Ezekiel Chapters

1 | •  ¹On the fifth day of the fourth month of the thirtieth year, when I was with the exiles by the River Kebar, the heavens opened, and I had visions from the Lord.

²On the fifth of the month (it was the fifth year of King Jehoiachin's exile), ³the word of the Lord came to Ezekiel, son of Buzi, the priest, in the land of the Chaldeans by the banks of the Chebar.

There the hand of the Lord was upon me.

Ezekiel Sees the Glory of the Lord

•  ⁴I looked: a windstorm came from the north, bringing a great cloud. A fiery light inside it lit up all around it, while at the center, there was something like glowing metal.

⁵In the center were what appeared to be four creatures with the same form; ⁶but each had four faces and four wings. ⁷Their legs were straight, and their feet were like those of a calf, shining like polished bronze. ⁸Under their wings (on their four sides) they had human hands. The wings of one ⁹touched those of the other. Their faces did not turn as they advanced because they could go forward in any of the four directions of their faces.

¹⁰I saw they had human faces, but each one also had the face of a lion on the right, and on the left, the face of an ox, and all four had the face of an eagle.

¹¹Their wings were spread upwards. Each had two wings meeting those of its neighbor and two covering its body; having four faces, they could advance in any of the four directions. ¹²Wherever the spirit would go, they went without turning as they advanced.

¹³Between these creatures could be seen glowing coals like torches moving between them. The fire blazed and flashed from thunderbolts. ¹⁴The creatures ran to and fro like thunderbolts.

¹⁵While I looked at the creatures, I saw a wheel on the ground beside each of them, ¹⁶glittering as if made of chrysolite. The four wheels had the same shape: indeed, each was double—two wheels were placed crosswise, ¹⁷so they could follow any of the four directions without turning as they went. ¹⁸Their rims were lofty and looked terrifying, and the four were covered with eyes.

¹⁹When the creatures moved forward, the wheels moved along beside them, and when they rose from the ground, the wheels rose, too.

²⁰Wherever the spirit was to go, there the creatures went; the wheels went with them, for the spirit of the creatures was also in the wheels. ²¹When the creatures moved forward, they did, too, stopping when they stopped and rising above the ground when they did, for the spirit of the creatures was in the wheels.

²²Over the heads of the creatures was a kind of platform; it looked like crystal.

²³Under the platform, their wings were straight, one parallel to the other. (Each creature had two that covered its body). ²⁴I heard the noise of their wings when they moved, similar to the roar of many waters and the voice of the Most High, the noise of a multitude or a camp. When they were not moving, they lowered their wings.

²⁵I heard a noise above the platform over their heads. ²⁶Above it was a throne resembling a sapphire, and high on this throne was a figure similar to a man's. Then I saw a light of glowing bronze, as if fire enveloped him ²⁷from his waist upwards. From his waist downwards, it was as if fire gave radiance around him.

²⁸The surrounding light was like a rainbow in the clouds after a day of rain. This vision was the likeness of the Lord’s glory. When I saw it, I fell on my face and heard a voice speaking.

Ezekiel Receives His Mission

2 | ¹He said to me, “Son of man, stand up; for I am about to speak to you.” ²A spirit came upon me as he spoke and kept me standing, and then I heard him speak,

³“Son of man, I am sending you to the Israelites, to a people who have rebelled against me; they and their fathers have sinned against me to this day. ⁴I am sending you to these defiant and stubborn people to tell them, ‘This is the Lord the Lord’s word.’

⁵So, whether they listen or not, this set of rebels will know a prophet is among them. ⁶But you, son of man, do not fear them or what they say, for they will be thorns for you, and you will be sitting on a nest of scorpions. Don’t be afraid of their words when you are facing this set of rebels. ⁷Tell them what I say, whether they choose to listen or not, for they are rebels. ⁸Listen then, son of man, to what I say, and don’t be a rebel among rebels. Open your mouth and take in what I’m about to say.”

⁹I looked and saw a hand stretched out in front of me holding a scroll. ¹⁰He unrolled it before me; on both sides were written lamentations, groaning, and woes.

3 | •  ¹He told me, “Son of man, eat what is given to you. Eat this scroll and then go; speak to the people of Israel.” ²I opened my mouth, and he made me eat the scroll; and then ³he said to me, “Eat and fill yourself with this scroll that I’m giving you.” I ate it, and it tasted as sweet as honey.

⁴He said, “Son of man, go to the Israelites; speak to them with my words. ⁵Indeed, it is not a people with a difficult foreign language to whom you are sent; it is to the people of Israel. ⁶ It’s not to the many nations with difficult and obscure languages that you cannot understand. If I sent you to them, they would listen to you.

⁷But the Israelites will not listen to you because they are not willing to listen to me; all of them are defiant and stubborn. ⁸See, I am making your face as unyielding as theirs and your forehead as hard as theirs. ⁹I am making your forehead as hard as a diamond, harder than flint, so you shall not fear or tremble because of this set of rebels.”

¹⁰He said to me, “Son of man, listen, and take to heart all I say to you. ¹¹Then go to the exiles, your fellow countrymen, speak to them and tell them: ‘This is what the Lord says,’ whether they listen or not.”

¹²Then the spirit lifted me up. Behind me, I heard a great acclamation, “Blessed be the glory of the Lord in his dwelling place.” ¹³ And I heard the noise of the animals’ wings brushing against each other and the noise of the wheels; it was a great uproar.

¹⁴The spirit had lifted me up and carried me off, but I went in a bitter and feverish spirit because the hand of the Lord was heavy upon me. ¹⁵I came to Tel-Abib, to the exiles living by the river Chebar, and I stayed there seven days with them, overwhelmed.

“I Have Made You a Watchman”

•  ¹⁶After seven days, the word of the Lord came to me: ¹⁷“Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. You will warn them in my name with the word you hear from my mouth. ¹⁸When I say to the wicked, ‘You will surely die,’ if you do not speak to warn the wicked man to give up his evil ways, and so live, he shall die for his sin, and I will hold you responsible for his death. ¹⁹But if you have warned the wicked man, and he has not given up his wickedness and evil ways, he shall die for his sin, but you will save yourself. ²⁰When the righteous man turns from what is good to evil, I shall put an obstacle in his path: he shall die. Since you did not warn him, he will die for his sin. His good deeds will not be remembered, and I shall hold you responsible for his death. ²¹But when you have warned the righteous man to keep him from sinning, and he has not sinned, he will live for sure, for he was warned; and you will save your life.”

Ezekiel Becomes Mute

•  ²²The hand of the Lord was upon me, and he said to me, “Get up! Go to the valley, and I shall speak to you there.”

²³I got up and went towards the valley, and there was the glory of the Lord that I had seen by the Chebar River. I fell on my face. ²⁴Then the spirit came to me and kept me standing. He spoke to me and said, “Go! Shut yourself in your house. ²⁵You, son of man, will be bound with cords and prevented from going among the people. ²⁶Your tongue shall stick to your palate, and you will remain dumb and unable to rebuke them, for they are a rebellious people. ²⁷But, when I speak to you, I shall open your lips, and you shall say to them: This is the word of the Lord! He who listens, let him listen; and he who refuses to listen, let him refuse, for they are a rebellious people.

Ezekiel Plays War

4 | ¹Son of man, take a clay tablet; place it in front of you and draw on it the city of Jerusalem. ²Then act as if you were laying siege to it; dig a trench around it and build a ramp; set up tents and a battering ram against it. ³Take an iron pan; place it as a wall of iron between you and the city and look towards it: it is under siege, and you are besieging it. All this will be a sign for the people of Israel.

⁴Lie on your left side, taking upon yourself the sin of Israel, for you will bear their sin as long as you are lying on it. ⁵I have assigned to you a number of days equal to the duration of their sins—for a hundred and ninety days, you will bear the sin of Israel.

⁶When you have completed this, you shall lie down again on your right side and bear the sin of Judah for forty days—one day corresponding to a year. ⁷Then you shall turn your face and your bared arm towards the siege of Jerusalem and prophesy against it. ⁸I shall bind you with cords to prevent you from turning from one side to the other until you have completed the days of your confinement. ⁹Take some wheat and barley, some beans, lentils, millet, and spelt; put it all in one vessel and make some bread; this is what you will eat all the time you are lying on your side—one hundred and ninety days.

¹⁰The food you eat will be a daily ration of eight ounces a day; ¹¹you will drink two-thirds of a quart of water daily. ¹²Eat the food as you would a barley cake. You will cook it publicly on human dung, ¹³for that is the way —says the Lord—the people of Israel will eat unclean bread among the nations where I shall drive them.”

¹⁴I said, “Ah, Lord God! I have not been defiled: from childhood until now, I have never eaten any animal found dead or torn; unclean meat has never entered my mouth.”

¹⁵He then said, “Very well! I allow you cow dung instead of human dung for baking your bread.” ¹⁶He continued, “Son of man, I shall cut off the food in Jerusalem. They will eat strictly rationed bread, with anxiety and despair, as they drink water sparingly ¹⁷ for food and water will be in short supply, and they will all waste away because of their sin.

Slaughter and Death in Jerusalem

5 | ¹Son of man, take a sharp sword and use it as a barber’s razor on your head and beard. Then take scales and divide the hair you have cut off. ²Burn a third of it in the middle of the city at the end of the siege, then take a third that you will strike with the sword all around the city; finally, scatter a third in the wind and unsheathe a sword and pursue them. ³Take a few strands of hair and tuck them away in the folds of your clothes; ⁴then throw some of them to burn in the fire. Then speak against all Israel:

⁵This is what the Lord said: That is Jerusalem! I placed her amid the nations surrounded by other countries; ⁶she rebelled against my laws and precepts more than neighboring nations. In fact, she rejected my laws and did not keep my decrees.

⁷That is why the Lord speaks thus: Your rebellion is greater than that of the nations around you—you have not kept my laws, respected my decrees or observed my ordinances; but instead, have conformed to the laws of neighboring nations—⁸because of that, the Lord speaks thus: I, too, have set myself against you. I will pass judgment on you in the sight of the nations. ⁹And, because of your abominations, I will punish you in a way I have never before done and never will do in the future. ¹⁰That is why parents among you will eat their children, and children their parents. I will pass judgment on you and scatter your remnant to every wind.

¹¹Therefore, as surely as I live, declares the Lord, because you have defiled my Sanctuary with all your horrors and abominations, I will strike you without pity! I, too, will show no mercy!

¹²A third of your people will die of the plague or starve within your walls, a third will fall by the sword outside the city, a third I will scatter to the winds, and pursue with sword unsheathed. ¹³My anger will spend itself; my fury against them be satisfied. I will have my revenge, and they will know that I, the Lord, have spoken in my jealousy when I have exhausted my fury against them. ¹⁴I will make you a heap of ruins, a reproach among the neighboring nations in the eyes of all who pass by. ¹⁵You will be a reproach, a taunt, a lesson, a warning, and an object of horror for the nations near you, when, with anger, wrath and stinging reproach, I punish you. I, the Lord, have spoken.

¹⁶When I send against you the deadly arrows of starvation to do away with you and blot you out, I will make you lack all food. ¹⁷Hunger and wild beasts will destroy your children, while the sword and plague will visit you. It is I, the Lord, who have spoken.”

6 | ¹The word of the Lord came to me: ²“Son of man, look towards the mountains of Israel and prophesy against them. Say to them:

³Mountains of Israel, listen to the word of the Lord! The Lord has spoken to the mountains and hills, rivers and valleys: I will bring the sword against you and destroy your high places. ⁴Your altars will become desolate, your incense burners smashed; ⁵I will lay your corpses in front of your idols and scatter your bones around your altars.

⁶Wherever you live, the towns will be in ruins and the high places desolate; your altars demolished and defiled; your filthy idols smashed and ruined; ⁷your incense burners knocked all around you; and you will know that I am the Lord. ⁸But I shall spare some of you. They will escape the sword and be scattered among the nations.

⁹Your survivors then will remember me among the people where they are exiled, for I shall break the adulterous hearts of those whose eyes lusted after their idols. They will loathe themselves for the evil they committed, for all their abominations. ¹⁰And they will know that I, the Lord, have not spoken in vain, in saying I would inflict this disaster on them.”

¹¹This is what the Lord said, “Clap your hands; stamp your feet and say: ‘Well done!’ when the people of Israel are falling by the sword, famine, and plague because of their abominations. ¹²He who is far away will die of the plague; he who is near will fall by the sword; whoever survives and is spared will die of starvation. Against them, I will exhaust my fury. ¹³And you will know that I am the Lord; when their people lie slain amid their idols; around their altars; on every high hill, on the mountain tops; under every green tree and spreading oak; and wherever they offered fragrant incense to all their idols. ¹⁴I will stretch out my hand against them; I will make their country a desolate wasteland, from the desert to Riblah, wherever they live; and they will know that I am the Lord.”

7 | ¹This word of the Lord came to me: ²“And you, son of man, listen to what the Lord God says to Israel:

³Finished! The end is coming for the four corners of the land. It is all over for you. I am unleashing my anger against you. I will judge you according to your ways and repay you for all your filthy practices. ⁴I will not look on you with pity; I will be merciless. I will bring against you what is fitting for your conduct and detestable practices, and you will know it is the Lord striking you.

⁵Thus says the Lord: Disaster! Disaster is coming! ⁶The end is near! It is your turn, you who live in the country. ⁷The time has come; the day is near! No joy, only panic on the mountains! ⁸I am unleashing my fury against you; my anger will exhaust itself on you. I will judge you according to your ways and your detestable practices. ⁹I will not look on you with pity; I will be without mercy. I will judge you according to your conduct and call you to account for your detestable practices. I will not look at you with pity and show you no mercy. I will give you what your conduct deserves. And you will know that I am the Lord when I strike you for your abominable practices.

¹⁰This is the day, the end is coming, the die is cast. For insolence has blossomed, pride bears its fruits ¹¹and violence reigns. No one will escape.

¹²The time has come; the day is here! Let not the buyer rejoice or the seller regret, for the punishment will fall upon all. ¹³The seller will not get back what he has sold, even though he survives, for the sentence regarding the multitude will not be reversed.

¹⁴They may sound the trumpet, make preparations, but no one will go to battle, for I am indignant with all. ¹⁵Outside, in the open, is the sword; plague and starvation in the houses. Those in the country will die by the sword; those in the city will be victims of famine and plague. ¹⁶Those who escape will go to the mountains, like doves, each moaning because of his sin.

¹⁷Every hand will be limp, every knee weak as water; ¹⁸they will put on sackcloth and shudder. All will be covered with shame, and every head will be bald.

¹⁹They will throw their silver in the streets, and their gold will be dropped like filth. Silver or gold will not save them on the day of the Lord’s anger. It will be useless to satisfy their hunger and to fill their stomachs, for it was their stumbling block, the cause of their sin.

²⁰They became proud of their splendid jewel (the temple), but they put into it their loathsome images and idols; that is why I will make it a horror. ²¹I will hand it over as plunder to foreigners and as booty to the most wicked of the land, and they will defile it.

²²I will take away my protection from them, and people will profane my treasure. Robbers will enter and desecrate it; ²³and within it, there will be massacres, for the land is full of violence.

²⁴I will bring the cruelest of the nations to take possession of their houses. I will break the pride of the violent, and their sanctuaries will be profaned.

²⁵Anguish is coming; they will seek peace, but there will be none. ²⁶Disaster will follow a disaster, rumor will follow a rumor. They will demand a vision from a prophet in vain. The priest will have no answer; the elders will be unable to advise. ²⁷The king will mourn; the princes will be overcome with grief, and the hands of the citizens will tremble.

I will treat them as their conduct deserves and judge them according to their deeds, and they will know that I am the Lord.

The Glory of the Lord Departs From the Temple

8 | •  ¹On the fifth day of the sixth month in the sixth year, I was sitting in my house with the elders of Judah sitting in front of me when the hand of the Lord fell heavily on me.

²I looked and saw a being as of fire. Downwards from what appeared to be his loins, there was the appearance of fire, and from his loins upward, a brightness like sparkling bronze. ³As he stretched out the form of a hand and took me by my hair, the spirit lifted me between heaven and earth; and brought me in a divine vision to Jerusalem, to the entrance of the inner gate facing north. There stands the idol, which provokes the Lord’s jealousy.

⁴And the glory of the God of Israel was there, similar to the vision I had seen in the plain. ⁵He told me, “Son of man, look to the north.” I looked toward the north, and, there, to the north of the altar gate, I saw this idol at the entrance, which provokes his jealousy. ⁶He said to me, “Son of man, do you see what they are doing? Do you see the great abomination that Israel commits here to drive me from my Sanctuary? You will see other abominations greater than this.”

⁷He then led me to the door of the court. ⁸He said, “Son of man, break through the wall.”

I broke through the wall and made an opening. ⁹He said, “Go in and see the wicked abomination they are committing here.” ¹⁰I went in, looked around, and saw all kinds of reptiles, repulsive beasts, and all the filthy idols of Israel portrayed on the wall all around.

¹¹Before them stood seventy men, elders of Israel, and among them was Jaazaniah, son of Shaphan. Each held a censer in his hand, and perfume rose from a cloud of incense.

¹²He said, “Do you see, son of man, what the elders of Israel do in the dark, each one in his room of pictures? For they think: the Lord does not see us; the Lord has forsaken the land.” ¹³Then he said, “You will see more of their great abominations.”

¹⁴He brought me to the entrance of the north gate of the house of the Lord; and, there, women were sitting, weeping for Tammuz. ¹⁵He said, “Did you see, son of man? You will see even greater abominations than these.”

¹⁶And he led me to the inner court of the house of the Lord; and at the door to the Lord’s Sanctuary, between the porch and the altar, were about twenty-five men, their backs to the temple, facing east, and worshiping the sun. He said to me, ¹⁷“Did you see, son of man? Is it not enough for Judah to commit the abominations that they commit here? See, they are waving the branch before their nose. ¹⁸I, too, will act against them in anger; my eye will not see with pity, and I will be without mercy. Though they cry loudly in my ears, I will not hear them.”

9 | ¹Then he shouted loudly in my ears saying, “The punishment of the city is near; see, each one of these has in his hand his instrument of destruction.” ²And six men came from the direction of the upper gate, which faces north, each one with his instrument of destruction. With them was a man clothed in linen, with writing material at his side. They came and stopped near the altar of bronze.

³Then the glory of the God of Israel rose from the cherubim, where it rested; and went to the house's threshold. The Lord called to the man clothed in linen who had the material for writing at his side, ⁴and he said to him, “Pass through the center of the city, through Jerusalem, and trace a cross on the forehead of the men who sigh and groan because of all the abominations committed in it.”

