Bible in 90 Days

Disaster Will Come

²¹ Then the word of the Lord came to me. He said, ²² “Son of man, why do people quote this saying about the land of Israel:

²³ “Tell the people that the Lord God will end that saying. They will not say that about Israel anymore. Now they will quote this saying:

²⁴ “There will not be any more false visions in Israel. There will not be any more magicians telling things that don’t come true. ²⁵ That’s because I am the Lord, and if I say something will happen, it will happen! I will not wait any longer. Those troubles are coming soon—in your own lifetime. Hear me, you people who always refuse to obey! When I say something, I make it happen.” This is what the Lord God said.

²⁶ Then the word of the Lord came to me. He said, ²⁷ “Son of man, the people of Israel think that the visions I give you are for a time far in the future. They think you are talking about things that will happen many years from now. ²⁸ So you must tell them this: ‘The Lord God says, I will not delay any longer. If I say something will happen, it will happen!’” This is what the Lord God said.

Warnings Against False Prophets

13 Then the word of the Lord came to me. He said, ² “Son of man,^[a] you must speak to the prophets of Israel for me. They are only saying what they want to say. You must speak to them. Tell them this: ‘Listen to this message from the Lord! ³ This is what the Lord God says. Bad things will happen to you foolish prophets. You are following your own spirits. You are not telling people what you really see in visions.

⁴ “‘Israel, your prophets are false prophets. They are like jackals hunting for food among the ruins of a city. ⁵ You have not put soldiers near the broken walls of the city. You have not built walls to protect the family of Israel. So when the day comes for the Lord to punish you, you will lose the war!

⁶ “‘Your prophets say they have seen visions. They did their magic to see what will happen next. But everything they said would happen is a lie. They claim to speak for the Lord, but the Lord did not send them. And they still think that what they said is what will happen.

⁷ “‘If you prophets saw visions, they were not true. And all you got from your magic was lies! So how can you say that the Lord told you those things? I did not speak to you!’”

⁸ So now, the Lord God really will speak. He says, “You told lies. You saw visions that were not true. So now I am against you!” This is what the Lord God said. ⁹ “I will punish those prophets whose visions are false and who lie about the future. I will remove them from my people. Their names will not be in the list of the family of Israel. They will never again come to the land of Israel. Then you will know that I am the Lord God!

¹⁰ “Again and again those false prophets lied to my people. They said there would be peace, but there is no peace. The people need to fix the walls and prepare for war. But they only slap a thin coat of plaster^[b] over the broken walls. ¹¹ Tell them that I will send hail and a strong rain. The wind will blow hard, and a tornado will come. Then the wall will fall down. ¹² When the wall falls down, the people will ask the prophets, ‘What happened to the plaster you put on the wall?’” ¹³ The Lord God says, “I am angry and I will send a storm against you. I am angry and I will send a strong rain. I am angry and I will make hail fall from the sky and completely destroy you! ¹⁴ You put plaster on the wall, but I will destroy the whole wall. I will pull it to the ground. The wall will fall on you, and then you will know that I am the Lord. ¹⁵ I will finish showing my anger against the wall and those who put plaster on it. Then I will say, ‘There is no wall, and there are no workers to put plaster on it.’

¹⁶ “All these things will happen to the false prophets of Israel. They speak to the people of Jerusalem and say there will be peace, but there is no peace.” This is what the Lord God said.

¹⁷ God said, “Son of man, look at the women prophets in Israel. They say the things they want to say, so you must speak against them for me. You must say this to them: ¹⁸ ‘This is what the Lord God says: Bad things will happen to you women. You sew cloth bracelets for people to wear on their arms. You make special scarves for people to wear on their heads. You say those things have magic powers to control people’s lives. You trap the people only to keep yourselves alive! ¹⁹ You make them think I am not important. You turn them against me for a few handfuls of barley and a few scraps of bread. You tell lies to my people. They love to listen to lies. You kill those who should live, and you let people live who should die. ²⁰ So this is what the Lord God says to you: You make those cloth bracelets to trap people, but I will set them free. I will tear those bracelets off your arms, and the people will be free from you. They will be like birds flying from a trap. ²¹ And I will tear up those scarves and save my people from your power. They will escape from your trap, and you will know that I am the Lord.

²² “‘You prophets tell lies. Your lies hurt good people—I did not want to hurt them! You support the wicked and encourage them. You don’t tell them to change their lives. You don’t try to save their lives! ²³ So you will not see any more useless visions or do any more magic. I will save my people from your power, and you will know that I am the Lord.’”

Warnings Against Idol Worship

14 Some of the elders of Israel came to me. They sat down to talk with me. ² The word of the Lord came to me. He said, ³ “Son of man,^[c] these men came to talk to you. But they still have their filthy idols. They kept the things that made them sin. They still worship those statues, so why do they come to me for advice? Should I answer their questions? ⁴ But I will give them an answer. You must tell them this: ‘This is what the Lord God says: If any Israelites come to a prophet and ask me for advice, I myself will answer their questions. I, the Lord, will answer them even if they still have their filthy idols, even if they kept the things that made them sin, and even if they still worship those statues. I will speak to them in spite of all their filthy idols. ⁵ This is because I want to touch their hearts. I want to show them that I love them, even though they left me for their filthy idols.’

