Ezekiel’s Call to Be a Prophet

2 He said to me, “Son of man,^[a](A) stand^(B) up on your feet and I will speak to you.^(C)” ² As he spoke, the Spirit came into me and raised me^(D) to my feet, and I heard him speaking to me.

³ He said: “Son of man, I am sending you to the Israelites, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against me; they and their ancestors have been in revolt against me to this very day.^{(E) 4} The people to whom I am sending you are obstinate and stubborn.^(F) Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says.’^{(G) 5} And whether they listen or fail to listen^(H)—for they are a rebellious people^(I)—they will know that a prophet has been among them.^{(J) 6} And you, son of man, do not be afraid^(K) of them or their words. Do not be afraid, though briers and thorns^(L) are all around you and you live among scorpions. Do not be afraid of what they say or be terrified by them, though they are a rebellious people.^{(M) 7} You must speak^(N) my words to them, whether they listen or fail to listen, for they are rebellious.^{(O) 8} But you, son of man, listen to what I say to you. Do not rebel^(P) like that rebellious people;^(Q) open your mouth and eat^(R) what I give you.”

⁹ Then I looked, and I saw a hand^(S) stretched out to me. In it was a scroll,^{(T) 10} which he unrolled before me. On both sides of it were written words of lament and mourning and woe.^(U)

3 And he said to me, “Son of man, eat what is before you, eat this scroll; then go and speak to the people of Israel.” ² So I opened my mouth, and he gave me the scroll to eat.

³ Then he said to me, “Son of man, eat this scroll I am giving you and fill your stomach with it.” So I ate^(A) it, and it tasted as sweet as honey^(B) in my mouth.

⁴ He then said to me: “Son of man, go now to the people of Israel and speak my words to them.^{(C) 5} You are not being sent to a people of obscure speech and strange language,^(D) but to the people of Israel— ⁶ not to many peoples of obscure speech and strange language, whose words you cannot understand. Surely if I had sent you to them, they would have listened to you.^{(E) 7} But the people of Israel are not willing to listen^(F) to you because they are not willing to listen to me, for all the Israelites are hardened and obstinate.^{(G) 8} But I will make you as unyielding and hardened as they are.^{(H) 9} I will make your forehead^(I) like the hardest stone, harder than flint.^(J) Do not be afraid of them or terrified by them, though they are a rebellious people.^(K)”

¹⁰ And he said to me, “Son of man, listen carefully and take to heart^(L) all the words I speak to you. ¹¹ Go^(M) now to your people in exile and speak to them. Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says,’^(N) whether they listen or fail to listen.^(O)”

¹² Then the Spirit lifted me up,^(P) and I heard behind me a loud rumbling sound as the glory of the Lord rose from the place where it was standing.^{[a] 13} It was the sound of the wings of the living creatures^(Q) brushing against each other and the sound of the wheels beside them, a loud rumbling sound.^{(R) 14} The Spirit^(S) then lifted me up^(T) and took me away, and I went in bitterness and in the anger of my spirit, with the strong hand of the Lord^(U) on me. ¹⁵ I came to the exiles who lived at Tel Aviv near the Kebar River.^(V) And there, where they were living, I sat among them for seven days^(W)—deeply distressed.

Ezekiel’s Task as Watchman

¹⁶ At the end of seven days the word of the Lord came to me:^{(X) 17} “Son of man, I have made you a watchman^(Y) for the people of Israel; so hear the word I speak and give them warning from me.^{(Z) 18} When I say to a wicked person, ‘You will surely die,^(AA)’ and you do not warn them or speak out to dissuade them from their evil ways in order to save their life, that wicked person will die for^[b] their sin, and I will hold you accountable for their blood.^{(AB) 19} But if you do warn the wicked person and they do not turn^(AC) from their wickedness^(AD) or from their evil ways, they will die^(AE) for their sin; but you will have saved yourself.^(AF)

²⁰ “Again, when a righteous person turns^(AG) from their righteousness and does evil, and I put a stumbling block^(AH) before them, they will die. Since you did not warn them, they will die for their sin. The righteous things that person did will not be remembered, and I will hold you accountable for their blood.^{(AI) 21} But if you do warn the righteous person not to sin and they do not sin, they will surely live because they took warning, and you will have saved yourself.^(AJ)”

²² The hand of the Lord^(AK) was on me there, and he said to me, “Get up and go^(AL) out to the plain,^(AM) and there I will speak to you.” ²³ So I got up and went out to the plain. And the glory of the Lord was standing there, like the glory I had seen by the Kebar River,^(AN) and I fell facedown.^(AO)

²⁴ Then the Spirit came into me and raised me^(AP) to my feet. He spoke to me and said: “Go, shut yourself inside your house.^{(AQ) 25} And you, son of man, they will tie with ropes; you will be bound so that you cannot go out among the people.^{(AR) 26} I will make your tongue stick to the roof^(AS) of your mouth so that you will be silent and unable to rebuke them, for they are a rebellious people.^{(AT) 27} But when I speak to you, I will open your mouth and you shall say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says.’^(AU) Whoever will listen let them listen, and whoever will refuse let them refuse; for they are a rebellious people.^(AV)