Ezekiel 16:46 Your older sister was Samaria, who lived with her daughters to your north; and your younger sister was Sodom, who lived with her daughters to your south.

◄ Ezekiel 16:46 ►

New International Version
Your older sister was Samaria, who lived to the north of you with her daughters; and your younger sister, who lived to the south of you with her daughters, was Sodom.

New Living Translation
“Your older sister was Samaria, who lived with her daughters in the north. Your younger sister was Sodom, who lived with her daughters in the south.

English Standard Version
And your elder sister is Samaria, who lived with her daughters to the north of you; and your younger sister, who lived to the south of you, is Sodom with her daughters.

Berean Standard Bible
Your older sister was Samaria, who lived with her daughters to your north; and your younger sister was Sodom, who lived with her daughters to your south.

King James Bible
And thine elder sister is Samaria, she and her daughters that dwell at thy left hand: and thy younger sister, that dwelleth at thy right hand, is Sodom and her daughters.

New King James Version
“Your elder sister is Samaria, who dwells with her daughters to the north of you; and your younger sister, who dwells to the south of you, is Sodom and her daughters.

New American Standard Bible
Now your older sister is Samaria, who lives north of you with her daughters; and your younger sister, who lives south of you, is Sodom with her daughters.

NASB 1995
“Now your older sister is Samaria, who lives north of you with her daughters; and your younger sister, who lives south of you, is Sodom with her daughters.

NASB 1977
“Now your older sister is Samaria, who lives north of you with her daughters; and your younger sister, who lives south of you, is Sodom with her daughters.

Legacy Standard Bible
Now your older sister is Samaria, who lives north of you with her daughters; and your younger sister, who lives south of you, is Sodom with her daughters.

Amplified Bible
Now your older sister is Samaria, she with her daughters (outlying cities) who live north of you; and your younger sister is Sodom, she with her daughters who live south of you.

Christian Standard Bible
Your older sister was Samaria, who lived with her daughters to the north of you, and your younger sister was Sodom, who lived with her daughters to the south of you.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Your older sister was Samaria, who lived with her daughters to the north of you, and your younger sister was Sodom, who lived with her daughters to the south of you.

American Standard Version
And thine elder sister is Samaria, that dwelleth at thy left hand, she and her daughters; and thy younger sister, that dwelleth at thy right hand, is Sodom and her daughters.

Contemporary English Version
Your older sister was Samaria, that city to your north with her nearby villages. Your younger sister was Sodom, that city to your south with her nearby villages.

English Revised Version
And thine elder sister is Samaria, that dwelleth at thy left hand, she and her daughters: and thy younger sister, that dwelleth at thy right hand, is Sodom and her daughters.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
" 'Your older sister was Samaria. She and her daughters lived north of you. Your younger sister is Sodom. She lives south of you with her daughters.

Good News Translation
"Your older sister, with her villages, is Samaria, in the north. Your younger sister, with her villages, is Sodom, in the south.

International Standard Version
Your elder sister was Samaria. She and her daughters lived in the north, while your younger sister who lived in the south with her daughters was Sodom.

Majority Standard Bible
Your older sister was Samaria, who lived with her daughters to your north; and your younger sister was Sodom, who lived with her daughters to your south.

NET Bible
Your older sister was Samaria, who lived north of you with her daughters, and your younger sister, who lived south of you, was Sodom with her daughters.

New Heart English Bible
Your elder sister is Samaria, who dwells at your left hand, she and her daughters; and your younger sister, who dwells at your right hand, is Sodom and her daughters.

Webster's Bible Translation
And thy elder sister is Samaria, she and her daughters that dwell at thy left hand: and thy younger sister, that dwelleth at thy right hand, is Sodom and her daughters.

World English Bible
Your elder sister is Samaria, who dwells at your left hand, she and her daughters; and your younger sister, who dwells at your right hand, is Sodom with her daughters.

Literal Translations

Literal Standard Version
And your older sister [is] Samaria, she and her daughters, "" Who is dwelling at your left hand, "" And your younger sister, who is dwelling on your right hand, [is] Sodom and her daughters.

Young's Literal Translation
And thine elder sister is Samaria, she and her daughters, Who is dwelling at thy left hand, And thy younger sister, who is dwelling on thy right hand, is Sodom and her daughters.

Smith's Literal Translation
Thine elder sister, Shomeron, she and her daughter dwelling upon thy left hand: and thy sister smaller than thou, dwelling from thy right hand, Sodom and her daughters.

