Ezekiel 12

1 And there is a word of YHWH to me, saying,

Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

2 “Son of man, you are dwelling in the midst of the house of rebellion, that have eyes to see, and they have not seen; they have ears to hear, and they have not heard; for they [are] a house of rebellion.

“Son of man, you are living in a rebellious house. They have eyes to see but do not see, and ears to hear but do not hear, for they are a rebellious house.

3 And you, son of man, make your vessels of removal, and remove by day before their eyes, and you have removed from your place to another place before their eyes, it may be they consider, for they [are] a house of rebellion.

Therefore, son of man, pack your bags for exile. In broad daylight, set out from your place and go to another as they watch. Perhaps they will understand, though they are a rebellious house.

4 And you have brought forth your vessels as vessels of removal by day before their eyes, and you go forth in the evening before their eyes, as the goings forth of a removal.

Bring out your baggage for exile by day, as they watch. Then in the evening, as they watch, go out like those who go into exile.

5 You dig through the wall before their eyes, and you have brought forth by it.

As they watch, dig through the wall and carry your belongings out through it.

6 Carry on the shoulder before their eyes, bring forth in the darkness, cover your face, and you do not see the earth, for I have given you [as] a sign to the house of Israel.”

And as they watch, lift your bags to your shoulder and take them out at dusk; cover your face so that you cannot see the land. For I have made you a sign to the house of Israel.”

7 And I do so, as I have been commanded; I have brought forth my vessels as vessels of removal by day, and I have dug through the wall with my hand in the evening; I have brought forth in the darkness, I have carried away on the shoulder, before their eyes.

So I did as I was commanded. I brought out my bags for exile by day, and in the evening I dug through the wall by hand. I took my belongings out at dusk, carrying them on my shoulder as they watched.

8 And there is a word of YHWH to me, in the morning, saying,

And in the morning the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

9 “Son of man, have they not said to you—the house of Israel—the house of rebellion—What are you doing?

“Son of man, hasn’t the rebellious house of Israel asked you, ‘What are you doing?’

10 Say to them, Thus said Lord YHWH: This burden [concerns] the prince in Jerusalem, and all the house of Israel who are in their midst.

Tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘This burden concerns the prince in Jerusalem and all the house of Israel who are there.’

11 Say: I [am] your sign; as I have done so it is done to them, into a removal, into a captivity, they go.

You are to say, ‘I am a sign to you.’ Just as it happened here, so will it be done to them; they will go into exile as captives.

12 As for the prince who [is] in their midst, he carries on the shoulder in the darkness, and he goes forth; they dig through the wall to bring forth by it; he covers his face that he may not look on the very surface of the land.

And at dusk the prince among them will lift his bags to his shoulder and go out. They will dig through the wall to bring him out. He will cover his face so he cannot see the land.

13 And I have spread My net for him, and he has been caught in My snare, and I have brought him to Babylon, the land of the Chaldeans, and he does not see it—and he dies there.

But I will spread My net over him, and he will be caught in My snare. I will bring him to Babylon, the land of the Chaldeans; yet he will not see it, and there he will die.

14 And all who are around him to help him, and all his bands, I scatter to every wind, and I draw out a sword after them.

And I will scatter to every wind all the attendants around him and all his troops, and I will draw a sword to chase after them.

15 And they have known that I [am] YHWH, in My scattering them among nations, and I have spread them through lands;

And they will know that I am the LORD, when I disperse them among the nations and scatter them throughout the countries.

16 and I have left of them, a few in number, from the sword, from the famine, and from the pestilence, so that they recount all their abominations among the nations to where they have come, and they have known that I [am] YHWH.”

But I will spare a few of them from sword and famine and plague, so that in the nations to which they go, they can recount all their abominations. Then they will know that I am the LORD.”

17 And there is a word of YHWH to me, saying,

Moreover, the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

18 “Son of man, eat your bread in haste, and drink your water with trembling and with fear;

“Son of man, eat your bread with trembling, and drink your water with quivering and anxiety.

19 and you have said to the people of the land, Thus said Lord YHWH concerning the inhabitants of Jerusalem, concerning the land of Israel: They eat their bread with fear, and drink their water with astonishment, because its land is desolate, because of its fullness, because of the violence of all who are dwelling in it.

Then tell the people of the land that this is what the Lord GOD says about those living in Jerusalem and in the land of Israel: ‘They will eat their bread with anxiety and drink their water in dread, for their land will be stripped of everything in it because of the violence of all who dwell in it.

20 And the cities that are inhabited are laid waste, and the land is a desolation, and you have known that I [am] YHWH.”

The inhabited cities will be laid waste, and the land will become desolate. Then you will know that I am the LORD.’”

21 And there is a word of YHWH to me, saying,

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

22 “Son of man, what [is] this allegory to you, concerning the land of Israel, saying, The days are prolonged, and every vision has perished?

“Son of man, what is this proverb that you have in the land of Israel: ‘The days go by, and every vision fails’?

23 Therefore say to them, Thus said Lord YHWH: I have caused this allegory to cease, And they do not use it as an allegory in Israel again, But speak to them: The days have drawn near, And every vision has spoken.

Therefore tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘I will put an end to this proverb, and in Israel they will no longer recite it.’ But say to them: ‘The days are at hand when every vision will be fulfilled.

24 For there is no longer any vain vision, and flattering divination, In the midst of the house of Israel.

For there will be no more false visions or flattering divinations within the house of Israel,

25 For I, YHWH, speak, The word that I speak—it is done, It is not prolonged anymore, For in your days, O house of rebellion, I speak a word, and I have done it, A declaration of Lord YHWH.”

because I, the LORD, will speak whatever word I speak, and it will be fulfilled without delay. For in your days, O rebellious house, I will speak a message and bring it to pass, declares the Lord GOD.’”

26 And there is a word of YHWH to me, saying,

Furthermore, the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

27 “Son of man, behold, the house of Israel is saying, The vision that he is seeing [is not] for many days, and he is prophesying of far-off times,

“Son of man, take note that the house of Israel is saying, ‘The vision that he sees is for many years from now; he prophesies about the distant future.’

28 therefore say to them, Thus said Lord YHWH: None of My words are prolonged anymore, When I speak a word—it is done, A declaration of Lord YHWH!”

Therefore tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘None of My words will be delayed any longer. The message I speak will be fulfilled, declares the Lord GOD.’”