TRV
Translation
King James Version
And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Woe to the women that sew pillows to all armholes, and make kerchiefs upon the head of every stature to hunt souls! Will ye hunt the souls of my people, and will ye save the souls alive that come unto you?
KJV (with Strong's)
And say H559, Thus saith H559 the Lord H136 GOD H3069; Woe H1945 to the women that sew H8609 pillows H3704 to all armholes H679 H3027, and make H6213 kerchiefs H4555 upon the head H7218 of every stature H6967 to hunt H6679 souls H5315! Will ye hunt H6679 the souls H5315 of my people H5971, and will ye save H2421 the souls H5315 alive H2421 that come unto you?
Complete Jewish Bible
tell them that Adonai ELOHIM says, 'Woe to the women who sew magic pads for all arm joints and put veils over people of all sizes, in order to hunt human lives! Will you hunt down the lives of my people while you keep your own lives safe?
Berean Standard Bible
and tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: Woe to the women who sew magic charms on their wrists and make veils for the heads of people of every height, in order to ensnare their souls. Will you ensnare the souls of My people but preserve your own?
American Standard Version
and say, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Woe to the women that sew pillows upon all elbows, and make kerchiefs for the head of persons of every stature to hunt souls! Will ye hunt the souls of my people, and save souls alive for yourselves?
World English Bible Messianic
and say, Thus says the Lord GOD: Woe to the women who sew pillows on all elbows, and make kerchiefs for the head of persons of every stature to hunt souls! Will you hunt the souls of my people, and save souls alive for yourselves?
Geneva Bible (1599)
Thus sayth the Lord God, Woe vnto the women that sowe pillowes vnder al arme holes, and make vailes vpon the head of euery one that standeth vp, to hunt soules: will yee hunt ye soules of my people, and will yee giue life to the soules that come vnto you?
Young's Literal Translation
And thou hast said: Thus said the Lord Jehovah: Woe to those sowing pillows for all joints of the arm, And to those making the kerchiefs For the head of every stature--to hunt souls, The souls do ye hunt of My people? And the souls ye have do ye keep alive?
In the KJVVerse 20,727 of 31,102
Study This Verse
Commentary on Ezekiel 13 verses 17–23
17 ¶ Likewise, thou son of man, set thy face against the daughters of thy people, which prophesy out of their own heart; and prophesy thou against them,
18 And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Woe to the women that sew pillows to all armholes, and make kerchiefs upon the head of every stature to hunt souls! Will ye hunt the souls of my people, and will ye save the souls alive that come unto you?
19 And will ye pollute me among my people for handfuls of barley and for pieces of bread, to slay the souls that should not die, and to save the souls alive that should not live, by your lying to my people that hear your lies?
20 Wherefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against your pillows, wherewith ye there hunt the souls to make them fly, and I will tear them from your arms, and will let the souls go, even the souls that ye hunt to make them fly.
21 Your kerchiefs also will I tear, and deliver my people out of your hand, and they shall be no more in your hand to be hunted; and ye shall know that I am the LORD.
22 Because with lies ye have made the heart of the righteous sad, whom I have not made sad; and strengthened the hands of the wicked, that he should not return from his wicked way, by promising him life:
23 Therefore ye shall see no more vanity, nor divine divinations: for I will deliver my people out of your hand: and ye shall know that I am the LORD.
