22 The Lord gave this message to me: 2 ‘Son of man, you must warn the people in this city about their punishment. The people are murderers. They have done many disgusting things. Are you ready to tell them that? 3 Say to them, “This is what the Almighty Lord says: Because you murder people, you have caused your punishment to come. You make idols for yourselves, and that has made you unclean. 4 Because you have murdered people and you have made disgusting idols, you are now guilty. This has brought the time of your punishment very near. Your years of power have come to an end. I will cause the people of other nations to laugh at you. They will all insult you. 5 The people of countries that are near to you will laugh at you. Those who live far away will also laugh at you. You will no longer receive any honour because your city is full of trouble.
6 Each ruler of Israel that lives in you, Jerusalem, has been a murderer. Each one has used his power to kill people. 7 The people in the city do not respect their parents. They have been cruel to the foreigners who live among you. They have cheated widows and children who have no family. 8 You have not respected my holy things. You have not made my Sabbath days special. 9 There are men among you who tell lies so that they can kill other people. There are people who eat the food of idols on the mountains. They do disgusting things among you. 10 Some men have sex with their father's wife. Some men have sex with a woman at the time when she bleeds each month and she is unclean. 11 One man has sex with another man's wife. Another man has sex with his son's wife. Another man among you has sex with the daughter of his own father. These are disgusting things to do. 12 People among you accept bribes to kill somebody. When some of you lend money to people, you make them pay more money back to you. Some of you use your power to make people give you money. You people of Jerusalem have forgotten me. That is what the Lord says.
13 Listen to me! I will show you that I am angry with you. You have cheated people and taken their money. You have murdered people who live among you. 14 When I have punished you, you will no longer feel brave or strong. I, the Lord , have said what I will do. And I will do it. 15 I will send you away to live among many other nations. I will stop you doing evil things. 16 All the other nations will see that you are useless. Then you will know that I am the Lord .” ’
17 The Lord gave this message to me: 18 ‘Son of man, Israel's people have become like dirt to me. They are like useless bits of metal that remain after silver is made pure in a hot oven. 19 So this is what the Lord God says: All of you have become like useless dirt. So listen to me! I will bring you all together into the middle of Jerusalem. 20 It will be like a hot oven that I put you in. It will be like an oven where men cause different metals to melt to make them pure. Because I am very angry with you, I will bring you into the city to punish you there. 21 I will put you in my oven, Jerusalem. And I will burn you with my hot anger. 22 My great anger will cause you to melt, like men cause silver to melt in a hot oven. Then you will know that I am the Lord . And you will know that I have punished you with my anger.’
23 The Lord gave this message to me: 24 ‘Son of man, say to the land of Israel, “I am angry with you. Because of that, you will receive no rain to make you clean.”
25 The rulers in the land hurt people, like strong lions that tear animals in pieces. They use their power to destroy people. They take for themselves riches and valuable things that belong to other people. They have killed many men so that there are now many widows in the land.
26 The priests in the land do not obey my law. They do not respect my holy things. They do not think that holy things are different from ordinary things. They say that unclean things and clean things are the same. [ a ] They refuse to make my Sabbath days special. Because of this, people do not give me any honour.
27 The officers in the land are like wolves that catch other animals and tear them into pieces. They use their power to murder people so that they can take their money for themselves.
28 The prophets in the land give false messages. They say that bad things are good. They see false visions. They tell lies about what will happen. They say, “This is what the Almighty Lord says.” But I, the Lord , have not spoken to them.
29 The people in the land make people give them money. They rob people. They are cruel to poor people and to weak people. They cheat foreign people who live among them. They do not allow them to have justice.
30 I looked among the people for a man who would make the land safe. He would make it a good, strong place again, with nothing bad in it. Then I would not destroy it. But I could not find anyone like that. 31 So I will certainly destroy them. I will punish them with my great anger, like a fire that burns them completely. I will now punish them as they deserve for their sins. That is what the Almighty Lord says.’
22 The word of the Lord came to me. He said, 2 “Son of man, [ a ] will you judge the city of murderers? Will you tell her about all the terrible things she has done? 3 You must say, ‘This is what the Lord God says: The city is full of murderers, so her time of punishment will come. She made filthy idols for herself, and those idols made her filthy!
