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Ezekiel 36
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Ezekiel 36
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 36
Regeneration of the Land. 1 As for you, son of man, prophesy to the mountains of Israel and say: Mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord! 2 Thus says the Lord God: Because the enemy said about you, “Ha! the ancient heights have become our possession,” 3 therefore prophesy and say: Thus says the Lord God: because you have been ridiculed and hounded on all sides for becoming a possession for the remaining nations and have become a byword and a popular jeer,(A) 4 therefore, mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord God: Thus says the Lord God to the mountains and hills, to the ravines and valleys, to the desolate ruins and abandoned cities, plundered and mocked by the nations remaining around you:(B) 5 therefore thus says the Lord God: Truly, with burning jealousy I speak against the remaining nations and against Edom; they all took possession of my land for plunder with wholehearted joy and utter contempt. 6 Therefore, prophesy concerning the land of Israel and say to the mountains and hills, to the ravines and valleys: Thus says the Lord God: See! in my jealous fury I speak, because you endured the reproach of the nations. 7 Therefore, thus says the Lord God: I raise my hand and swear: the nations around you shall bear their own reproach.
8 But you, mountains of Israel, you will sprout branches and bear fruit for my people Israel, for they are coming soon.(C) 9 Look! I am for you! I will turn my face toward you; you will be plowed and planted.(D) 10 Upon you I will multiply the whole house of Israel; cities shall be resettled and ruins rebuilt.(E) 11 Upon you I will multiply people and animals so they can multiply and be fruitful. I will resettle you as in the past, and make you more prosperous than at your beginning; then you shall know that I am the Lord.(F)
12 Upon you I will have them walk, my people Israel. They shall possess you, and you shall be their heritage. Never again shall you rob them of their children.
13 Thus says the Lord God: Because they say of you, “You devour your own people,[a] you rob your nation of its children,”(G) 14 therefore, you shall never again devour your people or rob your nation of its children—oracle of the Lord God. 15 I will no longer make you listen to the reproach of nations. You will never again endure insults from the peoples. Never again shall you rob your nation of its children—oracle of the Lord God.
Regeneration of the People. 16 The word of the Lord came to me: 17 Son of man, when the house of Israel lived in its land, they defiled it with their behavior and their deeds. In my sight their behavior was like the impurity of a woman in menstruation.(H) 18 So I poured out my fury upon them for the blood they poured out on the ground and for the idols with which they defiled it. 19 I scattered them among the nations, and they were dispersed through other lands; according to their behavior and their deeds I carried out judgment against them.(I) 20 [b]But when they came to the nations, where they went, they desecrated my holy name, for people said of them: “These are the people of the Lord, yet they had to leave their land.” 21 So I relented because of my holy name which the house of Israel desecrated among the nations to which they came. 22 Therefore say to the house of Israel: Thus says the Lord God: Not for your sake do I act, house of Israel, but for the sake of my holy name, which you desecrated among the nations to which you came.(J) 23 But I will show the holiness of my great name, desecrated among the nations, in whose midst you desecrated it. Then the nations shall know that I am the Lord—oracle of the Lord God—when through you I show my holiness before their very eyes.(K) 24 I will take you away from among the nations, gather you from all the lands, and bring you back to your own soil. 25 [c](L)I will sprinkle clean water over you to make you clean; from all your impurities and from all your idols I will cleanse you. 26 (M)I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.(N) 27 I will put my spirit within you so that you walk in my statutes, observe my ordinances, and keep them.(O) 28 You will live in the land I gave to your ancestors; you will be my people, and I will be your God.(P) 29 I will deliver you from all your impurities. I will summon the grain and make it plentiful; I will not send famine against you. 30 I will increase the fruit on your trees and the crops in your fields so that you no longer endure reproach from the nations because of famine.(Q) 31 Then you will remember your evil behavior and your deeds that were not good; you will loathe yourselves for your sins and your abominations. 32 Not for your sake do I act—oracle of the Lord God. Let this be known to you! Be ashamed and humbled because of your behavior, house of Israel.
33 Thus says the Lord God: When I cleanse you of all your guilt, I will resettle the cities and the ruins will be rebuilt.(R) 34 The desolate land will be tilled—once a wasteland in the eyes of every passerby. 35 They will say, “This once-desolate land has become like the garden of Eden. The cities once ruined, laid waste and destroyed, are now resettled and fortified.”(S) 36 Then the surrounding nations that remain shall know that I, the Lord, have rebuilt what was destroyed and replanted what was desolate. I, the Lord, have spoken: I will do it. 37 Thus says the Lord God: This also I will be persuaded to do for the house of Israel: to multiply them like sheep. 38 Like sheep for sacrifice, like the sheep of Jerusalem on its feast days, the ruined cities shall be filled with flocks of people; then they shall know that I am the Lord.(T)
Footnotes
- 36:13 You devour your own people: i.e., the land destroys its own population; this phrase also occurs in Nm 13:32, where Israelite spies describe Canaan as “a land that devours its inhabitants.”
- 36:20–24 These verses make clear that Israel’s restoration is God’s initiative, independent of the people’s shame and repentance (v. 31). By their wickedness, Israel provoked the exile; its presence among the nations gave the impression that God could not protect his people. God’s gracious return of Israel to its land will restore his honor among these same nations.
- 36:25–26 God’s initiative to cleanse Israel (cf. 24:13–14) is the first act in the creation of a new people, no longer disposed to repeating Israel’s wicked past (chap. 20). To make this restoration permanent, God replaces Israel’s rebellious and obdurate interiority (“heart of stone”) with an interiority (“heart of flesh”) susceptible to and animated by God’s intentions (“my spirit,” v. 27).
