TRV
Translation
King James Version
And as for thy nativity, in the day thou wast born thy navel was not cut, neither wast thou washed in water to supple thee; thou wast not salted at all, nor swaddled at all.
Complete Jewish Bible
As for your birth - on the day you were born nobody cut your umbilical cord, washed you in water to clean you off, rubbed salt on you or wrapped you in cloth.
Berean Standard Bible
On the day of your birth your cord was not cut, nor were you washed with water for cleansing. You were not rubbed with salt or wrapped in cloths.
American Standard Version
And as for thy nativity, in the day thou wast born thy navel was not cut, neither wast thou washed in water to cleanse thee; thou wast not salted at all, nor swaddled at all.
World English Bible Messianic
As for your birth, in the day you were born your navel was not cut, neither were you washed in water to cleanse you; you weren’t salted at all, nor swaddled at all.
Geneva Bible (1599)
And in thy natiuitie whe thou wast borne, thy nauell was not cut: thou wast not washed in water to soften thee: thou wast not salted with salt, nor swadled in cloutes.
Young's Literal Translation
As to thy nativity, in the day thou wast born, Thou--thy navel hath not been cut, And in water thou wast not washed for ease, And thou hast not been salted at all, And thou hast not been swaddled at all.
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Commentary on Ezekiel 16 verses 1–5
1 ¶ Again the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, cause Jerusalem to know her abominations,
3 And say, Thus saith the Lord GOD unto Jerusalem; Thy birth and thy nativity is of the land of Canaan; thy father was an Amorite, and thy mother an Hittite.
4 And as for thy nativity, in the day thou wast born thy navel was not cut, neither wast thou washed in water to supple thee; thou wast not salted at all, nor swaddled at all.
5 None eye pitied thee, to do any of these unto thee, to have compassion upon thee; but thou wast cast out in the open field, to the lothing of thy person, in the day that thou wast born.
Ezekiel is now among the captives in Babylon; but, as Jeremiah at Jerusalem wrote for the use of the captives though they had Ezekiel upon the spot with them (ch. 29), so Ezekiel wrote for the use of Jerusalem, though Jeremiah himself was resident there; and yet they were far from looking upon it as an affront to one another's help both by preaching and writing. Jeremiah wrote to the captives for their consolation, which was the thing they needed; Ezekiel here is directed to write to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for their conviction and humiliation, which was the thing they needed.
I. This is his commission (Eze 16:2): "Cause Jerusalem to know her abominations (that is, her sins); set them in order before her." Note, 1. Sins are not only provocations which God is angry at, but abominations which he hates, as contrary to his nature, and which we ought to hate, Jer 44:4. 2. The sins of Jerusalem are in a special manner so. The practice of profaneness appears most odious in those that make a profession of religion. 3. Though Jerusalem is a place of great knowledge, yet she is loth to know her abominations; so partial are men in their own favour that they are hardly made to see and own their own badness, but deny it, palliate or extenuate it. 4. It is requisite that we should know our sins, that we may confess them, and may justify God in what he brings upon us for them. 5. It is the work of ministers to cause sinners, sinners in Jerusalem, to know their abominations, to set before them the glass of the law, that in it they may see their own deformities and defilements, to tell them plainly of their faults. Thou art the man.
