Ezekiel 11

1 And the Spirit lifted me up, and he brought me to the east gate of the house of the Lord, which looks toward the rising of the sun. And behold, at the entrance to the gate were twenty-five men. And I saw, in their midst, Jaazaniah, the son of Azzur, and Pelatiah, the son of Benaiah, leaders of the people.

Then the Spirit picked me up and took me to the eastern entrance of the Lord's Temple. Twenty-five men were gathered there at the entrance. I recognized among them Jaazaniah son of Azzur and Pelatiah son of Benaiah, leaders of the people.

2 And he said to me: “Son of man, these are men who devise iniquity. And they offer a wicked counsel in this city,

The Lord told me, “Son of man, it's these men who are making evil plans and giving bad advice to the people in this city.

3 saying: ‘Was it so long ago that houses were being built? This city is a cooking pot, and we are the meat.’

They're saying, ‘Is this the time for us to be building houses? The city is the cooking pot, and we are the meat inside it.’

4 Therefore, prophesy against them, prophesy, O son of man.”

So prophesy against them. Prophesy, son of man!”

5 And the Spirit of the Lord fell upon me, and he said to me: “Speak: Thus says the Lord: So have you spoken, O house of Israel. And I know the thoughts of your heart.

The Spirit of the Lord came upon me and told me to say: This is what the Lord says: “People of Israel, that's what you're saying! I know what you're thinking inside!

6 You have killed very many in this city, and you have filled its streets with the slain.

You murder more and more people in this city. You've filled its streets with the dead!

7 Because of this, thus says the Lord God: Your slain, whom you have placed in its midst, these are the meat, and this city is the cooking pot. And I will draw you out of its midst.

So this is what the Lord God says: Those you've killed in this city are the meat, and the city is the pot; but I'm going to take you out of it.

8 You have dread the sword, and so I will lead the sword over you, says the Lord God.

You're afraid of being killed by the sword, so I will bring invaders with swords to attack you, declares the Lord God.

9 And I will cast you out of its midst, and I will give you over to the hand of the enemies, and I will execute judgments among you.

I'm going to take you out of the city and hand you over to foreigners, and I'm going to carry out my sentence against you.

10 You will fall by the sword. I will judge you within the borders of Israel. And you shall know that I am the Lord.

You will be killed by the sword, and I will punish you right up to the borders of Israel. Then you will know that I am the Lord.

11 This city will not be a cooking pot for you, and you will not be like meat in its midst. I will judge you within the borders of Israel.

The city won't be like a pot for you, and you won't be the meat inside it either. I will punish you right up to the borders of Israel.

12 And you shall know that I am the Lord. For you have not walked in my precepts, and you have not accomplished my judgments. Instead, you have acted in accord with the judgments of the Gentiles, who are all around you.”

Then you will know that I am the Lord. For you didn't follow my rules and you didn't keep my laws. Instead you kept the laws of the nations around you.”

13 And it happened that, when I prophesied, Pelatiah, the son of Benaiah, died. And I fell upon my face, and I cried out with a loud voice, and I said: “Alas, alas, alas, O Lord God! Will you cause the consummation of the remnant of Israel?”

While I was prophesying, Pelatiah son of Benaiah died. I fell facedown on the ground and shouted loudly, “Lord God, are you going to completely destroy what's left of the people of Israel?”

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

A message from Lord came to me, saying,

15 “Son of man, your brothers, the men among your close relatives, your brothers and the entire house of Israel, are all among those to whom the inhabitants of Jerusalem have said: ‘Withdraw far from the Lord; the earth has been given to us as a possession.’

“Son of man, your brothers, including your relatives, your fellow exiles, and all the other Israelites, are those the people of Jerusalem were referring to when they said, ‘They are far away from the Lord. This country was given to us and we are to own it.’

16 Because of this, thus says the Lord God: Since I have caused them to be far away, among the Gentiles, and since I have dispersed them among the lands, I will be a little sanctuary for them within the lands to which they have gone.

So tell them that this is what the Lord God says: Even though I sent them far away to live among the foreign nations, scattering them among the different countries, I have been taking care of them for a while in the countries where they went.

17 Because of this, say to them: Thus says the Lord God: I will gather you from among the peoples, and I will unite you, from the lands into which you were dispersed, and I will give the soil of Israel to you.

Tell them that this is what the Lord God says: I'm going to gather you from the other nations and bring you back from the countries where you've been scattered, and I will return the country of Israel to you.

18 And they shall go to that place, and they shall remove all the offenses and all its abominations from that place.

When they come back, they are going to get rid of all its offensive idols and disgusting practices from the country.

19 And I will give them one heart. And I will distribute a new spirit to their interior. And I will take away the heart of stone from their body. And I will give them a heart of flesh.

I will give them single-minded commitment and a whole new spirit. I will take away their hard-hearted attitude and replace it with one that is loving.

20 So may they may walk in my precepts, and observe my judgments, and accomplish them. And so may they be my people, and I will be their God.

This way they can follow my rules, keep my regulations, and do what I say. They will be my people, and I will be their God.

21 But as for those whose heart walks after their offenses and abominations, I will set their own way upon their head, says the Lord God.”

But for those who still choose to worship offensive idols and engage in disgusting practices, I will let them experience the consequences of their own actions, declares the Lord God.”

22 And the cherubim lifted up their wings, and the wheels with them. And the glory of the God of Israel was above them.

Then the cherubim opened their wings and took off, with the wheels alongside them, and with the glory of the God of Israel above them.

23 And the glory of the Lord ascended from the midst of the city and stood above the mountain, which is to the east of the city.

The glory of the Lord rose from inside the city and went over to the mountain to the east of the city.

24 And the Spirit lifted me up, and he brought me into Chaldea, to those of the transmigration, in a vision, in the Spirit of God. And the vision that I had seen was raised up, away from me.

In the vision given to me by the Spirit of God, the Spirit picked me up and carried me back to Babylonia to where the exiles were. After the vision left me,

25 And I spoke, to those of the transmigration, all the words of the Lord that he had revealed to me.

I explained to the exiles everything the Lord had shown me.