Ezekiel 33

1 Again the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

And the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

2 Son of man, speak to the children of your people, and say unto them, When I bring the sword upon a land, if the people of the land take a man of their coasts, and set him for their watchman:

Son of man, speak to the children of thy people, and thou shalt say to them, On whatsoever land I shall bring a sword, and the people of the land take one man of them, and set him for their watchman:

3 If when he sees the sword come upon the land, he blow the trumpet, and warn the people;

and he shall see the sword coming upon the land, and blow the trumpet, and sound an alarm to the people;

4 Then whosoever hears the sound of the trumpet, and takes not warning; if the sword come, and take him away, his blood shall be upon his own head.

and he that hears the sound of the trumpet shall hear [indeed], and [yet] not take heed, and the sword shall come upon him, and overtake him, his blood shall be upon his [own] head.

5 He heard the sound of the trumpet, and took not warning; his blood shall be upon him. But he that takes warning shall deliver his soul.

Because he heard the sound of the trumpet, and took no heed, his blood shall be upon him: but the other, because he took heed, has delivered his soul.

6 But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned; if the sword come, and take any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman's hand.

But if the watchman see the sword coming, and do not sound the trumpet, and the people do not watch; and the sword come, and take a soul from among them, that [soul] is taken because of its iniquity; but the blood [thereof] will I require at the watchman's hand.

7 So you, O son of man, I have set you a watchman unto the house of Israel; therefore you shall hear the word at my mouth, and warn them from me.

And thou, son of man, I have set thee [as] a watchman to the house of Israel, and thou shalt hear a word from my mouth.

8 When I say unto the wicked, O wicked man, you shall surely die; if you do not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at your hand.

When I say to the sinner, Thou shalt surely die; [if] thou speak not to warn the wicked from his way, the wicked himself shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand.

9 Nevertheless, if you warn the wicked of his way to turn from it; if he do not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity; but you have delivered your soul.

But if thou forewarn the wicked of his way to turn from it, and he turn not from his way, he shall die in his ungodliness; but thou hast delivered thine own soul.

10 Therefore, O you son of man, speak unto the house of Israel; Thus all of you speak, saying, If our transgressions and our sins be upon us, and we pine away in them, how should we then live?

And thou, son of man, say to the house of Israel; Thus have ye spoken, saying, Our errors, and our iniquities weigh upon us, and we pine away in them, and how then shall we live?

11 Say unto them, As I live, says the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn all of you, turn all of you from your evil ways; for why will all of you die, O house of Israel?

Say to them, Thus saith the Lord; [As] I live, I desire not the death of the ungodly, as that the ungodly should turn from his way and live: turn ye heartily from your way; for why will ye die, O house of Israel?

12 Therefore, you son of man, say unto the children of your people, The righteousness of the righteous shall not deliver him in the day of his transgression: as for the wickedness of the wicked, he shall not fall thereby in the day that he turns from his wickedness; neither shall the righteous be able to live for his righteousness in the day that he sins.

Say to the children of thy people, The righteousness of the righteous shall not deliver him, in the day wherein he errs: and the iniquity of the ungodly shall not harm him, in the day wherein he turns from his iniquity, but the righteous [erring] shall not be able to deliver himself.

13 When I shall say to the righteous, that he shall surely live; if he trust to his own righteousness, and commit iniquity, all his righteousnesses shall not be remembered; but for his iniquity that he has committed, he shall die for it.

When I say to the righteous, [Thou shalt live; and] he trusts in his righteousness, and shall commit iniquity, none of his righteousnesses shall be remembered; in his unrighteousness which he has wrought, in it shall he die.

14 Again, when I say unto the wicked, You shall surely die; if he turn from his sin, and do that which is lawful and right;

And when I say to the ungodly, Thou shalt surely die; and he shall turn from his sin, and do judgment and justice,

15 If the wicked restore the pledge, give again that he had robbed, walk in the statutes of life, without committing iniquity; he shall surely live, he shall not die.

and return the pledge, and repay that which he has robbed, [and] walk in the ordinances of life, so as to do no wrong; he shall surely live, and shall not die.

16 None of his sins that he has committed shall be mentioned unto him: he has done that which is lawful and right; he shall surely live.

