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12 ¶ The word of the LORD also came unto me, saying,

Son of man, thou dwellest in the midst of a rebellious house, which have eyes to see and do not see; they have ears to hear and do not hear; for they are a rebellious house.

Therefore, thou son of man, prepare thee stuff for moving and move by day in their sight and thou shalt move from thy place to another place in their sight: they will not see for they are a rebellious house.

And thou shalt bring forth thy stuff by day in their sight, as stuff for moving; and thou shalt go forth in the evening in their sight, as those that go forth to not return.

Dig through the wall in their sight, and leave thereby.

In their sight thou shalt bear it upon thy shoulders and carry it forth in the night; thou shalt cover thy face, and thou shalt not look at the land; for I have set thee for a sign unto the house of Israel.

And I did so as I was commanded: I brought forth my stuff by day, as stuff for a journey, and in the evening I dug through the wall with my hand; I brought it forth in the night, and I bore it upon my shoulder in their sight.

And in the morning the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

Son of man, has not the house of Israel, the rebellious house, said unto thee, What doest thou?

10 Say thou unto them, Thus hath the Lord GOD said: This burden concerns the prince in Jerusalem and all the house of Israel that are among them.

11 Say, I am your sign: like as I have done, so shall it be done unto them: when they go to another country they shall go in captivity.

12 And the prince that is among them shall be born upon their shoulders in the night, and they shall go forth; they shall dig through the wall to carry him out thereby; he shall cover his face that he not see the land with his eyes.

13 But I will spread my net upon him, and he shall be taken in my snare, and I will cause him to be taken to Babylon to the land of the Chaldeans; yet he shall not see it though he shall die there.

14 And I will scatter toward every wind all that were about him to help him and all his companies; and I will draw out the sword after them.

15 And they shall know that I am the LORD when I shall scatter them among the Gentiles and disperse them in the countries.

16 But I will leave a few men of them from the sword, from the famine, and from the pestilence; that they may declare all their abominations among the Gentiles where they go; and they shall know that I am the LORD.

17 ¶ And the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

18 Son of man, eat thy bread with quaking and drink thy water with trembling and with anxiety

19 and say unto the people of the land, Thus hath the Lord GOD said regarding the inhabitants of Jerusalem and the land of Israel. They shall eat their bread with anxiety and drink their water with terror that her land may be desolate from all that is in it because of the violence of all those that dwell therein.

20 And the cities that are inhabited shall be laid waste, and the land shall be desolate; and ye shall know that I am the LORD.

21 ¶ And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

22 Son of man, what is that saying that ye have in the land of Israel that saith, The days shall be prolonged, and every vision shall fail?

23 Tell them therefore, Thus hath the Lord GOD said: I will make this saying to cease, and they shall not repeat this as a saying in Israel but say unto them, Those days have drawn nigh, and the fulfillment of every vision.

24 For there shall no longer be any vain vision or flattering divination within the house of Israel.

25 Because I, the LORD, will speak, and the word that I shall speak shall come to pass; it shall no longer be prolonged, for in your days, O rebellious house, I will speak the word and will perform it, said the Lord GOD.

26 Again the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

27 Son of man, behold, those of the house of Israel say, The vision that he sees is for many days to come, and he prophesies of the times that are far off.

28 Therefore say unto them, Thus hath the Lord GOD said: All of my words shall not be prolonged any longer, but the word which I have spoken shall be done, said the Lord GOD.

The Exile Symbolized

12 The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, you are living among a rebellious people.(A) They have eyes to see but do not see and ears to hear but do not hear, for they are a rebellious people.(B)

“Therefore, son of man, pack your belongings for exile and in the daytime, as they watch, set out and go from where you are to another place. Perhaps(C) they will understand,(D) though they are a rebellious people.(E) During the daytime, while they watch, bring out your belongings packed for exile. Then in the evening, while they are watching, go out like those who go into exile.(F) While they watch, dig through the wall(G) and take your belongings out through it. Put them on your shoulder as they are watching and carry them out at dusk. Cover your face so that you cannot see the land, for I have made you a sign(H) to the Israelites.”

So I did as I was commanded.(I) During the day I brought out my things packed for exile. Then in the evening I dug through the wall with my hands. I took my belongings out at dusk, carrying them on my shoulders while they watched.

In the morning the word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, did not the Israelites, that rebellious people, ask you, ‘What are you doing?’(J)

10 “Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: This prophecy concerns the prince in Jerusalem and all the Israelites who are there.’ 11 Say to them, ‘I am a sign(K) to you.’

“As I have done, so it will be done to them. They will go into exile as captives.(L)

12 “The prince among them will put his things on his shoulder at dusk(M) and leave, and a hole will be dug in the wall for him to go through. He will cover his face so that he cannot see the land.(N) 13 I will spread my net(O) for him, and he will be caught in my snare;(P) I will bring him to Babylonia, the land of the Chaldeans,(Q) but he will not see(R) it, and there he will die.(S) 14 I will scatter to the winds all those around him—his staff and all his troops—and I will pursue them with drawn sword.(T)

15 “They will know that I am the Lord, when I disperse them among the nations(U) and scatter them through the countries. 16 But I will spare a few of them from the sword, famine and plague, so that in the nations where they go they may acknowledge all their detestable practices. Then they will know that I am the Lord.(V)

17 The word of the Lord came to me: 18 “Son of man, tremble as you eat your food,(W) and shudder in fear as you drink your water. 19 Say to the people of the land: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says about those living in Jerusalem and in the land of Israel: They will eat their food in anxiety and drink their water in despair, for their land will be stripped of everything(X) in it because of the violence of all who live there.(Y) 20 The inhabited towns will be laid waste and the land will be desolate. Then you will know that I am the Lord.(Z)’”

There Will Be No Delay

21 The word of the Lord came to me: 22 “Son of man, what is this proverb(AA) you have in the land of Israel: ‘The days go by and every vision comes to nothing’?(AB) 23 Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am going to put an end to this proverb, and they will no longer quote it in Israel.’ Say to them, ‘The days are near(AC) when every vision will be fulfilled.(AD) 24 For there will be no more false visions or flattering divinations(AE) among the people of Israel. 25 But I the Lord will speak what I will, and it shall be fulfilled without delay.(AF) For in your days, you rebellious people, I will fulfill(AG) whatever I say, declares the Sovereign Lord.(AH)’”

26 The word of the Lord came to me: 27 “Son of man, the Israelites are saying, ‘The vision he sees is for many years from now, and he prophesies about the distant future.’(AI)

28 “Therefore say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: None of my words will be delayed any longer; whatever I say will be fulfilled, declares the Sovereign Lord.’”