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Prophecies Against the Leaders

¹ Then the Spirit^[a] carried me to the East Gate of the Lord's Temple. This gate faces the east, where the sun comes up. I saw 25 men there at the entrance of this gate. Some of the leaders were among them, including Jaazaniah son of Azzur and Pelatiah son of Benaiah.

² Then God spoke to me and said, "Son of man,^[b] these are the men who make evil plans for this city. They always tell the people to do evil things. ³ These men say, ‘We will be building our houses again very soon. We are as safe in this city as meat in a pot!' ⁴ So you must speak to the people for me. Son of man, prophesy against the people."

⁵ Then the Spirit of the Lord came on me. He said to me, "Tell them that this is what the Lord said: House of Israel, you are planning big things. But I know what you are thinking. ⁶ You have killed many people in this city. You have filled the streets with dead bodies. ⁷ Now, the Lord God says this: ‘The dead bodies are the meat, and the city is the pot. But someone will come and take you out of this safe pot. ⁸ You are afraid of the sword, but I am bringing the sword against you!'" This is what the Lord God said.

⁹ He also said, "I will take you out of this city and give you to strangers. I will punish you. ¹⁰ You will die by the sword. I will punish you here in Israel, so you will know that I am the Lord. ¹¹ Yes, this place will be the cooking pot, and you will be the meat cooking in it. I will punish you here in Israel. ¹² Then you will know that I am the Lord. It was my law that you broke. You did not obey my commands. You decided to live like the nations around you."

¹³ As soon as I finished speaking for God, Pelatiah son of Benaiah died! I fell to the ground. I bowed with my face touching the ground and said, "Oh, Lord God, you are going to completely destroy all the survivors of Israel!"

Prophecies Against Survivors in Jerusalem

¹⁴ But then the word of the Lord came to me. He said, ¹⁵ "Son of man, remember your brothers, the family of Israel. They were forced to leave their country, but I will bring them back.^[c] But now, the people living in Jerusalem are saying, ‘Stay far away from the Lord. This land was given to us—it is ours!'

¹⁶ "So tell them this: The Lord God says, ‘It is true, I forced my people to go far away to other nations. I did scatter them among many countries. But I will be their temple for a short time while they are in those other countries. ¹⁷ But you must tell those people that the Lord God will bring them back. I have scattered you among many nations, but I will gather you together and bring you back from those nations. I will give the land of Israel back to you. ¹⁸ When my people come back, they will destroy all the terrible, filthy idols that are here now. ¹⁹ I will bring them together and make them like one person. I will put a new spirit^[d] in them. I will take away that heart of stone, and I will put a real heart in its place. ²⁰ Then they will obey my laws and my commands. They will do the things I tell them. They will be my people, and I will be their God.'"

The Glory of the Lord Leaves Jerusalem

²¹ Then God said, "But now, their hearts belong to those terrible, filthy idols, and I must punish those people for the bad things they have done." This is what the Lord God said. ²² Then the Cherub angels raised their wings and flew into the air. The wheels went with them. The Glory of the God of Israel was above them. ²³ The Glory of the Lord rose into the air and left the city and stopped on the hill east of Jerusalem.^{[e] 24} Then the Spirit^[f] lifted me into the air and brought me back to Babylonia. It brought me back to the people who were forced to leave Israel. I saw all this in the vision from God. Then the one I saw in the vision rose into the air and left me. ²⁵ Then I spoke to the people in exile. I told them about everything the Lord showed me.