Ezekiel 11:16
New International Version
“Therefore say: ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Although I sent them far away among the nations and scattered them among the countries, yet for a little while I have been a sanctuary for them in the countries where they have gone.’

New Living Translation
“Therefore, tell the exiles, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Although I have scattered you in the countries of the world, I will be a sanctuary to you during your time in exile.

English Standard Version
Therefore say, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: Though I removed them far off among the nations, and though I scattered them among the countries, yet I have been a sanctuary to them for a while in the countries where they have gone.’

Berean Standard Bible
Therefore declare that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Although I sent them far away among the nations and scattered them among the countries, yet for a little while I have been a sanctuary for them in the countries to which they have gone.’

King James Bible
Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Although I have cast them far off among the heathen, and although I have scattered them among the countries, yet will I be to them as a little sanctuary in the countries where they shall come.

New King James Version
Therefore say, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD: “Although I have cast them far off among the Gentiles, and although I have scattered them among the countries, yet I shall be a little sanctuary for them in the countries where they have gone.” ’

New American Standard Bible
Therefore say, ‘This is what the Lord GOD says: “Though I had removed them far away among the nations, and though I had scattered them among the countries, yet I was a sanctuary for them for a little while in the countries where they had gone.”’

NASB 1995
“Therefore say, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD, “Though I had removed them far away among the nations and though I had scattered them among the countries, yet I was a sanctuary for them a little while in the countries where they had gone."’

NASB 1977
“Therefore say, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD, “Though I had removed them far away among the nations, and though I had scattered them among the countries, yet I was a sanctuary for them a little while in the countries where they had gone.”’

Legacy Standard Bible
Therefore say, ‘Thus says Lord Yahweh, “Though I had removed them far away among the nations, and though I had scattered them among the countries, yet I was a sanctuary for them a little while in the countries where they had gone.”’

Amplified Bible
Therefore say, ‘Thus says the Lord GOD, “Though I had removed Israel far away among the nations and though I had scattered them among the countries, yet I have been a sanctuary for them for a little while in the countries to which they had gone.”’

Christian Standard Bible
“Therefore say, ‘This is what the Lord GOD says: Though I sent them far away among the nations and scattered them among the countries, yet for a little while I have been a sanctuary for them in the countries where they have gone.’

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Therefore say: This is what the Lord GOD says: Though I sent them far away among the nations and scattered them among the countries, yet for a little while I have been a sanctuary for them in the countries where they have gone.”

American Standard Version
Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Whereas I have removed them far off among the nations, and whereas I have scattered them among the countries, yet will I be to them a sanctuary for a little while in the countries where they are come.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
Because of this, thus says THE LORD OF LORDS: ‘I shall drive them out among the Gentiles, and I shall scatter them in the Earth, and I shall be to them for a little sanctuary in the lands to which they went’

Brenton Septuagint Translation
Therefore say thou, Thus saith the Lord; I will cast them off among the nations, and will disperse them into every land, yet will I be to them for a little sanctuary in the countries which they shall enter.

Contemporary English Version
But here is what I want you to tell the Israelites in Babylonia: It's true that I, the LORD God, have forced you out of your own country and made you live among foreign nations. But for now, I will be with you wherever you are, so that you can worship me.

Douay-Rheims Bible
Therefore thus saith the Lord God: Because I have removed them far off among the Gentiles, and because I have scattered them among the countries: I will be to them a little sanctuary in the countries whither they are come.

English Revised Version
Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord GOD: Whereas I have removed them far off among the nations, and whereas I have scattered them among the countries, yet will I be to them a sanctuary for a little while in the countries where they are come.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
"So tell them, 'This is what the Almighty LORD says: Although I sent them far away among the nations and scattered them among the countries, I have been their sanctuary for a little while among the countries where they've gone.'

Good News Translation
"Now tell your fellow exiles what I am saying. I am the one who sent them to live in far-off nations and scattered them in other countries. Yet, for the time being I will be present with them in the lands where they have gone.

International Standard Version
"Therefore you are to say, 'This is what the Lord GOD says, "Although I've removed them far away to live among the nations, and although I've scattered them throughout the earth, yet I've continued to be their sanctuary, even for the short time that they will be living in the lands to which they've gone."'

JPS Tanakh 1917
therefore say: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Although I have removed them far off among the nations, and although I have scattered them among the countries, yet have I been to them as a little sanctuary in the countries where they are come;

Literal Standard Version
it [is] ours, the land has been given for an inheritance; therefore say, Thus said Lord YHWH: Because I put them far off among nations, | And because I scattered them through lands, I am also for a little sanctuary to them, | In lands to where they have gone in.

Majority Standard Bible
Therefore declare that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Although I sent them far away among the nations and scattered them among the countries, yet for a little while I have been a sanctuary for them in the countries to which they have gone.’

