Bible Strands
Ezekiel 36:20
And wherever they went among the nations, they profaned My holy name, because it was said of them, ‘These are the people of the LORD, yet they had to leave His land.’
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — God addresses the exiled house of Israel, explaining His motive for restoration following their scattering among foreign territories.
The words — The text highlights חִלֵּל (cha.lelu), literally "they profaned," to describe how Israel's presence among the nations damaged the public standing of God's name.
The thread — This pattern of divine reputation being compromised by Israel's conduct runs through Isaiah 52:5, Romans 2:24, and Jeremiah 33:24.
Why it lands — The passage requires readers to acknowledge that communal behavior directly shapes external perception of God, making ethical fidelity a public theological issue.
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 when they entered unto the heathen, whither they went, they profaned my holy name, when they said to them, These are the people of the Lord, and are gone forth out of his land.
Cross-references
- Isaiah 52:5 And now what have I here? declares the LORD. For My people have been taken without cause; those who rule them taunt, declares the LORD, and My name is blasphemed continually all day long.
- Romans 2:24 As it is written: “God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.”
- Jeremiah 33:24 “Have you not noticed what these people are saying: ‘The LORD has rejected the two families He had chosen’? So they despise My people and no longer regard them as a nation.
- Exodus 32:11 But Moses sought the favor of the LORD his God, saying, “O LORD, why does Your anger burn against Your people, whom You brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and a mighty hand?
- Daniel 3:15 Now when you hear the sound of the horn, flute, zither, lyre, harp, pipes, and all kinds of music, if you are ready to fall down and worship the statue I have made, very good. But if you refuse to worship, you will be thrown at once into the blazing fiery furnace. Then what god will be able to deliver you from my hands?”
- Numbers 14:15 If You kill this people as one man, the nations who have heard of Your fame will say,
- Joshua 7:9 When the Canaanites and all who live in the land hear about this, they will surround us and wipe out our name from the earth. Then what will You do for Your great name?”
- 2 Kings 18:30 Do not let Hezekiah persuade you to trust in the LORD when he says, ‘The LORD will surely deliver us; this city will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.’
- 2 Kings 18:35 Who among all the gods of these lands has delivered his land from my hand? How then can the LORD deliver Jerusalem from my hand?”
- 2 Kings 19:10 “Give this message to Hezekiah king of Judah: ‘Do not let your God, in whom you trust, deceive you by saying that Jerusalem will not be delivered into the hand of the king of Assyria.