To The Word – Day 192

₁God's Spirit lifted me up and took me to the east gate of the Temple. There near the gate I saw 25 men, including Jaazaniah son of Azzur and Pelatiah son of Benaiah, two leaders of the nation.

₂God said to me, “Mortal man, these men make evil plans and give bad advice in this city. ₃They say, ‘We will soon be building houses again. The city is like a cooking pot, and we are like the meat in it, but at least it protects us from the fire.’ ₄Now then, denounce them, mortal man.”

₅The Spirit of the LORD took control of me, and the LORD told me to give the people this message: “People of Israel, I know what you are saying and what you are planning. ₆You have murdered so many people here in the city that the streets are full of corpses.

₇“So this is what I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying to you. This city is indeed a cooking pot, but what is the meat? The corpses of those you have killed! You will not be here — I will throw you out of the city! ₈Are you afraid of swords? I will bring men with swords to attack you. ₉I will take you out of the city and hand you over to foreigners. I have sentenced you to death, ₁₀and you will be killed in battle in your own country. Then everyone will know that I am the LORD. ₁₁This city will not protect you as a pot protects the meat in it. I will punish you wherever you may be in the land of Israel. ₁₂You will know that I am the LORD and that while you were keeping the laws of the neighbouring nations, you were breaking my laws and disobeying my commands.”

₁₃While I was prophesying, Pelatiah dropped dead. I threw myself face downwards on the ground and shouted, “No, Sovereign LORD! Are you going to kill everyone left in Israel?”

₁₄The LORD spoke to me. ₁₅“Mortal man,” he said, “the people who live in Jerusalem are talking about you and your fellow-Israelites who are in exile. They say, ‘The exiles are too far away to worship the LORD. He has given us possession of the land.’

₁₆“Now tell your fellow-exiles what I am saying. I am the one who sent them to live in far-off nations and scattered them in other countries. Yet, for the time being I will be present with them in the lands where they have gone.

₁₇“So tell them what I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying. I will gather them out of the countries where I scattered them, and will give the land of Israel back to them. ₁₈When they return, they are to get rid of all the filthy, disgusting idols they find. ₁₉I will give them a new heart and a new mind. I will take away their stubborn heart of stone and will give them an obedient heart. ₂₀Then they will keep my laws and faithfully obey all my commands. They will be my people, and I will be their God. ₂₁But I will punish the people who love to worship filthy, disgusting idols. I will punish them for what they have done.” The Sovereign LORD has spoken.

₂₂The living creatures began to fly, and the wheels went with them. The dazzling light of the presence of the God of Israel was over them. ₂₃Then the dazzling light left the city and moved to the mountain east of it. ₂₄In the vision the Spirit of God lifted me up and brought me back to the exiles in Babylonia. Then the vision faded, ₂₅and I told the exiles everything that the LORD had shown me.

₁The LORD spoke to me. ₂“Mortal man,” he said, “you are living among rebellious people. They have eyes, but they see nothing; they have ears, but they hear nothing, because they are rebellious.

₃“Now, mortal man, pack a bundle just as a refugee would, and start out before nightfall. Let everyone see you leaving and going to another place. Maybe those rebels will notice you. ₄While it is still daylight, pack your bundle for exile, so that they can see you, and then let them watch you leave in the evening as if you were going into exile. ₅While they are watching, break a hole through the wall of your house and take your pack out through it. ₆Let them watch you putting your pack on your shoulder and going out into the dark with your eyes covered, so that you can't see where you are going. What you do will be a warning to the Israelites.”

₇I did what the LORD told me to do. That day I packed a bundle as a refugee would, and that evening as it was getting dark I dug a hole in the wall with my hands and went out. While everyone watched, I put the pack on my shoulder and left.

₈The next morning the LORD spoke to me. ₉“Mortal man,” he said, “now that those Israelite rebels are asking you what you're doing, ₁₀tell them what I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying to them. This message is for the prince ruling in Jerusalem and for all the people who live there. ₁₁Tell them that what you have done is a sign of what will happen to them — they will be refugees and captives. ₁₂The prince who is ruling them will shoulder his pack in the dark and escape through a hole that they dig for him in the wall. He will cover his eyes and not see where he is going. ₁₃But I will spread out my net and trap him in it. Then I will take him to the city of Babylon, where he will die without having seen it. ₁₄I will scatter in every direction all the members of his court and his advisers and bodyguard, and people will search for them to kill them.

