Ezekiel 23:42

Eze 23:42 And a voice of a multitude being at ease [was] with her: and with the men of the common sort [were] brought Sabeans from the wilderness, which put bracelets upon their hands, and beautiful crowns upon their heads.

Ver. 42. And a voice of a multitude being at ease.] Or, Being jolly and jocund, as at brothel houses.

And with the men of the common, sort.] Heb., To the men. The basest and most abject people also were taken into confederacy; even Arabians, Ethiopians, Tartars, so cheap didst thou make thyself, so fond wast thou of their fopperies.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Which should teach the manner of worshipping their gods.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

Sabeans--Not content with the princely, handsome Assyrians, the sisters brought to themselves the rude robber hordes of Sabeans (Job 1:15). The Keri, or Margin, reads "drunkards."

upon their hands--upon the hands of the sisters, that is, they allured Samaria and Judah to worship their gods.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 42. And a voice of a multitude] This seems to be an account of an idolatrous festival, where a riotous multitude was assembled, and fellows of the baser sort, with bracelets on their arms and chaplets on their heads, performed the religious rites.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(42) A voice of a multitude being at ease was with her.—The words “voice of a multitude,” wherever else they occur (1Sa_4:14; Isa_13:4; Isa_33:3; Dan_10:6), mean a loud tumult, and even the word here used for “multitude,” when alone, always means a boisterous multitude. Translate The voice of the tumult was stilled thereat: i.e., the tumult of the invading army was stilled by the gifts of Israel, a fact of which there is frequent record in the history. The phrase translated “with her” is rendered “thereby” in Gen_24:14.

Men of the common sort is better rendered in the margin, the multitude of men; and “Sabeans” is not a proper name, but, as in the margin, drunkards. They are represented as from the wilderness, not as their home, but as the region through which they passed in marching to Judæa. The whole sense of the verse is that the conquerors attacking the land were satisfied with heavy tribute, and having received this, many of the warriors gave themselves up to drunkenness and debauchery, decking out their tributary with meretricious ornaments.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

42. being at ease] If the reading be correct “at ease” must refer to careless living, a sense which the word has not elsewhere. LXX. renders: and a sound of music they raised; but though the word “multitude” may mean sound or noise when joined to songs (Eze_26:13; Amo_5:23), it can hardly of itself mean music. LXX. may have read “they sang” for “at ease:” “and with a loud noise (Dan_10:6) they sang”—a sense not suitable seeing the musicians must have been the harlots themselves, Isa_23:15-16. For the idea of multitude cf. Jer_5:7 end. If music were referred to the words would be better attached to the previous verse.

was with her] Rather: therein or therewith. LXX. om.

and with the men … Sabeans] and with men. For Sabeans Heb. text reads “drunkards,” as marg., and from the nature of the passage, which speaks of a general practice, reference to any particular nation is less probable. Read as R.V. “and with (in addition to) men … were brought drunkards from the wilderness; and they put bracelets” &c. Even for these vulgar guests the harlots, so indiscriminate was their whoredom, put bracelets on their hands and decked themselves. The idea that it was “men of the common sort” who adorned the harlots with bracelets as their hire (A.V. &c.) has little to recommend it, cf. Eze_16:31 seq. (the verb “they put” is mas. because fem. is not in use, Est_1:20). Even in Muhammed’s days the Arabs were addicted to drunkenness. LXX. om. “drunkards,” which might be a duplicate of “brought,” and certainly the mention of two classes here is rather improbable, the common sort and those brought from the wilderness might rather be the same, viz. the vulgar and petty peoples in contrast to the larger and nobler such as Babylon. The omission makes the clause difficult to construe. Corn, reconstructs the clause after Pro_7:16, making it a description of the “bed of love” (Eze_23:17), but with little probability. If the adulterous act be anywhere referred to it is in Eze_23:43.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And a voice of a multitude being at ease was with her,.... With Aholibah, with the two tribes of Judah and Benjamin: or, "in her", in Jerusalem; or "in it", or "about it" (h); the bed, or table, or both: these were either the people of the many nations that came in great numbers with the ambassadors, as their retinue, and for the greater splendour of them; and who came, not to make war, but in a peaceable way, being invited to come; or these were a confluence of the Jewish people, who came from all parts to see the public entry of these ambassadors; who were quite easy with it, since they came as the ambassadors of their allies and friends, in whose alliance they thought themselves safe and happy; and therefore welcomed them with their loud huzzas:

and with the men of the common sort were brought Sabeans from the wilderness; or, "and with men because of a multitude of men" (i); that is, with those men that came from several parts on this occasion, for the sake of a greater number, and of making a greater appearance, the Sabeans that dwelt in the desert of Arabia were fetched from thence; or their neighbours round about Moab and Ammon, that dwelt in the wilderness, were sent for, and brought to make the solemnity the greater; so Jarchi; and to this sense the Targum renders it,

"because of the multitude of men that came round about on every side from the wilderness,''

Some render it, "drunkards from the wilderness" (k); a parcel of drunken fellows that lived in the wilderness, rustic, brutish, people; these were brought as fit persons to drink healths, and roar on this occasion:

which put bracelets upon their hands, and beautiful crowns upon their heads; that is, the Jews put these ornaments upon the hands and heads of these men of the common sort, and the Sabeans with them, and these poor country drunken fellows too, that they might make the better appearance when they met and huzzaed the ambassadors at their entry; or which Sabeans and other foreigners put these ornaments on Aholah and Aholibah, and enticed them to the worship of their idols, and taught them idolatry.