⁵I heard him say to the others, “Now you may pass through the city, after him, and strike. Your eyes shall not look with pity; show no mercy! Do away with them all—⁶old men, young men, virgins, children, and women—but do not touch anyone marked with a cross.”

And, as they were told to begin with the Sanctuary, they struck the elders in front of the temple. ⁷The Lord said to them, “Let the courts be filled with the slain and the temple be defiled with their blood: Go out!”

They went and slew the people in the city. ⁸While they were slaying the people, I fell on my face and cried out saying, “Ah, the Lord! Are you going to destroy all that is left of Israel and unleash your fury against Jerusalem?”

⁹He said to me, “The sin of Israel and Judah is very great; the land is filled with blood and the city full of perversion. For they say: ‘The Lord has forsaken the land; the Lord does not see.’ ¹⁰I, too, will be without pity; I will show no mercy; and I will bring their deeds upon their heads.”

¹¹Then, the man dressed in linen who had brought the writing kit reported, “I have done what you ordered.”

10 | ¹I looked and saw that, in the expanse over the heads of the cherubim, something resembling a sapphire stone in the form of a throne was there. ²He spoke to the man clothed in linen, “Enter by the space between the wheels under the cherubim; fill your hands with coals of fire from between the cherubim and scatter them over the city.” And I saw him as he entered.

³The cherubim stood at the temple's right when the man entered, and the cloud filled the inner court. ⁴Then the glory of the Lord rose from above the cherubim to the temple's threshold, and the temple was filled with clouds, while the court was filled with the radiance of the Lord’s glory.

⁵The noise of the cherubim’s wings could be heard as far as the outer court, similar to the voice of God Almighty when he thunders. ⁶Yet the man clothed in linen had been given the order to take the fire from between the wheels, in the space between the cherubim; so he went and stood beside the wheel. ⁷A cherub then stretched his hand towards the fire, in the space between the cherubim; then took some fire and gave handfuls to the man clothed in linen, who took them and went out. ⁸At that moment, I noticed this human hand under the cherubim's wings. ⁹I also saw four wheels beside the cherubim, each wheel beside a cherub. The wheels resembled the sparkle of yellow topaz. ¹⁰As for their appearance, the four had the same form; each was formed of two wheels placed crosswise, ¹¹so they could move following any of their four directions without turning as they went. ¹²In the direction the cherub’s head was turned, the wheels followed without turning. Their rims were full of eyes all around. ¹³In my hearing, the wheels were called “whirling.” ¹⁴(Each one had four faces, the first was the face of a cherub, the second, the face of a man, the third, the face of a lion, the fourth, the face of an eagle. ¹⁵The cherubim mounted up—they were the same creatures I had seen by the river Chebar).

¹⁶When the cherubim moved, the wheels moved at their side; and when the cherubim raised their wings to rise above the earth, the wheels did not depart from their side. ¹⁷When they stopped, the wheels stopped; when they rose, the wheels rose with them, for the spirit of the living creatures was in them.

¹⁸The glory of the Lord went from above the house's threshold to rest on the cherubim. ¹⁹Then the cherubim left, opening their wings and rising above the earth in my sight, and the wheels went with them. They halted at the east gate of the house of the Lord, and the glory of the God of Israel was over them.

²⁰These were the living creatures I had seen under the God of Israel on the banks of the river Chebar. I recognized them as cherubim. ²¹Each had four faces, each had four wings, and they had what seemed like human hands under their wings. ²²As for the appearance of their faces, they were the faces I had seen by the river Chebar, the same likeness. Each one went straight ahead.

The Leaders of the People Are Punished

11 | ¹Then the spirit lifted me up and brought me to the eastern gate of the Lord’s house, the one facing east; at the entrance to the gate were twenty-five men. Among them, I saw Jaazaniah, son of Azzur and Pelatiah, son of Benaiah, leaders of the people. ²The Lord told me, “Son of man, these men plot wickedness and give evil counsel in the city. ³They say: ‘Now there is no need for more houses! The city is the pot, and we are the meat!’ ⁴Because of that, prophesy against them, prophesy, son of man!”

⁵The spirit of the Lord seized me and said, “Speak! This is the word of the Lord: I know what you have said, Israel! I know what you are thinking. ⁶You have multiplied your victims in the city; you have filled the streets with the slain. ⁷That is why the Lord has spoken. The slain you have left in its midst; they are the meat; this city is the pot, and I will bring you out of it.

⁸The Lord says: Because you are afraid of the sword, I will send the sword against you. ⁹I will make you leave and deliver you over to foreigners, and I will pass sentence on you. ¹⁰You will fall by the sword.

I will judge you on the borders of Israel, and you will know that I am the Lord. ¹¹The city will not be like a pot to preserve you, nor will you be meat within her. ¹²And you will know that I am the Lord, for until now you have not walked according to my ordinances; you have not applied my laws, but, instead, you have acted according to the laws of the nations around you.”

¹³It happened that, while I was prophesying, Pelatiah, son of Beniah, died. I fell on my face and cried aloud saying, “Ah, Lord God! Are you to destroy even the remnant of Israel?”

¹⁴The word of the Lord came to me in these terms, ¹⁵“Son of man, these people have said of your brothers, your relatives, and all the exiled Israelites: ‘They are well, far from the Lord! He gave this land to us as our possession.’ ¹⁶Give them this word from the Lord: I, myself, have sent them far away, among the nations, and scattered them among the people; but I have been a sanctuary for them in the countries they entered.”

¹⁷For that reason, the Lord says, “I will gather you from among the people; I will group you together out of the countries where you were scattered and give you the land of Israel. ¹⁸When you have returned and removed all the horrors and abominations, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you.

¹⁹Yes, I will remove their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh; ²⁰that they may walk in my statutes, observe my laws and practice them; and they shall be my people, and I will be their God. ²¹As for those, whose hearts follow their horrors and abominations, I will punish them according to their deeds.”

²²Then the cherubim lifted up their wings, and the wheels went with them. ²³The glory of the God of Israel was over them.

The glory of the Lord rose, leaving the city to rest on the mountain that is to the east. ²⁴At that point, the spirit lifted me up and brought me to the exiles in Chaldea—all this happened in vision, by the power of the spirit of God—and the vision I had seen left me. ²⁵Then I told the exiles all that the Lord had shown me.

The Parable of the Exile

12 | •  ¹This word of the Lord came to me, ²“Son of man, you live amid a house of rebels: they have eyes for seeing but do not see; they have ears for hearing but do not hear; for they are a house of rebels. ³Because of this, son of man, prepare for yourself an exile’s baggage in their sight, as an exile does; and go as an exile, to another place, in their sight. Perhaps, they will see that they are a house of rebels.

⁴You will gather your things, an exile’s baggage, by day, to be seen by them, and you will leave in the evening for a departure of deportees. While they look on, ⁵dig a hole in the wall and leave from there. ⁶As they look on, shoulder your baggage and leave in the dark. Veil your face and do not look at the land, for I have made you a sign for Israel.”

⁷I did as I was ordered, gathering my things by day, an exile’s baggage, and, in the evening, I made a hole in the wall with my hand. I left in the dark, in their presence, shouldering my baggage.

⁸In the morning, the word of the Lord came to me: ⁹“Son of man, did not the Israelites, these rebels, ask you, ‘What are you doing there?’ ¹⁰Answer them on behalf of the Lord: This oracle concerns the prince in Jerusalem and all the Israelites remaining in the city.

¹¹Say, ‘I am a sign for you,’ for what I have done will happen to them: They will be deported, exiled. ¹²The prince among them shall shoulder his baggage in the dark and depart. They will dig a hole in the wall to bring him out. He will cover his face because he must not see the land with his eyes. ¹³I will spread my net over him, and he will be caught in its mesh. I will bring him to Babylon, in the country of the Chaldeans, but he will not see it, and it is there that he will die.

¹⁴As for all those who form his court, guard, and troops, I will scatter them to the winds and pursue them with the sword. ¹⁵They will know I am the Lord when I scatter them among the nations and disperse them in other countries. ¹⁶I will, however, allow a small number of them to escape the sword, famine, and pestilence; so they may confess their abominations among the nations where they will go, and they will know I am the Lord.”

¹⁷This word of the Lord came to me, ¹⁸“Son of man, trembling, you will eat your bread, and you will drink water in fear and anxiety. ¹⁹Say to the people, ‘This is what the Lord says regarding those who live in Jerusalem, in the land of Israel: In fear, they will eat their bread; and in affliction, they will drink their water; because the land will be desolate, stripped of all it contains, due to the violence of its inhabitants. ²⁰Inhabited cities will become ruins, the country a wasteland, and you will know that I am the Lord.”

The Word of God Will Be Fulfilled

•  ²¹The word of the Lord came to me in these terms, ²²“Son of man, what do you mean by this proverb: The days pass, and the visions do not come true? Why do you refer thus to what happens in Israel? ²³You shall say to them this word of the Lord: No more of this proverb. It will not be used in Israel, for the day is at hand when every vision will be fulfilled. ²⁴No longer will there be false visions or misleading divinations in Israel. ²⁵I, the Lord, will say what I want to say, and my words will be fulfilled. There will be no more delay; for it is in your days, rebellious people, that I will speak; and it will be done—word of the Lord.”

²⁶The word of the Lord was given to me in these terms, ²⁷“Son of man, this is what Israel says: ‘Ezekiel’s visions refer to the distant future; he prophesies for times far off.’ ²⁸Therefore speak to them: This is what the Lord says: There will be no further delay concerning my words: what I say will be done—word of the Lord.”

The False Prophets

13 | •  ¹The word of the Lord came to me again, ²“Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel, against those who prophesy on their own initiative. Say: Hear the word of the Lord! ³This is what the Lord says: Woe to the senseless prophets, who follow their inspiration without seeing anything! ⁴Your prophets, Israel, are like foxes among the ruins! ⁵They have not gone up to the breaches nor have they built a wall around Israel, so that she may hold out in battle on the day of the Lord. ⁶Their discourse is trickery and lies; they say: word of the Lord when the Lord has not sent them; and yet they wait for him to fulfill their word.

⁷Is it not a false vision you have seen? Have you not uttered lying divination? You say: oracle of the Lord when I have not spoken. ⁸But this is what the Lord says: Because of your false and lying revelations, I will oppose you—word of the Lord. ⁹My hand will strike the prophets whose revelations are delusions, whose predictions are lies. They will not be accepted among my people’s assembly, nor will they be inscribed in the register of the nation of Israel. They will not reenter the land of Israel—and you will know that I am the Lord.

¹⁰These prophets have misled my people, saying, “Peace!” when there is no peace. The people are building a wall, and these prophets daub it with whitewash. ¹¹Now say to those who daub it with whitewash: The wall will fall. I will send torrential rain, huge hailstones, and stormy winds, and see ¹²the wall will fall! Will you not be asked: Where is the whitewash you spread on it?”

¹³That is why the Lord speaks thus: In my fury, I will make a violent wind break out; and in my anger, I will send a torrential downpour; and my wrath will hurl destructive hailstones. ¹⁴I will destroy the wall you daubed with whitewash; I will level it to the ground, and its foundation will be laid bare. It will fall, and beneath it, you will be utterly destroyed, and you will know that I am the Lord. ¹⁵I will exhaust my anger against the wall and against those who daubed it with whitewash. Then, they will say to you: Where is the wall and where are those who whitewashed it, ¹⁶the prophets of Israel who prophesied to Jerusalem, and who had visions of peace, when there was no peace?”

¹⁷The Lord then said, “As for you, son of man, turn towards the women of your people, who prophesy on their own initiative; and prophesy against them. ¹⁸You will say: Woe to those who make magic bands for all wrists and veils for every size of the head—those women who ensnare souls! ¹⁹For the Lord God says: You who ensnare the lives of my people, will you preserve your own? You have dishonored me among my people for handfuls of barley and pieces of bread. Because of you, people die, who should not die, and people live, who should not live. For my people listen to you and your lies.”

²⁰That is why the Lord speaks, “I hate the wristbands with which you ensnare souls like birds. ²¹I will tear your veils and free my people from your hands. No more will they fall into your hands, and you will know that I am the Lord. ²²You have disheartened, with lies, the righteous whom I would never dishearten, and you have strengthened the wicked so that he might not turn away from his evil ways and save his life. ²³Because of that, I will no longer let you have false visions or practice divination. I will free my people from your clutches, and you will know that I am the Lord.”

I Will Not Allow Them To Consult Me

14 | •  ¹Some of the elders of Israel came and sat in front of me. ²Then the word of the Lord came to me, ³“Son of man, these men are keeping in their heart, and remain attached to, what makes them sin. Am I to allow them to consult me? ⁴Speak to them on my behalf: To every Israelite who goes to a prophet, while he keeps filthy idols in his heart, and is attached to what makes him sin, I, the Lord, will give the answer his many idols deserve.

⁵For I want to take hold of Israel’s heart, the heart of all those who have strayed from me, because of their filthy idols.

⁶So then, say to the people of Israel: Thus says the Lord: come back, turn away from your filthy idols; turn your face away from all your abominations. ⁷If a man of the people of Israel, or a guest staying in Israel, strays away from following me and goes to a prophet to consult me, while he keeps idols in his heart and remains attached to what makes him sin, I, the Lord, will answer him myself. ⁸I will turn my face against this man, make of him a proverbial example, strike him from the midst of my people; and you will know that I am the Lord.

⁹If the prophet lets himself be seduced and gives an answer, I, the Lord, will have let him be seduced. I will stretch out my hand against him and destroy him from among my people Israel.

¹⁰They will be responsible for their sin. The prophet will be as guilty as the one who consulted him, ¹¹that the people of Israel may no longer stray from me. Instead of defiling themselves with all their transgressions, they will be for me, a people, and I will be their God—word of the Lord.”

¹²The word of the Lord came to me in these terms, ¹³“Son of man, when a nation sins against me by being unfaithful, I will stretch out my hand against it and deprive it of bread; and famine will destroy people and animals. ¹⁴But if there were found in the land these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, they could only save themselves because of their righteousness—word of the Lord.

¹⁵If I also let wild beasts roam the land to deprive it of children; so that it becomes a desolation, without a passerby, because of the beasts, ¹⁶if these three men were in the land, as I live, word of the Lord, they would not save their sons or daughters. Still, only they would be spared while the land would be made desolate.

¹⁷The same would happen if I brought the sword against this land; and ordered the sword to go through the land, destroying people and animals. ¹⁸If these three men were in the land, as I live, word of the Lord, they would not save sons and daughters; but they, themselves, would be spared. ¹⁹Or if I sent pestilence to the land; and poured out my fury against it in bloodshed, to destroy people and animals, ²⁰if Noah, Daniel, and Job were in the land, as I live, word of the Lord, they would not save sons or daughters, but their own lives would be spared, because of their righteousness.”

²¹Now, the Lord says, “Although I have sent my four great punishments; sword, famine, wild beasts, and plague against Jerusalem to destroy people and animals, ²²there are survivors; sons and daughters, who will be brought out. They will come to you here, and when you see their way of life, and their deeds, you will no longer be shocked at the disaster I brought on Jerusalem and at everything that happened to her. ²³They will set your mind at rest when you see their conduct; and you will realize that not in vain, was all that I did in the city—word of the Lord.”

Israel: The Useless Vine

15 | •  ¹This word of the Lord came to me, ²“Son of man, in what way is the wood of the vine superior to that of any other tree in the forest? ³Do they take its wood to make anything? Do they use it to make a peg for hanging a tool?

⁴But now, they have used it as fuel; and the fire has burned it at both ends, leaving the middle charred. Is it then of any use? ⁵If it was of no use when it was whole, it will be even less when burnt in the fire.”

⁶That is why the Lord speaks thus, “I took the vine from among all the trees of the forest, and I gave it to the fire to be burned. This is how I have just dealt with those living in Jerusalem.⁷I will turn my face against them. Though they escaped from the fire, the fire will burn them; and you will know that I am the Lord when I turn against them. ⁸I will make the land desolate because they have been unfaithful—word of the Lord.”

The Unfaithful Bride

16 | •  ¹The word of the Lord came to me in these terms, ²“Son of man, make known to Jerusalem its sins. ³You say on my behalf: Your beginning was in Canaan; there, you were born. Your father was an Amorite and your mother a Hittite. ⁴On the day you were born, your cord was not cut; you were not bathed in water to make you clean; you were not rubbed with salt or wrapped in cloth. ⁵There was no one to look with pity on you; or compassionate enough to give you any of these attentions. You were left, exposed, in the open fields because you were looked upon with disgust on the day you were born.

⁶But I passed by and saw you struggling in your blood, and I said to you in your blood, “Live!” ⁷I made you grow like a plant of the field. ⁸You grew up and became tall and were becoming of marriageable age. Your breasts were formed, and your hair had grown, but you were naked and exposed. I passed by later and saw you were at the age of love, and I spread part of my garment over you to cover your nudity. I made a Covenant with you with an oath—word of the Lord—and you were mine. ⁹Then I bathed you in water; I cleansed you of your blood and anointed you with oil. ¹⁰I clothed you with embroidered cloth and put soft leather sandals on your feet. I dressed you in fine linen and covered you with silk. ¹¹I adorned you with jewelry, putting bracelets on your arms, a necklace around your neck, ¹²and a ring in your nose. ¹³I gave you earrings and a magnificent crown for your head. You were adorned with gold and silver; your clothing was fine linen, silk, and embroidered. You were fed the finest flour, honey, and oil; you became beautiful and rose to be queen. ¹⁴Your beauty was perfect, and your renown spread through the nations because of the splendor I had given you—the word of the Lord.

¹⁵But you relied on your beauty; you trusted in your fame, and you began to give yourself to every passerby, like a prostitute. ¹⁶With some of your garments, you made your high places, where you played the harlot (the like has never been and never will be). ¹⁷With my silver and gold, and with the ornaments that were your splendor, which I had given you, you formed male idols and gave yourself to them. ¹⁸With your embroidered garments, you covered them, and before them, you placed my oil and incense.

 ¹⁹You offered me the bread, which I gave you, the fine flour, the oil, and the honey with which I fed you, as fragrant incense before them, word of the Lord. ²⁰You took the sons and daughters you bore for me and sacrificed them as food to the idols. Was it not enough to prostitute yourself? ²¹Did you have to slaughter my children as an offering to your idols? ²²You revel in your abominations and prostitution without remembering the days of your youth when you were naked and exposed, lying in your blood.

²³Woe, woe to you—declares the Lord—for all this wickedness! ²⁴You built your mounds and made your high places at every crossroad. ²⁵At the entrance to every road, you built your lofty shrines; you defiled your beauty, giving yourself to every passerby and increasing your harlotry. ²⁶You gave yourself to the Egyptians, your large-limbed neighbors, and provoked my anger with your increasing promiscuity. ²⁷And I stretched out my hand against you, and reduced your territory, and gave you over to the mercy of your enemies, the daughters of the Philistines, who were shocked by your filthy ways.