₁₅“When I scatter them among the other nations and in foreign countries, they will know that I am the LORD. ₁₆I will let a few of them survive the war, the famine, and the diseases, so that there among the nations they will realize how disgusting their actions have been and will acknowledge that I am the LORD.”

₁₇The LORD spoke to me. ₁₈“Mortal man,” he said, “tremble when you eat, and shake with fear when you drink. ₁₉Tell the whole nation that this is the message of the Sovereign LORD to the people of Jerusalem who are still living in their land: they will tremble when they eat and shake with fear when they drink. Their land will be stripped bare, because everyone who lives there is lawless. ₂₀Cities that are now full of people will be destroyed, and the country will be made a wilderness. Then they will know that I am the LORD.”

₂₁The LORD spoke to me. ₂₂“Mortal man,” he said, “why do the people of Israel repeat this proverb: ‘Time goes by, and predictions come to nothing’? ₂₃Now tell them what I, the Sovereign LORD, have to say about that. I will put an end to that proverb. It won't be repeated in Israel any more. Tell them instead: the time has come, and the predictions are coming true!

₂₄“Among the people of Israel there will be no more false visions or misleading prophecies. ₂₅I, the LORD, will speak to them, and what I say will be done. There will be no more delay. In your own lifetime, you rebels, I will do what I have warned you I would do. I have spoken,” says the Sovereign LORD.

₂₆The LORD said to me, ₂₇“Mortal man, the Israelites think that your visions and prophecies are about the distant future. ₂₈So tell them that I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying: there will be no more delay. What I have said will be done. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken!”

₁The LORD spoke to me. ₂“Mortal man,” he said, “denounce the prophets of Israel who make up their own prophecies. Tell them to listen to the word of the LORD.”

₃This is what the Sovereign LORD says: “These foolish prophets are doomed! They provide their own inspiration and invent their own visions. ₄People of Israel, your prophets are as useless as foxes living among the ruins of a city. ₅They don't guard the places where the walls have crumbled, nor do they rebuild the walls, and so Israel cannot be defended when war comes on the day of the LORD. ₆Their visions are false, and their predictions are lies. They claim that they are speaking my message, but I have not sent them. Yet they expect their words to come true! ₇I tell them: those visions you see are false, and the predictions you make are lies. You say that they are my words, but I haven't spoken to you!”

₈So the Sovereign LORD says to them, “Your words are false, and your visions are lies. I am against you. ₉I am about to punish you prophets who have false visions and make misleading predictions. You will not be there when my people gather to make decisions; your names will not be included in the list of the citizens of Israel; you will never return to your land. Then you will know that I am the Sovereign LORD.

₁₀“The prophets mislead my people by saying that all is well. All is certainly not well! My people have put up a wall of loose stones, and then the prophets have come and covered it with whitewash. ₁₁Tell the prophets that their wall is going to fall down. I will send a pouring rain. Hailstones will fall on it, and a strong wind will blow against it. ₁₂The wall will collapse, and everyone will ask you what good the whitewash did.”

₁₃Now this is what the Sovereign LORD says: “In my anger I will send a strong wind, pouring rain, and hailstones to destroy the wall. ₁₄I intend to break down the wall they whitewashed, to shatter it, and to leave the foundation stones bare. It will collapse and kill you all. Then everyone will know that I am the LORD.

₁₅“The wall and those who covered it with whitewash will feel the force of my anger. Then I will tell you that the wall is gone and so are those who whitewashed it — ₁₆those prophets who assured Jerusalem that all was well, when all was not well!” The Sovereign LORD has spoken.

₁₇The LORD said, “Now, mortal man, look at the women among your people who make up predictions. Denounce them ₁₈and tell them what the Sovereign LORD is saying to them:

“You women are doomed! You sew magic wristbands for everyone and make magic scarves for everyone to wear on their heads, so that they can have power over other people's lives. You want to possess the power of life and death over my people and to use it for your own benefit. ₁₉You dishonour me in front of my people in order to get a few handfuls of barley and a few pieces of bread. You kill people who don't deserve to die, and you keep people alive who don't deserve to live. So you tell lies to my people, and they believe you.”

