וָאָשׁוּב וָאֶשָּׂא עֵינַי וָאֶרְאֶה וְהִנֵּה מְגִלָּה עָפָה

Again, I lifted my eyes and I saw, and behold, a scroll flying.

וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלַי מָה אַתָּה רֹאֶה וָאֹמַר אֲנִי רֹאֶה מְגִלָּה עָפָה אָרְכָּהּ עֶשְׂרִים בּאַמָּה וְרָחְבָּהּ עֶשֶׂר בָּאַמָּה

He said to me: What do you see? I said: I see a very large scroll flying; its length is twenty cubits, and its width ten cubits.

וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלַי זֹאת הָאָלָה הַיּוֹצֵאת עַל־פְּנֵי כָל־הָאָרֶץ כִּי כָל־הַגֹּנֵב מִזֶּה כָּמוֹהָ נִקָּה וְכָל־הַנִּשְׁבָּע מִזֶּה כָּמוֹהָ נִקָּה

He said to me: This is the curse that is going out over the face of the entire land, which is why it is so big; as anyone who steals was absolved from this curse, as it is written in the scroll; and anyone who takes an oath was absolved from this curse, as it is written in the scroll. Until now, everyone who stole or took a false oath had escaped the curse written in the scroll.

הוֹצֵאתִיהָ נְאֻם ה' צְבָאוֹת וּבָאָה אֶל־בֵּית הַגַּנָּב וְאֶל־בֵּית הַנִּשְׁבָּע בִּשְׁמִי לַשָּׁקֶר וְלָנֶה בְּתוֹךְ בֵּיתוֹ וְכִלַּתּוּ וְאֶת־עֵצָיו וְאֶת־אֲבָנָיו

Now I took it, this scroll of the curse, out over the whole land – the utterance of the Lord of hosts – and it will arrive at the house of the thief and at the house of the one who takes an oath by My name falsely, and it will stay the night inside his house. The scroll will accompany all evil actions, and reach every place where punishment is due. And it will eliminate it, the house, and its wood and its stones. This is a serious warning. Some terrible deeds might have gone unpunished until now, but it must be known that the scroll of the curse is flying over the world, and it will reach every place where wickedness is performed.

וַיֵּצֵא הַמַּלְאָךְ הַדֹּבֵר בִּי וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלַי שָׂא נָא עֵינֶיךָ וּרְאֵה מָה הַיּוֹצֵאת הַזֹּאת

The angel that spoke with me emerged and again said to me: Lift your eyes now and see: What is that which emerges and appears before your eyes?

וָאֹמַר מַה־הִיא וַיֹּאמֶר זֹאת הָאֵיפָה הַיּוֹצֵאת וַיֹּאמֶר זֹאת עֵינָם בְּכָל־הָאָרֶץ

I said: What is it? He said: That is the ephah, a large measuring vessel, that emerges. He, the angel, said: That is their eye, the eye that reveals the people’s wickedness, or punishment for their coveting eyes, throughout the land.

וְהִנֵּה כִּכַּר עֹפֶרֶת נִשֵּׂאת וְזֹאת אִשָּׁה אַחַת יוֹשֶׁבֶת בְּתוֹךְ הָאֵיפָה

Behold, I saw a talent of lead that is elevated in the air, and I further saw that this one woman is sitting inside the ephah.

וַיֹּאמֶר זֹאת הָרִשְׁעָה וַיַּשְׁלֵךְ אֹתָהּ אֶל־תּוֹךְ הָאֵיפָה וַיַּשְׁלֵךְ אֶת־אֶבֶן הָעוֹפֶרֶת אֶל־פִּיהָ

He, the angel, said: That woman in the midst of the measure is wickedness personified. He has cast her into the midst of the ephah, and he has cast the lead weight into her mouth, so that wickedness should be trapped and sealed.

וָאֶשָּׂא עֵינַי וָאֵרֶא וְהִנֵּה שְׁתַּיִם נָשִׁים יוֹצְאוֹת וְרוּחַ בְּכַנְפֵיהֶם וְלָהֵנָּה כְנָפַיִם כְּכַנְפֵי הַחֲסִידָה וַתִּשֶּׂנָה אֶת־הָאֵיפָה בֵּין הָאָרֶץ וּבֵין הַשָּׁמָיִם

I lifted my eyes and saw, and behold, two women are emerging, and wind is blowing in their wings. Perhaps these winged women were angels or some other type of celestial being; for they have wings shaped like the wings of a stork; and they lifted the ephah between the earth and the heavens. These winged women were raising the measure that contained the woman inside it, so that it was between the heaven and the earth.

וָאֹמַר אֶל־הַמַּלְאָךְ הַדֹּבֵר בִּי אָנָה הֵמָּה מוֹלִכוֹת אֶת־הָאֵיפָה

I said to the angel that spoke with me: Where are they taking the ephah?

וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלַי לִבְנוֹת־לָה בַיִת בְּאֶרֶץ שִׁנְעָר וְהוּכַן וְהֻנִּיחָה שָּׁם עַל־מְכֻנָתָהּ

He said to me: To build her a house in the land of Shinar, Babylonia. It, the house, will be established, and she will be placed there on her base, in her place. The woman inside the measure represents wickedness and the curse that goes forth over the land, e.g., coarseness and hatred. Her placement in a measuring vessel expresses the idea that quarrels and hatred are caused by monetary dealings. The moving of the curse from the Land of Israel to Babylonia, where Jews resided at the time, indicates that the Land of Israel is no longer cursed, and that the curse has moved to Babylonia.