Ezekiel 16

• 1. Then another message came to me from the LORD:
• 2. "Son of man, confront Jerusalem with her loathsome sins.
• 3. Give her this message from the Sovereign LORD: You are nothing but a Canaanite! Your father was an Amorite and your mother a Hittite!
• 4. When you were born, no one cared about you. Your umbilical cord was left uncut, and you were never washed, rubbed with salt, and dressed in warm clothing.
• 5. No one had the slightest interest in you; no one pitied you or cared for you. On the day you were born, you were dumped in a field and left to die, unwanted.
• 6. "But I came by and saw you there, helplessly kicking about in your own blood. As you lay there, I said, `Live!'
• 7. And I helped you to thrive like a plant in the field. You grew up and became a beautiful jewel. Your breasts became full, and your hair grew, though you were still naked.
• 8. And when I passed by and saw you again, you were old enough to be married. So I wrapped my cloak around you to cover your nakedness and declared my marriage vows. I made a covenant with you, says the Sovereign LORD, and you became mine.
• 9. "Then I bathed you and washed off your blood, and I rubbed fragrant oils into your skin.
• 10. I gave you expensive clothing of linen and silk, beautifully embroidered, and sandals made of fine leather.
• 11. I gave you lovely jewelry, bracelets, and beautiful necklaces,
• 12. a ring for your nose and earrings for your ears, and a lovely crown for your head.
• 13. And so you were made beautiful with gold and silver. Your clothes were made of fine linen and were beautifully embroidered. You ate the finest foods--fine flour, honey, and olive oil--and became more beautiful than ever. You looked like a queen, and so you were!
• 14. Your fame soon spread throughout the world on account of your beauty, because the splendor I bestowed on you perfected your beauty, says the Sovereign LORD.
• 15. "But you thought you could get along without me, so you trusted instead in your fame and beauty. You gave yourself as a prostitute to every man who came along. Your beauty was theirs for the asking!
• 16. You used the lovely things I gave you to make shrines for idols, where you carried out your acts of prostitution. Unbelievable! How could such a thing ever happen?
• 17. You took the very jewels and gold and silver ornaments I had given you and made statues of men and worshiped them, which is adultery against me.
• 18. You used the beautifully embroidered clothes I gave you to cover your idols. Then you used my oil and incense to worship them.
• 19. Imagine it! You set before them as a lovely sacrifice the fine flour and oil and honey I had given you, says the Sovereign LORD.
• 20. "Then you took your sons and daughters--the children you had borne to me--and sacrificed them to your gods. Was it not enough that you should be a prostitute?
• 21. Must you also slaughter my children by sacrificing them to idols?
• 22. In all your years of adultery and loathsome sin, you have not once thought of the days long ago when you lay naked in a field, kicking about in your own blood.
• 23. "Your destruction is certain, says the Sovereign LORD. In addition to all your other wickedness,
• 24. you built a pagan shrine and put altars to idols in every town square.
• 25. On every street corner you defiled your beauty, offering your body to every passerby in an endless stream of prostitution.
• 26. Then you added lustful Egypt to your lovers, fanning the flames of my anger with your increasing promiscuity.
• 27. That is why I struck you with my fist and reduced your boundaries. I handed you over to your enemies, the Philistines, and even they were shocked by your lewd conduct!
• 28. You have prostituted yourselves with the Assyrians, too. It seems you can never find enough new lovers! And after your prostitution there, you still were not satisfied.
• 29. You added to your lovers by embracing that great merchant land of Babylonia--but you still weren't satisfied!
• 30. "What a sick heart you have, says the Sovereign LORD, to do such things as these, acting like a shameless prostitute.
• 31. You build your pagan shrines on every street corner and your altars to idols in every square. You have been worse than a prostitute, so eager for sin that you have not even demanded payment for your love!
• 32. Yes, you are an adulterous wife who takes in strangers instead of her own husband.
• 33. Prostitutes charge for their services--but not you! You give gifts to your lovers, bribing them to come to you.
• 34. So you are the opposite of other prostitutes. No one pays you; instead, you pay them!
• 35. "Therefore, you prostitute, listen to this message from the LORD!
• 36. This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Because you have exposed yourself in prostitution to all your lovers, and because you have worshiped detestable idols, and because you have slaughtered your children as sacrifices to your gods,
• 37. this is what I am going to do. I will gather together all your allies--these lovers of yours with whom you have sinned, both those you loved and those you hated--and I will strip you naked in front of them so they can stare at you.
• 38. I will punish you for your murder and adultery. I will cover you with blood in my jealous fury.
• 39. Then I will give you to your lovers--these many nations--and they will destroy you. They will knock down your pagan shrines and the altars to your idols. They will strip you and take your beautiful jewels, leaving you completely naked and ashamed.
• 40. They will band together in a mob to stone you and run you through with swords.
• 41. They will burn your homes and punish you in front of many women. I will see to it that you stop your prostitution and end your payments to your many lovers.
• 42. "Then at last my fury against you will be spent, and my jealous anger will subside. I will be calm and will not be angry with you anymore.
• 43. But first, because you have not remembered your youth but have angered me by doing all these evil things, I will fully repay you for all of your sins, says the Sovereign LORD. For to all your disgusting sins, you have added these lewd acts.
• 44. Everyone who makes up proverbs will say of you, `Like mother, like daughter.'
• 45. For your mother loathed her husband and her children, and so do you. And you are exactly like your sisters, for they despised their husbands and their children. Truly your mother must have been a Hittite and your father an Amorite.
• 46. "Your older sister was Samaria, who lived with her daughters in the north. Your younger sister was Sodom, who lived with her daughters in the south.
• 47. But you have not merely sinned as they did--no, that was nothing to you. In a very short time you far surpassed them!
• 48. As surely as I live, says the Sovereign LORD, Sodom and her daughters were never as wicked as you and your daughters.
• 49. Sodom's sins were pride, laziness, and gluttony, while the poor and needy suffered outside her door.
• 50. She was proud and did loathsome things, so I wiped her out, as you have seen.
• 51. "Even Samaria did not commit half your sins. You have done far more loathsome things than your sisters ever did. They seem righteous compared to you!
• 52. You should be deeply ashamed because your sins are so terrible. In comparison, you make your sisters seem innocent!
• 53. "But someday I will restore the fortunes of Sodom and Samaria, and I will restore you, too.
• 54. Then you will be truly ashamed of everything you have done, for your sins make them feel good in comparison.
• 55. Yes, your sisters, Sodom and Samaria, and all their people will be restored, and at that time you also will be restored.
• 56. In your proud days you held Sodom in contempt.
• 57. But now your greater wickedness has been exposed to all the world, and you are the one who is scorned--by Edom and all her neighbors and by Philistia.
• 58. This is your punishment for all your disgusting sins, says the LORD.
• 59. "Now this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will give you what you deserve, for you have taken your solemn vows lightly by breaking your covenant.
• 60. Yet I will keep the covenant I made with you when you were young, and I will establish an everlasting covenant with you.
• 61. Then you will remember with shame all the evil you have done. I will make your sisters, Samaria and Sodom, to be your daughters, even though they are not part of our covenant.
• 62. And I will reaffirm my covenant with you, and you will know that I am the LORD.
• 63. You will remember your sins and cover your mouth in silence and shame when I forgive you of all that you have done, says the Sovereign LORD."

