Son of man, set your face toward Sidon, and prophesy against it,
Parallel translations
- KJV Son of man, set thy face against Zidon, and prophesy against it,
- BSB “Son of man, set your face against Sidon and prophesy against her.
- NKJV “Son of man, set your face toward Sidon, and prophesy against her,
- NASB “Son of man, set your face toward Sidon, prophesy against her
- NLT “Son of man, turn and face the city of Sidon and prophesy against it.
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 tells Ezekiel to face Sidon and prophesy against it. The prophet is commissioned to deliver judgment on the city.
Overview
"Set your face toward" is a prophetic gesture of confrontation, marking Sidon as the target of God's word. Sidon, a Phoenician center of idolatry and a foe of Israel, now comes under divine scrutiny. The command shows the prophet as God's appointed mouthpiece against the nations.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- Ezek 6:2“Son of man, set your face toward the mountains of Israel, and prophesy to them,
- Gen 10:15Canaan became the father of Sidon (his firstborn), Heth,
- Ezek 27:8The inhabitants of Sidon and Arvad were your rowers: your wise men, Tyre, were in you, they were your pilots.
- Jer 25:22and all the kings of Tyre, and all the kings of Sidon, and the kings of the isle which is beyond the sea;
- Ezek 25:2Son of man, set your face toward the children of Ammon, and prophesy against them:
- Jer 27:3Then send them to the king of Edom, and to the king of Moab, and to the king of the children of Ammon, and to the king of Tyre, and to the king of Sidon, by the hand of the messengers who come to Jerusalem to Zedekiah king of Judah.
- Isa 23:2–4Be still, you inhabitants of the coast, you whom the merchants of Sidon, that pass over the sea, have replenished.
- Joel 3:4–8“Yes, and what are you to me, Tyre, and Sidon, and all the regions of Philistia? Will you repay me? And if you repay me, I will swiftly and speedily return your repayment on your own head.
- Ezek 32:30There are the princes of the north, all of them, and all the Sidonians, who are gone down with the slain; in the terror which they caused by their might they are put to shame; and they lie uncircumcised with those who are slain by the sword, and bear their shame with those who go down to the pit.
- Ezek 29:2“Son of man, set your face against Pharaoh king of Egypt, and prophesy against him and against all Egypt.
- Zech 9:2and Hamath, also, which borders on it; Tyre and Sidon, because they are very wise.
- Isa 23:12He said, “You shall rejoice no more, you oppressed virgin daughter of Sidon. Arise, pass over to Kittim. Even there you will have no rest.”
- Jer 47:4because of the day that comes to destroy all the Philistines, to cut off from Tyre and Sidon every helper who remains; for Yahweh will destroy the Philistines, the remnant of the isle of Caphtor.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
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 28:21 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.