²⁸You played the harlot with the Assyrians as well because you were never satisfied. Yes, you played the harlot with them, but you remained insatiable. ²⁹Then you multiplied your prostitutions in a land of merchants, Chaldea, and even with that, you were not satisfied. ³⁰Ah! How my anger rose against you, word of the Lord, as you did all that, the work of an accomplished harlot, ³¹when you built your mounds at the entrance to every road, and your shrines in every square! You were not like a prostitute because you scorned payments. ³²Adulterous wife! You prefer strangers to your husband. ³³All prostitutes receive fees, but you gave gifts to your lovers, bribing them to come to you for your favors. ³⁴In your prostitution, you have been different from other women; no one approaches you, and you offer payment; no one gives you any. You are completely different.

³⁵Therefore, harlot, hear the word of the Lord ³⁶This is what the Lord says, “For having exposed yourself, and uncovered your nakedness to your lovers, and your abominable idols, and, because you have offered them the blood of your children, because of that, ³⁷I will gather all the lovers that found pleasure in you and all those you loved, as well as those you hated; I will assemble them from all around, to come against you; and I will strip you before them, and they will see your nakedness. ³⁸I will judge you as adulterous women are judged, and as those who shed blood, and I will bring upon you the blood vengeance of anger and jealousy. ³⁹I will hand you over to them; they will tear down your mounds and shrines; they shall strip you of your clothes, taking from you the ornaments that were your splendor, leaving you naked and bare. ⁴⁰They shall bring a troop against you, to stone you, and gash you with swords. ⁴¹Your houses will be burned by fire. A sentence shall be passed on you in the presence of many women. I will make you cease your prostitution, and you shall no longer be hired. ⁴²But my jealousy shall leave you when I have exhausted my fury against you. I will be calm and no longer angry.

⁴³Because you did not remember the days of your youth and roused my anger with all these things, I, in turn, will make you responsible for all you did, word of the Lord. Have you not added detestable deeds to all your other abominations?

⁴⁴Every maker of proverbs will say of you: “Like mother, like daughter!” ⁴⁵You are the daughter of your mother, who loathed her husband and her children, and you are the sister of your sisters, who loathed their husbands and their children. Your mother was a Hittite, your father an Amorite. ⁴⁶Your elder sister is Samaria, who, with her daughters, lives on your left, and your younger sister, at your right, is Sodom, with her daughters. ⁴⁷You have followed their ways insanely and given yourself the same abominations. You have been more corrupt than them in every way. ⁴⁸As I live, the word of the Lord, Sodom, your sister, and her daughters have not done as you have.

⁴⁹The sins of Sodom, your sister, were pride, over-indulgence in food, complacency, and indifference to the poor and needy. ⁵⁰They were arrogant and did detestable things in my sight. For that reason, I destroyed them, as you have seen. ⁵¹As for Samaria, she has not committed half of your sins. Your abominations are more numerous than hers and, in comparison, make your sisters appear righteous. ⁵²So bear your disgrace, you, who have committed such detestable sins, that you have provided excuses to your sisters! They appear to be more righteous than you are. Be ashamed and bear your disgrace since your sisters seem holy compared to you.

⁵³When I restore the fortunes of Sodom and her daughters, I will restore your own fortunes in their midst, ⁵⁴that you may bear your shame and confusion, because, they now feel, they are better than you. ⁵⁵When your sister Sodom and her daughters, and Samaria with hers, will return to what they were before, you and your daughters will also return to what you were before. ⁵⁶Had not Sodom your sister become a byword for you; in the time when you felt proud; ⁵⁷before your wickedness had become known? But now, you have become the taunt of the daughters of Edom and all her neighbors, of the daughters of the Philistines, who, all around, show their disgust for you. ⁵⁸You shall bear the consequences of your foul behavior and abominations, the Lord's word.

That You May Be Put To Shame

•  ⁵⁹For thus says the Lord: “I will treat you as you deserve; you, who despised the oath and broke the Covenant. ⁶⁰But I will remember my Covenant with you in the days of your youth, and, make in your favor, an eternal Covenant. ⁶¹You will be mindful of your ways and be ashamed when I take your sisters, both the elder and the younger, and give them to you as daughters, without prejudice to my Covenant with you. ⁶²For I will uphold my Covenant with you; and you will know that I am the Lord, ⁶³so that you may remember, be ashamed, and never open your mouth again, because of your humiliation, when I have pardoned you for all you have done,” word of the Lord.

The Kings—David’s Sons

17 | ¹The word of the Lord came to me in these terms ²“Son of man, set a riddle; and relate a parable to the people of Israel. The Lord says this:

•  ³The great eagle with powerful wings, long feathers, and fine plumage of various colors came to Lebanon and removed the top of a cedar. ⁴He broke off the twigs' topmost, carried it off to a land of trade, and set it in a city of merchants. ⁵He then planted a seed of the land, like a willow in fertile soil, near abundant water. ⁶It grew and became a splendid vine, with spreading branches turned towards the eagle and roots growing deep. It became a vine, growing branches and producing foliage.

⁷But there was another great eagle with powerful wings and abundant plumage, and the vine twisted its roots and ⁸its branches towards him, to be better watered than in the soil where it was planted. That vine, however, could produce branches, bear fruit, and develop into a magnificent vine because it had been planted in a good field near abundant water.”

⁹The Lord says, “Will the vine prosper? Will the eagle not tear out its roots and cut away its fruit so that the foliage will wither and the vine dry up? Pulling up its roots will not require much effort or people. ¹⁰It has been transplanted, but it will not prosper. When the east wind blows, the vine will completely wither away. In the soil where it grows, it will wither!”

¹¹The word of the Lord came to me in these terms ¹²“Say to these rebellious people: Do you not recognize what all this signifies? The king of Babylon came to Jerusalem and carried the king and princes off to Babylon. ¹³Then he took a member of the royal family and made an alliance with him, binding him by oath. He also carried off the leading citizens ¹⁴ to keep the kingdom humble and unable to assert itself, and he obliged the king to respect the treaty. ¹⁵But the king rebelled against him and sent messengers to Egypt to ask for horses and a powerful army. Will he succeed? Will he escape after doing this? Will he escape after breaking the treaty? ¹⁶As I live, word of the Lord, he will die in the land of the king who put him on the throne, by whose oath he despised, and whose treaty he has broken. There, in Babylon, he will die.

¹⁷Pharaoh will not send a mighty army and throngs of men to help him in a war when ramps are built and siege works erected to kill many people. ¹⁸This king has despised the oath and broken the treaty. Because he did all these things after giving his hand, he shall not escape!

¹⁹That is why the Lord speaks thus: “As I live, I will make him account for the oath he despised and the treaty he broke. ²⁰I will spread my net over him, and he will be caught in its mesh. I will bring him to Babylon, and there, I will demand an account of his infidelity to me. ²¹As for the pick of his troops, they will fall by the sword; those who survive will be scattered to the winds, and you will know that I, the Lord, have spoken.”

²²Thus says the Lord: “At the top of the cedar, I will take one of its uppermost branches, a tender twig, and plant it. ²³On a lofty, massive mountain, on a high mountain of Israel, I will plant it. It will produce branches and bear fruit and become a magnificent cedar. Birds will nest in it and find shelter in its branches. ²⁴And all the trees of the field shall know that I am the Lord; I bring down the lofty tree and make the lowly tree tall. I will make the tree full of sap wither and the dry tree bloom. I, the Lord, have spoken, and this will I do.”

If a Sinner Turns Away From Sin, He Will Live

18 | •  ¹The word of the Lord came to me in these terms, ²“Why are you applying this proverb to the land of Israel: ‘The parents have eaten sour grapes and the children’s teeth are set on edge?’

³As I live, word of the Lord, this proverb will no longer be quoted in Israel. ⁴All life is in my hands; the life of the parent and the life of the child are mine. The lives of both are in my hands, so the one who sins will die.

⁵Imagine a man who is righteous and practices what is just and right. ⁶He does not eat at the mountain shrines, look towards the filthy idols of Israel, does not defile his neighbor’s wife, or have intercourse with a woman during her period, ⁷he molests no one, pays what he owes, does not steal, gives food to the hungry and clothes to the naked, ⁸demands no interest on a loan and doesn’t lend for interest, refrains from injustice, practices true justice, man to man, ⁹follows my decrees and obeys my laws in acting loyally. Because such a man is truly righteous, he will live, word of the Lord.

¹⁰But perhaps this man has a son, who steals and sheds blood, committing crimes which his father never did. ¹¹Perhaps the son eats at the mountain shrines, defiles the wife of his neighbor, ¹²oppresses the poor and needy, steals, neglects to pay his debts, looks to the idols, does detestable things, ¹³demands interest on a loan, even practices usury. Will such a man live? No, he will not! Because he has committed all these abominations, he will die: his guilt will fall upon him.

¹⁴But imagine that such a man has, in turn, a son who does not commit the sins he has seen his father do. ¹⁵He does not eat at the mountain shrines or look to the idols of Israel, does not defile his neighbor’s wife, ¹⁶or oppress anyone, or ask for a pledge on loan; does not steal; and gives food to the hungry and clothing to the naked, ¹⁷turns from injustice, exacts no usury or excessive interest; observing my decrees and practicing my laws: such a man shall not die because of his father’s sins; no, he will live!

¹⁸His father, instead, who practiced extortion and stole from others, will die for his sin because he did wrong among his people.

¹⁹You may say, ‘Why does the son not bear the guilt of his father?’ But the son did what was right, observing and practicing my decrees; he will live! ²⁰The person who sins is the one who will die. The son will not be held responsible for his father's sin, and the father will not be responsible for his son's sin. The righteous deeds of the righteous will be to his credit, and the sin of the wicked will be charged against him.

²¹If the sinner turns from his sin, observes my decrees, and practices what is right and just, he will live and not die. ²²None of the sins he committed will be charged against him; he will live as a consequence of his righteous deeds. ²³Do I want the sinner's death?—word of the Lord. Do I not, rather, want him to turn from his ways and live?

²⁴But if the righteous man turns away from what is good and commits sins as the wicked do, will he live? His righteous deeds will no longer be credited to him, but he will die because of his infidelity and sins.

²⁵But you say: the Lord’s way is not just! Why, Israel! Is my position wrong? Is it not rather that yours is wrong? ²⁶If the righteous man turns from his righteous deeds and sins, then he dies because of his sins. ²⁷And if the wicked man does what is good and right, he will save his life after turning from the sins he committed. ²⁸He will live and not die because he has opened his eyes; and turned from the sins he had committed.

²⁹But you, Israel, say: the Lord’s way is not just! Is my position not just? Is it not yours that is wrong? ³⁰That is why I will judge you, Israel, each one according to his ways, word of the Lord. Come back, turn away from your offenses, that you may not deserve punishment.

³¹Free yourselves from all the offenses you have committed and get a new heart and spirit. Why should you die, Israel? ³²I do not want the death of anyone, word of the Lord, but that you be converted and live!”

The Last Kings of Judah

19 | •  ¹As for you, son of man, intone a lamentation for the princes of Israel. ²Say: A lioness among lions was your mother! Crouching among the cubs, she nursed her whelps. ³One of these she pushed forward, and he grew to be a young lion, able to tear his prey and become a man-eater.

⁴But the nations heard about him, and he was trapped in their pit, and they brought him with hooks to the land of Egypt. ⁵When she saw that her hope had come to nothing, she took other cubs and made him a young lion. ⁶He strutted among the others, for he had become a strong lion, able to tear his prey and be a man-eater.

⁷He destroyed their strongholds and ravaged their towns. The country and its inhabitants were alarmed at the sound of his roar. ⁸But the nations came against him from the region roundabout. They spread their net over him and caught him in their pit. ⁹They put him in a cage with hooks and brought him to the king of Babylon. There, he was put in custody so that his roar was no longer heard in the mountains of Israel.

¹⁰Your mother was like the vine of a vineyard planted near water. It became fruitful and leafy from being so well-watered. ¹¹It produced a vigorous branch that became a royal scepter towering above the foliage. It was outstanding for its height and its numerous branches.

¹²But the vine was uprooted in fury and cast down to the ground. The east wind dried it up and stripped it of its fruit. Its vigorous branch withered and was burned by fire. ¹³It is now planted in the desert, in an arid land of drought. ¹⁴Fire from its stem has destroyed its branches and fruit. No vigorous branch or royal scepter has been left.

This is a lament that people will sing.

A Summary of the History of Israel

20 | •  ¹It happened on the tenth day of the fifth month of the seventh year; some men from among the elders of Jerusalem came to consult the Lord; and sat in front of me. ²Then the word of the Lord came to me in these terms, ³“Son of man, say to the elders of Israel: This is the word of the Lord: Do you come to consult me? As I live, I will not answer you—word of the Lord.

⁴Judge them, son of man, will you judge them? Let them know about the detestable practices of their fathers. ⁵Say to them:

This is what the Lord has said: The day I chose Israel, I committed myself to the descendants of Jacob with an oath. I revealed myself to them in the land of Egypt and I swore to them, I am the Lord, your God. ⁶On that day, I swore to them that I would take them out of Egypt to a country I had explored for them, a land flowing with milk and honey, the most splendid of lands.

⁷I told them: Let each one reject the horrors that attract him! Do not defile yourselves with the idols of Egypt. I am the Lord, your God.

⁸But they rebelled against me and would not listen; none of them rejected the horrors that attracted them, and none abandoned the filthy idols of Egypt. I then thought of pouring out my fury on them, exhausting my anger against them in the land of Egypt. ⁹ Still, for the sake of my Name, I relented, lest it be profaned in the sight of the nations where they lived, whose inhabitants had seen how I revealed myself to the Israelites in bringing them out of Egypt.

¹⁰So I brought them out of Egypt and led them to the desert. ¹¹I gave them my decrees; and made my laws known to them, laws by which man lives provided he observes them. ¹²I also gave them my Sabbaths, to be a sign between us, letting them know that I am the Lord who makes them holy.

¹³But Israel rebelled against me in the desert. They did not follow my decrees; they despised my laws, by which man lives, provided he obeys them; they so profaned my Sabbaths that, in my fury, I thought of destroying them in the desert.

¹⁴But, again, I relented, for my Name's sake, lest it be profaned in the sight of the nations who saw me bring them out. ¹⁵However, I swore to them in the desert that I would not bring them to the land flowing with milk and honey that I had given them—the choicest of lands—¹⁶because they had despised my laws; and had not followed my decrees; they had profaned my Sabbaths, and their heart went after their idols. ¹⁷But I had pity on them and did not destroy them; I did not do away with them in the desert.

¹⁸I said to their children in the desert: Do not follow the example of your fathers; do not keep their practices and do not defile yourselves with their idols. ¹⁹I am the Lord, your God. Follow my decrees, observe my laws, and practice them. ²⁰Keep my Sabbaths holy, and let them be a sign between us; and you will know that I am the Lord, your God.

²¹But their children, too, rebelled against me. They did not follow my decrees or observe my laws; they did not carry out these laws, by which man lives, provided he obeys them. They profaned my Sabbaths, and I thought of pouring out my fury on them and exhausting my anger against them in the desert.

²²But, once more, I held back my hand, lest my name be profaned in the eyes of the nations that had seen me bring them out. ²³However, I swore to them in the desert, that I would scatter them among the nations, and disperse them in other lands, since they had not obeyed my laws; ²⁴but, instead, had defiled my Sabbaths; and had looked to the idols of their fathers. ²⁵In the meantime, I gave them statutes that were not good and laws they could not live by ²⁶so they might be defiled by their gifts. I let them offer by fire all their firstborn, to shame them; and let them know that I am the Lord.

²⁷Therefore, son of man, speak to Israel; say to them: This is what the Lord says: Do you not know that your fathers offended me by their infidelity? ²⁸I led them to the land I had sworn to give them, but they offered sacrifices whenever they saw a lofty hill or leafy tree. They provoked me with their offerings—appeasing aromas and drink offerings. ²⁹Then I asked them, ‘What is this place to which you go?’ That is why they called it “high place.”

³⁰Say to Israel, thus says the Lord: Since you follow your fathers, in lusting after their abominations, ³¹in bringing your gifts, and in sacrificing your children by fire, never ceasing to defile yourselves with your idols, am I to answer when you consult, Israel? As I live, word of the Lord, I will not answer you.

³²You have in mind to be like the other nations, worshiping wood and stone, but this shall not happen. ³³As I live, word of the Lord, I will rule you with an iron hand, an outstretched arm, and outpourings of wrath. ³⁴Then I will bring you from the midst of the nations and from the people where I have scattered you with a strong hand, an outstretched arm, and outpourings of wrath. ³⁵I will lead you to the wilderness of Syria, and ³⁶there I will enter into judgment with you face to face. Just as I judged your fathers in the desert of Egypt, ³⁷so will I judge you, word of the Lord. I will make you feel my rod and sort you out. ³⁸I will rid you of rebels; though they go out from the land of their exile, they shall not enter the land of Israel; and you will know that I am the Lord.

³⁹People of Israel, this is what the Lord God says: Go, serve your idols; but, in the end, you will not refuse to listen to me. No longer shall you profane my holy name with your gifts and your idols. ⁴⁰For it is on my holy mountain, the high mountain of Israel—word of the Lord—that all Israel, all in the land, shall serve me. ⁴¹There, I will accept you, as a pleasing fragrance, when I bring you out from the nations; and assemble you from the lands where you were dispersed; and through you, my holiness will be shown to the nations.

⁴²You will know that I am the Lord when I lead you to the land of Israel, to the land that I swore to your ancestors, that I would give you. ⁴³And, there, you will remember your ways and all your deeds, by which you defiled yourselves; and you shall loathe yourselves because of your evil ways. ⁴⁴You will know that I am the Lord when I deal with you, Israel, for my name’s sake, and not according to your wickedness and corrupt deeds, word of the Lord.

21 | ¹The word of the Lord came to me in these terms, ²“Son of man, look towards the south; direct your words to the south; and prophesy against Forest of the south. ³Say to the forest: ‘O forest, hear the word of the Lord: I am kindling a fire that will burn every tree, both green and dry; its flame will not be quenched; but from the south to the north, every face will be scorched. ⁴Everyone will see that I, the Lord, kindled it; it will not be put out.” ⁵I said, “Lord God, they say that I am always talking in parables.”

My Sword Is Unsheathed

⁶But the word of the Lord came to me in these terms, ⁷“Son of man, look towards Jerusalem; address your words to the Sanctuary and prophesy against Israel. ⁸Say to Israel: I come against you; I will unsheathe my sword and cut off from you both the good and the wicked. ⁹Yes: against both the good and the wicked. My sword is unsheathed against all mortals from north to south. ¹⁰And all will know that I, the Lord, have unsheathed my sword; and unsheathed it will remain.”

