1 A nd the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

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

2 S on of man, speak to your people and say to them, When I bring the sword upon a land and the people of the land take a man from among them and make him their watchman,

“Son of man, speak to the children of your people, and say to them: ‘When I bring the sword upon a land, and the people of the land take a man from their territory and make him their watchman,

3 I f when he sees the sword coming upon the land, he blows the trumpet and warns the people,

when he sees the sword coming upon the land, if he blows the trumpet and warns the people,

4 T hen whoever hears the sound of the trumpet and does not take warning, and the sword comes and takes him away, his blood shall be upon his own head.

then whoever hears the sound of the trumpet and does not take warning, if the sword comes and takes him away, his blood shall be on his own head.

5 H e heard the sound of the trumpet and did not take warning; his blood shall be upon himself. But he who takes warning shall save his life.

He heard the sound of the trumpet, but did not take warning; his blood shall be upon himself. But he who takes warning will save his life.

6 B ut if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet and the people are not warned, and the sword comes and takes any one of them, he is taken away in and for his perversity and iniquity, but his blood will I require at the watchman’s hand.

But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, and the people are not warned, and the sword comes and takes any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at the watchman’s hand.’

7 S o you, son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; therefore hear the word at My mouth and give them warning from Me.

“So you, son of man: I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel; therefore you shall hear a word from My mouth and warn them for Me.

8 W hen I say to the wicked, O wicked man, you shall surely die, and you do not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his perversity and iniquity, but his blood will I require at your hand.

When I say to the wicked, ‘O wicked man, you shall surely die!’ and you do not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at your hand.

9 B ut if you warn the wicked to turn from his evil way and he does not turn from his evil way, he shall die in his iniquity, but you will have saved your life.

Nevertheless if you warn the wicked to turn from his way, and he does not turn from his way, he shall die in his iniquity; but you have delivered your soul.

10 A nd you, son of man, say to the house of Israel, Thus you have said: Truly our transgressions and our sins are upon us, and we waste away because of them; how then can we live?

“Therefore you, O son of man, say to the house of Israel: ‘Thus you say, “If our transgressions and our sins lie upon us, and we pine away in them, how can we then live?”’

11 S ay to them, As I live, says the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil ways, for why will you die, O house of Israel?

Say to them: ‘ As I live,’ says the Lord God, ‘I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn, turn from your evil ways! For why should you die, O house of Israel?’ The Fairness of God’s Judgment

12 A nd you, son of man, say to your people, The uprightness and justice of the righteous shall not deliver him in the day of his transgression; and as for the wicked lawlessness of the wicked lawless, he shall not fall because of it in the day that he turns from his wickedness, neither shall the rigidly upright and just be able to live because of his past righteousness in the day that he sins and misses the mark.

“Therefore you, O son of man, say to the children of your people: ‘The righteousness of the righteous man shall not deliver him in the day of his transgression; as for the wickedness of the wicked, he shall not fall because of it in the day that he turns from his wickedness; nor shall the righteous be able to live because of his righteousness in the day that he sins.’

13 W hen I shall say to the righteous that he shall surely live, and he trusts to his own righteousness and commits iniquity (heinous sin), all his righteous deeds shall not be remembered; but for his perversity and iniquity that he has committed he shall die.

When I say to the righteous that he shall surely live, but he trusts in his own righteousness and commits iniquity, none of his righteous works shall be remembered; but because of the iniquity that he has committed, he shall die.

14 A gain, when I have said to the wicked, You shall surely die, if he turns from his sin and does that which is lawful and right—

Again, when I say to the wicked, ‘You shall surely die,’ if he turns from his sin and does what is lawful and right,

15 I f the wicked restores pledge, gives back what he had taken in robbery, walks in the statutes of life, without committing iniquity, he shall surely live; he shall not die.

if the wicked restores the pledge, gives back what he has stolen, and walks in the statutes of life without committing iniquity, he shall surely live; he shall not die.

16 N one of his sins that he has committed shall be remembered against him; he has done that which is lawful and right; he shall surely live.

None of his sins which he has committed shall be remembered against him; he has done what is lawful and right; he shall surely live.

17 Y et your people say, The way of the Lord is not perfect or even just; but as for them, it is their own way that is not perfect or even just.

