Ezekiel 33:6

But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned; if the sword come, and take any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman’s hand.

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Word by word — the Hebrew

Word	Hebrew	Strong’s	Meaning
watchman	וְ֠הַצֹּפֶה Ve.ha.tzo.feh	H6822	properly · conjunction + definite article + verb, qal active participle, masculine singular absolute
see	יִרְאֶ֨ה yir.'Eh	H7200	to see · verb, qal imperfect, 3rd person masculine singular
sword	הַחֶ֜רֶב ha.Che.rev	H2719	drought · definite article + noun, common feminine singular absolute
come	בָּאָ֗ה ba.'Ah	H935	to go or come (in a wide variety of applications) · verb, qal active participle, feminine singular absolute
blow	תָקַ֤ע ta.Ka'	H8628	to clatter · verb, qal perfect, 3rd person masculine singular
trumpet	בַּשּׁוֹפָר֙ ba.sho.Far	H7782	a cornet (as giving a clear sound) or curved horn · preposition with the article + noun, common masculine singular absolute
people	וְהָעָ֣ם ve.ha.'Am	H5971	a people (as a congregated unit) · conjunction + definite article + noun, common masculine singular absolute
warned	נִזְהָ֔ר niz.Har	H2094	to gleam · verb, niphal perfect, 3rd person masculine singular
sword	חֶ֔רֶב Che.rev	H2719	drought · noun, common feminine singular absolute
come	וַתָּב֣וֹא va.ta.Vo'	H935	to go or come (in a wide variety of applications) · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 3rd person feminine singular
take	וַתִּקַּ֥ח va.ti.Kach	H3947	to take (in the widest variety of applications) · conjunction + verb, qal sequential imperfect, 3rd person feminine singular
person	נָ֑פֶשׁ Na.fesh	H5315	properly · noun, common feminine singular absolute
away	נִלְקָ֔ח nil.Kach	H3947	to take (in the widest variety of applications) · verb, niphal perfect, 3rd person masculine singular
iniquity	בַּעֲוֹנ֣וֹ ba.'a.vo.No	H5771	perversity · preposition + noun, common masculine singular construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
blood	וְדָמ֖וֹ ve.da.Mo	H1818	blood (as that which when shed causes death) of man or… · conjunction + noun, common masculine singular construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
require	אֶדְרֹֽשׁ 'ed.Rosh	H1875	properly · verb, qal imperfect, 1st person common singular
watchman’s	הַצֹּפֶ֥ה ha.tzo.Peh	H6822	properly · definite article + verb, qal active participle, masculine singular absolute
hand	מִיַּֽד mi.yad-	H3027	a hand (the open one (indicating power · preposition + noun, common both genders singular construct

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

Ezekiel 3:18-20 When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to…
Genesis 42:22 And Reuben answered them, saying, Spake I not unto you, saying, Do not sin against the child; and ye would not hear? therefore, behold, also…
2 Samuel 4:11 How much more, when wicked men have slain a righteous person in his own house upon his bed? shall I not therefore now require his blood of y…
Ezekiel 33:8-9 When I say unto the wicked, O wicked man, thou shalt surely die; if thou dost not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man sha…
Ezekiel 18:20 The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the so…
Genesis 9:5 And surely your blood of your lives will I require; at the hand of every beast will I require it, and at the hand of man; at the hand of eve…
Ezekiel 18:24 But when the righteous turneth away from his righteousness, and committeth iniquity, and doeth according to all the abominations that the wi…
Ezekiel 34:10 Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require my flock at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding…

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Ezekiel 33:1-9

The prophet had been, by express order from God, taken off from prophesying to the Jews, just then when the news came that Jerusalem was invested, and close siege laid to it, Eze 24:27. But now that Jerusalem is taken, two years after, he is appointed again to direct his speech to them; and there his commission is renewed. If God had abandoned them quite, he would not have sent prophets to them; nor, if he had not had mercy in store for them, would he have shown them such things as these. In these verses we have, I. The office of a watchman laid down, the trust reposed in him, the charge given him, and the conditions adjusted between him and those that employ him, Eze 33:2, Eze 33:6. 1. It i…

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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Ezekiel 33:6

his iniquity--his negligence in not maintaining constant watchfulness, as they who are in warfare ought to do. The thing signified here appears from under the image.

Adam Clarke on Ezekiel 33:2

Son of man - if the people of the land take a man - The first ten verses of this chapter are the same with Eze 3:17-22; and to what is said there on this most important and awful subject I must refer the reader. Here the People choose the watchman; there, the Lord appoints him. When God chooses, the people should approve.

John Gill on Ezekiel 33:6

But if the watchman see the sword come,.... Or those that kill with the sword, as the Targum is; so far doing the duty of his office as to be in the watchtower, and not asleep: and yet blow not the trumpet: to give the people notice of the enemy, and of their danger: and the people be not warned; but in the utmost security, not apprehending themselves to be in any danger at all: if the sword come and take any person from among them; even though but a single person: he is taken away in his iniquity: having had no time to have it set before him, and to be convinced, and to repent of it, and seek for pardoning mercy for it; it is a dreadful thing thus to be taken out of the world, and snatc…

The Church Fathers

And: "From the hand of the watchman I will require your blood." What blood does God demand from the hand of the watchman, if not that of which the sinner is deprived? So the heart of the foolish one is destroyed, according to the saying: "Listen to Me, you who have lost heart!" — because the sinner is deprived of the blood and vital force of the soul.
— Origen of Alexandria, DIALOGUE WITH HERACLIDES

For this reason, overseers or rulers are set over the churches to reprimand sin, not to spare it. Nor is a person fully free from blame who is not in authority but who notices in those persons he meets in social life many faults he should censure and admonish. He is blameworthy if he fails to do this out of fear of hurting feelings or of losing such things as he may rightfully enjoy in his life but to which he is unduly attached.
— Augustine of Hippo, City of God 1.9

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

Ezekiel, Book of — Consists mainly of three groups of prophecies. After an account of his call to the prophetical office (1-3:21), Ezekiel (1) utters words of denunciation against the Jews (3:22-24), warning them of…
Watches — The periods into which the time between sunset and sunrise was divided. They are so called because watchmen relieved each other at each of these periods. There are frequent references in Scripture to…
Ignorance · SINS OF — SINS OF
Ministers · When unfaithful: Shall be punished — When unfaithful: Shall be punished
Opportunity · THE MEASURE OF RESPONSIBILITY — THE MEASURE OF RESPONSIBILITY
Responsibility · ACCORDING TO PRIVILEGE — ACCORDING TO PRIVILEGE
Trumpet · General references — General references
Watchman · Alarm of, given by trumpets — Alarm of, given by trumpets
Watchmen · Neglecting to give warning punished with death — Neglecting to give warning punished with death

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).

Ezekiel 33:6

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Ezekiel 33:1-9

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Ezekiel 33:6

Adam Clarke on Ezekiel 33:2

John Gill on Ezekiel 33:6

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

Ezekiel 33:6

Word by word — the Hebrew

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Ezekiel 33:1-9

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Ezekiel 33:6

Adam Clarke on Ezekiel 33:2

John Gill on Ezekiel 33:6

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

Keil & Delitzsch on Ezekiel 33:1-9

Tyndale Open Study Notes on Ezekiel 33:5-9

Rashi on Ezekiel 33:5