< Ezekiel 5 >

1 Thou therefore son of man Take thee a sharp cutting instrument, a barber’s razor, shalt thou take thee, and shalt cause it to pass upon thy head and upon thy chin, —and shalt take the balances for weighing, and shalt divide the hair.
“As for you, son of man, take a sharp sword, use it as a barber’s razor, and shave your head and beard. Then take a set of scales and divide the hair.
2 A third part in the fire, shalt thou burn in the midst of the city, when the days of the siege are fulfilled, —and thou shalt take a third part, thou shalt smite it with the cuting instrument round about it, and a third part, shalt thou scatter to the wind, and, a sword, will I, make bare after them;
When the days of the siege have ended, you are to burn up a third of the hair inside the city; you are also to take a third and slash it with the sword all around the city; and you are to scatter a third to the wind. For I will unleash a sword behind them.
3 and thou shalt take from thence, a few in number, —and shalt bind them in thy skirts;
But you are to take a few strands of hair and secure them in the folds of your garment.
4 and of them, again take, and cast them into the midst of the fire, and burn them in the fire, -therefrom, shall go forth a fire unto all the house of Israel.
Again, take a few of these, throw them into the fire, and burn them. From there a fire will spread to the whole house of Israel.
5 Thus, saith My Lord, Yahweh, This, is Jerusalem, In the midst of the nations, I placed her, — and of the countries round about her;
This is what the Lord GOD says: ‘This is Jerusalem, which I have set in the center of the nations, with countries all around her.
6 But she hath changed my regulations into lawlessness, more than the nations, And my statutes more than the countries which are round bout her, For my regulations, have they rejected, And in my statutes, have they not walked.
But she has rebelled against My ordinances more wickedly than the nations, and against My statutes worse than the countries around her. For her people have rejected My ordinances and have not walked in My statutes.’
7 Therefore, Thus saith My Lord, Yahweh. Because ye have become more rebellious than the nations who are round about you, In my statutes, have not walked. And my regulations, have not done, And according to the regulations of the nations which are round about you, have not done:
Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘You have been more insubordinate than the nations around you; you have not walked in My statutes or kept My ordinances, nor have you even conformed to the ordinances of the nations around you.’
8 Therefore, Thus, saith My Lord Yahweh, Lo! I am against thee, even I, Therefore will I, execute in thy midst, judgments, in the eyes of the nations;
Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Behold, I Myself am against you, Jerusalem, and I will execute judgments among you in the sight of the nations.
9 Yea I will execute upon thee that which I have not executed, And like unto which I will not execute again, - Because of all thine abominations.
Because of all your abominations, I will do to you what I have never done before and will never do again.
10 Therefore, fathers will eat sons in thy midst, And sons will eat fathers, — And I will execute upon thee judgments, And will scatter the whole remnant of thee, to every wind.
As a result, fathers among you will eat their sons, and sons will eat their fathers. I will execute judgments against you and scatter all your remnant to every wind.’
11 Therefore as I live, Declareth My Lord Yahweh, — Surely because my sanctuary, thou hast defiled, with all thy detestable things, and with all thine abominations Even I also, will cut off, and mine eye, shall not spare, Yea even I will not pity.
Therefore as surely as I live, declares the Lord GOD, because you have defiled My sanctuary with all your detestable idols and abominations, I Myself will withdraw My favor; I will not look upon you with pity, nor will I spare you.
12 The third part of thee by pestilence, shall die, and by famine, be consumed in thy midst And the third part by the sword, shall fall round about thee, - And the third part to every wind, will I scatter, and a sword, will I make bare after them.
A third of your people will die by plague or be consumed by famine within you, a third will fall by the sword outside your walls, and a third I will scatter to every wind and unleash a sword behind them.
13 So shall mine anger have an end, And I will cause mine indignation, to find rest, upon them, and will console myself, - And they shall know that, I, Yahweh, have spoken in my jealousy, when mine indignation hath come to an end, upon them.
And when My anger is spent and I have vented My wrath against them, I will be appeased. And when I have spent My wrath on them, they will know that I, the LORD, in My zeal have spoken.
14 And I will deliver thee up to desolation and reproach, among the nations that are round about thee, —in the eyes of every passer-by.
I will make you a ruin and a disgrace among the nations around you, in the sight of all who pass by.
15 So shall it become a reproach and an insult a warning and an astonishment, to the nations that are round about thee, —in that I have executed upon thee judgments in anger and in indignation and in rebukes of indignation, I, Yahweh have spoken:
So you will be a reproach and a taunt, a warning and a horror to the nations around you, when I execute judgments against you in anger, wrath, and raging fury. I, the LORD, have spoken.
16 In that I have sent the malignant arrows of famine among them which were for destruction, which I will send to destroy you, —and famine, will I increase upon you, and will break for you the staff of bread.
When I shower you with the deadly arrows of famine and destruction that I will send to destroy you, I will intensify the famine against you and cut off your supply of food.
17 So will I send upon you famine and mischievous beast and they shall bereave thee, —and pestilence and blood, shall pass through thee, —and a sword, will I bring in upon thee, I Yahweh, have spoken.
I will send famine and wild beasts against you, and they will leave you childless. Plague and bloodshed will sweep through you, and I will bring a sword against you. I, the LORD, have spoken.”

< Ezekiel 5 >