Ezekiel 36:13-15 · Bible study

Ezekiel 36:13-15 Commentary: The Land No Longer Devours

Hebrew · 8 what the commentators say

Meaning in one sentence

Ezekiel 36:13-15 explains how God reverses the land's shame as a 'devourer of men' and restores its blessing. A study on divine judgment and reputation.

Research Summary

Meaning: God promises to remove the land’s reputation as a devourer of men and restore its fertility and honor, reversing the curse that followed Israel’s sin.
Key words: 'Devourer of men,' 'bereave,' 'shame,' 'reproach,' 'stumble', each describes effects of divine judgment that God will cancel.
Main debate: Whether the fulfillment was entirely realized in the return from Babylon (Gill sees only partial) or awaits an eschatological age (Barnes, Cambridge point to future spiritual blessings).
Theological theme: God’s covenant faithfulness vindicates His land and His name among the nations.
Best use: Teaching on God’s power to restore broken reputations and remove shame, both nationally and personally.

Translation Comparison

BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020

¹³For this is what the Lord GOD says: Because people say to you, ‘You devour men and deprive your nation of its children,’

¹⁴therefore you will no longer devour men or deprive your nation of its children, declares the Lord GOD.

¹⁵I will no longer allow the taunts of the nations to be heard against you, and you will no longer endure the reproach of the peoples or cause your nation to stumble, declares the Lord GOD.”

WEB World English Bible 2000

¹³“‘The Lord Yahweh says: “Because they say to you, ‘You are a devourer of men, and have been a bereaver of your nation;’

¹⁴therefore you shall devour men no more, and not bereave your nation any more,” says the Lord Yahweh.

¹⁵“I won’t let you hear the shame of the nations any more. You won’t bear the reproach of the peoples any more, and you won’t cause your nation to stumble any more,” says the Lord Yahweh.’”

KJV King James Version 1769

¹³Thus saith the Lord God; Because they say unto you, Thou land devourest up men, and hast bereaved thy nations;

¹⁴Therefore thou shalt devour men no more, neither bereave thy nations any more, saith the Lord God.

¹⁵Neither will I cause men to hear in thee the shame of the heathen any more, neither shalt thou bear the reproach of the people any more, neither shalt thou cause thy nations to fall any more, saith the Lord God.

ASV American Standard Version 1901

¹³Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Because they say unto you, Thou land art a devourer of men, and hast been a bereaver of thy nation;

¹⁴therefore thou shalt devour men no more, neither bereave thy nation any more, saith the Lord Jehovah;

¹⁵neither will I let thee hear any more the shame of the nations, neither shalt thou bear the reproach of the peoples any more, neither shalt thou cause thy nation to stumble any more, saith the Lord Jehovah.

YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898

¹³Thus said the Lord Jehovah: Because they are saying to you: A devourer of men art thou, And a bereaver of thy nations thou hast been,

¹⁴Therefore, man thou devourest no more, And thy nations thou causest not to stumble any more, An affirmation of the Lord Jehovah.

¹⁵And I proclaim not unto thee any more the shame of the nations, And the reproach of peoples thou bearest no more, And thy nations stumble not any more, An affirmation of the Lord Jehovah.'

Darby Darby Bible 1890

¹³Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Because they say unto you, Thou devourest men, and hast bereaved thy nation,

¹⁴therefore thou shalt devour men no more, neither bereave thy nation any more, saith the Lord Jehovah;

¹⁵neither will I cause thee to hear the ignominy of the nations any more, and thou shalt not bear the reproach of the peoples any more, neither shalt thou cause thy nation to fall any more, saith the Lord Jehovah.

Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899

¹³Thus saith the Lord God: Because thy say of you: Thou art a devourer of men, and one that suffocatest thy nation:

¹⁴Therefore thou shalt devour men no more nor destroy thy nation any more, saith the Lord God.

