Ezekiel 33

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

Again the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

2 “Son of man, speak to the sons of your people, and you shall say to them: Concerning the land, when I will have led the sword over it: if the people of the land take a man, one of their least, and appoint him over themselves as a watchman,

“Son of man, speak to your people and tell them: ‘Suppose I bring the sword against a land, and the people of that land choose a man from among them, appointing him as their watchman,

3 and if he sees the sword approaching over the land, and he sounds the trumpet, and he announces to the people,

and he sees the sword coming against that land and blows the ram’s horn to warn the people.

4 then, having heard the sound of the trumpet, whoever he is, if he also does not take care of himself, and the sword arrives and takes him: his blood will be upon his own head.

Then if anyone hears the sound of the horn but fails to heed the warning, and the sword comes and takes him away, his blood will be on his own head.

5 He heard the sound of the trumpet, and he did not take care of himself, so his blood will be upon him. But if he guards himself, he will save his own life.

Since he heard the sound of the horn but failed to heed the warning, his blood will be on his own head. If he had heeded the warning, he would have saved his life.

6 And if the watchman sees the sword approaching, and he does not sound the trumpet, and so the people do not guard themselves, and the sword arrives and takes some of their lives, certainly these have been taken due to their own iniquity. But I will attribute their blood to the hand of the watchman.

But if the watchman sees the sword coming and fails to blow the horn to warn the people, and the sword comes and takes away a life, then that one will be taken away in his iniquity, but I will hold the watchman accountable for his blood.’

7 And as for you, son of man, I have made you a watchman to the house of Israel. Therefore, having heard the word from my mouth, you shall announce it to them from me.

As for you, O son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; so hear the word from My mouth and give them the warning from Me.

8 When I say to the impious, ‘O impious man, you will die a death,’ if you have not spoken so that the impious man will keep himself from his way, then that impious man will die in his iniquity. But I will attribute his blood to your hand.

If I say to the wicked, ‘O wicked man, you will surely die,’ but you do not speak out to dissuade him from his way, then that wicked man will die in his iniquity, yet I will hold you accountable for his blood.

9 But if you have announced to the impious man, so that he may be converted from his ways, and he has not converted from his way, then he will die in his iniquity. Yet you will have freed your own soul.

But if you warn the wicked man to turn from his way, and he does not turn from it, he will die in his iniquity, but you will have saved your life.

10 You, therefore, O son of man, say to the house of Israel: You have spoken in this way, saying: ‘Our iniquities and our sins are upon us, and we waste away in them. So then, how would we be able to live?’

Now as for you, son of man, tell the house of Israel that this is what they have said: ‘Our transgressions and our sins are heavy upon us, and we are wasting away because of them! How can we live?’

11 Say to them: As I live, says the Lord God, I do not desire the death of the impious, but that the impious should convert from his way and live. Be converted, be converted from your evil ways! For why should you die, O house of Israel?

Say to them: ‘As surely as I live, declares the Lord GOD, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked should turn from their ways and live. Turn! Turn from your evil ways! For why should you die, O house of Israel?’

12 And as for you then, son of man, say to the sons of your people: The justice of the just man will not deliver him, on whatever day he will have sinned. And the impiety of the impious man will not harm him, on whatever day he will have been converted from his impiety. And the just man will not be able to live by his justice, on whatever day he will have sinned.

Therefore, son of man, say to your people: ‘The righteousness of the righteous man will not deliver him in the day of his transgression; neither will the wickedness of the wicked man cause him to stumble on the day he turns from his wickedness. Nor will the righteous man be able to survive by his righteousness on the day he sins.’

13 Even now, if I say to the just man that he shall certainly live, and so, with confidence in his justice, he commits iniquity, all his justices will be delivered into oblivion, and by his iniquity, which he has done, by this he shall die.

If I tell the righteous man that he will surely live, but he then trusts in his righteousness and commits iniquity, then none of his righteous works will be remembered; he will die because of the iniquity he has committed.

14 And if I say to the impious man, ‘You shall certainly die,’ and yet he repents from his sin, and he does judgment and justice,

But if I tell the wicked man, ‘You will surely die,’ and he turns from his sin and does what is just and right—

15 and if that impious man returns the collateral, and repays what he has taken by force, and if he walks in the commandments of life, and does not do anything unjust, then he shall certainly live, and he shall not die.

if he restores a pledge, makes restitution for what he has stolen, and walks in the statutes of life without practicing iniquity—then he will surely live; he will not die.

