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35 Moreover Yahweh’s word came to me, saying, “Son of man, set your face against Mount Seir, and prophesy against it, and tell it, ‘The Lord Yahweh says: “Behold, I am against you, Mount Seir, and I will stretch out my hand against you. I will make you a desolation and an astonishment. I will lay your cities waste, and you will be desolate. Then you will know that I am Yahweh.

“‘“Because you have had a perpetual hostility, and have given over the children of Israel to the power of the sword in the time of their calamity, in the time of the iniquity of the end; therefore, as I live,” says the Lord Yahweh, “I will prepare you for blood, and blood will pursue you. Since you have not hated blood, therefore blood will pursue you. Thus I will make Mount Seir an astonishment and a desolation. I will cut off from it him who passes through and him who returns. I will fill its mountains with its slain. The slain with the sword will fall in your hills and in your valleys and in all your watercourses. I will make you a perpetual desolation, and your cities will not be inhabited. Then you will know that I am Yahweh.

10 “‘“Because you have said, ‘These two nations and these two countries will be mine, and we will possess it;’ whereas Yahweh was there: 11 therefore, as I live,” says the Lord Yahweh, “I will do according to your anger, and according to your envy which you have shown out of your hatred against them; and I will make myself known among them when I judge you. 12 You will know that I, Yahweh, have heard all your insults which you have spoken against the mountains of Israel, saying, ‘They have been laid desolate. They have been given us to devour.’ 13 You have magnified yourselves against me with your mouth, and have multiplied your words against me. I have heard it.” 14 The Lord Yahweh says: “When the whole earth rejoices, I will make you desolate. 15 As you rejoiced over the inheritance of the house of Israel because it was desolate, so I will do to you. You will be desolate, Mount Seir, and all Edom, even all of it. Then they will know that I am Yahweh.’”

Prophecy Against Mount Seir

35 The Lord’s message came to me: “Son of man, turn toward[a] Mount Seir,[b] and prophesy against it. Say to it, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:

“‘Look, I am against you, Mount Seir;
I will stretch out my hand against you
and turn you into a desolate ruin.
I will lay waste your cities,
and you will become desolate.
Then you will know that I am the Lord!

“‘You have shown unrelenting hostility and poured the people of Israel onto the blades of a sword[c] at the time of their calamity, at the time of their final punishment. Therefore, as surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, I will subject you to bloodshed, and bloodshed will pursue you. Since you did not hate bloodshed, bloodshed will pursue you. I will turn Mount Seir into a desolate ruin;[d] I will cut off[e] from it the one who passes through or returns. I will fill its mountains with its dead; on your hills and in your valleys and in all your ravines, those killed by the sword will fall. I will turn you into a perpetual desolation, and your cities will not be inhabited. Then you will know that I am the Lord.

10 “‘You said, “These two nations, these two lands[f] will be mine, and we will possess them,”[g] (although the Lord was there); 11 therefore, as surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, I will deal with you according to your anger and your envy, by which you acted spitefully against them. I will reveal myself to them when I judge you. 12 Then you will know that I, the Lord, have heard all the insults you spoke against the mountains of Israel, saying, “They are desolate; they have been given to us for food.” 13 You exalted yourselves against me with your speech[h] and hurled many insults against me[i]—I have heard them all! 14 This is what the Sovereign Lord says: While the whole earth rejoices, I will turn you into a desolation. 15 As you rejoiced over the inheritance of the house of Israel because it was desolate, so will I deal with you—you will be desolate, Mount Seir, and all Edom—all of it! Then they will know that I am the Lord.’”

Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 35:2 tn Heb “set your face against.”
  2. Ezekiel 35:2 sn Mount Seir is to be identified with Edom (Ezek 35:15), home of Esau’s descendants (Gen 25:21-30).
  3. Ezekiel 35:5 tn Or “gave over…to the power of the sword.” This phrase also occurs in Jer 18:21 and Ps 63:10.
  4. Ezekiel 35:7 tc The translation reads with some manuscripts לְשִׁמְמָה וּמְשַׁמָּה (leshimemah umeshammah, “desolate ruin”) as in verse 3 and often in Ezekiel. The majority reading reverses the first mem (מ) with the shin (שׁ), resulting in the repetition of the word desolate: לְשִׁמְמָה וּשְׁמָמָה (leshimemah ushemamah).
  5. Ezekiel 35:7 tn Or “kill.”
  6. Ezekiel 35:10 sn The reference is to Israel and Judah.
  7. Ezekiel 35:10 tn Heb “it.”
  8. Ezekiel 35:13 tn Heb “your mouth.”
  9. Ezekiel 35:13 tn Heb “and you multiplied against me your words.” The Hebrew verb occurs only here and in Prov 27:6, where it refers to the “excessive” kisses of an enemy. The basic idea of the verb appears to be “to be abundant.” Here it occurs in the causative (Hiphil) stem.