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Idolaters Condemned
Some of the elders of Israel came to me and sat down in front of me.
Some of the elders of Israel came to me and sat down in front of me.
The Idolatry of Israel’s Leaders
Then some of the leaders of Israel visited me, and while they were sitting with me,
Then some of the leaders of Israel visited me, and while they were sitting with me,
“Son of man, these men have set up idols in their hearts and put wicked stumbling blocks before their faces. Should I let them inquire of me at all?
Therefore speak to them and tell them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: When any of the Israelites set up idols in their hearts and put a wicked stumbling block before their faces and then go to a prophet, I the Lord will answer them myself in keeping with their great idolatry.
Tell them, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: The people of Israel have set up idols in their hearts and fallen into sin, and then they go to a prophet asking for a message. So I, the LORD, will give them the kind of answer their great idolatry deserves.
I will do this to recapture the hearts of the people of Israel, who have all deserted me for their idols.’
I will do this to capture the minds and hearts of all my people who have turned from me to worship their detestable idols.’
“Therefore say to the people of Israel, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Repent! Turn from your idols and renounce all your detestable practices!
“Therefore, tell the people of Israel, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Repent and turn away from your idols, and stop all your detestable sins.
“ ‘When any of the Israelites or any foreigner residing in Israel separate themselves from me and set up idols in their hearts and put a wicked stumbling block before their faces and then go to a prophet to inquire of me, I the Lord will answer them myself.
I, the LORD, will answer all those, both Israelites and foreigners, who reject me and set up idols in their hearts and so fall into sin, and who then come to a prophet asking for my advice.
I will set my face against them and make them an example and a byword. I will remove them from my people. Then you will know that I am the Lord.
I will turn against such people and make a terrible example of them, eliminating them from among my people. Then you will know that I am the LORD.
“ ‘And if the prophet is enticed to utter a prophecy, I the Lord have enticed that prophet, and I will stretch out my hand against him and destroy him from among my people Israel.
“‘And if a prophet is deceived into giving a message, it is because I, the LORD, have deceived that prophet. I will lift my fist against such prophets and cut them off from the community of Israel.
They will bear their guilt — the prophet will be as guilty as the one who consults him.
False prophets and those who seek their guidance will all be punished for their sins.
Then the people of Israel will no longer stray from me, nor will they defile themselves anymore with all their sins. They will be my people, and I will be their God, declares the Sovereign Lord.’ ”
In this way, the people of Israel will learn not to stray from me, polluting themselves with sin. They will be my people, and I will be their God. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken!’”
Jerusalem’s Judgment Inescapable
The word of the Lord came to me:
The word of the Lord came to me:
The Certainty of the LORD’s Judgment
Then this message came to me from the LORD:
“Son of man, if a country sins against me by being unfaithful and I stretch out my hand against it to cut off its food supply and send famine upon it and kill its people and their animals,
“Son of man, suppose the people of a country were to sin against me, and I lifted my fist to crush them, cutting off their food supply and sending a famine to destroy both people and animals.
Even if Noah, Daniel, and Job were there, their righteousness would save no one but themselves, says the Sovereign LORD.
“Or if I send wild beasts through that country and they leave it childless and it becomes desolate so that no one can pass through it because of the beasts,
“Or suppose I were to send wild animals to invade the country, kill the people, and make the land too desolate and dangerous to pass through.
as surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, even if these three men were in it, they could not save their own sons or daughters. They alone would be saved, but the land would be desolate.
As surely as I live, says the Sovereign LORD, even if those three men were there, they wouldn’t be able to save their own sons or daughters. They alone would be saved, but the land would be made desolate.
“Or if I bring a sword against that country and say, ‘Let the sword pass throughout the land,’ and I kill its people and their animals,
“Or suppose I were to bring war against the land, and I sent enemy armies to destroy both people and animals.
as surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, even if these three men were in it, they could not save their own sons or daughters. They alone would be saved.
As surely as I live, says the Sovereign LORD, even if those three men were there, they wouldn’t be able to save their own sons or daughters. They alone would be saved.
“Or if I send a plague into that land and pour out my wrath on it through bloodshed, killing its people and their animals,
“Or suppose I were to pour out my fury by sending an epidemic into the land, and the disease killed people and animals alike.
as surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, even if Noah, Daniel and Job were in it, they could save neither son nor daughter. They would save only themselves by their righteousness.
As surely as I live, says the Sovereign LORD, even if Noah, Daniel, and Job were there, they wouldn’t be able to save their own sons or daughters. They alone would be saved by their righteousness.
“For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: How much worse will it be when I send against Jerusalem my four dreadful judgments — sword and famine and wild beasts and plague — to kill its men and their animals!
“Now this is what the Sovereign LORD says: How terrible it will be when all four of these dreadful punishments fall upon Jerusalem — war, famine, wild animals, and disease — destroying all her people and animals.
Yet there will be some survivors — sons and daughters who will be brought out of it. They will come to you, and when you see their conduct and their actions, you will be consoled regarding the disaster I have brought on Jerusalem — every disaster I have brought on it.
Yet there will be survivors, and they will come here to join you as exiles in Babylon. You will see with your own eyes how wicked they are, and then you will feel better about what I have done to Jerusalem.
You will be consoled when you see their conduct and their actions, for you will know that I have done nothing in it without cause, declares the Sovereign Lord.”
When you meet them and see their behavior, you will understand that these things are not being done to Israel without cause. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken!”