Ezekiel Called to Be a Prophet

And He said to me, “Son of man, (A)stand on your feet, and I will speak to you.” Then (B)the Spirit entered me when He spoke to me, and set me on my feet; and I heard Him who spoke to me. And He said to me: “Son of man, I am sending you to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation that has (C)rebelled against Me; (D)they and their fathers have transgressed against Me to this very day. (E)For they are [a]impudent and stubborn children. I am sending you to them, and you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God.’ (F)As for them, whether they hear or whether they refuse—for they are a (G)rebellious house—yet they (H)will know that a prophet has been among them.

“And you, son of man, (I)do not be afraid of them nor be afraid of their words, though (J)briers and thorns are with you and you dwell among scorpions; (K)do not be afraid of their words or dismayed by their looks, (L)though they are a rebellious house. (M)You shall speak My words to them, whether they hear or whether they refuse, for they are rebellious. But you, son of man, hear what I say to you. Do not be rebellious like that rebellious house; open your mouth and (N)eat what I give you.”

Now when I looked, there was (O)a hand stretched out to me; and behold, (P)a scroll of a book was in it. 10 Then He spread it before me; and there was writing on the inside and on the outside, and written on it were lamentations and mourning and woe.

The Responsibility of the Prophet

Moreover He said to me, “Son of man, eat what you find; (Q)eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel.” So I opened my mouth, and He caused me to eat that scroll.

And He said to me, “Son of man, feed your belly, and fill your stomach with this scroll that I give you.” So I (R)ate, and it was in my mouth (S)like honey in sweetness.

Then He said to me: “Son of man, go to the house of Israel and speak with My words to them. For you are not sent to a people of unfamiliar speech and of hard language, but to the house of Israel, not to many people of unfamiliar speech and of hard language, whose words you cannot understand. Surely, (T)had I sent you to them, they would have listened to you. But the house of Israel will not listen to you, (U)because they will not listen to Me; (V)for all the house of Israel are [b]impudent and hard-hearted. Behold, I have made your face strong against their faces, and your forehead strong against their foreheads. (W)Like adamant stone, harder than flint, I have made your forehead; (X)do not be afraid of them, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they are a rebellious house.”

10 Moreover He said to me: “Son of man, receive into your heart all My words that I speak to you, and hear with your ears. 11 And go, get to the captives, to the children of your people, and speak to them and tell them, (Y)‘Thus says the Lord God,’ whether they hear, or whether they refuse.”

12 Then (Z)the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard behind me a great thunderous voice: “Blessed is the (AA)glory of the Lord from His place!” 13 I also heard the (AB)noise of the wings of the living creatures that touched one another, and the noise of the wheels beside them, and a great thunderous noise. 14 So the Spirit lifted me up and took me away, and I went in bitterness, in the [c]heat of my spirit; but (AC)the hand of the Lord was strong upon me. 15 Then I came to the captives at Tel Abib, who dwelt by the River Chebar; and (AD)I sat where they sat, and remained there astonished among them seven days.

Ezekiel Is a Watchman

16 Now it (AE)came to pass at the end of seven days that the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 17 (AF)“Son of man, I have made you (AG)a watchman for the house of Israel; therefore hear a word from My mouth, and give them (AH)warning from Me: 18 When I say to the wicked, ‘You shall surely die,’ and you give him no warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life, that same wicked man (AI)shall die in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at your hand. 19 Yet, if you warn the wicked, and he does not turn from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; (AJ)but you have delivered your soul.

20 “Again, when a (AK)righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die; because you did not give him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteousness which he has done shall not be remembered; but his blood I will require at your hand. 21 Nevertheless if you warn the righteous man that the righteous should not sin, and he does not sin, he shall surely live because he took warning; also you will have delivered your soul.”

22 (AL)Then the hand of the Lord was upon me there, and He said to me, “Arise, go out (AM)into the plain, and there I shall talk with you.”

23 So I arose and went out into the plain, and behold, (AN)the glory of the Lord stood there, like the glory which I (AO)saw by the River Chebar; (AP)and I fell on my face. 24 Then (AQ)the Spirit entered me and set me on my feet, and spoke with me and said to me: “Go, shut yourself inside your house. 25 And you, O son of man, surely (AR)they will put ropes on you and bind you with them, so that you cannot go out among them. 26 (AS)I will make your tongue cling to the roof of your mouth, so that you shall be mute and (AT)not be [d]one to rebuke them, (AU)for they are a rebellious house. 27 (AV)But when I speak with you, I will open your mouth, and you shall say to them, (AW)‘Thus says the Lord God.’ He who hears, let him hear; and he who refuses, let him refuse; for they are a rebellious house.

