The Boiling Pot of Judgment
24 1 In the ninth year, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, the word of our Father came to me: 2 Son of man, write down the name of this day, this very day. The king of Babylon has laid siege to Jerusalem this very day.
3 Speak a parable to the rebellious house and say to them, This is what the Sovereign Father says: Set on the pot, set it on, and pour water into it. 4 Put in the pieces, every good piece, the thigh and the shoulder fill it with the choicest bones. 5 Take the choicest of the flock and pile the logs beneath it bring it to a boil and cook its bones in it.
6 Therefore this is what the Sovereign Father says: Woe to the city of bloodshed, to the pot whose corrosion is in it, whose corrosion has not left it! Take it out piece by piece; no lot was cast for any of it. 1 1 v6 Lots were drawn to make selections; here no lot is cast — every piece comes out indiscriminately, picturing total judgment on Jerusalem. 7 For her blood is in her midst she set it on the bare rock. She did not pour it on the ground to cover it with dust. 8 To stir up wrath and bring justice, I have set her blood on the bare rock so that it would not be covered.
9 Therefore this is what the Sovereign Father says: Woe to the city of bloodshed! I too will pile the wood high. 10 Heap on the wood, kindle the fire, cook the meat through, mix in the spices and let the bones be charred. 11 Then set the empty pot on its coals so that it grows hot and its copper glows, that its impurity may be melted within it and its corrosion consumed. 12 She has worn herself out with toil yet her heavy corrosion will not leave her her corrosion remains even in the fire. 13 Your impurity is your shameful behavior. Because I tried to cleanse you and you would not be cleansed, you will not be clean again until I have satisfied my fury against you. 14 I, your Father, have spoken. It is coming and I will act. I will not hold back, I will not spare and I will not relent. They will judge you according to your ways and your deeds, declares the Sovereign Father.
The Father Takes Ezekiel's Wife
15 The word of our Father came to me:
16 Son of man, with one blow I am about to take from you the delight of your eyes. Yet you must not mourn or weep, and your tears must not fall. 2 2 v16 The death of Ezekiel's wife became a living sign: his forbidden grief mirrored the unspeakable loss Israel would feel when the temple fell. 17 Groan quietly; do not mourn for the dead. Keep your turban bound on your head and your sandals on your feet; do not cover your lips or eat the bread that mourners eat.
18 So I spoke to the people in the morning, and in the evening my wife died. The next morning I did as I had been commanded.
19 Then the people said to me, Won't you tell us what these things mean for us, that you are acting this way?
20 So I said to them, The word of our Father came to me: 21 Say to the house of Israel, This is what the Sovereign Father says: I am about to profane my sanctuary, the pride of your strength, the delight of your eyes, the longing of your soul; and the sons and daughters you left behind will fall by the sword. 22 And you will do as I have done: you will not cover your lips or eat the bread that mourners eat. 23 Your turbans will stay on your heads and your sandals on your feet. You will not mourn or weep, but you will waste away in your sins and groan to one another. 24 So Ezekiel will be a sign to you; you will do everything that he has done. When this comes, you will know that I am the Sovereign Father.
25 As for you, son of man, on the day I take from them their stronghold, their joy and glory, the delight of their eyes, the longing of their heart, and their sons and daughters, 26 on that day a fugitive will come to you to bring you the news. 27 On that day your mouth will be opened when the fugitive arrives; you will speak and no longer be silent. So you will be a sign to them, and they will know that I am your Father.