II. That Jerusalem may be made to know her abominations, and particularly the abominable ingratitude she had been guilty of, it was requisite that she should be put in mind of the great things God had done for her, as the aggravations of her bad conduct towards him; and, to magnify those favours, she is in these verses made to know the meanness and baseness of her original, from what poor beginnings God raised her, and how unworthy she was of his favour and of the honour he had put upon her. Jerusalem is here put for the Jewish church and nation, which is here compared to an outcast child, base-born and abandoned, which the mother herself has no affection nor concern for. 1. The extraction of the Jewish nation was mean: "Thy birth is of the land of Canaan (Eze 16:3); thou hadst from the very first the spirit and disposition of a Canaanite." The patriarchs dwelt in Canaan, and they were there but strangers and sojourners, had no possession, no power, not one foot of ground of their own but a burying-place. Abraham and Sarah were indeed their father and mother, but they were only inmates with the Amorites and Hittites, who, having the dominion, seemed to be as parents to the seed of Abraham, witness the court Abraham made to the children of Seth (Gen 23:4, Gen 23:8), the dependence they had upon their neighbours the Canaanites, and the fear they were in of them, Gen 13:7; Gen 34:30. If the patriarchs, at their first coming to Canaan, had conquered it, and made themselves masters of it, this would have put an honour upon their family and would have looked great in history; but, instead of that, they went from one nation to another (Psa 105:13), as tenants from one farm to another, almost as beggars from one door to another, when they were but few in number, yea, very few. And yet this was not the worst; their fathers had served other gods in Ur of the Chaldees (Jos 24:2); even in Jacob's family there were strange gods, Gen 35:2. Thus early had they a genius leading them to idolatry; and upon this account their ancestors were Amorites and Hittites. 2. When they first began to multiply their condition was really very deplorable, like that of a new-born child, which must of necessity die from the womb if the knees prevent it not, Job 3:11, Job 3:12. The children of Israel, when they began to increase into a people and became considerable, were thrown out from the country that was intended for them; a famine drove them thence. Egypt was the open field into which they were cast; there they had no protection or countenance from the government they were under, but, on the contrary, were ruled with rigour, and their lives embittered; they had no encouragement given them to build up their families, no help to build up their estates, no friends or allies to strengthen their interests. Joseph, who had been the shepherd and stone of Israel, was dead; the king of Egypt, who should have been kind to them for Joseph's sake, set himself to destroy this man-child as soon as it was born (Rev 12:4), ordered all the males to be slain, which, it is likely, occasioned the exposing of many as well as Moses, to which perhaps the similitude here has reference. The founders of nations and cities had occasion for all the arts and arms they were masters of, set their heads on work, by policies and stratagems, to preserve and nurse up their infant states. Tantae molis erat Romanam condere gentem - So vast were the efforts requisite to the establishment of the Roman name. Virgil. But the nation of Israel had no such care taken of it, no such pains taken with it, as Athens, Sparta, Rome, and other commonwealths had when they were first founded, but, on the contrary, was doomed to destruction, like an infant new-born, exposed to wind and weather, the navel-string not cut, the poor babe not washed, not clothed, no swaddled, because not pitied, Eze 16:4, Eze 16:5. Note, We owe the preservation of our infant lives to the natural pity and compassion which the God of nature has put into the hearts of parents and nurses towards new-born children. This infant is said to be cast out, to the loathing of her person; it was a sign that she was loathed by those that bore her, and she appeared loathsome to all that looked upon her. The Israelites were an abomination to the Egyptians, as we find Gen 43:32; Gen 46:34. Some think that this refers to the corrupt and vicious disposition of that people from their beginning: they were not only the weakest and fewest of all people (Deu 7:7), but the worst and most ill-humoured of all people. God giveth thee this good land, not for thy righteousness, for thou art a stiff-necked people, Deu 9:6. And Moses tells them there (Eze 16:24), You have been rebellious against the Lord from the day that I knew you. They were not suppled, nor washed, nor swaddled; they were not at all tractable or manageable, nor cast into any good shape. God took them to be his people, not because he saw any thing in them inviting or promising, but so it seemed good in his sight. And it is a very apt illustration of the miserable condition of all the children of men by nature. As for our nativity, in the day that we were born we were shapen in iniquity and conceived in sin, our understandings darkened, our minds alienated from the life of God, polluted with sin, which rendered us loathsome in the eyes of God. Marvel not then that we are told, You must be born again.
Matthew Henry (1662–1714) — Commentary on the Whole Bible. This section covers verses 1–5. Public domain.
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Origen of AlexandriaAD 253
HOMILIES ON EZEKIEL 6:6
It is a great work to be rubbed with salt. If we are seasoned with salt, we are full of grace.
Origen of AlexandriaAD 253
HOMILIES ON EZEKIEL 6:5
Not everyone is washed for salvation. We who have received the grace of baptism in the name of Christ are washed, but I do not know who is washed for salvation.
Origen of AlexandriaAD 253
HOMILIES ON EZEKIEL 6:6
To take an example from human relationships, if the Holy Spirit gives, then I travel on to Jesus Christ and God the Father.
Origen of AlexandriaAD 253
HOMILIES ON EZEKIEL 6:5
It is quite difficult that he who is washed should be washed in order to be saved. Listen, catechumens, listen, and from what is said, prepare yourselves, while you are catechumens, while you are not yet baptized, and come to the bath and be baptized for salvation. Do not be so baptized that you are washed but not for salvation.
