Ezekiel 4
Tree of Life Version
Ezekiel Portrays the Siege of Jerusalem
4 “Now you, son of man, take a brick and lay it before you. Engrave on it a city, Jerusalem. 2 Lay siege against it, build earthworks against it, raise an assault ramp against it; pitch camps against it and place battering rams all around it. 3 Then take an iron plate and set it up as an iron wall between you and the city. Set your face toward it so that it is under siege. So you will lay siege against it. This will be a sign to the house of Israel.
4 “Then you are to lie on your left side, and set on it the punishment of the house of Israel; according to the number of days that you lie on it, you will bear their iniquity. 5 I have appointed the years of their punishment to you as a number of days—390 days. So you will bear the iniquity of the house of Israel. 6 When you have completed these, you will lie on your right side and bear the iniquity of the house of Judah—40 days—a day for each year, I have appointed to you. 7 You will set your face toward the siege of Jerusalem, with your arm bared, and prophesy against it.
8 “Behold, I will put ropes upon you. You will not be able to turn from side to side until you have completed the days of your siege. 9 Take wheat and barley, beans and lentils, millet and rye, and put them in one bowl. You will make bread from them for the number of days that you will lie on your side; for 390 days, you will eat it. 10 The food that you will eat will be 20 shekels a day by weight[a]. You may eat from it from time to time. 11 You are also to drink water by measure, a sixth of a hin[b]. You may drink it from time to time. 12 Eat it as barley cakes. Bake it on human dung before their eyes.”
13 Then Adonai said, “This is how Bnei-Yisrael will eat their bread—unclean, among the nations where I will scatter them.”
14 Then I said, “Ah, Adonai Elohim! Behold, I have never defiled myself. From my youth up until now have I not eaten what died of itself or was torn by beasts. Tainted meat has never come into my mouth.”
15 He said to me, “See, I have given you cow dung instead of human dung. So you will prepare your bread on it.” 16 Then he said to me, “Son of man, I will break the staff of bread in Jerusalem. They will eat bread by weight, in anxiety, and they will drink water by measure, in horror. 17 On account of their lack of bread and water they will be appalled at one another and waste away in their iniquity.
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 4:10 About 8 ounces.
- Ezekiel 4:11 About 3 cups.
Ezekiel 4
New International Reader's Version
An Attack on Jerusalem Is Pictured
4 “Son of man, get a block of clay. Put it in front of you. Draw the city of Jerusalem on it. 2 Then pretend to surround it and attack it. Make some little models of war machines. Build a ramp up to it. Set camps up around it. Surround it with models of logs to be used for knocking down its gates. 3 Then get an iron pan. Put it between you and the city. Pretend it is an iron wall. Turn your face toward the city. It will be under attack when you begin to attack it. That will show the people of Israel what is going to happen to Jerusalem.
4 “Next, lie down on your left side. Pretend that you are putting Israel’s sin on yourself. Keep their sin on you for the number of days you lie on your side. 5 Let each day you lie there stand for one year of their sin. So you will keep Israel’s sin on you for 390 days.
6 “After you have finished this, lie down again. This time lie on your right side. Pretend that you are putting Judah’s sin on yourself. Lie there for 40 days. That is one day for each year of their sin. 7 Next, turn your face toward the model of Jerusalem under attack. Uncover your arm as if you were a soldier ready to fight. Prophesy against the city. 8 I will tie you up with ropes. Then you will not be able to turn from one side to the other. You will stay that way until you have finished attacking Jerusalem.
9 “Get some wheat and barley. Also get some beans and lentils. And get some millet and spelt. Put everything in a storage jar. Use it to make some bread for yourself. Eat it during the 390 days you are lying down on your side. 10 Weigh out eight ounces of food to eat each day. Eat it at your regular mealtimes. 11 Also measure out two-thirds of a quart of water. Drink it at your regular mealtimes. 12 Eat your food as you would eat a loaf of barley bread. Bake it over human waste in front of the people.” 13 The Lord said, “That is how the people of Israel will eat ‘unclean’ food. They will eat it in the nations where I will drive them.”
14 Then I said, “No, Lord and King! I won’t do this! I’ve never eaten anything ‘unclean.’ From the time I was young until now, I’ve never eaten anything that was found dead. And I’ve never eaten anything torn apart by wild animals. ‘Unclean’ meat has never entered my mouth.”
15 “All right,” he said. “I will let you bake your bread over waste from cows. You can use that instead of human waste.”
16 He continued, “Son of man, I am about to cut off the food supply in Jerusalem. The people will be worried as they eat their tiny share of food. They will not have any hope as they drink their tiny share of water. 17 There will be very little food and water. The people will be shocked as they look at one another. They will become weaker and weaker because of their sin.
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.
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