4 “‘People of Jerusalem, you killed many people. You made filthy idols. You are guilty, and the time has come to punish you. Your end has come. Other nations will make fun of you and laugh at you. 5 People far and near will make fun of you. You have ruined your name. You are filled with confusion.
6 “‘Look, all the leaders in Israel are using their strength just to kill other people. 7 And the people in Jerusalem don’t respect their parents. There in the city, they abuse the foreigners. They cheat orphans and widows in that place. 8 You hate all that I consider holy. You treat my special days of rest as if they are not important. 9 In Jerusalem, people tell lies in order to kill innocent people. They go to the mountains to worship false gods and then come back to Jerusalem to eat their fellowship meals.
“‘In Jerusalem, people commit many sexual sins. 10 There men commit sexual sins with their father’s wife. There the men rape women—even during their monthly time of bleeding. 11 One man commits a terrible sin against his own neighbor’s wife. Another man has sex with his daughter-in-law and makes her unclean. Another man rapes his father’s daughter—his very own sister. 12 There men accept bribes to kill people. You lend money and charge interest on the loans. You cheat your neighbors just to make a little money. You have even forgotten me.’ This is what the Lord God said.
13 “‘Now look! I will slam my hand down and stop you! I will punish you for cheating and killing people. 14 Will you be brave then? Will you be strong at the time I come to punish you? I am the Lord . I have spoken, and I will do what I said! 15 I will scatter you among the nations. I will force you to go to many countries. I will completely destroy the filthy things in this city. 16 But Jerusalem, you will become unclean. And the other nations will see all these things happen. Then you will know that I am the Lord .’”
17 The word of the Lord came to me. He said, 18 “Son of man, bronze, iron, lead, and tin are important metals, but when a worker melts silver to make it pure, those metals are poured off as waste. Israel has become like that waste to me. 19 So this is what the Lord God says: ‘All of you have become like worthless waste. So I will gather you into Jerusalem. 20 Workers put silver, bronze, iron, lead, and tin into a fire. They blow on the fire to make it hotter. Then the metals begin to melt. In the same way I will put you in my fire and melt you. That fire is my hot anger. 21 I will put you in my fire of anger and blow on it, and you will begin to melt. 22 In that city, you will be like silver melting in a fire. Then you will know that I am the Lord , and that I poured out my anger on you.’”
23 The word of the Lord came to me. He said, 24 “Son of man, speak to Israel. Tell her that she is not pure. [ b ] I am angry at that country, so that country has not received its rain. 25 The prophets in Jerusalem are making evil plans. They are like a lion—it roars when it begins to eat the animal it caught. They have destroyed many lives. They have taken many valuable things and made widows of many of the women in Jerusalem.
26 “The priests have really hurt my teachings. They don’t treat my holy things right—they don’t show they are important. They treat holy things the same as things that are not holy. They treat clean things like things that are unclean. They don’t teach the people about these things. They refuse to respect my special days of rest. They treat me as though I am not important.
27 “The leaders in Jerusalem are like a wolf eating the animal it has caught. They attack people and kill them just to get rich.
28 “The prophets don’t warn the people—they cover up the truth. They are like workers who don’t really repair a wall—they only put plaster over the holes. They only see lies. They do their magic to learn the future, but they only tell lies. They say, ‘This is what the Lord God said.’ But they are only lying—the Lord did not speak to them!
29 “The common people take advantage of each other. They cheat and steal from each other. They get rich by taking advantage of poor, helpless beggars, and they really cheat the foreigners. They are not fair to them at all!
30 “I asked the people to change their lives and protect their country. I asked people to fix the walls. I wanted them to stand by those holes in the wall and fight to protect their city. But no one came to help! 31 So I will show them my anger—I will completely destroy them. I will punish them for the evil things they have done. It is all their fault.” This is what the Lord God said.
22 Moreover the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,
2 Now, thou son of man, wilt thou judge, wilt thou judge the bloody city? yea, thou shalt shew her all her abominations.
3 Then say thou, Thus saith the Lord God , The city sheddeth blood in the midst of it, that her time may come, and maketh idols against herself to defile herself.