⁶ “So tell the family of Israel, ‘This is what the Lord God says: Come back to me and leave your filthy idols. Turn away from those terrible, false gods. ⁷ If any Israelites or foreigners who live in Israel come to me for advice, I will give them an answer. I, the Lord, will answer them even if they still have their filthy idols, even if they kept the things that made them sin, and even if they worship those statues. This is the answer I will give them: ⁸ I will turn against them and destroy them. They will be an example to others. People will laugh at them. I will remove them from my people. Then you will know that I am the Lord! ⁹ And if a prophet is foolish enough to give his own answer, I, the Lord, will show him how foolish he is! I will use my power against him. I will destroy him and remove him from among my people, Israel. ¹⁰ So both the one who came for advice and the prophet who gave an answer will get the same punishment. ¹¹ Why? So that those prophets will stop leading my people away from me, and my people will stop being filthy with sin. Then they will be my special people, and I will be their God.’” This is what the Lord God said.

Jerusalem Will Be Punished

¹² Then the word of the Lord came to me. He said, ¹³ “Son of man, I will punish any nation that leaves me and sins against me. I will stop their food supply. I might cause a famine and remove the people and animals from that country. ¹⁴ I would punish that country even if Noah, Daniel, and Job^[d] lived there. They could save their own lives by their goodness, but they could not save the whole country.” This is what the Lord God said.

¹⁵ “Or I might send wild animals through that country to kill all the people. Then no one would travel through that country because of the wild animals. ¹⁶ If Noah, Daniel, and Job lived there, those three men could save their own lives. But I promise by my own life that they could not save the lives of other people—not even their own sons and daughters! That evil country would be destroyed.” This is what the Lord God said.

¹⁷ “Or I might send an enemy army to fight against that country. The soldiers would destroy that country—I would remove all the people and animals from that country. ¹⁸ If Noah, Daniel, and Job lived there, those three men could save their own lives. But I promise by my own life that they could not save the lives of other people—not even their own sons and daughters! That evil country would be destroyed.” This is what the Lord God said.

¹⁹ “Or I might send a disease against that country. I will pour my anger down on the people. I will remove all the people and animals from that country. ²⁰ If Noah, Daniel, and Job lived there, those three men could save their own lives because they are good men. But I promise by my own life that they could not save the lives of other people—not even their own sons and daughters!” This is what the Lord God said.

²¹ Then the Lord God said, “So think how bad it will be for Jerusalem. I will send all four of those punishments against that city! I will send enemy soldiers, hunger, disease, and wild animals against that city. I will remove all the people and animals from that country. ²² Some of the people will escape from that country. They will bring their sons and daughters and come to you for help. Then you will see how bad those people really are, and you will feel better about all the troubles that I am bringing to Jerusalem. ²³ You will see how they live and all the bad things they do. Then you will know that I had a good reason for punishing them.” This is what the Lord God said.

Jerusalem, the Vine, Will Be Burned

15 Then the word of the Lord came to me. He said, ² “Son of man,^[e] are the pieces of wood from a grapevine^[f] any better than the little branches cut from trees in the forest? ³ Can you use that wood from a grapevine to make anything? Can you use that wood to make pegs to hang dishes on? ⁴ People throw that wood into the fire. The ends burn, and the middle is scorched. ⁵ If you cannot make anything from that wood before it is burned, you surely cannot make anything from that wood after it is burned! ⁶ So people throw the pieces of wood from a grapevine into the fire. It is just like wood from any other tree in the forest. In the same way I will throw the people living in Jerusalem into the fire!” This is what the Lord God said. ⁷ “I will punish those people. But some of them will be like the sticks that don’t burn completely. They will be punished, but they will not be destroyed completely. You will see that I punished them, and you will know that I am the Lord! ⁸ I will destroy that country because the people left me to worship false gods.” This is what the Lord God said.

God’s Love for Jerusalem

16 Then the word of the Lord came to me. He said, ² “Son of man, tell the people of Jerusalem about the terrible things they have done. ³ You must say, ‘This is what the Lord God says to Jerusalem: Look at your history. You were born in Canaan. Your father was an Amorite. Your mother was a Hittite. ⁴ Jerusalem, on the day you were born, there was no one to cut your navel cord. No one put salt on you and washed you to make you clean. No one wrapped you in cloth. ⁵ No one felt sorry for you or took care of you. On the day you were born, your parents threw you out into the field, because no one wanted you.

⁶ “‘Then I passed by. I saw you lying there, kicking in the blood. You were covered with blood, but I said, “Please live!” Yes, you were covered with blood, but I said, “Please live!” ⁷ I helped you grow like a plant in the field. You grew and grew. You became a young woman: your periods began, your breasts grew, and your hair began to grow. But you were still bare and naked. ⁸ I looked you over. I saw you were ready for love, so I spread my clothes over you^[g] and covered your nakedness. I promised to marry you. I made the agreement^[h] with you, and you became mine.’” This is what the Lord God said.

⁹ “‘I washed you in water. I poured water over you to wash away the blood that was on you, and then I put oil on your skin. ^10 [i] I gave you a nice dress and soft leather sandals, a linen headband, and a silk scarf. ¹¹ I also gave you some jewelry. I put bracelets on your arms and a necklace around your neck. ¹² I gave you a nose ring, earrings, and a beautiful crown to wear. ¹³ You were beautiful in your gold and silver jewelry, and your linen, silk, and embroidered material. You ate the best foods. You were very, very beautiful, and you became the queen! ¹⁴ You became famous for your beauty, all because I made you so lovely!’” This is what the Lord God said.

