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Doom for the Mountains of Israel

The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, set your face(A) against the mountains(B) of Israel; prophesy against them(C) and say: ‘You mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Sovereign Lord. This is what the Sovereign Lord says to the mountains and hills, to the ravines and valleys:(D) I am about to bring a sword against you, and I will destroy your high places.(E) Your altars will be demolished and your incense altars(F) will be smashed; and I will slay your people in front of your idols.(G) I will lay the dead bodies of the Israelites in front of their idols, and I will scatter your bones(H) around your altars.(I) Wherever you live,(J) the towns will be laid waste and the high places(K) demolished, so that your altars will be laid waste and devastated, your idols(L) smashed and ruined, your incense altars(M) broken down, and what you have made wiped out.(N) Your people will fall slain(O) among you, and you will know that I am the Lord.(P)

“‘But I will spare some, for some of you will escape(Q) the sword when you are scattered among the lands and nations.(R) Then in the nations where they have been carried captive, those who escape will remember(S) me—how I have been grieved(T) by their adulterous hearts, which have turned away from me, and by their eyes, which have lusted after their idols.(U) They will loathe themselves for the evil(V) they have done and for all their detestable practices.(W) 10 And they will know that I am the Lord;(X) I did not threaten in vain to bring this calamity on them.(Y)

11 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Strike your hands together and stamp your feet and cry out “Alas!” because of all the wicked and detestable practices of the people of Israel, for they will fall by the sword, famine and plague.(Z) 12 One who is far away will die of the plague, and one who is near will fall by the sword, and anyone who survives and is spared will die of famine. So will I pour out my wrath(AA) on them.(AB) 13 And they will know that I am the Lord, when their people lie slain among their idols(AC) around their altars, on every high hill and on all the mountaintops, under every spreading tree and every leafy oak(AD)—places where they offered fragrant incense to all their idols.(AE) 14 And I will stretch out my hand(AF) against them and make the land a desolate waste from the desert to Diblah[a]—wherever they live. Then they will know that I am the Lord.(AG)’”

Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 6:14 Most Hebrew manuscripts; a few Hebrew manuscripts Riblah

Judgment against Israel’s Mountains

Again a message came to me from the Lord: “Son of man, turn and face the mountains of Israel and prophesy against them. Proclaim this message from the Sovereign Lord against the mountains of Israel. This is what the Sovereign Lord says to the mountains and hills and to the ravines and valleys: I am about to bring war upon you, and I will smash your pagan shrines. All your altars will be demolished, and your places of worship will be destroyed. I will kill your people in front of your idols.[a] I will lay your corpses in front of your idols and scatter your bones around your altars. Wherever you live there will be desolation, and I will destroy your pagan shrines. Your altars will be demolished, your idols will be smashed, your places of worship will be torn down, and all the religious objects you have made will be destroyed. The place will be littered with corpses, and you will know that I alone am the Lord.

“But I will let a few of my people escape destruction, and they will be scattered among the nations of the world. Then when they are exiled among the nations, they will remember me. They will recognize how hurt I am by their unfaithful hearts and lustful eyes that long for their idols. Then at last they will hate themselves for all their detestable sins. 10 They will know that I alone am the Lord and that I was serious when I said I would bring this calamity on them.

11 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Clap your hands in horror, and stamp your feet. Cry out because of all the detestable sins the people of Israel have committed. Now they are going to die from war and famine and disease. 12 Disease will strike down those who are far away in exile. War will destroy those who are nearby. And anyone who survives will be killed by famine. So at last I will spend my fury on them. 13 They will know that I am the Lord when their dead lie scattered among their idols and altars on every hill and mountain and under every green tree and every great shade tree—the places where they offered sacrifices to their idols. 14 I will crush them and make their cities desolate from the wilderness in the south to Riblah[b] in the north. Then they will know that I am the Lord.”

Footnotes

  1. 6:4 The Hebrew term (literally round things) probably alludes to dung; also in 6:5, 6, 9, 13.
  2. 6:14 As in some Hebrew manuscripts; most Hebrew manuscripts read Diblah.

Idolatrous Worship Denounced

Now the word of the Lord came to me, saying, “Son of man, set your face toward the (A)mountains of Israel, and prophesy against them and say, ‘Mountains of Israel, listen to the word of the Lord [a]God! This is what the Lord [b]God says to the mountains, the hills, the ravines, and the valleys: “Behold, I Myself am going to bring a sword against you, and (B)I will destroy your high places. So your (C)altars will become deserted and your incense altars will be smashed; and I will make your slain fall in front of your idols. I will also lay the dead bodies of the sons of Israel in front of their idols; and I will scatter your (D)bones around your altars. [c]Everywhere you live, (E)cities will be in ruins and the high places will be deserted, so that your altars will be in ruins and [d]deserted, your (F)idols will be broken and brought to an end, your incense altars will be cut down, and your works wiped out. The slain will fall among you, and you will know that I am the Lord.

“However, I will leave a (G)remnant, in that you will have those who (H)escaped the sword among the nations when you are scattered among the countries. Then those of you who escape will (I)remember Me among the nations to which they will be taken captive, how I have [e](J)been hurt by their adulterous hearts which turned away from Me, and by their eyes which committed infidelity with their idols; and they will (K)loathe themselves in their own sight for the evils which they have committed, for all their abominations. 10 Then they will know that I am the Lord; I have not said in vain that I would inflict this disaster on them.”’

