1 “ You also, son of man, take a clay tablet and lay it before you, and portray on it a city, Jerusalem.

“Now, son of man, get a hard clay block. Set it down in front of you and draw the city of Jerusalem on it.

2 L ay siege against it, build a siege wall against it, and heap up a mound against it; set camps against it also, and place battering rams against it all around.

Then build a battle-wall around it to shut it in, and build a hill of dirt against the wall. Cut down trees and lay them on wheels all around the city, to use for breaking down the walls.

3 M oreover take for yourself an iron plate, and set it as an iron wall between you and the city. Set your face against it, and it shall be besieged, and you shall lay siege against it. This will be a sign to the house of Israel.

Then get an iron plate and set it up as an iron wall between you and the city, and turn your face toward it. It will be shut in, and you will fight a battle against it. This will be something special for the people of Israel to see.

4 “ Lie also on your left side, and lay the iniquity of the house of Israel upon it. According to the number of the days that you lie on it, you shall bear their iniquity.

“Then lie on your left side, and I will lay the sin of the people of Israel upon you. You will be under the weight of their sin for the number of days that you lie on your side.

5 F or I have laid on you the years of their iniquity, according to the number of the days, three hundred and ninety days; so you shall bear the iniquity of the house of Israel.

I have set a number of days for you which is the same as the number of years of their sin, 390 days. This is how long you must be under the weight of the sin of the people of Israel.

6 A nd when you have completed them, lie again on your right side; then you shall bear the iniquity of the house of Judah forty days. I have laid on you a day for each year.

When you have completed these, you must lie down a second time, but on your right side. And you must be under the weight of the sin of the people of Judah. I have set a time of forty days for you to do this, one day for each year.

7 “ Therefore you shall set your face toward the siege of Jerusalem; your arm shall be uncovered, and you shall prophesy against it.

Then you must turn your face toward the battle against Jerusalem with no covering on your arm, and tell what will happen against the city.

8 A nd surely I will restrain you so that you cannot turn from one side to another till you have ended the days of your siege.

I will tie you up with ropes so that you cannot turn from one side to the other, until you have completed the days of your battle.

9 “ Also take for yourself wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and spelt; put them into one vessel, and make bread of them for yourself. During the number of days that you lie on your side, three hundred and ninety days, you shall eat it.

“Take wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet and spelt and put them in one pot, and make them into bread for yourself. Eat it during the 390 days that you lie on your side.

10 A nd your food which you eat shall be by weight, twenty shekels a day; from time to time you shall eat it.

The food you eat each day will weigh as much as twenty pieces of silver, and will have to last until the next day.

11 Y ou shall also drink water by measure, one-sixth of a hin; from time to time you shall drink.

And the water you drink each day will be enough to fill a bottle. You will drink it from time to time.

12 A nd you shall eat it as barley cakes; and bake it using fuel of human waste in their sight.”

Eat your food as you would barley cakes, making it ready in front of their eyes over a fire burning human waste.”

13 T hen the Lord said, “So shall the children of Israel eat their defiled bread among the Gentiles, where I will drive them.”

The Lord said, “In this way the people of Israel will eat unclean food among the nations where I will drive them.”

14 S o I said, “Ah, Lord God! Indeed I have never defiled myself from my youth till now; I have never eaten what died of itself or was torn by beasts, nor has abominable flesh ever come into my mouth.”

But I said, “O Lord God! See, I have never been unclean. Since I was young until now, I have never eaten what died of itself or what was torn by wild animals. No unclean meat has ever come into my mouth.”

15 T hen He said to me, “See, I am giving you cow dung instead of human waste, and you shall prepare your bread over it.”

So He said to me, “Then I will let you make your bread over cow’s waste instead of human waste.”

16 M oreover He said to me, “Son of man, surely I will cut off the supply of bread in Jerusalem; they shall eat bread by weight and with anxiety, and shall drink water by measure and with dread,

And He said to me, “Son of man, I am going to take away the bread that is needed in Jerusalem. They will weigh the bread they eat and they will drink water from small cups, and be afraid

17 t hat they may lack bread and water, and be dismayed with one another, and waste away because of their iniquity.

because there will not be enough bread and water. They will look at one another in fear, and waste away in their sin.