1 Now the word of the Lord came to me in the ninth year, in the tenth month, on the tenth of the month, saying, 2 “Son of man, write the name of the day, this very day. The king of Babylon has laid siege to Jerusalem this very day. 3 Present a parable to the rebellious house and say to them, ‘This is what the Lord God says:
“Put on the pot, put it on and also pour water into it;
4 Put in it the pieces of meat,
Every good piece, the thigh and the shoulder;
Fill it with choice bones.
5 Take the choicest of the flock,
And also stack wood under the pot.
Make it boil vigorously.
Also boil its bones in it.”
6 ‘Therefore, this is what the Lord God says:
“Woe to the bloody city,
To the pot in which there is rust
And whose rust has not gone out of it!
Take out of it piece after piece,
Without making a choice.
7 For her blood is in her midst;
She placed it on the bare rock;
She did not pour it on the ground
To cover it with dust.
8 So that it may cause wrath to come up to take vengeance,
I have put her blood on the bare rock,
So that it will not be covered.”
9 Therefore, this is what the Lord God says:
“Woe to the bloody city!
I also will make the wood pile great.
10 Heap on the wood, kindle the fire,
Cook the meat thoroughly
And mix in the spices,
And let the bones be burned up.
11 Then set it empty on its burning coals
So that it may be hot
And its bronze may glow,
And its filthiness may be melted in it,
Its rust eliminated.
12 She has wearied Me with work,
Yet her great rust has not gone from her;
Let her rust be in the fire!
13 In your filthiness is outrageous sin.
Because I would have cleansed you,
Yet you are not clean,
You will not be cleansed from your filthiness again
Until I have expended My wrath on you.
14 I, the Lord, have spoken; it is coming and I will act. I will not overlook, I will not pity, and I will not be sorry; according to your ways and according to your deeds I will judge you,” declares the Lord God.’”
15 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 16 “Son of man, behold, I am about to take from you what is precious to your eyes with a fatal blow; but you shall not mourn and you shall not weep, and your tears shall not come. 17 Groan silently; do no mourning for the dead. Bind on your turban and put your sandals on your feet, and do not cover your mustache, and do not eat the bread of other people.” 18 So I spoke to the people in the morning, and in the evening my wife died. And in the morning I did as I was commanded. 19 And the people said to me, “Will you not tell us what these things mean for us, that you are doing?” 20 Then I said to them, “The word of the Lord came to me, saying, 21 ‘Speak to the house of Israel, “This is what the Lord God says: ‘Behold, I am about to profane My sanctuary, the pride of your power, that which is precious in your eyes and the longing of your soul; and your sons and your daughters whom you have left behind will fall by the sword. 22 And you will do just as I have done; you will not cover your mustache, and you will not eat the bread of other people. 23 Your turbans will be on your heads, and your sandals on your feet. You will not mourn and you will not weep; but you will rot away in your guilty deeds, and you will groan to one another. 24 So Ezekiel will be a sign to you; according to all that he has done, you will do. When it comes, then you will know that I am the Lord God.’”
25 ‘As for you, son of man, will it not be on the day when I take from them their stronghold, the joy of their splendor, that which is precious in their eyes and their heart’s longing, their sons and their daughters, 26 that on that day the one who escapes will come to you with information for your ears? 27 On that day your mouth will be opened to him who escaped, and you will speak and no longer be silenced. So you will be a sign to them, and they will know that I am the Lord.’”
1 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 2 “Son of man, set your face against the sons of Ammon and prophesy against them, 3 and say to the sons of Ammon, ‘Hear the word of the Lord God! This is what the Lord God says: “Because you said, ‘Aha!’ against My sanctuary when it was profaned, and against the land of Israel when it was made desolate, and against the house of Judah when they went into exile, 4 therefore, behold, I am going to give you to the people of the east as a possession, and they will set up their encampments among you and make their dwellings among you; they will eat your fruit and drink your milk. 5 I will make Rabbah a pasture for camels, and the sons of Ammon a resting place for flocks. Then you will know that I am the Lord.” 6 For this is what the Lord God says: “Because you have clapped your hands and stamped your feet, and have rejoiced with all the malice in your soul against the land of Israel, 7 therefore, behold, I have reached out with My hand against you and I will give you as plunder to the nations. And I will cut you off from the peoples and eliminate you from the lands. I will exterminate you. So you will know that I am the Lord.”
8 ‘The Lord God says this: “Because Moab and Seir say, ‘Behold, the house of Judah is like all the nations,’ 9 therefore, behold, I am going to deprive the flank of Moab of its cities, of its cities which are on its frontiers, the glory of the land, Beth-jeshimoth, Baal-meon, and Kiriathaim; 10 and I will give it as a possession along with the sons of Ammon to the people of the east, so that the sons of Ammon will not be remembered among the nations. 11 So I will execute judgments on Moab, and they will know that I am the Lord.”
12 ‘The Lord God says this: “Because Edom has acted against the house of Judah by taking vengeance, and has incurred great guilt, and avenged themselves upon them,” 13 therefore this is what the Lord God says: “I will also reach out with My hand against Edom and eliminate human and animal life from it. And I will turn it into ruins; from Teman even to Dedan they will fall by the sword. 14 And I will inflict My vengeance on Edom by the hand of My people Israel. Therefore, they will act in Edom in accordance with My anger and My wrath; so they will know My vengeance,” declares the Lord God.
