Bible Strands
Ezekiel 16:50
Thus they were haughty and committed abominations before Me. Therefore I removed them, as you have seen.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The prophet Ezekiel addresses the exiled community of Jerusalem while unfolding an extended allegory of Israel's covenant unfaithfulness. God declares through the prophet that He destroyed the arrogant city of Sodom as a visible precedent for His coming judgment on His own people.
The words — The Hebrew verb תִּגְבֶּ֔ינָה (tigbehenah) literally means "they were haughty," marking the prideful stance that preceded divine action. The noun תּוֹעֵבָ֖ה (to'evah) denotes "abomination," specifying the moral corruption committed directly in God's presence.
The thread — The sequence of pride, grievous sin, and subsequent removal runs through Genesis 13:13, Genesis 18:20, and Genesis 19:5, where Sodom's corruption triggers divine investigation and destruction. Ezekiel 16:51 immediately extends this thread by contrasting Jerusalem's multiplied abominations with Sodom's baseline judgment.
Why it lands — The text demands recognition that divine patience ends when pride and corruption become public and unrepentant. It requires the reader to measure their own conduct against the stated precedent of Sodom rather than minimize their faults by comparison.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And they were haughty, and committed abomination before me: therefore I took them away as I saw good.
Cross-references
- Genesis 13:13 But the men of Sodom were wicked, sinning greatly against the LORD.
- Genesis 18:20 Then the LORD said, “The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is great. Because their sin is so grievous,
- Genesis 19:5 They called out to Lot, saying, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Send them out to us so we can have relations with them!”
- Genesis 19:24 Then the LORD rained down sulfur and fire on Sodom and Gomorrah—from the LORD out of the heavens.
- Leviticus 18:22 You must not lie with a man as with a woman; that is an abomination.
- Deuteronomy 23:17 No daughter or son of Israel is to be a shrine prostitute.
- Deuteronomy 29:23 All its soil will be a burning waste of sulfur and salt, unsown and unproductive, with no plant growing on it, just like the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, which the LORD overthrew in His fierce anger.
- 2 Kings 23:7 He also tore down the quarters of the male shrine prostitutes that were in the house of the LORD, where the women had woven tapestries for Asherah.
- Job 18:15 Fire resides in his tent; burning sulfur rains down on his dwelling.
- Proverbs 16:18 Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.