Ezekiel 28:17

17 Your heart was proud because of your beauty; you ruined your wisdom because of your splendor. I threw you on the ground {before} kings; I have exposed you {for viewing}.

Ezekiel 28:17 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 28:17

Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty
Riches, wealth, power, and authority; see ( Ezekiel 28:5 ) , as the pope of Rome is, because of his dignity, the pomp and splendour of the Roman church, and the gaudy appearance it makes: thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness;
outward lustre and glory, which dazzled his eyes so that he could not see things in a true light; but neglecting the word of God, and setting up his own infallibility, corrupted his doctrine and worship, and became foolish, stupid, and sottish: I will cast thee to the ground;
from the throne and pinnacle of honour, to the lowest state and condition: and I will lay thee before kings:
prostrate at the feet of them, who heretofore has set his feet on the necks of them; or he shall fall before them, and be destroyed by them, when they shall hate the whore, and make her desolate, and burn her flesh with fire, ( Revelation 17:16 ) : that they may behold thee; with contempt and disdain, and as an instance and example of divine vengeance.

Ezekiel 28:17 In-Context

15 You [were] blameless in your ways from the day {when you were created}, until wickedness was found in you.

16 In the abundance of your trading, they filled the midst of you [with] violence, and you sinned; and I cast you as a profane thing from the mountain of God, and I expelled you, [the] guardian cherub, from the midst of [the] stones of fire.

17 Your heart was proud because of your beauty; you ruined your wisdom because of your splendor. I threw you on the ground {before} kings; I have exposed you {for viewing}.

18 From the abundance of your iniquities in the dishonesty of your trading, I profaned your sanctuaries and I brought fire from your midst; it consumed you, and I have turned you to ashes on the earth {before the eyes of everyone who sees you}.

19 {All who know you} among the peoples are appalled over you; you have become [as] horrors, and {you shall cease to exist forever}." '"

Footnotes

• [a] Literally "in the face of"
• [b] Literally "to look at you"