Chronological

1 ¶ Now it came to pass at thirty years, in the fourth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I was among the captives by the river of Chebar, that the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God.

² In the fifth day of the month, which was the fifth year of King Jehoiachin’s captivity,

³ the word of the LORD came expressly unto Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the river Chebar; and there the hand of the LORD came upon him.

⁴ ¶ And I looked, and, behold, a whirlwind came out of the north, and a great cloud, and a fire enfolding itself, and a brightness was about it, and out of the midst thereof as the colour of amber, out of the midst of the fire.

⁵ Also out of the midst thereof came the likeness of four living creatures. And this was their appearance: they had the likeness of man.

⁶ And each one had four faces, and four wings.

⁷ And their feet were straight feet; and the sole of their feet was like the sole of a calf’s foot; and they sparkled like the colour of highly burnished brass.

⁸ And they had the hands of a man under their wings on their four sides; and their faces and their wings on all four sides.

⁹ With their wings they joined one to another; they did not return when they went; they went each one straight in the direction they were facing.

¹⁰ And the likeness of their faces was human faces; and lion faces, on the right side; and they four had ox faces on the left side; likewise they four had eagle faces.

¹¹ Thus were their faces; and their wings were stretched upward; two wings of each one were joined one to another, and two covered their bodies.

¹² And they went each one straight forward in the direction they were facing: wherever the Spirit directed them to go, they went; and they did not return when they went.

¹³ As for the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was like burning coals of fire and like the appearance of lit torches; the fire went up and down among the living creatures and the brightness of the fire; and out of the fire went forth lightning.

¹⁴ And the living creatures ran and turned as the appearance of lightnings.

¹⁵ ¶ Now as I beheld the living creatures, behold a wheel upon the earth with its four rims by the living creatures.

¹⁶ The appearance of the wheels and their work was like unto the colour of a stone of Tarsis or beryl; and they four had one likeness; and their appearance and their workmanship was as it were a wheel in the middle of a wheel.

¹⁷ When they went, they went upon their four sides: and they did not return when they went.

¹⁸ And their ribs were high and dreadful, and full of eyes round about them in all four.

¹⁹ And when the living creatures went, the wheels went with them: and when the living creatures were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up.

²⁰ Wherever the spirit wished to go, they went; wherever the spirit directed them, the wheels also rose up after them: for the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels.

²¹ When those went, these went; and when those stood, these stood; and when those were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up after them: for the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels.

²² And over the heads of each living creature there appeared a heaven like a marvellous crystal, stretched forth over their heads above.

²³ And under the heaven their wings were straight, one toward the other: each one had two, and another two which covered their bodies.

²⁴ And when they went, I heard the noise of their wings, like the noise of many waters, as the voice of the Almighty, when they went; the voice of the word, as the voice of an army. When they stood, they let down their wings.

²⁵ And there was heard a voice from the heaven that was over their heads, when they stood, and had let down their wings.

²⁶ ¶ And above the heaven that was over their heads was the figure of a throne, as the appearance of a sapphire stone: and upon the figure of the throne was a likeness as the appearance of a man seated upon it.

²⁷ And I saw something that looked like the colour of amber, that appeared to have fire round about within it, which could be seen from his loins upward; and from his loins downward, I saw what looked like fire, and it had brightness round about

²⁸ that looked like the bow of heaven that is in the clouds in the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness round about. This was the vision of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. And I saw it and fell upon my face, and I heard a voice of one that spoke.

2 ¶ And he said unto me, Son of man, stand upon thy feet, and I will speak with thee.

² And spirit entered into me when he spoke unto me and set me upon my feet, and I heard him that spoke unto me.

³ And he said unto me, Son of man, I send thee to the sons of Israel, to rebellious Gentiles that have rebelled against me: they and their fathers have rebelled against me, even unto this very day.

⁴ And to sons that have hard faces and strong hearts do I send thee; and thou shalt say unto them, Thus hath the Lord GOD said.

⁵ And they will not hear nor forbear (for they are a rebellious house), but they shall know that there has been a prophet among them.

⁶ ¶ And thou, son of man, do not be afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, for they are rebels; though thou find thyself among thorns and thy dwelling be with briers, do not be afraid of their words, nor fear before them, for they are a rebellious house.

⁷ And thou shalt speak my words unto them, but they will not hear nor forbear, for they are rebels.

⁸ But thou, son of man, hear what I say unto thee; Do not be rebellious like the rebellious house: open thy mouth, and eat what I give thee.

⁹ And I looked, and behold, a hand was sent unto me; and in it was the roll of a book,

¹⁰ and he spread it before me; and it was written within and without; and there was written therein lamentations and mourning and woes.

3 ¶ And he said unto me, Son of man, eat what thou findest; eat this roll, and go speak unto the house of Israel.

² So I opened my mouth, and he caused me to eat that roll.

³ And he said unto me, Son of man, cause thy belly to eat, and fill thy bowels with this roll that I give thee. I ate it and it was in my mouth as sweet as honey.

⁴ Then he said unto me, Son of man, go and enter into the house of Israel, and speak with my words unto them.

⁵ For thou art not sent to a people of a profound speech nor of a hard language, but to the house of Israel;

⁶ not to many peoples of profound speech nor of hard language, whose words thou can not understand. Surely, had I sent thee to them, they would have hearkened unto thee.