As God has promised that when he pours out his Spirit upon his people both their sons and their daughters shall prophesy, so the devil, when he acts as a spirit of lies and falsehood, is so in the mouth not only of false prophets, but of false prophetesses too, and those are the deceivers whom the prophet is here directed to prophesy against; for they are not such despicable enemies to God's truths as deserve not to be taken notice of, nor yet will either the weakness of their sex excuse their sin or the tenderness and respect that are owing to it exempt them from the reproaches and threatenings of the word of God. No: Son of man, set they face against the daughters of thy people, Eze 13:17. God takes no pleasure in owning them for his people. They are thy people, as Exo 32:7. The women pretend to a spirit of prophecy, and are in the same song with the men, as Ahab's prophets were: Go on, and prosper. They prophesy out of their own heart too; they say what comes uppermost and what they know nothing of. Therefore prophesy against them from God's own mouth. The prophet must set his face against them, and try if they can look him in the face and stand to what they say. Note, When sinners grow very impudent it is time for reprovers to be very bold. Now observe,
I. How the sin of these false prophetesses is described, and what are the particulars of it. 1. They told deliberate lies to those who consulted them, and came to them to be advised, and to be told their fortune: "You do mischief by your lying to my people that hear your lies (Eze 13:19); they come to be told the truth, but you tell them lies; and, because you humour them in their sins, they are willing to hear you." Note, It is ill with those people who can better hear pleasing lies than unpleasing truths; and it is a temptation to those who lie in wait to deceive to tell lies when they find people willing to hear them and to excuse themselves with this, Si populus vult decipi, decipiatur - If the people will be deceived, let them. 2. They profaned the name of God by pretending to have received those lies from him (Eze 13:19): "You pollute my name among my people, and make use of that for the patronising of your lies and the gaining of credit to them." Note, Those greatly pollute God's holy name that make use of it to give countenance to falsehood and wickedness. Yet this they did for handfuls of barley and pieces of bread. They did it for gain; they cared not what dishonour they did to God's name by their lying, so they could but make a hand of it for themselves. There is nothing so sacred which men of mercenary spirits, in whom the love of this world reigns, will not profane and prostitute, if they can but get money by the bargain. But they did it for poor gain; if they could get no more for it, rather than break they would sell you a false prophecy that should please you to a nicety for the beggar's dole, a piece of bread or a handful of barley; and yet that was more than it was worth. Had they asked it as an alms, for God's sake, surely they might have had it, and God would have been honoured; but, taking it as a fee for a false prophecy, God's name if polluted, and the smallness of the reward heightens the offence. For a piece of bread that man will transgress, Pro 28:21. Had their poverty been their temptation to steal, and so to take the name of the Lord in vain, it would not have been nearly so bad as when it tempted them to prophesy lies in his name and so to profane it. 3. They kept people in awe, and terrified them with their pretensions: "You hunt the souls of my people (Eze 13:18), hunt them to make them flee (Eze 13:20), hunt them into gardens (so the margin reads it); you use all the arts you have to court or compel them into those places where you deliver your pretended predictions, or you have got such an influence upon them that you make them do just as you would have them to do, and tyrannise over them." It was indeed the people's fault that they did regard them, but it was their fault by lies and falsehoods to command that regard; they pretended to save the souls alive that came to them, Eze 13:18. If they would but be hearers of them, and contributors to them, they might be sure of salvation; thus they beguiled unstable souls that had a concern about salvation as their end but did not rightly understand the way, and therefore hearkened to those who were most confident in promising it to them. "But will you pretend to save souls, or secure salvation to your party?" Those are justly suspected that make such pretensions. 