Further, take an iron plate and place it as an iron wall between you and the city, and set your face toward it so that it is under siege, and besiege it. This is a sign to the house of Israel.

“Thus says the Lord God, ‘This is Jerusalem; I have set her in the center of the nations, and countries are around her.

Then they will know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord; I have not said in vain that I would bring this disaster [as punishment] on them.”’

He said to me, “Do you see this, son of man? Yet you will see still greater repulsive acts than these [that they are committing].”

He said to me, “Do you see this, son of man? Is it too slight a thing for the house of Judah to commit the repulsive acts which they have committed here, that they have filled the land with violence and repeatedly provoked Me to anger? And behold, they are putting the branch to their nose.

Then the cherubim rose upward. They are the [same four] living beings [regarded as one] that I saw by the River Chebar [in Babylonia].

These are the living beings that I saw beneath the God of Israel by the River Chebar; and I knew that they were cherubim.

Then the Spirit said to me, “Son of man, these are the men who devise evil and give wicked advice in this city,

who say, ‘Is not the time near to build houses? This city is [secure just like] the pot and we are the meat [in it].’

Then the Spirit of the Lord fell upon me, and He said to me, “Say, ‘Thus says the Lord, “This is what you think, house of Israel, for I know your thoughts.

You have multiplied your slain in this city, and you have filled its streets with the corpses [of righteous men].”

Therefore, thus says the Lord God, “Your dead whom you have laid in the midst of your city are the meat and this city is the pot; but I shall force you out of [the security of] it.

This city will not be a pot for you, nor will you be meat [safe] in it, but I will judge you at the border of Israel.

“Son of man, your brothers, your relatives, your fellow exiles and the whole house of Israel, all of them, are those to whom the [present] inhabitants of Jerusalem have said, ‘Go far away from the Lord; this land has been given to us as a possession.’

Say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “This oracle (a burden to be carried) concerns the prince (Zedekiah) in Jerusalem as well as all the house of Israel who are there.”’

“Son of man, what is this proverb that you have in the land of Israel, saying, ‘The days are long and every vision fails’?

Therefore tell them, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “I will put an end to this proverb, and they will no longer use it as a proverb in Israel.” But say to them, “The days draw near as well as the fulfillment of every vision.

Moreover, you increased your obscene immorality with the land of tradesmen, Chaldea (Babylonia), and yet even with this you were not satisfied.”’”

Because you have not remembered the days of your youth but have enraged Me with all these things, therefore, I in turn will bring your conduct down on your own head,” says the Lord God, “so that you will not commit this lewdness on top of all your other repulsive acts.

“Behold, everyone who uses proverbs will use this proverb against you: ‘Like mother, like daughter.’

Behold, this was the sin of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters (outlying cities) had arrogance, abundant food, and careless ease, but she did not help the poor and needy.

“There was [also] another great eagle with great wings and many feathers; and behold, this vine (Zedekiah) bent its roots toward him and sent out its branches toward him, away from the beds where it was planted, for him to water.

“What do you mean by using this proverb concerning the land of Israel,

‘The fathers eat sour grapes [they sin],
But the children’s teeth are set on edge’?

As I live,” says the Lord God, “you are certainly not going to use this proverb [as an excuse] in Israel anymore.

“Now behold, if this [wicked] man has a son who has observed all the sins which his father committed, and considers [thoughtfully what he has observed] and does not do like his father:

‘And the fire [of Zedekiah’s rebellion] has gone out from its branch;
It has consumed the vine’s shoots and fruit,
So that it has in it no [longer a] strong branch
As a scepter to rule.’”

This is a dirge (funeral poem to be sung), and has become a dirge.

“Therefore, son of man, speak to the house of Israel and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “Again in this your fathers have blasphemed Me, in that they acted faithlessly and treacherously against Me.

Then I said to them, ‘What is the high place to which you go?’ So the name of it is called Bamah (High Place) to this day.”’

When you offer your gifts, when you make your sons pass through the fire, you are defiling yourselves with all your idols to this day. And shall I be asked by you [for an oracle], O house of Israel? As I live,” says the Lord God, “I will not be inquired of by you.

For this sword has been tested [on others]; and what if it views with contempt the scepter [of Judah]? The scepter shall be no more [but shall be swept away],” says the Lord God.

A ruin, a ruin, I will make it a ruin! It shall no longer exist until He comes whose right it is [to reign], and I will give it to Him.’

“Now her sister Oholibah saw this, yet she was more corrupt in her lust than she, and her acts of prostitution were more [wanton] than the immoralities of her sister.

Moreover, they have done this to Me: they have defiled My sanctuary on the same day [of their idolatries] and have profaned My Sabbaths.

“Son of man, record the name of the day, this very day. The king of Babylon has laid siege to Jerusalem this very day.

