Ezekiel 4

The Siege of Jerusalem Portrayed

1 You also, son of man, take a clay tablet and lay it before you, and portray on it a city, Jerusalem.2 Lay siege against it, build a siege wall against it, and heap up a mound against it; set camps against it also, and place battering rams against it all around.3 Moreover take for yourself an iron plate, and set it as an iron wall between you and the city. Set your face against it, and it shall be besieged, and you shall lay siege against it. This will be a sign to the house of Israel.4 Lie also on your left side, and lay the iniquity of the house of Israel upon it. According to the number of the days that you lie on it, you shall bear their iniquity.5 For I have laid on you the years of their iniquity, according to the number of the days, three hundred and ninety days; so you shall bear the iniquity of the house of Israel.6 And when you have completed them, lie again on your right side; then you shall bear the iniquity of the house of Judah forty days. I have laid on you a day for each year.7 Therefore you shall set your face toward the siege of Jerusalem; your arm shall be uncovered, and you shall prophesy against it.8 And surely I will restrain you so that you cannot turn from one side to another till you have ended the days of your siege.9 Also take for yourself wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and spelt; put them into one vessel, and make bread of them for yourself. During the number of days that you lie on your side, three hundred and ninety days, you shall eat it.10 And your food which you eat shall be by weight, twenty shekels a day; from time to time you shall eat it.11 You shall also drink water by measure, one-sixth of a hin; from time to time you shall drink.12 And you shall eat it as barley cakes; and bake it using fuel of human waste in their sight.13 Then the Lord said, So shall the children of Israel eat their defiled bread among the Gentiles, where I will drive them.14 So I said, Ah, Lord God! Indeed I have never defiled myself from my youth till now; I have never eaten what died of itself or was torn by beasts, nor has abominable flesh ever come into my mouth.15 Then He said to me, See, I am giving you cow dung instead of human waste, and you shall prepare your bread over it.16 Moreover He said to me, Son of man, surely I will cut off the supply of bread in Jerusalem; they shall eat bread by weight and with anxiety, and shall drink water by measure and with dread,17 that they may lack bread and water, and be dismayed with one another, and waste away because of their iniquity.

Ezekiel 4

Ominous Object Lessons

1 “And you, son of man, take a bricks and set it in front of you. Inscribet a city on it – Jerusalem.2 Lay siege to it! Build siege works against it. Erect a siege rampt against it! Post soldiers outside itt and station battering rams around it.

3 Then for your part take an iron frying pant and set it up as an iron wall between you and the city. Set your face toward it. It is to be under siege; you are to besiege it. This is a signt for the house of Israel.
4 “Also for your part lie on your left side and place the iniquityt of the house of Israel on it. For the number of days you lie on your side you will bear their iniquity.

5 I have determined that the number of the years of their iniquity are to be the number of dayst for you – 390 days.ss So bear the iniquity of the house of Israel.t
6 “When you have completed these days, then lie down a second time, but on your right side, and bear the iniquity of the house of Judah 40 dayss – I have assigned one day for each year.7 You must turn your face toward the siege of Jerusalem with your arm bared and prophesy against it.

8 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.s
9 “As for you, take wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and spelt,s put them in a single container, and make foodt from them for yourself. For the same number of days that you lie on your side – 390 dayss – you will eat it.10 The food you eat will be eight ouncess a day by weight; you must eat it at fixedt times.11 And you must drink water by measure, a pint and a half;s you must drink it at fixed times.12 And you must eat the food like you would a barley cake. You must bake it in front of them over a fire made with dried human excrement.”s

13 And the Lord said, “This is how the people of Israel will eat their unclean food among the nationss where I will banish them.”

14 And I said, “Ah, sovereign Lord, I have never been ceremonially defiled before. I have never eaten a carcass or an animal torn by wild beasts; from my youth up, unclean meatt has never entered my mouth.”

15 So he said to me, “All right then, I will substitute cow’s manure instead of human excrement. You will cook your food over it.”
16 Then he said to me, “Son of man, I am about to remove the bread supplyt in Jerusalem.s They will eat their bread ration anxiously, and they will drink their water ration in terror

17 because they will lack bread and water. Each one will be terrified, and they will rot for their iniquity.t