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 lieth 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 brasen 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 had gone up from the cherub, on which he was, to the threshold of the house. And he called to the man clothed with linen, who 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 midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that are done in the midst of it.

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 ye after him through the city, and smite: let not your eye spare, neither have ye 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 upon whom is the mark; and begin at my sanctuary. Then they began at the elders who 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 ye 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 upon my face, and cried, and said, Ah Lord GOD! wilt thou destroy the whole remnant of Israel in thy pouring out of thy fury upon 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 hath forsaken the earth, and the LORD seeth 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 upon 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, who had the inkhorn by his side, reported the matter, saying, I have done as thou hast commanded me.