As I live: This oath formula emphasizes the truth of what God says. For further details on the significance of this oath and how to translate it, see the comments on 5.11. Here it may be translated “Just as I am alive.”

Says the Lord GOD: This solemn pronouncement emphasizes that God speaks these words. For the Lord GOD, see Ezek 17.3. For many languages it may be ponderous and unnatural to repeat this clause, but it is best to keep it if possible, even if it is set apart or in parentheses. One possible model is “This is the Lord Yahweh’s solemn declaration.” For those languages in which it is impossible for God to speak of himself in the third person, see the model below.

Surely in the place where the king dwells who made him king, whose oath he despised, and whose covenant with him he broke, in Babylon he shall die: The rest of this verse is a prediction of what will happen to Zedekiah. By keeping the verb for die to the very end, the Hebrew places stress on his death, as well as creating suspense (that is, the hearer wonders what will happen to him). The intervening words tell where and why Zedekiah will die. For many languages it will be necessary to bring the verb die near the beginning of the sentence and include the other information after it (so Good News Translation). The place of Zedekiah’s death will be the country or city of Babylon (see verse 12), the dwelling place of Nebuchadnezzar, who appointed Zedekiah king of Judah. Two reasons why Zedekiah will die are: (1) whose oath he despised, that is, Zedekiah did not take seriously the punishment that Nebuchadnezzar would inflict upon him if he broke their agreement (see the comments on 16.59), and (2) whose covenant with him he broke, that is, Zedekiah broke the treaty that Nebuchadnezzar had made with him. Although Good News Translation implies that Zedekiah broke his own agreement, the Hebrew is clear that he broke Nebuchadnezzar’s covenant. Similarly, he went against Nebuchadnezzar’s oath, that is, his promise to punish Zedekiah if he disobeyed, not Zedekiah’s own promise to obey Nebuchadnezzar. The effect of referring to Nebuchadnezzar’s oath and covenant is to make the crime of Zedekiah more serious and the punishment more certain, because it was the more powerful party to the agreement that was offended by Zedekiah’s disobedience. Translators need to identify the participants correctly. Some languages may also need to make it clear that Zedekiah became a prisoner and was taken to Babylonia before he died.

Here is a model for this verse:

• Just as I the Lord Yahweh am alive, I make this declaration. Surely that member of the king’s family will die in Babylonia, the country of the king who made him king, because he did not take seriously the promise that king had made to punish him, and he broke the agreement that king had made with him.

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 .