Jezekiel 3
1 And he said to me, Son of Man, eat this volume, and go and speak to the children of Israel.
“Son of man,” he told me, “eat what you find placed before you. Eat this scroll, then go and speak to the people of Israel.”
2 So he opened my mouth, and caused me to eat the volume. And he said to me, Son of man,
I opened my mouth, and he gave me the scroll to eat.
3 your mouth shall eat, and your belly shall be filled with this volume that is given to you. So I ate it; and it was in my mouth as sweet as honey.
“Son of man,” he said to me, “eat and fill yourself up with this scroll I'm giving you.” So I ate the scroll, and it tasted as sweet as honey.
4 And he said to me, Son of man, go your way, and go in to the house of Israel, and speak my words to them.
Then he told me, “Son of man, now you are to go to the people of Israel and give my message to them.
5 For you are not sent to a people of hard speech, [but] to the house of Israel;
I'm not sending you to those whose language is foreign to you, to people that you don't know—but to the people of Israel.
6 neither to many nations of other speech and other tongues, nor of harsh language, whose words you would not understand: although if I [had] sent you to such, they would have listened to you.
As I say, I'm not sending you to those whose language is foreign to you, to people that you don't know, whose words you don't understand. On the other hand, if I had sent you to foreigners, they would have listened to you.
7 But the house of Israel will not be willing to listen to you; for they will not listen to me: for all the house of Israel are stubborn and hard-hearted.
But the people of Israel won't want to listen to you, because they don't want to listen to me. All the Israelites are strong-minded and hard-hearted.
8 And, behold, I have made your face strong against their faces, and I will strengthen your power against their power.
Look! I'm going to make you as tough as them, and as strong-minded as them.
9 And it shall be continually stronger than a rock: be not afraid of them, neither be dismayed at their faces, because it is a provoking house.
I will make your mind like adamant, harder than flint. Don't be afraid of what they say or discouraged by the way they look at you, even though they are a rebellious people.”
10 And he said to me, Son of man, receive into your heart all the words that I have spoken to you, and hear [them] with your ears.
“Son of man,” he added, “pay close attention to everything I tell you, and think deeply about it yourself.
11 And go your way, go in to the captivity, to the children of your people, and you shall speak to them, and say to them, Thus says the Lord; whether they will hear, [or] whether they will forbear.
Go to your people who are in exile. Tell them this is what the Lord God says, whether they listen or not.”
12 Then the Spirit took me up, and I heard behind me the voice [as] of a great earthquake, [saying], Blessed [be] the glory of the Lord from his place.
The Spirit lifted me up, and I heard a really loud noise behind me that sounded like an earthquake. (Praise to the Lord's glory where he lives!)
13 And I perceived the sound of the wings of the living creatures clapping one to the other, and the sound of the wheels was near them, and the sound of the earthquake.
It was the sound made by the wings of the beings as they brushed against each other and the noise made by the wheels next to them, a really loud noise that sounded like an earthquake.
14 And the Spirit lifted me, and took me up, and I went in the impulse of my spirit; and the hand of the Lord was mighty upon me.
As I said, the Spirit lifted me up and carried me away. As I went I was feeling upset and angry; however the Lord's power had taken full control of me.
15 Then I passed through the air and came into the captivity, and went round [to] them that lived by the river of Chobar who were there; and I sat there seven days, conversant in the midst of them.
I arrived at the place where the exiles lived, Tel-abib by the River Kebar. I just sat with them, staying with them there for seven days. I was completely overcome with emotion.
16 And after the seven days the word of the Lord came to me, saying, Son of man,
After the seven days had passed, a message from the Lord came to me, saying,
17 I have made you a watchman to the house of Israel; and you shall hear a word of my mouth, and shall threaten them from me.
“Son of man, I have chosen you as a watchman for the people of Israel. Whenever I give you a message, then you must warn them for me.
18 When I say to the wicked, You shall surely die; and you have not warned him, to give warning to the wicked, to turn from his ways, that he should live; that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at your hand.
For example, if I give a warning to someone who's wicked, saying, ‘You are going to die for sure,’ but you don't warn them, if you don't speak out to warn them to stop their wicked ways so they can go on living, then that wicked person will die in their sins, and I will hold you responsible for their death.
19 But if you warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, and from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity, and you shall deliver your soul.
But if you warn them, and they don't stop their wicked ways, they will die in their sins, but you will have saved yourself—you won't die.
20 And when the righteous turns away from his righteousness, and commits a trespass, and I shall bring punishment before him, he shall die, because you did not warn him: he shall even die in his sins, because his righteousness shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at your hand.
Again, if someone who lives right stops doing so and sins and disregards my attempts to correct them, then they will die. If you didn't warn them, they will die in their sins, and the good things they did won't be remembered. In addition, I will hold you responsible for their death.
21 But if you warn the righteous not to sin, and he sin not, the righteous shall surely live, because you have warned him; and you shall deliver your own soul.
However, if you warn those who are living right not to sin, and they don't sin, they will live for sure, because they paid attention to your warning, and you will have saved yourself—you won't die.”
22 And the hand of the Lord came upon me; and he said to me, Arise, and go forth into the plain, and there shall you be spoken to.
The Lord's power took control of me there, and he told me, “Get up! Go to the valley, and I will talk to you there.”
23 And I arose, and went forth to the plain: and, behold, the glory of the Lord stood there, according to the vision, and according to the glory of the Lord, which I saw by the river of Chobar: and I fell on my face.
So I got up and went to the valley, and there I saw the Lord's glory. It was like the glory I had seen by the River Kebar. I fell facedown on the ground.
24 Then the Spirit came upon me, and set me on my feet, and spoke to me, and said to me, Go in, and shut yourself up in the midst of your house.
Then the Spirit came into me and made me stand upright. He told me, “Go into your house and shut the door.
25 And you, son of man, behold, bonds are prepared for you, and they shall bind you with them, and you shall not come forth of the midst of them.
You will be tied up with ropes, son of man. You will be bound so that won't be able to go out among the people.
26 Also I will bind your tongue, and you shall be dumb, and shall not be to them a reprover: because it is a provoking house.
I'll make your tongue stick to the roof of your mouth. You won't be able to speak and complain to them, even though they are a rebellious people.
27 But when I speak to you, I will open your mouth, and you shall say to them, Thus says the Lord, He that hears, let him hear; and he that is disobedient, let him be disobedient: because it is a provoking house.
However, when I talk with you, I will open your mouth so you can tell them that this is what the Lord God says. Those who want to listen will listen, and those who want to refuse will refuse, for they are a rebellious people.”
