeping the Sabbath and consequences for profaning it—parallels Ezekiel’s theme that Sabbath profanation invites divine punishment.
Alternative generated candidates
- You profaned my consecrated things with your oil, and you desecrated my Sabbaths.
- You profaned my holy things by your gifts, and my sabbaths you desecrated.
Eze.22.9 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- אנשי: NOUN,m,pl,cons
- רכיל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- היו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- בך: PREP+PRON,2,m,sg
- למען: PREP
- שפך: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- דם: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ואל: CONJ+PREP
- ההרים: NOUN,m,pl,def
- אכלו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- בך: PREP+PRON,2,m,sg
- זמה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- עשו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- בתוכך: PREP,2,m,sg
Parallels
- Ezekiel 22:6 (structural): Immediate parallel in the same chapter: accuses Jerusalem of taking bribes to shed blood and of devouring the poor—same charge and vocabulary continued in v.9.
- Micah 3:11 (verbal): Leaders and prophets pervert justice for gain: 'they give judgment for a bribe, and the priests teach for a price'—closely parallels Ezekiel's charge of bribery and corrupt prophets.
- Isaiah 1:23 (thematic): Isaiah condemns princes who 'love bribes' and do not defend the poor—echoes Ezekiel's indictment of bribery and violence against the needy.
- Amos 5:12 (thematic): Amos denounces those who 'hate the one who reproves in the gate' and mentions perverted justice and oppression of the poor—similar prophetic critique of violence and social injustice.
- Proverbs 17:23 (verbal): Says the wicked accepts a bribe to pervert justice—a proverbial distillation of the same theme of bribery leading to bloodshed and injustice found in Ezekiel 22:9.
Alternative generated candidates
- Merchants were in you to take advantage; in you they committed harlotry and ate on the mountains; in you they acted shamefully.
- Men of violence were in you, to shed blood; in you they ate upon the mountains—within you they committed harlotry.
Eze.22.10 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ערות: NOUN,f,sg,cons
- אב: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- גלה: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- בך: PREP+PRON,2,m,sg
- טמאת: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- הנדה: NOUN,f,sg,def
- ענו: VERB,qal,imp,2,pl
- בך: PREP+PRON,2,m,sg
Parallels
- Leviticus 18:8 (verbal): Uses the same legal phrase prohibiting the uncovering of a father's nakedness (forbidding sexual relations that expose a father's nakedness), directly echoing the language condemned in Ezekiel.
- Genesis 9:22-23 (thematic): Ham’s exposure of Noah’s nakedness is an early narrative instance of ‘uncovering a father,’ thematically parallel as a family-sexual violation that brings shame and curse.
- Leviticus 20:11-12 (structural): Prescribes penalties for incestuous acts that expose a father's nakedness (and related forbidden kinship sexual relations), paralleling Ezekiel’s moral-legal indictment of such conduct.
- 2 Samuel 13:10-14 (thematic): Amnon’s rape of his half-sister Tamar is a narrative example of sexual violence within the family and illicit exposure of a relative’s nakedness, thematically resonant with Ezekiel’s charge.
- Ezekiel 16:36-38 (allusion): Within Ezekiel’s own corpus God denounces Jerusalem’s sexual sins and speaks of uncovering and punishing her lewdness; this prophetic motif parallels the condemnation in 22:10.
Alternative generated candidates
- You uncovered the nakedness of your father in you; the impurity of the menstruant was in you; you disgraced her.
- You uncovered the nakedness of your father in you; in you were the impurity of the menstruant defilement.
Eze.22.11 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ואיש: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- את: PRT,acc
- אשת: NOUN,f,sg,cns
- רעהו: NOUN,m,sg,abs+3ms
- עשה: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- תועבה: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ואיש: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- את: PRT,acc
- כלתו: NOUN,f,sg,abs+PRON,3,m,sg
- טמא: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- בזמה: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ואיש: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- את: PRT,acc
- אחתו: NOUN,f,sg,cons,3,m
- בת: NOUN,f,sg,cs
- אביו: NOUN,m,sg,abs+3,m,sg
- ענה: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- בך: PREP+PRON,2,m,sg
Parallels
- Exodus 20:14 (verbal): The Decalogue prohibition 'You shall not commit adultery' parallels Ezekiel's condemnation of a man lying with his neighbor's wife (adultery).
- Leviticus 18:15 (verbal): Leviticus explicitly forbids sexual relations with 'the daughter of your father' (your sister), directly corresponding to 'אחתו בת־אביו' in Ezekiel 22:11 (incest with father's daughter).
- Leviticus 20:12 (verbal): Leviticus prescribes punishment for a man who lies with his daughter‑in‑law; this corresponds to Ezekiel's charge that a man 'defiled his daughter‑in‑law' (את־כלתו טמא בזמה).
- Deuteronomy 27:20 (verbal): In the covenantal curses Deuteronomy condemns sexual relations with a father's wife (and related incestuous acts), echoing the kinds of sexual transgressions listed in Ezekiel 22:11.