11 “This is what the Lord [f]God says: ‘Clap your hands, (L)stamp your foot and say, “(M)Woe, because of all the evil abominations of the house of Israel, which will fall by the (N)sword, famine, and plague! 12 Anyone who is (O)far away will die by the plague, anyone who is near will fall by the sword, and anyone who remains and is spared from these will die by the famine. So I will (P)expend My wrath on them. 13 Then you will know that I am the Lord, when their (Q)dead are among their idols around their altars, on (R)every high hill, on all the tops of the mountains, under every leafy tree and under every massive oak with thick branches—the places where they offered a soothing aroma to all their idols. 14 So through all their dwelling places I will (S)stretch out My hand against them and make the land more desolate and waste than the wilderness toward Diblah; so they will know that I am the Lord.”’”

Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 6:3 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
  2. Ezekiel 6:3 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
  3. Ezekiel 6:6 Lit In all your dwellings
  4. Ezekiel 6:6 As in some ancient versions; MT suffer for their guilt
  5. Ezekiel 6:9 Lit been broken; another reading is broken their (but unlikely)
  6. Ezekiel 6:11 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord

Judgment Against Idolatry

The word of the Lord came to me: (A)“Son of man, (B)set your face toward (C)the mountains of Israel, and (D)prophesy against them, and say, (E)You mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord God! Thus says the Lord God to (F)the mountains and (G)the hills, to (H)the ravines and the valleys: Behold, I, even I, will bring a sword upon you, (I)and I will destroy your high places. (J)Your altars shall become desolate, and your (K)incense altars shall be broken, and I will cast down your slain before your idols. (L)And I will lay the dead bodies of the people of Israel before their idols, (M)and I will scatter your bones around your altars. Wherever you dwell, (N)the cities shall be waste and (O)the high places ruined, so that your altars will be waste and ruined,[a] your idols broken and destroyed, your (P)incense altars cut down, and your works wiped out. And the slain shall fall in your midst, and you shall know that I am the Lord.

(Q)“Yet I will leave some of you alive. When you have among the nations (R)some who escape the sword, and when you are scattered through the countries, then those of you who escape (S)will remember me among the nations where they are carried captive, how (T)I have been broken over their whoring heart that has departed from me and over their eyes (U)that go whoring after their idols. (V)And they will be loathsome in their own sight for the evils that they have committed, for all their abominations. 10 And they shall know that I am the Lord. (W)I have not said in vain that I would do this evil to them.”

11 Thus says the Lord God: (X)“Clap your hands (Y)and stamp your foot and say, Alas, because of all the evil abominations of the house of Israel, (Z)for they shall fall by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence. 12 (AA)He who is far off shall die of pestilence, and he who is near shall fall by the sword, and he who is left and is preserved shall die of famine. (AB)Thus I will spend my fury upon them. 13 And you shall know that I am the Lord, (AC)when their slain lie among their idols around their altars, (AD)on every high hill, (AE)on all the mountaintops, (AF)under every green tree, and under (AG)every leafy oak, wherever (AH)they offered pleasing aroma to all their idols. 14 And (AI)I will stretch out my hand against them and (AJ)make the land desolate and waste, (AK)in all their dwelling places, from the wilderness to (AL)Riblah.[b] Then (AM)they will know that I am the Lord.”

Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 6:6 Or and punished
  2. Ezekiel 6:14 Some Hebrew manuscripts; most Hebrew manuscripts Diblah

Turn Israel into Wasteland

1-7 Then the Word of God came to me: “Son of man, now turn and face the mountains of Israel and preach against them: ‘O Mountains of Israel, listen to the Message of God, the Master. God, the Master, speaks to the mountains and hills, to the ravines and the valleys: I’m about to destroy your sacred god and goddess shrines. I’ll level your altars, bust up your sun-god pillars, and kill your people as they bow down to your no-god idols. I’ll stack the dead bodies of Israelites in front of your idols and then scatter your bones around your shrines. Every place where you’ve lived, the towns will be torn down and the pagan shrines demolished—altars busted up, idols smashed, all your custom-made sun-god pillars in ruins. Corpses everywhere you look! Then you’ll know that I am God.

8-10 “‘But I’ll let a few escape the killing as you are scattered through other lands and nations. In the foreign countries where they’re taken as prisoners of war, they’ll remember me. They’ll realize how devastated I was by their betrayals, by their voracious lust for gratifying themselves in their idolatries. They’ll be disgusted with their evil ways, disgusting to God in the way they’ve lived. They’ll know that I am God. They’ll know that my judgment against them was no empty threat.

11-14 “‘This is what God, the Master, says: Clap your hands, stamp your feet, yell out, “No, no, no!” because of all the evil obscenities rife in Israel. They’re going to be killed, dying of hunger, dying of disease—death everywhere you look, people dropping like flies, people far away dying, people nearby dying, and whoever’s left in the city starving to death. Why? Because I’m angry, furiously angry. They’ll realize that I am God when they see their people’s corpses strewn over and around all their ruined sex-and-religion shrines on the bare hills and in the lush fertility groves, in all the places where they indulged their sensual rites. I’ll bring my hand down hard on them, demolish the country wherever they live, turn it into wasteland from one end to the other, from the wilderness to Riblah. Then they’ll know that I am God!’”