Chapter 9[a]
Punishment of the Idolaters. 1 Then he shouted loudly for me to hear: “The scourges of the city are drawing near, each brandishing his weapon of destruction.” 2 Thereupon, I saw six men approaching from the direction of the upper gate which faces north, each one with a weapon for slaughter in his hand. Among them was a man clothed in linen,[b] with the necessary paraphernalia for writing in his hand. They went in and stood beside the bronze altar.
3 The glory of the God of Israel had risen above the cherubim upon which it rested to the threshold of the temple. Then he called to the man clothed in linen who had the writing case at his side, 4 and he said to him: “Go throughout the city, throughout Jerusalem, and mark[c] with a cross the foreheads of all those who grieve and lament over all the abominable practices that run rampant throughout its boundaries.”
5 To the others I heard him say: “Follow him throughout the city and kill, without looking upon them with pity or showing them any mercy. 6 Cut down old men, young men and maidens, small children and women, but touch no one who is marked on the forehead with a cross. Begin at my sanctuary.” And so they began with the elders who were in front of the temple. 7 Then he said to them: “Defile the temple and fill the courtyards with the slain.” Then they went forth and killed their way through the city.
8 While they continued with their mission of slaying, I was left alone. Throwing myself on the ground, I cried out, “Ah, Lord God, will you annihilate all that is left of Israel by pouring out your wrath on Jerusalem?” 9 He answered: “The guilt of the house of Israel and Judah is exceedingly great. The land is filled with bloodshed and the city is filled with perversity. They believe that the Lord has forsaken the land and that he does not see. 10 However, I will not look upon them with pity or show them any mercy. I will bring down their deeds upon their heads.”
11 Then the man clothed in linen and carrying the writing case reported, “I have done as you commanded me.”
Footnotes
- Ezekiel 9:1 The Apocalypse (Ezek 7:2) will use similar imagery in describing the end of the world.
- Ezekiel 9:2 Linen: was used for priestly vestments.
- Ezekiel 9:4 The mark was a tau, that is, the last letter of the Hebrew alphabet; in ancient writing, tau was in the form of a cross.