- 2 Samuel 13:1–22 (thematic): The narrative of Amnon and Tamar (brother raping sister) provides a narrative example of familial sexual violence/incest that thematically parallels Ezekiel's indictment of incest and sexual immorality in the community.
Alternative generated candidates
- One committed abomination with his neighbor’s wife; another defiled his daughter-in-law; another humbled his sister, his father's daughter, within you.
- One man has lain with his neighbor's wife; another has defiled his daughter-in-law; one has humbled his sister, the daughter of his father.
Eze.22.12 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- שחד: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לקחו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- בך: PREP+PRON,2,m,sg
- למען: PREP
- שפך: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- דם: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- נשך: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ותרבית: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- לקחת: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- ותבצעי: CONJ+VERB,qal,perf,2,f,sg
- רעיך: NOUN,m,pl,abs,poss,2,f,sg
- בעשק: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ואתי: PRON,1,m,sg
- שכחת: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- נאם: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אדני: NOUN,m,sg,abs,1,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Isaiah 1:23 (verbal): Accuses leaders of loving bribes and following rewards, failing to defend the vulnerable—parallels Ezekiel's charge of bribery and social injustice.
- Micah 3:11 (verbal): Leaders and priests judge for a bribe and prophesy for money—directly parallels the condemnation of corrupt officials taking bribes.
- Proverbs 17:23 (thematic): A wicked person accepts a bribe to pervert justice—echoes the moral link between bribery and the perversion of justice found in Ezekiel.
- Psalm 15:5 (thematic): Declares that the righteous do not put out money at interest or take bribes against the innocent—connects to Ezekiel's rebuke of bribery, usury, and forgetting God.
- Ezekiel 22:6-7 (structural): Immediate context describing traitors, shedding blood, extortion, and violence—closely parallels and develops the same charges in v.12.
Alternative generated candidates
- They took bribes in you to shed blood; you took interest and profit and increased your gain on your neighbors, and you have forgotten me, declares the Lord GOD.
- They took bribes in you to shed blood; you devoured the poor and you exacted usury; and you increased your gain in the wrong and made your neighbors prey by violence; yet you have forgotten me, declares the Lord GOD.
Eze.22.13 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- והנה: ADV
- הכיתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,_,sg
- כפי: PREP
- אל: NEG
- בצעך: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אשר: PRON,rel
- עשית: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- ועל: CONJ+PREP
- דמך: NOUN,m,sg,abs+2ms
- אשר: PRON,rel
- היו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- בתוכך: PREP,2,m,sg
Parallels
- Isaiah 1:15,23 (verbal): Isaiah condemns hands 'full of blood' and leaders who 'love bribes'—language and charges (bloodshed and unjust gain/bribery) closely parallel Ezekiel's condemnation of 'your blood' and 'your unjust gain (בצע)'.
- Micah 3:10-11 (thematic): Micah accuses builders of Zion and Jerusalem of doing so 'with blood' and denounces officials who take bribes; parallels Ezekiel's charge of internal bloodshed and profiteering by leaders.
- Jeremiah 22:17 (thematic): Jeremiah reproves the people for having eyes set on dishonest gain and on 'shedding innocent blood,' directly echoing the combination of extortion and bloodshed found in Ezekiel 22:13.
- Amos 5:12 (thematic): Amos lists 'taking bribes' and oppressing the righteous/poor among the nation's sins; thematically parallels Ezekiel's focus on extortion (בצע) and violence/blood within the community.
Alternative generated candidates
- Behold, therefore I strike my hand against your unjust gain which you have made, and against the bloodshed that is in your midst.
- Behold, therefore I have stretched out my hand against your dishonest gain that you made and against your blood that was among you.
Eze.22.14 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- היעמד: VERB,qal,impf,3,m,sg
- לבך: NOUN,m,sg,abs+PRON,2,m,sg
- אם: CONJ
- תחזקנה: VERB,qal,impf,3,f,pl
- ידיך: NOUN,f,pl,cs,2ms
- לימים: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs
- אשר: PRON,rel
- אני: PRON,1,sg
- עשה: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- אותך: PRON,2,m,sg
- אני: PRON,1,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- דברתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,c,sg
- ועשיתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,com,sg
Parallels
- Joel 2:11 (verbal): Both speak of the terrifying day of the LORD and pose/echo the question of who can stand/abide when God executes judgment—emphasis on divine action that humans cannot endure.
- Nahum 1:6 (verbal): Uses similar language about who can stand before God's indignation and endure his fierce anger—paralleling Ezekiel's challenge about hearts/hands enduring God's dealings.
- Proverbs 24:10 (thematic): Addresses human endurance in a day of adversity—'if you faint in the day of adversity' parallels Ezekiel's question about whether heart and hands will be strong when God acts.
- Ezekiel 7:13-14 (structural): Within the same prophetic block warning of imminent judgment; thematically echoes the inevitability of God's action and the dire consequences for those unprepared to endure it.
Alternative generated candidates
- Will your heart stand, or will your hands be strong, in the days when I deal with you? I the LORD have spoken; I will act.
