Moreover, he said to me, “Son of man, all my words that I shall speak to you receive in your heart, and hear with your ears.
English Standard Version (ESV)
This isn't just about listening; God says to "receive in your heart" before you "hear with your ears." This subtle shift emphasizes that true understanding and proclamation begin with internalizing God's words deeply within your soul, not just intellectually grasping them. It highlights the idea that your heart must be prepared to truly hear and then faithfully speak.
Moreover, he said to me, “Son of man, all my words that I shall speak to you receive in your heart, and hear with your ears.
English Standard Version (ESV)
God is commissioning Ezekiel to a vital, often difficult, task, reiterating the previous instruction to internalize His message. This command to "receive in your heart, and hear with your ears" emphasizes that the prophet must not only listen but deeply absorb and embrace every word from God before going to deliver it to the exiled community. This prepares him to faithfully proclaim the entirety of God's message without alteration or omission to the captives in Tel Abib.
God’s message isn't always easy to hear, but a true prophet embraces every word. How does this apply to us today?
The Whole Counsel
God tells Ezekiel, 'all my words that I shall speak to you receive… and hear….' This isn't a buffet where Ezekiel picks and chooses what he likes. He's commanded to receive all of it. This means the comforting promises and the harsh judgments, the good news and the hard truths.
This emphasizes that God’s message is complete and authoritative. We can't dissect it, discard parts we dislike, or dilute its power. The prophet’s job was to be a faithful conduit for God's complete revelation, not his own curated version.
Why 'All'?
Why is it crucial to accept all of God’s words? Because God’s wisdom is perfect. What might seem harsh to us can be essential for repentance, justice, or eventual restoration. When we try to omit parts of God's message, we’re essentially saying we know better than God.
The order of receiving God's word might surprise you. It’s not just about hearing, but about internalizing.
The Inner Reception
God tells Ezekiel, 'receive in thine heart, and hear with thine ears.' The commentators note this order is significant. While hearing naturally comes first externally, the command emphasizes the reception – the heart – as the primary goal. The message isn't just data to be processed by the intellect (ears), but truth to be embraced by the core of one's being (heart).
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This means truly understanding and believing God’s word begins inwardly. It’s about allowing God’s truth to transform our affections, our will, and our understanding before we even articulate it or share it. The 'eating' of the scroll in earlier verses is the visionary picture of this complete internal absorption.
Understand the original words
ben-adam · Hebrew Noun phrase
A messianic title used frequently in Ezekiel to emphasize the prophet’s humanity in contrast to the majesty and holiness of the Almighty God.
Ezekiel's ministry begins during a devastating exile, not in the promised land but in Babylonia. His call to 'receive in your heart' God's words, before speaking them to the exiles, highlights the profound internal preparation needed to deliver God's truth amidst national despair and judgment.
c. 597 BC
First Deportation of Jerusalem Elite
The Babylonian army, under Nebuchadnezzar II, conquers Jerusalem and deports the king Jehoiachin, along with thousands of the city's prominent citizens and craftsmen, including Ezekiel. This marks the beginning of the Babylonian exile.
c. 597 BC— this verse
Ezekiel Called as Prophet
Around the time of the first deportation, Ezekiel, who is now living among the exiles by the Chebar River in Babylonia, receives his prophetic call. This is the foundational moment for his ministry.
c. 597 BC
Prophet's Commission to the Exiles
Ezekiel is specifically commissioned to deliver God's message to the exiles in Babylonia, particularly those gathered at Tel Abib. This verse underscores the critical importance of fully internalizing God's word before proclaiming it.
c. 586 BC
Fall of Jerusalem and Second Deportation
Ten years after Ezekiel's call, Jerusalem falls to the Babylonians, and a much larger group of people, including the prophet Jeremiah and more of the population, are deported. This event further solidifies the exiles' desperate situation.
c. 582 BC
Third Deportation from Judah
Nebuchadnezzar conducts a final deportation of Jews from Judah, further diminishing the population left in the land and increasing the significance of the exiles in Babylonia as the remnant of God's people.
Just as Ezekiel is commanded to receive God's words into his heart, Jeremiah is told to gird his loins and speak whatever God commands, emphasizing the prophet's role as a messenger of God's complete message.
Jeremiah 15:16This passage shows Jeremiah finding joy and sustenance in God's words, mirroring Ezekiel's charge to internalize God's message as if it were food, highlighting the deeply personal reception of divine truth.
John 6:63Jesus declares that His words are spirit and life, echoing Ezekiel's command to receive God's words into the heart, underscoring that divine words carry life and power when truly embraced.
Acts 20:27Paul's declaration to the Ephesian elders that he did not shrink from declaring the whole counsel of God directly relates to Ezekiel's commission to receive and speak ALL of God's words, not just what is palatable.
henryEzekiel 3:1-11: "Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, eat that thou findest; eat this roll, and go speak unto the house of Israel."
3:1-11 Ezekiel was to receive the truths of God as the food for his soul, and to feed upon them by faith, and he would be strengthened. Gracious souls can receive those truths of God with delight, which speak terror to the wicked. He must speak all that, and that only, which God spake to him. How can we better speak God's mind than with his words? If disappointed…
pooleEzekiel 3:10: "Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, all my words that I shall speak unto thee receive in thine heart, and hear with thine ears."
This verse is a repetition of the charge given to the prophet, to deal faithfully and undauntedly in the delivering his message, to deliver always what God should speak, to speak nothing else, and to speak all that. These repetitions in the abundance of the same words, are from the usage and custom of the people of those countries in which the Jews we…
This isn't just about listening; God says to "receive in your heart" before you "hear with your ears." This subtle shift emphasizes that true understanding and proclamation begin with internalizing God's words deeply within your soul, not just intellectually grasping them. It highlights the idea that your heart must be prepared to truly hear and then faithfully speak.
God is commissioning Ezekiel to a vital, often difficult, task, reiterating the previous instruction to internalize His message. This command to "receive in your heart, and hear with your ears" emphasizes that the prophet must not only listen but deeply absorb and embrace every word from God before going to deliver it to the exiled community. This prepares him to faithfully proclaim the entirety of God's message without alteration or omission to the captives in Tel Abib.
God is commissioning Ezekiel to a vital, often difficult, task, reiterating the previous instruction to internalize His message. This command to "receive in your heart, and hear with your ears" emphasizes that the prophet must not only listen but deeply absorb and embrace every word from God before going to deliver it to the exiled community. This prepares him to faithfully proclaim the entirety of God's message without alteration or omission to the captives in Tel Abib.
"Moreover, he said to me, “Son of man, all my words that I shall speak to you receive in your heart, and hear with your ears." — This isn't just about listening; God says to "receive in your heart" before you "hear with your ears." This subtle shift emphasizes that true understanding and proclamation begin with internalizing…
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Last reviewed October 2026