Ezekiel 16:20

 Ezekiel 16:20

Moreover thou hast taken thy sons and thy daughters, whom thou hast borne unto me, and these hast thou sacrificed unto them to be devoured. Is this of thy whoredoms a small matter,

a. ASV: Moreover thou hast taken thy sons and thy daughters, whom thou hast borne unto me, and these hast thou sacrificed unto them to be devoured. Were thy whoredoms a small matter,

b.  YLT: And thou dost take thy sons and thy daughters Whom thou hast born to Me, And dost sacrifice them to them for food. Is it a little thing because of thy whoredoms,

c. Amplified Bible Classic: Moreover, you have taken your sons and your daughters whom you have borne to Me, and you have sacrificed them [to your idols] to be destroyed. Were your harlotries too little, 

d. Septuagint: And thou tookest thy sons and thy daughters, whom thou borest, land didst sacrifice [these] to them to be destroyed. Thou didst go a-whoring as [if that were] little,

e. Stone Edition Torah/Prophets/Writings: Then you took your sons and your daughters whom you begot for Me, and these you slaughtered for them to devour! Was your harlotry so trivial

1. Moreover thou hast taken thy sons and thy daughters, whom thou hast borne unto me

a. [Moreover thou hast] taken [Strong: 3947 lâqach, law-kakh'; a primitive root; to take (in the widest variety of applications):—accept, bring, buy, carry away, drawn, fetch, get, infold, × many, mingle, place, receive(-ing), reserve, seize, send for, take (away, -ing, up), use, win.]

b. [Strong: 853 853 'eth ayth apparent contracted from 226 in the demonstrative sense of entity; properly, self (but generally used to point out more definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or namely):--(as such unrepresented in English).] 

c. [thy] sons [Strong: 1121 bên, bane; from H1129; a son (as a builder of the family name), in the widest sense (of literal and figurative relationship, including grandson, subject, nation, quality or condition, etc., (like father or brother), etc.):—afflicted, age, (Ahoh-) (Ammon-) (Hachmon-) (Lev-) ite, (anoint-) ed one, appointed to, (+) arrow, (Assyr-) (Babylon-) (Egypt-) (Grec-) ian, one born, bough, branch, breed, + (young) bullock, + (young) calf, × came up in, child, colt, × common, × corn, daughter, × of first, firstborn, foal, + very fruitful, + postage, × in, + kid, + lamb, (+) man, meet, + mighty, + nephew, old, (+) people, rebel, + robber, × servant born, × soldier, son, + spark, steward, + stranger, × surely, them of, + tumultuous one, valiant(-est), whelp, worthy, young (one), youth.]

d. [Strong: 853 853 'eth ayth apparent contracted from 226 in the demonstrative sense of entity; properly, self (but generally used to point out more definitely the object of a verb or preposition, even or namely):--(as such unrepresented in English).]

e. [and thy] daughters [Strong: 1323 bath, bath; from H1129 (as feminine of H1121); a daughter (used in the same wide sense as other terms of relationship, literally and figuratively):—apple (of the eye), branch, company, daughter, × first, × old, owl, town, village.]

f. whom [Strong: 834 'aher ash-er' a primitive relative pronoun (of every gender and number); who, which, what, that; also (as an adverb and a conjunction) when, where, how, because, in order that, etc.:--X after, X alike, as (soon as), because, X every, for, + forasmuch, + from whence, + how(-soever), X if, (so) that ((thing) which, wherein), X though, + until, + whatsoever, when, where (+ -as, -in, -of, -on, -soever, -with), which, whilst, + whither(- soever), who(-m, -soever, -se). As it is indeclinable, it is often accompanied by the personal pronoun expletively, used to show the connection.]

g. [thou hast] borne [to me] [Strong: 3205 yâlad, yaw-lad'; a primitive root; to bear young; causatively, to beget; medically, to act as midwife; specifically, to show lineage:—bear, beget, birth(-day), born, (make to) bring forth (children, young), bring up, calve, child, come, be delivered (of a child), time of delivery, gender, hatch, labour, (do the office of a) midwife, declare pedigrees, be the son of, (woman in, woman that) travail(-eth, -ing woman).]

