7
終わりの時がくる
1続いて、神からのことばが私にありました。
2「イスラエルに告げよ。あなたの見るところはみな、東も西も、南も北も、もう終わりだ。この国はもう終わりが来た。 3わたしは、偶像を拝んだあなたに怒りをぶつける。もう絶体絶命だ。 4わたしはあなたから目を背け、あわれんだりはしない。とことんまで罰する。そうすれば、わたしが主であることを、あなたがたは知るようになるだろう。」
5-6神である主は言います。「次から次へと災いを送って、あなたにとどめを刺そう。終わりはすでにきている。終局の破滅が待っているだけだ。 7ああ、イスラエルよ。滅亡の日のきざしは現れ、時はきた。苦難の日は近い。それは喜びの声を上げる日ではなく、苦しみもだえて叫ぶ日だ。 8-9やがて、わたしは憤りを注ぎ、おまえたちの悪のすべてを徹底的に罰しよう。もはや、あなたを惜しまず、あわれまない。これをしているのが、主であるわたしであることを、あなたがたは知るようになるだろう。
10-11ついに、さばきの日がきた。朝日が昇ってくる。あなたの悪と高ぶりは頂点に達し、行き着くところまで行ったからだ。富におごり、高ぶる悪者は、一人も生き長らえない。高慢の鼻は完全にへし折られ、あなたがたの運命を嘆く者もいなくなる。
12さあ、その時がきた。その日が近づいた。神の怒りがその地に臨むので、買う物もなく、売る物もなくなる。 13主がイスラエルの民全体にさばきを宣言したので、たとえ商人が生き長らえても、商売はできなくなる。すべての人が滅ぼされる。罪に満ちた生活をしている者はだれも立ち直れない。
14イスラエル軍に、『進め』と角笛を吹き鳴らしても、だれも聞こうとしない。わたしの怒りがすべての者に臨むからだ。 15城壁の外に出れば、敵が彼らを殺そうと待ちかまえている。城壁の内側にとどまれば、ききんと疫病で滅ぼし尽くされる。 16運よく逃れた者も、山々にひそむ鳩のように、その寂しさを嘆き悲しみ、自分の罪のために泣き悲しむ。 17手も弱くなり、ひざもがくがく震えるようになる。 18彼らは荒布をまとい、恐怖と恥で包まれ、悲しみと自責の念にかられて頭をそる。
19金銀を投げ捨てよ。怒りの日には何の価値もなくなるのだから、がらくたのように放り出せ。彼らの罪の根本は金銀を愛することにある。それが、腹を満たすことも満足させることもできなくなるのだ。 20わたしの神殿を美しく飾るために与えた金で、彼らは偶像を造ってしまった。それゆえ、わたしはそれを全部取り上げる。 21戦利品として外国人や悪者どもに与える。彼らはわたしの神殿を汚すだろう。 22その時、わたしは見て見ぬふりをする。止めはしない。彼らは強盗のように宝物をあさり、神殿を廃墟のようにする。
23わたしの民のために鎖を用意せよ。この国は流血の罪で満ちているからだ。エルサレムは暴虐に満ちているので、わたしはその住民を奴隷とする。 24諸国の中でも最悪の国を、エルサレムに来させよう。彼らの家々を占領させ、彼らが誇っている要塞を破壊させ、神殿を汚させ、高慢の鼻をへし折らせる。 25イスラエルを切り捨てる時が、いよいよきた。平和を求めても得られない。 26-27災いの上に災いが、悲しみの上に悲しみが、惨事の上に惨事が襲う。彼らは預言者の指導を求める。それなのに、祭司も長老も、王も君主も、ただ手をこまねいているだけで、絶望のうちに泣き悲しんでいる。わたしは彼らが行った悪に対し、それに十分見合った報いをするので、彼らは恐怖のあまり震えおののく。そして、わたしが主であることを知るようになる。」
The End Has Come
1A message from the Lord came to me. The Lord said, 2“Son of man, I am the Lord and King. I say to the land of Israel, ‘The end has come! It has come on the four corners of the land. 3The end has now come for you. I will pour out my anger on you. I will judge you based on how you have lived. I will pay you back for all your evil practices. I hate them.
4“ ‘I will not feel sorry for you. I will not spare you. You can be sure that I will pay you back for how you have lived. I will judge you for your evil practices. I hate them. You will know that I am the Lord.’
5“I am the Lord and King. I say, ‘Horrible trouble is coming! No one has ever heard of anything like it. It is here!
6“ ‘The end has come! The end has come! It has stirred itself up against you. It is here! 7Death has come on you who live in the land. The time for you to be destroyed has come. The day when it will happen is near. There is no joy on your mountains. There is nothing but panic.
8“ ‘I am about to pour out all my great anger on you. I will judge you based on how you have lived. I will pay you back for all your evil practices. I hate them.
9“ ‘I will not feel sorry for you. I will not spare you. I will pay you back for how you have lived. I will judge you for your evil practices. I hate them. You will know that I am the one who strikes you down. I am the Lord.
10“ ‘The day for me to punish you is here! It is here! Death has arrived. The time is ripe for you to be judged. Your pride has grown so much that you will be destroyed. 11Your mean and harmful acts have become like a rod. I will use it to punish those who do evil. None of them will be left. None of their wealth or anything of value will remain.
12“ ‘The time has come! The day has arrived! I will soon pour out my great anger on the whole crowd of you. Do not let the buyer be happy. Do not let the seller be sad. 13The seller will not get back the land that was sold. That will be true as long as both the buyer and seller are alive.
“ ‘Ezekiel, the vision I gave you about that whole crowd will come true. They have committed many sins. So not one of them will be able to save their life. 14They have blown trumpets. They have made everything ready. But no one will go into battle. I will soon pour out my great anger on the whole crowd.
15“ ‘There is trouble everywhere. War is outside the city. Plague and hunger are inside it. Those out in the country will die in battle. Those in the city will be destroyed by hunger and plague. 16All those who escape and are left alive will run to the mountains. They will sound like doves of the valley when they cry over their sins.
17“ ‘Their hands will be powerless to help them. They will wet themselves. 18They will put on the rough clothing people wear when they’re sad. They will put on terror as if it were their clothes. Every face will be covered with shame. Every head will be shaved.
19“ ‘They will throw their silver into the streets. They will treat their gold like an “unclean” thing. Their silver and gold won’t be able to save them on the day I pour out my anger. It will not be able to satisfy their hunger. Their stomachs can’t be filled with it. Their silver and gold have tripped them up. It has made them fall into sin. 20My people were so proud of their beautiful jewelry. They used it to make statues of their evil gods. I hate those gods. So I will turn their jewelry into an “unclean” thing for them.
21“ ‘I will hand over their wealth to outsiders. I will turn it over to sinful people in other countries. They will make it “unclean.” 22I will turn my face away from my people. Robbers will make “unclean” the temple I love. They will enter it and make it “unclean.”
23“ ‘Ezekiel, get ready to put my people in chains. The land is full of murderers. They are harming one another all over Jerusalem. 24I will bring the most evil nations against them. They will take over the houses in the city. I will put an end to the pride of those who are mighty. Their holy places will be made “unclean.”
25“ ‘When terror comes, they will look for peace. But there will not be any. 26Trouble after trouble will come. One report will follow another. But they will not be true. The people will go searching for a vision from the prophets. But there will not be any. The teaching of the law by the priests will be gone. Advice from the elders will come to an end.
27“ ‘The king will be filled with sadness. The princes will lose all hope. The hands of the people of the land will tremble. I will punish them based on how they have lived. I will judge them by their own standards. Then they will know that I am the Lord.’ ”
