2:1How has the daughter of Zion been covered with a cloud by the Lord in his wrath! he has sent down from heaven to earth the glory of Israel, and has not kept in memory the resting-place of his feet in the day of his wrath. 2:2The Lord has given up to destruction all the living-places of Jacob without pity; pulling down in his wrath the strong places of the daughter of Judah, stretching out on the earth the wounded, even her king and her rulers. 2:3In his burning wrath every horn of Israel has been cut off; his right hand has been turned back before the attacker: he has put a fire in Jacob, causing destruction round about. 2:4His bow has been bent for the attack, he has taken his place with his hand ready, in his hate he has put to death all who were pleasing to the eye: on the tent of the daughter of Zion he has let loose his passion like fire. 2:5The Lord has become like one fighting against her, sending destruction on Israel; he has sent destruction on all her great houses, making waste his strong places: increasing the grief and the sorrow of the daughter of Judah. 2:6And he has violently taken away his tent, as from a garden; he has made waste his meeting-place: the Lord has taken away the memory of feast and Sabbath in Zion, and in the passion of his wrath he is against king and priest. 2:7The Lord has given up his altar and has been turned in hate from his holy place; he has given up into the hands of the attacker the walls of her great houses: their voices have been loud in the house of the Lord as in the day of a holy meeting. 2:8It is the Lord's purpose to make waste the wall of the daughter of Zion; his line has been stretched out, he has not kept back his hand from destruction: he has sent sorrow on tower and wall, they have become feeble together. 2:9Her doors have gone down into the earth; he has sent destruction on her locks: her king and her princes are among the nations where the law is not; even her prophets have had no vision from the Lord. 2:10The responsible men of the daughter of Zion are seated on the earth without a word; they have put dust on their heads, they are clothed in haircloth: the heads of the virgins of Jerusalem are bent down to the earth. 2:11My eyes are wasted with weeping, the inmost parts of my body are deeply moved, my inner parts are drained out on the earth, for the destruction of the daughter of my people; because of the young children and babies at the breast who are falling without strength in the open squares of the town. 2:12They say to their mothers, Where is grain and wine? when they are falling like the wounded in the open squares of the town, when their life is drained out on their mother's breast. 2:13What example am I to give you? what comparison am I to make for you, O daughter of Jerusalem? what am I to make equal to you, so that I may give you comfort, O virgin daughter of Zion? for your destruction is great like the sea: who is able to make you well? 2:14The visions which your prophets have seen for you are false and foolish; they have not made clear to you your sin so that your fate might be changed: but they have seen for you false words, driving you away. 2:15All who go by make a noise with their hands at you; they make hisses, shaking their heads at the daughter of Jerusalem, and saying, Is this the town which was the crown of everything beautiful, the joy of all the earth? 2:16All your haters are opening their mouths wide against you; making hisses and whistling through their teeth, they say, We have made a meal of her: certainly this is the day we have been looking for; it has come, we have seen it. 2:17The Lord has done that which was his purpose; he has put into force the orders which he gave in the days which are past; pulling down without pity, he has made your hater glad over you, lifting up the horn of those who were against you. 2:18Let your cry go up to the Lord: O wall of the daughter of Zion, let your weeping be flowing down like a stream day and night; give yourself no rest, let not your eyes keep back the drops of sorrow. 2:19Up! give cries in the night, at the starting of the night-watches; let your heart be flowing out like water before the face of the Lord, lifting up your hands to him for the life of your young children who are falling down, feeble for need of food, at the top of every street. 2:20Look! O Lord, see to whom you have done this! Are the women to take as their food the fruit of their bodies, the children who are folded in their arms? are the priest and the prophet to be put to death in the holy place of the Lord? 2:21The young men and the old are stretched on the earth in the streets; my virgins and my young men have been put to the sword: you have sent death on them in the day of your wrath, causing death without pity. 2:22As in the day of a holy meeting you have made fears come round me on every side, and no one got away or was kept safe in the day of the Lord's wrath: those who were folded in my arms, whom I took care of, have been sent to their destruction by my hater.
3:1I am the man who has seen trouble by the rod of his wrath. 3:2By him I have been made to go in the dark where there is no light. 3:3Truly against me his hand has been turned again and again all the day. 3:4My flesh and my skin have been used up by him and my bones broken. 3:5He has put up a wall against me, shutting me in with bitter sorrow. 3:6He has kept me in dark places, like those who have been long dead. 3:7He has put a wall round me, so that I am not able to go out; he has made great the weight of my chain. 3:8Even when I send up a cry for help, he keeps my prayer shut out. 3:9He has put up a wall of cut stones about my ways, he has made my roads twisted. 3:10He is like a bear waiting for me, like a lion in secret places. 3:11By him my ways have been turned on one side and I have been pulled in bits; he has made me waste. 3:12With his bow bent, he has made me the mark for his arrows. 3:13He has let loose his arrows into the inmost parts of my body. 3:14I have become the sport of all the peoples; I am their song all the day. 3:15He has made my life nothing but pain, he has given me the bitter root in full measure. 3:16By him my teeth have been broken with crushed stones, and I am bent low in the dust. 3:17My soul is sent far away from peace, I have no more memory of good. 3:18And I said, My strength is cut off, and my hope from the Lord. 3:19Keep in mind my trouble and my wandering, the bitter root and the poison. 3:20My soul still keeps the memory of them; and is bent down in me. 3:21This I keep in mind, and because of this I have hope. 3:22It is through the Lord's love that we have not come to destruction, because his mercies have no limit. 3:23They are new every morning; great is your good faith. 3:24I said to myself, The Lord is my heritage; and because of this I will have hope in him. 3:25The Lord is good to those who are waiting for him, to the soul which is looking for him. 3:26It is good to go on hoping and quietly waiting for the salvation of the Lord. 3:27It is good for a man to undergo the yoke when he is young. 3:28Let him be seated by himself, saying nothing, because he has put it on him. 3:29Let him put his mouth in the dust, if by chance there may be hope. 3:30Let his face be turned to him who gives him blows; let him be full of shame. 3:31For the Lord does not give a man up for ever. 3:32For though he sends grief, still he will have pity in the full measure of his love. 3:33For he has no pleasure in troubling and causing grief to the children of men. 3:34In a man's crushing under his feet all the prisoners of the earth, 3:35In his turning away the right of a man before the face of the Most High. 3:36In his doing wrong to a man in his cause, the Lord has no pleasure. 