4 Thou art become guilty in thy blood that thou hast shed; and hast defiled thyself in thine idols which thou hast made; and thou hast caused thy days to draw near, and art come even unto thy years: therefore have I made thee a reproach unto the heathen, and a mocking to all countries.
5 Those that be near, and those that be far from thee, shall mock thee, which art infamous and much vexed.
6 Behold, the princes of Israel, every one were in thee to their power to shed blood.
7 In thee have they set light by father and mother: in the midst of thee have they dealt by oppression with the stranger: in thee have they vexed the fatherless and the widow.
8 Thou hast despised mine holy things, and hast profaned my sabbaths.
9 In thee are men that carry tales to shed blood: and in thee they eat upon the mountains: in the midst of thee they commit lewdness.
10 In thee have they discovered their fathers' nakedness: in thee have they humbled her that was set apart for pollution.
11 And one hath committed abomination with his neighbour's wife; and another hath lewdly defiled his daughter in law; and another in thee hath humbled his sister, his father's daughter.
12 In thee have they taken gifts to shed blood; thou hast taken usury and increase, and thou hast greedily gained of thy neighbours by extortion, and hast forgotten me, saith the Lord God .
13 Behold, therefore I have smitten mine hand at thy dishonest gain which thou hast made, and at thy blood which hath been in the midst of thee.
14 Can thine heart endure, or can thine hands be strong, in the days that I shall deal with thee? I the Lord have spoken it, and will do it.
15 And I will scatter thee among the heathen, and disperse thee in the countries, and will consume thy filthiness out of thee.
16 And thou shalt take thine inheritance in thyself in the sight of the heathen, and thou shalt know that I am the Lord .
17 And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,
18 Son of man, the house of Israel is to me become dross: all they are brass, and tin, and iron, and lead, in the midst of the furnace; they are even the dross of silver.
19 Therefore thus saith the Lord God ; Because ye are all become dross, behold, therefore I will gather you into the midst of Jerusalem.
20 As they gather silver, and brass, and iron, and lead, and tin, into the midst of the furnace, to blow the fire upon it, to melt it; so will I gather you in mine anger and in my fury, and I will leave you there, and melt you.
21 Yea, I will gather you, and blow upon you in the fire of my wrath, and ye shall be melted in the midst therof.
22 As silver is melted in the midst of the furnace, so shall ye be melted in the midst thereof; and ye shall know that I the Lord have poured out my fury upon you.
23 And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,
24 Son of man, say unto her, Thou art the land that is not cleansed, nor rained upon in the day of indignation.
25 There is a conspiracy of her prophets in the midst thereof, like a roaring lion ravening the prey; they have devoured souls; they have taken the treasure and precious things; they have made her many widows in the midst thereof.
26 Her priests have violated my law, and have profaned mine holy things: they have put no difference between the holy and profane, neither have they shewed difference between the unclean and the clean, and have hid their eyes from my sabbaths, and I am profaned among them.
27 Her princes in the midst thereof are like wolves ravening the prey, to shed blood, and to destroy souls, to get dishonest gain.
28 And her prophets have daubed them with untempered morter, seeing vanity, and divining lies unto them, saying, Thus saith the Lord God , when the Lord hath not spoken.
29 The people of the land have used oppression, and exercised robbery, and have vexed the poor and needy: yea, they have oppressed the stranger wrongfully.
30 And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none.
31 Therefore have I poured out mine indignation upon them; I have consumed them with the fire of my wrath: their own way have I recompensed upon their heads, saith the Lord God .
22 Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 2 “And you, son of man, will you judge, will you judge the bloody city? Then inform her of all her abominations. 3 And you shall say, ‘This is what the Lord [ a ] God says: “A city ( A ) shedding blood in her midst, so that her time is coming; and a city that makes idols, contrary to her own good , for defilement! 4 You have become ( B ) guilty by [ b ] the blood which you have shed, and you have become defiled by your idols which you have made. So you have brought your days closer and have come to your years; therefore I have made you a ( C ) disgrace to the nations, and an object of mocking to all the lands. 5 Those who are near and those who are far from you will make fun of you, you of ill repute, full of ( D ) turmoil.
