וַיְהִי דְבַר־ה' אֵלַי לֵאמֹר

The word of the Lord was with me, saying:

בֶּן־אָדָם דַּבֵּר אֶל־בְּנֵי־עַמְּךָ וְאָמַרְתָּ אֲלֵיהֶם אֶרֶץ כִּי־אָבִיא עָלֶיהָ חָרֶב וְלָקְחוּ עַם־הָאָרֶץ אִישׁ אֶחָד מִקְצֵיהֶם וְנָתְנוּ אֹתוֹ לָהֶם לְצֹפֶה

Son of man, after addressing the nations, now speak to the members of your people, and say to them: When I bring the sword of war upon a country, and the people of the land will take one man from among them, from the periphery of the people, or an outstanding member of the community, e.g., one of their officers and appoint him as a sentinel for them, to look out from upon the city wall and warn the inhabitants inside of approaching danger,

וְרָאָה אֶת־הַחֶרֶב בָּאָה עַל־הָאָרֶץ וְתָקַע בַּשּׁוֹפָר וְהִזְהִיר אֶת־הָעָם

and he will see the sword coming upon the land and sound the shofar as a warning signal. Certain sounds of the shofar were used for this purpose, while others were a signal for the people to gather or to indicate a return to routine. And he thereby will warn the people,

וְשָׁמַע הַשֹּׁמֵעַ אֶת־קוֹל הַשּׁוֹפָר וְלֹא נִזְהָר וַתָּבוֹא חֶרֶב וַתִּקָּחֵהוּ דָּמוֹ בְּרֹאשׁוֹ יִהְיֶה

if the hearer will hear the sound of the shofar and not take heed and flee the enemy, and the sword will come and take him, killing him; his blood will be upon his head, as he will be solely responsible for his own death.

אֵת קוֹל הַשּׁוֹפָר שָׁמַע וְלֹא נִזְהָר דָּמוֹ בּוֹ יִהְיֶה וְהוּא נִזְהָר נַפְשׁוֹ מִלֵּט

The reason is that he heard the sound of the shofar, and he did not take heed, and therefore his blood will be upon him. Had he taken heed, he would have saved his life.

וְהַצֹּפֶה כִּי־יִרְאֶה אֶת־הַחֶרֶב בָּאָה וְלֹא־תָקַע בַּשּׁוֹפָר והָעָם לֹא־נִזְהָר וַתָּבוֹא חֶרֶב וַתִּקַּח מֵהֶם נָפֶשׁ הוּא בַּעֲוֹנוֹ נִלְקָח וְדָמוֹ מִיַּד־הַצֹּפֶה אֶדְרֹשׁ

But if the sentinel sees the sword coming and does not sound the shofar, either due to negligence, political reasons, or other considerations, and consequently, the people were not warned, and the sword comes and takes a life from among them, he, the victim, is taken for his iniquity, due to his own sins, but his blood I will demand from the hand of the sentinel. The specific reasons for someone’s death in war are between him and God, but the sentinel is not absolved of responsibility as he was lax in his mission.

וְאַתָּה בֶן־אָדָם צֹפֶה נְתַתִּיךָ לְבֵית יִשְׂרָאֵל וְשָׁמַעְתָּ מִפִּי דָּבָר וְהִזְהַרְתָּ אֹתָם מִמֶּנִּי

You, Son of man, I have appointed you as a sentinel for the house of Israel; this is your task as a prophet. You shall hear a matter of warning from My mouth and you shall warn them from Me. You must inform the people of God’s plans.

בְּאָמְרִי לָרָשָׁע רָשָׁע מוֹת תָּמוּת וְלֹא דִבַּרְתָּ לְהַזְהִיר רָשָׁע מִדַּרְכּוֹ הוּא רָשָׁע בַּעֲוֹנוֹ יָמוּת וְדָמוֹ מִיָּדְךָ אֲבַקֵּשׁ

When I say to the wicked person: Wicked one, you shall die for your sins, and you do not speak to warn the wicked person of his dangerous way, he is a wicked person, he will die for his iniquity, but his blood I will seek from your hand. In your capacity as a sentinel for the house of Israel, you should have cautioned him.