None of his sins which he has committed shall be remembered: because he has wrought judgment and righteousness; by them shall he live.

17 Yet the children of your people say, The way of the Lord is not equal: but as for them, their way is not equal.

Yet the children of thy people will say, The way of the Lord is not straight: whereas this their way is not straight.

18 When the righteous turns from his righteousness, and commits iniquity, he shall even die thereby.

When the righteous turns away from his righteousness, and shall commit iniquities, then shall he die in them.

19 But if the wicked turn from his wickedness, and do that which is lawful and right, he shall live thereby.

And when the sinner turns from his iniquity, and shall do judgment and righteousness, he shall live by them.

20 Yet all of you say, The way of the Lord is not equal. O all of you house of Israel, I will judge you every one after his ways.

And this is that which ye said, The way of the Lord is [not] straight. I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one for his ways.

21 And it came to pass in the twelfth year of our captivity, in the tenth month, in the fifth day of the month, that one that had escaped out of Jerusalem came unto me, saying, The city is smitten.

And it came to pass in the tenth year of our captivity, in the twelfth month, on the fifth [day] of the month, [that] one that had escaped from Jerusalem came to me, saying, The city is taken.

22 Now the hand of the LORD was upon me in the evening, before he that was escaped came; and had opened my mouth, until he came to me in the morning; and my mouth was opened, and I was no more dumb.

Now the hand of the Lord had come upon me in the evening, before he came; and he opened my mouth, when he came to me in the morning: and my mouth was open, it was no longer kept closed.

23 Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

And the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

24 Son of man, they that inhabit those wastes of the land of Israel speak, saying, Abraham was one, and he inherited the land: but we are many; the land is given us for inheritance.

Son of man, they that inhabit the desolate [places] on the land of Israel say, Abram was one, and he possessed the land: and we are more numerous; to us the land is given for a possession.

25 Wherefore say unto them, Thus says the Lord GOD; All of you eat with the blood, and lift up your eyes toward your idols, and shed blood: and shall all of you possess the land?

26 All of you stand upon your sword, all of you work abomination, and all of you defile every one his neighbour's wife: and shall all of you possess the land?

27 Say you thus unto them, Thus says the Lord GOD; As I live, surely they that are in the wastes shall fall by the sword, and him that is in the open field will I give to the beasts to be devoured, and they that be in the forts and in the caves shall die of the pestilence.

Therefore say to them, Thus saith the Lord God, [As] I live, surely they that are in the desolate places shall fall by swords and they that are in the open plain shall be given for food to the wild beasts of the field, and them that are in the fortified [cities] and them that are in the caves I will slay with pestilence.

28 For I will lay the land most desolate, and the pomp of her strength shall cease; and the mountains of Israel shall be desolate, that none shall pass through.

And I will make the land desert, and the pride of her strength shall perish; and the mountains of Israel shall be made desolate by reason of no man passing through.

29 Then shall they know that I am the LORD, when I have laid the land most desolate because of all their abominations which they have committed.

And they shall know that I am the Lord; and I will make their land desert, and it shall be made desolate because of all their abominations which they have wrought.

30 Also, you son of man, the children of your people still are talking against you by the walls and in the doors of the houses, and speak one to another, every one to his brother, saying, Come, I pray you, and hear what is the word that comes forth from the LORD.

And [as for] thee, son of man, the children of thy people are they that speak concerning thee by the walls, and in the porches of the houses, and they talk one to another, saying, Let us come together, and let us hear the [words] that proceed from the Lord.

31 And they come unto you as the people comes, and they sit before you as my people, and they hear your words, but they will not do them: for with their mouth they show much love, but their heart goes after their covetousness.

They approach thee as a people comes together, and sit before thee, and hear thy words, but they will not do them: for [there is] falsehood in their mouth, and their heart [goes] after their pollutions.

32 And, lo, you are unto them as a very lovely song of one that has a pleasant voice, and can play well on an instrument: for they hear your words, but they do them not.

And thou art to them as a sound of a sweet, well-tuned psaltery, and they will hear thy words, but they will not do them.

33 And when this comes to pass, (lo, it will come, ) then shall they know that a prophet has been among them.

But whenever it shall come [to pass], they will say, Behold, it is come: and they shall know that there was a prophet in the midst of them.