New Living Translation NLT
Common English Bible CEB
1 On January 15, during the ninth year of King Jehoiachin’s captivity, this message came to me from the LORD :
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In the ninth year, on the tenth day of the tenth month, the LORD's word came to me:
2 “Son of man, write down today’s date, because on this very day the king of Babylon is beginning his attack against Jerusalem.
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Human one, write down today's date, because today the king of Babylon has set up camp at Jerusalem—today!
3 Then give these rebels an illustration with this message from the Sovereign LORD : “Put a pot on the fire, and pour in some water.
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Compose a parable for the rebels' household and say to them, The LORD God proclaims: Put on the pot, set it on, and fill it with water.
4 Fill it with choice pieces of meat— the rump and the shoulder and all the most tender cuts.
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Add meat to it, every good piece. With shoulder and thigh, the meatiest bones, fill it up.
5 Use only the best sheep from the flock, and heap fuel on the fire beneath the pot. Bring the pot to a boil, and cook the bones along with the meat.
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Take the flock's best animal; arrange the wood beneath it. Bring it to a rolling boil, and cook its bones in it.
6 “Now this is what the Sovereign LORD says: What sorrow awaits Jerusalem, the city of murderers! She is a cooking pot whose corruption can’t be cleaned out. Take the meat out in random order, for no piece is better than another.
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The LORD God proclaims: Horror! You bloody city, you corroded pot; pot whose corrosion can't be removed! Empty it piece by piece. She is rejected
7 For the blood of her murders is splashed on the rocks. It isn’t even spilled on the ground, where the dust could cover it!
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because her blood is still with her. She didn't pour it out on the ground so that it could be covered with dirt, but she spread it out on a bare rock.
8 So I will splash her blood on a rock for all to see, an expression of my anger and vengeance against her.
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In order to arouse wrath, to guarantee vengeance, I will spread her blood on a bare rock, never to be covered.
9 “This is what the Sovereign LORD says: What sorrow awaits Jerusalem, the city of murderers! I myself will pile up the fuel beneath her.
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So now the LORD God proclaims: Horror! You bloody city! I myself will add fuel to the fire!
10 Yes, heap on the wood! Let the fire roar to make the pot boil. Cook the meat with many spices, and afterward burn the bones.
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Pile on the wood, light the fire, and cook the meat. Season it well and let the bones be charred.
11 Now set the empty pot on the coals. Heat it red hot! Burn away the filth and corruption.
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Let the pot stand empty on its coals until it's so hot that its copper glows, its impurities melt in it, and its corrosion is consumed.
12 But it’s hopeless; the corruption can’t be cleaned out. So throw it into the fire.
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It's a worthless task. Even by fire its great corrosion isn't removed.
13 Your impurity is your lewdness and the corruption of your idolatry. I tried to cleanse you, but you refused. So now you will remain in your filth until my fury against you has been satisfied.
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How your betrayals defile you! I cleansed you, but you didn't come clean from your impurities. You won't be clean again until I have exhausted my anger against you.
14 “I, the LORD, have spoken! The time has come, and I won’t hold back. I will not change my mind, and I will have no pity on you. You will be judged on the basis of all your wicked actions, says the Sovereign LORD .”
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I, the LORD, have spoken! It's coming, and I'll do it. I won't relent or have any pity or compassion. Your punishments will fit your ways and your deeds! This is what the LORD God says.
15 Then this message came to me from the LORD :
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The LORD's word came to me:
16 “Son of man, with one blow I will take away your dearest treasure. Yet you must not show any sorrow at her death. Do not weep; let there be no tears.
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Human one, I am about to take the delight of your eyes away from you in a single stroke. Don't mourn or weep. Don't even let your tears well up.
17 Groan silently, but let there be no wailing at her grave. Do not uncover your head or take off your sandals. Do not perform the usual rituals of mourning or accept any food brought to you by consoling friends.”
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Sigh inwardly; be deathly still. Don't perform mourning rites, but bind on your turban and put your shoes on your feet. And don't cover your upper lip or eat in human company.
18 So I proclaimed this to the people the next morning, and in the evening my wife died. The next morning I did everything I had been told to do.
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I spoke with the people in the morning, and by evening my wife was dead. The next morning I did as I was commanded.
19 Then the people asked, “What does all this mean? What are you trying to tell us?”
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The people asked, "Won't you tell us what your actions mean for us?"
20 So I said to them, “A message came to me from the LORD,
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So I said to them, The LORD's word came to me:
21 and I was told to give this message to the people of Israel. This is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will defile my Temple, the source of your security and pride, the place your heart delights in. Your sons and daughters whom you left behind in Judah will be slaughtered by the sword.
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Say to the house of Israel, the LORD God proclaims: I'm about to make my sanctuary impure, the pride of your strength, the delight of your eyes. Your heart's desire, the sons and daughters you left behind, will fall by the sword.
22 Then you will do as Ezekiel has done. You will not mourn in public or console yourselves by eating the food brought by friends.
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You will do as I have done. You will neither cover your upper lip nor eat in human company.
23 Your heads will remain covered, and your sandals will not be taken off. You will not mourn or weep, but you will waste away because of your sins. You will groan among yourselves for all the evil you have done.
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Your turbans will be on your heads, your sandals on your feet. You won't mourn or weep. You will waste away in your guilt, all of you groaning to each other.
24 Ezekiel is an example for you; you will do just as he has done. And when that time comes, you will know that I am the Sovereign LORD .”
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Ezekiel is your sign. You will do everything that he has done. When this happens, you will know that I am the LORD God.
25 Then the LORD said to me, “Son of man, on the day I take away their stronghold—their joy and glory, their heart’s desire, their dearest treasure—I will also take away their sons and daughters.
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And you, human one: On the day that I take from them their proud stronghold—their crowning joy, the delight of their eyes—and their sons and daughters, whose fate weighs on them,
26 And on that day a survivor from Jerusalem will come to you in Babylon and tell you what has happened.
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on that day, a refugee will come to you so that you yourself will hear the news.
27 And when he arrives, your voice will suddenly return so you can talk to him, and you will be a symbol for these people. Then they will know that I am the LORD .”
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On that day your mouth will be opened to the refugee, and you will speak and no longer be silent. You will be their sign, and they will know that I am the LORD.
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Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2011 Common English Bible