- Will your heart stand, or will your hands be strong in the days when I deal with you? I the LORD have spoken; I will act.
Eze.22.15 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- והפיצותי: VERB,hiph,perf,1,?,sg
- אותך: PRON,2,m,sg
- בגוים: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs
- וזריתיך: VERB,hiph,perf,1,?,sg
- בארצות: PREP+NOUN,f,pl,abs
- והתמתי: VERB,hiph,perf,1,?,sg
- טמאתך: NOUN,f,sg,abs+PRON,2,m,sg
- ממך: PREP+PRON,2,m,sg
Parallels
- Lev.26:33 (verbal): Uses the same judicial formula—God will 'scatter you among the nations' as punishment; a close verbal and thematic precedent for Ezekiel's act of dispersal.
- Deut.28:64 (verbal): Covenantal curse language: the LORD will 'scatter you among all peoples,' providing the Deuteronomic/legal background for the exilic dispersal in Ezekiel.
- Ezek.36:19-23 (thematic): Ezekiel elsewhere narrates that God 'scattered them among the nations' because of uncleanness but then promises regathering and purification; this passage echoes and contrasts the scattering in 22:15 with a future cleansing.
- Jer.9:16 (thematic): Prophetic parallel in Jeremiah: God will 'scatter them among nations' because of their sins—same motif of exile as divine judgment for impurity and transgression.
Alternative generated candidates
- And I will scatter you among the nations and disperse you through the countries, and I will consume your uncleanness out of you.
- And I will scatter you among the nations and disperse you through the countries, and I will purge you of your filthiness.
Eze.22.16 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ונחלת: NOUN,f,sg,cons
- בך: PREP+PRON,2,m,sg
- לעיני: PREP+NOUN,f,pl,cons
- גוים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- וידעת: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- כי: CONJ
- אני: PRON,1,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Ezekiel 36:23 (verbal): Uses the same goal—‘that the nations may know that I am the LORD’—and explicitly links God’s action to being made known ‘before their eyes’ (paralleling לעיני גוים).
- Ezekiel 6:10 (verbal): Speaks of survivors among the nations who, after exile and judgment, ‘shall know that I am the LORD,’ echoing the formula of recognition following deportation.
- Ezekiel 39:28–29 (thematic): In the restoration context God declares the nations will know that He is the LORD—the same thematic purpose of judgment and revelation to the nations as in Ezekiel 22:16.
- Jeremiah 16:21 (allusion): A prophetic parallel outside Ezekiel: God announces He will make the nations know his power and that they will know that ‘the LORD’ is God—similar theological aim of making God known to the nations.
Alternative generated candidates
- And I will make you a desolation and a reproach among the nations before their eyes, and you shall know that I am the LORD.
- I will make you a desolation before the eyes of the nations, and you shall know that I am the LORD.
Eze.22.17 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ויהי: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,m,sg
- דבר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אלי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- לאמר: INF,qal,infc
Parallels
- Ezekiel 1:3 (verbal): Uses the same prophetic introductory formula — 'the word of the LORD came to Ezekiel' — marking the reception of a divine oracle addressed to Ezekiel.
- Jeremiah 1:4 (verbal): Identical wording ('Now the word of the LORD came unto me, saying') introducing Jeremiah's call and first prophetic messages; same narrative device for divine communication.
- 1 Samuel 15:10 (verbal): The phrase 'Then the word of the LORD came to Samuel' functions similarly to announce a divine message delivered through a prophet concerning judgement.
- 2 Samuel 7:4 (structural): The report 'and it came to pass the same night that the word of the LORD came to Nathan' mirrors the structural pattern of God sending a nighttime revelation to a prophet, here Nathan, to convey instructions about the king.
Alternative generated candidates
- And the word of the LORD came to me, saying:
- And the word of the LORD came to me, saying:
Eze.22.18 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- בן: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אדם: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- היו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- לי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- בית: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ישראל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לסיג: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- כלם: PRON,3,m,pl
- נחשת: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ובדיל: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- וברזל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ועופרת: CONJ+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- בתוך: PREP
- כור: NOUN,m,sg,cs
- סגים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- כסף: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- היו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
Parallels
- Malachi 3:2-3 (thematic): Uses the refiner/cleanser imagery of fire to purify the people (and priests), paralleling Ezekiel's furnace/metal metaphor for Israel's condition and purification judgment.
- Zechariah 13:9 (thematic): Speaks of God refining Israel in the fire so that a purified remnant remains—echoes Ezekiel's image of the nation as metals in a furnace undergoing refinement.
- Proverbs 17:3 (verbal): Explicitly compares the crucible/furnace to the testing of silver and gold—verbal parallel to Ezekiel's depiction of Israel as silver in a furnace.
- Psalm 66:10 (verbal): Declares that God has tested his people as silver is tried, closely mirroring Ezekiel's metaphor of Israel as metal tested in fire.
- Isaiah 48:10 (verbal): God speaks of refining and testing in the furnace of affliction, comparing the process to refining silver—a direct verbal and thematic parallel to Ezekiel's furnace imagery.
