Common English Bible CEB
New Revised Standard NRS
1 The LORD's power overcame me, and while I was in the LORD's spirit, he led me out and set me down in the middle of a certain valley. It was full of bones.
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The hand of the Lord came upon me, and he brought me out by the spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones.
2 He led me through them all around, and I saw that there were a great many of them on the valley floor, and they were very dry.
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He led me all around them; there were very many lying in the valley, and they were very dry.
3 He asked me, "Human one, can these bones live again?" I said, "LORD God, only you know."
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He said to me, "Mortal, can these bones live?" I answered, "O Lord God, you know."
4 He said to me, "Prophesy over these bones, and say to them, Dry bones, hear the LORD's word!
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Then he said to me, "Prophesy to these bones, and say to them: O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord.
5 The LORD God proclaims to these bones: I am about to put breath in you, and you will live again.
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Thus says the Lord God to these bones: I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live.
6 I will put sinews on you, place flesh on you, and cover you with skin. When I put breath in you, and you come to life, you will know that I am the LORD."
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I will lay sinews on you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live; and you shall know that I am the Lord."
7 I prophesied just as I was commanded. There was a great noise as I was prophesying, then a great quaking, and the bones came together, bone by bone.
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So I prophesied as I had been commanded; and as I prophesied, suddenly there was a noise, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone.
8 When I looked, suddenly there were sinews on them. The flesh appeared, and then they were covered over with skin. But there was still no breath in them.
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I looked, and there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them; but there was no breath in them.
9 He said to me, "Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, human one! Say to the breath, The LORD God proclaims: Come from the four winds, breath! Breathe into these dead bodies and let them live."
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Then he said to me, "Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, mortal, and say to the breath: Thus says the Lord God: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live."
10 I prophesied just as he commanded me. When the breath entered them, they came to life and stood on their feet, an extraordinarily large company.
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I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood on their feet, a vast multitude.
11 He said to me, "Human one, these bones are the entire house of Israel. They say, ‘Our bones are dried up, and our hope has perished. We are completely finished.'
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Then he said to me, "Mortal, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They say, "Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are cut off completely.'
12 So now, prophesy and say to them, The LORD God proclaims: I'm opening your graves! I will raise you up from your graves, my people, and I will bring you to Israel's fertile land.
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Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord God: I am going to open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people; and I will bring you back to the land of Israel.
13 You will know that I am the LORD, when I open your graves and raise you up from your graves, my people.
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And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people.
14 I will put my breath in you, and you will live. I will plant you on your fertile land, and you will know that I am the LORD. I've spoken, and I will do it. This is what the LORD says."
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I will put my spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you on your own soil; then you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken and will act, says the Lord."
15 The LORD's word came to me:
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The word of the Lord came to me:
16 You, human one, take a stick, and write on it, "Belonging to Judah and to the Israelites associated with him." Take another stick and write on it, "Stick of Ephraim belonging to Joseph and everyone of the house of Israel associated with him."
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Mortal, take a stick and write on it, "For Judah, and the Israelites associated with it"; then take another stick and write on it, "For Joseph (the stick of Ephraim) and all the house of Israel associated with it";
17 Join them to each other to make a single stick so that they become one stick in your hand.
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and join them together into one stick, so that they may become one in your hand.
18 When your people ask you, "Why won't you tell us what these sticks mean to you?"
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And when your people say to you, "Will you not show us what you mean by these?"
19 say to them, The LORD God proclaims: I'm taking Joseph's stick, which has been in Ephraim's hand, and the tribes of Israel associated with him, and I'm putting it with Judah's stick, and I'm making them into a single stick so that they will be one stick in my hand.
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say to them, Thus says the Lord God: I am about to take the stick of Joseph (which is in the hand of Ephraim) and the tribes of Israel associated with it; and I will put the stick of Judah upon it, and make them one stick, in order that they may be one in my hand.
20 When the two sticks that you've written on are in your hand in their sight,
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When the sticks on which you write are in your hand before their eyes,
21 speak to them, This is what the LORD God says: I will take the Israelites from among the nations where they've gone, I will gather them from all around, and I will bring them to their fertile land.
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then say to them, Thus says the Lord God: I will take the people of Israel from the nations among which they have gone, and will gather them from every quarter, and bring them to their own land.
22 I will make them into a single nation in the land on Israel's highlands. There will be just one king for all of them. They will no longer be two nations, and they will no longer be divided into two kingdoms.
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I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king over them all. Never again shall they be two nations, and never again shall they be divided into two kingdoms.
23 They will no longer defile themselves with their idols or their worthless things or with any of their rebellions. I will deliver them from all the places where they sinned, and I will cleanse them. They will be my people, and I will be their God.
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They shall never again defile themselves with their idols and their detestable things, or with any of their transgressions. I will save them from all the apostasies into which they have fallen, and will cleanse them. Then they shall be my people, and I will be their God.
24 My servant David will be king over them. There will be just one shepherd for all of them. They will follow my case laws and carefully observe my regulations.
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My servant David shall be king over them; and they shall all have one shepherd. They shall follow my ordinances and be careful to observe my statutes.
25 They will live on the land that I gave to my servant Jacob, where their ancestors lived. They will live on it, they and their children and their grandchildren, forever. My servant David will be their prince forever.
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They shall live in the land that I gave to my servant Jacob, in which your ancestors lived; they and their children and their children's children shall live there forever; and my servant David shall be their prince forever.
26 I will make a covenant of peace for them. It will be their covenant forever. I will grant it to them and allow them to increase. I will set my sanctuary among them forever.
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I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them; and I will bless them and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary among them forevermore.
27 My dwelling will be with them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.
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My dwelling place shall be with them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.
28 The nations will know that I, the LORD, make Israel holy, when my sanctuary is among them forever.
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Then the nations shall know that I the Lord sanctify Israel, when my sanctuary is among them forevermore.
Copyright © 2011 Common English Bible
New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.