Ezekiel 9
New American Standard Bible
The Vision of Slaughter
9 Then He cried out in my [a]presence with a loud (A)voice, saying, “Come forward, you [b]executioners of the city, each with his weapon of destruction in his hand.” 2 And behold, six men came from the direction of the upper gate which faces north, each with his smashing weapon in his hand; and among them was (B)one man clothed in linen with a scribe’s kit at his waist. And they came in and stood beside the bronze altar.
3 Then the (C)glory of the God of Israel ascended from the cherub on which it had been, to the threshold of the [c]temple. And He called to the man clothed in linen at whose waist was the scribe’s kit. 4 And the Lord said to him, “Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and make a (D)mark on the foreheads of the people who (E)groan and sigh over all the abominations which are being committed in its midst.” 5 But to the others He said in my [d]presence, “Go through the city after him and strike; do not let your eye have pity and do not spare. 6 [e]Utterly (F)kill old men, young men, female virgins, little children, and women, but do not (G)touch any person on whom is the mark; and you shall (H)start from My sanctuary.” So they started with the [f]elders who were before the [g]temple. 7 He also said to them, “(I)Defile the [h]temple and fill the courtyards with the dead. Go out!” So they went out and struck and killed the people in the city. 8 And as they were striking the people and I alone was left, I (J)fell on my face and cried out, [i]saying, “(K)Oh, Lord [j]God! Are You going to destroy the entire remnant of Israel [k]by pouring out Your wrath on Jerusalem?”
9 Then He said to me, “The guilt of the house of Israel and Judah is very, very great, and the land is (L)filled with blood, and the city is (M)full of perversion; for (N)they say, ‘The Lord has abandoned the land, and the Lord does not see!’ 10 But as for Me, (O)My eye will have no pity nor will I spare, but (P)I will bring their conduct upon their heads.”
11 Then behold, the man clothed in linen, at whose waist was the scribe’s kit, [l]reported, saying, “I have done just as You have commanded me.”
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 9:1 Lit ears
- Ezekiel 9:1 Lit punishers
- Ezekiel 9:3 Lit house
- Ezekiel 9:5 Lit ears
- Ezekiel 9:6 Lit To destruction
- Ezekiel 9:6 Or old men
- Ezekiel 9:6 Lit house
- Ezekiel 9:7 Lit house
- Ezekiel 9:8 Lit and said
- Ezekiel 9:8 Heb YHWH, usually rendered Lord
- Ezekiel 9:8 Lit by Your pouring
- Ezekiel 9:11 Lit brought back word
Ezekiel 9
Easy-to-Read Version
God’s Messengers Punish Jerusalem
9 Then God shouted to the leaders in charge of punishing the city. Each leader had his own destructive weapon in his hand.[a] 2 Then I saw six men walking on the road from the upper gate. This gate is on the north side. Each man had his own deadly weapon in his hand. One of the men wore linen clothes.[b] He wore a scribe’s pen and ink set[c] at his waist. Those men went to the bronze altar in the Temple and stood there. 3 Then the Glory of the God of Israel rose from above the Cherub angels where he had been. Then the Glory went to the door of the Temple and stopped when he was over the threshold. Then he called to the man wearing the linen clothes and the scribe’s pen and ink set.
4 Then the Lord said to him, “Go through the city of Jerusalem. Put a mark on the forehead of everyone who feels sad and upset about all the terrible things people are doing in this city.”
5-6 Then I heard God say to the other men, “I want you to follow the first man. You must kill all those who do not have the mark on their foreheads. It doesn’t matter if they are elders, young men or young women, children or mothers—you must use your weapon and kill everyone who does not have the mark on their forehead. Don’t show any mercy. Don’t feel sorry for anyone. Start here at my Temple.” So they started with the elders in front of the Temple.
7 He said to them, “Make this Temple unclean—fill this courtyard with dead bodies! Now go!” So they went and killed the people in the city.
8 I stayed there while the men went to kill the people. I bowed with my face to the ground and said, “Oh, Lord God, in showing your anger against Jerusalem, are you killing all the survivors in Israel?”
9 He said, “The family of Israel and Judah has committed many terrible sins! People are being murdered everywhere in this country, and the city is filled with crime. That is because the people say to themselves, ‘The Lord has left this country. The Lord cannot see what we are doing.’ 10 So I will not show any mercy or feel sorry for them. They brought it on themselves. I am only giving them the punishment they deserve!”
11 Then the man wearing linen clothes and a scribe’s pen and ink set spoke up. He said, “I have done what you commanded.”
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 9:1 Each … hand In Hebrew this is like Ezek. 8:11.
- Ezekiel 9:2 linen clothes Priests usually wore these clothes.
- Ezekiel 9:2 scribe’s pen and ink set A scribe was a person who copied official documents and counted supplies and things. Scribes often carried a small board with dry ink in it and a pen. They could put water on the ink and then write with it. Also in verse 11.
Ezekiel 9
New King James Version
The Wicked Are Slain
9 Then He called out in my hearing with a loud voice, saying, “Let those who have charge over the city draw near, each with a [a]deadly weapon in his hand.” 2 And suddenly six men came from the direction of the upper gate, which faces north, each with his [b]battle-ax in his hand. (A)One man among them was clothed with linen and had a writer’s inkhorn [c]at his side. They went in and stood beside the bronze altar.
3 Now (B)the glory of the God of Israel had gone up from the cherub, where it had been, to the threshold of the [d]temple. And He called to the man clothed with linen, who had the writer’s inkhorn at his side; 4 and the Lord said to him, “Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and put (C)a mark on the foreheads of the men (D)who sigh and cry over all the abominations that are done within it.”
5 To the others He said in my [e]hearing, “Go after him through the city and (E)kill;[f] (F)do not let your eye spare, nor have any pity. 6 (G)Utterly[g] slay old and young men, maidens and little children and women; but (H)do not come near anyone on whom is the mark; and (I)begin at My sanctuary.” (J)So they began with the elders who were before the [h]temple. 7 Then He said to them, “Defile the [i]temple, and fill the courts with the slain. Go out!” And they went out and killed in the city.
8 So it was, that while they were killing them, I was left alone; and I (K)fell on my face and cried out, and said, (L)“Ah, Lord God! Will You destroy all the remnant of Israel in pouring out Your fury on Jerusalem?”
9 Then He said to me, “The iniquity of the house of Israel and Judah is exceedingly great, and (M)the land is full of bloodshed, and the city full of perversity; for they say, (N)‘The Lord has forsaken the land, and (O)the Lord does not see!’ 10 And as for Me also, My (P)eye will neither spare, nor will I have pity, but (Q)I will recompense their deeds on their own head.”
11 Just then, the man clothed with linen, who had the inkhorn at his side, reported back and said, “I have done as You commanded me.”
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 9:1 Or destroying
- Ezekiel 9:2 Lit. shattering weapon
- Ezekiel 9:2 Lit. upon his loins
- Ezekiel 9:3 Lit. house
- Ezekiel 9:5 Lit. ears
- Ezekiel 9:5 Lit. strike
- Ezekiel 9:6 Lit. Slay to destruction
- Ezekiel 9:6 Lit. house
- Ezekiel 9:7 Lit. house
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2006 by Bible League International
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
