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22 And the word of the Lord was made to me, and he said,

And thou, son of man, whether thou deemest not the city of bloods? And thou shalt show to it all his abominations, (And thou, son of man, judgest thou not this city of bloodshed, or this city of murder? And thou shalt show it all of its abominations,)

and thou shalt say, The Lord God saith these things, This is a city shedding out blood in the midst of itself, that the time thereof come; and which made idols against itself, that it should be defouled. (and thou shalt say, The Lord God saith these things, This is a city shedding out blood in the midst of itself, and its time hath come; yea, it made idols for itself to worship, so that it would be defiled.)

In thy blood which is shed out of thee, thou trespassedest, and thou art defouled in thine idols which thou madest; and thou madest thy days to nigh, and thou broughtest the time of thy years. Therefore I gave thee to be (a) shame to heathen men, and (a) scorning to all lands (In the blood which thou hast shed out, thou hast trespassed, and thou art defiled with thy idols which thou hast made; and thou madest thy days to come, and thou broughtest the time of thy years. And so I gave thee to be a shame to the heathen, and a mocking to all lands)

that be nigh thee, and that be far from thee; thou foul city, noble, great in perishing, they shall have victory of thee (they shall have the victory over thee).

Lo! [the] princes of Israel, all in their arm, were in thee, to shed out blood. (Lo! the leaders of Israel, all in their power, were in thee, to shed out blood.)

They punished with wrongs [the] father and (the) mother in thee, they challenged falsely a comeling in the midst of thee, they made sorry a fatherless child, and a widow at thee. (They treated wrongfully the father and the mother there with thee, they oppressed a newcomer in the midst of thee, they made sorrowful a fatherless child, and a widow there with thee.)

Ye despised my saintuaries, and ye defouled my sabbaths. (Ye despised my sanctuaries, and ye defiled my sabbaths.)

Men backbiters were in thee, to shed out blood, and eat on hills in thee (and to eat on thy hills); they wrought great trespass in the midst of thee.

10 They uncovered the shamefuller things of the father[s] in thee, they made low in thee the uncleanness of a woman in unclean blood.

11 And each man wrought abomination against the wife of his neighbour, and the father of the husband defouled his son’s wife unleavefully; a brother oppressed in thee his sister, the daughter of his father. (And each man did abomination with his neighbour’s wife, and the father of the husband lewdly defiled his son’s wife; a brother in thee oppressed his sister, his father’s daughter.)

12 They took gifts of thee, to shed out blood; thou tookest usury and overabundance, and thou challengedest greedily thy neighbours, and thou hast forgotten me, saith the Lord God. (They took gifts, or bribes, in thee to shed out blood; thou hast taken usury and overabundance, and thou hast oppressed thy neighbours for greed, and thou hast forgotten me, saith the Lord God.)

13 Lo! I have smitten together mine hands on thine avarice, [or greediness,] which thou didest, and on the blood which is shed out in the midst of thee. (Lo! I have struck my fist into my hand over thy greediness, and over the blood which is shed out in thy midst.)

14 Whether thine heart shall sustain, either thine hands shall have power, in the days which I shall make to thee? For I the Lord spake, and I shall do. (Shall thy heart be able to sustain thee, or shall thy hands have any power left, in the days when I shall deal with thee? For I the Lord spoke, and I shall do it.)

15 And I shall scatter thee into (the) nations, and I shall winnow, [or blow,] thee into (other) lands; and I shall make thine uncleanness to fail from thee,

16 and I shall wield thee in the sight of heathen men (and I shall be in possession of thee before the heathen); and thou shalt know, that I am the Lord.

17 And the word of the Lord was made to me, and he said,

18 Thou, son of man, the house of Israel is turned to me into dross, either filth of iron (Thou, son of man, to me the house of Israel is turned into dross, or slag, that is, the filth of iron); all these be brass, and tin, and iron, and lead, in the midst of a furnace; they (even) be made the dross of silver.

19 Therefore the Lord God saith these things, For that all ye be turned into dross (Because ye all be turned into dross, or slag), lo! I shall gather you together in the midst of Jerusalem,

20 by the gathering together of silver (like the gathering together of silver), and of latten, and of iron, and of tin, and of lead, in the midst of a furnace; and I shall kindle therein a fire, to well together; so I shall gather you together in my strong vengeance, and in my wrath, and (then) I shall rest. And I shall well you together,

21 and I shall gather you together, and I shall set you afire in the fire of my strong vengeance, and ye shall be welled together in the midst thereof.

22 As silver is welled together in the midst of a furnace, so ye shall be in the midst thereof; and ye shall know, that I am the Lord, when I have shed out mine indignation [up]on you. (Like silver is welled together in the midst of a furnace, so ye shall be in its midst; and ye shall know, that I am the Lord, when I have poured out my indignation upon you.)

23 And the word of the Lord was made to me, and he said,

24 Son of man, say thou to it, Thou art a land unclean (Thou art an unclean land), and not berained in the day of strong vengeance.