3:37Who is able to say a thing, and give effect to it, if it has not been ordered by the Lord? 3:38Do not evil and good come from the mouth of the Most High? 3:39What protest may a living man make, even a man about the punishment of his sin? 3:40Let us make search and put our ways to the test, turning again to the Lord; 3:41Lifting up our hearts with our hands to God in the heavens. 3:42We have done wrong and gone against your law; we have not had your forgiveness. 3:43Covering yourself with wrath you have gone after us, cutting us off without pity; 3:44Covering yourself with a cloud, so that prayer may not get through. 3:45You have made us like waste and that for which there is no use, among the peoples. 3:46The mouths of all our haters are open wide against us. 3:47Fear and deep waters have come on us, wasting and destruction. 3:48Rivers of water are running down from my eyes, for the destruction of the daughter of my people. 3:49My eyes are streaming without stopping, they have no rest, 3:50Till the Lord's eye is turned on me, till he sees my trouble from heaven. 3:51The Lord is unkind to my soul, more than all the daughters of my town. 3:52They who are against me without cause have gone hard after me as if I was a bird; 3:53They have put an end to my life in the prison, stoning me with stones. 3:54Waters were flowing over my head; I said, I am cut off. 3:55I was making prayer to your name, O Lord, out of the lowest prison. 3:56My voice came to you; let not your ear be shut to my breathing, to my cry. 3:57You came near in the day when I made my prayer to you: you said, Have no fear. 3:58O Lord, you have taken up the cause of my soul, you have made my life safe. 3:59O Lord, you have seen my wrong; be judge in my cause. 3:60You have seen all the evil rewards they have sent on me, and all their designs against me. 3:61Their bitter words have come to your ears, O Lord, and all their designs against me; 3:62The lips of those who came up against me, and their thoughts against me all the day. 3:63Take note of them when they are seated, and when they get up; I am their song. 3:64You will give them their reward, O Lord, answering to the work of their hands. 3:65You will let their hearts be covered over with your curse on them. 3:66You will go after them in wrath, and put an end to them from under the heavens of the Lord.
4:1How dark has the gold become! how changed the best gold! the stones of the holy place are dropping out at the top of every street. 4:2The valued sons of Zion, whose price was the best gold, are looked on as vessels of earth, the work of the hands of the potter! 4:3Even the beasts of the waste land have full breasts, they give milk to their young ones: the daughter of my people has become cruel like the ostriches in the waste land. 4:4The tongue of the child at the breast is fixed to the roof of his mouth for need of drink: the young children are crying out for bread, and no man gives it to them. 4:5Those who were used to feasting on delicate food are wasted in the streets: those who as children were dressed in purple are stretched out on the dust. 4:6For the punishment of the daughter of my people is greater than the punishment of Sodom, which was overturned suddenly without any hand falling on her. 4:7Her holy ones were cleaner than snow, they were whiter than milk, their bodies were redder than corals, their form was as the sapphire: 4:8Their face is blacker than night; in the streets no one has knowledge of them: their skin is hanging on their bones, they are dry, they have become like wood. 4:9Those who have been put to the sword are better off than those whose death is caused by need of food; for these come to death slowly, burned up like the fruit of the field. 4:10The hands of kind-hearted women have been boiling their children; they were their food in the destruction of the daughter of my people. 4:11The Lord has given full effect to his passion, he has let loose his burning wrath; he has made a fire in Zion, causing the destruction of its bases. 4:12To the kings of the earth and to all the people of the world it did not seem possible that the attackers and the haters would go into the doors of Jerusalem. 4:13It is because of the sins of her prophets and the evil-doing of her priests, by whom the blood of the upright has been drained out in her. 4:14They are wandering like blind men in the streets, they are made unclean with blood, so that their robes may not be touched by men. 4:15Away! unclean! they were crying out to them, Away! away! let there be no touching: when they went away in flight and wandering, men said among the nations, There is no further resting-place for them. 4:16The face of the Lord has sent them in all directions; he will no longer take care of them: they had no respect for the priests, they gave no honour to the old men. 4:17Our eyes are still wasting away in looking for our false help: we have been watching for a nation unable to give salvation. 4:18They go after our steps so that we may not go in our streets: our end is near, our days are numbered; for our end has come. 4:19Those who went after us were quicker than the eagles of the heaven, driving us before them on the mountains, waiting secretly for us in the waste land. 4:20Our breath of life, he on whom the holy oil was put, was taken in their holes; of whom we said, Under his shade we will be living among the nations. 4:21Have joy and be glad, O daughter of Edom, living in the land of Uz: the cup will be given to you in your turn, and you will be overcome with wine and your shame will be seen. 4:22The punishment of your evil-doing is complete, O daughter of Zion; never again will he take you away as a prisoner: he will give you the reward of your evil-doing, O daughter of Edom; he will let your sin be uncovered.
5:1Keep in mind, O Lord, what has come to us: take note and see our shame. 5:2Our heritage is given up to men of strange lands, our houses to those who are not our countrymen. 5:3We are children without fathers, our mothers are like widows. 5:4We give money for a drink of water, we get our wood for a price. 5:5Our attackers are on our necks: overcome with weariness, we have no rest. 5:6We have given our hands to the Egyptians and to the Assyrians so that we might have enough bread. 5:7Our fathers were sinners and are dead; and the weight of their evil-doing is on us. 5:8Servants are ruling over us, and there is no one to make us free from their hands. 5:9We put our lives in danger to get our bread, because of the sword of the waste land. 5:10Our skin is heated like an oven because of our burning heat from need of food. 5:11They took by force the women in Zion, the virgins in the towns of Judah. 5:12Their hands put princes to death by hanging: the faces of old men were not honoured. 5:13The young men were crushing the grain, and the boys were falling under the wood. 5:14The old men are no longer seated in the doorway, and the music of the young men has come to an end. 5:15The joy of our hearts is ended; our dancing is changed into sorrow. 5:16The crown has been taken from our head: sorrow is ours, for we are sinners. 5:17Because of this our hearts are feeble; for these things our eyes are dark; 5:18Because of the mountain of Zion which is a waste; jackals go over it. 5:19You, O Lord, are seated as King for ever; the seat of your power is eternal. 5:20Why have we gone from your memory for ever? why have you been turned away from us for so long? 5:21Make us come back to you, O Lord, and let us be turned; make our days new again as in the past. 5:22But you have quite given us up; you are full of wrath against us.