Jerusalem, the Unfaithful Bride

¹⁵ “But you began to trust in your beauty. You used the good name you had and became unfaithful to me. You acted like a prostitute with every man who passed by. You gave yourself to them all! ¹⁶ You took your beautiful clothes and used them to decorate your places for worship.^[j] And you acted like a prostitute there. You gave yourself to every man who came by! ¹⁷ Then you took your beautiful jewelry that I gave you, and you used the gold and silver to make statues of men, and you had sex with them too! ¹⁸ Then you took the beautiful cloth and made clothes for those statues. You took the perfume and incense I gave you and put it in front of those idols. ¹⁹ I gave you bread, honey, and oil, but you gave that food to your idols. You offered them as a sweet smell to please your false gods. You acted like a prostitute with those false gods!” This is what the Lord God said.

²⁰ “You and I had children together, but you took our children. You killed them and gave them to those false gods! But that is only some of the evil things you did when you were unfaithful to me and went to those false gods. ²¹ You slaughtered^[k] my sons and then passed them through the fire to those false gods. ²² You left me and did all those terrible things. You never remembered what happened when you were young. You did not remember that you were naked and kicking in blood when I found you.

²³ “After all these evil things, … it will be very bad for you!” The Lord God said all these things. ²⁴ “After all those things, you made a mound for worshiping that false god. You built those places for worshiping false gods on every street corner. ²⁵ You built your mounds at the head of every road. Then you degraded your beauty. You used it to catch every man who walked by. You raised your skirt so that they could see your legs, and you acted like a prostitute with those men. ²⁶ Then you went to Egypt, your neighbor that is always ready for sex. With more and more sexual sin, you made me angry. ²⁷ So I punished you! I took away part of your land. I let your enemies, the daughters of the Philistines, do what they wanted to you. Even they were shocked at the evil things you did. ²⁸ Then you went to have sex with Assyria. You could not get enough. You were never satisfied. ²⁹ So you turned to Canaan, and then to Babylonia, and still you were not satisfied. ³⁰ You are so weak. You let all those men cause you to sin. You acted just like a prostitute who wants to be the one in control.” This is what the Lord God said.

³¹ God said, “But you were not exactly like a prostitute. You built your mounds at the head of every road, and you built your places for worship at every street corner. You had sex with all those men, but you did not ask them to pay you the way a prostitute does. ³² You are a woman guilty of adultery. You would rather have sex with strangers than with your own husband. ³³ Most prostitutes force men to pay them for sex, but you gave money to your many lovers. You paid all the men around to come in to have sex with you. ³⁴ You are just the opposite of most prostitutes who force men to pay them, because you pay the men to have sex with you.”

³⁵ Prostitute, listen to the message from the Lord. ³⁶ This is what the Lord God says: “You have spent your money^[l] and let your lovers and filthy gods see your naked body and have sex with you. You have killed your children and poured out their blood. This was your gift to those false gods. ³⁷ So I am bringing all of your lovers together. I will bring all the men you loved and all the men you hated. I will bring them all together and let them see you naked.^[m] They will see you completely naked. ³⁸ Then I will punish you. I will punish you as a murderer and a woman who committed the sin of adultery. You will be punished as if by an angry and jealous husband. ³⁹ I will let those lovers have you. They will destroy your mounds. They will burn your places for worship. They will tear off your clothes and take your beautiful jewelry. They will leave you bare and naked as you were when I found you. ⁴⁰ They will bring a crowd of people and throw rocks at you to kill you. Then they will cut you into pieces with their swords. ⁴¹ They will burn your house. They will punish you so that all the other women can see. I will stop you from living like a prostitute. I will stop you from paying money to your lovers. ⁴² Then I will stop being angry and jealous. I will calm down. I will not be angry anymore. ⁴³ Why will all these things happen? Because you did not remember what happened when you were young. You did all those bad things and made me angry. So I had to punish you for doing them, but you planned even more terrible things.” This is what the Lord God said.

⁴⁴ “All the people who talk about you will now have one more thing to say. They will say, ‘Like mother, like daughter.’ ⁴⁵ You are your mother’s daughter. You don’t care about your husband or your children. You are like your sister. Both of you hated your husband and your children. You are like your parents. Your mother was a Hittite and your father was an Amorite. ⁴⁶ Your older sister was Samaria. She lived to the north of you with her daughters. Your younger sister was Sodom.^[n] She lived to the south of you with her daughters. ⁴⁷ You did all the terrible things they did, but you also did much worse! ⁴⁸ I am the Lord God. As I live, I swear that your sister Sodom and her daughters never did as many bad things as you and your daughters.

⁴⁹ “Your sister Sodom and her daughters were proud. They had too much to eat and too much time on their hands, and they did not help poor, helpless people. ⁵⁰ Sodom and her daughters became too proud and began to do terrible things in front of me. So I punished them!

⁵¹ “And Samaria did only half as many bad things as you did. You did many more terrible things than Samaria! You have done so many more terrible things than your sisters have done. Sodom and Samaria seem good compared to you. ⁵² So you must bear your shame. You have made your sisters look good compared to you. You have done terrible things, so you should be ashamed.

⁵³ “I destroyed Sodom and the towns around it, and I destroyed Samaria and the towns around it. And I will destroy you too, Jerusalem. But I will build those cities again, and I will rebuild you too. ⁵⁴ I will comfort you. Then you will remember the terrible things you did, and you will be ashamed. ⁵⁵ So you and your sisters will be rebuilt. Sodom and the towns around her, Samaria and the towns around her, and you and the towns around you will all be rebuilt.

⁵⁶ “In the past, you were proud and made fun of your sister Sodom. But you will not do that again. ⁵⁷ You did that before you were punished, before your neighbors started making fun of you. The daughters of Edom^[o] and Philistia are making fun of you now. ⁵⁸ Now you must suffer for the terrible things you did.” This is what the Lord said.