4. They discouraged those that were honest and good, and encouraged those that were wicked and profane: You slay the souls that should not die, and save those alive that should not live, Eze 13:19. This is explained (Eze 13:22): You have made the heart of the righteous sad, whom I have not made sad; because they would not, they durst not, countenance your pretensions, you thundered out the judgments of God against them, to their great grief and trouble; you put them under invidious characters, to make them either despicable or odious to the people, and pretended to do it in God's name, which made them go many a time with a sad heart; whereas it was the will of God that they should be comforted, and by having respect put upon them should have encouragement given them. But on the other side, and which is still worse, you have strengthened the hands of the wicked and emboldened them to go on in their wicked ways and not to return from them, which was the thing the true prophets with earnestness called them to. "You have promised sinners life in their sinful ways, have told them that they shall have peace though they go on, by which their hands have been strengthened and their hearts hardened." Some think this refers to the severe censures they passed upon those who had already gone into captivity (who were humbled under their affliction, by which their hearts were made sad), and the commendations they gave to those who rebelled against the king of Babylon, who were hardened in their impieties, by which their hands were strengthened; or by their polluting the name of God they saddened the hearts of good people who have a value and veneration for the word of God, and confirmed atheists and infidels in their contempt of divine revelation and furnished them with arguments against it. Note, Those have a great deal to answer for who grieve the spirits, and weaken the hands, of good people, and who gratify the lusts of sinners, and animate them in their opposition to God and religion. Nor can any thing strengthen the hands of sinners more than to tell them that they may be saved in their sins without repentance, or that there may be repentance though they do not return from their wicked ways. 5. They mimicked the true prophets, by giving signs for the illustrating of their false predictions (as Hananiah did, Jer 28:10), and they were signs agreeable to their sex; they sewed little pillows to the people's arm-holes, to signify that they might be easy and repose themselves, and needed not be disquieted with the apprehensions of trouble approaching. And they made kerchiefs upon the head of every stature, of persons of every age, young and old, distinguishable by their stature, Eze 13:18. These kerchiefs were badges of liberty or triumph, intimating that they should not only be delivered from the Chaldeans, but be victorious over them. Some think these were some superstitious rites which they used with those to whom they delivered their divinations, preparing them for the reception of them by putting enchanted pillows under their arms and handkerchiefs on their heads, to raise their fancies and their expectations of something great. Or perhaps the expressions are figurative: they did all they could to make people secure, which is signified by laying them easy, and to make people proud, which is signified by dressing them fine with handkerchiefs, perhaps laid or embroidered on their heads.
II. How the wrath of God against them is expressed. Here is a woe to them (Eze 13:18), and God declares himself against the methods they took to delude and deceive, Eze 13:20. But what course will God take with them? 1. They shall be confounded in their attempts, and shall proceed no further; for (Eze 13:23) you shall see no more vanity nor divine revelations; not that they shall themselves lay down their pretensions in a way of repentance, but when the event gives them the lie they shall be silent for shame; or their fancies and imaginations shall not be disposed to receive impressions which assist them in their divinations as they have been; or they themselves shall be cut off. 2. God's people shall be delivered out of their hands. When they see themselves deluded by them into a false peace and a fool's paradise, and that though they would not leave their sin their sin has left them, and they see no more vanity nor divine divinations, they shall turn their back upon them, shall slight their predictions. The righteous shall be no more saddened by them, no, nor the wicked strengthened: The pillows shall be torn from their arms, and the kerchiefs from their heads; the fallacies shall be discovered, their frauds detected, and the people of God shall no more be in their hand, to be hunted as they had been. Note, It is a great mercy to be delivered from a servile regard to, and fear of, those who, under colour of a divine authority, impose upon and tyrannise over the consciences of men, and say to their souls, Bow down, that we may go over. But it is a sore grief to those who delight in such usurpations to have their power broken and the prey delivered; such was the reformation to the church of Rome. And, when God does this, he makes it to appear that he is the Lord, that it is his prerogative to give law to souls.
Matthew Henry (1662–1714) — Commentary on the Whole Bible. This section covers verses 17–23. Public domain.
Copy as
Origen of AlexandriaAD 253
HOMILIES ON EZEKIEL 3:3
When the work of the speaker is deployed in licentious talk, a veil is placed on the head of everyone regardless of age, not just the children and the young but also the elderly.
Origen of AlexandriaAD 253
HOMILIES ON EZEKIEL 3:4
Allow me, O Christ, to break all pillows made for the luxury of souls.
Origen of AlexandriaAD 253
HOMILIES ON EZEKIEL 3:3
The Word of God must proclaim what is for the salvation of the hearer, what exhorts him to continence, to the practice of sensible actions, to all the things to which the person who is assiduous in works and not pleasures must apply himself in order to be able to obtain what God has promised.
