Chronological
Prophecy Against Edom
35 The ·Lord spoke his word [L word of the Lord came] to me, saying: 2 “·Human [T Son of man; 2:1], look toward ·Edom [L Mount Seir] and prophesy against it. 3 Say to it: ‘This is what the Lord God says: I am against you, ·Edom [L Mount Seir]. I will stretch out my hand against you and make you an ·empty desert [desolate waste]. 4 I will destroy your cities, and you will become ·empty [desolate]. Then you will know that I am the Lord.
5 “‘You have ·always been an enemy of [shown perpetual/ancient hatred toward the sons of] Israel. You ·let them be defeated in war [L gave them over to the hand of the sword] ·when they were in trouble [at the time of their disaster/calamity] at the time of their final punishment [Obad. 13]. 6 So the Lord God says, as surely as I live, I will ·let you be murdered [bring you bloodshed]. ·Murder [Bloodshed] will chase you. Since you did not hate ·murdering people [bloodshed; L blood], ·murder [bloodshed; L blood] will chase you. 7 I will make ·Edom [L Mount Seir] an ·empty ruin [desolate waste] and ·destroy [cut off] everyone who goes in or comes out of it. 8 I will fill its mountains with those who are killed. Those killed ·in war [L by the sword] will fall on your hills, in your valleys, and in all your ravines. 9 I will make you a ·ruin forever [perpetual/eternal desolation]; no one will live in your cities. Then you will know that I am the Lord.
10 “‘You said, “These two nations, Israel and Judah, and these two lands will be ours. We will take them for our ·own [possession].” But the Lord was there. 11 So this is what the Lord God says: As surely as I live, I will treat you just as you treated them. You were angry and ·jealous [envious] because you hated them. So I will ·show the Israelites who I am [make myself known to them] when I ·punish [judge] you. 12 Then you will know that I, the Lord, have heard all your insults against the mountains of Israel. You said, “They ·have been ruined [are desolate/laid waste]. They have been given to us to ·eat [devour].” 13 You have ·not stopped your proud talk [L exalted yourself against me and multiplied words] against me. I have heard you. 14 This is what the Lord God says: All the earth will ·be happy [rejoice] when I make you an ·empty ruin [desolation]. 15 You ·were happy [rejoiced] when the ·land [L inheritance of the house] of Israel was ·ruined [desolated], but I will do the same thing to you. Mount Seir and all Edom, you will become an ·empty ruin [desolation]. Then you will know that I am the Lord.’
Israel to Come Home
36 “·Human [T Son of man; 2:1], prophesy to the mountains of Israel and say: ‘Mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord. 2 This is what the Lord God says: The enemy has said about you, “[L Aha!] ·Now the old places to worship gods [The ancient heights] have become ·ours [L our possession].”’ 3 So prophesy and say: ‘This is what the Lord God says: They have made you an ·empty ruin [desolation] and have crushed you from all around. So you became a possession of the ·other [rest of the] nations. People have ·talked [gossiped] and ·whispered [slandered] against you. 4 So, mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord God. The Lord God speaks to the mountains, hills, ravines, and valleys, to the ·empty ruins [desolate wasteland] and abandoned cities that have ·been ·robbed [plundered] and ·laughed at [ridiculed; derided] by the other nations. 5 This is what the Lord God says: I speak ·in hot anger [with burning zeal] against the other nations. I speak against the people of Edom, who took my land for themselves with joy and with ·hate [contempt] in their hearts. They ·forced out the people and took their pastureland [seized their pastureland as spoil].’ 6 So prophesy about the land of Israel and say to the mountains, hills, ravines, and valleys: ‘This is what the Lord God says: I speak in my jealous anger, because you have suffered the ·insults [scorn; reproach] of the nations. 7 So this is what the Lord God says: I ·promise [vow] that the nations around you will also have to suffer ·insults [scorn; reproach].
8 “‘But you, mountains of Israel, will grow branches and fruit for my people, who will soon come home. 9 [L Look; T Behold] I am ·concerned about [for] you; I ·am on your side [L will turn to you]. You will be plowed, and seed will be planted in you. 10 I will increase the number of people who live on you, all the ·people [L house] of Israel. The cities will ·have people living in them [be inhabited], and the ruins will be rebuilt. 11 I will ·increase the number of people and animals living [multiply man and beast] on you. They will grow and ·have many young [be fruitful]. You will have people living on you as ·you did before [in former times], and I will make you better off than at the beginning. Then you will know that I am the Lord. 12 I will cause my people Israel to ·walk [live] on you and ·own [possess] you, and you will ·belong to them [become their inheritance]. You will never again ·take their children away from them [bereave them of their children].
