Ezekiel 39:12

12 “ ‘For seven months the Israelites will be burying them in order to cleanse the land.

Ezekiel 39:12 in Other Translations

KJV
12 And seven months shall the house of Israel be burying of them, that they may cleanse the land.
ESV
12 For seven months the house of Israel will be burying them, in order to cleanse the land.
NLT
12 It will take seven months for the people of Israel to bury the bodies and cleanse the land.
MSG
12 "Israel will bury the corpses in order to clean up the land. It will take them seven months.
CSB
12 The house of Israel will spend seven months burying them in order to cleanse the land.

Ezekiel 39:12 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 39:12

And seven months shall the house of Israel be burying of them,
&c.] So long time will the burial of Gog's army take up, because of the multitude of it, and by reason their bones will be scattered here and there; which will require time to gather them together, and bring them to one place: the reason of the burial of them will be, partly out of humanity, which the Christian religion, which will then be embraced by the Jews, teaches and encourages; and partly because of the disagreeable sight and ill smell of the carcasses of the slain, and to prevent the air being infected therewith, which might cause noxious diseases. Jarchi gives the reason of it, because Gog is of the seed of Japheth, who covered his father's nakedness, and therefore worthy of a funeral: but a better reason follows, that they may cleanse the land:
not from ceremonial uncleanness, a place being unclean, by the ceremonial law, where dead carcasses, or the bones of dead men, lay; for the ceremonial law, as it is abrogated, will now be disused by the Jews themselves, when converted; but from natural pollution, before mentioned.

Ezekiel 39:12 In-Context

10 They will not need to gather wood from the fields or cut it from the forests, because they will use the weapons for fuel. And they will plunder those who plundered them and loot those who looted them, declares the Sovereign LORD.
11 “ ‘On that day I will give Gog a burial place in Israel, in the valley of those who travel east of the Sea. It will block the way of travelers, because Gog and all his hordes will be buried there. So it will be called the Valley of Hamon Gog.
12 “ ‘For seven months the Israelites will be burying them in order to cleanse the land.
13 All the people of the land will bury them, and the day I display my glory will be a memorable day for them, declares the Sovereign LORD.
14 People will be continually employed in cleansing the land. They will spread out across the land and, along with others, they will bury any bodies that are lying on the ground. “ ‘After the seven months they will carry out a more detailed search.

Cross References 1

  • 1. Deuteronomy 21:23
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