Book of Ezekiel_Chapter 22

The word of the Lord came to me again, saying,

Son of man, will you question and question this bloody city? When she is made aware of all her detestable things.

You shall say, Thus says the Lord GOD, Ah. There is bloodshed in this city, causing the time for her to be avenged, and she has become an idol to defile herself and frame herself.

You are guilty because you shed human blood. You have become an idol and defiled yourself, causing the day of your retribution to approach and the year of retribution to come. So I make you subject to the humiliation of nations and the ridicule of nations.

You stinky and chaotic city, those who are near and far from you will mock you.

See, the leaders of Israel have each used their might to shed blood among you.

Among you, there are those who belittle their parents, those who oppress their neighbors, and those who mistreat orphans and widows.

You have despised my holy things and violated my Sabbath.

There are slanderers and bloodshed among you. Some have eaten offerings to idols on the mountains, while others have engaged in debauchery.

There are those among you who expose the genitals of your stepmother to shame your father, and those who defile women with unclean menstruation.

This person engages in detestable behavior with his neighbor’s wife. That person indulges in debauchery and defiles his daughter-in-law. Others dishonor their sisters.

There are those among you who have been bribed for shedding blood. Some seek interest from brothers who borrow money, while others demand more from brothers who borrow food. And because of greed, he became insatiable, oppressing his neighbors and taking wealth, yet he forgot about me. This is what the Lord Jehovah has said.

See, I clap my hands and sigh because of the unjust wealth you have gained and the blood you have shed among you.

On the day when I punish you, can your heart still bear it? Can your hands still be strong? I, the Lord, have said these words and will do them.

I will scatter you among the nations and scatter you among the nations. I will also remove your filth from among you.

You will be blasphemed in the eyes of the nations for your actions, and you will know that I am the Lord.

The word of the Lord came to me, saying,

Son of man, the house of Israel is in my sight as dross. They are all copper, tin, iron, and lead in the furnace, all silver dregs.

Therefore thus says the Lord GOD, Because you have all become dross, I will gather you in Jerusalem.

How do people gather silver, copper, iron, lead, and tin in a furnace and melt them by blowing a fire. Similarly, I will also be angry and angry, gathering you in the city and melting you down.

I will gather you and blow the fiery fire of my anger on you, and you will melt in it.

As silver melts in the furnace, so will you melt in the city, and you will know that I, the Lord, have poured out wrath on you.

The word of the Lord came to me, saying,

Son of man, say to this land, You are an unclean land, and there was no rain on you in the day of wrath.

The prophets among them conspired to betray, like roaring lions grabbing and tearing up prey. They devour the people, plunder treasures, and make the land full of widows.

The priests among them forcibly interpret my law, profane my holy things, do not distinguish between holy and vulgar, do not make people distinguish between clean and unclean, and cover their eyes from my Sabbath. I was also mocked among them.

The leaders among them are like wolves grabbing and tearing up prey, killing and bleeding, harming lives, and seeking unjust wealth.

The prophets among them smeared the walls with unpasteurized plaster for the people, seeing false visions and using deceitful divination, saying, This is what the Lord has said, but the Lord has not spoken.

The people within the country blindly oppress and are accustomed to plundering, causing harm to the poor and needy, and unjustly oppressing the sojourners.

I searched among them for someone to rebuild the wall and stand in front of me to prevent the destruction of this country, but I couldn’t find one.

So I poured out my anger on them and extinguished them with the flames of my wrath, and according to their deeds, I brought retribution upon their heads. This is what the Lord Jehovah has said.