Parable of the Boiling Pot

1Now the word of the LORD came to me in the ninth year, in the tenth month, on the tenth of the month, saying, 2“Son of man, write the name of the day, this very day. The king of Babylon [a]has laid siege to Jerusalem this very day. 3Present a parable to the rebellious house and say to them, ‘This is what the Lord [b]GOD says:

“Put on the pot, put it on and also pour water into it;

4[c]Put in it the pieces of meat,

Every good piece, the thigh and the shoulder;

Fill it with choice bones.

5“Take the choicest of the flock,

And also stack [d]wood under [e]the pot.

Make it boil vigorously.

Also boil its bones in it.”

6‘Therefore, this is what the Lord GOD says:

“Woe to the bloody city,

To the pot in which there is rust

And whose rust has not gone out of it!

Take out of it piece after piece,

[f]Without making a choice.

7“For her blood is in her midst;

She placed it on the bare rock;

She did not pour it on the ground

To cover it with dust.

8“So that it may cause wrath to come up to take vengeance,

I have put her blood on the bare rock,

So that it will not be covered.” 9Therefore, this is what the Lord GOD says:

“Woe to the bloody city!

I also will make the wood pile great.

10“Heap on the wood, kindle the fire,

[g]Cook the meat thoroughly

And mix in the spices,

And let the bones be burned up.

11“Then set it empty on its burning coals

So that it may be hot

And its bronze may [h]glow,

And its filthiness may be melted in it,

Its rust eliminated.

12“She has wearied Me with work,

Yet her great rust has not gone from her;

Let her rust be in the fire!

13“In your filthiness is outrageous sin.

Because I would have cleansed you,

Yet you are not clean,

You will not be cleansed from your filthiness again

Until I have [i]expended My wrath on you. 14I, the LORD, have spoken; it is coming and I will act. I will not overlook, I will not pity, and I will not be sorry; according to your ways and according to your deeds [j]I will judge you,” declares the Lord GOD.’”

Death of Ezekiel’s Wife Is a Sign

15And the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 16“Son of man, behold, I am about to take from you what is precious to your eyes with a fatal blow; but you shall not mourn and you shall not weep, and your tears shall not come. 17Groan silently; do no mourning for the dead. Bind on your turban and put your sandals on your feet, and do not [k]cover your mustache, and do not eat the [l]bread of other people.” 18So I spoke to the people in the morning, and in the evening my wife died. And in the morning I did as I was commanded. 19And the people said to me, “Will you not tell us what these things mean for us, that you are doing?” 20Then I said to them, “The word of the LORD came to me, saying, 21‘Speak to the house of Israel, “This is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Behold, I am about to profane My sanctuary, the pride of your power, that which is precious in your eyes and the longing of your soul; and your sons and your daughters whom you have left behind will fall by the sword. 22And you will do just as I have done; you will not [m]cover your mustache, and you will not eat the [n]bread of other people. 23Your turbans will be on your heads, and your sandals on your feet. You will not mourn and you will not weep; but you will rot away in your guilty deeds, and you will groan [o]to one another. 24So Ezekiel will be a sign to you; according to all that he has done, you will do. When it comes, then you will know that I am the Lord GOD.’”

25‘As for you, son of man, will it not be on the day when I take from them their stronghold, the joy of their splendor, that which is precious in their eyes and their [p]heart’s longing, their sons and their daughters, 26that on that day the one who escapes will come to you with information for your ears? 27On that day your mouth will be opened to him who escaped, and you will speak and no longer be silenced. So you will be a sign to them, and they will know that I am the LORD.’”

[a] 2 Lit leaned on
[b] 3 Heb YHWH, usually rendered LORD, and so throughout the ch
[c] 4 Lit Gather her pieces
[d] 5 Cf. v 10; MT bones
[e] 5 Lit it
[f] 6 Lit No lot has fallen on it
[g] 10 Lit Finish
[h] 11 Lit burn
[i] 13 Lit caused to rest
[j] 14 As in several mss and ancient versions; MT they
[k] 17 Covering the beard and mustache was a mourning custom
[l] 17 I.e., food from others for mourners
[m] 22 See note 1 v 17
[n] 22 See note 2 v 17
[o] 23 Lit each to his brother
[p] 25 Lit soul’s burden