Ezekiel 21 · Verse 14

Ezekiel 21:14

Thou therefore, son of man, prophesy, and smite thine hands together, and let the sword be doubled the third time, the sword of the slain: it is the sword of the great men that are slain, which entereth into their privy chambers.
Ezekiel 21:14, King James Version

Ezekiel 21:14 in other translations

BSB‘So then, son of man, prophesy and strike your hands together. Let the sword strike two times, even three. It is a sword that slays, a sword of great slaughter closing in on every side!
WEB“You therefore, son of man, prophesy, and strike your hands together. Let the sword be doubled the third time, the sword of the fatally wounded. It is the sword of the great one who is fatally wounded, which enters into their rooms.
ASVThou therefore, son of man, prophesy, and smite thy hands together; and let the sword be doubled the third time, the sword of the deadly wounded: it is the sword of the great one that is deadly wounded, which entereth into their chambers.
YLTAnd thou, son of man, prophesy, And smite hand on hand, And bent is the sword a third time, The sword of the wounded! It is the sword of the wounded--the great one, That is entering the inner chamber to them.
DARBYAnd thou, son of man, prophesy, and smite thy hands together; for the strokes of the sword shall be doubled the third time: it is the sword of the slain, the sword that hath slain the great one, which encompasseth them privily.
BBESo then, son of man, be a prophet, and put your hands together with a loud sound, and give two blows with the sword, and even three; it is the sword of those who are wounded, even the sword of the wounded; the great sword which goes round about them.
WebsterThou therefore, son of man, prophesy, and smite thy hands together, and let the sword be doubled the third time, the sword of the slain: it is the sword of the great men that are slain, which entereth into their private chambers.

What does Ezekiel 21:14 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
14. smite ... hands together--(Nu 24:10), indicative of the indignant fury with which God will "smite" the people. sword ... doubled the third time--referring to the threefold calamity:--(1) The taking of Zedekiah (to whom the "rod," or scepter, may refer); (2) the taking of the city; (3) the removal of all those who remained with Gedaliah. "Doubled" means "multiplied" or "repeated." The stroke shall be doubled and even trebled. of the slain--that is, by which many are slain. As the Hebrew is singular, Fairbairn makes it refer to the king, "the sword of the great one that is slain," or "pierced through." entereth ... privy chambers--(Jr 9:21). The sword shall overtake them, not merely in the open battlefield, but in the chambers whither they flee to hide themselves (1Ki 20:30; 22:25). Maurer translates, "which besieged them"; Fairbairn, "which penetrates to them." English Version is more literal.

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

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 14 Let the sword be doubled the third time - The sword has been doubled, and it shall come the third time. Nebuchadnezzar came against Judea Thrice. 1. Against Jehoiakim. 2. Against Jeconiah. 3. Against Zedekiah. The sword had already been doubled; it is to come now the third time, i.e., against Zedekiah. The sword of the slain - חרב חללים chereb chalalim, "the sword of the soldiers," of the Chaldeans. So in the next clause, היא חרב חלל הגדול hi chereb chalal haggadol, "it is the sword of that great soldier," that eminent king and conqueror. This is the meaning of the word חלל chalal, that is so ill rendered in almost every place of its occurrence, in our Version. See Dr. Kennicott.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Ezekiel 21:1-17

The ruin of Judah under the emblem of a sharp sword. (Ezek 21:1-17) The approach of the king of Babylon described. (Ezek 21:18-27) The destruction of the Ammonites. (Ezek 21:28-32) Verses 1-17 Here is an explanation of the parable in the last chapter. It is declared that the Lord was about to cut off Jerusalem and the whole land, that all might know it was his decree against a wicked and rebellious people. It…

Read the full comment on Ezekiel 21:1-17 →

Ezekiel 21:14 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.

וְאַתָּ֣הve.'a.Tahand youH859
בֶן\־ven-O son ofH1121
אָדָ֔ם'a.DamhumankindH120
הִנָּבֵ֕אhi.na.Ve'prophesyH5012
וְהַ֖ךְve.Hakhand strikeH5221
כַּ֣ףkafpalmH3709
אֶל\־'el-toH413
כָּ֑ףKafpalmH3709
וְתִכָּפֵ֞לve.ti.ka.Felso it may be doubledH3717
חֶ֤רֶבChe.reva swordH2719
שְׁלִישִׁ֙תָה֙she.li.Shi.taha thirdH7992
חֶ֣רֶבChe.reva sword ofH2719
חֲלָלִ֔יםcha.la.Lim[those] slainH2491
הִ֗יאHi'itH1931
חֶ֚רֶבChe.rev[is] a sword ofH2719
חָלָ֣לcha.Lal[the] slainH2491
הַגָּד֔וֹלha.ga.Dol<the> greatH1419
הַחֹדֶ֖רֶתha.cho.De.retwhich surroundsH2314
לָהֶֽם\׃la.Hem<to> them

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

Cross references for Ezekiel 21:14

  • 2 Kings 24:1

    In his days Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up, and Jehoiakim became his servant three years: then he turned and rebelled against him.

