A Walk Through The Word

Four Judgments

¹² The word of the Lord came to me.

Jerusalem Is a Useless Vine

15 The word of the Lord came to me.

Jerusalem, the Prostitute^[b]

16 The word of the Lord came to me.

¹⁸ To be sure, the former requirement is annulled, because it was weak and useless— ¹⁹ for the law did not bring anything to its goal—but now a better hope is introduced, by which we approach God.

²⁰ And something like this did not happen without an oath. Indeed, others who became priests did so without an oath, ²¹ but this one became a priest with an oath, through the one who said to him:

²² In this way, Jesus has become the guarantor^[b] of a better covenant.^[c]

²³ There were many who became priests because death prevented any of them from continuing to remain in office. ²⁴ But because this one endures forever, he has a permanent priesthood. ²⁵ So for this reason he is able to save forever those who come to God through him, because he always lives to plead on their behalf.

Jesus Is the High Priest We Need

²⁶ This is certainly the kind of high priest we needed: one who is holy, innocent, pure, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens. ²⁷ Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices on a daily basis, first for his own sins and then for the sins of the people. In fact, he sacrificed for sins once and for all when he offered himself. ²⁸ For the law appoints as high priests men who have weaknesses. But the word of the oath, which came after the law, appointed the Son, who has been brought to his goal forever.

Psalm 106

Israel Forgets

Introduction

Rebellion in Egypt

God’s Grace

An Action Prophecy About the Prince’s Exile

12 The word of the Lord came to me.

⁷ I did that, exactly as I was commanded. I brought out my baggage, packed for exile, during the daytime, and then in the evening I dug through the wall by hand. When it was getting dark, I brought my baggage out. I carried it on my shoulder while they were watching.

⁸ In the morning the word of the Lord came to me. ⁹ “Son of man, hasn’t the house of Israel, that rebellious house, asked you, ‘What are you doing?’ ¹⁰ You are to tell them that this is what the Lord God says.”

¹⁷ The word of the Lord came to me.

Two Sayings About Prophecy

²¹ The word of the Lord came to me.

²⁶ The word of the Lord came to me.

False Prophets and Prophetesses

13 The word of the Lord came to me.

Rulings About Prophecy

14 Some men from the elders of Israel came to me and sat down in front of me. ² Then the word of the Lord came to me.

A Priest Forever

7 This Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, is the one who met Abraham as he was returning from the defeat of the kings and blessed him,^{[a] 2} and Abraham gave him a tenth of everything.^[b] First, Melchizedek means “king of righteousness,” and then “king of Salem,” which is “king of peace.” ³ He is without father or mother, without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life, and resembling the Son of God, he remains a priest forever.

⁴ Consider how great this man was. Even Abraham, the patriarch, gave him a tenth from the best of the spoils. ⁵ According to the law, those sons of Levi who received the priesthood have a command to collect a tenth from the people, that is, from their brother Israelites, even though they also came from Abraham’s body. ⁶ But here the one who was not descended from them collected a tenth from Abraham and blessed the one who had the promises. ⁷ And without any question, it is the lesser who is blessed by the greater.

⁸ In the one case, those who are mortal collect the tenth; in the other case, the one who collects has testimony in Scripture^[c] that he lives. ⁹ And, through Abraham, even Levi, who collects the tenth, has paid a tenth, so to speak, ¹⁰ because he was still in the body of his forefather when Melchizedek met Abraham.

¹¹ So if everything could have been brought to its goal through the Levitical priesthood (for the people received the law on the basis of that priesthood), what further need was there for another priest to arise who was like Melchizedek, yet not said to be like Aaron? ¹² For when the priesthood is changed, by necessity a change in the law also happens. ¹³ Yet these things are said about the one who belonged to another tribe, from which no one had served at the altar. ¹⁴ It is certainly clear that our Lord is descended from Judah. Moses said nothing about priests in connection with that tribe.

¹⁵ And this becomes even clearer if another priest arises like Melchizedek, ¹⁶ who became a priest, not on the basis of a legal requirement about physical descent, but on the basis of the power of an endless^[d] life. ¹⁷ For it has been testified in Scripture about him:

The Lord Is Faithful in the Wilderness

The Lord Is Faithful in the Land

The Glory Is Seen Again

10 Then I looked, and there, above the vaulted ceiling^[a] that was over the heads of the cherubim, there was something that looked like a sapphire, shaped like a throne. It could be seen above the cherubim. ² The Lord^[b] said to the man dressed in linen, “Reach into the structure for the wheels that is beneath the cherubim, fill your cupped hands with fiery coals from among the cherubim, and scatter them over the city.” So he went in while I watched.

