Ezekiel 18; Ezekiel 19; Ezekiel 20

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Ezekiel 18

1 A message came to me from the Lord. He said,

2 "You people have a proverb about the land of Israel. What do you mean by it? It says, " 'The parents eat sour grapes. But the children have a bitter taste in their mouths.'

3 "You will not use that proverb in Israel anymore," announces the LORD and King. "And that is just as sure as I am alive.

4 Everyone belongs to me. Father and son alike belong to me. People will die because of their own sins.

5 "Suppose a godly man does what is fair and right.

6 And he does not eat at the mountain temples. He does not worship the statues of Israel's gods. He does not have sex with another man's wife. He does not make love to his own wife during her monthly period.

7 He does not treat anyone badly. Instead, he always gives back what he took as security for a loan. He does not steal. Instead, he gives his food to hungry people. He provides clothes for those who are naked.

8 He does not lend money and charge too much interest. He keeps himself from doing what is wrong. He judges cases fairly.

9 He follows my rules. He is faithful in keeping my laws. He always does what is right. You can be sure he will live," announces the LORD and King.

10 "But suppose he has a mean son who harms other people. The son commits murder. Or he does some other things that are wrong.

11 Suppose he does those things even though his father never did. "Suppose he eats at the mountain temples. And he has sex with another man's wife.

12 He treats poor and needy people badly. He steals. He does not pay back what he owes. He worships statues of gods. He does other things I hate.

13 He lends money and charges too much interest. Will a man like that live? He will not! You can be sure he will be put to death. And what happens to him will be his own fault. He did many things I hate.

14 "But suppose that son has a son of his own. And the son sees all of the sins his father commits. He sees them, but he does not do them.

15 "Suppose he does not eat at the mountain temples. And he does not worship the statues of Israel's gods. He does not have sex with another man's wife.

16 He does not treat anyone badly. He does not make people give him something to prove they will pay back what they owe him. He does not steal. Instead, he gives his food to hungry people. He provides clothes for those who are naked.

17 He keeps himself from committing sins. He does not lend money and charge too much interest. He keeps my laws and follows my rules. He will not die because of his father's sin. You can be sure he will live.

18 But his father will die because of his own sin. He got rich by cheating others. He robbed his relatives. He also did what was wrong among his people.

19 "But you still ask, 'Is the son guilty along with his father?' No! The son did what was fair and right. He was careful to keep all of my rules. So you can be sure he will live.

20 People will die because of their own sins. The son will not be guilty because of what his father did. And the father will not be guilty because of what his son did. The right things a godly person does will be added to his account. The wrong things a sinful person does will be charged against him.

21 "But suppose a sinful person turns away from all of the sins he has committed. And he keeps all my rules. He does what is fair and right. Then you can be sure he will live. He will not die.

22 None of the sins he has committed will be held against him. Because of the godly things he has done, he will live.

23 "When sinful people die, it does not give me any joy," announces the LORD and King. "But when they turn away from their sins and live, that makes me very happy.

24 "Suppose a godly person stops doing what is right. And he commits sin. He does the same evil things a sinful person does. He does things I hate. Then he will not live. I will not remember any of the right things he has done. He has not been faithful to me. He has also committed many other sins. So he is guilty. He will die.

25 "But you say, 'What the Lord does isn't fair.' Listen to me, people of Israel. What I do is always fair. What you do is not.

26 "Suppose a godly person stops doing what is right. And he commits sin. Then he will die because of it. He will die because of the sin he has committed.

27 "But suppose a sinful person turns away from the evil things he has done. And he does what is fair and right. Then he will save his life.

28 He thinks about all of the evil things he has done. And he turns away from them. So you can be sure he will live. He will not die.

29 "But the people of Israel still say, 'What the Lord does isn't fair.' People of Israel, what I do is always fair. What you do is not.

30 "So I will judge you people. I will judge each of you in keeping with what you have done," announces the LORD and King. "Turn away from your sins! Turn away from all of the evil things you have done. Then sin will not bring you down.

31 Get rid of all of the evil things you have done. Let me give you a new heart and a new spirit. Then you will be faithful to me. Why should you die, people of Israel?

32 When anyone dies, it does not give me any joy," announces the LORD and King. "So turn away from your sins. Then you will live!

Ezekiel 19

1 "Sing a song of sadness about Israel's princes.

2 Say to Israel, " 'You were like a mother lion to your princes. She lay down among the young lions. She brought up her cubs.

3 One of them was Jehoahaz. He became a strong lion. He learned to tear apart what he caught. And he ate men up.

4 The nations heard about him. They trapped him in their pit. They put hooks in his face. And they led him away to Egypt.

