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Ezekiel 24
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Ezekiel 24
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 24
Allegory of the Pot.[a] 1 On the tenth day of the tenth month, in the ninth year,[b] the word of the Lord came to me:(A) 2 Son of man, write down today’s date this very day, for on this very day the king of Babylon lays siege to Jerusalem. 3 (B)Propose this parable to the rebellious house and say to them: Thus says the Lord God:
Put the pot on, put it on!
Pour in some water;
4 Add to it pieces of meat,
all choice pieces;
With thigh and shoulder,
with choice cuts fill it.
5 Choose the pick of the flock,
then pile logs beneath it;
Bring it to a boil,
cook all the pieces in it.(C)
6 Therefore thus says the Lord God:
Woe to the city full of blood!(D)
A pot containing filth,
whose filth cannot be removed!
Take out its pieces one by one,
for no lot has fallen on their behalf.
7 For her blood is still in her midst;
on a bare rock she left it;
She did not pour it on the ground
to be covered with dirt.[c]
8 To arouse wrath, to exact vengeance,
I have left her blood on bare rock
not to be covered.
9 Therefore, thus says the Lord God:
Woe to the city full of blood!
I will make the pyre great!
10 Pile on the wood, kindle the fire.
Cook the meat, stir the spicy mixture,
char the bones!
11 Then set it empty on the coals,
to heat up until its copper glows,
So its impurities melt,
its filth disappears.
12 [d]The toil is exhausting,
but the great filth will not come out—
Filth, even with fire.
13 Even in defiling yourself with depravity
I would still have cleansed you,
but you would not have your impurity cleansed.
You will not be cleansed now
until I wreak my fury on you.(E)
14 I, the Lord, have spoken;
it will happen!
I will do it and not hold back!
I will not have pity or relent.
By your conduct and deeds you shall be judged—
oracle of the Lord God.
Ezekiel as a Sign for the Exiles. 15 The word of the Lord came to me: 16 Son of man, with a sudden blow I am taking away from you the delight of your eyes, but do not mourn or weep or shed any tears.(F) 17 Groan, moan for the dead, but make no public lament; bind on your turban, put your sandals on your feet, but do not cover your beard or eat the bread of mourners.[e] 18 I spoke to the people in the morning. In the evening my wife died. The next morning I did as I had been commanded.(G) 19 Then the people asked me, “Will you not tell us what all these things you are doing mean for us?” 20 I said to them, The word of the Lord came to me: 21 Say to the house of Israel: Thus says the Lord God: I will now desecrate my sanctuary, the pride of your strength, the delight of your eyes, the concern of your soul. The sons and daughters you left behind shall fall by the sword.(H) 22 [f]Then you shall do as I have done, not covering your beards nor eating the bread of mourning. 23 (I)Your turbans shall remain on your heads, your sandals on your feet. You shall not mourn or weep, but you shall waste away because of your sins and groan to one another. 24 Ezekiel shall be a sign for you: everything he did, you shall do. When it happens, you shall know that I am the Lord God.
End of Ezekiel’s Muteness. 25 (J)As for you, son of man, truly, on the very day I take away from them their strength, their glorious joy, the delight of their eyes, the desire of their soul, the pride of their hearts, their sons and daughters, 26 on that day a survivor will come to you so that you may hear it with your own ears.(K) 27 On that day, with the survivor, your mouth shall be opened; you shall speak and be mute[g] no longer. You shall be a sign to them, and they shall know that I am the Lord.
Footnotes
- 24:1–14 As the Babylonian siege of Jerusalem begins (588 B.C.), Ezekiel uses allegory to depict Jerusalem and its over-confident inhabitants as a pot of meat set on the fire for boiling (vv. 3–5; cf. 11:3) and left there until only burnt bones remain (v. 10). In vv. 6–8, the innocent blood shed by Jerusalem’s inhabitants is the rust that, despite efforts to remove it, coats the interior of the pot filled with meat. Once emptied (v. 8), the rust-encrusted pot is set on hot coals (v. 11), but the rust remains (v. 12). Only the brunt of the Lord’s fury can cleanse Jerusalem of its guilt (vv. 13–14).
- 24:1 The tenth day…the ninth year: January 15, 588 B.C. The same wording appears in 2 Kgs 25:1 (Jer 52:4).
- 24:7 Blood…to be covered with dirt: since blood was sacred to God, it had to be covered with earth (Gn 37:26; Lv 17:13); the blood of innocent victims left uncovered cried out for vengeance; cf. Gn 4:10; Jb 16:18; Is 26:21.