“Yet the children of your people say, ‘The way of the Lord is not fair.’ But it is their way which is not fair!

18 W hen the righteous turns back from his righteousness and commits perverseness and iniquity, he shall even die in and because of it.

When the righteous turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity, he shall die because of it.

19 B ut if the wicked turns back from his wickedness and does what is lawful and right, he shall live because of it.

But when the wicked turns from his wickedness and does what is lawful and right, he shall live because of it.

20 Y et you say, The way of the Lord is not perfect or just. O you house of Israel, I will judge you, every one according to his own ways!

Yet you say, ‘The way of the Lord is not fair.’ O house of Israel, I will judge every one of you according to his own ways.” The Fall of Jerusalem

21 I n the twelfth year of our captivity, in the tenth, on the fifth of the month, a man who had escaped out of Jerusalem came to me, saying, The city is taken.

And it came to pass in the twelfth year of our captivity, in the tenth month, on the fifth day of the month, that one who had escaped from Jerusalem came to me and said, “The city has been captured!”

22 N ow the hand of the Lord had been upon me in the evening before this one who had escaped came, and He had opened my mouth coming to me in the morning, and my mouth was opened and I was no longer dumb.

Now the hand of the Lord had been upon me the evening before the man came who had escaped. And He had opened my mouth; so when he came to me in the morning, my mouth was opened, and I was no longer mute. The Cause of Judah’s Ruin

23 T hen the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

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

24 S on of man, those who inhabit those wastes of the ground of Israel are saying, Abraham was only one man and he inherited the land, but we are many; the land is surely given to us to possess as our inheritance.

“Son of man, they who inhabit those ruins in the land of Israel are saying, ‘Abraham was only one, and he inherited the land. But we are many; the land has been given to us as a possession.’

25 T herefore say to them, Thus says the Lord God: You eat meat with the blood and lift up your eyes to your idols and shed blood; shall you then possess the land?

“Therefore say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “You eat meat with blood, you lift up your eyes toward your idols, and shed blood. Should you then possess the land?

26 Y ou stand upon your sword; you commit abominations and each of you defiles your neighbor’s wife; shall you then possess the land?

You rely on your sword, you commit abominations, and you defile one another’s wives. Should you then possess the land?”’

27 S ay this to them, Thus says the Lord God: As I live, surely those who are in the waste places shall fall by the sword, and him that is in the open field will I give to the beasts to be devoured, and those who are in strongholds and in caves shall die by pestilence.

“Say thus to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “ As I live, surely those who are in the ruins shall fall by the sword, and the one who is in the open field I will give to the beasts to be devoured, and those who are in the strongholds and caves shall die of the pestilence.

28 A nd I will make the land a desolation and a waste, and her proud might shall cease, and the mountains of Israel shall be so desolate that no one will pass through them.

For I will make the land most desolate, her arrogant strength shall cease, and the mountains of Israel shall be so desolate that no one will pass through.

29 T hen shall they know, understand, and realize that I am the Lord, when I have made the land a desolation and a waste because of all their abominations which they have committed.

Then they shall know that I am the Lord, when I have made the land most desolate because of all their abominations which they have committed.”’ Hearing and Not Doing

30 A s for you, son of man, your people who talk of you by the walls and in the doors of the houses say one to another, every one to his brother, Come and hear what the word is that comes forth from the Lord.

“As for you, son of man, the children of your people are talking about you beside the walls and in the doors of the houses; and they speak to one another, everyone saying to his brother, ‘Please come and hear what the word is that comes from the Lord.’

31 A nd they come to you as people come, and they sit before you as My people, and they hear the words you say, but they will not do them; for with their mouths they show much love, but their hearts go after and are set on their gain.

So they come to you as people do, they sit before you as My people, and they hear your words, but they do not do them; for with their mouth they show much love, but their hearts pursue their own gain.

32 B ehold, you are to them as a very lovely song of one who has a pleasant voice and can play well on an instrument, for they hear your words but do not do them.

Indeed you are to them as a very lovely song of one who has a pleasant voice and can play well on an instrument; for they hear your words, but they do not do them.

33 W hen this comes to pass—for behold, it will come!—then shall they know, understand, and realize that a prophet has been among them.

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