13 “‘This is what the Lord God says: People say about you, “You ·eat [devour] people and ·take children [bereave children] from your nation.” 14 But you will not ·eat [devour] people anymore or ·take away the [bereave your nation of] children, says the Lord God. 15 I will not make you listen to ·insults [taunts] from the nations anymore; you will not ·suffer shame [endure scorn/disgrace] from them anymore. You will not cause your nation to ·fall [stumble] anymore, says the Lord God.’”
The Lord Acts for Himself
16 The ·Lord spoke his word to me [L word of the Lord came] again, saying: 17 “·Human [T Son of man; 2:1], when the ·nation [L house] of Israel was living in their own land, they ·made it unclean [defiled it; C ritually] by their ways and the things they did. Their ways were like ·a woman’s uncleanness in her time of monthly bleeding [menstrual impurity; C ritually]. 18 So I poured out my anger against them, because they ·murdered in [shed blood on] the land and because they made the land ·unclean [defiled] with their idols. 19 I scattered them among the nations, and they were ·spread [dispersed] through the countries. I ·punished [judged] them for how they lived and what they did. 20 They ·dishonored [defiled; profaned; C ritually] my holy name in the nations where they went. The nations said about them, ‘These are the people of the Lord, but they had to leave the land which he gave them.’ 21 But I had concern for my holy name, which the ·nation [L house] of Israel had ·dishonored [defiled; profaned; C ritually] among the nations where they went.
22 “So say to the ·people [L house] of Israel, ‘This is what the Lord God says: [L house of] Israel, I am going to act, but not for your sake. I will do something to help my holy name, which you have ·dishonored [defiled; profaned; C ritually] among the nations where you went. 23 I will prove the holiness of my great name, which has been ·dishonored [defiled; profaned; C ritually] among the nations. You have ·dishonored [defiled; profaned; C ritually] it among these nations, but the nations will know that I am the Lord when I ·prove myself holy [vindicate my holiness] before their eyes, says the Lord God.
24 “‘I will take you from the nations and gather you out of all the lands and bring you back into your own land. 25 Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. I will cleanse you from all your uncleanness [C ritual impurity] and your idols. 26 Also, I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new ·way of thinking [L spirit] inside you. I will ·take out [remove from you] ·the stubborn hearts of stone from your bodies [L your heart of stone], and I will give you ·obedient hearts [L a heart] of flesh. 27 I will put my ·Spirit [or spirit] ·inside you [or among you; C the pronoun is plural] and ·help you [cause you to] ·live by [walk in] my ·rules [statutes] and carefully obey my ·laws [rules; judgments]. 28 You will live in the land I gave to your ·ancestors [fathers], and you will be my people, and I will be your God. 29 So I will save you from all your ·uncleanness [defilement; C ritual]. I will ·command [summon; call for] the grain to ·come and grow [multiply]; I will not ·allow a time of hunger to hurt [bring famine upon] you. 30 I will increase the harvest of fruit trees and the crops in the field so you will never again suffer ·shame [disgrace] among the nations because of ·hunger [famine]. 31 Then you will remember your evil ways and actions that were not good, and you will ·hate [loathe] yourselves because of your sins and your ·terrible acts that I hate [detestable/abominable acts]. 32 I want you to know that I am not going to do this for your sake, says the Lord God. Be ashamed and embarrassed about your ways, [L house of] Israel.
33 “‘This is what the Lord God says: This is what will happen on the day I cleanse you from all your sins: I will ·cause the cities to have people living in them again [repopulate/resettle your towns/cities], and the ·destroyed places [ruins] will be rebuilt. 34 The ·empty [desolate] land will be plowed so it will no longer be a ·ruin [desolation] for everyone who passes by to see. 35 They will say, “This land was ·ruined [desolate], but now it has become like the garden of Eden. The cities were destroyed, empty, and ruined, but now they are ·protected [fortified] and ·have people living in them [inhabited].” 36 Then those nations still around you will know that I, the Lord, have rebuilt ·what was destroyed [the ruins] and have planted what was ·empty [desolate]. I, the Lord, have spoken, and I will do it.’
37 “This is what the Lord God says: I will let myself be asked by the ·people [L house] of Israel to do this for them again: I will ·make their people grow in number [multiply their people] like a flock. 38 They will be as many as the flocks ·brought to Jerusalem during her holy feasts [for offerings]. Her ruined cities will be filled with flocks of people. Then they will know that I am the Lord.”