Ezekiel 36
New International Version
Ezekiel 36
New International Version
Hope for the Mountains of Israel
36 “Son of man, prophesy to the mountains of Israel(A) and say, ‘Mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord. 2 This is what the Sovereign Lord says:(B) The enemy said of you, “Aha!(C) The ancient heights(D) have become our possession.(E)”’ 3 Therefore prophesy and say, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because they ravaged(F) and crushed you from every side so that you became the possession of the rest of the nations and the object of people’s malicious talk and slander,(G) 4 therefore, mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Sovereign Lord: This is what the Sovereign Lord says to the mountains and hills, to the ravines and valleys,(H) to the desolate ruins(I) and the deserted(J) towns that have been plundered and ridiculed(K) by the rest of the nations around you(L)— 5 this is what the Sovereign Lord says: In my burning(M) zeal I have spoken against the rest of the nations, and against all Edom, for with glee and with malice in their hearts they made my land their own possession so that they might plunder its pastureland.’(N) 6 Therefore prophesy concerning the land of Israel and say to the mountains and hills, to the ravines and valleys: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: I speak in my jealous wrath because you have suffered the scorn of the nations.(O) 7 Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I swear with uplifted hand(P) that the nations around you will also suffer scorn.(Q)
8 “‘But you, mountains of Israel, will produce branches and fruit(R) for my people Israel, for they will soon come home. 9 I am concerned for you and will look on you with favor; you will be plowed and sown,(S) 10 and I will cause many people to live on you—yes, all of Israel. The towns will be inhabited and the ruins(T) rebuilt.(U) 11 I will increase the number of people and animals living on you, and they will be fruitful(V) and become numerous. I will settle people(W) on you as in the past(X) and will make you prosper more than before.(Y) Then you will know that I am the Lord. 12 I will cause people, my people Israel, to live on you. They will possess you, and you will be their inheritance;(Z) you will never again deprive them of their children.
13 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because some say to you, “You devour people(AA) and deprive your nation of its children,” 14 therefore you will no longer devour people or make your nation childless, declares the Sovereign Lord. 15 No longer will I make you hear the taunts of the nations, and no longer will you suffer the scorn of the peoples or cause your nation to fall, declares the Sovereign Lord.(AB)’”
Israel’s Restoration Assured
16 Again the word of the Lord came to me: 17 “Son of man, when the people of Israel were living in their own land, they defiled it by their conduct and their actions. Their conduct was like a woman’s monthly uncleanness(AC) in my sight.(AD) 18 So I poured out(AE) my wrath on them because they had shed blood in the land and because they had defiled it with their idols. 19 I dispersed them among the nations, and they were scattered(AF) through the countries; I judged them according to their conduct and their actions.(AG) 20 And wherever they went among the nations they profaned(AH) my holy name, for it was said of them, ‘These are the Lord’s people, and yet they had to leave his land.’(AI) 21 I had concern for my holy name, which the people of Israel profaned among the nations where they had gone.(AJ)
22 “Therefore say to the Israelites, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: It is not for your sake, people of Israel, that I am going to do these things, but for the sake of my holy name,(AK) which you have profaned(AL) among the nations where you have gone.(AM) 23 I will show the holiness of my great name,(AN) which has been profaned(AO) among the nations, the name you have profaned among them. Then the nations will know that I am the Lord,(AP) declares the Sovereign Lord, when I am proved holy(AQ) through you before their eyes.(AR)
24 “‘For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land.(AS) 25 I will sprinkle(AT) clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse(AU) you from all your impurities(AV) and from all your idols.(AW) 26 I will give you a new heart(AX) and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone(AY) and give you a heart of flesh.(AZ) 27 And I will put my Spirit(BA) in you and move you to follow my decrees(BB) and be careful to keep my laws.(BC) 28 Then you will live in the land I gave your ancestors; you will be my people,(BD) and I will be your God.(BE) 29 I will save you from all your uncleanness. I will call for the grain and make it plentiful and will not bring famine(BF) upon you. 30 I will increase the fruit of the trees and the crops of the field, so that you will no longer suffer disgrace among the nations because of famine.(BG) 31 Then you will remember your evil ways and wicked deeds, and you will loathe yourselves for your sins and detestable practices.(BH) 32 I want you to know that I am not doing this for your sake, declares the Sovereign Lord. Be ashamed(BI) and disgraced for your conduct, people of Israel!(BJ)
33 “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: On the day I cleanse(BK) you from all your sins, I will resettle your towns, and the ruins(BL) will be rebuilt.(BM) 34 The desolate land will be cultivated instead of lying desolate in the sight of all who pass through it. 35 They will say, “This land that was laid waste has become like the garden of Eden;(BN) the cities that were lying in ruins, desolate and destroyed, are now fortified and inhabited.(BO)” 36 Then the nations around you that remain will know that I the Lord have rebuilt what was destroyed and have replanted what was desolate. I the Lord have spoken, and I will do it.’(BP)
37 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Once again I will yield to Israel’s plea(BQ) and do this for them: I will make their people as numerous as sheep,(BR) 38 as numerous as the flocks for offerings(BS) at Jerusalem during her appointed festivals. So will the ruined cities be filled with flocks of people. Then they will know that I am the Lord.(BT)”
New American Bible (Revised Edition) (NABRE)
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