NET Bible

New American Standard Bible 1995

1The word of the LORD came to me:

1Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

2"As for you, son of man, are you willing to pronounce judgment, are you willing to pronounce judgment on the bloody city? Then confront her with all her abominable deeds!

2"And you, son of man, will you judge, will you judge the bloody city? Then cause her to know all her abominations.

3Then say, 'This is what the sovereign LORD says: O city, who spills blood within herself (which brings on her doom), and who makes herself idols (which results in impurity),

3"You shall say, 'Thus says the Lord GOD, "A city shedding blood in her midst, so that her time will come, and that makes idols, contrary to her interest, for defilement!

4you are guilty because of the blood you shed and defiled by the idols you made. You have hastened the day of your doom; the end of your years has come. Therefore I will make you an object of scorn to the nations, an object to be mocked by all lands.

4"You have become guilty by the blood which you have shed, and defiled by your idols which you have made. Thus you have brought your day near and have come to your years; therefore I have made you a reproach to the nations and a mocking to all the lands.

5Those both near and far from you will mock you, you with your bad reputation, full of turmoil.

5"Those who are near and those who are far from you will mock you, you of ill repute, full of turmoil.

6"'See how each of the princes of Israel living within you has used his authority to shed blood.

6"Behold, the rulers of Israel, each according to his power, have been in you for the purpose of shedding blood.

7They have treated father and mother with contempt within you; they have oppressed the foreigner among you; they have wronged the orphan and the widow within you.

7"They have treated father and mother lightly within you. The alien they have oppressed in your midst; the fatherless and the widow they have wronged in you.

8You have despised my holy things and desecrated my Sabbaths!

8"You have despised My holy things and profaned My sabbaths.

9Slanderous men shed blood within you. Those who live within you eat pagan sacrifices on the mountains; they commit obscene acts among you.

9"Slanderous men have been in you for the purpose of shedding blood, and in you they have eaten at the mountain shrines. In your midst they have committed acts of lewdness.

10They have sex with their father's wife within you; they violate women during their menstrual period within you.

10"In you they have uncovered their fathers' nakedness; in you they have humbled her who was unclean in her menstrual impurity.

11One commits an abominable act with his neighbor's wife; another obscenely defiles his daughter-in-law; another violates his sister--his father's daughter--within you.

11"One has committed abomination with his neighbor's wife and another has lewdly defiled his daughter-in-law. And another in you has humbled his sister, his father's daughter.

12They take bribes within you to shed blood. You engage in usury and charge interest; you extort money from your neighbors. You have forgotten me, declares the sovereign LORD.

12"In you they have taken bribes to shed blood; you have taken interest and profits, and you have injured your neighbors for gain by oppression, and you have forgotten Me," declares the Lord GOD.

13"'See, I strike my hands together at the dishonest profit you have made, and at the bloodshed they have done among you.

13"Behold, then, I smite My hand at your dishonest gain which you have acquired and at the bloodshed which is among you.

14Can your heart endure, or can your hands be strong when I deal with you? I, the LORD, have spoken, and I will do it!

14"Can your heart endure, or can your hands be strong in the days that I will deal with you? I, the LORD, have spoken and will act.

15I will scatter you among the nations and disperse you among various countries; I will remove your impurity from you.

15"I will scatter you among the nations and I will disperse you through the lands, and I will consume your uncleanness from you.

16You will be profaned within yourself in the sight of the nations; then you will know that I am the LORD.'"

16"You will profane yourself in the sight of the nations, and you will know that I am the LORD."'"

17The word of the LORD came to me:

17And the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

18"Son of man, the house of Israel has become slag to me. All of them are like bronze, tin, iron, and lead in the furnace; they are the worthless slag of silver.

18"Son of man, the house of Israel has become dross to Me; all of them are bronze and tin and iron and lead in the furnace; they are the dross of silver.

19Therefore this is what the sovereign LORD says: 'Because all of you have become slag, look out!--I am about to gather you in the middle of Jerusalem.

19"Therefore, thus says the Lord GOD, 'Because all of you have become dross, therefore, behold, I am going to gather you into the midst of Jerusalem.

20As silver, bronze, iron, lead, and tin are gathered in a furnace so that the fire can melt them, so I will gather you in my anger and in my rage. I will deposit you there and melt you.

20As they gather silver and bronze and iron and lead and tin into the furnace to blow fire on it in order to melt it, so I will gather you in My anger and in My wrath and I will lay you there and melt you.

21I will gather you and blow on you with the fire of my fury, and you will be melted in it.

21'I will gather you and blow on you with the fire of My wrath, and you will be melted in the midst of it.

22As silver is melted in a furnace, so you will be melted in it, and you will know that I, the LORD, have poured out my anger on you.'"

22'As silver is melted in the furnace, so you will be melted in the midst of it; and you will know that I, the LORD, have poured out My wrath on you.'"

23The word of the LORD came to me:

23And the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

24"Son of man, say to her: 'You are a land that receives no rain or showers in the day of my anger.'

24"Son of man, say to her, 'You are a land that is not cleansed or rained on in the day of indignation.'

25Her princes within her are like a roaring lion tearing its prey; they have devoured lives. They take away riches and valuable things; they have made many women widows within it.

25"There is a conspiracy of her prophets in her midst like a roaring lion tearing the prey. They have devoured lives; they have taken treasure and precious things; they have made many widows in the midst of her.

26Her priests abuse my law and have desecrated my holy things. They do not distinguish between the holy and the profane, or recognize any distinction between the unclean and the clean. They ignore my Sabbaths and I am profaned in their midst.

26"Her priests have done violence to My law and have profaned My holy things; they have made no distinction between the holy and the profane, and they have not taught the difference between the unclean and the clean; and they hide their eyes from My sabbaths, and I am profaned among them.

27Her officials are like wolves in her midst rending their prey--shedding blood and destroying lives--so they can get dishonest profit.

27"Her princes within her are like wolves tearing the prey, by shedding blood and destroying lives in order to get dishonest gain.

28Her prophets coat their messages with whitewash. They see false visions and announce lying omens for them, saying, 'This is what the sovereign LORD says,' when the LORD has not spoken.

28"Her prophets have smeared whitewash for them, seeing false visions and divining lies for them, saying, 'Thus says the Lord GOD,' when the LORD has not spoken.

29The people of the land have practiced extortion and committed robbery. They have wronged the poor and needy; they have oppressed the foreigner who lives among them and denied them justice.

29"The people of the land have practiced oppression and committed robbery, and they have wronged the poor and needy and have oppressed the sojourner without justice.

30"I looked for a man from among them who would repair the wall and stand in the gap before me on behalf of the land, so that I would not destroy it, but I found no one.

30"I searched for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand in the gap before Me for the land, so that I would not destroy it; but I found no one.

31So I have poured my anger on them, and destroyed them with the fire of my fury. I hereby repay them for what they have done, declares the sovereign LORD."

31"Thus I have poured out My indignation on them; I have consumed them with the fire of My wrath; their way I have brought upon their heads," declares the Lord GOD.

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