Old/New Testament
The Lord Again Appoints Ezekiel to Warn Israel
33 A message from the Lord came to me. The Lord said, 2 “Son of man, speak to your people. Tell them, ‘Suppose I send enemies against a land. And its people choose one of their men to stand guard. 3 He sees the enemies coming against the land. He blows a trumpet to warn the people. 4 Someone hears the trumpet. But they do not pay any attention to the warning. The enemies come and kill them. Then what happens to them will be their own fault. 5 They heard the sound of the trumpet. But they did not pay any attention to the warning. So what happened to them was their own fault. If they had paid attention, they would have saved themselves. 6 But suppose the guard sees the enemies coming. And he does not blow the trumpet to warn the people. The enemies come and kill one of them. Then their life has been taken away from them because they sinned. But I will hold the guard responsible for their death.’
7 “Son of man, I have appointed you as a prophet to warn the people of Israel. So listen to my message. Give them a warning from me. 8 Suppose I say to a sinful person, ‘You can be sure that you will die.’ And suppose you do not try to get them to change their ways. Then they will die because they have sinned. And I will hold you responsible for their death. 9 But suppose you do warn that sinful person. You tell them to change their ways. But they do not change. Then they will die because they have sinned. But you will have saved yourself.
10 “Son of man, speak to the Israelites. Tell them, ‘You are saying, “Our sins and the wrong things we have done weigh us down. We are wasting away because we have sinned so much. So how can we live?” ’ 11 Tell them, ‘When sinful people die, it does not give me any joy. But when they turn away from their sins and live, that makes me very happy. And that is just as sure as I am alive,’ announces the Lord and King. ‘So turn away from your sins! Change your evil ways! Why should you die, people of Israel?’
12 “Son of man, speak to your people. Tell them, ‘Suppose a godly person does not obey the Lord. Then the right things that person has done in the past count for nothing. Suppose a sinful person turns away from doing wrong things. Then the wrong things that person has done in the past won’t bring them judgment. A godly person who sins won’t be allowed to live. That’s true even though they used to do right things.’ 13 Suppose I tell a godly person that they will live. And they trust in the fact that they used to do what is right. But now they do what is evil. Then I will not remember any of the right things they have done. They will die because they have done so many evil things. 14 Suppose I say to a sinful person, ‘You can be sure you will die.’ And then they turn away from their sin. They do what is fair and right. 15 They return things they take to make sure loans are repaid. They give back what they have stolen. They obey my rules that give life. They do not do what is evil. Then you can be sure they will live. They will not die. 16 None of the sins they have committed will be held against them. They have done what is fair and right. So you can be sure they will live.
17 “In spite of that, your people say, ‘What the Lord does isn’t fair.’ But it is what you do that is not fair. 18 Suppose a godly person stops doing what is right. And they do what is evil. Then they will die because of it. 19 But suppose a sinful person turns away from the evil things they have done. And they do what is fair and right. Then they will live by doing that. 20 In spite of that, you Israelites say, ‘What the Lord does isn’t fair.’ But I will judge each of you based on how you have lived.”
The Lord Explains Why Jerusalem Fell
21 It was the 12th year since we had been brought to Babylon as prisoners. On the fifth day of the tenth month, a man who had escaped from Jerusalem came to bring me a report. He said, “The city has fallen!” 22 The evening before the man arrived, the power of the Lord came on me. He opened my mouth before the man came to me in the morning. So my mouth was opened. I was no longer silent.
23 Then a message from the Lord came to me. The Lord said, 24 “Son of man, here is what the people living in Israel’s broken-down buildings are saying. ‘Abraham was only one man. But he owned the land. We are many people. The land must certainly belong to us.’ 25 So tell them, ‘The Lord and King says, “You eat meat that still has blood in it. You worship your statues of gods. You commit murder. So should you still possess the land? 26 You depend on your swords. You do things I hate. Each one of you sleeps with your neighbor’s wife. So should you still possess the land?” ’
27 “Tell them, ‘Here is what the Lord and King says. “The people who are left in those broken-down buildings will be killed by swords. Wild animals will eat up those who are out in the country. Those who are in caves and other safe places will die of a plague. And that is just as sure as I am alive. 28 I will turn the land into a dry and empty desert. The strength Jerusalem is so proud of will come to an end. The mountains of Israel will be deserted. No one will travel across them. 29 So I will turn the land into a dry and empty desert. I will punish my people because of all the evil things they have done. I hate those things. Then they will know that I am the Lord.” ’
30 “Son of man, your people are talking about you. They are getting together by the walls of their houses and at their doors. They are saying to one another, ‘Come. Listen to the Lord’s message.’ 31 My people come to you, just as they usually do. They sit in front of you. They hear what you say. But they do not put it into practice. With their mouths they say they love me. But in their hearts they want what belongs to others. They try to get rich by cheating them. 32 You are nothing more to them than someone who sings love songs. They say you have a beautiful voice. They think you play an instrument well. They hear what you say. But they do not put it into practice.
33 “Everything I have told you will come true. You can be sure of it. Then the people will know that a prophet has been among them.”
The Lord Will Be the Shepherd of His People
34 A message from the Lord came to me. The Lord said, 2 “Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel. Tell them, ‘The Lord and King says, “How terrible it will be for you shepherds of Israel! You only take care of yourselves. You should take good care of your flocks. 3 Instead, you eat the butter. You dress yourselves with the wool. You kill the finest animals. But you do not take care of your flocks. 4 You have not made the weak ones in the flock stronger. You have not healed the sick. You have not bandaged those who are hurt. You have not brought back those who have wandered away. You have not searched for the lost. When you ruled over them, you were mean to them. You treated them badly. 5 So they were scattered because they did not have a shepherd. They became food for all of the wild animals. 6 My sheep wandered all over the mountains and high hills. They were scattered over the whole earth. No one searched for them. No one looked for them.”
