Bible Strands
Ezekiel 20:5
and tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: On the day I chose Israel, I swore an oath to the descendants of the house of Jacob and made Myself known to them in the land of Egypt. With an uplifted hand I said to them, ‘I am the LORD your God.’
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The Lord GOD speaks through Ezekiel to the descendants of the house of Jacob, commanding him to confront them with their fathers' abominations. This declaration occurs at the moment of recounting Israel's election and the initial divine revelation in Egypt.
The words — The Hebrew word בָּחֳרִ֣/י (bo.cho.R/i) literally means "chose I," marking the decisive act of divine election. The particle כֹּֽה\־ (koh-) translates as "thus," framing the ensuing declaration as a direct divine utterance.
The thread — The motif of an uplifted hand appears in Genesis 14:22 as a gesture of sworn authority, while the promise to bring Israel to a land flowing with milk and honey connects directly to Exodus 3:8. These references establish a continuous thread of covenantal promise and deliverance.
Why it lands — The text demands recognition of God's unilateral initiative in choosing Israel and revealing Himself as their God. It requires the reader to acknowledge that covenant identity originates in divine oath, not human merit.
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 unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; In the day when I chose Israel, and lifted up mine hand unto the seed of the house of Jacob, and made myself known unto them in the land of Egypt, when I lifted up mine hand unto them, saying, I am the Lord your God;
Cross-references
- Genesis 14:22 But Abram replied to the king of Sodom, “I have raised my hand to the LORD God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth,
- Exodus 3:8 I have come down to rescue them from the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey—the home of the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites.
- Exodus 4:31 and they believed. And when they heard that the LORD had attended to the Israelites and had seen their affliction, they bowed down and worshiped.
- Exodus 6:6 Therefore tell the Israelites: ‘I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians and deliver you from their bondage. I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment.
- Deuteronomy 7:6 For you are a people holy to the LORD your God. The LORD your God has chosen you to be a people for His prized possession out of all peoples on the face of the earth.
- Ezekiel 20:15 Moreover, with an uplifted hand I swore to them in the wilderness that I would not bring them into the land that I had given them—a land flowing with milk and honey, the glory of all lands—
- Ezekiel 20:23 However, with an uplifted hand I swore to them in the wilderness that I would scatter them among the nations and disperse them throughout the lands.
- Ezekiel 47:14 You are to divide it equally among them. Because I swore with an uplifted hand to give it to your forefathers, this land will fall to you as an inheritance.
- Exodus 3:6 Then He said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.
- Exodus 3:16 Go, assemble the elders of Israel and say to them, ‘The LORD, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—has appeared to me and said: I have surely attended to you and have seen what has been done to you in Egypt.