³ Now the cherubim were standing on the south side of the temple while he, the man, approached, and the cloud filled the inner courtyard. ⁴ Then the Glory of the Lord rose from above the cherubim and moved to the threshold of the temple. The temple was filled with the cloud, and the courtyard was full of the radiance of the Glory of the Lord. ⁵ The sound of the wings of the cherubim was heard as far away as the outer courtyard, like the voice of God Almighty when he speaks.

⁶ When he commanded the man dressed in linen, “Take fire from between the wheels, from between the cherubim,” the man went and stood beside the wheel. ⁷ Then a cherub stretched out his hand from among the cherubim and reached into the fire that was between the cherubim. He lifted up some coals, and he put them into the cupped hands of the man dressed in linen, and the man took them and went out.

⁸ The cherubim had something that seemed like the form of a human hand under their wings.

⁹ Then I looked, and right there beside the cherubim were four wheels, one wheel beside each cherub, and the wheels looked like topaz. ¹⁰ The four of them all looked alike—there was a wheel inside each wheel.^{[c] 11} The cherubim could move in any of the four directions toward which one of them faced, without turning as they moved. They went straight ahead in the direction they faced, never turning from side to side.^[d]

¹² Their entire body, their back, their hands, their wings, and the wheels were full of eyes all around. (I mean the wheels that belonged to the four of them.) ¹³ As for the wheels, they were called “wheelwork”^[e] in my hearing.

¹⁴ Each one of the cherubim had four faces. One face was the face of a cherub.^[f] The second face was the face of a man. The third was the face of a lion, and the fourth was the face of an eagle.

¹⁵ Then the cherubim rose. These were the living creatures that I had seen by the Kebar Canal. ¹⁶ Whenever the cherubim moved, the wheels moved alongside them, and whenever the cherubim lifted up their wings to rise from the ground, the wheels did not turn away from their side. ¹⁷ When the cherubim stood still, the wheels would stand still, and when the cherubim rose, the wheels would rise with them, because the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels.

¹⁸ Then the Glory of the Lord moved out from the threshold of the temple and took a position above the cherubim. ¹⁹ As I watched, the cherubim lifted up their wings and rose from the ground. As they went out, the wheels remained beside them. They^[g] stopped at the entrance of the east gate of the House of the Lord, and the Glory of the God of Israel was above the cherubim. ²⁰ These were the living creatures that I had seen beneath the God of Israel at the Kebar Canal, and I now knew that they were cherubim. ²¹ Each one had four faces, and each had four wings, with something like the hands of a man underneath their wings. ²² The faces looked like the faces that I had seen by the Kebar Canal—exactly the same. Each one went straight ahead.

Warning of Judgment

11 Then the Spirit^[h] lifted me up and brought me to the east gate of the temple of the Lord, which faces east. There, at the entrance to the gateway, were twenty-five men, and among them I saw Ja’azaniah son of Azzur and Pelatiah son of Benaiah, leaders of the people. ² He said to me, “Son of man, these are the men who are plotting evil and giving wicked advice in this city, ³ who are saying, ‘We will not have to build houses anytime soon.^[i] The city is the pot, and we are the meat.’ ⁴ Therefore, prophesy against them. Prophesy, son of man.”

⁵ Then the Spirit of the Lord fell upon me, and he told me to say this.

¹³ While I was prophesying, Pelatiah son of Benaiah died. Then I fell facedown and cried out in a loud voice. I said, “Oh no, Lord God, you are making a complete destruction of the remaining survivors of Israel!”

Promise of One Heart and a New Spirit

¹⁴ Then the word of the Lord came to me.

The Glory Departs

²² Then the cherubim lifted up their wings. The wheels were beside them, and the Glory of the God of Israel was positioned above them. ²³ The Glory of the Lord went up from the middle of the city and stood on the mountain east of the city. ²⁴ The Spirit lifted me up and brought me to the exiles in Chaldea, in the vision from the Spirit of God. Then the vision I had seen departed from me, and I told the exiles all the things from the Lord that he had shown to me.

Moving On Toward Maturity

6 Therefore, leaving the beginning discussion of Christ, let us press on toward matters that require greater maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, of faith in God, ² of the teaching about baptisms,^[a] of the laying on of hands, of the resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. ³ And we will do this, if God permits.

⁴ For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift and shared in the Holy Spirit, ⁵ who have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the coming age, ⁶ and who then fell away, to be restored to repentance because^[b] they are crucifying the Son of God again, to their own harm, and exposing him to public ridicule.

⁷ For the land that drinks the rain that often falls on it and produces plants useful to those farming it, this land receives a blessing from God. ⁸ But the land that grows thorns and thistles is worthless and will soon be cursed—its end is to be burned.

⁹ But even if we speak this way, we are confident of better things for you, dear friends, things belonging to salvation. ¹⁰ For God is not unjust. He will not forget your work and the love that you showed for his name’s sake, when you served the saints, and while you continue to serve them. ¹¹ And we want each of you to continue to show the same eagerness, so that you may have the full assurance of your hope until the end. ¹² Our goal is that you would not become lazy but imitators of those who inherited the promise through faith and patient endurance.

