Verse (Click for Chapter) New International Version “Take wheat and barley, beans and lentils, millet and spelt; put them in a storage jar and use them to make bread for yourself. You are to eat it during the 390 days you lie on your side. New Living Translation “Now go and get some wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and emmer wheat, and mix them together in a storage jar. Use them to make bread for yourself during the 390 days you will be lying on your side. English Standard Version “And you, take wheat and barley, beans and lentils, millet and emmer, and put them into a single vessel and make your bread from them. During the number of days that you lie on your side, 390 days, you shall eat it. Berean Standard Bible But take wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and spelt; put them in a single container and make them into bread for yourself. This is what you are to eat during the 390 days you lie on your side. King James Bible Take thou also unto thee wheat, and barley, and beans, and lentiles, and millet, and fitches, and put them in one vessel, and make thee bread thereof, according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon thy side, three hundred and ninety days shalt thou eat thereof. New King James Version “Also take for yourself wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and spelt; put them into one vessel, and make bread of them for yourself. During the number of days that you lie on your side, three hundred and ninety days, you shall eat it. New American Standard Bible “But as for you, take wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and spelt, and put them in one vessel and make them into bread for yourself; you shall eat it according to the number of the days that you lie on your side, 390 days. NASB 1995 “But as for you, take wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet and spelt, put them in one vessel and make them into bread for yourself; you shall eat it according to the number of the days that you lie on your side, three hundred and ninety days. NASB 1977 “But as for you, take wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet and spelt, put them in one vessel and make them into bread for yourself; you shall eat it according to the number of the days that you lie on your side, three hundred and ninety days. Legacy Standard Bible “Now as for you, take wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and spelt; set them in one vessel and make them into bread for yourself; you shall eat it according to the number of the days that you lie on your side, 390 days. Amplified Bible “But as for you, take wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and spelt, and put them into one vessel and make them into bread for yourself. You shall eat it according to the number of the days that you lie on your side, three hundred and ninety days. Christian Standard Bible “Also take wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and spelt. Put them in a single container and make them into bread for yourself. You are to eat it during the number of days you lie on your side, 390 days. Holman Christian Standard Bible Also take wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and spelt. Put them in a single container and make them into bread for yourself. You are to eat it during the number of days you lie on your side, 390 days. American Standard Version Take thou also unto thee wheat, and barley, and beans, and lentils, and millet, and spelt, and put them in one vessel, and make thee bread thereof; according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon thy side, even three hundred and ninety days, shalt thou eat thereof. Contemporary English Version Get a large bowl. Then mix together wheat, barley, beans, lentils, and millet, and make some bread. This is what you will eat for the 390 days you are lying down. English Revised Version Take thou also unto thee wheat, and barley, and beans, and lentils, and millet, and spelt, and put them in one vessel, and make thee bread thereof; according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon thy side, even three hundred and ninety days, shalt thou eat thereof. GOD'S WORD® Translation "Then take wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and winter wheat. Put them in a container, and use them to make bread for yourself. Eat it during the 390 days that you are lying on your side. Good News Translation "Now take some wheat, barley, beans, peas, millet, and spelt. Mix them all together and make bread. That is what you are to eat during the 390 days you are lying on your left side. International Standard Version "Furthermore, you are to take some wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and spelt, and mix them together in one container. Then you are to make bread from these grains sufficient to supply you through the time during which you'll be sleeping on your side. You are to eat it for 390 days. NET Bible "As for you, take wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and spelt, put them in a single container, and make food from them for yourself. For the same number of days