Ezekiel
1:1Now it came about in the thirtieth year, in the fourth month, on the fifth day of the month, while I was by the river Chebar among those who had been made prisoners, that the heavens were made open and I saw visions of God. 1:2On the fifth day of the month, in the fifth year after King Jehoiachin had been made a prisoner, 1:3The word of the Lord came to me, Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldaeans by the river Chebar; and the hand of the Lord was on me there. 1:4And, looking, I saw a storm-wind coming out of the north, a great cloud with flames of fire coming after one another, and a bright light shining round about it and in the heart of it was something coloured like electrum. 1:5And in the heart of it were the forms of four living beings. And this was what they were like; they had the form of a man. 1:6And every one had four faces, and every one of them had four wings. 1:7And their feet were straight feet; and the under sides of their feet were like the feet of oxen; and they were shining like polished brass. 1:8And they had the hands of a man under their wings; the four of them had faces on their four sides. 1:9They went without turning, every one went straight forward. 1:10As for the form of their faces, they had the face of a man, and the four of them had the face of a lion on the right side, and the four of them had the face of an ox on the left side, and the four of them had the face of an eagle. 1:11And their wings were separate at the top; two of the wings of every one were joined one to another, and two were covering their bodies. 1:12Every one of them went straight forward; wherever the spirit was to go they went; they went on without turning. 1:13And between the living beings it was like burning coals of fire, as if flames were going one after the other between the living beings; and the fire was bright, and out of the fire went thunder-flames. 1:14And the living beings went out and came back as quickly as a thunder-flame. 1:15Now while I was looking at the four living beings, I saw one wheel on the earth, by the side of the living beings, for the four of them. 1:16The form of the wheels and their work was like a beryl; the four of them had the same form and design, and they were like a wheel inside a wheel. 1:17The four of them went straight forward without turning to one side. 1:18And I saw that they had edges, and their edges, even of the four, were full of eyes round about. 1:19And when the living beings went on, the wheels went by their side; and when the living beings were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up. 1:20Wherever the spirit was to go they went; and the wheels were lifted up by their side: for the spirit of the living beings was in the wheels. 1:21When these went on, the others went; and when these came to rest, the others came to rest; and when these were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up by their side: for the spirit of the living beings was in the wheels. 1:22And over the heads of the living beings there was the form of an arch, looking like ice, stretched out over their heads on high. 1:23Under the arch their wings were straight, one stretched out to another: every one had two wings covering their bodies on this side and two covering their bodies on that side. 1:24And when they went, the sound of their wings was like the sound of great waters to my ears, like the voice of the Ruler of all, a sound like the rushing of an army: when they came to rest they let down their wings. 1:25And there was a voice from the top of the arch which was over their heads: when they came to rest they let down their wings. 1:26And on the top of the arch which was over their heads was the form of a king's seat, like a sapphire stone; and on the form of the seat was the form of a man seated on it on high. 1:27And I saw it coloured like electrum, with the look of fire in it and round it, going up from what seemed to be the middle of his body; and going down from what seemed to be the middle of his body I saw what was like fire, and there was a bright light shining round him. 1:28Like the bow in the cloud on a day of rain, so was the light shining round him. And this is what the glory of the Lord was like. And when I saw it I went down on my face, and the voice of one talking came to my ears.
2:1And he said to me, Son of man, get up on your feet, so that I may say words to you. 2:2And at his words the spirit came into me and put me on my feet; and his voice came to my ears. 2:3And he said to me, Son of man, I am sending you to the children of Israel, to an uncontrolled nation which has gone against me: they and their fathers have been sinners against me even to this very day. 2:4And the children are hard and stiff-hearted; I am sending you to them: and you are to say to them, These are the words of the Lord. 2:5And they, if they give ear to you or if they do not give ear (for they are an uncontrolled people), will see that there has been a prophet among them. 2:6And you, son of man, have no fear of them or of their words, even if sharp thorns are round you and you are living among scorpions: have no fear of their words and do not be overcome by their looks, for they are an uncontrolled people. 2:7And you are to give them my words, if they give ear to you or if they do not: for they are uncontrolled. 2:8But you, son of man, give ear to what I say to you, and do not be uncontrolled like that uncontrolled people: let your mouth be open and take what I give you. 2:9And looking, I saw a hand stretched out to me, and I saw the roll of a book in it; 2:10And he put it open before me, and it had writing on the front and on the back; words of grief and sorrow and trouble were recorded in it.