God Remains Faithful

⁵⁹ This is what the Lord God said: “I will treat you like you treated me! You broke your marriage promise. You did not respect our agreement. ⁶⁰ But I will remember the agreement we made when you were young. I made an agreement with you that will continue forever! ⁶¹ I will bring your sisters to you, and I will make them your daughters. That was not in our agreement, but I will do that for you. Then you will remember the terrible things you did, and you will be ashamed. ⁶² So I will make my agreement with you, and you will know that I am the Lord. ⁶³ You will remember me, and you will be so ashamed of the evil things you did that you will not be able to say anything. But I will make you pure, and you will never be ashamed again!” This is what the Lord God said.

The Eagle and the Vine

17 Then the word of the Lord came to me. He said, ² “Son of man,^[p] I have a story with a hidden meaning for you to tell the family of Israel. ³ Tell them that this is what the Lord God says:

King Zedekiah Punished

¹¹ The word of the Lord came to me. He said, ¹² “Explain this story to the people of Israel who always turn against me. Tell them this: The first eagle is the king of Babylonia. He came to Jerusalem and took away the king and other leaders. He brought them to Babylonia. ¹³ Then Nebuchadnezzar made an agreement with a man from the king’s family. Nebuchadnezzar forced that man to make a promise. So this man promised to be loyal to Nebuchadnezzar. Nebuchadnezzar made this man the new king of Judah. Then he took all the powerful men away from Judah. ¹⁴ So Judah became a weak kingdom that could not turn against King Nebuchadnezzar. The people were forced to keep the agreement Nebuchadnezzar made with the new king of Judah. ¹⁵ But this new king tried to rebel against Nebuchadnezzar anyway! He sent messengers to Egypt to ask for help. The new king asked for many horses and soldiers. Now, do you think the new king of Judah will succeed? Do you think the new king will have enough power to break the agreement and escape punishment?”

¹⁶ The Lord God says, “By my life, I swear that this new king will die in Babylonia! Nebuchadnezzar made this man the new king of Judah, but he broke his promise with Nebuchadnezzar. This new king ignored that agreement. ¹⁷ The king of Egypt will not be able to save the king of Judah. He might send many soldiers, but Egypt’s great power will not save Judah. Nebuchadnezzar’s army will build dirt roads and dirt walls to capture the city. Many people will die. ¹⁸ But the king of Judah will not escape, because he ignored his agreement. He broke his promise to Nebuchadnezzar.” ¹⁹ The Lord God makes this promise: “By my life, I swear that I will punish the king of Judah, because he ignored my warnings and broke our agreement. ²⁰ I will set my trap, and he will be caught in it. Then I will bring him to Babylon, and I will punish him there. I will punish him because he turned against me, ²¹ and I will destroy his army. I will destroy his best soldiers and scatter them to the wind. Then you will know that I am the Lord and that I told you these things.”

²² This is what the Lord God says:

True Justice

18 The word of the Lord came to me. He said, ² “Why do you people say this proverb:

³ But the Lord God says, “By my life, I swear that people in Israel will not think this proverb is true anymore! ⁴ I will treat everyone, child and parent, just the same. The one who sins is the one who will die!

⁵ “A person who is good will live! He is fair and does what is right. ⁶ He doesn’t go to the mountains to share food offered to idols. He doesn’t pray to those filthy idols in Israel. He doesn’t commit adultery with his neighbor’s wife or with a woman during her period. ⁷ He doesn’t take advantage of others. If someone borrows money from him, he might take something of value before he gives the money. But when that person pays him back, he returns what he took. He gives food to the hungry and clothes to people who need them. ⁸ If someone wants to borrow money from him, he lends the money and doesn’t charge interest on the loan. He refuses to be crooked. He is always fair with everyone. People can trust him. ⁹ He obeys my laws and studies my rules so that he can learn to be fair and dependable. He is good, so he will live.” This is what the Lord God said.

¹⁰ “But someone like that might have a son who does not do any of these good things. The son steals things and kills people. ¹¹ He does things his father never did. He goes to the mountains and eats foods offered to false gods. He commits the sin of adultery with his neighbor’s wife. ¹² He mistreats poor, helpless people. He takes advantage of them. When a debt is paid,^[r] he does not give back what he took from them. He prays to filthy idols and does other terrible things. ¹³ He lends money to people who need it, but he forces them to pay interest on the loan. The evil son will not be allowed to live. He will be put to death because he did such terrible things, and he will be responsible for his own death.

¹⁴ “Now, that evil son might also have a son. But this son sees the bad things his father did, and he refuses to live as his father did. He treats people fairly. ¹⁵ He does not go to the mountains and eat foods offered to false gods. He does not pray to filthy idols in Israel. He does not commit the sin of adultery with his neighbor’s wife. ¹⁶ He does not take advantage of people. If someone borrows money from him, the good son takes something of value and then gives the other person the money. When that person pays him back, the good son gives back what he took. The good son gives food to hungry people, and he gives clothes to those who need them. ¹⁷ He helps the poor. If people want to borrow money, the good son lends them the money, and he does not charge interest on the loan. He obeys my laws and follows them. He will not be put to death for his father’s sins. The good son will live. ¹⁸ The father hurts people and steals things. He never does anything good for my people! He will die because of his own sins.

¹⁹ “You might ask, ‘Why will the son not be punished for his father’s sins?’ The reason is that the son was fair and did good things. He very carefully obeyed my laws, so he will live. ²⁰ The one who sins is the one who will be put to death. A son will not be punished for his father’s sins, and a father will not be punished for his son’s sins. A good man’s goodness belongs to him alone, and a bad man’s evil belongs to him alone.

