Ezekiel 12:1-28 - The Announcement Of The Imminent Coming Of The Exile

¹ And the word of Yahweh {came} to me, {saying}, ² "Son of man, you [are] dwelling in the midst of the house of rebellion {who has eyes to see and they do not see}; {they have ears to hear}, and they do not hear, for they [are] a house of rebellion.

³ And you, son of man, prepare for yourself [the] baggage of an exile, and go into exile by day before their eyes. And you must go into exile from your place to another place before their eyes; perhaps they will see that they [are] a house of rebellion. ⁴ And you must bring out your baggage like [the] baggage of an exile by day before their eyes, and you must go out in the evening before their eyes like {those who go into exile}. ⁵ Before their eyes dig through for yourself, through the wall, and you must bring [the baggage] out through it. ⁶ Before their eyes, on your shoulder, you must lift up [the baggage] in the dusk, [and] your face you must cover, so that you may not see the land, for I make you [as] a sign to the house of Israel."

⁷ And I did {just as} I was commanded; my baggage, like [the] baggage of an exile, I brought out by day, and in the evening I dug through for myself into the wall with my hand in the dusk; I brought [the baggage] on [my] shoulder; I carried [it] before their eyes.

⁸ And the word of Yahweh {came} to me in the morning, {saying}, ⁹ "Son of man, did not they, the house of Israel, the house of rebellion, say to you, 'What [are] you doing?' ¹⁰ Say to them, 'Thus says the Lord Yahweh: "This oracle [is about] the prince in Jerusalem and {the entire} house of Israel {who are among them}." ' ¹¹ Say, 'I am your sign, [and] {just as} I did, so will it be done to them in the exile; into captivity they will go.' ¹² And the prince who [is] in the midst of them, on [his] shoulder he will carry [the baggage] in the dusk, and he will go out; {the wall will be dug through} to bring him through it; and he will cover his face so that he will not see the land with his eye. ¹³ And I will spread out my net on him, and he will be captured in my hunting snare, and I will bring him to Babylon, the land of the Chaldeans, but he will not see it, and there he will die. ¹⁴ And all who [are] around him, his help and all of his troops I will scatter {in every direction}, and I will draw [the] sword behind them. ¹⁵ And they will know that I [am] Yahweh {when I scatter them} among the nations and I scatter them in the countries. ¹⁶ But I will spare from them {a few men} from [the] sword, from [the] famine and from [the] plague, so that they may tell of all their abominations among the nations [to] which they will go, and they will know that I [am] Yahweh."

¹⁷ And the word of Yahweh {came} to me, {saying}, ¹⁸ "Son of man, you must eat your food with trembling, and your water with shuddering, and with anxiety you must drink. ¹⁹ And you must say to the people of the land, 'Thus says the Lord Yahweh to the inhabitants of Jerusalem about the land of Israel: "They will eat their food with anxiety and their water they will drink with horror, because their land will be desolate from its fullness because of all the violence of {those who are dwelling in it}. ²⁰ And {the inhabited cites will be desolate}, and the land will be a desolation, and you will know that I [am] Yahweh." '"

²¹ And the word of Yahweh {came} to me, {saying}, ²² "Son of man, what [is] this proverb {you people have} about the land of Israel, {saying}, '{The days are prolonged}, and every vision has come to nothing.'

²³ Therefore say to them, 'Thus says the Lord Yahweh: "I will put an end [to] this proverb, and they will not quote it as a proverb again in Israel." ' But say to them, 'The days are near, and [also] the word of every vision.' ²⁴ For [there] will not be any longer {any false vision} or flattering divination in the midst of the house of Israel. ²⁵ For I, Yahweh, I will speak what I will speak [as a] word, and it will be done. It will not prolong [itself] any longer, for in your days, house of rebellion, I will speak a word and I will fulfill it!" {declares} the Lord Yahweh.

²⁶ And the word of Yahweh {came} to me, {saying}, ²⁷ "Son of man, look! The house of Israel [is] saying, 'The vision that he [is] seeing [is] for many days [from now], and for distant times he [is] prophesying.' ²⁸ Therefore say to them, 'Thus says the Lord Yahweh: "None of my words will [be] prolonged any longer that I speak [as] a word, and it will be fulfilled!" '" {declares} the Lord Yahweh.