Ezekiel 16:13 — meaning, Hebrew and Greek word study, commentary
Ezekiel 16:13
Thus wast thou decked with gold and silver; and thy raiment was of fine linen, and silk, and broidered work; thou didst eat fine flour, and honey, and oil: and thou wast exceeding beautiful, and thou didst prosper into a kingdom.
properly · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 2nd person feminine singular
prosper
וַֽתִּצְלְחִ֖יva.titz.le.Chi
H6743
to push forward · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 2nd person feminine singular
kingdom
לִמְלוּכָֽהlim.lu.Khah
H4410
something ruled · preposition + noun, common feminine singular absolute
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Deuteronomy 32:13-14 He made him ride on the high places of the earth, that he might eat the increase of the fields; and he made him to suck honey out of the roc…
1 Kings 4:21 And Solomon reigned over all kingdoms from the river unto the land of the Philistines, and unto the border of Egypt: they brought presents,…
Psalms 50:2 Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined.
Psalms 48:2 Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King.
Psalms 45:13-14 The king’s daughter is all glorious within: her clothing is of wrought gold.
Ezekiel 16:19 My meat also which I gave thee, fine flour, and oil, and honey, wherewith I fed thee, thou hast even set it before them for a sweet savour:…
Genesis 17:6 And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee.
Deuteronomy 8:8 A land of wheat, and barley, and vines, and fig trees, and pomegranates; a land of oil olive, and honey;
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Ezekiel 16:6-14
In there verses we have an account of the great things which God did for the Jewish nation in raising them up by degrees to be very considerable. 1. God saved them from the ruin they were upon the brink of in Egypt (Eze 16:6): "When I passed by thee, and saw thee polluted in thy own blood, loathed and abandoned, and appointed to die, as sheep for the slaughter, then I said unto thee, Live. I designed thee for life when thou wast doomed to destruction, and resolved to save thee from death." Those shall live to whom God commands life. God looked upon the world of mankind as thus cast off, thus cast out, thus polluted, thus weltering in blood, and his thoughts towards it were thoughts of good,…
flour . . . honey . . . oil--These three mixed form the sweetest cakes; not dry bread and leeks as in Egypt. From raiment He passes to food (Deu 32:13-14).
exceeding beautiful-- Psa 48:2, the city; also, Psa 29:2, the temple.
prosper into a kingdom--exercising empire over surrounding nations.
Adam Clarke on Ezekiel 16:13
Thus wast thou decked, etc. - The Targum understands all this of the tabernacle service, the book of the law, the sacerdotal vestments, etc.
Thou didst prosper into a kingdom - Here the figure explains itself: by this wretched infant, the low estate of the Jewish nation in its origin is pointed out; by the growing up of this child into woman's estate, the increase and multiplication of the people; by her being decked out and ornamented, her tabernacle service, and religious ordinances; by her betrothing and consequent marriage, the covenant which God made with the Jews; by her fornication and adulteries, their apostasy from God, and the establishment of idolatrous worship, with all its abomi…
Thus wast thou decked with gold and silver,.... The Targum interprets it of the tabernacle adorned with gold and silver, and linen curtains, of various dies and colours; but it refers to the ornaments, bracelets, chain, earrings, and crown before, mentioned; see Psalm 45:9;
and thy raiment was of fine linen, and silk, and broidered work; See Gill on Ezekiel 16:10; with this compare Revelation 19:8;
thou didst eat fine flour, and honey, and oil; which did not a little contribute to her beauty and comeliness; see Daniel 1:15; this the Targum explains of the manna with which the Lord fed the Israelites in the wilderness, and was good, like fine flour, and honey, and oil; and had, as Jarchi sa…
The Church Fathers
(Verse 13.) And you are adorned with gold and silver. We have often said that gold pertains to the mind, and silver to eloquence. May the Lord grant us to receive divine understanding and wisdom, and to bring forth with eloquence what we conceive in our minds, and by no means to make an idol out of them as heretics do, of whom it is written: 'I gave them silver and gold, but they made a Baal out of silver and gold' (Hosea 2:8). And this, according to spiritual understanding, is more suited to the adornment of women. Otherwise, silver, a cheaper material, is suitable for the adornment of rustic and poor maidservants, which does not befit Jerusalem, which is said to have advanced to being a queen. And you are dressed in fine linen and embroidered cloth and many colors, 70: And your clothing is made of fine linen, embroidered with multicolored thread. The Hebrew word "Mesi" here, Theodotion has translated as "bysso" above, Aquila has translated it as "ἄνθιμον," Symmachus as "polymitum." But we have said above that "polymitum" is similar to Symmachus' translation, meaning fine linen. The LXX has translated it as "trichapta," preserving the previous interpretation, in order to show a similarity to fine hair