God’s Sword of Judgment

1The worde of the LORDE came to me, sayenge: 2Thou sonne of man, set thy face towarde Ierusalem, speake agaynst the Sanctuary, & prophecie agaynst the londe of Israel, saye to the lode of Israel: 3Thus saieth the LORDE God: Beholde, I wil vpon the, & wil drawe my swearde out of ye sheth, & rote out of ye both the rightuous & the wicked. 4Seinge then that I will rote out of the both the rightuous & wicked, therfore shal my swearde go out of his sheth, agaynst all flesh from the north to the south: 5that all flesh maye knowe, how that I the LORDE haue drawen my swearde out of the sheth, & it shal not be put in agayne. 6Mourne therfore (o thou sonne of man) yt thy loynes crack withall, yee mourne bytterly for them: 7And yf they saye, wherfore mournest thou? Then tell them: for the tydinges that commeth, at the which all hertes shall melt, all hondes shal be letten downe, all stomackes shal faynte, and all knees shall waxe feble. Beholde, it commeth & shal be fulfilled, saieth the LORDE God.

8Agayne, the worde of the LORDE came vnto me, sayenge:

9Thou sonne of man, prophecie, and speake: Thus saieth the LORDE God: speake, the swearde is sharpened & wel scoured.

10Sharpened is it for the slaughter, & scoured yt it maye be bright. O, the destroyenge staff of my sonne, shal bringe downe all wodde.

11He hath put his swearde to ye dightinge, yt good holde maye be take of it. This swearde is sharpened & dight, yt it maye be geuen in to the honde of the manslayer. 12Crie (o thou sonne of man) and howle, for this swearde shal smyte my people, & all the rulers in Israel, which with my people shall be slayne downe to the grounde thorow this swearde. 13Smyte thou vpo thy thee, for, wherfore shulde not the plage & staff of iudgmet come?

14Prophecy thou sonne of man, & smyte thine hodes together: make the swearde two edged, yee make it thre edged, yt manslayers swearde, that swearde of the greate slaughter, which shal smyte them, euen in their preuy chambres: 15to make them abasshed & faynte at the hertes, & in all gates to make some of them fall. O how bright and sharpe is it, how wel dight & mete for ye slaughter? 16Get the to some place alone, ether vpon the right honde or on the lefte, whither so euer thy face turneth. 17I wil smyte my hondes together also, and satisfie my wrothfull indignacion: Euen I the LORDE haue sayde it.

18The worde of the LORDE came yet vnto me agayne, sayenge: 19Thou sonne of man, make the two stretes, that the swearde of ye kinge of Babilo maye come. Both these stretes shall go out of one londe. He shal set him vp a place, at the heade of the strete shal he chose him out a corner. 20Make ye a strete, that the swearde maye come towarde Rabath of the Ammonites, and to the stronge cite of Ierusalem. 21For the kinge of Babilon shall stonde in the turnynge of the waye, at the heade of the two stretes: to axe councell at the soythsayers, castinge the lottes with his arowes, to axe councell at the Idols, and to loke in the lyuer. 22But the soythsayenge shall poynte to the right syde vpon Ierusalem, that he maye set men of warre, to smyte it with a greate noyse, to crie out Alarum, to set batellrammes agaynst the gates, to graue vp dyches, & to make bulworkes. 23Neuertheles, as for ye soythsayenge, they shall holde it but for vanite, euen as though a iest were tolde them: Yee and they them selues remembre their wickednesse, so that by right they must be take and wonne.

24Therfore saieth the LORDE God: For so moch as ye youre selues shewe your offence, and haue opened youre wickednesse, so that in all youre workes men maye se youre synnes: Yee in so moch (I saye) that ye youre selues haue made mencion therof, ye shalbe taken by violence. 25O thou shameful wicked gyde of Israel, whose daye is come: euen the tyme that wickednesse shall haue an ende: 26Thus saieth the LORDE God: take awaye the mytre, and put of the crowne, and so is it awaye: the humble is exalted, and the proude brought lowe. 27Punysh, punysh, yee punysh them will I, and destroye them: and that shall not be fulfilled, vntill he come, to whom the iudgment belongeth, and to whom I haue geue it.

28And thou (o sonne of man) prophecy, & speake: Thus saieth the LORDE God to the children of Ammon, & to their blasphemy, speake thou: The swearde, the swearde, is drawen forth alredy to the slaughter, & scoured that it glistreth 29(because thou hast loked the out vanities, & prophecied lyes) yt it maye come vpon thy necke, like as vpo the other vngodly, which be slayne: whose daye came, when their wickednesse was full. 30Though it were put vp agayne into the sheath, yet will I punysh the, in the londe where thou wast norished & borne, 31and poure my indignacion vpon the, and will blowe vpon the in the fyre of my wrath, and delyuer the vnto cruell people, which are lerned to destroye. 32Thou shalt fede the fyre, and yi bloude shall be shed in the londe, that thou mayest be put out of remembraunce. Euen I the LORDE haue spoken it.