Ezekiel 11

1 Then a spirit lifted me up, and brought me unto the east gate of the LORD'S house, which looketh eastward; and behold at the door of the gate five and twenty men; and I saw in the midst of them Jaazaniah the son of Azzur, and Pelatiah the son of Benaiah, princes of the people.

Then the Spirit picked me up and took me to the eastern entrance of the Lord's Temple. Twenty-five men were gathered there at the entrance. I recognized among them Jaazaniah son of Azzur and Pelatiah son of Benaiah, leaders of the people.

2 And He said unto me: 'Son of man, these are the men that devise iniquity, and that give wicked counsel in this city;

The Lord told me, “Son of man, it's these men who are making evil plans and giving bad advice to the people in this city.

3 that say: The time is not near to build houses! this city is the caldron, and we are the flesh.

They're saying, ‘Is this the time for us to be building houses? The city is the cooking pot, and we are the meat inside it.’

4 Therefore prophesy against them, prophesy, O son of man.'

So prophesy against them. Prophesy, son of man!”

5 And the spirit of the LORD fell upon me, and He said unto me: 'Speak: Thus saith the LORD: Thus have ye said, O house of Israel; for I know the things that come into your mind.

The Spirit of the Lord came upon me and told me to say: This is what the Lord says: “People of Israel, that's what you're saying! I know what you're thinking inside!

6 Ye have multiplied your slain in this city, and ye have filled the streets thereof with the slain.

You murder more and more people in this city. You've filled its streets with the dead!

7 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Your slain whom ye have laid in the midst of it, they are the flesh, and this city is the caldron; but ye shall be brought forth out of the midst of it.

So this is what the Lord God says: Those you've killed in this city are the meat, and the city is the pot; but I'm going to take you out of it.

8 Ye have feared the sword; and the sword will I bring upon you, saith the Lord GOD.

You're afraid of being killed by the sword, so I will bring invaders with swords to attack you, declares the Lord God.

9 And I will bring you forth out of the midst thereof, and deliver you into the hands of strangers, and will execute judgments among you.

I'm going to take you out of the city and hand you over to foreigners, and I'm going to carry out my sentence against you.

10 Ye shall fall by the sword: I will judge you upon the border of Israel; and ye shall know that I am the LORD.

You will be killed by the sword, and I will punish you right up to the borders of Israel. Then you will know that I am the Lord.

11 Though this city shall not be your caldron, ye shall be the flesh in the midst thereof; I will judge you upon the border of Israel;

The city won't be like a pot for you, and you won't be the meat inside it either. I will punish you right up to the borders of Israel.

12 and ye shall know that I am the LORD; for ye have not walked in My statutes, neither have ye executed Mine ordinances, but have done after the ordinances of the nations that are round about you.'

Then you will know that I am the Lord. For you didn't follow my rules and you didn't keep my laws. Instead you kept the laws of the nations around you.”

13 And it came to pass, when I prophesied, that Pelatiah the son of Benaiah died. Then fell I down upon my face, and cried with a loud voice, and said: 'Ah Lord GOD! wilt Thou make a full end of the remnant of Israel?'

While I was prophesying, Pelatiah son of Benaiah died. I fell facedown on the ground and shouted loudly, “Lord God, are you going to completely destroy what's left of the people of Israel?”

14 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying:

A message from Lord came to me, saying,

15 'Son of man, as for thy brethren, even thy brethren, the men of thy kindred, and all the house of Israel, all of them, concerning whom the inhabitants of Jerusalem have said: Get you far from the LORD! unto us is this land given for a possession;

“Son of man, your brothers, including your relatives, your fellow exiles, and all the other Israelites, are those the people of Jerusalem were referring to when they said, ‘They are far away from the Lord. This country was given to us and we are to own it.’

16 therefore say: Thus saith the Lord GOD: Although I have removed them far off among the nations, and although I have scattered them among the countries, yet have I been to them as a little sanctuary in the countries where they are come;

So tell them that this is what the Lord God says: Even though I sent them far away to live among the foreign nations, scattering them among the different countries, I have been taking care of them for a while in the countries where they went.

17 therefore say: Thus saith the Lord GOD: I will even gather you from the peoples, and assemble you out of the countries where ye have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel.

Tell them that this is what the Lord God says: I'm going to gather you from the other nations and bring you back from the countries where you've been scattered, and I will return the country of Israel to you.

18 And they shall come thither, and they shall take away all the detestable things thereof and all the abominations thereof from thence.

When they come back, they are going to get rid of all its offensive idols and disgusting practices from the country.

19 And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them a heart of flesh;

I will give them single-minded commitment and a whole new spirit. I will take away their hard-hearted attitude and replace it with one that is loving.

20 that they may walk in My statutes, and keep Mine ordinances, and do them; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God.

This way they can follow my rules, keep my regulations, and do what I say. They will be my people, and I will be their God.

21 But as for them whose heart walketh after the heart of their detestable things and their abominations, I will bring their way upon their own heads, saith the Lord GOD.'

But for those who still choose to worship offensive idols and engage in disgusting practices, I will let them experience the consequences of their own actions, declares the Lord God.”

22 Then did the cherubim lift up their wings, and the wheels were beside them; and the glory of the God of Israel was over them above.

Then the cherubim opened their wings and took off, with the wheels alongside them, and with the glory of the God of Israel above them.

23 And the glory of the LORD went up from the midst of the city, and stood upon the mountain which is on the east side of the city.

The glory of the Lord rose from inside the city and went over to the mountain to the east of the city.

24 And a spirit lifted me up, and brought me in the vision by the spirit of God into Chaldea, to them of the captivity. So the vision that I had seen went up from Me.

In the vision given to me by the Spirit of God, the Spirit picked me up and carried me back to Babylonia to where the exiles were. After the vision left me,

25 Then I spoke unto them of the captivity all the things that the LORD had shown me.

I explained to the exiles everything the Lord had shown me.