English Standard Version ESV
The Message Bible MSG
1 And he said to me, "Son of man, eat whatever you find here. Eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel."
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He told me, "Son of man, eat what you see. Eat this book. Then go and speak to the family of Israel."
2 So I opened my mouth, and he gave me this scroll to eat.
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As I opened my mouth, he gave me the scroll to eat,
3 And he said to me, "Son of man, feed your belly with this scroll that I give you and fill your stomach with it."Then I ate it, and it was in my mouth as sweet as honey.
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saying, "Son of man, eat this book that I am giving you. Make a full meal of it!" So I ate it. It tasted so good - just like honey.
4 And he said to me, "Son of man, go to the house of Israel and speak with my words to them.
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Then he told me, "Son of man, go to the family of Israel and speak my Message.
5 For you are not sent to a people of foreign speech and a hard language, but to the house of Israel--
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Look, I'm not sending you to a people who speak a hard-to-learn language with words you can hardly pronounce.
6 not to many peoples of foreign speech and a hard language, whose words you cannot understand. Surely, if I sent you to such, they would listen to you.
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If I had sent you to such people, their ears would have perked up and they would have listened immediately.
7 But the house of Israel will not be willing to listen to you, for they are not willing to listen to me: because all the house of Israel have a hard forehead and a stubborn heart.
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"But it won't work that way with the family of Israel. They won't listen to you because they won't listen to me. They are, as I said, a hard case, hardened in their sin.
8 Behold, I have made your face as hard as their faces, and your forehead as hard as their foreheads.
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But I'll make you as hard in your way as they are in theirs.
9 Like emery harder than flint have I made your forehead. Fear them not, nor be dismayed at their looks, for they are a rebellious house."
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I'll make your face as hard as rock, harder than granite. Don't let them intimidate you. Don't be afraid of them, even though they're a bunch of rebels."
10 Moreover, he said to me, "Son of man, all my words that I shall speak to you receive in your heart, and hear with your ears.
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Then he said, "Son of man, get all these words that I'm giving you inside you. Listen to them obediently. Make them your own.
11 And go to the exiles, to your people, and speak to them and say to them, 'Thus says the Lord GOD,'whether they hear or refuse to hear."
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And now go. Go to the exiles, your people, and speak. Tell them, 'This is the Message of God, the Master.' Speak your piece, whether they listen or not."
12 Then the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard behind me the voice of a great earthquake: "Blessed be the glory of the LORD from its place!"
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Then the Spirit picked me up. Behind me I heard a great commotion - "Blessed be the Glory of God in his Sanctuary!"
13 It was the sound of the wings of the living creatures as they touched one another, and the sound of the wheels beside them, and the sound of a great earthquake.
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- the wings of the living creatures beating against each other, the whirling wheels, the rumble of a great earthquake.
14 The Spirit lifted me up and took me away, and I went in bitterness in the heat of my spirit, the hand of the LORD being strong upon me.
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The Spirit lifted me and took me away. I went bitterly and angrily. I didn't want to go. But God had me in his grip.
15 And I came to the exiles at Tel-abib, who were dwelling by the Chebar canal, and I sat where they were dwelling. And I sat there overwhelmed among them seven days.
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I arrived among the exiles who lived near the Kebar River at Tel Aviv. I came to where they were living and sat there for seven days, appalled.
16 And at the end of seven days, the word of the LORD came to me:
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At the end of the seven days, I received this Message from God:
17 "Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning from me.
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"Son of man, I've made you a watchman for the family of Israel. Whenever you hear me say something, warn them for me.
18 If I say to the wicked, 'You shall surely die,'and you give him no warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, in order to save his life, that wicked person shall die for his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand.
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If I say to the wicked, 'You are going to die,' and you don't sound the alarm warning them that it's a matter of life or death, they will die and it will be your fault. I'll hold you responsible.
19 But if you warn the wicked, and he does not turn from his wickedness, or from his wicked way, he shall die for his iniquity, but you will have delivered your soul.
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But if you warn the wicked and they keep right on sinning anyway, they'll most certainly die for their sin, but you won't die. You'll have saved your life.
20 Again, if a righteous person turns from his righteousness and commits injustice, and I lay a stumbling block before him, he shall die. Because you have not warned him, he shall die for his sin, and his righteous deeds that he has done shall not be remembered, but his blood I will require at your hand.
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"And if the righteous turn back from living righteously and take up with evil when I step in and put them in a hard place, they'll die. If you haven't warned them, they'll die because of their sins, and none of the right things they've done will count for anything - and I'll hold you responsible.
21 But if you warn the righteous person not to sin, and he does not sin, he shall surely live, because he took warning, and you will have delivered your soul."
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But if you warn these righteous people not to sin and they listen to you, they'll live because they took the warning - and again, you'll have saved your life."
22 And the hand of the LORD was upon me there. And he said to me, "Arise, go out into the valley, and there I will speak with you."
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God grabbed me by the shoulder and said, "Get up. Go out on the plain. I want to talk with you."
23 So I arose and went out into the valley, and behold, the glory of the LORD stood there, like the glory that I had seen by the Chebar canal, and I fell on my face.
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So I got up and went out on the plain. I couldn't believe my eyes: the Glory of God! Right there! It was like the Glory I had seen at the Kebar River. I fell to the ground, prostrate.
24 But the Spirit entered into me and set me on my feet, and he spoke with me and said to me, "Go, shut yourself within your house.
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Then the Spirit entered me and put me on my feet. He said, "Go home and shut the door behind you."
25 And you, O son of man, behold, cords will be placed upon you, and you shall be bound with them, so that you cannot go out among the people.
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And then something odd: "Son of man: They'll tie you hand and foot with ropes so you can't leave the house.
26 And I will make your tongue cling to the roof of your mouth, so that you shall be mute and unable to reprove them, for they are a rebellious house.
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I'll make your tongue stick to the roof of your mouth so you won't be able to talk and tell the people what they're doing wrong, even though they are a bunch of rebels.
27 But when I speak with you, I will open your mouth, and you shall say to them, 'Thus says the Lord GOD.'He who will hear, let him hear; and he who will refuse to hear, let him refuse, for they are a rebellious house.
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"But then when the time is ripe, I'll free your tongue and you'll say, 'This is what God, the Master, says: . . .' From then on it's up to them. They can listen or not listen, whichever they like. They are a bunch of rebels!
The English Standard Version is published with the permission of Good News Publishers.
Published by permission. Originally published by NavPress in English as THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright 2002 by Eugene Peterson. All rights reserved.