God’s Promise Is Sure

¹³ For God made a promise to Abraham, and since God had no one greater to swear by, “He swore by himself.”^{[c] 14} He said, “I will most certainly bless you and make you increase in number.”^{[d] 15} And so in this way, after Abraham had waited patiently, he received the promise.

¹⁶ To be sure, people swear by someone who is greater, and the oath serves as a confirmation for them that ends all disputes. ¹⁷ Because God wanted to show the heirs of the promise with even greater certainty that his plan was unchangeable, he guaranteed his promise with an oath. ¹⁸ He did this so that, through two unchangeable things (in which it is impossible that God would lie), we, who have fled for refuge by taking hold of this hope that is held out to us, might have strong encouragement.

¹⁹ We have this hope as an anchor for the soul. It is sure and firm, and it goes behind the inner curtain, ²⁰ where Jesus entered ahead of us on our behalf, because he became a high priest forever like Melchizedek.

The Lord Is Faithful in Egypt:
His Protection of Joseph

The Lord Is Faithful in Egypt:
His Protection of the People

The End Has Come

7 The word of the Lord came to me.

Abominations in the Temple

8 In the sixth year, in the sixth month, on the fifth day of the month,^[j] I was sitting in my house, and the elders of Judah were sitting in front of me. The hand of the Lord God fell upon me there. ² I looked, and there I saw a figure that looked like a man.^[k] From what appeared to be his waist down, he looked like fire, and from his waist up, he had the appearance of a dazzling light, something like glowing metal.^{[l] 3} He reached out with what looked like a hand and seized me by a lock of hair. Then the Spirit^[m] lifted me up between earth and heaven and brought me to Jerusalem, while I was experiencing visions from God. He brought me to the entrance of the north gate into the inner courtyard of the Temple, where the idolatrous image of jealousy, which provokes jealousy, was located. ⁴ Then I looked, and there was the Glory of the God of Israel, as it was in the vision that I had seen in the middle of the river valley.

⁵ He said to me, “Son of man, look toward the north.” So I looked toward the north, and what did I see! There, north of the altar gate, was this idolatrous image of jealousy beside the entrance. ⁶ He said to me, “Son of man, do you see what they are doing—what great abominations the house of Israel is practicing here, to distance themselves^[n] from my sanctuary! But you will see even greater abominations.”

⁷ Next, he brought me to the entrance to the courtyard, and I looked and saw that there was a hole in the wall. ⁸ He said to me, “Son of man, dig through the wall.” So I dug through the wall, and there I saw a doorway. ⁹ He said to me, “Go in and observe the vile abominations that they are committing here.” ¹⁰ When I entered, I looked around, and what did I see! Every form of creeping creature and every kind of detestable animal and all the filthy idols of the house of Israel were engraved on the wall, all around. ¹¹ Seventy men of the elders of the house of Israel—with Ja’azaniah^[o] son of Shaphan standing in the middle—were standing in front of the images, each with his censer in his hand, and the fragrance of the cloud of incense was ascending. ¹² He said to me, “Do you see, son of man, what the elders of the house of Israel are doing in the darkness, each in his chamber for carved images? Listen! They are saying, ‘The Lord does not see us. The Lord has forsaken the land.’”

¹³ Then he said to me, “You will see even greater abominations which they are practicing.”

¹⁴ Next, he brought me to the entrance of the gateway of the House of the Lord that is on the north side, and right there I saw women sitting and wailing for Tammuz.^{[p] 15} He said to me, “Do you see, son of man? You will see even greater abominations than these.”

¹⁶ Finally, he brought me to the inner courtyard of the House of the Lord, and there at the entrance to the temple of the Lord, between the vestibule and the altar, were twenty-five men, showing their backsides to the temple of the Lord with their faces toward the east, and they were bowing down to the sun in the east. ¹⁷ Then he said to me, “Have you seen this, son of man? Is it too trivial for the house of Judah to commit the abominations they are committing here? Do they also have to fill the land with violence, so that they provoke me more and more? They are even sticking the branch up my nose!^{[q] 18} But I also will act in wrath. My eye will not show pity, and I will have no compassion. They will call out to my ears with a loud cry, but I will not hear them.”

Those Without the Mark Are Put to Death

9 Then he called out with a loud voice in my hearing, “Bring the supervisors of the city here, each one of them with his weapon of destruction in his hand.” ² Then I noticed six men coming from the direction of the upper gate that faces north, each with his weapon, a war club, in his hand. There was also one man in the middle, dressed in linen, with a scribe’s kit at his waist. They entered and stood beside the bronze altar.

