Ezekiel 9:4

9:4 The Lord said to him, “Go through the city of Jerusalem ¹  and put a mark ²  on the foreheads of the people who moan and groan over all the abominations practiced in it.”

Ezekiel 24:17

24:17 Groan in silence for the dead, ³  but do not perform mourning rites. ⁴  Bind on your turban ⁵  and put your sandals on your feet. Do not cover your lip ⁶  and do not eat food brought by others.” ⁷ 

Ezekiel 24:23

24:23 Your turbans will be on your heads and your sandals on your feet; you will not mourn or weep, but you will rot ⁸  for your iniquities ⁹  and groan among yourselves.

Ezekiel 26:15

26:15 “This is what the sovereign Lord says to Tyre: Oh, how the coastlands will shake at the sound of your fall, when the wounded groan, at the massive slaughter in your midst!

Ezekiel 30:24

30:24 I will strengthen the arms of the king of Babylon, and I will place my sword in his hand, but I will break the arms of Pharaoh, and he will groan like the fatally wounded before the king of Babylon. ¹⁰ 

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¹ tn Heb “through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem.”

map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.

² tn The word translated “mark” is in Hebrew the letter ת (tav). Outside this context the only other occurrence of the word is in Job 31:35. In ancient Hebrew script this letter was written like the letter X.

sn For a similar concept in the Bible, see Rev 7:2-4; 13:16; 14:9, 11; 20:4; 22:4.

³ tn Or “Groan silently. As to the dead….” Cf. M. Greenberg’s suggestion that דֹּם מֵתִים (dom metim) be taken together and דֹּם be derived from ָדּמַם (damam, “to moan, murmur”). See M. Greenberg, Ezekiel (AB), 2:508.

⁴ tn Heb “(For) the dead mourning you shall not conduct.” In the Hebrew text the word translated “dead” is plural, indicating that mourning rites are in view. Such rites would involve outward demonstrations of one’s sorrow, including wailing and weeping.

⁵ sn The turban would normally be removed for mourning (Josh 7:6; 1 Sam 4:12).

⁶ sn Mourning rites included covering the lower part of the face. See Lev 13:45.

⁷ tn Heb “the bread of men.” The translation follows the suggestion accepted by M. Greenberg (Ezekiel [AB], 2:509) that this refers to a meal brought by comforters to the one mourning. Some repoint the consonantal text to read “the bread of despair” (see L. C. Allen, Ezekiel [WBC], 2:56), while others, with support from the Targum and Vulgate, emend the consonantal text to read “the bread of mourners” (see D. I. Block, Ezekiel [NICOT], 1:784).

⁸ tn The same verb appears in 4:17 and 33:10.

⁹ tn Or “in your punishment.” The phrase “in/for [a person’s] iniquity/punishment” occurs fourteen times in Ezekiel: here; 3:18, 19; 4:17; 7:13, 16; 18:17, 18, 19, 20; 33:6, 8, 9; 39:23. The Hebrew word for “iniquity” may also mean the “punishment” for iniquity or “guilt” of iniquity.

¹⁰ tn Heb “him”; the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.