Hello, this is Father Paul, and I'm glad we're
taking this journey together to read the Bible
in a year. Today's reading is from the book of
Ezekiel, chapters 19 and 33. Chapter 19. Moreover,
take up a lamentation for the princes of Israel
and say, What is your mother, a lioness? She
laid down among the lions. Among the young lions
she nourished her cubs. She brought up one of
her cubs, and he became a young lion. He learned
to catch prey, and he devoured men. The nations
also heard of him. He was trapped in their pit,
and they brought him with chains to the land
of Egypt. When she saw that she waited, that
her hope was lost, she took another of her cubs
and made him a young lion. He roved among the
lions, and he became a young lion. He learned
to catch prey, he devoured men, he knew their
desolate places, and laid waste their cities.
The land with its fullness was desolated. by
the noise of his roaring. Then the nations set
against him from the provinces on every side,
and spread their net over him. He was trapped
in their pit. They put him in a cage with chains,
and brought him to the king of Babylon. They
brought him in nets, that his voice should no
longer be heard on the mountains of Israel. Your
mother was like a vine in your bloodline. planted
by the waters, fruitful and full of branches,
because of many waters. She had strong branches
for scepters of rulers. She towered in stature
above the thick branches, and was seen in her
height amid the dense foliage. But she was plucked
up in fury. She was cast down to the ground,
and the east wind dried her fruit. Her strong
branches were broken and withered. The fire consumed
them. And now she is planted in the wilderness,
in a dry and thirsty land. Fire has come out
from a rod of her branches and devoured her fruit,
so that she has no strong branch, a scepter,
for ruling. This is a lamentation and has become
a lamentation. Chapter 33 Again the word of the
Lord came to me, saying, Son of man, speak to
the children of your people, and say to them,
When I bring the sword upon a land, And the people
of the land take a man from their territory and
make him their watchman. When he sees the sword
coming upon the land, if he blows the trumpet
and warns the people, then whoever hears the
sound of the trumpet and does not take warning,
if the sword comes and takes him away, his blood
shall be on his own head. He heard the sound
of the trumpet, but did not take warning. His
blood shall be upon himself, but he who takes
warning will save his life. But if the watchman
sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet,
and the people are not warned, and the sword
comes and takes any person from among them, he
is taken away in his iniquity, but his blood
I will require at the watchman's hand. So you,
son of man, I have made you a watchman for the
house of Israel. Therefore you shall hear a word
from my mouth and warn them for me. When I say
to the wicked, O wicked man, you shall surely
die, and you do not speak to warn the wicked
from his way, that wicked man shall die in his
iniquity. But his blood I will require at your
hand. Nevertheless, if you warn the wicked to
turn from his way, and he does not turn from
his way, he shall die in his iniquity. But you
have delivered your soul. Therefore you, O son
of man, say to the house of Israel, Thus you
say, If our transgressions and our sins lie upon
us, and we pine away in them, how can we then
live? Say to them, As I live, says the Lord God,
I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked,
but that the wicked turn from his way and live.
Turn, turn from your evil ways, for why should
you die, O house of Israel? Therefore you, O
son of man, say to the children of your people,
The righteousness of the righteous man shall
not deliver him in the day of his transgression.
As for the wickedness of the wicked, he shall
not fall because of it in the day that he turns
from his wickedness. Nor shall the righteous
be able to live because of his righteousness
in the day that he sins. When I say to the righteous
that he shall surely live, but he trusts in his
own righteousness and commits iniquity. None
of his righteous works shall be remembered, but
because of the iniquity that he has committed,
he shall die. Again, when I say to the wicked,
you shall surely die, if he turns from his sin
and does what is lawful and right, if the wicked
restores the pledge, gives back what he has stolen,
and walks in the statutes of life without committing
iniquity, he shall surely live, he shall not
die. none of his sins which he has committed
shall be remembered against him he has done what
is lawful and right he shall surely live yet
the children of your people say the way of the
lord is not fair but it is their way which is
not fair When the righteous turns from his righteousness
and commits iniquity, he shall die because of
it. But when the wicked turns from his wickedness
and does what is lawful and right, he shall live
because of it. Yet you say, The way of the Lord
is not fair. O house of Israel, I will judge
every one of you according to his own ways. And
it came to pass in the twelfth year of our captivity,
in the tenth month, Then the word of the Lord
came to me, saying, Son of man, They who inhabit
those ruins in the land of Israel are saying,
Abraham was only one, and he inherited the land.
But we are many. The land has been given to us
as a possession. Therefore say to them, Thus
says the Lord God, You eat meat with blood. You
lift up your eyes toward your idols and shed
blood. Should you then possess the land? You
rely on your sword. You commit abominations and
you defile one another's wives. Should you then
possess the land? Say thus to them, Thus says
the Lord God, As I live, surely those who are
in the ruins shall fall by the sword, and the
one who is in the open field I will give to the
beasts to be devoured, and those who are in the
strongholds and caves shall die of the pestilence.
For I will make the land most desolate, her arrogant
strength shall cease, and the mountains of Israel
shall be so desolate that no one will pass through.
Then they shall know that I am the Lord, when
I have made the land most desolate because of
all their abominations which they have committed.
As for you, son of man, the children of your
people are talking about you beside the walls
and in the doors of the houses, and they speak
to one another, everyone saying to his brother,
Please come and hear what the word is that comes
from the Lord. So they come to you as people
do. They sit before you as my people, and they
hear your words, but they do not do them. For
with their mouth they show much love, but their
hearts pursue their own gain. Indeed, you are
to them as a very lovely song of one who has
a pleasant voice and can play well on an instrument.
For they hear your words, but they do not do
them. And when this comes to pass, surely it
will come. Then they will know that a prophet
has been among them. I hope you enjoyed today's
reading as much as I did and I look forward to
seeing you again tomorrow to continue on our
journey. God bless you and have a great day.