⁷ But the house of Israel will not desire to hear; for they do not desire to hear me: for all the house of Israel are impudent and hardhearted.

⁸ Behold, I have made thy face strong against their faces, and thy forehead strong against their foreheads.

⁹ As diamond harder than flint I have made thy forehead: do not fear them, neither be dismayed at their looks, though they are a rebellious house.

¹⁰ Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, all my words that I shall speak unto thee receive in thine heart, and hear with thine ears.

¹¹ And go, and enter in among the captives, unto the sons of thy people, and thou shalt speak unto them, and tell them, Thus hath the Lord GOD said, They will not hear, nor forbear.

¹² And the Spirit took me up, and I heard behind me a voice of great thunder of the blessed glory of the LORD leaving his place,

¹³ and the noise of the wings of the living creatures that touched one another, and the noise of the wheels over against them, and a noise of great thunder.

¹⁴ And the Spirit lifted me up and took me away, and I went in bitterness, in the heat of my spirit; but the hand of the LORD was strong upon me.

¹⁵ And I came unto the captives at Telabib, that dwelt by the river of Chebar, and I sat where they sat, and remained there disheartened among them seven days.

¹⁶ ¶ And it came to pass at the end of the seven days, that the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

¹⁷ Son of man, I have placed thee as a watchman unto the house of Israel; therefore thou shalt hear the word at my mouth and give them warning from me.

¹⁸ When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die and thou dost not give him warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, that he might live, the same wicked man shall die for his iniquity; but his blood I will require at thine hand.

¹⁹ Yet if thou warn the wicked and he does not turn from his wickedness nor from his wicked way, he shall die for his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul.

²⁰ Again, When the righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity and I lay a stumblingblock before him, he shall die because thou hast not given him warning; he shall die in his sin, and his righteousness which he has done shall not be remembered; but his blood I will require at thy hand.

²¹ Nevertheless if thou warn the righteous man that the righteous not sin and he does not sin, he shall surely live because he is warned; also thou hast delivered thy soul.

²² ¶ And the hand of the LORD came upon me there; and he said unto me, Arise, go forth into the plain, and I will talk with thee there.

²³ Then I arose and went forth into the plain, and, behold, the glory of the LORD stood there as the glory which I saw by the river of Chebar; and I fell on my face.

²⁴ Then spirit entered into me and set me upon my feet, and he spoke with me and said unto me, Go, shut thyself within thine house.

²⁵ And thou, O son of man, behold, they shall put bands upon thee and shall bind thee with them, and thou shalt not go out among them;

²⁶ and I will make thy tongue cleave to the roof of thy mouth that thou shalt be dumb and shalt not be to them a reprover; for they are a rebellious house.

²⁷ But when I speak with thee, I will open thy mouth; and thou shalt say unto them, Thus hath the Lord GOD said: He that hears, let him hear, and he that forbears; let him forbear: for they are a rebellious house.

4 ¶ Thou also, son of man, take a tile and lay it before thee and portray upon it the city of Jerusalem

² and lay siege against it and build a fort against it and cast a mount against it; set the camp also against it, and set battering rams against it round about.

³ And take an iron pan and set it for a wall of iron between thee and the city; and set thy face against it and it shall be for an encompassment, and thou shalt lay siege against the city. This shall be a sign to the house of Israel.

⁴ Thou shalt sleep upon thy left side and lay the iniquity of the house of Israel upon it; according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon it, thou shalt bear their iniquity.

⁵ For I have summed up for thee the years of their iniquity, according to the number of the days, three hundred and ninety days; so shalt thou bear the iniquity of the house of Israel.

⁶ And when thou hast accomplished them, thou shalt sleep on thy right side this second time, and thou shalt bear the iniquity of the house of Judah forty days: a day for a year; I have appointed thee each day for a year.

⁷ Therefore thou shalt set thy face toward the siege of Jerusalem, and thine arm shall be uncovered, and thou shalt prophesy against her.

⁸ And, behold, I laced bands upon thee, and thou shalt not turn from one side to another until thou hast ended the days appointed thee upon thy sides.

⁹ ¶ Take also unto thee wheat and barley and beans and lentils and millet and fitches and put them in one vessel and make thee bread thereof, according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon thy side, three hundred and ninety days shalt thou eat thereof.

¹⁰ And thy food which thou shalt eat shall be by weight, twenty shekels a day; from time to time shalt thou eat it.

¹¹ Thou shalt also drink water by measure, the sixth part of a hin; from time to time shalt thou drink.

¹² And thou shalt eat barley cakes baked under the ashes, and thou shalt bake it with dung that comes out of man, in their sight.

¹³ And the LORD said, Even thus shall the sons of Israel eat their defiled bread among the Gentiles, where I will drive them.

¹⁴ Then said I, Ah Lord GOD! behold, my soul is not defiled: for from my youth up even until now have I not eaten of that which dies of itself, or is torn in pieces; neither has abominable flesh come into my mouth.

¹⁵ Then he said unto me, Behold, I give thee cow’s dung for man’s dung, and thou shalt prepare thy bread with it.

¹⁶ Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, behold, I break the sustenance of bread in Jerusalem; and they shall eat bread by weight, and with anguish; and they shall drink water by measure, and with terror.

¹⁷ For they shall lack bread and water, and terrorize one another, and faint because of their iniquity.