以西結書4:9-17

4:9 你要取小麥、大麥、豆子、紅豆、小米、粗麥，裝在一個器皿中，用以為自己做餅；要按你側臥的三百九十日吃這餅。

4:10 你所吃的要按分兩吃，每日二十舍客勒，按時而吃。

4:11 你喝水也要按制子，每日喝一欣六分之一，按時而喝。

4:12 你吃這餅像吃大麥餅一樣，要用人糞在眾人眼前燒烤。」

4:13 耶和華說：「以色列人在我所趕他們到的各國中，也必這樣吃不潔淨的食物。」

4:14 我說：「哎！主耶和華啊，我素來未曾被玷污，從幼年到如今沒有吃過自死的，或被野獸撕裂的，那可憎的肉也未曾入我的口。」

4:15 於是他對我說：「看哪，我給你牛糞代替人糞，你要將你的餅烤在其上。」

4:16 他又對我說：「人子啊，我必在耶路撒冷折斷他們的杖，就是斷絕他們的糧。他們吃餅要按分兩，憂慮而吃；喝水也要按制子，驚惶而喝；

4:17 使他們缺糧缺水，彼此驚惶，因自己的罪孽消滅。」

“And you, take wheat and barley, beans and lentils, millet and emmer, and put them into a single vessel and make your bread from them. During the number of days that you lie on your side, 390 days, you shall eat it.  And your food that you eat shall be by weight, twenty shekels a day; from day to day you shall eat it.  And water you shall drink by measure, the sixth part of a hin; from day to day you shall drink.  And you shall eat it as a barley cake, baking it in their sight on human dung.”  And the Lord said, “Thus shall the people of Israel eat their bread unclean, among the nations where I will drive them.”  Then I said, “Ah, Lord God! Behold, I have never defiled myself. From my youth up till now I have never eaten what died of itself or was torn by beasts, nor has tainted meat come into my mouth.”  Then he said to me, “See, I assign to you cow's dung instead of human dung, on which you may prepare your bread.”  Moreover, he said to me, “Son of man, behold, I will break the supply of bread in Jerusalem. They shall eat bread by weight and with anxiety, and they shall drink water by measure and in dismay.  I will do this that they may lack bread and water, and look at one another in dismay, and rot away because of their punishment.

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「小麥、大麥」，這兩樣算是以色列人的主要糧食，「豆子、紅豆、小米、粗麥」則算是「雜糧」。通常以色列人做餅為主食，主要是用小麥與大麥，混著雜糧一起做，大概就是飢荒的時候才會發生。

《利未記19:19》禁止以色列人「混種」耕種，但是律法並沒有禁止混用穀類煮食。不過實際上當時以色列也很少有人混著吃各種穀類。因此有學者認為這可能是巴比倫的習俗，至少應該奇異到可以引起以色列人的注意。

以西結目前要做的，就是以色列人被擄到外國之後的狀況：沒有辦法再堅持自己的潔淨律，為了生存只好吃不潔淨的食物。使用牛糞烹煮，應該也會使得食物不潔淨。但是以色列周遭的民族都常常使用牛、駱駝等乾燥的糞便作為燃料，至少不會像「人糞」這樣具有衝擊性。

而以西結這樣做是要宣告：耶路撒冷將要面臨被圍城導致的飢荒。要他們認識上帝必定會管教以色列人，讓他們知道：他們不遵行上帝的律法之後果！這是先知很重要之使命！要他們受警告而悔改（回歸上帝面前），不管他們聽不聽。