English Standard Version

International Standard Version

1“And you, son of man, prophesy to the mountains of Israel, and say, O mountains of Israel, hear the word of the LORD.

1"Now as for you, Son of Man, prophesy to Israel's mountains and tell them, 'Listen to this message from the LORD, you mountains of Israel:

2Thus says the Lord GOD: Because the enemy said of you, ‘Aha!’ and, ‘The ancient heights have become our possession,’

2"This is what the Lord GOD says: 'The enemy has been saying about you, "Good! The ancient heights are back in our possession!"'"'

3therefore prophesy, and say, Thus says the Lord GOD: Precisely because they made you desolate and crushed you from all sides, so that you became the possession of the rest of the nations, and you became the talk and evil gossip of the people,

3"Therefore this is what you are to prophesy: 'Here's what the Lord GOD says, "You've been turned into a desolate wasteland and crushed by everyone who surrounds you for a very, very good reason. You've become the property of all the other nations and you've become the object of gossip and whispering campaigns of the nations."'"

4therefore, O mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord GOD: Thus says the Lord GOD to the mountains and the hills, the ravines and the valleys, the desolate wastes and the deserted cities, which have become a prey and derision to the rest of the nations all around,

4"Therefore listen to what the Lord GOD has to say, you mountains of Israel: 'This is what the Lord GOD says to the mountains, to the hills, to the waterways, to the valleys, to the desolate wastelands, and to the abandoned cities that have become an object of derision to the mountains that surround you:

5therefore thus says the Lord GOD: Surely I have spoken in my hot jealousy against the rest of the nations and against all Edom, who gave my land to themselves as a possession with wholehearted joy and utter contempt, that they might make its pasturelands a prey.

5"'Because this is what the Lord GOD says: "Motivated by my burning zealousness, I have spoken against the rest of the surrounding nations, including Edom, who confiscated my land, taking possession of it with joyful enthusiasm and with animal-like malice, in order to plunder Israel's pastures.'

6Therefore prophesy concerning the land of Israel, and say to the mountains and hills, to the ravines and valleys, Thus says the Lord GOD: Behold, I have spoken in my jealous wrath, because you have suffered the reproach of the nations.

6"Therefore prophesy concerning the land of Israel and speak to its mountains, hills, ravines, and valleys. Tell them, 'This is what the Lord GOD says: "Pay attention! In my zealous anger I'm speaking because you've had to endure the mockery of the world's nations."'"

7Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: I swear that the nations that are all around you shall themselves suffer reproach.

7"Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: "I hereby raise my hand to swear this oath: the nations that surround you will have their own mockery to endure!

8“But you, O mountains of Israel, shall shoot forth your branches and yield your fruit to my people Israel, for they will soon come home.

8But you mountains of Israel are going to sprout branches and bear fruit for my people Israel, because they'll be coming soon.'"

9For behold, I am for you, and I will turn to you, and you shall be tilled and sown.

9"Watch me! I'm on your side! I'll be turning in your direction, and you mountains will be plowed and planted.

10And I will multiply people on you, the whole house of Israel, all of it. The cities shall be inhabited and the waste places rebuilt.

10I'm going to make the entire house of Israel grow—every single member —and their cities will be inhabited with all the ruins rebuilt.

11And I will multiply on you man and beast, and they shall multiply and be fruitful. And I will cause you to be inhabited as in your former times, and will do more good to you than ever before. Then you will know that I am the LORD.

11I'll make both the population and the livestock increase throughout your territories. They'll increase and be fruitful. I'll make your territories to be settled like you were in the past, and you will be treated better than you ever were before. At that time you will know that I am the LORD.

12I will let people walk on you, even my people Israel. And they shall possess you, and you shall be their inheritance, and you shall no longer bereave them of children.

12"I'll lead my people, my nation of Israel, across you mountains, and they will take possession of you again, and you'll be their inheritance once more. Never again will you leave them robbed of children.

13Thus says the Lord GOD: Because they say to you, ‘You devour people, and you bereave your nation of children,’

13"This is what the Lord GOD says: 'Because some have been saying to you, "You mountains have been devouring human beings and leaving people childless,"

14therefore you shall no longer devour people and no longer bereave your nation of children, declares the Lord GOD.

14therefore you will no longer devour human beings or leave their nation childless,' declares the Lord GOD.

15And I will not let you hear anymore the reproach of the nations, and you shall no longer bear the disgrace of the peoples and no longer cause your nation to stumble, declares the Lord GOD.”

15I won't let you hear other people mock you, and no nation will ever make you childless again,' declares the Lord GOD."

16The word of the LORD came to me:

16This message came to me from the LORD:

17“Son of man, when the house of Israel lived in their own land, they defiled it by their ways and their deeds. Their ways before me were like the uncleanness of a woman in her menstrual impurity.

17"Son of Man, when the house of Israel was living on their own land, they defiled it with their lifestyles and behavior; they were as disqualified to be with me as a menstruating woman is to you.

18So I poured out my wrath upon them for the blood that they had shed in the land, for the idols with which they had defiled it.