3:1And he said to me, Son of man, take this roll for your food, and go and say my words to the children of Israel. 3:2And, on my opening my mouth, he made me take the roll as food. 3:3And he said to me, Son of man, let your stomach make a meal of it and let your inside be full of this roll which I am giving you. Then I took it, and it was sweet as honey in my mouth. 3:4And he said to me, Son of man, go now to the children of Israel, and say my words to them. 3:5For you are not sent to a people whose talk is strange and whose language is hard, but to the children of Israel; 3:6Not to a number of peoples whose talk is strange and whose language is hard and whose words are not clear to you. Truly, if I sent you to them they would give ear to you. 3:7But the children of Israel will not give ear to you; for they have no mind to give ear to me: for all the children of Israel have a hard brow and a stiff heart. 3:8See, I have made your face hard against their faces, and your brow hard against their brows. 3:9Like a diamond harder than rock I have made your brow: have no fear of them and do not be overcome by their looks, for they are an uncontrolled people. 3:10Then he said to me, Son of man, take into your heart all my words which I am about to say to you, and let your ears be open to them. 3:11And go now to those who have been taken away as prisoners, to the children of your people, and say to them, This is what the Lord has said; if they give ear or if they do not. 3:12Then I was lifted up by the wind, and at my back the sound of a great rushing came to my ears when the glory of the Lord was lifted up from his place. 3:13And there was the sound of the wings of the living beings touching one another, and the sound of the wheels at their side, the sound of a great rushing. 3:14And the wind, lifting me up, took me away: and I went in the heat of my spirit, and the hand of the Lord was strong on me. 3:15Then I came to those who had been taken away as prisoners, who were at Telabib by the river Chebar, and I was seated among them full of wonder for seven days. 3:16And at the end of seven days, the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 3:17Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the children of Israel: so give ear to the word of my mouth, and give them word from me of their danger. 3:18When I say to the evil-doer, Death will certainly be your fate; and you give him no word of it and say nothing to make clear to the evil-doer the danger of his evil way, so that he may be safe; that same evil man will come to death in his evil-doing; but I will make you responsible for his blood. 3:19But if you give the evil-doer word of his danger, and he is not turned from his sin or from his evil way, death will overtake him in his evil-doing; but your life will be safe. 3:20Again, when an upright man, turning away from his righteousness, does evil, and I put a cause of falling in his way, death will overtake him: because you have given him no word of his danger, death will overtake him in his evil-doing, and there will be no memory of the upright acts which he has done; but I will make you responsible for his blood. 3:21But if you say to the upright man that he is not to do evil, he will certainly keep his life because he took note of your word; and your life will be safe. 3:22And the hand of the Lord was on me there; and he said, Get up and go out into the valley and there I will have talk with you. 3:23Then I got up and went out into the valley; and I saw the glory of the Lord resting there as I had seen it by the river Chebar; and I went down on my face. 3:24Then the spirit came into me and put me on my feet; and he had talk with me and said to me, Go and keep yourself shut up inside your house. 3:25But see, O son of man, I will put bands on you, prisoning you in them, and you will not go out among them: 3:26And I will make your tongue fixed to the roof of your mouth, so that you have no voice and may not make protests to them: for they are an uncontrolled people. 3:27But when I have talk with you I will make your mouth open, and you are to say to them, This is what the Lord has said: Let the hearer give ear; and as for him who will not, let him keep his ears shut: for they are an uncontrolled people.
4:1And you, son of man, take a back and put it before you and on it make a picture of a town, even Jerusalem. 4:2And make an attack on it, shutting it in, building strong places against it, and making high an earthwork against it; and put up tents against it, placing engines all round it for smashing down its walls. 4:3And take a flat iron plate, and put it for a wall of iron between you and the town: and let your face be turned to it, and it will be shut in and you will make an attack on it. This will be a sign to the children of Israel. 4:4Then, stretching yourself out on your left side, take the sin of the children of Israel on yourself: for as long as you are stretched out, so long will the sin of the children of Israel be on you. 4:5For I have had the years of their sin measured for you by a number of days, even three hundred and ninety days: and you will take on yourself the sin of the children of Israel. 4:6And when these days are ended, turning on your right side, you are to take on yourself the sin of the children of Judah: forty days, a day for a year, I have had it fixed for you. 4:7And let your face be turned to where Jerusalem is shut in, with your arm uncovered, and be a prophet against it. 4:8And see, I will put bands on you; and you will be stretched out without turning from one side to the other till the days of your attack are ended. 4:9And take for yourself wheat and barley and different sorts of grain, and put them in one vessel and make bread for yourself from them; all the days when you are stretched on your side it will be your food. 4:10And you are to take your food by weight, twenty shekels a day: you are to take it at regular times. 4:11And you are to take water by measure, the sixth part of a hin: you are to take it at regular times. 4:12And let your food be barley cakes, cooking it before their eyes with the waste which comes out of a man. 4:13And the Lord said, Even so the children of Israel will have unclean bread for their food among the nations where I am driving them. 4:14Then I said, Ah, Lord! see, my soul has never been unclean, and I have never taken as my food anything which has come to a natural death or has been broken by beasts, from the time when I was young even till now; no disgusting flesh has ever come into my mouth. 4:15Then he said to me, See, I have given you cow's waste in place of man's waste, and you will make your bread ready on it. 4:16And he said to me, Son of man, see, I will take away from Jerusalem her necessary bread: they will take their bread by weight and with care, measuring out their drinking-water with fear and wonder: 4:17So that they may be in need of bread and water and be wondering at one another, wasting away in their sin.
5:1And you, son of man, take a sharp sword, using it like a haircutter's blade, and making it go over your head and the hair of your chin: and take scales for separating the hair by weight. 5:2You are to have a third part burned with fire inside the town, when the days of the attack are ended; and a third part you are to take and give blows with the sword round about it; and give a third part for the wind to take away, and let loose a sword after them. 5:3And take from them a small number of hairs, folding them in your skirts. 5:4And again take some of these and put them in the fire, burning them up in the fire; and say to all the children of Israel, 5:5This is what the Lord has said: This is Jerusalem: I have put her among the nations, and countries are round her on every side; 5:6And she has gone against my orders by doing evil more than the nations, and against my rules more than the countries round her: for they have given up my orders, and as for my rules, they have not gone in the way of them. 5:7For this cause the Lord has said: Because you have been more uncontrolled than the nations round about you, and have not been guided by my rules or kept my orders, but have kept the orders of the nations round about you; 5:8For this cause the Lord has said: See, I, even I, am against you; and I will be judging among you before the eyes of the nations. 5:9And I will do in you what I have not done and will not do again, because of all your disgusting ways. 5:10For this cause fathers will take their sons for food among you, and sons will make a meal of their fathers; and I will be judge among you, and all the rest of you I will send away to every wind. 5:11For this cause, by my life, says the Lord, because you have made my holy place unclean with all your hated things and all your disgusting ways, you will become disgusting to me; my eye will have no mercy and I will have no pity. 5:12A third of you will come to death from disease, wasting away among you through need of food; a third will be put to the sword round about you; and a third I will send away to every wind, letting loose a sword after them. 5:13So my wrath will be complete and my passion will come to rest on them; and they will be certain that I the Lord have given the word of decision, when my wrath against them is complete. 5:14And I will make you a waste and a name of shame among the nations round about you, in the eyes of everyone who goes by. 5:15And you will be a name of shame and a cause of bitter words, an example and a wonder to the nations round about you, when I give effect to my judging among you in wrath and in passion and in burning protests: I the Lord have said it: 5:16When I send on you the evil arrows of disease, causing destruction, which I will send to put an end to you; and, further, I will take away your necessary food. 5:17And I will send on you need of food and evil beasts, and they will be a cause of loss to you; and disease and violent death will go through you; and I will send the sword on you: I the Lord have said it.