¹⁵Neither will I cause men to hear in thee the shame of the nations any more, nor shalt thou bear the reproach of the people, nor lose thy nation any more, saith the Lord God.

Verse in Context

11 I will multiply man and animal on you. They will increase and be fruitful. I will cause you to be inhabited as you were before, and you will do better than at your beginnings. Then you will know that I am Yahweh.

12 Yes, I will cause men to walk on you, even my people Israel. They will possess you, and you will be their inheritance, and you will never again bereave them of their children.”

13 “‘The Lord Yahweh says: “Because they say to you, ‘You are a devourer of men, and have been a bereaver of your nation;’

14 therefore you shall devour men no more, and not bereave your nation any more,” says the Lord Yahweh.

15 “I won’t let you hear the shame of the nations any more. You won’t bear the reproach of the peoples any more, and you won’t cause your nation to stumble any more,” says the Lord Yahweh.’”

16 Moreover Yahweh’s word came to me, saying,

17 “Son of man, when the house of Israel lived in their own land, they defiled it by their ways and by their deeds. Their way before me was as the uncleanness of a woman in her impurity.

Scholars' Consensus

Commentators agree that the accusation against the land of Israel as a 'devourer of men' (Ezekiel 36:13) echoes the evil report of the spies in Numbers 13:32, who said, 'The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that eats up its inhabitants.' Barnes connects this to the judgment God sent upon the land, war, famine, pestilence, which left it so desolate that men deemed it fatal (compare 2 Kings 17:25). Gill elaborates that the surrounding nations suggested either the air was unwholesome, the land unproductive, or the curse of God lay on it. The Cambridge Bible adds that the land whose population perishes of scarcity is regarded as devouring them. But God now promises a complete reversal (vv. 14, 15): the land will no longer devour men or bereave its nation; it will no longer hear the shame of the nations or bear reproach; it will not cause its nation to stumble. Jamieson-Fausset-Brown notes that the Hebrew can be read as 'cause to fall,' pointing to the moral stumbling through sin that brought judgment. The promise includes fertility, population, and honor, blessings that, as Barnes argues, point beyond the return from exile to a future spiritual fulfillment in the absolute triumph of God’s kingdom.

How settled is the interpretation?

Interpretive difficulty: Medium

Main views:

Historical fulfillment (return from exile): Gill and some commentators note partial fulfillment after Babylon, with restoration of land and population.
Eschatological fulfillment (future kingdom): Barnes and Cambridge emphasize that the full blessing has not been realized historically, pointing to a future age when God's kingdom triumphs.
Spiritual fulfillment in the Church: Some Christian traditions see the land as a type of the church, with removal of shame and spiritual fruitfulness symbolizing salvation.

What is clear: God promises to reverse the curse on the land, removing its reputation as a devourer of men and restoring its honor, so that the nations will see His faithfulness.

What Scholars Agree and Debate

Topic	Agreed	Debated
Meaning of 'devourer of men'	All commentators see it as an accusation that the land destroys its inhabitants through war, famine, pestilence, or curse.	Barnes emphasizes the land's fatal reputation from God's judgments; Gill includes natural causes and moral decay; Cambridge focuses on scarcity.
Fulfillment of the promise	The promise includes a real, literal restoration of the land's fertility and population.	Barnes and Cambridge argue it points to a future, spiritual fulfillment beyond the return from exile. Gill sees partial temporal fulfillment, but notes the land still experienced later desolation.
The land's responsibility vs. God's sovereignty	The land itself is not blamed; it suffers because of the people's sin and God's judgment.	Some traditions stress the land as a passive victim (Wesley), while others (Jamieson-Fausset-Brown) note the land personified as causing stumbling through temptation to idolatry.
Connection to Numbers 13:32	All cited commentators link the accusation to the spies' report.	Geneva and Gill treat it as a direct allusion; Cambridge treats it as a parallel concept without claiming direct dependence.

