< Ezekiel 5 >

1 “And you, son of man, take a sharp weapon for yourself, take the barber’s razor for yourself, and you have caused [it] to pass over your head, and over your beard, and you have taken weighing scales for yourself, and apportioned them.
And you, son of man, take you a sword sharper than a barber's razor; you shall procure it for yourself, and shall bring it upon your head, and upon your beard: and you shall take a pair of scales, and shall separate the hair.
2 You burn a third part with fire in the midst of the city, at the fullness of the days of the siege; and you have taken the third part, you strike with a weapon around it; and the third part you scatter to the wind, and I draw out a weapon after them.
A fourth part you shall burn in the fire in the midst of the city, at the fulfilment of the days of the siege: and you shall take a fourth part, and burn it up in the midst of it: and a fourth part you shall cut with a sword round about it: and a fourth part you shall scatter to the wind; and I will draw out a sword after them.
3 And you have taken there a few in number—and have bound them in your skirts;
And you shall take thence a few in number, and shall wrap them in the fold of your garment.
4 and you take of them again, and have cast them into the midst of the fire, and have burned them in the fire—out of it comes forth a fire to all the house of Israel.”
And you shall take of these again, and cast them into the midst of the fire, and burn them up with fire: from thence shall come forth fire; and you shall say to the whole house of Israel,
5 Thus said Lord YHWH: “This [is] Jerusalem, I have set her in the midst of the nations, And the lands [are] around her.
Thus says the Lord; This is Jerusalem: I have set her and the countries round about her in the midst of the nations.
6 And she changes My judgments into wickedness more than the nations, And My statutes more than the lands that [are] around her, For they have kicked against My judgments, And My statutes—they have not walked in them.”
And you shall declare mine ordinances to the lawless one from out of the nations; and my statutes [to the sinful one] of the countries round about her: because they have rejected mine ordinances, and have not walked in my statutes.
7 Therefore, thus said Lord YHWH: “Because of your multiplying above the nations that [are] around you, You have not walked in My statutes, And you have not done My judgments, According to the judgments of the nations that [are] around you, you have not done.”
Therefore thus says the Lord, Because your occasion [for sin has been taken] from the nations round about you, and you have not walked in my statutes, nor kept mine ordinances, nay, you have not even done according to the ordinances of the nations round about you; therefore thus says the Lord;
8 Therefore, thus said Lord YHWH: “Behold, I [am] against you, even I, And I have done judgments in your midst, Before the eyes of the nations.
Behold, I am against you, and I will execute judgement in the midst of you in the sight of the nations.
9 And I have done in you that which I have not done, And the like of which I do not do again, Because of all your abominations.
And I will do in you things which I have not done, and the like of which I will not do again, for all your abominations.
10 Therefore fathers eat sons in your midst, And sons eat their fathers, And I have done judgments in you, And have scattered all your remnant to every wind.
Therefore the fathers shall eat [their] children in the midst of you, and children shall eat [their] fathers; and I will execute judgements in you, and I will scatter all that are left of you to every wind.
11 Therefore, [as] I live,” a declaration of Lord YHWH, “Because you have defiled My sanctuary With all your detestable things, And with all your abominations, Therefore I also diminish you, And My eye does not pity, and I do not spare.
Therefore, [as] I live, says the Lord; surely, because you have defiled my holy things with all your abominations, I also will reject you; mine eye shall not spare, and I will have no mercy.
12 Your third part dies by pestilence, And are consumed by famine in your midst, And the third part fall by sword around you, And the third part I scatter to every wind, And I draw out a sword after them.
A fourth part of you shall be cut off by pestilence, and a fourth part of you shall be consumed in the midst of you with famine: and [as for another] fourth part of you, I will scatter them to every wind; and a fourth part of you shall fall by sword round about you, and I will draw out a sword after them.
13 And My anger has been completed, And I have caused My fury to rest on them, And I have been comforted, And they have known that I, YHWH, have spoken in My zeal, In My completing My fury on them.
And my wrath and mine anger shall be accomplished upon them: and you shall know that I the Lord have spoken in my jealousy, when I have accomplished mine anger upon them.
14 And I give you for a ruin, And for a reproach among nations that [are] around you, Before the eyes of everyone passing by.
And I will make you desolate, and your daughters round about you, in the sight of every one that passes through.
15 And it has been a reproach and a reviling, An instruction and an astonishment, To nations that [are] around you, In My doing judgments in you, In anger and fury, and in furious reproofs, I, YHWH, have spoken.
And you shall be mourned over and miserable amongst the nations round about you, when I have executed judgements in you in the vengeance of my wrath. I the Lord have spoken.
16 In My sending the evil arrows of famine among them, That have been for destruction, That I send to destroy you, And I am adding famine on you, And I have broken your staff of bread.
And when I have sent against them shafts of famine, then they shall be consumed, and I will break the strength of your bread.
17 And I have sent famine and evil beasts on you, And they have bereaved you, And pestilence and blood pass over on you, And I bring a sword in against you, I, YHWH, have spoken!”
So I will send forth against you famine and evil beasts, and I will take vengeance upon you; and pestilence and blood shall pass through upon you; and I will bring a sword upon you round about. I the Lord have spoken.

< Ezekiel 5 >