וְאַתָּה כִּי הִזְהַרְתָּ רָשָׁע מִדַּרְכּוֹ לָשׁוּב מִמֶּנָּה וְלֹא־שָׁב מִדַּרְכּוֹ הוּא בַּעֲוֹנוֹ יָמוּת וְאַתָּה נַפְשְׁךָ הִצַּלְתָּ

But you, if you warned the wicked person to repent his way, thereby fulfilling your duty, and he did not repent his way, he will die for his iniquity, but you will have saved your life. The prophet is the sentinel on the wall receiving reports and he is the one obligated to transmit them. He is not obligated to compel the people to change their behavior; however, it is incumbent upon him to caution them.

וְאַתָּה בֶן־אָדָם אֱמֹר אֶל־בֵּית יִשְׂרָאֵל כֵּן אֲמַרְתֶּם לֵאמֹר כִּי־פְשָׁעֵינוּ וְחַטֹּאתֵינוּ עָלֵינוּ וּבָם אֲנַחְנוּ נְמַקִּים וְאֵיךְ נִחְיֶה

You, Son of man, say to the house of Israel: So you stated, saying: For our transgressions and our sins, the iniquities of the people in the past and present, are upon us, and in them we are moldering; how shall we live? What kind of future can we hope for if we must bear upon our shoulders both our sins and those of our ancestors?

אֱמֹר אֲלֵיהֶם חַי־אָנִי נְאֻם ה' אֱלוֹהִים אִם־אֶחְפֹּץ בְּמוֹת הָרָשָׁע כִּי אִם בְּשׁוּב רָשָׁע מִדַּרְכּוֹ וְחָיָה שׁוּבוּ שׁוּבוּ מִדַּרְכֵיכֶם הָרָעִים וְלָמָּה תָמוּתוּ בֵּית יִשְׂרָאֵל

Say to them: As I live – the utterance of the Lord God – I surely do not desire the death of the wicked person. I do not desire that outcome; rather, I wish for the repentance of the wicked person from his way, that he live. Repent, repent your evil ways. Why should you die, house of Israel? The path of sin is not predetermined by fate. Each person is free to change his ways. Man himself bears responsibility at all times for rejecting evil and choosing good.

וְאַתָּה בֶן־אָדָם אֱמֹר אֶל־בְּנֵי־עַמְּךָ צִדְקַת הַצַּדִּיק לֹא תַצִּילֶנּוּ בְּיוֹם פִּשְׁעוֹ ורִשְׁעַת הָרָשָׁע לֹא־יִכָּשֶׁל בָּהּ בְּיוֹם שׁוּבוֹ מֵרִשְׁעוֹ וְצַדִּיק לֹא יוּכַל לִחְיוֹת בָּהּ בְּיוֹם חֲטֹאתוֹ

You, Son of man, say to the members of your people: The righteousness of the righteous person will not deliver him on the day of his transgression. If a righteous person becomes wicked, his merit over the years will not save him from punishment. And the wickedness of the wicked person, he will not stumble on it on the day he repents his wickedness. When a wicked person repents from his evil ways, the fact that he was a sinner in the past will not be held against him; rather, his iniquities will be forgiven. The prophet reiterates: And the righteous person will not be able to live thereby, on the basis of his former righteousness, on the day that he sins. Man is judged in accordance with his current behavior.

בְּאָמְרִי לַצַּדִּיק חָיֹה יִחְיֶה וְהוּא־בָטַח עַל־צִדְקָתוֹ וְעָשָׂה עָוֶל כָּל־צִדְקֹתָו לֹא תִזָּכַרְנָה וּבְעַוְלוֹ אֲשֶׁר־עָשָׂה בּוֹ יָמוּת

Accordingly, when I say to the righteous person: He, the righteous person, shall live, and then, sometime later, he relied on his righteousness and performed iniquity, all his prior righteous deeds will not be remembered, and for the iniquity that he performed, for it he will die.

