Ezekiel 16:52

52 Thou also -- bear thy shame, That thou hast adjudged to thy sisters, Because of thy sins that thou hast done more abominably than they, They are more righteous than thou, And thou, also, be ashamed and bear thy shame, In thy justifying thy sisters.

Ezekiel 16:52 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 16:52

Thou also which hast judged thy sisters
Sodom and Samaria, by censuring and condemning them for their sins; see ( 2 Chronicles 13:8-10 ) ; in which sense Jarchi and Kimchi interpret the word; or by defending and patronizing them, acquitting and absolving them, by committing the same sins, and more heinous ones: bear thine own shame for thy sins that thou hast committed more
abominable than they;
look upon thy sins, and blush at them; confess them with shame and confusion of face; take shame to thyself for them, in that thou hast censured and condemned these sins in others thou hast been guilty of thyself; and the rather, since thy sins are greater, and attended with more aggravating circumstances, than those thou hast blamed in others; or this is a prophecy of their punishment for their sins, when they should be carried captive, and be put to shame before their neighbours: or, "thou shalt bear" F4; shame is the fruit of sin, sooner or later: they are more righteous than thou;
in comparison of her; though neither of them were righteous in the sight of God, yet comparatively one was more righteous than another, having committed fewer sins, and lesser abominations: yea, be thou confounded also, and bear thy shame, in that thou hast
justified thy sisters;
this is repeated in stronger expressions, and with the reasons of it, to show the great confusion they should be brought unto, and the certainty of it, the more to strike and affect their minds with it.


FOOTNOTES:

F4 (yav ta) imperat. pro fut. i.e. "confunderis", Vatablus.

Ezekiel 16:52 In-Context

50 And they are haughty and do abomination before Me, And I turn them aside when I have seen.
51 As to Samaria, as the half of thy sins -- she hath not sinned, And thou dost multiply thine abominations more than they, And dost justify thy sisters by all thy abominations that thou hast done.
52 Thou also -- bear thy shame, That thou hast adjudged to thy sisters, Because of thy sins that thou hast done more abominably than they, They are more righteous than thou, And thou, also, be ashamed and bear thy shame, In thy justifying thy sisters.
53 And I have turned back [to] their captivity, The captivity of Sodom and her daughters, And the captivity of Samaria and her daughters, And the captivity of thy captives in their midst,
54 So that thou dost bear thy shame, And hast been ashamed of all that thou hast done, In thy comforting them.
Young's Literal Translation is in the public domain.