22 The word of Adonai came to me: ² “Now, human being, are you prepared to judge? Are you prepared to judge the city drenched in blood? Then make her realize how disgusting all her practices are! ³ Say that Adonai Elohim says, ‘City that sheds blood within yourself, thus speeding your own doom, and that makes idols for yourself that defile you: ⁴ you are guilty because of the blood you have shed, you are defiled by your idols that you have made. You have shortened your days, you have completed your years; therefore I have made you an object of scorn for the nations and a laughingstock for every country. ⁵ Those close by and those far off will taunt you, you who have such a defiled reputation and such great disorder.

⁶ “‘The leaders of Isra’el in you all use their power in order to shed blood. ⁷ In you, they make light of fathers and mothers, they oppress foreigners, they wrong orphans and widows. ⁸ You treat my holy things with contempt, you profane my shabbats. ⁹ In you, people gossip to the point of inciting bloodshed; in you are those who go to eat on the mountains; in you, they commit lewd acts; ¹⁰ in you, they commit incest; in you, they force themselves on women during their menstrual impurity. ¹¹ In you, one commits an abomination with his neighbor’s wife; another commits some lewd act defiling his daughter-in-law; still another humbles his sister, his own father’s daughter. ¹² In you, people take bribes to shed blood; you demand and accept interest on loans; in greed you make profits off your neighbors by extorting them; and you have forgotten me,’ says Adonai Elohim.

¹³ “‘Therefore, I am clapping my hands together because of your ill-gotten gains and the blood shed in you. ¹⁴ Can your courage last, can your strength continue during the days when I deal with you? I, Adonai, have spoken it; and I will do it. ¹⁵ I will scatter you among the Goyim and disperse you throughout the countries; thus I will remove your defilement from you, ¹⁶ and you will cause yourselves to be profaned in full view of the Goyim. Then you will know that I am Adonai.’”

¹⁷ The word of Adonai came to me: ¹⁸ “Human being, the house of Isra’el has become an alloy of base metals for me; they are all copper, tin, iron and lead mixed together in the crucible, the dross left over from the silver. ¹⁹ Therefore Adonai Elohim says this: ‘Because you have all become dross, I will collect all of you inside Yerushalayim. ²⁰ Then, just as they collect silver, copper, iron, lead and tin into a crucible and blow fire on it to melt it down; so likewise I will collect you in my anger and fury, throw you in there, and melt you down. ²¹ Yes, I will collect you and blow on you with the fire of my rage, and you will be melted down in it. ²² As silver is melted down in a crucible, so will you be melted down in [Yerushalayim]. Then you will know that it is I, Adonai, who have poured out my fury on you.’”

²³ The word of Adonai came to me: ²⁴ “Human being, tell her this: ‘You are a land that is neither cleansed nor rained on in the day of fury. ²⁵ There is a conspiracy of prophets in it like a roaring lion tearing up the prey; they have devoured people, seized wealth and valuables, and widowed many in it. ²⁶ Her cohanim have done violence to my Torah, profaned my holy things, made no difference between the holy and the common, not distinguished between unclean and clean, hidden their eyes from my shabbats, and profaned me among themselves. ²⁷ Her leaders in it are like wolves tearing up the prey to shed blood and destroy people, in order to benefit unjustly. ²⁸ Her prophets have “plastered” for them with whitewash, seeing false visions and divining lies for them, saying, “Thus says Adonai Elohim,” when Adonai has not spoken. ²⁹ The people of the land have extorted, robbed, wronged the poor and needy and unjustly oppressed foreigners.

³⁰ “‘I sought for a man among them who could build a barricade or stand in the break to oppose me on behalf of the land, so that I would not destroy it; but I found no one. ³¹ Therefore I am pouring out my fury on them, consuming them with the fire of my rage, bringing their own ways on their own heads,’ says Adonai Elohim.”

23 The word of Adonai came to me: ² “Human being! There were two women, daughters of the same mother, ³ who were whores in Egypt — even as young girls they were whores. There they let their breasts be caressed, and there their virgin nipples were fondled. ⁴ Their names were Oholah, the older one, and Oholivah, her sister. They belonged to me, and they gave birth to sons and daughters. As for their names, Shomron is Oholah, and Yerushalayim is Oholivah.

⁵ “Even when she belonged to me, Oholah prostituted herself; she lusted after her lovers from Ashur — warriors ⁶ dressed in blue, governors, rulers, all of them good-looking young men riding on horseback. ⁷ She gave herself as a whore to them, all of them the elite of Ashur; and she defiled herself with all the idols of everyone she lusted after. ⁸ She did not give up the whoring she had begun in Egypt, where men had sex with her, fondled her virgin nipples and flooded her with their fornication.

