Ezekiel, 22

1. Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

1. The word of Yahweh came to me in these terms,

2. Now, thou son of man, wilt thou judge, wilt thou judge the bloody city? yea, thou shalt shew her all her abominations.

2. "Son of man, will you judge them? Will you judge the city of blood? Charge her with all her detestable practices.

3. Then say thou, Thus saith the Lord GOD, The city sheddeth blood in the midst of it, that her time may come, and maketh idols against herself to defile herself.

3. Say: This is Yahweh's word: City of bloodshed, your hour has come. You who made your own idols to defile yourself, you are nearing your last days, the end of your years has come.

4. Thou art become guilty in thy blood that thou hast shed; and hast defiled thyself in thine idols which thou hast made; and thou hast caused thy days to draw near, and art come [even] unto thy years: therefore have I made thee a reproach unto the heathen, and a mocking to all countries.

4. That is why I am making you an object of horror for the nations and a laughing-stock for every country.

5. [Those that be] near, and [those that be] far from thee, shall mock thee, [which art] infamous [and] much vexed.

5. Those both near and far will mock you, for your name is defiled and you are full of tumult.

6. Behold, the princes of Israel, every one were in thee to their power to shed blood.

6. The leaders of Israel, each according to his strength, have one intent - to shed blood.

7. In thee have they set light by father and mother: in the midst of thee have they dealt by oppression with the stranger: in thee have they vexed the fatherless and the widow.

7. In you, Israel, father and mother are treated with contempt, in you the alien is oppressed, the fatherless and the widow are wronged.

8. Thou hast despised mine holy things, and hast profaned my sabbaths.

8. You have despised my holy things and profaned my sabbaths.

9. In thee are men that carry tales to shed blood: and in thee they eat upon the mountains: in the midst of thee they commit lewdness.

9. In you, men slander to shed blood; in you, they go to eat on the hill sanctuaries and act shamefully.

10. In thee have they discovered their fathers' nakedness: in thee have they humbled her that was set apart for pollution.

10. In you are those who defile their father's bed, in you are those who violate women when they are unclean.

11. And one hath committed abomination with his neighbour's wife; and another hath lewdly defiled his daughter in law; and another in thee hath humbled his sister, his father's daughter.

11. One man commits a detestable offense with his neighbor's wife, another shamefully dishonors his daughter-in-law, another violates his own sister, his father's daughter.

12. In thee have they taken gifts to shed blood; thou hast taken usury and increase, and thou hast greedily gained of thy neighbours by extortion, and hast forgotten me, saith the Lord GOD.

12. In you, men accept bribes to shed blood. You exact interest and usury and you rob and exploit your neighbor, and you have forgotten me. It is Yahweh who speaks.

13. Behold, therefore I have smitten mine hand at thy dishonest gain which thou hast made, and at thy blood which hath been in the midst of thee.

13. See, I will clap my hands at your dishonest profit, and the blood you have shed. Will your courage hold out, will your hands be steady when I shall come against you?

14. Can thine heart endure, or can thine hands be strong, in the days that I shall deal with thee? I the LORD have spoken [it], and will do [it].

14. I, Yahweh, have spoken and I will act accordingly.

15. And I will scatter thee among the heathen, and disperse thee in the countries, and will consume thy filthiness out of thee.

15. I will scatter you among the nations, I will disperse you in other countries to rid you of your uncleanness.

16. And thou shalt take thine inheritance in thyself in the sight of the heathen, and thou shalt know that I [am] the LORD.

16. Then you will be dishonored in the eyes of the nations and you will know that I am Yahweh."

17. And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

17. The word of Yahweh came to me in these terms,

18. Son of man, the house of Israel is to me become dross: all they [are] brass, and tin, and iron, and lead, in the midst of the furnace; they are [even] the dross of silver.

18. "Israel has become for me like dross; some were like silver, bronze, tin, iron and lead; but in the furnace only dross is left.

19. Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because ye are all become dross, behold, therefore I will gather you into the midst of Jerusalem.

19. The Lord Yahweh has spoken: This is how I am gathering you together in Jerusalem.

20. [As] they gather silver, and brass, and iron, and lead, and tin, into the midst of the furnace, to blow the fire upon it, to melt [it]; so will I gather [you] in mine anger and in my fury, and I will leave [you there], and melt you.

20. As they place silver, bronze, iron, lead and tin in the fires of a furnace to be smelted, so in my anger will I assemble you, put you in the furnace and smelt you.

21. Yea, I will gather you, and blow upon you in the fire of my wrath, and ye shall be melted in the midst thereof.

21. I will gather you in Jerusalem, stir up the fire of my wrath and smelt you in it.

22. As silver is melted in the midst of the furnace, so shall ye be melted in the midst thereof; and ye shall know that I the LORD have poured out my fury upon you.

22. As silver is smelted in the furnace so will you be smelted and you will know that I, Yahweh, have poured out my fiery wrath against you."

23. And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

23. The word of Yahweh came to me in these terms,

24. Son of man, say unto her, Thou [art] the land that is not cleansed, nor rained upon in the day of indignation.

24. "Son of man, say to Jerusalem: You are a land without rain, a land without a shower on a day of wrath,

25. [There is] a conspiracy of her prophets in the midst thereof, like a roaring lion ravening the prey; they have devoured souls; they have taken the treasure and precious things; they have made her many widows in the midst thereof.

25. a land where the princes have been like a roaring lion tearing its prey. They devour people; they take treasures and precious objects and increase the number of widows.

26. Her priests have violated my law, and have profaned mine holy things: they have put no difference between the holy and profane, neither have they shewed [difference] between the unclean and the clean, and have hid their eyes from my sabbaths, and I am profaned among them.

26. Your priests have broken my laws and have profaned my holy things. They have made no distinction between what is holy and what is common; they have not taught what difference there is between the clean and the unclean. They have ignored my sabbath and I have been dishonored by them.

27. Her princes in the midst thereof [are] like wolves ravening the prey, to shed blood, [and] to destroy souls, to get dishonest gain.

27. The officials of the city are like wolves who tear their prey, shedding blood and killing people for unjust gain.

28. And her prophets have daubed them with untempered [morter], seeing vanity, and divining lies unto them, saying, Thus saith the Lord GOD, when the LORD hath not spoken.

28. As for the prophets, they whitewash everything by means of false visions and lying predictions, saying: 'Yahweh has spoken' when Yahweh has not spoken.

29. The people of the land have used oppression, and exercised robbery, and have vexed the poor and needy: yea, they have oppressed the stranger wrongfully.

29. The lords of the land have practiced extortion and robbery, oppressing the poor and needy, molesting the alien and denying him justice.

30. And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none.

30. I looked for a man among them to build a wall and stand on the breach to protect the land lest I destroy it, but I found none.

31. Therefore have I poured out mine indignation upon them; I have consumed them with the fire of my wrath: their own way have I recompensed upon their heads, saith the Lord GOD.

31. So I have poured out my wrath against them; I have destroyed them in the heat of my fury bringing down on their heads all they have done - it is Yahweh who speaks."