Ezekiel 32; Ezekiel 33; Ezekiel 34

Ezekiel 32

1 It was the 12th year since King Jehoiachin had been brought to Babylon as a prisoner. On the first day of the 12th month, a message came to me from the Lord. He said,

2 "Son of man, sing a song of sadness about Pharaoh Hophra, the king of Egypt. Tell him, " 'You are like a lion among the nations. You are like a monster in the sea. You move around wildly in your rivers. You churn the water with your feet. You make the streams muddy.' "

3 The LORD and King says, "I will use a large crowd of people to throw my net over you. They will pull you up in it.

4 Then I will throw you on the land. I will toss you into an open field. I will let all of the birds of the air settle on you. I will let all of the wild animals eat you up.

5 I will scatter the parts of your body all over the mountains. I will fill the valleys with your remains.

6 I will soak the land with your blood. It will flow all the way to the mountains. The valleys will be filled with the parts of your body.

7 When I wipe you out, I will put a cover over the heavens. I will darken the stars. I will cover the sun with a cloud. The moon will stop shining.

8 I will darken all of the bright lights in the sky above you. I will bring darkness over your land," announces the LORD and King.

9 "The hearts of many people will be troubled. That is because I will destroy you among the nations. You had never known anything about those lands before.

10 Many nations will be shocked when they see what has happened to you. Their kings will tremble with fear when they find out about it. I will get ready to use Nebuchadnezzar as my sword against them. On the day you fall from power, each of the kings will tremble with fear. Each will be afraid he is the next to die."

11 The LORD and King says, "I will send against you the sword of the king of Babylonia.

12 I will destroy your huge army. They will be killed with the swords of Babylonia's mighty soldiers. The soldiers will not show them any pity. They will bring Egypt down in all of its pride. Its huge armies will be thrown down.

13 I will destroy all of its cattle from the places where they have plenty of water. Human feet will never stir the water up again. The hoofs of cattle will not make it muddy anymore.

14 I will let the waters of Egypt settle. I will make its streams flow like olive oil," announces the LORD and King.

15 "I will turn Egypt into an empty land. I will strip away everything in it. I will strike down everyone who lives there. Then they will know that I am the Lord.

16 "That is the song of sadness people will sing about Egypt. Women from other nations will sing it. They will sob over Egypt and its huge armies," announces the LORD and King.

17 It was the 15th day of a month near the end of the 12th year since King Jehoiachin had been brought to Babylon as a prisoner. A message came to me from the Lord. He said,

18 "Son of man, sob over the huge army of Egypt. Tell the Egyptians they will go down into the earth below. The women singers from the other mighty nations will go down into the grave along with them and others.

19 "Tell them, 'Are you any better than others? Since you are not, go down there. Lie down with those who have not been circumcised.'

20 "They will fall dead among those who were killed with swords. Nebuchadnezzar is ready to use his sword against them. Let Egypt be dragged off together with its huge armies.

21 "The mighty leaders who are already in the grave will talk about Egypt. They will also speak about the nations that were going to help it. They will say, 'They have come down here. They are lying down with those who had not been circumcised. They are here with those who were killed with swords.'

22 "Assyria is there with its whole army. Its king is surrounded by the graves of all of its people who were killed with swords.

23 Their graves are deep down in the pit. Assyria's army lies around the grave of its king. All those who spread terror while they were alive are now dead. They were killed with swords.

24 "Elam is also there. Its huge armies lie around the grave of its king. All those who spread terror while they were alive are now dead. They were killed with swords. They had not been circumcised. They went down into the earth below. Their shame is like the shame of others who go down into the grave.

25 "A bed is made for Elam's king among the dead. His huge armies lie around his grave. They had not been circumcised. They were killed with swords. They had spread terror while they were alive. So now their shame is like the shame of others who go down into the grave. They lie down among the dead.

26 "Meshech and Tubal are also there. Their huge armies lie around the graves of their kings. They had not been circumcised. They had spread their terror while they were alive. So they were killed with swords.

27 "They lie down with the other dead soldiers who had not been circumcised. They and their weapons had gone down into the grave. Their swords had been placed under their heads. They had spread their terror while they were alive. But now the shame of their sin covers their bones.

28 "Pharaoh Hophra, you too will be broken. You will lie down among those who had not been circumcised. You will be there with those who were killed with swords.

29 "Edom is also there. So are its kings and all of its princes. In spite of their power, they lie down with those who were killed with swords. They lie down with those who had not been circumcised. They are there with others who went down into the grave.

30 "All of the princes of the north are there too. So are all of the people of Sidon. They went down into the grave in dishonor. While they were alive, they used their power to spread terror. They had never been circumcised. But now they lie down there with those who were killed with swords. Their shame is like the shame of others who go down into the grave.

