Execution of the Idolaters
Ezekiel hears the Lord summon the executioners of the city, and six armed men approach from the upper gate, joined by one man clothed in linen with a writing kit. They stand beside the bronze altar as the glory of the God of Israel rises from above the cherubim to the temple threshold. The man in linen is then sent through Jerusalem to place a mark on the foreheads of those who sigh and groan over all the city's abominations.
T1hen I heard Him call out in a loud voice, saying, “Draw near, O executioners of the city, each with a weapon of destruction in hand.” 2And I saw six men coming from the direction of the Upper Gate, which faces north, each with a weapon of slaughter in his hand. With them was another man clothed in linen who had a writing kit at his side. And they came in and stood beside the bronze altar. 3Then the glory of the God of Israel rose from above the cherubim, where it had been, and moved to the threshold of the temple. And He called to the man clothed in linen who had the writing kit at his side. 4“Go throughout the city of Jerusalem,” said the LORD, “and put a mark on the foreheads of the men sighing and groaning over all the abominations committed there.”
After the marking, the other agents are ordered to follow through the city and kill without pity, sparing only those who bear the mark. The command explicitly begins at the sanctuary, so the elders before the temple are struck first. The temple and its courts are then filled with the slain, turning the profaned sanctuary into a scene of judgment.
5And as I listened, He said to the others, “Follow him through the city and start killing; do not show pity or spare anyone! 6Slaughter the old men, the young men and maidens, the women and children; but do not go near anyone who has the mark. Now begin at My sanctuary.” 7Then He told them, “Defile the temple and fill the courts with the slain. Go forth!”
Left alone while the slaughter proceeds, Ezekiel falls facedown and pleads with the Lord GOD, asking whether the entire remnant of Israel will be destroyed. God replies that the iniquity of Israel and Judah is exceedingly great: the land is full of bloodshed, the city full of perversity, and the people still say that the LORD neither sees nor remains in the land. Therefore He will show no pity but bring their deeds back on their own heads, after which the man in linen reports that he has done as commanded.
8While they were killing, I was left alone. And I fell facedown and cried out, “Oh, Lord GOD, when You pour out Your wrath on Jerusalem, will You destroy the entire remnant of Israel?” 9He replied, “The iniquity of the house of Israel and Judah is exceedingly great. The land is full of bloodshed, and the city is full of perversity. For they say, ‘The LORD has forsaken the land; the LORD does not see.’ 10But as for Me, I will not look on them with pity, nor will I spare them. I will bring their deeds down upon their own heads.” 11Then the man clothed in linen with the writing kit at his side reported back, “I have done as You commanded.”