³ Now the Glory of the God of Israel ascended from above the cherub, over whom it had been standing, and moved to the threshold of the temple building. He called out to the man who was dressed in linen, who had the scribe’s kit at his waist. ⁴ The Lord said to him, “Go through the city, through Jerusalem, and put a cross mark^[r] on the foreheads of those who moan and lament over the abominations being committed in her.” ⁵ To the others he said in my hearing, “Follow him through the city and strike the people down. Do not let your eye show pity, and do not have compassion. ⁶ Old men and young men, virgins, little children, and women—you are to keep killing until you wipe them out completely. But do not go near anyone who has been marked with the cross. You are to begin at my sanctuary.”

So they began with the old men who were in front of the temple. ⁷ Then he said to them, “Defile the temple and fill the courts with the slain. Go!” So they went and struck them down throughout the city.

⁸ While they were striking them down, I was left alone and I fell facedown and cried out, “Oh, Lord God! Are you going to destroy everyone who is left in Israel, as you pour out your wrath upon Jerusalem?” ⁹ He said to me, “The guilt of the house of Israel and Judah is very, very great. The land is filled with bloodshed, and the city is full of injustice, because they say, ‘The Lord has forsaken the land’ and ‘The Lord does not see.’ ¹⁰ But I am determined that my eye will show no pity, and I will have no compassion. I will bring down their conduct on their own heads.” ¹¹ Just then, I saw the man dressed in linen, who had the scribe’s kit at his waist. He was reporting, “I have done just as you commanded me.”

Our High Priest Is Like Melchizedek

5 To be sure, every high priest is chosen from the people and is appointed to represent the people in the things pertaining to God, so that he may offer gifts, as well as sacrifices, for sins. ² He is able to deal gently with those who are ignorant and going astray, since he himself is also weak in many ways. ³ And for this reason he is obligated to offer sacrifices for his own sins, just as he does for the people.

⁴ No one takes this honor on himself, but he is called by God, just as Aaron was. ⁵ In the same way, Christ did not take the glory of becoming a high priest on himself, but God said to him:

⁶ He also said the same thing in another place:

⁷ In the days of his flesh,^[c] he offered prayers and pleas with loud cries and tears to the one who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence. ⁸ Although he was the Son, he learned obedience from the things he suffered. ⁹ After he was brought to his goal, he became the source of eternal salvation for everyone who obeys him, ¹⁰ because he was designated by God as a high priest, like Melchizedek.

Milk or Solid Food

¹¹ We have much to say about this, and it is difficult to explain, because you have become too lazy to listen. ¹² In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the beginning principles of God’s word all over again. You have become people who need milk, not solid food. ¹³ For everyone who lives on milk is not acquainted with the word of righteousness, because he is still an infant. ¹⁴ But solid food is for mature people, who have their senses trained by practice to distinguish between good and evil.

Psalm 105

The Lord Remembers His Covenant

Opening Praise

The Promise of the Covenant

The Lord Is Faithful in Canaan:
His Protection of the Patriarchs

¹⁶ At the end of seven days the Lord’s message came to me: ¹⁷ “Son of man, I have appointed you a watchman^[a] for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you must give them a warning from me. ¹⁸ When I say to the wicked, ‘You will certainly die,’^[b] and you do not warn him—you do not speak out to warn the wicked to turn from his wicked lifestyle so that he may live—that wicked person will die for his iniquity,^[c] but I will hold you accountable for his death.^{[d] 19} But as for you, if you warn the wicked and he does not turn from his wicked deed and from his wicked lifestyle, he will die for his iniquity but you will have saved your own life.^[e]

²⁰ “When a righteous person turns from his righteousness and commits iniquity, and I set an obstacle^[f] before him, he will die. If you have not warned him, he will die for his sin. The righteous deeds he performed will not be considered, but I will hold you accountable for his death. ²¹ However, if you warn the righteous person not to sin, and he^[g] does not sin, he will certainly live because he was warned, and you will have saved your own life.”

Isolated and Silenced

²² The hand^[h] of the Lord rested on me there, and he said to me, “Get up, go out to the valley,^[i] and I will speak with you there.” ²³ So I got up and went out to the valley, and the glory of the Lord was standing there, just like the glory I had seen by the Kebar River,^[j] and I threw myself face down.

²⁴ Then a wind^[k] came into me and stood me on my feet. The Lord^[l] spoke to me and said, “Go shut yourself in your house. ²⁵ As for you, son of man, they will put ropes on you and tie you up with them, so you cannot go out among them. ²⁶ I will make your tongue stick to the roof of your mouth so that you will be silent and unable to reprove^[m] them, for they are a rebellious house. ²⁷ But when I speak with you, I will loosen your tongue^[n] and you must say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says.’ Those who listen will listen, but the indifferent will refuse,^[o] for they are a rebellious house.

