Ezekiel 23:42

Contemporary English Version

Their room was always filled with a noisy crowd of drunkards brought in from the desert. These men gave the women bracelets and beautiful crowns,

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
The sound of a carefree crowd was there. Drunkards from the desert were brought in, along with common men. They put bracelets on the women’s hands and beautiful tiaras on their heads.

Hebrew Names Version
The voice of a multitude being at ease was with her: and with men of the common sort were brought Sava'im from the wilderness; and they put bracelets on the hands of them [twain], and beautiful crowns on their heads.

King James Version
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.

English Standard Version
The sound of a carefree multitude was with her; and with men of the common sort, drunkards were brought from the wilderness; and they put bracelets on the hands of the women, and beautiful crowns on their heads.

New American Standard Bible
"And the sound of a carefree multitude was with her; and heavy drinkers were brought from the wilderness with people from the multitude of humanity. And they put bracelets on the wrists of the women and beautiful crowns on their heads.

New Century Version
"There was the noise of a reckless crowd in the city. Common people gathered, and drunkards were brought from the desert. They put bracelets on the wrists of the two sisters and beautiful crowns on their heads.

Amplified Bible
"The sound of a carefree crowd was with her; and drunkards were brought from the wilderness with men of a common sort, who put bracelets on the hands of the women (both sisters) and beautiful crowns on their heads.

World English Bible
The voice of a multitude being at ease was with her: and with men of the common sort were brought drunkards from the wilderness; and they put bracelets on the hands of them [twain], and beautiful crowns on their heads.

Geneva Bible (1587)
And a voyce of a multitude being at ease, was with her: and with the men to make the company great were brought men of Saba from the wildernes, which put bracelets vpon their hands, and beautifull crownes vpon their heads.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
"The sound of a carefree multitude was with her; and drunkards were brought from the wilderness with men of the common sort. And they put bracelets on the hands of the women and beautiful crowns on their heads.

Legacy Standard Bible
The sound of a multitude at ease was with her; and drunkards were brought from the wilderness with men of the common sort. And they put bracelets on the hands of the women and beautiful crowns on their heads.

Berean Standard Bible
The sound of a carefree crowd accompanied her. Sabeans were brought in from the desert along with men from the rabble, who put bracelets on your wrists and beautiful crowns on your head.

Complete Jewish Bible
The noise of a carefree crowd could be heard there; many of the men were brought in drunk from the desert. They put bracelets on their hands and magnificent crowns on their heads.

Darby Translation
And the voice of a multitude living carelessly was with her; and with people of the common sort were brought Sabeans from the wilderness, and they put bracelets upon their hands, and a beautiful crown upon their heads.

Easy-to-Read Version
"The noise in Jerusalem sounded like a crowd of people having a party. Many people came to the party. People were already drinking as they came in from the desert. They gave bracelets and beautiful crowns to the women.

George Lamsa Translation
And the sound of their merrymaking could be heard everywhere, and the voices of men who had come from Sheba and from the desert, who put bracelets upon their wrists, and beautiful crowns upon their heads.

Good News Translation
The sound of a carefree crowd could be heard, a group of men brought in from the desert. They put bracelets on the women's arms and beautiful crowns on their heads.

Lexham English Bible
And a sound of a carefree crowd was with it, and in addition to these men, a crowd of drunken men was brought in from the desert, and they put bracelets on their arms and a crown of splendor on their heads.

Literal Translation
And the sound of a crowd at ease was with her, and drunkards from the wilderness were brought with the men of the host of mankind. And they put bracelets on their hands and crowns of beauty on their heads.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
Then was there greate cheare wt her, & the men yt were sent fro farre coutrees ouer the deserte: vnto these they gaue bracelettes vpon their hondes, & set glorious crownes vpon their heades.

American Standard Version
And the voice of a multitude being at ease was with her: and with men of the common sort were brought drunkards from the wilderness; and they put bracelets upon the hands of them twain, and beautiful crowns upon their heads.

Bible in Basic English
Three dots are used where it is no longer possible to be certain of the true sense of the Hebrew words, and for this reason no attempt has been made to put them into Basic English. and they put jewels on her hands and beautiful crowns on her head.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
And the voice of a multitude being at ease was therein; and for the sake of men, they were so many, brought drunken from the wilderness, they put bracelets upon their hands, and beautiful crowns upon their heads.

King James Version (1611)
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 wildernesse, which put bracelets vpon their hands, and beautifull crownes vpon their heads.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And a noyse of a mery company at it, and with the men, beside the multitude of the people, were brought men of Saba out of the desert, which gaue them bracelettes vpon their handes, and beautifull crownes vpon their heades.

