Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: See Ezek 13.3.

I will make a stormy wind break out in my wrath; and there shall be a deluge of rain in my anger, and great hailstones in wrath to destroy it: See the comments on verse 11, where God’s words are similar. In verse 11 the Hebrew verb rendered “break out” was intransitive, but here it is causative and God is clearly the one who will cause the strong winds to blow. The significant additions in this verse are the references to God’s wrath and anger. The Hebrew words for wrath and anger have basically the same meaning (see the comments on 5.13, where they are rendered “anger” and “fury”). The use of these synonyms and the repetition of wrath strongly stress God’s anger. Contemporary English Version reflects this emphasis by saying “I … am so angry that I will send….” To destroy it is literally “for complete destruction.” Most translations take this expression in an adjectival sense with the word wrath; for example, New International Version and New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh say “destructive fury.” However, some express it as a verb (so Revised Standard Version, Good News Translation, Contemporary English Version, New Century Version). If this is done, it may refer only to the destructive force of the hailstones, but it probably includes the impact of the wind and rain also—the wind, rain, and hail will completely destroy the wall. Parole de Vie has “destroy everything,” but it is better to say “destroy the wall” (Good News Translation, New Century Version).

Contemporary English Version makes it clear that the wall represents Jerusalem by adding “That wall is the city of Jerusalem.” The false prophets assured the people that they would always be protected there. Although it is clear in verse 16 that the wall represents Jerusalem, most translations do not make this explicit here and refer still to the wall, which we recommend. It is better to let the meaning of the metaphor unfold as the text does.

One model for God’s words here is:

• I am so angry I am going to destroy that wall. In my anger I will send a great windstorm, and I will bring the rain down like a flood. And I will even attack that wall with a hailstorm.

Quoted with permission from Gross, Carl & Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on Ezekiel. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2016. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .