Ezekiel 13:1-16

Common English Bible

Against the prophets

13 The Lord’s word came to me: ² Human one, prophesy to Israel’s prophets who prophesy from their own imaginations. Say, Hear the Lord’s word! ³ The Lord God proclaims: Doom to the foolish prophets who follow their own whims but see nothing. ⁴ Israel, your prophets have been like jackals among ruins. ⁵ You haven’t gone up into the breach or reinforced the wall of the house of Israel, so that it might withstand the battle on the day of the Lord. ⁶ They saw worthless visions and performed deceptive divinations. Even though the Lord didn’t send them, they said, “This is what the Lord says” and expected their word to stand. ⁷ Didn’t you see worthless visions? And didn’t you report deceptive divinations and say, “This is what the Lord says,” even though I didn’t speak?

⁸ Therefore, the Lord God proclaims: Because you spoke worthless things and had false visions, I’m against you. This is what the Lord God says! ⁹ I’ll wield my power against the prophets, those seers of nothingness and diviners of lies. They won’t be included in my people’s council, or recorded in the house of Israel’s official records, or enter Israel’s fertile land. Then you will know that I am the Lord.

¹⁰ Without a doubt, they led my people astray, saying “Peace” when there was no peace, and “He is building a wall” when they were the ones who laid on the plaster. ¹¹ Say to those who laid on the plaster that it will fall. When the flooding rains appear and I send hailstones, it will collapse, and the storm winds will break it apart. ¹² The wall will certainly fall. Won’t it be said about you, “Where is your plaster now?”

¹³ Therefore, the Lord God proclaims: In my fury I will make a storm wind break out, and in my anger there will be flooding rains and hailstones in consuming wrath. ¹⁴ I will tear down the wall on which you laid plaster. I will raze it to the ground and expose its foundation. When it falls, you will be destroyed with it, and you will know that I am the Lord. ¹⁵ I will exhaust my fury on the wall and on those who laid plaster on it. Then I will say to you, “Where is the wall?”^[a] and “Where are those who plastered it, ¹⁶ those prophets of Israel who prophesied to Jerusalem and envisioned peace when there was no peace?” This is what the Lord God says!