“‘Say to them: This is what the sovereign Lord says: “‘Will it prosper? Will he not rip out its roots and cause its fruit to rot ¹  and wither? All its foliage ²  will wither. No strong arm or large army will be needed to pull it out by its roots. ³ 

The person who sins is the one who will die. A son will not suffer ¹  for his father’s iniquity, and a father will not suffer ²  for his son’s iniquity; the righteous person will be judged according to his righteousness, and the wicked person according to his wickedness. ³ 

“‘But the children ¹  rebelled against me, did not follow my statutes, did not observe my regulations by carrying them out (the one who obeys ²  them will live by them), and desecrated my Sabbaths. I decided to pour out ³  my rage on them and fully vent my anger against them in the wilderness.

Her priests abuse my law and have desecrated my holy things. They do not distinguish between the holy and the profane, ¹  or recognize any distinction between the unclean and the clean. They ignore ²  my Sabbaths and I am profaned in their midst.

“‘Therefore this is what the sovereign Lord says: Woe to the city of bloodshed, the pot whose rot ¹  is in it, whose rot has not been removed ²  from it! Empty it piece by piece. No lot has fallen on it. ³ 

I will leave you in the wilderness, you and all the fish of your waterways; you will fall in the open field and will not be gathered up or collected. ¹  I have given you as food to the beasts of the earth and the birds of the skies.

But suppose the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet to warn the people. Then the sword comes and takes one of their lives. He is swept away for his iniquity, ¹  but I will hold the watchman accountable for that person’s death.’ ² 

This is what the sovereign Lord says: Look, I am against the shepherds, and I will demand my sheep from their hand. I will no longer let them be shepherds; ¹  the shepherds will not feed themselves anymore. I will rescue my sheep from their mouth, so that they will no longer be food for them.

I will make them one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel, and one king will rule over them all. They will never again be two nations and never again be divided into two kingdoms. ¹ 

They will not need to take ¹  wood from the field or cut down trees from the forests, because they will make fires with the weapons. They will take the loot from those who looted them and seize the plunder of those who plundered them, ²  declares the sovereign Lord.

The Lord said to me: “This gate will be shut; it will not be opened, and no one will enter by it. For the Lord, the God of Israel, has entered by it; therefore it will remain shut.

“‘They must not come near a dead person or they will be defiled; ¹  however, for father, mother, son, daughter, brother or sister, they may defile themselves.

On both sides of the river’s banks, every kind of tree will grow for food. Their leaves will not wither nor will their fruit fail, but they will bear fruit every month, because their water source flows from the sanctuary. Their fruit will be for food and their leaves for healing.” ¹ 

their wings touched each other; they did not turn as they moved, but went straight ahead. ¹ 

Each moved straight ahead ¹  – wherever the spirit ²  would go, they would go, without turning as they went.

For you are not being sent to a people of unintelligible speech ¹  and difficult language, ²  but ³  to the house of Israel –

But as for you, if you warn the wicked and he does not turn from his wicked deed and from his wicked lifestyle, he will die for his iniquity but you will have saved your own life. ¹ 

However, if you warn the righteous person not to sin, and he ¹  does not sin, he will certainly live because he was warned, and you will have saved your own life.”

I will make your tongue stick to the roof of your mouth so that you will be silent and unable to reprove ¹  them, for they are a rebellious house.

Look here, I will tie you up with ropes, so you cannot turn from one side to the other until you complete the days of your siege. ¹