Jezekiel 9

1 And he cried in mine ears with a loud voice, saying, The judgement of the city has drawn near; and each had the weapons of destruction in his hand.

Then crying out in my hearing in a loud voice, he said, Let the overseers of the town come near, every man armed.

2 And, behold, six men came from the way of the high gate that looks towards the north, and each one's axe was in his hand; and there was one man in the midst of them clothed with a long robe down to the feet, and a sapphire girdle was on his loins: and they came in and stood near the brazen altar.

And six men came from the way of the higher doorway looking to the north, every man with his axe in his hand: and one man among them was clothed in linen, with a writer's inkpot at his side. And they went in and took their places by the brass altar.

3 And the glory of the God of Israel, that was upon them, went up from the cherubs to the porch of the house. And he called the man that was clothed with the long robe, who had the girdle on his loins;

And the glory of the God of Israel had gone up from the winged ones on which it was resting, to the doorstep of the house. And crying out to the man clothed in linen who had the writer's inkpot at his side,

4 And said to him, Go through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark on the foreheads of the men that groan and that grieve for all the iniquities that are done in the midst of them.

The Lord said to him, Go through the town, through the middle of Jerusalem, and put a mark on the brows of the men who are sorrowing and crying for all the disgusting things which are done in it.

5 And he said to the first in my hearing, Go after him into the city, and strike: and let not your eyes spare, and have no mercy.

And to these he said in my hearing, Go through the town after him using your axes: do not let your eyes have mercy, and have no pity:

6 Slay utterly old man and youth, and virgin, and infants, and women: but go you not near any on whom is the mark: begin at my sanctuary. So they began with the elder men who were within in the house.

Give up to destruction old men and young men and virgins, little children and women: but do not come near any man who has the mark on him: and make a start at my holy place. So they made a start with the old men who were before the house.

7 And he said to them, Defile the house, and go out and fill the ways with dead bodies, and strike.

And he said to them, Make the house unclean, make the open places full of dead: go forward and send destruction on the town.

8 And it came to pass as they were striking, that I fell upon my face, and cried out, and said, Alas, O Lord! will you destroy the remnant of Israel, in pouring out your wrath upon Jerusalem?

Now while they were doing so, and I was untouched, I went down on my face, and crying out, I said, Ah, Lord! will you give all the rest of Israel to destruction in letting loose your wrath on Jerusalem?

9 Then said he to me, The iniquity of the house of Israel and Juda is become very exceedingly great: for the land is filled with many nations, and the city is filled with iniquity and uncleanness: because they have said, The Lord has forsaken the earth, The Lord looks not upon [it].

Then he said to me, The sin of the children of Israel and Judah is very, very great, and the land is full of blood and the town full of evil ways: for they say, The Lord has gone away from the land, and the Lord does not see.

10 Therefore mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have any mercy: I have recompensed their ways upon their heads.

And as for me, my eye will not have mercy, and I will have no pity, but I will send the punishment of their ways on their heads.

11 And, behold, the man clothed with the long robe, and girded with the girdle about his loins, answered and said, I have done as you did command me.

Then the man clothed in linen, who had the inkpot at his side, came back and said, I have done what you gave me orders to do.