Ezekiel 36:20 (ASV)

Passage

And when they came unto the nations, whither they went, they profaned my holy name; in that men said of them, These are the people of Jehovah, and are gone forth out of his land.

Nearby Context

Ezekiel 36:18 Wherefore I poured out my wrath upon them for the blood which they had poured out upon the land, and because they had defiled it with their idols;

Ezekiel 36:19 and I scattered them among the nations, and they were dispersed through the countries: according to their way and according to their doings I judged them.

Ezekiel 36:20 And when they came unto the nations, whither they went, they profaned my holy name; in that men said of them, These are the people of Jehovah, and are gone forth out of his land.

Ezekiel 36:21 But I had regard for my holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the nations, whither they went.

Ezekiel 36:22 Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: I do not [this] for your sake, O house of Israel, but for my holy name, which ye have profaned among the nations, whither ye went.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "came", "nations", "whither", "went", "profaned", "holy", "name", and "said". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "came" and "nations", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 19's "and I scattered them among the nations..." into verse 21's "But I had regard for my holy...", so "came" and "nations" belong inside that flow. In Ezekiel context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "came" and "nations" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.