2
"Son of man, speak to the sons of your people and say to them, 'If I bring a sword upon a land, and the people of the landtakeoneman from among them and make him their watchman,
6
'But if the watchmansees the swordcoming and does not blow the trumpet and the people are not warned, and a swordcomes and takes a person from them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood I will require from the watchman'shand.'
7
"Now as for you, son of man, I have appointed you a watchman for the house of Israel; so you will hear a message from My mouth and give them warning from Me.
8
"When I say to the wicked, 'O wickedman, you will surelydie,' and you do not speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wickedman shall die in his iniquity, but his blood I will require from your hand.
9
"But if you on your partwarn a wickedman to turn from his way and he does not turn from his way, he will die in his iniquity, but you have delivered your life.
10
"Now as for you, son of man, say to the house of Israel, 'Thus you have spoken, saying, "Surely our transgressions and our sins are upon us, and we are rottingaway in them; how then can we survive?"'
11
"Say to them, 'As I live!' declares the LordGOD, 'I takenopleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather* that the wickedturn from his way and live. Turnback, turnback from your evilways! Why then will you die, O house of Israel?'
12
"And you, son of man, say to your fellowcitizens, 'The righteousness of a righteousman will not deliver him in the day of his transgression, and as for the wickedness of the wicked, he will not stumble because of it in the day when he turns from his wickedness; whereas a righteousman will not be able to live by his righteousness on the day when he commitssin.'
13
"When I say to the righteous he will surelylive, and he so trusts in his righteousness that he commitsiniquity, none* of his righteousdeeds will be remembered; but in that same iniquity of his which he has committed he will die.
15
if a wickedmanrestores a pledge, paysbackwhat he has taken by robbery, walks by the statutes which ensure lifewithoutcommittinginiquity, he shall surelylive; he shall not die.
22
Now the hand of the LORD had been upon me in the evening, before the refugeescame. And He opened my mouth at the time they came to me in the morning; so my mouth was opened and I was nolongerspeechless.
24
"Son of man, they who live in thesewasteplaces in the land of Israel are saying, 'Abraham was only one, yet he possessed the land; so to us who are many the land has been given as a possession.'
25
"Thereforesay to them, 'Thussays the LordGOD, "You eat meat with the blood in it, lift up your eyes to your idols as you shedblood. Should you then possess the land?
27
"Thus you shall say to them, 'Thussays the LordGOD, "As I live, surely* those who are in the wasteplaces will fall by the sword, and whoever is in the openfield I will give to the beasts to be devoured, and those who are in the strongholds and in the caves will die of pestilence.
28
"I will make the land a desolation and a waste, and the pride of her power will cease; and the mountains of Israel will be desolateso that noone will passthrough.
30
"But as for you, son of man, your fellowcitizens who talk about you by the walls and in the doorways of the houses, speak to oneanother, each to his brother, saying, 'Comenow and hearwhat the message is which comesforth from the LORD.'
31
"They come to you as peoplecome, and sitbefore you as My people and hear your words, but they do not do them, for they do the lustfuldesires expressed by their mouth, and their heartgoesafter their gain.
32
"Behold, you are to them like a sensualsong by one who has a beautifulvoice and playswell on an instrument; for they hear your words but they do not practice them.