Origen of AlexandriaAD 253
HOMILIES ON EZEKIEL 6:6
The soul that is reborn is barely out of the bath before being enveloped with towels.
JeromeAD 420
Commentary on Ezekiel
(Verse 4, 5.) And when you were born, on the day of your birth your umbilical cord was not cut, and you were not washed in water for your own health, nor were you sprinkled with salt, nor wrapped in swaddling clothes. No eye had pity on you, to do any of these things out of compassion for you: but you were thrown out into the open field, in the abjection of your soul, on the day you were born. LXX: And on the day you were born, they did not bind your breasts, and your umbilical cord was not cut, and you were not washed in water for your own health, nor were you sprinkled with salt, and you were not wrapped in swaddling clothes; no eye had pity on you, to do any of these things for you, and allow anything to happen to you, and you were thrown out into the open field, in the corruption of your soul, on the day you were born. Let us discuss each point in the order of the reading. When Jerusalem was born from her father Amorite and her mother Hittite, and was poured out from the womb, her umbilicus was not cut, with which fetuses are nourished in the womb like trees and plants, which are nourished by the hidden moisture of the earth through their roots. And just as the seed of men is signified in the loins, so the genitalia of women are called umbilicus in honorable speech according to the custom of the Scriptures, as witnessed by Job, who speaks figuratively of the devil as a dragon: His strength is in his loins, and his power is in the navel of his belly (Job 40:11). For this ancient dragon serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, deceives the world; he has power over men in their loins, and over women in their navels. But this refers to Jerusalem: that it did not immediately receive the law, and that the beginnings of its shameful birth were not cut off; but it first lived a Gentile life; for this reason the Seventy translated: 'On the day you were born, they did not bind your breasts' (Ezek. 7:8), having this holy Scripture custom, that it might use the words heart, bosom, or breast, and breasts according to each appropriate context. Priests in whom there should be doctrine, and they seek the law from their mouth, receive a small breast. John reclines upon the Lord's breast, so that he may draw from the most abundant fountain the flows of wisdom (John 13). In the Song of Songs, the Virgin has two breasts, like two twin young goats that feed among lilies until the day breathes and the shadows flee away (Song of Songs 4). A loving mother, as soon as her little child is born, binds her breasts so that they may cease from tender swelling and preserve her virgin beauty. But when she reaches the age of puberty, it will be said of her: Will the bride forget her adornment, or the virgin her breastband? (Jeremiah II, 32) It follows: And you were not washed in water for salvation. The bodies of babies, as soon as they are born from the womb, are usually washed with water: so too does the spiritual generation require the saving washing. For no one is clean from filth, not even if his life were of only one day (Job XXVI, 14, 15). And in the Psalms we read: In iniquities I was conceived, and in sins my mother conceived me (Psalm 50:6). The second birth dissolves the first birth. For it is written: Unless one is born of water and the Holy Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God (John 3:5). Many are the baptisms that the Pagans have in their mysteries, and the heretics promise: they all cleanse; but they do not cleanse for salvation. Therefore, it is added: and in which you have not been cleansed for salvation. This can be understood not only about heretics, but also about ecclesiastics who do not receive baptism with full faith. It must be said about them that they receive water, but they do not receive the spirit, just like Simon Magus who wanted to buy the grace of God with money. He was indeed baptized in water, but he was by no means baptized unto salvation (Acts 8). Thirdly, it is said: 'not seasoned with salt.' When the tender bodies of infants still hold the warmth of the womb, and they announce the beginnings of laborious life with their first cries, they are usually touched with salt by the midwives to make them drier and more constricted. Furthermore, Jerusalem, which was born of wicked parents, has achieved nothing of taste, nothing of diligence. But those who are reborn in Christ are said to: 'You are the salt of the earth' (Matthew 5); and it is commanded to them by the Apostle: 'Let your speech always be seasoned with grace' (Colossians 4). Hence, both the wise are commonly