New International Reader s Version - NIrV - 1996
Ezekiel 12
1
A message came to me from the Lord. He said,
2
"Son of man, you are living among people who refuse to obey me. They have eyes that can see. But they do not really see. They have ears that can hear. But they do not really hear. They refuse to obey me.
Reference
3
"Son of man, pack your belongings as if you were going on a long trip. Leave in the daytime. Let the people see you. Start out from where you are. Go to another place. Perhaps they will understand the meaning of what you are doing. But they will still refuse to obey me.
Reference
4
Bring out your belongings packed for a long trip. Do it during the daytime. Let the people see you. Then in the evening, pretend you are being forced to leave home. Let the people see you.
Reference
5
"While the people are watching, dig through the mud bricks of your house. Then take your belongings out through the hole in the wall.
6
Put them on your shoulder. Carry them out at sunset. Let the people see you. Cover your face so you can't see the land. All of that will show the people of Israel what is going to happen to them."
Reference
7
So I did just as he commanded me. During the day I brought out my things as if I were going on a long trip. In the evening I dug through the wall of my house with my hands. At sunset I took my belongings out. I put them on my shoulders. The people watched what I was doing.
Reference
8
In the morning a message came to me from the Lord. He said,
9
"Son of man, didn't the people of Israel ask you, 'What are you doing?' They always refuse to obey me.
Reference
10
"Tell them, 'The Lord and King says, "This message is about Zedekiah, the prince in Jerusalem. It is also about all of the people of Israel who still live there." '
Reference
11
Tell them, 'The things I've done are a picture of what's going to happen to you. So what I've done will happen to you. You will be forced to leave home. You will be taken to Babylonia as prisoners.'
Reference
12
"The prince among them will put his things on his shoulder and leave. He will do it at sunset. Someone will dig a hole in a wall for him to go through. He will cover his face so he can't see the land.
Reference
13
I will spread out my net to catch him. He will be caught in my trap. I will bring him to Babylonia. It is the land where the Chaldeans live. But he will not see it. He will die there.
Reference
14
I will scatter to the winds all those who are around him. I will scatter his officials and all of his troops. And I will chase them with a sword that is ready to strike them down.
Reference
15
"They will know that I am the Lord when I scatter them among the nations. I will send them to other countries.
Reference
16
But I will spare a few of them. I will save them from war, hunger and plague. In those countries they will admit they have done all kinds of evil things. I hate those things. They will know that I am the Lord."
Reference
17
A message came to me from the Lord. He said,
18
"Son of man, tremble with fear as you eat your food. Tremble as you drink your water.
Reference
Parallel theme
Lamentations 5:9
19
Speak to the people of the land. Say to them, 'Here is what the Lord and King says about those who live in Jerusalem and Israel. He tells them, "They will be worried as they eat their food. They will not have any hope as they drink their water. Their land will be stripped of everything in it because all those who live there are harming one another.
Reference
Parallel theme
Zechariah 7:14
Micah 7:13
Jeremiah 10:22
Ezekiel 7:23
References Lord
Ezekiel 6:14
1 Corinthians 10:28
20
The towns where people live will be completely destroyed. The land will become a dry and empty desert. Then you will know that I am the Lord." ' "
Reference
21
A message came to me from the Lord. He said,
22
"Son of man, you have a proverb in the land of Israel. It says, 'The days go by, and not even one vision comes true.'
Reference
23
Tell them, 'The Lord and King says, "I am going to put an end to that proverb. They will not use that saying in Israel anymore." ' Tell them, 'The days are coming soon when every vision will come true.
Reference
24
There will be no more false visions. People will no longer use magic to find out whether good things are going to happen in Israel.
Reference
Parallel theme
Ezekiel 13:23
25
I am the Lord. So I will say what I want to. And it will come true when I want it to. In your days I will do everything I say I will. But you people always refuse to obey me,' announces the Lord and King."
Reference
Parallel theme
Habakkuk 1:5
References God
Jeremiah 16:9
References Lord
Isaiah 14:24
Ezekiel 6:10
Word
Isaiah 55:11
Ezekiel 12:28
Matthew 24:35
Luke 21:33
Zechariah 1:6
Lamentations 2:17
26
A message came to me from the Lord. He said,
27
"Son of man, the people of Israel are saying, 'The vision Ezekiel sees won't come true for many years. He is prophesying about a time that is a long way off.'
Reference
28
"So tell them, 'The Lord and King says, "Everything I say will come true. It will happen when I want it to," announces the Lord and King.' "
Summary of Ezekiel 12
Ezekiel 12 uses dramatic symbolic actions and direct prophetic warnings to confront the belief that Jerusalem's destruction is either impossible or still far in the future, showing through Ezekiel's simulated escape, his burden of baggage, his nighttime departure through a hole in the wall, and his trembling while eating and drinking that the people will soon experience exile, fear, famine, and the collapse of their city.
