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Ezekiel 16:46

Old Testament Major Prophet ASV (1901)

What does Ezekiel 16:46 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “And thine elder sister is Samaria, that dwelleth at thy left hand, she and her daughters; and thy younger sister, that dwelleth at thy right hand, is Sodom and her daughters.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

And thine elder sister is Samaria, that dwelleth at thy left hand, she and her daughters; and thy younger sister, that dwelleth at thy right hand, is Sodom and her daughters.
Ezekiel 16:46 — American Standard Version

Context — Ezekiel 16

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
43Because thou hast not remembered the days of thy youth, but hast raged against me in all these things; therefore, behold, I also will bring thy way upon thy head, saith the Lord Jehovah: and thou shalt not commit this lewdness with all thine abominations.
44Behold, every one that useth proverbs shall use [this] proverb against thee, saying, As is the mother, so is her daughter.
45Thou art the daughter of thy mother, that loatheth her husband and her children; and thou art the sister of thy sisters, who loathed their husbands and their children: your mother was a Hittite, and your father an Amorite.
46And thine elder sister is Samaria, that dwelleth at thy left hand, she and her daughters; and thy younger sister, that dwelleth at thy right hand, is Sodom and her daughters.
47Yet hast thou not walked in their ways, nor done after their abominations; but, as [if that were] a very little [thing], thou wast more corrupt than they in all thy ways.
48As I live, saith the Lord Jehovah, Sodom thy sister hath not done, she nor her daughters, as thou hast done, thou and thy daughters.
49Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom: pride, fulness of bread, and prosperous ease was in her and in her daughters; neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy.
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What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“And thine elder sister [is] Samaria, &c.] The metropolis of the ten tribes; “sister” to the Jews, because of the same descent, having one and the same father; the “elder” or “greater”f236, because more in number and power; the kingdom of Israel consisted of ten tribes, and the kingdom of Judah but of two; and the ten tribes also were the first in the apostasy from the true worship of God: she and her daughters that dwell at thy left hand; as Samaria the sister was the metropolis of the ten tribes, her daughters are the other cities and towns belonging thereunto; and so the Targum renders it, she and her villages; these were situated to the north of the land of Israel, as Judah was to the…”
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Jamieson, Fausset & Brown
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“elder sister . . . Samaria--older than Sodom, to whom Judah was less nearly related by kindred than she was to Samaria. Sodom is therefore called her younger sister; Samaria, her "elder sister" [GROTIUS]. Samaria is called the "elder," because in a moral respect more nearly related to Judah [FAIRBAIRN]. Samaria had made the calves at Dan and Beth-el in imitation of the cherubim. her daughters--the inferior towns subject to Samaria (compare Num 21:25, Margin). left--The Orientals faced the east in marking the directions of the sky; thus the north was "left," the south "right." Sodom . . . daughters--Ammon and Moab, offshoots from Sodom; also the towns subject to it.”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“The temple looked to the east. Samaria was on its left, and Sodom on its right hand. return to 'Top of Page'”
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Wesley's Explanatory Notes
John Wesley (1703–1791) · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament and Old Testament notes · 18th-century historical commentary
“Thine elder sister - The greater for power, riches, and numbers of people. Her daughters - The lesser cities of the kingdom of Israel. Thy left hand - Northward as you look toward the east. Thy younger sister - Which was smaller and less populous. Thy right hand - Southward from Jerusalem. Ezekiel 16:47”
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Tyndale Open Study Notes
Tyndale House Publishers · Tyndale Open Study Notes · Modern study notes
“16:46-50 Samaria, Jerusalem’s older (or larger) sister, had practiced deviant worship ever since Jeroboam introduced golden calves into his national shrines at Dan and Bethel (1 Kgs 12:28-33). • Sodom, Jerusalem’s younger (or smaller) sister, was a byword for sexual sin (Gen 19:4-9) and for pride, gluttony, laziness, and neglect of the poor and needy.”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“elder: Eze 16:51, Eze 23:4, Eze 23:11, Eze 23:31-33; Jer 3:8-11; Mic 1:5 thy younger sister: Heb. thy sister lesser than thou, Eze 16:48, Eze 16:49, Eze 16:53-56, Eze 16:61; Gen 13:11-13, Gen 18:20-33, Gen 19:24, Gen 19:25; Deu 29:23, Deu 32:32; Isa 1:9, Isa 1:10; Jer 23:14; Lam 4:6 \*marg. Luk 17:28-30; Pe2 2:6; Jde 1:7; Rev 11:8 her daughters: Eze 16:27 \*marg. Eze 26:6; Gen 14:8, Gen 19:29; Hos 11:8 Ezekiel 16:47”
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Related study paths

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Sources and verification