31 "Pharaoh and his whole army will see all of them. That will comfort him in spite of the fact that his huge armies were killed with swords," announces the LORD and King.

32 "I let Pharaoh spread terror while he was alive. But now he and his huge armies will be buried with those who had not been circumcised. They will lie down there with those who were killed with swords," announces the LORD and King.

Ezekiel 33

1 A message came to me from the Lord. He said,

2 "Son of man, speak to the people of your own country. Tell them, 'Suppose I send enemies against a land. And its people choose one of their men to stand guard.

3 He sees the enemies coming against the land. He blows a trumpet to warn the people.

4 " 'Someone hears the trumpet. But he does not pay any attention to the warning. The enemies come and kill him. Then what happens to him will be his own fault.

5 He heard the sound of the trumpet. But he did not pay any attention to the warning. So what happened to him was his own fault. If he had paid attention, he would have saved himself.

6 " 'But suppose the guard sees the enemies coming. And he does not blow the trumpet to warn the people. The enemies come and kill one of them. Then his life has been taken away from him because he sinned. But I will hold the guard accountable for his death.'

7 "Son of man, I have appointed you as a prophet to warn the people of Israel. So listen to my message. Give them a warning from me.

8 "Suppose I say to a sinful person, 'You can be sure that you will die.' And suppose you do not try to get him to change his ways. Then he will die because he has sinned. And I will hold you accountable for his death.

9 "But suppose you do warn that sinful person. You tell him to change his ways. But he does not do it. Then he will die because he has sinned. But you will have saved yourself.

10 "Son of man, speak to the people of Israel. Tell them, 'You are saying, "Our sins and the wrong things we have done weigh us down. We are wasting away because we have sinned so much. So how can we live?" '

11 "Tell them, 'When sinful people die, it does not give me any joy. But when they turn away from their sins and live, that makes me very happy. And that is just as sure as I am alive,' announces the LORD and King. 'So turn away from your sins! Change your evil ways! Why should you die, people of Israel?'

12 "Son of man, speak to the people of your own country. Tell them, 'The right things a godly person does will not save him when he does not obey the Lord. The wrong things a sinful person does will not destroy him when he turns away from them. If a godly person sins, he will not be allowed to live just because he used to do what is right.'

13 "Suppose I tell someone who is godly that he will live. And he trusts in the fact that he used to do what was right. But now he does what is evil. Then I will not remember any of the right things he has done. He will die because he has done so many evil things.

14 "Suppose I say to a sinful person, 'You can be sure you will die.' And then he turns away from his sin. He does what is fair and right.

15 He gives back what he took as security for a loan. He returns what he has stolen. He follows my rules that give life. He does not do what is evil. Then you can be sure he will live. He will not die.

16 None of the sins he has committed will be held against him. He has done what is fair and right. So you can be sure he will live.

17 "In spite of that, your people say, 'What the Lord does isn't fair.' But it is what you do that is not fair.

18 "Suppose someone who is godly stops doing what is right. And he does what is evil. Then he will die because of it.

19 But suppose a sinful person turns away from the evil things he has done. And he does what is fair and right. Then he will live by doing that.

20 "In spite of that, you people of Israel say, 'What the Lord does isn't fair.' But I will judge each of you based on how you have lived."

21 It was the 12th year since we had been brought to Babylonia as prisoners. On the fifth day of the tenth month, a man who had escaped from Jerusalem came to bring me a report. He said, "The city has fallen!"

22 The evening before the man arrived, the LORD put his strong hand on me. He opened my mouth before the man came to me in the morning. So my mouth was opened. I was no longer silent.

23 Then a message came to me from the Lord. He said,

24 "Son of man, the people who live in those broken-down buildings in Israel are saying, 'Abraham was only one man. But he owned the land. We are many people. The land must certainly belong to us.'

25 "So tell them, 'The LORD and King says, "You eat meat that still has blood in it. You worship your gods. You commit murder. So should you still possess the land?

26 You depend on your swords. You do things I hate. Each one of you has sex with your neighbor's wife. So should you still possess the land?" '

27 "Tell them, 'The LORD and King says, "The people who are left in those broken-down buildings will be killed with swords. Wild animals will eat up those who are out in the country. Those who are in caves and other safe places will die of a plague. And that is just as sure as I am alive.

28 " ' "I will turn the land into a dry and empty desert. The strength Jerusalem is so proud of will come to an end. The mountains of Israel will be deserted. No one will travel across them.

29 So I will turn the land into a dry and empty desert. I will punish my people because of all of the evil things they have done. I hate those things. They will know that I am the Lord." '

30 "Son of man, your people are talking about you. They are getting together by the walls of their houses and at their doors. They are saying to one another, 'Come. Listen to the LORD's message.'

