⁷ from the tribe of Issachar, Igal the son of Joseph; ⁸ from the tribe of Ephraim, ^[a]Hoshea the son of Nun; ⁹ from the tribe of Benjamin, Palti the son of Raphu; ¹⁰ from the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel the son of Sodi; ¹¹ from the tribe of Joseph, that is, from the tribe of Manasseh, Gaddi the son of Susi; ¹² from the tribe of Dan, Ammiel the son of Gemalli; ¹³ from the tribe of Asher, Sethur the son of Michael; ¹⁴ from the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi the son of Vophsi; ¹⁵ from the tribe of Gad, Geuel the son of Machi.

¹⁶ These are the names of the men whom Moses sent to ^[b]spy out the land. And Moses called ^(A)Hoshea^[c] the son of Nun, Joshua.

¹⁷ Then Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said to them, “Go up this way into the South, and go up to ^(B)the mountains, ¹⁸ and see what the land is like: whether the people who dwell in it are strong or weak, few or many; ¹⁹ whether the land they dwell in is good or bad; whether the cities they inhabit are like camps or strongholds; ²⁰ whether the land is ^[d]rich or poor; and whether there are forests there or not. ^(C)Be of good courage. And bring some of the fruit of the land.” Now the time was the season of the first ripe grapes.

²¹ So they went up and spied out the land ^(D)from the Wilderness of Zin as far as ^(E)Rehob, near the entrance of ^(F)Hamath. ²² And they went up through the South and came to ^(G)Hebron; Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the descendants of ^(H)Anak, were there. (Now Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.) ^23 (I)Then they came to the ^[e]Valley of Eshcol, and there cut down a branch with one cluster of grapes; they carried it between two of them on a pole. They also brought some of the pomegranates and figs. ²⁴ The place was called the Valley of ^[f]Eshcol, because of the cluster which the men of Israel cut down there. ²⁵ And they returned from spying out the land after forty days.

²⁶ Now they departed and came back to Moses and Aaron and all the congregation of the children of Israel in the Wilderness of Paran, at ^(J)Kadesh; they brought back word to them and to all the congregation, and showed them the fruit of the land. ²⁷ Then they told him, and said: “We went to the land where you sent us. It truly ^[g]flows with ^(K)milk and honey, ^(L)and this is its fruit. ²⁸ Nevertheless the ^(M)people who dwell in the land are strong; the cities are fortified and very large; moreover we saw the descendants of ^(N)Anak there. ^29 (O)The Amalekites dwell in the land of the South; the Hittites, the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the mountains; and the Canaanites dwell by the sea and along the banks of the Jordan.”

³⁰ Then ^(P)Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, “Let us go up at once and take possession, for we are well able to overcome it.”

^31 (Q)But the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we.” ³² And they ^(R)gave the children of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, “The land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants, and ^(S)all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature. ³³ There we saw the ^[h]giants (^(T)the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were ^(U)like^[i] grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were ^(V)in their sight.”

³ And He said to me: “Son of man, I am sending you to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation that has ^(A)rebelled against Me; ^(B)they and their fathers have transgressed against Me to this very day. ^4 (C)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.’ ^5 (D)As for them, whether they hear or whether they refuse—for they are a ^(E)rebellious house—yet they ^(F)will know that a prophet has been among them.

⁶ “And you, son of man, ^(G)do not be afraid of them nor be afraid of their words, though ^(H)briers and thorns are with you and you dwell among scorpions; ^(I)do not be afraid of their words or dismayed by their looks, ^(J)though they are a rebellious house. ^7 (K)You shall speak My words to them, whether they hear or whether they refuse, for they are rebellious. ⁸ But you, son of man, hear what I say to you. Do not be rebellious like that rebellious house; open your mouth and ^(L)eat what I give you.”

⁹ Now when I looked, there was ^(M)a hand stretched out to me; and behold, ^(N)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

3 Moreover He said to me, “Son of man, eat what you find; ^(O)eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel.” ² So I opened my mouth, and He caused me to eat that scroll.

³ And He said to me, “Son of man, feed your belly, and fill your stomach with this scroll that I give you.” So I ^(P)ate, and it was in my mouth ^(Q)like honey in sweetness.

⁴ Then He said to me: “Son of man, go to the house of Israel and speak with My words to them. ⁵ For you are not sent to a people of unfamiliar speech and of hard language, but to the house of Israel, ⁶ not to many people of unfamiliar speech and of hard language, whose words you cannot understand. Surely, ^(R)had I sent you to them, they would have listened to you. ⁷ But the house of Israel will not listen to you, ^(S)because they will not listen to Me; ^(T)for all the house of Israel are ^[b]impudent and hard-hearted. ⁸ Behold, I have made your face strong against their faces, and your forehead strong against their foreheads. ^9 (U)Like adamant stone, harder than flint, I have made your forehead; ^(V)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, ^(W)‘Thus says the Lord God,’ whether they hear, or whether they refuse.”

Treatment of Church Members

5 Do not rebuke an older man, but exhort him as a father, younger men as brothers, ² older women as mothers, younger women as sisters, with all purity.

Honor True Widows

³ Honor widows who are really widows. ⁴ But if any widow has children or grandchildren, let them first learn to show piety at home and ^(A)to repay their parents; for this is ^[a]good and acceptable before God. ⁵ Now she who is really a widow, and left alone, trusts in God and continues in supplications and prayers ^(B)night and day. ⁶ But she who lives in ^[b]pleasure is dead while she lives. ⁷ And these things command, that they may be blameless. ⁸ But if anyone does not provide for his own, ^(C)and especially for those of his household, ^(D)he has denied the faith ^(E)and is worse than an unbeliever.

⁹ Do not let a widow under sixty years old be taken into the number, and not unless she has been the wife of one man, ¹⁰ well reported for good works: if she has brought up children, if she has lodged strangers, if she has washed the saints’ feet, if she has relieved the afflicted, if she has diligently followed every good work.

¹¹ But ^[c]refuse the younger widows; for when they have begun to grow wanton against Christ, they desire to marry, ¹² having condemnation because they have cast off their first ^[d]faith. ¹³ And besides they learn to be idle, wandering about from house to house, and not only idle but also gossips and busybodies, saying things which they ought not. ¹⁴ Therefore I desire that the younger widows marry, bear children, manage the house, give no opportunity to the adversary to speak reproachfully. ¹⁵ For some have already turned aside after Satan. ¹⁶ If any believing ^[e]man or woman has widows, let them ^[f]relieve them, and do not let the church be burdened, that it may relieve those who are really widows.