called salty, and the foolish are called tasteless. And in the book of Leviticus it is established by law: 'All your sacrifices shall be seasoned with salt.' The salt of the Testament of the Lord will not cease from your sacrifices: you shall offer salt with all your offerings (Leviticus 2:13). He who is seasoned with this salt, and has dried up every harmful decay and moisture by its mixture, will no longer say: My wounds have festered and become rotten because of my foolishness (Psalm 37:6). I know that I have read in a certain volume about the Lord Savior, that he himself is the heavenly salt; and not only the earthly and infernal, but also the celestial things are seasoned by its flavor: so that what is written may be fulfilled: Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men of good will (Luke 2:14). The fourth thing is: not wrapped in swaddling clothes. And the Savior was wrapped in swaddling clothes as an infant, and everyone who is born needs God's protection through the swaddling clothes. It is natural, however, that where the diligence of parents is not lacking, the infants' umbilical cords are first cut after birth: then they are washed with water to cleanse the blood. Thirdly, the moisture of the infants' bodies is dried with the addition of salt. Fourthly, so that the tender bodies of infants are wrapped in swaddling clothes, for two reasons: so that the body is dried with salt, and so that it is kept and tightened with the clothes so that it does not flow away; and so that the most delicate limbs are not easily deformed. And even the bodies of the barbarians are more upright than Roman bodies. Until the second and third year, they are always wrapped in cloths. But not such is Jerusalem, whose navel is not cut off, nor are her breasts bound, nor is she washed with water for health, nor seasoned with salt, nor wrapped and bound with infancy cloths. But why she deserved none of these, the following Scripture testifies. The eye has not spared you: to do one of these things, being moved with compassion for you. For which reason, the Seventy determined: 'Your eye spared not over you: that it might make you one of all these.' And it is necessary, that a double edition have a double understanding. The prior signifies this: 'Your eye spared not over you, that it might make one of these things be merciful to you.' And the sense is: No one had mercy on you, having offended God; no one's bowels were moved for you, that out of the four higher Tensions at least one might be made for you; because you did not deserve to receive all things at once. In the second it is said: Your eye did not spare you, so that I may do this one thing for you out of pity for you. And this has the meaning: You have acted in this way, and thus you were born in sin and conceived in guilt by your mother, so that even she does not have pity on you. And when you acted in this way, so that you emerged as cruel against yourself through evil deeds: what could I have done for you, who did not even deserve to receive one thing from your superiors? Therefore, since none of the things that are commonly done for infants was done for you; and this not without cause or without judgement, but due to your fault and sin, for which even you have no pity on yourself: therefore you are cast down upon the face of the earth, or the wayside; and cast down because of the wickedness of your soul on the day you were born. Let us not be thrown down into the face of the field by the wickedness of the soul, in which there is a wide and spacious road that leads to death; in which the cavalry of the Chaldeans revels. It must also be considered that no one can commit any evil on the day of their birth, except at the time of the bath, when the wise generation of the faithful is assumed.
JeromeAD 420
COMMENTARY ON EZEKIEL 4:16.4-5
That you were washed in water means washing not only from heretics but also from ecclesiastics who do not receive saving baptism with a full faith, about whom it is said that they will have received the water but not the Spirit.
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.
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SUMMARY
Ezekiel 16:4 vividly portrays Jerusalem, personified as a newborn infant, abandoned and utterly neglected at birth. This graphic imagery underscores the nation of Israel's initial state of profound helplessness, destitution, and lack of inherent merit, setting a stark contrast against the backdrop of God's subsequent, unmerited act of finding, cleansing, and covenanting with her. The verse emphatically communicates that Israel's origins were not glorious or self-sufficient, but rather marked by a desperate need for divine intervention and sovereign grace.