25 Swearing together, either conspiring, of prophets is in the midst thereof; as a lion roaring and taking prey (like a lion roaring and taking prey), they devoured men, they took riches, and price; they multiplied widows thereof in the midst thereof.

26 [The] Priests thereof despised my law, and defouled my saintuaries (Its priests despised my Law, and defiled my sanctuaries); they had not difference betwixt holy thing and unholy, they understood not betwixt defouled thing and clean thing; and they turned away their eyes from my sabbaths, and I was defouled in the midst of them.

27 The princes thereof in the midst thereof were as wolves ravishing prey, to shed out blood, and to lose men, and in following lucres greedily. (Its princes in its midst were like wolves tearing apart their prey, who shed out blood, and destroy people, to greedily acquire filthy lucre.)

28 Forsooth the prophets thereof pargeted them without tempering, and saw vain things, and divined leasings to them, and said, The Lord God saith these things, when the Lord spake not. (And its prophets mortared them without tempering, and saw empty and futile things, and divined lies for them, and said, The Lord God saith these things, when the Lord did not speak.)

29 The peoples of the land challenged false challenge, and ravished by violence; they tormented a needy man and (a) poor (man), and oppressed a comeling by false challenge, without doom. (The peoples of the land oppressed, and robbed with violence; they tormented the needy and the poor, and oppressed newcomers, without justification.)

30 And I sought of them a man, that should set an hedge betwixt, and stand set against me for the land, that I should not destroy it, and I found not. (And I sought someone among them, who would make a hedge between, and would stand against me for the land, so that I would not destroy it, but I found no one.)

31 And I shed out on them mine indignation, and I wasted them in the fire of my wrath; and I yielded the way of them on the head of them, saith the Lord God. (And so I poured out my indignation upon them, and I destroyed them in the fire of my anger; and I gave back their ways onto their own heads, saith the Lord God.)

Judgment on Jerusalem’s Sins

22 The word of the Lord came to me:

“Son of man, will you judge her? Will you judge this city of bloodshed?(A) Then confront her with all her detestable practices(B) and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: You city that brings on herself doom by shedding blood(C) in her midst and defiles herself by making idols, you have become guilty because of the blood you have shed(D) and have become defiled by the idols you have made. You have brought your days to a close, and the end of your years has come.(E) Therefore I will make you an object of scorn(F) to the nations and a laughingstock to all the countries.(G) Those who are near and those who are far away will mock you, you infamous city, full of turmoil.(H)

“‘See how each of the princes of Israel who are in you uses his power to shed blood.(I) In you they have treated father and mother with contempt;(J) in you they have oppressed the foreigner(K) and mistreated the fatherless and the widow.(L) You have despised my holy things and desecrated my Sabbaths.(M) In you are slanderers(N) who are bent on shedding blood;(O) in you are those who eat at the mountain shrines(P) and commit lewd acts.(Q) 10 In you are those who dishonor their father’s bed;(R) in you are those who violate women during their period,(S) when they are ceremonially unclean.(T) 11 In you one man commits a detestable offense with his neighbor’s wife,(U) another shamefully defiles his daughter-in-law,(V) and another violates his sister,(W) his own father’s daughter.(X) 12 In you are people who accept bribes(Y) to shed blood; you take interest(Z) and make a profit from the poor. You extort unjust gain from your neighbors.(AA) And you have forgotten(AB) me, declares the Sovereign Lord.(AC)

13 “‘I will surely strike my hands(AD) together at the unjust gain(AE) you have made and at the blood(AF) you have shed in your midst.(AG) 14 Will your courage endure(AH) or your hands(AI) be strong in the day I deal with you? I the Lord have spoken,(AJ) and I will do it.(AK) 15 I will disperse you among the nations and scatter(AL) you through the countries; and I will put an end to(AM) your uncleanness.(AN) 16 When you have been defiled[a] in the eyes of the nations, you will know that I am the Lord.’”

17 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 18 “Son of man, the people of Israel have become dross(AO) to me; all of them are the copper, tin, iron and lead left inside a furnace.(AP) They are but the dross of silver.(AQ) 19 Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: ‘Because you have all become dross,(AR) I will gather you into Jerusalem. 20 As silver, copper, iron, lead and tin are gathered into a furnace to be melted with a fiery blast, so will I gather you in my anger and my wrath and put you inside the city and melt you.(AS) 21 I will gather you and I will blow(AT) on you with my fiery wrath, and you will be melted inside her.(AU) 22 As silver is melted(AV) in a furnace, so you will be melted inside her, and you will know that I the Lord have poured out my wrath(AW) on you.’”(AX)