6:1And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 6:2Son of man, let your face be turned to the mountains of Israel, and be a prophet to them, and say, 6:3You mountains of Israel, give ear to the words of the Lord: this is what the Lord has said to the mountains and the hills, to the waterways and the valleys: See, I, even I, am sending on you a sword for the destruction of your high places. 6:4And your altars will be made waste, and your sun-images will be broken: and I will have your dead men placed before your images. 6:5And I will put the dead bodies of the children of Israel in front of their images, sending your bones in all directions about your altars. 6:6In all your living-places the towns will become broken walls, and the high places made waste; so that your altars may be broken down and made waste, and your images broken and ended, and so that your sun-images may be cut down and your works rubbed out. 6:7And the dead will be falling down among you, and you will be certain that I am the Lord. 6:8But still, I will keep a small band safe from the sword among the nations, when you are sent wandering among the countries. 6:9And those of you who are kept safe will have me in mind among the nations where they have been taken away as prisoners, how I sent punishment on their hearts which were untrue to me, and on their eyes which were turned to their false gods: and they will be full of hate for themselves because of the evil things which they have done in all their disgusting ways. 6:10And they will be certain that I am the Lord: not for nothing did I say that I would do this evil to them. 6:11This is what the Lord has said: Give blows with your hand, stamping with your foot, and say, O sorrow! because of all the evil and disgusting ways of the children of Israel: for death will overtake them by the sword and through need of food and by disease. 6:12He who is far away will come to his death by disease; he who is near will be put to the sword; he who is shut up will come to his death through need of food; and I will give full effect to my passion against them. 6:13And you will be certain that I am the Lord, when their dead men are stretched among their images round about their altars on every high hill, on all the tops of the mountains, and under every branching tree, and under every thick oak-tree, the places where they made sweet smells to all their images. 6:14And my hand will be stretched out against them, making the land waste and unpeopled, from the waste land to Riblah, through all their living-places: and they will be certain that I am the Lord.
7:1And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 7:2And you, son of man, say, This is what the Lord has said to the land of Israel: An end has come, the end has come on the four quarters of the land. 7:3Now the end has come on you, and I will send my wrath on you, judging you for your ways, I will send punishment on you for all your disgusting acts. 7:4My eye will not have mercy on you, and I will have no pity: but I will send the punishment of your ways on you, and your disgusting works will be among you: and you will be certain that I am the Lord. 7:5This is what the Lord has said: An evil, even one evil; see, it is coming. 7:6An end has come, the end has come; see, it is coming on you. 7:7The crowning time has come on you, O people of the land: the time has come, the day is near; the day will not be slow in coming, it will not keep back. 7:8Now, in a little time, I will let loose my passion on you, and give full effect to my wrath against you, judging you for your ways, and sending punishment on you for all your disgusting works. 7:9My eye will not have mercy, and I will have no pity: I will send on you the punishment of your ways, and your disgusting works will be among you; and you will see that I am the Lord who gives punishment. 7:10See, the day; see, it is coming: the crowning time has gone out; the twisted way is flowering, pride has put out buds. 7:11Violent behaviour has been lifted up into a rod of evil; it will not be slow in coming, it will not keep back. 7:12The time has come, the day is near: let not him who gives a price for goods be glad, or him who gets the price have sorrow: 7:13For the trader will not go back to the things for which he had his price, even while he is still living: 7:14And he who has given a price for goods will not get them, for my wrath is on all of them. 7:15Outside is the sword, and inside disease and need of food: he who is in the open country will be put to the sword; he who is in the town will come to his end through need of food and disease. 7:16And those of them who get away safely will go and be in the secret places like the doves of the valleys, all of them will come to death, every one in his sin. 7:17All hands will be feeble and all knees without strength, like water. 7:18And they will put haircloth round them, and deep fear will be covering them; and shame will be on all faces, and the hair gone from all their heads. 7:19They will put out their silver into the streets, and their gold will be as an unclean thing; their silver and their gold will not be able to keep them safe in the day of the wrath of the Lord; they will not get their desire or have food for their need: because it has been the cause of their falling into sin. 7:20As for their beautiful ornament, they had put it on high, and had made the images of their disgusting and hated things in it: for this cause I have made it an unclean thing to them. 7:21And I will give it into the hands of men from strange lands who will take it by force, and to the evil-doers of the earth to have for themselves; and they will make it unholy. 7:22And my face will be turned away from them, and they will make my secret place unholy: violent men will go into it and make it unholy. 7:23Make the chain: for the land is full of crimes of blood, and the town is full of violent acts. 7:24For this reason I will send the worst of the nations and they will take their houses for themselves: I will make the pride of their strength come to an end; and their holy places will be made unclean. 7:25Shaking fear is coming; and they will be looking for peace, and there will be no peace. 7:26Destruction will come on destruction, and one story after another; and the vision of the prophet will be shamed, and knowledge of the law will come to an end among the priests, and wisdom among the old. 7:27The king will give himself up to sorrow, and the ruler will be clothed with wonder, and the hands of the people of the land will be troubled: I will give them punishment for their ways, judging them as it is right for them to be judged; and they will be certain that I am the Lord.
