Ezekiel 21:1-13 ▼

1 This message came to me from the LORD:

2 |Son of Man, look toward Jerusalem, preach against its sanctuaries, and prophesy against Israel's land.

3 Declare to Israel, 'This is what the LORD says: |Watch out! I'm against you! I'm going to unsheathe my sword to kill both the righteous and the wicked among you.

4 Since I'm going to kill both the righteous and the wicked among you, I'll be unsheathing my sword against everyone from south to north.

5 Then everyone will know that I am the LORD, who unsheathed my sword, and who won't have to unsheathe it again.|'

6 |And now, Son of Man, you are to start groaning until you're sick to your stomach. You are to groan bitterly right in front of them.

7 When they'll ask you, 'Why are you groaning?' you are to say, 'Because of the news that just arrived. Every heart will melt with fear, every hand will grow limp, every spirit will grow faint, and every knee will glisten with sweat.' Look! It has come and it will be fulfilled,| declares the Lord GOD.

8 This message came to me from the LORD:

9 |Son of Man, prophesy and say, 'This is what the Lord GOD says: 'A sword! A sword is being sharpened. It's also being polished.

10 It's being sharpened for slaughter, and being polished to gleam like lightning.' |We shouldn't be rejoicing, should we, while my Son's scepter, the sword, is despising every tree?

11 It's intended to be polished so it can be grasped in the hand. The sword is sharpened. It's polished for placement into the hand of the executioner.|

12 Cry and wail, you Son of Man! It's headed against my people. It's also against all the princes of Israel, who have been tossed to the sword, along with my people. So it's time to grieve like you mean it,

13 because testing is sure to come. 'In putting the sword to the test along with the scepter, it won't keep on rejecting, will it?' declares the Lord GOD.|