Ezekiel 23:34

34 1you shall drink it and drain it out, and gnaw its shards, and tear your breasts;for I have spoken, declares the Lord GOD.

Ezekiel 23:34 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 23:34

Thou shalt even drink it, and suck it out
The very dregs of it, that which lies at the bottom, which is the most nauseous and the most pernicious; not through love to it, but through force, shall be obliged to it; see ( Psalms 75:8 ) : and thou shall break the sherds thereof;
and suck them, so that not a drop of the liquor shall be lost; even what has penetrated into the earthen vessel, which this cup is supposed to be; and therefore it shall be broken to pieces, and these pieces sucked, that all may be got out; suggesting that there will be no abatement of the punishment, it shall be endured to the utmost: or it may be an allusion to drunkards, who, having drunk up their liquor, and become drunk, break their glasses, pots, and cups, and to which the next clause agrees: and pluck off thine own breasts;
as men in their drunken fits, being like mad men, tear their own flesh; and so the Targum paraphrases it,

``thou shall tear thy flesh;''
so the Jews, under punishment for sin, and pressed with the guilt of it, through indignation at themselves should tear their flesh, and particularly pluck off their breasts: the allusion is to fornication, to which idolatry is compared, in which those parts are particularly affected; see ( Ezekiel 23:21 ) , the Syriac version renders this and the former clause thus, "thou shall shave thine hair and cut off thy breasts"; Kimchi thinks by the "breasts" are meant the oral and written laws, which ceased in the time of the captivity; but without any foundation: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord;
and therefore it shall be done.

Ezekiel 23:34 In-Context

32 Thus says the Lord GOD: "You shall drink your sister's cup that is deep and large; you shall be laughed at and held in derision, for it contains much;
33 you will be filled with drunkenness and sorrow. A cup of horror and desolation, the cup of your sister Samaria;
34 you shall drink it and drain it out, and gnaw its shards, and tear your breasts;for I have spoken, declares the Lord GOD.
35 Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Because you have forgotten me and cast me behind your back, you yourself must bear the consequences of your lewdness and whoring."
36 The LORD said to me: "Son of man, will you judge Oholah and Oholibah? Declare to them their abominations

Cross References 1

The English Standard Version is published with the permission of Good News Publishers.