Ominous Object Lessons

4 “And you, son of man, take a brick^[p] and set it in front of you. Inscribe^[q] a city on it—Jerusalem. ² Lay siege to it! Build siege works against it. Erect a siege ramp^[r] against it! Post soldiers outside it^[s] and station battering rams around it. ³ Then for your part take an iron frying pan^[t] 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 sign^[u] for the house of Israel.

⁴ “Also for your part lie on your left side and place the iniquity^[v] 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 days^[w] for you—390 days.^[x] So bear the iniquity of the house of Israel.^[y]

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 days^[z]—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.^[aa]

⁹ “As for you, take wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet, and spelt,^[ab] put them in a single container, and make food^[ac] from them for yourself. For the same number of days that you lie on your side—390 days^[ad]—you will eat it. ¹⁰ The food you eat will be eight ounces^[ae] a day by weight; you must eat it at fixed times.^{[af] 11} And you must drink water by measure, a pint and a half;^[ag] you must drink it at fixed times. ¹² And you must eat the food as you would a barley cake. You must bake it in front of them over a fire made with dried human excrement.”^{[ah] 13} And the Lord said, “This is how the people of Israel will eat their unclean food among the nations^[ai] 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 meat^[aj] 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 supply^[ak] in Jerusalem. 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.^[al]

5 “As for you, son of man, take a sharp sword and use it as a barber’s razor.^[am] Shave off some of the hair from your head and your beard.^[an] Then take scales and divide up the hair you cut off. ² Burn a third of it in the fire inside the city when the days of your siege are completed. Take a third and slash it with a sword all around the city. Scatter a third to the wind, and I will unleash a sword behind them. ³ But take a few strands of hair^[ao] from those and tie them in the ends of your garment.^{[ap] 4} Again, take more of them and throw them into the fire,^[aq] and burn them up. From there a fire will spread to all the house of Israel.

⁵ “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: This is Jerusalem; I placed her in the center of the nations with countries all around her. ⁶ Then she defied my regulations and my statutes, becoming more wicked than the nations^[ar] and the countries around her.^[as] Indeed, they^[at] have rejected my regulations, and they do not follow my statutes.

⁷ “Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Because you are more arrogant^[au] than the nations around you,^[av] you have not followed my statutes and have not carried out my regulations. You have not even^[aw] carried out the regulations of the nations around you!

⁸ “Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I—even I—am against you,^[ax] and I will execute judgment^[ay] among you while the nations watch.^{[az] 9} I will do to you what I have never done before and will never do again because of all your abominable practices.^{[ba] 10} Therefore, fathers will eat their sons within you, Jerusalem,^[bb] and sons will eat their fathers. I will execute judgments on you, and I will scatter any survivors^[bc] to the winds.^[bd]

¹¹ “Therefore, as surely as I live, says the Sovereign Lord, because you defiled my sanctuary with all your detestable idols and with all your abominable practices, I will withdraw; my eye will not pity you, nor will I spare^[be] you. ¹² A third of your people will die of plague or be overcome by the famine within you.^[bf] A third of your people will fall by the sword surrounding you,^[bg] and a third I will scatter to the winds. I will unleash a sword behind them. ¹³ Then my anger will be fully vented; I will exhaust my rage on them, and I will be appeased.^[bh] Then they will know that I, the Lord, have spoken in my jealousy^[bi] when I have fully vented my rage against them.

¹⁴ “I will make you desolate and an object of scorn among the nations around you, in the sight of everyone who passes by. ¹⁵ You will be^[bj] an object of scorn and taunting,^[bk] a prime example of destruction^[bl] among the nations around you when I execute judgments against you in anger and raging fury.^[bm] I, the Lord, have spoken! ¹⁶ I will shoot against them deadly,^[bn] destructive^[bo] arrows of famine,^[bp] which I will shoot to destroy you.^[bq] I will prolong a famine on you and will remove the bread supply.^{[br] 17} I will send famine and wild beasts against you, and they will take your children from you.^[bs] Plague and bloodshed will overwhelm you,^[bt] and I will bring a sword against you. I, the Lord, have spoken!”

Judgment on the Mountains of Israel

6 The Lord’s message came to me: ² “Son of man, turn toward^[bu] the mountains of Israel and prophesy against them. ³ Say, ‘Mountains of Israel,^[bv] hear the word of the Sovereign Lord!^[bw] This is what the Sovereign Lord says to the mountains and the hills, to the ravines and the valleys: I am bringing^[bx] a sword against you, and I will destroy your high places.^{[by] 4} Your altars will be ruined and your incense altars will be broken. I will throw down your slain in front of your idols.^{[bz] 5} I will place the corpses of the people of Israel in front of their idols,^[ca] and I will scatter your bones around your altars. ⁶ In all your dwellings, the cities will be laid waste and the high places ruined so that your altars will be laid waste and ruined, your idols will be shattered and demolished, your incense altars will be broken down, and your works wiped out.^{[cb] 7} The slain will fall among you and then you will know that I am the Lord.^[cc]

