Ezekiel 21
World English Bible
21 Yahweh’s word came to me, saying, 2 “Son of man, set your face toward Jerusalem, and preach toward the sanctuaries, and prophesy against the land of Israel. 3 Tell the land of Israel, ‘Yahweh says: “Behold, I am against you, and will draw my sword out of its sheath, and will cut off from you the righteous and the wicked. 4 Seeing then that I will cut off from you the righteous and the wicked, therefore my sword will go out of its sheath against all flesh from the south to the north. 5 All flesh will know that I, Yahweh, have drawn my sword out of its sheath. It will not return any more.”’
6 “Therefore sigh, you son of man. You shall sigh before their eyes with a broken heart[a] and with bitterness. 7 It shall be, when they ask you, ‘Why do you sigh?’ that you shall say, ‘Because of the news, for it comes! Every heart will melt, all hands will be feeble, every spirit will faint, and all knees will be weak as water. Behold, it comes, and it shall be done, says the Lord Yahweh.’”
8 Yahweh’s word came to me, saying, 9 “Son of man, prophesy, and say, ‘Yahweh says:
“A sword! A sword!
It is sharpened,
and also polished.
10 It is sharpened that it may make a slaughter.
It is polished that it may be as lightning.
Should we then make mirth?
The rod of my son condemns every tree.
11 It is given to be polished,
that it may be handled.
The sword is sharpened.
Yes, it is polished
to give it into the hand of the killer.”’
12 Cry and wail, son of man;
for it is on my people.
It is on all the princes of Israel.
They are delivered over to the sword with my people.
Therefore beat your thigh.
13 “For there is a trial. What if even the rod that condemns will be no more?” says the Lord Yahweh.
14 “You therefore, son of man, prophesy,
and strike your hands together.
Let the sword be doubled the third time,
the sword of the fatally wounded.
It is the sword of the great one who is fatally wounded,
which enters into their rooms.
15 I have set the threatening 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 Gather yourselves together.
Go to the right.
Set yourselves in array.
Go to the left,
wherever your face is set.
17 I will also strike my hands together,
and I will cause my wrath to rest.
I, Yahweh, have spoken it.”
18 Yahweh’s word came to me again, saying, 19 “Also, you son of man, appoint two ways, that the sword of the king of Babylon may come. They both will come out of one land, and mark out a place. Mark it out at the head of the way to the city. 20 You shall appoint a way for the sword to come to Rabbah of the children of Ammon, and to Judah in Jerusalem the fortified. 21 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 back and forth. He consulted the teraphim.[b] He looked in the liver. 22 In his right hand was the lot 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 mounds, and to build forts. 23 It will be to them as a false divination in their sight, who have sworn oaths to them; but he brings iniquity to memory, that they may be taken.
24 “Therefore the Lord Yahweh says: ‘Because you have caused your iniquity to be remembered, in that your transgressions are uncovered, so that in all your doings your sins appear; because you have come to memory, you will be taken with the hand.
25 “‘You, deadly wounded wicked one, the prince of Israel, whose day has come, in the time of the iniquity of the end, 26 the Lord Yahweh says: “Remove the turban, and take off the crown. This will not be as it was. Exalt that which is low, and humble that which is high. 27 I will overturn, overturn, overturn it. This also will be no more, until he comes whose right it is; and I will give it.”’
28 “You, son of man, prophesy, and say, ‘The Lord Yahweh says this concerning the children of Ammon, and concerning their reproach:
“A sword! A sword is drawn!
It is polished for the slaughter,
to cause it to devour,
that it may be as lightning;
29 while they see for you false visions,
while they divine lies to you,
to lay you on the necks of the wicked who are deadly wounded,
whose day has come in the time of the iniquity of the end.
30 Cause it to return into its sheath.
In the place where you were created,
in the land of your birth, I will judge you.
31 I will pour out my indignation on you.
I will blow on you with the fire of my wrath.
I will deliver you into the hand of brutish men,
skillful to destroy.
32 You will be for fuel to the fire.
Your blood will be in the middle of the land.
You will be remembered no more;
for I, Yahweh, have spoken it.”’”
Ezekiel 21
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.
Guilt remembered
18 The Lord’s word came to me: 19 You, human one, mark two roads for the coming of the sword of the king of Babylon. They should diverge from a single country. Where the road to the city begins, set up a sign, 20 and point out the way for the sword to come: “To Rabbah of the Ammonites” or “To Judah in its stronghold Jerusalem.” 21 The king of Babylon stands at the fork in the road where the two roads begin and performs his divinations. He shakes the arrows, consults the divine images, and inspects the liver. 22 On his right side appeared the omen for Jerusalem: to put battering rams in place, to proclaim war and raise the alarm, to place battering rams against the gates, and to set up siege ramps and build towers. 23 It seems to them like a lying divination, because solemn pledges had been sworn to them. But he will remind them of their guilt, and they will be captured.
24 So the Lord God proclaims: Now that you have remembered your guilt and your treacheries are exposed, your sins can be seen in everything you do. Because you have brought your guilt to light, you will be captured! 25 But you vile, wicked prince of Israel whose day has come, the time of final punishment, 26 this is what the Lord God says: Remove the turban, take off the crown! Nothing will be as it was. Bring down the exalted, and exalt the lowly. 27 A ruin, ruin, ruin, I’ll make it! Such a thing has never happened! Even before the rightful judge comes, I’ve handed it over to him.
Avenging Ammon’s disgrace
28 You, human one, prophesy and say, The Lord God proclaims to the Ammonites concerning their disgrace. Say, Sword! Sword unsheathed for slaughter, burnished, battle-ready,[d] flashing like lightning: 29 False visions and lying divinations set you against the necks of vile, wicked men whose day had come, the time of final punishment. 30 Return it to its sheath. In the place where you were created, in the land of your origin, I will judge you. 31 I will pour out my wrath against you. With a raging fire I will blow against you, and I will hand you over to those who burn and forge destruction. 32 Fire will consume you, your blood will sink into the earth, and you will no longer be remembered. I, the Lord, have spoken.
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 21:1 21:6 in Heb
- Ezekiel 21:10 Heb uncertain
- Ezekiel 21:13 Heb uncertain
- Ezekiel 21:28 Or to take in the hand
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