Notas al pie

  1. Ezekiel 2:4 Lit. stiff-faced and hard-hearted sons
  2. Ezekiel 3:7 Lit. strong of forehead
  3. Ezekiel 3:14 Or anger
  4. Ezekiel 3:26 Lit. one who rebukes

Ezekiel’s Call to Be a Prophet

He said to me, “Son of man,[a](A) stand(B) up on your feet and I will speak to you.(C) As he spoke, the Spirit came into me and raised me(D) to my feet, and I heard him speaking to me.

He said: “Son of man, I am sending you to the Israelites, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against me; they and their ancestors have been in revolt against me to this very day.(E) The people to whom I am sending you are obstinate and stubborn.(F) Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says.’(G) And whether they listen or fail to listen(H)—for they are a rebellious people(I)—they will know that a prophet has been among them.(J) And you, son of man, do not be afraid(K) of them or their words. Do not be afraid, though briers and thorns(L) are all around you and you live among scorpions. Do not be afraid of what they say or be terrified by them, though they are a rebellious people.(M) You must speak(N) my words to them, whether they listen or fail to listen, for they are rebellious.(O) But you, son of man, listen to what I say to you. Do not rebel(P) like that rebellious people;(Q) open your mouth and eat(R) what I give you.”

Then I looked, and I saw a hand(S) stretched out to me. In it was a scroll,(T) 10 which he unrolled before me. On both sides of it were written words of lament and mourning and woe.(U)

And he said to me, “Son of man, eat what is before you, eat this scroll; then go and speak to the people of Israel.” So I opened my mouth, and he gave me the scroll to eat.

Then he said to me, “Son of man, eat this scroll I am giving you and fill your stomach with it.” So I ate(V) it, and it tasted as sweet as honey(W) in my mouth.

He then said to me: “Son of man, go now to the people of Israel and speak my words to them.(X) You are not being sent to a people of obscure speech and strange language,(Y) but to the people of Israel— not to many peoples of obscure speech and strange language, whose words you cannot understand. Surely if I had sent you to them, they would have listened to you.(Z) But the people of Israel are not willing to listen(AA) to you because they are not willing to listen to me, for all the Israelites are hardened and obstinate.(AB) But I will make you as unyielding and hardened as they are.(AC) I will make your forehead(AD) like the hardest stone, harder than flint.(AE) Do not be afraid of them or terrified by them, though they are a rebellious people.(AF)

10 And he said to me, “Son of man, listen carefully and take to heart(AG) all the words I speak to you. 11 Go(AH) now to your people in exile and speak to them. Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says,’(AI) whether they listen or fail to listen.(AJ)

12 Then the Spirit lifted me up,(AK) and I heard behind me a loud rumbling sound as the glory of the Lord rose from the place where it was standing.[b] 13 It was the sound of the wings of the living creatures(AL) brushing against each other and the sound of the wheels beside them, a loud rumbling sound.(AM) 14 The Spirit(AN) then lifted me up(AO) and took me away, and I went in bitterness and in the anger of my spirit, with the strong hand of the Lord(AP) on me. 15 I came to the exiles who lived at Tel Aviv near the Kebar River.(AQ) And there, where they were living, I sat among them for seven days(AR)—deeply distressed.

Ezekiel’s Task as Watchman

16 At the end of seven days the word of the Lord came to me:(AS) 17 “Son of man, I have made you a watchman(AT) for the people of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me.(AU) 18 When I say to a wicked person, ‘You will surely die,(AV)’ and you do not warn them or speak out to dissuade them from their evil ways in order to save their life, that wicked person will die for[c] their sin, and I will hold you accountable for their blood.(AW) 19 But if you do warn the wicked person and they do not turn(AX) from their wickedness(AY) or from their evil ways, they will die(AZ) for their sin; but you will have saved yourself.(BA)

20 “Again, when a righteous person turns(BB) from their righteousness and does evil, and I put a stumbling block(BC) before them, they will die. Since you did not warn them, they will die for their sin. The righteous things that person did will not be remembered, and I will hold you accountable for their blood.(BD) 21 But if you do warn the righteous person not to sin and they do not sin, they will surely live because they took warning, and you will have saved yourself.(BE)

