Ezekiel 5

1 “You, son of man, take a sharp sword. You shall take it as a barber’s razor to yourself, and shall cause it to pass over your head and over your beard. Then take balances to weigh and divide the hair.

“Also, you human, [when you start doing those things, ] take a sharp sword and use it like [SIM] a razor to shave your head and your beard. Then put the hair that you shaved off on scales, and divide the [into three equal parts].

2 A third part you shall burn in the fire in the middle of the city, when the days of the siege are fulfilled. You shall take a third part, and strike with the sword around it. A third part you shall scatter to the wind, and I will draw out a sword after them.

When the time during [you will symbolize that] the city will be [by enemy troops] ends, put a third of the hair inside [drawing of the] city and burn it. Take another third of the hair, [scatter it] all [the drawing of] the city, and then strike it with your sword. That will symbolize that I will strike the people of Jerusalem [their enemies’] swords. Then allow the wind to scatter the other third of the hair. That will symbolize [even if they flee from the city], I will [cause their enemies to] pursue them and attack them with swords.

3 You shall take a small number of these and bind them in the folds of your robe.

Take a few of your hairs and tuck them into the folds of your robe.

4 Of these again you shall take, and cast them into the middle of the fire, and burn them in the fire. From it a fire will come out into all the house of Israel.

Then take a few of those hairs, throw them into the fire, and burn them up. [That will symbolize that] a fire will spread from Jerusalem [and destroy things] throughout Israel.

5 “The Lord GOD says: ‘This is Jerusalem. I have set her in the middle of the nations, and countries are around her.

This is what [I, ] Yahweh the Lord, say: ‘[drawing will represent] Jerusalem, [the city which] I have set in the center of the nations, with [other] countries around it.

6 She has rebelled against my ordinances in doing wickedness more than the nations, and against my statutes more than the countries that are around her; for they have rejected my ordinances, and as for my statutes, they have not walked in them.’

But the wicked people of Jerusalem rebelled against [obeying] my commands, and [they show that] they are more wicked than the people of the surrounding countries. They rejected my laws and refused to obey my commands.’

7 “Therefore the Lord GOD says: ‘Because you are more turbulent than the nations that are around you, and have not walked in my statutes, neither have kept my ordinances, neither have followed the ordinances of the nations that are around you;

Therefore, this is what I, Yahweh the Lord, say: ‘You people of Jerusalem have been more rebellious than the people of the nations around you; you have not obeyed any of my laws [DOU]. You have not even obeyed the laws of the nations around you!’

8 therefore the Lord GOD says: ‘Behold, I, even I, am against you; and I will execute judgments among you in the sight of the nations.

Therefore, this is [I, ] Yahweh the Lord, say: ‘I am opposed to [you people of] Jerusalem. I will punish you, and the [people of other] nations will see it happen.

9 I will do in you that which I have not done, and which I will not do anything like it any more, because of all your abominations.

Because of all your detestable [idols], I will punish [people of Jerusalem] like I have never done before and will never do again.

10 Therefore the fathers will eat the sons within you, and the sons will eat their fathers. I will execute judgments on you; and I will scatter the whole remnant of you to all the winds.

As a result, parents among you will eat their children, and children will eat their [because there will be nothing else to eat]. I will punish you [severely], and I will cause those who will still be alive to be scattered in all directions [IDM].’

11 Therefore as I live,’ says the Lord GOD, ‘surely, because you have defiled my sanctuary with all your detestable things, and with all your abominations, therefore I will also diminish you. My eye will not spare, and I will have no pity.

Therefore, I, Yahweh the Lord, declare that as surely as I am alive, because you have polluted my temple with all your disgusting [statues of idols] and by the other detestable things that you do, I will no longer bless you. I will not pity [you] or act mercifully [toward you].

12 A third part of you will die with the pestilence, and they will be consumed with famine within you. A third part will fall by the sword around you. A third part I will scatter to all the winds, and will draw out a sword after them.

One-third of your people will die inside the city because of the plagues [they will experience] or by (famine/lack of food). One-third of your people will be killed [your enemies’] swords outside the city. And one-third I will cause to be scattered in all directions; [your enemies] will [still] pursue you and kill you with their swords.

13 “‘Thus my anger will be accomplished, and I will cause my wrath toward them to rest, and I will be comforted. They will know that I, the LORD, have spoken in my zeal, when I have accomplished my wrath on them.

Then I will no longer be angry with you; I will stop punishing [MTY] you after I have gotten revenge on you. And when I stop punishing you, you will know that I, Yahweh, have spoken to you because I have been very strongly concerned [what you have done].

14 “‘Moreover I will make you a desolation and a reproach among the nations that are around you, in the sight of all that pass by.

I will cause your [city] to be a ruins, with the result that [people of other] nations that are around you will pass by and see it and sneer at you.

15 So it will be a reproach and a taunt, an instruction and an astonishment, to the nations that are around you, when I execute judgments on you in anger and in wrath, and in wrathful rebukes—I, the LORD, have spoken it—

They will make fun of you and taunt you. When I severely punish you because of my being very angry [DOU] with you, they will be horrified and they will be warned. [That will surely happen because] I, Yahweh, have said it.

16 when I send on them the evil arrows of famine that are for destruction, which I will send to destroy you. I will increase the famine on you and will break your staff of bread.

When I cut off your food supply and cause there to be more famine, [it will be as though] [MET] I am shooting at you with my arrows that will destroy you.

17 I will send on you famine and evil animals, and they will bereave you. Pestilence and blood will pass through you. I will bring the sword on you. I, the LORD, have spoken it.’”

I will cause you to experience a famine, and I will send wild beasts to attack you and your children, and [all] your children will be killed. You will experience plagues and wars, and I will cause [your enemies] to attack you with their swords. [That will surely happen because] I, Yahweh, have said it.”