Jezekiel 21

1 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

2 Therefore prophesy, son of man, set thy face steadfastly toward Jerusalem, and look toward their holy places, and thou shalt prophesy against the land of Israel,

Son of man, set thy face toward Jerusalem, and drop [thy word] toward the holy places, and prophesy against the land of Israel,

3 and thou shalt say to the land of Israel, Thus saith the Lord; Behold, I am against thee, and I will draw forth my sword out of its sheath, and I will destroy out of thee the transgressor and unrighteous.

And say to the land of Israel, Thus saith the LORD; Behold, I [am] against thee, and will draw forth my sword out of his sheath, and will cut off from thee the righteous and the wicked.

4 Because I will destroy out of thee the unrighteous and the transgressor, [therefore] so shall my sword come forth out of its sheath against all flesh from the south to the north:

Seeing then that I will cut off from thee the righteous and the wicked, therefore shall my sword go forth out of his sheath against all flesh from the south to the north:

5 and all flesh shall know that I the Lord have drawn forth my sword out of its sheath: it shall not return any more.

That all flesh may know that I the LORD have drawn forth my sword out of his sheath: it shall not return any more.

6 And thou, son of man, groan with the breaking of thy loins; thou shalt even groan heavily in their sight.

Sigh therefore, thou son of man, with the breaking of [thy] loins; and with bitterness sigh before their eyes.

7 And it shall come to pass, if they shall say to thee, Wherefore dost thou groan? that thou shalt say, For the report; because it comes: and every heart shall break, and all hands shall become feeble, and all flesh and every spirit shall faint, and all thighs shall be defiled with moisture: behold, it comes, saith the Lord.

And it shall be, when they say unto thee, Wherefore sighest thou? that thou shalt answer, For the tidings; because it cometh: and every heart shall melt, and all hands shall be feeble, and every spirit shall faint, and all knees shall be weak [as] water: behold, it cometh, and shall be brought to pass, saith the Lord GOD.

8 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

Again the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

9 Son of man, prophesy, and thou shalt say, Thus saith the Lord; Say, Sword, sword, be sharpened and rage,

Son of man, prophesy, and say, Thus saith the LORD; Say, A sword, a sword is sharpened, and also furbished:

10 that thou mayest slay victims; be sharpened that thou mayest be bright, ready for slaughter, slay, set at nought, despise every tree.

It is sharpened to make a sore slaughter; it is furbished that it may glitter: should we then make mirth? it contemneth the rod of my son, [as] every tree.

11 And he made it ready for his hand to hold: the sword is sharpened, it is ready to put into the hand of the slayer.

And he hath given it to be furbished, that it may be handled: this sword is sharpened, and it is furbished, to give it into the hand of the slayer.

12 Cry out and howl, son of man: for this [sword] is come upon my people, this [sword is come] upon all the princes of Israel: they shall be as strangers: [judgment] with the sword is come upon my people: therefore clap thine hands, for sentence has been passed:

Cry and howl, son of man: for it shall be upon my people, it [shall be] upon all the princes of Israel: terrors by reason of the sword shall be upon my people: smite therefore upon [thy] thigh.

13 and what if even the tribe be rejected? it shall not be, saith the Lord God.

Because [it is] a trial, and what if [the sword] contemn even the rod? it shall be no [more], saith the Lord GOD.

14 And thou, son of man, prophesy, and clap thine hands, and take a second sword: the third sword is [the sword] of the slain, the great sword of the slain: and thou shalt strike them with amazement, lest the heart should faint

Thou therefore, son of man, prophesy, and smite [thine] hands together, and let the sword be doubled the third time, the sword of the slain: it [is] the sword of the great [men that are] slain, which entereth into their privy chambers.

15 and the weak ones be multiplied at every gate—they are given up to the slaughter of the sword: it is well fitted for slaughter, it is well fitted for glittering.

I have set the point of the sword against all their gates, that [their] heart may faint, and [their] ruins be multiplied: ah! [it is] made bright, [it is] wrapped up for the slaughter.

16 And do thou go on, sharpen thyself on the right and on the left whithersoever thy face may set itself.

Go thee one way or other, [either] on the right hand, [or] on the left, whithersoever thy face [is] set.

17 And I also will clap my hands, and let loose my fury: I the Lord have spoken [it].

I will also smite mine hands together, and I will cause my fury to rest: I the LORD have said [it].

