Ezekiel 36

1 “And you, son of man, prophesy to the mountains of Israel and say: O mountains of Israel, hear the word of the LORD.

“But as for you, son of man, prophesy over the mountains of Israel, and you shall say: O mountains of Israel, listen to the word of the Lord.

2 This is what the Lord GOD says: Because the enemy has said of you, ‘Aha! The ancient heights have become our possession,’

Thus says the Lord God: Because the enemy has said about you: ‘It is well! The everlasting heights have been given to us as an inheritance!’

3 therefore prophesy and declare that this is what the Lord GOD says: Because they have made you desolate and have trampled you on every side, so that you became a possession of the rest of the nations and were taken up in slander by the lips of their talkers,

because of this, prophesy and say: Thus says the Lord God: Because you have been made desolate, and you have been trampled on every side, and you have been made into an inheritance for the remainder of the nations, and because you rose up, over the tip of the tongue and over the shame of the people,

4 therefore, O mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord GOD. This is what the Lord GOD says to the mountains and hills, to the ravines and valleys, to the desolate ruins and abandoned cities, which have become a spoil and a mockery to the rest of the nations around you.

because of this, O mountains of Israel, listen to the word of the Lord God. Thus says the Lord God to the mountains, and to the hills, to the torrents, and to the valleys, and to the deserts, and to the ruins, and to the forsaken cities, which have been depopulated and ridiculed by the remainder of the nations all around:

5 Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: Surely in My burning zeal I have spoken against the rest of the nations, and against all Edom, who took My land as their own possession with wholehearted joy and utter contempt, so that its pastureland became plunder.

Because of this, thus says the Lord God: In the fire of my zeal, I have spoken about the remainder of the nations, and about all of Idumea, who have given my land to themselves, joyfully, as an inheritance, and with all the heart and mind, and who have cast it out, so that they may lay waste to it.

6 Therefore, prophesy concerning the land of Israel and tell the mountains and hills, the ravines and valleys, that this is what the Lord GOD says: Behold, I have spoken in My burning zeal because you have endured the reproach of the nations.

Therefore, prophesy over the soil of Israel, and you shall say to the mountains, and to the hills, to the ridges, and to the valleys: Thus says the Lord God: Behold, I have spoken in my zeal and in my fury, because you have endured the shame of the Gentiles.

7 Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: I have sworn with an uplifted hand that surely the nations around you will endure reproach of their own.

Therefore, thus says the Lord God: I have lifted up my hand, so that the Gentiles, who are all around you, will themselves bear their shame.

8 But you, O mountains of Israel, will produce branches and bear fruit for My people Israel, for they will soon come home.

But as for you, O mountains of Israel, spring forth your branches, and bear your fruit, to my people Israel. For they are close to their advent.

9 For behold, I am on your side; I will turn toward you, and you will be tilled and sown.

For behold, I am for you, and I will turn to you, and you will be plowed, and you will receive seed.

10 I will multiply the people upon you—the house of Israel in its entirety. The cities will be inhabited and the ruins rebuilt.

And I will multiply men among you and among all the house of Israel. And the cities shall be inhabited, and the ruinous places shall be restored.

11 I will fill you with people and animals, and they will multiply and be fruitful. I will make you as inhabited as you once were, and I will make you prosper more than before. Then you will know that I am the LORD.

And I will fill you again with men and with cattle. And they will be multiplied, and they will increase. And I will cause you to live as from the beginning, and I will give you even greater gifts than those you had from the start. And you shall know that I am the Lord.

12 Yes, I will cause My people Israel to walk upon you; they will possess you, and you will be their inheritance, and you will no longer deprive them of their children.

And I will lead men over you, over my people Israel, and they will possess you as an inheritance. And you shall be to them as an inheritance. And you shall no longer be permitted to be without them.

13 For this is what the Lord GOD says: Because people say to you, ‘You devour men and deprive your nation of its children,’

Thus says the Lord God: Because they are saying about you, ‘You are a woman who devours men, and you are strangling your own nation,’

14 therefore you will no longer devour men or deprive your nation of its children, declares the Lord GOD.

because of this, you shall no longer consume men, and you shall no longer harm your own nation, says the Lord God.

15 I will no longer allow the taunts of the nations to be heard against you, and you will no longer endure the reproach of the peoples or cause your nation to stumble, declares the Lord GOD.”

Neither will I permit men to discover in you the shame of the Gentiles any more. And you shall never again bear the reproach of the peoples. And you shall not send your people away any more, says the Lord God.”

16 Again the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:

17 “Son of man, when the people of Israel lived in their land, they defiled it by their own ways and deeds. Their behavior before Me was like the uncleanness of a woman’s impurity.

“Son of man, the house of Israel lived on their own soil, and they defiled it with their ways and with their intentions. Their way, in my sight, became like the uncleanness of a menstruous woman.

18 So I poured out My wrath upon them because of the blood they had shed on the land, and because they had defiled it with their idols.