Alternative generated candidates
- Son of man, the house of Israel to me has been like the dross of metals—bronze, tin, iron, lead, and silver; in the midst of a furnace they were mixed.
- Son of man, the house of Israel to me are like metal in a furnace—copper, tin, iron, and lead, and the mixtures of silver in the midst of the furnace.
Eze.22.19 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- לכן: ADV
- כה: ADV
- אמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- אדני: NOUN,m,sg,abs,1,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- יען: CONJ
- היות: VERB,qal,inf
- כלכם: PRON,2,m,pl
- לסגים: PREP+VERB,qal,ptc,3,m,pl
- לכן: ADV
- הנני: PRT+PRON,1,sg
- קבץ: VERB,qal,imp,2,ms
- אתכם: PRT+PRON,2,m,pl
- אל: NEG
- תוך: PREP
- ירושלם: NOUN,f,sg,abs
Parallels
- Ezekiel 22:18 (verbal): Immediate context—uses the same 'dross' imagery and sets up the judgment of gathering into Jerusalem; verse 19 continues the thought.
- Isaiah 1:25 (thematic): God speaks of smelting away dross and removing tin—same refining/dross imagery for purging Israel's impurities.
- Malachi 3:2-3 (thematic): Portrays the Lord as a refiner and purifier of silver who will purify the people—parallel purification imagery to remove dross.
- Zechariah 13:9 (thematic): Speaks of refining a remnant like silver and testing by fire—similar motif of purging and producing a purified remnant.
- Ezekiel 36:24 (structural): God promises to gather the people from the nations and bring them into their land—echoes the 'I will gather you into Jerusalem' theme of restoration/gathering.
Alternative generated candidates
- Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Because all of you are dross, behold, I will gather you into Jerusalem.
- Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Because all of you are like dross,
Eze.22.20 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- קבצת: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,sg
- כסף: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ונחשת: CONJ+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- וברזל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ועופרת: CONJ+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ובדיל: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אל: NEG
- תוך: PREP
- כור: NOUN,m,sg,cs
- לפחת: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- עליו: PREP,3,m,sg
- אש: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- להנתיך: VERB,nif,inf
- כן: ADV
- אקבץ: VERB,qal,impf,1,m,sg
- באפי: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,suf,1,sg
- ובחמתי: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs+PRON,1,sg
- והנחתי: VERB,hiph,perf,1,_,sg
- והתכתי: CONJ+VERB,hitp,perf,1,m,sg
- אתכם: PRT+PRON,2,m,pl
Parallels
- Isaiah 1:25 (verbal): Uses metal-refining imagery—'I will turn my hand upon thee, and purge away thy dross'—paralleling Ezekiel's gathering of metals and melting to purge sin.
- Isaiah 48:10 (thematic): God speaks of refining in a furnace ('I have refined thee, but not as silver'), echoing the motif of divine purification by fire found in Ezekiel 22:20.
- Malachi 3:2-3 (verbal): Describes the Lord as a refiner's fire and fuller’s soap who will purify like silver, closely paralleling the furnace/refining language of Ezekiel 22:20.
- Zechariah 13:9 (thematic): Promises that the remnant will be refined 'as silver is refined,' reflecting the testing and melting imagery used to judge and purify Israel in Ezekiel.
- Psalm 66:10 (thematic): Speaks of God proving and testing his people 'as silver is tried,' employing the same metallurgical metaphor of testing and refining present in Ezekiel 22:20.
Alternative generated candidates
- I will gather silver and bronze and iron and lead and tin into the furnace to blow upon it for melting; so I will gather you in my wrath and in my fury and will melt you.
- behold, I will gather you into Jerusalem; I will gather silver and copper and iron and lead and tin into the midst of the furnace to blow upon it with the fire of wasting, to melt it.
Eze.22.21 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- וכנסתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,_,sg
- אתכם: PRT+PRON,2,m,pl
- ונפחתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,_,sg
- עליכם: PREP+PRON,2mp
- באש: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- עברתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,m,sg
- ונתכתם: VERB,niphal,perf,2,m,pl
- בתוכה: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs+PRON,3,fs
Parallels
- Zechariah 13:9 (verbal): God says he will 'bring the third part through the fire' and 'refine them,' closely echoing the language of bringing people into fire and melting/refining them.
- Isaiah 48:10 (verbal): Uses furnace/refining imagery—'I have refined you... I have chosen you in the furnace of affliction'—paralleling divine purging by fire.
- Malachi 3:2-3 (thematic): Describes the LORD as a refiner's fire who will purify and refine, thematically similar to judgment-as-refining in Ezekiel 22:21.
- Deuteronomy 4:24 (thematic): 'The LORD thy God is a consuming fire'—a foundational Old Testament characterization of God's wrath as consuming fire that underlies Ezekiel's imagery.
- Isaiah 66:15 (thematic): Depicts the LORD coming with fire to execute judgment, echoing the theme of divine judgment enacted by fire and destruction.