that you lie on your side--390 days--you will eat it. New Heart English Bible "Take for yourself also wheat, and barley, and beans, and lentils, and millet, and spelt, and put them in one vessel, and make bread of it; according to the number of the days that you shall lie on your side, even three hundred ninety days, you shall eat of it. Webster's Bible Translation Take thou also to thee wheat, and barley, and beans, and lentils, and millet, and fitches, and put them in one vessel, and make thee bread thereof, according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon thy side, three hundred and ninety days shalt thou eat of it. Majority Text Translations Majority Standard BibleBut take wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and spelt; put them in a single container and make them into bread for yourself. This is what you are to eat during the 390 days you lie on your side. World English Bible “Take for yourself also wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and spelt, and put them in one vessel. Make bread of it. According to the number of the days that you will lie on your side, even three hundred ninety days, you shall eat of it. Literal Translations Literal Standard VersionAnd you, take for yourself wheat, and barley, and beans, and lentiles, and millet, and spelt, and you have put them in one vessel, and made them for bread for yourself; the number of the days that you are lying on your side—three hundred and ninety days—you eat it. Young's Literal Translation 'And thou, take to thee wheat, and barley, and beans, and lentiles, and millet, and spelt, and thou hast put them in one vessel, and made them to thee for bread; the number of the days that thou art lying on thy side -- three hundred and ninety days -- thou dost eat it. Smith's Literal Translation And thou, take to thee wheat, and barley, and the bean, and lentiles, and millet, and spelt, and give them into one vessel, and make them to thee for bread, the number of days which thou didst lie upon thy side; three hundred and ninety days shalt thou eat it. Catholic Translations Douay-Rheims BibleAnd take to thee wheat and barley, and beans, and lentils, and millet, and fitches, and put them in one vessel, and make thee bread thereof according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon thy side: three hundred and ninety days shalt thou eat thereof. Catholic Public Domain Version And you shall take for yourself wheat, and barley, and beans, and lentils, and millet, and vetch. And you shall set them in one vessel, and you shall make for yourself bread by the number of days that you will sleep upon your side: three hundred and ninety days shall you shall eat from it. New American Bible Then take wheat and barley, beans and lentils, millet and spelt; put them into a single pot and make them into bread. Eat it for as many days as you lie upon your side, three hundred and ninety days. New Revised Standard Version And you, take wheat and barley, beans and lentils, millet and spelt; put them into one vessel, and make bread for yourself. During the number of days that you lie on your side, three hundred ninety days, you shall eat it. Translations from Aramaic Lamsa BibleAnd take for yourself wheat and barley, beans and lentils, millet and rye, and put them in one vessel, and make for yourself bread of them; according to the number of days that you shall lie upon your side, three hundred and ninety days, you shall eat of it. Peshitta Holy Bible Translated And take for yourself wheat and barley, and beans and lentils, and millet and rye, and put them in one vessel and make them bread for yourself for the number of days that you lay on your side; three hundred and ninety days you shall eat it OT Translations JPS Tanakh 1917Take thou also unto thee wheat, and barley, and beans, and lentils, and millet, and spelt, and put them in one vessel, and make thee bread thereof; according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon thy side, even three hundred and ninety days, shalt thou eat thereof. Brenton Septuagint Translation Take thou also to thee wheat, and barley, and beans, and lentils, and millet, and bread-corn; and thou shalt cast them into one earthen vessel, and shalt make them into loaves for thyself; and thou shalt eat them a hundred and ninety days, according to the number of the days during which thou sleepest on thy side. Additional Translations ... Audio Bible Context The Defiled Bread9 But take wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and spelt; put them in a single container and make them into bread for yourself. This is what you are to eat during the 390 days you lie on your side. 10You are to weigh out twenty shekels of food to eat each day, and you are to eat it at set times.