16 None of his sins, which he has committed, will be imputed to him. He has done judgment and justice, so he shall certainly live.

None of the sins he has committed will be held against him. He has done what is just and right; he will surely live.

17 And the sons of your people have said, ‘The way of the Lord is not a fair balance,’ even while their own way is unjust.

Yet your people say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ But it is their way that is not just.

18 For when the just man will have withdrawn from his justice, and committed iniquities, he shall die by these.

If a righteous man turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity, he will die for it.

19 And when the impious man will have withdrawn from his impiety, and have done judgment and justice, he shall live by these.

But if a wicked man turns from his wickedness and does what is just and right, he will live because of this.

20 And yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not right.’ But I shall judge each one of you according to his own ways, O house of Israel.”

Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not just.’ But I will judge each of you according to his ways, O house of Israel.”

21 And it happened that, in the twelfth year of our transmigration, in the tenth month, on the fifth of the month, one who had fled from Jerusalem arrived saying, “The city has been laid waste.”

In the twelfth year of our exile, on the fifth day of the tenth month, a fugitive from Jerusalem came to me and reported, “The city has been taken!”

22 But the hand of the Lord had been upon me in the evening, before the one who had fled arrived. And he opened my mouth, until he came to me in the morning. And since my mouth had been opened, I was no longer silent.

Now the evening before the fugitive arrived, the hand of the LORD was upon me, and He opened my mouth before the man came to me in the morning. So my mouth was opened and I was no longer mute.

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

Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

24 “Son of man, as for those who live in these ruinous ways on the soil of Israel, when speaking, they say: ‘Abraham was one man, and he possessed the land as an inheritance. But we are many; the land has been given to us as a possession.’

“Son of man, those living in the ruins in the land of Israel are saying, ‘Abraham was only one man, yet he possessed the land. But we are many; surely the land has been given to us as a possession.’

25 Therefore, you shall say to them: Thus says the Lord God: You who eat even the blood, and who lift up your eyes to your uncleannesses, and who shed blood: will you possess the land as an inheritance?

Therefore tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘You eat meat with the blood in it, lift up your eyes to your idols, and shed blood. Should you then possess the land?

26 You stood by your swords, you committed abominations, and each one has defiled his neighbor’s wife. And will you possess the land as an inheritance?

You have relied on your swords, you have committed detestable acts, and each of you has defiled his neighbor’s wife. Should you then possess the land?’

27 You shall say these things to them: So says the Lord God: As I live, those who live in ruinous ways will fall by the sword. And whoever is in the field will be delivered over to wild beasts to be devoured. But those who are in fortresses and in caves will die of the pestilence.

Tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘As surely as I live, those in the ruins will fall by the sword, those in the open field I will give to be devoured by wild animals, and those in the strongholds and caves will die by plague.

28 And I will make the land into a wilderness and a desert. And its arrogant strength will fail. And the mountains of Israel will be desolate; for there will be no one who crosses through them.

I will make the land a desolate waste, and the pride of her strength will come to an end. The mountains of Israel will become desolate, so that no one will pass through.

29 And they shall know that I am the Lord, when I will have made their land desolate and deserted, because of all their abominations, which they have worked.

Then they will know that I am the LORD, when I have made the land a desolate waste because of all the abominations they have committed.’

30 And as for you, O son of man: the sons of your people speak about you beside the walls and in the doorways of houses. And they speak to one another, each man to his neighbor, saying: ‘Come, and let us hear what may be the word going forth from the Lord.’

As for you, son of man, your people are talking about you near the city walls and in the doorways of their houses. One speaks to another, each saying to his brother, ‘Come and hear the message that has come from the LORD!’

31 And they come to you, as if the people were entering, and my people sit before you. And they listen to your words, but they do not do them. For they turn them into a song for their mouth, but their heart pursues their own avarice.

So My people come to you as usual, sit before you, and hear your words; but they do not put them into practice. Although they express love with their mouths, their hearts pursue dishonest gain.

32 And you are to them like a verse set to music, which is sung with a sweet and pleasing voice. And they hear your words, but they do not do them.

Indeed, you are to them like a singer of love songs with a beautiful voice, who skillfully plays an instrument. They hear your words but do not put them into practice.

33 And when what has been predicted occurs, for behold it is approaching, then they shall know that a prophet was among them.”

So when it comes to pass—and surely it will come—then they will know that a prophet has been among them.”