Bible Strands
Ezekiel 20:47
Say to the forest of the Negev: Hear the word of the LORD! This is what the Lord GOD says: I am about to ignite in you a fire, and it will devour all your trees, both green and dry. The blazing flame will not be quenched, and by it every face from south to north will be scorched.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — God commands Ezekiel to address the forest of the Negev, declaring that He will ignite a fire consuming both living and dead trees, scorching every face from south to north. This oracle directly follows the instruction to face south and prophesy against the region and precedes the statement that all will witness the unquenchable flame.
The words — The phrase לְיַעַר הַנֶּגֶב (le-Ya'ar ha-Neghev) literally identifies "the forest of the south," while the imperative שְׁמַע (she-Ma') commands "hear" the word of Yahweh. These terms anchor the prophecy to a specific geographic target and demand immediate attention to the coming divine action.
The thread — The image of God kindling an unquenchable fire to judge a land recurs in Jeremiah 21:14 and Isaiah 9:18, where fire consumes forests as a symbol of wrath against wickedness. Isaiah 24:1 parallels this judgment motif by describing the Lord laying waste the earth and scattering its inhabitants.
Why it lands — The text states that God will execute a total, visible judgment that leaves no part of the targeted region untouched. It requires the reader to acknowledge that divine punishment operates beyond human control and demands unflinching attention to its inevitability.
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 say to the forest of the south, Hear the word of the Lord; Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, I will kindle a fire in thee, and it shall devour every green tree in thee, and every dry tree: the flaming flame shall not be quenched, and all faces from the south to the north shall be burned therein.
Cross-references
- Jeremiah 21:14 I will punish you as your deeds deserve, declares the LORD. I will kindle a fire in your forest that will consume everything around you.’”
- Isaiah 9:18 For wickedness burns like a fire that consumes the thorns and briers and kindles the forest thickets, which roll upward in billows of smoke.
- Isaiah 24:1 Behold, the LORD lays waste the earth and leaves it in ruins. He will twist its surface and scatter its inhabitants—
- Ezekiel 17:24 Then all the trees of the field will know that I am the LORD. I bring the tall tree down and make the low tree tall. I dry up the green tree and make the withered tree flourish. I, the LORD, have spoken, and I have done it.’”
- Luke 23:31 For if men do these things while the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?”
- Deuteronomy 32:22 For a fire has been kindled by My anger, and it burns to the depths of Sheol; it consumes the earth and its produce, and scorches the foundations of the mountains.
- Isaiah 13:8 Terror, pain, and anguish will seize them; they will writhe like a woman in labor. They will look at one another, their faces flushed with fear.
- Isaiah 30:33 For Topheth has long been prepared; it has been made ready for the king. Its funeral pyre is deep and wide, with plenty of fire and wood. The breath of the LORD, like a torrent of burning sulfur, sets it ablaze.
- Isaiah 66:24 “As they go forth, they will see the corpses of the men who have rebelled against Me; for their worm will never die, their fire will never be quenched, and they will be a horror to all mankind.”
- Ezekiel 15:6 Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Like the wood of the vine among the trees of the forest, which I have given to the fire for fuel, so I will give up the people of Jerusalem.