… Cross References Genesis 1:29 Then God said, “Behold, I have given you every seed-bearing plant on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit contains seed. They will be yours for food. Leviticus 26:26 When I cut off your supply of bread, ten women will bake your bread in a single oven and dole out your bread by weight, so that you will eat but not be satisfied. Deuteronomy 8:3 He humbled you, and in your hunger He gave you manna to eat, which neither you nor your fathers had known, so that you might understand that man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of the LORD. 1 Kings 17:12-16 But she replied, “As surely as the LORD your God lives, I have no bread—only a handful of flour in a jar and a little oil in a jug. Look, I am gathering a couple of sticks to take home and prepare a meal for myself and my son, so that we may eat it and die.” / “Do not be afraid,” Elijah said to her. “Go and do as you have said. But first make me a small cake of bread from what you have, and bring it out to me. Afterward, make some for yourself and your son, / for this is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘The jar of flour will not be exhausted and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the LORD sends rain upon the face of the earth.’” ... 2 Kings 4:42-44 Now a man from Baal-shalishah came to the man of God with a sack of twenty loaves of barley bread from the first ripe grain. “Give it to the people to eat,” said Elisha. / But his servant asked, “How am I to set twenty loaves before a hundred men?” “Give it to the people to eat,” said Elisha, “for this is what the LORD says: ‘They will eat and have some left over.’” / So he set it before them, and they ate and had some left over, according to the word of the LORD. Isaiah 55:2 Why spend money on that which is not bread, and your labor on that which does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, and your soul will delight in the richest of foods. Jeremiah 15:16 Your words were found, and I ate them. Your words became my joy and my heart’s delight. For I bear Your name, O LORD God of Hosts. Lamentations 4:10 The hands of compassionate women have cooked their own children, who became their food in the destruction of the daughter of my people. Hosea 2:8 For she does not acknowledge that it was I who gave her grain, new wine, and oil, who lavished on her silver and gold—which they crafted for Baal. Joel 1:10-12 The field is ruined; the land mourns. For the grain is destroyed, the new wine is dried up, and the oil fails. / Be dismayed, O farmers, wail, O vinedressers, over the wheat and barley, because the harvest of the field has perished. / The grapevine is dried up, and the fig tree is withered; the pomegranate, palm, and apple—all the trees of the orchard—are withered. Surely the joy of mankind has dried up. Matthew 4:4 But Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” Matthew 6:11 Give us this day our daily bread. Matthew 14:17-21 “We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,” they answered. / “Bring them here to Me,” Jesus said. / And He directed the crowds to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, He spoke a blessing. Then He broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. ... Mark 6:38-44 “Go and see how many loaves you have,” He told them. And after checking, they said, “Five—and two fish.” / Then Jesus directed them to have the people sit in groups on the green grass. / So they sat down in groups of hundreds and fifties. ... Luke 4:4 But Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone.’” Treasury of Scripture Take you also to you wheat, and barley, and beans, and lentils, and millet, and fitches, and put them in one vessel, and make you bread thereof, according to the number of the days that you shall lie on your side, three hundred and ninety days shall you eat thereof. wheat Ezekiel 4:13,16 And the LORD said, Even thus shall the children of Israel eat their defiled bread among the Gentiles, whither I will drive them… millet. fitches. three Ezekiel 4:5 For I have laid upon thee the years of their iniquity, according to the number of the days, three hundred and ninety days: so shalt thou bear the iniquity of the house of Israel. Jump to Previous Barley Beans Bread Eat Fitches Hundred Lentils Ninety Side Spelt Thereof Three Vessel WheatJump to Next Barley Beans Bread Eat Fitches Hundred Lentils Ninety Side Spelt Thereof Three Vessel WheatEzekiel 4 1. Under type of a siege is shown the time from the defection of Jeroboam to captivity9. By the provision of the siege, is shown the hardness of the famine But take wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and spelt; This phrase lists the ingredients for a unique bread that Ezekiel is instructed to make. Wheat and barley were common grains in ancient Israel, often used in daily sustenance. Beans and lentils were also staple foods, providing necessary protein. Millet and spelt, though less common, were known in the region. The combination of these ingredients suggests a time of scarcity, as they are mixed together rather than used separately, indicating a lack of abundance. This reflects the impending siege of Jerusalem, where food would be scarce, and people would have to make do with what was available. put them in a single container and make them into bread for yourself. This is what you are to eat during the 390 days you lie on your side. Persons / Places / Events 1. EzekielA prophet called by God to deliver His messages to the Israelites during their Babylonian exile. Known for his symbolic actions and visions. 