Eze 3:12-7:27 | ESV | STEP | Then the Spirit lifted me up , and I heard behind me the voice of a great earthquake : Blessed be the glory of the Lord from its place !

12 ^aThen the Spirit ^{▼▼Or the wind; also verse 14} lifted me up, and I heard behind me the voice ^{▼▼Or sound} of ^da great earthquake: “Blessed be the glory of the Lord from its place!” 13 It was the sound of the wings of ^ethe living creatures as they touched one another, and the sound of the wheels beside them, and the sound of ^fa great earthquake. 14 ^gThe Spirit lifted me up and took me away, and I went in bitterness in the heat of my spirit, the ^hhand of the Lord being strong upon me. 15 ⁱAnd I came to the exiles at Tel-abib, who were dwelling ^jby the Chebar canal, and I sat where they were dwelling. ^{▼▼Or Chebar, and to where they dwelt} And ^lI sat there ^moverwhelmed among them ⁿseven days.

A Watchman for Israel

16 ^oAnd at the end of seven days, the word of the Lord came to me: 17 ^p“Son of man, ^qI have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall ^rgive them warning from me. 18 ^sIf I say to the wicked, ^t‘You shall surely die,’ ^uand you give him no warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, in order to save his life, that wicked person ^vshall die for ^{▼▼Or in; also verses 19, 20} his iniquity, ^xbut his blood I will require at your hand. 19 ^yBut if you warn the wicked, and he does not turn from his wickedness, or from his wicked way, he shall die for his iniquity, ^zbut you ^aawill have delivered your soul. 20 ^abAgain, if a righteous person turns from his righteousness and commits injustice, ^acand I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die. ^adBecause you have not warned him, he shall die for his sin, ^aeand his righteous deeds that he has done shall not be remembered, ^afbut his blood I will require at your hand. 21 But if you warn the righteous person not to sin, and he does not sin, he shall surely live, because he took warning, and you will have delivered your soul.”

22 ^agAnd the hand of the Lord was upon me there. And he said to me, “Arise, go out into ^ahthe valley, ^{▼▼Or plain; also verse 23} and ^ajthere I will speak with you.” 23 So I arose and went out into the valley, and behold, ^akthe glory of the Lord stood there, like the glory that I had seen ^alby the Chebar canal, ^amand I fell on my face. 24 ^anBut the Spirit entered into me and set me on my feet, and he spoke with me and said to me, “Go, shut yourself within your house. 25 And you, O son of man, behold, ^aocords will be placed upon you, and you shall be bound with them, so that you cannot go out among the people. 26 And I will make your tongue cling to the roof of your mouth, so that ^apyou shall be mute and unable to reprove them, ^aqfor they are a rebellious house. 27 ^arBut when I speak with you, I will open your mouth, and you shall say to them, ^as‘Thus says the Lord God.’ ^atHe who will hear, let him hear; and he who will refuse to hear, let him refuse, for they are a rebellious house.

Ezekiel 4

The Siege of Jerusalem Symbolized

1 “And you, ^auson of man, ^avtake a brick and lay it before you, and engrave on it a city, even Jerusalem. 2 ^awAnd put siegeworks against it, ^axand build a siege wall against it, ^ayand cast up a mound against it. Set camps also against it, ^azand plant battering rams against it all around. 3 And you, take an iron griddle, and place it as an iron wall between you and the city; ^baand set your face toward it, ^bband let it be in a state of siege, and press the siege against it. This is ^bca sign for the house of Israel.

4 “Then lie on your left side, and place the punishment ^{▼▼Or iniquity; also verses 5, 6, 17} of the house of Israel upon it. For the number of the days that you lie on it, ^beyou shall bear their punishment. 5 For I assign to you a number of days, ^bf390 days, ^bgequal to the number of the years of their punishment. ^bhSo long shall you bear ^bithe punishment of the house of Israel. 6 And when you have completed these, you shall lie down a second time, but on your right side, and ^bjbear ^bkthe punishment of the house of Judah. ^blForty days I assign you, a day for each year. 7 ^bmAnd you shall set your face toward the siege of Jerusalem, ^bnwith your arm bared, and you shall prophesy against the city. 8 And behold, ^boI will place cords upon you, so that you cannot turn from one side to the other, till you have completed ^bpthe days of your siege.

