Ezekiel 23:20

20 She wanted men who behaved like animals in their sexual desire.

Ezekiel 23:20 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 23:20

For she doted upon their paramours
Or "concubines" F26; the neighbouring nations and allies of the Egyptians, whose friendship the Jews courted, and whose idols they served: the Septuagint and Arabic versions wrongly read the Chaldeans: whose flesh is as the flesh of asses, and whose issue is like the issue
of horses;
by "flesh" is meant the "membrum virile", which in asses is very large, and therefore dedicated to Priapus by the Heathens; and vast is the profusion of seed in coitus by horses, to which the flesh and issue of the Egyptian paramours are compared; who were very libidinous, and therefore desirable to insatiable women; all which serves to express the eagerness of the people of the Jews after idolatry.


FOOTNOTES:

F26 (Mhyvglp) "equecubinas eorum", Vatablus, so Junius & Tremellius, Polanus; "concubitores", Munster, Tigurine version; "cinaedos", Castalio; and, as Ben Melech observes, these were men, and not women.

Ezekiel 23:20 In-Context

18 But she continued her prostitution so openly that everyone knew about it. And I finally became sick of her, as I had her sister.
19 But she remembered how she was a young prostitute in Egypt, so she took part in even more prostitution
20 She wanted men who behaved like animals in their sexual desire.
21 In the same way you desired to do the sinful things you had done in Egypt. There men touched and held your young breasts
22 "So, Jerusalem, this is what the Lord God says: You are tired of your lovers. So now I will make them angry with you and have them attack you from all sides.
Scripture taken from the New Century Version. Copyright © 1987, 1988, 1991 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.