therefore, behold, I will deliver you to the children of the east for a possession. They will set their encampments in you, and make their dwellings in you. They will eat your fruit and they will drink your milk.
Parallel Translations
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therefore, behold, I will deliver you to the children of the east for a possession. They will set their encampments in you, and make their dwellings in you. They will eat your fruit and they will drink your milk.
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Behold, therefore I will deliver thee to the men of the east for a possession, and they shall set their palaces in thee, and make their dwellings in thee: they shall eat thy fruit, and they shall drink thy milk.
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therefore, behold, I will deliver thee to the children of the east for a possession, and they shall set their encampments in thee, and make their dwellings in thee; they shall eat thy fruit, and they shall drink thy milk.
Cross-references (15)
Passages linked to Ezekiel 25:4 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Deuteronomy 28:33 A nation which you don’t know will eat the fruit of your ground and all of your work. You will only be oppressed and crushed always,
- Judges 6:33 Then all the Midianites and the Amalekites and the children of the east assembled themselves together; and they passed over, and encamped in the valley of Jezreel.
- Deuteronomy 28:51 They will eat the fruit of your livestock and the fruit of your ground, until you are destroyed. They also won’t leave you grain, new wine, oil, the increase of your livestock, or the young of your flock, until they have caused you to perish.
- 1 Kings 4:30 Solomon’s wisdom excelled the wisdom of all the children of the east and all the wisdom of Egypt.
- Isaiah 1:7 Your country is desolate. Your cities are burned with fire. Strangers devour your land in your presence and it is desolate, as overthrown by strangers.
- Genesis 29:1 Then Jacob went on his journey, and came to the land of the children of the east.
- Leviticus 26:16 I also will do this to you: I will appoint terror over you, even consumption and fever, that shall consume the eyes, and make the soul to pine away. You will sow your seed in vain, for your enemies will eat it.
- Numbers 23:7 He took up his parable, and said, “From Aram has Balak brought me, the king of Moab from the mountains of the East. Come, curse Jacob for me. Come, defy Israel.
- Judges 6:3-6 So it was, when Israel had sown, that the Midianites, the Amalekites, and the children of the east came up against them. They encamped against them, and destroyed the increase of the earth, until you come to Gaza. They left no sustenance in Israel, and no sheep, ox, or donkey. For they came up with their livestock and their tents. They came in as locusts for multitude. Both they and their camels were without number; and they came into the land to destroy it. Israel was brought very low because of Midian; and the children of Israel cried to Yahweh.
- Judges 7:12 The Midianites and the Amalekites and all the children of the east lay along in the valley like locusts for multitude; and their camels were without number, as the sand which is on the seashore for multitude.
- Judges 8:10 Now Zebah and Zalmunna were in Karkor, and their armies with them, about fifteen thousand men, all who were left of all the army of the children of the east; for there fell one hundred twenty thousand men who drew sword.
- 2 Samuel 12:26 Now Joab fought against Rabbah of the children of Ammon, and took the royal city.
- Isaiah 32:8-9 But the noble devises noble things; and he will continue in noble things. Rise up, you women who are at ease! Hear my voice! You careless daughters, give ear to my speech!
- Isaiah 41:2 Who has raised up one from the east? Who called him to his foot in righteousness? He hands over nations to him and makes him rule over kings. He gives them like the dust to his sword, like the driven stubble to his bow.
- Isaiah 65:22 They will not build and another inhabit. They will not plant and another eat: for the days of my people will be like the days of a tree, and my chosen will long enjoy the work of their hands.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (13 sources)
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Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain They shall chase thee away, and take thy gorgeous…
They shall chase thee away, and take thy gorgeous houses to dwell in.
That is, to the Babylonians.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Eze 25:4 Behold, therefore I will deliver thee to…
Eze 25:4 Behold, therefore I will deliver thee to the men of the east for a possession, and they shall set their palaces in thee, and make their dwellings in thee: they shall eat thy fruit, and they shall drink thy milk.
Ver. 4. I will deliver thee to the men of the east.] To the Arabians, Keturah’s posterity, who were shepherds and camel masters.
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They shall eat thy fruit and drink thy milk.] Sept., πιοτητα, Thy fatness. Est enim adeps lac coagulatum. The Ammonites, as now the Flemmings, were γαλακτοφαγοι, butter boxes, as we say, and lived much upon dairy products; so do we. Let us use our plenty to God’s glory, lest we lose all.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain I, the God whom thou hast despised, whose people…
I, the God whom thou hast despised, whose people thou hast reproached, whose worship thou hast vilified, I will avenge myself, and deliver time up.
