*THE BOOK OF THE PROPHET
EZEKIEL
Ezekiel 22 ©
God writes down a catalogue of the abominable sins that were rife in Jerusalem, committed against the first and the second table of the law, vs, 1, 2, 3, etc. For which he in very fierce anger fore tells them fearful astonishment and scattering among the Gentiles, 13. And that He will, because they are become as dross, melt them in Jerusalem as in a furnace by the fire of His anger, 17. General wickedness of prophets, priests, princes and people, 23.
MOREOVER the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
Now, thou son of man, wilt thou judge, wilt thou 1judgea the 2bloody city? yea, thou shalt shew her all her abominations.
Then say thou, Thus saith the Lord GOD, The 3city sheddeth blood in the midst of it, that her 4time may come, and maketh 5idols 6against herself to defile herself.
Thou art become guilty in 7thy blood that thou hast shed;b and hast defiledc thyself in thine idols which thou hast made; and thou hast caused thy 8days to draw near, and art come even unto thy years: therefore have I 9made thee a reproachd unto the heathen, and a mocking to all countries.
Those that be near, and those that be far from thee, shall mock thee, which art 10infamous and 11much vexed.
Behold, the princes of Israel, every one 12were in thee to their 13power to shed blood.
In thee 14have they set 15light by father and mother: in the midst of thee have they dealt by 16oppression with the stranger: in thee have they 17vexed the fatherless and the widow.
Thou hast despised mine holy things, and hast profaned my sabbaths.
In thee are men 18that carry tales to shed blood: and in thee they 19eat upon the mountains:e in the midst of thee they commit lewdness.
In thee have they discoveredf their fathers’ 20nakedness: in thee have they 21humbled her that was set 22apart for pollution.g
And one hath committed abominationh with his neighbour’s wife;i and another hath lewdly defiled his daughter in law;j and another in thee hath humbled his sister, his father’sk daughter.
In thee have they taken gifts to shed blood; thou hast taken 23usury and increase, and thou hast greedily gained of thy neighbours by 24extortion, and hast forgotten me, saith the Lord GOD.
¶Behold, therefore I have smittenl mine 25hand at thy dishonest gain which thou hast made, and at thy 26blood 27which hath been in the midst of thee.
Can thine heart 28endure, or can thine hands be strong, in the days that I shall 29deal with thee? I the LORD have spoken it, and will domit.
And I will scattern thee among the heathen, and disperse thee in the countries, and will 30consume thy filthiness out of thee.
And thou shalt take thine 31inheritance in thyself in the sight of the heathen, and thou shalt know that I am the LORD.
And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
Son of man, the 32house of Israel is to me become 33dross:o all they are 34brass, and tin, and iron, and lead, in the midst of the furnace; they are even the dross of silver.
Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because ye are all become dross, behold, therefore I will 35gather you into the midst of Jerusalem.
As they 36gather silver, and brass, and iron, and lead, and tin, into the midst of the furnace, to blow the fire upon it, to melt it; so will I gather you in mine anger and in my fury, and I will leave you there, and melt you.
Yea, I will gather you, and blow upon you in the fire of my wrath, and ye shall be melted in the midst 37thereof.
As silver is melted in the midst of the furnace, so shall ye be melted in the midst thereof; and ye shall know that I the LORD have poured out my fury upon you.
¶And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
Son of man, say unto 38her, Thou art the land that is not 39cleansed, 40nor rained upon in the day of 41indignation.
There is 42a conspiracy 43of her prophets in the midst thereof, like a roaring lion raveningp the prey; they have devoured 44souls;q they have taken the treasure and precious things; they have 45made her many widows in the midst thereof.
Her priests have 46violated my law, and have profaned mine holy things: they have put no differencer between the holy and profane, neither have they shewed difference between the unclean and the clean, and have 47hid their eyes from my sabbaths, and I am 48profaned among them.
Her princess in the midst thereof are like wolves ravening the prey, to shed blood, and to destroy 49souls, to get dishonest gain.
And her prophets have 50daubedt them with untempered morter, seeingu51vanity, and divining lies unto them, saying, Thus saith the Lord GOD, when the LORD hath not spoken.
The people of the land have 52used oppression, and exercised robbery, and have 53vexed the poor and needy: yea, they have oppressed the stranger 54wrongfully.
And I sought for a man 55among them, that should make up the 56hedge, and stand in the gapv before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none.
Therefore have I poured out mine indignation upon them; I have consumed them with the fire of my wrath: their own way have I recompensed upon their 57heads,w saith the Lord GOD.