The chapter begins by describing Judah as a rebellious people who have eyes but refuse to see and ears but refuse to hear, emphasizing that their problem is not a lack of information but a refusal to accept what God has repeatedly revealed to them.
Ezekiel therefore becomes a living sign.
He prepares baggage as though he is going into exile, carries it outside during the day, and later moves through a hole in the wall at night while covering his face, symbolically demonstrating what the people of Jerusalem will soon experience when the city is surrounded and its leaders attempt to escape.
The symbolism becomes especially specific when God identifies the prince of Jerusalem, referring to the king who will attempt to escape during the siege but will ultimately be captured and taken to Babylon.
This prophecy corresponds closely with the historical fate of King Zedekiah in 586 BC, who attempted to flee Jerusalem but was captured by Babylonian forces and taken into exile.
The chapter then emphasizes that exile will affect not only the king but also his officials, soldiers, and supporters, while a small number of survivors will remain to recognize and confess the seriousness of the nation's rebellion.
Ezekiel's second symbolic action reinforces the emotional reality of the coming disaster, as he is instructed to eat and drink with trembling and anxiety, representing the fear, scarcity, and uncertainty that will accompany the siege, when ordinary food and water become difficult to obtain and the population realizes that its previous confidence was misplaced.
The final section addresses perhaps the most important problem of all: the people's belief that God's warnings will not happen soon.
They have developed sayings suggesting that prophetic visions take too long to be fulfilled and that Ezekiel's warnings concern some distant future, allowing them to continue living as though there is no immediate danger.
God directly rejects this attitude by declaring that the time of fulfillment is near and that His word will no longer be delayed.
The chapter therefore emphasizes that delayed judgment should never be mistaken for canceled judgment, because the apparent silence between God's warning and its fulfillment does not mean that His word has failed.
The central message is that Ezekiel 12 confronts Judah's false confidence and denial by turning Ezekiel himself into a living picture of exile, as his baggage, nighttime escape, covered face, trembling food and drink, and simulated departure demonstrate that Jerusalem's inhabitants, including its king and political leaders, will soon experience the very displacement and fear they have refused to believe are coming, while the collapse of the people's confidence in prophetic warnings is challenged by God's declaration that His word will no longer be delayed and that the destruction of Jerusalem will occur because of the nation's persistent rebellion, making the chapter a powerful warning against dismissing God's word simply because its fulfillment appears to take longer than expected, while also showing that even amid judgment a small remnant will survive to recognize what has happened and understand that God's warnings were true.
The chapter begins by describing Judah as a rebellious people who have eyes but refuse to see and ears but refuse to hear, emphasizing that their problem is not a lack of information but a refusal to accept what God has repeatedly revealed to them.
Ezekiel therefore becomes a living sign.
He prepares baggage as though he is going into exile, carries it outside during the day, and later moves through a hole in the wall at night while covering his face, symbolically demonstrating what the people of Jerusalem will soon experience when the city is surrounded and its leaders attempt to escape.
The symbolism becomes especially specific when God identifies the prince of Jerusalem, referring to the king who will attempt to escape during the siege but will ultimately be captured and taken to Babylon.
This prophecy corresponds closely with the historical fate of King Zedekiah in 586 BC, who attempted to flee Jerusalem but was captured by Babylonian forces and taken into exile.
The chapter then emphasizes that exile will affect not only the king but also his officials, soldiers, and supporters, while a small number of survivors will remain to recognize and confess the seriousness of the nation's rebellion.
Ezekiel's second symbolic action reinforces the emotional reality of the coming disaster, as he is instructed to eat and drink with trembling and anxiety, representing the fear, scarcity, and uncertainty that will accompany the siege, when ordinary food and water become difficult to obtain and the population realizes that its previous confidence was misplaced.
The final section addresses perhaps the most important problem of all: the people's belief that God's warnings will not happen soon.
They have developed sayings suggesting that prophetic visions take too long to be fulfilled and that Ezekiel's warnings concern some distant future, allowing them to continue living as though there is no immediate danger.
God directly rejects this attitude by declaring that the time of fulfillment is near and that His word will no longer be delayed.
The chapter therefore emphasizes that delayed judgment should never be mistaken for canceled judgment, because the apparent silence between God's warning and its fulfillment does not mean that His word has failed.
The central message is that Ezekiel 12 confronts Judah's false confidence and denial by turning Ezekiel himself into a living picture of exile, as his baggage, nighttime escape, covered face, trembling food and drink, and simulated departure demonstrate that Jerusalem's inhabitants, including its king and political leaders, will soon experience the very displacement and fear they have refused to believe are coming, while the collapse of the people's confidence in prophetic warnings is challenged by God's declaration that His word will no longer be delayed and that the destruction of Jerusalem will occur because of the nation's persistent rebellion, making the chapter a powerful warning against dismissing God's word simply because its fulfillment appears to take longer than expected, while also showing that even amid judgment a small remnant will survive to recognize what has happened and understand that God's warnings were true.