2. Babylon The place of exile for the Israelites, representing a period of judgment and reflection for the nation. 3. Israel's Exile A significant event where the Israelites were taken captive by Babylon as a consequence of their disobedience to God. 4. Symbolic Action Ezekiel's act of lying on his side and eating specific bread symbolizes the siege and suffering of Jerusalem. 5. 390 Days Represents the years of Israel's sin and the duration of their punishment. Teaching Points Symbolism in Prophetic ActionsEzekiel's actions serve as a visual prophecy, reminding us that God communicates in diverse ways. We should be attentive to how God might be speaking to us today. Consequences of Disobedience The exile and Ezekiel's symbolic actions highlight the serious consequences of turning away from God. It calls us to examine our own lives for areas of disobedience. God's Provision in Judgment Even in judgment, God provides for His people, as seen in the specific ingredients for the bread. This reminds us of God's faithfulness and provision in our own trials. Call to Repentance The 390 days symbolize a call to repentance. We are encouraged to reflect on our actions and turn back to God, seeking His forgiveness and restoration. Hope Beyond Judgment While Ezekiel's message includes judgment, it also points to hope and restoration. We are reminded that God's ultimate plan is for our redemption and reconciliation with Him. Bible Study Questions and Answers 1. What is the meaning of Ezekiel 4:9?2. How does Ezekiel 4:9 illustrate God's provision during times of judgment? 3. What is the significance of the specific grains listed in Ezekiel 4:9? 4. How can Ezekiel 4:9 inspire us to trust God's instructions today? 5. In what ways does Ezekiel 4:9 connect to Jesus as the Bread of Life? 6. How can we apply the principle of obedience from Ezekiel 4:9 in daily life? 7. Why does Ezekiel 4:9 specify multiple grains for making bread? 8. What is the significance of the ingredients listed in Ezekiel 4:9? 9. How does Ezekiel 4:9 relate to the concept of divine judgment? 10. What are the top 10 Lessons from Ezekiel 4? 11. Ezekiel 4:9–12: Is there any historical evidence that this specific type of “siege bread” was actually made and consumed in ancient times? 12. What foods are mentioned in the Bible? 13. If God intended Ezekiel’s symbolic actions in Ezekiel 12:6–7 to be a warning for all, why is there no extrabiblical evidence of widespread awareness or reaction? 14. How does the destruction caused by the locusts (Exodus 10:15) align with the later plague of hail in Exodus 9, which supposedly ruined crops earlier? What Does Ezekiel 4:9 Mean But take wheat, barley,• The Lord begins with two familiar staples of Israel’s diet—“wheat” and “barley”. • Wheat pictures the best daily provision God intended for His people (Genesis 18:6; Matthew 6:11). • Barley, often the grain of the poor (Judges 7:13; John 6:9), reminds us that during siege conditions even basic food would be scarce (Ezekiel 4:16). • By commanding Ezekiel to gather both, God foreshadows a time when every scrap—choice or humble—will be needed to survive (2 Kings 25:3). beans, lentils, • Legumes add protein, yet they were not normally milled together with grain for bread. • Their inclusion signals hardship that forces creative stretching of supplies—“beans” and “lentils” kept on hand for emergencies (2 Samuel 17:28; Lamentations 4:5). • The mixture also echoes Esau’s hasty trade for lentil stew (Genesis 25:34), underscoring how desperation leads to poor choices and judgment. millet, and spelt; • These lesser grains grew in marginal soils and were eaten when finer grain ran out (Isaiah 28:25; Exodus 9:32). • Their presence in Ezekiel’s ration points to complete depletion of normal stores—nothing will be wasted, nothing left over (Leviticus 26:26). • The diverse list ends with a semicolon, as though the Lord pauses to let the reality of deprivation sink in. put them in a single container and make them into bread for yourself. • Combining every ingredient into “a single container” pictures the totality of judgment: all Israel’s sins, all the coming calamities, compressed into one sorrowful sign act (Ezekiel 4:12–13). • Bread normally symbolized fellowship and abundance (Ruth 2:14), but this odd, coarse loaf speaks of rationing, isolation, and disgrace. • Ezekiel must bake and eat it “for yourself,” a personal embodiment of the nation’s suffering (Hosea 4:5). This is what you are to eat during the 390 days you lie on your side. • The prophet’s diet is linked to his posture—lying on his side 390 days, one day for each year of Israel’s iniquity (Ezekiel 4:5–6; Numbers 14:34). • Every bite for more than a year testifies to the certainty and duration of divine judgment. • The precise number of days underscores God’s sovereign control; He sets both the start and the end of chastisement (Daniel 9:2). • By obeying, Ezekiel declares that the coming siege of Jerusalem is not random but ordained. summary Ezekiel 4:9 is God’s meticulous recipe for a prophetic sign. The mixed grains and legumes show looming scarcity; the single container pictures compressed judgment; the daily ration across 390 days embodies sustained chastisement for centuries of sin. The verse reassures believers that every detail—ingredients, measure, and time—rests in God’s sovereign, righteous hands, even when discipline is severe. (9) Take thou also unto thee wheat.