1). In the very next verse the Lord says they were his children.

a). Ezekiel 16:21 That thou hast slain my children, and delivered them to cause them to pass through the fire for them?

2. “…and these hast thou sacrificed unto them to be devoured…”

a. [and these thou hast] sacrificed [unto them] [Strong: 2076 zabach zaw-bakh' a primitive root; to slaughter an animal (usually in sacrifice):--kill, offer, (do) sacrifice, slay.]

1). Psalm 106:37, 38 Yea, they sacrificed their sons and their daughters unto devils,

And shed innocent blood, even the blood of their sons and of their daughters, whom they sacrificed unto the idols of Canaan: and the land was polluted with blood.

b. [to be] devoured [Strong: 398 ʼâkal, aw-kal'; a primitive root; to eat (literally or figuratively):—× at all, burn up, consume, devour(-er, up), dine, eat(-er, up), feed (with), food, × freely, × in...wise(-deed, plenty), (lay) meat, × quite.]

1). Infants were sacrificed to devils.

a). Psalm 106:37, 38 Yea, they sacrificed their sons and their daughters unto devils,

106:38 And shed innocent blood, even the blood of their sons and of their daughters, whom they sacrificed unto the idols of Canaan: and the land was polluted with blood.

2). The Lord called them who participate in this behavior the seed of the whore.

a). Isaiah 57:3-5 But draw near hither, ye sons of the sorceress, the seed of the adulterer and the whore.

57:4 Against whom do ye sport yourselves? against whom make ye a wide mouth, and draw out the tongue? are ye not children of transgression, a seed of falsehood.

57:5 Enflaming yourselves with idols under every green tree, slaying the children in the valleys under the clifts of the rocks?

2). Ezekiel 23:37-39 That they have committed adultery, and blood is in their hands, and with their idols have they committed adultery, and have also caused their sons, whom they bare unto me, to pass for them through the fire, to devour them.

23:38 Moreover this they have done unto me: they have defiled my sanctuary in the same day, and have profaned my sabbaths.

23:39 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.

3. “Is this of thy whoredoms a small matter?”

a. [Is this of thy] whoredoms [Strong: 8457 taznûwth, taz-nooth'; or תַּזְנֻת taznuth; from H2181; harlotry, i.e. (figuratively) idolatry:—fornication, whoredom.]

b. [a] small [matter] [Strong: 4592 mᵉʻaṭ, meh-at'; or מְעָט mᵉʻâṭ; from H4591; a little or few (often adverbial or comparative):—almost (some, very) few(-er, -est), lightly, little (while), (very) small (matter, thing), some, soon, × very.]

1). Do you think this is a small matter? The Lord asks the question, “Is this a small matter?” The judgment that came upon Judah and Jerusalem happened because of the sins of Manasseh shedding innocent blood. Note the following Scriptures.

a). 2 Kings 21:16  Moreover Manasseh shed innocent blood very much, till he had filled Jerusalem from one end to another; beside his sin wherewith he made Judah to sin, in doing that which was evil in the sight of the Lord.

b). 2 Kings 23:26, 27 Notwithstanding the Lord turned not from the fierceness of his great wrath, wherewith his anger was kindled against Judah, because of all the provocations that Manasseh had provoked him withal.

23:27 And the Lord said, I will remove Judah also out of my sight, as I have removed Israel, and will cast off this city Jerusalem which I have chosen, and the house of which I said, My name shall be there.

c). 2 Kings 24:3, 4 Surely at the commandment of the Lord came this upon Judah, to remove them out of his sight, for the sins of Manasseh, according to all that he did;

24:4 And also for the innocent blood that he shed: for he filled Jerusalem with innocent blood; which the Lord would not pardon.

2). So in answer to the Lord’s question, the killing of their children was not and is not a small matter. Because of it they were removed out of the land and many Jews were killed.