< Ezekiel 3 >

1 And he said to me, Son of man, take this roll for your food, and go and say my words to the children of Israel.
He said to me, "Son of man, eat that which you find. Eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel."
2 And, on my opening my mouth, he made me take the roll as food.
So I opened my mouth, and he caused me to eat the scroll.
3 And he said to me, Son of man, let your stomach make a meal of it and let your inside be full of this roll which I am giving you. Then I took it, and it was sweet as honey in my mouth.
He said to me, "Son of man, cause your belly to eat, and fill your belly with this scroll that I give you." Then I ate it; and it was as sweet as honey in my mouth.
4 And he said to me, Son of man, go now to the children of Israel, and say my words to them.
He said to me, "Son of man, go to the house of Israel, and speak my words to them.
5 For you are not sent to a people whose talk is strange and whose language is hard, but to the children of Israel;
For you are not sent to a people of a strange speech and of a hard language, but to the house of Israel;
6 Not to a number of peoples whose talk is strange and whose language is hard and whose words are not clear to you. Truly, if I sent you to them they would give ear to you.
not to many peoples of a strange speech and of a hard language, whose words you can not understand. Surely, if I sent you to them, they would listen to you.
7 But the children of Israel will not give ear to you; for they have no mind to give ear to me: for all the children of Israel have a hard brow and a stiff heart.
But the house of Israel will not listen to you; for they will not listen to me: for all the house of Israel are obstinate and hard-hearted.
8 See, I have made your face hard against their faces, and your brow hard against their brows.
Look, I have made your face hard against their faces, and your forehead hard against their foreheads.
9 Like a diamond harder than rock I have made your brow: have no fear of them and do not be overcome by their looks, for they are an uncontrolled people.
As an adamant harder than flint have I made your forehead. Do not be afraid of them, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they are a rebellious house."
10 Then he said to me, Son of man, take into your heart all my words which I am about to say to you, and let your ears be open to them.
Moreover he said to me, "Son of man, all my words that I shall speak to you receive in your heart, and hear with your ears.
11 And go now to those who have been taken away as prisoners, to the children of your people, and say to them, This is what the Lord has said; if they give ear or if they do not.
And go to the exiles, to the children of your people, and speak to them, and tell them, 'Thus says the LORD'; whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear.
12 Then I was lifted up by the wind, and at my back the sound of a great rushing came to my ears when the glory of the Lord was lifted up from his place.
Then the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard behind me the voice of a great rushing, saying, "Blessed be the glory of the LORD from his place."
13 And there was the sound of the wings of the living beings touching one another, and the sound of the wheels at their side, the sound of a great rushing.
I heard the noise of the wings of the living creatures as they touched one another, and the noise of the wheels beside them, even the noise of a great rushing.
14 And the wind, lifting me up, took me away: and I went in the heat of my spirit, and the hand of the Lord was strong on me.
So the Spirit lifted me up, and took me away; and I went in bitterness, in the anger of my spirit; and the hand of the LORD was strong on me.
15 Then I came to those who had been taken away as prisoners, who were at Telabib by the river Chebar, and I was seated among them full of wonder for seven days.
Then I came to them of the exiles at Tel Aviv, that lived by the river Chebar, and to where they lived; and I sat there overwhelmed among them seven days.
16 And at the end of seven days, the word of the Lord came to me, saying,
It happened at the end of seven days, that the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
17 Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the children of Israel: so give ear to the word of my mouth, and give them word from me of their danger.
"Son of man, I have made you a watchman to the house of Israel: therefore hear the word from my mouth, and give them warning from me.
18 When I say to the evil-doer, Death will certainly be your fate; and you give him no word of it and say nothing to make clear to the evil-doer the danger of his evil way, so that he may be safe; that same evil man will come to death in his evil-doing; but I will make you responsible for his blood.
When I tell the wicked, 'You shall surely die'; and you give him no warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at your hand.
19 But if you give the evil-doer word of his danger, and he is not turned from his sin or from his evil way, death will overtake him in his evil-doing; but your life will be safe.
Yet if you warn the wicked, and he doesn't turn from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but you have delivered your soul.
20 Again, when an upright man, turning away from his righteousness, does evil, and I put a cause of falling in his way, death will overtake him: because you have given him no word of his danger, death will overtake him in his evil-doing, and there will be no memory of the upright acts which he has done; but I will make you responsible for his blood.
"Again, when a righteous man does turn from his righteousness, and commit iniquity, and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die: because you have not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteous deeds which he has done shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at your hand.
21 But if you say to the upright man that he is not to do evil, he will certainly keep his life because he took note of your word; and your life will be safe.
Nevertheless if you warn the righteous man, that the righteous not sin, and he does not sin, he shall surely live, because he took warning; and you have delivered your soul."
22 And the hand of the Lord was on me there; and he said, Get up and go out into the valley and there I will have talk with you.
The hand of the LORD was there on me; and he said to me, "Arise, go forth into the plain, and I will there talk with you."
23 Then I got up and went out into the valley; and I saw the glory of the Lord resting there as I had seen it by the river Chebar; and I went down on my face.
Then I arose, and went forth into the plain: and look, the glory of the LORD stood there, as the glory which I saw by the river Chebar; and I fell on my face.
24 Then the spirit came into me and put me on my feet; and he had talk with me and said to me, Go and keep yourself shut up inside your house.
Then the Spirit entered into me, and set me on my feet; and he spoke with me, and said to me, "Go, shut yourself inside your house.
25 But see, O son of man, I will put bands on you, prisoning you in them, and you will not go out among them:
But you, son of man, look, they shall lay bands on you, and shall bind you with them, and you shall not go out among them:
26 And I will make your tongue fixed to the roof of your mouth, so that you have no voice and may not make protests to them: for they are an uncontrolled people.
and I will make your tongue stick to the roof of your mouth, that you shall be mute, and shall not be to them a reprover; for they are a rebellious house.
27 But when I have talk with you I will make your mouth open, and you are to say to them, This is what the Lord has said: Let the hearer give ear; and as for him who will not, let him keep his ears shut: for they are an uncontrolled people.
But when I speak with you, I will open your mouth, and you shall tell them, 'Thus says the Lord GOD': He who hears, let him hear; and he who forbears, let him forbear: for they are a rebellious house.

< Ezekiel 3 >