⁹ “So I handed her over to her lovers, the men of Ashur she lusted after. ¹⁰ They exposed her private parts, took her sons and daughters, and put her to death with the sword; so that she became notorious among women for the judgments executed against her.

¹¹ “Her sister Oholivah saw this; nevertheless she was worse than her sister in lusting and likewise in whoring. ¹² She lusted after the men from Ashur, governors and rulers, warriors dressed to perfection, skilled horsemen, all of them good-looking young men. ¹³ I saw that she had defiled herself; both sisters had gone down the same path. ¹⁴ She prostituted herself more than ever; because she saw wall-carvings of men, depicting the Kasdim in vermilion, ¹⁵ with sashes wrapped around their waists and flowing turbans on their heads, all of them looking like military men, the very image of men of Bavel born in the land of the Kasdim. ¹⁶ The moment she saw them, she lusted after them and sent messengers to them in the land of the Kasdim; ¹⁷ and the men of Bavel climbed into her “love bed” and defiled her with their lust. She was defiled by them, and then filled with revulsion at them. ¹⁸ Thus did she reveal her fornication and expose her private parts. When this happened, I was filled with revulsion at her, just as I had been filled with revulsion at her sister. ¹⁹ Still she kept increasing her whoring, remembering the days when she was young, fornicating in the land of Egypt. ²⁰ Yes, she lusted after their male prostitutes, whose members are like those of donkeys and who ejaculate like stallions. ²¹ You yearned for the lewdness of your girlhood, when the Egyptians used to fondle your nipples and caress your young breasts.

²² “Therefore, Oholivah, here is what Adonai Elohim says: ‘I will raise up your lovers against you, the ones who fill you with revulsion, and bring them against you from every side — ²³ the men of Bavel and all the Kasdim, P’kod, Shoa and Koa, and with them all the men of Ashur, good-looking young men, all of them governors and rulers, commanders and officers, all on horseback. ²⁴ They will advance on you armed with chariots, wagons and with an army drawn from many peoples; they will array themselves against you from every side with breastplates, shields and helmets. I will give them the authority to judge, and they will judge you as they see fit. ²⁵ I will direct my jealousy against you, so that they will deal with you in fury — they will cut off your nose and ears, and what is left of you will die by the sword; they will seize your sons and daughters, and those who remain of you will be consumed by the fire. ²⁶ They will strip you of your clothes and seize your fine jewels. ²⁷ Thus I will put an end to your lewdness and your fornication brought from the land of Egypt, so that you will no longer raise your eyes toward them or remember Egypt any more.’ ²⁸ For this is what Adonai Elohim says: ‘I am about to hand you over to those you hate, to those who fill you with revulsion; ²⁹ and they will deal with you in hatred, seize everything you have worked for, and leave you naked and exposed — the full shame of your whoring will be exposed, your lewdness and your fornicating. ³⁰ These things will be done to you because you have gone fornicating with the Goyim, and because you are defiled with their idols. ³¹ You walked down your sister’s path, so I will put her cup in your hand.’ ³² Adonai Elohim says:

says Adonai Elohim.

³⁵ “Therefore this is what Adonai Elohim says: ‘Because you forgot me and flung me behind your back, you will bear the guilt of your lewdness and whoring.’”

³⁶ Then Adonai said to me, “Human being, are you ready to judge Oholah and Oholivah? Then confront them with their disgusting practices. ³⁷ For they committed adultery, and their hands are dripping with blood. They committed adultery with their idols; and they offered their sons, whom they bore to me, for these idols to eat. ³⁸ Moreover, they have done this to me as well: they defiled my sanctuary on the same day, and they profaned my shabbats. ³⁹ For after killing their children for their idols, they came the same day into my sanctuary to profane it; this they did in my house.

⁴⁰ “Worse still, you sent a messenger summoning men to come from a distance; and they came. For them you washed yourself, painted your eyes, decked yourself with your finery, ⁴¹ and sat on a sumptuous bed, with a table arranged before it, on which you put my incense and my olive oil. ⁴² The noise of a carefree crowd could be heard there; many of the men were brought in drunk from the desert. They put bracelets on their hands and magnificent crowns on their heads. ⁴³ I thought, ‘That woman! She’s worn out from all her adulteries, but they still go to fornicate with her!’ ⁴⁴ For every one went in to her; just as men go in to a prostitute, so they went in to Oholah and Oholivah, those debauched women. ⁴⁵ Nevertheless, there are righteous men who will judge them as adulterers and murderers are supposed to be judged; because they are adulterers, and blood is dripping from their hands. ⁴⁶ For here is what Adonai Elohim says:

⁴⁸ “‘Thus I will put an end to lewdness in the land, so that all women may be taught not to imitate your lewdness. ⁴⁹ You will receive the punishment your lewdness deserves, and you will pay the penalty for your idolatries. Then you will know that I am Adonai Elohim.’”