Ezekiel 17

• 1. Then this message came to me from the LORD:
• 2. "Son of man, tell this story to the people of Israel.
• 3. Give them this message from the Sovereign LORD: A great eagle with broad wings full of many-colored feathers came to Lebanon. He took hold of the highest branch of a cedar tree
• 4. and plucked off its topmost shoot. Then he carried it away to a city filled with merchants, where he planted it.
• 5. "Then he planted one of its seedlings in fertile ground beside a broad river, where it would grow as quickly as a willow tree.
• 6. It took root there and grew into a low, spreading vine. Its branches turned up toward the eagle, and its roots grew down beneath it. It soon produced strong branches and luxuriant leaves.
• 7. But then another great eagle with broad wings and full plumage came along. So the vine sent its roots and branches out toward him for water.
• 8. The vine did this even though it was already planted in good soil and had plenty of water so it could grow into a splendid vine and produce rich leaves and luscious fruit.
• 9. "So now the Sovereign LORD asks: Should I let this vine grow and prosper? No! I will pull it out, roots and all! I will cut off its fruit and let its leaves wither and die. I will pull it out easily enough--it won't take a strong arm or a large army to do it.
• 10. Then when the vine is transplanted, will it thrive? No, it will wither away completely when the east wind blows against it. It will die in the same good soil where it had grown so well."
• 11. Then this message came to me from the LORD:
• 12. "Say to these rebels of Israel: Don't you understand the meaning of this riddle of the eagles? I will tell you, says the Sovereign LORD. The king of Babylon came to Jerusalem, took away her king and princes, and brought them to Babylon.
• 13. He made a treaty with a member of the royal family and made him take an oath of loyalty. He also exiled Israel's most influential leaders,
• 14. so Israel would not become strong again and revolt. Only by keeping her treaty with Babylon could Israel maintain her national identity.
• 15. "Nevertheless, this man of Israel's royal family rebelled against Babylon, sending ambassadors to Egypt to request a great army and many horses. Can Israel break her sworn treaties like that and get away with it?
• 16. No! For as surely as I live, says the Sovereign LORD, the king of Israel will die in Babylon, the land of the king who put him in power and whose treaty he despised and broke.
• 17. Pharaoh and all his mighty army will fail to help Israel when the king of Babylon lays siege to Jerusalem again and destroys the lives of many.
• 18. For the king of Israel broke his treaty after swearing to obey; therefore, he will not escape.
• 19. "So this is what the Sovereign LORD says: As surely as I live, I will punish him for breaking my covenant and despising the solemn oath he made in my name.
• 20. I will throw my net over him and capture him in my snare. I will bring him to Babylon and deal with him there for this treason against me.
• 21. And all the best warriors of Israel will be killed in battle, and those remaining in the city will be scattered to the four winds. Then you will know that I, the LORD, have spoken these words.
• 22. "And the Sovereign LORD says: I will take a tender shoot from the top of a tall cedar, and I will plant it on the top of Israel's highest mountain.
• 23. It will become a noble cedar, sending forth its branches and producing seed. Birds of every sort will nest in it, finding shelter beneath its branches.
• 24. And all the trees will know that it is I, the LORD, who cuts down the tall tree and helps the short tree to grow tall. It is I who makes the green tree wither and gives new life to the dead tree. I, the LORD, have spoken! I will do what I have said."

