Ezekiel 36
GOD’S WORD Translation
Blessings for the Mountains of Israel
36 ⌞The Lord said,⌟ “Son of man, prophesy to the mountains of Israel. Tell them, ‘Mountains of Israel, listen to the Lord’s word. 2 This is what the Almighty Lord says: Your enemies said this about you, “Aha! The ancient worship sites now belong to us.” ’
3 “So prophesy. Say, ‘This is what the Almighty Lord says: Your enemies turned you into ruins and crushed you from every side. You became the possession of the rest of the nations, and people began to talk and gossip about you.
4 “ ‘Mountains of Israel, listen to the Almighty Lord’s word. This is what the Almighty Lord says to the mountains and hills, to the ravines and valleys, and to the empty ruins and abandoned cities that have become prey and are mocked by the rest of the surrounding nations: 5 In my fiery anger I have spoken against the rest of the nations and against all of Edom. The Edomites have taken possession of my land with wholehearted joy and with complete scorn. They forced out the people and took their land.’
6 “So prophesy about Israel. Tell the mountains and hills and the ravines and valleys, ‘This is what the Almighty Lord says: I am speaking in my anger and fury because you have been insulted by the nations. 7 So this is what the Almighty Lord says: I raise my hand and swear that the nations which surround you will be insulted.
8 “ ‘But you, mountains of Israel, will grow branches and bear fruit for my people Israel. My people will come home soon. 9 I am for you. I will turn to you, and you will be plowed and planted. 10 I will increase the number of people who live on you. All the people of Israel, all of them, will live on you. The cities will be inhabited, and the ruins will be rebuilt. 11 I will increase the number of people and animals that live on you. They will grow and become many. I will let people live on you as in the past, and I will make you better off than ever before. Then you will know that I am the Lord. 12 I will bring people, my people Israel, to you. They will take possession of you, and you will be their inheritance. You will no longer take their children away from them.
13 “ ‘This is what the Almighty Lord says: People say that you devour your people and take the children away from your nation. 14 So you will no longer devour your people or take the children away from your nation, declares the Almighty Lord. 15 I will no longer let you hear the insults from the nations. You will no longer suffer the disgrace of the people. You will never again take the children away from your own nation, declares the Almighty Lord.’ ”
16 The Lord spoke his word to me. He said, 17 “Son of man, when the people of Israel lived in their land, they dishonored it by the way they lived and by everything they did. Their ways were as unclean [a] as a woman’s menstrual period. 18 So I poured out my fury on them because they poured out blood on the land and they dishonored the land with their idols. 19 I forced them into other nations, and they became scattered among the nations. I judged them based on the way that they lived and based on everything that they had done. 20 But wherever they went among the nations, they dishonored my holy name. People said about them, ‘These are the Lord’s people, yet they had to leave his land.’ 21 I became concerned about my holy name because my people dishonored it among the nations wherever they went.
22 “So tell the people of Israel, ‘This is what the Almighty Lord says: I am about to do something, people of Israel. I will not do this for your sake but for the sake of my holy name, which you have dishonored among the nations wherever you have gone. 23 I will reveal the holiness of my great name, which has been dishonored by the nations, ⌞the name⌟ that you have dishonored among them. Then the nations will know that I am the Lord, because I will reveal my holiness among you as they watch, declares the Almighty Lord.
24 “ ‘I will take you from the nations and gather you from every country. I will bring you back to your own land. 25 I will sprinkle clean water on you and make you clean [b] instead of unclean. Then I will cleanse you from all your idols. 26 I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you. I will remove your stubborn hearts and give you obedient hearts. 27 I will put my Spirit in you. I will enable you to live by my laws, and you will obey my rules. 28 Then you will live in the land that I gave your ancestors. You will be my people, and I will be your God. 29 I will rescue you from all your uncleanness. I will make the grain grow so that you will never again have famines. 30 I will make fruit grow on the trees and crops grow in the fields so that you will no longer suffer disgrace among the nations because of famines. 31 Then you will remember your evil ways and the bad things that you did, and you will hate yourselves for all these wicked and disgusting things. 32 I want you to know that I’m not doing this for your sake, declares the Almighty Lord. Be ashamed and disgraced because of your ways, people of Israel.
33 “ ‘This is what the Almighty Lord says: On the day that I cleanse you from all your wickedness, I will cause your cities to be lived in again, and your ruins will be rebuilt. 34 The wasteland will be plowed. It will no longer remain empty for everyone passing by to see. 35 People will say, “This wasteland has become like the garden of Eden. The cities were destroyed. They were empty and ruined, but now they are fortified and have people living in them.” 36 The surrounding nations that are left will know that I, the Lord, have rebuilt the ruined places and planted crops in the land that was empty. I, the Lord, have spoken, and I will do it.’
37 “This is what the Almighty Lord says: I will also let the people of Israel ask me to make them as numerous as sheep. 38 They will be like the sheep for sacrifices, like the sheep in Jerusalem during the appointed festivals. Their ruined cities will be filled with flocks of people. Then they will know that I am the Lord.”
