Ezekiel 24:22

And ye shall do as I have done: ye shall not cover [your] lips, nor eat the bread of men.

And ye shall do {H6213} as I have done {H6213}: ye shall not cover {H5844} your lips {H8222}, nor eat {H398} the bread {H3899} of men {H582}.

But you are to do as I have done - not cover your upper lips, not eat the food people prepare for mourners,

Then you will do as I have done: You will not cover your lips or eat the bread of mourners.

And ye shall do as I have done: ye shall not cover your lips, nor eat the bread of men.

Commentary

Context

Ezekiel 24:22 is part of a powerful and somber prophecy concerning the impending destruction of Jerusalem and its Temple by the Babylonians. The immediate context is found in Ezekiel 24:15-18, where God instructs Ezekiel not to mourn publicly or conventionally after the sudden death of his beloved wife. This act serves as a prophetic sign to the exiled Israelites in Babylon. God reveals that just as Ezekiel will not mourn in typical ways, so too will the people of Judah be so utterly overwhelmed by the swift and devastating fall of Jerusalem and the Temple—the "desire of their eyes" and "that which their soul pitieth"—that they will be incapable of traditional expressions of grief. This verse emphasizes the severity of God's judgment and the depth of the coming national calamity.

Key Themes

  • Unconventional Mourning: The verse highlights a grief so profound and shocking that it transcends conventional mourning rituals. The people will be too stunned, too grieved, or too despairing to engage in the usual signs of sorrow.
  • Divine Judgment and Sovereignty: This prophecy underscores God's absolute sovereignty over historical events and His righteous judgment against Judah's persistent idolatry and rebellion. The destruction is not random but a direct consequence of their sin.
  • Prophetic Sign and Fulfillment: Ezekiel's personal tragedy serves as a living parable. His commanded lack of traditional mourning foreshadows the nation's experience, demonstrating that God's word through His prophet is reliable and will be fulfilled.

Linguistic Insights

  • "Ye shall not cover [your] lips": In ancient Israel, covering the lips (or beard) was a common sign of mourning, humiliation, or shame. It was a practice seen in various contexts of distress, such as for lepers (Leviticus 13:45) or prophets struck dumb by God's judgment (Micah 3:7). The instruction here implies that the coming disaster will be so overwhelming that even this customary expression of grief will be absent, perhaps due to sheer shock or the universality of sorrow.
  • "Nor eat the bread of men": This phrase refers to the "bread of mourners" or "bread of sorrow," which was food provided by neighbors and friends to comfort the bereaved during a time of mourning. Not eating this bread suggests either that there will be no one left to offer comfort, or that the grief will be too consuming to accept such solace, indicating profound isolation and despair.

Practical Application

This verse serves as a stark reminder of the consequences of persistent disobedience to God. For believers today, it highlights several points:

  • The Gravity of Sin: God takes sin seriously, and while His grace abounds, there are also real, sometimes severe, consequences for rebellion and spiritual complacency.
  • God's Warnings are Real: Just as God warned Judah through Ezekiel, He continues to warn His people through His Word. We should heed these warnings and pursue repentance and obedience.
  • Profound Spiritual Loss: The destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple represented an immense spiritual loss for Israel. This can serve as a metaphor for the profound sorrow that can accompany the loss of spiritual blessings, community, or a vibrant relationship with God due to unfaithfulness.
  • God's Sovereignty in All Circumstances: Even in devastating judgment, God is sovereign. This passage, though grim, ultimately points to God's justice and His ultimate plan, which includes restoration for those who turn to Him (Ezekiel 36:26-27).
Note: If the commentary doesn’t appear instantly, please allow 2–5 seconds for it to load. It is generated by Gemini 2.5 Flash using a prompt focused on Biblical fidelity over bias. While the insights have been consistently reliable, we encourage prayerful discernment through the Holy Spirit.

Please note that only the commentary section is AI-generated — the main Scripture and cross-references are stored on the site and are from trusted and verified sources.

Cross-References

  • Job 27:15 (2 votes)

    Those that remain of him shall be buried in death: and his widows shall not weep.

  • Amos 6:9 (2 votes)

    And it shall come to pass, if there remain ten men in one house, that they shall die.

  • Amos 6:10 (2 votes)

    And a man's uncle shall take him up, and he that burneth him, to bring out the bones out of the house, and shall say unto him that [is] by the sides of the house, [Is there] yet [any] with thee? and he shall say, No. Then shall he say, Hold thy tongue: for we may not make mention of the name of the LORD.

  • Jeremiah 16:4 (2 votes)

    They shall die of grievous deaths; they shall not be lamented; neither shall they be buried; [but] they shall be as dung upon the face of the earth: and they shall be consumed by the sword, and by famine; and their carcases shall be meat for the fowls of heaven, and for the beasts of the earth.

  • Jeremiah 16:7 (2 votes)

    Neither shall [men] tear [themselves] for them in mourning, to comfort them for the dead; neither shall [men] give them the cup of consolation to drink for their father or for their mother.

  • Psalms 78:64 (2 votes)

    Their priests fell by the sword; and their widows made no lamentation.

  • Ezekiel 24:16 (2 votes)

    Son of man, behold, I take away from thee the desire of thine eyes with a stroke: yet neither shalt thou mourn nor weep, neither shall thy tears run down.