Ambrose of MilanAD 397
Interrogation of Job and David 1.7.25
The Holy Spirit poured out upon the prophet lamenting the misfortune of our frailty, which neither had rest in this life nor retained anything in the sudden encounter with death, that humanity would not rise again until the one came who did not patch the new onto the old nor put a new piece of cloth on an old garment; but rather made all things new, as he himself said: Behold, I make all things new. For he is the resurrection, he is the firstborn from the dead, in whom we have indeed received a foretaste of the future resurrection, yet he alone has already risen with eternal resurrection.
JeromeAD 420
Commentary on Ezekiel
(Verse 17 and following) And you, son of man, set your face against the daughters of your people who prophesy out of their own heart, and prophesy against them, and say, 'Thus says the Lord God: Woe to those who sew cushions for all armholes and make veils for the heads of people of every height, to hunt souls! Will you hunt the souls of My people, and keep yourselves alive? And will you profane Me among My people for handfuls of barley and for pieces of bread, killing people who should not die, and keeping people alive who should not live, by your lying to My people who listen to lies.' Therefore, thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against your cushions, with which you hunt the flying souls, and I will tear them from your arms, and I will release the souls whom you hunt, souls to fly. And I will tear off your necklaces, and I will free my people from your hand, and they shall no longer be in your hands for plunder. And you shall know that I am the Lord. Because you have made the heart of the righteous sad, whom I have not made sad, and you have encouraged the hands of the wicked, so that he does not turn away from his evil way and live, therefore you shall no longer see false visions nor practice divination. And I will deliver my people from your hand, and you shall know that I am the Lord. LXX: And you, son of man, set your face against the daughters of your people, who prophesy out of their own heart; prophesy against them, and say, 'Thus says the Lord God: Woe to the women who sew magic charms on their sleeves and make veils for the heads of people of every height, to hunt souls! Will you hunt down the souls of My people, and keep yourselves alive? And will you profane Me among My people for handfuls of barley and for pieces of bread, killing people who should not die, and keeping people alive who should not live, by your lying to My people who listen to lies?' Therefore, thus says the Lord God: Behold, I am against your cushions, on which you gather souls, and I will tear them from your arms, and I will release the souls that you have perverted, their souls into dispersion. And I will tear off your veils and deliver my people from your hands, and they shall no longer be in your hands for a gathering. And you shall know that I am the Lord. Because you have perverted the soul of the righteous unjustly, and I did not pervert him, and you strengthened the hand of the wicked, so that he would not turn from his evil way and live. Therefore, you will no longer see your lies, and you will not be able to divine any divinations from now on. And I will free my people from your hand, and you will know that I am the Lord. A divine word was directed above the prophets, who were lining the wall with clay, which had no straw, and could not give any strength to the wall or the mortar. Now, they are commanded to put their faces or direct them against the prophetesses of the people, and, as the Septuagint translated, to harden. But just as some false prophets were inspired by a diabolical spirit to subvert the commands of God, so too against prophetesses, such as Deborah (Judges 5) and Huldah (2 Kings 22), and in the Acts of the Apostles, the four daughters of Philip the evangelist prophesying were inspired by a demonic spirit (Acts 21), there were also others of the same sex, among whom were Prisca and Maximilla, who by their false prophecy subverted the faith of truth. However, the Hebrews are said to be skilled in the evil arts through necromancy and the Pythian spirit, such as the one who was seen to have raised the soul of Samuel (1 Samuel 28); and in the Acts of the Apostles, there was a fortune-telling woman who gained much wealth for her masters through divination, from whom an unclean spirit was cast out by the command of the apostle Paul (Acts 16). But we will say that other heretics preach power through the falsehood of their doctrines. Pythagoras and Zeno were among them, from whom the Stoics originated: the Indian Brachmans and the Ethiopian Gymnosophists, who, due to their self-control in food, are considered a