⁸ “‘But I will spare some of you. Some will escape the sword when you are scattered in foreign lands.^{[cd] 9} Then your survivors will remember me among the nations where they are exiled. They will realize^[ce] how I was crushed by their unfaithful^[cf] heart that turned from me and by their eyes that lusted after their idols. They will loathe themselves^[cg] because of the evil they have done and because of all their abominable practices. ¹⁰ They will know that I am the Lord; my threats to bring this catastrophe on them were not empty.^[ch]

¹¹ “‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: Clap your hands, stamp your feet, and say, “Ah!” because of all the evil, abominable practices of the house of Israel, for they will fall by the sword, famine, and pestilence.^{[ci] 12} The one far away will die by pestilence, the one close by will fall by the sword, and whoever is left and has escaped these^[cj] will die by famine. I will fully vent my rage against them. ¹³ Then you will know that I am the Lord when their dead lie among their idols around their altars, on every high hill and on all the mountaintops, under every green tree and every leafy oak^[ck]—the places where they have offered fragrant incense to all their idols. ¹⁴ I will stretch out my hand against them^[cl] and make the land a desolate waste from the wilderness to Riblah,^[cm] in all the places where they live. Then they will know that I am the Lord.’”

God’s Promised Rest

4 Therefore we must be wary^[a] that, while the promise of entering his rest remains open, none of you may seem to have come short of it. ² For we had good news proclaimed to us just as they did. But the message they heard did them no good, since they did not join in^[b] with those who heard it in faith.^{[c] 3} For we who have believed enter that rest, as he has said, “As I swore in my anger, ‘They will never enter my rest!’”^[d] And yet God’s works^[e] were accomplished from the foundation of the world. ⁴ For he has spoken somewhere about the seventh day in this way: “And God rested on the seventh day from all his works,”^{[f] 5} but to repeat the text cited earlier:^[g] “They will never enter my rest!” ⁶ Therefore it remains for some to enter it, yet those to whom it was previously proclaimed did not enter because of disobedience. ⁷ So God^[h] again ordains a certain day, “Today,” speaking through David^[i] after so long a time, as in the words quoted before,^[j] “Oh, that today you would listen as he speaks!^[k] Do not harden your hearts.” ⁸ For if Joshua had given them rest, God^[l] would not have spoken afterward about another day. ⁹ Consequently a Sabbath rest remains for the people of God. ¹⁰ For the one who enters God’s^[m] rest has also rested from his works, just as God did from his own works. ¹¹ Thus we must make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by following the same pattern of disobedience. ¹² For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any double-edged sword, piercing even to the point of dividing soul from spirit, and joints from marrow; it is able to judge the desires and thoughts of the heart. ¹³ And no creature is hidden from God,^[n] but everything is naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must render an account.

Jesus Our Compassionate High Priest

¹⁴ Therefore since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast to our confession. ¹⁵ For we do not have a high priest incapable of sympathizing with our weaknesses, but one who has been tempted in every way just as we are, yet without sin. ¹⁶ Therefore let us confidently approach the throne of grace to receive mercy and find grace whenever we need help.^[o]

A Vision of God’s Glory

1 In the thirtieth year,^[a] on the fifth day of the fourth month, while I was among the exiles^[b] at the Kebar River,^[c] the heavens opened^[d] and I saw a divine vision.^{[e] 2} (On the fifth day of the month—it was the fifth year of King Jehoiachin’s exile— ³ the Lord’s message came to the priest Ezekiel^[f] the son of Buzi,^[g] at the Kebar River in the land of the Babylonians.^[h] The hand^[i] of the Lord came on him there.)

⁴ As I watched, I noticed^[j] a windstorm^[k] coming from the north—an enormous cloud, with lightning flashing,^[l] such that bright light^[m] rimmed it and came from^[n] it like glowing amber^[o] from the middle of a fire. ⁵ In the fire^[p] were what looked like^[q] four living beings.^[r] In their appearance they had human form,^{[s] 6} but each had four faces and four wings. ⁷ Their legs were straight, but the soles of their feet were like calves’ feet. They gleamed^[t] like polished bronze. ⁸ They had human hands^[u] under their wings on their four sides. As for the faces and wings of the four of them, ⁹ their wings touched each other; they did not turn as they moved, but went straight ahead.^[v]

¹⁰ Their faces had this appearance: Each of the four had the face of a man, with the face of a lion on the right, the face of an ox on the left, and also the face of an eagle.^{[w] 11} Their wings were spread out above them; each had two wings touching the wings of one of the other beings on either side and two wings covering their bodies. ¹² Each moved straight ahead^[x]—wherever the spirit^[y] would go, they would go, without turning as they went. ¹³ In the middle^[z] of the living beings was something like^[aa] burning coals of fire^[ab] or like torches. It moved back and forth among the living beings. It was bright, and lightning was flashing out of the fire. ¹⁴ The living beings moved backward and forward as quickly as flashes of lightning.^[ac]

¹⁵ Then I looked,^[ad] and I saw one wheel^[ae] on the ground^[af] beside each of the four beings. ¹⁶ The appearance of the wheels and their construction^[ag] was like gleaming jasper,^[ah] and all four wheels looked alike. Their structure was like a wheel within a wheel.^{[ai] 17} When they moved they would go in any of the four directions they faced without turning as they moved. ¹⁸ Their rims were high and awesome,^[aj] and the rims of all four wheels were full of eyes all around.

