Old/New Testament
8 Then, late in August of the sixth year of King Jehoiachin’s captivity,[a] as I was talking with the elders of Judah in my home, the power of the Lord God fell upon me. 2 I saw what appeared to be a Man; from his waist down, he was made of fire; from his waist up, he was all amber-colored brightness. 3 He put out what seemed to be a hand and took me by the hair. And the Spirit lifted me up into the sky and seemed to transport me to Jerusalem, to the entrance of the north gate, where the large idol was that had made the Lord so angry. 4 Suddenly the glory of the God of Israel was there, just as I had seen it before in the valley.
5 He said to me, “Son of dust, look toward the north.” So I looked and, sure enough, north of the altar gate in the entrance stood the idol.
6 And he said: “Son of dust, do you see what they are doing? Do you see what great sins the people of Israel are doing here, to push me from my Temple? But come, and I will show you greater sins than these!”
7 Then he brought me to the door of the Temple court, where I could see an opening in the wall.
8 “Now dig into the wall,” he said. I did and uncovered a door to a hidden room.
9 “Go in,” he said, “and see the wickedness going on in there!”
10 So I went in. The walls were covered with pictures of all kinds of snakes, lizards, and hideous creatures, besides all the various idols worshiped by the people of Israel. 11 Seventy elders of Israel were standing there along with Jaazaniah (son of Shaphan) worshiping the pictures. Each of them held a censer of burning incense, so there was a thick cloud of smoke above their heads.
12 Then the Lord said to me: “Son of dust, have you seen what the elders of Israel are doing in their minds? For they say, ‘The Lord doesn’t see us; he has gone away!’” 13 Then he added, “Come, and I will show you greater sins than these!”
14 He brought me to the north gate of the Temple, and there sat women weeping for Tammuz,[b] their god.
15 “Have you seen this?” he asked. “But I will show you greater evils than these!”
16 Then he brought me into the inner court of the Temple, and there at the door, between the porch and the bronze altar, were about twenty-five men standing with their backs to the Temple of the Lord, facing east, worshiping the sun!
17 “Have you seen this?” he asked. “Is it nothing to the people of Judah that they commit these terrible sins, leading the whole nation into idolatry, thumbing their noses at me and arousing my fury against them? 18 Therefore, I will deal with them in fury. I will neither pity nor spare. And though they scream for mercy, I will not listen.”
9 Then he thundered, “Call those to whom I have given the city! Tell them to bring their weapons with them!”
2 Six men appeared at his call, coming from the upper north gate, each one with his sword. One of them wore linen clothing and carried a writer’s case strapped to his side. They all went into the Temple and stood beside the bronze altar. 3 And the glory of the God of Israel rose from between the Guardian Angels where it had rested and stood above the entrance to[c] the Temple.
And the Lord called to the man with the writer’s case 4 and said to him, “Walk through the streets of Jerusalem and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who weep and sigh because of all the sins they see around them.”
5 Then I heard the Lord tell the other men: “Follow him through the city and kill everyone whose forehead isn’t marked. Spare not nor pity them— 6 kill them all—old and young, girls, women, and little children; but don’t touch anyone with the mark. And begin right here at the Temple.” And so they began by killing the seventy elders.
7 And he said, “Defile the Temple! Fill its courts with the bodies of those you kill! Go!” And they went out through the city and did as they were told.
8 While they were fulfilling their orders, I was alone. I fell to the ground on my face and cried out: “O Lord God! Will your fury against Jerusalem wipe out everyone left in Israel?”
9 But he said to me, “The sins of the people of Israel and Judah are very great and all the land is full of murder and injustice, for they say, ‘The Lord doesn’t see it! He has gone away!’ 10 And so I will not spare them nor have any pity on them, and I will fully repay them for all that they have done.”
11 Just then the man in linen clothing, carrying the writer’s case, reported back and said, “I have finished the work you gave me to do.”
10 Suddenly a throne of beautiful blue sapphire[d] appeared in the sky above the heads of the Guardian Angels.
2 Then the Lord spoke to the man in linen clothing and said: “Go in between the whirling wheels beneath the Guardian Angels, and take a handful of glowing coals and scatter them over the city.”
He did so while I watched. 3 The Guardian Angels were standing at the south end of the Temple when the man went in. And the cloud of glory filled the inner court. 4 Then the glory of the Lord rose from above the Guardian Angels and went over to the door of the Temple. The Temple was filled with the cloud of glory, and the court of the Temple was filled with the brightness of the glory of the Lord. 5 And the sound of the wings of the Guardian Angels was as the voice of Almighty God when he speaks and could be heard clear out in the outer court.