וּבְאָמְרִי לָרָשָׁע מוֹת תָּמוּת וְשָׁב מֵחַטָּאתוֹ וְעָשָׂה מִשְׁפָּט וּצְדָקָה

When I say to the wicked person: You shall die, and he repents his sin and performs justice and righteousness:

חֲבֹל יָשִׁיב רָשָׁע גְּזֵלָה יְשַׁלֵּם בְּחֻקּוֹת הַחַיִּים הָלַךְ לְבִלְתִּי עֲשׂוֹת עָוֶל חָיוֹ יִחְיֶה לֹא יָמוּת

The wicked person returns the collateral that he unlawfully seized to its rightful owner; for example, if he took the cloak of a pauper as collateral, or repays that which was robbed. If, in general, he follows the statutes of life to refrain from performing iniquity, he will live, he will not die.

כָּל־חַטֹּאתָו אֲשֶׁר חָטָא לֹא תִזָּכַרְנָה לוֹ מִשְׁפָּט וּצְדָקָה עָשָׂה חָיוֹ יִחְיֶה

All his sins that he committed in the past will not be remembered for him now; he performed justice and righteousness, and therefore he will live.

וְ אָמְרוּ בְּנֵי עַמְּךָ לֹא יִתָּכֵן דֶּרֶךְ ה'וְהֵמָּה דַּרְכָּם לֹא־יִתָּכֵן

But the members of your people have said: The way of the Lord is improper. They claim that God’s way is unreasonable in this case, as how can it be that someone who spent all his days performing good is deemed guilty when he turns to the path of sin? God therefore answers: But they, those who pose this question, their way is improper.

בְּשׁוּב־צַדִּיק מִצִּדְקָתוֹ וְעָשָׂה עָוֶל וּמֵת בָּהֶם

When the righteous repents his righteousness and commits iniquity, he will die for them, due to his iniquities.

וּבְשׁוּב רָשָׁע מֵרִשְׁעָתוֹ וְעָשָׂה מִשְׁפָּט וּצְדָקָה עֲלֵיהֶם הוּא יִחְיֶה

When the wicked person repents his wickedness, and he performs justice and righteousness, he will live because of them. Nobody has a guaranteed destiny of good or evil. A wicked person can alter his path and his deeds, and his fate will be transformed accordingly.

ו אֲמַרְתֶּם לֹא יִתָּכֵן דֶּרֶךְ ה'אִישׁ כִּדְרָכָיו אֶשְׁפּוֹט אֶתְכֶם בֵּית יִשְׂרָאֵל

You say: The way of the Lord is improper. Nevertheless, each person in accordance with his ways I will judge you, house of Israel.

וַיְהִי בִּשְׁתֵּי עֶשְׂרֵה שָׁנָה בָּעֲשִׂרִי בַּחֲמִשָּׁה לַחֹדֶשׁ לְגָלוּתֵנוּ בָּא־אֵלַי הַפָּלִיט מִירוּשָׁלִַם לֵאמֹר הֻכְּתָה הָעִיר

It was in the twelfth year of our exile, the exile of Yehoyakhin, in the tenth month, Tevet, on the fifth of the month, the survivor from Jerusalem came to me, saying: The city has fallen. Since Jerusalem had been destroyed in the fifth month, Av, at least five months had passed before the survivor informed the exiles in Babylonia of the tragedy. Some suggest that there was a year and a half between the destruction and the arrival of the survivor who had escaped. Jerusalem and Babylonia are separated by thousands of kilometers and, due to the state of war, the long journey was probably even more arduous than in peacetime. Clearly, the king of Babylon was aware of what transpired before the exiled Israelites. However, he did not publicize what had occurred, and the exiles had heard unsubstantiated rumors. This refugee was an eyewitness to the events and provided a firsthand report.