18 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

The word of the LORD came unto me again, saying,

19 and thou, son of man, appoint thee two ways, that the sword of the king of Babylon may enter in: the two shall go forth of one country; and [there shall be] a force at the top of the way of the city, thou shalt set [it] at the top of the way,

Also, thou son of man, appoint thee two ways, that the sword of the king of Babylon may come: both twain shall come forth out of one land: and choose thou a place, choose [it] at the head of the way to the city.

20 that the sword may enter in upon Rabbath of the children of Ammon, and upon Judea, and upon Jerusalem in the midst thereof.

Appoint a way, that the sword may come to Rabbath of the Ammonites, and to Judah in Jerusalem the defenced.

21 For the king of Babylon shall stand on the old way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination, to make bright the arrow, and to enquire of the graven images, and to examine [the victims].

For the king of Babylon stood at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination: he made [his] arrows bright, he consulted with images, he looked in the liver.

22 On his right was the divination against Jerusalem, to cast a mound, to open the mouth in shouting, to lift up the voice with crying, to cast a mound against her gates, to cast up a heap, and to build forts.

At his right hand was the divination for Jerusalem, to appoint captains, to open the mouth in the slaughter, to lift up the voice with shouting, to appoint [battering] rams against the gates, to cast a mount, [and] to build a fort.

23 And he was to them as one using divination before them, and he himself recounting his iniquities, that they might be borne in mind.

And it shall be unto them as a false divination in their sight, to them that have sworn oaths: but he will call to remembrance the iniquity, that they may be taken.

24 Therefore thus saith the Lord, Because ye have caused your iniquities to be remembered, in the discovery of your wickedness, so that your sins should be seen, in all your wickedness and in your [evil] practices; because ye have caused remembrance [of them], in these shall ye be taken.

Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because ye have made your iniquity to be remembered, in that your transgressions are discovered, so that in all your doings your sins do appear; because, [I say], that ye are come to remembrance, ye shall be taken with the hand.

25 And thou profane wicked prince of Israel, whose day, [even] an end, is come in a sea of iniquity, thus saith the Lord;

And thou, profane wicked prince of Israel, whose day is come, when iniquity [shall have] an end,

26 Thou hast taken off the mitre and put on the crown, it shall not have such [another] after it: thou hast abased that which was high, and exalted that which was low.

Thus saith the Lord GOD; Remove the diadem, and take off the crown: this [shall] not [be] the same: exalt [him that is] low, and abase [him that is] high.

27 Injustice, injustice, injustice, will I make it: woe to it: such shall it be until he comes to whom it belongs; and I will deliver [it] to him.

I will overturn, overturn, overturn, it: and it shall be no [more], until he come whose right it is; and I will give it [him].

28 And thou, son of man, prophesy, and thou shalt say, Thus saith the Lord, concerning the children of Ammon, and concerning their reproach; and thou shalt say, O sword, sword, drawn for slaughter, and drawn for destruction, awake, that thou mayest gleam.

And thou, son of man, prophesy and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD concerning the Ammonites, and concerning their reproach; even say thou, The sword, the sword [is] drawn: for the slaughter [it is] furbished, to consume because of the glittering:

29 While thou art seeing vain [visions], and while thou art prophesying falsehoods, to bring thyself upon the necks of ungodly transgressors, the day is come, [even] an end, in a season of iniquity.

Whiles they see vanity unto thee, whiles they divine a lie unto thee, to bring thee upon the necks of [them that are] slain, of the wicked, whose day is come, when their iniquity [shall have] an end.

30 Turn, rest not in this place wherein thou wert born: in thine own land will I judge thee.

Shall I cause [it] to return into his sheath? I will judge thee in the place where thou wast created, in the land of thy nativity.

31 And I will pour out my wrath upon thee, I will blow upon thee with the fire of my wrath, and I will deliver thee into the hands of barbarians skilled in working destruction.

And I will pour out mine indignation upon thee, I will blow against thee in the fire of my wrath, and deliver thee into the hand of brutish men, [and] skilful to destroy.

32 Thou shalt be fuel for fire; thy blood shall be in the midst of thy land; there shall be no remembrance at all of thee: for I the Lord have spoken [it].

Thou shalt be for fuel to the fire; thy blood shall be in the midst of the land; thou shalt be no [more] remembered: for I the LORD have spoken [it].