¹¹And you, son of man, groan in the bitterness of a broken heart, groan in their presence. ¹²When they say to you, ‘Why are you groaning?’ you will answer: ‘Because of what will happen; when you hear of it, every heart will melt, every hand becomes limp, every spirit will be faint, and knees shall be as weak as water.’ It is to happen; it has come, word of the Lord God.”

¹³The word of the Lord came to me in these terms, ¹⁴“Son of man; prophesy, and say on my behalf: The sword has been polished and sharpened. ¹⁵It has been sharpened for a massacre. ¹⁶The Lord gave it to be polished and seized by the hand. He has had the sword sharpened and polished to hand to the executioner.

¹⁷Cry out and wail, son of man, for this sword is intended for my people and the princes of Israel. They shall be given over to the sword, with my people; beat your breast, word of the Lord.

^18-19And you, son of man, prophesy and clap your hands! The sword will strike, and strike again, for the slaughter, for the massacre. ²⁰Hearts languish, and people fall, for I have placed at every gate the sword, for slaughter. ²¹It has been sharpened and polished. O sword! slash to the right, slash to the left, wherever you turn. ²²For my part, I clap my hands and release my fury; I, the Lord, have spoken.”

²³The word of the Lord came to me in these terms, ²⁴“Son of man, mark two roads for the coming of the king of Babylon’s sword. The two should leave from the same point. ²⁵At the head of each road, place a sign, the first, directing the sword to Rammah of the Ammonites, and the second, to Judah and the fortified city of Jerusalem. ²⁶The king of Babylon, in fact, is now standing at the parting of the ways, at the head of both roads, looking for an omen. He is shaking arrows, questioning the idols, and looking at the victims' livers.

²⁷The lot falls upon Jerusalem. Then he raises a war cry, ‘Set a battering ram at the gates, construct a ramp, and erect siege works.’ ²⁸Those who have sworn allegiance to him in Jerusalem do not dare believe it, but he remembers their guilt, and they are captured. ²⁹That is why the Lord has spoken: Your evil deeds have brought to mind your wickedness and made known your sins. And when I remembered you, sin appeared in all your deeds. Because of this, you will be taken captive.

³⁰As for you, dishonored criminal, prince of Israel, the day and moment of your punishment has come. ³¹They will remove your turban; take away your crown. All will be changed: what is lowly will be lifted high, and what is lofty will be brought low. ³²I will make it a ruin, a ruin such as never has been, until the one comes whose right it is to rule, the one I shall send.

³³And you, son of man, prophesy and say: This is the Lord’s word concerning the Ammonites and their insults. You are to say this: The sword is unsheathed for the slaughter, polished, and flashing for the work of destruction. ³⁴Beware of your false visions and lying omens when your sword is laid to the necks of the wicked, for their time has come, and their punishment is near. ³⁵People of Ammon put back the sword in its sheath. You will be judged in your own place, in the land of your birth. ³⁶I will pour out my wrath on you; against you, I will breathe the fire of my fury; and hand you over to brutal men, experts in destruction. ³⁷You will be fuel for the fire; your blood will be spilled through the land; and you shall be remembered no more, for I, the Lord, have spoken.”

The Sins of Jerusalem

22 | •  ¹The word of the Lord came to me in these terms, ²“Son of man, will you judge them? Will you judge the city of blood? Charge her with all her detestable practices. ³Say: This is the Lord’s word: City of bloodshed, your hour has come. You, who made your own idols to defile yourself, are nearing your last days; the end of your years has come. ⁴That is why I am making you an object of horror for the nations and a laughingstock for every country. ⁵Those, both near and far, will mock you, for your name is defiled, and you are full of tumult. ⁶The leaders of Israel, each according to his strength, have one intent—to shed blood. ⁷In you, Israel, father and mother are treated with contempt; in you, the alien is oppressed, the fatherless and the widow are wronged. ⁸You have despised my holy things and profaned my Sabbaths.

⁹In you, men slander to shed blood; in you, they go to eat on the hill Sanctuaries and act shamefully. ¹⁰In you are those who defile their father’s bed; in you are those who violate women when they are unclean. ¹¹One man commits a detestable offense with his neighbor’s wife, another shamefully dishonors his daughter-in-law, and another violates his own sister, his father’s daughter.

¹²In you, men accept bribes to shed blood. You exact interest and usury, rob and exploit your neighbor, and have forgotten me. It is the Lord who speaks.

¹³See, I will clap my hands at your dishonest profit and the blood you have shed. Will your courage hold out, will your hands be steady when I come against you? ¹⁴I, the Lord, have spoken; and I will act accordingly. ¹⁵I will scatter you among the nations and disperse you in other countries to rid you of your uncleanness.

¹⁶Then, you will be dishonored in the eyes of the nations; and you will know that I am the Lord.”

¹⁷The word of the Lord came to me in these terms ¹⁸“Israel has become for me like dross; some were like silver, bronze, tin, iron, and lead; but, in the furnace, only dross is left. ¹⁹The Lord God has spoken: This is how I am gathering you together in Jerusalem. ²⁰As they place silver, bronze, iron, lead, and tin in the fires of a furnace to be smelted, so, in my anger, will I assemble you, to put you in the furnace and smelt you. ²¹I will gather you, in Jerusalem, to stir up the fire of my wrath, and smelt you in it. ²²As silver is smelted in the furnace, so will you be smelted; and you will know that I, the Lord, have poured out my fiery wrath against you.”

²³The word of the Lord came to me in these terms: ²⁴ “Son of man, say to Jerusalem: You are a land without rain, a land without a shower on a day of wrath; 25 a land where the princes have been like a roaring lion tearing its prey. They devour people, take treasures and precious objects, and increase the number of widows.

²⁶Your priests have broken my laws and profaned my holy things. They have made no distinction between what is holy and what is common, and they have not taught the difference between the clean and the unclean. They have ignored my Sabbath, and I have been dishonored by them.

²⁷The officials of the city are like wolves who tear their prey, shedding blood and killing people for unjust gain. ²⁸As for the prophets, they whitewash everything by false visions and lying predictions, saying: ‘The Lord has spoken’ when the Lord has not spoken. ²⁹The lords of the land have practiced extortion and robbery, oppressing the poor and needy, molesting the alien, and denying him justice.

³⁰I looked for a man among them to build a wall and stand on the breach to protect the land, lest I destroy it, but I found none. ³¹So I have poured out my wrath against them; I have destroyed them in the heat of my fury; bringing down on their heads all they have done—it is the Lord who speaks.”

Oholah and Oholibah

23 | ¹The word of the Lord God came to me in these terms ²“Son of man, there were two women, daughters of the same mother. ³They became prostitutes in Egypt, even from their youth. In that land their breasts were fondled and caressed. ⁴The elder was called Oholah, her sister Oholibah. Both of them were mine, and they gave me sons and daughters. Oholah is Samaria and Oholibah is Jerusalem.

•  ⁵Oholah was mine when she played the harlot; she lusted after her lovers, the Assyrians; ⁶warriors, dressed in purple; governors, commanders; desirable young men, riders on horses. ⁷She offered them her harlotry to those who were the best of Assyria. She dishonored herself with all those for whom she lusted and with their idols. ⁸But she did not forget her harlotry with the Egyptians, who had lain with her and poured their lust on her from the time of her youth. ⁹That is why I gave her over to her lovers, the Assyrians, the object of her lustful desires. ¹⁰They uncovered her nakedness, seized her sons and daughters, and slew her. And she became a byword among women because punishment had come to her.

¹¹Her sister, Oholibah, witnessed this, but she was even more corrupt in her lust and worse than her sister in her prostitution. ¹²She lusted after the Assyrians; governors, commanders, horsemen, all desirable young men; and ¹³I saw how she dishonored herself.

Both sisters acted similarly, but she went further than her sister. ¹⁴No sooner had she seen men portrayed on walls, pictures of Chaldeans sketched in vermilion, than she lusted after these men, ¹⁵tightly belted, heads top-heavy with turbans, all resembling Babylonian cavalry officers. ¹⁶She sent messengers to Chaldea, and ¹⁷ they came to her in the bed of love and defiled her with their prostitution. They dishonored her so much that she turned from them in disgust.

¹⁸But because she had given herself and exposed her nakedness, I, too, turned from her in disgust, just as I had turned away from her sister. ¹⁹She multiplied her harlotry, recalling her youth when she played the harlot in Egypt. ²⁰She lusted after her lovers, whose bodies were like those of donkeys and whose organs resembled those of horses. ²¹She returned to the shameful conduct of her youth with the Egyptians.

²²That is why, Oholibah, thus says the Lord: I am sending against you your lovers, from whom you have turned away in disgust; and I will bring them against you from all sides, ²³Babylonians and Chaldeans, men of Pekod, Shoa, and Koa, and all the Assyrians with them; handsome young men, governors, commanders, cavalry officers, titled people, all riding horses.

²⁴They will come against you with chariots, wagons, and throngs of people, who will assail you from all sides, with buckler, shield, and helmet. ²⁵I will put your case before them, and they will judge you according to their laws. I will release my jealousy against you so they will deal with you furiously. They will cut off your nose and your ears, and what is left of you will fall by the sword. They will seize your sons and daughters, and what is left of you will be consumed by the fire; ²⁶they will strip you of your clothes and ornaments.

 ²⁷I will put an end to your shameful behavior and your harlotry, dating from your time in Egypt; you will not look towards them again; and will no longer dream of Egypt. ²⁸Thus says the Lord God: I am handing you over to those you hate, to those from whom you turned in disgust. ²⁹They will treat you with loathing and take from you everything you have worked for, leaving you naked and uncovered, and the nakedness of your harlotry will be exposed. ³⁰Your shameful conduct and your promiscuity have brought this upon you because you lusted after the nations and defiled yourself with their idols.

³¹Since you have gone the way of your sister, I will place her cup in your hand. ³²Thus says the Lord: You shall drink your sister’s cup, which is deep and wide. You shall be the butt of derision and mockery: the cup holds so much! ³³You shall be filled with drunkenness and sorrow; it is a cup of desolation and horror, the cup of Samaria, your sister!

³⁴You will drink and empty it to the dregs, and then tear your breasts—for I have spoken, word of the Lord God.”

³⁵That is why the Lord God speaks thus: “Since you have forgotten me and turned your back on me, you, too, will pay for your immodesty and harlotry!”

³⁶Then the Lord said to me, “Son of man, will you judge Oholah and Oholibah? Confront them with their abominations, ³⁷for they have committed adultery and stained their hands with blood. They committed adultery with their idols and even sacrificed their children—my children—as food for them. ³⁸At that time, they defiled my Sanctuary and profaned my Sabbaths; ³⁹the same day they sacrificed their children to their idols, they entered my Sanctuary to desecrate it. This is what they did in my house.

⁴⁰Both sent messages to men who had come from afar, and they came. You bathed yourself for them, painted your eyes, and decked yourself with jewels. ⁴¹You seated yourself on a stately couch beside a table, on which you put incense and oil, which was mine.

⁴²The sound of a carefree crowd was heard there because of their number, not to mention the people brought in from the desert. They put bracelets on the wrists of the women and splendid crowns on their heads. ⁴³Then I said about this city, worn out and defiled with her adultery: This is indeed harlotry! ⁴⁴Men go to her as one goes to a prostitute. So they went to Oholah and Oholibah, the dissolute women!

⁴⁵But upright men will judge as adulterous those who have shed blood, for, indeed, they are adulteresses; and blood is on their hands.”

⁴⁶For thus says the Lord: “Let a great assembly be gathered against them! Let them be delivered to terror and spoil! ⁴⁷The assembly will stone them, have them cut in pieces by the sword, kill their sons and daughters, and burn their houses.

⁴⁸I will put an end to debauchery in this land; all the women will be warned, and no longer will they imitate your immorality. ⁴⁹I will make your immorality fall on your heads, and when you receive the punishment of your idolatry, you will know that I am the Lord.”

24 | ¹The word of the Lord came to me on the tenth day of the tenth month of the ninth year, in these terms, ²“Write today’s date, this very day, because the king of Babylon has laid siege to Jerusalem today. ³Teach these rebellious people using a parable: The Lord ordered me to Put the pot on the fire; place it there and pour water into it. ⁴Put all the pieces of meat, the choice pieces, the leg and shoulder, and fill it with the best of the bones. ⁵Take these from the pick of the flock. Set wood underneath it, in a circle, to boil the pieces of meat and cook the bones in it.”

⁶The Lord says, “Woe to the city of blood, to the rusty pot with the rust encrusted on it! Let them empty it, piece by piece, but without sparing anyone, ⁷for the blood she shed is in her midst. She poured it on the rock surface, not on the ground where dust would cover it. ⁸But I will not cover the blood that was poured on the bare rock. I shall, instead, kindle my fury and take revenge.

⁹That is why the Lord God speaks thus: Woe to the city of blood! ¹⁰I will make a great heap of wood! Pile on the wood, light the fire; cook the meat well, adding the spice; and let the bones burn. ¹¹Leave the empty pot on the coals, that it may heat; and the bronze grows red-hot, to melt the filth inside, so its rust will be consumed.

¹²But the rust is such, that not even the fire removes it. ¹³ I have tried to cleanse you of the filth of your immorality; but since you would not be cleansed, you shall not be cleansed until I have satisfied my fury against you. ¹⁴I, the Lord, have spoken. This will happen; I will act and not relent; I will show no pity, no compassion. You shall be judged according to your ways and deeds—the Lord's word.”

Ezekiel’s Wife Dies

•  ¹⁵The word of the Lord came to me in these terms ¹⁶“Son of man, I am about to suddenly take from you the delight of your eyes, but you are not to lament or weep or let your tears flow. ¹⁷Groan in silence and do not mourn for the dead; wear your turban, put on your sandals, do not cover your beard or eat the customary food of mourners.”

¹⁸I spoke to the people in the morning, and my wife died that evening. The next morning I did as I had been commanded. ¹⁹Then, the people told me, "Explain to us the meaning of your actions.” ²⁰I said to them, “The word of the Lord came to me in these terms: ²¹‘Say to Israel: I am about to profane my Sanctuary, your pride, the delight of your eyes for which you long. The sons and daughters you left behind will also fall by the sword, ²²but you will do as I have done: you will not cover your beard or eat the customary food of mourners; ²³you will keep your turbans on your heads and sandals on your feet. You will not lament or weep. Instead, because of your sin, you will waste away and groan among yourselves. ²⁴Ezekiel will be a sign for you. Do as he did; when this happens, you will know I am the Lord.’

²⁵Son of man, the day I take their stronghold, the jewel which is the delight of their eyes, for which they and their children long, ²⁶on that day, a fugitive will come to give you the news. ²⁷That very day, you will open your mouth and be able to speak to him; and you will no longer be silent. You will be a sign for them, and they will know I am the Lord.”

Prophecies Against Foreign Nations

Ammon, Moab, Edom, the Philistines

25 | •  ¹The word of the Lord came to me in these terms, ²“Turn towards the people of the Ammonites and prophesy against them. ³Say to them on my behalf: This is what the Lord says: Because you mocked when my Sanctuary was profaned, when the land of Israel was laid waste, and the Judeans were exiled, ⁴I am giving you over to the people of the East as their possession; they will pitch their camps and settle among you. They will eat your fruit and drink your milk. ⁵I will turn Rabbah into a pasture for camels and the towns of the Ammonites into a sheepfold, and you will know that I am the Lord.”

⁶Thus says the Lord: “Because you clapped your hands and stamped your feet, and danced for joy with an evil heart, against the land of Israel, ⁷I will stretch out my hand against you, and hand you over as plunder to the nations. I will cut you off from the nations; no longer will you be numbered among them. I will destroy you, and you will know I am the Lord.”

⁸Thus says the Lord, “Because Moab said: ‘Judah is like all the other nations,’ ⁹I will leave Moab unprotected and destroy the towns which are her glory: Beth-jeshimoth, Baalmeon, Kiriathaim. ¹⁰I will give Moab, along with the Ammonites, as a possession to the people of the East, so that the Ammonites will not be remembered among the nations. ¹¹When I will punish Moab, they will know I am the Lord.”

¹²Word of the Lord, “Because Edom took revenge on Judah and was guilty in so doing, this is what ¹³the Lord says: I will stretch out my hand against Edom, destroying people and animals. I will make it a ruin from Teman and let them be slain as far as Dedan. ¹⁴I will put Israel in charge of my revenge against Edom. They will deal with Edom according to my wrath and my fury, and Edom will experience my revenge”—word of the Lord.

¹⁵Word of the Lord, “Because the Philistines have taken revenge with an evil heart, and because of their ceaseless hatred, thus says the Lord: ¹⁶I intend to stretch out my hand against the Philistines; I will cut off the Cherethites and destroy the rest of the coast. ¹⁷I will take terrible revenge and punish them in my wrath—then they will know I am the Lord.”

Against Tyre

26 | ¹On the first day of the month in the eleventh year, the word of the Lord came to me in these terms, ²“Son of man, you see how Tyre has mocked Jerusalem: ‘Aha! The land through which the nations' goods came to me is destroyed; what she received will now be mine; I shall prosper while she lies in ruins.’ ³Because Tyre said that—word of the Lord—I am against her! I will bring many people against her. They will rise like the waves of the sea, ⁴destroy the ramparts of Tyre, and knock down its towers. I will sweep away the dust, making it a bare rock. ⁵She will be in the midst of the sea, a place to hang out nets—I, the Lord, have spoken.

⁶Tyre should become plunder for the nations; her villages on dry land will be laid waste by the sword, and they will know that I am the Lord.”

⁷This is what the Lord says, “From the north, I will bring Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, against Tyre. He will come with horses, chariots, cavalry, a vast army, and throngs of people. ⁸He will lay waste with the sword your villages on dry land. He will set up a siege wall against you and throw up a mound, and raise a roof of shields against you. ⁹He will set a battering ram to hammer your walls, and he will demolish your towers with weapons. ¹⁰His numerous horses will cover you with dust. The noise of the cavalry, the wheels of the chariots, and wagons will shake your walls when they enter your gates, as one enters a town through a breach in its walls.

¹¹Horses’ hooves will trample your streets; he will slay your people with the sword, and your powerful pillars will crumble to the ground. ¹²They will plunder your riches and loot your merchandise. They will break down your walls and destroy your pleasant houses. Your stones, timber, and soil they will cast into the sea.

¹³I will silence your songs, and the sound of your lyres will be heard no more. ¹⁴I will make a stark rock of you, a place to dry fishing nets; and you shall never be rebuilt!—I, the Lord, have spoken.

