Israel Exalted at Last

22 Thus says the Lord God: “I will take also one of the highest zbranches of the high cedar and set it out. I will crop off from the topmost of its young twigs aa tender one, and will bplant it on a high and prominent mountain. 23 cOn the mountain height of Israel I will plant it; and it will bring forth boughs, and bear fruit, and be a majestic cedar. dUnder it will dwell birds of every sort; in the shadow of its branches they will dwell. 24 And all the trees of the field shall know that I, the Lord, ehave brought down the high tree and exalted the low tree, dried up the green tree and made the dry tree flourish; fI, the Lord, have spoken and have done it.”

A False Proverb Refuted

18 The word of the Lord came to me again, saying, 2 “What do you mean when you use this proverb concerning the land of Israel, saying:

‘The afathers have eaten sour grapes,

And the children’s teeth are set on edge’?

3 “As I live,” says the Lord God, “you shall no longer use this proverb in Israel.

4 “Behold, all souls are bMine;

The soul of the father

As well as the soul of the son is Mine;

cThe soul who sins shall die.

5 But if a man is just

And does what is lawful and right;

6 dIf he has not eaten 1on the mountains,

Nor lifted up his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel,

Nor edefiled his neighbor’s wife,

Nor approached fa woman during her impurity;

7 If he has not goppressed anyone,

But has restored to the debtor his hpledge;

Has robbed no one by violence,

But has igiven his bread to the hungry

And covered the naked with jclothing;

8 If he has not 2exacted kusury

Nor taken any increase,

But has withdrawn his hand from iniquity

And lexecuted true 3judgment between man and man;

9 If he has walked in My statutes—

And kept My judgments faithfully—

He is just;

He shall surely mlive!”

Says the Lord God.

10 “If he begets a son who is a robber

Or na shedder of blood,

Who does any of these things

11 And does none of those duties,

But has eaten 4on the mountains

Or defiled his neighbor’s wife;

12 If he has oppressed the poor and needy,

Robbed by violence,

Not restored the pledge,

Lifted his eyes to the idols,

Or ocommitted abomination;

13 If he has exacted usury

Or taken increase—

Shall he then live?

He shall not live!

If he has done any of these abominations,

He shall surely die;

pHis blood shall be upon him.

14 “If, however, he begets a son

Who sees all the sins which his father has done,

And considers but does not do likewise;

15 qWho has not eaten 5on the mountains,

Nor lifted his eyes to the idols of the house of Israel,

Nor defiled his neighbor’s wife;

16 Has not oppressed anyone,

Nor withheld a pledge,

Nor robbed by violence,

But has given his bread to the hungry

And covered the naked with clothing;

17 Who has withdrawn his hand from 6the poor

And not received usury or increase,

But has executed My judgments

And walked in My statutes

He shall not die for the iniquity of his father;

He shall surely live!

18 “As for his father,

Because he cruelly oppressed,

Robbed his brother by violence,

And did what is not good among his people,

Behold, rhe shall die for his iniquity.

Turn and Live

19 “Yet you say, ‘Why sshould the son not bear the guilt of the father?’ Because the son has done what is lawful and right, and has kept all My statutes and observed them, he shall surely live. 20 tThe soul who sins shall die. uThe son shall not bear the guilt of the father, nor the father bear the guilt of the son. vThe righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, wand the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself.

21 “But xif a wicked man turns from all his sins which he has committed, keeps all My statutes, and does what is lawful and right, he shall surely live; he shall not die. 22 yNone of the transgressions which he has committed shall be remembered against him; because of the righteousness which he has done, he shall zlive. 23 aDo I have any pleasure at all that the wicked should die?” says the Lord God, “and not that he should turn from his ways and live?

24 “But bwhen a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and does according to all the abominations that the wicked man does, shall he live? cAll the righteousness which he has done shall not be remembered; because of the unfaithfulness of which he is guilty and the sin which he has committed, because of them he shall die.

25 “Yet you say, d‘The way of the Lord is not fair.’ Hear now, O house of Israel, is it not My way which is fair, and your ways which are not fair? 26 eWhen a righteous man turns away from his righteousness, commits iniquity, and dies in it, it is because of the iniquity which he has done that he dies. 27 Again, fwhen a wicked man turns away from the wickedness which he committed, and does what is lawful and right, he preserves himself alive. 28 Because he gconsiders and turns away from all the transgressions which he committed, he shall surely live; he shall not die. 29 hYet the house of Israel says, ‘The way of the Lord is not fair.’ O house of Israel, is it not My ways which are fair, and your ways which are not fair?

30 i“Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways,” says the Lord God. j“Repent, and turn from all your transgressions, so that iniquity will not be your ruin. 31 kCast away from you all the transgressions which you have committed, and get yourselves a lnew heart and a new spirit. For why should you die, O house of Israel? 32 For mI have no pleasure in the death of one who dies,” says the Lord God. “Therefore turn and nlive!”

Israel Degraded

19 “Moreover atake up a lamentation for the princes of Israel, 2 and say:

‘What is your mother? A lioness:

She lay down among the lions;

Among the young lions she nourished her cubs.

3 She brought up one of her cubs,

And bhe became a young lion;

He learned to catch prey,

And he devoured men.

4 The nations also heard of him;

He was trapped in their pit,

And they brought him with chains to the land of cEgypt.

5 ‘When she saw that she waited, that her hope was lost,

She took danother of her cubs and made him a young lion.

6 eHe roved among the lions,

And fbecame a young lion;

He learned to catch prey;

He devoured men.

7 1He knew their desolate places,

And laid waste their cities;

The land with its fullness was desolated

By the noise of his roaring.

8 gThen the nations set against him from the provinces on every side,

And spread their net over him;

hHe was trapped in their pit.

