Ezekiel 22:18-31

New American Standard Bible

¹⁸ “Son of man, the house of Israel has become ^[a](A)waste metal to Me; all of them are ^(B)bronze, tin, iron, and lead in the ^(C)smelting furnace; they are the ^[b]waste metal of silver. ¹⁹ Therefore, this is what the Lord God says: ‘Because all of you have become ^[c]waste metal, therefore, behold, I am going to gather you into the midst of Jerusalem. ²⁰ As they gather silver, bronze, iron, lead, and tin into the ^(D)smelting furnace to blow fire on it in order to melt it, so I will gather you in My anger and in My wrath, and I will place you there and melt you. ²¹ And I will gather you and blow on you with the fire of My wrath, and you will be melted in the midst of it. ²² As silver is melted in the furnace, so you will be melted in the midst of it; and you will know that I, the Lord, have ^(E)poured out My wrath on you.’”

²³ And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, ²⁴ “Son of man, say to her, ‘You are a land that is ^(F)not clean or rained on in the day of indignation.’ ²⁵ There is a ^(G)conspiracy of her prophets in her midst like a roaring lion tearing the prey. They have ^(H)devoured lives; they have taken treasure and precious things; they have made many ^(I)widows in the midst of her. ²⁶ Her ^(J)priests have done violence to My Law and have ^(K)profaned My holy things; they have made no ^(L)distinction between the holy and the ^[d]common, and they have not taught the difference between the ^(M)unclean and the clean; and they have closed their eyes from My Sabbaths, and I am defiled among them. ²⁷ Her leaders within her are like wolves tearing the prey, by shedding blood and ^(N)destroying lives in order to make ^(O)dishonest profit. ²⁸ And her prophets have coated with whitewash for them, seeing ^(P)false visions and divining lies for them, saying, ‘This is what the Lord God says,’ when the Lord has not spoken. ²⁹ The people of the land have practiced ^(Q)extortion and committed robbery, and they have oppressed the poor and needy, and have ^(R)oppressed the stranger without justice. ³⁰ I ^(S)searched for a man among them who would ^(T)build up a wall and ^(U)stand in the gap before Me for the land, so that I would not destroy it; but I found ^[e]no one. ³¹ So I have poured out My ^(V)indignation on them; I have consumed them with the fire of My wrath; I have brought ^(W)their way upon their heads,” declares the Lord God.