Alternative generated candidates
- And I will bring you into the midst of it and blow on you with the fire of my anger, and you shall be melted in its midst.
- I will bring you into the midst of it, and I will blow on you with the fire of my wrath, and you shall be melted in its midst.
Eze.22.22 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- כהתוך: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,def
- כסף: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- בתוך: PREP
- כור: NOUN,m,sg,cs
- כן: ADV
- תתכו: VERB,qal,impf,2,m,pl
- בתוכה: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs+PRON,3,fs
- וידעתם: VERB,qal,perf,2,m,pl
- כי: CONJ
- אני: PRON,1,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- שפכתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,n,sg
- חמתי: NOUN,f,sg,abs+1s
- עליכם: PREP+PRON,2mp
Parallels
- Malachi 3:2-3 (verbal): God pictured as a refiner and purifier of silver—uses the same refining imagery to describe divine judgment and purification so that people will know the LORD.
- Zechariah 13:9 (thematic): Speaks of refining by fire and testing the people so that a remnant is purified—parallel theme of divine trial producing purification.
- Isaiah 48:10 (allusion): 'I have refined you... I have tested you in the furnace of affliction'—uses the refining-smelting metaphor to describe God's disciplinary testing.
- Psalm 66:10-12 (verbal): 'For you, O God, have tried us; you have refined us as silver is refined'—explicit verbal parallel linking testing, refining, and coming to know God.
- Proverbs 17:3 (verbal): 'The crucible for silver, and the furnace for gold; the LORD tests the hearts'—connects the metallurgical refining process with God's testing and judgment.
Alternative generated candidates
- As silver is melted in the midst of the furnace, so shall you be melted in its midst; and you shall know that I the LORD have poured out my wrath upon you.
- As silver is melted in the midst of a furnace, so shall you be melted in its midst; and you shall know that I the LORD have poured out my indignation upon you.
Eze.22.23 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ויהי: VERB,qal,wayyiqtol,3,m,sg
- דבר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- אלי: PREP+PRON,1,sg
- לאמר: INF,qal,infc
Parallels
- Jeremiah 1:4 (verbal): Uses the same prophetic formula 'Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying,'—a direct verbal and structural parallel introducing prophetic speech.
- Ezekiel 24:1 (structural): Within Ezekiel the same introductory formula appears ('the word of the LORD came to me, saying'), showing the book's recurrent structural marker for new oracle units.
- Zechariah 1:7 (verbal): Begins with 'the word of the LORD came unto me, saying'—a typical prophetic introduction found in later prophets and parallel in wording and function.
- Micah 1:1 (thematic): Introduces a prophet's oracle with a close variant ('The word of the LORD that came to Micah'), reflecting the common prophetic convention of marking authoritative revelation.
- Amos 1:1 (structural): Like Ezek.22:23, Amos opens with a formulaic notice of divine communication ('The words of Amos...'), serving the same structural role of signaling received revelation.
Alternative generated candidates
- And the word of the LORD came to me, saying:
- And the word of the LORD came to me, saying:
Eze.22.24 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- בן: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אדם: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- לה: PREP+PRON,3,f,sg
- את: PRT,acc
- ארץ: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- לא: PART_NEG
- מטהרה: ADJ,f,sg,abs
- היא: PRON,dem,3,f,sg
- לא: PART_NEG
- גשמה: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ביום: PREP
- זעם: NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Amos 4:7-8 (verbal): God withholds rain as an act of judgment—Amos explicitly describes withholding rain from cities as punishment, paralleling Ezekiel's claim that the land is not rained on.
- Deuteronomy 11:16-17 (thematic): Mosaic warning that turning from Yahweh will bring closed heavens and no rain; a covenantal precedent for drought as divine wrath (the 'day of indignation').
- Jeremiah 14:1-6 (thematic): Jeremiah laments severe drought and lack of rain as the result of the people's sinfulness, echoing Ezekiel's linkage of land desolation with divine anger.
- Joel 1:10-15 (allusion): Joel depicts the land mourning, crops ruined and declares 'Alas for the day'/'the day of the LORD'—combining imagery of destroyed land and an impending day of wrath similar to Ezekiel 22:24.
Alternative generated candidates
- Son of man, say to the land: You are a land not cleansed, nor rained upon in the day of indignation.
- Son of man, say to the land: You are a land not cleansed, nor rained upon in the day of indignation.
Eze.22.25 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- קשר: VERB,qal,impv,2,m,sg
- נביאיה: NOUN,m,pl,suff3f
- בתוכה: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs+PRON,3,fs
- כארי: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- שואג: VERB,qal,ptc,m,sg
- טרף: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- טרף: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- נפש: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- אכלו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- חסן: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- ויקר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- יקחו: VERB,qal,impf,3,pl
- אלמנותיה: NOUN,f,pl,suff3f
- הרבו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- בתוכה: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs+PRON,3,fs
Parallels
- Ezekiel 13:10 (verbal): Same prophetic-structural imagery — false prophets ‘plastering’ with untempered mortar; both passages condemn deceitful prophets who give false assurance to the people.
