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Ezekiel 22

Amplified Bible, 2015 (AMP)

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1 The golden calf itself will be carried to Assyria As tribute to King Jareb; Ephraim will be seized with shame And Israel will be ashamed of his own counsel [to worship the calf and separate Israel from Judah].
2 As for Samaria, her king will be cut off and float away Like a twig on the surface of the water.
3 Also the high places of Aven (Beth-aven), the sin of Israel, will be destroyed; The thorn and the thistle will grow on their [pagan] altars, And [in despair] they will say to the mountains, "Cover us!" And to the hills, "Fall on us!"
4 O Israel, you have [willfully] sinned since the days of Gibeah; There they (Israel) stand! Will not the battle against the sons of wickedness overtake them at Gibeah?
5 When it is my desire [to defend My righteousness], I will chastise them; And [hostile] peoples will be gathered against them When they are bound and punished for their double guilt [their revolt against the LORD and their worship of idols].
6 Ephraim is a trained heifer that loves to tread out the grain, But I will come over her fair neck with a heavy yoke [for hard field work]. I will harness Ephraim; Judah will plow and Jacob will harrow and rake for himself.
7 Sow with a view to righteousness [that righteousness, like seed, may germinate]; Reap in accordance with mercy and lovingkindness. Break up your uncultivated ground, For it is time to seek and search diligently for the LORD [and to long for His blessing] Until He comes to rain righteousness and His gift of salvation on you.
8 You have plowed and planted wickedness, you have reaped the [willful] injustice [of oppressors], You have eaten the fruit of lies. Because you have trusted in your own way and your chariots, and in your many warriors,
9 Therefore an uproar will arise among your people, And all your fortresses will be destroyed, As Shalman destroyed Beth-arbel on the day of battle, When mothers were dashed in pieces with their children.
10 In this way it will be done to you at [idolatrous] Bethel because of your great wickedness; At daybreak the king of Israel will be completely cut off.
11 When Israel was a child [a young nation], I loved him, And I called My son out of Egypt.
12 The more they [the prophets] called them [to repentance and obedience], The more they went away from them; They kept sacrificing to the Baals And burning incense to the carved images.
13 Yet it is I who taught Ephraim to walk, Taking them in My arms [nurturing the young nation]; But they did not know that I healed them.
14 I led them gently with cords of a man, with bonds of love [guiding them], And I was to them as one who lifts up and eases the yoke [of the law] over their jaws; And I bent down to them and fed them.
15 They will not return to the land of Egypt, But Assyria will be their king [bringing them into captivity] Because they refused to return to Me.
16 The sword will whirl against and fall on their cities, And will demolish the bars of their gates and fortifications And will consume them because of their counsels.
17 My people are bent on turning from Me; Though the prophets call them to the One on high, None at all exalts Him.
18 How can I give you up, O Ephraim? How can I surrender you, O Israel? How can I make you like Admah? How can I treat you like[1] Zeboiim? My heart recoils within Me; All My compassions are kindled together [for My nation of Israel].
19 I will not execute the fierceness of My anger; I will not return to Ephraim to destroy him again. For I am God and not man, the Holy One in your midst [who will not revoke My covenant], And I will not come in wrath or enter the city [in judgment].
20 They will walk after the LORD [in obedience and worship], Who will roar like a lion; He will roar [summoning them] And His sons will come trembling from the west.
21 They will come trembling and hurriedly like birds from Egypt And like doves from the land of Assyria; And I will settle them in their houses [in the land of their inheritance], declares the LORD.
22 Ephraim surrounds Me with lies And the house of Israel with deceit; Judah is also unruly against God, Even against the faithful Holy One.
23 Ephraim feeds on the [emptiness of the] wind And [continually] pursues the [parching] east wind [which brings destruction]; Every day he multiplies lies and violence. Further, he makes a covenant with Assyria And (olive) oil is carried to Egypt [to seek alliances].
24 The LORD also has a dispute [a legal complaint and an indictment] with Judah, And He will punish Jacob in accordance with his ways; He will repay him in accordance with his deeds.
25 In their mother's womb he took his brother by the heel, And in his maturity he contended with God.
26 He wrestled with the angel and prevailed; He wept [in repentance] and sought His favor. He met Him at Bethel And there God spoke with [him and through him with] us—
27 Even the LORD, the God of hosts, The name of Him [who spoke with Jacob] is the LORD.
28 Therefore, return [in repentance] to your God, Observe and highly regard kindness and justice, And wait [expectantly] for your God continually.
29 A merchant, in whose hand are false and fraudulent balances; He loves to oppress and exploit.
30 Ephraim said, "I have indeed become rich [and powerful as a nation]; I have found wealth for myself. In all my labors they will not find in me Any wickedness that would be sin."
31 But I have been the LORD your God since [you became a nation in] the land of Egypt; I will make you live in tents again, As in the days of the appointed and solemn[1] festival.