Judgement against Idolatry
1 The word of the Lord came to me, saying, 2 “Son of man, set your face toward the mountains of Israel, and prophesy against them.
3 Say to them, ‘You mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord God! The Lord God says to the mountains and to the hills, to the watercourses and to the valleys, “I, yes I, will bring a sword on you, and I will destroy your high places. 4 Your altars will become desolate, and your incense altars will be broken. I will cast down your slain men before your idols. 5 I will lay the dead bodies of the Israelites before their idols. I will scatter your bones around your altars.
6 In all your dwelling places, the cities will be laid waste and the high places will be desolate, that your altars may be laid waste and made desolate, and your idols may be broken and cease, and your incense altars may be cut down, and your works may be abolished. 7 The slain will fall among you, and you will know that I am the Lord.
A Remnant Shall be Blessed
8 Yet I will leave a remnant, in that you will have some that escape the sword among the nations when you are scattered through the countries.
9 Those of you that escape will remember me among the nations where they are taken captive, how I have been heartbroken by their adulterous hearts, which departed from me, and with their eyes, which lusted for their idols. Then they will loathe themselves in their own sight for the evil which they have done in all their abominations. 10 They will know that I am God. I have not said in vain that I would bring this disaster on them.
11 The Lord God says: Strike with your hand, and stamp with your foot, and cry out because of all the evil abominations of the house of Israel, for they will fall by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence. 12 He who is far off will die of the pestilence. He who is near will fall by the sword. He who remains and is besieged will die by famine. Thus I will accomplish my wrath on them.
13 You will know that I am the Lord, when their slain men are among their idols around their altars, on every high hill, on all the tops of the mountains, under every green tree, and under every thick oak, the places where they offered pleasant aroma to all their idols. 14 I will stretch out my hand on them and make the land desolate and waste, from the wilderness toward Diblah, throughout all their habitations. Then they will know that I am the Lord.’ ”