Lectionary Calendar
Monday, August 18th, 2025
the Week of Proper 15 / Ordinary 20
Attention!
For 10¢ a day you can enjoy StudyLight.org ads
free while helping to build churches and support pastors in Uganda.
Click here to learn more!

Read the Bible

Good News Translation

Ezekiel 17:4

which he carried to a land of commerce and placed in a city of merchants.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Cities;   Ezekiel;   Merchant;   Scofield Reference Index - Parables;   Thompson Chain Reference - Business Life;   Trading;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Babylon;   Cedar, the;   Commerce;   Eagle, the;   Prophets;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Babylon;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Ezekiel;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Allegory;   Easton Bible Dictionary - Babylon, Kingdom of;   Canaanites;   Riddle;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Canaan;   Eagle;   Fable;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Canaan, History and Religion of;   Ezekiel;   History;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Canaanites;   Ezekiel;   Fable;   Vine, Vineyard;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Zedekiah ;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Chief parables and miracles in the bible;   Wilson's Dictionary of Bible Types - Twig;  

Encyclopedias:

- International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Crop;   Proverb;   Trade;   Traffic;   Kitto Biblical Cyclopedia - Babylonia;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - Allegory in the Old Testament;   Canaanites, the;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
He plucked off its topmost shoot, brought it to the land of merchants, and set it in a city of traders.
Hebrew Names Version
he cropped off the topmost of the young twigs of it, and carried it to a land of traffic; he set it in a city of merchants.
King James Version
He cropped off the top of his young twigs, and carried it into a land of traffick; he set it in a city of merchants.
English Standard Version
He broke off the topmost of its young twigs and carried it to a land of trade and set it in a city of merchants.
New American Standard Bible
"He broke off the topmost of its young twigs and brought it to a land of merchants; he set it in a city of traders.
New Century Version
He pulled off the top branch and brought it to a land of traders, where he planted it in a city of traders.
Amplified Bible
"He broke off the topmost of its young twigs (young King Jehoiachin) and carried it to a land of traders (Babylonia); he set it in a city of merchants (Babylon).
World English Bible
he cropped off the topmost of the young twigs of it, and carried it to a land of traffic; he set it in a city of merchants.
Geneva Bible (1587)
And brake off the toppe of his twigge, and caried it into the land of marchants, and set it in a citie of marchants.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
"He plucked off the topmost of its young twigs and brought it to a land of merchants; he set it in a city of traders.
Legacy Standard Bible
He plucked off the topmost of its young twigs and brought it to a land of merchants; he set it in a city of traders.
Berean Standard Bible
He plucked off its topmost shoot, carried it to the land of merchants, and planted it in a city of traders.
Contemporary English Version
then carried it to a nation of merchants and left it in one of their cities.
Complete Jewish Bible
He cropped off the topmost of its young twigs, carried them to a land of traders and set them down in a city of merchants.
Darby Translation
He cropped off the top of its young shoots, and carried it into a merchants' land; he set it in a city of traders.
Easy-to-Read Version
He broke the top out of that big cedar tree and brought it to Canaan. He set the branch down in a city of merchants.
George Lamsa Translation
He cropped off the topmost of its tender twigs, and carried it to the land of Canaan; and he set it in a city of merchants.
Lexham English Bible
He plucked the top of its new plant shoot, and he brought it to the land of Canaan and put it in a city of merchants,
Literal Translation
He plucked off the first of its young twigs and brought it into a land of traders. He set it in a city of merchants.
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
and brake of the toppe of his twygge, and caried it in to the londe of Canaan, and set it in a cite of marchauntes.
American Standard Version
he cropped off the topmost of the young twigs thereof, and carried it unto a land of traffic; he set it in a city of merchants.
Bible in Basic English
Biting off the highest of its young branches, he took it to the land of Canaan, and put it in a town of traders.
JPS Old Testament (1917)
He cropped off the topmost of the young twigs thereof, and carried it into a land of traffic; he set it in a city of merchants.
King James Version (1611)
Hee cropt off the top of his yong twigs, and caried it into a land of traffique; he set it in a city of merchants.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And brake of the top of his twigges, and caryed it into the lande of marchauntes, and set it in a citie of marchauntes.
Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
he cropped off the ends of the tender twigs, and brought them into the land of Chanaan; he laid them up in a walled city.
English Revised Version
he cropped off the topmost of the young twigs thereof, and carried it into a land of traffic; he set it in a city of merchants.
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
He pullide awei the hiynesse of boowis therof, and bar it ouer in to the lond of Chanaan, and settide it in the citee of marchauntis.
Update Bible Version
he cropped off the topmost of the young twigs thereof, and carried it to a land of traffic; he set it in a city of merchants.
Webster's Bible Translation
He cropped off the top of its young twigs, and carried it into a land of traffick; he set it in a city of merchants.
New English Translation
He plucked off its topmost shoot; he brought it to a land of merchants and planted it in a city of traders.
New King James Version
He cropped off its topmost young twig And carried it to a land of trade; He set it in a city of merchants.
New Living Translation
and plucked off its highest branch. He carried it away to a city filled with merchants. He planted it in a city of traders.
New Life Bible
He broke off the very top of its young branches and brought it to a land of traders. He placed it in a city of people who buy and sell.
New Revised Standard
broke off its topmost shoot; he carried it to a land of trade, set it in a city of merchants.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
The crown of its young twigs, plucked he off, and brought it into a land of traffic, :in a city of merchants, he t it.
Douay-Rheims Bible
He cropped off the top of the twigs thereof: and carried it away into the land of Chanaan, and he set it in a city of merchants.
Revised Standard Version
he broke off the topmost of its young twigs and carried it to a land of trade, and set it in a city of merchants.
Young's Literal Translation
The top of its tender twigs it hath cropped, And it bringeth it in to the land of Canaan. In a city of merchants it hath placed it.

