3
"Son of man, thesemen have 3set up their idols in their hearts and have 4putrightbefore their faces the stumblingblock of their iniquity. Should I be 5consulted by them at all?
4
"Thereforespeak to them and tell them, 'Thussays the LordGOD, "Anyman of the house of Israelwhosets up his idols in his heart, putsrightbefore his face the stumblingblock of his iniquity, and then comes to the prophet, I the LORD will be brought to give him an answer in the matter in view of the 6multitude of his idols,
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in order to layhold of 7the hearts of the house of Israelwho are 8estranged from Me through all their idols."'
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"Thereforesay to the house of Israel, 'Thussays the LordGOD, "9Repent and turnaway from your idols and turn your facesaway from all your 10abominations.
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"For anyone of the house of Israel or of the 11immigrantswhostay in Israel who separates himself from Me, sets up his idols in his heart, putsrightbefore his face the stumblingblock of his iniquity, and then comes to the prophet to inquire of Me for himself, 12I the LORD will be brought to answer him in My own person.
8
"I will 13set My face against that man and make him a 14sign and a proverb, and I will cut him off from among My people. So you will know that I am the LORD.
9
"But if the prophet is prevailed upon to speak a word, it is I, the LORD, who have prevailed upon that prophet, and I will stretch out My handagainst him and 15destroy him from among My peopleIsrael.
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"They will bear the punishment of their iniquity; as the iniquity of the inquirer is, so the iniquity of the prophet will be,
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in order that the house of Israel may nolonger16stray from Me and nolonger17defile themselves with all their transgressions. Thus they will be 18My people, and I shall be their God,"' declares the LordGOD."
13
"Son of man, if a countrysins against Me by 19committingunfaithfulness, and I stretch out My handagainst it, destroy its 20supply of bread, sendfamine against it and cutoff from it both man and beast,
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even 21though thesethreemen, 22Noah, 23Daniel and 24Job were in its midst, by their own righteousness they could only deliver25themselves," declares the LordGOD.
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"If I were to cause 26wildbeasts to pass through the land and they depopulated it, and it becamedesolateso* that noone would passthrough it because* of the beasts,
16
though thesethreemen were in its midst, as I live," declares the LordGOD, "they could not delivereither their sonsor their daughters. 27They alone would be delivered, but the country would be desolate.
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"Or if I should 28bring a sword on that country and say, 'Let the swordpass through the country and 29cutoffman and beast from it,'
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even though thesethreemen were in its midst, as I live," declares the LordGOD, "they could not deliver either their sons or their daughters, but they alone would be delivered.
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"Or if I should send a 30plagueagainst that country and pour out My wrath in blood on it to cutoffman and beast from it,
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even though Noah, Daniel and Job were in its midst, as I live," declares the LordGOD, "they could not delivereither their sonor their daughter. They would deliver only themselves by their righteousness."
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For thussays the LordGOD, "Howmuchmore*when31I send My fourseverejudgmentsagainstJerusalem: sword, famine, wildbeasts and plague to cutoffman and beast from it!
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"Yet, behold, survivors will be left in it who will be brought out, both sons and daughters. Behold, they are going to comeforth to you and you will 32see their conduct and actions; then you will be 33comforted for the calamitywhich I have broughtagainstJerusalem for everythingwhich I have brought upon it.
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"Then they will comfort you when you see their conduct and actions, for you will know that I have not done34in vainwhatever* I did to it," declares the LordGOD.