וְיַד־ה' הָיְתָה אֵלַי בָּעֶרֶב לִפְנֵי בּוֹא הַפָּלִיט וַיִּפְתַּח אֶת־פִּי עַד־בּוֹא אֵלַי בַּבֹּקֶר וַיִּפָּתַח פִּי וְלֹא נֶאֱלַמְתִּי עוֹד

The hand of the Lord, the spirit of prophecy, had been upon me in the evening, before the arrival of the survivor, and He opened my mouth before he came to me in the morning, and my mouth opened, and I was mute no longer. Until that point, Ezekiel had been forced to refrain from speaking, with the exception of certain prophetic statements. Earlier, he had been told that on the day he learned that his prophecy of the destruction of Jerusalem had been realized, God would open his mouth and he would be permitted to speak freely (see 3:26–27; 23; 27). In actual fact, the restriction on his speech was lifted the night before the refugee arrived. Therefore, Ezekiel already knew that the refugee’s report would verify his prophecies regarding the destruction of Jerusalem.

וַיְהִי דְבַר־ה' אֵלַי לֵאמֹר

The word of the Lord was with me, saying:

בֶּן־אָדָם יֹשְׁבֵי הֶחֳרָבוֹת הָאֵלֶּה עַל־אַדְמַת יִשְׂרָאֵל אֹמְרִים לֵאמֹר אֶחָד הָיָה אַבְרָהָם וַיִּירַשׁ אֶת־הָאָרֶץ וַאֲנַחְנוּ רַבִּים לָנוּ נִתְּנָה הָאָרֶץ לְמוֹרָשָׁה

Son of man, the inhabitants of these ruins upon the soil of Israel, the surviving residents of Judah, state, saying: Abraham was one, and he inherited the land, as God gave him the entire Land of Israel; we former and current inhabitants of Judah are many; certainly, therefore, the land has been given to us as a heritage. The fact that we survived is proof that God is with us, and consequently we are entitled to the property of those who perished in the war.

לָכֵן אֱמֹר אֲלֵהֶם כֹּה־אָמַר ה' אֱלוֹהִים עַל־הַדָּם תֹּאכֵלוּ וְעֵינֵכֶם תִּשְׂאוּ אֶל גִּלּוּלֵיכֶם וְדָם תִּשְׁפֹּכוּ וְהָאָרֶץ תִּירָשׁוּ!

Therefore, say to them: So said the Lord God: You eat over the blood. As part of your pagan rituals, you eat the flesh of animals together with its blood. This was a ritual in which the worshippers would stand in a pool of blood and invite the spirits of the dead, demons, and the like, to come and participate in the ceremony. You raise your eyes to your idols, as you treasure your idol worship, and you shed innocent blood, and with all that, you will then possess the land? Do you believe that you are entitled to inherit the land after committing all those sins?

עֲמַדְתֶּם עַל־חַרְבְּכֶם עֲשִׂיתֶן תּוֹעֵבָה וְאִישׁ אֶת־אֵשֶׁת רֵעֵהוּ טִמֵּאתֶם וְהָאָרֶץ תִּירָשׁוּ!

You stood by your sword, as your lives are based upon violence, you performed abomination, and each man defiled his neighbor’s wife, and you think you, who murder and engage in licentious acts, will possess the land?

כֹּה־תֹאמַר אֲלֵהֶם כֹּה־אָמַר ה' אֱלוֹהִים חַי־אָנִי אִם־לֹא אֲשֶׁר בֶּחֳרָבוֹת בַּחֶרֶב יִפֹּלוּ וַאֲשֶׁר עַל־פְּנֵי הַשָּׂדֶה לַחַיָּה נְתַתִּיו לְאָכְלוֹ וַאֲשֶׁר בַּמְּצָדוֹת וּבַמְּעָרוֹת בַּדֶּבֶר יָמוּתוּ

So you shall say to them: So said the Lord God: As I live, surely, an expression of an oath, those who are left among the ruins will fall by the sword, and he who is in the open field I have given to the beast to devour him, and those who are in the citadels in the mountains and in the caves will die of pestilence. Contrary to your way of thinking, you survivors are no better than your brothers who were killed. The fate of those who lay claim to the land will be the same as those who died.