18So I poured out my anger on them because of all the bloodshed throughout the land and because they had defiled it with their idolatry.

19I scattered them among the nations, and they were dispersed through the countries. In accordance with their ways and their deeds I judged them.

19Then I scattered them among the nations, dispersing them to other lands, just as their lifestyles and behavior deserved. That's how I judged them.

20But when they came to the nations, wherever they came, they profaned my holy name, in that people said of them, ‘These are the people of the LORD, and yet they had to go out of his land.’

20Nevertheless, when they arrived in those nations, they continued to profane my holy name. It was said about them, 'These are the LORD's people, even though they've left his land.'

21But I had concern for my holy name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the nations to which they came.

21I've been concerned about my holy reputation, which the house of Israel has been defiling throughout all of the nations where they've gone."

22“Therefore say to the house of Israel, Thus says the Lord GOD: It is not for your sake, O house of Israel, that I am about to act, but for the sake of my holy name, which you have profaned among the nations to which you came.

22"Therefore tell the house of Israel, 'This is what the Lord GOD says: "I'm not about to act for your sake, you house of Israel, but for the sake of my holy reputation, which you have been defiling throughout all of the nations where you've gone.

23And I will vindicate the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, and which you have profaned among them. And the nations will know that I am the LORD, declares the Lord GOD, when through you I vindicate my holiness before their eyes.

23I'm going to affirm my great reputation that has been defiled among the nations (that is, that you have defiled in their midst), and those people will learn that I am the LORD," declares the Lord GOD, "when I affirm my holiness in front of their very eyes.

24I will take you from the nations and gather you from all the countries and bring you into your own land.

24I'm going to remove you from the nations, gather you from all of the territories, and bring you all back to your own land.

25I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you.

25I'll sprinkle pure water on you all, and you'll be cleansed from your impurity and from all of your idols."

26And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.

26"'"I'm going to give you a new heart, and I'm going to give you a new spirit within all of your deepest parts. I'll remove that rock-hard heart of yours and replace it with one that's sensitive to me.

27And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.

27I'll place my spirit within you, empowering you to live according to my regulations and to keep my just decrees.

28You shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers, and you shall be my people, and I will be your God.

28You'll live in the land that I gave to your ancestors, you'll be my people, and I will be your God.

29And I will deliver you from all your uncleannesses. And I will summon the grain and make it abundant and lay no famine upon you.

29In addition, I'll deliver you from everything that makes you unclean. I'll call out to the grain you plant, ordering it to produce abundant yields, and I will never bring famine in your direction.

30I will make the fruit of the tree and the increase of the field abundant, that you may never again suffer the disgrace of famine among the nations.

30I'll increase the yields of your fruit trees and crops so that you'll never again experience the disgrace of famine that occurs in other nations.

31Then you will remember your evil ways, and your deeds that were not good, and you will loathe yourselves for your iniquities and your abominations.

31Then you'll remember your lifestyles and practices that were not good. You'll hate yourselves as you look at your own iniquities and loathsome practices.

32It is not for your sake that I will act, declares the Lord GOD; let that be known to you. Be ashamed and confounded for your ways, O house of Israel.

32I won't be doing any of this for your sake," declares the Lord GOD, "so keep that in mind. Be ashamed and frustrated because of your behavior, you house of Israel!"'"

33“Thus says the Lord GOD: On the day that I cleanse you from all your iniquities, I will cause the cities to be inhabited, and the waste places shall be rebuilt.

33"This is what the Lord GOD says: 'At the same time that I cleanse you from all of your guilt, I'll make your cities become inhabited again and the desolate wastelands will be rebuilt.

34And the land that was desolate shall be tilled, instead of being the desolation that it was in the sight of all who passed by.

34The desolate fields will be cultivated, replacing the former wasteland that everyone who passed by in times past had noticed.

35And they will say, ‘This land that was desolate has become like the garden of Eden, and the waste and desolate and ruined cities are now fortified and inhabited.’

35They will say, "This wasteland has become like the garden of Eden, and what used to be desolate ruins are now fortified and inhabited."

36Then the nations that are left all around you shall know that I am the LORD; I have rebuilt the ruined places and replanted that which was desolate. I am the LORD; I have spoken, and I will do it.

36Then the surviving people that live around you will learn that I, the LORD, have rebuilt these ruins and have cultivated these pastures that used to be desolate wastelands. I, the LORD, have spoken this, and I'm going to bring it about!'

37“Thus says the Lord GOD: This also I will let the house of Israel ask me to do for them: to increase their people like a flock.

37"This is what the Lord GOD has to say: 'I'm going to allow the house of Israel to ask anything they want from me, including this: I'm going to increase their population as a shepherd increases his flock.

38Like the flock for sacrifices, like the flock at Jerusalem during her appointed feasts, so shall the waste cities be filled with flocks of people. Then they will know that I am the LORD.”

38The desolate cities will be filled with flocks of human beings, just like Jerusalem used to be filled with flocks of sheep during the times of the appointed festivals. Then they will know that I am the LORD.'"

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