- Zephaniah 3:3 (verbal): Uses the image of rulers/prophets as roaring lions and wolves that devour the people, echoing Ezekiel’s ‘like a roaring lion… they devour’ depiction of harmful leaders.
- Micah 3:11 (thematic): Condemns leaders and prophets who take bribes and exploit the people (‘they eat the flesh of my people’/‘they seize wealth’), paralleling Ezekiel’s charge that prophets devour souls and take treasures, producing widows.
- Jeremiah 23:14 (thematic): Accuses prophets of promoting evil, strengthening evildoers and leading people astray — a thematic match to Ezekiel’s denunciation of prophets who prey on the people.
- Jeremiah 5:30-31 (thematic): Speaks of prophets prophesying lies and the people accepting them, paralleling Ezekiel’s critique of prophetic corruption and its damaging effects on the community.
Alternative generated candidates
- Its prophets are in it like roaring lions tearing prey; they devour human lives; they take treasure and precious things; they make many widows in its midst.
- Her prophets in her are like roaring lions tearing the prey; they have devoured souls; they have taken riches and precious things, and they have made many widows within her.
Eze.22.26 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- כהניה: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- חמסו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- תורתי: NOUN,f,sg,cs+1s
- ויחללו: VERB,piel,perf,3,m,pl
- קדשי: NOUN,m,pl,cons
- בין: PREP
- קדש: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- לחל: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לא: PART_NEG
- הבדילו: VERB,hifil,perf,3,m,pl
- ובין: CONJ+PREP
- הטמא: ADJ,m,sg,def
- לטהור: VERB,qal,inf
- לא: PART_NEG
- הודיעו: VERB,hifil,perf,3,m,pl
- ומשבתותי: CONJ+PREP+NOUN,f,pl,abs+1s
- העלימו: VERB,hifil,perf,3,m,pl
- עיניהם: NOUN,f,pl,abs+3mp
- ואחל: VERB,qal,perf,1,m,sg
- בתוכם: PREP+PRON,3,m,pl
Parallels
- Leviticus 10:10 (verbal): Commands priests to distinguish between holy and common, and between unclean and clean—language and priestly responsibility echoed in Ezekiel's charge that priests made no such distinctions.
- Ezekiel 20:12-13 (thematic): God recounts giving statutes and sabbaths which the people profaned; complements Ezek.22.26's accusation that priests hid their eyes from the sabbaths and profaned God's covenant.
- Ezekiel 44:23 (structural): A later Ezekiel passage prescribing that priests must teach the people the difference between holy and unholy—presented as the corrective to the failure described in Ezek.22.26.
- Malachi 2:7-9 (thematic): Accuses priests of corrupting the covenant and leading people astray, echoing the theme of priestly failure and profaning what is holy found in Ezek.22.26.
- Hosea 4:6 (thematic): God laments destruction for lack of knowledge because leaders rejected instruction—parallels Ezekiel's critique that priests failed to teach distinctions and thus profaned God's ways.
Alternative generated candidates
- Her priests have violated my law and profaned my holy things; they made no distinction between the holy and the common, nor taught the difference between the unclean and the clean; and they hid their eyes from my Sabbaths, and I am profaned among them.
- Her priests have violated my law and profaned my holy things; they made no distinction between the holy and the common, nor taught the difference between the unclean and the clean; and they shut their eyes to my sabbaths, so that I am profaned among them.
Eze.22.27 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- שריה: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- בקרבה: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs+PRON,3,f,sg
- כזאבים: PREP+NOUN,m,pl,abs
- טרפי: NOUN,m,pl,poss_3s
- טרף: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לשפך: PREP+INF,qal
- דם: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לאבד: VERB,qal,inf
- נפשות: NOUN,f,pl,abs
- למען: PREP
- בצע: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- בצע: NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Ezekiel 34:2-5 (thematic): Condemns Israel's leaders as 'shepherds' who feed themselves and scatter the flock—same theme of rulers exploiting and harming the people for their own gain.
- Micah 3:2-3 (verbal): Accuses leaders of hating the good and 'tearing the skin from my people'—uses violent, devouring language like Ezek. 22:27 to describe officials who prey on the populace.
- Jeremiah 5:26-29 (verbal): Speaks of wicked men lying in wait like those who set snares and seize people—parallel imagery of predatory, blood‑shedding actors among the people for selfish ends.
- Zephaniah 3:3 (verbal): Describes officials as 'roaring lions' and judges as 'evening wolves that leave nothing'—explicitly compares rulers to wolves/devourers, echoing Ezekiel's metaphor.
- Matthew 7:15 (allusion): Jesus' warning to 'beware of false prophets... ravenous wolves' echoes the prophetic motif of leaders as predatory wolves who harm the flock for their own advantage.
Alternative generated candidates
- Her princes within it are like wolves tearing the prey, shedding blood, destroying lives for the sake of dishonest gain.
- Her princes are in her like wolves tearing the prey—devouring lives, to shed blood, to get dishonest gain.