9 “And you, take wheat and barley, beans and lentils, millet and emmer, ^{▼▼A type of wheat} and put them into a single vessel and make your ^brbread from them. ^bsDuring the number of days that you lie on your side, ^bt390 days, you shall eat it. 10 And your food that you eat shall be ^buby weight, ^bvtwenty shekels ^{▼▼A shekel was about 2/5 ounce or 11 grams} a day; from day to day ^{▼▼Or at a set time daily; also verse 11} you shall eat it. 11 And water you shall drink ^byby measure, the sixth part of a hin; ^{▼▼A hin was about 4 quarts or 3.5 liters} from day to day you shall drink. 12 And you shall eat it as a barley cake, baking it ^cain their sight on human dung.” 13 And the Lord said, “Thus shall the people of Israel eat ^cbtheir bread unclean, among the nations where I will drive them.” 14 Then I said, ^cc“Ah, Lord God! Behold, I have never defiled myself. ^{▼▼Hebrew my soul (or throat) has never been made unclean} ^ceFrom my youth up till now I have never eaten ^cfwhat died of itself or was torn by beasts, nor has ^cgtainted meat come into my mouth.” 15 Then he said to me, “See, I assign to you cow’s dung instead of human dung, on which you may prepare your bread.” 16 Moreover, he said to me, ^ch“Son of man, behold, ^ciI will break the supply ^{▼▼Hebrew staff} of bread in Jerusalem. They shall eat bread ^ckby weight and with anxiety, and they shall drink water ^clby measure and in dismay. 17 I will do this that they may lack bread and water, and ^cmlook at one another in dismay, and ^cnrot away because of their punishment.

Ezekiel 5

Jerusalem Will Be Destroyed

1 “And you, ^coO son of man, take a ^cpsharp sword. Use it as ^cqa barber’s razor and ^crpass it over your head and your beard. Then take balances for weighing and divide the hair. 2 ^csA third part you shall burn in the fire ^ctin the midst of the city, ^cuwhen the days of the siege are completed. And a third part you shall take and strike with the sword all around the city. ^cvAnd a third part you shall scatter to the wind, and ^cwI will unsheathe the sword after them. 3 ^cxAnd you shall take from these a small number and bind them in the skirts of your robe. 4 ^cyAnd of these again you shall take some and cast them into the midst of the fire and burn them in the fire. From there a fire will come out into all the house of Israel.

5 “Thus says the Lord God: ^czThis is Jerusalem. I have set her ^dain the center of the nations, with countries all around her. 6 And she has rebelled against my rules by doing wickedness ^dbmore than the nations, and against my statutes more than ^dcthe countries all around her; for they have rejected my rules and have not walked in my statutes. 7 Therefore thus says the Lord God: Because you are ^ddmore turbulent than the nations that are all around you, ^deand have not walked in my statutes or obeyed my rules, ^dfand have not ^{▼▼Some Hebrew manuscripts and Syriac lack not} even acted according to the rules of the nations that are all around you, 8 therefore thus says the Lord God: Behold, I, even I, ^dham against you. ^diAnd I will execute judgments ^{▼▼The same Hebrew expression can mean obey rules, or execute judgments, depending on the context} in your midst ^dkin the sight of the nations. 9 And because of all your abominations I will do with you ^dlwhat I have never yet done, and the like of which I will never do again. 10 Therefore ^dmfathers shall eat their sons in your midst, and sons shall eat their fathers. ^dnAnd I will execute judgments on you, ^doand any of you who survive I will scatter to all the winds. 11 Therefore, ^dpas I live, declares the Lord God, surely, ^dqbecause you have defiled my sanctuary ^drwith all your detestable things and with all your ^dsabominations, ^dttherefore I will withdraw. ^{▼▼Some Hebrew manuscripts I will cut you down} ^dvMy eye will not spare, and I will have no pity. 12 ^dwA third part of you shall die of pestilence and be consumed with famine in your midst; ^dxa third part shall fall by the sword all around you; ^dyand a third part I will scatter to all the winds and will unsheathe the sword after them.

