“Son of man, turn and face Jerusalem and prophesy against Israel and her sanctuaries.
Parallel translations
- WEB “Son of man, set your face toward Jerusalem, and preach toward the sanctuaries, and prophesy against the land of Israel.
- KJV Son of man, set thy face toward Jerusalem, and drop thy word toward the holy places, and prophesy against the land of Israel,
- BSB “Son of man, set your face against Jerusalem and preach against the sanctuaries. Prophesy against the land of Israel
- NKJV “Son of man, set your face toward Jerusalem, preach against the holy places, and prophesy against the land of Israel;
- NASB “Son of man, set your face against Jerusalem, and speak prophetically against the sanctuaries and prophesy against the land of Israel;
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
God directs Ezekiel to set his face toward Jerusalem and prophesy against its sanctuaries and the land of Israel. The judgment is now named plainly: Jerusalem itself.
Overview
What was symbolized as the 'south' and the 'forest' is now identified directly as Jerusalem, its temple, and the land. Even the sanctuaries are not exempt, for the people had defiled them with idolatry. The directness of this oracle leaves no room for the people to dismiss the warning as mere parable.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 16
- Ezek 20:46“Son of man, set your face toward the south, and preach toward the south, and prophesy against the forest of the field in the South;
- Ezek 4:7You shall set your face toward the siege of Jerusalem, with your arm uncovered; and you shall prophesy against it.
- Ezek 28:21Son of man, set your face toward Sidon, and prophesy against it,
- Ezek 25:2Son of man, set your face toward the children of Ammon, and prophesy against them:
- Jer 26:11–12Then spoke the priests and the prophets to the princes and to all the people, saying, “This man is worthy of death; for he has prophesied against this city, as you have heard with your ears.”
- Ezek 36:1You, son of man, prophesy to the mountains of Israel, and say, You mountains of Israel, hear Yahweh’s word.
- Mic 2:11If a man walking in a spirit of falsehood lies: “I will prophesy to you of wine and of strong drink”; he would be the prophet of this people.
- Mic 2:6“Don’t prophesy!” They prophesy. “Don’t prophesy about these things. Disgrace won’t overtake us.”
- Ezek 6:2“Son of man, set your face toward the mountains of Israel, and prophesy to them,
- Amos 7:16Now therefore listen to Yahweh’s word: ‘You say, Don’t prophesy against Israel, and don’t preach against the house of Isaac.’
- Ezek 4:3Take for yourself an iron pan, and set it for a wall of iron between you and the city: and set your face toward it. It shall be besieged, and you shall lay siege against it. This shall be a sign to the house of Israel.
- Eph 6:19on my behalf, that utterance may be given to me in opening my mouth, to make known with boldness the mystery of the Good News,
- Ezek 38:2Son of man, set your face toward Gog, of the land of Magog, the prince of Rosh, Meshech, and Tubal, and prophesy against him,
- Acts 6:13–14and set up false witnesses who said, “This man never stops speaking blasphemous words against this holy place and the law.
- Ezek 29:2“Son of man, set your face against Pharaoh king of Egypt, and prophesy against him and against all Egypt.
- Deut 32:2My doctrine will drop as the rain. My speech will condense as the dew, as the misty rain on the tender grass, as the showers on the herb.
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Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
The promise of one Shepherd-King David, a new heart and new Spirit, and the river of life flowing from the temple all stream toward Christ, the good Shepherd who gives the Spirit.
How Ezekiel 21:2 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.