Ezekiel 21

1 Then came the word of Yahweh unto me, saying:

And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

2 Son of man Set thy face against Jerusalem, And drop thy word against the holy places And prophesy against the soil of Israel.

Son of man, set thy face toward Jerusalem, and drop [thy word] toward the sanctuaries, and prophesy against the land of Israel;

3 Thou shalt say then to the soil of Israel Thus saith Yahweh, Behold me against thee, Therefore will I bring forth my sword out of its sheath, —and will cut off from thee the righteous and the lawless.

and say to the land of Israel, Thus saith the LORD: Behold, I am against thee, and will draw forth my sword out of its sheath, and will cut off from thee the righteous and the wicked.

4 Because I have cut off from thee the righteous and the lawless, Therefore shall my sword go forth out of its sheath against all flesh from south to north:

Seeing then that I will cut off from thee the righteous and the wicked, therefore shall my sword go forth out of its sheath against all flesh from the south to the north:

5 So shall all flesh know that, I, Yahweh have brought forth my sword out of its sheath, — it shall not return any more.

and all flesh shall know that I the LORD have drawn forth my sword out of its sheath; it shall not return any more.

6 Thou, therefore O son of man sigh, — In the sharp pain of thy loins and in bitterness, shalt thou sigh before their eyes.

Sigh therefore, thou son of man; with the breaking of thy loins and with bitterness shalt thou sigh before their eyes.

7 And it shall come to pass when they shall say unto thee, Wherefore art thou sighing? that thou shalt say, For the report because it cometh, When every heart shall melt. And all hands be unnerved And every spirit shall become faint. And all knees shall be weak as water, Lo! it cometh and shall be brought to pass, Saith My Lord, Yahweh.

And it shall be, when they say unto thee, Wherefore sighest thou? that thou shalt say, Because of the tidings, for it cometh: and every heart shall melt, and all hands shall be feeble, and every spirit shall faint, and all knees shall be weak as water: behold, it cometh, and it shall be done, saith the Lord GOD.

8 And the word of Yahweh came unto me. saying:

And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,

9 Son of man, Prophesy and thou shalt say, Thus saith My Lord, — Say, A sword! a sword! Sharpened moreover also furbished:

Son of man, prophesy, and say, Thus saith the LORD: Say, A sword, a sword, it is sharpened, and also furbished:

10 To make a slaughter, is it sharpened, That it may flash as lightning, is it furbished. Or shall we flourish the royal rod of my son which despiseth every tree?

it is sharpened that it may make a slaughter; it is furbished that it may be as lightning: shall we then make mirth? the rod of my son, it contemneth every tree.

11 It hath. however been given to be furbished that it may be grasped by the hand: The same is a sword sharpened. Yea the same, is furbished, Ready to be given into the hand of the slayer.

And it is given to be furbished, that it may be handled: the sword, it is sharpened, yea, it is furbished, to give it into the hand of the slayer.

12 Make an outcry and howl son of man, For the same hath come against my people, the same is against all the princes of Israel, - Who are thrown to the sword with my people, Therefore smite thou upon thy thigh.

Cry and howl, son of man: for it is upon my people, it is upon all the princes of Israel: they are delivered over to the sword with my people: smite therefore upon thy thigh.

13 For trial hath been made, What then, even though the royal rod despiseth, shall it not be? Demandeth My Lord. Yahweh.

For there is a trial; and what if even the rod that contemneth shall be no more? saith the Lord GOD.

14 Thou, therefore, son of man, Prophesy, and smite thy hands together, And let the sword smite twice thrice the sword of the slain! the same is the great sword of the slain, that which hemmeth them in.

Thou therefore, son of man, prophesy, and smite thine hands together; and let the sword be doubled the third time, the sword of the deadly wounded: it is the sword of the great one that is deadly wounded, which entereth into their chambers.

15 That the heart may melt And the overthrow be multiplied at all their gates, I have recompensed a slaying by the sword: Surely it hath been made ready to flash like lightning, keen for slaughter.

I have set the point of the sword against all their gates, that their heart may melt, and their stumblings be multiplied: ah! it is made as lightning, it is pointed for slaughter.

16 One firm stroke to the right. Turn to the left, - Whithersoever thine edge is directed,

Gather thee together, go to the right; set thyself in array, go to the left; whithersoever thy face is set.

17 Yea even I myself, will smite my hands together, And will cause mine indignation to find rest, — I Yahweh, have spoken.

I will also smite mine hands together, and I will satisfy my fury: I the LORD have spoken it.