So Ezekiel will be a sign to you; in accordance with all that he has done you will do. And when this [destruction of the temple] comes, then you will know [without any doubt] that I am the Lord God.’”

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).”

“Which among the trees of Eden do you equal in glory and in greatness [O Egypt]? Yet you [also] will be brought down with the trees of Eden to the earth beneath (nether world). You will lie among the uncircumcised (the barbaric, the boorish, the crude) with those who were slain by the sword. This is how it shall be with Pharaoh and all his hordes!”’ says the Lord God.”

This is the dirge (funeral poem to be sung) and they shall sing it [for her]. The daughters of the nations shall sing it; for Egypt and for all her hordes they shall sing it,” says the Lord God.

Now the hand of the Lord had been upon me in the evening, before the survivor came. And He opened my mouth at the time he came to me in the morning; so my mouth was opened [in readiness] and I was no longer mute.

You shall say this to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “As I live, those who are in the ruins certainly will fall by the sword, and I will give whoever is in the open field to the [predatory] animals to be devoured, and those who are in strongholds and in caves will die of virulent diseases.

So when it comes to pass—as it most certainly will—then they will know [without any doubt] that a prophet has been among them.”

Yes, [O mountains of Israel] I will cause men—My people Israel—to walk on you and take possession of you, so that you will become their inheritance and never again bereave them of children.’

“Therefore say to the house of Israel, ‘Thus says the Lord God, “It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for My holy name, which you have profaned among the nations where you went.

I am not doing this for your sake,” says the Lord God. “Let that be known to you. Be ashamed and humiliated for your [wicked] ways, O house of Israel!”

Then they will say, ‘This land that was deserted and desolate has become like the garden of Eden; and the waste, desolate, and ruined cities are fortified and inhabited.’

‘Thus says the Lord God, “This too I will let the house of Israel ask Me to do for them: I will increase their people like a flock.

There were three guardrooms on each side of the gate toward the east; the three were the same size, and the side pillars on each side measured the same.

On each side a border (barrier wall) one cubit wide stood in front of the guardrooms on each side; and the guardrooms were six cubits square on each side.

From the front of the entrance gate [on the outside] to the front of the inner porch (portico) of the gate [the distance] was fifty cubits.

The pavement (that is, the lower pavement) was by the side of the gates, corresponding to the length of the gates.

Its guardrooms, three on each side, and its side pillars and its porches had the same measurement as the first gate. Its length was fifty cubits and the width was twenty-five cubits.

There were seven steps going up to the gate, and its porches were in front of them; and it had palm tree decorations [carved] on its side pillars, one on each side.

In the porch (portico) of the gate were two tables on each side, on which to slaughter the burnt offering, the sin offering and the guilt offering.

He [who was guiding me] said to me, “This is the chamber which faces toward the south; it is for the priests who have the responsibility and take care of the temple;

Then he brought me to the porch of the temple, and he measured each side pillar of the porch, five cubits on each side; and the width of the gate was three cubits on each side.

He measured the length [of the interior of the inner sanctuary], twenty cubits, and the width, twenty cubits, opposite the nave (outer sanctuary); and he said to me, “This is the Most Holy Place.”

so that the face of a man was toward the palm decoration on the one side, and the face of a young lion toward the palm decoration on the other side. It was carved [this way] on the entire house (temple) all around.

The altar was of wood, three cubits high and two cubits long; and its corners, its base, and its sides were wood. And he said to me, “This is the table that is before the Lord.”

And He [the Lord] said to me, “Son of man, this is the place of My throne and the place of the soles of My feet, where I will dwell in the midst of the sons (descendants) of Israel forever. And the house of Israel will not again defile My holy name, neither they nor their kings, by their [idolatrous] prostitution and by the corpses and monuments of their kings in their graves,

This is the law of the temple: Its entire area all around on the top of the mountain (Mount Moriah) shall be most holy. Behold, this is the law of the temple.

“And these are the measurements of the altar [of burnt offering] in cubits (the cubit being a [long] cubit [the length of a forearm] and a hand width): the base shall be a cubit [long] and a cubit wide, with its border on its edge all around it of a span [in width]. And this shall be the height of the base of the altar.

Then the Lord said to me, “This gate shall be shut; it shall not be opened, and no one shall enter by it, for the Lord, the God of Israel, has entered by it; therefore it shall be shut.

“It [their ministry to Me] shall be as an inheritance to them, for I am their inheritance; and you shall give them no property (land) in Israel, for I am their possession.

Of this there shall be a square plot five hundred by five hundred cubits in perimeter for the holy place, and fifty cubits for the open space around it.

And in this area you shall measure off a portion 25,000 cubits in length and 10,000 cubits in width. And in it shall be the sanctuary which is most holy.