¹⁵This is a word of the Lord to Tyre: At the time of your massacre, will not the coastlands quake when the noise of your fall and the groaning of the victims is heard? ¹⁶All the princes of the sea will step down from their thrones; they will remove their robes and take off their embroidered garments. They will put on mourning clothes, sit on the ground, tremble with fear, and be appalled because of you. ¹⁷They will be amazed at your account and will take up this lament:

‘How you have perished, vanished from the sea, city of renown! Formerly, you and your citizens were so powerful on the sea! You imposed terror on all ¹⁸but now, the coastlands tremble on the day of your fall. The islands of the sea are terrified of your disappearance.’

¹⁹Thus says the Lord: When I make you into a city of ruins, like uninhabited towns, when I make the ocean rise against you, and the mighty waters cover you, ²⁰then I will thrust you down, with those who descend to the pit, to the people of long ago. I will throw you into the netherworld, into everlasting loneliness, like those who go down to the pit, and you may not return to the land of the living. ²¹Then you will be an object of horror, and even if sought, you will not be found—word of the Lord.”

A Lament for Tyre

27 | •  ¹The word of the Lord came to me in these terms, ²“Son of man, intone a lament for Tyre and ³say to her, who is the gateway to the sea, who trades with people on many coasts: This is what the Lord says:

Tyre, you were satisfied with your perfect beauty. ⁴Your borders were in the heart of the sea and your builders perfected your beauty; ⁵all your planks were made of the wood of fir trees, your masts, from the cedars of Lebanon; and ⁶your oars from the oak of Bashan. Your decks were of cedar from the coast of Cyprus, inlaid with ivory.

⁷Embroidered linen from Egypt was used for your sails, serving as your ensign. Your awning was made of blue and purple from the coasts of Elishah. ⁸Your oarsmen were citizens of Sidon and Arvad. The most skilled men from Tyre served you as sailors, ⁹veteran craftsmen from Gebal were on board to seal your seams. All the ships of the seas with their crews called on you to barter for your wares.

¹⁰Persia, Lud, and Put served in your army as men of war. They brought you splendor and hung their bucklers and helmets on your walls. ¹¹The men of Arvad and Helech watched all around your walls; men of Gamad guarded your towers and hung their shields on your walls, completing your magnificence.

¹²Tarshish traded with you because of your abundant wealth, supplying your markets with silver, iron, tin, and lead. ¹³Javan, Tubal, and Meshech trafficked with you, providing you with slaves and bronze articles.

¹⁴People from Beth-Togarmah exchanged workhorses, war horses, and mules for your wares. ¹⁵The people of Rhodes traded with you, and many coastlands were your customers; in payment, they gave ivory tusks and ebony wood. ¹⁶Edom trafficked with you because of your many products and provided your markets with turquoise and purple fabric, embroidered cloth, fine linen, coral, and rubies. ¹⁷Judah and Israel sold you wheat from Minnith, millet, honey, oil, and resin. ¹⁸Damascus traded with you because of your abundant wares, providing you with wine from Helbon and white wool.

¹⁹Danites and Greeks from Uzal exchanged wrought iron, cassia, and calamus for your merchandise. ²⁰Dedan supplied you with saddle blankets. ²¹Arabia and all the princes of Kedar carried on a lively trade with you in lambs, rams, and goats.

²²Merchants from Sheba and Raamah provided your markets with all kinds of high-grade spices, precious stones, and gold. ²³Haran, Canneh, Eden, Asshur, and Chilmad ²⁴traded with you in beautiful garments, blue fabric, embroidered cloth, and colored rugs with twisted and tightly knotted cords. ²⁵The ships of Tarshish carried your merchandise.

You lay filled and heavy

in the midst of the ocean.

²⁶Your mariners led you to the high sea, and the east wind wrecked you in the sea.

²⁷Your riches, wares, merchandise,

your seamen and sailors,

those who repaired your seams,

and assured your trade;

your men of war, with all the passengers, sank into the depths of the sea,

on the day of your shipwreck.

²⁸At the cries of your seamen, the coasts quaked ²⁹and the oarsmen came from their ships;

sailors and seamen went ashore.

³⁰They mourn and weep bitterly for you, throw dust on their heads, and roll in ashes.

³¹Because of you, they shave their heads and wear sackcloth.

In the bitterness of their hearts, they weep and intone a bitter lament for you.

³²A funeral song is heard:

Who was like Tyre, now silent

in the midst of the ocean?

³³How many nations have you provided

with the goods unloaded from distant shores!

With your abundant riches and commerce, you enriched the kings of the earth;

³⁴but now, you are shattered by the sea, engulfed in its depths.

Your wares and all your company have gone down!

³⁵All who live on the coasts are appalled because of you,

their kings shudder and fall prostrate.

³⁶The merchants of the nations hiss at you;

you are an object of dread.

You have gone forever.”

About the King of Tyre

28 | ¹The word of the Lord came to me in these terms ²“Son of man, say to the prince of Tyre:

You are very proud and self-satisfied:

‘I am a god; I sit like a god in the heart of the sea.’

Yet you are a man and not a god;

would you hold yourself as wise as God?

³You consider yourself wiser than Daniel;

no secret is hidden from you.

⁴Your wisdom and know-how have earned you a fortune,

gold and silver flowed to your treasury.

⁵Clever in trade, you became wealthy

and, as your fortune increased,

your heart became prouder.

⁶But now, the Lord has spoken to you,

to the one who is like God:

⁷I am bringing foreigners against you,

the most feared of all the nations.

Their sword will challenge your wisdom and debase your refined culture.

⁸They will bring you down to the pit

and you will die in the depths of the sea.

⁹Will you be able to say ‘I am a god’

when your murderers are killing you?

You are a man and not a god.

¹⁰You will die the death of the uncircumcised and perish at the hands of aliens,

for I have spoken—word of the Lord.”

¹¹The word of the Lord came to me in these terms, ¹²“Son of man, intone a lamentation for the king of Tyre and say to him: This is what the Lord says:

You were the model of perfection,

full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.

¹³You lived in Eden, the garden of God;

and every kind of precious stone adorned you,

ruby, topaz, emerald, chrysolite, onyx and jasper, sapphire, turquoise and emerald.

The trinkets on your robe were made of gold,

prepared for you on the day you were created.

¹⁴I anointed you a guardian angel,

on the holy mountain of God,

where you walked amidst the spirits of God.

¹⁵You were perfect in your ways,

from the day you were created,

until wickedness was found in you.

¹⁶Because of your extensive trade

you were filled with violence and sinned;

I then deprived you of your dignity,

driving you away from the mountain of God,

expelling you from among the guardian angels;

¹⁷your heart was proud because of your beauty.

As your splendor corrupted your wisdom, I have cast you down to the ground,

and exposed you before kings,

a spectacle in their sight.

¹⁸Your many sins and dishonest trade

have filled and defiled your Sanctuaries.

Then I made a fire break out in you;

and reduced you to ashes on the ground in the sight of all who looked on.

¹⁹The nations who knew you are appalled.

You have become an object of terror; you have gone forever.”

²⁰The word of the Lord came to me in these terms ²¹“Look towards Sidon and prophesy against her. You will say:

²²Thus says the Lord: I come against you, Sidon, and I will be glorified in you. When I inflict punishment on her and make known my holiness, they will know I am the Lord. ²³I will send pestilence against her and shed blood in her streets. The sword is directed against her from all sides, and they will know I am the Lord when the victims fall.

²⁴No longer will there be, for the people of Israel, thorns that wound, or briers that prick them, among their neighbors. Then they will know that I am the Lord.

²⁵Thus says the Lord: When I gather Israel from among the nations where she has been dispersed, I will use them to show the nations my holiness; and they will live in the land I gave to my servant Jacob. ²⁶They will live safely, build houses, and plant vineyards. They will live in safety when I punish all those neighbors who treated them with contempt, and they will know that I am the Lord, their God.”

Against Egypt

29 | ¹On the tenth day of the twelfth month of the tenth year, the word of the Lord came to me in these terms, ²“Son of man, look towards Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and prophesy against all Egypt. ³Say: This is the word of the Lord: I am against you, Pharaoh, king of Egypt! Huge monster, wallowing in the midst of your streams saying: ‘The Nile and its canals are mine; I made them.’ ⁴I will put hooks in your jaws and make the fish of your rivers cling to your scales. I will drag you from your rivers with all the fish clinging to your scales. ⁵I will throw you, and the fish of the rivers, into the desert. You will fall on the ground with no one to lift you up or bury you. I will give you as food to the wild beasts and to the birds of the air, and ⁶all who live in Egypt will know I am the Lord.

You have been but a staff of reed for Israel. ⁷When they took hold of you, you broke in their hands; you tore open all their shoulder; when they leaned on you, you wrenched their backs. ⁸That is why thus says the Lord: I am bringing the sword against you, and I will destroy both people and animals. ⁹Egypt will be a wasteland and ruins, and the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord when Egypt is made ruins and a wasteland.

You said: ‘The Nile is mine; I made it.’ ¹⁰Because of that, I am coming against you in the midst of your streams. I will reduce Egypt to lonely ruins from Migdol to Aswan and to the border of Cush. ¹¹Neither foot of man nor hoof of an animal will tread its paths. Egypt will be uninhabited for forty years; ¹²I will make it one of the wastelands; and, for forty years, its cities will be numbered among ruins. I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations and disperse them in other lands.

¹³Thus says the Lord: After forty years, I will gather the Egyptians from among the nations where they were dispersed; ¹⁴I will bring back Egyptian captives to Pathros, the land of their birth. There, they will form a small kingdom, ¹⁵weaker than other kingdoms, no longer strong enough to dominate other nations. ¹⁶I will decrease their number so that they may no longer conquer other lands. No longer will Israel be tempted to trust in Egypt, nor will they sin by turning to Egypt for help. Then they will know that I am the Lord.”

¹⁷It happened on the first day of the first month of the twenty-seventh year that the word of the Lord came to me in these terms:

¹⁸“Son of man, Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, has mobilized his army for an expedition against Tyre. All are worn out, bald-headed, their shoulders raw, but neither he nor his people have received any reward for this campaign against Tyre.

¹⁹That is why, says the Lord, I intend to give Egypt to Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon. He will take its riches, plunder it, and let his army have the loot in place of wages. ²⁰Because these people have worked for me, I will give Egypt to them as a reward—the word of the Lord.

²¹On that day, I will lift up the nation of Israel, and, as for you, I will let you speak among them again; and they will know that I am the Lord.”

30 | ¹The word of the Lord came to me in these terms, ²Son of man, prophesy and say: This is the word of the Lord: Wail, ³“Alas, the day is here!” The day of the Lord is coming! It will be a day of clouds, a time of doom for the nations. ⁴The sword is brought to strike Egypt, and anguish will come to Cush. The slain will fall throughout Egypt; people will carry off its riches, and its foundations will be torn away. ⁵Cush, Put, and Lydia, all Arabia, Libya, and the Covenant's people will fall by the sword.

⁶This is the word of the Lord: “Those who support Egypt will fall; her haughty power will crumble! From Migdal to Aswan, people will be slain, word of the Lord. ⁷They will be numbered among desolate lands and her cities among ruined cities. ⁸They will know I am the Lord when I set fire to Egypt; and when all her allies are crushed.

⁹On that day, my messengers will leave in ships to shake the people of Cush out of their complacency, and they will be in anguish on the day of the fall of Egypt, for that day is coming.

¹⁰Thus says the Lord: I will end the hordes of Egypt using Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, and ¹¹his people with him, the most feared among the nations. For I will lead them here to destroy the land.

They will draw their swords against Egypt and fill the land with victims. ¹²I will dry up Egypt’s canals and hand over the country to the wicked. I will use the hand of the foreigner to make the land, and all it contains a waste. I, the Lord, have spoken.

¹³This is the word of the Lord: I will destroy the idols and wipe out the false gods in Memphis. No longer will there be a prince in the land of Egypt; and I will put fear in the land. ¹⁴I will make a wasteland of Pathros, set fire to Zoan, and inflict punishment on Thebes. ¹⁵I will pour out my fury on Pelusium, the fortress of Egypt, and destroy the throngs of Thebes.

¹⁶I will set fire to Egypt; Pelusium will writhe in agony. They will enter Thebes through a breach and take her by storm. ¹⁷The young men of On and Pi-beseth will fall by the sword, and the women will be taken captive. ¹⁸What a dark day it will be in Tahpanhes when I break the leadership of Egypt and destroy her arrogant might! As for this city, a cloud will cover it; and her daughters will be taken captive. ¹⁹I will inflict punishment on Egypt, and they will know I am the Lord.”

²⁰On the seventh day of the first month of the eleventh year, the word of the Lord came to me, ²¹“Son of man, I have broken the arm of Pharaoh, king of Egypt. No one has treated it for healing or bandaged it to enable him to hold a sword. ²²That is why thus says the Lord: See, I am against Pharaoh, king of Egypt. I will break his arms, both the one that is strong and the wounded one as well. ²³I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations and disperse them in other lands. ²⁴I will strengthen the arm of the king of Babylon and put my sword in his hand; but as for Pharaoh, I will break his arms, making him moan like a mortally wounded man. ²⁵Yes, I will strengthen the arm of the king of Babylon but make Pharaoh’s arm limp. They will know I am the Lord when I place my sword in the hand of the king of Babylon. ²⁶I will scatter the Egyptians among the nations and disperse them in other lands, and they will know that I am the Lord.”

31 | •  ¹On the first day of the third month of the eleventh year, the word of the Lord came to me, ²“Son of man, say to Pharaoh, king of Egypt and to his multitude: Who is comparable to you in your greatness? ³You are like a very tall cedar in Lebanon, with beautiful branches providing forest shade, with its top among the clouds.

⁴It grew. The waters made it grow, and the streams ascending from the deep springs that watered all the land's trees through the canals flowed straight to its place. ⁵Higher than all the other trees, its boughs increased, and its branches grew larger because of the plentiful water. ⁶The birds of the air nested in its boughs, and all the animals brought their young under its branches. Numerous nations lived in its shade.

⁷It became majestic in height, and the thickness of its branches, for its roots were turned towards plentiful water. ⁸The other cedars in the garden of God could not equal it. The pine trees could not equal its boughs, or the plane trees rival its branches. No other tree in God’s garden was comparable to it in beauty. ⁹I made it beautiful in the abundance of its branches, the envy of the trees in the garden of God in Eden.

¹⁰That is why thus says the Lord: Because it grew tall and reached the clouds and became proud, ¹¹I will hand it over to the ruler of the nations, who will treat it according to its wickedness. I have rejected it. ¹²Foreigners, the most terrible among the nations, have felled it, cut it down on the mountains: its boughs have fallen in all the valleys, its branches lie broken in ravines. All the nations have fled from its shade and abandoned it. ¹³The birds of the air alight on its broken boughs, and the animals are found among its fallen branches. ¹⁴This prevents well-watered trees from reaching such heights and reaching the clouds. All are destined to die and go below, among those who descend to the pit.

¹⁵Thus says the Lord: The day the cedar descended to the netherworld; I made the depths mourn for it. I restrained its rivers and held back the abundant waters. Darkness covered Lebanon, and all the trees of the field were faint. ¹⁶The nations were shaken at the noise of its fall; when I made it depart to the lower regions, with those who go down to the pit. Then, all the trees from Eden, the finest trees of Lebanon, and all well-watered, were comforted in the earth below. ¹⁷Those from among the nations who lived in its shade also went down, together, to those slain by the sword. ¹⁸O tree, splendid and glorious, who among the trees of Eden was comparable to you? But you were made to go down to the lower regions, like the other trees of Eden. You lay among the uncircumcised people, victims of the sword; you, Pharaoh, and all your multitudes, word of the Lord.”

32 | ¹On the first day of the twelfth month in the twelfth year, the word of the Lord came to me in these terms, ²“Intone a lamentation for Pharaoh, king of Egypt. You will say: Lion of the nations, you are lost! You were like a monster of the sea, thrashing the water in the rivers, stirring and muddying the water with your feet.

³This is what the Lord says: I will spread my nets over you, and an assembly of many nations will haul you up into my net. ⁴I will throw you on the ground, hurl you into the open field, and let the birds of the air settle on you and the beasts of the earth feed on you. ⁵I will scatter your flesh on the mountains, fill the valleys with your remains and ⁶drench the earth with your liquids. When I blot you out, ⁷the skies will darken and the stars dim; I will veil the sun with a cloud, and the moon shall not give its light. ⁸Because of you, I will darken all the lights in the sky and cover the earth in darkness, word of the Lord.

⁹Many nations will grieve when I spread the news of your fall, even people you do not know; ¹⁰their kings will shudder because of you when I wave my sword before them. They will tremble for their life on the day of your fall.

¹¹For thus says the Lord: The sword of the king of Babylon is coming against you. ¹²The sword of the warriors, the most terrible among the nations, will destroy your numerous people. They will shatter the pride of Egypt, and your multitudes will be exterminated. ¹³I will destroy all your cattle along the shores of the great river, no longer to be trodden by man or beast. ¹⁴And then, I will calm their rivers; and their streams will flow like oil, word of the Lord. ¹⁵When I make a wasteland of Egypt and destroy its inhabitants, striking all those who live there, they will know that I am the Lord.

¹⁶This is the dirge the nations' cities will chant for Egypt and its multitudes—the word of the Lord.”

¹⁷On the fifteenth day of the month, in the eleventh year, the word of the Lord came to me in these terms, ¹⁸“Son of man, wail for the multitudes of Egypt and make them descend to the netherworld. ¹⁹I will send them to the land of shadows, with those who go down to the pit. ²⁰There, they will meet all the victims of the sword. Egypt has been taken; she has been dragged away with her multitudes. ²¹The mighty heroes in the netherworld and Pharaoh’s allies will say to her: ‘Why should you be more favored than others? Come down, and make your bed with the uncircumcised, with those fallen by the sword.’

²²Assyria is there with her entire army; she is surrounded by the tombs of her victims, fallen by the sword. ²³Their graves are at the bottom of the pit, and her army lies around her tomb; all those who spread terror in the land of the living have been killed by the sword.

²⁴Elam is there, with all her multitude around her tomb, all slain, fallen by the sword. They are the uncircumcised, who have gone down to the lower regions, those who spread terror in the land of the living, ²⁵among the dead; they have made a bed for her, along with all her hordes around her grave. All of them are uncircumcised, killed by the sword, for their terror had spread in the land of the living. They bear their shame, along with those who descend to the pit; they are placed among the dead.

²⁶Meshech and Tubal are there, with the tombs of their multitude around them. All these uncircumcised are there, pierced by the sword, for they spread terror in the land of the living. ²⁷They are not lying with the heroes of former times, who went to the grave with all their gear of war; the heroes, whose terror filled the land of the living, lie with their swords placed under their heads, their shields over their bones.

²⁸You, instead, will be among the uncircumcised victims of the sword.

