The Meaning of Ezekiel 11:20 Explained

Ezekiel 11:20

KJV: That they may walk in my statutes, and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God.

YLT: So that in My statutes they walk, And My judgments they keep, and have done them, And they have been to me for a people, And I am to them for God.

Darby: that they may walk in my statutes, and keep mine ordinances, and do them; and they shall be my people, and I will be their God.

ASV: that they may walk in my statutes, and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

That they may walk  in my statutes,  and keep  mine ordinances,  and do  them: and they shall be my people,  and I will be their God. 

What does Ezekiel 11:20 Mean?

Context Summary

Ezekiel 11:5-25 - A New Heart Promised
The Spirit of God led the prophet to the East Gate of the Temple, where the Shekinah had settled, Ezekiel 10:19. There He uttered the divine verdict on the priesthood. They had ridiculed Jeremiah's letter to the captives, among whom Ezekiel lived, Jeremiah 29:5; and had made merry at his comparison between the city and a caldron, Jeremiah 1:13. It was to these scornful men that Ezekiel uttered the scathing denunciations of Ezekiel 11:7-18. The sudden death of Pelatiah, the ringleader of the scorners, gave terrible emphasis to the prophet's words. Ezekiel was told to look for his true kinsmen not among the doomed priesthood, but among his fellow-exiles whom they of Jerusalem despised. Spiritual ties must supersede natural ones, when the two clash. They might be far removed from the outer Temple, but God would be their asylum and sanctuary. What a sweet promise Ezekiel 11:16 provides for those who are compelled to go far from home! They may always meet their dear ones in God. Note the inclusive promise of Ezekiel 11:19 -unity, newness, and sensitiveness to the least touch of the divine nature. [source]

Chapter Summary: Ezekiel 11

1  The presumption of the princes
4  Their sin and judgment
13  Ezekiel complaining, God shows him his purpose in saving a remnant
22  The glory of God leaves the city
24  Ezekiel is returned to the captivity

What do the individual words in Ezekiel 11:20 mean?

that in My statutes they may walk and My judgments keep and do them and they shall be My people and I will be their God
לְמַ֙עַן֙ בְּחֻקֹּתַ֣י יֵלֵ֔כוּ וְאֶת־ מִשְׁפָּטַ֥י יִשְׁמְר֖וּ וְעָשׂ֣וּ אֹתָ֑ם וְהָיוּ־ לִ֣י לְעָ֔ם וַאֲנִ֕י אֶהְיֶ֥ה לָהֶ֖ם לֵאלֹהִֽים

לְמַ֙עַן֙  that 
Parse: Preposition
Root: לְמַעַן 
Sense: purpose, intent prep.
בְּחֻקֹּתַ֣י  in  My  statutes 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, feminine plural construct, first person common singular
Root: חֻקָּה  
Sense: statute, ordinance, limit, enactment, something prescribed.
יֵלֵ֔כוּ  they  may  walk 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: הָלַךְ  
Sense: to go, walk, come.
מִשְׁפָּטַ֥י  My  judgments 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, first person common singular
Root: מִשְׁפָּט  
Sense: judgment, justice, ordinance.
יִשְׁמְר֖וּ  keep 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: שָׁמַר  
Sense: to keep, guard, observe, give heed.
וְעָשׂ֣וּ  and  do 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, third person common plural
Root: עָשָׂה 
Sense: to do, fashion, accomplish, make.
וְהָיוּ־  and  they  shall  be 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, third person common plural
Root: אֶהְיֶה 
Sense: to be, become, come to pass, exist, happen, fall out.
לִ֣י  My 
Parse: Preposition, first person common singular
לְעָ֔ם  people 
Parse: Preposition-l, Noun, masculine singular
Root: עַם 
Sense: nation, people.
וַאֲנִ֕י  and  I 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Pronoun, first person common singular
Root: אֲנִי  
Sense: I (first pers.
אֶהְיֶ֥ה  will  be 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, first person common singular
Root: אֶהְיֶה 
Sense: to be, become, come to pass, exist, happen, fall out.
לֵאלֹהִֽים  God 
Parse: Preposition-l, Noun, masculine plural
Root: אֱלֹהִים  
Sense: (plural).