¹⁹ When the living beings moved, the wheels beside them moved; when the living beings rose up from the ground, the wheels rose up too. ²⁰ Wherever the spirit^[ak] would go, they would go,^[al] and the wheels would rise up beside them because the spirit^[am] of the living being was in the wheel. ²¹ When the living beings moved, the wheels moved, and when they stopped moving, the wheels stopped.^[an] When they rose up from the ground, the wheels rose up from the ground; the wheels rose up beside them because the spirit of the living being was in the wheel.

²² Over the heads of the living beings was something like a platform,^[ao] glittering awesomely like ice,^[ap] stretched out over their heads. ²³ Under the platform their wings were stretched out, each toward the other. Each of the beings also had two wings covering^[aq] its body. ²⁴ When they moved, I heard the sound of their wings—it was like the sound of rushing waters, or the voice of the Sovereign One,^[ar] or the tumult^[as] of an army. When they stood still, they lowered their wings.

²⁵ Then there was a voice from above the platform over their heads when they stood still.^{[at] 26} Above the platform over their heads was something like a sapphire shaped like a throne. High above on the throne was a form that appeared to be a man. ²⁷ I saw an amber glow^[au] like a fire enclosed all around^[av] from his waist up. From his waist down I saw something that looked like fire. There was a brilliant light around it, ²⁸ like the appearance of a rainbow in the clouds after the rain.^[aw] This was the appearance of the surrounding brilliant light; it looked like the glory of the Lord. When I saw^[ax] it, I threw myself face down, and I heard a voice speaking.

Ezekiel’s Commission

2 He said to me, “Son of man,^[ay] stand on your feet and I will speak with you.” ² As he spoke to me,^[az] a wind^[ba] came into me and stood me on my feet, and I heard the one speaking to me.

³ He said to me, “Son of man, I am sending you to the house^[bb] of Israel, to rebellious nations^[bc] who have rebelled against me; both they and their fathers have revolted^[bd] against me to this very day. ⁴ The people^[be] to whom I am sending you are obstinate and hard-hearted,^[bf] and you must say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says.’^{[bg] 5} And as for them,^[bh] whether they listen^[bi] or not—for they are a rebellious^[bj] house^[bk]—they will know that a prophet has been among them. ⁶ But you, son of man, do not fear them, and do not fear their words. Even though briers^[bl] and thorns^[bm] surround you and you live among scorpions—do not fear their words and do not be terrified of the looks they give you,^[bn] for they are a rebellious house! ⁷ You must speak my words to them whether they listen or not, for they are rebellious. ⁸ As for you, son of man, listen to what I am saying to you: Do not rebel like that rebellious house! Open your mouth and eat what I am giving you.”

⁹ Then I looked and realized a hand was stretched out to me, and in it was a written scroll. ¹⁰ He unrolled it before me, and it had writing on the front^[bo] and back;^[bp] written on it were laments, mourning, and woe.

3 He said to me, “Son of man, eat what you see in front of you^[bq]—eat this scroll—and then go and speak to the house of Israel.” ² So I opened my mouth and he fed me the scroll.

³ He said to me, “Son of man, feed your stomach and fill your belly with this scroll I am giving to you.” So I ate it,^[br] and it was sweet like honey in my mouth.

⁴ He said to me, “Son of man, go to the house of Israel and speak my words to them. ⁵ For you are not being sent to a people of unintelligible speech^[bs] and difficult language,^[bt] but^[bu] to the house of Israel— ⁶ not to many peoples of unintelligible speech and difficult language, whose words you cannot understand.^[bv] Surely if^[bw] I had sent you to them, they would listen to you! ⁷ But the house of Israel is unwilling to listen to you,^[bx] because they are not willing to listen to me,^[by] for the whole house of Israel is hardheaded and hardhearted.^[bz]

⁸ “I have made your face adamant^[ca] to match their faces, and your forehead hard to match their foreheads. ⁹ I have made your forehead harder than flint—like diamond!^[cb] Do not fear them or be terrified of the looks they give you,^[cc] for they are a rebellious house.”

¹⁰ And he said to me, “Son of man, take all my words that I speak to you to heart and listen carefully. ¹¹ Go to the exiles, to your fellow countrymen,^[cd] and speak to them. Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says,’ whether they pay attention or not.”

