The Flesh Or The Spirit

35 Now the word of the Lord came to me, saying, ² “Son of man, set your face against Mount Seir, and prophesy against it ³ and say to it, ‘This is what the Lord God says:

⁵ Since you have had everlasting hostility and have turned over the sons of Israel to the power of the sword at the time of their disaster, at the time of the punishment of the end,⁶ therefore as I live,” declares the Lord God, “I will certainly doom you to bloodshed, and bloodshed will pursue you; since you have not hated bloodshed, therefore bloodshed will pursue you. ⁷ I will make Mount Seir a waste and a desolation and I will eliminate from it one who passes through and returns. ⁸ I will fill its mountains with its slain; those killed by the sword will fall on your hills, in your valleys, and in all your ravines. ⁹ I will make you a permanent desolation, and your cities will not be inhabited. Then you will know that I am the Lord.

¹⁰ “Since you have said, ‘These two nations and these two lands will be mine, and we will possess them,’ although the Lord was there, ¹¹ therefore as I live,” declares the Lord God, “I will deal with you according to your anger and according to your envy which you displayed because of your hatred for them; so I will make Myself known among them when I judge you. ¹² Then you will know that I, the Lord, have heard all your insults which you have spoken against the mountains of Israel saying, ‘They are desolate; they have been given to us as food.’ ¹³ And you have spoken arrogantly against Me and have multiplied your words against Me; I Myself have heard it.” ¹⁴ This is what the Lord God says: “As all the earth rejoices, I will make you a desolation. ¹⁵ As you rejoiced over the inheritance of the house of Israel because it was desolate, so I will do to you. You will be a desolation, Mount Seir, and all Edom, all of it. Then they will know that I am the Lord.”’

The Mountains of Israel to Be Blessed

36 “Now you, son of man, prophesy to the mountains of Israel and say, ‘You mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord. ² This is what the Lord God says: “Since the enemy has spoken against you, ‘Aha!’ and, ‘The everlasting heights have become our possession,’ ³ therefore prophesy and say, ‘This is what the Lord God says: “For good reason they have made you desolate and harassed you from every side, so that you would become a possession of the rest of the nations; and you have been taken up in the talk and the rumor of the people.”’” ⁴ Therefore, you mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord God. This is what the Lord Godsays to the mountains and to the hills, to the ravines and to the valleys, to the desolate ruins and to the abandoned cities which have become plunder and an object of ridicule to the rest of the nations which are all around— ⁵ therefore the Lord God says this: “Certainly in the fire of My jealousy I have spoken against the rest of the nations, and against all Edom, who appropriated My land for themselves as a possession with wholehearted joy and with contempt of soul, in order to make its pastureland plunder.” ⁶ Therefore prophesy in regard to the land of Israel and say to the mountains and to the hills, to the ravines and to the valleys, “This is what the Lord God says: ‘Behold, I have spoken in My jealousy and in My wrath because you have endured the insults of the nations.’ ⁷ Therefore the Lord God says this: ‘I have sworn that the nations that are around you will certainly endure their insults themselves. ⁸ But as for you, mountains of Israel, you will grow your branches and bear fruit for My people Israel; for they are about to come. ⁹ For, behold, I am for you, and I will turn to you, and you will be cultivated and sown. ¹⁰ And I will multiply people on you, all the house of Israel, all of it; and the cities will be inhabited and the ruins will be rebuilt. ¹¹ I will multiply on you people and animals, and they will increase and be fruitful; and I will populate you as you were previously, and treat you better than at the beginning. Then you will know that I am the Lord. ¹² Yes, I will have people—My people Israel—walk on you and possess you, so that you will become their inheritance and never again bereave them of children.’

¹³ “The Lord God says this: ‘Since they say to you, “You are a devourer of people and have bereaved your nation of children,” ¹⁴ for that reason you will no longer devour people and no longer bereave your nation of children,’ declares the Lord God. ¹⁵ I will not let you hear insults from the nations anymore, nor will you suffer disgrace from the peoples any longer, nor will you make your nation stumble any longer,” declares the Lord God.’”