24 The word of Adonai came to me on the tenth day of the tenth month of the ninth year: ² “Human being, write down today’s date; because on this very day the king of Bavel has begun his attack on Yerushalayim. ³ And tell this allegory to these rebels; say that Adonai Elohim says:

⁶ “Therefore Adonai Elohim says:

¹⁴ “‘I, Adonai, have spoken it, and it will happen. I will do it, I will not turn back, I will not refrain or spare or relent. They will judge you as your ways and deeds deserve,’ says Adonai Elohim.”

¹⁵ The word of Adonai came to me: ¹⁶ “Human being, with a single blow I am about to deprive you of the delight of your eyes. But you are not to lament, weep or let your tears run down. ¹⁷ Sigh silently, don’t observe mourning for the dead, bind your turban on your head, put your sandals on your feet, don’t cover your upper lip, and don’t eat the food people prepare for mourners.” ¹⁸ I spoke to the people in the morning, and that evening my wife died. So I did the following morning as I had been ordered. ¹⁹ The people asked me, “Won’t you tell us what these actions of yours mean for us?” ²⁰ I answered them, “The word of Adonai came to me, telling me ²¹ to speak to the house of Isra’el and say that this is what Adonai Elohim says: ‘I am about to profane my sanctuary, the pride of your strength, the delight of your eyes and your heart’s desire. Your sons and daughters whom you have left behind will die by the sword. ²² But you are to do as I have done — not cover your upper lips, not eat the food people prepare for mourners, ²³ put your turbans on your heads and your sandals on your feet, and neither observe mourning nor cry. Rather, because of your crimes you will pine away and groan to one another. ²⁴ Thus Yechezk’el will be a sign for you; you will do just what he has done; and when this happens, you will know that I am Adonai Elohim.’

²⁵ “As for you, human being, on the day when I take away from them their stronghold, their crowning joy, the delight of their eyes, their heart’s desire, their sons and daughters — ²⁶ on that day a fugitive will come and bring you the news; ²⁷ and on that day your mouth will be opened for you to speak to the survivor and no longer be silent. In this way you will be a sign to them, and they will know that I am Adonai.”

9 The fifth angel sounded his shofar; and I saw a star that had fallen out of heaven onto the earth, and he was given the key to the shaft leading down to the Abyss. ² He opened the shaft of the Abyss, and there went up smoke from the shaft like the smoke of a huge furnace; the sun was darkened, and the sky too, by the smoke from the shaft. ³ Then out of the smoke onto the earth came locusts, and they were given power like the power scorpions have on earth. ⁴ They were instructed not to harm the grass on the earth, any green plant or any tree, but only the people who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads. ⁵ The locusts were not allowed to kill them, only to inflict pain on them for five months; and the pain they caused was like the pain of a scorpion sting. ⁶ In those days people will seek death but will not find it; they will long to die, but death will elude them.

⁷ Now these locusts looked like horses outfitted for battle. On their heads were what looked like crowns of gold, and their faces were like human faces. ⁸ They had hair like women’s hair, and their teeth were like those of lions. ⁹ Their chests were like iron breastplates, and the sound their wings made was like the roar of many horses and chariots rushing into battle. ¹⁰ They had tails like those of scorpions, with stings; and in their tails was their power to hurt people for five months. ¹¹ They had as king over them the angel of the Abyss, whose name in Hebrew is “Abaddon” and in our language, “Destroyer.”

¹² The first woe has passed, but there are still two woes to come.

¹³ The sixth angel sounded his shofar, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the gold altar before God, ¹⁴ saying to the sixth angel, the one with the shofar, “Release the four angels that are bound at the great river Euphrates!” ¹⁵ And they were released. These four angels had been kept ready for this moment, for this day and month and year, to kill a third of mankind; ¹⁶ and the number of cavalry soldiers was two hundred million! — I heard the number.

¹⁷ Here is how the horses looked in the vision: the riders had breastplates that were fire-red, iris-blue and sulfur-yellow; the horses’ heads were like lions’ heads; and from their mouths issued fire, smoke and sulfur. ¹⁸ It was these three plagues that killed a third of mankind — the fire, smoke and sulfur issuing from the horses’ mouths. ¹⁹ For the power of the horses was in their mouths — and also in their tails, for their tails were like snakes with heads, and with them they could cause injury.

²⁰ The rest of mankind, those who were not killed by these plagues, even then did not turn from what they had made with their own hands — they did not stop worshipping demons and idols made of gold, silver, bronze, stone and wood, which cannot see or hear or walk.^{[a] 21} Nor did they turn from their murdering, their involvement with the occult and with drugs, their sexual immorality or their stealing.