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Ezekiel 21-24
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Ezekiel 21-24
Holman Christian Standard Bible
God’s Sword of Judgment
21 [a]The word of the Lord came to me again: 2 “Son of man, turn your face toward(A) Jerusalem and preach against the sanctuaries. Prophesy against the land of Israel, 3 and say to it: This is what the Lord says: I am against you.(B) I will draw My sword from its sheath and cut off both the righteous and the wicked from you. 4 Since I will cut off[b] both the righteous and the wicked, My sword will therefore come out of its sheath against everyone from the south to the north.(C) 5 So all the people will know that I, Yahweh, have taken My sword from its sheath—it will not be sheathed again.(D)
6 “But you, son of man, groan! Groan bitterly with a broken heart[c] right before their eyes. 7 And when they ask you, ‘Why are you groaning?’ then say: Because of the news that is coming.(E) Every heart will melt, and every hand will become weak. Every spirit will be discouraged, and every knee will turn to water. Yes, it is coming and it will happen.” This is the declaration of the Lord God.
8 The word of the Lord came to me: 9 “Son of man, prophesy: This is what the Lord says! You are to proclaim:
A sword!(F) A sword is sharpened
and also polished.(G)
10 It is sharpened for slaughter,
polished to flash like lightning!
Should we rejoice?
The scepter of My son,
the sword despises every tree.[d]
11 The sword is given to be polished,
to be grasped in the hand.
It is sharpened, and it is polished,
to be put in the hand of the slayer.(H)
12 Cry out and wail, son of man,
for it is against My people.
It is against all the princes of Israel!
They are given over to the sword with My people.
Therefore strike your thigh in grief.(I)
13 Surely it will be a trial!
And what if the sword despises even the scepter?
The scepter will not continue.[e]
This is the declaration of the Lord God.
14 Therefore, son of man, prophesy
and clap your hands together.(J)
Let the sword strike two times, even three.
It is a sword for massacre,
a sword for great massacre—
it surrounds[f] them!
15 I have appointed a sword(K) for slaughter[g]
at all their gates,
so that their hearts may melt
and many may stumble.
Yes! It is ready to flash like lightning;(L)
it is drawn[h] for slaughter.
16 Slash to the right;
turn to the left—
wherever your blade is directed.
17 I also will clap My hands together,
and I will satisfy My wrath.(M)
I, Yahweh, have spoken.”
18 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 19 “Now you, son of man, mark out two roads that the sword of Babylon’s king can take. Both of them should originate from the same land. And make a signpost at the fork in the road to each city. 20 Mark out a road that the sword can take to Rabbah of the Ammonites(N) and to Judah into fortified Jerusalem. 21 For the king of Babylon stands at the split in the road, at the fork of the two roads, to practice divination: he shakes the arrows, consults the idols, and observes the liver. 22 The answer marked[i] Jerusalem appears in his right hand, indicating that he should set up battering rams,(O) give the order to[j] slaughter, raise a battle cry, set battering rams against the gates, build a ramp, and construct a siege wall. 23 It will seem like false divination in the eyes of those who have sworn an oath to the Babylonians,[k](P) but it will draw attention to their guilt so that they will be captured.
24 “Therefore, this is what the Lord God says: Because you have drawn attention to your guilt, exposing your transgressions, so that your sins are revealed in all your actions, since you have done this, you will be captured by them.
26 This is what the Lord God says:
Remove the turban, and take off the crown.
Things will not remain as they are;[n]
exalt the lowly and bring down the exalted.(S)
27 A ruin, a ruin,
I will make it a ruin!
Yet this will not happen
until He comes;(T)
I have given the judgment to Him.[o]
28 “Now prophesy, son of man, and say: This is what the Lord God says concerning the Ammonites and their contempt. You are to proclaim:
A sword! A sword
is drawn for slaughter,
polished to consume,(U) to flash like lightning.
29 While they offer false visions(V)
and lying divinations about you,
the time has come to put you
to the necks of the profane wicked ones;
the day has come
for your punishment.[p]
30 Return it to its sheath!(W)
I will judge you[q]
in the place where you were created,
in the land of your origin.
31 I will pour out My indignation on you;
I will blow the fire of My fury on you.(X)
I will hand you over to brutal men,
skilled at destruction.
32 You will be fuel for the fire.
Your blood will be spilled in the land.
You will not be remembered,(Y)
for I, Yahweh, have spoken.”
Indictment of Sinful Jerusalem
22 The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “As for you, son of man, will you pass judgment? Will you pass judgment against the city of blood? Then explain all her detestable practices to her.(Z) 3 You are to say: This is what the Lord God says: A city that sheds blood(AA) within her walls so that her time of judgment has come and who makes idols for herself so that she is defiled! 4 You are guilty of the blood you have shed,(AB) and you are defiled from the idols you have made. You have brought your judgment days near and have come to your years of punishment. Therefore, I have made you a disgrace to the nations and a mockery to all the lands. 5 Those who are near and those far away from you will mock you, you infamous one full of turmoil.
