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

And the word of Jehovah came unto me, saying,

2 “ Son of man, set your face toward Jerusalem, preach against the holy places, and prophesy against the land of Israel;

Son of man, set thy face against Jerusalem, and drop against 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 I will draw My sword out of its sheath and cut off both righteous and wicked from you.

and say to the land of Israel, Thus saith Jehovah: Behold, I am against thee, and I will draw forth my sword out of its sheath, and will cut off from thee the righteous and the wicked.

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

Seeing 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 t hat all flesh may know that I, the Lord, have drawn My sword out of its sheath; it shall not return anymore.”’

and all flesh shall know that I Jehovah have drawn forth my sword out of its sheath: it shall not return any more.

6 S igh therefore, son of man, with a breaking heart, and sigh with bitterness before their eyes.

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

7 A nd it shall be when they say to you, ‘Why are you sighing?’ that you shall answer, ‘Because of the news; when 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 is coming and shall be brought to pass,’ says the Lord God.”

And it shall be, when they say unto thee, Wherefore dost thou sigh? that thou shalt say, Because of the tidings, for it cometh; and every heart shall melt, and all hands shall be feeble, and every spirit shall languish, and all knees shall melt into water: behold, it cometh; it is here, saith the Lord Jehovah.

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

And the word of Jehovah came unto me, saying,

9 “ Son 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 Jehovah: Say, A sword, a sword is sharpened, and also furbished.

10 S harpened to make a dreadful slaughter, Polished to flash like lightning! Should we then make mirth? It despises the scepter of My son, As it does all wood.

It is sharpened for sore slaughter, it is furbished that it may glitter. Shall we then make mirth, The sceptre of my son contemneth all wood?

11 A nd He has given it to be polished, That it may be handled; This sword is sharpened, and it is polished To be given into the hand of the slayer.’

And he hath given it to be furbished that it may be handled. The sword,—it is sharpened, and it is furbished to give it into the hand of the slayer.

12 “ Cry and wail, son of man; For it will be against My people, Against all the princes of Israel. Terrors including the sword will be against My people; Therefore strike your thigh.

Cry and howl, son of man; for it shall be against my people, it shall be against all the princes of Israel: they are given up to the sword along with my people: smite therefore upon the thigh.

13 “ Because it is a testing, And what if the sword despises even the scepter? The scepter shall be no more, ” says the Lord God.

For the trial; and what if even the contemning sceptre shall be no ? saith the Lord Jehovah.

14 “ You therefore, son of man, prophesy, And strike your hands together. The third time let the sword do double damage. It is the sword that slays, The sword that slays the great men, That enters their private chambers.

And thou, son of man, prophesy, and smite thy hands together; for the sword shall be doubled the third time: it is the sword of the slain, the sword that hath slain the great one, which encompasseth them privily.

15 I have set the point of the sword against all their gates, That the heart may melt and many may stumble. Ah! It is made bright; It is grasped for slaughter:

In order that the heart may melt, and the stumbling-blocks be multiplied, I have set the threatening sword against all their gates: ah! it is made glittering, it is whetted for the slaughter.

16 “ Swords at the ready! Thrust right! Set your blade! Thrust left— Wherever your edge is ordered!

Gather up, go to the right hand, turn thee, go to the left, whithersoever thy face is appointed.

17 “ I also will beat My fists together, And I will cause My fury to rest; I, the Lord, have spoken.”

And I myself will smite my hands together, and I will satisfy my fury: I Jehovah have spoken.

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

And the word of Jehovah came unto me, saying,

19 “ And son of man, appoint for yourself two ways for the sword of the king of Babylon to go; both of them shall go from the same land. Make a sign; put it at the head of the road to the city.

And thou, son of man, set thee two ways, by which the sword of the king of Babylon may come—out of one land shall they both come—and make thee a signpost, make it at the head of the way to the city.

20 A ppoint a road for the sword to go to Rabbah of the Ammonites, and to Judah, into fortified Jerusalem.

Appoint a way for the coming of the sword to Rabbah of the children of Ammon, and to Judah at the fenced of Jerusalem.

21 F or the king of Babylon stands at the parting of the road, at the fork of the two roads, to use divination: he shakes the arrows, he consults the images, he looks at the 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 arrows, he inquireth of the teraphim, he looketh in the liver.

22 I n his right hand is the divination for Jerusalem: to set up battering rams, to call for a slaughter, to lift the voice with shouting, to set battering rams against the gates, to heap up a siege mound, and to build a wall.

In his right hand is the lot of Jerusalem to appoint battering-rams, to open the mouth for bloodshed, to lift up the voice with shouting, to appoint battering-rams against the gates, to cast mounds, to build siege-towers.

23 A nd it will be to them like a false divination in the eyes of those who have sworn oaths with them; but he will bring their iniquity to remembrance, that they may be taken.

And this shall be a false divination in their sight, for them that have sworn oaths; but he will call to remembrance the iniquity, that they may be taken.

24 “ Therefore thus says the Lord God: ‘Because you have made 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 remembrance, you shall be taken in hand.

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

25 ‘ Now to you, O profane, wicked prince of Israel, whose day has come, whose iniquity shall end,

And thou, profane, wicked prince of Israel, whose day is come, at the time of the iniquity of the end,

26 t hus says the Lord God: “Remove the turban, and take off the crown; Nothing shall remain the same. Exalt the humble, and humble the exalted.

—thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Remove the mitre and take off the crown; what is shall be no. Exalt that which is low, and abase that which is high.

27 O verthrown, overthrown, I will make it overthrown! It shall be no longer, Until He comes whose right it is, And I will give it to Him. ”’ A Sword Against the Ammonites

I will overturn, overturn, overturn it! This also shall be no, until he come whose right it is; and I will give it.

28 “ And you, son of man, prophesy and say, ‘Thus says the Lord God concerning the Ammonites and concerning their reproach,’ and say: ‘A sword, a sword is drawn, Polished for slaughter, For consuming, for flashing—

And thou, son of man, prophesy and say, Thus speaketh the Lord Jehovah concerning the children of Ammon, and concerning their reproach; and thou shalt say, A sword, a sword is drawn; for the slaughter is it furbished, that it may consume, that it may glitter:

29 W hile they see false visions for you, While they divine a lie to you, To bring you on the necks of the wicked, the slain Whose day has come, Whose iniquity shall end.

whilst they see vanity for thee, whilst they divine a lie unto thee, to lay thee upon the necks of the wicked that are slain, whose day is come at the time of the iniquity of the end.

30 ‘ Return it to its sheath. I will judge you In the place where you were created, In the land of your nativity.

Restore to its sheath. I will judge thee in the place where thou wast created, in the land of thy birth.

31 I will pour out My indignation on you; I will blow against you with the fire of My wrath, And deliver you into the hands of brutal men who are skillful to destroy.

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

32 Y ou shall be fuel for the fire; Your blood shall be in the midst of the land. You shall not be remembered, For I the Lord have spoken.’”

Thou shalt be for fuel to the fire; thy blood shall be in the midst of the land; thou shalt not be remembered: for I Jehovah have spoken.