Ezekiel 36
New King James Version
Blessing on Israel
36 “And you, son of man, prophesy to the (A)mountains of Israel, and say, ‘O mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord! 2 Thus says the Lord God: “Because (B)the enemy has said of you, ‘Aha! (C)The [a]ancient heights (D)have become our possession,’ ” ’ 3 therefore prophesy, and say, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Because they made you desolate and swallowed you up on every side, so that you became the possession of the rest of the nations, (E)and you are taken up by the lips of (F)talkers and slandered by the people”— 4 therefore, O mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord God! Thus says the Lord God to the mountains, the hills, the [b]rivers, the valleys, the desolate wastes, and the cities that have been forsaken, which (G)became plunder and (H)mockery to the rest of the nations all around— 5 therefore thus says the Lord God: (I)“Surely I have spoken in My burning jealousy against the rest of the nations and against all Edom, (J)who gave My land to themselves as a possession, with wholehearted joy and [c]spiteful minds, in order to plunder its open country.” ’
6 “Therefore prophesy concerning the land of Israel, and say to the mountains, the hills, the rivers, and the valleys, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Behold, I have spoken in My jealousy and My fury, because you have (K)borne the shame of the nations.” 7 Therefore thus says the Lord God: “I have (L)raised My hand in an oath that surely the nations that are around you shall (M)bear their own shame. 8 But you, O mountains of Israel, you shall shoot forth your branches and yield your fruit to My people Israel, for they are about to come. 9 For indeed I am for you, and I will turn to you, and you shall be tilled and sown. 10 I will multiply men upon you, all the house of Israel, all of it; and the cities shall be inhabited and (N)the ruins rebuilt. 11 (O)I will multiply upon you man and beast; and they shall increase and [d]bear young; I will make you inhabited as in former times, and do (P)better for you than at your beginnings. (Q)Then you shall know that I am the Lord. 12 Yes, I will cause men to walk on you, My people Israel; (R)they shall take possession of you, and you shall be their inheritance; no more shall you (S)bereave them of children.”
13 ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Because they say to you, (T)‘You devour men and bereave your nation of children,’ 14 therefore you shall devour men no more, nor bereave your nation anymore,” says the Lord God. 15 (U)“Nor will I let you hear the taunts of the nations anymore, nor bear the reproach of the peoples anymore, nor shall you cause your nation to stumble anymore,” says the Lord God.’ ”
The Renewal of Israel
16 Moreover the word of the Lord came to me, saying: 17 “Son of man, when the house of Israel dwelt in their own land, (V)they defiled it by their own ways and deeds; to Me their way was like (W)the uncleanness of a woman in her customary impurity. 18 Therefore I poured out My fury on them (X)for the blood they had shed on the land, and for their idols with which they had defiled it. 19 So I (Y)scattered them among the nations, and they were dispersed throughout the countries; I judged them (Z)according to their ways and their deeds. 20 When they came to the nations, wherever they went, they (AA)profaned My holy name—when they said of them, ‘These are the people of the Lord, and yet they have gone out of His land.’ 21 But I had concern (AB)for My holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the nations wherever they went.
22 “Therefore say to the house of Israel, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “I do not do this for your sake, O house of Israel, (AC)but for My holy name’s sake, which you have profaned among the nations wherever you went. 23 And I will sanctify My great name, which has been profaned among the nations, which you have profaned in their midst; and the nations shall know that I am the Lord,” says the Lord God, “when I am (AD)hallowed in you before their eyes. 24 For (AE)I will take you from among the nations, gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land. 25 (AF)Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you (AG)from all your filthiness and from all your idols. 26 I will give you a (AH)new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 I will put My (AI)Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them. 28 (AJ)Then you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; (AK)you shall be My people, and I will be your God. 29 I will (AL)deliver you from all your uncleannesses. (AM)I will call for the grain and multiply it, and (AN)bring no famine upon you. 30 (AO)And I will multiply the fruit of your trees and the increase of your fields, so that you need never again bear the reproach of famine among the nations. 31 Then (AP)you will remember your evil ways and your deeds that were not good; and you (AQ)will [e]loathe yourselves in your own sight, for your iniquities and your abominations. 32 (AR)Not for your sake do I do this,” says the Lord God, “let it be known to you. Be ashamed and confounded for your own ways, O house of Israel!”
33 ‘Thus says the Lord God: “On the day that I cleanse you from all your iniquities, I will also enable you to dwell in the cities, (AS)and the ruins shall be rebuilt. 34 The desolate land shall be tilled instead of lying desolate in the sight of all who pass by. 35 So they will say, ‘This land that was desolate has become like the garden of (AT)Eden; and the wasted, desolate, and ruined cities are now fortified and inhabited.’ 36 Then the nations which are left all around you shall know that I, the Lord, have rebuilt the ruined places and planted what was desolate. (AU)I, the Lord, have spoken it, and I will do it.”
37 ‘Thus says the Lord God: (AV)“I will also let the house of Israel inquire of Me to do this for them: I will (AW)increase their men like a flock. 38 Like a [f]flock offered as holy sacrifices, like the flock at Jerusalem on its [g]feast days, so shall the ruined cities be filled with flocks of men. Then they shall know that I am the Lord.” ’ ”
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 36:2 Or everlasting
- Ezekiel 36:4 Or ravines
- Ezekiel 36:5 Lit. scorning souls
- Ezekiel 36:11 Lit. be fruitful
- Ezekiel 36:31 despise
- Ezekiel 36:38 Lit. holy flock
- Ezekiel 36:38 appointed feasts
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Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