6 “Look, every prince of Israel(AC) within you has used his strength to shed blood. 7 Father and mother are treated with contempt,(AD) and the foreign resident is exploited within you. The fatherless and widow are oppressed in you.(AE) 8 You despise My holy things and profane My Sabbaths.(AF) 9 There are men within you who slander in order to shed blood.(AG) People who live in you eat at the mountain shrines; they commit immoral acts within you. 10 Men within you have sexual intercourse with their father’s wife and violate women during their menstrual impurity.(AH) 11 One man within you commits a detestable act with his neighbor’s wife;(AI) another wickedly defiles his daughter-in-law; and yet another violates his sister, his father’s daughter.(AJ) 12 People who live in you accept bribes in order to shed blood.(AK) You take interest and profit on a loan and brutally extort your neighbors.(AL) You have forgotten Me.”(AM) This is the declaration of the Lord God.
13 “Now look, I clap My hands together against the dishonest profit you have made(AN) and against the blood shed among you. 14 Will your courage endure(AO) or your hands be strong in the days when I deal with you? I, Yahweh, have spoken, and I will act.(AP) 15 I will disperse you among the nations and scatter you among the countries;(AQ) I will purge your uncleanness.(AR) 16 You[r] will be profaned in the sight of the nations. Then you will know that I am Yahweh.”(AS)
Jerusalem as God’s Furnace
17 The word of the Lord came to me: 18 “Son of man, the house of Israel has become dross to Me.(AT) All of them are copper, tin, iron, and lead inside the furnace;(AU) they are the dross of silver. 19 Therefore, this is what the Lord God says: Because all of you have become dross, I am about to gather you into Jerusalem. 20 Just as one gathers silver, copper, iron, lead, and tin into the furnace to blow fire(AV) on them and melt them, so I will gather you in My anger and wrath, put you inside, and melt you. 21 Yes, I will gather you together and blow on you with the fire of My fury, and you will be melted within the city. 22 As silver is melted inside a furnace, so you will be melted inside the city. Then you will know that I, Yahweh, have poured out My wrath on you.”(AW)
Indictment of a Sinful Land
23 The word of the Lord came to me: 24 “Son of man, say to her: You are a land that has not been cleansed,(AX) that has not received rain in the day of indignation. 25 The conspiracy of her prophets(AY) within her is[s] like a roaring lion tearing its prey: they devour people, seize wealth and valuables, and multiply the widows within her. 26 Her priests do violence to My instruction and profane My holy things.(AZ) They make no distinction between the holy and the common, and they do not explain the difference between the clean and the unclean.(BA) They disregard[t] My Sabbaths, and I am profaned among them.
27 “Her officials within her are like wolves tearing their prey, shedding blood, and destroying lives in order to make profit dishonestly. 28 Her prophets plaster with whitewash for them by seeing false visions and lying divinations,(BB) and they say, ‘This is what the Lord God says,’ when the Lord has not spoken. 29 The people of the land have practiced extortion and committed robbery.(BC) They have oppressed the poor and needy and unlawfully exploited the foreign resident. 30 I searched for a man among them who would repair the wall(BD) and stand in the gap before Me on behalf of the land so that I might not destroy it,(BE) but I found no one. 31 So I have poured out My indignation on them and consumed them with the fire of My fury. I have brought their actions down on their own heads.”(BF) This is the declaration of the Lord God.
The Two Immoral Sisters
23 The word of the Lord came to me again: 2 “Son of man, there were two women,(BG) daughters of the same mother, 3 who acted like prostitutes in Egypt,(BH) behaving promiscuously in their youth. Their breasts were fondled there, and their virgin nipples caressed. 4 The older one was named Oholah,[u] and her sister was Oholibah.[v] They became Mine and gave birth to sons and daughters. As for their names, Oholah represents Samaria and Oholibah represents Jerusalem.
5 “Oholah acted like a prostitute even though she was Mine. She lusted after her lovers, the Assyrians:(BI) warriors 6 dressed in blue, governors and prefects, all of them desirable young men, horsemen riding on steeds. 7 She offered her sexual favors to them; all of them were the elite of Assyria. She defiled herself with all those she lusted after and with all their idols. 8 She didn’t give up her promiscuity that began in Egypt,(BJ) when men slept with her in her youth, caressed her virgin nipples, and poured out their lust on her. 9 Therefore, I handed her over to her lovers,(BK) the Assyrians she lusted for. 10 They exposed her nakedness, seized her sons and daughters, and killed her with the sword. Since they executed judgment against her, she became notorious among women.