9 iThey put him in a cage with 2chains,

And brought him to the king of Babylon;

They brought him in nets,

That his voice should no longer be heard on jthe mountains of Israel.

10 ‘Your mother was klike a vine in your 3bloodline,

Planted by the waters,

lFruitful and full of branches

Because of many waters.

11 She had strong branches for scepters of rulers.

mShe towered in stature above the thick branches,

And was seen in her height amid the 4dense foliage.

12 But she was nplucked up in fury,

She was cast down to the ground,

And the oeast wind dried her fruit.

Her strong branches were broken and withered;

The fire consumed them.

13 And now she is planted in the wilderness,

In a dry and thirsty land.

14 pFire has come out from a rod of her branches

And devoured her fruit,

So that she has no strong branch—a scepter for ruling.’ ”

qThis is a lamentation, and has become a lamentation.

The Rebellions of Israel

20 It came to pass in the seventh year, in the fifth month, on the tenth day of the month, that acertain of the elders of Israel came to inquire of the Lord, and sat before me. 2 Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying, 3 “Son of man, speak to the elders of Israel, and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Have you come to inquire of Me? As I live,” says the Lord God, b“I will not be inquired of by you.” ’ 4 Will you judge them, son of man, will you judge them? Then cmake known to them the abominations of their fathers.

5 “Say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “On the day when dI chose Israel and raised My hand in an oath to the descendants of the house of Jacob, and made Myself eknown to them in the land of Egypt, I raised My hand in an oath to them, saying, f‘I am the Lord your God.’ 6 On that day I raised My hand in an oath to them, gto bring them out of the land of Egypt into a land that I had searched out for them, h‘flowing with milk and honey,’ ithe glory of all lands. 7 Then I said to them, ‘Each of you, jthrow away kthe abominations which are before his eyes, and do not defile yourselves with lthe idols of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.’ 8 But they rebelled against Me and would not 1obey Me. They did not all cast away the abominations which were before their eyes, nor did they forsake the idols of Egypt. Then I said, ‘I will mpour out My fury on them and fulfill My anger against them in the midst of the land of Egypt.’ 9 nBut I acted for My name’s sake, that it should not be profaned before the Gentiles among whom they were, in whose sight I had made Myself oknown to them, to bring them out of the land of Egypt.

10 “Therefore I pmade them go out of the land of Egypt and brought them into the wilderness. 11 qAnd I gave them My statutes and 2showed them My judgments, r‘which, if a man does, he shall live by them.’ 12 Moreover I also gave them My sSabbaths, to be a sign between them and Me, that they might know that I am the Lord who sanctifies them. 13 Yet the house of Israel trebelled against Me in the wilderness; they did not walk in My statutes; they udespised My judgments, v‘which, if a man does, he shall live by them’; and they greatly wdefiled My Sabbaths. Then I said I would pour out My fury on them in the xwilderness, to consume them. 14 yBut I acted for My name’s sake, that it should not be profaned before the Gentiles, in whose sight I had brought them out. 15 So zI also raised My hand in an oath to them in the wilderness, that I would not bring them into the land which I had given them, a‘flowing with milk and honey,’ bthe glory of all lands, 16 cbecause they despised My judgments and did not walk in My statutes, but profaned My Sabbaths; for dtheir heart went after their idols. 17 eNevertheless My eye spared them from destruction. I did not make an end of them in the wilderness.

18 “But I said to their children in the wilderness, ‘Do not walk in the statutes of your fathers, nor observe their judgments, nor defile yourselves with their idols. 19 I am the Lord your God: fWalk in My statutes, keep My judgments, and do them; 20 ghallow My Sabbaths, and they will be a sign between Me and you, that you may know that I am the Lord your God.’

21 “Notwithstanding, hthe children rebelled against Me; they did not walk in My statutes, and were not careful to observe My judgments, i‘which, if a man does, he shall live by them’; but they profaned My Sabbaths. Then I said I would pour out My fury on them and fulfill My anger against them in the wilderness. 22 Nevertheless I 3withdrew My hand and acted for My name’s sake, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the Gentiles, in whose sight I had brought them out. 23 Also I raised My hand in an oath to those in the wilderness, that jI would scatter them among the Gentiles and disperse them throughout the countries, 24 kbecause they had not executed My judgments, but had despised My statutes, profaned My Sabbaths, and ltheir eyes were fixed on their fathers’ idols.

25 “Therefore mI also gave them up to statutes that were not good, and judgments by which they could not live; 26 and I pronounced them unclean because of their ritual gifts, in that they caused all 4their firstborn to pass nthrough the fire, that I might make them desolate and that they omight know that I am the Lord.” ’

27 “Therefore, son of man, speak to the house of Israel, and say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “In this too your fathers have pblasphemed Me, by being unfaithful to Me. 28 When I brought them into the land concerning which I had raised My hand in an oath to give them, and qthey saw all the high hills and all the thick trees, there they offered their sacrifices and provoked Me with their offerings. There they also sent up their rsweet aroma and poured out their drink offerings. 29 Then I said to them, ‘What is this 5high place to which you go?’ So its name is called 6Bamah to this day.” ’ 30 Therefore say to the house of Israel, ‘Thus says the Lord God: “Are you defiling yourselves in the manner of your sfathers, and committing harlotry according to their tabominations? 31 For when you offer uyour gifts and make your sons pass through the fire, you defile yourselves with all your idols, even to this day. So shall I be inquired of by you, O house of Israel? As I live,” says the Lord God, “I will vnot be inquired of by you. 32 wWhat you have in your mind shall never be, when you say, ‘We will be like the Gentiles, like the families in other countries, serving wood and stone.’