₂₀Now this is what the Sovereign LORD says: “I hate the wristbands that you use in your attempt to control life and death. I will rip them off your arms and set free the people that you were controlling. ₂₁I will rip off your scarves and let my people escape from your power once and for all. Then you will know that I am the LORD.

₂₂“By your lies you discourage good people, whom I do not wish to hurt. You prevent evil people from giving up evil and saving their lives. ₂₃So now your false visions and misleading predictions are over. I am rescuing my people from your power, so that you will know that I am the LORD.”

₁Some of the leaders of the Israelites came to consult me about the LORD's will. ₂Then the LORD spoke to me. ₃“Mortal man,” he said, “these men have given their hearts to idols and are letting idols lead them into sin. Do they think I will give them an answer?

₄“Now speak to them and tell them what I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying to them: every Israelite who has given his heart to idols and lets them lead him into sin and who then comes to consult a prophet, will get an answer from me — the answer that his many idols deserve! ₅All those idols have turned the Israelites away from me, but by my answer I hope to win back their loyalty.

₆“Now then, tell the Israelites what I, the Sovereign LORD, am saying: turn back and leave your disgusting idols.

₇“Whenever one of the Israelites or one of the foreigners who live in the Israelite community turns away from me and worships idols, and then goes to consult a prophet, I, the LORD, will give him his answer! ₈I will oppose him. I will make an example of him. I will remove him from the community of my people, so that you will know that I am the LORD.

₉“If a prophet is deceived into giving a false answer, it is because I, the LORD, have deceived him. I will remove him from the people of Israel. ₁₀Both the prophet and the one who consults him will get the same punishment. ₁₁I will do this to keep the Israelites from deserting me and defiling themselves by their sins. They are to be my people, and I will be their God.” The Sovereign LORD has spoken.

₁₂The LORD spoke to me. ₁₃“Mortal man,” he said, “if a country sins and is unfaithful to me, I will stretch out my hand and destroy its supply of food. I will send a famine and kill people and animals alike. ₁₄Even if those three men, Noah, Danel, and Job, were living there, their goodness would save only their own lives.” The Sovereign LORD has spoken.

₁₅“Or I might send wild animals to kill the people, making the land so dangerous that no one could travel through it, ₁₆and even if those three men lived there — as surely as I, the Sovereign LORD, am the living God — they would not be able to save even their own children. They would save only their own lives, and the land would become a wilderness.

₁₇“Or I might bring war on that country and send destructive weapons to wipe out people and animals alike, ₁₈and even if those three men lived there — as surely as I, the Sovereign LORD, am the living God — they would not be able to save even their children, but only their own lives.

₁₉“If I send an epidemic on that country and in my anger take many lives, killing people and animals, ₂₀even if Noah, Danel, and Job lived there — as surely as I, the Sovereign LORD, am the living God — they would not be able to save even their own children. Their goodness would save only their own lives.”

₂₁This is what the Sovereign LORD is saying: “I will send my four worst punishments on Jerusalem — war, famine, wild animals, and disease — to destroy people and animals alike. ₂₂If anyone does survive and save his children, look at them when they come to you. See how evil they are, and be convinced that the punishment I am bringing on Jerusalem is justified; ₂₃then you will know that there was good reason for everything I did.” The Sovereign LORD has spoken.

₁The LORD spoke to me. ₂“Mortal man,” he said, “how does a vine compare with a tree? What good is a branch of a grapevine compared with the trees of the forest? ₃Can you use it to make anything? Can you even make a peg out of it to hang things on? ₄It is only good for building a fire. And when the ends are burnt up and the middle is charred, can you make anything out of it? ₅It was useless even before it was burnt. Now that the fire has burnt it and charred it, it is even more useless.”

₆Now this is what the Sovereign LORD is saying, “Just as a vine is taken from the forest and burnt, so I will take the people who live in Jerusalem ₇and will punish them. They have escaped one fire, but now fire will burn them up. When I punish them, you will know that I am the LORD. ₈They have been unfaithful to me, and so I will make the country a wilderness.” The Sovereign LORD has spoken.