Ezekiel 2:4

2:4 The people ¹  to whom I am sending you are obstinate and hard-hearted, ²  and you must say to them, ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says.’ ³ 

Ezekiel 13:2

13:2 “Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel who are now prophesying. Say to the prophets who prophesy from their imagination: ⁴  ‘Hear the word of the Lord!

Ezekiel 16:3

16:3 and say, ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says to Jerusalem: Your origin and your birth were in the land of the Canaanites; your father was an Amorite and your mother a Hittite.

Ezekiel 21:3

21:3 and say to them, ⁵  ‘This is what the Lord says: Look, ⁶  I am against you. ⁷  I will draw my sword ⁸  from its sheath and cut off from you both the righteous and the wicked. ⁹ 

Ezekiel 21:9

21:9 “Son of man, prophesy and say: ‘This is what the Lord says:

“‘A sword, a sword is sharpened,

and also polished.

Ezekiel 22:3

22:3 Then say, ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says: O city, who spills blood within herself (which brings on her doom), ¹⁰  and who makes herself idols (which results in impurity),

Ezekiel 24:3

24:3 Recite a proverb to this rebellious house ¹¹  and say to them, ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says:

“‘Set on the pot, ¹²  set it on,

pour water in it too;

Ezekiel 35:3

35:3 Say to it, ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says:

“‘Look, I am against you, Mount Seir;

I will stretch out my hand against you

and turn you into a desolate ruin.

Ezekiel 36:1

Blessings on the Mountains of Israel

36:1 “As for you, son of man, prophesy to the mountains of Israel, and say: ‘O mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord!

Ezekiel 37:4

37:4 Then he said to me, “Prophesy over these bones, and tell them: ‘Dry bones, hear the word of the Lord.

Ezekiel 38:11

38:11 You will say, “I will invade ¹³  a land of unwalled towns; I will advance against ¹⁴  those living quietly in security – all of them living without walls and barred gates –

Ezekiel 38:14

38:14 “Therefore, prophesy, son of man, and say to Gog: ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says: On that day when my people Israel are living securely, you will take notice ¹⁵ 

Ezekiel 39:1

39:1 “As for you, son of man, prophesy against Gog, and say: ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says: Look, I am against you, O Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal!

Ezekiel 44:6

44:6 Say to the rebellious, ¹⁶  to the house of Israel, ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says: Enough of all your abominable practices, O house of Israel!

¹ tn Heb “sons.” The word choice may reflect treaty idiom, where the relationship between an overlord and his subjects can be described as that of father and son.

² tc Heb “stern of face and hard of heart.” The phrases “stern of face” and “hard of heart” are lacking in the LXX.

³ tn The phrase “thus says [the Lord]” occurs 129 times in Ezekiel; the announcement is identical to the way messengers often introduced their messages (Gen 32:5; 45:9; Exod 5:10; Num 20:14; Judg 11:15).

⁴ tn Heb “from their mind.”

⁷ tn Heb “the land of Israel.”

⁸ tn The word הִנֵּה (hinneh, traditionally “behold”) draws attention to something and has been translated here as a verb.

⁹ tn Or “I challenge you.” The phrase “I am against you” may be a formula for challenging someone to combat or a duel. See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 1:201-2, and P. Humbert, “Die Herausforderungsformel ‘h!nn#n' ?l?K>,’” ZAW 45 (1933): 101-8.

¹⁰ sn This is the sword of judgment, see Isa 31:8; 34:6; 66:16.

¹¹ sn Ezekiel elsewhere pictures the Lord’s judgment as discriminating between the righteous and the wicked (9:4-6; 18:1-20; see as well Pss 1 and 11) and speaks of the preservation of a remnant (3:21; 6:8; 12:16). Perhaps here he exaggerates for rhetorical effect in an effort to subdue any false optimism. See L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:25-26; D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 1:669-70; and W. Zimmerli, Ezekiel (Hermeneia), 1:424-25.

¹⁰ tn Heb “her time”; this refers to the time of impending judgment (see the note on “doom” in v. 4).

¹³ sn The book of Ezekiel frequently refers to the Israelites as a rebellious house (Ezek 2:5, 6, 8; 3:9, 26-27; 12:2-3, 9, 25; 17:12; 24:3).

¹⁴ sn See Ezek 11:3-12.

¹⁶ tn Heb “go up against.”

¹⁷ tn Heb “come (to).”

¹⁹ tn The Hebrew text is framed as a rhetorical question: “will you not take notice?”

²² tc The LXX reads “house of rebellion.”