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Ezekiel 21:1-17
New International Version
Ezekiel 21:1-17
New International Version
Babylon as God’s Sword of Judgment
21 [a]The word of the Lord came to me:(A) 2 “Son of man, set your face against(B) Jerusalem and preach against the sanctuary.(C) Prophesy against(D) the land of Israel 3 and say to her: ‘This is what the Lord says: I am against you.(E) I will draw my sword(F) from its sheath and cut off from you both the righteous and the wicked.(G) 4 Because I am going to cut off the righteous and the wicked, my sword(H) will be unsheathed against everyone from south to north.(I) 5 Then all people will know that I the Lord have drawn my sword(J) from its sheath; it will not return(K) again.’(L)
6 “Therefore groan, son of man! Groan before them with broken heart and bitter grief.(M) 7 And when they ask you, ‘Why are you groaning?(N)’ you shall say, ‘Because of the news that is coming. Every heart will melt with fear(O) and every hand go limp;(P) every spirit will become faint(Q) and every leg will be wet with urine.’(R) It is coming! It will surely take place, declares the Sovereign Lord.”
8 The word of the Lord came to me: 9 “Son of man, prophesy and say, ‘This is what the Lord says:
“‘A sword, a sword,
sharpened and polished—
10 sharpened for the slaughter,(S)
polished to flash like lightning!
“‘Shall we rejoice in the scepter of my royal son? The sword despises every such stick.(T)
11 “‘The sword is appointed to be polished,(U)
to be grasped with the hand;
it is sharpened and polished,
made ready for the hand of the slayer.
12 Cry out and wail, son of man,
for it is against my people;
it is against all the princes of Israel.
They are thrown to the sword
along with my people.
Therefore beat your breast.(V)
13 “‘Testing will surely come. And what if even the scepter, which the sword despises, does not continue? declares the Sovereign Lord.’
14 “So then, son of man, prophesy
and strike your hands(W) together.
Let the sword strike twice,
even three times.
It is a sword for slaughter—
a sword for great slaughter,
closing in on them from every side.(X)
15 So that hearts may melt with fear(Y)
and the fallen be many,
I have stationed the sword for slaughter[b]
at all their gates.
Look! It is forged to strike like lightning,
it is grasped for slaughter.(Z)
16 Slash to the right, you sword,
then to the left,
wherever your blade is turned.
17 I too will strike my hands(AA) together,
and my wrath(AB) will subside.
I the Lord have spoken.(AC)”
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 21:1 In Hebrew texts 21:1-32 is numbered 21:6-37.
- Ezekiel 21:15 Septuagint; the meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.
Ezekiel 21:1-17
Common English Bible
Ezekiel 21:1-17
Common English Bible
The sword
21 [a] The Lord’s word came to me: 2 Human one, face Jerusalem, preach against their sanctuary, and prophesy against Israel’s fertile land. 3 Say to Israel’s fertile land, The Lord proclaims: I’m now against you! I will draw my sword from its sheath and cut off both the righteous and the wicked from you. 4 In order to cut off the righteous and wicked from you, my sword will go out from its sheath against everyone from south to north. 5 And everyone will know that I, the Lord, have taken my sword out of its sheath. It won’t be put away again.
6 You, human one, groan in their sight; groan bitterly with trembling knees. 7 If they ask you why you’re groaning, say to them, “Because of the news.” When it comes, every heart will despair, every hand will hang lifeless, every spirit will be listless, and urine will run down every leg. It’s coming! It will happen! This is what the Lord God says.
The sword dance
8 The Lord’s word came to me: 9 Human one, prophesy! Say, The Lord proclaims! Say:
A sword! A sharp and polished sword!
10 For utter slaughter it is sharpened,
polished to flash like lightning.
Let’s not rejoice, because no one will escape the purge.[b]
11 He appoints it for polishing, to seize in the hand.
The sword is sharpened, it is polished;
it is ready for the destroyer’s hand.
12 Human one, cry aloud, and wail,
for it comes against my people,
against all of Israel’s princes,
handed over to the sword along with my people.
Therefore, strike your thigh. 13 He’s testing.
When even the rod rejects,
will it not certainly happen?[c]
This is what the Lord God says.
14 And you, human one, prophesy!
Strike hand to hand.
Let the sword strike twice, three times!
It’s a deadly sword,
a great deadly sword.
It whirls around them
15 to make hearts shudder,
to make many stumble and fall.
I’ve set the slaughtering sword
against all their gates.
Oh! It’s crafted to flash like lightning,
polished for slaughter!
16 Stab again and again! Plunge right,
plunge left, wherever your edge goes.
17 It is I who strike hand to hand!
I’ll satisfy my wrath! I, the Lord, have spoken.
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 21:1 21:6 in Heb
- Ezekiel 21:10 Heb uncertain
- Ezekiel 21:13 Heb uncertain
Ezekiel 21:1-17
King James Version
Ezekiel 21:1-17
King James Version
21 And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,
2 Son of man, set thy face toward Jerusalem, and drop thy word toward the holy places, and prophesy against the land of Israel,
3 And say to the land of Israel, Thus saith the Lord; Behold, I am against thee, and will draw forth my sword out of his sheath, and will cut off from thee the righteous and the wicked.
4 Seeing then that I will cut off from thee the righteous and the wicked, therefore shall my sword go forth out of his sheath against all flesh from the south to the north:
5 That all flesh may know that I the Lord have drawn forth my sword out of his sheath: it shall not return any more.
6 Sigh therefore, thou son of man, with the breaking of thy loins; and with bitterness sigh before their eyes.
7 And it shall be, when they say unto thee, Wherefore sighest thou? that thou shalt answer, For the tidings; because 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 shall be brought to pass, saith the Lord God.
8 Again the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,
9 Son of man, prophesy, and say, Thus saith the Lord; Say, A sword, a sword is sharpened, and also furbished:
10 It is sharpened to make a sore slaughter; it is furbished that it may glitter: should we then make mirth? it contemneth the rod of my son, as every tree.
11 And he hath given it to be furbished, that it may be handled: this sword is sharpened, and it is furbished, to give it into the hand of the slayer.
12 Cry and howl, son of man: for it shall be upon my people, it shall be upon all the princes of Israel: terrors by reason of the sword shall be upon my people: smite therefore upon thy thigh.
13 Because it is a trial, and what if the sword contemn even the rod? it shall be no more, saith the Lord God.
14 Thou therefore, son of man, prophesy, and smite thine hands together. and let the sword be doubled the third time, the sword of the slain: it is the sword of the great men that are slain, which entereth into their privy chambers.
15 I have set the point of the sword against all their gates, that their heart may faint, and their ruins be multiplied: ah! it is made bright, it is wrapped up for the slaughter.
16 Go thee one way or other, either on the right hand, or on the left, whithersoever thy face is set.
17 I will also smite mine hands together, and I will cause my fury to rest: I the Lord have said it.
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