11 “Now her sister Oholibah saw this, but she was even more depraved in her lust than Oholah, and made her promiscuous acts worse than those of her sister.(BL) 12 She lusted after the Assyrians:(BM) governors and prefects, warriors splendidly dressed, horsemen riding on steeds, all of them desirable young men. 13 And I saw that she had defiled herself; both of them had taken the same path. 14 But she increased her promiscuity when she saw male figures carved on the wall,(BN) images of the Chaldeans, engraved in vermilion,(BO) 15 wearing belts on their waists and flowing turbans on their heads; all of them looked like officers, a depiction of the Babylonians in Chaldea, the land of their birth. 16 At the sight of them[w] she lusted after them and sent messengers to them in Chaldea.(BP) 17 Then the Babylonians came to her,(BQ) to the bed of love, and defiled her with their lust. But after she was defiled by them, she turned away from them in disgust. 18 When she flaunted her promiscuity and exposed her nakedness, I turned away from her in disgust just as I turned away from her sister.(BR) 19 Yet she multiplied her acts of promiscuity, remembering the days of her youth when she acted like a prostitute in the land of Egypt 20 and lusted after their lovers, whose sexual members were like those of donkeys and whose emission was like that of stallions. 21 So you revisited the indecency of your youth, when the Egyptians caressed your nipples to enjoy your youthful breasts.(BS)
22 “Therefore Oholibah, this is what the Lord God says: I am going to incite your lovers against you, those you turned away from in disgust. I will bring them against you from every side: 23 the Babylonians and all the Chaldeans; Pekod, Shoa, and Koa;(BT) and all the Assyrians with them—desirable young men, all of them governors and prefects, officers and administrators, all of them riding on horses. 24 They will come against you with an alliance of nations and with weapons, chariots, and[x] wagons. They will set themselves against you on every side with shields, bucklers, and helmets. I will delegate judgment to them, and they will judge you by their own standards. 25 When I vent My jealous rage on you,(BU) they will deal with you in wrath. They will cut off your nose and ears, and your descendants will fall by the sword. They will seize your sons and daughters, and your descendants will be consumed by fire. 26 They will strip off your clothes and take your beautiful jewelry.(BV) 27 So I will put an end to your indecency and sexual immorality, which began in the land of Egypt, and you will not look longingly at them or remember Egypt anymore.
28 “For this is what the Lord God says: I am going to hand you over to those you hate, to those you turned away from in disgust. 29 They will treat you with hatred, take all you have worked for, and leave you stark naked,(BW) so that the shame of your debauchery will be exposed, both your indecency and promiscuity. 30 These things will be done to you because you acted like a prostitute with the nations,(BX) defiling yourself with their idols. 31 You have followed the path of your sister, so I will put her cup in your hand.”(BY)
32 This is what the Lord God says:
You will drink your sister’s cup,(BZ)
which is deep and wide.
You will be an object of[y] ridicule and scorn,
for it holds so much.(CA)
33 You will be filled with drunkenness and grief,
with a cup of devastation and desolation,
the cup of your sister Samaria.
34 You will drink it and drain it;
then you will gnaw its broken pieces,
and tear your breasts.
For I have spoken.
This is the declaration of the Lord God.
35 Therefore, this is what the Lord God says: “Because you have forgotten Me(CB) and cast Me behind your back,(CC) you must bear the consequences of your indecency and promiscuity.”
36 Then the Lord said to me: “Son of man, will you pass judgment against Oholah and Oholibah?(CD) Then declare their detestable practices to them.(CE) 37 For they have committed adultery, and blood is on their hands; they have committed adultery with their idols. They have even made the children they bore to Me pass through the fire as food for the idols.(CF) 38 They also did this to Me: they defiled My sanctuary(CG) on that same day and profaned My Sabbaths.(CH) 39 On the same day they slaughtered their children for their idols, they entered My sanctuary to profane it.(CI) Yes, that is what they did inside My house.
40 “In addition, they sent for men who came from far away when a messenger was dispatched to them. And look how they came! You bathed, painted your eyes,(CJ) and adorned yourself with jewelry for them.(CK) 41 You sat on a luxurious couch with a table spread before it,(CL) on which you had set My incense and oil. 42 The sound of a carefree crowd was there. Drunkards[z] from the desert were brought in, along with common men. They put bracelets on the women’s hands and beautiful crowns on their heads. 43 Then I said concerning this woman worn out by adultery: Will they now have illicit sex with her, even her? 44 Yet they had sex with her as one does with a prostitute. This is how they had sex with Oholah and Oholibah, those obscene women. 45 But righteous men will judge them the way adulteresses(CM) and those who shed blood are judged, for they are adulteresses and blood is on their hands.
46 “This is what the Lord God says: Summon[aa] an assembly against them and consign them to terror and plunder.(CN) 47 The assembly will stone them and cut them down with their swords.(CO) They will kill their sons and daughters and burn their houses with fire. 48 So I will put an end to indecency in the land, and all the women will be admonished not to imitate your indecent behavior. 49 They will repay you for your indecency,(CP) and you will bear the consequences for your sins of idolatry. Then you will know that I am the Lord Yahweh.”
Parable of the Boiling Pot
24 The word of the Lord came to me in the ninth year, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month: 2 “Son of man, write down today’s date, this very day. The king of Babylon has laid siege to Jerusalem this very day.(CQ) 3 Now speak a parable(CR) to the rebellious house. Tell them: This is what the Lord God says:
Put the pot(CS) on the fire—
put it on,
and then pour water into it!
