The Daily Audio Bible

Eternal One: ² Son of man, look toward Jerusalem, and speak against My temple. Prophesy against the whole land of Israel, ³ and tell the land of Israel what the Eternal One says: “Pay attention. I am against you. I will draw My sword from its sheath and kill both the righteous and the wicked who live within your borders. ⁴ Because I am going to kill everyone, both good and evil, all flesh from south to north will feel the wrath of My sword! ⁵ Then everyone all over the world will know I, the Eternal One, have drawn My sword from its sheath and do not intend to return it.”

⁶ Now as for you, son of man, groan as if your heart is breaking. Groan in front of people because of your bitter agony! ⁷ When they see you, they will ask you, “Why all this loud and noisy groaning?” Answer them this way: “I am groaning because of the horrible news that is coming. Every heart will melt, every hand will fall limp, every spirit will grow faint, and every knee will become as weak as water. So pay attention. The time is near! It is going to happen soon.”

Eternal One: ⁹ Son of man, prophesy, and tell them this message is from the Eternal.

Eternal One: ¹⁹ Son of man, mark out two roads for the sword of Babylon’s king to take. Have both roads begin in the same place. Make a signpost, and put it at the fork in the road: ²⁰ one road leading the sword to Ammon and its capital, Rabbah; the other road leading to Judah and its fortified capital, Jerusalem. ²¹ The Babylonian king will stop at the fork in the road and look for a sign to see which way to go: he will shake the arrows and draw one, call to his household gods^[a] for advice, and examine an animal liver.

Eternal One: ²² He reads “Jerusalem” in his right hand, so he will march first in that direction with battering rams for the gates and a command to massacre the city, sounding war cries and building siege ramps and siege walls. ²³ Everyone in Jerusalem will believe the omen to be false because they had pledged loyalty to Babylon. But his actions will remind the doubters of their guilt, and they will be taken prisoners.

(to the Israelites) ²⁴ Because you have reminded Me of your sins and once again exposed your rebellious ways, making every wicked thing you ever did obvious, you will be forcefully taken prisoner. ²⁵ You are already dead, you wicked prince of Israel! Your hour has arrived! Your day of excruciating punishment has come! ²⁶ This is what the Eternal Lord says: “Remove your royal turban and crown. Everything is about to change: the lowly will be brought high, and the high will be brought low. ²⁷ Ruination! I will make a total ruin out of everything! It will remain in ruins until the one to whom it rightfully belongs arrives, and then I will hand it over to Him.”

²⁸ But you, son of man, must preach to them what I, the Eternal Lord, have to say about the Ammonites and their insults:

²⁹ “In spite of false prophesies and lying omens concerning you, the sword will slice the necks of the wicked. They are as good as dead. Their hour has come! Their day of punishment has arrived! ³⁰ Put the sword back in its sheath. In the place where you were conceived, in the land of your origin, I will judge you with My sword of judgment. ³¹ I will pour out My anger over your head, I will breathe fiery wrath on you, I will give you over to barbaric men (artists of destruction who love to mutilate and kill). ³² You will become coals for a fire; Babylonian blood will flood the land, and you will be forgotten! I, the Eternal, promise this.”

Eternal One: ² Son of man, will you judge this bloody city? Will you? You must! Confront her about her shocking actions, ³ and speak to her.

Eternal One: You are a city of bloodshed, and your ways will come back to haunt you. You are a city of idols, making them even though they defile you. ⁴ The blood you shed covers you with the heaviness of guilt. The idols you have made degraded your spirit. You have reached the end of your life, so I have made you an object of scorn to all the nations! ⁵ Those near and far will mock you—city of infamy and turmoil!

⁶ Look, the princes of Israel who reside in your walls use their political power to murder. ⁷ Infamous city of turmoil, your people mistreat their elders, disrespect their parents, take advantage of foreigners passing through, and treat orphans and widows with contempt. ⁸ In you My holy things are desecrated and My Sabbaths are profaned. ⁹ Your citizens lie and give false testimonies at capital trials, shedding innocent blood. Your people feast at lofty shrines devoted to false gods and commit lewd sexual acts. ¹⁰ In you men expose their fathers’ nakedness by having intercourse with their wives and engage in sexual relations with women who are impure because of their menstrual cycles. ¹¹ In you one man commits unspeakable things with his neighbor’s wife, while another practices incest with his daughter-in-law or half-sister. ¹² In you murder is for hire, exorbitant interests and profits are taken from the poor, neighbors are oppressed for personal gain; and in you I am forgotten.

¹³ I will strike My hands at your extortion and murderous ways. ¹⁴ Will you be courageous and strong when I come to deal with you? I, the Eternal One, will do what I’ve said I will do. ¹⁵ I will scatter you among the nations and disperse you throughout unfamiliar lands! I will put an end to your impurity. ¹⁶ When you have been defiled in front of the nations, you will know that I am the Eternal.

Eternal One: ¹⁸ Son of man, the people of Israel have become dross to Me; all of them are the dross metals—bronze, iron, tin, and lead—left inside a furnace after silver has been refined. ¹⁹ Therefore, I, the Eternal Lord, say to them, “Because you’ve become worthless dross, I will gather you up in the middle of Jerusalem. ^20-21 Just as men throw copper, iron, tin, lead, and silver into a furnace to melt the impurities away with fiery blasts, I will gather you inside My furnace called Jerusalem, and you will experience the fire of My wrath as it blows across and melts you inside that city! ²² Just as silver is melted in a furnace, you will be melted in My city. Then you will know I, the Eternal One, have poured out the fire of My wrath upon you.”

Eternal One: ²⁴ Son of man, say to her, “You are a land plagued with drought during My wrath—[not a single drop of rain has fallen from the sky]^[b].” ²⁵ Her prophets^[c] conspire in her midst like raging lions killing their prey; they have destroyed lives, stolen treasures and other valuable things; they have made many wives widows all over the city. ²⁶ Her priests violate My laws and desecrate My holy things. They fail to distinguish between the sacred and profane. They no longer teach that there is a difference between pure and impure! They completely disregard My Sabbaths; as a result I am defamed among My people. ²⁷ Her princes and officials are like a pack of wolves tearing apart their prey. They kill innocent people and ruin lives just to get what they want! ²⁸ Her false prophets whitewash these wicked acts by claiming to receive divine visions, but they are all false! Their divination turns up only lies! They say, “This is what the Eternal Lord says . . . ,” when the Eternal Lord has not said anything to them at all. ²⁹ Her people are full of wickedness: they are bullies and thieves; they have abused the poor and helpless; they have taken advantage of foreigners and perverted justice. ³⁰ I searched for one man among them, a man who could build the wall and stand in the gap before Me and advocate for the land, a man who could convince Me not to destroy it; but I found no one. ³¹ Therefore, I will dump the fires of My fury on them, and the flames of My indignation will devour them. I will give them what they deserve.