1 A nd the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

2 S on of man, set your face toward Jerusalem and direct your word against the holy places; prophesy against the land of Israel

Son of man, set thy face toward Jerusalem, and drop thy word toward the holy places, and prophesy against the land of Israel,

3 A nd say to the land of Israel, Thus says the Lord: Behold, I am against you and will draw forth My sword out of its sheath and will cut off from you both the righteous and the wicked.

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 B ecause I will cut off from you both the righteous and the wicked, therefore shall My sword go out of 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 his sheath against all flesh from the south to the north:

5 A nd all living shall know, understand, and realize that I the Lord have drawn My sword out of its sheath; it shall not be sheathed any more.

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 S igh therefore, son of man! With breaking heart and with bitterness shall you sigh before their eyes.

Sigh therefore, thou son of man, with the breaking of thy loins; and with bitterness sigh before their eyes.

7 A nd it shall be that when they say to you, Why do you sigh? that you shall answer, Because of the tidings. When it comes, every heart will melt and all hands will be feeble, and every spirit will faint and all knees will be weak as water. Behold, it comes and it shall be fulfilled, says the Lord God.

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 A gain the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

Again the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

9 S on of man, prophesy and say, Thus says the Lord: Say, A sword, a sword is sharpened and also polished;

Son of man, prophesy, and say, Thus saith the Lord; Say, A sword, a sword is sharpened, and also furbished:

10 I t is sharpened that it may make a slaughter, polished that it may flash and glitter like lightning! Shall we then rejoice and make mirth ? But the rod or scepter of My son rejects and views with contempt every tree!

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 A nd the sword is given to be polished that it may be put to use; the sword is sharpened and polished to be given into the hand of the slayer.

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 C ry 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, and terrors by reason of the sword are upon My people. Therefore smite your thigh.

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 F or this sword has been tested and proved, and what if the rejecting and despising rod or scepter of Judah shall be no more but completely swept away? says the Lord God.

Because it is a trial, and what if the sword contemn even the rod? it shall be no more, saith the Lord God.

14 T herefore, son of man, prophesy and smite your hands together and let the sword be doubled, yes, trebled in intensity—the sword for those to be overthrown and pierced through; it is the sword of great slaughter which encompasses them.

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 threatening and glittering sword against all their gates, that their hearts may melt and their stumblings be multiplied. Ah! It is made like lightning; it is pointed and sharpened for slaughter.

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 T urn and cut right or cut left, whichever way your lust for blood and your edge direct you.

Go thee one way or other, either on the right hand, or on the left, whithersoever thy face is set.

17 I will also clap My hands, and I will cause My wrath to rest. I the Lord have said it.

I will also smite mine hands together, and I will cause my fury to rest: I the Lord have said it.

18 T he word of the Lord came to me again, saying,

The word of the Lord came unto me again, saying,

19 A lso, son of man, mark out two ways by which the sword of the king of Babylon may come; both shall come forth from the same land. And make a signpost (a hand); make it at the head of the way to a city.

Also, thou son of man, appoint thee two ways, that the sword of the king of Babylon may come: both twain shall come forth out of one land: and choose thou a place, choose it at the head of the way to the city.

20 Y ou shall point out a way for the sword to come to Rabbah of the sons of Ammon and to Judah with Jerusalem, the fortified and inaccessible.

Appoint a way, that the sword may come to Rabbath of the Ammonites, and to Judah in Jerusalem the defenced.

21 F or the king of Babylon stands at the parting of the way, at the fork of the two ways, to use divination. He shakes the arrows to and fro, he consults the teraphim (household gods), he looks at the liver.

For the king of Babylon stood at the parting of the way, at the head of the two ways, to use divination: he made his arrows bright, he consulted with images, he looked in the liver.

22 I n his right hand is the lot marked for Jerusalem: to set battering rams, to open the mouth calling for slaughter, to lift up the voice with a war cry, to set battering rams against the gates, to cast up siege mounds, and to build siege towers.

At his right hand was the divination for Jerusalem, to appoint captains, to open the mouth in the slaughter, to lift up the voice with shouting, to appoint battering rams against the gates, to cast a mount, and to build a fort.

23 A nd it shall seem like a lying divination to them who have sworn oaths. But he will remind them of their guilt and iniquity, that they may be caught.

And it shall be unto them as a false divination in their sight, to them that have sworn oaths: but he will call to remembrance the iniquity, that they may be taken.

24 T herefore thus says the Lord God: Because you have made your guilt and iniquity to be remembered, in that your transgressions are uncovered, so that in all your doings your sins appear—because, I say, you have come to remembrance, you shall be taken with the hand.

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

25 A nd you, O dishonored and wicked one, the prince of Israel, whose day will come at the time of your final reckoning and punishment,

And thou, profane wicked prince of Israel, whose day is come, when iniquity shall have an end,

26 T hus says the Lord God: Remove the miter or headband and take off the crown; things shall not remain as they have been; the low is to be exalted and the high is to be brought low.

Thus saith the Lord God; Remove the diadem, and take off the crown: this shall not be the same: exalt him that is low, and abase him that is high.

27 I will overthrow, overthrow, overthrow it; this also shall be no more until He comes Whose right it is, and I will give it to Him.

I will overturn, overturn, overturn, it: and it shall be no more, until he come whose right it is; and I will give it him.

28 A nd you, son of man, prophesy and say, Thus says the Lord God concerning the sons of Ammon and concerning their reproach: Say, A sword, a sword is drawn for the slaughter; it is polished to cause it to devour to the uttermost and to flash like lightning,

And thou, son of man, prophesy and say, Thus saith the Lord God concerning the Ammonites, and concerning their reproach; even say thou, The sword, the sword is drawn: for the slaughter it is furbished, to consume because of the glittering:

29 W hile they see for you false visions, while they divine lies for you to lay you upon the headless trunks of those who are slain, of the wicked whose day is coming at the time of the final reckoning and punishment.

Whiles they see vanity unto thee, whiles they divine a lie unto thee, to bring thee upon the necks of them that are slain, of the wicked, whose day is come, when their iniquity shall have an end.

30 R eturn to its sheath. In the place where you were created, in the land of your origin and of your birth, I will judge you.

Shall I cause it to return into his sheath? I will judge thee in the place where thou wast created, in the land of thy nativity.

31 A nd I will pour out My indignation upon you; I will blow upon you with the fire of My wrath and will deliver you into the hand of brutish men, skillful to destroy.

And I will pour out mine indignation upon thee, I will blow against thee in the fire of my wrath, and deliver thee into the hand of brutish men, and skilful to destroy.

32 Y ou shall be for fuel to the fire; your blood shall be in the midst of the land; you shall be no more remembered, for I the Lord have spoken it.

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.