Wherever you dwell, the cities shall be waste and the high places ruined, so that your altars will be waste and ruined, your idols broken and destroyed, your incense altars cut down, and your works wiped out.
English Standard Version (ESV)
This verse isn't just about physical destruction; it's a devastating decree that even the works of their hands—everything they built and devised for worship—will be utterly wiped out. It highlights that God's judgment isn't just on the objects of their idolatry, but on the very acts and efforts they poured into their false devotion.
Wherever you dwell, the cities shall be waste and the high places ruined, so that your altars will be waste and ruined, your idols broken and destroyed, your incense altars cut down, and your works wiped out.
English Standard Version (ESV)
God is speaking through Ezekiel to pronounce judgment on Israel for their widespread idolatry. He’s declaring that their entire land, every place they call home, will be utterly destroyed and left desolate. This devastation is specifically aimed at tearing down the very places and objects they used for their forbidden worship, ensuring nothing of their corrupted practices remains.
God's judgment isn't selective; it's a sweeping decree against widespread sin. This verse paints a stark picture of what that looks like.
The prophet Ezekiel emphasizes that the coming judgment would be comprehensive. The phrase "In all your dwellingplaces" signals that no area of Israel's life would be spared.
Judgment on Every Level
Why such utter devastation? This verse reveals that the destruction isn't random, but a direct consequence of God's displeasure with Israel's worship.
Ask a follow-up
The destruction foretold in Ezekiel 6:6 isn't merely a political or military defeat; it's a divine response to religious corruption. The verse explicitly links the desolation of cities and high places to the ruin of altars and idols.
Consequences of Defiance
What did the people of Ezekiel's day worship? The text calls them 'idols' and 'works,' stripping them of any divine power.
The verse powerfully contrasts the living God with the inanimate objects of Israel's worship. It describes idols as "broken," "destroyed," and "cut down," and refers to their entire system as "works."
The Nature of Idolatry
Understand the original words
bamah · Hebrew Noun
In biblical theology, this refers to specific sites, often elevated, where worship was conducted. While sometimes used for Yahweh, in the prophets, they are almost exclusively associated with apostate worship of pagan deities.
mizbeach · Hebrew Noun
An object or structure used for sacrifice or to present offerings to a deity. In the Old Testament, these were to be built only for Yahweh, but the term frequently refers to the sites of forbidden idolatrous worship.
gillulim · Hebrew Noun
Representations of false gods or physical objects treated as divine. In Scripture, they represent the ultimate rival to the worship of the one true God, embodying spiritual adultery and rebellion.
This prophecy is delivered during the Babylonian exile, looking back at the destruction of both the Northern Kingdom and Jerusalem. It emphasizes that the judgment wasn't just on the capital but on every place where the people had turned to idolatry.
c. 722 BC
Fall of the Northern Kingdom (Israel)
The Assyrian Empire conquers the Northern Kingdom of Israel, leading to the deportation of its people and the establishment of foreign colonies in their land. This event marks a significant loss of national sovereignty and a turning point for the worship of God in the region.
586 BC
Destruction of Jerusalem and Temple
The Neo-Babylonian Empire under Nebuchadnezzar II destroys Jerusalem and its Temple, exiling the majority of the Judean population. This catastrophic event fulfills earlier prophecies of judgment for persistent idolatry and disobedience.
c. 593 BC— this verse
Ezekiel's Call to Prophecy
Ezekiel receives his prophetic call by the Chebar Canal among the exiles in Babylon. He is commissioned by God to deliver messages of judgment and hope to the people, both in exile and those remaining in Judah.
c. 586 BC
The Aftermath of Jerusalem's Fall
Following the destruction of Jerusalem, the remaining inhabitants and refugees grapple with the devastating consequences of God's judgment. Ezekiel's prophecy addresses the widespread idolatry that pervaded even the 'high places' and cities, detailing the comprehensive destruction that would follow.
This passage echoes Ezekiel's theme by directly accusing Judah of having 'as many gods as you have cities,' highlighting the pervasive nature of idolatry that Ezekiel is prophesying against.
Hosea 10:1-2This prophetic oracle directly links the flourishing of Israel's altars and sacred pillars to their plentiful harvest, implying that their prosperity was fueling their idolatry, a concept relevant to Ezekiel's denunciation of 'works' and altars.
Isaiah 2:8This verse describes the land being 'full of idols' and people worshipping 'the work of their hands,' paralleling Ezekiel's language about the destruction of idols and 'works' that were central to Israel's corrupt worship.
Deuteronomy 12:2-3This foundational text commands the Israelites to destroy the altars and high places of the nations they displace, setting the stage for Ezekiel's prophecy that their own altars and high places would be destroyed because they adopted the very practices God commanded them to eradicate.
gillEzekiel 6:6: "In all your dwellingplaces the cities shall be laid waste, and the high places shall be desolate; that your altars may be laid waste and made desolate, and your idols may be broken and cease, and your images may be cut down, and your works may be abolished."
In all your dwelling places your cities shall be laid waste,.... Which denotes that the desolation should be general, wherever they had cities and places to dwell in; the idolatry being universal, as is said in Jeremiah 2:28 ;…
calvinEzekiel 6:6: "In all your dwellingplaces the cities shall be laid waste, and the high places shall be desolate; that your altars may be laid waste and made desolate, and your idols may be broken and cease, and your images may be cut down, and your works may be abolished."
- In all your dwellingplaces the cities shall be laid waste, and the high places shall be desolate; that your altars may be laid waste and made desolate, and your idols may be broken and cease, and your images may be cut down…
This verse isn't just about physical destruction; it's a devastating decree that even the works of their hands—everything they built and devised for worship—will be utterly wiped out. It highlights that God's judgment isn't just on the objects of their idolatry, but on the very acts and efforts they poured into their false devotion.
God is speaking through Ezekiel to pronounce judgment on Israel for their widespread idolatry. He’s declaring that their entire land, every place they call home, will be utterly destroyed and left desolate. This devastation is specifically aimed at tearing down the very places and objects they used for their forbidden worship, ensuring nothing of their corrupted practices remains.
God is speaking through Ezekiel to pronounce judgment on Israel for their widespread idolatry. He’s declaring that their entire land, every place they call home, will be utterly destroyed and left desolate. This devastation is specifically aimed at tearing down the very places and objects they used for their forbidden worship, ensuring nothing of their corrupted practices remains.
"Wherever you dwell, the cities shall be waste and the high places ruined, so that your altars will be waste and ruined, your idols broken and destroyed, your incense altars cut down, and your works wiped out." — This verse isn't just about physical destruction; it's a devastating decree that even the works of their hands—everything they built and devised for worship—will be utterly wiped out. It highlights…
Get the original Greek and Hebrew, verse-by-verse context, and related passages inside the app.
Last reviewed October 2026