Limitless Word
Son of man, set thy face against Zidon, and prophesy against it,
Ezekiel 28:21 · King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB Son of man, set your face toward Sidon, 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 6:2Son of man, set thy face toward the mountains of Israel, and prophesy against them,
  • Gen 10:15And Canaan begat Sidon his first born, and Heth,
  • Ezek 27:8The inhabitants of Zidon and Arvad were thy mariners: thy wise men, O Tyrus, that were in thee, were thy pilots.
  • Jer 25:22And all the kings of Tyrus, and all the kings of Zidon, and the kings of the isles which are beyond the sea,
  • Ezek 25:2Son of man, set thy face against the Ammonites, and prophesy against them;
  • Jer 27:3And send them to the king of Edom, and to the king of Moab, and to the king of the Ammonites, and to the king of Tyrus, and to the king of Zidon, by the hand of the messengers which come to Jerusalem unto Zedekiah king of Judah;
  • Isa 23:2–4Be still, ye inhabitants of the isle; thou whom the merchants of Zidon, that pass over the sea, have replenished.
  • Joel 3:4–8Yea, and what have ye to do with me, O Tyre, and Zidon, and all the coasts of Palestine? will ye render me a recompence? and if ye recompense me, swiftly and speedily will I return your recompence upon your own head;
  • Ezek 32:30There be the princes of the north, all of them, and all the Zidonians, which are gone down with the slain; with their terror they are ashamed of their might; and they lie uncircumcised with them that be slain by the sword, and bear their shame with them that go down to the pit.
  • Ezek 29:2Son of man, set thy face against Pharaoh king of Egypt, and prophesy against him, and against all Egypt:
  • Zech 9:2And Hamath also shall border thereby; Tyrus, and Zidon, though it be very wise.
  • Isa 23:12And he said, Thou shalt no more rejoice, O thou oppressed virgin, daughter of Zidon: arise, pass over to Chittim; there also shalt thou have no rest.
  • Jer 47:4Because of the day that cometh to spoil all the Philistines, and to cut off from Tyrus and Zidon every helper that remaineth: for the LORD will spoil the Philistines, the remnant of the country of Caphtor.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (1)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Ezekiel videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Ezekiel 28:21YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on EzekielMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    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.