nor to many peoples of unintelligible speech or difficult language, whose words you cannot understand. But I have sent you to them who should listen to you;

However, if you have warned the righteous man that the righteous should not sin and he does not sin, he shall surely live because he took warning; and you have delivered yourself.”

The time has come; the day has struck! The customer should not rejoice, nor the seller mourn; for divine wrath comes against their whole crowd.

And he said unto me, Son of man, seest thou what they do? even the great abominations that the house of Israel do commit here, that I should go far off from my sanctuary? but thou shalt again see yet other great abominations.

And he said unto me, "Hast thou seen this thou son of man? Thinketh the house of Israel that it is but a trifle to do these abominations here? Should they fill the land full of wickedness, and undertake to provoke me unto anger? Yea, and purposely to cast up their noses upon me?

You have profaned me among my people for handfuls of barley and scraps of bread. You have put to death people who should not die and kept alive those who should not live by your lies to my people, who listen to lies!

Because you disheartened the righteous with falsehood when I did not cause him grief, but have encouraged the wicked not to turn from his wicked way and preserve his life,

"Son of man, these men have erected their idols in their hearts and placed the obstacle leading to their iniquity right before their faces. Should I really allow them to seek me?

though these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, they should deliver but their own souls by their righteousness, saith the Lord Jehovah.

"If a fierce animal I [should] let cross through the land, and it [should] make it childless and it will be desolation, so that [there will] not [be] one crossing over [the land] {due to} the presence of the animal,

though these three men were in it, as I live, saith the Lord Jehovah, they should deliver neither sons nor daughters; they only should be delivered, but the land should be desolate.

Or if I should bring a sword on that country and say, ‘Let the sword pass through the country and cut off man and beast from it,’

though these three men were in it, as I live, saith the Lord Jehovah, they should deliver neither sons nor daughters, but they only should be delivered themselves.

Or if I should send a plague against that country and pour out My wrath in blood on it to cut off man and beast from it,

though Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in it, as I live, saith the Lord Jehovah, they should deliver neither son nor daughter; they should but deliver their own souls by their righteousness.

For thus, saith My Lord Yahweh, How much less should they avail when my four calamitous judgments, sword and famine and mischievous wild beast and pestilence I have sent against Jerusalem, - to cut off therefrom man and beast?

Behold, when it was whole, it was used for no work; how much less when the fire hath consumed it, and it is burned, should it yet be used for any work?

You took some of your clothes and made for yourself [decorated] high places and shrines of various colors and prostituted yourself on them—things which should never have come about and taken place.

Yea thou didst slay my children, - And didst deliver them up. that they should be caused to pass through the fire unto them.

How should I circumcise thine heart, sayeth the LORD God, seeing thou doest all these things, thou precious whore?

Should I make my wrath to be still, take my jealousy from thee, be content, and no more to be displeased?

For thus sayeth the LORD God: I should, by right, deal with thee, as thou hast done. Thou hast despised the oath, and broken the covenant.

And it grew, and became a spreading vine of low stature, so that its branches should turn toward him, and the roots thereof be under him; and it became a vine, and brought forth branches, and shot forth sprigs.

Nevertheless it was planted upon a good ground beside great waters: so that by reason it should have brought out branches and fruit, and have been a goodly vine.'

But he fell from him, and sent his Ambassadors into Egypt that he might have horses and much people. Should that prosper? Should he be kept safe, that doth such things? Or should he escape, that breaketh his covenant?

"Yet you say, 'Why should the son not suffer for his father's iniquity?' When the son does what is just and right, and observes all my statutes and carries them out, he will surely live.

Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked,” says the Lord God, “rather than that he should turn [away] from his [malevolent] acts and live?

Throw away all your sins you have committed and fashion yourselves a new heart and a new spirit! Why should you die, O house of Israel?

‘They put him in a cage with hooks and chains
And brought him to the king of Babylon;
They brought him in hunting nets
So that his voice would be heard no more
On the mountains of Israel.

Fire has gone out from its main branch
and has devoured its fruit,
so that it no longer has a strong branch,
a scepter for ruling.

This is a lament and should be used as a lament.”

But I acted for My Name’s sake, that it would not be profaned in the sight of the [pagan] nations among whom they lived, in whose sight I made Myself known to them by bringing them out of the land of Egypt.

And yet the house of Israel rebelled against me in the wilderness. They would not walk in my commandments; they have cast away my laws, which whoso keepeth should live in them; and my Sabbath days have they greatly unhallowed. Then I made me to pour out my indignation upon them, and to consume them in the wilderness.

But I acted for My Name’s sake, that it would not be profaned in the sight of the [pagan] nations in whose sight I had brought them out [of slavery].

Nevertheless mine eye threw a shield over them that they should not be destroyed; So I made not of them a full end in the desert.