Historical & Cultural Context

Ezekiel 36 addresses the mountains of Israel directly, the land personified as the recipient of God’s covenant promises. In the preceding verses, God declares He will restore the land after it suffered desolation due to Israel’s sin and the taunts of surrounding nations (Ezekiel 36:1, 12). The accusation 'You are a devourer of men' reflects a long-standing reputation: the Canaanites perished in war, and Israel itself suffered repeated losses. Barnes and Cambridge both link this to Numbers 13:32, where the spies brought an evil report. The land’s fertility failed, droughts and plagues struck (Amos 4:7, 9), and the people were taken captive. Neighboring peoples seized on this as proof that God had abandoned His land.

Now the Lord promises to reverse the curse. The 'shame of the nations' and 'reproach of the peoples', the taunts that had become proverbial (Psalm 89:50; Ezekiel 5:14, 15), will cease. The land will be fruitful and populous, as already promised in vv. 8, 11. The repeated 'no more' (v. 14, 15) emphatically cancels each element of the accusation. This restoration is not merely agricultural; it restores the land’s identity as God’s dwelling place. The ultimate goal, as Ezekiel 37:28 states, is that 'the nations will know that I am Yahweh who sanctifies Israel, when my sanctuary is among them forever more.' The land’s reputation is bound up with God’s own reputation among the nations.

Textual Notes

The supplied sources note no significant textual variants for Ezekiel 36:13, 15. The main textual issue mentioned by Jamieson-Fausset-Brown is the Hebrew Keri (marginal reading) 'bereave' versus the Chetib (textual reading) 'cause to fall' in verse 14. The Chetib is preferred as the more difficult reading and provides a transition to the moral stumbling mentioned in verse 15.

Reception History

In the early church, this passage was read as a prophecy of the restoration of Israel under Christ, when the land would no longer be a place of death but of life. Reformation commentators like Calvin and Geneva treated the promise as both temporal, fulfilled in the post-exilic community, and spiritual, pointing to the church’s fruitfulness. Jewish exegetes understood the verses as God’s assurance that the land would never again devour its inhabitants, a hope clung to in exile. The repeated 'no more' has been used in hymns of hope to celebrate God’s removal of shame. Modern interpreters often see the passage as foundational for understanding God’s covenant commitment to restore the land and the people, with some reading it as a type of the new creation.

Preaching This Verse

Three-point outline

The accusation against the land (v. 13): The land is called a devourer of men and a bereaver of its nation, a slander rooted in the judgment of war, famine, and disease.
The divine reversal (v. 14): God declares the land will no longer devour or bereave; the curse is broken by His sovereign word.
The restoration of honor (v. 15): Shame and reproach from the nations will cease; the land will no longer cause its people to stumble.

Five-point outline

The slander: The land’s reputation as a death-bringer (Numbers 13:32).
The root cause: Divine judgment for sin, not the land itself being evil.
The proclamation: God speaks a direct 'no more' to each charge.
The result: Fertility, population, and safety replace scarcity and death.
The outcome: The nations witness God’s faithfulness and the land’s honor is restored.

Illustration hooks

A neighborhood’s reputation: After a series of tragedies, a place gets a bad name. Then renewal comes, new families move in, crime drops, and the stigma lifts. This mirrors God’s reversal for the land.
Personal shame removed: Someone known for failure finally experiences a turnaround. The promises in Ezekiel show that God can remove not just the consequences of sin but the very reproach that follows.
A photo album of emptiness vs. life: Compare images of a barren, war-torn land with the same place teeming with children and harvest. The contrast illustrates the transformation God promises.

Questions your congregation is asking

Is this promise just for ancient Israel, or does it give us hope today when our communities feel cursed or broken?
How can we trust God to remove the shame of past failures, whether national or personal?
What does it mean for a land or a people to 'stumble'? How does God prevent that?

