1 T hen He said to me, “Son of man, eat what is in front of you. Eat this book, then go and speak to the people of Israel.”

And He saith unto me, `Son of man, that which thou findest eat, eat this roll, and go, speak unto the house of Israel.'

2 S o I opened my mouth, and He fed me this book.

And I open my mouth, and He causeth me to eat this roll.

3 A nd He said to me, “Son of man, eat this book that I give you and fill your stomach with it.” So I ate it, and it was as sweet as honey in my mouth.

And He saith unto me, `Son of man, thy belly thou dost feed, and thy bowels thou dost fill with this roll that I am giving unto thee;' and I eat it, and it is in my mouth as honey for sweetness.

4 T hen He said to me, “Son of man, go to the people of Israel, and speak My words to them.

And He saith unto me, `Son of man, go, enter in unto the house of Israel, and thou hast spoken with My words unto them.

5 F or you are not being sent to people of strange speech and a hard language, but to the people of Israel.

For, not unto a people deep of lip and heavy of tongue thou sent -- unto the house of Israel;

6 Y ou are not being sent to many people of strange speech and a hard language whom you cannot understand. If I had sent you to them, they would have listened to you.

not unto many peoples, deep of lip and heavy of tongue, whose words thou dost not understand. If I had not sent thee unto them -- they, they do hearken unto thee,

7 B ut the people of Israel will not listen to you, for they are not willing to listen to Me. All the people of Israel are strong-willed and show no respect.

but the house of Israel are not willing to hearken unto thee, for they are not willing to hearken unto Me, for all the house of Israel are brazen-faced and strong-hearted.

8 S ee, I have made you as strong-willed and as hard as they are.

`Lo, I have made thy face strong against their face, and thy forehead strong against their forehead.

9 I have made your forehead harder than the hardest stone. Do not be afraid of them. Do not be afraid of how they look, even if they do not obey Me.”

As an adamant harder than a rock I have made thy forehead; thou dost not fear them, nor art thou affrighted before them, for a rebellious house they.'

10 H e said to me, “Son of man, take all My words that I say to you into your heart, and hear with your ears.

And He saith unto me, `Son of man, all My words, that I speak unto thee, receive with thy heart, and with thine ears hear;

11 T hen go to the Jews who have been taken away from their land. Go to the sons of your people. And if they listen or not, tell them, ‘This is what the Lord God says.’”

and go, enter in unto the Removed, unto the sons of thy people, and thou hast spoken unto them, and hast said unto them: Thus said the Lord Jehovah: whether they hear, or whether they forbear.'

12 T hen the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard a loud sounding voice behind me say, “Great is the shining-greatness of the Lord from His place.”

And lift me up doth a spirit, and I hear behind me a noise, a great rushing -- `Blessed the honour of Jehovah from His place!' --

13 I heard the sound of the wings of the living beings touching one another, and the sound of the wheels beside them. It was a loud rushing sound.

even a noise of the wings of the living creatures touching one another, and a noise of the wheels over-against them, even a noise of a great rushing.

14 T he Spirit lifted me up and took me away. And I went with a bitter and angry spirit. The hand of the Lord was strong upon me.

And a spirit hath lifted me up, and doth take me away, and I go bitterly, in the heat of my spirit, and the hand of Jehovah on me strong.

15 T hen I came to the Jews who had been taken from their land and who lived by the Chebar River at Tel-abib. I sat among them seven days where they were living, and I was filled with fear. Ezekiel to Watch Over Israel

And I come in unto the Removed, at Tel-Ahib, who are dwelling at the river Chebar, and where they are dwelling I also dwell seven days, causing astonishment in their midst.

16 A t the end of seven days the Word of the Lord came to me, saying,

And it cometh to pass, at the end of seven days,

17 “ Son of man, I have chosen you to be a watchman over the people of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from My mouth, tell them of the danger.

that there is a word of Jehovah unto me, saying, `Son of man, a watchman I have given thee to the house of Israel, and thou hast heard from My mouth a word, and hast warned them from Me.

18 I f I say to the sinful man, ‘You will die for sure,’ and you do not tell him of the danger, and try to turn him from his sinful way so that he may live, that sinful man will die in his sin. But you will be guilty for his blood.

In My saying to the wicked: Thou dost surely die; and thou hast not warned him, nor hast spoken to warn the wicked from his wicked way, so that he doth live; he -- the wicked -- in his iniquity dieth, and his blood from thy hand I require.

19 B ut if you tell a sinful man of the danger he is in, and he does not turn from his sins or from his sinful way, then he will die in his sin. But you will have saved yourself.

And thou, because thou hast warned the wicked, and he hath not turned back from his wickedness, and from his wicked way, he in his iniquity dieth, and thou thy soul hast delivered.

20 A gain, if a right and good man turns away from his right and good way and sins, and I put a cause of falling in his way, he will die. Because you have not told him of the danger, he will die in his sin, and the right and good things he has done will not be remembered. But you will be guilty for his blood.

`And in the turning back of the righteous from his righteousness, and he hath done perversity, and I have put a stumbling-block before him, he dieth; because thou hast not warned him, in his sin he dieth, and not remembered is his righteousness that he hath done, and his blood from thy hand I require.

21 Y et if you have told the right and good man of the danger of his sinning, and he does not sin, he will live for sure because he listened to you. And you will have saved yourself.” Ezekiel Is Not Able to Speak

And thou, because thou hast warned him -- the righteous -- that the righteous sin not, and he hath not sinned, he surely liveth, because he hath been warned; and thou thy soul hast delivered.'

22 T he hand of the Lord was upon me there, and He said to me, “Get up, go out to the plain, and I will speak to you there.”

And there is on me there a hand of Jehovah, and He saith to me, `Rise, go forth to the valley, and there I do speak with thee.'

23 S o I got up and went out to the plain, and saw the shining-greatness of the Lord standing there. It was like the shining-greatness which I saw by the Chebar River, and I fell on my face.

And I rise and go forth unto the valley, and lo, there the honour of Jehovah is standing as the honour that I had seen by the river Chebar, and I fall on my face.

24 T hen the Spirit came into me and made me stand on my feet. And He spoke and said to me, “Go, shut yourself up in your house.

And come into me doth a spirit, and causeth me to stand on my feet, and He speaketh with me, and saith unto me, `Go in, be shut up in the midst of thy house.

25 A s for you, son of man, they will put ropes on you and tie you up with them, so that you cannot go out among the people.

`And thou, son of man, lo, they have put on thee thick bands, and have bound thee with them, and thou goest not forth in their midst;

26 A nd I will make your tongue stick to the roof of your mouth so that you cannot speak. You will not be able to speak sharp words to them, for they will not obey Me.

and thy tongue I cause to cleave unto thy palate, and thou hast been dumb, and art not to them for a reprover, for a rebellious house they.

27 B ut when I speak to you, I will open your mouth, and you will tell them, ‘This is what the Lord God says.’ He who hears, let him hear. And he who is not willing to hear, let him not be willing. For they are a sinful people.

And in My speaking with thee, I do open thy mouth, and thou hast said unto them: Thus said the Lord Jehovah; the hearer doth hear, and the forbearer doth forbear; for a rebellious house they.