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.”