Jezekiel 24
1 And the word of the Lord came to me, in the ninth year, in the tenth month, on the tenth [day] of the month, saying,
The word of Yahweh came to me in the ninth year, in the tenth month, and on the tenth day of the month, saying,
2 Son of man, write for thyself daily from this day, on which the king of Babylon set himself against Jerusalem, [even] from this day.
“Son of man, write for yourself the name of this day, this exact day, for this exact day the king of Babylon has besieged Jerusalem.
3 And speak a parable to the provoking house, and thou shalt say to them, Thus saith the Lord; Set on the caldron, and pour water into it:
So speak a proverb against this rebellious house, a parable. Say to them, 'The Lord Yahweh says this: Place the cooking pot. Place it and pour water into it.
4 and put the pieces into it, every prime piece, the leg and shoulder taken off from the bones,
Gather pieces of food within it, every good piece—the thigh and shoulder— and fill it with the best bones.
5 [which are] taken from choice cattle, and burn the bones under them: her bones are boiled and cooked in the midst of her.
Take the best of the flock and pile up the bones under it. Bring it to a boil and cook the bones in it.
6 Therefore thus saith the Lord; O bloody city, the caldron in which there is scum, and the scum has not gone out of, she has brought it forth piece by piece, no lot has fallen upon it.
Therefore the Lord Yahweh says this: Woe to the city of blood, a cooking pot that has rust in it and that rust will not come out of it. Take piece after piece from it, but do not cast lots for it.
7 For her blood is in the midst of her; I have set it upon a smooth rock: I have not poured it out upon the earth, so that the earth should cover it;
For her blood is in the midst of her. She has set it on the smooth rock; she has not poured it out on the ground to cover it with dust,
8 that my wrath should come up for complete vengeance to be taken: I set her blood upon a smooth rock, so as not to cover it.
so it brings fury up to exact vengeance. I placed her blood on the smooth rock so it could not be covered.
9 Therefore thus saith the Lord, I will also make the firebrand great,
Therefore, the Lord Yahweh says this: Woe to the city of blood. I will also enlarge the pile of wood.
10 and I will multiply the wood, and kindle the fire, that the flesh may be consumed, and the liquor boiled away;
Stack up the wood and kindle the fire. Cook the meat well and mix in the spices and let the bones be charred.
11 and that [it] may stand upon the coals, that her brass may be thoroughly heated, and be melted in the midst of her filthiness, and her scum may be consumed,
Then set the pot on its coals empty, in order to heat and scorch its bronze, so its uncleanness within it will be melted, its corrosion consumed.'
12 and her abundant scum may not come forth of her.
She has become weary because of toil, but her corrosion has not gone out of her by the fire.
13 Her scum shall become shameful, because thou didst defile thyself: and what if thou shalt be purged no more until I have accomplished my wrath?
Your shameful behavior is in your uncleanness. Because I tried to cleanse you but still you would not be cleansed from your uncleanness, you will not be cleansed anymore until I have satisfied my fury upon you.
14 I the Lord have spoken; and it shall come, and I will do [it]; I will not delay, neither will I have any mercy: I will judge thee, saith the Lord, according to thy ways, and according to thy devices: therefore will I judge thee according to thy bloodshed, and according to thy devices will I judge thee, thou unclean, notorious, and abundantly provoking one.
I, Yahweh, have declared it, and I will do it. I will not relent nor will I rest from it. As your ways were, and as your activities, they will judge you!—this is the Lord Yahweh's declaration.”
15 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying,
Then the word of Yahweh came to me, saying,
16 Son of man, behold I take from thee the desire of thine eyes by violence: thou shalt not lament, neither shalt thou weep.
“Son of man! Behold, I am taking the desire of your eyes from you with a plague, but you must not mourn nor weep, and your tears must not flow.
17 Thou shalt groan for blood, and have mourning upon thy loins; thy hair shall not be braided upon thee, and thy sandals [shall be] on thy feet; thou shalt in no wise be comforted by their lips, and thou shalt not eat the bread of men.
You must groan silently. Do not conduct a funeral for the dead. Tie your turban on you and place your sandals on your feet, but do not veil your facial hair or eat the bread of men who mourn for having lost their wives.”
18 And I spoke to the people in the morning, as he commanded me in the evening, and I did in the morning as it was commanded me.
So I spoke to the people in the morning, and my wife died in the evening. In the morning I did what I had been commanded to do.
19 And the people said to me, Wilt thou not tell us what these things are that thou doest?
The people asked me, “Will you not tell us what these things mean, the things that you are doing?”
20 Then I said to them, The word of the Lord came to me, saying,
So I said to them, “The word of Yahweh came to me, saying,
21 Say to the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord; Behold, I [will] profane my sanctuary, the boast of your strength, the desire of your eyes, and for which your souls are concerned; and your sons and your daughters, whom ye have left, shall fall by the sword.
'Say to the house of Israel, the Lord Yahweh says this: Behold! I will desecrate my sanctuary—the pride of your power, the delight of your eyes, and the yearning of your soul, and your sons and your daughters whom you left behind will fall by the sword.
22 And ye shall do as I have done: ye shall not be comforted at their mouth, and ye shall not eat the bread of men.
Then you will do exactly as I have done: you will not veil your facial hair, nor eat the bread of mourning men!
23 And your hair [shall be] upon your head, and your shoes on your feet: neither shall ye at all lament or weep; but ye shall pine away in your iniquities, and shall comfort every one his brother.
Instead, your turbans will be on your heads, and your sandals on your feet; you will not mourn nor weep, for you will melt away in your iniquities, and each man will groan for his brother.
24 And Jezekiel shall be for a sign to you: according to all that I have done shall ye do, when these things shall come; and ye shall know that I am the Lord.
So Ezekiel will be a sign for you, as everything that he has done you will do when this comes. Then you will know that I am the Lord Yahweh!'”
25 And thou, son of man, [shall it] not [be] in the day when I take their strength from them, the pride of their boasting, the desires of their eyes, and the pride of their soul, their sons and their daughters,
“But you, son of man, on the day that I capture their temple, which is their joy, their pride, and what they see and desire—and when I take away their sons and daughters—
26 that in that day he that escapes shall come to thee, to tell [it] thee in thine ears?
on that day, a refugee will come to you to give you the news!
27 In that day thy mouth shall be opened to him that escapes; thou shalt speak, and shalt be no longer dumb: and thou shalt be for a sign to them, and they shall know that I am the Lord.
On that day your mouth will be opened up to that refugee and you will speak—you will no longer be silent. You will be a sign for them so that they will know that I am Yahweh.”
