Ezekiel 23 · Verse 5

Ezekiel 23:5

And Aholah played the harlot when she was mine; and she doted on her lovers, on the Assyrians her neighbours,
Ezekiel 23:5, King James Version

Ezekiel 23:5 in other translations

BSBOholah prostituted herself while she was still Mine. She lusted after her lovers, the Assyrians—warriors
WEB“Oholah played the prostitute when she was mine. She doted on her lovers, on the Assyrians her neighbors,
ASVAnd Oholah played the harlot when she was mine; and she doted on her lovers, on the Assyrians her neighbors,
YLTAnd go a-whoring doth Aholah under Me, And she doteth on her lovers, On the neighbouring Assyrians,
DARBYAnd Oholah played the harlot when she was mine; and she lusted after her lovers, after the Assyrians her neighbours,
BBEAnd Oholah was untrue to me when she was mine; she was full of desire for her lovers, even for the Assyrians, her neighbours,
WebsterAnd Aholah played the harlot when she was mine; and she doted on her lovers, on the Assyrians her neighbors.

What does Ezekiel 23:5 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
5. when ... mine--literally, "under Me," that is, subject to Me as her lawful husband. neighbours--On the northeast the kingdom of Israel bordered on that of Assyria; for the latter had occupied much of Syria. Their neighborhood in locality was emblematical of their being near in corruption of morals and worship. The alliances of Israel with Assyria, which are the chief subject of reprobation here, tended to this (2Ki 15:19; 16:7, 9; 17:3; Ho 8:9).

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

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 5 And Aholah played the harlot - Without entering into detail here, or following the figures, they both became idolatrous, and received the impure rites of the Egyptians, Assyrians, and Chaldeans, of which connection the prophet speaks here as he did in chap. 16, which see. In this chapter there are many of what we would call indelicate expressions, because a parallel is run between idolatry and prostitution, and the circumstances of the latter illustrate the peculiarities of the former. In such cases, perhaps, the matter alone was given to the prophet, and he was left to use his own language, and amplify as he saw good. Ezekiel was among the Jews what Juvenal was among the Romans, - a rough reprover of the most abominable vices. They both spoke of things as they found them; stripped vice naked, and scourged it publicly. The original is still more rough than the translation; and surely there is no need of a comment to explain imagery that is but too generally understood. I have said enough on Ezekiel 16, and to that I must refer the reader. It is true that there are a few things here in the shade that might be illustrated by anatomy; and it would not be difficult to do it: but they are not necessary to salvation, and I shall not take off the covering. They were sufficiently understood by those for whose use they were originally designed.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Ezekiel 23:5 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.

וַתִּ֥זֶןva.Ti.zenand she acted as a prostituteH2181
אָהֳלָ֖ה'o.ho.LahOholahH170
תַּחְתָּ֑יtach.Taiunder meH8478
וַתַּעְגַּב֙va.ta'.Gavand she lustedH5689
עַֽל\־'al-onH5921
מְאַהֲבֶ֔יהָme.'a.ha.Vei.halovers herH157
אֶל\־'el-toH413
אַשּׁ֖וּר'a.ShurAssyriaH804
קְרוֹבִֽים\׃ke.ro.Vim[were] warriorsH7138

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

Cross references for Ezekiel 23:5

  • 2 Kings 17:3

    Against him came up Shalmaneser king of Assyria; and Hoshea became his servant, and gave him presents.

  • Hosea 5:13

    When Ephraim saw his sickness, and Judah saw his wound, then went Ephraim to the Assyrian, and sent to king Jareb: yet could he not heal you, nor cure you of your wound.

  • 2 Kings 15:19

    And Pul the king of Assyria came against the land: and Menahem gave Pul a thousand talents of silver, that his hand might be with him to confirm the kingdom in his hand.

  • 2 Kings 16:7

    So Ahaz sent messengers to Tiglath–pileser king of Assyria, saying, I am thy servant and thy son: come up, and save me out of the hand of the king of Syria, and out of the hand of the king of Israel, which rise up against me.

  • 2 Kings 17:7-18

    For so it was, that the children of Israel had sinned against the Lord their God, which had brought them up out of the land of Egypt, from under the hand of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and had feared other gods, And walked in the statutes of the heathen, whom the Lord cast out from before the children of Israel, and of the kings of Israel, which they had made. And the children of Israel did secretly those things that were not right against the Lord their God, and they built them high places in all their cities, from the tower of the watchmen to the fenced city. And they set them up images and groves in every high hill, and under every green tree: …

  • Hosea 8:9-10

    For they are gone up to Assyria, a wild ass alone by himself: Ephraim hath hired lovers. Yea, though they have hired among the nations, now will I gather them, and they shall sorrow a little for the burden of the king of princes.

  • Ezekiel 16:28

    Thou hast played the whore also with the Assyrians, because thou wast unsatiable; yea, thou hast played the harlot with them, and yet couldest not be satisfied.

  • Jeremiah 50:38

    A drought is upon her waters; and they shall be dried up: for it is the land of graven images, and they are mad upon their idols.

  • Ezekiel 23:12

    She doted upon the Assyrians her neighbours, captains and rulers clothed most gorgeously, horsemen riding upon horses, all of them desirable young men.

  • Ezekiel 23:16

    And as soon as she saw them with her eyes, she doted upon them, and sent messengers unto them into Chaldea.

  • 1 Kings 16:31-32

    And it came to pass, as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, that he took to wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Zidonians, and went and served Baal, and worshipped him. And he reared up an altar for Baal in the house of Baal, which he had built in Samaria.

  • Ezekiel 23:9

    Wherefore I have delivered her into the hand of her lovers, into the hand of the Assyrians, upon whom she doted.

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

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Aholah.The Israelites, in addition to their former gross idolatries, received the impure idolatrous worship of the Assyrians, who became their neighbours by the conquest of Syria.
1Ki 14:9,16; 15:26,30; 16:31,32; 21:26; 2Ki 17:7-18
doted.
7,9,12,16,20; 16:37; Jer 50:38
on the.
16:28; 2Ki 15:19; 16:7; 17:3; Ho 5:13; 8:9,10; 10:6; 12:1

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

Context

  • Ezekiel 23:4

    And the names of them were Aholah the elder, and Aholibah her sister: and they were mine, and they bare sons and daughters. Thus were their names; Samaria is Aholah, and Jerusalem Aholibah.

  • Ezekiel 23:5

    And Aholah played the harlot when she was mine; and she doted on her lovers, on the Assyrians her neighbours,

  • Ezekiel 23:6

    Which were clothed with blue, captains and rulers, all of them desirable young men, horsemen riding upon horses.

Read all of Ezekiel 23

Ezekiel 23:5 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Y Aholah cometió fornicación en mi poder: y prendóse de sus amantes, los Asirios sus vecinos,
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Et Ohola, étant à moi, se prostitua et se passionna pour ses amants, pour les Assyriens, ses voisins,
German
Elberfelder 1871		Und Ohola hurte, als sie unter mir war. Und sie entbrannte gegen ihre Buhlen, gegen die Assyrer, die nahe waren,
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Fornicata est igitur super me Oolla, et insanivit in amatores suos, in Assyrios propinquantes,