| Berean Study Bible | New Living Translation |
| 1And the word of the LORD came to me, saying, | 1 Then this message came to me from the LORD: |
| 2“Son of man, set your face against Jerusalem and preach against the sanctuaries. Prophesy against the land of Israel | 2“Son of man, turn and face Jerusalem and prophesy against Israel and her sanctuaries. |
| 3and tell her that this is what the LORD says: ‘I am against you, and I will draw My sword from its sheath and cut off from you both the righteous and the wicked. | 3Tell her, ‘This is what the LORD says: I am your enemy, O Israel, and I am about to unsheath my sword to destroy your people—the righteous and the wicked alike. |
| 4Because I will cut off both the righteous and the wicked, My sword will be unsheathed against everyone from south to north. | 4Yes, I will cut off both the righteous and the wicked! I will draw my sword against everyone in the land from south to north. |
| 5Then all flesh will know that I, the LORD, have taken My sword from its sheath, not to return it again.’ | 5Everyone in the world will know that I am the LORD. My sword is in my hand, and it will not return to its sheath until its work is finished.’ |
| 6But you, son of man, groan! Groan before their eyes with a broken heart and bitter grief. | 6“Son of man, groan before the people! Groan before them with bitter anguish and a broken heart. |
| 7And when they ask, ‘Why are you groaning?’ you are to say, ‘Because of the news that is coming. Every heart will melt, and every hand will go limp. Every spirit will faint, and every knee will turn to water.’ Yes, it is coming and it will surely happen, declares the Lord GOD.” | 7When they ask why you are groaning, tell them, ‘I groan because of the terrifying news I have heard. When it comes true, the boldest heart will melt with fear; all strength will disappear. Every spirit will faint; strong knees will become as weak as water. And the Sovereign LORD says: It is coming! It’s on its way!’” |
| 8Again the word of the LORD came to me, saying, | 8Then the LORD said to me, |
| 9“Son of man, prophesy and tell them that this is what the Lord says: ‘A sword, a sword, sharpened and polished— | 9“Son of man, give the people this message from the Lord: “A sword, a sword is being sharpened and polished. |
| 10it is sharpened for the slaughter, polished to flash like lightning! Should we rejoice in the scepter of My son? The sword despises every such stick. | 10It is sharpened for terrible slaughter and polished to flash like lightning! Now will you laugh? Those far stronger than you have fallen beneath its power! |
| 11The sword is appointed to be polished, to be grasped in the hand. It is sharpened and polished, to be placed in the hand of the slayer. | 11Yes, the sword is now being sharpened and polished; it is being prepared for the executioner. |
| 12Cry out and wail, O son of man, for the sword is wielded against My people; it is against all the princes of Israel! They are tossed to the sword with My people; therefore strike your thigh. | 12“Son of man, cry out and wail; pound your thighs in anguish, for that sword will slaughter my people and their leaders— everyone will die! |
| 13Surely testing will come! And what if even the scepter, which the sword despises, does not continue?’ declares the Lord GOD. | 13It will put them all to the test. What chance do they have? says the Sovereign LORD. |
| 14‘So then, son of man, prophesy and strike your hands together. Let the sword strike two times, even three. It is a sword that slays, a sword of great slaughter closing in on every side! | 14“Son of man, prophesy to them and clap your hands. Then take the sword and brandish it twice, even three times, to symbolize the great massacre, the great massacre facing them on every side. |
| 15So that their hearts may melt and many may stumble, I have appointed at all their gates a sword for slaughter. Yes, it is ready to flash like lightning; it is drawn for slaughter. | 15Let their hearts melt with terror, for the sword glitters at every gate. It flashes like lightning and is polished for slaughter! |
| 16Slash to the right; set your blade to the left—wherever your blade is directed. | 16O sword, slash to the right, then slash to the left, wherever you will, wherever you want. |
| 17I too will strike My hands together, and I will satisfy My wrath.’ I, the LORD, have spoken.” | 17I, too, will clap my hands, and I will satisfy my fury. I, the LORD, have spoken!” Omens for Babylon’s King |
| 18Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying, | 18Then this message came to me from the LORD: |