Contextual Overview

1 The Lord spoke to me. 2 "Mortal man," he said, "tell the Israelites a parable 3 to let them know what I, the Sovereign Lord , am saying to them: There was a giant eagle with beautiful feathers and huge wings, spread wide. He flew to the Lebanon Mountains and broke off the top of a cedar tree, 4 which he carried to a land of commerce and placed in a city of merchants. 5 Then he took a young plant from the land of Israel and planted it in a fertile field, where there was always water to make it grow. 6 The plant sprouted and became a low, wide-spreading grapevine. The branches grew upward toward the eagle, and the roots grew deep. The vine was covered with branches and leaves. 7 "There was another giant eagle with huge wings and thick plumage. And now the vine sent its roots toward him and turned its leaves toward him, in the hope that he would give it more water than there was in the garden where it was growing. 8 But the vine had already been planted in a fertile, well-watered field so that it could grow leaves and bear grapes and be a magnificent vine. 9 "So I, the Sovereign Lord , ask: Will this vine live and grow? Won't the first eagle pull it up by its roots, pull off the grapes, and break off the branches and let them wither? It will not take much strength or a mighty nation to pull it up. 10 Yes, it is planted, but will it live and grow? Won't it wither when the east wind strikes it? Won't it wither there where it is growing?"

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

the top: The princes of Judah.

into: Isaiah 43:14, Isaiah 47:15, Jeremiah 51:13, Revelation 18:3, Revelation 18:11-19

a land: Chaldea

a city: Babylon, which by means of the Euphrates and Tigris, had communications with the richest and most distant nations.

Reciprocal: Genesis 42:34 - traffic Ezekiel 31:3 - a cedar

Cross-References

Genesis 12:2
I will give you many descendants, and they will become a great nation. I will bless you and make your name famous, so that you will be a blessing.
Genesis 13:16
I am going to give you so many descendants that no one will be able to count them all; it would be as easy to count all the specks of dust on earth!
Genesis 16:10
Then he said, "I will give you so many descendants that no one will be able to count them.
Genesis 17:1
When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, "I am the Almighty God. Obey me and always do what is right.
Genesis 17:11
From now on you must circumcise every baby boy when he is eight days old, including slaves born in your homes and slaves bought from foreigners. This will show that there is a covenant between you and me.
Genesis 17:18
He asked God, "Why not let Ishmael be my heir?"
Genesis 22:17
I promise that I will give you as many descendants as there are stars in the sky or grains of sand along the seashore. Your descendants will conquer their enemies.
Genesis 32:12
Remember that you promised to make everything go well for me and to give me more descendants than anyone could count, as many as the grains of sand along the seashore."
Genesis 35:11
And God said to him, "I am Almighty God. Have many children. Nations will be descended from you, and you will be the ancestor of kings.
Genesis 48:19
His father refused, saying, "I know, son, I know. Manasseh's descendants will also become a great people. But his younger brother will be greater than he, and his descendants will become great nations."

Gill's Notes on the Bible

He cropped off the top of his young twigs,.... By which are meant the princes of the land, or the several branches of the royal family; the top of which was King Jeconiah, who was but young and tender, being but eighteen years of age when he began his reign, and this was within three months after; and who was no more able to withstand the force of the king of Babylon, than a tender twig so ravenous a bird as an eagle, 2 Kings 24:8; whose superior power and strength is signified by the cropping off of a tender twig:

and carried it into a land of traffic; not into the land of Canaan, as the Septuagint, and some other versions, literally render it; but into Babylon, which was become a place of great merchandise, through the great concourse of people to it, and the large additions made to the empire:

he set it in a city of merchants; meaning the city of Babylon, perhaps in particular, as distinct from the country before mentioned: the word for "merchants" signifies "apothecaries" or "druggists" p; and may design such merchants as traded in sweet spices and aromatic drugs. The words may be rendered, "and brought it out of the land of Canaan" q; out of which Jeconiah and his nobles were carried by the king of Babylon; so the particle אל sometimes signifies "from", or "out of", as in 1 Kings 8:30; and others r, "and in a city of merchants he set it"; in Babylon, famous for merchants; whom the Jews, being captives, were obliged to attend in a servile manner.

p רוכלים "aromatariorum", Junius & Tremellius, Polinus. So Stockius, p. 1017. q אל ארץ כנען "tetra Chanaan", Texelius, Phoenix, l. 3. c. 4. sect. 6. p. 205. r Vid. Noldii Concord. Part. Ebr. p. 56.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

A land of traffick - The land of Babylon.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Ezekiel 17:4. The top of his young twigs — The princes of Judah.

A land of traffic — Chaldea.

A city of merchants — Babylon; for which this city was the most celebrated of all the cities of the east. Its situation procured it innumerable advantages; its two rivers, the Tigris and Euphrates, and the Persian Gulf, gave it communication with the richest and the most distant nations.


 
adsfree-icon
Ads FreeProfile