8:1Now in the sixth year, in the sixth month, on the fifth day of the month, when I was in my house and the responsible men of Judah were seated before me, the hand of the Lord came on me there. 8:2And looking, I saw a form like fire; from the middle of his body and down there was fire: and up from the middle of his body a sort of shining, like electrum. 8:3And he put out the form of a hand and took me by the hair of my head; and the wind, lifting me up between the earth and the heaven, took me in the visions of God to Jerusalem, to the way into the inner door facing to the north; where was the seat of the image of envy. 8:4And I saw the glory of the Lord there, as in the vision which I saw in the valley. 8:5Then he said to me, Son of man, now let your eyes be lifted up in the direction of the north; and on looking in the direction of the north, to the north of the doorway of the altar, I saw this image of envy by the way in. 8:6And he said to me, Son of man, do you see what they are doing? even the very disgusting things which the children of Israel are doing here, causing me to go far away from my holy place? but you will see other most disgusting things. 8:7And he took me to the door of the open place; and looking, I saw a hole in the wall. 8:8And he said to me, Son of man, make a hole in the wall: and after making a hole in the wall I saw a door. 8:9And he said to me, Go in and see the evil and disgusting things which they are doing here. 8:10So I went in and saw; and there every sort of living thing which goes flat on the earth, and unclean beasts, and all the images of the children of Israel, were pictured round about on the wall. 8:11And before them seventy of the responsible men of the children of Israel had taken their places, every man with a vessel for burning perfumes in his hand, and in the middle of them was Jaazaniah, the son of Shaphan; and a cloud of smoke went up from the burning perfume. 8:12And he said to me, Son of man, have you seen what the responsible men of the children of Israel do in the dark, every man in his room of pictured images? for they say, The Lord does not see us; the Lord has gone away from the land. 8:13Then he said to me, You will see even more disgusting things which they do. 8:14Then he took me to the door of the way into the Lord's house looking to the north; and there women were seated weeping for Tammuz. 8:15Then he said to me, Have you seen this, O son of man? you will see even more disgusting things than these. 8:16And he took me into the inner square of the Lord's house, and at the door of the Temple of the Lord, between the covered way and the altar, there were about twenty-five men with their backs turned to the Temple of the Lord and their faces turned to the east; and they were worshipping the sun, turning to the east. 8:17Then he said to me, Have you seen this, O son of man? is it a small thing to the children of Judah that they do the disgusting things which they are doing here? for they have made the land full of violent behaviour, making me angry again and again: and see, they put the branch to my nose. 8:18For this reason I will let loose my wrath: my eye will not have mercy, and I will have no pity.
9:1Then crying out in my hearing in a loud voice, he said, Let the overseers of the town come near, every man armed. 9:2And six men came from the way of the higher doorway looking to the north, every man with his axe in his hand: and one man among them was clothed in linen, with a writer's inkpot at his side. And they went in and took their places by the brass altar. 9:3And the glory of the God of Israel had gone up from the winged ones on which it was resting, to the doorstep of the house. And crying out to the man clothed in linen who had the writer's inkpot at his side, 9:4The Lord said to him, Go through the town, through the middle of Jerusalem, and put a mark on the brows of the men who are sorrowing and crying for all the disgusting things which are done in it. 9:5And to these he said in my hearing, Go through the town after him using your axes: do not let your eyes have mercy, and have no pity: 9:6Give up to destruction old men and young men and virgins, little children and women: but do not come near any man who has the mark on him: and make a start at my holy place. So they made a start with the old men who were before the house. 9:7And he said to them, Make the house unclean, make the open places full of dead: go forward and send destruction on the town. 9:8Now while they were doing so, and I was untouched, I went down on my face, and crying out, I said, Ah, Lord! will you give all the rest of Israel to destruction in letting loose your wrath on Jerusalem? 9:9Then he said to me, The sin of the children of Israel and Judah is very, very great, and the land is full of blood and the town full of evil ways: for they say, The Lord has gone away from the land, and the Lord does not see. 9:10And as for me, my eye will not have mercy, and I will have no pity, but I will send the punishment of their ways on their heads. 9:11Then the man clothed in linen, who had the inkpot at his side, came back and said, I have done what you gave me orders to do.
10:1Then looking, I saw that on the arch which was over the head of the winged ones there was seen over them what seemed like a sapphire stone, having the form of a king's seat. 10:2And he said to the man clothed in linen, Go in between the wheels, under the winged ones, and get your two hands full of burning coals from between the winged ones and send them in a shower over the town. And he went in before my eyes. 10:3Now the winged ones were stationed on the right side of the house when the man went in; and the inner square was full of the cloud. 10:4And the glory of the Lord went up from the winged ones and came to rest over the doorstep of the house; and the house was full of the cloud and the open square was full of the shining of the Lord's glory. 10:5And the sound of the wings of the winged ones was clear even in the outer square, like the voice of the Ruler of all. 10:6And when he gave orders to the man clothed in linen, saying, Take fire from between the wheels, from between the winged ones, then he went in and took his place at the side of a wheel. 10:7And stretching out his hand to the fire which was between the winged ones, he took some of it and went out. 10:8And I saw the form of a man's hands among the winged ones under their wings. 10:9And looking, I saw four wheels by the side of the winged ones, one wheel by the side of a winged one and another wheel by the side of another: and the wheels were like the colour of a beryl stone to the eye. 10:10In form the four of them were all the same, they seemed like a wheel inside a wheel. 10:11When they were moving, they went on their four sides without turning; they went after the head in the direction in which it was looking; they went without turning. 10:12And the edges of the four wheels were full of eyes round about. 10:13As for the wheels, they were named in my hearing, the circling wheels. 10:14And every one had four faces: the first face was the face of a winged one, and the second was the face of a man, and the third the face of a lion, and the fourth the face of an eagle. 10:15And the winged ones went up on high: this is the living being which I saw by the river Chebar. 10:16And when the winged ones went, the wheels went by their side: and when their wings were lifted to take them up from the earth, the wheels were not turned from their side. 10:17When they were at rest in their place, these were at rest; when they were lifted up, these went up with them: for the spirit of life was in them. 10:18Then the glory of the Lord went out from the doorstep of the house, and came to rest over the winged ones. 10:19And the winged ones, lifting up their wings, went up from the earth before my eyes, with the wheels by their side: and they came to rest at the east doorway of the Lord's house; and the glory of the God of Israel was over them on high. 10:20This is the living being which I saw under the God of Israel by the river Chebar; and it was clear to me that they were the winged ones. 10:21Every one had four faces and every one had four wings; and hands like a man's hands were under their wings. 10:22As for the form of their faces, they were the faces whose form I saw by the river Chebar; when they went, every one of them went straight forward.
