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Ezekiel 47:9

Old Testament Major Prophet ASV (1901)

What does Ezekiel 47:9 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “And it shall come to pass, that every living creature which swarmeth, in every place whither the rivers come, shall live; and there shall be a very great multitude of fish; for these waters are come thither, and [the waters of the sea] shall be healed, and everything shall live whithersoever the river cometh.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

And it shall come to pass, that every living creature which swarmeth, in every place whither the rivers come, shall live; and there shall be a very great multitude of fish; for these waters are come thither, and [the waters of the sea] shall be healed, and everything shall live whithersoever the river cometh.
Ezekiel 47:9 — American Standard Version

Context — Ezekiel 47

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
6And he said unto me, Son of man, hast thou seen [this]? Then he brought me, and caused me to return to the bank of the river.
7Now when I had returned, behold, upon the bank of the river were very many trees on the one side and on the other.
8Then said he unto me, These waters issue forth toward the eastern region, and shall go down into the Arabah; and they shall go toward the sea; into the sea [shall the waters go] which were made to issue forth; and the waters shall be healed.
9And it shall come to pass, that every living creature which swarmeth, in every place whither the rivers come, shall live; and there shall be a very great multitude of fish; for these waters are come thither, and [the waters of the sea] shall be healed, and everything shall live whithersoever the river cometh.
10And it shall come to pass, that fishers shall stand by it: from En-gedi even unto En-eglaim shall be a place for the spreading of nets; their fish shall be after their kinds, as the fish of the great sea, exceeding many.
11But the miry places thereof, and the marshes thereof, shall not be healed; they shall be given up to salt.
12And by the river upon the bank thereof, on this side and on that side, shall grow every tree for food, whose leaf shall not whither, neither shall the fruit thereof fail: it shall bring forth new fruit every month, because the waters thereof issue out of the sanctuary; and the fruit thereof shall be for food, and the leaf thereof for healing.
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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 it shall come to pass that everything that liveth, which moveth, &c.] That is, every living man; everyone that lives naturally or corporeally, that lives, moves, and has his being in God, as all men have, (<441728>Acts 17:28), whithersoever the rivers shall come, shall live; or, “the two rivers”f851; the waters divided as before, east and west; not the two Testaments, Old and New; nor the two ordinances of baptism and the Lord’s supper; but the Gospel, which, wherever it shall come with power, and to whomsoever it so comes, they shall live spiritually; not to whomsoever it is preached, for to some it is not profitable; (see <264711>Ezekiel 47:11), but is the savour of death unto death;…”
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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
“rivers--in Hebrew, "two rivers." Hence Hebrew expositors think that the waters from the temple were divided into two branches, the one emptying itself into the eastern or Dead Sea, the other into the western or Mediterranean. So Zac 14:8. However, though this probably is covertly implied in the Hebrew dual, the flowing of the waters into the Dead Sea only is expressed. Compare Eze 47:8, "waters . . . healed," which can apply only to it, not to the Mediterranean: also Eze 47:10, "fish as the fish of the great sea"; the Dead Sea, when healed, containing fish, as the Mediterranean does.”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“The rivers - literally, as in the margin. Perhaps with reference to the circumstance that this “brook or river” is to come into the Dead Sea through the same plain as the Jordan. The one river (Jordan) always flowed, but now, when another river comes in, and “two rivers” flow into the sea, the waters shall be healed. 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
“Shall live - Be preserved alive, and thrive, whereas no fish can live in the Dead - sea. For they - The poisonous waters of the Dead - sea shall be made wholesome for fish. Shall live - Thrive, and multiply in the virtue of the healing streams. Thus is the fruitfulness of the grace of God in the church set forth. Ezekiel 47:10”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“every thing: Joh 3:16, Joh 11:26 rivers: Heb. two rivers, Psa 78:16 shall live: Joh 5:25, Joh 6:63, Joh 11:25, Joh 14:6, Joh 14:19; Rom 8:2; Co1 15:45; Eph 2:1-5 a very great: Isa 49:12, Isa 60:3-10; Zac 2:11, Zac 8:21-23; Act 2:41, Act 2:47, Act 4:4, Act 5:14, Act 6:7; Act 21:20, Greek for they: Exo 15:26; Psa 103:3; Isa 30:26 Ezekiel 47:10”
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Related study paths

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Sources and verification