Ezekiel 33:25
New International Version
Therefore say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Since you eat meat with the blood still in it and look to your idols and shed blood, should you then possess the land?

New Living Translation
So tell these people, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: You eat meat with blood in it, you worship idols, and you murder the innocent. Do you really think the land should be yours?

English Standard Version
Therefore say to them, Thus says the Lord GOD: You eat flesh with the blood and lift up your eyes to your idols and shed blood; shall you then possess the land?

Berean Standard Bible
Therefore tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘You eat meat with the blood in it, lift up your eyes to your idols, and shed blood. Should you then possess the land?

King James Bible
Wherefore say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Ye eat with the blood, and lift up your eyes toward your idols, and shed blood: and shall ye possess the land?

New King James Version
“Therefore say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “You eat meat with blood, you lift up your eyes toward your idols, and shed blood. Should you then possess the land?

New American Standard Bible
Therefore say to them, ‘This is what the Lord GOD says: “You eat meat with the blood in it, raise your eyes to your idols as you shed blood. Should you then possess the land?

NASB 1995
“Therefore say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD, “You eat meat with the blood in it, lift up your eyes to your idols as you shed blood. Should you then possess the land?

NASB 1977
“Therefore, say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD, “You eat meat with the blood in it, lift up your eyes to your idols as you shed blood. Should you then possess the land?

Legacy Standard Bible
Therefore say to them, ‘Thus says Lord Yahweh, “You eat meat with the blood in it and lift up your eyes to your idols as you shed blood. Should you then possess the land?

Amplified Bible
Therefore say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD, “You eat meat with the blood in it and raise your eyes to your idols and shed blood. Should you take possession of the land?

Christian Standard Bible
Therefore say to them, ‘This is what the Lord GOD says: You eat meat with blood in it, you look to your idols, and you shed blood. Should you then receive possession of the land?

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Therefore say to them: This is what the Lord GOD says: You eat meat with blood in it, raise your eyes to your idols, and shed blood. Should you then receive possession of the land?

American Standard Version
Wherefore say unto them, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Ye eat with the blood, and lift up your eyes unto your idols, and shed blood: and shall ye possess the land?

Contemporary English Version
So, Ezekiel, tell them I am saying: How can you think the land is still yours? You eat meat with blood in it and worship idols. You commit murder

English Revised Version
Wherefore say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD: Ye eat with the blood, and lift up your eyes unto your idols, and shed blood: and shall ye possess the land?

GOD'S WORD® Translation
So tell them, 'This is what the Almighty LORD says: You eat meat with blood in it. You look to your idols for help. You murder people. Should the land be given to you?

Good News Translation
"Tell them what I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying: You eat meat with the blood still in it. You worship idols. You commit murder. What makes you think that the land belongs to you?

International Standard Version
So tell them, 'This is what the Lord GOD says: "You keep eating flesh along with its blood, you keep looking to your idols, and you keep shedding blood, and you're going to take possession of the land?

Majority Standard Bible
Therefore tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘You eat meat with the blood in it, lift up your eyes to your idols, and shed blood. Should you then possess the land?

NET Bible
Therefore say to them, 'This is what the sovereign LORD says: You eat the meat with the blood still in it, pray to your idols, and shed blood. Do you really think you will possess the land?

New Heart English Bible
Therefore tell them, 'Thus says the Lord GOD: "You eat with the blood, and lift up your eyes to your idols, and shed blood: and shall you possess the land?

Webster's Bible Translation
Wherefore say to them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Ye eat with the blood, and lift up your eyes towards your idols, and shed blood: and shall ye possess the land?

World English Bible
Therefore tell them, ‘The Lord Yahweh says: “You eat with the blood, and lift up your eyes to your idols, and shed blood. So should you possess the land?
Literal Translations
Literal Standard Version
Therefore say to them, Thus said Lord YHWH: You eat with the blood, "" And you lift up your eyes to your idols, "" And you shed blood, "" Should you then inherit the land?

Young's Literal Translation
Therefore say unto them: Thus said the Lord Jehovah: With the blood ye do eat, And your eyes ye lift up unto your idols, And blood ye shed, and the land ye inherit!

Smith's Literal Translation
For this, say to them, Thus said the Lord Jehovah: Ye will eat with the bloods, and ye will lift up your eyes to your blocks, and ye will pour out blood: and shall ye possess the land?
Catholic Translations
Douay-Rheims Bible
Therefore say to them: Thus saith the Lord God, You that eat with the blood and lift up your eyes to your uncleannesses, and that shed blood: shall you possess the land by inheritance?