Catholic Translations

Douay-Rheims Bible
And thy elder sister is Samaria, she and her daughters that dwell at thy left hand: and thy younger sister that dwelleth at thy right hand is Sodom, and her daughters.

Catholic Public Domain Version
And your older sister is Samaria, she and her daughters are those who live to your left. But your younger sister, who lives to your right, is Sodom and her daughters.

New American Bible
Your elder sister was Samaria with her daughters to the north of you; and your younger sister was Sodom and her daughters, south of you.

New Revised Standard Version
Your elder sister is Samaria, who lived with her daughters to the north of you; and your younger sister, who lived to the south of you, is Sodom with her daughters.

Translations from Aramaic

Lamsa Bible
And your elder sister is Samaria, who dwells at your left hand with her daughters; and your younger sister, who dwells at your right hand, is Sodom with her daughters.

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
And your elder sister is Samaria and her daughters who dwelt at your left, and your younger sister who dwells at your right is Sadom and her daughters

OT Translations

JPS Tanakh 1917
And thine elder sister is Samaria, that dwelleth at thy left hand, she and her daughters; and thy younger sister, that dwelleth at thy right hand, is Sodom and her daughters.

Brenton Septuagint Translation
Your elder sister who dwells on thy left hand is Samaria, she and her daughters: and thy younger sister, that dwells on the right hand, is Sodom and her daughters.

Additional Translations ...

Audio Bible

Context

Judgment on Jerusalem
…45You are the daughter of your mother, who despised her husband and children. You are the sister of your sisters, who despised their husbands and children. Your mother was a Hittite and your father an Amorite. 46Your older sister was Samaria, who lived with her daughters to your north; and your younger sister was Sodom, who lived with her daughters to your south. 47And you not only walked in their ways and practiced their abominations, but soon you were more depraved than they were.…

Berean Standard Bible · Download

Cross References

Jeremiah 3:8-11
She saw that because faithless Israel had committed adultery, I gave her a certificate of divorce and sent her away. Yet that unfaithful sister Judah had no fear and prostituted herself as well. / Indifferent to her own infidelity, Israel had defiled the land and committed adultery with stones and trees. / Yet in spite of all this, her unfaithful sister Judah did not return to Me with all her heart, but only in pretense,” declares the LORD. ...

Isaiah 1:10
Hear the word of the LORD, you rulers of Sodom; listen to the instruction of our God, you people of Gomorrah!

Lamentations 4:6
The punishment of the daughter of my people is greater than that of Sodom, which was overthrown in an instant without a hand turned to help her.

Hosea 4:15
Though you prostitute yourself, O Israel, may Judah avoid such guilt! Do not journey to Gilgal, do not go up to Beth-aven, and do not swear on oath, ‘As surely as the LORD lives!’

Amos 4:11
“Some of you I overthrew as I overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah, and you were like a firebrand snatched from a blaze, yet you did not return to Me,” declares the LORD.

Matthew 11:23-24
And you, Capernaum, will you be lifted up to heaven? No, you will be brought down to Hades! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Sodom, it would have remained to this day. / But I tell you that it will be more bearable for Sodom on the day of judgment than for you.”

Luke 10:12-15
I tell you, it will be more bearable on that day for Sodom than for that town. / Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles that were performed in you had been performed in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. / But it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment than for you. ...

2 Peter 2:6
if He condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction, reducing them to ashes as an example of what is coming on the ungodly;

Jude 1:7
In like manner, Sodom and Gomorrah and the cities around them, who indulged in sexual immorality and pursued strange flesh, are on display as an example of those who sustain the punishment of eternal fire.

Genesis 19:24-25
Then the LORD rained down sulfur and fire on Sodom and Gomorrah—from the LORD out of the heavens. / Thus He destroyed these cities and the entire plain, including all the inhabitants of the cities and everything that grew on the ground.

Deuteronomy 29:23
All its soil will be a burning waste of sulfur and salt, unsown and unproductive, with no plant growing on it, just like the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, which the LORD overthrew in His fierce anger.

Isaiah 3:9
The expression on their faces testifies against them, and like Sodom they flaunt their sin; they do not conceal it. Woe to them, for they have brought disaster upon themselves.

Jeremiah 23:14
And among the prophets of Jerusalem I have seen a horrible thing: They commit adultery and walk in lies. They strengthen the hands of evildoers, so that no one turns his back on wickedness. They are all like Sodom to Me; the people of Jerusalem are like Gomorrah.”