23 Again the word of the Lord came to me: 24 “Son of man, say to the land, ‘You are a land that has not been cleansed or rained on in the day of wrath.’(AY) 25 There is a conspiracy(AZ) of her princes[b] within her like a roaring lion(BA) tearing its prey; they devour people,(BB) take treasures and precious things and make many widows(BC) within her. 26 Her priests do violence to my law(BD) and profane my holy things; they do not distinguish between the holy and the common;(BE) they teach that there is no difference between the unclean and the clean;(BF) and they shut their eyes to the keeping of my Sabbaths, so that I am profaned(BG) among them.(BH) 27 Her officials(BI) within her are like wolves(BJ) tearing their prey; they shed blood and kill people(BK) to make unjust gain.(BL) 28 Her prophets whitewash(BM) these deeds for them by false visions and lying divinations.(BN) They say, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says’—when the Lord has not spoken.(BO) 29 The people of the land practice extortion and commit robbery;(BP) they oppress the poor and needy and mistreat the foreigner,(BQ) denying them justice.(BR)

30 “I looked for someone among them who would build up the wall(BS) and stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found no one.(BT) 31 So I will pour out my wrath on them and consume them with my fiery anger,(BU) bringing down(BV) on their own heads all they have done, declares the Sovereign Lord.(BW)

Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 22:16 Or When I have allotted you your inheritance
  2. Ezekiel 22:25 Septuagint; Hebrew prophets

22 Moreover the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

Now, thou son of man, wilt thou judge, wilt thou judge the bloody city? yea, thou shalt shew her all her abominations.

Then say thou, Thus saith the Lord God, The city sheddeth blood in the midst of it, that her time may come, and maketh idols against herself to defile herself.

Thou art become guilty in thy blood that thou hast shed; and hast defiled thyself in thine idols which thou hast made; and thou hast caused thy days to draw near, and art come even unto thy years: therefore have I made thee a reproach unto the heathen, and a mocking to all countries.

Those that be near, and those that be far from thee, shall mock thee, which art infamous and much vexed.

Behold, the princes of Israel, every one were in thee to their power to shed blood.

In thee have they set light by father and mother: in the midst of thee have they dealt by oppression with the stranger: in thee have they vexed the fatherless and the widow.

Thou hast despised mine holy things, and hast profaned my sabbaths.

In thee are men that carry tales to shed blood: and in thee they eat upon the mountains: in the midst of thee they commit lewdness.

10 In thee have they discovered their fathers' nakedness: in thee have they humbled her that was set apart for pollution.

11 And one hath committed abomination with his neighbour's wife; and another hath lewdly defiled his daughter in law; and another in thee hath humbled his sister, his father's daughter.

12 In thee have they taken gifts to shed blood; thou hast taken usury and increase, and thou hast greedily gained of thy neighbours by extortion, and hast forgotten me, saith the Lord God.

13 Behold, therefore I have smitten mine hand at thy dishonest gain which thou hast made, and at thy blood which hath been in the midst of thee.

14 Can thine heart endure, or can thine hands be strong, in the days that I shall deal with thee? I the Lord have spoken it, and will do it.

15 And I will scatter thee among the heathen, and disperse thee in the countries, and will consume thy filthiness out of thee.

16 And thou shalt take thine inheritance in thyself in the sight of the heathen, and thou shalt know that I am the Lord.

17 And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

18 Son of man, the house of Israel is to me become dross: all they are brass, and tin, and iron, and lead, in the midst of the furnace; they are even the dross of silver.

19 Therefore thus saith the Lord God; Because ye are all become dross, behold, therefore I will gather you into the midst of Jerusalem.

20 As they gather silver, and brass, and iron, and lead, and tin, into the midst of the furnace, to blow the fire upon it, to melt it; so will I gather you in mine anger and in my fury, and I will leave you there, and melt you.

21 Yea, I will gather you, and blow upon you in the fire of my wrath, and ye shall be melted in the midst therof.

22 As silver is melted in the midst of the furnace, so shall ye be melted in the midst thereof; and ye shall know that I the Lord have poured out my fury upon you.

23 And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

24 Son of man, say unto her, Thou art the land that is not cleansed, nor rained upon in the day of indignation.

25 There is a conspiracy of her prophets in the midst thereof, like a roaring lion ravening the prey; they have devoured souls; they have taken the treasure and precious things; they have made her many widows in the midst thereof.

26 Her priests have violated my law, and have profaned mine holy things: they have put no difference between the holy and profane, neither have they shewed difference between the unclean and the clean, and have hid their eyes from my sabbaths, and I am profaned among them.

27 Her princes in the midst thereof are like wolves ravening the prey, to shed blood, and to destroy souls, to get dishonest gain.

28 And her prophets have daubed them with untempered morter, seeing vanity, and divining lies unto them, saying, Thus saith the Lord God, when the Lord hath not spoken.

29 The people of the land have used oppression, and exercised robbery, and have vexed the poor and needy: yea, they have oppressed the stranger wrongfully.

30 And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none.

31 Therefore have I poured out mine indignation upon them; I have consumed them with the fire of my wrath: their own way have I recompensed upon their heads, saith the Lord God.