Catholic Public Domain Version
Therefore, you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord God: You who eat even the blood, and who lift up your eyes to your uncleannesses, and who shed blood: will you possess the land as an inheritance?

New American Bible
Therefore say to them: Thus says the Lord GOD: You eat on the mountains, you raise your eyes to your idols, you shed blood—yet you would keep possession of the land?

New Revised Standard Version
Therefore say to them, Thus says the Lord GOD: You eat flesh with the blood, and lift up your eyes to your idols, and shed blood; shall you then possess the land?
Translations from Aramaic
Lamsa Bible
Therefore say to them, Thus says the LORD God: Because you eat meat with the blood and lift up your eyes toward your idols and drink blood, do you expect to inherit the land?

Peshitta Holy Bible Translated
Because of this, say to them, ‘Thus says THE LORD OF LORDS: because you eat blood and you lift up your eyes to your idols and drink blood, do you also seek to inherit the land?
OT Translations
JPS Tanakh 1917
Wherefore say unto them: Thus saith the Lord GOD. Ye eat with the blood, and lift up your eyes unto your idols, and shed blood; and shall ye possess the land?

Brenton Septuagint Translation


Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Word of Jerusalem's Fall
24“Son of man, those living in the ruins in the land of Israel are saying, ‘Abraham was only one man, yet he possessed the land. But we are many; surely the land has been given to us as a possession.’ 25Therefore tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘You eat meat with the blood in it, lift up your eyes to your idols, and shed blood. Should you then possess the land? 26You have relied on your swords, you have committed detestable acts, and each of you has defiled his neighbor’s wife. Should you then possess the land?’…

Cross References
Leviticus 18:24-30
Do not defile yourselves by any of these practices, for by all these things the nations I am driving out before you have defiled themselves. / Even the land has become defiled, so I am punishing it for its sin, and the land will vomit out its inhabitants. / But you are to keep My statutes and ordinances, and you must not commit any of these abominations—neither your native-born nor the foreigner who lives among you. ...

Deuteronomy 12:16
but you must not eat the blood; pour it on the ground like water.

Deuteronomy 12:23-25
Only be sure not to eat the blood, because the blood is the life, and you must not eat the life with the meat. / You must not eat the blood; pour it on the ground like water. / Do not eat it, so that it may go well with you and your children after you, because you will be doing what is right in the eyes of the LORD.

Deuteronomy 15:23
But you must not eat the blood; pour it on the ground like water.

Isaiah 1:15-17
When you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide My eyes from you; even though you multiply your prayers, I will not listen. Your hands are covered with blood. / Wash and cleanse yourselves. Remove your evil deeds from My sight. Stop doing evil! / Learn to do right; seek justice and correct the oppressor. Defend the fatherless and plead the case of the widow.”

Jeremiah 7:9-10
Will you steal and murder, commit adultery and perjury, burn incense to Baal, and follow other gods that you have not known, / and then come and stand before Me in this house, which bears My Name, and say, ‘We are delivered, so we can continue with all these abominations’?

Jeremiah 22:3
This is what the LORD says: Administer justice and righteousness. Rescue the victim of robbery from the hand of his oppressor. Do no wrong or violence to the foreigner, the fatherless, or the widow. Do not shed innocent blood in this place.

Hosea 4:1-3
Hear the word of the LORD, O children of Israel, for the LORD has a case against the people of the land: “There is no truth, no loving devotion, and no knowledge of God in the land! / Cursing and lying, murder and stealing, and adultery are rampant; one act of bloodshed follows another. / Therefore the land mourns, and all who dwell in it will waste away with the beasts of the field and the birds of the air; even the fish of the sea disappear.

Amos 5:21-24
“I hate, I despise your feasts! I cannot stand the stench of your solemn assemblies. / Even though you offer Me burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them; for your peace offerings of fattened cattle I will have no regard. / Take away from Me the noise of your songs! I will not listen to the music of your harps. ...

Micah 6:6-8
With what shall I come before the LORD when I bow before the God on high? Should I come to Him with burnt offerings, with year-old calves? / Would the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams, with ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I present my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? / He has shown you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you but to act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?

Matthew 23:23
Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You pay tithes of mint, dill, and cumin. But you have disregarded the weightier matters of the law: justice, mercy, and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.

Mark 7:21-23
For from within the hearts of men come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, / greed, wickedness, deceit, debauchery, envy, slander, arrogance, and foolishness. / All these evils come from within, and these are what defile a man.”