6 “Behold, the ( E ) rulers of Israel, each according to his [ c ] power, have been among you for the purpose of shedding blood. 7 They have ( F ) treated father and mother with contempt among you. They have oppressed the ( G ) stranger in your midst; they have oppressed the ( H ) orphan and the widow among you. 8 You have ( I ) despised My holy things and ( J ) profaned My Sabbaths. 9 Slanderous men have been among you for the purpose of shedding blood, and among you they have eaten at the mountain shrines . In your midst they have ( K ) committed outrageous sin. 10 Among you [ d ] they have ( L ) uncovered their fathers’ nakedness; among you they have abused her who was ( M ) unclean in her menstruation. 11 And one has committed abomination with his ( N ) neighbor’s wife, another has outrageously defiled his ( O ) daughter-in-law, and another among you has sexually ( P ) abused his sister, his father’s daughter. 12 Among you they have ( Q ) taken bribes to shed blood; you have taken [ e ] ( R ) interest, you have injured your neighbors by ( S ) oppression, and you have ( T ) forgotten Me,” declares the Lord God .
13 “Behold, then, I strike with My hand your ( U ) profit which you have made and [ f ] the bloodshed which is among you. 14 Can ( V ) your heart endure, or can your hands be strong for the days that I will deal with you? ( W ) I, the Lord , have spoken and will act. 15 And I will ( X ) scatter you among the nations and disperse you among the lands, and I will ( Y ) eliminate your uncleanness from you. 16 Then you will defile yourself in the sight of the nations, and you will ( Z ) know that I am the Lord .”’”
17 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 18 “Son of man, the house of Israel has become [ g ] ( AA ) waste metal to Me; all of them are ( AB ) bronze, tin, iron, and lead in the ( AC ) smelting furnace; they are the [ h ] waste metal of silver. 19 Therefore, this is what the Lord God says: ‘Because all of you have become [ i ] waste metal, therefore, behold, I am going to gather you into the midst of Jerusalem. 20 As they gather silver, bronze, iron, lead, and tin into the ( AD ) smelting furnace to blow fire on it in order to melt it , so I will gather you in My anger and in My wrath, and I will place you there and melt you. 21 And I will gather you and blow on you with the fire of My wrath, and you will be melted in the midst of it. 22 As silver is melted in the furnace, so you will be melted in the midst of it; and you will know that I, the Lord , have ( AE ) poured out My wrath on you.’”
23 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 24 “Son of man, say to her, ‘You are a land that is ( AF ) not clean or rained on in the day of indignation.’ 25 There is a ( AG ) conspiracy of her prophets in her midst like a roaring lion tearing the prey. They have ( AH ) devoured lives; they have taken treasure and precious things; they have made many ( AI ) widows in the midst of her. 26 Her ( AJ ) priests have done violence to My Law and have ( AK ) profaned My holy things; they have made no ( AL ) distinction between the holy and the [ j ] common, and they have not taught the difference between the ( AM ) unclean and the clean; and they have closed their eyes from My Sabbaths, and I am defiled among them. 27 Her leaders within her are like wolves tearing the prey, by shedding blood and ( AN ) destroying lives in order to make ( AO ) dishonest profit. 28 And her prophets have coated with whitewash for them, seeing ( AP ) false visions and divining lies for them, saying, ‘This is what the Lord God says,’ when the Lord has not spoken. 29 The people of the land have practiced ( AQ ) extortion and committed robbery, and they have oppressed the poor and needy, and have ( AR ) oppressed the stranger without justice. 30 I ( AS ) searched for a man among them who would ( AT ) build up a wall and ( AU ) stand in the gap before Me for the land, so that I would not destroy it; but I found [ k ] no one. 31 So I have poured out My ( AV ) indignation on them; I have consumed them with the fire of My wrath; I have brought ( AW ) their way upon their heads,” declares the Lord God .
