Samaria has not committed half your sins: Here God turns his attention to Jerusalem’s other sister. This clause means the people of Jerusalem committed more than double the number of sins as the people of the northern kingdom. It may be rendered “Samaria did not do half as much evil as you have” or “You are more than twice as bad as Samaria.”

You have committed more abominations than they: This clause repeats the meaning of the previous one, so it is omitted by some translations (so Contemporary English Version, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch (1982)). Some of the translations that keep the clause misunderstand it by saying the people of Jerusalem did worse things than the people of Samaria; for example, Good News Translation has “You have acted more disgustingly than she ever did” (similarly New Century Version). This rendering goes too far, because the clause only says that they did many more bad things. A better model is “You did many more things I hate than they ever did.” For abominations see Ezek 16.2. The pronoun they refers to both of Jerusalem’s sisters, Sodom and Samaria. New Living Translation makes this clear by rendering this clause as “You have done far more detestable things than your sisters ever did.”

And have made your sisters appear righteous by all the abominations which you have committed: This is a vivid way of saying that Jerusalem was so bad that, in comparison to her, the wicked cities of Sodom and Samaria looked “good” (New Century Version) or “innocent” (Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version, Revised English Bible, New Jerusalem Bible), that is, they looked as if they had not sinned. Translators may say “Compared to the terrible things you have done, your sisters look innocent.” Your sisters is what is read in Masoretic Text, but what is written is “your sister” (Revised English Bible). Almost all the translations and commentators have “your sisters,” which is the recommendation of Hebrew Old Testament Text Project.

Models for this verse are:

• Samaria was wicked, but you are very wicked. You have done many more wicked things than Sodom and Samaria did. If someone looks at you and then looks at them, they will think that those two cities were good.

• Samaria did not do half of the sins you have. You have done more things that I hate than your wicked sisters, and in comparison they seem good.

Quoted with permission from Gross, Carl & Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on Ezekiel. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2016. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .