Ezekiel 9:4–11

⁴And the Lord said to him, “Pass through the city, through Jerusalem, and ^fput a mark on the foreheads of the men who ^gsigh and groan over all the abominations that are committed in it.” ⁵And to ^hthe others he said in my hearing, “Pass through the city after him, and strike. ⁱYour eye shall not spare, and you shall show no pity. ^6jKill old men outright, young men and maidens, little children and women, but ^ktouch no one on whom is the mark. And ^lbegin at my sanctuary.” So they began with the elders who were before the house. ⁷Then he said to them, ^m“Defile the house, and fill the courts with the slain. Go out.” So they went out and struck in the city. ⁸And while they were striking, and I was left alone, ⁿI fell upon my face, and cried, ^o“Ah, Lord God! ^pWill you destroy all the remnant of Israel ^qin the outpouring of your wrath on Jerusalem?”

⁹Then he said to me, ^r“The guilt of the house of Israel and Judah is exceedingly great. ^sThe land is full of blood, and the city full of injustice. For ^tthey say, ‘The Lord has forsaken the land, and the Lord does not see.’ ¹⁰As for me, ^umy eye will not spare, nor will I have pity; ^vI will bring their deeds upon their heads.”

¹¹And behold, ^wthe man clothed in linen, with the writing case at his waist, brought back word, saying, “I have done as you commanded me.”