| 19“Now you, son of man, mark out two roads for the sword of the king of Babylon to take, both starting from the same land. And make a signpost where the road branches off to each city. | 19“Son of man, make a map and trace two routes on it for the sword of Babylon’s king to follow. Put a signpost on the road that comes out of Babylon where the road forks into two— |
| 20Mark out one road for the sword to come against Rabbah of the Ammonites, and another against Judah into fortified Jerusalem. | 20one road going to Ammon and its capital, Rabbah, and the other to Judah and fortified Jerusalem. |
| 21For the king of Babylon stands at the fork in the road, at the junction of the two roads, to seek an omen: He shakes the arrows, he consults the idols, he examines the liver. | 21The king of Babylon now stands at the fork, uncertain whether to attack Jerusalem or Rabbah. He calls his magicians to look for omens. They cast lots by shaking arrows from the quiver. They inspect the livers of animal sacrifices. |
| 22In his right hand appears the portent for Jerusalem, where he is to set up battering rams, to call for the slaughter, to lift a battle cry, to direct the battering rams against the gates, to build a ramp, and to erect a siege wall. | 22The omen in his right hand says, ‘Jerusalem!’ With battering rams his soldiers will go against the gates, shouting for the kill. They will put up siege towers and build ramps against the walls. |
| 23It will seem like a false omen to the eyes of those who have sworn allegiance to him, but it will draw attention to their guilt and take them captive. | 23The people of Jerusalem will think it is a false omen, because of their treaty with the Babylonians. But the king of Babylon will remind the people of their rebellion. Then he will attack and capture them. |
| 24Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Because you have drawn attention to your guilt, exposing your transgressions, so that your sins are revealed in all your deeds—because you have come to remembrance—you shall be taken in hand. | 24“Therefore, this is what the Sovereign LORD says: Again and again you remind me of your sin and your guilt. You don’t even try to hide it! In everything you do, your sins are obvious for all to see. So now the time of your punishment has come! |
| 25And you, O profane and wicked prince of Israel, the day has come for your final punishment.’ | 25“O you corrupt and wicked prince of Israel, your final day of reckoning is here! |
| 26This is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Remove the turban, and take off the crown. Things will not remain as they are: Exalt the lowly and bring low the exalted. | 26This is what the Sovereign LORD says: “Take off your jeweled crown, for the old order changes. Now the lowly will be exalted, and the mighty will be brought down. |
| 27A ruin, a ruin, I will make it a ruin! And it will not be restored until the arrival of Him to whom it belongs, to whom I have assigned the right of judgment.’ | 27Destruction! Destruction! I will surely destroy the kingdom. And it will not be restored until the one appears who has the right to judge it. Then I will hand it over to him. A Message for the Ammonites |
| 28Now prophesy, son of man, and declare that this is what the Lord GOD says concerning the Ammonites and their contempt: ‘A sword! A sword is drawn for slaughter, polished to consume, to flash like lightning— | 28“And now, son of man, prophesy concerning the Ammonites and their mockery. Give them this message from the Sovereign LORD: “A sword, a sword is drawn for your slaughter. It is polished to destroy, flashing like lightning! |
| 29while they offer false visions for you and lying divinations about you—to be placed on the necks of the wicked who are slain, whose day has come, the time of their final punishment. | 29Your prophets have given false visions, and your fortune-tellers have told lies. The sword will fall on the necks of the wicked for whom the day of final reckoning has come. |
| 30Return the sword to its sheath! In the place where you were created, in the land of your origin, I will judge you. | 30“Now return the sword to its sheath, for in your own country, the land of your birth, I will pass judgment upon you. |
| 31I will pour out My anger upon you; I will breathe the fire of My fury against you; I will hand you over to brutal men, skilled in destruction. | 31I will pour out my fury on you and blow on you with the fire of my anger. I will hand you over to cruel men who are skilled in destruction. |
| 32You will be fuel for the fire. Your blood will stain your own land. You will not be remembered, for I, the LORD, have spoken.’ ” | 32You will be fuel for the fire, and your blood will be spilled in your own land. You will be utterly wiped out, your memory lost to history, for I, the LORD, have spoken!” |
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