Ezekiel

And he said unto me, Son of man, stand upon thy feet, and I will speak unto thee.

1He said to me, "Son of man, stand up on your feet, and I will speak to you."

Note"Son of man" here simply means "human being." God uses it again and again as his name for Ezekiel through this book.

2And the spirit entered into me when he spake unto me, and set me upon my feet, that I heard him that spake unto me.

2As he spoke to me, the Spirit came into me and set me on my feet. Then I heard him speaking to me.

3And he said unto me, Son of man, I send thee to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation that hath rebelled against me: they and their fathers have transgressed against me, even unto this very day.

3He said to me, "Son of man, I am sending you to the people of Israel. They are a nation that has turned against me. They and their fathers before them have disobeyed me, right up to this very day.

4For they are impudent children and stiffhearted. I do send thee unto them; and thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD.

4They are stubborn children who refuse to give in. I am sending you to them, and you must tell them, 'This is what the Lord GOD says.'

5And they, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear, (for they are a rebellious house,) yet shall know that there hath been a prophet among them.

5Whether they listen or refuse to listen, since they are a people who rebel, they will know that a prophet has been among them.

6And thou, son of man, be not afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns be with thee, and thou dost dwell among scorpions: be not afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house.

6"And you, son of man, do not be afraid of them or of what they say. Do not be afraid, even if you are surrounded by thorns and sharp branches, and live among scorpions. Do not fear their words or be upset by the way they look at you, though they are a rebellious people.

7And thou shalt speak my words unto them, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear: for they are most rebellious.

7You must speak my words to them, whether they listen or refuse to listen, because they are full of rebellion.

8But thou, son of man, hear what I say unto thee; Be not thou rebellious like that rebellious house: open thy mouth, and eat that I give thee.

8"But you, son of man, listen to what I tell you. Do not rebel like those rebellious people. Open your mouth and eat what I give you."

9And when I looked, behold, an hand was sent unto me; and, lo, a roll of a book was therein;

9Then I looked, and I saw a hand reaching out to me. In the hand was a rolled-up scroll.

NoteA "roll of a book" is a scroll: a long sheet of writing material rolled up. Books with pages did not exist yet.

10And he spread it before me; and it was written within and without: and there was written therein lamentations, and mourning, and woe.

10He unrolled it in front of me. It had writing on the front and on the back. Written on it were words of weeping, sadness, and trouble.