marvel by their nations (or, unbelievers). And rightly they are said to whitewash the wall and promise some strength; but because they do not have the seasoning of Christ, their labor is in vain, and their building will perish. For unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain (Psalm 127:1). But other doctors of pleasures and desires, such as the Epicureans, the Pyrrhonians, Jovinianus, and Eunomius, say: Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die. Therefore, the prophet is commanded to set or harden his face against the daughters of his people. First, it must be explained what it means for the face to be set or hardened. Indeed, it is that which is written about the Lord: 'The face of the Lord is against those who do evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth' (Psalm 34:16). For just as wax melts before fire, so sinners perish before God's presence. In the same sense, the prophet says: Son of man, set your face against Theman, Darom, and Nageb. And again: The word of the Lord came to me, saying: Son of man, set your face against the children of Jerusalem. And a little later: The word of the Lord came to me, saying: Son of man, set your face against the children of Ammon. And again: Firmly set your face against Pharaoh, king of Egypt (Infra, XXIX, 2). And again: Son of man, set your face against Gog and Magog. And in another place: I will set my face against that man, and I will make him a desolation and a byword, and I will remove him from the midst of my people, and you shall know that I am the Lord (Infra, XIV, 8). Woe, therefore, to these heresies and doctrines which, promising rest, deceive people of every age and sex, in order to capture the souls of the wretched and lead me away from my people, while I am believed to love pleasure. And this not because of their barley, or the barley of the half-farsang, as we read in Hosea (Hosea V), but because of a handful of barley, by which animals are intoxicated, and a fragment of bread. Not whole bread or solid testimonies of the Scriptures, but those which have been broken, cut, and diminished by heretical depravity; so that they deceive and lead astray even the holy ones, and drag them to death; and they claim to give life to sinners with empty promises. Therefore, the merciful and compassionate God does not kill the prophetesses themselves, but he breaks their spindles, which like nets capture flying souls, so that once they are broken, they have the freedom to fly. And they would tear the veils or kerchiefs, in which the principal soul would recline, and with which the heads of the deceivers would be covered. Since the Apostle teaches that the heads of men should not be covered, but should have the glory of the Lord revealed (II Cor. III). For, he says, you were breaking the spirits of those who serve God with false terrors, and you were holding the impious captive with fraudulent promises, so that, while they were repenting, they would not regain the life they had lost. Therefore, you shall by no means see empty visions, nor shall I call your lies prophecies; but rather divinations, of which it is written: There is no omen in Jacob, nor divination in Israel (Num. XXIII, 23): so that I may deliver my people from your hands, and you may know that I am the Lord who has rescued the lost.
JeromeAD 420
COMMENTARY ON EZEKIEL 4:3.17-23
Woe to those heresies and teachings! They promise respite and deceive every age and gender, in order to capture the souls of unhappy people, and they defame me to my own people until I am believed to desire nothing but my own pleasure.
Gregory the DialogistAD 604
PASTORAL RULE 2:8
To put cushions under every elbow is to cherish with bland flatteries souls that are falling from their uprightness and reclining themselves in this world’s enjoyment. For it is as though the elbow of a recumbent person rested on a cushion and his head on pillows, when the hardness of reproof is withdrawn from one who sins, and when the softness of favor is offered to him, that he may lie softly in error, while no roughness of contradiction troubles him.
Source: Quotations drawn from early Church Fathers and historical Christian theologians (AD 100–1500). Some quotes address the surrounding passage context rather than this verse alone.
Copy as
Continue studying Ezekiel 13:18 across the web’s major study libraries — every link below opens this exact verse, chapter, or book on the destination site.
Read & Compare
BibleGatewayThis verse in more than 200 translations and 70 languages.
Bible.comThe YouVersion reader — hundreds of translations, reading plans, and highlights.
ESV.orgCrossway's official English Standard Version reader.
NET BibleThe NET translation with 60,000+ translators' notes on every rendering decision.
