< 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.”
He cried also in my ears with a loud voice, saying, Cause them that have charge over the city to draw near, even every man with his destroying weapon in his 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, behold, six men came from the way of the higher gate, which lies toward the north, and every man a slaughter weapon in his hand; and one man among them was clothed with linen, with a writer’s inkhorn by his side: and they went in, and stood beside the brazen 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.
And the glory of the God of Israel was gone up from the cherub, whereupon he was, to the threshold of the house. And he called to the man clothed with linen, which had the writer’s inkhorn by 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.”
And the LORD said to him, Go through the middle of the city, through the middle of Jerusalem, and set a mark on the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the middle thereof.
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 to the others he said in my hearing, Go you after him through the city, and smite: let not your eye spare, neither have you pity:
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.”
Slay utterly old and young, both maids, and little children, and women: but come not near any man on whom is the mark; and begin at my sanctuary. Then they began at the ancient men which were before the house.
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.
And he said to them, Defile the house, and fill the courts with the slain: go you forth. And they went forth, and slew in 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?”
And it came to pass, while they were slaying them, and I was left, that I fell on my face, and cried, and said, Ah Lord GOD! will you destroy all the residue of Israel in your pouring out of your fury on Jerusalem?
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.
Then said he to me, The iniquity of the house of Israel and Judah is exceeding great, and the land is full of blood, and the city full of perverseness: for they say, The LORD has forsaken the earth, and the LORD sees not.
10 And I also, My eye does not pity, nor do I spare; I have put their way on their own head.”
And as for me also, my eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity, but I will recompense their way on their head.
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.”
And, behold, the man clothed with linen, which had the inkhorn by his side, reported the matter, saying, I have done as you have commanded me.