Luke 11:42
Woe to you Pharisees! For you pay tithes of mint, rue, and every herb, but you disregard justice and the love of God. You should have practiced the latter without neglecting the former.

Romans 1:28-32
Furthermore, since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, He gave them up to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. / They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed, and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, and malice. They are gossips, / slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant, and boastful. They invent new forms of evil; they disobey their parents. ...

Romans 2:21-24
you, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? / You who forbid adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? / You who boast in the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? ...


Treasury of Scripture

Why say to them, Thus said the Lord GOD; You eat with the blood, and lift up your eyes toward your idols, and shed blood: and shall you possess the land?

Ye eat

Genesis 9:4
But flesh with the life thereof, which is the blood thereof, shall ye not eat.

Leviticus 3:17
It shall be a perpetual statute for your generations throughout all your dwellings, that ye eat neither fat nor blood.

Leviticus 7:26,27
Moreover ye shall eat no manner of blood, whether it be of fowl or of beast, in any of your dwellings…

lift up

Ezekiel 18:6,12,15
And hath not eaten upon the mountains, neither hath lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel, neither hath defiled his neighbour's wife, neither hath come near to a menstruous woman, …

Deuteronomy 4:19
And lest thou lift up thine eyes unto heaven, and when thou seest the sun, and the moon, and the stars, even all the host of heaven, shouldest be driven to worship them, and serve them, which the LORD thy God hath divided unto all nations under the whole heaven.

Psalm 24:4
He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully.

and shed

Ezekiel 9:9
Then said he unto me, The iniquity of the house of Israel and Judah is exceeding great, and the land is full of blood, and the city full of perverseness: for they say, The LORD hath forsaken the earth, and the LORD seeth not.

Ezekiel 22:6,9,27
Behold, the princes of Israel, every one were in thee to their power to shed blood…

shall ye

Jeremiah 7:9,10
Will ye steal, murder, and commit adultery, and swear falsely, and burn incense unto Baal, and walk after other gods whom ye know not; …

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Ezekiel 33
1. According to the duty of a watchman in warning the people
7. Ezekiel is admonished of his duty
10. God shows the justice of his ways toward the penitent and toward revolters
17. He maintains his justice
21. Upon the news of the taking of Jerusalem
25. he prophecies the desolation of the land
30. God's judgment upon the mockers of the prophets














Therefore tell them
This phrase indicates a direct command from God to the prophet Ezekiel. The Hebrew word for "tell" is "אָמַר" (amar), which means to speak or declare. This highlights the role of the prophet as a mouthpiece for God, emphasizing the importance of delivering God's message accurately and faithfully. In the historical context, prophets were often tasked with delivering difficult truths to the people, calling them to repentance and obedience.

this is what the Lord GOD says
The phrase underscores the authority of the message. "Lord GOD" in Hebrew is "אֲדֹנָי יְהוִה" (Adonai Yahweh), combining the sovereign title "Adonai" with the personal name of God, "Yahweh." This combination emphasizes both God's supreme authority and His covenant relationship with Israel. It serves as a reminder that the message is not from Ezekiel himself but from the Almighty, who has the ultimate authority over the land and its people.

You eat meat with blood
This practice was explicitly forbidden in the Mosaic Law (Leviticus 17:10-14). The Hebrew word for "blood" is "דָּם" (dam), which is considered the life force of a creature. Consuming blood was seen as a serious violation of God's commandments, symbolizing a disregard for the sanctity of life. Historically, this practice was associated with pagan rituals, indicating a departure from the covenantal laws given to Israel.

you look to your idols
Idolatry was a persistent issue for Israel, often leading them away from worshiping the one true God. The Hebrew word for "idols" is "גִּלּוּלִים" (gillulim), which can also mean "worthless things." This term reflects the futility and emptiness of idol worship. In the scriptural context, idolatry is not just the physical act of bowing to statues but represents a deeper spiritual adultery, where the people placed their trust and hope in things other than God.

and you shed blood
This phrase refers to acts of violence and murder, which were rampant in the society Ezekiel addressed. The shedding of innocent blood is a grave sin in the biblical narrative, violating the commandment "You shall not murder" (Exodus 20:13). The Hebrew word for "shed" is "שָׁפַךְ" (shaphak), meaning to pour out, indicating the deliberate and violent nature of these acts. Historically, such violence was symptomatic of a society that had turned away from God's laws.

