^21:3and say to them,⁴ ‘This is what the Lord says: Look,⁵ I am against you.⁶ I will draw my sword⁷ from its sheath and cut off from you both the righteous and the wicked.⁸^21:4Because I will cut off from you both the righteous and the wicked, my sword will go out from its sheath against everyone⁹ from the south¹⁰ to the north.

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Footnotes

4 Heb “the land of Israel.”
5 The word הִנֵּה (hinneh, traditionally “behold”) draws attention to something and has been translated here as a verb.
6 Or “I challenge you.” The phrase “I am against you” may be a formula for challenging someone to combat or a duel. See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (), 1:–2, and P. Humbert, “Die Herausforderungsformel ‘hinnenî êlêkâ,’ ” 45 (1933): 101–8.
7 This is the sword of judgment, see Isa 31:8; 34:6; 66:16.
8 Ezekiel elsewhere pictures the Lord’s judgment as discriminating between the righteous and the wicked (9:4–6; 18:1–20; see as well Pss 1 and 11) and speaks of the preservation of a remnant (3:21; 6:8; 12:16). Perhaps here he exaggerates for rhetorical effect in an effort to subdue any false optimism. See L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (), 2:25–26; D. I. Block, Ezekiel (), 1:; and W. Zimmerli, Ezekiel (Hermeneia), 1:.
9 Heb “all flesh” (also in the following verse).
10 Heb “Negev.” The Negev is the south country.

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

and say to the land of Israel, Thus says the Lord: Behold, I am against you and will draw my sword from its sheath and will cut off from you both righteous and wicked. Because I will cut off from you both righteous and wicked, therefore my sword shall be drawn from its sheath against all flesh from south to north.

NIVNew International Version (2011)

and say to her: ‘This is what the Lord says: I am against you. I will draw my sword from its sheath and cut off from you both the righteous and the wicked. Because I am going to cut off the righteous and the wicked, my sword will be unsheathed against everyone from south to north.

CSBChristian Standard Bible

and say to it, ‘This is what the Lord says: I am against you. I will draw my sword from its sheath and cut off from you both the righteous and the wicked. Since I will cut off both the righteous and the wicked, my sword will therefore come out of its sheath against all humanity from the south to the north.

NLTNew Living Translation

Tell her, ‘This is what the Lord says: I am your enemy, O Israel, and I am about to unsheath my sword to destroy your people—the righteous and the wicked alike. Yes, I will cut off both the righteous and the wicked! I will draw my sword against everyone in the land from south to north.

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

And you must say to the land of Israel, ‘Thus says Yahweh: “Look! I am against you, and I will draw out my sword from its sheath, and I will cut off from you the righteous and the wicked. Because I will cut off from you both righteous and wicked, therefore my sword will go out from its sheath to all creatures from south to north.

KJV 1900King James Version

And say to the land of Israel, Thus saith the Lord; Behold, I am against thee, and will draw forth my sword out of his sheath, and will cut off from thee the righteous and the wicked. Seeing then that I will cut off from thee the righteous and the wicked, therefore shall my sword go forth out of his sheath against all flesh from the south to the north:

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