²⁹Edom is there with her kings and princes, who, despite their bravery, lie with those fallen by the sword. They are placed with the uncircumcised and with those who go down to the pit. ³⁰All the princes of the north are there, and all the Sidonians, who have gone down in disgrace, with the slain, despite the terror caused by their power. They are shamed and lie with the uncircumcised victims of the sword. They bear their shame with those who go down to the pit.

³¹When Pharaoh and all his army see them, he will be comforted because of all his multitudes killed by the sword, word of the Lord. ³²Although I had him spread terror in the land of the living, Pharaoh will be laid among the uncircumcised victims of the sword, he and his multitudes, word of the Lord.”

The Reestablishment of Israel

The Prophet—Watchman of the People

33 | •  ¹The word of the Lord came to me in these terms ²“Son of man, speak to your people and say to them: Imagine that I bring the sword against a country, and the people of that country choose one among them to be their sentry. ³When this man sees the sword approach the land, he shall sound the trumpet to warn the people; ⁴then, if anyone hears the trumpet, and does not heed the warning, he shall be responsible for his own death; ⁵but the man who gave the warning will save his life. ⁶Conversely, when the sentry sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, the people are not warned, and some are killed. In that case, I will hold the sentry responsible, and he will answer for the victims’ death.

⁷For your part, son of man, I have set you as a watchman for Israel; and when you hear my word, you must give them my warning. ⁸When I say to the wicked: ‘Wicked man, you shall die for sure,’ if you do not warn the wicked man to turn from his ways, he will die because of his sin, but I will also call you to account for his blood. ⁹If you warn the wicked man to turn from his ways and he does not do so, he will die for his sin; but you, yourself, will be saved.

¹⁰Son of man, you know the people of Israel say: ‘We are wasting away because of our sin, and our wrongdoing is weighing us down. How can we live?’ ¹¹Say to them: As I live, word of the Lord, I do not want the wicked to die, but rather that they turn from their ways and live. Turn! Turn from your wicked ways! Why, O Israel, should you die?

¹²You, son of man, say to your people: The righteous life of the upright will not save him on the day he turns to sin, and the wicked man will not be bound to his wickedness on the day he turns from his evil ways; likewise for the upright: he will die. ¹³When I have said to the righteous: ‘You will live,’ if he takes advantage of his righteousness to do evil, his former upright life will not be remembered; the evil he is doing will make him die. ¹⁴And if I say to the wicked man, ‘You will certainly die,’ but he then turns from his sin and does what is just and right, ¹⁵gives back what he took as a pledge on loan, restores what he has stolen, obeys the decrees that are life-giving and avoids evil, he will live, he will not die. ¹⁶His life, in sin, will no longer be held against him. He has done what is just and right, and because of that, he will live.

¹⁷Yet your people say, ‘The position of the Lord is not just.’ On the contrary, it is theirs that is wrong. ¹⁸The upright man who turns from what is just and right, and does evil, shall die; ¹⁹and the wicked man, who turns from evil to do what is just and right, shall live! ²⁰Though you say: ‘The Lord’s position is wrong,’ I will judge you, Israel, each one according to his ways.”

²¹On the fifth day of the tenth month in the eleventh year of our exile, a fugitive arrived from Jerusalem to tell me: “The city has fallen.”

²²Now, the hand of the Lord had been on me the evening before the arrival of the fugitive. When I met him in the morning, the Lord opened my mouth. My tongue was loosened, and I was no longer silent.

²³The word of the Lord then came to me in these terms, ²⁴“Son of man, those who remain among the ruins in the land of Israel reckon: ‘Abraham was alone when he received the land as a possession; we are still numerous enough, and it is to us that the country has been given.’

²⁵But you will say to them: thus says the Lord: You eat food with blood, you look towards idols, you shed blood, and you want to possess the land! ²⁶You lean on your sword; you do what is detestable; each one dishonors his neighbor’s wife; yet, you want to possess the land!

²⁷Say to them: This is the word of the Lord: As I live, those who settled among the ruins will fall by the sword; those in the open country, I will give as food to the beasts, and those in strongholds and caves shall die of the plague. ²⁸I will make the country a wasteland, a lonely place. They will no longer lean on their power, and the mountains of Israel shall be deserted, with no one crossing them. ²⁹Then they will know that I am the Lord when I make their country a lonely waste because of all the detestable things they have done.

³⁰Son of man, your people talk about you along the walls and at the doors of the houses; each one with his neighbor: ‘Come and hear the latest word of the Lord.’

³¹They go to you as they go to an assembly and sit in front of you. They listen to your words but do not do what you say. Instead, they continue to lie and look only for their interest. ³²For them, you are no more than a singer of love songs—a beautiful voice accompanied by beautiful music. They listen but do not practice what they hear.

³³But when what is foretold comes true—and it is about to happen—they will know there was a prophet among them.”

The Shepherds of Israel

34 | •  ¹The word of the Lord came to me in these terms, ²“Son of man, speak on my behalf against the shepherds of Israel! Say to the shepherds on my behalf: Woe to the shepherds of Israel, who feed themselves! Should not the shepherds feed the flock? ³But you feed on milk, are clothed in wool, and slaughter the fattest sheep. You have not taken care of the flock; ⁴you have not strengthened the weak, cared for the sick or bandaged the injured. You have not gone after the sheep that strayed or searched for the one that was lost. Instead, you ruled them harshly and were their oppressors. ⁵They have scattered for want of a shepherd and become prey of wild animals. ⁶My sheep wander over the mountains and high hills, and when they are scattered throughout the land, no one bothers about them or looks for them.

⁷Hear, then, shepherds, what the Lord says: ⁸As I live—word of the Lord—because my sheep have been the prey of wild animals and become their food for want of shepherds, because the shepherds have not cared for my sheep, because you, shepherds have not bothered about them but fed yourselves, and not the flocks, because of that, ⁹hear the word of the Lord. ¹⁰This is what the Lord says: I will ask an account of the shepherds and reclaim my sheep from them. No longer shall they tend my flock, nor shall some shepherds feed themselves. I shall save the flock from their mouths, and no longer shall it be food for them.

¹¹Indeed, the Lord says, I will care for my sheep and watch over them. ¹²As the shepherd looks after his flock when he finds them scattered, so will I watch over my sheep; and gather them from all the places where they were scattered in a time of cloud and fog. ¹³I will bring them out from the nations and gather them from other countries. I will lead them to their own land; and pasture them on the mountains of Israel, in all the valleys and inhabited regions of the land. ¹⁴I will take them to good pastures on the high mountains of Israel. They will rest where the grazing is good and feed in lush pastures on the heights of Israel. ¹⁵I will tend my sheep and let them rest, word of the Lord. ¹⁶I will search for the lost and lead back the strays. I will bind up the injured and strengthen the weak, but the fat and strong will be eliminated. I will shepherd my flock with justice.

¹⁷As for you, my flock—says the Lord—I will distinguish between one sheep and another and set apart rams and goats. ¹⁸Was it not enough for you to feed on good pasture? Why did you trample under your feet the rest of the pasture? Were you not satisfied with drinking clear water? Why did you muddy the rest with your feet? ¹⁹Must my sheep feed on what you have trampled; and drink what you have muddied with your feet?

²⁰That is why thus says the Lord God to the shepherds: Here I am. I, myself, will judge between the fat sheep and the lean. ²¹Because with flank, shoulder, and horns you butt the weak sheep until you have driven them away, ²²I will rescue my flock, and no longer will they be plundered. I will judge between one sheep and another.

²³I will put one shepherd over them, my servant David, who will tend them, pasture them, and be a true shepherd for them. ²⁴I, the Lord, will be their God and my servant David, a ruler among them. I, the Lord, have this to say: ²⁵I will make a Covenant of peace with them and rid the land of wild beasts so that they may live safely in the desert and sleep in forests. ²⁶I will settle them on my holy mountain, sending them rain in season, showers of rich blessings. ²⁷The trees of the field will give their fruit and the soil its produce, while they are safe in their land; and they will know that I am the Lord.

I will break the bars of their yoke and free them from the power of those who enslave them. ²⁸No longer will they be plundered by the nations or ravaged by wild beasts. They will live in security, without anyone causing them to fear. ²⁹I will give them splendid crops; people will not die of hunger; and no longer will you be scorned by other nations. ³⁰This people will know that I, the Lord, am their God; and that I am with them; and that they, Israel, are my people—word of the Lord. ³¹You are my sheep, the flock of my pasture, and I am your God, declares the Lord.”

Against Edom

35 | •  ¹The word of the Lord came to me, ²“Son of man, set your face against the mountain of Seir; prophesy against it ³and say: Thus says the Lord: I come to strike you, mountain of Seir! I have stretched out my hand against you, and I will make of you a mournful solitude. ⁴I will reduce your towns to ruins, make you a desolation; and you shall know that I am the Lord.

⁵I know your long-standing enmity; and how you handed over the people of Israel to the sword in the day of their disaster, when their sins reached an end. ⁶Because of that, as I live, word of the Lord, I intend to give you over to bloodshed, and bloodshed will pursue you. ⁷I will make of the mountain of Seir a mournful solitude; and destroy all who come and go there. ⁸The mountains will be filled with the slain; the victims of the sword will fall on your hills, in your valleys and ravines. ⁹I will reduce you to desolate ruins forever; no longer will your towns be inhabited; and then you will know that I am the Lord.

¹⁰You said: ‘These two nations and countries will be mine. We shall take possession of them; ‘you disregarded the Lord, who was there. ¹¹Because of that, as I live, declares the Lord, I will deal with you according to your hatred towards them; and I will make myself known among them when I judge you. ¹²Then you will know that I, the Lord, have heard all the insults uttered against the mountains of Israel, such as: ‘They are devastated and have been given over to us to be devoured.’ ¹³For I heard when you boasted against me without restraint.

¹⁴Thus says the Lord: You will be desolate when all the earth rejoices. ¹⁵Since you rejoiced when the inheritance of Israel became deserted ruins, that is how I will deal with you. You will become a desert, Mount Seir, and Edom likewise, and people will know I am the Lord.”

Israel Shall Be Gathered Together

36 | ¹“Son of man, prophesy regarding the mountains of Israel; say to them: Mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord: ²Your enemies have said: ‘Aha! These eternal heights have become our possession.’ ³People have envied you and ravaged you on all sides; other nations have taken possession of you so that you became the subject of talk and gossip. Because of that, ⁴mountains of Israel hear this word of the Lord. The Lord says to the mountains, the hills, the ravines, and the valleys, to the deserted ruins and the empty towns which have become the plunder and target of mockery for other nations around: ⁵Truly in the fire of my jealousy, I will speak against the other nations, namely all of Edom, who, with glee and malice in their hearts, have taken possession of my land and plundered its pastures.

⁶Now, you shall prophesy concerning Israel. You shall say to the mountains, the hills, the ravines, and the valleys: This is the word of the Lord, who speaks in the fury of his jealousy! Because you have suffered the scorn of the nations, ⁷the Lord says: I swear with uplifted hand, the nations surrounding you will suffer scorn. ⁸But you, mountains of Israel, you shall bring forth branches, and produce fruit for my people Israel, for soon they will return.

⁹I have turned in your direction and bent towards you; you will be cultivated and sown with seed. ¹⁰I will increase your population in all of Israel; the towns will be inhabited, and the ruins will be rebuilt. ¹¹Both people and animals will increase; they will be fruitful and multiply. I will build up their numbers as in the past, and they will know I am the Lord. ¹²Men and women of Israel will walk on you again. They will take possession of you; you will be their heritage again, and never again will you let their children perish.”

¹³The Lord speaks, “People say that you devour men and that you rob your people of children. ¹⁴But never again shall you devour men or rob your people of children—word of the Lord. ¹⁵You shall no longer hear the mockery of the nations or suffer the insults of other lands—word of the Lord.”

¹⁶The word of the Lord came to me in these terms, ¹⁷“Son of man, when Israel occupied her own land, she defiled it, by her way of life and her actions. To me, her conduct was like the uncleanness of a woman in her period.

¹⁸I poured out my fury on them because of the blood they shed in the land and because they defiled it with their filthy idols. ¹⁹I scattered them among the nations and dispersed them in other lands. I judged them according to their conduct and their actions.

²⁰But when they were brought to other nations, my holy name was profaned because others said of them: ‘The people of the Lord had to be exiled from his land!’ ²¹Then I was concerned for my holy name, profaned by Israel among the nations where she had been dispersed. Now you shall say to the people of Israel:

A New Heart

•  ²²It is not for your sake that I am about to act, but because of my holy name, you have profaned in the places where you have gone. ²³I will make known the holiness of my great name, profaned among the nations because of you; and they will know that I am the Lord when I show them my holiness among you.

²⁴For I will gather you from all the nations and bring you back to your own land. ²⁵Then I shall pour pure water over you, and you shall be made clean—cleansed from the defilement of all your idols. ²⁶I shall give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you. I shall remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. ²⁷I shall put my spirit within you and move you to follow my decrees and keep my laws. ²⁸You will live in the land I gave your ancestors; you shall be my people, and I will be your God.

²⁹I will free you from all your uncleanness. I shall summon the wheat and make it plentiful so as to keep famine away from you. ³⁰I shall see that the fruits of the earth and the produce of the fields are plentiful; and that you no longer suffer the disgrace of famine among the nations.

³¹Then you will remember your evil ways and wicked actions and loathe yourselves for the sins you committed and for your detestable practices. ³²I want you to know that it is not for your sake; I am doing this, word of the Lord. Be ashamed and humbled because of your conduct, Israel! ³³This is what the Lord says: The day I cleanse you from all your sins, I shall repopulate the cities, and the ruins will be rebuilt. ³⁴The devastated land will be cultivated wherever passers-by see it desolate. ³⁵Everyone will say, ‘This devastated land is now a garden of Eden, and its cities, once in ruins and leveled to the ground, have been rebuilt and populated.’ ³⁶And the nations that remain around you will know that I, the Lord, have rebuilt the ruined city and replanted what was desolate. I, the Lord, have spoken; and I will do it.

³⁷Thus says the Lord: I shall listen to Israel's plea and favor them again. I shall make their people as numerous as sheep, ³⁸ as numerous as the flock they bring to Jerusalem’s temple at the time of her holy days. In the same way, the ruined cities will be filled with flocks of people, and they will know that I am the Lord.

“Dry Bones, Hear the Word of the Lord”

37 | •  ¹The hand of the Lord was upon me. He brought me out and led me in spirit to the middle of the valley, which was full of bones. ²He made me walk to and fro among them, and I could see there was a great number of them on the ground, all along the valley; and that they were very dry.

³The Lord asked me, “Son of man, can these bones live again?” I said, “Lord God, only you know that.” ⁴He then said, “Speak on my behalf concerning these bones; say to them:

Dry bones hear the word of the Lord! 5 The Lord says: I am going to put a spirit in you and make you live. ⁶I shall put sinews on you and make flesh grow on you; I shall cover you with skin and give you my spirit that you may live. And you will know that I am the Lord.”

⁷I prophesied as I had been commanded, and then, there was a noise and commotion; the bones joined together. ⁸I saw that they had sinews, that flesh was growing on them, and that he was covering them with skin. But there was no spirit in them.

⁹So the Lord said, “Speak on my behalf and call on the spirit, son of man! Say to the spirit: This is the word of the Lord: spirit, come from the four winds. Breathe into these dead bones and let them live!”

¹⁰I prophesied as he had commanded me, and breath entered them; they came alive, standing on their feet —a great, immense army!

¹¹He told me, “Son of man, these bones are all Israel. They keep saying: ‘Our bones are dry, hope has gone, it is the end of us.’ ¹²So prophesy! Say to them: This is what the Lord says: I am going to open your tombs; I shall bring you out of your tombs, my people; and lead you back to the land of Israel. ¹³You will know that I am the Lord, O my people! when I open your graves and bring you out of your graves; ¹⁴when I put my spirit in you, and you live. I shall settle you in your land, and you will know that I, the Lord, have done what I said I would do.”

•  ¹⁵The word of the Lord came to me in these terms, “Son of man, take a piece of wood and write on it: ‘Judah and the Israelites loyal to him.’ ¹⁶Take another piece of wood and write: ‘Joseph, the branch of Ephraim, and the Israelites loyal to him.’ ¹⁷Join one to the other to make a single piece of wood in your hand. ¹⁸When your people say to you, ‘Won’t you tell us what this means?’ ¹⁹say to them: The Lord says this: I am going to take the branch of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and the tribes of Israel loyal to him, and put Judah’s branch with them, and they will be as one in my hand. ²⁰And you will hold in your hand the pieces of wood you wrote in their sight.

²¹You will then say to them: Thus says the Lord: I am about to withdraw the Israelites from where they were among the nations. I shall gather them from all around and return them to their land. ²²I shall make them into one people on the mountains of Israel, and one king is to be king of them all. They will no longer form two nations or be two separate kingdoms, ²³nor will they defile themselves again with their idols, detestable practices, and sins. I shall free them from the guilt of their treachery; I shall cleanse them; and they will be for me a people, and I shall be God for them. ²⁴My servant David will reign over them, one shepherd for all. They will live according to my laws and follow and practice my decrees. ²⁵They will settle in the land I gave to my servant Jacob where their ancestors lived. There, they will live forever, their children and their children’s children. David, my servant, will be their prince forever.

²⁶I shall establish a Covenant of peace with them, an everlasting Covenant. I shall settle them, and they will increase, and I shall put my Sanctuary in their midst forever. ²⁷I shall make my home at their side; I shall be their God, and they will be my people. ²⁸The nations will know that I am the Lord who makes Israel holy, having my Sanctuary among them forever.”

Gog and Magog

38 | •  ¹The word of the Lord came to me in these terms, ²“Son of man, turn towards Gog, of the country of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal, and prophesy against him. ³Say to him: Hear the word of the Lord: I come to strike you, Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal. ⁴I will turn you around, fix hooks in your jaws, and bring you out; you, and your entire army, horses and riders, all perfectly equipped; a great army, all with shields and bucklers and brandishing swords. ⁵Persia, Cush, and Put are with them, all with bucklers and helmets. ⁶Gomer and all his troops, and Beth-Togarmah, from the far north, with his battalions, a vast throng, are with you.

⁷Get ready, be prepared you and all your troops massed around you and take command of them. ⁸After many days, you will be given a mission. In the years ahead, you will invade a land recovering from war, where the people are gathered from among many nations, on the mountains of Israel, which had for long been barren. Its people were brought from among the nations and now live safely, all of them. ⁹Then you will go up like a storm, like a cloud covering the earth, all your troops, and the many nations with you.