Ezekiel 18

• 1. Then another message came to me from the LORD:
• 2. "Why do you quote this proverb in the land of Israel: `The parents have eaten sour grapes, but their children's mouths pucker at the taste'?
• 3. As surely as I live, says the Sovereign LORD, you will not say this proverb anymore in Israel.
• 4. For all people are mine to judge--both parents and children alike. And this is my rule: The person who sins will be the one who dies.
• 5. "Suppose a certain man is just and does what is lawful and right,
• 6. and he has not feasted in the mountains before Israel's idols or worshiped them. And suppose he does not commit adultery or have intercourse with a woman during her menstrual period.
• 7. Suppose he is a merciful creditor, not keeping the items given in pledge by poor debtors, and does not rob the poor but instead gives food to the hungry and provides clothes for people in need.
• 8. And suppose he grants loans without interest, stays away from injustice, is honest and fair when judging others,
• 9. and faithfully obeys my laws and regulations. Anyone who does these things is just and will surely live, says the Sovereign LORD.
• 10. "But suppose that man has a son who grows up to be a robber or murderer and refuses to do what is right.
• 11. And suppose that son does all the evil things his father would never do--worships idols on the mountains, commits adultery,
• 12. oppresses the poor and helpless, steals from debtors by refusing to let them redeem what they have given in pledge, worships idols and takes part in loathsome practices,
• 13. and lends money at interest. Should such a sinful person live? No! He must die and must take full blame.
• 14. "But suppose that sinful son, in turn, has a son who sees his father's wickedness but decides against that kind of life.
• 15. Suppose this son refuses to worship idols on the mountains, does not commit adultery,
• 16. and does not exploit the poor, but instead is fair to debtors and does not rob them. And suppose this son feeds the hungry, provides clothes for the needy,
• 17. helps the poor, does not lend money at interest, and obeys all my regulations and laws. Such a person will not die because of his father's sins; he will surely live.
• 18. But the father will die for the many sins he committed--for being cruel and robbing close relatives, doing what was clearly wrong among his people.
• 19. " `What?' you ask. `Doesn't the child pay for the parent's sins?' No! For if the child does what is right and keeps my laws, that child will surely live.
• 20. The one who sins is the one who dies. The child will not be punished for the parent's sins, and the parent will not be punished for the child's sins. Righteous people will be rewarded for their own goodness, and wicked people will be punished for their own wickedness.
• 21. But if wicked people turn away from all their sins and begin to obey my laws and do what is just and right, they will surely live and not die.
• 22. All their past sins will be forgotten, and they will live because of the righteous things they have done.
• 23. "Do you think, asks the Sovereign LORD, that I like to see wicked people die? Of course not! I only want them to turn from their wicked ways and live.
• 24. However, if righteous people turn to sinful ways and start acting like other sinners, should they be allowed to live? No, of course not! All their previous goodness will be forgotten, and they will die for their sins.
• 25. "Yet you say, `The Lord isn't being just!' Listen to me, O people of Israel. Am I the one who is unjust, or is it you?
• 26. When righteous people turn from being good and start doing sinful things, they will die for it. Yes, they will die because of their sinful deeds.
• 27. And if wicked people turn away from their wickedness, obey the law, and do what is just and right, they will save their lives.
• 28. They will live, because after thinking it over, they decided to turn from their sins. Such people will not die.
• 29. And yet the people of Israel keep saying, `The Lord is unjust!' O people of Israel, it is you who are unjust, not I.
• 30. "Therefore, I will judge each of you, O people of Israel, according to your actions, says the Sovereign LORD. Turn from your sins! Don't let them destroy you!
• 31. Put all your rebellion behind you, and get for yourselves a new heart and a new spirit. For why should you die, O people of Israel?
• 32. I don't want you to die, says the Sovereign LORD. Turn back and live!

New Living Translation: 284 of 324 days.