Ezekiel 11

1Moreover the spirit lifted me up, and brought me unto the east gate of the LORD’s house, which looketh eastward: and behold at the door of the gate five and twenty men; among whom I saw Jaazaniah the son of Azur, and Pelatiah the son of Benaiah, princes of the people.

2Then said he unto me, Son of man, these are the men that devise mischief, and give wicked counsel in this city:

3Which say, It is not near; let us build houses: this city is the caldron, and we be the flesh.footnote a

4Therefore prophesy against them, prophesy, O son of man.

5And the Spirit of the LORD fell upon me, and said unto me, Speak; Thus saith the LORD; Thus have ye said, O house of Israel: for I know the things that come into your mind, every one of them.

6Ye have multiplied your slain in this city, and ye have filled the streets thereof with the slain.

7Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Your slain whom ye have laid in the midst of it, they are the flesh, and this city is the caldron: but I will bring you forth out of the midst of it.

8Ye have feared the sword; and I will bring a sword upon you, saith the Lord GOD.

9And I will bring you out of the midst thereof, and deliver you into the hands of strangers, and will execute judgments among you.

10Ye shall fall by the sword; I will judge you in the border of Israel; and ye shall know that I am the LORD.

11This city shall not be your caldron, neither shall ye be the flesh in the midst thereof; but I will judge you in the border of Israel:

12And ye shall know that I am the LORD: for ye have not walked in my statutes, neither executed my judgments, but have done after the manners of the heathen that are round about you.footnote b

13And it came to pass, when I prophesied, that Pelatiah the son of Benaiah died. Then fell I down upon my face, and cried with a loud voice, and said, Ah Lord GOD! wilt thou make a full end of the remnant of Israel?

14Again the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

15Son of man, thy brethren, even thy brethren, the men of thy kindred, and all the house of Israel wholly, are they unto whom the inhabitants of Jerusalem have said, Get you far from the LORD: unto us is this land given in possession.

16Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Although I have cast them far off among the heathen, and although I have scattered them among the countries, yet will I be to them as a little sanctuary in the countries where they shall come.

17Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; I will even gather you from the people, and assemble you out of the countries where ye have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel.

18And they shall come thither, and they shall take away all the detestable things thereof and all the abominations thereof from thence.

19And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh:

20That they may walk in my statutes, and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God.

21But as for them whose heart walketh after the heart of their detestable things and their abominations, I will recompense their way upon their own heads, saith the Lord GOD.

22Then did the cherubims lift up their wings, and the wheels beside them; and the glory of the God of Israel was over them above.

23And the glory of the LORD went up from the midst of the city, and stood upon the mountain which is on the east side of the city.

24Afterwards the spirit took me up, and brought me in a vision by the Spirit of God into Chaldea, to them of the captivity. So the vision that I had seen went up from me.

25Then I spake unto them of the captivity all the things that the LORD had shewed me.

Evil in High Places

1Then the Spirit lifted me up and brought me to the gate of the house of the LORD that faces east. And there at the entrance of the gate were twenty-five men. Among them I saw Jaazaniah son of Azzur and Pelatiah son of Benaiah, who were leaders of the people. 2And the LORD said to me, “Son of man, these are the men who plot evil and give wicked counsel in this city. 3They are saying, ‘Is not the time near to build houses? The city is the cooking pot,footnote a and we are the meat.’ 4Therefore prophesy against them; prophesy, O son of man!”

5And the Spirit of the LORD fell upon me and told me to declare that this is what the LORD says: “That is what you are thinking, O house of Israel; and I know the thoughts that arise in your minds. 6You have multiplied those you killed in this city and filled its streets with the dead.

7Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: The slain you have laid within this city are the meat, and the city is the pot; but I will remove you from it. 8You fear the sword, so I will bring the sword against you, declares the Lord GOD. 9I will bring you out of the city and deliver you into the hands of foreigners, and I will execute judgments against you. 10You will fall by the sword, and I will judge you even to the borders of Israel. Then you will know that I am the LORD.

11The city will not be a pot for you, nor will you be the meat within it. I will judge you even to the borders of Israel. 12Then you will know that I am the LORD. For you have neither followed My statutes nor practiced My ordinances, but you have conformed to the ordinances of the nations around you.”

A Promise of Restoration

13Now as I was prophesying, Pelatiah son of Benaiah died. Then I fell facedown and cried out in a loud voice, “Oh, Lord GOD, will You bring the remnant of Israel to a complete end?”

14Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 15“Son of man, your brothers—your relatives, your fellow exiles, and the whole house of Israel—are those of whom the people of Jerusalem have said, ‘They are far away from the LORD; this land has been given to us as a possession.’

16Therefore declare that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Although I sent them far away among the nations and scattered them among the countries, yet for a little while I have been a sanctuary for them in the countries to which they have gone.’

17Therefore declare that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘I will gather you from the peoples and assemble you from the countries to which you have been scattered, and I will give back to you the land of Israel.’

18When they return to it, they will remove all its detestable things and all its abominations. 19And I will give them singleness of heart and put a new spirit within them; I will remove their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh, 20so that they may follow My statutes, keep My ordinances, and practice them. Then they will be My people, and I will be their God.

21But as for those whose hearts pursue detestable things and abominations, I will bring their conduct down upon their own heads, declares the Lord GOD.”

God’s Glory Leaves Jerusalem

22Then the cherubim, with the wheels beside them, spread their wings, and the glory of the God of Israel was above them. 23And the glory of the LORD rose up from within the city and stood over the mountain east of the city.

24And the Spirit lifted me up and carried me back to Chaldea,footnote b to the exiles in the vision given by the Spirit of God. After the vision had gone up from me, 25I told the exiles everything the LORD had shown me.