^4:1“And you, son of man, take a brick¹ and set it in front of you. Inscribe² a city on it—Jerusalem. ^4:2Lay siege to it! Build siege works against it. Erect a siege ramp³ against it! Post soldiers outside it⁴ and station battering rams around it. ^4:3Then for your part take an iron frying pan⁵ and set it up as an iron wall between you and the city. Set your face toward it. It is to be under siege; you are to besiege it. This is a sign⁶ for the house of Israel.

^4:4“Also for your part lie on your left side and place the iniquity⁷ of the house of Israel on it. For the number of days you lie on your side you will bear their iniquity. ^4:5I have determined that the number of the years of their iniquity are to be the number of days⁸ for you—390 days.⁹ So bear the iniquity of the house of Israel.¹⁰

Read in Logos

Footnotes

1 Ancient Near Eastern bricks were 10 to 24 inches long and 6 to 13 1/2 inches wide.
2 Or perhaps “draw.”
3 Or “a barricade.”
4 Heb “set camps against it.”
5 Or “a griddle,” that is, some sort of plate for cooking.
6 That is, a symbolic object lesson.
7 Or “punishment” (also in vv. 5, 6).
8 Heb “I have assigned for you that the years of their iniquity be the number of days.” Num 14:33–34 is an example of the reverse, where the days were converted into years, the number of days spying out the land becoming the number of years of the wilderness wanderings.
9 The reads “190 days.” The significance of the number 390 is not clear. The best explanation is that “days” are used figuratively for years and the number refers to the years of the sinfulness of Israel during the period of the First Temple. Some understand the number to refer to the length of the division of the northern and southern kingdoms down to the fall of Jerusalem (931–586 b.c.), but this adds up to only 345 years.
10 Or “When you have carried the iniquity of the house of Israel,” and continuing on to the next verse.

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

“And you, son of man, take a brick and lay it before you, and engrave on it a city, even Jerusalem. And put siegeworks against it, and build a siege wall against it, and cast up a mound against it. Set camps also against it, and plant battering rams against it all around. And you, take an iron griddle, and place it as an iron wall between you and the city; and set your face toward it, and let it be in a state of siege, and press the siege against it. This is a sign for the house of Israel.

“Then lie on your left side, and place the punishment of the house of Israel upon it. For the number of the days that you lie on it, you shall bear their punishment. For I assign to you a number of days, 390 days, equal to the number of the years of their punishment. So long shall you bear the punishment of the house of Israel.

NIVNew International Version (2011)

“Now, son of man, take a block of clay, put it in front of you and draw the city of Jerusalem on it. Then lay siege to it: Erect siege works against it, build a ramp up to it, set up camps against it and put battering rams around it. Then take an iron pan, place it as an iron wall between you and the city and turn your face toward it. It will be under siege, and you shall besiege it. This will be a sign to the people of Israel.

“Then lie on your left side and put the sin of the people of Israel upon yourself. You are to bear their sin for the number of days you lie on your side. I have assigned you the same number of days as the years of their sin. So for 390 days you will bear the sin of the people of Israel.

CSBChristian Standard Bible

“Now you, son of man, take a brick, set it in front of you, and draw the city of Jerusalem on it. Then lay siege against it: Construct a siege wall, build a ramp, pitch military camps, and place battering rams against it on all sides. Take an iron plate and set it up as an iron wall between yourself and the city. Face it so that it is under siege, and besiege it. This will be a sign for the house of Israel.

“Then lie down on your left side and place the iniquity of the house of Israel on it. You will bear their iniquity for the number of days you lie on your side. For I have assigned you the years of their iniquity according to the number of days you lie down, 390 days; so you will bear the iniquity of the house of Israel.

NLTNew Living Translation

“And now, son of man, take a large clay brick and set it down in front of you. Then draw a map of the city of Jerusalem on it. Show the city under siege. Build a wall around it so no one can escape. Set up the enemy camp, and surround the city with siege ramps and battering rams. Then take an iron griddle and place it between you and the city. Turn toward the city and demonstrate how harsh the siege will be against Jerusalem. This will be a warning to the people of Israel.

“Now lie on your left side and place the sins of Israel on yourself. You are to bear their sins for the number of days you lie there on your side. I am requiring you to bear Israel’s sins for 390 days—one day for each year of their sin.

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

“Now, son of man, take for yourself a brick, and you must put it before you, and you must portray on it a city, Jerusalem. And you must build against it siege works, and you must build against it a bulwark, and you must heap against it a siege ramp, and you must set up against it camps and put against it a battering ram all around. And take for yourself a plate of iron, and you must place it as a wall of iron between you and the city, and you must set your face against it, and it must be under siege, and you must lay the siege against it; it is a sign for the house of Israel. And you, lie down on your left side, and you must put the guilt of the house of Israel on it. You will carry their guilt the number of days that you will lie on it. And I will give to you the years of their guilt according to the number of the days, three hundred and ninety days, and you must bear the guilt of the house of Israel.

KJV 1900King James Version

Thou also, son of man, take thee a tile, and lay it before thee, and pourtray upon it the city, even Jerusalem: And lay siege against it, and build a fort against it, and cast a mount against it; set the camp also against it, and set battering rams against it round about. Moreover take thou unto thee an iron pan, and set it for a wall of iron between thee and the city: and set thy face against it, and it shall be besieged, and thou shalt lay siege against it. This shall be a sign to the house of Israel.

Lie thou also upon thy left side, and lay the iniquity of the house of Israel upon it: according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon it thou shalt bear their iniquity. For I have laid upon thee the years of their iniquity, according to the number of the days, three hundred and ninety days: so shalt thou bear the iniquity of the house of Israel.

Public Domain