5 " 'The mother lion looked and waited. But all of her hope was gone. So she got another one of her cubs. She made him into a strong lion.

6 He prowled with the lions. He became very strong. He learned to tear apart what he caught. And he ate men up.

7 He broke down their forts. He completely destroyed their towns. The land and all those who were in it were terrified when he roared.

8 Then nations came against him. They came from all around him. They spread out their net to catch him. He was trapped in their pit.

9 They used hooks to pull him into a cage. They brought him to the king of Babylonia. They put him in prison. So his roar was not heard anymore on the mountains of Israel.

10 " 'Israel, you were like a vine in a vineyard. It was planted near water. It had a lot of fruit and many branches. There was plenty of water.

11 Its branches were strong. Each was good enough to be made into a ruler's rod. The vine grew high above all of the leaves. It stood out because it was so tall and had so many branches.

12 But Nebuchadnezzar became angry. He pulled it up by its roots. He threw it to the ground. The east wind dried it up. Its fruit was stripped off. Its strong branches dried up. And fire destroyed them.

13 Now it is planted in the Babylonian desert. It is in a dry and thirsty land.

14 One of its main branches was Zedekiah. Fire spread from it and burned up its fruit. None of its branches is good enough to be made into a ruler's rod.' "That is a song of sadness. And that is how it should be used."

Ezekiel 20

1 It was the seventh year since King Jehoiachin had been brought to Babylon as a prisoner. On the tenth day of the fifth month, some of the elders of Israel came to ask the LORD for advice. They sat down with me.

2 Then a message came to me from the Lord. He said,

3 "Son of man, speak to the elders of Israel. Tell them, 'The LORD and King says, "Have you come to ask me for advice? I will not let you do that," announces the LORD and King. "And that is just as sure as I am alive." '

4 "Are you going to judge them, son of man? Will you judge them? Tell them the evil things their people did long ago. I hate those things.

5 Tell them, 'The LORD and King says, "I chose Israel. On that day I raised my hand and took an oath. I made a promise to the members of Jacob's family line. I made myself known to them in Egypt. I raised my hand and told them, 'I am the LORD your God.'

6 " ' "On that day I promised I would bring them out of Egypt. I told them I would take them to a land I had found for them. It had plenty of milk and honey. It was the most beautiful land of all.

7 I said to them, 'Each of you must get rid of the statues of the evil gods you worship. Do not pollute yourselves by worshiping the gods of Egypt. I am the LORD your God.'

8 " ' "But they refused to obey me. They would not listen to me. They did not get rid of the evil gods they worshiped. And they did not turn away from Egypt's gods. So I said I would pour out all of my burning anger on them in Egypt.

9 " ' "But I wanted my name to be honored. I kept it from being treated as if it were not holy. I did not want that to happen in front of the nations my people lived among. I had made myself known to Israel in the sight of those nations. I had brought my people out of Egypt.

10 " ' "So I led them out of Egypt. I brought them into the Desert of Sinai.

11 I gave them my rules. I made my laws known to them. The one who obeys them will live by them.

12 I also told them to observe my Sabbath days. That is the sign of the covenant I made with them. I wanted them to know that I made them holy. I am the Lord.

13 " ' "But the people of Israel refused to obey me in the desert. They did not follow my rules. They turned their backs on my laws. The one who obeys them will live by them. They totally misused my Sabbath days. So I said I would pour out my burning anger on them. I would destroy them in the desert.

14 " ' "But I wanted my name to be honored. I kept it from being treated as if it were not holy. I did not want that to happen in front of the nations. They had seen me bring Israel out of Egypt.

15 " ' "I also raised my hand and took an oath in the desert. I told my people I would not bring them into the land I had given them. It had plenty of milk and honey. It was the most beautiful land of all.

16 But they turned their backs on my laws. They did not follow my rules. They misused my Sabbaths. Their hearts were committed to worshiping the statues of their gods.

17 " ' "Then I felt sorry for them. So I did not destroy them. I did not put an end to them in the desert.

18 I spoke to their children there. I said, 'Do not follow the rules your parents gave you. Do not obey their laws. Do not pollute yourselves by worshiping their gods.

19 I am the LORD your God. So follow my rules. Be careful to obey my laws.

20 Keep my Sabbath days holy. That is the sign of the covenant I made with you. You will know that I am the LORD your God.'

21 " ' "But their children refused to obey me. They did not follow my rules. They were not careful to keep my laws. The one who obeys them will live by them. They misused my Sabbaths. So I said I would pour out all of my burning anger on them in the desert.