Should you then possess the land?
This rhetorical question challenges the people's sense of entitlement to the land promised to their ancestors. The Hebrew word for "possess" is "יָרַשׁ" (yarash), meaning to inherit or occupy. The land was a gift from God, contingent upon the people's obedience to His commandments. This question serves as a call to self-examination, urging the Israelites to consider whether their actions align with the covenantal requirements necessary to remain in the land. It reflects the biblical principle that blessings are tied to obedience, and disobedience leads to judgment and exile.

(25) Ye eat with the blood.--The people who remained in the land went on as before in their course of sin. The crimes here charged upon them (Ezekiel 33:25-26) are the same as those all along alleged against them, and Jeremiah gives a sad picture of their open rebellion against the express commands of God (Jeremiah 42, 43). This particular sin of eating flesh with the blood had been repeatedly forbidden, first to Noah (Genesis 9:4), and again under the Law (Leviticus 3:17; Leviticus 7:26; Leviticus 17:10-14; Deuteronomy 12:16). . . . Verse 25. - Ye eat with the blood. It is characteristic of Ezekiel that the first offence which he names with horror should be a sin against a positive commandment. He felt, as it were, a sense of loathing at what seemed to him a descent into the worst form of pollution, forbidden, not to the Jews only (Leviticus 17:10; Leviticus 19:26; Deuteronomy 12:16), but to mankind (Genesis 9:4); compare the scene in 1 Samuel 14:32. The same feeling shows itself in Zechariah 9:7 and Acts 15:20, 29. The prohibition of blood took its place, in later Judaism, as among the precepts of Noah, which were binding even on the proselytes of the gate, upon whom, as distinct from the proselytes of righteousness, the rite of circumcision was not enforced; and as such were accepted by the council at Jerusalem, as binding also among Christian converts. Not for such as these was the inheritance of Israel, and the prophet asks indignantly, after naming yet . more hateful offenses, Shall ye possess the land?

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
Therefore
לָכֵן֩ (lā·ḵên)
Adverb
Strong's 3651: So -- thus

tell
אֱמֹ֨ר (’ĕ·mōr)
Verb - Qal - Imperative - masculine singular
Strong's 559: To utter, say

them
אֲלֵיהֶ֜ם (’ă·lê·hem)
Preposition | third person masculine plural
Strong's 413: Near, with, among, to

that this is what
כֹּֽה־ (kōh-)
Adverb
Strong's 3541: Like this, thus, here, now

the Lord
אֲדֹנָ֣י (’ă·ḏō·nāy)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 136: The Lord

GOD
יְהֹוִ֗ה (Yah·weh)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3068: LORD -- the proper name of the God of Israel

says:
אָמַ֣ר ׀ (’ā·mar)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 559: To utter, say

‘You eat
תֹּאכֵ֛לוּ (tō·ḵê·lū)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person masculine plural
Strong's 398: To eat

meat with the blood [in it],
הַדָּ֧ם ׀ (had·dām)
Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 1818: Blood, of man, an animal, the juice of the grape, bloodshed

lift up
תִּשְׂא֥וּ (tiś·’ū)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person masculine plural
Strong's 5375: To lift, carry, take

your eyes
וְעֵינֵכֶ֛ם (wə·‘ê·nê·ḵem)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - cdc | second person masculine plural
Strong's 5869: An eye, a fountain

to
אֶל־ (’el-)
Preposition
Strong's 413: Near, with, among, to

your idols,
גִּלּוּלֵיכֶ֖ם (gil·lū·lê·ḵem)
Noun - masculine plural construct | second person masculine plural
Strong's 1544: A log, an idol

and shed
תִּשְׁפֹּ֑כוּ (tiš·pō·ḵū)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person masculine plural
Strong's 8210: To spill forth, to expend, to sprawl out

blood.
וְדָ֣ם (wə·ḏām)
Conjunctive waw | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 1818: Blood, of man, an animal, the juice of the grape, bloodshed

Should you then possess
תִּירָֽשׁוּ׃ (tî·rā·šū)
Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person masculine plural
Strong's 3423: To occupy, to seize, to rob, to inherit, to expel, to impoverish, to ruin

the land?
וְהָאָ֖רֶץ (wə·hā·’ā·reṣ)
Conjunctive waw, Article | Noun - feminine singular
Strong's 776: Earth, land


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OT Prophets: Ezekiel 33:25 Therefore tell them Thus says the Lord (Ezek. Eze Ezk)
Ezekiel 33:24
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