CONTEXT
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
The primary literary device employed in Ezekiel 16:4 and throughout the chapter is Allegory. Jerusalem, representing the nation of Israel, is personified as a newborn infant. This extended allegory allows God to convey complex theological truths about Israel's history, His covenant relationship with them, and their subsequent unfaithfulness, in a deeply relatable and emotionally charged manner. The verse also employs potent Vivid Imagery, painting a visceral picture of an abandoned, unkempt newborn. The detailed description of omitted birthing rituals—the uncut navel, unwashed body, unsalted skin, and unswaddled state—evokes a strong sense of Pathos and horror, highlighting the extreme vulnerability and utter destitution of the allegorical infant. This graphic imagery serves to magnify the depth of Jerusalem's spiritual depravity and the profound extent of God's unmerited grace in choosing and rescuing her from such a desperate state. The cumulative effect of these omitted actions creates a powerful sense of Negation and absence, emphasizing what was not done, thereby stressing the severity of the neglect and the complete lack of care.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Ezekiel 16:4 serves as a profound theological statement on the nature of God's grace and humanity's inherent spiritual condition. The graphic depiction of Jerusalem's "birth" as a neglected, abandoned infant powerfully illustrates that Israel's election and covenant relationship with God were not based on any pre-existing merit, inherent worth, or self-sufficiency. Instead, it was an act of pure, unadulterated divine compassion and initiative. This verse underscores the universal truth that humanity, in its fallen state, is spiritually helpless, exposed, and incapable of preparing itself for a relationship with a holy God. Our "spiritual birth" apart from God's intervention is one of destitution and death. Therefore, any spiritual life, cleansing, or security we experience is solely a result of God's sovereign love reaching down to us in our most vulnerable state, rescuing us, and bringing us into His covenant.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Ezekiel 16:4, though a stark and challenging passage, offers a profound mirror for personal spiritual reflection. It compels us to confront the reality of our own spiritual condition apart from God's grace. Just as Jerusalem had no inherent beauty, strength, or claim to God's favor at her "birth," so too are we, in our natural state, spiritually helpless, unholy, and utterly dependent on divine intervention. This verse calls us to a deeper appreciation of God's boundless love and mercy—a love that seeks us out not when we are cleaned up and presentable, but when we are most vulnerable, exposed, and spiritually destitute. It reminds us that our salvation, our cleansing, and our security in Christ are not earned but freely given, a testament to God's initiative and transformative power. This should cultivate profound humility, gratitude, and a renewed commitment to living in response to such an astonishing display of unmerited favor, recognizing that every spiritual blessing flows from His compassionate heart.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
What is the main purpose of the graphic imagery in Ezekiel 16:4?
Answer: The graphic imagery in Ezekiel 16:4 serves multiple crucial purposes within the larger allegory of Ezekiel 16. Primarily, it is designed to shock the audience and powerfully convey the utter destitution and lack of inherent merit in Jerusalem's (Israel's) origins. By depicting the city as an abandoned, uncared-for newborn left to die, God emphasizes that Israel's existence and eventual covenant relationship with Him were not due to any inherent greatness or worthiness on her part, but solely due to His unmerited compassion and initiative. This stark portrayal magnifies the depth of God's grace and highlights Israel's subsequent ingratitude and spiritual betrayal, making her sin appear even more heinous in light of such a merciful rescue.
Does this passage imply that God chose Israel because they were "unworthy" or "unclean"?
Answer: This passage strongly implies that God chose Israel not because they were unworthy or unclean, but despite their unworthiness and uncleanness. The imagery in Ezekiel 16:4 emphasizes that Israel had no inherent qualities that would commend them to God. Their "birth" was one of abandonment and spiritual destitution, a state of profound uncleanness and helplessness. Therefore, God's choice and subsequent covenant with them were acts of pure, sovereign grace and love, not based on any merit or attractiveness in Israel herself. This aligns perfectly with other biblical passages, such as Deuteronomy 7:7-8, which explicitly state that God chose Israel not because they were numerous or great, but because He loved them and was faithful to His oath.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Ezekiel 16:4, with its raw depiction of an abandoned, unwashed, and unswaddled infant, finds profound Christ-centered fulfillment in the New Testament's portrayal of humanity's spiritual condition and God's redemptive work through Jesus. Just as Jerusalem was utterly helpless and without hope at her "birth," so too are all humanity "dead in trespasses and sins" (Ephesians 2:1). We are born into a state of spiritual neglect, unable to cleanse ourselves or prepare for fellowship with a holy God. However, the gospel reveals that God, in His boundless love and mercy, "made us alive together with Christ" (Ephesians 2:5). The "washing in water" that was absent for the allegorical infant finds its ultimate spiritual reality in the "washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit" (Titus 3:5), through which believers are cleansed from sin and given new life in Christ. The "swaddling" that was denied symbolizes the spiritual covering and security found in Christ, who wraps us in His righteousness and brings us into the warmth and safety of God's covenant family. Our spiritual "nativity" is not one of abandonment, but a glorious new birth "through the living and abiding word of God" (1 Peter 1:23), initiated by God's grace through the atoning work of the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Thus, Ezekiel 16:4 powerfully magnifies the depth of our desperate need and the immeasurable grace of God, who, through Christ, rescues us from spiritual death and brings us into abundant, eternal life.