²¹ “Now, if evil people change their lives, they will live and not die. They might stop doing all the bad things they did and begin to carefully obey all my laws. They might become fair and good. ²² God will not remember all the bad things they did. He will remember only their goodness, so they will live!”

²³ The Lord God says, “I don’t want evil people to die. I want them to change their lives so that they can live!

²⁴ “Now, maybe good people might stop being good. They might change their lives and begin to do all the terrible things that evil people have done in the past. (The evil people changed, so they can live.) So if those good people change and become bad, God will not remember all the good things they did. He will remember that they turned against him and began to sin. So they will die because of their sin.

²⁵ “You people might say, ‘The Lord isn’t fair!’ But listen, family of Israel. I am fair. You are the ones who are not fair! ²⁶ If good people change and become evil, they must die for the bad things they do. ²⁷ And if evil people change and become good and fair, they will save their lives. They will live! ²⁸ They saw how wicked they were and came back to me. They stopped doing the evil things they did in the past. So they will live! They will not die!”

²⁹ The people of Israel said, “That’s not fair! The Lord isn’t fair!”

“I am fair! You are the ones who are not fair! ³⁰ Why? Because, family of Israel, I will judge each of you only for what you do!” This is what the Lord God said. “So come back to me! Stop committing those crimes and do away with those things that cause you to sin! ³¹ Throw away all the terrible idols with which you committed your crimes! Change your heart and spirit. People of Israel, why should you do things that will cost you your life? ³² I don’t want to kill you! Please come back and live!” This is what the Lord God said.

A Sad Song About Israel

19 The Lord said to me, “You must sing this sad song about the leaders of Israel:

This was a sad song about death, and it was sung as a sad song about death.”

Israel Turned Away From God

20 One day some of the elders of Israel came to me to ask the Lord for advice. This was on the tenth day of the fifth month of the seventh year of exile.^[s] The elders sat down in front of me.

² Then the word of the Lord came to me. He said, ³ “Son of man,^[t] speak to the elders of Israel. Tell them ‘This is what the Lord God says: Have you come to ask me what you should do? I, the Lord God, tell you that, as surely as I live, I will not listen to you.’ ⁴ Should you judge them? Will you judge them, son of man? You must tell them about the terrible things their fathers have done. ⁵ You must tell them, ‘This is what the Lord God says: On the day I chose Israel, I raised my hand to Jacob’s family and made a promise to them in Egypt. When I let them know who I was, I raised my hand and said, “I am the Lord your God.” ⁶ On that day I promised to take you out of Egypt and lead you to the land I was giving to you. That was a good land filled with many good things.^[u] It was the most beautiful of all countries!

⁷ “‘I told the family of Israel to throw away their horrible idols. I told them not to become filthy with those filthy statues from Egypt. I said, “I am the Lord your God.” ⁸ But they turned against me and refused to listen to me. They did not throw away their horrible idols. They did not leave their filthy statues in Egypt. So I decided to destroy them in Egypt—to let them feel the full force of my anger. ⁹ But I did not destroy them. I had already told the Egyptians that I would bring my people out of Egypt. I did not want to ruin my good name, so I did not destroy Israel in front of those other people. ¹⁰ I brought the family of Israel out of Egypt. I led them into the desert. ¹¹ Then I gave them my laws and told them all my rules. All those who obey them will live. ¹² I also told them about all the special days of rest, which were a special sign between us. They showed that I am the Lord and that I was making them special to me.

¹³ “‘But the family of Israel turned against me in the desert. They did not follow my laws. They refused to obey my rules—even though people who obey my laws live because of them. They treated my special days of rest as if they were not important. They worked on those days many times. I decided to destroy them in the desert—to let them feel the full force of my anger. ¹⁴ But I did not destroy them. The other nations saw me bring Israel out of Egypt. I did not want to ruin my good name, so I did not destroy Israel in front of those other people. ¹⁵ I made another promise to those people in the desert. I promised that I would not bring them into the land I was giving them. That was a good land filled with many good things. It was the most beautiful of all countries!

¹⁶ “‘The people of Israel refused to obey my rules or to follow my laws. They treated my days of rest as if they were not important. They did all these things because their hearts belonged to their filthy idols. ¹⁷ But I felt sorry for them, so I did not destroy them. I did not completely destroy them in the desert. ¹⁸ I spoke to their children and told them, “Don’t be like your parents. Don’t make yourselves filthy with their filthy idols. Don’t follow their laws or obey their commands. ¹⁹ I am the Lord. I am your God. Obey my laws and keep my commands. Do the things I tell you. ²⁰ Show that my days of rest are important to you. Remember, they are a special sign between us. I am the Lord, and these days show you that I am your God.”

²¹ “‘But the children turned against me and did not obey my laws. They did not keep my commands—even though people who obey my laws live because of them. They treated my special days of rest as though they were not important. So I decided to destroy them completely in the desert—to let them feel the full force of my anger. ²² But I stopped myself. The other nations saw me bring Israel out of Egypt. I did not want to ruin my good name, so I did not destroy Israel in front of those other people. ²³ So I made another promise to those people in the desert. I promised to scatter them among the nations, to send them to many different countries.