To the men of the East; the Medes and Persians, say some; the Babylonians, say others, but this suits not well with geography; Arabians, say others, associates of Nehuchadnezzar, who, it is likely, recompensed their labour and service with giving them this country when it was conquered, as it was five years after the desolation of Jerusalem.
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For a possession; they shall settle on it, as a very convenient country for their sheep and camels, and possess it, as their inheritance.
Set their palaces in thee: the word palaces seems little to agree with Arabians, who dwelt in tents, but this manner of dwelling many of them would be ready to change, where they might to so great advantage, as in that country, which was fruitful, as this was; besides, the word signifieth, what is fenced, as Isa 2:15, and is paraphrased by camp, and Arabians had their munitions and fortified camps, and these they shall set here while they stay. And I add this also, that the next words explain these.
Make their dwellings in thee; they shall set up their tents, as the word properly; their tents and habitations they would fortify in some manner or other, that in their camp they might be safe, if they did not build cities in the country.
Eat thy fruit; the fruit of that land was once thine, of the trees thou plantedst.
Drink thy milk; which in so fruitful land and rich pastures they had in abundance from the multitude of their kine, and it was a drink that well suited with those hot regions.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain Behold, therefore, I will deliver thee to the men…
Behold, therefore, I will deliver thee to the men of the east for a possession,.... The Chaldeans and Syrians, which were on the east side, as Jarchi; or the Medes and Persians, as Kimchi, which lay more eastward; or it may be the Arabians, who are commonly called the men of the east; who were a part of Nebuchadnezzar's army, and whom he might reward with this country, when taken by him; for this prophecy, according to Josephus (q), was fulfilled five years after the destruction of Jerusalem:
and they shall set their palaces in thee, and make their dwellings in thee; or, "their camps and their tents" (r); and so the Syriac version renders it, their armies and their tents; who should subdue them, and take possession of their cities and fields, and enjoy what they found there:
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they shall eat thy fruit, and drink thy milk; the fruit of their land, their vineyards and fields, and the milk of their flocks and herds, which was commonly drank in those countries; these are put for the whole of their substance. So the Targum,
"they shall eat the good of thy land, and spoil thy substance.''
(q) Antiqu. l. 16. c. 9. sect. 7. (r) "arces suas", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Polanus, Coeccius. "tentoria sua", V. L. "tabernacala sus", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Polanus, Cocceius, Starckius.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain The men of the east - The Arabians, associates…
The men of the east - The Arabians, associates of Nebuchadnezzar, who recompensed their service, with giving them this country when it was conquered, as it was five years after the desolation of Jerusalem.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 4. Will deliver thee to the men of…
Verse 4. Will deliver thee to the men of the east] Probably the Scenite Arabs, Ishmaelites, and people of Kedar, who seized upon the provinces of the vanquished Ammonites, &c. The following description suits this people only, living on fruits, the milk of their flocks, using camels, &c. Some think the people of the east mean the Chaldeans.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain Eze 25:4-7. Behold, I will deliver thee to the…
Eze 25:4-7. Behold, I will deliver thee to the men of the east — That is, to the Chaldeans, whose country lay east of the Ammonites. This people was accordingly conquered and subdued by the Chaldeans, about five years after the destruction of Jerusalem. And they shall drink thy milk — Milk was the principal sustenance of those people, whose riches consisted chiefly in their stocks of cattle. The Hebrew word חלב, however, here rendered milk, signifies also the fattest or choicest parts of any flesh or fruits. So it is used Gen 45:18, Ye shall eat the fat of the land; and Psa 81:16, where our translation reads, The finest of the wheat, in the Hebrew it is, The fat of the wheat. And this clause is rendered by the LXX., Και αυτοι πιονται τον πιοτητα σου, And they shall drink, or swallow down, thy fatness. And I will make Rabbah a stable for camels — Rabbah was the chief city of the Ammonites. What is said of it here, that it should be made a stable for camels, implies, that instead of being a city inhabited by men, it should be a place for cattle, and particularly for camels, to feed and lie down in, of which that and the neighbouring countries had great store. It is a proverbial expression for utter destruction, to say that grass grows where a town stood. Because thou hast clapped thy hands, &c. — Showed expressions of joy and satisfaction in the most insolent manner, with all thy despite against the land of Israel — With the utmost hatred and contempt of my people; I will stretch out my hand upon thee — Namely, my hand of wrath. And will deliver thee for a spoil to the heathen — Or, for meat, as the word in the Hebrew text, לבג, properly means, though the marginal reading of the Masorites is, לבז, for a prey. The greedy, covetous soldiers shall make thy wealth their prey; the hungry enemies shall eat thee up. And I will cut thee off from the people — Thou shalt no more be reckoned among the nations, but shalt cease from being a people. And thou shalt know that I am the Lord — In these words the threatenings, both in Eze 25:5 and in this verse, conclude. For thus, 1st, God would maintain his own honour, and make it appear that he was the God of Israel, though he suffered them for a time to be captives in Babylon. And, 2d, He would bring those that were strangers to him into an acquaintance with him, and it would be a blessed effect of their calamities. How much better is it to be poor and know God, than to be rich and ignorant of him!
