Mission to Rebellious Israel

He said to me, “Son of man, stand up on your feet(A) and I will speak with you.” As he spoke to me, the Spirit entered me and set me on my feet,(B) and I listened to the one who was speaking to me. He said to me, “Son of man, I am sending you to the Israelites, to[a] the rebellious pagans who have rebelled against me. The Israelites and their ancestors have transgressed against me to this day.(C) The descendants are obstinate[b] and hardhearted.(D) I am sending you to them, and you must say to them, ‘This is what the Lord God says.’ Whether they listen or refuse to listen(E)—for they are a rebellious house—they will know that a prophet has been among them.(F)

“But you, son of man, do not be afraid of them and do not be afraid of their words,(G) even though briers and thorns are beside you and you live among scorpions.(H) Don’t be afraid of their words or discouraged by the look on their faces, for they are a rebellious house. Speak my words to them whether they listen or refuse to listen,(I) for they are rebellious.

“And you, son of man, listen to what I tell you: Do not be rebellious like that rebellious house. Open your mouth and eat what I am giving you.”(J) So I looked and saw a hand reaching out to me,(K) and there was a written scroll in it.(L) 10 When he unrolled it before me, it was written on the front and back; words of lamentation, mourning, and woe were written on it.

Footnotes

  1. 2:3 Or Israelites and to
  2. 2:4 Lit hard of face

Ezekiel’s Call to Be a Prophet

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

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) The people to whom I am sending you are obstinate and stubborn.(F) Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says.’(G) 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) 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) You must speak(N) my words to them, whether they listen or fail to listen, for they are rebellious.(O) 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.”

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)

Footnotes

  1. Ezekiel 2:1 The Hebrew phrase ben adam means human being. The phrase son of man is retained as a form of address here and throughout Ezekiel because of its possible association with “Son of Man” in the New Testament.