²⁴ “‘The people of Israel did not obey my commands. They refused to obey my laws. They treated my special days of rest as though they were not important, and they worshiped the filthy idols of their fathers. ²⁵ So I gave them laws that were not good. I gave them commands that would not bring life. ²⁶ I let them make themselves filthy with their gifts. They even began to sacrifice their own firstborn children. In this way I would destroy them. Then they would know that I am the Lord.’ ²⁷ So now, son of man, speak to the family of Israel. Tell them, ‘This is what the Lord God says: The people of Israel said bad things about me and made evil plans against me. ²⁸ But I still brought them to the land I promised to give them. They saw all the hills and green trees, so they went to all those places to worship. They took their sacrifices and anger offerings^[v] to all those places. They offered their sacrifices that made a sweet smell, and they offered their drink offerings at those places. ²⁹ I asked the people of Israel why they were going to the high places. But that high place is still there today.^[w]’

³⁰ “Since Israel did those things, speak to them and tell them, ‘This is what the Lord God says: You people have made yourselves filthy by doing the things your ancestors did. You have acted like a prostitute. You have left me to be with the horrible gods your ancestors worshiped. ³¹ You are giving the same kind of gifts. You are putting your children in the fire as a gift to your false gods. You are still making yourself filthy with these filthy idols today! Do you really think that I should let you come to me and ask me for advice? I am the Lord God. By my life, I swear that I will not answer your questions or give you advice! ³² You keep saying you want to be like the other nations. You live like the people in other nations. You serve pieces of wood and stone idols!’”

³³ The Lord God says, “By my life, I swear that I will rule over you as king. But I will raise my powerful arm and punish you. I will show my anger against you! ³⁴ I will bring you out of these other nations. I scattered you among these nations, but I will gather you together and bring you back from these countries. But I will raise my powerful arm and punish you. I will show my anger against you! ³⁵ I will lead you into a desert as I did before, but this will be a place where other nations live. We will stand face to face, and I will judge you. ³⁶ I will judge you as I judged your ancestors in the desert near Egypt.” This is what the Lord God said.

³⁷ “I will judge you guilty and punish you according to the agreement. ³⁸ I will remove all those who turned against me and sinned against me. I will remove them from your homeland. They will never again come to the land of Israel. Then you will know that I am the Lord.”

³⁹ Now, family of Israel, this is what the Lord God says: “Whoever wants to worship their filthy idols, let them go and worship them. But later, don’t think you will get any advice from me. You will not ruin my name anymore—not when you continue to give your gifts to your filthy idols!”

⁴⁰ The Lord God says, “People must come to my holy mountain—the high mountain in Israel—to serve me! The whole family of Israel will be on their land; they will be there in their country. There you can come to ask me for advice, and you must come there to bring me your offerings. You must bring the first part of your crops to me there. You must bring all your holy gifts to me in that place. ⁴¹ Then I will be pleased with the sweet smell of your sacrifices. That will happen when I bring you back. I scattered you among many nations, but I will gather you together and make you my special people again. And all the nations will see it. ⁴² Then you will know that I am the Lord. You will know this when I bring you back to the land of Israel, the land I promised to give to your ancestors. ⁴³ In that country you will remember all the evil things you did that made you filthy, and you will be ashamed. ⁴⁴ Family of Israel, you did many evil things, and you should be destroyed because of them. But to protect my good name, I will not give you the punishment you really deserve. Then you will know that I am the Lord.” This is what the Lord God said.

⁴⁵ Then the word of the Lord came to me. He said, ⁴⁶ “Son of man, look toward the Negev, the southern part of Judah. Speak against the Negev Forest.^{[x] 47} Say to the Negev Forest, ‘Listen to the word of the Lord. This is what the Lord God said: Look, I am ready to start a fire in your forest. The fire will destroy every green tree and every dry tree. The flame that burns will not be put out. All the land from south to north will be burned by the fire. ⁴⁸ Then all people will see that I, the Lord, have started the fire. The fire will not be put out!’”

⁴⁹ Then I said, “Oh, Lord God! If I say this, the people will say that I am only telling them stories.”

Babylon, the Sword

21 So the word of the Lord came to me again. He said, ² “Son of man,^[y] look toward Jerusalem and speak against their holy places. Speak against the land of Israel for me. ³ Say to the land of Israel, ‘This is what the Lord said: I am against you! I will pull my sword from its sheath. I will remove all people from you—the good and the evil. ⁴ I will cut off both good people and evil people from you. I will pull my sword from its sheath and use it against all people from south to north. ⁵ Then everyone will know that I am the Lord. They will know that I have pulled my sword from its sheath. My sword will not go back into its sheath again until it is finished.’

⁶ “Son of man, make sad sounds like a sad person with a broken heart. Make these sad sounds in front of the people. ⁷ Then they will ask you, ‘Why are you making these sad sounds?’ Then you must say, ‘Because of the sad news that is coming. Every heart will melt with fear. All hands will become weak. Every spirit will become weak. All knees will be like water.’ Look, that bad news is coming. These things will happen!” This is what the Lord God said.

The Sword Is Ready

⁸ The word of the Lord came to me. He said, ⁹ “Son of man, speak to the people for me. Say this, ‘This is what the Lord says:

¹² “‘Son of man, shout out and scream because the sword will be used against my people and all the rulers of Israel. They wanted war—so they will be with my people when the sword comes. So slap your thigh to show your sadness, ¹³ because it is not just a test. You refused to be punished with the wooden stick, so what else should I use to punish you? A sword?’” This is what the Lord God said.

