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10 You will be allowed eight ounces of bread a day, and it will have to last until the next day. 11 You will also have a limited amount of water to drink, two cups a day. 12 You are to build a fire out of dried human excrement, bake bread on the fire, and eat it where everyone can see you.”

13 The Lord said, “This represents the way the Israelites will have to eat food which the Law forbids,[a] when I scatter them to foreign countries.”

14 But I replied, “No, Sovereign Lord! I have never defiled myself. From childhood on I have never eaten meat from any animal that died a natural death or was killed by wild animals. I have never eaten any food considered unclean.”

15 So God said, “Very well. I will let you use cow dung instead, and you can bake your bread on that.”

16 And he added, “Mortal man, I am going to cut off the supply of bread for Jerusalem. The people there will be distressed and anxious as they measure out the food they eat and the water they drink. 17 They will run out of bread and water; they will be in despair, and they will waste away because of their sins.”

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Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 4:13 The Law of Moses prohibited the eating of certain foods as being ritually unclean (see Lv 11).

10 Weigh out twenty shekels[a](A) of food to eat each day and eat it at set times. 11 Also measure out a sixth of a hin[b] of water and drink it at set times.(B) 12 Eat the food as you would a loaf of barley bread; bake it in the sight of the people, using human excrement(C) for fuel.” 13 The Lord said, “In this way the people of Israel will eat defiled food among the nations where I will drive them.”(D)

14 Then I said, “Not so, Sovereign Lord!(E) I have never defiled myself. From my youth until now I have never eaten anything found dead(F) or torn by wild animals. No impure meat has ever entered my mouth.(G)

15 “Very well,” he said, “I will let you bake your bread over cow dung instead of human excrement.”

16 He then said to me: “Son of man, I am about to cut off(H) the food supply in Jerusalem. The people will eat rationed food in anxiety and drink rationed water in despair,(I) 17 for food and water will be scarce.(J) They will be appalled at the sight of each other and will waste away because of[c] their sin.(K)

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Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 4:10 That is, about 8 ounces or about 230 grams
  2. Ezekiel 4:11 That is, about 2/3 quart or about 0.6 liter
  3. Ezekiel 4:17 Or away in