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain East; the Chaldeans, (Sanctius) who conquered them, (Haydock) though…
East; the Chaldeans, (Sanctius) who conquered them, (Haydock) though the Scenite Arabs, who occupied the country after the inhabitants were removed, or the Armenians and Agarens, are rather meant than the Chaldeans. (Worthington)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain men of . . . east--literally, "children of the…
men of . . . east--literally, "children of the East," the nomad tribes of Arabia-Deserta, east of the Jordan and the Dead Sea.
palaces--their nomadic encampments or folds, surrounded with mud walls, are so called in irony. Where thy "palaces" once stood, there shall their very different "palaces" stand. Fulfilled after the ravaging of their region by Nebuchadnezzar, shortly after the destruction of Jerusalem (compare Eze 21:22; Jer. 49:1-28).
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 4. Men of the east — Hebrews, children of…
4. Men of the east — Hebrews, children of the east. The wandering tribes which were always near neighbors of Ammon and Israel (Jdg_6:3; Jdg_6:33; Jdg_7:12; Jdg_8:11; Job_1:3).
Palaces — R.V., “encampments.”
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 4. men of the east] lit. children of the…
4. men of the east] lit. children of the east, the nomad tribes of the Arabian desert, Jdg_6:3.
set their palaces] their encampments, Jdg_6:1-6.
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drink thy milk] Ammon, lying toward the desert, was a pastoral country.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (4) To the men of the east.—Literally, sons of…
(4) To the men of the east.—Literally, sons of the east, i.e., the various nomadic tribes inhabiting the Eastern deserts, who occupy the country to this day. They are described as its possessors, not its conquerors; the conquest was effected by Nebuchadnezzar. In Eze_21:20-23 he was represented as hesitating whether to attack first Judah or Ammon, and determined to the former by the Divine direction; in this attack some of the Ammonites joined his army, but he nevertheless afterwards carried out his purpose and desolated their country. (See Eze_21:28.)
Palaces.—The word properly means an enclosure for folding cattle. The same word is used in connection with tribes of the desert in Gen_25:16; Num_31:10, and in both is translated castles, a singularly inappropriate sense. It afterwards came to mean a dwelling-place of any kind. The Ammonites and Moabites appear to have practically constituted one nation, the latter being, for the most part, the settled, and the former the nomadic portion. After the conquest of Nebuchadnezzar the Ammonites gradually dwindled away, until lost from history. The Ptolemies founded the city Philadelphia on the site of Rabbah, and there are still extensive ruins there belonging to the period of the Roman occupation; but the Ammonites had no part in either of these successive cities. The place is now utterly without inhabitants, and the most recent traveller says, “Lonely desolation in a rich country was the striking characteristic.”
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain Vers. 4, 5The men of the east; Hebrew, children…
Vers. 4, 5The men of the east; Hebrew, children of the east. The name is applied in Gen_29:1; 1Ki_4:30; Job_1:3; Jud_1:6:3, 33 7:12 8:10, to the nomadic tribes, Midianites and others, which roamed to and fro in the wilderness east of Ammon and Moab, after the manner of the modem Bedouins, with their sheep and camels, and were looked upon as descendants of Ishmael. Palaces; better, with the Revised Version, encampments, or tent-villages. The word is found, in this sense, in Gen_25:16; Psa_69:25; Num_31:10. This was, probably, the immediate result of Nebuchadnezzar"s march. Rabbah was left undefended, and became a stable for the camels of the Midianites and other tribes. (Jud_1:6:5) The prediction has been slowly fulfilled. Under the Greece-Egyptian rule the city revived, was named after Ptolemy Philadel-phus, and was flourishing under the Roman Empire. Remains of temples, theatres, houses, are still found on its site, but its present desolate condition agrees with the picture drawn here by Ezekiel Jer_49:2. The language of Jer_49:6 impliescaptivity and a partial return from it.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.