11:1And the wind, lifting me up, took me to the east doorway of the Lord's house, looking to the east: and at the door I saw twenty-five men; and among them I saw Jaazaniah, the son of Azzur, and Pelatiah, the son of Benaiah, rulers of the people. 11:2Then he said to me, Son of man, these are the men who are designing evil, who are teaching evil ways in this town: 11:3Who say, This is not the time for building houses: this town is the cooking-pot and we are the flesh. 11:4For this cause be a prophet against them, be a prophet, O son of man. 11:5And the spirit of the Lord came on me, and he said to me, Say, These are the words of the Lord: This is what you have said, O children of Israel; what comes into your mind is clear to me. 11:6You have made great the number of your dead in this town, you have made its streets full of dead men. 11:7For this reason the Lord has said: Your dead whom you have put down in its streets, they are the flesh, and this town is the cooking-pot: but I will make you come out from inside it. 11:8You have been fearing the sword, and I will send the sword on you, says the Lord. 11:9I will make you come out from inside the town and will give you up into the hands of men from other lands, and will be judge among you. 11:10You will come to your death by the sword; and I will be your judge in the land of Israel; and you will be certain that I am the Lord. 11:11This town will not be your cooking-pot, and you will not be the flesh inside it; I will be your judge at the limit of the land of Israel; 11:12And you will be certain that I am the Lord: for you have not been guided by my rules or given effect to my orders, but you have been living by the orders of the nations round about you. 11:13Now while I was saying these things, death came to Pelatiah, the son of Benaiah. Then falling down on my face and crying out with a loud voice, I said, Ah, Lord! will you put an end to all the rest of Israel? 11:14And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 11:15Son of man, your countrymen, your relations, and all the children of Israel, all of them, are those to whom the people of Jerusalem have said, Go far from the Lord; this land is given to us for a heritage: 11:16For this reason say, This is what the Lord has said: Though I have had them moved far off among the nations, and though I have sent them wandering among the countries, still I have been a safe place for them for a little time in the countries where they have come. 11:17Then say, This is what the Lord has said: I will get you together from the peoples, and make you come out of the countries where you have been sent in flight, and I will give you the land of Israel. 11:18And they will come there, and take away all the hated and disgusting things from it. 11:19And I will give them a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in them; and I will take the heart of stone out of their flesh and give them a heart of flesh: 11:20So that they may be guided by my rules and keep my orders and do them: and they will be to me a people, and I will be to them a God. 11:21But as for those whose heart goes after their hated and disgusting things, I will send on their heads the punishment of their ways, says the Lord. 11:22Then the wings of the winged ones were lifted up, and the wheels were by their side; and the glory of the God of Israel was over them on high. 11:23And the glory of the Lord went up from inside the town, and came to rest on the mountain on the east side of the town. 11:24And the wind, lifting me up, took me in the visions of God into Chaldaea, to those who had been taken away as prisoners. So the vision which I had seen went away from me. 11:25Then I gave an account to those who had been taken prisoners of all the things which the Lord had made me see.
12:1And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 12:2Son of man, you are living among an uncontrolled people, who have eyes to see but see not, and ears for hearing but they do not give ear; for they are an uncontrolled people. 12:3And you, O son of man, by day, before their eyes, get ready the vessels of one who is taken away, and go away from your place to another place before their eyes: it may be that they will see, though they are an uncontrolled people. 12:4By day, before their eyes, take out your vessels like those of one who is taken away: and go out in the evening before their eyes, like those who are taken away as prisoners. 12:5Make a hole in the wall, before their eyes, and go out through it. 12:6And before their eyes, take your goods on your back and go out in the dark; go with your face covered: for I have made you a sign to the children of Israel. 12:7And I did as I was ordered: I took out my vessels by day, like those of one who is taken away, and in the evening I made a hole through the wall with a tent-pin; and in the dark I went out, taking my things on my back before their eyes. 12:8And in the morning the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 12:9Son of man, has not Israel, the uncontrolled people, said to you, What are you doing? 12:10You are to say to them, This is what the Lord has said: This word has to do with the ruler in Jerusalem and all the children of Israel in it. 12:11Say, I am your sign: as I have done, so will it be done to them: they will go away as prisoners. 12:12And the ruler who is among them will take his goods on his back in the dark and go out: he will make a hole in the wall through which to go out: he will have his face covered so that he may not be seen. 12:13And my net will be stretched out on him, and he will be taken in my cords: and I will take him to Babylon to the land of the Chaldaeans; but he will not see it, and there death will come to him. 12:14And all his helpers round about him and all his armies I will send in flight to every wind; and I will let loose a sword after them. 12:15And they will be certain that I am the Lord, when I send them in flight among the nations, driving them out through the countries. 12:16But a small number of them I will keep from the sword, from the need of food, and from disease, so that they may make clear all their disgusting ways among the nations where they come; and they will be certain that I am the Lord. 12:17Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 12:18Son of man, take your food with shaking fear, and your water with trouble and care; 12:19And say to the people of the land, This is what the Lord has said about the people of Jerusalem and the land of Israel: They will take their food with care and their drink with wonder, so that all the wealth of their land may be taken from it because of the violent ways of the people living in it. 12:20And the peopled towns will be made waste, and the land will become a wonder; and you will be certain that I am the Lord. 12:21And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 12:22Son of man, what is this saying which you have about the land of Israel, The time is long and every vision comes to nothing? 12:23For this cause say to them, This is what the Lord has said: I have made this saying come to an end, and it will no longer be used as a common saying in Israel; but say to them, The days are near, and the effect of every vision. 12:24For there will be no more false visions or smooth use of secret arts in Israel. 12:25For I am the Lord; I will say the word and what I say I will do; it will not be put off: for in your days, O uncontrolled people, I will say the word and do it, says the Lord. 12:26Again the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 12:27Son of man, see, the children of Israel say, The vision which he sees is for the days which are a long way off, and his words are of times still far away. 12:28Say to them then, This is what the Lord has said: Not one of my words will be put off any longer, but what I say I will do, says the Lord.