Eze.22.28 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ונביאיה: NOUN,m,pl,abs+3ms
- טחו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- להם: PREP+PRON,3,m,pl
- תפל: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- חזים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- שוא: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- וקסמים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- להם: PREP+PRON,3,m,pl
- כזב: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אמרים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- כה: ADV
- אמר: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- אדני: NOUN,m,sg,abs,1,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
- ויהוה: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לא: PART_NEG
- דבר: NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Ezekiel 13:6-9 (verbal): Same prophetic context and imagery: false prophets 'plastering' with untempered mortar, seeing 'vanity' and lying divinations — direct verbal and thematic parallel within Ezekiel's denunciation of false prophecy.
- Jeremiah 23:16-22 (verbal): Condemns prophets who say 'Thus saith the Lord' when God has not spoken; stresses that their messages are false and not from the LORD, closely echoing Ezek.22:28's charge.
- Jeremiah 14:14 (verbal): God declares that the prophets prophesy lies in His name and that He did not send them — a concise statement paralleling Ezekiel's claim that the LORD had not spoken.
- Deuteronomy 18:20-22 (structural): Legal criterion for identifying a false prophet: if what a prophet predicts does not come to pass, the prophet has not spoken for the LORD. Provides the normative background for condemning self-styled prophets in Ezekiel 22:28.
- Micah 3:5-7 (thematic): Denounces prophets who give misleading assurances and rely on dreams/visions to mislead the people; thematically parallels Ezekiel's critique of deceptive prophetic visions and false assurances.
Alternative generated candidates
- And its prophets have given them false and worthless visions and divinations; they say, 'Thus says the Lord GOD,' when the LORD has not spoken.
- And her prophets have plastered them with untempered mortar; they have seen false visions and divinations, uttering lies and saying, 'Thus says the Lord GOD,' when the LORD has not spoken.
Eze.22.29 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- עם: PREP
- הארץ: NOUN,f,sg,def
- עשקו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- עשק: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- וגזלו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- גזל: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- ועני: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- ואביון: CONJ+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- הונו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- ואת: CONJ
- הגר: NOUN,f,sg,def,prop
- עשקו: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,pl
- בלא: PREP
- משפט: NOUN,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Isaiah 10:2 (verbal): Isaiah accuses leaders of turning aside the needy from justice and robbing the poor—language of robbery/extortion closely parallels Ezekiel's charge.
- Amos 5:11 (thematic): Amos condemns trampling the poor and exacting levies/fees from them; shares the theme of economic exploitation of the needy.
- Micah 2:1-2 (thematic): Micah denounces those who scheme to seize fields and houses and oppress the poor—parallel denunciation of extortion and unjust seizure.
- Zechariah 7:10 (verbal): Zechariah explicitly forbids oppressing the widow, the fatherless, and the sojourner—echoes Ezekiel's mention of oppressing the sojourner and the needy.
- Deuteronomy 24:17 (structural): Deuteronomic law forbids perverting justice for the sojourner and the fatherless; provides the legal/ethical background for Ezekiel's indictment of oppression.
Alternative generated candidates
- The people of the land have practiced extortion and committed robbery; they oppress the poor and needy and wrong the sojourner without justice.
- The people of the land have practiced extortion and committed robbery; they have oppressed the poor and needy and have wronged the sojourner without justice.
Eze.22.30 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ואבקש: VERB,qal,impf,1,c,sg
- מהם: PREP+PRON,3,m,pl
- איש: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- גדר: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- גדר: NOUN,f,sg,abs
- ועמד: VERB,qal,perf,3,m,sg
- בפרץ: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,abs
- לפני: PREP
- בעד: PREP
- הארץ: NOUN,f,sg,def
- לבלתי: PART,neg
- שחתה: VERB,qal,perf,3,f,sg
- ולא: CONJ
- מצאתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,sg
Parallels
- Isaiah 59:16 (verbal): Uses very similar language and idea—God 'saw that there was no man'/'no intercessor' and thus searched for one to stand in the breach (close verbal and conceptual parallel).
- Jeremiah 5:1 (verbal): 'Run ye to and fro... if ye can find a man... I will pardon it'—the motif of searching for a righteous person whose presence would avert destruction mirrors Ezekiel's plea to 'find a man' to stand in the gap.
- Genesis 18:23–33 (thematic): Abraham's intercession for Sodom (pleading with God to spare the city if righteous are found) parallels the idea of standing in the gap to avert judgment on the land.
- Exodus 32:11–14 (thematic): Moses' intercession on Israel's behalf—pleading with God to relent from destroying the people—exemplifies the role of an intercessor who stands between God and a doomed community.
- Ezekiel 13:5 (structural): Complaint that others 'have not gone up into the breaches, neither builded the wall' echoes the breach/gap imagery and the absence of those who should repair or defend the land—contextual and book-level parallel to Ezek. 22:30.
Alternative generated candidates
- And I sought among them one who would build up the wall and stand in the breach before me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it, but I found none.
- And I sought for a man among them who should stand in the breach and restore the wall before me on behalf of the land, that I should not destroy it, but I found none.
