Ezekiel 19 · Verse 2

Ezekiel 19:2

And say, What is thy mother? A lioness: she lay down among lions, she nourished her whelps among young lions.
Ezekiel 19:2, King James Version

Ezekiel 19:2 in other translations

BSBand say: ‘What was your mother? A lioness among the lions! She lay down among the young lions; she reared her cubs.
WEBand say, ‘What was your mother? A lioness. She couched among lions, in the middle of the young lions she nourished her cubs.
ASVand say, What was thy mother? A lioness: she couched among lions, in the midst of the young lions she nourished her whelps.
YLTand thou hast said: What is thy mother? --a lioness, Among lions she hath crouched down, In the midst of young lions she hath multiplied her whelps.
DARBYand say, What was thy mother? A lioness: she lay down among lions, she nourished her whelps in the midst of the young lions.
BBEWhat was your mother? Like a she-lion among lions, stretched out among the young lions she gave food to her little ones.
WebsterAnd say, What is thy mother: A lioness: she lay down among lions, she nourished her whelps among young lions.

What does Ezekiel 19:2 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
2. thy mother--the mother of Jehoiachin, the representative of David's line in exile with Ezekiel. The "mother" is Judea: "a lioness," as being fierce in catching prey (Eze 19:3), referring to her heathenish practices. Jerusalem was called Ariel (the lion of God) in a good sense (Is 29:1); and Judah "a lion's whelp ... a lion ... an old lion" (Ge 49:9), to which, as also to Nu 23:24; 24:9, this passage alludes. nourished ... among young lions--She herself had "lain" among lions, that is, had intercourse with the corruptions of the surrounding heathen and had brought up the royal young ones similarly: utterly degenerate from the stock of Abraham. Lay down--or "couched," is appropriate to the lion, the Arab name of which means "the coucher."

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 2 What is thy mother? A lioness - Judea may here be the mother; the lioness, Jerusalem. Her lying down among lions, her having confederacy with the neighboring kings; for lion here means king.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Ezekiel 19:1-9

A parable lamenting the ruin of Jehoahaz and Jehoiakim. (Ezek 19:1-9) Another describing the desolation of the people. (Ezek 19:10-14) Verses 1-9 Ezekiel is to compare the kingdom of Judah to a lioness. He must compare the kings of Judah to a lion's whelps; they were cruel and oppressive to their own subjects. The righteousness of God is to be acknowledged, when those who have terrified and enslaved others, are…

Read the full comment on Ezekiel 19:1-9 →

Ezekiel 19:2 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וְאָמַרְתָּ֗ve.'a.mar.Taand you will sayH559
מָ֤הmahwhat?H4100
אִמְּךָ֙'i.me.Kha[was] mother yourH517
לְבִיָּ֔אle.vi.Ya'a lionessH3833
בֵּ֥יןbeinbetweenH996
אֲרָי֖וֹת'a.ra.YotlionsH738
רָבָ֑צָהra.Va.tzahshe lay downH7257
בְּת֥וֹךְbe.Tokhin amongH8432
כְּפִרִ֖יםke.fi.Rimyoung lionsH3715
רִבְּתָ֥הri.be.Tahshe rearedH7235
גוּרֶֽיהָ\׃gu.Rei.hacubs herH1482

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Ezekiel 19:2

  • Isaiah 5:29

    Their roaring shall be like a lion, they shall roar like young lions: yea, they shall roar, and lay hold of the prey, and shall carry it away safe, and none shall deliver it.

  • Psalms 58:6

    Break their teeth, O God, in their mouth: break out the great teeth of the young lions, O Lord.

  • Zechariah 11:3

    There is a voice of the howling of the shepherds; for their glory is spoiled: a voice of the roaring of young lions; for the pride of Jordan is spoiled.

  • Nahum 2:11-12

    Where is the dwelling of the lions, and the feedingplace of the young lions, where the lion, even the old lion, walked, and the lion’s whelp, and none made them afraid? The lion did tear in pieces enough for his whelps, and strangled for his lionesses, and filled his holes with prey, and his dens with ravin.

  • Zephaniah 3:1-4

    Woe to her that is filthy and polluted, to the oppressing city! She obeyed not the voice; she received not correction; she trusted not in the Lord; she drew not near to her God. Her princes within her are roaring lions; her judges are evening wolves; they gnaw not the bones till the morrow. Her prophets are light and treacherous persons: her priests have polluted the sanctuary, they have done violence to the law.

  • Isaiah 11:6-9

    The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together: and the lion shall eat straw like the ox. And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice’ den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.

  • Job 4:11

    The old lion perisheth for lack of prey, and the stout lion’s whelps are scattered abroad.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
A lioness.Judea, which possessed strength, courage, and sovereignty.
Na 2:11,12; Zep 3:1-4
she lay.Had confederacy with the neighbouring kings, and learned their manners.
her whelps.The sons of Josiah, who learned to be oppressive tyrants from the surrounding princes.
young lions.
Job 4:11; Ps 58:6; Isa 5:29; 11:6-9; Zec 11:3

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Ezekiel 19:1

    Moreover take thou up a lamentation for the princes of Israel,

  • Ezekiel 19:2

    And say, What is thy mother? A lioness: she lay down among lions, she nourished her whelps among young lions.

  • Ezekiel 19:3

    And she brought up one of her whelps: it became a young lion, and it learned to catch the prey; it devoured men.

Read all of Ezekiel 19

Ezekiel 19:2 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Y dirás: ¡Cómo se echó entre los leones tu madre la leona! entre los leoncillos crió sus cachorros.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		et dis: Qu’était ta mère? Une lionne couchée parmi les lions, élevant ses petits au milieu des lionceaux.
German
Elberfelder 1871		und sprich: Welch eine Löwin war deine Mutter! Zwischen Löwen lagerte sie, unter jungen Löwen zog sie ihre Jungen groß.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		et dices: Quare mater tua leæna inter leones cubavit? in medio leunculorum enutrivit catulos suos?