  • Numbers 24:10

    And Balak’s anger was kindled against Balaam, and he smote his hands together: and Balak said unto Balaam, I called thee to curse mine enemies, and, behold, thou hast altogether blessed them these three times.

  • 2 Kings 24:10-16

    At that time the servants of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up against Jerusalem, and the city was besieged. And Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came against the city, and his servants did besiege it. And Jehoiachin the king of Judah went out to the king of Babylon, he, and his mother, and his servants, and his princes, and his officers: and the king of Babylon took him in the eighth year of his reign. And he carried out thence all the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the king’s house, and cut in pieces all the vessels of gold which Solomon king of Israel had made in the temple of the Lord, as the Lord had said. …

  • Leviticus 26:24

    Then will I also walk contrary unto you, and will punish you yet seven times for your sins.

  • Ezekiel 6:11

    Thus saith the Lord God; Smite with thine hand, and stamp with thy foot, and say, Alas for all the evil abominations of the house of Israel! for they shall fall by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence.

  • Leviticus 26:21

    And if ye walk contrary unto me, and will not hearken unto me; I will bring seven times more plagues upon you according to your sins.

  • Ezekiel 21:17

    I will also smite mine hands together, and I will cause my fury to rest: I the Lord have said it.

  • Daniel 3:19

    Then was Nebuchadnezzar full of fury, and the form of his visage was changed against Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed–nego: therefore he spake, and commanded that they should heat the furnace one seven times more than it was wont to be heated.

  • Ezekiel 8:12

    Then said he unto me, Son of man, hast thou seen what the ancients of the house of Israel do in the dark, every man in the chambers of his imagery? for they say, The Lord seeth us not; the Lord hath forsaken the earth.

  • 2 Kings 25:1-7

    And it came to pass in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, in the tenth day of the month, that Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came, he, and all his host, against Jerusalem, and pitched against it; and they built forts against it round about. And the city was besieged unto the eleventh year of king Zedekiah. And on the ninth day of the fourth month the famine prevailed in the city, and there was no bread for the people of the land. And the city was broken up, and all the men of war fled by night by the way of the gate between two walls, which is by the king’s garden: (now the Chaldees were against the city round about:) and the king went the way toward the plain. …

  • 1 Kings 22:25

    And Micaiah said, Behold, thou shalt see in that day, when thou shalt go into an inner chamber to hide thyself.

  • Amos 9:2

    Though they dig into hell, thence shall mine hand take them; though they climb up to heaven, thence will I bring them down:

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

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
smite.
17; 6:11; Nu 24:10
hands together. Heb. hand to hand. let the.
Le 26:21,24; 2Ki 24:1,10-16; 25:1-7; Da 3:19
entereth.
8:12; 1Ki 20:30; 22:25; Am 9:2

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

Context

  • Ezekiel 21:13

    Because it is a trial, and what if the sword contemn even the rod? it shall be no more, saith the Lord God.

  • Ezekiel 21:14

    Thou therefore, son of man, prophesy, and smite thine hands together, and let the sword be doubled the third time, the sword of the slain: it is the sword of the great men that are slain, which entereth into their privy chambers.

  • Ezekiel 21:15

    I have set the point of the sword against all their gates, that their heart may faint, and their ruins be multiplied: ah! it is made bright, it is wrapped up for the slaughter.

Read all of Ezekiel 21

Ezekiel 21:14 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909
Tú pues, hijo del hombre, profetiza y bate una mano con otra, y dóblese la espada la tercera vez, la espada de muertos: ésta es espada de gran matanza que los penetrará,
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885
Fils d’homme, prophétise, et dis: Ainsi dit l’ Éternel: Dis: L’épée, l’épée est aiguisée et aussi fourbie.
German
Elberfelder 1871
Menschensohn, weissage und sprich: So spricht der Herr: Sprich: Ein Schwert, ein Schwert, geschärft und auch geschliffen!
Latin
Clementine Vulgate
Tu ergo, fili hominis, propheta, et percute manu ad manum: et duplicetur gladius, ac triplicetur gladius interfectorum: hic est gladius occisionis magnæ, qui obstupescere eos facit