in the clothing. But all the adornment of women is described, such as bathing, cleaning, anointing with oil, and dressing in colorful garments, wearing hyacinth on their feet, girding themselves with fine linen, wearing fine and delicate clothes, wearing bracelets and a golden necklace, hanging circles on their ears, and small wheels, wearing a diadem on their head, decorated with gold and silver. Even though silver is a cheaper material and is brought in last. You are dressed in fine linen and multicolored clothes; or, as the Septuagint translated, with a cloak and a mantle, for these things signify not only that she was adorned in her physical appearance and had all the jewelry of women, but also that she was attentive to her bed and couch with marital diligence, so that after fulfilling these things, she would come to the delights of food, and not allow anything to be lacking even in these things. We will adapt all these things according to the higher explanation of spiritual intelligence: so that they may be covered with a fine fabric and delicate, so as not to burden the delicate limbs of the spouse with a heavy load of garments, but also to provide both…
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
Dictionary and topics
Dress — (1.) Materials used. The earliest and simplest an apron of fig-leaves sewed together (Gen. 3:7); then skins of animals (3:21). Elijah’s dress was probably the skin of a sheep (2 Kings 1:8). The…
Fornication — In every form of it was sternly condemned by the Mosaic law (Lev. 21:9; 19:29; Deut. 22:20, 21, 23-29; 23:18; Ex. 22:16). (See ADULTERY.) But this word is more frequently used in a symbolical than in…
Oil — Only olive oil seems to have been used among the Hebrews. It was used for many purposes: for anointing the body or the hair (Ex. 29:7; 2 Sam. 14:2; Ps. 23:5; 92:10; 104:15; Luke 7:46); in some of the…
Silk — Heb. demeshek, “damask,” silk cloth manufactured at Damascus, Amos 3:12. A.V., “in the corner of a bed, and in Damascus in a couch;” R.V., “in the corner of a couch, and on the silken cushions of a…
Solomon, Song of — Called also, after the Vulgate, the “Canticles.” It is the “song of songs” (1:1), as being the finest and most precious of its kind; the noblest song, “das Hohelied,” as Luther calls it. The…
Zedekiah — Righteousness of Jehovah. (1.) The last king of Judah. He was the third son of Josiah, and his mother’s name was Hamutal, the daughter of Jeremiah of Libnah, and hence he was the brother of Jehoahaz…
Bride · FIGURATIVE — FIGURATIVE
Bridegroom · FIGURATIVE — FIGURATIVE
Diet Of The Jews, The · Articles used for: Oil — Articles used for: Oil
Dragon · Symboli — Symboli
Embroidery · On the garments of women — On the garments of women
Ezekiel 16:10-13
10. I clothed thee also with broidered work, and shod thee with badgers' skin, and I girded thee about with fine linen, and I covered thee with silk.
10. Et vestivi te Phrygionica veste, [77] et calceavi te taxo, [78] et cinxi te bysso, et operui te serico.
11. I decked thee also with ornaments, and I put bracelets upon thy hands, and a chain on thy neck.
11. Et ornavi te ornatu, et posui armillas in manibus tuis, et torquem in collo tuo.
12. And I put a jewel on thy forehead, and earrings in thine ears, and a beautiful crown upon thine head.
12. Et posui circulum super faciem tuam, [79] et inaures super aures tuas, et coronam decoris in capite tuo. [80]
13. Thus wast…
Israel therefore owes its preservation and exaltation to honour and glory to the Lord its God alone. - Eze 16:6. Then I passed by thee, and saw thee stamping in thy blood, and said to thee, In thy blood live! and said to thee, In thy blood live! Eze 16:7. I made thee into myriads as the growth of the field, and thou grewest and becamest tall, and camest to ornament of cheeks. The breasts expanded, and thy hair grew, whereas thou wast naked and bare. Eze 16:8. And I passed by thee, and saw thee, and, behold, it was thy time, the time of love; and I spread my wing over thee, and covered thy nakedness; and I swore to thee, and entered into covenant with thee, is the saying of the Lord Jehovah,…
She was adorned with jewelry and fed with the very finest foods. She was known throughout the world for her beauty and splendor—both gifts from the Lord.
Rashi on Ezekiel 16:13
And you adorned yourself with gold and silver [Jonathan renders:] And I placed My Tabernacle among you, adorned with gold, silver, curtains of linen, colored tapestries and embroidery, and mannawhich was as good as fine flour, honey and oil—I fed you, and you became exceedingly rich and strong, and you prospered and ruled over all the kingdoms.
fine flour, honey, and oil you ate The manna, which would change to any flavorto fine flour, honey, and oilyou ate. The Midrash Aggadah (Mid. Song 4:2) [points out that] thirteen items are enumerated here, and corresponding to them, the Holy One, blessed be He, ordered them to bring the thirteen items enumerated in the donation for the Tabernacle (Ex…
Honey · Was eaten: Mixed with flour — Was eaten: Mixed with flour
Ingratitude To God · Illustrated — Illustrated
Jewels · Tokens of love — Tokens of love
Linen · .For women ma — .For women ma
Oil · Used for food — Used for food
Silk · Wearing apparel ma — Wearing apparel ma
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