13 ^dz“Thus shall my anger spend itself, and I will vent my fury upon them and satisfy myself. And they shall know that ^eaI am the Lord—that I have spoken in my jealousy— ^ebwhen I spend my fury upon them. 14 Moreover, I will make you ^eca desolation and ^edan object of reproach among ^eethe nations all around you and in the sight of all who pass by. 15 You shall be ^{▼▼Dead Sea Scroll, Septuagint, Syriac, Vulgate, Targum; Masoretic Text And it shall be} a reproach and a taunt, a warning ^egand a horror, to ^ehthe nations all around you, ^eiwhen I execute judgments on you in anger and fury, and ^ejwith furious rebukes—I am the Lord; I have spoken— 16 when I send against you ^{▼▼Hebrew them} ^elthe deadly arrows of famine, arrows for destruction, which I will send to destroy you, and when I bring more and more famine upon ^emyou and break your supply ^{▼▼Hebrew staff} of bread. 17 I will send famine and ^eowild beasts against you, ^epand they will rob you of your children. Pestilence and ^eqblood shall pass through you, and I will bring the sword upon you. I am the Lord; I have spoken.”

Ezekiel 6

Judgment Against Idolatry

1 The word of the Lord came to me: 2 ^er“Son of man, ^esset your face toward ^etthe mountains of Israel, and ^euprophesy against them, 3 and say, ^evYou mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord God! Thus says the Lord God to ^ewthe mountains and ^exthe hills, to ^eythe ravines and the valleys: Behold, I, even I, will bring a sword upon you, ^ezand I will destroy your high places. 4 ^faYour altars shall become desolate, and your ^fbincense altars shall be broken, and I will cast down your slain before your idols. 5 ^fcAnd I will lay the dead bodies of the people of Israel before their idols, ^fdand I will scatter your bones around your altars. 6 Wherever you dwell, ^fethe cities shall be waste and ^ffthe high places ruined, so that your altars will be waste and ruined, ^{▼▼Or and punished} your idols broken and destroyed, your ^fhincense altars cut down, and your works wiped out. 7 And the slain shall fall in your midst, and you shall know that I am the Lord.

8 ^fi“Yet I will leave some of you alive. When you have among the nations ^fjsome who escape the sword, and when you are scattered through the countries, 9 then those of you who escape ^fkwill remember me among the nations where they are carried captive, how ^flI have been broken over their whoring heart that has departed from me and over their eyes ^fmthat go whoring after their idols. ^fnAnd they will be loathsome in their own sight for the evils that they have committed, for all their abominations. 10 And they shall know that I am the Lord. ^foI have not said in vain that I would do this evil to them.”

11 Thus says the Lord God: ^fp“Clap your hands ^fqand stamp your foot and say, Alas, because of all the evil abominations of the house of Israel, ^frfor they shall fall by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence. 12 ^fsHe who is far off shall die of pestilence, and he who is near shall fall by the sword, and he who is left and is preserved shall die of famine. ^ftThus I will spend my fury upon them. 13 And you shall know that I am the Lord, ^fuwhen their slain lie among their idols around their altars, ^fvon every high hill, ^fwon all the mountaintops, ^fxunder every green tree, and under ^fyevery leafy oak, wherever ^fzthey offered pleasing aroma to all their idols. 14 And ^gaI will stretch out my hand against them and ^gbmake the land desolate and waste, ^gcin all their dwelling places, from the wilderness to ^gdRiblah. ^{▼▼Some Hebrew manuscripts; most Hebrew manuscripts Diblah} Then ^gfthey will know that I am the Lord.”

Ezekiel 7

The Day of the Wrath of the Lord

1 The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “And you, ^ggO son of man, thus says the Lord God to the land of Israel: ^ghAn end! The end has come upon the four corners of the land. ^{▼▼Or earth} 3 Now ^gjthe end is upon you, and ^gkI will send my anger upon you; ^glI will judge you according to your ways, and I will punish you for all your abominations. 4 ^gmAnd my eye will not spare you, nor will I have pity, but ^gnI will punish you for your ways, while your abominations are in your midst. ^goThen you will know that I am the Lord.

