Ezekiel 3

1 He said to me, “Son of man, what you have found, eat. Eat this scroll, then go speak to the house of Israel.”

He said to me, “You human, eat this scroll that is in front of you. Then go and speak to the Israeli people [MTY].”

2 So I opened my mouth, and he fed me that scroll.

So I opened my mouth, and he gave me the scroll to eat it.

3 He said to me, “Son of man, feed your belly and fill your stomach with this scroll that I have given to you!” So I ate it, and it was as sweet as honey in my mouth.

Then he said to me, “You human, eat the scroll that I have given to you. Fill your stomach with it.” So I ate it, and in my mouth it tasted as sweet as honey.

4 Then he said to me, “Son of man, go to the house of Israel and speak my words to them.

Then he said to me, “You human, go to the Israeli people [MTY] and tell them my message.

5 For you are not being sent to a people of strange speech or difficult language, but to the house of Israel—

The people to whom I am sending you are not people whose language is very [to learn], a language which you do not understand. I am sending you to your Israeli people [MTY].

6 not to many peoples of strange speech or a difficult language, whose words you cannot understand. Surely if I sent you to them, they would have listened to you.

I am sending you to people whose language you understand very well. If I were sending you to people whose language was difficult for you to understand, they [be surprised and] pay attention to what [say to them].

7 But the house of Israel will not be willing to listen to you, for they are not willing to listen to me. So all the house of Israel is strong browed and hard hearted.

But the Israeli people do not want to listen to you because they do not want to listen to me. [They do not want to listen because] they are all very stubborn [DOU].

8 Behold! I have made your face as stubborn as their faces and your brow as hard as their brows.

But I will enable you [SYN] to be as stubborn and tough as they are.

9 I have made your brow like a diamond, harder than flint! Do not fear them or be discouraged by their faces, since they are a rebellious house.”

I will cause you to be as firm/unbreakable as [SIM] the hardest stone, like flint. So, [even though] they are very rebellious people, do not be afraid of them; do not allow them to cause you to be afraid.”

10 Then he said to me, “Son of man, all the words that I announce to you—take them into your heart and hear them with your ears!

He also said to me, “You human, listen very carefully to what I say, and keep thinking about it [IDM].

11 Then go to the captives, to your people, and speak to them. Say to them, 'This is what the Lord Yahweh says,' whether they will listen or not.”

Go to your fellow Israelis who [here after being] (exiled/forced to leave their country), and speak to them. Say to them, ‘This is what Yahweh the Lord says,’ [and then tell them my message], whether they want to hear it or whether they do not want to hear it.”

12 Then the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard behind me the sound of a great earthquake: “Blessed be the glory of Yahweh from his place!”

[in the vision] the [of God] lifted me up, and I heard behind [someone speaking very loudly], like a loud rumbling sound. [I heard someone say, ] “Praise our glorious Yahweh in the place where he [in heaven]!”

13 It was the sound of the wings of the living creatures as they touched one another, and the sound of the wheels that were with them, and the sound of a great earthquake.

[I heard] the sound of the wings of the four living creatures brushing against each other, [I also heard] the sound of the wheels that were beside them. It was a loud rumbling sound.

14 The Spirit lifted me up and took me away, and I went with bitterness in my spirit's rage, for the hand of Yahweh was powerfully pressing on me!

The Spirit took me away. Within me I was very bitter and angry [DOU], but I felt Yahweh holding me very powerfully.

15 So I went to the captives at Tel Aviv who lived along the Kebar Canal, and I stayed there among them for seven days, overwhelmed in amazement.

I came to the exiles who lived at Tel [town] near the Kebar River/ [south of Babylon]. Then, where they were living, I sat for seven days. I was [about everything that I had seen].

16 Then it happened after seven days that the word of Yahweh came to me, saying,

After those seven days had ended, Yahweh gave me this message:

17 “Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel, so listen to the word from my mouth, and give them my warning.

“You human, I am appointing [to be like] a watchman [MET] for the Israeli people [MTY]. [So] listen to these messages that I will give you, and tell them those messages to warn them.

18 When I say to the wicked, 'You will surely die' and you do not warn him or speak a warning to the wicked about his evil deeds so he might live—the wicked one will die for his sin, but I will require his blood from your hand.

When I say about some wicked people, ‘They will surely [because of their sins],’ if you do not warn them or tell them that they must turn from their wicked behavior if they want to (save their lives/remain alive), those wicked people will die because of the sins that they have committed, but I will consider that you are responsible for their deaths [MTY].

19 But if you warn the wicked, and he does not turn from his wickedness or from his wicked deeds, then he will die for his sin, but you will have rescued your own life.

But if you warn the wicked people and they do not turn from all their wicked behavior [DOU], they will die because of their sins, but you will have saved [from my punishing you].

20 If a righteous man turns from his righteousness and acts unjustly, and I set a stumbling block before him, he will die. Because you did not warn him, he will die in his sin, and I will not call to mind the righteous deeds that he performed, but I will require his blood from your hand.

Similarly, when righteous people turn from their righteous behavior and do evil deeds, I will cause bad things to happen [IDM] to them. [But you must warn them. If you do not warn them], and if they do not stop their sinful behavior, they will die because of their sins; I will not think about the righteous things that they [previously], but I will consider that you are responsible for their deaths [MTY].

21 But if you warn the righteous man to stop sinning so that he no longer sins, he will surely live since he was warned; and you will have rescued your own life.”

But if you warn righteous people not to sin, and they do not sin, they will surely remain alive because they [your] warning, and you will have saved [from my punishing you].”

22 So the hand of Yahweh was on me there, and he said to me, “Arise! Go out into the plain, and I will speak with you there!”

[I felt] Yahweh take control [MTY] of me, and he said to me, “Get up and go [from the city down] to the plain/valley, and there I will speak to you.”

23 I arose and went out into the plain, and there the glory of Yahweh was staying, like the glory that I had seen beside the Kebar Canal; so I fell on my face.

So I got up and went down to the valley. And I saw the glory of Yahweh there, like the glory that I had seen along the Kebar River/Canal. And I prostrated myself on the ground.

24 The Spirit came to me and stood me up on my feet; and he spoke with me, and said to me, “Go and shut yourself up within your house,

Then the [of God] entered me and enabled me to stand up. He said to me, “Go into your house and stay inside it.

25 for now, son of man, they will place ropes upon you and tie you so you cannot go out among them.

People will tie you with ropes, with the result that you will be unable to go out among the people.

26 I will make your tongue stick to the roof of your mouth, so you will be mute, and you will not be able to rebuke them, since they are a rebellious house.

[Even though] they are very rebellious people, I will cause your tongue to stick to the roof of your mouth, with the result that you will be unable to talk and to rebuke them.

27 But when I speak with you, I will open your mouth so you will say to them, 'This is what the Lord Yahweh says.' The one who will hear will hear; the one who will not listen will not listen, for they are a rebellious house!”

[then] when I speak to [again], I will enable you to talk [MTY], and you will say to them, ‘This is what Yahweh the Lord says,’ [and you will tell them my message]. Those who are willing to [to what you say] will listen, [many] will refuse to listen, because they are rebellious people [MTY].”