Ezekiel 21

1 Then the word of Yahweh came to me, saying,

Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying:

2 “Son of man, set your face toward Jerusalem, and speak against the sanctuaries; prophesy against the land of Israel.

'Son of man, set thy face toward Jerusalem, and preach toward the sanctuaries, and prophesy against the land of Israel;

3 Say to the land of Israel, 'Yahweh says this: Behold! I am against you! I will draw my sword from its sheath and cut off both the righteous person and the wicked person from you!

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 In order for me to cut off both the righteous and the wicked from you, my sword will go out from its sheath against all flesh from the south to the 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 Then all flesh will know that I, Yahweh, have drawn my sword from its sheath. It will no longer hold back!'

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 As for you, son of man, groan as your loins break! In bitterness groan 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 Then it will happen that they will ask you, 'For what reason are you groaning?' Then you will say, 'Because of the news that is coming, for every heart will faint away, and every hand will falter! Every spirit will grow faint, and every knee will flow like water. Behold! It is coming and it will be like this!—this is the Lord Yahweh's declaration.'”

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 slack, and every spirit shall be faint, and all knees shall drip with water; behold, it cometh, and it shall be done, saith the Lord GOD.'

8 Then the word of Yahweh came to me, saying,

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

9 “Son of man, prophesy and say, 'The Lord says this: “Say: A sword! A sword! It will be sharpened and polished!

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

10 It will be sharpened in order to engage in great slaughter! It will be polished in order to be like lightning! Should we rejoice in my son's scepter? The coming sword hates every such rod!

It is sharpened that it may make a sore slaughter, it is furbished that it may glitter — or shall we make mirth? — against the rod of My son, contemning every tree.

11 So the sword will be given to be polished, and then to be grasped by the hand! The sword is sharpened and it is polished and it is to be given into the hand of the one who kills!”'”

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 Call for help and lament, son of man! For that sword has come against my people! It is against all the leaders of Israel. They are thrown against the sword with my people. Therefore, slap your thigh!

Cry and wail, son of man; for it is upon My people, it is upon all the princes of Israel; they are thrust down to the sword with My people; smite therefore upon thy thigh.

13 For there is a trial, but what if the scepter does not last?—this is the Lord Yahweh's declaration.

For there is a trial; and what if it contemn even the rod? It shall be no more, saith the Lord GOD.

14 Now you, son of man, prophesy and hit your two hands together, for the sword will attack even a third time! A sword for the ones to be slaughtered! It is a sword for the many to be slaughtered, piercing them everywhere!

Thou therefore, son of man, prophesy, and smite thy hands together; and let the sword be doubled the third time, the sword of those to be slain; it is the sword of the great one that is to be slain, which compasseth them about.

15 In order to melt their hearts and to multiply their fallen, I have set the sword for slaughter at all their gates. Ah! It is made like lightning, it is grasped 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 glittering, it is sharpened for slaughter.

16 You, sword! Strike to the right! Strike to the left! Go wherever your face is turned.

Go thee one way to the right, or direct thyself to the left; whither is thy face set?

17 For I will also hit my two hands together, and then I will bring my fury to rest! I, Yahweh, declare it!”

I will also smite My hands together, and I will satisfy My fury; I the LORD have spoken it.'

18 The word of Yahweh came to me again, saying,

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

19 “Now you, son of man, assign two roads for the sword of the king of Babylon to come. The two roads will start in the same land, and a signpost will mark one of them as leading to a city.

'Now, thou son of man, make thee two ways, that the sword of the king of Babylon may come; they twain shall come forth out of one land; and mark a signpost, mark it clear at the head of the way to the city.

20 Mark one road for the Babylonian army to come to Rabbah, the city of the Ammonites. Mark the other to lead the army to Judah and the city of Jerusalem, which is fortified.

Thou shalt make a way, that the sword may come to Rabbah of the children of Ammon, and to Judah in Jerusalem the fortified.

21 For the king of Babylon will stop at the crossroads, at the junction, in order to practice divination. He will shake some arrows and ask direction from some idols and he will examine a liver.

For the king of Babylon standeth at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination; he shaketh the arrows to and fro, he inquireth of the teraphim, he looketh in the liver.

22 In his right hand will be an omen about Jerusalem, to set battering rams against it, to open his mouth to order the slaughter, to sound a war cry, to set battering rams against the gates, to build a ramp, and to erect siege towers.

In his right hand is the lot Jerusalem, to set battering rams, to open the mouth for the slaughter, to lift up the voice with shouting, to set battering rams against the gates, to cast up mounds, to build forts.

23 It will seem to be a useless omen in the eyes of the ones in Jerusalem, those who had sworn an oath to the Babylonians! But the king will accuse them of violating their treaty in order to besiege them!

And it shall be unto them as a false divination in their sight, who have weeks upon weeks! but it bringeth iniquity to remembrance, that they may be taken.

24 Therefore the Lord Yahweh says this: Because you have made your guilt to be remembered, making your transgressions to be revealed, so that in all your actions your sins will be seen— because you have done this you will be taken in hand.

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

25 As for you, profane and wicked ruler of Israel, whose day of punishment has come, and whose time of committing iniquity has ended,

And thou, O wicked one, that art to be slain, the prince of Israel, whose day is come, in the time of the iniquity of the end;

26 the Lord Yahweh says this to you: Remove the turban and take off the crown! Things will no longer be the same! Exalt the lowly and humble the exalted!

thus saith the Lord GOD: The mitre shall be removed, and the crown taken off; this shall be no more the same: that which is low shall be exalted, and that which is high abased.

27 A ruin! A ruin! I will make it a ruin! It will not be restored until the one comes who is assigned to execute judgment.

A ruin, a ruin, a ruin, will I make it; this also shall be no more, until he come whose right it is, and I will give it him.

28 So you, son of man, prophesy and say, 'The Lord Yahweh says this to the people of Ammon concerning their coming disgrace: A sword, a sword is drawn! It is sharpened for the slaughter in order to devour, so it will be like lightning!

And thou, son of man, prophesy, and say: Thus saith the Lord GOD concerning the children of Ammon, and concerning their taunt; and say thou: O sword, O sword keen-edged, furbished for the slaughter, to the uttermost, because of the glitterings;

29 While prophets see empty visions for you, while they perform rituals to come up with lies for you, this sword will lie on the necks of the wicked who are about to be killed, whose day of punishment has come and whose time of iniquity is about to end.

While they see falsehood unto thee, while they divine lies unto thee, to lay thee upon the necks of the wicked that are to be slain, whose day is come, in the time of the iniquity of the end!

30 Return the sword to its sheath. In the place of your creation, in the land of your origin, I will judge you!

Cause it to return into its sheath! — In the place where thou wast created, in the land of thine origin, will I judge thee.

31 I will pour out my indignation on you! I will fan the fire of my rage against you and put you into the hand of cruel men, craftsmen of destruction!

And I will pour out My 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 You will become fuel for the fire! Your blood will be in the midst of the land. You will not be remembered, for I, Yahweh have declared this!'”

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.'