The Vision of Dry Bones
37 I felt the ·power [L hand] of the Lord on me, and he brought me out by the ·Spirit [or spirit] of the Lord and put me down in the middle of a valley. It was full of bones. 2 He led me around among the bones, and I saw that there were many bones in the valley and [L look; T behold] that they were very dry. 3 Then he asked me, “·Human [T Son of man; 2:1], can these bones live?”
I answered, “Lord God, only you know.”
4 He said to me, “Prophesy ·to [over] these bones and say to them, ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. 5 This is what the Lord God says to the bones: I will cause breath to enter you so you will come to life. 6 I will put ·muscles [tendons; sinews] on you and flesh on you and cover you with skin. Then I will put breath in you so you will come to life. Then you will know that I am the Lord.’”
7 So I prophesied as I was commanded. While I prophesied, there was a noise and a rattling. The bones came together, bone to bone. 8 I looked and saw ·muscles [sinews; tendons] come on the bones, and flesh grew, and skin covered the bones. But there was no breath in them.
9 Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the ·wind [breath; Spirit]. Prophesy, ·human [T son of man; 2:1], and say to the ·wind [breath; Spirit], ‘This is what the Lord God says: ·Wind [Breath; Spirit], come from the four winds, and breathe on these ·people who were killed [slain] so they can come back to life.’” 10 So I prophesied as the Lord commanded me. And the ·breath [wind; Spirit] came into them, and they came to life and stood on their feet, a very large army.
11 Then he said to me, “·Human [T Son of man; 2:1], these bones are like all the ·people [L house] of Israel. They say, ‘Our bones are dried up, and our hope has ·gone [perished]. We are ·destroyed [cut off].’ 12 So, prophesy and say to them, ‘This is what the Lord God says: [L Look; T Behold] My people, I will open your graves and cause you to come up out of your graves. Then I will bring you into the land of Israel. 13 My people, you will know that I am the Lord when I open your graves and cause you to come up from them. 14 And I will put my ·Spirit [breath; wind] inside you, and you will come to life. Then I will ·put [settle] you in your own land. And you will know that I, the Lord, have spoken and ·done it [or will do it], says the Lord.’”
Judah and Israel Back Together
15 The ·Lord spoke his word [L word of the Lord came] to me, saying, 16 “·Human [T Son of man; 2:1], take ·a [one] ·stick [branch] and write on it, ‘For Judah and all the Israelites with him.’ Then take another ·stick [branch] and write on it, ‘The ·stick [branch] of Ephraim, for Joseph and all the ·Israelites [L house of Israel; C the northern kingdom] with him.’ 17 Then join them together into one stick so they will be one in your hand.
18 “When your people say to you, ‘Explain to us what you mean by this,’ 19 say to them, ‘This is what the Lord God says: I will take the ·stick [branch] for Joseph and the tribes of Israel with him, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and I will put it with the ·stick [branch] of Judah. I will make them into one ·stick [branch], and they will be one in my hand [C the northern and southern kingdoms will be united again; 33:29; Jer. 3:18; 23:5–6; Hos. 1:11; Amos 9:11].’ 20 Hold the sticks on which you wrote these names in your hand ·so the people can see them [L before their eyes]. 21 Say to the people, ‘This is what the Lord God says: [L Look; T Behold] I am going to take the ·people [L house] of Israel from among the nations where they have gone. I will gather them from all around and bring them into their own land. 22 I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel. One king will rule all of them. They will never again be two nations; they will not be divided into two kingdoms anymore. 23 They will not continue to ·make themselves unclean [defile themselves] by their idols, their ·statues of gods which I hate [detestable things], or by ·their sins [all their transgressions/offenses]. I will save them from all ·the ways they sin and turn against me [their backsliding/unfaithfulness/apostasies], and I will ·make them clean [purify them]. Then they will be my people, and I will be their God.
24 “‘My servant David will be their king [34:23], and they will all have one shepherd. They will ·live by [L walk in] my ·laws [rules; judgments] and be careful to keep my ·rules [statutes]. 25 They will live on the land I gave to my servant Jacob, the land in which your ·ancestors [fathers] lived. They will all live on the land forever: they, their children, and their grandchildren. David my servant will be their king forever. 26 I will make an ·agreement [covenant; treaty] of peace with them, an ·agreement that continues forever [everlasting covenant/treaty; Jer. 31:31–34]. I will ·put them in their land [establish them] and ·make them grow in number [multiply them; Gen. 12:1–3]. Then I will put my ·Temple [sanctuary] among them forever. 27 ·The place where I live [My dwelling place] will be with them. I will be their God, and they will be my people. 28 When my ·Temple [sanctuary] is among them forever, the nations will know that I, the Lord, ·make Israel holy [sanctify Israel].’”
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