4 Place the pieces of meat in it,
every good piece—
thigh and shoulder.
Fill it with choice bones.
5 Take the choicest of the flock
and also pile up the fuel[ab] under it.
Bring it to a boil
and cook the bones in it.”
6 Therefore, this is what the Lord God says:
Woe to the city of bloodshed,(CT)
the pot that has rust inside it,
and whose rust will not come off!
Empty it piece by piece;
lots should not be cast for its contents.
7 For the blood she shed[ac] is still within her.
She put it out on the bare rock;
she didn’t pour it on the ground
to cover it with dust.(CU)
8 In order to stir up wrath and take vengeance,(CV)
I have put her blood on the bare rock,
so that it would not be covered.
9 Therefore, this is what the Lord God says:
Woe to the city of bloodshed!(CW)
I Myself will make the pile of kindling large.
10 Pile on the logs and kindle the fire!
Cook the meat well
and mix in the spices![ad][ae]
Let the bones be burned!
11 Set the empty pot on its coals
so that it becomes hot and its copper glows.
Then its impurity will melt inside it;
its rust will be consumed.(CX)
12 It has frustrated every effort;[af]
its thick rust will not come off.
Into the fire with its rust!
13 Because of the indecency of your uncleanness—
since I tried to purify you,
but you would not be purified from your uncleanness—
you will not be pure again
until I have satisfied My wrath on you.(CY)
14 I, Yahweh, have spoken.
It is coming, and I will do it!(CZ)
I will not refrain, I will not show pity,
and I will not relent.
I[ag] will judge you
according to your ways and deeds.(DA)
This is the declaration of the Lord God.
The Death of Ezekiel’s Wife: A Sign
15 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 16 “Son of man, I am about to take the delight of your eyes(DB) away from you with a fatal blow. But you must not lament or weep or let your tears flow.(DC) 17 Groan quietly; do not observe mourning rites for the dead.(DD) Put on your turban and strap your sandals on your feet; do not cover your mustache or eat the bread of mourners.”[ah](DE)
18 I spoke to the people in the morning, and my wife died in the evening. The next morning I did just as I was commanded. 19 Then the people asked me, “Won’t you tell us what these things you are doing mean for us?”
20 So I answered them: “The word of the Lord came to me: 21 ‘Say to the house of Israel: This is what the Lord God says: I am about to desecrate My sanctuary, the pride of your power, the delight of your eyes, and the desire of your heart. Also, the sons and daughters you left behind will fall by the sword.(DF) 22 Then you will do just as I have done: You will not cover your mustache or eat the bread of mourners.[ai] 23 Your turbans will remain on your heads and your sandals on your feet. You will not lament or weep(DG) but will waste away(DH) because of your sins and will groan to one another. 24 Now Ezekiel will be a sign for you.(DI) You will do everything that he has done. When this happens, you will know that I am the Lord Yahweh.
25 “‘Son of man, know that on the day I take their stronghold from them, their pride and joy, the delight of their eyes and the longing of their hearts, as well as their sons and daughters, 26 on that day a fugitive will come to you and report the news.(DJ) 27 On that day your mouth will be opened to talk with him; you will speak and no longer be mute.(DK) So you will be a sign for them, and they will know that I am Yahweh.’”
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 21:1 Ezk 21:6 in Hb
- Ezekiel 21:4 Lit off from you
- Ezekiel 21:6 Lit with broken loins
- Ezekiel 21:10 Hb obscure
- Ezekiel 21:13 Hb obscure
- Ezekiel 21:14 Or penetrates
- Ezekiel 21:15 Hb obscure
- Ezekiel 21:15 Hb obscure
- Ezekiel 21:22 Lit The divination for
- Ezekiel 21:22 Lit rams, open the mouth in
- Ezekiel 21:23 Lit them
- Ezekiel 21:25 = King Zedekiah
- Ezekiel 21:25 Lit come in the time of the punishment of the end
- Ezekiel 21:26 Lit This not this
- Ezekiel 21:27 Or comes to whom it rightfully belongs, and I will give it to Him
- Ezekiel 21:29 Lit come in the time of the punishment of the end
- Ezekiel 21:30 = the Ammonites
- Ezekiel 22:16 One Hb ms, LXX, Syr, Vg read I
- Ezekiel 22:25 LXX reads indignation, 25 whose princes within her are
- Ezekiel 22:26 Lit close their eyes from
- Ezekiel 23:4 = Her Tent
- Ezekiel 23:4 = My Tent Is in Her
- Ezekiel 23:16 Lit of her eyes
- Ezekiel 23:24 LXX reads nations, from the north, chariots and; Hb obscure
- Ezekiel 23:32 Or It will bring
- Ezekiel 23:42 Or Sabeans
- Ezekiel 23:46 Or I will summon
- Ezekiel 24:5 Lit bones
- Ezekiel 24:7 Lit For her blood
- Ezekiel 24:10 Some Hb mss read well; remove the broth; LXX reads fire so that the meat may be cooked and the broth may be reduced
- Ezekiel 24:10 Or and stir the broth
- Ezekiel 24:12 Hb obscure
- Ezekiel 24:14 Some Hb mss, LXX, Syr, Tg, Vg; other Hb mss read They
- Ezekiel 24:17 Lit men
- Ezekiel 24:22 Lit men
Ezekiel 21-24
New International Version
Ezekiel 21-24
New International Version
Babylon as God’s Sword of Judgment
21 [a]The word of the Lord came to me:(A) 2 “Son of man, set your face against(B) Jerusalem and preach against the sanctuary.(C) Prophesy against(D) the land of Israel 3 and say to her: ‘This is what the Lord says: I am against you.(E) I will draw my sword(F) from its sheath and cut off from you both the righteous and the wicked.(G) 4 Because I am going to cut off the righteous and the wicked, my sword(H) will be unsheathed against everyone from south to north.(I) 5 Then all people will know that I the Lord have drawn my sword(J) from its sheath; it will not return(K) again.’(L)
6 “Therefore groan, son of man! Groan before them with broken heart and bitter grief.(M) 7 And when they ask you, ‘Why are you groaning?(N)’ you shall say, ‘Because of the news that is coming. Every heart will melt with fear(O) and every hand go limp;(P) every spirit will become faint(Q) and every leg will be wet with urine.’(R) It is coming! It will surely take place, declares the Sovereign Lord.”
