Ezekiel 21

¹And the word of the Lord was maad to me,

²and he seide, Thou, sone of man, sette thi face to Jerusalem, and droppe thou to the seyntuaries, and profesie thou ayens the erthe of Israel.

³And thou schalt seie to the lond of Israel, The Lord God seith these thingis, Lo! Y to thee, and Y schal caste my swerd out of his schethe, and Y schal sle in thee a iust man and a wickid man.

⁴Forsothe for that that Y haue slayn in thee a iust man and a wickid man, therfor my swerd schal go out of his schethe to ech man, fro the south til to the north;

⁵that ech man wite, that Y the Lord haue drawe out my swerd fro his schethe, that schal not be clepid ayen.

⁶And thou, sone of man, weile in sorewe of leendis, and in bitternessis thou schalt weile bifore hem.

⁷And whanne thei schulen seie to thee, Whi weilist thou? thou schalt seie, For hering, for it cometh; and ech herte shal faile, and alle hondis schulen be aclumsid, and ech spirit schal be sike, and watris schulen flete doun bi alle knees; lo! it cometh, and it shal be don, seith the Lord God.

⁸And the word of the Lord was maad to me,

⁹and he seide, Sone of man, profesie thou; and thou schalt seie, The Lord God seith these thingis, Speke thou, The swerd, the swerd is maad scharp, and is maad briyt;

¹⁰it is maad scharp to sle sacrifices; it is maad briyt, that it schyne. Thou that mouest the ceptre of my sone, hast kit doun ech tree.

¹¹And Y yaf it to be forbischid, that it be holdun with hond; this swerd is maad scharp, and this is maad briyt, that it be in the hond of the sleere.

¹²Sone of man, crie thou, and yelle, for this swerd is maad in my puple, this in alle the duykis of Israel; thei that fledden ben youun to swerd with my puple. Therfor smite thou on thin hipe, for it is preuyd;

¹³and this whanne it hath distried the ceptre, and it schal not be, seith the Lord God.

¹⁴Therfor, sone of man, profesie thou, and smyte thou hond to hond, and the swerd be doublid, and the swerd of sleeris be treblid; this is the swerd of greet sleyng, that schal make hem astonyed,

¹⁵and to faile in herte, and multiplieth fallingis. In alle the yatis of hem Y yaf disturbling of a swerd, scharp and maad briyt to schyne, gird to sleynge.

¹⁶Be thou maad scharp, go thou to the riyt side, ether to the left side, whidur euer the desir of thi face is.

¹⁷Certis and Y schal smyte with hond to hond, and Y schal fille myn indignacioun; Y the Lord spak.

¹⁸And the word of the Lord was maad to me,

¹⁹and he seide, And thou, sone of man, sette to thee twei weies, that the swerd of the king of Babiloyne come; bothe schulen go out of o lond, and bi the hond he schal take coniecting; he schal coniecte in the heed of the weie of the citee,

²⁰settinge a weye, that the swerd come to Rabath of the sones of Amon, and to Juda in to Jerusalem moost strong.

²¹For the king of Babiloyne stood in the meeting of twey weies, in the heed of twei weies, and souyte dyuynyng, and medlide arowis; he axide idols, and took councel at entrails.

²²Dyuynyng was maad to his riyt side on Jerusalem, that he sette engyns, that he opene mouth in sleyng, that he reise vois in yelling, that he sette engyns ayens the yatis, that he bere togidere erthe, that he bilde strengthinges.

²³And he shal be as counceling in veyn goddis answer bifor the iyen of hem, and seruynge the reste of sabatis; but he schal haue mynde on wickidnesse, to take.

²⁴Therfor the Lord God seith these thingis, For that that ye hadden mynde on youre wickidnesse, and schewiden youre trespassyngis, and youre synnes apperiden in alle youre thouytis, forsothe for that that ye hadden mynde, ye schulen be takun bi hond.

²⁵But thou, cursid wickid duyk of Israel, whos dai bifor determyned is comun in the tyme of wickidnesse,

²⁶the Lord God seith these thingis, Do awei the mitre, take awei the coroun; whether it is not this that reiside the meke man, and made low the hiy man?

²⁷Wickidnesse, wickidnesse, wickidnesse Y schal putte it; and this schal not be doon til he come, whos the doom is, and Y schal bitake to hym.

²⁸And thou, sone of man, profesie, and seie, The Lord God seith these thingis to the sones of Amon, and to the schenschipe of hem; and thou schalt seie, A! thou swerd, A! thou swerd, drawun out to sle, maad briyte, that thou sle and schyne,

²⁹whanne veyn thingis weren seien to thee, and leesingis weren dyuynyd, that thou schuldist be youun on the neckis of wickid men woundid, the dai of whiche bifore determyned schal come in the tyme of wickidnesse, turne thou ayen in to thi schethe,

³⁰in to the place in which thou were maad. Y schal deme thee in the lond of thi birthe,

³¹and Y schal schede out myn indignacioun on thee; in the fier of my strong veniaunce Y schal blowe in thee, and Y schal yyue thee in to the hondis of vnwise men, and makinge deth.

³²Thou schalt be mete to fier, thi blood schal be in the middis of erthe; thou schalt be youun to foryetyng, for Y the Lord spak.

Ezekiel 21

¹And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

²Son of man, set thy face toward Jerusalem, and drop thy word toward the holy places, and prophesy against the land of Israel,

³And 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.

⁴Seeing 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:

⁵That all flesh may know that I the Lord have drawn forth my sword out of his sheath: it shall not return any more.

⁶Sigh therefore, thou son of man, with the breaking of thy loins; and with bitterness sigh before their eyes.

⁷And 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.

⁸Again the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,

⁹Son of man, prophesy, and say, Thus saith the Lord; Say, A sword, a sword is sharpened, and also furbished:

¹⁰It 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.

¹¹And 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.

¹²Cry 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.

¹³Because it is a trial, and what if the sword contemn even the rod? it shall be no more, saith the Lord God.

¹⁴Thou 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.

¹⁵I 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.

¹⁶Go thee one way or other, either on the right hand, or on the left, whithersoever thy face is set.

¹⁷I will also smite mine hands together, and I will cause my fury to rest: I the Lord have said it.

¹⁸The word of the Lord came unto me again, saying,

¹⁹Also, 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.

²⁰Appoint a way, that the sword may come to Rabbath of the Ammonites, and to Judah in Jerusalem the defenced.

²¹For 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.

²²At 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.

²³And 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.

²⁴Therefore 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.

²⁵And thou, profane wicked prince of Israel, whose day is come, when iniquity shall have an end,

²⁶Thus 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.

²⁷I will overturn, overturn, overturn, it: and it shall be no more, until he come whose right it is; and I will give it him.

²⁸And 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:

²⁹Whiles 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.

³⁰Shall 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.

³¹And 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.

³²Thou 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.