Bible Strands
Ezekiel 23:44
And they slept with her as with a prostitute; they slept with Oholah and Oholibah, those lewd women.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The prophet Ezekiel addresses the exiled community, pronouncing judgment on the personified sister cities of Samaria and Jerusalem after detailing their covenant violations.
The words — The Hebrew phrase כְּבֹא אֶל־אִשָּׁה זוֹנָה (kəḇōʾ ʾel-ʾiššāh zōnā) literally means "as goes into a prostitute woman," emphasizing the physical act of penetration rather than a general metaphor.
The thread — This judgment echoes their initial corruption in Egypt (Ezekiel 23:3) and follows their prior exposure to Assyrian captivity (Ezekiel 23:9).
Why it lands — The text declares that the cities will be treated exactly as they treated themselves, requiring the reader to recognize that divine punishment mirrors the chosen pattern of sin.
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
Yet they went in unto her, as they go in unto a woman that playeth the harlot: so went they in unto Aholah and unto Aholibah, the lewd women.
Cross-references
- Ezekiel 23:3 and they played in Egypt, prostituting themselves from their youth. Their breasts were fondled there, and their virgin bosoms caressed.
- Ezekiel 23:9 Therefore I delivered her into the hands of her lovers, the Assyrians for whom she lusted.