8 The word of the Lord came to me: 9 “Son of man, prophesy and say, ‘This is what the Lord says:
“‘A sword, a sword,
sharpened and polished—
10 sharpened for the slaughter,(S)
polished to flash like lightning!
“‘Shall we rejoice in the scepter of my royal son? The sword despises every such stick.(T)
11 “‘The sword is appointed to be polished,(U)
to be grasped with the hand;
it is sharpened and polished,
made ready for the hand of the slayer.
12 Cry out and wail, son of man,
for it is against my people;
it is against all the princes of Israel.
They are thrown to the sword
along with my people.
Therefore beat your breast.(V)
13 “‘Testing will surely come. And what if even the scepter, which the sword despises, does not continue? declares the Sovereign Lord.’
14 “So then, son of man, prophesy
and strike your hands(W) together.
Let the sword strike twice,
even three times.
It is a sword for slaughter—
a sword for great slaughter,
closing in on them from every side.(X)
15 So that hearts may melt with fear(Y)
and the fallen be many,
I have stationed the sword for slaughter[b]
at all their gates.
Look! It is forged to strike like lightning,
it is grasped for slaughter.(Z)
16 Slash to the right, you sword,
then to the left,
wherever your blade is turned.
17 I too will strike my hands(AA) together,
and my wrath(AB) will subside.
I the Lord have spoken.(AC)”
18 The word of the Lord came to me: 19 “Son of man, mark out two roads for the sword(AD) of the king of Babylon to take, both starting from the same country. Make a signpost(AE) where the road branches off to the city. 20 Mark out one road for the sword to come against Rabbah of the Ammonites(AF) and another against Judah and fortified Jerusalem. 21 For the king of Babylon will stop at the fork in the road, at the junction of the two roads, to seek an omen: He will cast lots(AG) with arrows, he will consult his idols,(AH) he will examine the liver.(AI) 22 Into his right hand will come the lot for Jerusalem, where he is to set up battering rams, to give the command to slaughter, to sound the battle cry,(AJ) to set battering rams against the gates, to build a ramp(AK) and to erect siege works.(AL) 23 It will seem like a false omen to those who have sworn allegiance to him, but he will remind(AM) them of their guilt(AN) and take them captive.
24 “Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: ‘Because you people have brought to mind your guilt by your open rebellion, revealing your sins in all that you do—because you have done this, you will be taken captive.
25 “‘You profane and wicked prince of Israel, whose day has come,(AO) whose time of punishment has reached its climax,(AP) 26 this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Take off the turban, remove the crown.(AQ) It will not be as it was: The lowly will be exalted and the exalted will be brought low.(AR) 27 A ruin! A ruin! I will make it a ruin! The crown will not be restored until he to whom it rightfully belongs shall come;(AS) to him I will give it.’(AT)
28 “And you, son of man, prophesy and say, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says about the Ammonites(AU) and their insults:
“‘A sword,(AV) a sword,
drawn for the slaughter,
polished to consume
and to flash like lightning!
29 Despite false visions concerning you
and lying divinations(AW) about you,
it will be laid on the necks
of the wicked who are to be slain,
whose day has come,
whose time of punishment has reached its climax.(AX)
30 “‘Let the sword return to its sheath.(AY)
In the place where you were created,
in the land of your ancestry,(AZ)
I will judge you.
31 I will pour out my wrath on you
and breathe(BA) out my fiery anger(BB) against you;
I will deliver you into the hands of brutal men,
men skilled in destruction.(BC)
32 You will be fuel for the fire,(BD)
your blood will be shed in your land,
you will be remembered(BE) no more;
for I the Lord have spoken.’”