- 24:12 A cryptic line in Hebrew.
- 24:17 The bread of mourners: a post-burial meal that mourners shared to comfort one another; cf. 2 Sm 3:35; Jer 16:7. The other gestures mentioned here were also popular mourning customs. Because Ezekiel does not observe any of the mourning customs mentioned, the people are puzzled and ask him to explain.
- 24:22–24 The fall of the city will be so sudden and final that the exiles will have no time to go into mourning.
- 24:27 Mute: unable to preach anything but the Lord’s judgment against Judah and Jerusalem; cf. 3:27 and note on 33:21–22.
Ezekiel 24
New International Version
Ezekiel 24
New International Version
Jerusalem as a Cooking Pot
24 In the ninth year, in the tenth month on the tenth day, the word of the Lord came to me:(A) 2 “Son of man, record(B) this date, this very date, because the king of Babylon has laid siege to Jerusalem this very day.(C) 3 Tell this rebellious people(D) a parable(E) and say to them: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘Put on the cooking pot;(F) put it on
and pour water into it.
4 Put into it the pieces of meat,
all the choice pieces—the leg and the shoulder.
Fill it with the best of these bones;(G)
5 take the pick of the flock.(H)
Pile wood beneath it for the bones;
bring it to a boil
and cook the bones in it.(I)
6 “‘For this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘Woe(J) to the city of bloodshed,(K)
to the pot now encrusted,
whose deposit will not go away!
Take the meat out piece by piece
in whatever order(L) it comes.(M)
7 “‘For the blood she shed is in her midst:
She poured it on the bare rock;
she did not pour it on the ground,
where the dust would cover it.(N)
8 To stir up wrath and take revenge
I put her blood on the bare rock,
so that it would not be covered.
9 “‘Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
“‘Woe to the city of bloodshed!
I, too, will pile the wood high.
10 So heap on the wood
and kindle the fire.
Cook the meat well,
mixing in the spices;
and let the bones be charred.
11 Then set the empty pot on the coals
till it becomes hot and its copper glows,
so that its impurities may be melted
and its deposit burned away.(O)
12 It has frustrated all efforts;
its heavy deposit has not been removed,
not even by fire.
13 “‘Now your impurity is lewdness. Because I tried to cleanse you but you would not be cleansed(P) from your impurity, you will not be clean again until my wrath against you has subsided.(Q)
14 “‘I the Lord have spoken.(R) The time has come for me to act.(S) I will not hold back; I will not have pity,(T) nor will I relent.(U) You will be judged according to your conduct and your actions,(V) declares the Sovereign Lord.(W)’”
Ezekiel’s Wife Dies
15 The word of the Lord came to me: 16 “Son of man, with one blow(X) I am about to take away from you the delight of your eyes.(Y) Yet do not lament or weep or shed any tears.(Z) 17 Groan quietly;(AA) do not mourn for the dead. Keep your turban(AB) fastened and your sandals(AC) on your feet; do not cover your mustache and beard(AD) or eat the customary food of mourners.(AE)”
18 So I spoke to the people in the morning, and in the evening my wife died. The next morning I did as I had been commanded.(AF)
19 Then the people asked me, “Won’t you tell us what these things have to do with us?(AG) Why are you acting like this?”
20 So I said to them, “The word of the Lord came to me: 21 Say to the people of Israel, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am about to desecrate my sanctuary(AH)—the stronghold in which you take pride,(AI) the delight of your eyes,(AJ) the object of your affection. The sons and daughters(AK) you left behind will fall by the sword.(AL) 22 And you will do as I have done. You will not cover your mustache and beard(AM) or eat the customary food of mourners.(AN) 23 You will keep your turbans(AO) on your heads and your sandals(AP) on your feet. You will not mourn(AQ) or weep but will waste away(AR) because of[a] your sins and groan among yourselves.(AS) 24 Ezekiel(AT) will be a sign(AU) to you; you will do just as he has done. When this happens, you will know that I am the Sovereign Lord.’
25 “And you, son of man, on the day I take away their stronghold, their joy and glory, the delight of their eyes,(AV) their heart’s desire,(AW) and their sons and daughters(AX) as well— 26 on that day a fugitive will come to tell you(AY) the news. 27 At that time your mouth will be opened; you will speak with him and will no longer be silent.(AZ) So you will be a sign to them, and they will know that I am the Lord.(BA)”
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 24:23 Or away in
New American Bible (Revised Edition) (NABRE)
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