Ezekiel 5:17
So will I send upon you famine and evil beasts, and they shall bereave thee; and pestilence and blood shall pass through thee; and I will bring the sword upon thee. I the LORD have spoken it.
Original Language Analysis
Cross References
Historical Context
Each judgment element found historical fulfillment. Famine during the siege killed thousands. When the city fell and population scattered, wild animals indeed reclaimed previously inhabited areas (Isaiah 13:21-22 describes this pattern). Disease spread through weakened, starving populations. Blood and sword characterized Babylon's conquest—mass executions and violent slaughter (2 Kings 25:7, 18-21).
The bereavement was particularly tragic. Many children starved during siege; others were killed when the city fell; surviving children were often separated from parents during deportation. The trauma of losing children—whether to death, slavery, or exile—devastated the generation that experienced Jerusalem's fall. Lamentations repeatedly laments dead children and broken families (1:5, 16; 2:11-12, 19-20; 4:4, 10; 5:11-14).
The comprehensive nature of these judgments fulfilled covenant curses warned centuries earlier (Leviticus 26; Deuteronomy 28). God's faithfulness to His word—both blessings for obedience and curses for rebellion—was vindicated. The severity taught that God's threats aren't empty rhetoric but certain realities requiring serious response. This historical lesson remains relevant: God's character guarantees He will do what He promises, whether judgment or salvation.
Questions for Reflection
- How does the comprehensive catalog of judgments (six different forms) reveal sin's pervasive destructive effects?
- What does the inclusion of 'evil beasts' teach about creation's relationship to human covenant faithfulness?
- In what ways does Christ bearing all these curses (Galatians 3:13) provide assurance of believers' safety from judgment?
Related Resources
Explore related topics, people, and study resources to deepen your understanding of this passage.
Analysis & Commentary
So will I send upon you famine and evil beasts, and they shall bereave thee; and pestilence and blood shall pass through thee; and I will bring the sword upon thee. I the LORD have spoken it. The chapter concludes by summarizing all judgment forms: famine (economic collapse), evil beasts (wild animals invading depopulated areas, Leviticus 26:22), bereavement (loss of children), pestilence (disease), blood (violence/war), and sword (military conquest). This comprehensive catalog exhausts punishment categories—nothing is left out. The accumulation emphasizes total devastation from every possible source.
"Evil beasts" (chayyah raah, חַיָּה רָעָה) represents creation's curse reversal. God originally commissioned humans to subdue creation (Genesis 1:28); covenant violation reverses this, making wild animals dominant and humans prey. "They shall bereave thee" (veshikkelukh, וְשִׁכְּלֻךְ) specifically means making childless—the ultimate generational tragedy, cutting off future hope. Combined with pestilence and bloodshed, these judgments assault human life from all angles.
The closing formula "I the LORD have spoken it" appears for the third time in this chapter (verses 13, 15, 17), emphasizing absolute certainty. God's word guarantees fulfillment; what He decrees must occur. For judgment, this is terrifying; for promises, it's comforting. The same God who faithfully executed judgment threats will faithfully fulfill restoration promises (Ezekiel 36-37). This drives us to Christ, who bore every curse (Galatians 3:13) so believers inherit every blessing (Ephesians 1:3).