¹⁰Thus says the Lord: On that day, thoughts will come to your mind, and you will plan an evil scheme, ¹¹saying: ‘I will go up against unprotected towns, against peaceful people living in safety, all living without walls, bars or gates. ¹²I will plunder and loot and attack the inhabited land again. I will go against this people gathered from among the nations, who live by trading and are increasing their cattle at the center of the world.’

¹³People of Sheba and Dedan, and all the merchants of Tarshish and its villages, will ask you: ‘Have you come to plunder? Is it to loot, that you have assembled such an army?’ And they will come, with silver and gold, to take away the livestock and to buy your enormous booty.

¹⁴Therefore prophesy, son of man, and say to Gog on my behalf: On that day, when my people Israel are living in security, you will come from the far north; ¹⁵you, and the throngs with you, all on horses, with many troops—a vast army. ¹⁶You will come against my people, Israel, like a cloud about to cover the earth. In the far-off days, you will come against my people, and I shall let you do so; that the nations may know me, for I shall manifest my holiness through you, O Gog!

¹⁷Thus says the Lord: You are the one about whom I spoke in former times, through my servants, the prophets of Israel, saying that I would bring you against them in far-off days. ¹⁸On that day, when Gog will come to the land of Israel—word of the Lord—my fury will be aroused. ¹⁹In the jealousy and heat of my anger, I declare: On that day, there will be a great earthquake in Israel. ²⁰The sea fish, the birds of the air, the beasts of the field, the creatures that creep on the ground, and every human being on the earth, will tremble before me.

Mountains will fall, cliffs will crumble, and walls will collapse. ²¹I will summon the sword against Gog on all my mountains—word of the Lord. Each one’s sword will turn against his brother. ²²I will punish Gog with plague and bloodshed. I will send torrential rain, hailstones, and burning sulfur on him, on his battalions, and the many nations with him. ²³I will manifest myself as the mighty and Holy One in the sight of these many people, and they will know that I am the Lord.

39 | ¹Son of man, prophesy against Gog! Say to him: Thus says the Lord: I come against you, Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal. ²When I have led, directed, and brought you from the far north to the mountains of Israel, ³I shall break the bow in your left hand and snatch the arrows from your right hand. ⁴You will fall on the mountains of Israel, you, your battalions and the nations with you. And I shall give you over to all the birds of prey and wild beasts ⁵when you have fallen in the open countryside, for I have spoken; word of the Lord. ⁶I shall send fire to the land of Magog, and those living peacefully in the islands, and they will know that I am the Lord. ⁷I will manifest my holy name among my people Israel, and never again allow my holy name to be profaned; and the nations will know that I am the Lord, the Holy One of Israel.

⁸All this will come about and take place—word of the Lord. This is the day I foretold. ⁹After that, citizens of the towns of Israel will make a fire, using their weapons as fuel: small and large bucklers, bows and arrows, clubs, and javelins. For seven years, they will be used as fuel; ¹⁰ there will be no need to bring wood from the country or to gather it in the forests since they will have your weapons to burn. They will plunder their plunderers and loot those who looted them—word of the Lord.

¹¹On that day, I shall give Gog a well-known burial place in Israel, the valley of the Abarim, on the east of the sea, where the traveler must stop. There, they will bury Gog and his hordes; and they will call it the Valley of the Multitude of Gog. ¹²It will take seven months to bury the dead and cleanse the country. ¹³All the population will work at burying the dead, which will be their honor on the day I am glorified, the word of the Lord. ¹⁴Men will work on regularly going around the country to bury those lying on the ground and so cleanse the land. For seven months, they will go searching. ¹⁵If they come across human remains as they go through the land, they will make a pile of stones beside them until the gravediggers bury them in the Valley of the Multitude of Gog ¹⁶(the name of the town is Multitude). In that way, the land will be cleansed.

¹⁷Son of man, the Lord says this: Say to every kind of bird and wild beast: Assemble and come together, from all parts to the sacrifice I am preparing for you; a great sacrifice on the mountains of Israel; at which, you will eat flesh and drink blood; ¹⁸the flesh of heroes and the blood of the world’s princes. They are all rams, lambs, goats, bullocks, and fattened animals from Bashan. ¹⁹You will eat all the fat you want; and drink blood until you are drunk, at the sacrifice I am preparing for you. ²⁰You will have your fill of horses, riders, heroes, and warriors of all kinds—word of the Lord. ²¹I will show my glory among all the nations, and they will know my judgment and the punishment I shall inflict on them.

²²Then Israel will know from that day onward that I am the Lord, their God. ²³And the nations will know that Israel was exiled because they were unfaithful to me, and this was why I hid my face from them; I handed them over to their enemies, and they perished by the sword. ²⁴I dealt with them as their defilement and sins deserved and hid my face from them.

²⁵That is why thus says the Lord: Now, moved by my compassion for Israel, I am going to bring back the captives of Jacob, and I will give glory to my holy name. ²⁶They will forget their shame and the treachery they committed towards me, when they live safely in their own land, with no one to disturb them. ²⁷When I gather them from among the nations and take them from the land of their enemies, I will show my holiness through them to many nations. ²⁸They will know that I am the Lord their God when, after their exile among the nations, I bring them together in their own land and leave no one behind. ²⁹Never again shall I hide my face from them; because I shall pour out my spirit on Israel—word of the Lord.”

The Future Temple

40 | •  ¹In the twenty-fifth year of our captivity, at the beginning of the year, on the tenth day of the month, fourteen years after Jerusalem had been taken, the hand of the Lord was upon me. ²In a divine vision, he took me away, to the land of Israel, and put me down on a very high mountain, on the south of which there seemed to be built a city. ³He took me to it, and there, I saw a man who seemed to be made of bronze. He was standing in the gateway with a flax cord and a measuring rod in his hand. ⁴The man said to me, “Son of man, look carefully, listen closely, and pay attention to everything I show you since they brought you here, for me to show it to you. Tell the people of Israel everything that you see.”

⁵The house was surrounded by a wall, and the man was holding a measuring rod that was three meters long (six great cubits). He measured the thickness of this construction—one rod—and its height—one rod.

⁶He went to the east gate, climbed the steps, and measured its threshold: one rod deep. ⁷Each guardroom, one rod by one rod; and the walls between the guardrooms, five cubits thick; ⁸and the threshold of the gate inward from the porch of the gate, one rod. ⁹He measured the porch of the gate, eight cubits; its jambs, two cubits; the porch of the gate was at the inner end. ¹⁰There were three guardrooms on each side of the east gate, all of the same size; the walls between them were all the same thickness on each side. ¹¹He measured the width of the entrance, ten cubits, and the width all down the gateway, thirteen cubits. ¹² A rail was in front of the guardrooms; each rail on either side was one cubit. And the guardrooms on either side were six cubits square. ¹³He measured the width of the gate from the back wall of one guardroom to the back wall of the other; it was twenty-five cubits across, from window to window. ¹⁴He measured the entrance, twenty cubits; the outer court came after the porch of the gate. ¹⁵From the entrance end of the gate to the porch opposite, fifty cubits. ¹⁶On each side of the gate were windows with screens, both in the guardrooms and in the spaces between, and openings were all around inside the porch and palm trees decorating the pillars.

¹⁷He took me through to the outer court. There were rooms and a paved terrace going all the way around; there were thirty rooms on this terrace. ¹⁸This terrace, which came right up to the sides of the gates and matched their depth, is the Lower Terrace. ¹⁹He measured a hundred cubits across the outer court from the lower gate to the outside of the inner court.

²⁰He measured the length and breadth of the north gate of the outer court. ²¹It had three guardrooms on each side; the thickness of the walls between them, and its porch too, all measured the same as those of the first gate, fifty cubits by twenty-five cubits. ²²Its windows, entrance, and palm-tree decoration all measured the same as the east gate's. There were seven steps up to it, and its porch was at the inner end. ²³In the inner court, opposite the north gate, there was a gate like the one opposite the east gate. He measured the distance from one gate to another: a hundred cubits.

²⁴He took me to the south, and there was a gate to the south gate; he measured its guardrooms, the thickness of its walls and porch; they were of the same dimensions as the others. ²⁵All around it and its entrance were windows, like the other windows; it measured fifty cubits by twenty-five cubits, ²⁶and had seven steps up to it; its entrance was at the inner end and had palm-tree decorations on its pillars, one on each side. ²⁷The inner court had a southern gate; he measured the distance southward from one gate to another: a hundred cubits.

²⁸He then took me into the inner court by the south gate; he measured the south gate, which was the same size as the others. ²⁹Its guardrooms, the thickness of its walls, and the entrance all measured the same as the others. ³⁰Its entrance had windows all around. It measured fifty cubits by twenty-five cubits. Its entrance, measured all around, was twenty-five cubits by five cubits. ³¹The entrance gave on to the outer court. It had palm trees on its pillars on each side and eight steps leading up to it.

³²He took me to the east gate and measured it. It was the same size as the others. ³³Its guardrooms, the thickness of its walls, and its entrance all measured the same as the others. The gate and its entrance had windows all around. Its area was fifty cubits by twenty-five cubits. ³⁴Its porch gave on to the outer court. There were palm trees on its pillars on either side and eight steps leading up to it.

³⁵He took me to the north gate and measured it. Its guardrooms, the thickness of its walls, and its entrance all measured the same as the others. ³⁶It had windows all around. Its area was fifty cubits by twenty-five cubits. ³⁷Its entrance gave on to the outer court. There were palm trees on its pillars on either side and eight steps leading up to it.

³⁸There was a room entered from the entrance of the gates. It was here that they had to wash the holocaust. ³⁹And on either side of the gate entrance were two tables for slaughtering the burnt offering, the sacrifice for sin, and the sacrifice of repayment. ⁴⁰Going northward up to the gate, there were two tables outside and two more tables at the entrance end of the gate. ⁴¹There were four tables on the inside and four on the outside of the entrance; all in all, there were eight tables on which the sacrifices were offered. ⁴²There were also four tables of dressed stone for burnt offerings, a cubit and a half long, a cubit and a half wide, and a high, where all the things necessary for killing the burnt offering and the sacrifices were put. ⁴³Rims, a broad handbreadth, went all around the top, and the flesh of the offerings was on these tables.

⁴⁴He took me into the inner court; there were two lodges in the inner court; one, at the side of the north gate, facing south; the other, facing north. ⁴⁵He told me, “The lodge looking south is for the priests in charge of the temple, ⁴⁶and the lodge looking north is for the priests who serve the altar. These are the sons of Zadok, the only sons of Levi who approach the Lord to serve him.”

⁴⁷He measured the inner court. It was square, 100 cubits by 100 cubits, with the altar in front of the house.

⁴⁸He took me to the hall of the house and measured its door pillars—five cubits on each side—and the width of the entrance—fourteen cubits, with a three-cubit wall on each side. ⁴⁹The Hall was twenty cubits by twelve cubits. There were ten steps leading up to it, and there were columns by the door pillars, one on each side.

41 | ¹He took me into the Sanctuary and measured its door pillars: six cubits deep on one side and six cubits deep on the other. ²The width of the entrance was ten cubits. The walls on each side of the entrance were five cubits on one side and five cubits on the other. He measured its length, forty cubits, and its width, twenty cubits.

³He went in and measured the door pillars at the entrance, two cubits; then the entrance, six cubits; and the walls on each side of the entrance, seven cubits. ⁴He measured its length, twenty cubits, and its width, twenty cubits. He said, “This is the most Holy Place.”

⁵He measured the wall of the house, six cubits. The width of the side cells was four cubits all around the house. ⁶The cells were one above the other, thirty in three stories. ⁷The supports for the surrounding cells were fixed into the house wall so that the cells were not recessed into the house wall. The width of the cells increased, story by story, for they surrounded the house in the stories that went right around it. ⁸Then I saw that there was a paved terrace all around the house. The height of this, which formed the base of the side cells, was a full rod of six cubits. ⁹The outer wall of the side cells was five cubits thick, and the pavement formed a veranda outside the cells of the house. ¹⁰Beyond the rooms were twenty cubits wide around the house. ¹¹For access from the side cells onto the courtyard, there was one entrance on the north side and one on the south side. The width of the courtyard was five cubits all around.

¹²The building to the west of this surrounding area was seventy cubits by ninety cubits, and the wall of the building was five cubits thick, all around. ¹³He measured the length of the house, a hundred cubits. The length of the court, plus the building and its walls, was a hundred cubits. ¹⁴The breadth of the house's facade with the quadrangle is a hundred cubits. ¹⁵He measured the length of the building, plus the surrounding area at the back, plus the side depth of its door: a hundred cubits.

The inside of the Sanctuary, the entrance of the court, their thresholds, the window screens, the three sets of doors, one at each threshold, ¹⁶were all paneled with wood, from floor to windows, and the windows were screened with lattice-work. ¹⁷From the door to the inner part of the house, and around the whole wall of the inner room, outside and inside, ¹⁸were carved cherubs and palm trees, palm trees and cherubs, alternating; each cherub had two faces—¹⁹the face of a man turned toward the palm tree on one side; and the face of a lion toward the palm tree on the other, all around the house. The cherubs and palm trees were carved ²⁰from the floor to above the entrance and on the wall of the hall. ²¹The pillars of the house were square.

In front of the Most Holy Place, ²² there appeared to be a wooden altar, three cubits high and two cubits square. Its corners, base, and sides were of wood. He told me, “This is the table before the Lord.”

²³There was a double door for the temple and a double door for the Sanctuary. ²⁴These doors had two hinged leaves, two for one door and two for the other. ²⁵On the doors of the Sanctuary were carved cherubs and palm trees like those carved on the walls. A wooden screen outside went across the front of the hall. ²⁶There were screened windows with flanking palm trees on the house's walls and of the cells at the side of the house.

42 | ¹He took me northward into the court and led me to the rooms facing the outer court and the building to the north. ²They were one hundred cubits long on the north side and fifty cubits wide. ³On the sides facing the entrance of the inner court and the paving of the outer court was a gallery, in front of the triple gallery, ⁴and in front of the rooms was a walk, ten cubits broad, measured inward, and a hundred cubits long; their doors looked north. ⁵The top-floor rooms were narrow because the galleries took up part of the width, being narrower than those on the ground floor or those on the middle floor of the building. ⁶They were in three stories and had no columns like those in the court. Hence, they were narrower than the ground or middle floors below them. ⁷The outer wall parallel to the rooms, facing them, and giving on to the outer court, was fifty cubits long, ⁸the length of the rooms facing the outer court being fifty cubits; while on the side facing the building, it was a hundred cubits. ⁹Beneath the rooms, there was an entrance from the east that led in from the outer court.

¹⁰In the thickness of the wall of the court, on the south side, fronting the court and the building, were rooms. ¹¹A walk ran in front of them, as with the rooms built on the north side; they were of the same length and breadth and had similar designs and doors in and out. ¹²They were like the entrances of the southern rooms; one entrance at the end of each walk, fronting the eastern wall, being the way in. He said to me, ¹³“The northern and southern rooms giving on to the court, are holy rooms, in which the priests who approach the Lord will eat the most holy things. In them will be placed the most holy things: the offering, the sacrifice for sin, and the sacrifice of repayment, since this is a holy place. ¹⁴Once the priests have entered, they will not go out of the holy place into the outer court without leaving their liturgical vestments there since they are holy; they will put on other clothes before going near the room assigned to the people.”

¹⁵When he had finished measuring the inside of the temple, he took me out to the east gate and measured the whole area of the court. ¹⁶He measured the east side with his measuring rod: a total of five hundred cubits by the measuring rod. ¹⁷He then measured the north side: five hundred cubits by the measuring rod. ¹⁸He then measured the south side: five hundred cubits by the measuring rod. ¹⁹On the west side, he measured five hundred cubits. ²⁰So he measured the entire enclosing wall on all four sides: length, five hundred; breadth, five hundred. This separated the sacred from the profane.

43 | ¹He took me to the gate, facing east. ²Then I saw the glory of the God of Israel approaching from the east, with a sound like the sound of the ocean; and the earth shone with his glory. ³This vision was like the one I had seen when he came for the destruction of the city and like the one I had seen on the bank of the river Chebar. Then I threw myself to the ground.

⁴The glory of the Lord arrived at the temple by the east gate. ⁵The spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court: the glory of the Lord was filling the house. ⁶I heard someone speaking to me from the temple while the man stood beside me. ⁷The voice said, “Son of man, you have seen the place of my throne, where I will place the soles of my feet, and live among the Israelites forever; and the people of Israel, they and their kings, will no longer defile my Holy Name with their prostitutions and the kings, ⁸setting their threshold beside my threshold and their door beside my door, with a common wall shared by them and me. They used to defile my Holy Name by their filthy practices, and this is why I destroyed them in my anger. ⁹From now on, if they take their prostitution and the corpses of their kings away from my presence, I shall live among them forever.

¹⁰Son of man, describe this house to the people of Israel, to shame them out of their filthy practices. ¹¹If they are ashamed of their behavior, draw up the plan; and show them the design of the temple, its exits, and entrances, its shape; how all of it is arranged; its rules and its laws. Give them all this, in writing, so that they can see and take note of its design and the way it is all arranged and carry it out. ¹²This is the law of the temple: all the surrounding area on top of the mountain is a most holy area.

¹³Here are the dimensions of the altar (in big cubits, each of a cubit plus a handbreadth). The base: one cubit high and one cubit wide. The ledge all around it: one span. This is the altar's height: 14 from the ground level of the base up to the lower base, two cubits high and one cubit wide; from the lesser plinth to the greater base, four cubits high and one wide. ¹⁵The altar hearth is four cubits high, with four horns projecting from the hearth; ¹⁶the hearth is square, twelve cubits by twelve cubits; ¹⁷and the square base, fourteen cubits by fourteen cubits; and the ledge all around, half a cubit; and the base, one cubit all around. The steps are on the east side.”

¹⁸He said to me, “Son of man, the Lord says this: Regarding the altar, this is how things are to be done when it has been built; for the offering of the holocaust and the pouring of blood. ¹⁹To those Levitical priests of the race of Zadok who approach me to serve me—it is the Lord who speaks—you must give a young bull as a sacrifice for sin. ²⁰You are to put some of its blood on the four horns, the four corners of the base, and the surrounding ledge. ²¹In this way, you will purify it and make atonement on it. Then, take the bull of the sacrifice for sin, and burn it in a house room apart from the Sanctuary. ²²On the second day, you must offer an unblemished he-goat as a sacrifice for sin, and the altar is to be purified again, as with the bull. ²³When you have finished the purification, you must offer a young bull without blemish and an unblemished ram chosen from the flock. ²⁴You are to present them before the Lord, and the priests will sprinkle salt on them; and offer them as a holocaust to the Lord. ²⁵As a sacrifice for sin, every day, for seven days, you must offer a he-goat, a bull, and an unblemished ram chosen from the flock for a week. ²⁶ This way, the altar will be atoned for, purified, and inaugurated. ²⁷At the end of that time, on the eighth day, and afterward, the priest is to offer your burnt offerings and your communion offerings on the altar, and I will look kindly on you—it is the Lord who speaks.”