7 “ ‘Shepherds, listen to the Lord’s message. He says, 8 “My flock does not have a shepherd. Many of my sheep have been stolen. They have become food for all the wild animals. My shepherds did not care for my sheep. They did not even search for them. Instead, they only took care of themselves. And that is just as sure as I am alive,” announces the Lord and King. 9 Shepherds, listen to the Lord’s message. 10 The Lord and King says, “I am against the shepherds. I will hold them responsible for my flock. I will stop them from taking care of the flock. Then they will not be able to feed themselves anymore. I will save my flock from their mouths. My sheep will no longer be food for them.” ’ ”
11 The Lord and King says, “I myself will search for my sheep. I will look after them. 12 A shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them. And I will look after my sheep. I will save them from all the places where they were scattered on a dark and cloudy day. 13 I will bring them out from among the nations. I will gather them together from other countries. I will bring them into their own land. There they will eat grass on the mountains and in the valleys. And they will eat in all the fields of Israel. 14 I will take care of them in the best grasslands. They will eat grass on the highest mountains of Israel. There they will lie down in the finest grasslands. They will eat grass in the best places on Israel’s mountains. 15 I myself will take care of my sheep. I will let them lie down in safety,” announces the Lord and King. 16 “I will search for the lost. I will bring back those who have wandered away. I will bandage the ones who are hurt. I will make the weak ones stronger. But I will destroy those who are fat and strong. I will take good care of my sheep. I will treat them fairly.”
17 The Lord and King says, “You are my flock. I will judge between one sheep and another. I will judge between rams and goats. 18 You already eat in the best grasslands. Must you also stomp all over the other fields? You already drink clear water. Must you also make the rest of the water muddy with your feet? 19 Must my flock have to eat the grass you have stomped on? Must they drink the water you have made muddy?”
20 So the Lord and King speaks to them. He says, “I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the skinny sheep. 21 You push the other sheep around with your hips and shoulders. You use your horns to butt all the weak sheep. Finally, you drive them away. 22 But I will save my sheep. They will not be carried off anymore. I will judge between one sheep and another. 23 I will place one shepherd over them. He will belong to the family line of my servant David. He will take good care of them. He will look after them. He will be their shepherd. 24 I am the Lord. I will be their God. And my servant from David’s family line will be the prince among them. I have spoken. I am the Lord.
25 “I will make a covenant with them. It promises to give them peace. I will get rid of the wild animals in the land. Then my sheep can live safely in the desert. They can sleep in the forests. 26 I will make them and the places surrounding my holy mountain of Zion a blessing. I will send down rain at the right time. There will be showers of blessing. 27 The trees will bear their fruit. And the ground will produce its crops. The people will be secure in their land. I will break the chains that hold them. I will save them from the power of those who made them slaves. Then they will know that I am the Lord. 28 The nations will not carry them off anymore. Wild animals will no longer eat them up. They will live in safety. And no one will make them afraid. 29 I will give them a land that is famous for its crops. They will never again be hungry there. The nations will not make fun of them anymore. 30 Then they will know that I am with them. I am the Lord their God. And the Israelites will know that they are my people,” announces the Lord and King. 31 “You are my sheep. You belong to my flock. And I am your God,” announces the Lord and King.
To Older and Younger Believers
5 I’m speaking to the elders among you. I was a witness of Christ’s sufferings. And I will also share in the glory that is going to come. I’m making my appeal to you as one who is an elder together with you. 2 Be shepherds of God’s flock, the believers under your care. Watch over them, though not because you have to. Instead, do it because you want to. That’s what God wants you to do. Don’t do it because you want to get money in dishonest ways. Do it because you really want to serve. 3 Don’t act as if you were a ruler over those under your care. Instead, be examples to the flock. 4 The Chief Shepherd will come again. Then you will receive the crown of glory. It is a crown that will never fade away.
5 In the same way, I’m speaking to you who are younger. Follow the lead of those who are older. All of you, put on a spirit free of pride toward one another. Put it on as if it were your clothes. Do this because Scripture says,
“God opposes those who are proud.
But he gives grace to those who are humble.” (Proverbs 3:34)
6 So make yourselves humble. Put yourselves under God’s mighty hand. Then he will honor you at the right time. 7 Turn all your worries over to him. He cares about you.
8 Be watchful and control yourselves. Your enemy the devil is like a roaring lion. He prowls around looking for someone to swallow up. 9 Stand up to him. Remain strong in what you believe. You know that you are not alone in your suffering. The family of believers throughout the world is going through the same thing.
10 God always gives you all the grace you need. So you will only have to suffer for a little while. Then God himself will build you up again. He will make you strong and steady. And he has chosen you to share in his eternal glory because you belong to Christ. 11 Give him the power for ever and ever. Amen.
Final Greetings
12 I consider Silas to be a faithful brother. With his help I have written you this short letter. I have written it to encourage you. And I have written to speak the truth about the true grace of God. Remain strong in it.
13 The members of the church in Babylon send you their greetings. They were chosen together with you. Mark, my son in the faith, also sends you his greetings.
14 Greet each other with a kiss of friendship.
May God give peace to all of you who believe in Christ.
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