Yet I withdrew My hand and acted for My Name’s sake, that it would not be profaned in the sight of the [pagan] nations in whose sight I had brought them out [of slavery].

[Therefore] I also gave them statutes that were not good and ordinances by which they could not live;

When you present your gifts and make your sons pass through the fire, you continue to defile yourselves with your idols to this day. Should I be inquired of by you, you house of Israel? As I live," declares the LORD, "I certainly won't be inquired of by you."

It is sharpened for slaughter, it is polished to flash like lightning! "'Should we rejoice in the scepter of my son? No! The sword despises every tree!

“Now you, son of man, mark out two roads that the sword of Babylon’s king can take. Both of them should originate from the same land. And make a signpost at the fork in the road to each city.

The answer marked Jerusalem appears in his right hand, indicating that he should set up battering rams, give the order to slaughter, raise a battle cry, set battering rams against the gates, build a ramp, and construct a siege wall.

"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.

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.

Therefore, this is what the Lord God says:

Woe to the city of bloodshed,
the pot that has rust inside it,
and whose rust will not come off!
Empty it piece by piece;
lots should not be cast for its contents.

That it might cause fury to come up to take vengeance; I have set her blood upon the top of a rock, that it should not be covered.

Then the people told me, "Are you going to explain what these things that you're doing should mean to us?"

so that none of the trees by the waters may exalt themselves because of their height, nor set their top among the clouds, nor their well-watered mighty ones stand [arrogantly] in their height. For they have all been handed over to death, to the earth beneath, among the sons of men, with those who go down to the pit (the grave).”

Should not they then lie also among the worthies, and uncircumcised Giants which with their weapons are gone down to hell? Whose swords are laid under their heads, whose wickedness is upon their bones, because that as worthies they have brought fear in to the land of the living.

The sound of the horn, he heard, but took not warning, His blood, upon himself shall remain, - Whereas had he taken warning, his own soul, he should have delivered.

If I should say to a certain wicked person, "You wicked man, you're certainly about to die,' but you don't warn him to turn from his wicked behavior, he'll die in his guilt, but I'll seek retribution for his bloodshed from you.

"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?'

Say to them, 'As surely as I live, declares the sovereign Lord, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but prefer that the wicked change his behavior and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil deeds! Why should you die, O house of Israel?'

Therefore say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “You eat meat with the blood in it, lift up your eyes to your idols as you shed blood. Should you then possess the land?

You rely on your sword, you commit abominations and each of you defiles his neighbor’s wife. Should you then possess the land?”’

"Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel; prophesy, and say to them -- to the shepherds: 'This is what the sovereign Lord says: Woe to the shepherds of Israel who have been feeding themselves! Should not shepherds feed the flock?

"Woe to you shepherds of Israel who have been feeding yourselves and not the sheep. Shouldn't shepherds feed the sheep? You're eating the best parts, clothing yourselves with the wool, and slaughtering the home-grown sheep without having fed the sheep!

Is it too slight a thing for you that you should feed in the good pasture, that you must tread down with your feet the rest of your pastures? Or that you should drink of the clear waters, that you must foul the rest with your feet?

Therefore, prophesy, and thou shalt say, Thus saith My Lord Yahweh-Because even because they have desolated and panted for you on every side That ye should become a possession to the rest of the nations, And ye have come up into the talk of the tongue and the slander of the people

Thus sayeth the LORD God: Thou art he, of whom I have spoken afore time by my servants the prophets of Israel; which prophesied, in those days and years, that I should bring thee upon them.

His sight to look upon was like the first, that I saw, when I went in, what time as the city should have been destroyed: and like the vision that I saw by the water of Chebar. Then fell I upon my face,

Should they be set and ordained to minister under the doors of the house of my Sanctuary? And to do service in the house: to slay burnt offerings and sacrifices for the people; to stand before them, and to serve them;

Should I use them to be porters of the house, and to all the service that is done therein?

When they go out into the outer court, into the outer courtyard to the people, they shall take off the garments in which they have been ministering and leave them in the holy chambers; then they shall put on other clothing so that they will not transmit holiness to the people with their [ceremonial] garments.

The prince should enter from the outside by way of the gate’s portico and stand at the doorpost of the gate while the priests sacrifice his burnt offerings and fellowship offerings. He will bow in worship at the threshold of the gate and then depart, but the gate must not be closed until evening.

"'This is what the sovereign Lord says: If the prince should give a gift to one of his sons as his inheritance, it will belong to his sons, it is their property by inheritance.

He said to me, “This is the place where the priests shall boil (cook) the guilt offering and the sin offering, and where they shall bake the grain offering, so that they do not bring them out into the outer courtyard to transmit holiness to the people.”

Part it indifferently unto one as unto another: of the which land I swore unto your fathers, that it should fall to your inheritance.