Eze.22.31 - Details
Original Text
Morphology
- ואשפך: VERB,qal,impf,1,sg
- עליהם: PREP,3,m,pl
- זעמי: NOUN,m,sg,abs+1,m,sg
- באש: PREP+NOUN,f,sg,abs
- עברתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,m,sg
- כליתים: NOUN,m,pl,abs
- דרכם: NOUN,f,sg,abs+3,m,pl
- בראשם: PREP+NOUN,m,sg,suf3mp
- נתתי: VERB,qal,perf,1,_,sg
- נאם: NOUN,m,sg,abs
- אדני: NOUN,m,sg,abs,1,sg
- יהוה: NOUN,prop,m,sg,abs
Parallels
- Ezekiel 7:8 (verbal): Uses virtually the same language and imagery—God 'pours out' or 'shortly pours out' his fury and 'accomplishes' his anger on the people; close verbal and thematic parallel within Ezekiel's condemnation of Jerusalem.
- Ezekiel 5:13 (thematic): Speaks of God fulfilling his fury and making his anger rest upon the people so that they know his word; shares the theme of divine wrath executed as a demonstrative act of judgment.
- Isaiah 34:8 (thematic): Declares a 'day of vengeance' and recompense by the LORD against the nations—a parallel motif of appointed, consuming divine judgment and a day of calamity.
- Nahum 1:2 (thematic): Portrays Yahweh as jealous and avenging, keeping wrath for his enemies and executing it with consuming power; parallels the portrayal of poured-out indignation and destructive divine anger.
Alternative generated candidates
- Therefore I have poured out my indignation upon them; with the fire of my wrath I have brought their way to ruin; I have given their deeds into their own heads, says the Lord GOD.
- Therefore I have poured out my wrath upon them; I have consumed them with the fire of my anger; their way I have brought upon their heads, declares the Lord GOD.
And the word of the LORD came to me, saying:
Son of man, judge — judge the bloody city; make known to her all her abominations. And say, Thus says the Lord GOD: O city that has shed blood within you, come now! You have made detestable idols upon yourself to defile you.
By your blood that you have shed you are guilty, and by the idols that you have made you are defiled; you have brought your days near and your years have come. Therefore I have made you a reproach among the nations and a scorn to all the lands.
Those near and those far from you will be appalled at you; the defilement of the land is in you, and the outcry is great.
Behold, the princes of Israel in you—each for his own seed—were in you to shed blood.
Father and mother are treated lightly in you; you have exacted from the sojourner by extortion; within you the orphan and the widow are wronged.
You profaned my holy things and desecrated my Sabbaths.
Men of trade were in you for the purpose of shedding blood; on your high places they committed harlotry and made impurity within you.
The nakedness of a father was uncovered in you; in you was the uncleanness of menstruation; you were disgraced because of it.
One committed an abomination with his neighbor’s wife; another defiled his daughter-in-law; another humbled his sister, the daughter of his father, in you.
They took bribes in you to shed blood; you accepted interest and increase; you made gain of your neighbors by extortion, and you forgot me, declares the Lord GOD.
Behold, therefore I will strike my hand against your covetousness which you practiced, and against the blood that is in your midst.
Will your heart stand, will your hands be strong on the day I deal with you? I the LORD have spoken, and I will do it.
I will scatter you among the nations and disperse you through the lands, and I will consume your filthiness out of you.
I will deal with you before the eyes of the nations, and you shall know that I am the LORD. And the word of the LORD came to me, saying:
Son of man, to me the house of Israel is like the dross of copper, tin, iron, and lead in the midst of the furnace; in them was silver.
Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Because you are all like dross, therefore behold, I will gather you into the midst of Jerusalem.
I will gather silver, copper, iron, lead, and tin into the furnace to blow upon it, to melt it; so I will gather you in my anger and in my wrath I will put you into the furnace and melt you.
I will bring you into it and blow on you with the fire of my wrath, and you shall be melted in its midst.
As silver is melted in a furnace, so shall you be melted within it; and you shall know that I the LORD have poured out my wrath upon you. And the word of the LORD came to me, saying:
Son of man, say to the land: You are not cleansed; it has not rained on the day of indignation.
Her prophets are like roaring lions tearing the prey; they devour souls. They take what is precious and valuable, and make many widows in her midst.
Her priests have done violence to my law and profaned my holy things; they did not distinguish between holy and common, nor teach the difference between clean and unclean, and they have shut their eyes to my Sabbaths, so that I am profaned among them.
Her princes in her are like wolves tearing the prey—they shed blood and destroy lives for the sake of gain.
Her prophets have given them worthless visions and divinations and false dreams; they say, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD,’ when the LORD has not spoken.
The people of the land practice extortion and robbery; they oppress the poor and needy, and they wrong the stranger without justice.
I sought for a man to stand in the breach and to build up the wall before me for the land, to turn back my wrath, that I might not destroy it—but I found none.
Therefore I will pour out my indignation upon them; I will spend my fierce anger upon them, and I will repay their deeds upon their heads, declares the Lord GOD.