And so I poured out my indignation upon them, because of the blood which they shed upon the land, and because they defiled it with their idols.

19 I dispersed them among the nations, and they were scattered throughout the lands. I judged them according to their ways and deeds.

And I dispersed them among the Gentiles, and they have been scattered among the lands. I have judged them according to their ways and their plans.

20 And wherever they went among the nations, they profaned My holy name, because it was said of them, ‘These are the people of the LORD, yet they had to leave His land.’

And when they walked among the Gentiles, to whom they had entered, they defiled my holy name, though it was being said about them: ‘This is the people of the Lord,’ and ‘They went forth from his land.’

21 But I had concern for My holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the nations to which they had gone.

But I have spared my holy name, which the house of Israel has defiled among the Gentiles, to whom they entered.

22 Therefore tell the house of Israel that this is what the Lord GOD says: It is not for your sake that I will act, O house of Israel, but for My holy name, which you profaned among the nations to which you went.

For this reason, you shall say to the house of Israel: Thus says the Lord God: I will act, not for your sake, O house of Israel, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have defiled among the Gentiles, to whom you entered.

23 I will show the holiness of My great name, which has been profaned among the nations—the name you have profaned among them. Then the nations will know that I am the LORD, declares the Lord GOD, when I show My holiness in you before their eyes.

And I will sanctify my great name, which was defiled among the Gentiles, which you have defiled in their midst. So may the Gentiles know that I am the Lord, says the Lord of hosts, when I will have been sanctified in you, before their eyes.

24 For I will take you from among the nations and gather you out of all the countries, and I will bring you back into your own land.

Certainly, I will take you away from the Gentiles, and I will gather you together from all the lands, and I will lead you into your own land.

25 I will also sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. I will cleanse you from all your impurities and all your idols.

And I will pour clean water over you, and you shall be cleansed from all your filth, and I will cleanse you from all your idols.

26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will remove your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.

And I will give to you a new heart, and I will place in you a new spirit. And I will take away the heart of stone from your body, and I will give to you a heart of flesh.

27 And I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes and to carefully observe My ordinances.

And I will place my Spirit in your midst. And I will act so that you may walk in my precepts and keep my judgments, and so that you may fulfill them.

28 Then you will live in the land that I gave your forefathers; you will be My people, and I will be your God.

And you shall live in the land that I gave to your fathers. And you shall be my people, and I will be your God.

29 I will save you from all your uncleanness. I will summon the grain and make it plentiful, and I will not bring famine upon you.

And I will save you from all your filth. And I will call for grain, and I will multiply it, and I will not impose a famine upon you.

30 I will also make the fruit of the trees and the crops of the field plentiful, so that you will no longer bear reproach among the nations on account of famine.

And I will multiply the fruit of the tree and the produce of the field, so that you may no longer bear the disgrace of famine among the nations.

31 Then you will remember your evil ways and wicked deeds, and you will loathe yourselves for your iniquities and abominations.

And you shall remember your very wicked ways and your intentions, which were not good. And you will be displeased by your own iniquities and your own crimes.

32 It is not for your sake that I will act, declares the Lord GOD—let it be known to you. Be ashamed and disgraced for your ways, O house of Israel!

It is not for your sakes that I will act, says the Lord God; let this be known to you. Be confounded and ashamed over your own ways, O house of Israel.

33 This is what the Lord GOD says: On the day I cleanse you from all your iniquities, I will cause the cities to be resettled and the ruins to be rebuilt.

Thus says the Lord God: In the day when I will have cleansed you from all your iniquities, and when I will have caused the cities to be inhabited, and when I will have restored the ruinous places,

34 The desolate land will be cultivated instead of lying desolate in the sight of all who pass through.

and when the deserted land will have been cultivated, which previously was desolate to the eyes of all who passed by,

35 Then they will say, ‘This land that was desolate has become like the garden of Eden. The cities that were once ruined, desolate, and destroyed are now fortified and inhabited.’

then they shall say: ‘This uncultivated land has become a garden of delight, and the cities, which were deserted and destitute and overturned, have been settled and fortified.’

36 Then the nations around you that remain will know that I, the LORD, have rebuilt what was destroyed, and I have replanted what was desolate. I, the LORD, have spoken, and I will do it.

And the Gentiles, those who remain around you, shall know that I, the Lord, have built up what was destroyed, and have planted what was uncultivated. I, the Lord, have spoken and acted.

37 This is what the Lord GOD says: Once again I will hear the plea of the house of Israel and do for them this: I will multiply their people like a flock.

Thus says the Lord God: Even in this time, the house of Israel shall find me, so that I may act for them. I will multiply them like a flock of men,

38 Like the numerous flocks for sacrifices at Jerusalem during her appointed feasts, so the ruined cities will be filled with flocks of people. Then they will know that I am the LORD.”

like a holy flock, like the flock of Jerusalem in her solemnities. So shall the deserted cities be filled with flocks of men. And they shall know that I am the Lord.”