The voice said to me, “Son of man, eat what I am giving you—eat this scroll! Then go and give its message to the people of Israel.”
Parallel translations
- WEB He said to me, “Son of man, eat what you find. Eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel.”
- KJV Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, eat that thou findest; eat this roll, and go speak unto the house of Israel.
- BSB “Son of man,” He said to me, “eat what you find here. Eat this scroll, then go and speak to the house of Israel.”
- NKJV Moreover He said to me, “Son of man, eat what you find; eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel.”
- NASB Then He said to me, “Son of man, eat what you find; eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house 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 commands Ezekiel to eat the scroll and then go speak to Israel. He must consume God's word before he proclaims it.
Overview
Eating the scroll symbolizes thoroughly receiving and internalizing God's message. Only after taking the word in is Ezekiel sent to speak it to the house of Israel. True proclamation flows from a heart filled with God's word. This models how every preacher must first be nourished by the word he delivers.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Rev 10:9–10I went to the angel, telling him to give me the little book. He said to me, “Take it, and eat it up. It will make your stomach bitter, but in your mouth it will be as sweet as honey.”
- Ezek 3:17–21“Son of man, I have made you a watchman to the house of Israel. Therefore hear the word from my mouth, and warn them from me.
- Ezek 2:8–9But you, son of man, hear what I tell you. Don’t be rebellious like that rebellious house. Open your mouth, and eat that which I give you.”
- 1 Tim 4:15Be diligent in these things. Give yourself wholly to them, that your progress may be revealed to all.
- Ezek 3:15Then I came to them of the captivity at Tel Aviv, that lived by the river Chebar, and to where they lived; and I sat there overwhelmed among them seven days.
- Jer 24:1–7Yahweh showed me, and behold, two baskets of figs set before Yahweh’s temple, after that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had carried away captive Jeconiah the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, and the princes of Judah, with the craftsmen and smiths, from Jerusalem, and had brought them to Babylon.
- Ezek 2:3He said to me, “Son of man, I send you to the children of Israel, to a nation of rebels who have rebelled against me. They and their fathers have transgressed against me even to this very day.
- Ezek 3:10–11Moreover he said to me, “Son of man, all my words that I shall speak to you receive in your heart, and hear with your ears.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Commentaries & study tools
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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 3:1 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.