15 ‘This is what the Lord God says: “Because the Philistines have acted in revenge, and have taken vengeance with malice in their souls to destroy with everlasting hostility,” 16 therefore this is what the Lord God says: “Behold, I am going to reach out with My hand against the Philistines and eliminate the Cherethites; and I will destroy the remnant of the seacoast. 17 I will execute great vengeance on them with wrathful rebukes; and they will know that I am the Lord, when I inflict My vengeance on them.”’”
1 Now in the eleventh year, on the first of the month, the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 2 “Son of man, because Tyre has said in regard to Jerusalem, ‘Aha! The gateway of the peoples is broken; it has opened to me. I shall be filled, now that she is laid waste,’ 3 therefore this is what the Lord God says: ‘Behold, I am against you, Tyre, and I will bring up many nations against you, as the sea brings up its waves. 4 They will destroy the walls of Tyre and tear down her towers; and I will sweep her debris away from her and make her a bare rock. 5 She will become a dry place for the spreading of nets in the midst of the sea, for I have spoken,’ declares the Lord God; ‘and she will become plunder for the nations. 6 Also her daughters who are on the mainland will be killed by the sword, and they will know that I am the Lord.’”
7 For the Lord God says this: “Behold, I am going to bring upon Tyre from the north Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, king of kings, with horses, chariots, cavalry, and a great army. 8 He will kill your daughters on the mainland with the sword; and he will make siege walls against you, pile up an assault ramp against you, and raise up a large shield against you. 9 And he will direct the blow of his battering rams against your walls, and he will tear down your towers with his axes. 10 Because of the multitude of his horses, the dust raised by them will cover you; your walls will shake from the noise of cavalry, wagons, and chariots when he enters your gates as warriors enter a city that is breached. 11 With the hoofs of his horses he will trample all your streets. He will kill your people with the sword, and your strong pillars will go down to the ground. 12 Also they will take your riches as spoils and plunder your merchandise, tear down your walls and destroy your delightful houses, and throw your stones, your timbers, and your debris into the water. 13 So I will put an end to the sound of your songs, and the sound of your harps will no longer be heard. 14 I will turn you into a bare rock; you will become a dry place for the spreading of nets. You will not be rebuilt, for I the Lord have spoken,” declares the Lord God.
15 The Lord God says this to Tyre: “Will the coastlands not shake from the sound of your downfall when the wounded groan, when the slaughter takes place in your midst? 16 Then all the princes of the sea will descend from their thrones, remove their robes, and strip off their colorfully woven garments. They will clothe themselves with trembling; they will sit on the ground, tremble again and again, and be appalled at you. 17 And they will take up a song of mourning over you and say to you,
‘How you have perished, you inhabited one,
From the seas, you famous city,
Which was mighty on the sea,
She and her inhabitants,
Who imposed her terror
On all her inhabitants!
18 Now the coastlands will tremble
On the day of your downfall;
Yes, the coastlands which are by the sea
Will be horrified at your passing.’”
19 For this is what the Lord God says: “When I make you a desolate city, like the cities which are not inhabited, when I bring up the deep over you and the great waters cover you, 20 then I will bring you down with those who go down to the pit, to the people of old, and I will make you remain in the lower parts of the earth, like the ancient ruins, with those who go down to the pit, so that you will not be inhabited; but I will put glory in the land of the living. 21 I will cause you sudden terrors and you will no longer exist; though you will be sought, you will never be found again,” declares the Lord God.
1 Now faith is the certainty of things hoped for, a proof of things not seen. 2 For by it the people of old gained approval.
3 By faith we understand that the world has been created by the word of God so that what is seen has not been made out of things that are visible. 4 By faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain, through which he was attested to be righteous, God testifying about his gifts, and through faith, though he is dead, he still speaks. 5 By faith Enoch was taken up so that he would not see death; and he was not found because God took him up; for before he was taken up, he was attested to have been pleasing to God. 6 And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for the one who comes to God must believe that He exists, and that He proves to be One who rewards those who seek Him. 7 By faith Noah, being warned by God about things not yet seen, in reverence prepared an ark for the salvation of his household, by which he condemned the world, and became an heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.
8 By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he left, not knowing where he was going. 9 By faith he lived as a stranger in the land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, fellow heirs of the same promise; 10 for he was looking for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder is God. 11 By faith even Sarah herself received ability to conceive, even beyond the proper time of life, since she considered Him faithful who had promised. 12 Therefore even from one man, and one who was as good as dead at that, there were born descendants who were just as the stars of heaven in number, and as the innumerable grains of sand along the seashore.
13 All these died in faith, without receiving the promises, but having seen and welcomed them from a distance, and having confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. 14 For those who say such things make it clear that they are seeking a country of their own. 15 And indeed if they had been thinking of that country which they left, they would have had opportunity to return. 16 But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; for He has prepared a city for them.
1 The Lord says to my Lord:
“Sit at My right hand
Until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.”
2 The Lord will stretch out Your strong scepter from Zion, saying,
“Rule in the midst of Your enemies.”
3 Your people will volunteer freely on the day of Your power;
In holy splendor, from the womb of the dawn,
Your youth are to You as the dew.
4 The Lord has sworn and will not change His mind,
“You are a priest forever
According to the order of Melchizedek.”
5 The Lord is at Your right hand;
He will shatter kings in the day of His wrath.
6 He will judge among the nations,
He will fill them with corpses,
He will shatter the chief men over a broad country.
7 He will drink from the brook by the wayside;
Therefore He will lift up His head.
14 One who blesses his friend with a loud voice early in the morning,
It will be considered a curse to him.
