Babylon Is God’s Sword

21 The Word of the Lord came to me saying, ² “Son of man, look toward Jerusalem and speak against the holy places. Speak against the land of Israel. ³ Tell the land of Israel, ‘The Lord says, “See, I am against you. I will take My sword out of its holder and destroy from you both the good and the sinful. ⁴ Because I will destroy from you both the good and the sinful, My sword will go out against everyone from south to north. ⁵ Then all people will know that I, the Lord, have taken out My sword. It will not be put back into its holder again.”’ ⁶ As for you, son of man, cry in sorrow in front of them, as if your heart is breaking. ⁷ And when they ask you, ‘Why are you crying?’ tell them, ‘Because of the news that is coming, every heart will melt and all hands will be weak. Every spirit will lose its strength, and all knees will be as weak as water. It is coming, and it will happen,’ says the Lord God.”

⁸ Again the Word of the Lord came to me saying, ⁹ “Son of man, speak in My name and tell them, ‘The Lord says, “A sword, a sharp and shining sword! ¹⁰ It is made sharp to kill, and shined to look like lightning! Shall we have joy? It hates the special stick of My son, as it does all wood. ¹¹ The sword is being shined to make it ready to use. It is made sharp and shiny, to be put into the hand of the killer. ¹² Cry out in a loud voice, son of man, for the sword is against My people. It is against all the leaders of Israel. They are going to be killed with My people, so beat your upper leg in sorrow. ¹³ They will be put to the test. If they do not turn from their sinful ways, these things will happen,” says the Lord God.’

¹⁴ “So speak in My name, son of man, and clap your hands together. Let the sword that kills hit two, even three times. It is the sword that kills and is all around them, ¹⁵ so that they will lose their strength of heart, and many will be killed at all their gates. I have sent the shining sword. It is made to shine like lightning, and is ready to kill. ¹⁶ O sharp sword, cut to the left and to the right. Cut wherever you have been sent. ¹⁷ I will also clap My hands, and My anger will be gone. I, the Lord, have spoken.”

¹⁸ The Word of the Lord came to me saying, ¹⁹ “Son of man, make two ways for the king of Babylon to come with his sword. Both of them will come from the same land. Mark the way where the road divides and goes to the city. ²⁰ Mark a way for the sword to go to Rabbah of the Ammonites, and to Judah into the strong city of Jerusalem. ²¹ For the king of Babylon stands where the road divides in two to use strange secret powers. He shakes the arrows and speaks with false gods, and looks at the liver. ²² In his right hand is the arrow marked for Jerusalem. It tells him to set up objects to knock down the city walls, to call out the battle cry, to set up objects to break down the gates, and to build a wall of dirt and battle towers. ²³ The people who promised to obey him will not believe this. But he will make them remember their guilt so that they may be taken. ²⁴ So the Lord God says, ‘You have made your guilt to be remembered. Your sins are no longer covered, and everyone has seen the bad things you have done and remembers them. So you will be taken in battle. ²⁵ And you, O bad and sinful one, the leader of Israel, the day of your punishment has come. Your sin will end.’ ²⁶ The Lord God says, ‘Take off the head-covering. Take off the crown. Things will not stay as they are. Honor that which is low. And bring down that which is honored. ²⁷ A waste, a waste. I will lay the city waste. It will be no more, until He comes whose right it is, and I will give it to Him.’

²⁸ “And you, son of man, speak in My name and tell them, ‘This is what the Lord God says about the sons of Ammon and about their shame.’ Tell them, ‘A sword is pulled out ready to kill! It is made to shine like lightning! ²⁹ Even with the false dreams about you, and the lies spoken about you by using secret ways, you will be laid on the necks of the sinful who are killed, whose day has come for their last punishment. ³⁰ Put your sword back into its holder. I will punish you in the place where you were made, in the land of your birth. ³¹ I will be angry with you. I will blow on you with the fire of My anger. And I will give you over to men who show no pity, who have been taught to destroy. ³² You will be destroyed by fire. You will be killed in your land, and you will not be remembered. For I, the Lord, have spoken.’”