Ezekiel 20:3

¹ In the seventh year, on the tenth day of the fifth month, some of the elders of Israel came to inquire of the LORD, and they sat down before me.

² Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

“Son of man, speak to the elders of Israel and tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: Have you come to inquire of Me? As surely as I live, I will not be consulted by you, declares the Lord GOD.

⁴ Will you judge them, will you judge them, son of man? Confront them with the abominations of their fathers

⁵ and tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: On the day I chose Israel, I swore an oath to the descendants of the house of Jacob and made Myself known to them in the land of Egypt. With an uplifted hand I said to them, ‘I am the LORD your God.’

Here the Bible tells a story about someone else. Ask yourself what it can say to us today. Do read the surrounding verses too, because the context often says more than a single verse.

Compare

BSB: “Son of man, speak to the elders of Israel and tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: Have you come to inquire of Me? As surely as I live, I will not be consulted by you, declares the Lord GOD.
KJV: Son of man, speak unto the elders of Israel, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Are ye come to enquire of me? As I live, saith the Lord GOD, I will not be enquired of by you.
WEB: “Son of man, speak to the elders of Israel, and tell them, ‘The Lord GOD says: “Is it to inquire of me that you have come? As I live,” says the Lord GOD, “I will not be inquired of by you.”’
ASV: Son of man, speak unto the elders of Israel, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Is it to inquire of me that ye are come? As I live, saith the Lord Jehovah, I will not be inquired of by you.
DARBY: Son of man, speak unto the elders of Israel, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Are ye come to inquire of me? [As] I live, saith the Lord Jehovah, I will not be inquired of by you.
BLB: “Son of man, speak to the elders of Israel, and say to them, thus says the Lord YHWH: Have you⁺ come to inquire of Me? [As] I live, I will not be inquired of by you⁺, a declaration of the Lord YHWH.

ÅB: Menneskesønn! Tal med Israels eldste og si til dem: Så sier Herren, Israels Gud: Er dere kommet for å spørre meg? Så sant jeg lever, lar jeg meg ikke spørre av dere, sier Herren, Israels Gud.
OTB: "Menneskesønn, tal til de eldste i Israel og si til dem: ‘Så sier Herren Gud: Har dere kommet for å spørre meg? Så sant jeg lever, sier Herren Gud, jeg vil ikke la dere spørre meg.’
B1930: Menneskesønn! Tal med Israels eldste og si til dem: Så sier Herren, Israels Gud: Er I kommet for å spørre mig? Så sant jeg lever, lar jeg mig ikke spørre av eder, sier Herren, Israels Gud.

Study notes (Tyndale)

Original text and word study

Cross references

Psalms 50:15–21
Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor Me.”
Read in context
Proverbs 28:9
Whoever turns his ear away from hearing the law, even his prayer is detestable.
Read in context
Matthew 15:8–9
‘These people honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me.
Read in context
Micah 3:7
Then the seers will be ashamed and the diviners will be disgraced. They will all cover their mouths because there is no answer from God.”
Read in context
Ezekiel 20:31
When you offer your gifts, sacrificing your sons in the fire, you continue to defile yourselves with all your idols to this day. So should I be consulted by you, O house of Israel? As surely as I live, declares the Lord GOD, I will not be consulted by you!
Read in context
Isaiah 1:12
When you come to appear before Me, who has required this of you— this trampling of My courts?
Read in context
Proverbs 15:8
The sacrifice of the wicked is detestable to the LORD, but the prayer of the upright is His delight.
Read in context
Ezekiel 14:7–8
For when any Israelite or any foreigner dwelling in Israel separates himself from Me, sets up idols in his heart, and puts a wicked stumbling block before his face, and then comes to the prophet to inquire of Me, I the LORD will answer him Myself.
Read in context