"What mean ye by this common proverb, that ye use in the land of Israel, saying, 'The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge'?

Behold, all souls are mine. Like as the father is mine, so is the son mine also. The soul that sinneth, shall die.

If a man be godly, and do the thing that is equal and right,

he grieveth nobody; he giveth his debtor his pledge again; he raketh none other man's goods by violence; he parteth his meat with the hungry; he clotheth the naked;

he lendeth nothing upon usury; he taketh nothing over; he withdraweth his hand from doing wrong; he handleth faithfully betwixt man and man;

he walketh in my commandments, and keepeth my laws, and performeth them faithfully: This is a righteous man, he shall surly live, sayeth the LORD God.

he lendeth upon usury, and taketh moreover. Shall this man live? He shall not live. Seeing he hath done all these abominations, he shall die: his blood shall be upon him.

Now if this man get a son also, that seeth all his father's sins, which he hath done, and feareth, neither doth such like:

he vexeth no man; he keepeth no man's pledge, he neither spoileth, nor robbeth any man; he dealeth his meat with the hungry; he clotheth the naked;

he opresseth not the poor; he receiveth no usury, nor anything over; he keepeth my laws, and walketh in my commandments: this man shall not die in his father's sin, but shall live without fail.

And yet the wicked, if he turn from all his sins which he did, and keep all mine ordinances, and do justly and righteously; he shall live and not die.

"As for me, I will judge every man, according to his ways, O ye house of Israel, sayeth the LORD God. Wherefore be converted, and turn you clean from all your wickedness, so shall there no sin do you harm.

her stalks were so strong that men might have made staves thereof for officers, she grew so high in her stalks. So when men saw that she exceeded the height and multitude of her branches,

"Thou son of man: speak unto the elders of Israel, and say unto them, 'Thus sayeth the LORD God: Are ye come hither to ask anything at me? As truly as I live, sayeth the LORD God,

I will give you no answer.' Wilt thou not reprove them, thou son of man? Wilt thou not reprove them? Show them the abominations of their forefathers, and tell them: 'Thus sayeth the LORD God:

"'In the day when I chose Israel, and lift up mine hand upon the seed of the house of Jacob, and showed myself unto them in the land of Egypt; Yea, when I lift up mine hand over them, and said, 'I am the LORD your God,'

even in the day that I lift up mine hand over them, to bring them out of the land of Egypt, into a land that I have provided for them, which floweth with milk and honey, and it is a pleasant land among all others:

Then said I unto them, 'Cast away every man the abominations that he hath before him, and defile not yourselves with the Idols of Egypt, for I am the LORD your God.'

But they rebelled against me, and would not follow me: to cast away every man the abominations of his eyes, and to forsake the Idols of Egypt. Then I made me to pour my indignation over them, and to satisfy my wrath upon them: Yea, even in the midst of the land of Egypt.

Nevertheless, mine eye spared them, so that I would not utterly slay them, and consume them in the wilderness.

I lift up mine hand over them also in the wilderness, that I would scatter them among the Heathen, and straw them among the nations:

"Therefore, O thou son of man, tell the house of Israel, 'Thus sayeth the LORD God: Beside all this, your forefathers have yet blasphemed me more, and greatly offended against me.

Go now then, sayeth the LORD God: ye house of Israel, cast away, and destroy every man his Idols. Then shall ye hear me, and no more blaspheme my holy name with your offerings and Idols.

"Thou son of man, set thy face toward the south, and speak to the south wind,

and say to the wood toward the south, 'Hear the word of the LORD, thus sayeth the LORD God: Behold, I will kindle a fire in thee, that shall consume thee green trees with the dry. No man shall be able to quench his flame, but all that looketh from the south to the north shall be burnt therein.

And all flesh shall see, that I the LORD have kindled it, so that no man may quench it.'"

"Thou son of man, set thy face toward Jerusalem, speak against the Sanctuary, and prophesy against the land of Israel, say to the land of Israel,

Mourn therefore, O thou son of man, that thy loins crack withal; yea mourn bitterly for them.

"Thou son of man, prophesy and speak, 'Thus sayeth the LORD God: speak, the sword is sharpened and well scoured.

Cry, O thou son of man, and howl: for this sword shall smite my people, and all the rulers in Israel, which with my people shall be slain down to the ground through this sword. Smite therefore thou upon thy thigh, for it is gone forth to make a trial.

Prophesy, thou son of man, and smite thine hands together: make the sword two edged, yea make it three edged, that manslayer's sword, that sword of the great slaughter, which shall smite them even in their privy chambers:

"Thou son of man, make thee two streets, that the sword of the king of Babylon may come. Both these streets shall go out of one land. He shall set him up a place; at the head of the street shall he choose him out a corner.

But the soothsaying shall point to the right side upon Jerusalem, that he may set men of war, to smite it with a great noise, to cry out Alarum, to set battle rams against the gates, to grave up ditches, and to make bulwarks.

Therefore sayeth the LORD God: Forsomuch as ye yourselves show your offense, and have opened your wickedness, so that in all your works men may see your sins: Yea in so much, I say, that ye yourselves have made mention thereof, ye shall be taken by violence.

