Ezekiel 4
1 Thou also sonne of man, take thee a bricke, and lay it before thee, and pourtray vpon it the citie, euen Ierusalem,
[Yahweh also said to me, ] “You human, take a large clay tablet/brick and put it in front of you. Then on the [engrave/draw] on it lines that represent Jerusalem.
2 And lay siege against it, and builde a fort against it, and cast a mount against it: set the campe also against it, and lay engins of warre against it rounde about.
[draw figures around it to represent enemy soldiers who will] surround the city. Make mounds around it and a dirt ramp up against the [around the city]. [figures around it that represent] (battering rams/heavy logs that will break though the walls).
3 Moreouer, take an yron pan, and set it for a wall of yron betweene thee and the citie, and direct thy face towarde it, and it shall be besieged, and thou shalt lay siege against it: this shall be a signe vnto the house of Israel.
Then take an iron pan, and place it [to be] like an iron wall between you [the drawing of] the city. Then turn your face toward the drawing. It will symbolize [enemy troops will] surround the city to attack it. That will be a warning to the Israeli people [MTY].
4 Sleepe thou also vpon thy left side, and lay the iniquitie of the house of Israel vpon it: according to the nomber of the dayes, that thou shalt sleepe vpon it, thou shalt beare their iniquity.
Then lie on your left side, and stay like that for 390 days. That [symbolize that the Israeli people will be punished for] their sins; you must lie like that one day for each year during which they will be punished.
5 For I haue layed vpon thee the yeeres of their iniquitie, according to the nomber of the dayes, euen three hundreth and ninetie dayes: so shalt thou beare the iniquitie of the house of Israel.
6 And when thou hast accomplished them, sleepe againe vpon thy right side, and thou shalt beare the iniquitie of the house of Iudah fourtie dayes: I haue appointed thee a day for a yeere, euen a day for a yeere.
After that, lie down again. This time, lie on your right side for 40 days. That [symbolize that the Israeli people will be punished more] for their sins, one day for each [during which they will be punished].
7 Therefore thou shalt direct thy face towarde the siege of Ierusalem, and thine arme shalbe vncouered, and thou shalt prophesie against it.
Turn your face [the drawing of] Jerusalem and bare your [like a soldier does who prepares to go into a battle] [MTY], and prophesy [what will happen to] the city.
8 And beholde, I will lay bands vpon thee, and thou shalt not turne thee from one side to another, till thou hast ended the dayes of thy siege.
[You will not be able to move; it will be as though] I have tied you with ropes in order that you cannot turn from one side to the other until you have [symbolizing how many years the city] will be (besieged/surrounded by enemy soldiers).
9 Thou shalt take also vnto thee wheate, and barley, and beanes, and lentiles, and millet, and fitches, and put them in one vessell, and make thee bread thereof according to the nomber of the dayes, that thou shalt sleepe vpon thy side: euen three hundreth and ninetie dayes shalt thou eate thereof.
[Before you do that, ] take some wheat and barley, beans, lentils, spelt and millet, and put them in a [storage] jar, and use that to bake [for yourself]. That is what you will eat during the 390 days while you lie on your [left] side.
10 And the meate, whereof thou shalt eate, shalbe by weight, euen twenty shekels a day: and from time to time shalt thou eate thereof.
You will eat (8 ounces/a small loaf) of bread each day.
11 Thou shalt drinke also water by measure, euen the sixt part of an Hin: from time to time shalt thou drinke.
[Also] measure out (1.5 pints/0.6 liter) of water to drink each day.
12 And thou shalt eate it as barley cakes, and thou shalt bake it in the dongue that commeth out of man, in their sight.
Eat that bread like you would eat a loaf of barley bread. But use your own dried dung for fuel to bake the bread while people are watching.
13 And the Lord said, So shall the children of Israel eate their defiled bread among the Gentiles, whither I will cast them.
That will symbolize that the Israeli people will be forced to eat food that is unacceptable to me when they are living in the nations to which I will force them to go.”
14 Then said I, Ah, Lord God, beholde, my soule hath not bene polluted: for from my youth vp, euen vnto this houre, I haue not eaten of a thing dead, or torne in pieces, neither came there any vncleane flesh in my mouth.
Then I said, “No, Yahweh God![Do not force me to do that]! I have never caused myself to become unacceptable to you [by doing anything like that]. From the time when I was young, I have never eaten meat of any [animal] that was found dead or that had been killed by wild animals. And I have never eaten any meat that is unacceptable to you.”
15 Then he said vnto me, Loe, I haue giuen thee bullockes dongue for mans dongue, and thou shalt prepare thy bread therewith.
Yahweh replied, “Okay, I will allow you to bake your bread using dried cow manure instead of human [for fuel].”
16 Moreouer, he said vnto me, Sonne of man, beholde, I will breake the staffe of bread in Ierusalem, and they shall eate bread by weight, and with care, and they shall drinke water by measure, and with astonishment.
Then he said to me, “You human, I will cause the supply of food to Jerusalem to be cut off. [Then] the people will eat the small amounts of food and drink the small amounts of [that the government permits them to have], and they will be [very] distressed and anxious as they do that,
17 Because that bread and water shall faile, they shalbe astonied one with another, and shall consume away for their iniquitie.
because water and food will be very scarce. They will see each other becoming extremely thin, and they will be appalled; [but this will happen] because they are being punished [for the sins that they have committed].”
