Egypt Falls into the Pit

¹⁷ On March 17,^[a] during the twelfth year, another message came to me from the Lord: ¹⁸ “Son of man, weep for the hordes of Egypt and for the other mighty nations.^[b] For I will send them down to the world below in company with those who descend to the pit. ¹⁹ Say to them,

²⁰ The Egyptians will fall with the many who have died by the sword, for the sword is drawn against them. Egypt and its hordes will be dragged away to their judgment. ²¹ Down in the grave^[d] mighty leaders will mockingly welcome Egypt and its allies, saying, ‘They have come down; they lie among the outcasts, hordes slaughtered by the sword.’

²² “Assyria lies there surrounded by the graves of its army, those who were slaughtered by the sword. ²³ Their graves are in the depths of the pit, and they are surrounded by their allies. They struck terror in the hearts of people everywhere, but now they have been slaughtered by the sword.

²⁴ “Elam lies there surrounded by the graves of all its hordes, those who were slaughtered by the sword. They struck terror in the hearts of people everywhere, but now they have descended as outcasts to the world below. Now they lie in the pit and share the shame of those who have gone before them. ²⁵ They have a resting place among the slaughtered, surrounded by the graves of all their hordes. Yes, they terrorized the nations while they lived, but now they lie in shame with others in the pit, all of them outcasts, slaughtered by the sword.

²⁶ “Meshech and Tubal are there, surrounded by the graves of all their hordes. They once struck terror in the hearts of people everywhere. But now they are outcasts, all slaughtered by the sword. ²⁷ They are not buried in honor like their fallen heroes, who went down to the grave^[e] with their weapons—their shields covering their bodies^[f] and their swords beneath their heads. Their guilt rests upon them because they brought terror to everyone while they were still alive.

²⁸ “You too, Egypt, will lie crushed and broken among the outcasts, all slaughtered by the sword.

²⁹ “Edom is there with its kings and princes. Mighty as they were, they also lie among those slaughtered by the sword, with the outcasts who have gone down to the pit.

³⁰ “All the princes of the north and the Sidonians are there with others who have died. Once a terror, they have been put to shame. They lie there as outcasts with others who were slaughtered by the sword. They share the shame of all who have descended to the pit.

³¹ “When Pharaoh and his entire army arrive, he will take comfort that he is not alone in having his hordes killed, says the Sovereign Lord. ³² Although I have caused his terror to fall upon all the living, Pharaoh and his hordes will lie there among the outcasts who were slaughtered by the sword. I, the Sovereign Lord, have spoken!”

Ezekiel as Israel’s Watchman

33 Once again a message came to me from the Lord: ² “Son of man, give your people this message: ‘When I bring an army against a country, the people of that land choose one of their own to be a watchman. ³ When the watchman sees the enemy coming, he sounds the alarm to warn the people. ⁴ Then if those who hear the alarm refuse to take action, it is their own fault if they die. ⁵ They heard the alarm but ignored it, so the responsibility is theirs. If they had listened to the warning, they could have saved their lives. ⁶ But if the watchman sees the enemy coming and doesn’t sound the alarm to warn the people, he is responsible for their captivity. They will die in their sins, but I will hold the watchman responsible for their deaths.’

⁷ “Now, son of man, I am making you a watchman for the people of Israel. Therefore, listen to what I say and warn them for me. ⁸ If I announce that some wicked people are sure to die and you fail to tell them to change their ways, then they will die in their sins, and I will hold you responsible for their deaths. ⁹ But if you warn them to repent and they don’t repent, they will die in their sins, but you will have saved yourself.

The Watchman’s Message

¹⁰ “Son of man, give the people of Israel this message: You are saying, ‘Our sins are heavy upon us; we are wasting away! How can we survive?’ ¹¹ As surely as I live, says the Sovereign Lord, I take no pleasure in the death of wicked people. I only want them to turn from their wicked ways so they can live. Turn! Turn from your wickedness, O people of Israel! Why should you die?

¹² “Son of man, give your people this message: The righteous behavior of righteous people will not save them if they turn to sin, nor will the wicked behavior of wicked people destroy them if they repent and turn from their sins. ¹³ When I tell righteous people that they will live, but then they sin, expecting their past righteousness to save them, then none of their righteous acts will be remembered. I will destroy them for their sins. ¹⁴ And suppose I tell some wicked people that they will surely die, but then they turn from their sins and do what is just and right. ¹⁵ For instance, they might give back a debtor’s security, return what they have stolen, and obey my life-giving laws, no longer doing what is evil. If they do this, then they will surely live and not die. ¹⁶ None of their past sins will be brought up again, for they have done what is just and right, and they will surely live.

¹⁷ “Your people are saying, ‘The Lord isn’t doing what’s right,’ but it is they who are not doing what’s right. ¹⁸ For again I say, when righteous people turn away from their righteous behavior and turn to evil, they will die. ¹⁹ But if wicked people turn from their wickedness and do what is just and right, they will live. ²⁰ O people of Israel, you are saying, ‘The Lord isn’t doing what’s right.’ But I judge each of you according to your deeds.”

