1And the word of Jehovah came unto me , saying , 2Son of man , speak to the children of thy people , and say unto them , When I bring the sword upon a land, and the people of the land take a man from among them , and set him for their watchman ; 3if , when he seeth the sword come upon the land, he blow the trumpet , and warn the people ; 4then whosoever heareth the sound of the trumpet , and taketh not warning , if the sword come , and take him away , his blood shall be upon his own head . 5He heard the sound of the trumpet , and took not warning ; his blood shall be upon him ; whereas if he had taken warning , he would have delivered his soul . 6But if the watchman see the sword come , and blow not the trumpet , and the people be not warned , and the sword come , and take any person from among them ; he is taken away in his iniquity , but his blood will I require at the watchman ’s hand . 7So thou , son of man , I have set thee a watchman unto the house of Israel ; therefore hear the word at my mouth , and give them warning from me . 8When I say unto the wicked , O wicked man , thou shalt surely die , and thou dost not speak to warn the wicked from his way ; that wicked man shall die in his iniquity , but his blood will I require at thy hand . 9Nevertheless , if thou warn the wicked of his way to turn from it , and he turn not from his way ; he shall die in his iniquity , but thou hast delivered thy soul .
The Call to Repentance
10And thou , son of man , say unto the house of Israel : Thus ye speak, saying, Our transgressions and our sins are upon us , and we pine away in them ; how then can we live ? 11Say unto them , As I live , saith the Lord Jehovah , I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked ; but that the wicked turn from his way and live : turn ye , turn ye from your evil ways ; for why will ye die , O house of Israel ? 12And thou , son of man , say unto the children of thy people , The righteousness of the righteous shall not deliver him in the day of his transgression ; and as for the wickedness of the wicked , he shall not fall thereby in the day that he turneth from his wickedness ; neither shall he that is righteous be able to live thereby in the day that he sinneth . 13When I say to the righteous , that he shall surely live ; if he trust to his righteousness , and commit iniquity , none of his righteous deeds shall be remembered ; but in his iniquity that he hath committed , therein shall he die . 14Again , when I say unto the wicked , Thou shalt surely die ; if he turn from his sin , and do that which is lawful and right ; 15if the wicked restore the pledge , give again that which he had taken by robbery , walk in the statutes of life , committing no iniquity ; he shall surely live , he shall not die . 16None of his sins that he hath committed shall be remembered against him : he hath done that which is lawful and right ; he shall surely live . 17Yet the children of thy people say, The way of the Lord is not equal : but as for them , their way is not equal . 18When the righteous turneth from his righteousness , and committeth iniquity , he shall even die therein. 19And when the wicked turneth from his wickedness , and doeth that which is lawful and right , he shall live thereby. 20Yet ye say , The way of the Lord is not equal . O house of Israel , I will judge you every one after his ways .
The Fate of the Righteous and the Wicked
21And it came to pass in the twelfth year of our captivity , in the tenth month , in the fifth day of the month , that one that had escaped out of Jerusalem came unto me , saying, The city is smitten . 22Now the hand of Jehovah had been upon me in the evening , before he that was escaped came ; and he had opened my mouth , until he came to me in the morning ; and my mouth was opened , and I was no more dumb. 23And the word of Jehovah came unto me , saying , 24Son of man , they that inhabit those waste places in the land of Israel speak, saying, Abraham was one , and he inherited the land: but we are many ; the land is given us for inheritance . 25Wherefore say unto them , Thus saith the Lord Jehovah : Ye eat with the blood , and lift up your eyes unto your idols , and shed blood : and shall ye possess the land? 26Ye stand upon your sword , ye work abomination , and ye defile every one his neighbor ’s wife: and shall ye possess the land? 27Thus shalt thou say unto them , Thus saith the Lord Jehovah : As I live , surely they that are in the waste places shall fall by the sword ; and him that is in the open field will I give to the beasts to be devoured; and they that are in the strongholds and in the caves shall die of the pestilence . 28And I will make the land a desolation and an astonishment ; and the pride of her power shall cease ; and the mountains of Israel shall be desolate , so that none shall pass through . 29Then shall they know that I am Jehovah , when I have made the land a desolation and an astonishment , because of all their abominations which they have committed .
The Fall of Jerusalem and the Response of the People
30And as for thee , son of man , the children of thy people talk of thee by the walls and in the doors of the houses , and speak one to another, every one to his brother, saying , Come , I pray you , and hear what is the word that cometh forth from Jehovah . 31And they come unto thee as the people cometh , and they sit before thee as my people , and they hear thy words , but do them not ; for with their mouth they show much love , but their heart goeth after their gain . 32And , lo , thou art unto them as a very lovely song of one that hath a pleasant voice , and can play well on an instrument ; for they hear thy words , but they do them not . 33And when this cometh to pass ( behold , it cometh), then shall they know that a prophet hath been among them .