Ezekiel Before the Exiles

¹² Then a wind lifted me up^[ce] and I heard a great rumbling sound behind me as the glory of the Lord rose from its place,^{[cf] 13} and the sound of the living beings’ wings brushing against each other, and the sound of the wheels alongside them, a great rumbling sound. ¹⁴ A wind lifted me up and carried me away. I went bitterly,^[cg] my spirit full of fury, and the hand of the Lord rested powerfully^[ch] on me. ¹⁵ I came to the exiles at Tel Abib,^[ci] who lived by the Kebar River.^[cj] I sat dumbfounded among them there, where they were living, for seven days.^[ck]

Jesus and Moses

3 Therefore, holy brothers and sisters,^[a] partners in a heavenly calling, take note of Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess,^{[b] 2} who is faithful to the one who appointed him, as Moses was also in God’s^[c] house.^{[d] 3} For he has come to deserve greater glory than Moses, just as the builder of a house deserves greater honor than the house itself! ⁴ For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God. ⁵ Now Moses was faithful in all God’s^[e] house^[f] as a servant, to testify to the things that would be spoken. ⁶ But Christ^[g] is faithful as a son over God’s^[h] house. We are of his house,^[i] if in fact we hold firmly^[j] to our confidence and the hope we take pride in.^[k]

Exposition of Psalm 95: Hearing God’s Word in Faith

⁷ Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says,^[l]

¹² See to it,^[q] brothers and sisters,^[r] that none of you has^[s] an evil, unbelieving heart that forsakes^[t] the living God.^{[u] 13} But exhort one another each day, as long as it is called “Today,” that none of you may become hardened by sin’s deception. ¹⁴ For we have become partners with Christ, if in fact we hold our initial confidence^[v] firm until the end. ¹⁵ As it says,^[w] “Oh, that today you would listen as he speaks!^[x] Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.”^{[y] 16} For which ones heard and rebelled? Was it not all who came out of Egypt under Moses’ leadership?^{[z] 17} And against whom was God^[aa] provoked for forty years? Was it not those who sinned, whose dead bodies fell in the wilderness?^{[ab] 18} And to whom did he swear they would never enter into his rest, except those who were disobedient? ¹⁹ So^[ac] we see that they could not enter because of unbelief.

Psalm 104^[a]

א (Alef)

The Prophet Speaks

ב (Bet)

ג (Gimel)

ד (Dalet)

ה (He)

ו (Vav)

ז (Zayin)

ח (Khet)

ט (Tet)

י (Yod)

כ (Kaf)

ל (Lamed)

מ (Mem)

נ (Nun)

ס (Samek)

פ (Pe)

ע (Ayin)

The People of Jerusalem Lament

צ (Tsade)

ק (Qof)

ר (Resh)

ש (Sin/Shin)

The Prophet Speaks

ת (Tav)

The People of Jerusalem Pray

Warning Against Drifting Away

2 Therefore we must pay closer attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. ² For if the message spoken through angels^[a] proved to be so firm that every violation^[b] or disobedience received its just penalty, ³ how will we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? It was first communicated through the Lord and was confirmed to us by those who heard him, ⁴ while God confirmed their witness^[c] with signs and wonders and various miracles and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed^[d] according to his will.

Exposition of Psalm 8: Jesus and the Destiny of Humanity

⁵ For he did not put the world to come,^[e] about which we are speaking,^[f] under the control of angels. ⁶ Instead someone testified somewhere:

For when he put all things under his control, he left nothing outside of his control. At present we do not yet see all things under his control,^{[j] 9} but we see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels for a little while,^[k] now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death,^[l] so that by God’s grace he would experience^[m] death on behalf of everyone. ¹⁰ For it was fitting for him, for whom and through whom all things exist,^[n] in bringing many sons to glory, to make the pioneer^[o] of their salvation perfect through sufferings. ¹¹ For indeed he who makes holy and those being made holy all have the same origin,^[p] and so^[q] he is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters,^{[r] 12} saying, “I will proclaim your name to my brothers;^[s] in the midst of the assembly I will praise you.”^{[t] 13} Again he says,^[u] “I will be confident in him,” and again, “Here I am,^[v] with^[w] the children God has given me.”^{[x] 14} Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, he likewise shared in^[y] their humanity,^[z] so that through death he could destroy^[aa] the one who holds the power of death (that is, the devil), ¹⁵ and set free those who were held in slavery all their lives by their fear of death. ¹⁶ For surely his concern is not for angels, but he is concerned for Abraham’s descendants. ¹⁷ Therefore he had^[ab] to be made like his brothers and sisters^[ac] in every respect, so that he could become a merciful and faithful high priest in things relating to God, to make atonement^[ad] for the sins of the people. ¹⁸ For since he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are tempted.

Psalm 103^[a]

By David.

Great Is Your Faithfulness