Leading a Discussion

This passage shows how God responds to the slander against His land and people. After judgment came through war and famine, the nations taunted Israel. But God promises a complete reversal. As you discuss, consider how the land’s reputation reflects God’s own honor, and what this teaches about His power to restore.

Discussion questions

What accusation is made against the land in verse 13? Why would the nations say this?
How does the accusation in Ezekiel 36:13 echo Numbers 13:32? What does that connection tell us about Israel’s history?
What does God promise in verses 14, 15? List each 'no more' statement. What is being reversed?
Both Barnes and Jamieson-Fausset-Brown see a link between the land’s physical barrenness and the people’s moral stumbling. How are physical conditions and spiritual faithfulness connected in this passage?
How does this passage show God’s concern for His reputation among the nations? Why does that matter for how we live today?
In what ways might we feel like the 'land' that has been devoured or shamed? How can God’s promise here give us hope?
How can Christians today participate in God’s work of reversing shame and restoring blessing in their communities?

What the Commentators Say

6 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible Protestant 1832

Barnes insists that the land blessings in this prophecy cannot be merely temporal, since the land remains under pagan control. He sees them as future spiritual blessings, fulfilled when Israel is gathered into the Church of God. The passage depicts the complete triumph of God's kingdom in the ultimate conflict between the world and God.

Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880

The commentator explains that the land of Israel was said to "eat up" its people through famine and scarcity, not through war or bad climate. The future promise is that the land will no longer "bereave" its population, and the reproach from surrounding nations for this will end. A textual note clarifies the Hebrew verb should be "bereave" rather than "fall."

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Commentary Protestant 1871

JFB argues that the Hebrew reading "cause to fall" (rather than "bereave") is the original, because it is the more difficult reading and creates a better transition to the moral cause of Israel's calamities: their sins. Once those stumblings cease, the land no longer devours its people.

Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857

Lange argues that the promises to the mountains of Israel must be read as symbols pointing to Christ and the Church, not as a literal restoration of the land to ethnic Israel. He insists that true fulfillment comes in spiritual renewal through the Holy Spirit, not in a future earthly kingdom.

Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710

Henry notes that God addresses the land itself—its mountains, hills, and valleys—to show that the restoration is as concrete and physical as the desolation had been. The enemy had taunted Israel about possessing their ancient high places, but God promises that the very land which bore the shame of the nations will be vindicated and flourish again.

Wesley's Explanatory Notes Methodist/Wesleyan 1754

Wesley reads the promise as specifically about abundant children as the visible sign of God's blessing, turning a nation's shame into honor. For him the reproach that ends is the disgrace of barrenness, replaced by a flourishing population that secures the land's future.

Cross-References

Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)

Numbers 13:32	They brought up an evil report of the land which they had spied out to the children of Israel, saying, “The land, through which we have gone to spy it out, is a land that eats up its inhabitants; and all the people who we saw in it are men of great stature.
Isaiah 60:21	Then your people will all be righteous. They will inherit the land forever, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified.
Ezekiel 37:25	They will dwell in the land that I have given to Jacob my servant, in which your fathers lived. They will dwell therein, they, and their children, and their children’s children, forever. David my servant will be their prince forever.
Ezekiel 37:28	The nations will know that I am Yahweh who sanctifies Israel, when my sanctuary is among them forever more.”’”
Amos 9:15	I will plant them on their land, and they will no more be plucked up out of their land which I have given them,” says Yahweh your God.
Psalms 89:50	Remember, Lord, the reproach of your servants, how I bear in my heart the taunts of all the mighty peoples,
Isaiah 54:4	“Don’t be afraid, for you will not be ashamed. Don’t be confounded, for you will not be disappointed. For you will forget the shame of your youth. You will remember the reproach of your widowhood no more.
Isaiah 60:14	The sons of those who afflicted you will come bowing to you; and all those who despised you will bow themselves down at the soles of your feet. They will call you Yahweh’s City, the Zion of the Holy One of Israel.

Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.

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