--The grains enumerated are of all kinds from the best to the worst, indicating that every sort of food would be sought after in the straitness of the siege. If the mixing of these in one vessel and making bread of them all together was not against the exact letter of the law, it was, at least, a plain violation of its spirit (Leviticus 19:19; Deuteronomy 22:9), thus again indicating the stern necessity which should be laid upon the people.Three hundred and ninety days.--No mention is here made of the additional forty days. (See Excursus.) Verse 9. - Take thou also unto thee, etc. The act implies, as I have said, that there were exceptions to the generally immovable attitude. The symbolism seems to have a twofold meaning. We can scarcely exclude a reference to the famine which accompanied the siege. On the other hand, one special feature of it is distinctly referred, not to the siege, but to the exile (ver. 13). Starting with the former, the prophet is told to make bread, not of wheat, the common food of the wealthier class (Deuteronomy 32:14; Psalm 81:16; Psalm 147:14; Jeremiah 12:13; Jeremiah 41:8), nor of barley, the chief food of the poor (Ezekiel 13:19; Hosea 3:2; John 6:9), but of these mixed with beans (2 Samuel 17:28), lentils (2 Samuel 17:28; Genesis 25:34) - then, as now, largely used in Egypt and other Eastern countries - millet (the Hebrew word is not found elsewhere), and fitches, i.e. vetches (here also the Hebrew word is found only in this passage, that so translated in Isaiah 28:25-27 standing, it is said, for the seed of the black cummin). The outcome of this mixture would be a coarse, unpalatable bread, not unlike that to which the population of Paris was reduced in the siege of 1870-71. This was to be the prophet's food, as it was to be that of the people of Jerusalem during the 390 days by which that siege was symbolically, though not numerically, represented. It is not improbable, looking to the prohibition against mixtures of any kind in Deuteronomy 22:9, that it would be regarded as in itself unclean.Parallel Commentaries ... Hebrew But takeקַח־ (qaḥ-) Verb - Qal - Imperative - masculine singular Strong's 3947: To take wheat, חִטִּ֡ין (ḥiṭ·ṭîn) Noun - feminine plural Strong's 2406: Wheat barley, וּ֠שְׂעֹרִים (ū·śə·‘ō·rîm) Conjunctive waw | Noun - feminine plural Strong's 8184: Barley beans, וּפ֨וֹל (ū·p̄ō·wl) Conjunctive waw | Noun - masculine singular Strong's 6321: A bean lentils, וַעֲדָשִׁ֜ים (wa·‘ă·ḏā·šîm) Conjunctive waw | Noun - masculine plural Strong's 5742: A lentil millet, וְדֹ֣חַן (wə·ḏō·ḥan) Conjunctive waw | Noun - masculine singular Strong's 1764: Millet and spelt; וְכֻסְּמִ֗ים (wə·ḵus·sə·mîm) Conjunctive waw | Noun - feminine plural Strong's 3698: Spelt (a kind of wheat) put וְנָתַתָּ֤ה (wə·nā·ṯat·tāh) Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive perfect - second person masculine singular Strong's 5414: To give, put, set them in a single אֶחָ֔ד (’e·ḥāḏ) Number - masculine singular Strong's 259: United, one, first container בִּכְלִ֣י (biḵ·lî) Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular Strong's 3627: Something prepared, any apparatus and make וְעָשִׂ֧יתָ (wə·‘ā·śî·ṯā) Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive perfect - second person masculine singular Strong's 6213: To do, make them into bread לְלָ֑חֶם (lə·lā·ḥem) Preposition-l | Noun - masculine singular Strong's 3899: Food, bread, grain for yourself. לְךָ֖ (lə·ḵā) Preposition | second person masculine singular Strong's Hebrew [This is what] you are to eat תֹּאכֲלֶֽנּוּ׃ (tō·ḵă·len·nū) Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person masculine singular | third person masculine singular Strong's 398: To eat during the מִסְפַּ֨ר (mis·par) Noun - masculine singular construct Strong's 4557: A number, definite, indefinite, narration 390 שְׁלֹשׁ־ (šə·lōš-) Number - feminine singular construct Strong's 7969: Three, third, thrice days י֖וֹם (yō·wm) Noun - masculine singular Strong's 3117: A day that אֲשֶׁר־ (’ă·šer-) Pronoun - relative Strong's 834: Who, which, what, that, when, where, how, because, in order that you lie שׁוֹכֵ֣ב (šō·w·ḵêḇ) Verb - Qal - Participle - masculine singular Strong's 7901: To lie down on עַֽל־ (‘al-) Preposition Strong's 5921: Above, over, upon, against your side. צִדְּךָ֗ (ṣid·də·ḵā) Noun - masculine singular construct | second person masculine singular Strong's 6654: A side, an adversary Links Ezekiel 4:9 NIVEzekiel 4:9 NLT Ezekiel 4:9 ESV Ezekiel 4:9 NASB Ezekiel 4:9 KJV Ezekiel 4:9 BibleApps.com Ezekiel 4:9 Biblia Paralela Ezekiel 4:9 Chinese Bible Ezekiel 4:9 French Bible Ezekiel 4:9 Catholic Bible OT Prophets: Ezekiel 4:9 Take for yourself also wheat and barley (Ezek. Eze Ezk) |
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