[1] It happened in the sixth year, in the sixth [month], in the fifth [day]
of the month, as I sat in my house, and the elders of Judah sat before me,
that the hand of the Lord Yahweh fell there on me. [2] Then I saw, and,
behold, a likeness as the appearance of fire; from the appearance of his
loins and downward, fire; and from his loins and upward, as the appearance
of brightness, as it were glowing metal. [3] He put forth the form of a
hand, and took me by a lock of my head; and the Spirit lifted me up between
earth and the sky, and brought me in the visions of God to Jerusalem, to
the door of the gate of the inner [court] that looks toward the north;
where was the seat of the image of jealousy, which provokes to jealousy.
[4] Behold, the glory of the God of Israel was there, according to the
appearance that I saw in the plain. [5] Then said he to me, Son of man,
lift up your eyes now the way toward the north. So I lifted up my eyes the
way toward the north, and see, northward of the gate of the altar this
image of jealousy in the entry. [6] He said to me, Son of man, see you what
they do? even the great abominations that the house of Israel do commit
here, that I should go far off from my sanctuary? but you shall again see
yet other great abominations. [7] He brought me to the door of the court;
and when I looked, behold, a hole in the wall. [8] Then said he to me, Son
of man, dig now in the wall: and when I had dug in the wall, behold, a
door. [9] He said to me, Go in, and see the wicked abominations that they
do here. [10] So I went in and saw; and see, every form of creeping things,
and abominable animals, and all the idols of the house of Israel, portrayed
on the wall round about. [11] There stood before them seventy men of the
elders of the house of Israel; and in the midst of them stood Jaazaniah the
son of Shaphan, every man with his censer in his hand; and the odor of the
cloud of incense went up. [12] Then said he to me, Son of man, have you
seen what the elders of the house of Israel do in the dark, every man in
his chambers of imagery? for they say, Yahweh doesn`t see us; Yahweh has
forsaken the land. [13] He said also to me, You shall again see yet other
great abominations which they do. [14] Then he brought me to the door of
the gate of Yahweh`s house which was toward the north; and see, there sat
the women weeping for Tammuz. [15] Then said he to me, Have you seen
[this], son of man? you shall again see yet greater abominations than
these. [16] He brought me into the inner court of Yahweh`s house; and see,
at the door of the temple of Yahweh, between the porch and the altar, were
about twenty-five men, with their backs toward the temple of Yahweh, and
their faces toward the east; and they were worshipping the sun toward the
east. [17] Then he said to me, Have you seen [this], son of man? Is it a
light thing to the house of Judah that they commit the abominations which
they commit here? for they have filled the land with violence, and have
turned again to provoke me to anger: and, behold, they put the branch to
their nose. [18] Therefore will I also deal in wrath; my eye shall not
spare, neither will I have pity; and though they cry in my ears with a loud
voice, yet will I not hear them.