“This is the offering that you shall offer: a sixth of an ephah from a homer of wheat; a sixth of an ephah from a homer of barley;

“All the people of the land shall give to this offering for the prince in Israel.

You shall do this on the seventh [day] of the month for everyone who goes astray [and sins through error or ignorance] and for him who is naive; so shall you make atonement for the temple (house).

Also you shall provide a grain offering with it morning by morning, one-sixth of an ephah with one-third of a hin of oil to sprinkle on the finely-milled flour. This is a perpetual ordinance for a continual grain offering to the Lord.

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.”

And he said to me, “Son of man, have you seen this?” Then he brought me back to the bank of the river.

You shall divide it as an inheritance, each one equally with the other. I lifted up My hand and swore to give it to your fathers, and this land shall fall to you as an inheritance.

“And this shall be the boundary of the land on the north side: from the Great [Mediterranean] Sea by way of Hethlon to the entrance of Zedad,

So the boundary will extend from the [Mediterranean] Sea to Hazar-enan at the border of Damascus, and on the north, northward, is the border of Hamath. This is the north side.

“The east side, from between Hauran, Damascus, Gilead, and the land of Israel, shall be the Jordan; from the north border to the eastern sea you shall measure. This is the east side.

“The south side, southward, from Tamar [near the Dead Sea] shall extend as far as the waters of Meribath-kadesh, to the Brook of Egypt and to the Great [Mediterranean] Sea. This is the south side toward the south.

“The west side shall be the Great [Mediterranean] Sea, from the south border to a point opposite Lebo-hamath [north of Mount Hermon]. This is the west side.

“So you shall divide this land among yourselves according to the tribes of Israel.

The holy allotment shall be for these, namely for the priests, toward the north 25,000 cubits in length, and toward the west 10,000 in width, and toward the east 10,000 in width, and toward the south 25,000 in length; and the sanctuary of the Lord shall be in the midst of it.

And this [land offering] shall be an allotment to them from the allotment of the land, a most holy portion beside the border of the [other] Levites.

And they shall not sell any of it or exchange it, or allow this choice portion of land to pass to others; for it is holy to the Lord.

This is the land which you shall divide by lot among the tribes of Israel as their inheritance, and these are their several portions,” says the Lord God.

So the man listened to them in this matter and tested them for ten days.

The Chaldeans answered the king and said, “There is not a man on earth who can tell the king this matter, for no king, lord or ruler has ever asked such a thing as this of any magician or enchanter or Chaldean.

Because of this the king was indignant and extremely furious and gave a command to destroy all the wise men of Babylon.

in order that they might seek compassion from the God of heaven regarding this secret, so that Daniel and his companions would not be executed with the rest of the wise men of Babylon.

But as for me, this secret has not been revealed to me because my wisdom is greater than that of any other living man, but in order to make the interpretation known to the king, and so that you may understand [fully] the thoughts of your mind.

“You, O king, were looking, and behold, [there was] a single great statue; this image, which was large and of unsurpassed splendor, stood before you, and its appearance was awesome and terrifying.

As for this statue, its head was made of fine gold, its breast and its arms of silver, its belly and its thighs of bronze,

“This was the dream; now we will tell the king its interpretation.

The king answered Daniel and said, “Most certainly your God is the God of gods and the Lord of kings and a revealer of mysteries, since you have been able to reveal this mystery!”

Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego answered the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to answer you on this point.

Therefore I make a decree that any people, nation, or language that speaks anything offensive against the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego shall be cut into pieces and their houses be made a heap of rubbish, for there is no other god who is able to save in this way!”

“This sentence is by the decree of the angelic watchers
And the decision is a command of the holy ones,
So that the living may know [without any doubt]
That the Most High [God] rules over the kingdom of mankind
And He bestows it on whomever He desires
And sets over it the humblest and lowliest of men.”

This is the dream which I, King Nebuchadnezzar, have seen. Now you, Belteshazzar, explain its meaning, since none of the wise men of my kingdom are able to reveal its interpretation to me; but you are able, for a spirit of the holy gods is in you.’

this is the interpretation, O king: It is the decree of the Most High [God], which has come upon my lord the king:

“All this happened to Nebuchadnezzar the king.

The king said thoughtfully, ‘Is not this the great Babylon which I myself have built as the royal residence and seat of government by the might of my power and for the honor and glory of my majesty?’

The king called aloud to bring in the enchanters (Magi), the Chaldeans [who were master astrologers] and the diviners. The king said to the wise men of Babylon, “Whoever can read this writing and explain its interpretation to me shall be clothed with purple and have a chain of gold put around his neck, and have authority as the third ruler in the kingdom.”

It was because an extraordinary spirit, knowledge and insight, the ability to interpret dreams, clarify riddles, and solve complex problems were found in this Daniel, whom the king named Belteshazzar. Now let Daniel be called and he will give the interpretation.”