22 The word of Adonai came to me: ² “Now, human being, are you prepared to judge? Are you prepared to judge the city drenched in blood? Then make her realize how disgusting all her practices are! ³ Say that Adonai Elohim says, ‘City that sheds blood within yourself, thus speeding your own doom, and that makes idols for yourself that defile you: ⁴ you are guilty because of the blood you have shed, you are defiled by your idols that you have made. You have shortened your days, you have completed your years; therefore I have made you an object of scorn for the nations and a laughingstock for every country. ⁵ Those close by and those far off will taunt you, you who have such a defiled reputation and such great disorder.

⁶ “‘The leaders of Isra’el in you all use their power in order to shed blood. ⁷ In you, they make light of fathers and mothers, they oppress foreigners, they wrong orphans and widows. ⁸ You treat my holy things with contempt, you profane my shabbats. ⁹ In you, people gossip to the point of inciting bloodshed; in you are those who go to eat on the mountains; in you, they commit lewd acts; ¹⁰ in you, they commit incest; in you, they force themselves on women during their menstrual impurity. ¹¹ In you, one commits an abomination with his neighbor’s wife; another commits some lewd act defiling his daughter-in-law; still another humbles his sister, his own father’s daughter. ¹² In you, people take bribes to shed blood; you demand and accept interest on loans; in greed you make profits off your neighbors by extorting them; and you have forgotten me,’ says Adonai Elohim.

¹³ “‘Therefore, I am clapping my hands together because of your ill-gotten gains and the blood shed in you. ¹⁴ Can your courage last, can your strength continue during the days when I deal with you? I, Adonai, have spoken it; and I will do it. ¹⁵ I will scatter you among the Goyim and disperse you throughout the countries; thus I will remove your defilement from you, ¹⁶ and you will cause yourselves to be profaned in full view of the Goyim. Then you will know that I am Adonai.’”

¹⁷ The word of Adonai came to me: ¹⁸ “Human being, the house of Isra’el has become an alloy of base metals for me; they are all copper, tin, iron and lead mixed together in the crucible, the dross left over from the silver. ¹⁹ Therefore Adonai Elohim says this: ‘Because you have all become dross, I will collect all of you inside Yerushalayim. ²⁰ Then, just as they collect silver, copper, iron, lead and tin into a crucible and blow fire on it to melt it down; so likewise I will collect you in my anger and fury, throw you in there, and melt you down. ²¹ Yes, I will collect you and blow on you with the fire of my rage, and you will be melted down in it. ²² As silver is melted down in a crucible, so will you be melted down in [Yerushalayim]. Then you will know that it is I, Adonai, who have poured out my fury on you.’”

²³ The word of Adonai came to me: ²⁴ “Human being, tell her this: ‘You are a land that is neither cleansed nor rained on in the day of fury. ²⁵ There is a conspiracy of prophets in it like a roaring lion tearing up the prey; they have devoured people, seized wealth and valuables, and widowed many in it. ²⁶ Her cohanim have done violence to my Torah, profaned my holy things, made no difference between the holy and the common, not distinguished between unclean and clean, hidden their eyes from my shabbats, and profaned me among themselves. ²⁷ Her leaders in it are like wolves tearing up the prey to shed blood and destroy people, in order to benefit unjustly. ²⁸ Her prophets have “plastered” for them with whitewash, seeing false visions and divining lies for them, saying, “Thus says Adonai Elohim,” when Adonai has not spoken. ²⁹ The people of the land have extorted, robbed, wronged the poor and needy and unjustly oppressed foreigners.

³⁰ “‘I sought for a man among them who could build a barricade or stand in the break to oppose me on behalf of the land, so that I would not destroy it; but I found no one. ³¹ Therefore I am pouring out my fury on them, consuming them with the fire of my rage, bringing their own ways on their own heads,’ says Adonai Elohim.”

37 With the hand of Adonai upon me, Adonai carried me out by his Spirit and set me down in the middle of the valley, and it was full of bones. ² He had me pass by all around them — there were so many bones lying in the valley, and they were so dry! ³ He asked me, “Human being, can these bones live?” I answered, “Adonai Elohim! Only you know that!” ⁴ Then he said to me, “Prophesy over these bones! Say to them, ‘Dry bones! Hear what Adonai has to say! ⁵ To these bones Adonai Elohim says, “I will make breath enter you, and you will live. ⁶ I will attach ligaments to you, make flesh grow on you, cover you with skin and put breath in you. You will live, and you will know that I am Adonai.”’”

⁷ So I prophesied as ordered; and while I was prophesying, there was a noise, a rattling sound; it was the bones coming together, each bone in its proper place. ⁸ As I watched, ligaments grew on them, flesh appeared and skin covered them; but there was no breath in them. ⁹ Next he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath! Prophesy, human being! Say to the breath that Adonai Elohim says, ‘Come from the four winds, breath; and breathe on these slain, so that they can live.’”

¹⁰ So I prophesied as ordered, and the breath came into them, and they were alive! They stood up on their feet, a huge army! ¹¹ Then he said to me, “Human being! These bones are the whole house of Isra’el; and they are saying, ‘Our bones have dried up, our hope is gone, and we are completely cut off.’ ¹² Therefore prophesy; say to them that Adonai Elohim says, ‘My people! I will open your graves and make you get up out of your graves, and I will bring you into the land of Isra’el. ¹³ Then you will know that I am Adonai — when I have opened your graves and made you get up out of your graves, my people! ¹⁴ I will put my Spirit in you; and you will be alive. Then I will place you in your own land; and you will know that I, Adonai, have spoken, and that I have done it,’ says Adonai.”

¹⁵ The word of Adonai came to me: ¹⁶ “You, human being, take one stick and write on it, ‘For Y’hudah and those joined with him [among] the people of Isra’el.’ Next, take another stick and write on it, ‘For Yosef, the stick of Efrayim, and all the house of Isra’el who are joined with him.’ ¹⁷ Finally, bring them together into a single stick, so that they become one in your hand. ¹⁸ When your people ask you what all this means, ¹⁹ tell them that Adonai Elohim says this: ‘I will take the stick of Yosef, which is in the hand of Efrayim, together with the tribes of Isra’el who are joined with him, and put them together with the stick of Y’hudah and make them a single stick, so that they become one in my hand.’ ²⁰ The sticks on which you write are to be in your hand as they watch. ²¹ Then say to them that Adonai Elohim says: ‘I will take the people of Isra’el from among the nations where they have gone and gather them from every side and bring them back to their own land. ²² I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Isra’el; and one king will be king for all of them. They will no longer be two nations, and they will never again be divided into two kingdoms.

²³ “‘They will never again defile themselves with their idols, their detestable things, or any of their transgressions; but I will save them from all the places where they have been living and sinning; and I will cleanse them, so that they will be my people, and I will be their God. ²⁴ My servant David will be king over them, and all of them will have one shepherd; they will live by my rulings and keep and observe my regulations. ²⁵ They will live in the land I gave to Ya‘akov my servant, where your ancestors lived; they will live there — they, their children, and their grandchildren, forever; and David my servant will be their leader forever. ²⁶ I will make a covenant of peace with them, an everlasting covenant. I will give to them, increase their numbers, and set my sanctuary among them forever. ²⁷ My home will be with them; I will be their God, and they will be my people. ²⁸ The nations will know that I am Adonai, who sets Isra’el apart as holy, when my sanctuary is with them forever.’”