Ezekiel 16:16

16 You used the lovely things I gave you to make shrines for idols, where you played the prostitute. Unbelievable! How could such a thing ever happen?

Ezekiel 16:16 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 16:16

And of thy garments thou didst take
Which were made of fine linen, silk, and broidered work; which God had given them, and they were richly clad with: and deckedst thy high places with divers colours;
that is, with garments of divers colours; either they erected tents on their high places, made with these; or they covered their altars with them, which were on their high places for the ornament of them, as harlots deck their beds to allure their lovers; see ( Proverbs 7:16 Proverbs 7:17 ) ; or "thou hast made for thyself high places spotted" F4; so the word is rendered in ( Genesis 30:32 Genesis 30:33 Genesis 30:35 ) ; alluding to garments spotted with the flesh by adulterers. The Targum is, "thou hast made for thyself high places covered with idols": and so the Septuagint version renders it, "idols sewed together". The word, in the Talmudic language F5, has the signification of sewing. These idols were decked as children's babies are; and so the Syriac version, "thou hast made for thyself babies"; images like babies, richly dressed with their garments above described, such as the papists now have; and playedst the harlot thereon;
committed idolatry on the high places; or "with them" F6; that is, with the images and idols decked with their garments, which were set on those high places: [the like things] shall not come, neither shall it be [so];
the like idolatries shall set be committed any more; and after the Babylonish captivity worshipping of idols was not practised by the Jews; nor is it to this day: or such "things have not come yet", and there "shall not be" the like F7; the sense is, there never were such idolatries committed by this people before; and there hover shall be, or will be, the like afterwards. Kimchi's note is,

``the high places shall not come as these; as if it was said these shall not be in futurity; and there shall not be a man or a people that shall make like these for multitudes;''
so Ben Melech; and (twmb) , "high places", does agree with (twab) , "come". The Targum joins this with the preceding clause,
``"and playedst the harlot" with them, as is not right and fit''

FOOTNOTES:

F4 (twalj twmb Kl yvetw) "et fecisti tibi excelsa maculosa", Montanus; "excelsa conspera maculis", Calvin; "latis maculis interstincta", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Polanus.
F5 T. Bab. Gittin. fol. 45. 2. Misn. Celim, c. 27. sect. 6.
F6 (Mhyle) "iisque", Ar. Interp.
F7 (hyhy alw twab al) "non eventurae sunt [tales scortationes], nec erit [qui sic scortetur]", Piscator.

Ezekiel 16:16 In-Context

14 Your fame soon spread throughout the world because of your beauty. I dressed you in my splendor and perfected your beauty, says the Sovereign LORD .
15 “But you thought your fame and beauty were your own. So you gave yourself as a prostitute to every man who came along. Your beauty was theirs for the asking.
16 You used the lovely things I gave you to make shrines for idols, where you played the prostitute. Unbelievable! How could such a thing ever happen?
17 You took the very jewels and gold and silver ornaments I had given you and made statues of men and worshiped them. This is adultery against me!
18 You used the beautifully embroidered clothes I gave you to dress your idols. Then you used my special oil and my incense to worship them.
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