9 Then he cried loudly right in my ears: “Summon the commanders of the city, each holding his weapon of destruction.” ² At once, six men approached on the path from the upper gate, to the north, each man holding his weapon of destruction. Among them was a man clothed in linen, with a scribe’s writing equipment at his waist. They entered and stood by the bronze altar. ³ Then the glory of the God of Isra’el was made to go up from over the keruv, where it had been, to the threshold of the house. He called to the man clothed in linen, who had the scribe’s writing equipment at his waist. ⁴ Adonai said to him, “Go throughout the city, through all Yerushalayim, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who are sighing and crying over all the disgusting practices that are being committed in it.” ⁵ To the others I heard him say, “Go through the city after him and strike! Don’t let your eye spare; have no pity! ⁶ Kill old men, young men, girls, little children, women — slaughter them all! But don’t go near anyone with the mark. Begin at my sanctuary.” They began with the leaders in front of the house. ⁷ Then he said to them, “Defile the house! Fill the courtyards with corpses! Get going!” So they went out, spreading death in the city.

⁸ While the killing was going on, I was left alone. I fell on my face, cried, and said, “Oh, Adonai Elohim! In pouring out your fury on Yerushalayim, are you going to destroy everyone left in Isra’el?” ⁹ Then he said to me, “The wickedness of the house of Isra’el and Y’hudah is enormous, the land is full of blood, and the city is full of justice denied; because they say, ‘Adonai has left the land, Adonai doesn’t see.’ ¹⁰ But as far as I am concerned, my eye will not spare, and I will have no pity, but I will bring [the consequences of] their ways on their own heads.”

¹¹ At this point the man clothed in linen with the writing equipment at his waist returned and reported, “I have done everything you ordered me to do.”

10 Then I looked, and suddenly, on the dome over the heads of the k’ruvim, there appeared above them something like sapphire that seemed to take the form of a throne. ² He spoke to the man clothed in linen; he said, “Go in between the wheels under the k’ruvim, fill both your hands with fiery coals from between the k’ruvim, and throw them on the city.” As I watched, he went. ³ Now the k’ruvim were standing to the right of the house when the man entered, and the cloud filled the inner courtyard. ⁴ The glory of Adonai rose from above the keruv to the threshold of the house, leaving the house filled with the cloud and the courtyard full of the brilliance of Adonai’s glory. ⁵ The sound of the wings of the k’ruvim could be heard even in the outer courtyard sounding like the voice of God, Shaddai, when he speaks.

⁶ When he ordered the man clothed in linen to take fire from between the wheels, from between the k’ruvim, he went in and stood next to a wheel; ⁷ and a keruv put out his hand from between the k’ruvim into the fire between the k’ruvim, took some of it, and put it in the hands of the one clothed in linen, who took it and went out.

⁸ Now there appeared among the k’ruvim the form of a man’s hand under their wings. ⁹ I looked and saw four wheels next to the k’ruvim, one wheel next to one keruv and another wheel next to another keruv: the wheels had the color of beryl. ¹⁰ Their shape was the same for all four, like a wheel inside a wheel. ¹¹ When they moved, they could go in any of the four directions without turning as they moved; rather, wherever the head looked, they followed without turning as they moved. ¹² Their whole bodies, including their backs, hands and wings, and also the wheels, were full of eyes all around — even the wheels of the four k’ruvim. ¹³ As for the wheels, I heard them called “the wheel apparatus.” ¹⁴ Every one [of the k’ruvim] had four faces: the first face was the face of a keruv, the second face was the face of a man, the third the face of a lion and the fourth the face of an eagle.

¹⁵ Then the k’ruvim rose. These were the living creatures I had seen by the K’var River. ¹⁶ When the k’ruvim moved, the wheels went with them; and when the k’ruvim lifted their wings to rise off the ground, these wheels did not stop going with them. ¹⁷ When [the k’ruvim] stood still, [the wheels] stood still; and when the former rose, the latter rose with them; because the spirit of the living creatures was in them.

¹⁸ Now the glory of Adonai left the threshold of the house and halted above the k’ruvim. ¹⁹ The k’ruvim lifted their wings and rose off the earth — I was watching as they went off with the wheels next to them. They paused at the entrance to the east gate of Adonai’s house, with the glory of the God of Isra’el over them, from above.

²⁰ This was the living creature I had seen beneath the God of Isra’el by the K’var River, so I knew they were k’ruvim. ²¹ Each of the four had four faces, and each had four wings, and what looked like a man’s hands was under their wings. ²² As for how their faces looked, they were the faces I had seen by the K’var River, identical in appearance. Each one moved straight ahead.

11 Then a spirit lifted me up and brought me to the east gate of Adonai’s house, the gate that faces eastward. At the entrance of the gate I saw twenty-five men; among them were Ya’azanyah the son of ‘Azur and P’latyahu the son of B’nayahu, leaders of the people. ² He said to me, “Human being, these are the men who make evil plans and give wicked advice in this city. ³ They say, ‘The time hasn’t come to build houses. This city is the cooking pot, and we’re the meat!’ ⁴ Therefore prophesy against them, human being, prophesy!” ⁵ The Spirit of Adonai fell on me, and he said to me, “Say, ‘Here is what Adonai says: “What you are saying is correct, house of Isra’el; because I know how your minds work. ⁶ You have killed many in this city, you have filled its streets with the dead.” ⁷ Therefore Adonai Elohim says this: “Those you have killed and strewn all over it, they are the meat; and this city is indeed the cooking pot; but you will be removed from it. ⁸ You are afraid of the sword, but I will bring the sword upon you,” says Adonai Elohim. ⁹ “I will bring you out of it, hand you over to foreigners and execute judgments among you. ¹⁰ You will die by the sword; I will judge you at the border of Isra’el; and you will know that I am Adonai. ¹¹ This city will not be your cooking pot, but you will be the meat in it — I will judge you at Isra’el’s frontier; ¹² and you will know that I am Adonai. For you have not lived by my laws or obeyed my rulings but have acted according to the rules of the nations surrounding you.”’”