5 “Thus says the Lord God: Disaster ^gpafter disaster! ^{▼▼Some Hebrew manuscripts (compare Syriac, Targum); most Hebrew manuscripts Disaster! A unique disaster!} Behold, it comes. 6 ^grAn end has come; the end has come; it has awakened against you. Behold, it comes. 7 ^gsYour doom ^{▼▼The meaning of the Hebrew word is uncertain; also verse 10} has come to you, O inhabitant of the land. ^guThe time has come; the day is near, a day of tumult, and not ^gvof joyful shouting on the mountains. 8 Now I will soon ^gwpour out my wrath upon you, and ^gxspend my anger against you, ^gyand judge you according to your ways, and I will punish you for all your abominations. 9 ^gzAnd my eye will not spare, nor will I have pity. I will punish you according to your ways, while your abominations are in your midst. ^haThen you will know that I am the Lord, who strikes.

10 ^hb“Behold, the day! Behold, it comes! ^hcYour doom has come; ^hdthe rod has blossomed; pride has budded. 11 ^heViolence has grown up into ^hfa rod of wickedness. ^hgNone of them shall remain, nor their abundance, nor their wealth; neither shall there be preeminence among them. ^{▼▼The meaning of this last Hebrew sentence is uncertain} 12 ^hiThe time has come; the day has arrived. Let not ^hjthe buyer rejoice, nor ^hkthe seller mourn, ^hlfor wrath is upon all their multitude. ^{▼▼Or abundance; also verses 13, 14} 13 For ^hnthe seller shall not return to what he has sold, while they live. ^hoFor the vision concerns all their multitude; it shall not turn back; and because of his iniquity, none can maintain his life. ^{▼▼The meaning of this last Hebrew sentence is uncertain}

14 “They have blown the trumpet and made everything ready, but none goes to battle, ^hqfor my wrath is upon all their multitude. 15 ^hrThe sword is without; pestilence and famine are within. ^hsHe who is in the field dies by the sword, ^htand him who is in the city famine and pestilence devour. 16 ^huAnd if any survivors escape, they will be on the mountains, like ^hvdoves of the valleys, all of them moaning, each one over his iniquity. 17 ^hwAll hands are feeble, and all knees turn to water. 18 ^hxThey put on sackcloth, and ^hyhorror covers them. Shame is on all faces, and ^hzbaldness on all their heads. 19 They cast their silver into the streets, and their gold is like an unclean thing. ^iaTheir silver and gold are not able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of the Lord. They cannot satisfy their hunger or fill their stomachs with it. ^ibFor it was ^icthe stumbling block of their iniquity. 20 ^idHis beautiful ornament they used for pride, and ^iethey made their abominable images and their detestable things of it. Therefore ^ifI make it an unclean thing to them. 21 And I will give it into the hands of ^igforeigners for prey, ^ihand to the wicked of the earth for spoil, and ⁱⁱthey shall profane it. 22 I will turn my face from them, and ^ijthey shall profane my treasured ^{▼▼Or secret} place. Robbers shall enter ^iland profane it.

23 ^im“Forge a chain! ^{▼▼Probably refers to an instrument of captivity} ^ioFor the land is full of bloody crimes ^ipand the city is full of violence. 24 I will bring ^iqthe worst of the nations to take possession of their houses. ^irI will put an end to the pride of the strong, ^isand their holy places ^{▼▼By revocalization (compare Septuagint); Hebrew and those who sanctify them} shall be profaned. 25 ^iuWhen anguish comes, ^ivthey will seek peace, but there shall be none. 26 ^iwDisaster comes upon disaster; ^ixrumor follows rumor. ^iyThey seek a vision from the prophet, while ^izthe law ^{▼▼Or instruction} perishes from the priest and ^jbcounsel from the elders. 27 The king mourns, the prince is wrapped in despair, and the hands of the people of the land are paralyzed by terror. According to their way ^jcI will do to them, and according to their judgments I will judge them, ^jdand they shall know that I am the Lord.”