18 Then came the word of Yahweh unto me saying:

The word of the LORD came unto me again, saying,

19 Thou, therefore son of man. Appoint thee two ways For the sword of the king of Babylon to enter, Out of one land shall those two ways come, — And a hand, engrave thou, At the head of the way to the city, engrave it.;

Also, thou son of man, appoint thee two ways, that the sword of the king of Babylon may come; they twain shall come forth out of one land: and mark out a place, mark it out at the head of the way to the city.

20 A way, shalt thou appoint, for the sword to enter. Even to Rabbah of the sons of Ammon, — And to Judah against Jerusalem, the defenced,

Thou shalt appoint a way, for the sword to come to Rabbah of the children of Ammon, and to Judah in Jerusalem the defenced.

21 For the king of Babylon, hath come to a stand, At the parting of the way At the head of the two ways To divine a divination: He hath shaken with arrows He hath asked of the household gods, He hath inspected the liver.

For the king of Babylon stood at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination: he shook the arrows to and fro, he consulted the teraphim, he looked in the liver.

22 On his right hand, hath come the divination—Jerusalem! To plant battering-rams To open a hole by breach To lift up the voice with a war-shout, — To plant battering-rams against the gates, To cast up an earth-work To build a siege-wall.

In his right hand was the divination [for] Jerusalem, to set battering rams, to open the mouth in the slaughter, to lift up the voice with shouting, to set battering rams against the gates, to cast up mounts, to build forts.

23 Though it will become to them a veritably false divination in their eyes, even when bound by oaths to them Yet, he, calling to mind iniquity, [will determine] that it shall be captured.

And it shall be unto them as a vain divination in their sight, which have sworn oaths unto them: but he bringeth iniquity to remembrance, that they may be taken.

24 Therefore Thus saith My Lord. Yahweh, Because ye have brought to mind your iniquity, by revealing your transgressions causing your sins to appear in all your doings, - Because ye have brought yourselves to mind By force shall ye be captured.

Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD: Because ye have made your iniquity to be remembered, in that your transgressions are discovered, so that in all your doings your sins do appear; because that ye are come to remembrance, ye shall be taken with the hand.

25 Thou therefore, O profane, lawless one, prince of Israel, - Whose day hath come, in a time of final iniquity:

And thou, O deadly wounded wicked one, the prince of Israel, whose day is come, in the time of the iniquity of the end;

26 Thus, saith My Lord. Yahweh, Remove the turban, And lift off the crown, — This not that, The abased, exalt, And the exalted, abase.

thus saith the Lord GOD: Remove the mitre, and take off the crown: this [shall be] no more the same: exalt that which is low, and abase that which is high.

27 An overthrow overthrow overthrow, will I make it, — Even this, hath not befallen until the coming of One to whom belongeth the right Then will I bestow it.

I will overturn, overturn, overturn it: this also shall be no more, until he come whose right it is; and I will give it [him].

28 Thou, therefore, son of man Prophesy and say, thus, saith My Lord. Yahweh, As to the sons of Ammon and as to their reproach Yea thou shalt say. A sword! a sword! Drawn for slaughter, Furbished, that when it beginneth, it may flash like lightning;

And thou, son of man, prophesy, and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD concerning the children of Ammon, and concerning their reproach; and say thou, A sword, a sword is drawn, for the slaughter it is furbished, to cause it to devour, that it may be as lightning:

29 Since they see for thee, false visions, Since they divine for thee lies, To stretch thee upon the necks of them who are the most profaned of lawless ones, Whose day hath come, in a time of final iniquity,

whiles they see vanity unto thee, whiles they divine lies unto thee, to lay thee upon the necks of the wicked that are deadly wounded, whose day is come, in the time of the iniquity of the end.

30 Put it back into its sheath! In the place where thou wast created In the land of thy nativity, will I judge thee

Cause it to return into its sheath. In the place where thou wast created, in the land of thy birth, will I judge thee.

31 Then will I pour out upon thee mine indignation, With the fire of mine outburst, will I blow upon thee; and will deliver thee up into the hand of brutish men, skilled to destroy.

And I will pour out mine indignation upon thee; I will blow upon thee with the fire of my wrath: and I will deliver thee into the hand of brutish men, skilful to destroy.

32 For the fire, shalt thou serve as fuel, Thy blood shall be in the midst of the land, - Thou shalt not be remembered, For I, Yahweh, have spoken.

Thou shalt be for fuel to the fire; thy blood shall be in the midst of the land; thou shalt be no more remembered: for I the LORD have spoken it.