Babylon as God’s Sword of Judgment

21 ^[a]The word of the Lord came to me:^{(A) 2} “Son of man, set your face against^(B) Jerusalem and preach against the sanctuary.^(C) Prophesy against^(D) the land of Israel ³ and say to her: ‘This is what the Lord says: I am against you.^(E) I will draw my sword^(F) from its sheath and cut off from you both the righteous and the wicked.^{(G) 4} Because I am going to cut off the righteous and the wicked, my sword^(H) will be unsheathed against everyone from south to north.^{(I) 5} Then all people will know that I the Lord have drawn my sword^(J) from its sheath; it will not return^(K) again.’^(L)

⁶ “Therefore groan, son of man! Groan before them with broken heart and bitter grief.^{(M) 7} And when they ask you, ‘Why are you groaning?^(N)’ you shall say, ‘Because of the news that is coming. Every heart will melt with fear^(O) and every hand go limp;^(P) every spirit will become faint^(Q) and every leg will be wet with urine.’^(R) It is coming! It will surely take place, declares the Sovereign Lord.”

⁸ The word of the Lord came to me: ⁹ “Son of man, prophesy and say, ‘This is what the Lord says:

“‘Shall we rejoice in the scepter of my royal son? The sword despises every such stick.^(T)

¹³ “‘Testing will surely come. And what if even the scepter, which the sword despises, does not continue? declares the Sovereign Lord.’

¹⁸ The word of the Lord came to me: ¹⁹ “Son of man, mark out two roads for the sword^(AD) of the king of Babylon to take, both starting from the same country. Make a signpost^(AE) where the road branches off to the city. ²⁰ Mark out one road for the sword to come against Rabbah of the Ammonites^(AF) and another against Judah and fortified Jerusalem. ²¹ For the king of Babylon will stop at the fork in the road, at the junction of the two roads, to seek an omen: He will cast lots^(AG) with arrows, he will consult his idols,^(AH) he will examine the liver.^{(AI) 22} Into his right hand will come the lot for Jerusalem, where he is to set up battering rams, to give the command to slaughter, to sound the battle cry,^(AJ) to set battering rams against the gates, to build a ramp^(AK) and to erect siege works.^{(AL) 23} It will seem like a false omen to those who have sworn allegiance to him, but he will remind^(AM) them of their guilt^(AN) and take them captive.

²⁴ “Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: ‘Because you people have brought to mind your guilt by your open rebellion, revealing your sins in all that you do—because you have done this, you will be taken captive.

²⁵ “‘You profane and wicked prince of Israel, whose day has come,^(AO) whose time of punishment has reached its climax,^{(AP) 26} this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Take off the turban, remove the crown.^(AQ) It will not be as it was: The lowly will be exalted and the exalted will be brought low.^{(AR) 27} A ruin! A ruin! I will make it a ruin! The crown will not be restored until he to whom it rightfully belongs shall come;^(AS) to him I will give it.’^(AT)

²⁸ “And you, son of man, prophesy and say, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says about the Ammonites^(AU) and their insults:

Judgment on Jerusalem’s Sins

22 The word of the Lord came to me:

² “Son of man, will you judge her? Will you judge this city of bloodshed?^(BF) Then confront her with all her detestable practices^{(BG) 3} and say: ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says: You city that brings on herself doom by shedding blood^(BH) in her midst and defiles herself by making idols, ⁴ you have become guilty because of the blood you have shed^(BI) and have become defiled by the idols you have made. You have brought your days to a close, and the end of your years has come.^(BJ) Therefore I will make you an object of scorn^(BK) to the nations and a laughingstock to all the countries.^{(BL) 5} Those who are near and those who are far away will mock you, you infamous city, full of turmoil.^(BM)

⁶ “‘See how each of the princes of Israel who are in you uses his power to shed blood.^{(BN) 7} In you they have treated father and mother with contempt;^(BO) in you they have oppressed the foreigner^(BP) and mistreated the fatherless and the widow.^{(BQ) 8} You have despised my holy things and desecrated my Sabbaths.^{(BR) 9} In you are slanderers^(BS) who are bent on shedding blood;^(BT) in you are those who eat at the mountain shrines^(BU) and commit lewd acts.^{(BV) 10} In you are those who dishonor their father’s bed;^(BW) in you are those who violate women during their period,^(BX) when they are ceremonially unclean.^{(BY) 11} In you one man commits a detestable offense with his neighbor’s wife,^(BZ) another shamefully defiles his daughter-in-law,^(CA) and another violates his sister,^(CB) his own father’s daughter.^{(CC) 12} In you are people who accept bribes^(CD) to shed blood; you take interest^(CE) and make a profit from the poor. You extort unjust gain from your neighbors.^(CF) And you have forgotten^(CG) me, declares the Sovereign Lord.^(CH)

¹³ “‘I will surely strike my hands^(CI) together at the unjust gain^(CJ) you have made and at the blood^(CK) you have shed in your midst.^{(CL) 14} Will your courage endure^(CM) or your hands^(CN) be strong in the day I deal with you? I the Lord have spoken,^(CO) and I will do it.^{(CP) 15} I will disperse you among the nations and scatter^(CQ) you through the countries; and I will put an end to^(CR) your uncleanness.^{(CS) 16} When you have been defiled^[c] in the eyes of the nations, you will know that I am the Lord.’”

¹⁷ Then the word of the Lord came to me: ¹⁸ “Son of man, the people of Israel have become dross^(CT) to me; all of them are the copper, tin, iron and lead left inside a furnace.^(CU) They are but the dross of silver.^{(CV) 19} Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: ‘Because you have all become dross,^(CW) I will gather you into Jerusalem. ²⁰ As silver, copper, iron, lead and tin are gathered into a furnace to be melted with a fiery blast, so will I gather you in my anger and my wrath and put you inside the city and melt you.^{(CX) 21} I will gather you and I will blow^(CY) on you with my fiery wrath, and you will be melted inside her.^{(CZ) 22} As silver is melted^(DA) in a furnace, so you will be melted inside her, and you will know that I the Lord have poured out my wrath^(DB) on you.’”^(DC)

²³ Again the word of the Lord came to me: ²⁴ “Son of man, say to the land, ‘You are a land that has not been cleansed or rained on in the day of wrath.’^{(DD) 25} There is a conspiracy^(DE) of her princes^[d] within her like a roaring lion^(DF) tearing its prey; they devour people,^(DG) take treasures and precious things and make many widows^(DH) within her. ²⁶ Her priests do violence to my law^(DI) and profane my holy things; they do not distinguish between the holy and the common;^(DJ) they teach that there is no difference between the unclean and the clean;^(DK) and they shut their eyes to the keeping of my Sabbaths, so that I am profaned^(DL) among them.^{(DM) 27} Her officials^(DN) within her are like wolves^(DO) tearing their prey; they shed blood and kill people^(DP) to make unjust gain.^{(DQ) 28} Her prophets whitewash^(DR) these deeds for them by false visions and lying divinations.^(DS) They say, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says’—when the Lord has not spoken.^{(DT) 29} The people of the land practice extortion and commit robbery;^(DU) they oppress the poor and needy and mistreat the foreigner,^(DV) denying them justice.^(DW)

³⁰ “I looked for someone among them who would build up the wall^(DX) and stand before me in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I found no one.^{(DY) 31} So I will pour out my wrath on them and consume them with my fiery anger,^(DZ) bringing down^(EA) on their own heads all they have done, declares the Sovereign Lord.^(EB)”

BOOK I

Psalms 1–41

Psalm 1