Judgment on Jerusalem’s Sins
22 The word of the Lord came to me:
2 “Son of man, will you judge her? Will you judge this city of bloodshed?(BF) Then confront her with all her detestable practices(BG) 3 and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: You city that brings on herself doom by shedding blood(BH) in her midst and defiles herself by making idols, 4 you have become guilty because of the blood you have shed(BI) and have become defiled by the idols you have made. You have brought your days to a close, and the end of your years has come.(BJ) Therefore I will make you an object of scorn(BK) to the nations and a laughingstock to all the countries.(BL) 5 Those who are near and those who are far away will mock you, you infamous city, full of turmoil.(BM)
6 “‘See how each of the princes of Israel who are in you uses his power to shed blood.(BN) 7 In you they have treated father and mother with contempt;(BO) in you they have oppressed the foreigner(BP) and mistreated the fatherless and the widow.(BQ) 8 You have despised my holy things and desecrated my Sabbaths.(BR) 9 In you are slanderers(BS) who are bent on shedding blood;(BT) in you are those who eat at the mountain shrines(BU) and commit lewd acts.(BV) 10 In you are those who dishonor their father’s bed;(BW) in you are those who violate women during their period,(BX) when they are ceremonially unclean.(BY) 11 In you one man commits a detestable offense with his neighbor’s wife,(BZ) another shamefully defiles his daughter-in-law,(CA) and another violates his sister,(CB) his own father’s daughter.(CC) 12 In you are people who accept bribes(CD) to shed blood; you take interest(CE) and make a profit from the poor. You extort unjust gain from your neighbors.(CF) And you have forgotten(CG) me, declares the Sovereign Lord.(CH)
13 “‘I will surely strike my hands(CI) together at the unjust gain(CJ) you have made and at the blood(CK) you have shed in your midst.(CL) 14 Will your courage endure(CM) or your hands(CN) be strong in the day I deal with you? I the Lord have spoken,(CO) and I will do it.(CP) 15 I will disperse you among the nations and scatter(CQ) you through the countries; and I will put an end to(CR) your uncleanness.(CS) 16 When you have been defiled[c] in the eyes of the nations, you will know that I am the Lord.’”
17 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 18 “Son of man, the people of Israel have become dross(CT) to me; all of them are the copper, tin, iron and lead left inside a furnace.(CU) They are but the dross of silver.(CV) 19 Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: ‘Because you have all become dross,(CW) I will gather you into Jerusalem. 20 As silver, copper, iron, lead and tin are gathered into a furnace to be melted with a fiery blast, so will I gather you in my anger and my wrath and put you inside the city and melt you.(CX) 21 I will gather you and I will blow(CY) on you with my fiery wrath, and you will be melted inside her.(CZ) 22 As silver is melted(DA) in a furnace, so you will be melted inside her, and you will know that I the Lord have poured out my wrath(DB) on you.’”(DC)
23 Again the word of the Lord came to me: 24 “Son of man, say to the land, ‘You are a land that has not been cleansed or rained on in the day of wrath.’(DD) 25 There is a conspiracy(DE) of her princes[d] within her like a roaring lion(DF) tearing its prey; they devour people,(DG) take treasures and precious things and make many widows(DH) within her. 26 Her priests do violence to my law(DI) and profane my holy things; they do not distinguish between the holy and the common;(DJ) they teach that there is no difference between the unclean and the clean;(DK) and they shut their eyes to the keeping of my Sabbaths, so that I am profaned(DL) among them.(DM) 27 Her officials(DN) within her are like wolves(DO) tearing their prey; they shed blood and kill people(DP) to make unjust gain.(DQ) 28 Her prophets whitewash(DR) these deeds for them by false visions and lying divinations.(DS) They say, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says’—when the Lord has not spoken.(DT) 29 The people of the land practice extortion and commit robbery;(DU) they oppress the poor and needy and mistreat the foreigner,(DV) denying them justice.(DW)
30 “I looked for someone among them who would build up the wall(DX) and stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found no one.(DY) 31 So I will pour out my wrath on them and consume them with my fiery anger,(DZ) bringing down(EA) on their own heads all they have done, declares the Sovereign Lord.(EB)”
Two Adulterous Sisters
23 The word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, there were two women, daughters of the same mother.(EC) 3 They became prostitutes in Egypt,(ED) engaging in prostitution(EE) from their youth.(EF) In that land their breasts were fondled and their virgin bosoms caressed.(EG) 4 The older was named Oholah, and her sister was Oholibah. They were mine and gave birth to sons and daughters. Oholah is Samaria, and Oholibah is Jerusalem.(EH)
5 “Oholah engaged in prostitution while she was still mine; and she lusted after her lovers, the Assyrians(EI)—warriors(EJ) 6 clothed in blue, governors and commanders, all of them handsome young men, and mounted horsemen. 7 She gave herself as a prostitute to all the elite of the Assyrians and defiled herself with all the idols of everyone she lusted after.(EK) 8 She did not give up the prostitution she began in Egypt,(EL) when during her youth men slept with her, caressed her virgin bosom and poured out their lust on her.(EM)
9 “Therefore I delivered her into the hands(EN) of her lovers,(EO) the Assyrians, for whom she lusted.(EP) 10 They stripped(EQ) her naked, took away her sons and daughters and killed her with the sword. She became a byword among women,(ER) and punishment was inflicted(ES) on her.(ET)
11 “Her sister Oholibah saw this,(EU) yet in her lust and prostitution she was more depraved than her sister.(EV) 12 She too lusted after the Assyrians—governors and commanders, warriors in full dress, mounted horsemen, all handsome young men.(EW) 13 I saw that she too defiled herself; both of them went the same way.(EX)