22 " ' "But I kept myself from punishing them at that time. I wanted my name to be honored. So I kept it from being treated as if it were not holy. I did not want that to happen in front of the nations. They had seen me bring Israel out of Egypt.

23 " ' "I also raised my hand and took an oath in the desert. I told my people I would scatter them among the nations. I would send them to other countries.

24 They had not obeyed my laws. They had turned their backs on my rules. They had misused my Sabbaths. Their eyes longed to see the statues of their parents' gods.

25 " ' "I even let them follow rules that were not good. I let them have laws they could not live by.

26 I let them become polluted by offering sacrifices to other gods. They even sacrificed the first male child who was born in each family. I wanted to fill them with horror. Then they would know that I am the Lord." '

27 "Son of man, speak to the people of Israel. Tell them, 'The LORD and King says, "Your people spoke evil things against me long ago. They deserted me.

28 But I brought them into the land. I had taken an oath and promised to give the land to them. Then they offered sacrifices that made me very angry. They did it on every high hill and under every green tree. There they brought their sweet-smelling incense. And there they poured out their drink offerings.

29 Then I said to them, 'What? You are going to a high place?' " ' " That high place is called Bamah to this very day.

30 The LORD said to me, "Speak to the people of Israel. Tell them, 'The LORD and King says, "Are you going to pollute yourselves the way your people did? Do you long to see the statues of their evil gods?

31 You pollute yourselves by offering sacrifices to other gods. You even sacrifice your children in the fire. You continue to do those things to this very day. People of Israel, should I let you ask me for advice? I will not let you do that," announces the LORD and King. "And that is just as sure as I am alive.

32 " ' "You say, 'We want to be like the other nations. We want to be like all of the other people in the world. They serve gods that are made out of wood and stone.' But what you have in mind will never happen.

33 I will rule over you by reaching out my mighty hand and powerful arm. I will pour my burning anger out on you," announces the LORD and King. "And that is just as sure as I am alive.

34 " ' "I will bring you back from the nations. I will gather you together from the countries where you have been scattered. I will reach out my mighty hand and powerful arm. I will pour my burning anger out on you.

35 I will send you among the nations. There I will judge you face to face. It will be as if I were judging you in the desert again.

36 Long ago, I judged your people in the desert of Egypt. In the same way, I will judge you," announces the LORD and King.

37 " ' "I will take note of you as you pass under my shepherd's rod. I will separate those who obey me from those who do not. And I will give the blessings of the new covenant to those of you who obey me.

38 I will get rid of those among you who turn against me and refuse to obey me. I will bring them out of the land where they are living. But they will not enter the land of Israel. Then you will know that I am the Lord.

39 " ' "People of Israel, the LORD and King says, 'Go, every one of you! Serve your gods. But later you will listen to me. You will no longer treat my name as if it were not holy. You will not offer sacrifices to other gods anymore.

40 " ' " 'People of Israel, you will serve me,' announces the LORD and King. 'You will serve me on my high and holy mountain in Jerusalem. There I will accept you. I will require your offerings and your finest gifts. I want you to bring them along with all of your other holy sacrifices.

41 I will bring you back from the nations. I will gather you together from the countries where you have been scattered. Then I will accept you as if you were sweet-smelling incense. I will show that I am holy among you. The nations will see it.

42 " ' " 'I will bring you into the land of Israel. Then you will know that I am the Lord. Long ago I raised my hand and took an oath. I promised to give that land to your people.

43 There you will remember your conduct. You will think about everything you did that polluted you. And you will hate yourselves because of all of the evil things you have done.

44 " ' " 'People of Israel, I will deal with you for the honor of my name. I will not deal with you based on your evil conduct and sinful practices. Then you will know that I am the Lord,' announces the LORD and King." ' "

45 A message came to me from the Lord. He said,

46 "Son of man, turn your attention to Judah in the south. Preach against it. Prophesy against its forests.

47 Tell them, 'Listen to the LORD's message. The LORD and King says, "I am about to set you on fire. The fire will destroy all of your trees. It will burn up green trees and dry trees alike. The blazing flame will not be put out. The faces of everyone from south to north will be burned by it.

48 Everyone will see that I started the fire. It will not be put out. I am the Lord." ' "

49 Then I said, "LORD and King, people are talking about me. They are saying, 'Isn't he just telling stories?' "

Ezekiel 18; Ezekiel 19; Ezekiel 20

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Ezekiel 18

Ezekiel 19

Ezekiel 20