22 The word of the Lord came to me:
2 “Son of man, will you judge her? Will you judge this city of bloodshed? ( A ) Then confront her with all her detestable practices ( B ) 3 and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: You city that brings on herself doom by shedding blood ( C ) in her midst and defiles herself by making idols, 4 you have become guilty because of the blood you have shed ( D ) and have become defiled by the idols you have made. You have brought your days to a close, and the end of your years has come. ( E ) Therefore I will make you an object of scorn ( F ) to the nations and a laughingstock to all the countries. ( G ) 5 Those who are near and those who are far away will mock you, you infamous city, full of turmoil. ( H )
6 “‘See how each of the princes of Israel who are in you uses his power to shed blood. ( I ) 7 In you they have treated father and mother with contempt; ( J ) in you they have oppressed the foreigner ( K ) and mistreated the fatherless and the widow. ( L ) 8 You have despised my holy things and desecrated my Sabbaths. ( M ) 9 In you are slanderers ( N ) who are bent on shedding blood; ( O ) in you are those who eat at the mountain shrines ( P ) and commit lewd acts. ( Q ) 10 In you are those who dishonor their father’s bed; ( R ) in you are those who violate women during their period, ( S ) when they are ceremonially unclean. ( T ) 11 In you one man commits a detestable offense with his neighbor’s wife, ( U ) another shamefully defiles his daughter-in-law, ( V ) and another violates his sister, ( W ) his own father’s daughter. ( X ) 12 In you are people who accept bribes ( Y ) to shed blood; you take interest ( Z ) and make a profit from the poor. You extort unjust gain from your neighbors. ( AA ) And you have forgotten ( AB ) me, declares the Sovereign Lord . ( AC )
13 “‘I will surely strike my hands ( AD ) together at the unjust gain ( AE ) you have made and at the blood ( AF ) you have shed in your midst. ( AG ) 14 Will your courage endure ( AH ) or your hands ( AI ) be strong in the day I deal with you? I the Lord have spoken, ( AJ ) and I will do it. ( AK ) 15 I will disperse you among the nations and scatter ( AL ) you through the countries; and I will put an end to ( AM ) your uncleanness. ( AN ) 16 When you have been defiled [ a ] in the eyes of the nations, you will know that I am the Lord .’”
17 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 18 “Son of man, the people of Israel have become dross ( AO ) to me; all of them are the copper, tin, iron and lead left inside a furnace. ( AP ) They are but the dross of silver. ( AQ ) 19 Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: ‘Because you have all become dross, ( AR ) I will gather you into Jerusalem. 20 As silver, copper, iron, lead and tin are gathered into a furnace to be melted with a fiery blast, so will I gather you in my anger and my wrath and put you inside the city and melt you. ( AS ) 21 I will gather you and I will blow ( AT ) on you with my fiery wrath, and you will be melted inside her. ( AU ) 22 As silver is melted ( AV ) in a furnace, so you will be melted inside her, and you will know that I the Lord have poured out my wrath ( AW ) on you.’” ( AX )
23 Again the word of the Lord came to me: 24 “Son of man, say to the land, ‘You are a land that has not been cleansed or rained on in the day of wrath.’ ( AY ) 25 There is a conspiracy ( AZ ) of her princes [ b ] within her like a roaring lion ( BA ) tearing its prey; they devour people, ( BB ) take treasures and precious things and make many widows ( BC ) within her. 26 Her priests do violence to my law ( BD ) and profane my holy things; they do not distinguish between the holy and the common; ( BE ) they teach that there is no difference between the unclean and the clean; ( BF ) and they shut their eyes to the keeping of my Sabbaths, so that I am profaned ( BG ) among them. ( BH ) 27 Her officials ( BI ) within her are like wolves ( BJ ) tearing their prey; they shed blood and kill people ( BK ) to make unjust gain. ( BL ) 28 Her prophets whitewash ( BM ) these deeds for them by false visions and lying divinations. ( BN ) They say, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says’—when the Lord has not spoken. ( BO ) 29 The people of the land practice extortion and commit robbery; ( BP ) they oppress the poor and needy and mistreat the foreigner, ( BQ ) denying them justice. ( BR )
30 “I looked for someone among them who would build up the wall ( BS ) and stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found no one. ( BT ) 31 So I will pour out my wrath on them and consume them with my fiery anger, ( BU ) bringing down ( BV ) on their own heads all they have done, declares the Sovereign Lord . ( BW ) ”