New American Bible
Therefore say: Thus says the Lord GOD: I have indeed sent them far away among the nations, scattered them over the lands, and have been but little sanctuary for them in the lands to which they have gone.

NET Bible
"Therefore say: 'This is what the sovereign LORD says: Although I have removed them far away among the nations and have dispersed them among the countries, I have been a little sanctuary for them among the lands where they have gone.'

New Revised Standard Version
Therefore say: Thus says the Lord GOD: Though I removed them far away among the nations, and though I scattered them among the countries, yet I have been a sanctuary to them for a little while in the countries where they have gone.

New Heart English Bible
Therefore say, 'Thus says the Lord GOD: "Whereas I have removed them far off among the nations, and whereas I have scattered them among the countries, yet will I be to them a sanctuary for a little while in the countries where they have come."'

Webster's Bible Translation
Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Although I have cast them far off among the heathen, and although I have scattered them among the countries, yet will I be to them as a little sanctuary in the countries where they shall come.

World English Bible
“Therefore say, ‘The Lord Yahweh says: “Whereas I have removed them far off among the nations, and whereas I have scattered them among the countries, yet I will be to them a sanctuary for a little while in the countries where they have come.”’

Young's Literal Translation
it is ours, the land hath been given for an inheritance; therefore say: Thus said the Lord Jehovah: Because I put them afar off among nations, And because I scattered them through lands, I also am to them for a little sanctuary, In lands whither they have gone in.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
A Promise of Restoration
15“Son of man, your brothers—your relatives, your fellow exiles, and the whole house of Israel—are those of whom the people of Jerusalem have said, ‘They are far away from the LORD; this land has been given to us as a possession.’ 16Therefore declare that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Although I sent them far away among the nations and scattered them among the countries, yet for a little while I have been a sanctuary for them in the countries to which they have gone.’ 17Therefore declare that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘I will gather you from the peoples and assemble you from the countries to which you have been scattered, and I will give back to you the land of Israel.’…

Cross References
Psalm 31:20
You hide them in the secret place of Your presence from the schemes of men. You conceal them in Your shelter from accusing tongues.

Psalm 90:1
Lord, You have been our dwelling place through all generations.

Psalm 91:9
Because you have made the LORD your dwelling--my refuge, the Most High--

Isaiah 8:14
And He will be a sanctuary--but to both houses of Israel a stone of stumbling and a rock of offense, to the dwellers of Jerusalem a trap and a snare.

Jeremiah 29:7
Seek the prosperity of the city to which I have sent you as exiles. Pray to the LORD on its behalf, for if it prospers, you too will prosper."

Jeremiah 29:11
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, to give you a future and a hope.

Zechariah 2:6
"Get up! Get up! Flee from the land of the north," declares the LORD, "for I have scattered you like the four winds of heaven," declares the LORD.


Treasury of Scripture

Therefore say, Thus said the Lord GOD; Although I have cast them far off among the heathen, and although I have scattered them among the countries, yet will I be to them as a little sanctuary in the countries where they shall come.

Thus saith

Leviticus 26:44
And yet for all that, when they be in the land of their enemies, I will not cast them away, neither will I abhor them, to destroy them utterly, and to break my covenant with them: for I am the LORD their God.

Deuteronomy 30:3,4
That then the LORD thy God will turn thy captivity, and have compassion upon thee, and will return and gather thee from all the nations, whither the LORD thy God hath scattered thee…

2 Kings 24:12-16
And Jehoiachin the king of Judah went out to the king of Babylon, he, and his mother, and his servants, and his princes, and his officers: and the king of Babylon took him in the eighth year of his reign…

as a

Psalm 31:20
Thou shalt hide them in the secret of thy presence from the pride of man: thou shalt keep them secretly in a pavilion from the strife of tongues.

Psalm 90:1
A Prayer of Moses the man of God. Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations.

Psalm 91:1,9
He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty…

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Although Cast Countries Far Heathen Little Nations Removed Sanctuary Scattered Whereas
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Although Cast Countries Far Heathen Little Nations Removed Sanctuary Scattered Whereas
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














(16) Therefore say.--These words, again repeated in Ezekiel 11:17, refer to what the people of Jerusalem had said in Ezekiel 11:15. Their saying these things was a reason, not for what God would do, but for His declaring His merciful purpose beforehand.

As a little sanctuary.--Rather, as a sanctuary for a little. The original word is to be taken as an adverb rather than an adjective, and in itself may refer either to time or to amount: either a sanctuary for a little time, or a sanctuary in some degree. The connection points to the former as the true sense; for a little while, during the term of their captivity, God's presence with them spiritually would be instead of the outward symbolical presence in His Temple. The contrast is striking. God has already said that he would abandon the Temple, and give up Jerusalem to destruction, and cast out its people; but now to the exiles, scattered among the heathen, He would Himself be for a sanctuary.

