¹And it was in the seventh year, in the fifth month, on the tenth of the month, that men from the elders of Israel came to inquire of Yahweh, and they sat down before me.

²And the word of Yahweh came to me, saying:

³Son of man, speak to the elders of Israel, and say to them: Thus says the Adonai Yahweh: Have you come to inquire of me? As I live, I will surely not let myself be inquired of by you, the utterance of the Adonai Yahweh.

⁴Will you judge them? Will you judge, son of man? Make known to them the abominations of their fathers.

⁵And you shall say to them: This is what the Adonai Yahweh says: On the day I chose Israel, I lifted up my hand to the seed of the house of Jacob, and I made myself known to them in the land of Egypt; I lifted up my hand to them, saying: I am Yahweh your God.

⁶On that day I lifted up my hand to them, to bring them out of the land of Egypt into a land that I had scouted for them, flowing with milk and honey—she is the beauty of all the lands.

⁷And I said to them: Every man, throw away the abominable filth of his eyes, and do not defile yourselves with the idols of Egypt; I am Yahweh your God.

⁸But they rebelled against me and were not willing to listen to me. Not one of them threw away the abominable filth of their eyes, and they did not forsake the idols of Egypt. So I said I would pour out my rage on them, to exhaust my anger on them in the middle of the land of Egypt.

⁹But I acted for the sake of my name, so that it would not be profaned in the eyes of the nations in whose midst they were, before whose eyes I had made myself known to them by bringing them out of the land of Egypt.

¹⁰And I brought them out of the land of Egypt, and I brought them into the wilderness.

¹¹And I gave them my statutes, and I made known to them my justices, which a person who does them will live by.

¹²And also I gave them my sabbaths, to be a sign between me and between them, so that they would know that I am Yahweh, who sets them apart.

¹³And the house of Israel rebelled against me in the wilderness. They did not walk in my statutes, and they rejected my justices, which a person who does them will live by, and they profaned my sabbaths greatly. So I said I would pour out my rage on them in the wilderness, to make an end of them.

¹⁴But I acted for the sake of my name, so that it would not be profaned in the eyes of the nations, before whose eyes I had brought them out.

¹⁵And also I myself lifted up my hand to them in the wilderness, that I would not bring them into the land that I had given, flowing with milk and honey—she is the beauty of all the lands.

¹⁶Because they rejected my justices, did not walk in my statutes, and profaned my sabbaths—for their heart went after their idols.

¹⁷And my eye had pity on them, so as not to ruin them, and I did not make a full end of them in the wilderness.

¹⁸And I said to their children in the wilderness: Do not walk in the statutes of your fathers, do not keep their justices, and do not defile yourselves with their idols.

¹⁹I am Yahweh your God. Walk in my statutes, keep my justices, and do them.

²⁰And set apart my sabbaths, and they will be a sign between me and between you, so that you know that I am Yahweh your God.

²¹But the children rebelled against me. They did not walk in my statutes, and did not keep my justices to do them, which a person who does them will live by; and they profaned my sabbaths. So I said I would pour out my rage on them, to exhaust my anger on them in the wilderness.

²²But I turned back my hand and acted for the sake of my name, so that it would not be profaned in the eyes of the nations, before whose eyes I had brought them out.

²³Also I myself lifted up my hand to them in the wilderness, to scatter them among the nations, and to disperse them through the lands.

²⁴Because they did not do my justices, and they rejected my statutes, and they profaned my sabbaths, and their eyes were following the idols of their fathers.

²⁵And I also gave them statutes that were not good, and justices by which they could not live.

²⁶And I defiled them through their gifts, by handing over every firstborn of the womb, so that I might appall them, so that they would know that I am Yahweh.

²⁷Therefore speak to the house of Israel, son of man, and say to them: This is what the Adonai Yahweh says: Yet again, in this, your fathers reviled me, when they acted unfaithfully against me, a breach of faith.

²⁸And I brought them into the land that I had lifted up my hand to give it to them, and they saw every high hill and every leafy tree, and they sacrificed their sacrifices there, and there they gave their provoking offering, and there they put their soothing scent, and there they poured out their drink offerings.

²⁹And I said to them: What is the high place where you go? And its name was called Bamah until this day.

³⁰Therefore say to the house of Israel: This is what the Adonai Yahweh says: Are you defiling yourselves in the way of your fathers, and are you prostituting yourselves after their abominable filth?

³¹And when you lift up your gifts, when you hand over your sons in the fire, you are defiling yourselves with all your idols until this day. And shall I let myself be consulted by you, house of Israel? As I live, the utterance of the Adonai Yahweh, I will not let myself be consulted by you.

³²And what comes up in your breath will certainly not happen—what you are saying: We will be like the nations, like the clans of the lands, serving wood and stone.

³³As I live, the utterance of the Adonai Yahweh, surely with a mighty hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with rage poured out, I will reign over you.

³⁴And I will bring out you from the peoples, and I will gather you from the lands where you have been scattered, with a mighty hand and with an outstretched arm and with rage poured out.

³⁵And I will bring you into the wilderness of the peoples, and there I will enter into judgment with you, face to face.

³⁶As I judged with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so I will judge with you, the utterance of the Adonai Yahweh.

³⁷And I will make you pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant.

³⁸And I will purge out from among you the rebels and those who transgress against me; from the land of their sojournings I will bring them out, but into the ground of Israel they will not come. Then you will know that I am Yahweh.

³⁹And you, house of Israel, thus says the Adonai Yahweh: Go, each man, serve his idols; and afterward, if you will not listen to me, my holy name you will not profane again with your gifts and with your idols.

⁴⁰For on my holy mountain, on the mountain of the height of Israel — the utterance of the Adonai Yahweh — there all the house of Israel, all of it, will serve me in the land; there I will accept them, and there I will require your contributions and the first of your gifts, with all your holy things.

⁴¹As a soothing scent I will accept you, when I bring you out from the peoples and gather you from the lands where you were scattered among them; and I will be set apart among you before the eyes of the nations.

⁴²And you will know that I am Yahweh, when I bring you into the ground of Israel, into the land that I lifted up my hand to give it to your fathers.

⁴³And you will remember there your ways and all your deeds by which you made yourselves unclean, and you will loathe yourselves before your own faces for all your evils that you have done.

⁴⁴And you will know that I am Yahweh, when I deal with you for the sake of my name, not according to your evil ways, nor according to your corrupt deeds, house of Israel — the utterance of the Adonai Yahweh.

⁴⁵And the word of Yahweh came to me, saying:

⁴⁶Son of man, set your face in the direction of the south, and let your speech drip toward the south, and prophesy against the forest of the field of the Negev.

⁴⁷And say to the forest of the Negev: Hear the word of Yahweh. Thus says the Adonai Yahweh: Look, I am kindling in you a fire, and it will devour in you every fresh tree and every dry tree; the blazing flame will not go out, and all faces from the south to the north will be scorched by it.

⁴⁸And all flesh will see that I, Yahweh, have kindled it; it will not go out.

⁴⁹And I said: Alas, Adonai Yahweh! They are saying of me: Is he not a maker of parables?