"And thou, O son of man, prophesy and speak, 'Thus sayeth the LORD God to the children of Ammon, and to their blasphemy,' speak thou, 'The sword, the sword is drawn forth already to the slaughter, and scoured that it glistereth

"Thou son of man, wilt thou not reprove this bloodthirsty city? Show them their abominations,

Behold, the rulers of Israel have brought every man his power, to shed blood in thee.

Every man hath dealt shamefully with his neighbour's wife, and abominably defiled his daughter-in-law. In thee hath every man forced his own sister, even his father's daughter.

"Thou son of man, the house of Israel is turned to dross. All they that should be brass, tin, iron and lead, are in the fire become dross.

"Thou son of man, tell her, 'Thou art an unclean land, which is not rained upon in the day of the cruel wrath:

And I sought in the land for a man, that would make up the hedge, and set himself in the gap before me in the lands behalf, that I should not utterly destroy it: but I could find none.

"Thou son of man, there were two women, that had one mother.

The eldest of them was called Oholah and her youngest sister Oholibah. These two were mine, and bare sons and daughters. Their names were, Samaria, and that was Oholah: and Jerusalem, that was Oholibah.

which had to do with her: even the princes and lords, that were decked in costly array: fair young men, lusty riders of horses.

Thus through her whoredom, she cleaved unto all the young men of Assyria: Yea she was mad upon them, and defiled herself with all their Idols.

But she increased still in whoredom: for when she saw men painted upon the wall, the images of the Chaldeans set forth with fresh colors,

The LORD said moreover unto me, "Thou son of man, wilt thou not reprove Oholah and Oholibah? Show them their abominations:

Beside all this, thou hast sent thy messengers for men out of far countries: and when they came, thou hast bathed, trimmed and set forth thyself of the best fashion.

Thou sattest upon a goodly bed, and a table spread before thee: whereupon thou hast set mine incense and mine oil.

Then was there great cheer with her: and the men that were sent from far countries over the desert, unto these they gave bracelets upon their hands, and set glorious crowns upon their heads.

"O thou son of man, write up the name of this day; yea, even the hour of this present day when the king of Babylon set himself against Jerusalem.

"Thou son of man, behold, I take away the pleasure of thine eyes with a plague: yet shalt thou neither mourn, nor weep, nor water thy cheeks therefore.

"But behold, O thou son of man: In the day when I take from them their power, their joy and honour, the lust of their eyes, the burden of their bodies - namely, their sons and daughters -

"Thou son of man, set thy face against the Ammonites, prophesy upon them,

behold, I will stretch out mine hand over thee also, and deliver thee to be spoiled of the Heathen, and root thee out from among the people, and cause thee to be destroyed out of all lands. Yea, I will make thee be laid waste, that thou mayest know that I am the LORD.

therefore thus sayeth the LORD: I will reach out mine hand upon Edom, and take away man and beast out of it. From Teman unto Dedan will I make it desolate; they shall be slain with the sword.

Therefore thus sayeth the LORD God: Behold, I will stretch out mine hand over the Philistines, and destroy the destroyer, and cause all the remnant of the sea coast to perish.

"Thou son of man, because that Tyre hath spoken upon Jerusalem, 'Aha, now I trow the ports of the people be broken, and she turned unto me, for I have destroyed my belly full.'

The dust of his horses shall cover thee, they shall be so many: thy walls shall shake at the noise of the horsemen, chariots and wheels when he cometh to thy ports, as men do into an open city.

They shall mourn for thee, and say unto thee, 'O thou noble city, that hast been so greatly occupied of old, thou that hast been the strongest upon the sea with thine inhabiters of whom all men stood in fear: How art thou now so utterly destroyed?'

For thus sayeth the LORD God: when I make thee a desolate city, as other cities be, that no man dwell in, and when I bring the deep upon thee, that great waters may cover thee:

Then will I cast thee down unto them, that descend into the pit, unto a people that hath been long dead, and set thee in a land that is beneath, like the old wilderness, with them which go down to their graves, so that no man shall dwell more in thee. And I will make thee to be no more in honor, in the land of the living.

"O thou son of man, make a lamentable complaint upon Tyre,

Javan, Tubal and Meshech were thy merchants, which brought the men, and ornaments of metal for thy occupying.

so that thy wares, thy merchandise, thy riches, thy mariners, thy shipmasters, thy helpers, thy occupiers that brought the things necessary, the men of war that are in thee: Yea, and all thy commons shall perish in the midst of the sea, in the day of thy fall.

All whirry men, and all mariners upon the sea, shall leap out of their boats and set themselves upon the land.

"Thou son of man, tell the prince of Tyre, 'Thus sayeth the LORD God: Because thou hast a proud heart and hast said, 'I am a God, I have my seat in the midst of the sea like a God,' whereas thou art but a man, and not God, and yet standest in thine own conceit, that thou art God:

as they that be slain. Let see, if thou wilt say then, before them that slay thee, 'I am God' - whereas thou art but a man and not God, in the hands of them that slayeth thee.