22 The hand of the Lord(BF) was on me there, and he said to me, “Get up and go(BG) out to the plain,(BH) and there I will speak to you.” 23 So I got up and went out to the plain. And the glory of the Lord was standing there, like the glory I had seen by the Kebar River,(BI) and I fell facedown.(BJ)

24 Then the Spirit came into me and raised me(BK) to my feet. He spoke to me and said: “Go, shut yourself inside your house.(BL) 25 And you, son of man, they will tie with ropes; you will be bound so that you cannot go out among the people.(BM) 26 I will make your tongue stick to the roof(BN) of your mouth so that you will be silent and unable to rebuke them, for they are a rebellious people.(BO) 27 But when I speak to you, I will open your mouth and you shall say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says.’(BP) Whoever will listen let them listen, and whoever will refuse let them refuse; for they are a rebellious people.(BQ)

Notas al pie

  1. Ezekiel 2:1 The Hebrew phrase ben adam means human being. The phrase son of man is retained as a form of address here and throughout Ezekiel because of its possible association with “Son of Man” in the New Testament.
  2. Ezekiel 3:12 Probable reading of the original Hebrew text; Masoretic Text sound—may the glory of the Lord be praised from his place
  3. Ezekiel 3:18 Or in; also in verses 19 and 20

The Lord Will Not Relent

15 Then the Lord said to me, (A)Even if (B)Moses and (C)Samuel stood before Me, My [a]mind would not be favorable toward this people. Cast them out of My sight, and let them go forth. And it shall be, if they say to you, ‘Where should we go?’ then you shall tell them, ‘Thus says the Lord:

(D)“Such as are for death, to death;
And such as are for the sword, to the sword;
And such as are for the famine, to the famine;
And such as are for the (E)captivity, to the captivity.” ’

“And I will (F)appoint over them four forms of destruction,” says the Lord: “the sword to slay, the dogs to drag, (G)the birds of the heavens and the beasts of the earth to devour and destroy. I will hand them over to (H)trouble, to all kingdoms of the earth, because of (I)Manasseh the son of Hezekiah, king of Judah, for what he did in Jerusalem.

“For who will have pity on you, O Jerusalem?
Or who will bemoan you?
Or who will turn aside to ask how you are doing?
(J)You have forsaken Me,” says the Lord,
“You have (K)gone backward.
Therefore I will stretch out My hand against you and destroy you;
(L)I am [b]weary of relenting!
And I will winnow them with a winnowing fan in the gates of the land;
I will (M)bereave them of children;
I will destroy My people,
Since they (N)do not return from their ways.
Their widows will be increased to Me more than the sand of the seas;
I will bring against them,
Against the mother of the young men,
A plunderer at noonday;
I will cause anguish and terror to fall on them (O)suddenly.

“She(P) languishes who has borne seven;
She has breathed her last;
(Q)Her sun has gone down
While it was yet day;
She has been ashamed and confounded.
And the remnant of them I will deliver to the sword
Before their enemies,” says the Lord.

Jeremiah’s Dejection

10 (R)Woe is me, my mother,
That you have borne me,
A man of strife and a man of contention to the whole [c]earth!
I have neither lent for interest,
Nor have men lent to me for interest.
Every one of them curses me.

11 The Lord said:

“Surely it will be well with your remnant;
Surely I will cause (S)the enemy to intercede with you
In the time of adversity and in the time of affliction.
12 Can anyone break iron,
The northern iron and the bronze?
13 Your wealth and your treasures
I will give as (T)plunder without price,
Because of all your sins,
Throughout your territories.
14 And I will [d]make you cross over with your enemies
(U)Into a land which you do not know;
For a (V)fire is kindled in My anger,
Which shall burn upon you.”

15 O Lord, (W)You know;
Remember me and [e]visit me,
And (X)take vengeance for me on my persecutors.
In Your enduring patience, do not take me away.
Know that (Y)for Your sake I have suffered rebuke.
16 Your words were found, and I (Z)ate them,
And (AA)Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart;
For I am called by Your name,
O Lord God of hosts.
17 (AB)I did not sit in the assembly of the mockers,
Nor did I rejoice;
I sat alone because of Your hand,
For You have filled me with indignation.
18 Why is my (AC)pain perpetual
And my wound incurable,
Which refuses to be healed?
Will You surely be to me (AD)like an unreliable stream,
As waters that [f]fail?

