Study Desk

ט Tet Those slain by the sword are better off than those slain by hunger, who waste away, pierced with pain because the fields lack produce.

מ Mem Yet it happened because of the sins of her prophets and the guilt of her priests, who shed the blood of the righteous within her.

We secure our food at the risk of our lives because of the sword in the wilderness.

Because of this, our heart is sick; because of these, our eyes grow dim:

because of Mount Zion, which lies desolate and has jackals prowling in it.

But the house of Israel will not want to listen to you because they do not want to listen to Me. For the whole house of Israel is hardheaded and hardhearted.

Now if a righteous person turns from his righteousness and practices iniquity, and I put a stumbling block in front of him, he will die. If you did not warn him, he will die because of his sin and the righteous acts he did will not be remembered. Yet I will hold you responsible for his blood.

But if you warn the righteous person that he should not sin, and he does not sin, he will indeed live because he listened to your warning, and you will have saved your life."

So they will lack bread and water; everyone will be devastated and waste away because of their iniquity.

"Therefore, this is what the Lord God says: Because you have been more insubordinate than the nations around you—you have not walked in My statutes or kept My ordinances; you have not even kept the ordinances of the nations around you—

Because of all your detestable practices, I will do to you what I have never done before and what I will never do again.

"Therefore, as I live"—this is the declaration of the Lord God —"I am going to cut you off and show you no pity, because you have defiled My sanctuary with all your detestable practices and abominations. Yes, I will not spare you.

Then your survivors will remember Me among the nations where they are taken captive, how I was crushed by their promiscuous hearts that turned away from Me and by their eyes that lusted after their idols. They will loathe themselves because of the evil things they did, their detestable practices of every kind.

The seller will certainly not return to what was sold as long as he and the buyer remain alive. For the vision concerning all its people will not be revoked, and none of them will preserve his life because of his iniquity.

Then say to the people of the land: This is what the Lord God says about the residents of Jerusalem in the land of Israel: They will eat their bread with anxiety and drink their water in dread, for their land will be stripped of everything in it because of the violence of all who live there.

"Therefore, this is what the Lord God says: I am against you because you have spoken falsely and had lying visions." This is the declaration of the Lord God .

Because you have disheartened the righteous person with lies, even though I have not caused him grief, and because you have encouraged the wicked person not to turn from his evil way to save his life,

so that I may take hold of the house of Israel by their hearts. They are all estranged from Me because of their idols.

I will make the land desolate because they have acted unfaithfully." This is the declaration of the Lord God .

No one cared enough about you to do even one of these things out of compassion for you. But you were thrown out into the open field because you were despised on the day you were born.