The Meaning of Ezekiel 3:23 Explained

Ezekiel 3:23

KJV: Then I arose, and went forth into the plain: and, behold, the glory of the LORD stood there, as the glory which I saw by the river of Chebar: and I fell on my face.

YLT: And I rise and go forth unto the valley, and lo, there the honour of Jehovah is standing as the honour that I had seen by the river Chebar, and I fall on my face.

Darby: And I arose, and went forth into the valley, and behold, the glory of Jehovah stood there, like the glory which I saw by the river Chebar; and I fell on my face.

ASV: Then I arose, and went forth into the plain: and, behold, the glory of Jehovah stood there, as the glory which I saw by the river Chebar; and I fell on my face.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Then I arose,  and went forth  into the plain:  and, behold, the glory  of the LORD  stood  there, as the glory  which I saw  by the river  of Chebar:  and I fell  on my face. 

What does Ezekiel 3:23 Mean?

Verse Meaning

Ezekiel obeyed the Lord. While he was standing on the plain, he saw another vision of God"s glory and again prostrated himself on the ground (cf. Ezekiel 1:28; Acts 7:55).

Context Summary

Ezekiel 3:12-27 - The Watchman's Responsibility
He was bitter because of his message, but hot because God's fire was burning within him. It is a blessed thing for preacher, leader, or Christian worker, when the hand of God is strong upon the soul. But whatever your inward condition, you will never be able to do your best work, unless you can sit where the people sit. In other words you must take their attitude, know by experience their circumstances, and share their lot. We must live very near to God, or we shall never hear the word of His mouth. There is no other way of obtaining messages that will effect His purpose. Ponder again Ezekiel 3:17. In Ezekiel 3:20 God is said to lay a stumbling-block only in the sense that He has constituted the world in that way. When the prophet went forth into the plain God revealed Himself. Whether He bids us go to the plain, or shut ourselves in the house, the place of obedience and duty will ever be the right one for the manifestation of His glory and the communication of His message. The secret of a successful ministry is to be absolutely yielded in thought and in speech to God. [source]

Chapter Summary: Ezekiel 3

1  Ezekiel eats the scroll
4  God encourages him
15  God shows him the rule of prophecy
22  God shuts and opens the prophet's mouth

What do the individual words in Ezekiel 3:23 mean?

So I arose and went out into the plain and behold there the glory of Yahweh stood like the glory which I saw by the River Chebar and I fell on my face
וָאָקוּם֮ וָאֵצֵ֣א אֶל־ הַבִּקְעָה֒ וְהִנֵּה־ שָׁ֤ם כְּבוֹד־ יְהוָה֙ עֹמֵ֔ד כַּכָּב֕וֹד אֲשֶׁ֥ר רָאִ֖יתִי עַל־ נְהַר־ כְּבָ֑ר וָאֶפֹּ֖ל עַל־ פָּנָֽי

וָאָקוּם֮  So  I  arose 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, first person common singular
Root: קוּם 
Sense: to rise, arise, stand, rise up, stand up.
וָאֵצֵ֣א  and  went  out 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, first person common singular
Root: יׄוצֵאת 
Sense: to go out, come out, exit, go forth.
אֶל־  into 
Parse: Preposition
Root: אֶל  
Sense: to, toward, unto (of motion).
הַבִּקְעָה֒  the  plain 
Parse: Article, Noun, feminine singular
Root: בִּקְעָה  
Sense: valley.
וְהִנֵּה־  and  behold 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Interjection
Root: הִנֵּה  
Sense: behold, lo, see, if.
כְּבוֹד־  the  glory 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: כָּבֹוד  
Sense: glory, honour, glorious, abundance.
יְהוָה֙  of  Yahweh 
Parse: Proper Noun, masculine singular
Root: יהוה 
Sense: the proper name of the one true God.
עֹמֵ֔ד  stood 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine singular
Root: עָמַד  
Sense: to stand, remain, endure, take one’s stand.
כַּכָּב֕וֹד  like  the  glory 
Parse: Preposition-k, Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: כָּבֹוד  
Sense: glory, honour, glorious, abundance.
רָאִ֖יתִי  I  saw 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, first person common singular
Root: רָאָה 
Sense: to see, look at, inspect, perceive, consider.
נְהַר־  the  River 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: נָהָר  
Sense: stream, river.
כְּבָ֑ר  Chebar 
Parse: Proper Noun, feminine singular
Root: כְּבָר  
Sense: a Babylonian river near which many Israelite exiles settled; maybe the ‘Habor’ or the ‘Royal Canal’ of Nebuchadnezzar.
וָאֶפֹּ֖ל  and  I  fell 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Consecutive imperfect, first person common singular
Root: נָפַל  
Sense: to fall, lie, be cast down, fail.
פָּנָֽי  my  face 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, first person common singular
Root: לִפְנֵי 
Sense: face.