Ezekiel 3:5

Brenton's Septuagint

For thou art not sent to a people of hard speech, but to the house of Israel;

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
For you are not being sent to a people of unintelligible speech or a difficult language but to the house of Israel—

Hebrew Names Version
For you are not sent to a people of a strange speech and of a hard language, but to the house of Yisra'el;

King James Version
For thou art not sent to a people of a strange speech and of an hard language, but to the house of Israel;

English Standard Version
For you are not sent to a people of foreign speech and a hard language, but to the house of Israel—

New American Standard Bible
"For you are not being sent to a people of unintelligible speech or difficult language, but to the house of Israel,

New Century Version
You are not being sent to people whose speech you can't understand, whose language is difficult. You are being sent to Israel.

Amplified Bible
"For you are not being sent to a people of unintelligible speech or difficult language, but to the house of Israel,

World English Bible
For you are not sent to a people of a strange speech and of a hard language, but to the house of Israel;

Geneva Bible (1587)
For thou art not sent to a people of an vnknowen tongue, or of an hard language, but to the house of Israel,

New American Standard Bible (1995)
"For you are not being sent to a people of unintelligible speech or difficult language, but to the house of Israel,

Legacy Standard Bible
For you are not being sent to a people of unintelligible lips or a difficult tongue, but to the house of Israel,

Berean Standard Bible
For you are not being sent to a people of unfamiliar speech or difficult language, but to the house of Israel-

Contemporary English Version
They are Israelites, not some strangers who speak a foreign language you can't understand. If I were to send you to foreign nations, they would listen to you.

Complete Jewish Bible
For you are not being sent to a people with a difficult language and unintelligible speech, but to the house of Isra'el —

Darby Translation
For thou art not sent to a people of strange language, and of difficult speech, [but] to the house of Israel;

Easy-to-Read Version
I am not sending you to some foreigners you cannot understand. You don't have to learn another language. I am sending you to the family of Israel.

George Lamsa Translation
For you are not sent to a people of a strange speech and of a hard language, but to the house of Israel;

Good News Translation
I am not sending you to a nation that speaks a difficult foreign language, but to the Israelites.

Lexham English Bible
For you are sent to the house of Israel, not to a people of obscure speech and of a difficult language,

Literal Translation
For you are not sent to a people of deep lip and difficult of language, but to the house of Israel;

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
for I sende the not to a people that hath a strauge, vnknowne or harde speache, but vnto the house off Israel:

American Standard Version
For thou art not sent to a people of a strange speech and of a hard language, but to the house of Israel;

Bible in Basic English
For you are not sent to a people whose talk is strange and whose language is hard, but to the children of Israel;

JPS Old Testament (1917)
For thou art not sent to a people of an unintelligible speech and of a slow tongue, but to the house of Israel;

King James Version (1611)
For thou art not sent to a people of a strange speech, and of an hard language, but to the house of Israel.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
For not to a people of profounde lippes and harde language art thou sent, but vnto the house of Israel:

English Revised Version
For thou art not sent to a people of a strange speech and of an hard language, but to the house of Israel;

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
For thou schalt not be sent to a puple of hiy word, and of vnknowun langage; thou schalt be sent to the hous of Israel,

Update Bible Version
For you are not sent to a people of a strange speech and of a hard language, but to the house of Israel;

Webster's Bible Translation
For thou art not sent to a people of a strange speech and of a hard language, [but] to the house of Israel;

New English Translation
For you are not being sent to a people of unintelligible speech and difficult language, but to the house of Israel—

New King James Version
For you are not sent to a people of unfamiliar speech and of hard language, but to the house of Israel,

New Living Translation
I am not sending you to a foreign people whose language you cannot understand.

New Life Bible
For you are not being sent to people of strange speech and a hard language, but to the people of Israel.