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
and they raised a sound of music, and that with men coming from the wilderness out of a multitude of men, and they put bracelets on their hands, and a crown of glory on their heads;

English Revised Version
And the voice of a multitude being at ease was with her: and with men of the common sort were brought drunkards from the wilderness; and they put bracelets upon the hands of them twain, and beautiful crowns upon their heads.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And a vois of multitude makynge ful out ioye was ther ynne; and in men that weren brouyt of the multitude of men, and camen fro desert, thei settiden bies in the hondis of hem, and faire corouns on the heedis of hem.

Update Bible Version
And the voice of a multitude being at ease was with her: and men of the multitude of man were brought from the wilderness; and they put bracelets on their hands, and beautiful crowns on their heads.

Webster's Bible Translation
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, who put bracelets upon their hands, and beautiful crowns upon their heads.

New English Translation
The sound of a carefree crowd accompanied her, including all kinds of men; even Sabeans were brought from the desert. The sisters put bracelets on their wrists and beautiful crowns on their heads.

New King James Version
The sound of a carefree multitude was with her, and Sabeans were brought from the wilderness with men of the common sort, who put bracelets on their wrists and beautiful crowns on their heads.

New Living Translation
From your room came the sound of many men carousing. They were lustful men and drunkards from the wilderness, who put bracelets on your wrists and beautiful crowns on your heads.

New Life Bible
The sound of a group free of care was around you. Men who drank too much were brought from the desert with men who were not important. They put beautiful objects on the women's hands and beautiful crowns on their heads.

New Revised Standard
The sound of a raucous multitude was around her, with many of the rabble brought in drunken from the wilderness; and they put bracelets on the arms of the women, and beautiful crowns upon their heads.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
The noise of careless throng also, was with her, And besides men out of the mass of mankind, there wore brought in drunkards, out of the desert; And they put bracelets upon the hands of both women, And crowns of adorning upon their heads.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And there was in her the voice of a multitude rejoicing: and to some that were brought of the multitude of men, and that came from the desert, they put bracelets on their hands, and beautiful crowns on their heads.

Revised Standard Version
The sound of a carefree multitude was with her; and with men of the common sort drunkards were brought from the wilderness; and they put bracelets upon the hands of the women, and beautiful crowns upon their heads.

Young's Literal Translation
And the voice of a multitude at ease [is] with her, And unto men of the common people are brought in Sabeans from the wilderness, And they put bracelets on their hands, And a beauteous crown on their heads.

Contextual Overview

³⁶ The Lord said: Ezekiel, son of man, it's time for you to tell Oholah and Oholibah that they are guilty. Remind them of their evil ways! ³⁷ They have been unfaithful by worshiping idols, and they have committed murder by sacrificing my own children as offerings to idols. ³⁸They came into my temple that same day, and that made it unfit as a place to worship me. They have even stopped respecting the Sabbath. ⁴⁰ They sent messengers to attract men from far away. When those men arrived, the two sisters took baths and put on eye shadow and jewelry. ⁴¹ They sat on a fancy couch, and in front of them was a table for the olive oil and incense that had belonged to me. ⁴² Their room was always filled with a noisy crowd of drunkards brought in from the desert. These men gave the women bracelets and beautiful crowns, ⁴³ and I noticed that the men were eager to have sex with these women, though they were exhausted from being prostitutes. ⁴⁴ In fact, the men had sex over and over with Oholah and Oholibah, the two sinful sisters. ⁴⁵ But good men will someday accuse those two of murder and of being unfaithful, because they are certainly guilty. ⁴⁶ So I, the Lord God, now say to these sisters: I will call together an angry mob that will abuse and rob you.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

a voice: This seems to be an account of an idolatrous festival, perhaps that of Bacchus; in which a riotous and drunken multitude assembled, adorned with bracelets and chaplets, accompanied with music, songs, and dances. Exodus 32:6, Exodus 32:18, Exodus 32:19, Hosea 13:6, Amos 6:1-6

common sort: Heb. multitude of men

were brought: Job 1:15, Joel 3:8

Sabeans: or, drunkards

bracelets: Ezekiel 16:11, Ezekiel 16:12, Revelation 12:3

Reciprocal: Isaiah 45:14 - the Sabeans Isaiah 65:11 - prepare

Gill's Notes on the Bible

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

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

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.”

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Ezekiel 23:42. 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.