Ezekiel 9

1 And He cries [with] a loud voice in my ears, saying, “Inspectors of the city have drawn near, and each [with] his destroying weapon in his hand.”

Then I heard Him call out in a loud voice, saying, “Draw near, O executioners of the city, each with a weapon of destruction in hand.”

2 And behold, six men are coming from the way of the upper gate, that is facing the north, and each [with] his slaughter-weapon in his hand, and one man in their midst is clothed with linen, and a scribe’s inkhorn at his loins, and they come in, and stand near the bronze altar.

And I saw six men coming from the direction of the Upper Gate, which faces north, each with a weapon of slaughter in his hand. With them was another man clothed in linen who had a writing kit at his side. And they came in and stood beside the bronze altar.

3 And the glory of the God of Israel has gone up from off the cherub, on which it has been, to the threshold of the house.

Then the glory of the God of Israel rose from above the cherubim, where it had been, and moved to the threshold of the temple. And He called to the man clothed in linen who had the writing kit at his side.

4 And He calls to the man who is clothed with linen, who has the scribe’s inkhorn at his loins, and YHWH says to him, “Pass on into the midst of the city, into the midst of Jerusalem, and you have made a mark on the foreheads of the men who are sighing and who are groaning for all the abominations that are done in its midst.”

“Go throughout the city of Jerusalem,” said the LORD, “and put a mark on the foreheads of the men sighing and groaning over all the abominations committed there.”

5 And to the others he said in my ears, “Pass on into the city after him, and strike; your eye does not pity, nor do you spare;

And as I listened, He said to the others, “Follow him through the city and start killing; do not show pity or spare anyone!

6 aged, young man, and virgin, and infant, and women, you slay—to destruction; and against any man on whom [is] the mark you do not go near, and you begin from My sanctuary.”

Slaughter the old men, the young men and maidens, the women and children; but do not go near anyone who has the mark. Now begin at My sanctuary.” So they began with the elders who were before the temple.

7 And they begin among the aged men who [are] before the house, and He says to them, “Defile the house, and fill the courts with the wounded, go forth.” And they have gone forth and have struck in the city.

Then He told them, “Defile the temple and fill the courts with the slain. Go forth!” So they went out and began killing throughout the city.

8 And it comes to pass, as they are striking, and I am left—that I fall on my face, and cry, and say, “Aah! Lord YHWH, are You destroying all the remnant of Israel, in Your pouring out Your wrath on Jerusalem?”

While they were killing, I was left alone. And I fell facedown and cried out, “Oh, Lord GOD, when You pour out Your wrath on Jerusalem, will You destroy the entire remnant of Israel?”

9 And He says to me, “The iniquity of the house of Israel and Judah [is] very, very great, and the land is full of blood, and the city has been full of perverseness, for they have said: YHWH has forsaken the land, and YHWH is not seeing.

He replied, “The iniquity of the house of Israel and Judah is exceedingly great. The land is full of bloodshed, and the city is full of perversity. For they say, ‘The LORD has forsaken the land; the LORD does not see.’

10 And I also, My eye does not pity, nor do I spare; I have put their way on their own head.”

But as for Me, I will not look on them with pity, nor will I spare them. I will bring their deeds down upon their own heads.”

11 And behold, the man clothed with linen, at whose loins [is] the inkhorn, is bringing back word, saying, “I have done as You have commanded me.”

Then the man clothed in linen with the writing kit at his side reported back, “I have done as You commanded.”