They had human hands under their wings on their four sides. All four of them had faces and wings.

Their faces looked something like the face of a human, and each of the four had the face of a lion on the right, the face of an ox on the left, and the face of an eagle.

Something like a throne with the appearance of lapis lazuli was above the expanse over their heads. On the throne, high above, was someone who looked like a human.

He said to me, “Son of man, I am sending you to the Israelites, to[fn] the rebellious pagans who have rebelled against me. The Israelites and their ancestors have transgressed against me to this day.

“But you, son of man, do not be afraid of them and do not be afraid of their words, even though briers and thorns are beside you and you live among scorpions. Don’t be afraid of their words or discouraged by the look on their faces, for they are a rebellious house.

“And you, son of man, listen to what I tell you: Do not be rebellious like that rebellious house. Open your mouth and eat what I am giving you.”

“Son of man,” he said to me, “feed your stomach and fill your belly with this scroll I am giving you.” So I ate it, and it was as sweet as honey in my mouth.

Then he said to me, “Son of man, go to the house of Israel and speak my words to them.

Next he said to me, “Son of man, listen carefully to all my words that I speak to you and take them to heart.

“Son of man, I have made you a watchman over the house of Israel. When you hear a word from my mouth, give them a warning from me.

“As for you, son of man, they will put ropes on you and bind you with them so you cannot go out among them.

He said to me, “Son of man, I am going to cut off the supply of bread in Jerusalem. They will anxiously eat food they have weighed out and in dread drink rationed water

“for lack of bread and water. Everyone will be devastated and waste away because of their iniquity.

The seller will certainly not return

to what was sold

as long as he and the buyer remain alive.[fn]

For the vision concerning her whole crowd

will not be revoked,

and because of the iniquity of each one,

none will preserve his life.

He said to me, “Son of man, do you see what they are doing here ​— ​more detestable acts that the house of Israel is committing ​— ​so that I must depart from my sanctuary? You will see even more detestable acts.”

He said to me, “Son of man, dig through the wall.” So I dug through the wall and discovered a doorway.

He said to me, “Son of man, do you see what the elders of the house of Israel are doing in the darkness, each at the shrine of his idol? For they are saying, ‘The LORD does not see us. The LORD has abandoned the land.’ ”

And he said to me, “Do you see this, son of man? You will see even more detestable acts than these.”

And he said to me, “Do you see this, son of man? Is it not enough for the house of Judah to commit the detestable acts they are doing here, that they must also fill the land with violence and repeatedly anger me, even putting the branch to their nose?[fn]

Each had four faces and each had four wings, with what looked something like human hands under their wings.

“Therefore, prophesy against them. Prophesy, son of man! ”

“Son of man, your own relatives, those who have the right to redeem your property,[fn][fn] along with the entire house of Israel ​— ​all of them ​— ​are those to whom the residents of Jerusalem have said, ‘You are far from the LORD; this land has been given to us as a possession.’

“Now you, son of man, get your bags ready for exile and go into exile in their sight during the day. You will go into exile from your place to another place while they watch; perhaps they will understand, though they are a rebellious house.

“Son of man, hasn’t the house of Israel, that rebellious house, asked you, ‘What are you doing? ’

“Son of man, eat your bread with trembling and drink your water with anxious shaking.

“Son of man, what is this proverb you people have about the land of Israel, which goes, ‘The days keep passing by, and every vision fails’?

“Son of man, notice that the house of Israel is saying, ‘The vision that he sees concerns many years from now; he prophesies about distant times.’

“Now you, son of man, face[fn] the women among your people who prophesy out of their own imagination, and prophesy against them.

“Therefore, speak to them and tell them, ‘This is what the Lord GOD says: When anyone from the house of Israel sets up idols in his heart and puts his sinful stumbling block in front of himself, and then comes to the prophet, I, the LORD, will answer him appropriately.[fn] I will answer him according to his many idols,

“For when anyone from the house of Israel or from the aliens who reside in Israel separates himself from me, setting up idols in his heart and putting his sinful stumbling block in front of himself, and then comes to the prophet to inquire of me, I, the LORD, will answer him myself.

“I will turn against that one and make him a sign and a proverb; I will cut him off from among my people. Then you will know that I am the LORD.

“Son of man, suppose a land sins against me by acting faithlessly, and I stretch out my hand against it to cut off its supply of bread, to send famine through it, and to wipe out both people and animals from it.

“Or suppose I bring a sword against that land and say, ‘Let a sword pass through it,’ so that I wipe out both people and animals from it.

“Or suppose I send a plague into that land and pour out my wrath on it with bloodshed to wipe out both people and animals from it.

“For this is what the Lord GOD says: How much worse will it be when I send my four devastating judgments against Jerusalem ​— ​sword, famine, dangerous animals, and plague ​— ​in order to wipe out both people and animals from it!