Ezekiel 20 · Verse 1

Ezekiel 20:1

And it came to pass in the seventh year, in the fifth month, the tenth day of the month, that certain of the elders of Israel came to enquire of the Lord, and sat before me.
Ezekiel 20:1, King James Version

Ezekiel 20:1 in other translations

BSBIn the seventh year, on the tenth day of the fifth month, some of the elders of Israel came to inquire of the LORD, and they sat down before me.
WEBIn the seventh year, in the fifth month, the tenth day of the month, some of the elders of Israel came to inquire of the LORD, and sat before me.
ASVAnd it came to pass in the seventh year, in the fifth month, the tenth day of the month, that certain of the elders of Israel came to inquire of Jehovah, and sat before me.
YLTAnd it cometh to pass, in the seventh year, in the fifth month, in the tenth of the month, come in have certain of the elders of Israel to seek Jehovah, and they sit before me;
DARBYAnd it came to pass in the seventh year, in the fifth month, the tenth of the month, that certain of the elders of Israel came to inquire of Jehovah, and they sat before me.
BBENow it came about in the seventh year, in the fifth month, on the tenth day of the month, that certain of the responsible men of Israel came to get directions from the Lord and were seated before me.
WebsterAnd it came to pass in the seventh year, in the fifth month, the tenth day of the month, that certain of the elders of Israel came to inquire of the LORD, and sat before me.

What does Ezekiel 20:1 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown

Eze 20:1-49. Rejection of the Elders' Application to the Prophet:

Exposure of Israel's Protracted Rebellions, notwithstanding God's Long-suffering Goodness: Yet Will God Restore His People at Last. 1. seventh year, &c.--namely, from the carrying away of Jeconiah (Eze 1:2; 8:1). This computation was calculated to make them cherish the more ardently the hope of the restoration promised them in seventy years; for, when prospects are hopeless, years are not computed [Calvin]. elders ... came to inquire--The object of their inquiry, as in Eze 14:1, is not stated; probably it was to ascertain the cause of the national calamities and the time of their termination, as their false prophets assured them of a speedy restoration.

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

Adam Clarke's Commentary

Introduction

A deputation of the elders of Israel, as usual, in their distress, came to request Ezekiel to ask counsel of God, Eze 20:1. In reply to this, God commands the prophet to put them in mind of their rebellion and idolatry: In Egypt, Eze 20:2-9, in the wilderness, vv. 10-27, and in Canaan, Eze 20:28-32. Notwithstanding which the Lord most graciously promises to restore them to their own land, after they should be purged from their dross, Eze 20:33-44. The five last verses of this chapter ought to begin the next, as they are connected with the subject of that chapter, being a prophecy against Jerusalem, which lay to the south of Chaldea, where the prophet then was, and which here and elsewhere is represented under the emblem of a forest doomed to be destroyed by fire, Eze 20:45-49. Verse 1 In the seventh year - Of the captivity of Jeconiah, (see Eze 8:1), and the seventh of the reign of Zedekiah. The fifth month, the tenth day - That is, according to Abp. Usher, Monday, August 27, A.M. 3411. Certain of the elders of Israel - What these came to inquire about is not known. They were doubtless hypocrites and deceivers, from the manner in which God commands the prophet to treat them. It seems to have been such a deputation of elders as those mentioned Eze 8:1; Eze 14:1.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Ezekiel 20:1-9
The elders of Israel are reminded of the idolatry in Egypt. (Ezek 20:1-9) In the wilderness. (Ezek 20:10-26) In Canaan. (Ezek 20:27-32) God promises to pardon and restore them. (Ezek 20:33-44) Prophecy against Jerusalem. (Ezek 20:45-49) Verses 1-9 . Those hearts are wretchedly hardened which ask God leave to go on in sin, and that even when suffering for it; see Ezek 20:32. God is justly angry with those who are resolved to go on still in their trespasses. Cause the people to know the evil deeds of their fathers, that they may see how righteous it was with God to cut them off.

Matthew Henry, 1706 · public domain

Ezekiel 20:1 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.