Ezekiel 23:1-4
Again the word of the LORD came to me, saying, / “Son of man, there were two women, daughters of the same mother, / and they played in Egypt, prostituting themselves from their youth. Their breasts were fondled there, and their virgin bosoms caressed. ...

Ezekiel 23:11-13
Her sister Oholibah saw this, yet in her lust and prostitution she was more depraved than her sister. / She too lusted after the Assyrians—governors and commanders, warriors dressed in splendor, horsemen riding on steeds, all desirable young men. / And I saw that she too had defiled herself; both of them had taken the same path.

Treasury of Scripture

And your elder sister is Samaria, she and her daughters that dwell at your left hand: and your younger sister, that dwells at your right hand, is Sodom and her daughters.

elder

Ezekiel 16:51
Neither hath Samaria committed half of thy sins; but thou hast multiplied thine abominations more than they, and hast justified thy sisters in all thine abominations which thou hast done.

Ezekiel 23:4,11,31-33
And the names of them were Aholah the elder, and Aholibah her sister: and they were mine, and they bare sons and daughters. Thus were their names; Samaria is Aholah, and Jerusalem Aholibah…

Jeremiah 3:8-11
And I saw, when for all the causes whereby backsliding Israel committed adultery I had put her away, and given her a bill of divorce; yet her treacherous sister Judah feared not, but went and played the harlot also…

Ezekiel 16:48,49,53-56,61
As I live, saith the Lord GOD, Sodom thy sister hath not done, she nor her daughters, as thou hast done, thou and thy daughters…

Genesis 13:11-13
Then Lot chose him all the plain of Jordan; and Lot journeyed east: and they separated themselves the one from the other…

Genesis 18:20
And the LORD said, Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous;

her daughters

Ezekiel 26:6
And her daughters which are in the field shall be slain by the sword; and they shall know that I am the LORD.

Genesis 14:8
And there went out the king of Sodom, and the king of Gomorrah, and the king of Admah, and the king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (the same is Zoar;) and they joined battle with them in the vale of Siddim;

Genesis 19:29
And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when he overthrew the cities in the which Lot dwelt.

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Daughters Dwell Dwelleth Dwelling Dwells Elder Hand North Older Right Samaria Sama'ria Sister Sodom South Younger

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Daughters Dwell Dwelleth Dwelling Dwells Elder Hand North Older Right Samaria Sama'ria Sister Sodom South Younger

Ezekiel 16

1. Under the parable of a wretched infant is shown the natural state of Jerusalem
6. God's extraordinary love toward her,
15. Her grievous judgment
35. Her sin, equal to her mother,
46. and exceeding her sisters, Sodom and Samaria,
59. calls for judgments
60. Mercy is promised her in the end

Berean Study Bible

Your older sister was Samaria
In this phrase, "older sister" refers to a city or nation that is more established or has existed longer. Samaria was the capital of the Northern Kingdom of Israel, which had fallen to the Assyrians in 722 BC. The use of "sister" here is metaphorical, indicating a familial relationship between Jerusalem and Samaria, suggesting shared heritage and covenantal ties. Historically, Samaria was known for its idolatry and apostasy, which led to its downfall. The Hebrew root for Samaria, "Shomron," means "watch mountain," reflecting its geographical and strategic significance. This phrase serves as a warning to Jerusalem, highlighting the consequences of unfaithfulness to God.

who lived with her daughters to the north of you
The "daughters" of Samaria refer to the smaller towns and villages that were part of its domain. The phrase "to the north of you" is geographically accurate, as Samaria was located north of Jerusalem. This positioning is significant in the biblical narrative, as the Northern Kingdom's apostasy and subsequent judgment serve as a cautionary tale for Jerusalem. The historical context emphasizes the importance of faithfulness to God's covenant, as the northern tribes were exiled due to their persistent idolatry and disobedience.

and your younger sister was Sodom
"Sodom" is infamous for its destruction due to wickedness, as recounted in Genesis 19. The term "younger sister" implies a lesser or more recent entity, yet it carries a heavy moral implication. Sodom's sins were not just sexual immorality but also pride, gluttony, and neglect of the poor, as detailed in Ezekiel 16:49. The Hebrew root for Sodom, "Sedom," means "burning," symbolizing its fiery judgment. By comparing Jerusalem to Sodom, God underscores the severity of Jerusalem's sins and the impending judgment if they do not repent.

who lived with her daughters to the south of you
Similar to Samaria, the "daughters" of Sodom refer to the surrounding cities, such as Gomorrah, that shared in its fate. "To the south of you" is geographically accurate, as Sodom was located in the southern region near the Dead Sea. This directional reference serves as a reminder of the historical and moral lessons from Sodom's destruction. The juxtaposition of Samaria to the north and Sodom to the south creates a powerful image of Jerusalem being surrounded by examples of divine judgment, urging the city to heed the warnings and return to righteousness.