14 “But she carried her prostitution still further. She saw men portrayed on a wall,(EY) figures of Chaldeans[e] portrayed in red,(EZ) 15 with belts(FA) around their waists and flowing turbans on their heads; all of them looked like Babylonian chariot officers, natives of Chaldea.[f] 16 As soon as she saw them, she lusted after them and sent messengers(FB) to them in Chaldea.(FC) 17 Then the Babylonians(FD) came to her, to the bed of love, and in their lust they defiled her. After she had been defiled by them, she turned away from them in disgust.(FE) 18 When she carried on her prostitution openly and exposed her naked body,(FF) I turned away(FG) from her in disgust, just as I had turned away from her sister.(FH) 19 Yet she became more and more promiscuous as she recalled the days of her youth, when she was a prostitute in Egypt. 20 There she lusted after her lovers, whose genitals were like those of donkeys and whose emission was like that of horses. 21 So you longed for the lewdness of your youth, when in Egypt your bosom was caressed and your young breasts fondled.[g](FI)
22 “Therefore, Oholibah, this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will stir up your lovers(FJ) against you, those you turned away from in disgust, and I will bring them against you from every side(FK)— 23 the Babylonians(FL) and all the Chaldeans,(FM) the men of Pekod(FN) and Shoa and Koa, and all the Assyrians with them, handsome young men, all of them governors and commanders, chariot officers and men of high rank, all mounted on horses.(FO) 24 They will come against you with weapons,[h] chariots and wagons(FP) and with a throng of people; they will take up positions against you on every side with large and small shields and with helmets. I will turn you over to them for punishment,(FQ) and they will punish you according to their standards. 25 I will direct my jealous anger(FR) against you, and they will deal with you in fury. They will cut off your noses and your ears, and those of you who are left will fall by the sword. They will take away your sons and daughters,(FS) and those of you who are left will be consumed by fire.(FT) 26 They will also strip(FU) you of your clothes and take your fine jewelry.(FV) 27 So I will put a stop(FW) to the lewdness and prostitution you began in Egypt. You will not look on these things with longing or remember Egypt anymore.
28 “For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am about to deliver you into the hands(FX) of those you hate, to those you turned away from in disgust. 29 They will deal with you in hatred and take away everything you have worked for. They will leave you stark naked,(FY) and the shame of your prostitution will be exposed.(FZ) Your lewdness(GA) and promiscuity(GB) 30 have brought this on you, because you lusted after the nations and defiled yourself with their idols.(GC) 31 You have gone the way of your sister; so I will put her cup(GD) into your hand.(GE)
32 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“You will drink your sister’s cup,
a cup large and deep;
it will bring scorn and derision,(GF)
for it holds so much.(GG)
33 You will be filled with drunkenness and sorrow,
the cup of ruin and desolation,
the cup of your sister Samaria.(GH)
34 You will drink it(GI) and drain it dry
and chew on its pieces—
and you will tear your breasts.
I have spoken, declares the Sovereign Lord.(GJ)
35 “Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Since you have forgotten(GK) me and turned your back on me,(GL) you must bear(GM) the consequences of your lewdness and prostitution.”
36 The Lord said to me: “Son of man, will you judge Oholah and Oholibah? Then confront(GN) them with their detestable practices,(GO) 37 for they have committed adultery and blood is on their hands. They committed adultery with their idols; they even sacrificed their children, whom they bore to me, as food for them.(GP) 38 They have also done this to me: At that same time they defiled my sanctuary(GQ) and desecrated my Sabbaths.(GR) 39 On the very day they sacrificed their children to their idols, they entered my sanctuary and desecrated(GS) it. That is what they did in my house.(GT)
40 “They even sent messengers for men who came from far away,(GU) and when they arrived you bathed yourself for them, applied eye makeup(GV) and put on your jewelry.(GW) 41 You sat on an elegant couch,(GX) with a table(GY) spread before it on which you had placed the incense(GZ) and olive oil that belonged to me.(HA)
42 “The noise of a carefree(HB) crowd was around her; drunkards(HC) were brought from the desert along with men from the rabble, and they put bracelets(HD) on the wrists of the woman and her sister and beautiful crowns on their heads.(HE) 43 Then I said about the one worn out by adultery, ‘Now let them use her as a prostitute,(HF) for that is all she is.’ 44 And they slept with her. As men sleep with a prostitute, so they slept with those lewd women, Oholah and Oholibah. 45 But righteous judges will sentence them to the punishment of women who commit adultery and shed blood,(HG) because they are adulterous and blood is on their hands.(HH)
46 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Bring a mob(HI) against them and give them over to terror and plunder.(HJ) 47 The mob will stone them and cut them down with their swords; they will kill their sons and daughters(HK) and burn(HL) down their houses.(HM)
48 “So I will put an end(HN) to lewdness in the land, that all women may take warning and not imitate you.(HO) 49 You will suffer the penalty for your lewdness and bear the consequences of your sins of idolatry.(HP) Then you will know that I am the Sovereign Lord.(HQ)”
Jerusalem as a Cooking Pot
24 In the ninth year, in the tenth month on the tenth day, the word of the Lord came to me:(HR) 2 “Son of man, record(HS) this date, this very date, because the king of Babylon has laid siege to Jerusalem this very day.(HT) 3 Tell this rebellious people(HU) a parable(HV) and say to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘Put on the cooking pot;(HW) put it on
and pour water into it.