Jerusalem Punished

¹⁸ The word of the Lord came to me. He said, ¹⁹ “Son of man, draw two roads that the sword of the king of Babylon can use to come to Israel. Both roads will come from the same country. Then draw a sign at the head of the road to the city. ²⁰ Use the sign to show which road the sword will use. One road leads to the Ammonite city of Rabbah. The other road leads to Judah, to the protected city, Jerusalem. ²¹ The king of Babylon has come to where the two roads separate. He uses magic to learn which way to go: He shakes his arrows, he asks his family idols, and he looks at the liver^[z] from an animal he has killed.

²² “The signs tell him to take the road on his right, the road leading to Jerusalem, where he will use battering rams.^[aa] The signs tell him to give the command for his soldiers to begin the killing. They will shout the battle cry and set the battering rams against the gates. They will build a wall of dirt around the city and a dirt road leading up to the walls. They will build wooden towers to attack the city. ²³ But the people in Jerusalem will think this is all a big mistake. They will not believe that this could happen, because they had made a peace agreement with Babylon’s king. But the king will remind them that they are guilty of breaking that agreement, and he will take them captive.”

²⁴ This is what the Lord God says: “You have done many evil things. Your sins are very clear. You forced me to remember that you are guilty, so the enemy will catch you in his hand. ²⁵ And you, evil leader of Israel, you will be killed. Your time of punishment has come! The end is here!”

²⁶ This is what the Lord God says: “Take off the turban! Take off the crown! The time has come to change. The important leaders will be brought low, and those who are not important now will become important leaders. ²⁷ I will completely destroy that city! But this will not happen until the right man becomes the new king. Then I will let him have this city.”

The Ammonites Punished

²⁸ “Son of man, speak to the people for me. Say this, ‘This is what the Lord God says to the people of Ammon and their shameful god:

Prophecy Against Babylon

³⁰ “‘Put the sword back in its sheath. Babylon, I will judge you in the place where you were created, in the land where you were born. ³¹ I will pour out my anger against you. My anger will burn you like a hot wind. I will hand you over to cruel men.^[ab] Those men are skilled at killing people. ³² You will be like fuel for the fire. Your blood will flow deep into the earth—people will never remember you again. I, the Lord, have spoken!’”

Ezekiel Speaks Against Jerusalem

22 The word of the Lord came to me. He said, ² “Son of man,^[ac] will you judge the city of murderers? Will you tell her about all the terrible things she has done? ³ You must say, ‘This is what the Lord God says: The city is full of murderers, so her time of punishment will come. She made filthy idols for herself, and those idols made her filthy!

⁴ “‘People of Jerusalem, you killed many people. You made filthy idols. You are guilty, and the time has come to punish you. Your end has come. Other nations will make fun of you and laugh at you. ⁵ People far and near will make fun of you. You have ruined your name. You are filled with confusion.

⁶ “‘Look, all the leaders in Israel are using their strength just to kill other people. ⁷ And the people in Jerusalem don’t respect their parents. There in the city, they abuse the foreigners. They cheat orphans and widows in that place. ⁸ You hate all that I consider holy. You treat my special days of rest as if they are not important. ⁹ In Jerusalem, people tell lies in order to kill innocent people. They go to the mountains to worship false gods and then come back to Jerusalem to eat their fellowship meals.

“‘In Jerusalem, people commit many sexual sins. ¹⁰ There men commit sexual sins with their father’s wife. There the men rape women—even during their monthly time of bleeding. ¹¹ One man commits a terrible sin against his own neighbor’s wife. Another man has sex with his daughter-in-law and makes her unclean. Another man rapes his father’s daughter—his very own sister. ¹² There men accept bribes to kill people. You lend money and charge interest on the loans. You cheat your neighbors just to make a little money. You have even forgotten me.’ This is what the Lord God said.

¹³ “‘Now look! I will slam my hand down and stop you! I will punish you for cheating and killing people. ¹⁴ Will you be brave then? Will you be strong at the time I come to punish you? I am the Lord. I have spoken, and I will do what I said! ¹⁵ I will scatter you among the nations. I will force you to go to many countries. I will completely destroy the filthy things in this city. ¹⁶ But Jerusalem, you will become unclean. And the other nations will see all these things happen. Then you will know that I am the Lord.’”

Israel Is Like Worthless Waste

¹⁷ The word of the Lord came to me. He said, ¹⁸ “Son of man, bronze, iron, lead, and tin are important metals, but when a worker melts silver to make it pure, those metals are poured off as waste. Israel has become like that waste to me. ¹⁹ So this is what the Lord God says: ‘All of you have become like worthless waste. So I will gather you into Jerusalem. ²⁰ Workers put silver, bronze, iron, lead, and tin into a fire. They blow on the fire to make it hotter. Then the metals begin to melt. In the same way I will put you in my fire and melt you. That fire is my hot anger. ²¹ I will put you in my fire of anger and blow on it, and you will begin to melt. ²² In that city, you will be like silver melting in a fire. Then you will know that I am the Lord, and that I poured out my anger on you.’”

Ezekiel Speaks Against Jerusalem

²³ The word of the Lord came to me. He said, ²⁴ “Son of man, speak to Israel. Tell her that she is not pure.^[ad] I am angry at that country, so that country has not received its rain. ²⁵ The prophets in Jerusalem are making evil plans. They are like a lion—it roars when it begins to eat the animal it caught. They have destroyed many lives. They have taken many valuable things and made widows of many of the women in Jerusalem.

²⁶ “The priests have really hurt my teachings. They don’t treat my holy things right—they don’t show they are important. They treat holy things the same as things that are not holy. They treat clean things like things that are unclean. They don’t teach the people about these things. They refuse to respect my special days of rest. They treat me as though I am not important.

