Say to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord GOD: See Ezek 24.3. In verses 21-24 the Hebrew text has four levels of quotation, which can become complicated for translators. It is acceptable to change some of the direct speech to indirect, if necessary, but care must be taken with the identification of the participants to ensure that the meaning comes through clearly (compare Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version). A possible model for verses 20-21a is “20 So I told them that Yahweh had spoken to me 21 and told me what I should say to them, the people of Israel. The Lord Yahweh said to them….”

For Behold see verse 15.

I will profane my sanctuary means God will make the Temple ritually unclean. He will punish the people of Jerusalem by allowing foreigners to capture the city and desecrate the Temple. For the Hebrew verb rendered profane, see 7.21. Translators may render this clause as “I will make my Temple unfit for my worship [or, unfit for my presence].”

The pride of your power, the delight of your eyes, and the desire of your soul: These three phrases describe how the people felt about Jerusalem and the Temple. The pride of your power refers to the people’s belief that God would never allow enemies to destroy Jerusalem or the Temple and, as a result, those who lived there would always be safe (compare Contemporary English Version, which has “[the temple] in which you take such pride and which makes you feel so safe”). New King James Version says “your arrogant boast,” which stresses that this belief was wrong. New Century Version renders this phrase as “You think it gives you strength. You are proud of it.” Another possible model is “You are proud that the Temple protects you.” The delight of your eyes renders the same Hebrew phrase used in verse 16 to describe Ezekiel’s wife (see the comments there). Here it refers to the Temple, so it may be translated “your dearest treasure.” The desire of your soul refers to what they cared about most, that is, the Temple. The Hebrew word rendered desire comes from a root meaning “pity,” “spare,” or “have compassion on” (compare King James Version, which renders this phrase as “that which your soul pitieth”). It fits how the exiles felt about the city of Jerusalem. The Hebrew word for soul (nefesh) does not refer to the immaterial essence of a person (see the comments on 4.14). Here it refers to the “feeling, passionate faculty” (Greenberg), that is, the ability of human beings to feel strongly and passionately about things. So translators may express this phrase as “You have great love for it” or “You care about it very strongly.”

And your sons and your daughters whom you left behind shall fall by the sword: Finally, the destruction of their beloved Temple and city focuses on personal tragedy. Their children who remained in Jerusalem when Nebuchadnezzar took them to Babylonia in 597 B.C. will be killed in war. For fall by the sword, see 5.12.

The last two sentences of this verse may be rendered as follows:

• I will make my Temple ritually unclean. You are so proud of it and you believe it will keep you safe. It is the dearest thing in the world for you, the thing you care about [or, love] most. And your children whom you left behind in Jerusalem will be killed in war.

In some languages translators will use an active construction for the last sentence instead of a passive one, as in “And enemies will kill in battle your children whom you left behind in Jerusalem.”

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 .