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(46) Thine elder sister.--The words elder and younger mean, literally, greater and smaller. They thus come, like the Latin major and minor, to be used for older and younger; but still their original and most common meaning, which should be retained here, is greater and smaller. Chronologically, Sodom was not younger than Jerusalem, nor is there evidence that Samaria was older. The terms are to be understood of Samaria as the capital of the far larger northern kingdom, and of Sodom as a single city of no great population. The Orientals, in describing geographical positions, considered themselves as facing the east, and hence Samaria (at the north) was on the left, and Sodom on the right. Sodom is spoken of poetically as if still in existence. They were both the spiritual sisters of Judah, just as all alike were daughters of the Amorite and Hittite.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 46. - No very adequate reason appears for the assignment of the respective ages of the two sisters. Historically, Sodom, as the oldest representative of evil, would have seemed to claim precedence. Samaria may have had this position assigned to it as more closely connected with Judah. The left and right hands indicate respectively a position to the north and south of Jerusalem, the observer of the heavens looking east, as, we may note, the temple did (Ezekiel 8:16). The comparison with Samaria is developed more fully in ch. 23. The daughters are, as elsewhere, the cities dependent on Sodom and Samaria respectively.

Parallel Commentaries ...

Hebrew

Your older
הַגְּדוֹלָ֤ה (hag·gə·ḏō·w·lāh)
Article | Adjective - feminine singular
Strong's 1419: Great, older, insolent

sister
וַאֲחוֹתֵ֨ךְ (wa·’ă·ḥō·w·ṯêḵ)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - feminine singular construct | second person feminine singular
Strong's 269: Sister -- a sister

was Samaria,
שֹֽׁמְרוֹן֙ (šō·mə·rō·wn)
Noun - proper - feminine singular
Strong's 8111: Samaria -- capital of northern kingdom of Israel

who
הִ֣יא (hî)
Pronoun - third person feminine singular
Strong's 1931: He, self, the same, this, that, as, are

lived
הַיּוֹשֶׁ֖בֶת (hay·yō·wō·še·ḇeṯ)
Article | Verb - Qal - Participle - feminine singular
Strong's 3427: To sit down, to dwell, to remain, to settle, to marry

with her daughters
וּבְנוֹתֶ֔יהָ (ū·ḇə·nō·w·ṯe·hā)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - feminine plural construct | third person feminine singular
Strong's 1323: A daughter

to
עַל־ (‘al-)
Preposition
Strong's 5921: Above, over, upon, against

your north;
שְׂמֹאולֵ֑ךְ (śə·mō·w·lêḵ)
Noun - masculine singular construct | second person feminine singular
Strong's 8040: Dark, the north, the left hand

and your younger
הַקְּטַנָּ֣ה (haq·qə·ṭan·nāh)
Article | Adjective - feminine singular
Strong's 6996: Small, young, unimportant

sister
וַאֲחוֹתֵ֞ךְ (wa·’ă·ḥō·w·ṯêḵ)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - feminine singular construct | second person feminine singular
Strong's 269: Sister -- a sister

was Sodom,
סְדֹ֖ם (sə·ḏōm)
Noun - proper - feminine singular
Strong's 5467: Sodom -- a Canaanite city near the Dead Sea

who lived
הַיּוֹשֶׁ֙בֶת֙ (hay·yō·wō·še·ḇeṯ)
Article | Verb - Qal - Participle - feminine singular
Strong's 3427: To sit down, to dwell, to remain, to settle, to marry

with her daughters
וּבְנוֹתֶֽיהָ׃ (ū·ḇə·nō·w·ṯe·hā)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - feminine plural construct | third person feminine singular
Strong's 1323: A daughter

to
מִמֵּ֗ךְ (mim·mêḵ)
Preposition | second person feminine singular
Strong's 4480: A part of, from, out of

your south.
מִֽימִינֵ֔ךְ (mî·mî·nêḵ)
Preposition-m | Noun - feminine singular construct | second person feminine singular
Strong's 3225: The right hand, side, the south

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OT Prophets: Ezekiel 16:46 Your elder sister is Samaria who dwells (Ezek. Eze Ezk)