New Regulations for Worship

44 | ¹He brought me back to the outer east gate of the Sanctuary. It was shut. ²The Lord said, “This gate will be kept shut. No one will open it or go through it since the Lord, the God of Israel, has been through it. And so it must be kept shut. ³The prince, however, may sit there to take his meal in the presence of the Lord. But he is to enter through the gate's entrance and leave the same way.”

⁴He led me through the north gate to the front of the house. I looked; I saw the glory of the Lord filling his house, and I threw myself to the ground. ⁵The Lord said to me, “Son of man, pay attention; look carefully and listen closely to everything while I explain all the rules of the house of the Lord and all its laws. Be careful about which men are admitted to the house and which are excluded from the Sanctuary. ⁶And say to the rebels of the people of Israel, the Lord God says this: There has been enough of all your filthy practices, house of Israel. ⁷You let aliens enter, uncircumcised in heart and body, to frequent my Sanctuary and profane my temple, when you gave me for my food the fat and the blood; and you broke my Covenant with all your filthy practices ⁸when you let them perform your duties in my Sanctuary. ⁹For, the Lord God said this: No alien, uncircumcised in heart and body, is to enter my Sanctuary; none of those aliens living among the Israelites.

¹⁰The Levites who abandoned me when Israel strayed far from me and followed their idols must bear the weight of their own sin. ¹¹They are to be servants in my Sanctuary, responsible for guarding the gates and serving the house. They will kill the burnt offering and the sacrifice for the people and hold themselves at the service of the people. ¹²But since they used to be at their service in front of their idols, and made Israel sin, (and I have raised my hand against them) it is the Lord who speaks—they must bear the weight of their sin. ¹³They are never to approach me again, to perform the priestly office in my presence, or to touch my holy things, and my most holy things; they must bear the disgrace of their filthy practices. ¹⁴I shall let them work in the house, serve it, and do everything to be done in it.

¹⁵The Levitical priests, the sons of Zadok, who did their duty to me in the Sanctuary when the Israelites strayed far from me, may still approach me to serve me. They may stand in my presence, to offer me the fat and blood—it is the Lord who speaks. ¹⁶They may enter my Sanctuary, approach my table to serve me; they may perform my liturgy. ¹⁷Once they enter the gates of the inner court, they are to wear linen garments; they are to wear no wool when they serve inside the gates of the inner court and in the house. ¹⁸They are to wear linen caps on their heads and linen breeches about their loins; they are not to wear belts that might make them sweat. ¹⁹When they go out to the people in the outer court, they are to remove the garments in which they have performed the liturgy, leave them in the rooms of the Holy Place, and put on other clothes so as not to hallow the people with their vestments. ²⁰They are neither to shave their heads nor to let their hair grow long but must cut their hair to a reasonable length. ²¹No priest is to drink wine on the day he enters the inner court. ²²They are not to marry widows or divorced women, but only virgins of the race of Israel; they may, however, marry widows if it is the widow of a priest. ²³They are to teach my people what is sacred and profane and make them know what is clean and unclean. ²⁴They are to be judges in disputes, in the spirit of my statutes, follow my laws and ordinances at all my feasts, and keep my Sabbaths holy. ²⁵They are not to go near a dead person, lest they become unclean, except for father, mother, daughter, son, brother, or unmarried sister. ²⁶After one of them has been purified, seven days must elapse; ²⁷then, when he enters the Sanctuary—the inner court, to minister in the Sanctuary, he is to offer his sacrifice for sin—it is the Lord who speaks. ²⁸They are to have no inheritance in Israel; I myself will be their inheritance. You are to give them no patrimony in Israel; I myself will be their patrimony. ²⁹Their food is to be the offering, the sacrifice for sin, and the sacrifice of repayment. Everything in Israel consecrated by anathema shall be for them. ³⁰The best of all your first fruits of every sort and of all that you offer is to go to the priests; the best of your dough you are also to give to the priests, so that a blessing may rest on your houses. ³¹Priests are not to eat the flesh of anything that has died a natural death or been savaged, neither the flesh of a bird nor any other creature.

45 | ¹When you divide the country into portions by lot, you are to allocate a sacred portion of the country to the Lord: twenty-five thousand cubits long and twenty thousand wide. ²The whole of this land is to be sacred, and of this, a square area, five hundred by five hundred cubits, is to be for the Sanctuary, with a boundary fifty cubits wide all around. ³Out of this area, you are also to measure a section twenty-five thousand by ten thousand cubits, in which there shall stand the Sanctuary; this is a very holy land. ⁴This is to be the sacred portion of the country; it shall belong to the priests who officiate in the Sanctuary and approach the Lord to serve him. There, they are to have their houses and also a district set apart for the Sanctuary. ⁵An area twenty-five thousand by ten thousand cubits is to be kept for the Levites serving the house to own, with towns to live in. ⁶You are to give the city an area of five thousand by twenty-five thousand cubits, near the land belonging to the Sanctuary; this is to be for the whole people of Israel.

⁷The prince is to have a domain on either side of the very holy land, and of the land belonging to the city, and adjacent to both of them, stretching westward from the west and eastward from the east; its size equal to one of the portions between the west and the east frontiers of the country. ⁸This is to be his possession in Israel. Then my princes will no longer oppress my people; they must leave the rest of the country for the people of Israel, for its tribes.

⁹The Lord says this: Let this be enough for you, princes of Israel! Give up your violence and plundering; practice justice and integrity; crush my people no more with taxation—it is the Lord who speaks. ¹⁰Have fair scales, a fair ephah, and a fair bath. ¹¹Let the ephah and bath be equal; let the bath hold one-tenth of a homer, and the ephah, one-tenth of a homer. ¹²Let the measures be based on the homer. The shekel is to be twenty gerahs. Twenty shekels, twenty-five, and fifteen shekels are to make one mina.

¹³This is the tax you are to levy: a sixth of an ephah for every homer of wheat and a sixth of an ephah for every homer of barley. ¹⁴The dues on oil: one bath of oil out of every ten baths or out of every cor (which equals ten baths or one homer, since ten baths equal one homer). ¹⁵You are to levy one sheep on every flock of two hundred from the patrimony of Israel for the oblation, the burnt offering, and the communion sacrifice. This is for the atonement—it is the Lord who speaks. ¹⁶Let all the country's people be bound to give this offering for the prince of Israel. ¹⁷The prince is to provide burnt offerings, grain offerings, and drink offerings for feasts, new moons, and Sabbaths, as well as all the solemn festivals of Israel. He is to provide the sacrifice for sin, oblation, holocaust, and communion sacrifices atoning for Israel.

¹⁸The Lord says this: On the first day of the first month, you must take a young bull without blemish to purify the Sanctuary. ¹⁹The priest is to take blood from the sacrifice for sin and put it on the doorposts of the house, on the four corners of the altar base, and the doorposts of the gates of the inner court. ²⁰You must do the same for anyone who has sinned through inadvertence or ignorance on the seventh of the month. This is how you are to make atonement for the house. ²¹On the fourteenth day of the first month, you must celebrate the feast of the Passover. For seven days, everyone is to eat unleavened loaves. ²²On Passover day, the prince must offer a bull as a sacrifice for sin, himself, and all the people in the country. ²³For the seven days of the feast, he must offer the Lord a burnt offering, of seven bulls and seven rams without blemish, daily, for a week, and one he-goat, daily, as a sacrifice for sin, ²⁴with a grain offering of one ephah for each bull, and one ephah for each ram, and a hin of oil for every ephah, for the oblation.

²⁵For the feast on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, he must do the same for seven days, offering the sacrifice for sin, a burnt offering, a drink offering, and the oil.

The Sabbath and the New Moon

46 | ¹Thus speak the Lord: The east gate of the inner court must be kept shut for six working days. On the Sabbath day, it is to be opened, as also on the day of the new moon; ²and the prince is to go in, through the entrance of the outer gate, and stand by the gate's doorposts. The priest must then offer his holocaust and his communion sacrifice. He must prostrate himself on the gate's threshold and go out; the gate will not be shut again until the evening. ³The country's people are to prostrate themselves in the presence of the Lord at the entrance to the gate on Sabbaths and days of the new moon. ⁴On the Sabbath day, the prince shall offer six unblemished lambs and one unblemished ram for the burnt offering. ⁵The grain offering is of one ephah for the ram, with such oblation as he pleases for the lambs, and a hin of oil for every ephah. ⁶On the day of the new moon, he shall offer a young bull without blemish, six unblemished lambs and one unblemished ram; ⁷he must make a grain offering of one ephah for the bull and one ephah for the ram, and what he pleases for the lambs, and a hin of oil for every ephah.

⁸When the prince goes in, he is to enter by the gate's entrance and leave in the same way. ⁹When the people of the country come into the presence of the Lord at the solemn festivals, to prostrate themselves, those who have come in by the north gate are to go out by the south gate; and those who have come in by the south gate are to go out by the north gate; no one is to turn back, to leave through the gate by which he entered, but is to go out on the opposite side.

¹⁰The prince is to come with them, coming in like them and going out like them. ¹¹On feast days and solemn festivals, the oblation must be one ephah for every bull, one ephah for every ram, what he pleases for the lambs, and a hin of oil for every ephah. ¹²When the prince offers the Lord a voluntary communion sacrifice, the east gate is to be opened for him, and he is to offer his holocaust and his communion sacrifice as he does on the Sabbath day; when he has gone out, the gate is to be shut after him. ¹³Every day, he must offer an unblemished one-year-old lamb, as a holocaust to the Lord; he must offer this every morning. ¹⁴Also, every morning, he is to offer an oblation of one-sixth of an ephah and one-third of a hin of oil for mixing with the flour. This is an eternal law. ¹⁵The lamb, the oblation, and the oil will be offered forever morning after morning.

¹⁶The Lord says this: If the prince gives his sons part of his inheritance, the gift is to pass to the ownership of his sons and become their heritage. ¹⁷But if he gives part of his inheritance to one of his servants, it shall only belong to the man until the year of liberation; and is then to revert to the prince. Only his sons may retain his inheritance. ¹⁸The prince may not take any part of the people’s inheritance and thus rob them of their rightful possessions; he must provide the patrimony of his sons out of his own property so that no member of my people will be robbed of his rightful possessions.”

¹⁹He took me through the entrance, at the side of the north gate leading to the Holy Place rooms set apart for the priests. And before us, to the west, was a space at the end. ²⁰He said to me, “This is where the priests are to boil the slaughtered animals for the sacrifice for sin and the sacrifice of reparation, and where they are to bake the oblation. They shall not carry them into the outer court lest they hallow the people.” ²¹He took me into the outer court and led me to each of its four corners; ²²in each corner was a compound; there were four small compounds, forty cubits by thirty, all four being the same size. ²³Each of the four was enclosed by a wall, with hearths all around the bottom of the wall. ²⁴He said, “These are the kitchens where the temple servants are to boil the sacrifices offered by the people.”

The River that Flows From the Temple

47 | •  ¹The man brought me back to the temple entrance, and I saw water coming out from the temple's threshold and flowing eastward. The temple faced the east, and the water flowed from the south side of the temple, from the south side of the altar. ²He then brought me out through the north gate and led me around the outside to the outer gate facing the east; and there I saw the stream coming from the south side.

³The man had a measuring cord in his hand. As he went towards the east, he measured off a thousand cubits and led me across the water up to my ankles. ⁴He measured off another thousand cubits and made me cross the water, which came to my knees. He measured off another thousand cubits, and we crossed the water up to my waist. ⁵When he had again measured a thousand cubits, I could not cross the torrent, for it had swollen to a depth impossible to cross without swimming.

⁶The man said, “Son of man, did you see?” He led me on further and then brought me back to the bank of the river. ⁷There, I saw several trees on both sides of the river. ⁸He told me, “This water goes to the east, down to the Arabah, and when it flows into the sea of foul-smelling water, it will become wholesome. ⁹Wherever the river flows, swarms of creatures will live in it; fish will be plentiful, and the seawater will become fresh. Wherever it flows, life will abound. ¹⁰Fishermen will stand on the banks and spread nets from En-gedi to En-eglaim. Fish of many kinds will be found there, like the open sea fish, and they will be very plentiful. ¹¹The swamps and the marshes will not become wholesome; they will be used as salt beds.

¹²Near the river on both banks, there will be all kinds of fruit trees, with foliage that will not wither and fruit that will never fail; each month, they will bear a fresh crop because the water comes from the temple. The fruit will be good to eat, and the leaves will be used for healing.

The Frontiers of the Land

¹³The Lord says this: Here are the boundaries of the territories to be allotted between the twelve tribes of Israel, with two portions for Joseph. ¹⁴You must share it equally since I swore to your ancestors that I would give them this land, which now falls to you as your inheritance. ¹⁵Here are the frontiers of the land. On the north, from the Great Sea, by way of Hethlon, to the Pass of Hamath, and on to Zedad, ¹⁶Berothah, Sibraim, lying between the territories of Damascus and Hamath—and to Hazar-enon on the borders of Hauran. ¹⁷The frontier will extend from the sea to Hazar-enon, marching with Damascus and Hamath on the north, the northern frontier. ¹⁸On the east, the Jordan will serve as a frontier between Hauran and Damascus, between Gilead and the land of Israel, down to the Eastern Sea, as far as Tamar; this is for the eastern frontier. ¹⁹On the south, from Tamar southward to the waters of Meribah in Kadesh, to the torrent of Egypt and the Great Sea; this is for the southern frontier. ²⁰On the west, the Great Sea will serve as a frontier straight up towards Lebo-hamath; so much for the western frontier. ²¹You are to share this land among yourselves, between the tribes of Israel. ²²You are to divide it into inheritances for yourselves and the aliens settled among you who have had children among you since you are to treat them as citizens of Israel. They are to draw lots with you for their inheritance, with the tribes of Israel. ²³You must give the alien his inheritance in the tribe where he is living—the Lord speaks.

The Distribution of the Land Among the Twelve Tribes

48 | ¹This is the list of the tribes. In the far north, by way of Hethlon to Al-Hamad, to Hazar-Enon, with the frontier of Damascus lying to the north, bordering Hamath—each portion extends from the eastern frontier to the western frontier: Dan, one portion. ²Bordering Dan, from the eastern frontier to the western frontier: Asher. ³Bordering Asher, from the eastern frontier to the western frontier: Naphtali. ⁴Bordering Naphtali, from the eastern to the western frontier: Manasseh. ⁵Bordering Manasseh, from the eastern frontier to the western frontier: Ephraim. ⁶Bordering Ephraim, from the eastern frontier to the western frontier: Reuben. ⁷Bordering Reuben, from the eastern frontier to the western frontier: Judah. ⁸Bordering Judah, from the eastern frontier to the western frontier, is the part you are to set aside, twenty-five thousand cubits wide, and as long as the other portions from the eastern frontier to the western frontier. The Sanctuary will be in the center of it.

⁹The part you must set aside for the Lord is to be twenty-five thousand cubits long and ten thousand cubits wide. ¹⁰This consecrated portion is to belong to the priests, being on the north side, twenty-five thousand cubits; on the west side ten thousand cubits wide, on the east side ten thousand cubits wide and the south side twenty-five thousand cubits long; and the Sanctuary of the Lord will be the center of it. ¹¹This belongs to the consecrated priests, to those of the sons of Zadok, who maintained my liturgy and did not go astray with the straying Israelites, as the Levites went astray. ¹²And so, their portion is to be taken out of the most holy portion of the land, at the side of the territory of the Levites. ¹³The territory of the Levites, like the territory of the priests, is to be twenty-five thousand cubits long and ten thousand wide—the whole length being twenty-five thousand and the width ten thousand. ¹⁴They must not sell or exchange any part of it, and their part can never be alienated since it is consecrated to the Lord. ¹⁵The remainder, an area of five thousand cubits by twenty-five thousand, is a non-sacred space for the city, for houses and pastures. The city is to stand in the center. ¹⁶Here are its measurements: on the north side, four thousand five hundred cubits; on the south side, four thousand five hundred cubits; on the east side, four thousand five hundred cubits; on the west side, four thousand five hundred cubits. ¹⁷And the city pastures are to extend two hundred and fifty cubits to the north, two hundred and fifty to the south, two hundred and fifty to the east, two hundred and fifty to the west. ¹⁸What remains of the part set aside, after keeping out the consecrated portion, consists of ten thousand cubits eastward and ten thousand westward, alongside the consecrated portion; this will bring in revenue for feeding the people working inside the city. ¹⁹These people are to be drawn from all the tribes of Israel and shall till this land. ²⁰The portion is to have a total area of twenty-five thousand cubits by twenty-five thousand cubits. So the sacred portion has a square shape and is located beside the land belonging to the city. ²¹What is left over on either side of the sacred portion, and of the land belonging to the city, shall be for the prince, extending along the twenty-five thousand cubits eastward, to the eastern frontier, and extending along the twenty-five thousand cubits westward, to the western frontier—running parallel with the other portions. This is the portion for the prince, with the consecrated portion and the sanctuary of the temple in the middle. ²²Thus, apart from the property of the Levites and property of the city, which lie inside the prince’s portion, everything between the borders of Judah and the borders of Benjamin is to belong to the prince.

²³Here are the rest of the tribes: Benjamin from the eastern frontier to the western frontier. ²⁴Bordering Benjamin, from the eastern frontier to the western frontier: Simeon. ²⁵Bordering Simeon, from the eastern frontier to the western frontier: Issachar. ²⁶Bordering Issachar, from the eastern frontier to the western frontier: Zebulun. ²⁷Bordering Zebulun, from the eastern frontier to the western frontier: Gad. ²⁸The southern border of Gad will be formed by the southern frontier running through Tamar, to the waters of Meribah in Kadesh, to the Wadi of Egypt and the great Sea. ²⁹This is the inheritance of the tribes of Israel and this is how you will apportion it—it is the Lord who speaks.

³⁰Here are the ways out of the city. On the north side, being four thousand five hundred cubits long, ³¹three gates: the gate of Reuben, the gate of Judah, and the gate of Levi; the gates of the city are to be named after the tribes of Israel. ³²On the east side, which is to be four thousand five hundred cubits long, there are three gates: the gate of Joseph, the gate of Benjamin, and the gate of Dan. ³³On the south side, which is to be four thousand five hundred cubits long, three gates: the gate of Simeon, the gate of Issachar, the gate of Zebulun. ³⁴On the west side, which is four thousand five hundred cubits long, there are three gates: the gate of Gad, Asher, and Naphtali. ³⁵The total perimeter will be eighteen thousand cubits, and the city's name is to be: the Lord-is-there.