Bread and Water

Eze 4:7 Therefore thou shalt set thy face toward the siege of Jerusalem, and thine arm shall be uncovered, and thou shalt prophesy against it.
Eze 4:8 And, behold, I will lay bands upon thee, and thou shalt not turn thee from one side to another, till thou hast ended the days of thy siege. 

He was to be bound with ropes. He probably was able to get up to eat and to tend to personal matters.

Eze 4:9 Take thou also unto thee wheat, and barley, and beans, and lentiles, and millet, and fitches, and put them in one vessel, and make thee bread thereof, according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon thy side, three hundred and ninety days shalt thou eat thereof.

Barley was the least of the bread grains. Beans and lentils supplied protein. Millet is found in bird seed and fitches or spelt, was a type of wheat.

Eze 4:10 And thy meat which thou shalt eat shall be by weight, twenty shekels a day: from time to time shalt thou eat it.
Eze 4:11 Thou shalt drink also water by measure, the sixth part of an hin: from time to time shalt thou drink.

Everything was by measure, such as in times of scarcity.It was a vegetarian diet. Daniel preferred vegetables instead of the kings meat.

Dan 1:8 But Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king's meat, nor with the wine which he drank: therefore he requested of the prince of the eunuchs that he might not defile himself.

Eze 4:12 And thou shalt eat it as barley cakes, and thou shalt bake it with dung that cometh out of man, in their sight.
Eze 4:13 And the LORD said, Even thus shall the children of Israel eat their defiled bread among the Gentiles, whither I will drive them.

Eze 4:14 Then said I, Ah Lord GOD! behold, my soul hath not been polluted: for from my youth up even till now have I not eaten of that which dieth of itself, or is torn in pieces; neither came there abominable flesh into my mouth.
Eze 4:15 Then he said unto me, Lo, I have given thee cow's dung for man's dung, and thou shalt prepare thy bread therewith.

He was allowed to cook with cows dung because as a priest  dung from a man was a defilement. The food illustration was to show that they would not be eating as well as when they were free under their covenant in Jerusalem.  Abundance often brings idleness.

Amo 6:1 Woe to them that are at ease in Zion, and trust in the mountain of Samaria, which are named chief of the nations, to whom the house of Israel came!

Eze 4:16 Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, behold, I will break the staff of bread in Jerusalem: and they shall eat bread by weight, and with care; and they shall drink water by measure, and with astonishment:

Lev 26:26 And when I have broken the staff of your bread, ten women shall bake your bread in one oven, and they shall deliver you your bread again by weight: and ye shall eat, and not be satisfied.

Ten women would share one loaf of bread.

Eze 4:17 That they may want bread and water, and be astonied one with another, and consume away for their iniquity.

Lev 26:39 And they that are left of you shall pine away in their iniquity in your enemies' lands; and also in the iniquities of their fathers shall they pine away with them.

The LORD would bring Jerusalem into a famine because of their iniquities. I was thinking about Ezekiel being told to act out these signs to the exiles in Babylon. These were things coming to their beloved city because of sin and idolatry. As exiles they may have been saying why me LORD? I thought you were a God of love? Why be so mean? Well, he is showing them the results of their rebellion. He still loved his people and was showing them his righteous judgement of their sins, according to their covenant. He had done nothing wrong; the evil was brought upon themselves. Truth is to be received for correction and correction received brings about true repentance. God's people are not forgotten.