Verse 16. - Yet will I be unto them as a little sanctuary; better, with the Revised Version, a little while, as marking that the state described was transient and provisional. For a time, Ezekiel and the exiles were to find the presence of Jehovah manifested as in the vision of Chebar (Ezekiel 1:4-28), or felt spiritually, and this would make the spot where they found themselves as fully a holy place as the temple had been. There also they would have a "house of God." But this was not to be their permanent lot. There was to be a restoration to "the land of Israel" (ver. 17; Ezekiel 37:21), to the visible sanctuary, to a second temple no longer desecrated by the pollutions that had defiled the first. As with all such prophecies, the words had "springing and germinant accomplishments." In Ezekiel 40-48, we have Ezekiel's ideal vision of their fulfilment. A literal but incomplete fulfilment is formed in the work of restoration achieved by Zerubbabel, Ezra, and Nehemiah, and the hopes then cherished by Haggai and Zechariah. A more complete but less literal fulfilment appears in the Church of Christ as the true Israel of God (Galatians 6:16), and in the Jerusalem which is above (Galatians 4:26). In the fact that in the seer's vision of that heavenly city there is no temple, but the presence of "the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb" Revelation 21:22), we find the crowning development of Ezekiel's thought. Intermediate expansions are found

(1) in the gradual substitution of the synagogue for the temple in the religious life of Israel;

(2) in our Lord's words to the woman of Samaria (John 4:21-24); and

(3) in his promise that where two or three are gathered together in his Name, there he would be in the midst of them (Matthew 18:20). The thought that it is the presence of Jehovah that makes the sanctuary, not the sanctuary that secures the presence, Ezekiel may have learnt from the fate of Shiloh (Psalm 78:60).

Parallel Commentaries ...


Hebrew
Therefore
לָכֵ֣ן (lā·ḵên)
Adverb
Strong's 3651: So -- thus

declare
אֱמֹ֗ר (’ĕ·mōr)
Verb - Qal - Imperative - masculine singular
Strong's 559: To utter, say

that this is what
כֹּֽה־ (kōh-)
Adverb
Strong's 3541: Like this, thus, here, now

the Lord
אֲדֹנָ֣י (’ă·ḏō·nāy)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 136: The Lord

GOD
יְהוִה֒ (Yah·weh)
Noun - proper - masculine singular
Strong's 3069: YHWH

says:
אָמַר֮ (’ā·mar)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person masculine singular
Strong's 559: To utter, say

‘Although
כִּ֤י (kî)
Conjunction
Strong's 3588: A relative conjunction

I sent them far away
הִרְחַקְתִּים֙ (hir·ḥaq·tîm)
Verb - Hifil - Perfect - first person common singular | third person masculine plural
Strong's 7368: To be or become far or distant

among the nations
בַּגּוֹיִ֔ם (bag·gō·w·yim)
Preposition-b, Article | Noun - masculine plural
Strong's 1471: A foreign nation, a Gentile, a troop of animals, a flight of locusts

and scattered
הֲפִֽיצוֹתִ֖ים (hă·p̄î·ṣō·w·ṯîm)
Verb - Hifil - Perfect - first person common singular | third person masculine plural
Strong's 6327: To be dispersed or scattered

them among the countries,
בָּאֲרָצ֑וֹת (bā·’ă·rā·ṣō·wṯ)
Preposition-b, Article | Noun - feminine plural
Strong's 776: Earth, land

yet for a little while
מְעַ֔ט (mə·‘aṭ)
Adjective - masculine singular
Strong's 4592: A little, fewness, a few

I have been
וָאֱהִ֤י (wā·’ĕ·hî)
Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - first person common singular
Strong's 1961: To fall out, come to pass, become, be

a sanctuary
לְמִקְדָּ֣שׁ (lə·miq·dāš)
Preposition-l | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 4720: A consecrated thing, place, a palace, sanctuary, asylum

for them
לָהֶם֙ (lā·hem)
Preposition | third person masculine plural
Strong's Hebrew

in the countries
בָּאֲרָצ֖וֹת (bā·’ă·rā·ṣō·wṯ)
Preposition-b, Article | Noun - feminine plural
Strong's 776: Earth, land

to which
אֲשֶׁר־ (’ă·šer-)
Pronoun - relative
Strong's 834: Who, which, what, that, when, where, how, because, in order that

they have gone.’
בָּ֥אוּ (bā·’ū)
Verb - Qal - Perfect - third person common plural
Strong's 935: To come in, come, go in, go


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OT Prophets: Ezekiel 11:16 Therefore say Thus says the Lord Yahweh: (Ezek. Eze Ezk)
Ezekiel 11:15
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