33:1 The word of the Lord came to me: 33:2 “Son of man, speak to your people,1 and say to them, ‘Suppose I bring a sword against the land, and the people of the land take one man from their number and make him their watchman. 33:3 He sees the sword coming against the land, blows the trumpet, and warns the people,2 33:4 but there is one who hears the sound of the trumpet yet does not heed the warning. When the sword comes and sweeps him away, he will be responsible for his own death.3 33:5 He heard the sound of the trumpet but did not heed the warning, so he is responsible for himself.4 If he had heeded the warning, he would have saved his life. 33:6 But suppose the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet to warn the people. When the sword comes and takes the life of one of them, he is swept away in his sin, but I will hold the watchman accountable for that person’s death.’5
33:7 “As for you, son of man, I have made you a watchman6 for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you must give them a warning from me. 33:8 Suppose I say to the wicked, ‘O wicked man, you must certainly die,’7 and you do not warn8 the wicked about his behavior.9 The wicked man will die in his sin, but I will hold you accountable for his death.10 33:9 But if you warn the wicked man to change his behavior,11 and he refuses to change,12 he will die in his sin, but you have saved your own life.
33:10 “And you, son of man, say to the house of Israel, ‘This is what you have said,: “Our rebellious acts and our sins weigh us down,13 and we are wasting away because of them. How then can we live?”’ 33:11 Say to them, ‘As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but prefer that the wicked change his behavior14 and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil deeds!15 Why should you die, O house of Israel?’
33:12 “And you, son of man, say to your people,16 ‘The righteousness of the godly will not deliver him if he rebels.17 As for the wicked, his sin will not make him stumble if he turns from it.18 The godly will not be able to live by his righteousness19 if he sins.’20 33:13 Suppose I tell the righteous that he will certainly live, but he becomes confident in his godliness and commits iniquity. None of his righteous deeds will be remembered; because of the iniquity he has committed he will die. 33:14 Suppose I say to the wicked, ‘You must certainly die,’ but he turns from his sin and does what is just and right. 33:15 He21 returns a pledge, pays back what he has stolen, and observes the statutes that give life,22 committing no iniquity. He will certainly live, he will not die. 33:16 None of the sins he has committed will be counted23 against him. He has done what is just and right; he will certainly live.
33:17 “Yet your people24 say, ‘The behavior25 of the Lord is not right,’26 when it is their behavior that is not right. 33:18 When a righteous man turns from his godliness and commits iniquity, he will die for it. 33:19 When the wicked turns from his sin and does what is just and right, he will live because of it. 33:20 Yet you say, ‘The behavior of the Lord is not right.’ House of Israel, I will judge each of you according to his behavior.”27
The Fall of Jerusalem
33:21 In the twelfth year of our exile, in the tenth month, on the fifth of the month,28 a refugee came to me from Jerusalem29 saying, “The city has been defeated!”30 33:22 Now the hand of the Lord had been on me31 the evening before the refugee arrived, but the Lord32 opened my mouth by the time the refugee came to me33 in the morning; he opened my mouth and I was no longer unable to speak.34 33:23 The word of the Lord came to me: 33:24 “Son of man, the ones living in these ruins in the land of Israel are saying, ‘Abraham was only one man, yet he possessed the land; but we are many; surely the land has been given to us for a possession.’35 33:25 Therefore say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: You eat the meat with the blood still in it,36 pray to37 your idols, and shed blood. Do you really think you will possess38 the land? 33:26 You rely39 on your swords and commit abominable deeds; each of you defiles his neighbor’s wife. Will you possess the land?’
33:27 “This is what you must say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: As surely as I live, those living in the ruins will die by the sword, those in the open field I will give to the wild beasts for food, and those who are in the strongholds and caves will die of diseases. 33:28 I will make the land a desolate ruin; the pride of her power will come to an end. The mountains of Israel will be so desolate no one will pass through them. 33:29 Then they will know that I am the Lord, when I make the land a desolate ruin because of all the abominable deeds they have committed.’40
33:30 “But as for you, son of man, your people41 (who are talking about you by the walls and at the doors of the houses) say to one another,42 ‘Come hear the word that comes43 from the Lord.’ 33:31 They come to you in crowds,44 and they sit in front of you as45 my people. They hear your words, but do not obey46 them. For they carry out the lustful desires expressed by their mouths, and their heart is set on47 their unjust gain. 33:32 Look, to them you are like love songs sung by one with a beautiful voice, who plays an instrument well. They hear your words, but they do not obey them.48 33:33 When all this comes true—and it certainly will—then they will know that a prophet was among them.”
A Prophecy Against False Shepherds