STEP BibleTyndale House's free study tool — original text, vocabulary, and scholarly resources.
BibliaLogos Bible Software's free web reader.
USCCBThe New American Bible (Revised Edition) with the U.S. bishops' study notes.
Commentaries
BibleHub CommentariesDozens of classic commentaries on this verse, gathered on one page.
StudyLightMore than 100 commentary sets — the largest collection on the web.
BibleRefPlain-English commentary on what this verse means, verse by verse.
Enduring WordDavid Guzik's free commentary on this chapter, widely used by Bible teachers.
Bible Study ToolsVerse commentary alongside Greek and Hebrew study aids.
Original Language & Research
- BibleHub InterlinearThe verse word by word — original language, transliteration, and English.
- BibleHub LexiconEvery word's original-language definition and Strong's entry.
Blue Letter BibleDeep-study tools — Strong's numbers, concordance, and word studies.
SefariaThe Hebrew text with Rashi and centuries of Jewish commentary.
Sermons, Hymns & Audio
TrulyRandomVerse is not affiliated with these sites and doesn’t control their content. They’re linked because they’re genuinely useful.
SUMMARY
Ezekiel 13:18 delivers a searing divine indictment from the Lord GOD against false prophetesses in ancient Israel. These women are condemned for their deceptive and predatory spiritual practices, symbolized by the "pillows" sewn to armholes and "kerchiefs" made for heads, which they cunningly employed to ensnare and exploit the very souls of God's people. The verse powerfully exposes their spiritual manipulation, challenging their perverse claim to "save souls alive" while actively leading individuals astray, thereby underscoring the severe divine judgment awaiting those who corrupt God's truth and endanger His flock for personal gain.
CONTEXT
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
Ezekiel 13:18 masterfully employs several potent literary devices to convey its message of divine condemnation. Symbolism is central to the verse, with the "pillows to all armholes" and "kerchiefs upon the head of every stature" serving as vivid symbols of the false comfort, deceptive security, and manipulative spiritual authority peddled by the prophetesses. These objects represent the tangible means by which they ensnared their followers, lulling them into a false sense of peace and preventing them from seeking true repentance. The phrase "to hunt souls" is a powerful metaphor, likening the prophetesses to predatory hunters and the vulnerable people to their unsuspecting prey. This imagery emphasizes the deliberate, malicious, and exploitative nature of their spiritual manipulation, highlighting the grave danger posed to the spiritual well-being and very lives of God's people. Finally, the verse culminates in a sharp rhetorical question: "Will ye hunt the souls of my people, and will ye save the souls alive that come unto you?" This question is not posed for an answer but to underscore God's righteous indignation, expose the inherent contradiction in the prophetesses' deceitful claims, and powerfully emphasize the immense value God places on the souls they sought to destroy. These devices collectively amplify the severity of the prophetesses' sin and the certainty of God's impending judgment.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Ezekiel 13:18 profoundly connects to the broader biblical theme of the critical importance of spiritual discernment and the severe consequences of false teaching. It underscores God's unwavering commitment to the truth and His protective, pastoral care for His people against those who would lead them astray. The "hunting of souls" speaks to the immense value God places on human life and spiritual integrity, revealing His righteous anger against any who would exploit or endanger it for personal gain. This passage serves as a timeless warning that true spiritual comfort and security come only from the Lord GOD and His unadulterated word, not from human contrivances, deceptive rituals, or self-serving promises. It highlights the stark contrast between those who genuinely seek to build up God's people in truth and those who, like ravenous wolves, seek to devour them through lies and manipulation, ultimately leading to spiritual death rather than life.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Ezekiel 13:18 stands as a timeless and potent reminder for believers in every generation to cultivate profound spiritual discernment and to remain vigilant against all forms of deception that masquerade as truth or comfort. In a world saturated with diverse voices, spiritual claims, and self-help philosophies, this passage urgently calls us to critically examine the source, substance, and fruit of every message, ensuring it aligns unequivocally with the unchanging and authoritative Word of God. We are challenged to recognize that true spiritual security, genuine peace, and lasting life are found not in external rituals, human assurances, or comforting lies, but solely in a genuine, repentant, and obedient relationship with the Lord GOD, who alone is the fountain of life and truth. This verse compels us to guard our hearts and minds with diligence, to cling steadfastly to sound doctrine, and to prioritize the spiritual well-being of ourselves and others above any fleeting sense of ease or false promise. It encourages us to pray for divine wisdom to discern the "hunting of souls" in our contemporary context, whether through manipulative spiritual leaders, deceptive ideologies, or any message that subtly or overtly diverts us from the narrow path of Christ and His gospel.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
What were the "pillows" and "kerchiefs" and why were they used by the prophetesses?