וַיְהִ֣י\׀vay.Hiand it wasH1961
בַּשָּׁנָ֣הba.sha.Nahin the yearH8141
הַשְּׁבִיעִ֗יתha.she.vi.'It<the> seventhH7637
בַּֽחֲמִשִׁי֙ba.cha.mi.Shiin the fifth [month]H2549
בֶּעָשׂ֣וֹרbe.'a.Soron the tenH6218
לַחֹ֔דֶשׁla.Cho.deshof the monthH2320
בָּ֧אוּBa.'uthey cameH935
אֲנָשִׁ֛ים'a.na.ShimmenH582
מִזִּקְנֵ֥יmi.zik.Neifrom [the] elders ofH2205
יִשְׂרָאֵ֖לYis.ra.'ElIsraelH3478
לִדְרֹ֣שׁlid.Roshto consultH1875
אֶת\־'et-<obj.>H853
יְהוָ֑הYah.wehYahwehH3068
וַיֵּשְׁב֖וּvai.ye.she.Vuand they sat downH3427
לְפָנָֽי\׃\ \סle.fa.Nai<to> before meH6440

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

Cross references for Ezekiel 20:1

  • Ezekiel 8:1

    And it came to pass in the sixth year, in the sixth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I sat in mine house, and the elders of Judah sat before me, that the hand of the Lord God fell there upon me.

  • Ezekiel 40:1

    In the five and twentieth year of our captivity, in the beginning of the year, in the tenth day of the month, in the fourteenth year after that the city was smitten, in the selfsame day the hand of the Lord was upon me, and brought me thither.

  • Ezekiel 24:1

    Again in the ninth year, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

  • Ezekiel 29:17

    And it came to pass in the seven and twentieth year, in the first month, in the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

  • Ezekiel 26:1

    And it came to pass in the eleventh year, in the first day of the month, that the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

  • Ezekiel 29:1

    In the tenth year, in the tenth month, in the twelfth day of the month, the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

  • Ezekiel 32:1

    And it came to pass in the twelfth year, in the twelfth month, in the first day of the month, that the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

  • Ezekiel 30:20

    And it came to pass in the eleventh year, in the first month, in the seventh day of the month, that the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

  • Ezekiel 31:1

    And it came to pass in the eleventh year, in the third month, in the first day of the month, that the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

  • Acts 22:3

    I am verily a man which am a Jew, born in Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, yet brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, and taught according to the perfect manner of the law of the fathers, and was zealous toward God, as ye all are this day.

  • 1 Kings 14:2-6

    And Jeroboam said to his wife, Arise, I pray thee, and disguise thyself, that thou be not known to be the wife of Jeroboam; and get thee to Shiloh: behold, there is Ahijah the prophet, which told me that I should be king over this people. And take with thee ten loaves, and cracknels, and a cruse of honey, and go to him: he shall tell thee what shall become of the child. And Jeroboam’s wife did so, and arose, and went to Shiloh, and came to the house of Ahijah. But Ahijah could not see; for his eyes were set by reason of his age. And the Lord said unto Ahijah, Behold, the wife of Jeroboam cometh to ask a thing of thee for her son; for he is sick: thus and thus shalt thou say unto her: for it shall be, when she cometh in, that she shall feign herself to be another woman. …

  • Isaiah 29:13

    Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men:

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

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
1 God refuses to be consulted by the elders of Israel.
4 He shews the story of their rebellions in Egypt,
10 in the wilderness,
27 and in the land.
33 He promises to gather them by the Gospel.
45 Under the name of a forest he shews the destruction of Jerusalem.

A.M. 3411. B.C. 593. in the seventh.The seventh year of the captivity of Jeconiah, and according to Usher, Monday, Aug. 27, 3411.
1:2; 8:1; 24:1; 26:1; 29:1,17; 30:20; 31:1; 32:1; 40:1
that certain.
14:1-3; 33:30-33; 1Ki 14:2-6; 22:15-28; 2Ki 3:13; Isa 29:13; 58:2
Jer 37:17; Mt 22:16
and sat.
8:1; Lu 2:46; 8:35; 10:39; Ac 22:3

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

Context

  • Ezekiel 20:1

    And it came to pass in the seventh year, in the fifth month, the tenth day of the month, that certain of the elders of Israel came to enquire of the Lord, and sat before me.

  • Ezekiel 20:2

    Then came the word of the Lord unto me, saying,

Read all of Ezekiel 20

Ezekiel 20:1 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Y ACONTECIÓ en el año séptimo, en el mes quinto, á los diez del mes, que vinieron algunos de los ancianos de Israel á consultar á Jehová, y sentáronse delante de mí.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		*Et il arriva, la septième année, au cinquième mois, le dixième jour du mois, que des hommes d’entre les anciens d’Israël vinrent pour consulter l’ Éternel; et ils s’assirent devant moi.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Und es geschah im siebten Jahre, im fünften Monat, am Zehnten des Monats, da kamen Männer von den Ältesten Israels, um Jehova zu befragen; und sie setzten sich vor mir nieder.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Et factum est in anno septimo, in quinto, in decima mensis, venerunt viri de senioribus Israël ut interrogarent Dominum, et sederunt coram me.