13:1And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 13:2Son of man, be a prophet against the prophets of Israel, and say to those prophets whose words are the invention of their hearts, Give ear to the word of the Lord; 13:3This is what the Lord has said: A curse on the foolish prophets who go after the spirit which is in them and have seen nothing! 13:4O Israel, your prophets have been like jackals in the waste places. 13:5You have not gone up into the broken places or made up the wall for the children of Israel to take your place in the fight in the day of the Lord. 13:6They have seen visions without substance and made use of secret arts, who say, The Lord has said; and the Lord has not sent them: hoping that the word would have effect. 13:7Have you not seen a vision without substance and have you not falsely made use of secret arts, when you say, The Lord has said; though I have said nothing? 13:8So this is what the Lord has said: Because your words are without substance and your visions are false, see, I am against you, says the Lord. 13:9And my hand will be against the prophets who see visions without substance and who make false use of secret arts: they will not be in the secret of my people, and they will not be recorded in the list of the children of Israel, and they will not come into the land of Israel; and it will be clear to you that I am the Lord. 13:10Because, even because they have been guiding my people into error, saying, Peace; when there is no peace; and in the building of a division wall they put whitewash on it: 13:11Say to those who put whitewash on it, There will be an overflowing shower; and you, O ice-drops, will come raining down; and it will be broken in two by the storm-wind. 13:12And when the wall has come down, will they not say to you, Where is the whitewash which you put on it? 13:13For this reason, the Lord has said: I will have it broken in two by a storm-wind in my passion; and there will be an overflowing shower in my wrath, and you, O ice-drops, will come raining angrily down. 13:14So I will let the wall, which you were covering with whitewash, be broken down; I will have it levelled to the earth so that its base is uncovered: it will come down, and destruction will come on you with it; and it will be clear to you that I am the Lord. 13:15So I will let loose my passion on the wall in full measure, and on those who put whitewash on it; and I will say to you, Where is the wall, and where are those who put whitewash on it? 13:16Even the prophets of Israel who say words to Jerusalem, who see visions of peace for her when there is no peace, says the Lord. 13:17And you, son of man, let your face be turned against the daughters of your people, who are acting the part of prophets at their pleasure; be a prophet against them, and say, 13:18This is what the Lord has said: A curse is on the women who are stitching bands on all arms and putting veils on the heads of those of every size, so that they may go after souls! Will you go after the souls of my people and keep yourselves safe from death? 13:19And you have put me to shame among my people for a little barley and some bits of bread, sending death on souls for whom there is no cause of death, and keeping those souls living who have no right to life, by the false words you say to my people who give ear to what is false. 13:20For this cause the Lord has said: See, I am against your bands with which you go after souls, and I will violently take them off their arms; and I will let loose the souls, even the souls whom you go after freely. 13:21And I will have your veils violently parted in two, and will make my people free from your hands, and they will no longer be in your power for you to go after them; and you will be certain that I am the Lord. 13:22Because with your false words you have given pain to the heart of the upright man when I had not made him sad; in order to make strong the hands of the evil-doer so that he may not be turned from his evil way and get life: 13:23For this cause you will see no more foolish visions or make false use of secret arts: and I will make my people free from your power; and you will be certain that I am the Lord.
14:1Then certain of the responsible men of Israel came to me and took their seats before me. 14:2And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 14:3Son of man, these men have taken their false gods into their hearts and put before their faces the sin which is the cause of their fall: am I to give ear when they come to me for directions? 14:4For this cause say to them, These are the words of the Lord: Every man of Israel who has taken his false god into his heart, and put before his face the sin which is the cause of his fall, and comes to the prophet; I the Lord will give him an answer by myself in agreement with the number of his false gods; 14:5So as to take the children of Israel in the thoughts of their hearts, because they have become strange to me through their false gods. 14:6For this cause say to the children of Israel, These are the words of the Lord: Come back and give up your false gods and let your faces be turned from your disgusting things. 14:7When any one of the men of Israel, or of those from other lands who are living in Israel, who has become strange to me, and takes his false gods into his heart, and puts before his face the sin which is the cause of his fall, comes to the prophet to get directions from me; I the Lord will give him an answer by myself: 14:8And my face will be turned against that man, and I will make him a sign and a common saying, cutting him off from among my people; and you will be certain that I am the Lord. 14:9And if the prophet, tricked by deceit, says anything, it is I the Lord by whom he has been tricked, and I will put out my hand against him, and he will be cut off from among my people Israel. 14:10And the punishment of their sin will be on them: the sin of the prophet will be the same as the sin of him who goes to him for directions; 14:11So that the children of Israel may no longer go wandering away from me, or make themselves unclean with all their wrongdoing; but they will be my people, and I will be their God, says the Lord. 14:12And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 14:13Son of man, when a land, sinning against me, does wrong, and my hand is stretched out against it, and the support of its bread is broken, and I make it short of food, cutting off man and beast from it: 14:14Even if these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, only themselves would they keep safe by their righteousness, says the Lord. 14:15Or if I send evil beasts through the land causing destruction and making it waste, so that no man may go through because of the beasts: 14:16Even if these three men were in it, by my life, says the Lord, they would not keep safe their sons or daughters, but only themselves, and the land would be made waste. 14:17Or if I send a sword against that land, and say, Sword, go through the land, cutting off from it man and beast: 14:18Even if these three men were in it, by my life, says the Lord, they would not keep safe their sons or daughters, but only themselves. 14:19Or if I send disease into that land, letting loose my wrath on it in blood, cutting off from it man and beast: 14:20Even if Noah, Daniel, and Job were in it, by my life, says the Lord, they would not keep son or daughter safe; only themselves would they keep safe through their righteousness. 14:21For this is what the Lord has said: How much more when I send my four bitter punishments on Jerusalem, the sword and need of food and evil beasts and disease, cutting off from it man and beast? 14:22But truly, there will still be a small band who will be safe, even sons and daughters: and they will come out to you, and you will see their ways and their doings: and you will be comforted about the evil which I have sent on Jerusalem, even about everything I have sent on it. 14:23They will give you comfort when you see their ways and their doings: and you will be certain that not for nothing have I done all the things I have done in it, says the Lord.
15:1And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 15:2Son of man, what is the vine-tree more than any branching tree which is among the trees of the woods? 15:3Will its wood be used for any work? do men make of it a pin for hanging any vessel on? 15:4See, it is put into the fire for burning: the fire has made a meal of its two ends and the middle part of it is burned; is it good for any work? 15:5Truly, before it was cut down, it was not used for any purpose: how much less, when the fire has made a meal of it and it is burned, will it be made into anything? 15:6For this cause the Lord has said: Like the vine-tree among the trees of the woods which I have given to the fire for burning, so will I give the people of Jerusalem. 15:7And my face will be turned against them; and though they have come out of the fire they will be burned up by it; and it will be clear to you that I am the Lord when my face is turned against them. 15:8And I will make the land a waste because they have done evil, says the Lord.