Answer: The "pillows" (Hebrew: kesathoth) and "kerchiefs" (Hebrew: misphachoth) were likely not ordinary items but symbolic and possibly ritualistic objects employed by the false prophetesses in their deceptive practices. The "pillows" or "bands" sewn to armholes probably represented charms, amulets, or spiritual restraints designed to offer a false sense of comfort, security, or even magical protection to their followers, or perhaps to the prophetesses themselves to enhance their perceived power. The "kerchiefs" or "veils" placed on heads were likely ornate head coverings used in their divination rituals, perhaps to create an aura of mystical authority, to induce a trance-like state, or to symbolically "cover" and thus control the minds of those they sought to influence. These items were instruments of their spiritual manipulation, designed to ensnare and lull people into a false sense of peace, thereby "hunting souls" by preventing them from seeking true repentance and God's genuine word, often for material gain, as suggested in Ezekiel 13:19.
Why is "hunting souls" considered such a grave offense by God?
Answer: "Hunting souls" (Hebrew: tsud nepheshoth) is considered a grave offense because it signifies a predatory and destructive act against the very essence of a person's life and spiritual well-being. God places immense value on human souls, having created humanity in His image and desiring their flourishing (Genesis 1:27). False prophetesses who "hunt souls" are not merely misleading people; they are actively seeking to ensnare, exploit, and ultimately lead them away from the life and truth found in God, towards spiritual death and separation from Him. This is a direct affront to God's character as the Giver of life, the Good Shepherd who protects His flock (John 10:11), and the One who desires all to come to repentance and life (2 Peter 3:9). Their actions pervert the sacred role of a prophet, which is to guide people to God, into a self-serving enterprise that endangers eternal destinies. God's rhetorical question in the verse, "Will ye hunt the souls of my people, and will ye save the souls alive that come unto you?", powerfully underscores His indignation at this perversion and the immense value He places on His people's lives.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Ezekiel 13:18, with its stark condemnation of those who "hunt souls" and offer false comfort, finds its profound Christ-centered fulfillment in the person and redemptive work of Jesus, the true Shepherd and Savior of souls. While the false prophetesses sought to ensnare and exploit for their own gain, leading people to spiritual death and bondage, Jesus came not to hunt and destroy but to seek and save the lost (Luke 19:10). He unequivocally declares Himself as the Good Shepherd who willingly lays down His life for the sheep, offering abundant and genuine life, in stark contrast to the "thieves and robbers" who come only to steal, kill, and destroy (John 10:10-11). The deceptive comfort offered by the "pillows" and "kerchiefs" of the false prophetesses is utterly superseded by the true peace and soul-rest found in Christ, who graciously invites all who are weary and burdened to come to Him for genuine rest for their souls (Matthew 11:28-30). Unlike those who claimed to "save souls alive" through manipulative means, Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, the only one through whom true spiritual life and eternal salvation are found (John 14:6). His perfect sacrifice on the cross broke the power of spiritual deception, delivered humanity from the snare of sin and death, and offers eternal life to all who believe, thereby truly and eternally saving souls alive.