⁸ But you, son of man, hear what I say to you. Do not be rebellious like that rebellious house; open your mouth and ^(A)eat what I give you.”

⁹ So I went to the angel and said to him, “Give me the little book.”

And he said to me, ^(A)“Take and eat it; and it will make your stomach bitter, but it will be as sweet as honey in your mouth.”

The Responsibility of the Prophet

3 Moreover He said to me, “Son of man, eat what you find; ^(A)eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel.” ² So I opened my mouth, and He caused me to eat that scroll.

³ And He said to me, “Son of man, feed your belly, and fill your stomach with this scroll that I give you.” So I ^(B)ate, and it was in my mouth ^(C)like honey in sweetness.

³ nor as ^(A)being ^[a]lords over ^(B)those entrusted to you, but ^(C)being examples to the flock;

^14 (A)Do not neglect the gift that is in you, which was given to you by prophecy ^(B)with the laying on of the hands of the eldership. ¹⁵ Meditate on these things; give yourself entirely to them, that your progress may be evident to all. ¹⁶ Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you.

¹⁰ Moreover He said to me: “Son of man, receive into your heart all My words that I speak to you, and hear with your ears.

²¹ and he cried out to the man of God who came from Judah, saying, “Thus says the Lord: ‘Because you have disobeyed the word of the Lord, and have not kept the commandment which the Lord your God commanded you, ²² but you came back, ate bread, and drank water in the ^(A)place of which the Lord said to you, “Eat no bread and drink no water,” your corpse shall not come to the tomb of your fathers.’ ”

²⁴ “Aaron shall ^[a]be ^(A)gathered to his people, for he shall not enter the land which I have given to the children of Israel, because you rebelled against My word at the water of Meribah.