Ezekiel 3

1 “Son of man,” He said to me, “eat what you find here. Eat this scroll, then go and speak to the house of Israel.”

Then said he unto me, Son of man What thou findest, eat, —eat this roll, and go speak unto the house of Israel.

2 So I opened my mouth, and He fed me the scroll.

So I opened my mouth, —and he caused me to eat this roll.

3 “Son of man,” He said to me, “eat and fill your stomach with this scroll I am giving you.” So I ate, and it was as sweet as honey in my mouth.

Then said he unto me Son of man. Thy belly, cause thou to eat and thy bowels, fill thou with this roll which I am giving unto thee. So I did eat, and it became in my mouth, as honey for sweetness.

4 Then He said to me, “Son of man, go now to the house of Israel and speak My words to them.

Then said he unto me, — Son of man Go get thee unto the house of Israel, and thou shalt speak with my words, unto them.

5 For you are not being sent to a people of unfamiliar speech or difficult language, but to the house of Israel—

For not unto a people deep of lip and heavy of tongue, art thou sent —[but] unto the house of Israel:

6 not to the many peoples of unfamiliar speech and difficult language whose words you cannot understand. Surely if I had sent you to them, they would have listened to you.

not unto many peoples deep of lip and heavy of tongue, whose words thou couldst not understand, —surely if unto them I had sent thee, they would have hearkened unto thee.

7 But the house of Israel will be unwilling to listen to you, since they are unwilling to listen to Me. For the whole house of Israel is hard-headed and hard-hearted.

But the house of Israel will not be willing to hearken unto thee, for they are not willing to hearken unto me, —for all the house of Israel are bold of forehead and hard of heart.

8 Behold, I will make your face as hard as their faces, and your forehead as hard as their foreheads.

Lo! I have made thy face bold like as their faces, and thy forehead bold like as their forehead.

9 I will make your forehead like a diamond, harder than flint. Do not be afraid of them or dismayed at their presence, even though they are a rebellious house.”

As an adamant harder than flint, have I made thy forehead, —thou shalt not fear them neither shalt thou be dismayed at their faces, For a perverse house, they are!

10 “Son of man,” He added, “listen carefully to all the words I speak to you, and take them to heart.

Then said he unto me, — Son of man. All my words which I shall speak unto thee, receive thou into thy heart and in thine ears, hear thou:

11 Go to your people, the exiles; speak to them and tell them, ‘This is what the Lord GOD says,’ whether they listen or refuse to listen.”

then go get thee unto them of the captivity, unto the sons of thy people, and thou shalt speak unto them and say unto them, Thus saith My Lord Yahweh, whether they will hear or whether they will forbear.

12 Then the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard a great rumbling sound behind me: ‘Blessed be the glory of the LORD in His dwelling place!’

Then the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard behind me the sound of a great rushing, — Blessed be the glory of Yahweh. From his place!

13 It was the sound of the wings of the living creatures brushing against one another and the sound of the wheels beside them, a great rumbling sound.

Yea the sound of the wings of the living ones, gently touching each other, and the sound of the wheels, along with them, even the sound of a great rushing.

14 So the Spirit lifted me up and took me away, and I went in bitterness and in the anger of my spirit, with the strong hand of the LORD upon me.

So the Spirit lifted me up, and took me away, —and I went bitterly, in the rage of my spirit, but the hand of Yahweh upon me was strong.

15 I came to the exiles at Tel-abib who dwelt by the River Kebar. And for seven days I sat where they sat and remained there among them, overwhelmed.

Thus came I unto them of the captivity, at Tel-abib. who were dwelling towards he river Chebar and I dwelt where They were dwelling; yea I dwelt there seven days, stunned in their midst,

16 At the end of seven days the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

And it came to pass at the end of seven days, that the word of Yahweh came unto me saying

17 “Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from My mouth, give them a warning from Me.

Son of man, A watchman, have I appointed thee to the house of Israel, —and thou shalt hear, at my mouth a message, and shalt warn them from me.

18 If I say to the wicked man, ‘You will surely die,’ but you do not warn him or speak out to warn him from his wicked way to save his life, that wicked man will die in his iniquity, and I will hold you responsible for his blood.

When I say to the lawless man— Thou shalt surely die, and thou hast not given him warning, neither hast spoken to warn the lawless man from his lawless way, to save himself alive the same lawless man in his iniquity shall die, but his blood, at thy hand, will I require.

19 But if you warn a wicked man and he does not turn from his wickedness and his wicked way, he will die in his iniquity, but you will have saved yourself.

Whereas when thou hast warned a lawless man, and he hath not turned from his lawlessness and from his lawless way he in his iniquity shall die, but Thou hast delivered thine own soul.

20 Now if a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and I put a stumbling block before him, he will die. If you did not warn him, he will die in his sin, and the righteous acts he did will not be remembered. And I will hold you responsible for his blood.

And when a righteous man hath turned from his righteousness, and committed perversity, and I have suffered a stumbling- block to be laid before him he shall die, —though thou hast not warned him, in his sin, shall he die, neither shall be remembered his righteous deeds which he hath done, but his blood, at thy hand will I require;

21 But if you warn the righteous man not to sin, and he does not sin, he will indeed live because he heeded your warning, and you will have saved yourself.”

whereas when Thou hast warned a righteous man. That a righteous man must not sin and he hath not sinned, he shall surely live in that he took warning, and thou hast delivered thine own soul.

22 And there the hand of the LORD was upon me, and He said to me, “Get up, go out to the plain, and there I will speak with you.”

Then came upon me there the hand of Yahweh, —and he said unto me, Arise go forth into the valley, and there, will I speak with thee.

23 So I got up and went out to the plain, and behold, the glory of the LORD was present there, like the glory I had seen by the River Kebar, and I fell facedown.

So I arose and went forth into the valley, and lo! there the glory of Yahweh, standing, like the glory which I saw by the river Chebar, -and I fell upon my face.

24 Then the Spirit entered me and set me on my feet. He spoke with me and said, “Go, shut yourself inside your house.

Then the Spirit entered into me, and caused me to stand upon my feet, —and he spake with me and said unto me, Go in shut thyself up, in the midst of thine own house,

25 And you, son of man, they will tie with ropes, and you will be bound so that you cannot go out among the people.

And thou—O son of man, lo! they have put upon thee bands, and they will bind thee therewith, -. so that thou go not forth in their midst;

26 I will make your tongue stick to the roof of your mouth, and you will be silent and unable to rebuke them, though they are a rebellious house.

thy tongue also, will I cause to cleave unto the roof of thy mouth, so shalt thou be dumb and not be to them a reprover, — For a perverse house, they are!

27 But when I speak with you, I will open your mouth, and you are to tell them, ‘This is what the Lord GOD says.’ Whoever listens, let him listen; and whoever refuses, let him refuse, for they are a rebellious house.

But when I speak with thee, I will open thy mouth, and thou shalt say unto them. Thus saith My Lord Yahweh, —He that is minded to hear, let him hear, And he that is minded to forbear, let him forbear! For a perverse house, they are!