For when they had slain their children to their idols, then they came the same day into my sanctuary to profane it; and, lo, thus have they done in the midst of mine house.

EZEKIEL 23:39KJV
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Ezekiel 23:39 (KJV)

What does Ezekiel 23:39 mean?

Ezekiel 23:39 describes how the people of Israel committed the terrible act of sacrificing their own children to idols and then, on that very same day, entered God’s sanctuary, disrespecting and defiling it by their presence. The verse shows the shocking contrast between their public acts of idolatry and their continued participation in worship at God’s temple.

In this verse, God is speaking through the prophet Ezekiel to the people of Jerusalem, condemning their hypocrisy. The setting is a time when many Israelites were blending idol worship with the worship of God, ignoring the seriousness of their actions. The verse highlights how deeply offensive it was to God that they would carry out such evil and then act as if nothing was wrong by coming into His house.

The Hebrew behind Ezekiel 23:39

  • "slain" (שָׁחַט, shachat): This word means to kill or slaughter, often used for ritual sacrifice. Here, it emphasizes the deliberate and ritualistic nature of the children’s deaths.
  • "idols" (גִּלּוּל, gillul): This word refers to disgusting or detestable idols, not just generic images. It underlines how offensive these objects were in God’s eyes.
  • "profane" (חָלַל, chalal): This word means to defile or treat as common something that should be holy. It shows that entering the sanctuary after such acts was not just inappropriate, but it made the holy place unclean.

Why Ezekiel 23:39 matters

  • Ezekiel 23:39 clears up any idea that outward religious acts can cover up serious wrongdoing; God sees through the hypocrisy.
  • The verse emphasizes the seriousness of mixing idol worship with worship of God, showing that such actions deeply violate the relationship with Him.
  • This verse connects to the wider passage where God, through Ezekiel, is exposing the unfaithfulness of His people, using strong language to show how far they have strayed.

Where else these words appear

“idols” Hebrew H1544 · used in 45 verses

  • Leviticus 26:30 And I will destroy your high places, and cut down your images, and cast your carcases upon the carcases of your idols, and my soul shall abhor you.
  • Ezekiel 8:10 So I went in and saw; and behold every form of creeping things, and abominable beasts, and all the idols of the house of Israel, pourtrayed upon the wall round about.
  • Ezekiel 20:31 For when ye offer your gifts, when ye make your sons to pass through the fire, ye pollute yourselves with all your idols, even unto this day: and shall I be enquired of by you, O house of Israel? As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I will not be enquired of by you.

“slain” Hebrew H7819 · used in 70 verses

  • Genesis 22:10 And Abraham stretched forth his hand, and took the knife to slay his son.
  • Leviticus 9:8 Aaron therefore went unto the altar, and slew the calf of the sin offering, which was for himself.
  • 2 Kings 10:7 And it came to pass, when the letter came to them, that they took the king's sons, and slew seventy persons, and put their heads in baskets, and sent him them to Jezreel.

“sanctuary” Hebrew H4720 · used in 71 verses

  • Exodus 15:17 Thou shalt bring them in, and plant them in the mountain of thine inheritance, in the place, O LORD, which thou hast made for thee to dwell in, in the Sanctuary, O Lord, which thy hands have established.
  • Nehemiah 10:39 For the children of Israel and the children of Levi shall bring the offering of the corn, of the new wine, and the oil, unto the chambers, where are the vessels of the sanctuary, and the priests that minister, and the porters, and the singers: and we will not forsake the house of our God.
  • Ezekiel 28:18 Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffick; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee.

“profane” Hebrew H2490 · used in 131 verses

  • Genesis 4:26 And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enos: then began men to call upon the name of the LORD.
  • Judges 20:31 And the children of Benjamin went out against the people, and were drawn away from the city; and they began to smite of the people, and kill, as at other times, in the highways, of which one goeth up to the house of God, and the other to Gibeah in the field, about thirty men of Israel.
  • Isaiah 56:6 Also the sons of the stranger, that join themselves to the LORD, to serve him, and to love the name of the LORD, to be his servants, every one that keepeth the sabbath from polluting it, and taketh hold of my covenant;