¹³ As I was prophesying, P’latyahu the son of B’nayah died. I fell down on my face and cried out, “Oh, Adonai Elohim! Are you going to destroy completely those of Isra’el who are left?” ¹⁴ Then the word of Adonai came to me: ¹⁵ “Human being, it is to your kinsmen — your brothers, your relatives and the whole house of Isra’el — that the people living in Yerushalayim have said, ‘Get away from Adonai! This land has been given to us to possess!’ ¹⁶ Therefore, say that Adonai Elohim says this: ‘True, I removed them far away among the nations and scattered them among the countries; nevertheless, I have been a little sanctuary for them in the countries to which they have gone.’ ¹⁷ Therefore, say that Adonai Elohim says this: ‘“I will gather you from the peoples and collect you from the countries where you have been scattered, and I will give the land of Isra’el to you.” ¹⁸ Then they will go there and remove all its loathsome things and disgusting practices, ¹⁹ and I will give them unity of heart. “I will put a new spirit among you.” I will remove from their bodies the hearts of stone and give them hearts of flesh; ²⁰ so that they will live by my regulations, obey my rulings and act by them. Then they will be my people, and I will be their God. ²¹ But as for those whose hearts go after the heart of their loathsome things and disgusting practices, I will bring [the consequences of] their ways on their own heads,’ says Adonai Elohim.”

²² The k’ruvim lifted their wings, and the wheels were next to them, with the glory of the God of Isra’el over them, above. ²³ Next, the glory of Adonai rose from within the city and stood over the mountain which is on the east side of the city. ²⁴ Then a spirit lifted me up and brought me, in the vision, by the Spirit of God, to the exiles in the land of the Kasdim; after which the vision I had seen left me. ²⁵ So I told the exiles everything Adonai had shown me.

12 The word of Adonai came to me: ² “Human being, you are living among a rebellious people. They have eyes that can see, but they don’t take notice; and they have ears that can hear, but they don’t pay attention; because they are a rebellious people. ³ So you, human being, prepare supplies for exile; and during the daytime, as they watch, go away as if you were going into exile — leave your place, and go somewhere else as they watch. Perhaps they will take notice, even though they are a rebellious house. ⁴ Bring out your belongings during the day while they watch, as supplies for exile; and you yourself, while they watch, are to leave as people do who are going into exile. ⁵ Dig a hole through the wall while they watch, and carry [your belongings] out through it. ⁶ While they watch, you are to shoulder your pack and carry it out into the dark, with your face covered, so that you can’t see the ground; for I am making you a sign for the house of Isra’el.”

⁷ So I did as I had been ordered — I brought out my belongings during the day as supplies for exile, and in the evening I dug a hole through the wall with my hand; then I carried my pack out on my shoulder in the dark as they watched.

⁸ In the morning the word of Adonai came to me: ⁹ “Human being, the house of Isra’el, that rebellious house, has asked you what you are doing. ¹⁰ Tell them that Adonai Elohim says this prophecy concerns the prince in Yerushalayim and all the house of Isra’el there. ¹¹ Say: ‘I am a sign for you. As I have done, so will it be done to them — they will go into exile, into captivity. ¹² The prince who is with them will shoulder his pack and leave in the dark. They will dig holes through the wall to carry out their supplies. He will cover his face, so that he won’t be able to see the ground with his eyes. ¹³ I will spread my net over him, and he will be caught in my snare. Then I will bring him to Bavel, to the land of the Kasdim. But he will not see it, even though he is going to die there. ¹⁴ I will scatter to every wind all who are in attendance on him to help him, along with all his troops; and I will pursue them with the sword. ¹⁵ They will know that I am Adonai when I scatter them among the nations and disperse them among the countries. ¹⁶ But I will spare a few of them from sword, famine and plague; so that they can tell about all their disgusting practices among the nations where they go; thus they too will know that I am Adonai.’”

¹⁷ The word of Adonai came to me: ¹⁸ “Human being, shake as you eat your food; tremble anxiously as you drink your water; ¹⁹ and say to the people of the land, ‘Here is what Adonai Elohim says concerning those living in Yerushalayim in the land of Isra’el: “They will eat their bread in anxiety and drink their water in horror; because the land will be desolated from everything that fills it, due to the violence of those living there. ²⁰ The inhabited cities will be laid waste, the land will be desolate, and you will know that I am Adonai.”’”

²¹ The word of Adonai came to me: ²² “Human being, don’t you have this proverb in the land of Isra’el, ‘Time keeps passing, and none of the visions are fulfilled’? ²³ Therefore tell them that Adonai Elohim says, ‘I will put an end to that proverb; never again will they use it as a proverb in Isra’el.’ Tell them, ‘The time has come for the fulfillment of every vision. ²⁴ There will no longer be empty visions or falsely optimistic divinations in the house of Isra’el, ²⁵ because I am Adonai. I will speak; and whatever statement I make, it will be accomplished. It will no longer be delayed; for in your days, you rebellious house, I will speak the word and accomplish it,’ says Adonai Elohim.”

²⁶ Again, the word of Adonai came to me: ²⁷ “Human being, look! People from the house of Isra’el are saying, ‘The vision he sees concerns the distant future; he is prophesying about a time far off.’ ²⁸ Therefore, say to them that Adonai Elohim says, ‘None of my words will be delayed any more, but the word that I speak will be accomplished,’ says Adonai Elohim.”