The Meaning of Ezekiel 43:9 Explained

Ezekiel 43:9

KJV: Now let them put away their whoredom, and the carcases of their kings, far from me, and I will dwell in the midst of them for ever.

YLT: Now do they put far off their whoredom, And the carcases of their kings -- from Me, And I have dwelt in their midst to the age.

Darby: Now let them put away their fornication, and the carcases of their kings, far from me, and I will dwell in the midst of them for ever.

ASV: Now let them put away their whoredom, and the dead bodies of their kings, far from me; and I will dwell in the midst of them for ever.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Now let them put away  their whoredom,  and the carcases  of their kings,  far  from me, and I will dwell  in the midst  of them for ever. 

What does Ezekiel 43:9 Mean?

Verse Meaning

If the Israelites would put away their harlotry (physical and spiritual) and would refrain from burying their dead too close to holy ground, the Lord promised to dwell among them forever. While the place of burial may seem insignificant to modern Westerners, it was important to ancient Near Easterners since it expressed respect or disrespect.
This is one of many places in which a prophet conditioned the coming of God"s kingdom on Israel"s repentance (cf. Haggai 2:4-7; Zechariah 12:10 to Zechariah 14:9; et al.). The prophets presented the coming of the kingdom as contingent on the sovereignty of God and the enablement of the Holy Spirit as well. [1]

Chapter Summary: Ezekiel 43

1  The returning of the glory of God into the temple
7  The sin of Israel hindered God's presence
10  The prophet exhorts them to repentance and observation of the law of the house
13  The measures
18  and ordinances of the altar

What do the individual words in Ezekiel 43:9 mean?

Now let them put away - their harlotry and the carcasses of their kings far from Me and I will dwell in their midst forever -
עַתָּ֞ה יְרַחֲק֧וּ אֶת־ זְנוּתָ֛ם וּפִגְרֵ֥י מַלְכֵיהֶ֖ם מִמֶּ֑נִּי וְשָׁכַנְתִּ֥י בְתוֹכָ֖ם לְעוֹלָֽם ס

עַתָּ֞ה  Now 
Parse: Adverb
Root: עַתָּה  
Sense: now.
יְרַחֲק֧וּ  let  them  put  away 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: רָחַק  
Sense: to be or become far, be or become distant, be removed, go far away.
אֶת־  - 
Parse: Direct object marker
Root: אֹות 
Sense: sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative.
זְנוּתָ֛ם  their  harlotry 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular construct, third person masculine plural
Root: זְנוּת  
Sense: fornication, harlotry.
וּפִגְרֵ֥י  and  the  carcasses 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: פֶּגֶר  
Sense: corpse, carcass, monument, stela.
מַלְכֵיהֶ֖ם  of  their  kings 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, third person masculine plural
Root: מֶלֶךְ 
Sense: king.
מִמֶּ֑נִּי  far  from  Me 
Parse: Preposition, first person common singular
Root: מִן 
Sense: from, out of, on account of, off, on the side of, since, above, than, so that not, more than.
וְשָׁכַנְתִּ֥י  and  I  will  dwell 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, first person common singular
Root: שָׁכַן  
Sense: to settle down, abide, dwell, tabernacle, reside.
בְתוֹכָ֖ם  in  their  midst 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular construct, third person masculine plural
Root: תָּוֶךְ  
Sense: midst, middle.
לְעוֹלָֽם  forever 
Parse: Preposition-l, Noun, masculine singular
Root: עֹולָם  
Sense: long duration, antiquity, futurity, for ever, ever, everlasting, evermore, perpetual, old, ancient, world.
ס  - 
Parse: Punctuation