Ezekiel 19:1
Moreover take thou up a lamentation for the princes of Israel,
Original Language Analysis
שָׂ֣א
Moreover take thou up
H5375
שָׂ֣א
Moreover take thou up
Strong's:
H5375
Word #:
2 of 6
to lift, in a great variety of applications, literal and figurative, absolute and relative
קִינָ֔ה
a lamentation
H7015
קִינָ֔ה
a lamentation
Strong's:
H7015
Word #:
3 of 6
a dirge (as accompanied by beating the breasts or on instruments)
Cross References
Ezekiel 26:17And they shall take up a lamentation for thee, and say to thee, How art thou destroyed, that wast inhabited of seafaring men, the renowned city, which wast strong in the sea, she and her inhabitants, which cause their terror to be on all that haunt it!Ezekiel 27:2Now, thou son of man, take up a lamentation for Tyrus;2 Kings 24:6So Jehoiakim slept with his fathers: and Jehoiachin his son reigned in his stead.Ezekiel 2:10And he spread it before me; and it was written within and without: and there was written therein lamentations, and mourning, and woe.Ezekiel 19:14And fire is gone out of a rod of her branches, which hath devoured her fruit, so that she hath no strong rod to be a sceptre to rule. This is a lamentation, and shall be for a lamentation.2 Kings 24:12And Jehoiachin the king of Judah went out to the king of Babylon, he, and his mother, and his servants, and his princes, and his officers: and the king of Babylon took him in the eighth year of his reign.2 Kings 23:34And Pharaoh-nechoh made Eliakim the son of Josiah king in the room of Josiah his father, and turned his name to Jehoiakim, and took Jehoahaz away: and he came to Egypt, and died there.
Historical Context
Written circa 591 BC, after Jehoahaz's deportation to Egypt (609 BC) and Jehoiachin's to Babylon (597 BC). Both reigned briefly before foreign powers removed them. The lament anticipates Zedekiah's coming fate. This poetic form would have been familiar to exiles, connecting current political tragedy to Israel's mourning traditions.
Questions for Reflection
- How do we lament failed leadership while maintaining hope in God's ultimate sovereignty?
- What does this passage teach about the consequences of ungodly leadership?
Related Resources
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Analysis & Commentary
'Moreover take thou up a lamentation for the princes of Israel.' This chapter is a qinah (lament or funeral dirge) for Judah's failed kings. The Hebrew nasa' qinah ('take up a lamentation') indicates formal mourning poetry. The 'princes' (nesi'im) likely refer to Jehoahaz and Jehoiachin, two kings taken captive. The lament form is ironic—mourning leaders who are still physically alive but politically dead, their royal house collapsed.