6 When the Lord told the man in linen clothing to go between the Guardian Angels and take some burning coals from between the wheels, the man went in and stood beside one of the wheels, 7-8 and one of the Guardian Angels reached out his hand (for each of the mighty Angels had, beneath his wings, what looked like human hands) and took some live coals from the flames between the Angels and put them into the hands of the man in linen clothes, who took them and went out.
9-13 Each of the four Guardian Angels had a wheel beside him—“The Whirl-Wheels,” as I heard them called, for each one had a second wheel crosswise within—sparkling like chrysolite, giving off a greenish yellow glow. Because of the construction of these wheels,[e] the Angels could go straight forward in each of four directions; they did not turn when they changed direction but could go in any of the four ways their faces looked. Each of the four wheels was covered with eyes, including the rims and spokes. 14 Each of the four Guardian Angels had four faces—the first was that of an ox;[f] the second, a man’s; the third, a lion’s; and the fourth, an eagle’s.
15-16 These were the same beings I had seen beside the Chebar Canal, and when they rose into the air, the wheels rose with them and stayed beside them as they flew. 17 When the Guardian Angels stood still, so did the wheels, for the spirit of the Guardian Angels was in the wheels.[g]
18 Then the glory of the Lord moved from the door of the Temple and stood above the Guardian Angels. 19 And as I watched, the Guardian Angels flew with their wheels beside them to the east gate of the Temple. And the glory of the God of Israel was above them.
20 These were the living beings I had seen beneath the God of Israel beside the Chebar Canal. I knew they were the same, 21 for each had four faces and four wings, with what looked like human hands under their wings. 22 Their faces too were identical to the faces of those I had seen at the canal, and they traveled straight ahead, just as the others did.
13 Continue to love each other with true brotherly love. 2 Don’t forget to be kind to strangers, for some who have done this have entertained angels without realizing it! 3 Don’t forget about those in jail. Suffer with them as though you were there yourself. Share the sorrow of those being mistreated, for you know what they are going through.
4 Honor your marriage and its vows, and be pure; for God will surely punish all those who are immoral or commit adultery.
5 Stay away from the love of money; be satisfied with what you have. For God has said, “I will never, never fail you nor forsake you.” 6 That is why we can say without any doubt or fear, “The Lord is my Helper, and I am not afraid of anything that mere man can do to me.”
7 Remember your leaders who have taught you the Word of God. Think of all the good that has come from their lives, and try to trust the Lord as they do.
8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. 9 So do not be attracted by strange, new ideas. Your spiritual strength comes as a gift from God, not from ceremonial rules about eating certain foods—a method which, by the way, hasn’t helped those who have tried it!
10 We have an altar—the cross where Christ was sacrificed—where those who continue to seek salvation by obeying Jewish laws can never be helped. 11 Under the system of Jewish laws, the high priest brought the blood of the slain animals into the sanctuary as a sacrifice for sin, and then the bodies of the animals were burned outside the city. 12 That is why Jesus suffered and died outside the city, where his blood washed our sins away.
13 So let us go out to him beyond the city walls (that is, outside the interests of this world, being willing to be despised[a]) to suffer with him there, bearing his shame. 14 For this world is not our home; we are looking forward to our everlasting home in heaven.
15 With Jesus’ help we will continually offer our sacrifice of praise to God by telling others of the glory of his name. 16 Don’t forget to do good and to share what you have with those in need, for such sacrifices are very pleasing to him. 17 Obey your spiritual leaders and be willing to do what they say. For their work is to watch over your souls, and God will judge them on how well they do this. Give them reason to report joyfully about you to the Lord and not with sorrow, for then you will suffer for it too.
18 Pray for us, for our conscience is clear and we want to keep it that way. 19 I especially need your prayers right now so that I can come back to you sooner.
20-21 And now may the God of peace, who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, equip you with all you need for doing his will. May he who became the great Shepherd of the sheep by an everlasting agreement between God and you, signed with his blood, produce in you through the power of Christ all that is pleasing to him. To him be glory forever and ever. Amen.
22 Brethren, please listen patiently to what I have said in this letter, for it is a short one. 23 I want you to know that Brother Timothy is now out of jail; if he comes here soon, I will come with him to see you. 24-25 Give my greetings to all your leaders and to the other believers there. The Christians from Italy who are here with me send you their love. God’s grace be with you all. Good-bye.
The Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.