"Thou son of man, make a lamentable complaint over the king of Tyre, and tell him, 'Thus sayeth the LORD God: Thou art a seal of a likeness, full of wisdom and excellent beauty.

"Thou son of man, set thy face against Sidon. Prophesy upon it,

"O thou son of man, set now face against Pharaoh the king of Egypt: Prophesy against him and against the whole land of Egypt.

Speak, and tell him, 'Thus sayeth the LORD God: Behold, O Pharaoh thou king of Egypt, I will upon thee, thou great dragon that liest in the waters; thou that sayest, 'The water is mine; I have made it myself.'

"'Therefore, thus sayeth the LORD God: Behold, I will bring a sword upon thee, and root out of thee both man and beast.

Yea, the land of Egypt shall be desolate and waste, and they shall know that I am the LORD: Because he said, 'The water is mine, I myself have made it.'

so that in forty years there shall no foot of man walk there, neither foot of cattle go there, neither shall it be inhabited.

"O thou son of man, Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon hath made his host, with great travail and labour to come before Tyre: that every head may be bald, and every shoulder bare. Yet hath Tyre given neither him nor his host any reward, for the great travail that he hath taken there.

"Thou son of man, prophesy and speak, 'Thus sayeth the LORD God: Mourn, woe worth this day,

the sword cometh upon Egypt. When the wounded men fall down in Egypt, when her people are taken away, and when her foundations are destroyed,

he and his people with him. Yea, and the cruel tyrants of the Heathen shall be brought to destroy the land. They shall draw out their swords upon Egypt and fill the land full of slain men.

The best men of On and Bubaste shall be slain with the sword, and carried away captive.

"Behold, thou son of man, I will brake the arm of Pharaoh king of Egypt: and lo, it shall not be bound up to be healed, neither shall any plaster be laid upon it, for to ease it, or to make it so strong as to hold a sword.

Again I will strengthen the arm of the king of Babylon, and give him my sword in his hand: but I will break Pharaoh's arm, so that he shall hold it before him piteously, like a wounded man.

"Thou son of man, speak unto Pharaoh king of Egypt, and to all his people, 'Whom art thou like in thy greatness?

The enemies shall destroy him, and the mighty men of the Heathen shall so scatter him, that his branches shall lie upon all mountains and in all valleys: his boughs shall be broken down to the ground throughout the land. Then all the people of the land shall go from his shadow, and forsake him.

so that from henceforth, no tree in the water shall attain to his highness, nor reach his top unto the clouds, neither shall any tree of the water stand so high, as he hath done. For unto death shall they all be delivered under the earth, and go down to the grave, like other men.

"Thou son of man, take up a lamentation upon Pharaoh the king of Egypt, and say unto him, 'Thou art reputed as a Lion of the Heathen, and as a whalefish in the sea. Thou castest thy waters about thee, thou troublest the waters with thy feet, and stampest in their floods.

When thou art put out, I will cover the heaven, and make his stars dim. I will spread a cloud over the Sun, and the moon shall not give her light.

Yea, I will make many people with their kings so afraid through thee, that their hair shall stand up, when I shake my sword at their faces. Suddenly shall they be astonished, every man in himself, at the day of thy fall.

All the cattle also of Egypt will I destroy, that they shall come no more upon the waters: so that neither man's foot nor beasts claw, shall steer them any more.

"Thou son of man, Take up a lamentation upon the people of Egypt, and cast them down, yea and the mighty people of the Heathen also, even with them that dwell beneath: and with them that go down into the grave.

whose graves lie beside him in the low pit. His commons are buried round about his grave: all together wounded and slain with the sword, which men afore time brought fear in to the land of the living.

"Thou son of man, Speak to the children of thy people, and tell them, 'When I send a sword upon a land, if the people of the land take a man of their country, and set him to be their watchman:

The same man, when he seeth the sword come upon the land, shall blow the trumpet, and warn the people.

If a man now hear the noise of the trumpet and will not be warned, and the sword come and take him away: his blood shall be upon his own head.

Again, if the watchman see the sword come, and show it not with the trumpet, so that the people is not warned: if the sword come then, and take any man from among them: the same shall be taken away in his own sin, but his blood will I require of the watchman's hand.'

And now, O thou son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: that whereas thou hearest anything out of my mouth, thou mayest warn them on my behalf.

"Therefore, O thou son of man, speak unto the house of Israel. Yea, say thus, 'Our offenses and sins lie upon us, and we be corrupt in them: how should we then be restored unto life?'

Thou son of man, tell the children of thy people, 'The righteousness of the righteous shall not save him, whensoever he turneth away unfaithfully. Again, the wickedness of the wicked shall not hurt him, whensoever he converteth from his ungodliness. And the righteousness of the righteous, shall not save his life, whensoever he sinneth.

Insomuch that the same wicked man giveth the pledge again, restoreth that he had taken away by robbery, walketh in the commandments of life, and doth no wrong: Then shall he surely live, and not die.

Now the hand of the LORD had been upon me the evening before this man, which was escaped, came unto me, and had opened my mouth, until the morning that he came to me: yea he opened my mouth, so that I was no more dumb.