וְנָתַתִּי אֶת־הָאָרֶץ שְׁמָמָה וּמְשַׁמָּה וְנִשְׁבַּת גְּאוֹן עֻזָּהּ וְשָׁמְמוּ הָרֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל מֵאֵין עוֹבֵר

I will render the land desolation and waste, utterly destroyed and deserted, and the pride of its might will be eliminated, its strength and glory will be nullified, and the mountains of Israel will become desolate, without passerby.

וְיָדְעוּ כִּי־אֲנִי ה' בְּתִתִּי אֶת־הָאָרֶץ שְׁמָמָה וּמְשַׁמָּה עַל כָּל־תּוֹעֲבֹתָם אֲשֶׁר עָשׂוּ

They will know that I am the Lord when I render the land desolation and waste because of all their abominations that they performed.

וְאַתָּה בֶן־אָדָם בְּנֵי עַמְּךָ הַנִּדְבָּרִים בְּךָ אֵצֶל הַקִּירוֹת וּבְפִתְחֵי הַבָּתִּים וְדִבֶּר־חַד אֶת־אַחַד אִישׁ אֶת־אָחִיו לֵאמֹר בֹּאוּ־נָא וְשִׁמְעוּ מָה הַדָּבָר הַיּוֹצֵא מֵאֵת ה'

You, Son of man, the members of your people who speak against you in the Jewish neighborhood, near the walls and in the entrances of the houses, one speaks to another, each man to his brother, saying: Come now and hear what is the word that emerges from the Lord. On street corners, a rumor spread that the prophet was about to deliver the word of God.

וְיָבוֹאוּ אֵלֶיךָ כִּמְבוֹא־עָם וְיֵשְׁבוּ לְפָנֶיךָ עַמִּי וְשָׁמְעוּ אֶת־דְּבָרֶיךָ וְאוֹתָם לֹא יַעֲשׂוּ כִּי־עֲגָבִים בְּפִיהֶם הֵמָּה עֹשִׂים אַחֲרֵי בִצְעָם לִבָּם הֹלֵךְ

They will come to you as a people comes for a public gathering, and My people will sit before you; they will hear your words, but they will not perform them, they will not heed what you have to say, for there is lust, or laughter, in their mouth; their heart follows their ill-gotten gain. They are interested in matters of lust and greed, legal or otherwise. They approach the prophet for entertainment, or in order to gossip.

וְהִנְּךָ לָהֶם כְּשִׁיר עֲגָבִים יְפֵה קוֹל וּמֵטִב נַגֵּן וְשָׁמְעוּ אֶת־דְּבָרֶיךָ וְעֹשִׂים אֵינָם אוֹתָם

You are to them like a song of lust, beautiful of voice and skillful of melody. Those who gather will enjoy your speech for its pleasant sounds and fine turns of phrase, but no more. They will hear your words, but they do not perform them. They do not consider themselves obligated to fulfill the content of your message; rather, they act as though they have come to a performance.

וּבְבֹאָהּ הִנֵּה בָאָה וְיָדְעוּ כִּי נָבִיא הָיָה בְתוֹכָם

However, when it, this report of the destruction, comes and behold, it, the destruction, is indeed coming, they will know that a prophet was in their midst. Their attitude toward you will change completely. As long as the prophet was merely speaking of the destruction of Jerusalem, about what was going to befall the king of Judah, and about other impending disasters, they viewed his statements as non-binding routine; the people ask questions and the prophet replies with predictions of doom. Once the refugee arrives and delivers his report, there will be recognition of the validity of Ezekiel’s prophecy.