Ezekiel 22:6

6 Behold, the princes of Israel, every one were in thee to their power^[a] to shed blood.

Ezekiel 22:6 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 22:6

Behold, the princes of Israel
Those that belonged to the royal family, or the nobles of the land, or the members of the grand sanhedrim of the nation: everyone were in thee to their power to shed blood;
everyone exerted himself to the uttermost, according to his ability, to shed blood, or cause it to be shed; everyone strove, as it were, who should shed most, to exceed each other in this abominable sin.

Ezekiel 22:6 In-Context

4 Thou art become guilty in thy blood that thou hast shed; and hast defiled thyself in thine idols which thou hast made; and thou hast caused thy days to draw near, and art come even unto thy years: therefore have I made thee a reproach unto the heathen, and a mocking to all countries.

5 Those that be near, and those that be far from thee, shall mock thee, which art infamous and much vexed.

6 Behold, the princes of Israel, every one were in thee to their power to shed blood.

7 In thee have they set light by father and mother: in the midst of thee have they dealt by oppression with the stranger: in thee have they vexed the fatherless and the widow.

8 Thou hast despised mine holy things, and hast profaned my sabbaths.

Footnotes

• [a]. power: Heb. arm