4 Put into it the pieces of meat,
all the choice pieces—the leg and the shoulder.
Fill it with the best of these bones;(HX)
5 take the pick of the flock.(HY)
Pile wood beneath it for the bones;
bring it to a boil
and cook the bones in it.(HZ)
6 “‘For this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘Woe(IA) to the city of bloodshed,(IB)
to the pot now encrusted,
whose deposit will not go away!
Take the meat out piece by piece
in whatever order(IC) it comes.(ID)
7 “‘For the blood she shed is in her midst:
She poured it on the bare rock;
she did not pour it on the ground,
where the dust would cover it.(IE)
8 To stir up wrath and take revenge
I put her blood on the bare rock,
so that it would not be covered.
9 “‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘Woe to the city of bloodshed!
I, too, will pile the wood high.
10 So heap on the wood
and kindle the fire.
Cook the meat well,
mixing in the spices;
and let the bones be charred.
11 Then set the empty pot on the coals
till it becomes hot and its copper glows,
so that its impurities may be melted
and its deposit burned away.(IF)
12 It has frustrated all efforts;
its heavy deposit has not been removed,
not even by fire.
13 “‘Now your impurity is lewdness. Because I tried to cleanse you but you would not be cleansed(IG) from your impurity, you will not be clean again until my wrath against you has subsided.(IH)
14 “‘I the Lord have spoken.(II) The time has come for me to act.(IJ) I will not hold back; I will not have pity,(IK) nor will I relent.(IL) You will be judged according to your conduct and your actions,(IM) declares the Sovereign Lord.(IN)’”
Ezekiel’s Wife Dies
15 The word of the Lord came to me: 16 “Son of man, with one blow(IO) I am about to take away from you the delight of your eyes.(IP) Yet do not lament or weep or shed any tears.(IQ) 17 Groan quietly;(IR) do not mourn for the dead. Keep your turban(IS) fastened and your sandals(IT) on your feet; do not cover your mustache and beard(IU) or eat the customary food of mourners.(IV)”
18 So I spoke to the people in the morning, and in the evening my wife died. The next morning I did as I had been commanded.(IW)
19 Then the people asked me, “Won’t you tell us what these things have to do with us?(IX) Why are you acting like this?”
20 So I said to them, “The word of the Lord came to me: 21 Say to the people of Israel, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am about to desecrate my sanctuary(IY)—the stronghold in which you take pride,(IZ) the delight of your eyes,(JA) the object of your affection. The sons and daughters(JB) you left behind will fall by the sword.(JC) 22 And you will do as I have done. You will not cover your mustache and beard(JD) or eat the customary food of mourners.(JE) 23 You will keep your turbans(JF) on your heads and your sandals(JG) on your feet. You will not mourn(JH) or weep but will waste away(JI) because of[i] your sins and groan among yourselves.(JJ) 24 Ezekiel(JK) will be a sign(JL) to you; you will do just as he has done. When this happens, you will know that I am the Sovereign Lord.’
25 “And you, son of man, on the day I take away their stronghold, their joy and glory, the delight of their eyes,(JM) their heart’s desire,(JN) and their sons and daughters(JO) as well— 26 on that day a fugitive will come to tell you(JP) the news. 27 At that time your mouth will be opened; you will speak with him and will no longer be silent.(JQ) So you will be a sign to them, and they will know that I am the Lord.(JR)”
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 21:1 In Hebrew texts 21:1-32 is numbered 21:6-37.
- Ezekiel 21:15 Septuagint; the meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
- Ezekiel 22:16 Or When I have allotted you your inheritance
- Ezekiel 22:25 Septuagint; Hebrew prophets
- Ezekiel 23:14 Or Babylonians
- Ezekiel 23:15 Or Babylonia; also in verse 16
- Ezekiel 23:21 Syriac (see also verse 3); Hebrew caressed because of your young breasts
- Ezekiel 23:24 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
- Ezekiel 24:23 Or away in
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