(h) "in ea", Pagninus, Montanus, Vatablus, Junius & Tremellius, Polanus; "in illa", Cocceius, Starckius, "in illo", Piscator; "circa eam", a Lapide. (i) "et cum viris ut multiplicarent homines" Pagninus; "ut adessent multi homines", Munster; "prae multitudine hominum", Tigurine version, Cocceius, Starckius; "propter multiplicare homines", Vatablus. (k) "ebrosi ex deserto", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Polanus; so R. Sol. Urbin. Ohel Moed, fol. 99. 1.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

A voice ... - Or, The voice of the tumult was stilled thereby. The tumultuous cries of the invading army were stilled by these gifts. Others render being at ease, “living carelessly.”

Of the common sort - See the margin - a multitudinous crowd.

Sabeans - Better as in the margin. The Chaldaeans were noted for their intemperance and revellings.

The wilderness - The desert tract which the Chalaeans had to pass from the north of Mesopotamia to the holy land. This verse describes the temporary effects of the alliance of Israel and Judah with the Assyrians and Babylonians. All became quiet, the allies received gifts (incense and oil) from Israel and Judah, and these in turn brought riches to Palestine, “bracelets upon their” (i. e., Aholah’s and Aholibah’s) “hands,” and crowns “upon their heads.”

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

And that. Protestants, "Sabeans (marginal note and Septuagint, drunkards) from," &c. Any were admitted (Haydock) to the priesthood and to her favours, even the most rustic and deformed, 3 Kings xii. 32.

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

A voice of a multitude; a shout for joy, that there was a treaty of peace between the Jews and the Chaldeans, or songs of gladness for the peace made, and confirmed, not in God’s name, but in the name of the idols.

Being at ease; free now from the fears of any wars to disquiet them.

Was with her; about the altar first, where the peace was sworn; about her bed next, where she feasted her new allies, that were great princes and nobles.

And with the men; and to these worthy the name of men, or beside these great and famous ones. Et avec ces hommes, as the French version.

Were brought Sabeans; messengers were sent to, or received, or entertained and caressed, from the roaring Sabeans, who lived on robberies, and spoiling the merchants; these were brought to Jerusalem from the wilderness, deserts of Arabia, a rude, barbarous, and idolatrous scum of men, described by their ill properties in geographers: of these were they that destroyed Job’s servants: in the verse described by their ornaments, bracelets about necks and arms, and crowns on their heads, which some think they bestowed upon this harlot.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

42. And a voice of a multitude being at ease was with her — The LXX. reads, And with a loud noise did they sing therein.

And with the men… Sabeans — Hebrews with men… drunkards. From the earliest days harlotry and drunkenness have been closely associated.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

A voice of a multitude, etc. The word for "multitude" is strictly tumult, and Keil and Currey render, The voice of tumult became still," sc. the threats of the alien powers whom Judah courted were for a time hushed by the tributes thus paid to them. With the men of the common sort; literally, as in the margin, of the multitude of men. Sabeans from the wilderness. The Revised Version, with Keil and almost all recent commentators, follows the margin, drunkards (LXX, oijnwmenoi). "Sabeans" rests on a Jewish rendering of the text, but, as a people, the Sabeans, who dwelt south of Meroe, though named in Isa_45:14, were too remote to come within the horizon of the parable. What Ezekiel dwells on is the ever-growing degradation of the harlot city. Not only the officers of the Chaldeans, but the mixed multitude, the very drunkards from the wilderness of Babylon, were admitted to her embraces. Possibly the word may point to the false gods to whom libations of wine were offered, but I incline to refer it rather to those who got drunk at their idol-festivals even in Jerusalem. Drunkenness was one of the vices of the Babylonians, and the prophets, who admired the Rechabites and the Nazarites (Amo_2:11) must have looked on Judah"s participation in that sin as a measureless degradation. The bracelets and crowns symbolize the wealth and prestige which the Chaldean alliance was supposed to bring with it.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

A voice - A shout for joy, that there was a treaty of peace between the Jews, and the Chaldeans.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

General Information:

Yahweh continues to refer to the cities of Jerusalem and Samaria as if they were two prostitutes. (See: Metaphor)

So the sound of a noisy crowd was around her

The sound of the crowd is used to refer to the crowd of people. AT: "So there was a noisy crowd around her" (See: Metonymy)

was around her ... on their hands

"was around her ... on her and her sister's hands." This verse begins by referring to one of the sisters but the situation is probably the same for both sisters. If one sister must be specified in your language, refer to Oholibah here. In the second part of the verse it switches back to referring to both sisters with the word "their."

Sabeans were brought

This can be stated in active form. The word "Sabeans" refers to people from Sheba. AT: "Sabeans had come" (See: Active or Passive and How to Translate Names)

they put bracelets

The word "they" refers to the men.

translationWords

drunk

desert

crown

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

And the sound of a multitude of many nanons were in her; not a multitude that came for war, but the voice of a tranquil multitude.

for the sake of men [Heb. וְאֶל אֶנָשִׁים,] for the sake of men. That multitude was of men, not of animals.

of the many people who were in her midst, who were brought to commit adultery, from the desert.

those dwelling all around [Heb. סָבָאִים,] people who lived around her. Of her neighbors, Ammon and Moab, and so did [Jonathan] render סָבָאִים “from all around.”

they placed Oholah and Oholibah [placed] bracelets on their hands to adorn themselves in order to commit adultery; i.e., Ammon and Moab, since they are many, she adorns and beautifies herself for them, and because they are her neighbors, she beautifies herself before their eyes with her ornaments; therefore, Oholah and Oholibah put bracelets on their hands in order to be beautiful in the eyes of the adulterers. The “vav” of וַיִתְּנוּ is superfluous, like that of (Exod. 15:2): “The strength and the cutting of God was (וַיְהִי) my salvation,” and like that of (ibid. 9:21): “But whoever did not take the word of the Lord to heart left (וַיַעֲזֹב).”

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.