²⁷ “The leaders in Jerusalem are like a wolf eating the animal it has caught. They attack people and kill them just to get rich.

²⁸ “The prophets don’t warn the people—they cover up the truth. They are like workers who don’t really repair a wall—they only put plaster over the holes. They only see lies. They do their magic to learn the future, but they only tell lies. They say, ‘This is what the Lord God said.’ But they are only lying—the Lord did not speak to them!

²⁹ “The common people take advantage of each other. They cheat and steal from each other. They get rich by taking advantage of poor, helpless beggars, and they really cheat the foreigners. They are not fair to them at all!

³⁰ “I asked the people to change their lives and protect their country. I asked people to fix the walls. I wanted them to stand by those holes in the wall and fight to protect their city. But no one came to help! ³¹ So I will show them my anger—I will completely destroy them. I will punish them for the evil things they have done. It is all their fault.” This is what the Lord God said.

23 The word of the Lord came to me. He said, ² “Son of man,^[ae] listen to this story about Samaria and Jerusalem. There were two sisters, daughters of the same mother. ³ They became prostitutes in Egypt while they were still young girls. That’s where they first let men touch and handle their young breasts. ⁴ The older daughter was named Oholah,^[af] and her sister was named Oholibah.^[ag] They became my wives, and we had children. I am using the name Oholah to mean Samaria and the name Oholibah to mean Jerusalem.

⁵ “Then Oholah became unfaithful to me—she began to live like a prostitute. She began to want her lovers. She saw the Assyrian soldiers ⁶ in their blue uniforms. They were all handsome young men riding horses. They were leaders and officers, ⁷ and Oholah gave herself to all those men. All of them were handpicked soldiers in the Assyrian army, and she wanted them all! She became filthy with their filthy idols. ⁸ Besides that, she never stopped her love affair with Egypt. Egypt made love to her when she was a young girl. Egypt was the first lover to touch her young breasts. Egypt poured his untrue love on her. ⁹ So I let her lovers have her. She wanted Assyria, so I gave her to them! ¹⁰ They raped^[ah] her. They took her children and killed her. They punished her, and women still talk about her.

¹¹ “Her younger sister Oholibah saw all these things happen. But Oholibah sinned more than her sister did! She was more unfaithful than Oholah. ¹² She wanted the Assyrian leaders and officers. She wanted those soldiers in blue uniforms riding their horses. They were all handsome young men. ¹³ I saw that both women were going to ruin their lives with the same mistakes.

¹⁴ “Oholibah continued to be unfaithful to me. In Babylon, she saw pictures of men carved on the walls. These were pictures of Chaldean men wearing their red uniforms. ¹⁵ They wore belts around their waists and long turbans on their heads. All those men looked like chariot officers. They all looked like native-born Babylonian men, ¹⁶ and Oholibah wanted them. ¹⁷ So the Babylonian men came to her bed to have sex with her. They used her and made her so filthy that she became disgusted with them.

¹⁸ “Oholibah let everyone see that she was unfaithful. She let so many men enjoy her naked body that I became disgusted with her—just as I had become disgusted with her sister. ¹⁹ But Oholibah thought about her time as a prostitute in Egypt when she was young, and she turned to even more prostitution. ²⁰ She remembered the lovers who excited her there, who were like animals in their sexual desires and abilities.

²¹ “Oholibah, you dreamed of those times when you were young, when your lovers touched and handled your young breasts. ²² So Oholibah, this is what the Lord God says: ‘You became disgusted with your lovers, but I will bring them here, and they will surround you. ²³ I will bring all the men from Babylon, especially the Chaldeans. I will bring the men from Pekod, Shoa, and Koa, and all the men from Assyria. I will bring all the leaders and officers, all those desirable young men, chariot officers, and handpicked soldiers riding their horses. ²⁴ That crowd of men will come to you in large groups, riding on their horses and in their chariots. They will have their spears, shields, and helmets. They will gather around you, and I will tell them what you have done to me. Then they will punish you their own way. ²⁵ I will show you how jealous I am. They will become angry and hurt you. They will cut off your nose and ears. They will kill you with a sword. Then they will take your children and burn whatever is left of you. ²⁶ They will take your nice clothes and jewelry. ²⁷ So I will stop your dreams about your love affair with Egypt. You will never again look for them. You will never remember Egypt again!’”

²⁸ This is what the Lord God says: “I am giving you to the men you hate. I am giving you to the men you became disgusted with. ²⁹ And they will show how much they hate you! They will take everything you worked for, and they will leave you bare and naked! People will clearly see your sins. They will see that you acted like a prostitute and dreamed wicked dreams. ³⁰ You did those bad things when you left me to chase after the other nations. You did those bad things when you began to worship their filthy idols. ³¹ You followed your sister and lived as she did. You, yourself, took her cup of poison and held it in your hands.^[ai]” ³² This is what the Lord God says:

³⁵ “So this is what the Lord God said: ‘Jerusalem, you forgot me. You threw me away and left me behind. So now you must suffer for leaving me and living like a prostitute. You must suffer for your wicked dreams.’”

Judgment Against Oholah and Oholibah

³⁶ The Lord said to me, “Son of man, will you judge Oholah and Oholibah? Then tell them about the terrible things they have done. ³⁷ They committed the sin of adultery. They are guilty of murder. They acted like prostitutes—they left me to be with their filthy idols. They had my children, but they forced them to pass through fire. They did this to give food to their filthy idols. ³⁸ They also treated my special days of rest and my holy place as though they were not important. ³⁹ They killed their children for their idols, and then they went into my holy place and made it filthy too! They did this inside my Temple!