New Revised Standard
For you are not sent to a people of obscure speech and difficult language, but to the house of Israel—

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
For not unto a people deep of lip and heavy of tongue, art thou sent - but unto the house of Israel:

Douay-Rheims Bible
For thou art not sent to a people of a profound speech, and of an unknown tongue, but to the house of Israel:

Revised Standard Version
For you are not sent to a people of foreign speech and a hard language, but to the house of Israel--

Young's Literal Translation
For, not unto a people deep of lip and heavy of tongue [art] thou sent -- unto the house of Israel;

Contextual Overview

¹ And he said to me, Son of Man, eat this volume, and go and speak to the children of Israel. ² So he opened my mouth, and caused me to eat the volume. ³ thy mouth shall eat, and thy belly shall be filled with this volume that is given to thee. So I ate it; and it was in my mouth as sweet as honey. ⁴ And he said to me, Son of man, go thy way, and go in to the house of Israel, and speak my words to them. ⁵ For thou art not sent to a people of hard speech, but to the house of Israel; ⁶ neither to many nations of other speech and other tongues, nor of harsh language, whose words thou wouldest not understand: although if I had sent thee to such, they would have hearkened to thee. ⁷ But the house of Israel will not be willing to hearken to thee; for they will not hearken to me: for all the house of Israel are stubborn and hard-hearted. ⁸ And, behold, I have made thy face strong against their faces, and I will strengthen thy power against their power. ⁹ And it shall be continually stronger than a rock: be not afraid of them, neither be dismayed at their faces, because it is a provoking house. ¹⁰ And he said to me, Son of man, receive into thine heart all the words that I have spoken to thee, and hear them with thine ears.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

thou: Jonah 1:2, Jonah 3:2-4, Acts 26:17, Acts 26:18

of a strange speech and of an hard language: Heb. deep of lip and heavy of tongue, and so, Ezekiel 3:6, Psalms 81:5, Isaiah 33:19

Reciprocal: Isaiah 58:1 - spare

Cross-References

Genesis 2:17
but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil—of it ye shall not eat, but in whatsoever day ye eat of it, ye shall surely die.

Genesis 3:2
Now the serpent was the most crafty of all the brutes on the earth, which the Lord God made, and the serpent said to the woman, Wherefore has God said, Eat not of every tree of the garden?

Genesis 3:3
And the woman said to the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden,

Genesis 3:6
For God knew that in whatever day ye should eat of it your eyes would be opened, and ye would be as gods, knowing good and evil.

Genesis 3:7
And the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes to look upon and beautiful to contemplate, and having taken of its fruit she ate, and she gave to her husband also with her, and they ate.

Genesis 3:10
And the Lord God called Adam and said to him, Adam, where art thou?

Genesis 3:13
And Adam said, The woman whom thou gavest to be with me—she gave me of the tree and I ate.

Genesis 3:14
And the Lord God said to the woman, Why hast thou done this? And the woman said, The serpent deceived me and I ate.

Genesis 3:15
And the Lord God said to the serpent, Because thou hast done this thou art cursed above all cattle and all the brutes of the earth, on thy breast and belly thou shalt go, and thou shalt eat earth all the days of thy life.

Genesis 3:22
And the Lord God made for Adam and his wife garments of skin, and clothed them.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

For thou [art] not sent to a people of a strange speech,.... "Deep of lip" g, or "speech"; difficult to be got at and understood:

and of a hard language: or "heavy of tongue" h of a barbarous and unknown language, whom he could not understand, nor they him; and so would have been barbarians to one another; and consequently it could not be thought his prophesying among them, could have been of any use. This may be considered, either by way of encouragement to the prophet to go on his errand to such a people; since as he could understand them, and they him he might hope to meet with success; or, however he could deliver his message so as to be understood: or as an aggravation of the impiety perverseness and stupidity of the Israelites; that though the prophet spoke to them in their own language, yet they would not hear nor receive his words:

[but] to the house of Israel; who were a people of the same speech and language with the prophet; all spoke and understood the language of Canaan; nor were the things he delivered such as they were altogether strangers to being the same, for substance, which Moses, and the other prophets, had ever taught.

g עמקי שפה "profundi labii", Vatablus; "profundorum labio", Polanus, Cocceius; "profundi sermonis", Starkius. h כבדי לשון "graves linguae", Montanus; "gravium lingua", Polanus.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Ezekiel 3:5. Thou art not sent to a people of a strange speech — I neither send thee to thy adversaries, the Chaldeans, nor to the Medes and Persians, their enemies. Even these would more likely have hearkened unto thee than thy own countrymen.