Ezekiel symbolized the coming destruction of Jerusalem

4 Yahweh also said to me, “You human, take a large clay tablet/brick and put it in front of you. Then on the clayengrave/draw on it lines that represent Jerusalem. 2 Thendraw figures around it to represent enemy soldiers who will surround the city. Make mounds around it and a dirt ramp up against the wallaround the city. Setfigures around it that represent ◄battering rams/heavy logs that will break though the walls►. 3 Then take an iron pan, and place it to be like an iron wall between you andthe drawing of the city. Then turn your face toward the drawing. It will symbolize thatenemy troops will surround the city to attack it. That will be a warning to the Israeli people [MTY].

4-5 4-5Then lie on your left side, and stay like that for 390 days. That willsymbolize that the Israeli people will be punished for their sins; you must lie like that one day for each year during which they will be punished.

6 After that, lie down again. This time, lie on your right side for 40 days. That willsymbolize that the Israeli people will be punished more for their sins, one day for each yearduring which they will be punished. 7 Turn your face towardthe drawing of Jerusalem and bare your armlike a soldier does who prepares to go into a battle [MTY], and prophesy aboutwhat will happen to the city. 8 You will not be able to move; it will be as though I have tied you with ropes in order that you cannot turn from one side to the other until you have finishedsymbolizing how many years the city will be ◄besieged/surrounded by enemy soldiers►.

9 Before you do that, take some wheat and barley, beans, lentils, spelt and millet, and put them in a storage jar, and use that to bake breadfor yourself. That is what you will eat during the 390 days while you lie on your left side. 10 You will eat ◄8 ounces/a small loaf► of bread each day. 11 Also measure out ◄1.5 pints/0.6 liter► of water to drink each day. 12 Eat that bread like you would eat a loaf of barley bread. But use your own dried dung for fuel to bake the bread while people are watching. 13 That will symbolize that the Israeli people will be forced to eat food that is unacceptable to me when they are living in the nations to which I will force them to go.”

14 Then I said, “No, Yahweh God!Do not force me to do that! I have never caused myself to become unacceptable to you by doing anything like that. From the time when I was young, I have never eaten meat of any animal that was found dead or that had been killed by wild animals. And I have never eaten any meat that is unacceptable to you.”

15 Yahweh replied, “Okay, I will allow you to bake your bread using dried cow manure instead of human dungfor fuel.”

16 Then he said to me, “You human, I will cause the supply of food to Jerusalem to be cut off. Then the people will eat the small amounts of food and drink the small amounts of waterthat the government permits them to have, and they will be very distressed and anxious as they do that, 17 because water and food will be very scarce. They will see each other becoming extremely thin, and they will be appalled; but this will happen because they are being punished for the sins that they have committed.”

5 “Also, you human, when you start doing those things, take a sharp sword and use it like [SIM] a razor to shave your head and your beard. Then put the hair that you shaved off on scales, and divide the hairinto three equal parts. 2 When the time during whichyou will symbolize that the city will be surroundedby enemy troops ends, put a third of the hair inside thedrawing of the city and burn it. Take another third of the hair, scatter it all aroundthe drawing of the city, and then strike it with your sword. That will symbolize that I will strike the people of Jerusalem withtheir enemies’ swords. Then allow the wind to scatter the other third of the hair. That will symbolize thateven if they flee from the city, I will stillcause their enemies to pursue them and attack them with swords. 3 Take a few of your hairs and tuck them into the folds of your robe. 4 Then take a few of those hairs, throw them into the fire, and burn them up. That will symbolize that a fire will spread from Jerusalem and destroy things throughout Israel.

5 This is what I, Yahweh the Lord, say: ‘Thisdrawing will represent Jerusalem, the city which I have set in the center of the nations, with other countries around it. 6 But the wicked people of Jerusalem rebelled against obeying my commands, and they show that they are more wicked than the people of the surrounding countries. They rejected my laws and refused to obey my commands.’

7 Therefore, this is what I, Yahweh the Lord, say: ‘You people of Jerusalem have been more rebellious than the people of the nations around you; you have not obeyed any of my laws [DOU]. You have not even obeyed the laws of the nations around you!’

8 Therefore, this is whatI, Yahweh the Lord, say: ‘I am opposed to you people of Jerusalem. I will punish you, and the people of other nations will see it happen. 9 Because of all your detestable idols, I will punish youpeople of Jerusalem like I have never done before and will never do again. 10 As a result, parents among you will eat their children, and children will eat their parentsbecause there will be nothing else to eat. I will punish you severely, and I will cause those who will still be alive to be scattered in all directions [IDM].’ 11 Therefore, I, Yahweh the Lord, declare that as surely as I am alive, because you have polluted my temple with all your disgusting statues of idols and by the other detestable things that you do, I will no longer bless you. I will not pity you or act mercifully toward you. 12 One-third of your people will die inside the city because of the plagues they will experience or by ◄famine/lack of food►. One-third of your people will be killed byyour enemies’ swords outside the city. And one-third I will cause to be scattered in all directions; butyour enemies will still pursue you and kill you with their swords.

13 Then I will no longer be angry with you; I will stop punishing [MTY] you after I have gotten revenge on you. And when I stop punishing you, you will know that I, Yahweh, have spoken to you because I have been very strongly concerned aboutwhat you have done.

14 I will cause your city to be a ruins, with the result that people of other nations that are around you will pass by and see it and sneer at you. 15 They will make fun of you and taunt you. When I severely punish you because of my being very angry [DOU] with you, they will be horrified and they will be warned. That will surely happen because I, Yahweh, have said it. 16 When I cut off your food supply and cause there to be more famine, it will be as though [MET] I am shooting at you with my arrows that will destroy you. 17 I will cause you to experience a famine, and I will send wild beasts to attack you and your children, and all your children will be killed. You will experience plagues and wars, and I will cause your enemies to attack you with their swords. That will surely happen because I, Yahweh, have said it.”