²⁸ The number of captives taken to Babylon in the seventh year of Nebuchadnezzar’s reign^[a] was 3,023. ²⁹ Then in Nebuchadnezzar’s eighteenth year^[b] he took 832 more. ³⁰ In Nebuchadnezzar’s twenty-third year^[c] he sent Nebuzaradan, the captain of the guard, who took 745 more—a total of 4,600 captives in all.

Psalm 137

Descendants of Simeon

²⁴ The sons of Simeon were Jemuel,^[a] Jamin, Jarib, Zohar,^[b] and Shaul.

²⁵ The descendants of Shaul were Shallum, Mibsam, and Mishma.

²⁶ The descendants of Mishma were Hammuel, Zaccur, and Shimei.

²⁷ Shimei had sixteen sons and six daughters, but none of his brothers had large families. So Simeon’s tribe never grew as large as the tribe of Judah.

²⁸ They lived in Beersheba, Moladah, Hazar-shual, ²⁹ Bilhah, Ezem, Tolad, ³⁰ Bethuel, Hormah, Ziklag, ³¹ Beth-marcaboth, Hazar-susim, Beth-biri, and Shaaraim. These towns were under their control until the time of King David. ³² Their descendants also lived in Etam, Ain, Rimmon, Token, and Ashan—five towns ³³ and their surrounding villages as far away as Baalath.^[c] This was their territory, and these names are listed in their genealogical records.

³⁴ Other descendants of Simeon included Meshobab, Jamlech, Joshah son of Amaziah, ³⁵ Joel, Jehu son of Joshibiah, son of Seraiah, son of Asiel, ³⁶ Elioenai, Jaakobah, Jeshohaiah, Asaiah, Adiel, Jesimiel, Benaiah, ³⁷ and Ziza son of Shiphi, son of Allon, son of Jedaiah, son of Shimri, son of Shemaiah.

³⁸ These were the names of some of the leaders of Simeon’s wealthy clans. Their families grew, ³⁹ and they traveled to the region of Gerar,^[d] in the east part of the valley, seeking pastureland for their flocks. ⁴⁰ They found lush pastures there, and the land was spacious, quiet, and peaceful.

Some of Ham’s descendants had been living in that region. ⁴¹ But during the reign of King Hezekiah of Judah, these leaders of Simeon invaded the region and completely destroyed^[e] the homes of the descendants of Ham and of the Meunites. No trace of them remains today. They killed everyone who lived there and took the land for themselves, because they wanted its good pastureland for their flocks. ⁴² Five hundred of these invaders from the tribe of Simeon went to Mount Seir, led by Pelatiah, Neariah, Rephaiah, and Uzziel—all sons of Ishi. ⁴³ They destroyed the few Amalekites who had survived, and they have lived there ever since.

Descendants of Reuben

5 The oldest son of Israel^[f] was Reuben. But since he dishonored his father by sleeping with one of his father’s concubines, his birthright was given to the sons of his brother Joseph. For this reason, Reuben is not listed in the genealogical records as the firstborn son. ² The descendants of Judah became the most powerful tribe and provided a ruler for the nation,^[g] but the birthright belonged to Joseph.

³ The sons of Reuben, the oldest son of Israel, were Hanoch, Pallu, Hezron, and Carmi.

⁴ The descendants of Joel were Shemaiah, Gog, Shimei, ⁵ Micah, Reaiah, Baal, ⁶ and Beerah. Beerah was the leader of the Reubenites when they were taken into captivity by King Tiglath-pileser^[h] of Assyria.

⁷ Beerah’s^[i] relatives are listed in their genealogical records by their clans: Jeiel (the leader), Zechariah, ⁸ and Bela son of Azaz, son of Shema, son of Joel.

The Reubenites lived in the area that stretches from Aroer to Nebo and Baal-meon. ⁹ And since they had so many livestock in the land of Gilead, they spread east toward the edge of the desert that stretches to the Euphrates River.

¹⁰ During the reign of Saul, the Reubenites defeated the Hagrites in battle. Then they moved into the Hagrite settlements all along the eastern edge of Gilead.

Descendants of Gad

¹¹ Next to the Reubenites, the descendants of Gad lived in the land of Bashan as far east as Salecah. ¹² Joel was the leader in the land of Bashan, and Shapham was second-in-command, followed by Janai and Shaphat.

¹³ Their relatives, the leaders of seven other clans, were Michael, Meshullam, Sheba, Jorai, Jacan, Zia, and Eber. ¹⁴ These were all descendants of Abihail son of Huri, son of Jaroah, son of Gilead, son of Michael, son of Jeshishai, son of Jahdo, son of Buz. ¹⁵ Ahi son of Abdiel, son of Guni, was the leader of their clans.

¹⁶ The Gadites lived in the land of Gilead, in Bashan and its villages, and throughout all the pasturelands of Sharon. ¹⁷ All of these were listed in the genealogical records during the days of King Jotham of Judah and King Jeroboam of Israel.