Ezekiel 11

Moreover, the Spirit lifted me up and brought me to the gate of the Lord’s house, which faced eastward. And behold, at the entrance of the gate there were twenty-five men; and I saw among them Jaazaniah the son of Azzur and Pelatiah the son of Benaiah, princes of the people.

Then the Spirit lifted me up and brought me to the gate of the house of the Lord that faces east. There at the entrance of the gate were twenty-five men, and I saw among them Jaazaniah son of Azzur and Pelatiah son of Benaiah, leaders of the people.

Then the Spirit said to me, “Son of man, these are the men who devise evil and give wicked advice in this city,

The Lord said to me, ‘Son of man, these are the men who are plotting evil and giving wicked advice in this city.

who say, ‘Is not the time near to build houses? This city is [secure just like] the pot and we are the meat [in it].’

They say, “Haven’t our houses been recently rebuilt? This city is a pot, and we are the meat in it.”

Therefore, prophesy against them; prophesy, son of man!”

Therefore prophesy against them; prophesy, son of man.’

Then the Spirit of the Lord fell upon me, and He said to me, “Say, ‘Thus says the Lord, “This is what you think, house of Israel, for I know your thoughts.

Then the Spirit of the Lord came on me, and he told me to say: ‘This is what the Lord says: that is what you are saying, you leaders in Israel, but I know what is going through your mind.

You have multiplied your slain in this city, and you have filled its streets with the corpses [of righteous men].”

You have killed many people in this city and filled its streets with the dead.

Therefore, thus says the Lord God, “Your dead whom you have laid in the midst of your city are the meat and this city is the pot; but I shall force you out of [the security of] it.

‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: the bodies you have thrown there are the meat and this city is the pot, but I will drive you out of it.

You have feared the sword; so I will bring a sword upon you,” says the Lord God.

You fear the sword, and the sword is what I will bring against you, declares the Sovereign Lord.

“And I will bring you out of the midst of the city and hand you over to strangers and execute judgment against you.

I will drive you out of the city and deliver you into the hands of foreigners and inflict punishment on you.

You will fall by the sword; I will judge and punish you [in front of your neighbors] at the border of [the land of] Israel; and you will know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord.

You will fall by the sword, and I will execute judgment on you at the borders of Israel. Then you will know that I am the Lord.

This city will not be a pot for you, nor will you be meat [safe] in it, but I will judge you at the border of Israel.

This city will not be a pot for you, nor will you be the meat in it; I will execute judgment on you at the borders of Israel.

And you will know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord; for you have not walked in My statutes nor have you executed My ordinances, but you have acted in accordance with the ordinances of the nations around you.”’”

And you will know that I am the Lord, for you have not followed my decrees or kept my laws but have conformed to the standards of the nations around you.’

Now it came about while I was prophesying, that Pelatiah the son of Benaiah died. Then I fell face downward and cried out loudly, “Alas, Lord God! Will You bring the remnant of Israel to a complete end?”

Promise of Restoration

Now as I was prophesying, Pelatiah son of Benaiah died. Then I fell face down and cried out in a loud voice, ‘Alas, Sovereign Lord! Will you completely destroy the remnant of Israel?’

The promise of Israel’s return

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

The word of the Lord came to me:

“Son of man, your brothers, your relatives, your fellow exiles and the whole house of Israel, all of them, are those to whom the [present] inhabitants of Jerusalem have said, ‘Go far away from the Lord; this land has been given to us as a possession.’

‘Son of man, the people of Jerusalem have said of your fellow exiles and all the other Israelites, “They are far away from the Lord; this land was given to us as our possession.”

Therefore say, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “Though I had removed Israel far away among the nations and though I had scattered them among the countries, yet I have been a sanctuary for them for a little while in the countries to which they had gone.”’

‘Therefore say: “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: although I sent them far away among the nations and scattered them among the countries, yet for a little while I have been a sanctuary for them in the countries where they have gone.”

Therefore say, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “I will gather you from the peoples and assemble you out of the countries where you have been scattered, and I will give [back] to you the land of Israel.”’

‘Therefore say: “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will gather you from the nations and bring you back from the countries where you have been scattered, and I will give you back the land of Israel again.”

When they return there, they will remove from it all [traces of] its detestable things and all its repulsive things (remnants of paganism).

‘They will return to it and remove all its vile images and detestable idols.

And I will give them one heart [a new heart], and put a new spirit within them. I will take from them the heart of stone, and will give them a heart of flesh [that is responsive to My touch],

I will give them an undivided heart and put a new spirit in them; I will remove from them their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh.

that they may walk in My statutes and keep My ordinances and do them. Then they shall be My people, and I will be their God.

Then they will follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws. They will be my people, and I will be their God.

But as for those whose heart longs for and follows after their detestable things and their repulsive things [associated with idolatry], on their own head I will repay [them in full for] their [vile] conduct,” says the Lord God.

But as for those whose hearts are devoted to their vile images and detestable idols, I will bring down on their own heads what they have done, declares the Sovereign Lord.’

Then the cherubim lifted up their wings with the wheels beside them, and the [Shekinah] glory of the God of Israel hovered over them.

Then the cherubim, with the wheels beside them, spread their wings, and the glory of the God of Israel was above them.

Then the glory and brilliance of the Lord went up from the midst of the city and paused over the mountain, [the Mount of Olives] which is east of the city.

The glory of the Lord went up from within the city and stopped above the mountain east of it.

And the Spirit lifted me up and brought me in a vision by the Spirit of God to the exiles in Chaldea (Babylonia). Then the vision that I had seen left me.

The Spirit lifted me up and brought me to the exiles in Babylonia^[a] in the vision given by the Spirit of God.

Then the vision I had seen went up from me,

Then I told the exiles everything that the Lord had shown me.

and I told the exiles everything the Lord had shown me.