The Lord Reassures Jeremiah

19 Therefore thus says the Lord:

(AE)“If you return,
Then I will bring you back;
You shall (AF)stand before Me;
If you (AG)take out the precious from the vile,
You shall be as My mouth.
Let them return to you,
But you must not return to them.
20 And I will make you to this people a fortified bronze (AH)wall;
And they will fight against you,
But (AI)they shall not prevail against you;
For I am with you to save you
And deliver you,” says the Lord.
21 “I will deliver you from the hand of the wicked,
And I will redeem you from the grip of the terrible.”

Notas al pie

  1. Jeremiah 15:1 Lit. soul was not toward
  2. Jeremiah 15:6 tired
  3. Jeremiah 15:10 Or land
  4. Jeremiah 15:14 So with MT, Vg.; LXX, Syr., Tg. cause you to serve (cf. 17:4)
  5. Jeremiah 15:15 attend to
  6. Jeremiah 15:18 Or cannot be trusted

15 Then the Lord said to me: “Even if Moses(A) and Samuel(B) were to stand before me, my heart would not go out to this people.(C) Send them away from my presence!(D) Let them go! And if they ask you, ‘Where shall we go?’ tell them, ‘This is what the Lord says:

“‘Those destined for death, to death;
those for the sword, to the sword;(E)
those for starvation, to starvation;(F)
those for captivity, to captivity.’(G)

“I will send four kinds of destroyers(H) against them,” declares the Lord, “the sword(I) to kill and the dogs(J) to drag away and the birds(K) and the wild animals to devour and destroy.(L) I will make them abhorrent(M) to all the kingdoms of the earth(N) because of what Manasseh(O) son of Hezekiah king of Judah did in Jerusalem.

“Who will have pity(P) on you, Jerusalem?
    Who will mourn for you?
    Who will stop to ask how you are?
You have rejected(Q) me,” declares the Lord.
    “You keep on backsliding.
So I will reach out(R) and destroy you;
    I am tired of holding back.(S)
I will winnow(T) them with a winnowing fork
    at the city gates of the land.
I will bring bereavement(U) and destruction on my people,(V)
    for they have not changed their ways.(W)
I will make their widows(X) more numerous
    than the sand of the sea.
At midday I will bring a destroyer(Y)
    against the mothers of their young men;
suddenly I will bring down on them
    anguish and terror.(Z)
The mother of seven will grow faint(AA)
    and breathe her last.(AB)
Her sun will set while it is still day;
    she will be disgraced(AC) and humiliated.
I will put the survivors to the sword(AD)
    before their enemies,”(AE)
declares the Lord.

10 Alas, my mother, that you gave me birth,(AF)
    a man with whom the whole land strives and contends!(AG)
I have neither lent(AH) nor borrowed,
    yet everyone curses(AI) me.

11 The Lord said,

“Surely I will deliver you(AJ) for a good purpose;
    surely I will make your enemies plead(AK) with you
    in times of disaster and times of distress.

12 “Can a man break iron—
    iron from the north(AL)—or bronze?

13 “Your wealth(AM) and your treasures
    I will give as plunder,(AN) without charge,(AO)
because of all your sins
    throughout your country.(AP)
14 I will enslave you to your enemies
    in[a] a land you do not know,(AQ)
for my anger will kindle a fire(AR)
    that will burn against you.”

15 Lord, you understand;
    remember me and care for me.
    Avenge me on my persecutors.(AS)
You are long-suffering(AT)—do not take me away;
    think of how I suffer reproach for your sake.(AU)
16 When your words came, I ate(AV) them;
    they were my joy and my heart’s delight,(AW)
for I bear your name,(AX)
    Lord God Almighty.
17 I never sat(AY) in the company of revelers,
    never made merry with them;
I sat alone because your hand(AZ) was on me
    and you had filled me with indignation.
18 Why is my pain unending
    and my wound grievous and incurable?(BA)
You are to me like a deceptive brook,
    like a spring that fails.(BB)

19 Therefore this is what the Lord says:

“If you repent, I will restore you
    that you may serve(BC) me;
if you utter worthy, not worthless, words,
    you will be my spokesman.(BD)
Let this people turn to you,
    but you must not turn to them.
20 I will make you a wall(BE) to this people,
    a fortified wall of bronze;
they will fight against you
    but will not overcome(BF) you,
for I am with you
    to rescue and save you,”(BG)
declares the Lord.
21 “I will save(BH) you from the hands of the wicked(BI)
    and deliver(BJ) you from the grasp of the cruel.”(BK)

Notas al pie

  1. Jeremiah 15:14 Some Hebrew manuscripts, Septuagint and Syriac (see also 17:4); most Hebrew manuscripts I will cause your enemies to bring you / into