31 "My people come to you, just as they usually do. They sit in front of you. They listen to what you say. But they do not put it into practice. With their mouths they claim to be faithful to me. But in their hearts they want what belongs to others. They try to get rich by cheating them.

32 You are nothing more to them than someone who sings love songs. They say you have a beautiful voice. They think you play an instrument well. They listen to what you say. But they do not put it into practice.

33 "Everything I have told you will come true. You can be sure of it. Then the people will know that a prophet has been among them."

Ezekiel 34

1 A message came to me from the Lord. He said,

2 "Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel. Tell them, 'The LORD and King says, "How terrible it will be for you shepherds of Israel! You only take care of yourselves. You should take good care of your flocks.

3 Instead, you eat the butter. You dress yourselves with the wool. You kill the finest animals. But you do not take care of your flocks.

4 You have not made the weak ones in the flock stronger. You have not healed the sick. You have not bandaged those that are hurt. You have not brought back those that have wandered away. You have not searched for the lost. When you ruled over them, you were mean to them. You treated them badly.

5 " ' "So they were scattered because they did not have a shepherd. They became food for all of the wild animals.

6 My sheep wandered all over the mountains and high hills. They were scattered over the whole earth. No one searched for them. No one looked for them."

7 " 'Shepherds, listen to the LORD's message.

8 He says, "My flock does not have a shepherd. Many of my sheep have been stolen. They have become food for all of the wild animals. My shepherds did not care for my sheep. They did not even search for them. Instead, they only took care of themselves. And that is just as sure as I am alive," announces the LORD and King.

9 " 'Shepherds, listen to the LORD's message.

10 The LORD and King says, "I am against the shepherds. I will hold them accountable for my flock. I will stop them from taking care of the flock. Then they will not be able to feed themselves anymore. I will save my flock from their mouths. My sheep will no longer be food for them." ' "

11 The LORD and King says, "I myself will search for my sheep. I will look after them.

12 A shepherd looks after his scattered flock when he is with them. And I will look after my sheep. I will save them from all of the places where they were scattered on a dark and cloudy day.

13 "I will bring them out from among the nations. I will gather them together from other countries. I will bring them into their own land. They will eat grass on the mountains of Israel. I will also let them eat in the valleys and in all of the places in the land where people live.

14 I will take care of them in the best grasslands. They will eat grass on the high mountains of Israel. There they will lie down in the finest grasslands. They will eat grass in the best places on Israel's mountains.

15 "I myself will take care of my sheep. I will let them lie down in safety," announces the LORD and King.

16 "I will search for the lost. I will bring back those that have wandered away. I will bandage the ones that are hurt. I will make the weak ones stronger. But I will destroy those that are fat and strong. I will take good care of my sheep. I will treat them fairly."

17 The LORD and King says, "You are my flock. I will judge between one sheep and another. I will judge between rams and goats.

18 You already eat in the best grasslands. Must you also stomp all over the other fields? You already drink clear water. Must you also make the rest of the water muddy with your feet?

19 Must my flock have to eat the grass you have stomped on? Must they drink the water you have made muddy?"

20 So the LORD and King speaks to them. He says, "I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the skinny sheep.

21 You push the other sheep around with your hips and shoulders. You use your horns to butt all of the weak sheep. Finally, you drive them away.

22 But I will save my sheep. They will not be carried off anymore. I will judge between one sheep and another.

23 "I will place one shepherd over them. He will belong to the family line of my servant David. He will take good care of them. He will look after them. He will be their shepherd.

24 I am the Lord. I will be their God. And my servant from David's line will be prince among them. I have spoken. I am the Lord.

25 "I will make a covenant with them. It promises to give them peace. I will get rid of the wild animals in the land. Then my sheep can live safely in the desert. They can sleep in the forests.

26 "I will bless them. I will also bless the places surrounding my holy mountain of Zion. I will send down rain at the right time. There will be showers of blessing.

27 The trees in the fields will bear their fruit. And the ground will produce its crops. The people will be secure in their land. I will break the chains that hold them. I will save them from the powerful hands of those who made them slaves. Then they will know that I am the Lord.

28 "The nations will not carry them off anymore. Wild animals will no longer eat them up. They will live in safety. And no one will make them afraid.

29 I will give them a land that is famous for its crops. They will never be hungry there again. The nations will not make fun of them anymore.

30 "Then they will know that I am with them. I am the LORD their God. And they will know that they are my people Israel," announces the LORD and King.

31 "You are the sheep belonging to my flock. You are my people. And I am your God," announces the LORD and King.