Ezekiel 47:1–11

The Life-Giving River

47Then he brought me back to the entrance of the temple and there was water flowing from under the threshold of the temple toward the east, for the temple faced east. The water was coming down from under the south side of the threshold of the temple, south of the altar. ^c2Next he brought me out by way of the north gate and led me around the outside to the outer gate that faced east; there the water was trickling from the south side. ³As the man went out east with a measuring line in his hand, ^dhe measured off a third of a mile ^eand led me through the water. It came up to my ankles. ⁴Then he measured off a third of a mile ^fand led me through the water. It came up to my knees. He measured off another third of a mile ^gand led me through the water. It came up to my waist. ⁵Again he measured off a third of a mile ^h, and it was a river that I could not cross on foot. For the water had risen; it was deep enough to swim in, a river that could not be crossed on foot.

⁶He asked me, “Do you see this, son of man?” Then he led me back to the bank of the river. ⁷When I had returned, I saw a very large number of trees along both sides of the riverbank. ⁱ⁸He said to me, “This water flows out to the eastern region and goes down to the Arabah. When it enters the sea, the sea of foul water, ^jkthe water of the sea becomes fresh. ^l9Every kind of living creature that swarms will live wherever the river flows, ^mand there will be a huge number of fish because this water goes there. Since the water will become fresh, there will be life everywhere the river goes. ¹⁰Fishermen will stand beside it from En-gedi to En-eglaim. ⁿThese will become places where nets are spread out to dry. Their fish will consist of many different kinds, like the fish of the Mediterranean Sea. ^o11Yet its swamps and marshes will not be healed; they will be left for salt.