¹ 'Son of man, take a sharp sword, use it like a barber's razor and run it over your head and beard. Then take scales and divide the hair you have cut off.

² Burn one-third inside the city, while the days of the siege are working themselves out. Then take another third and chop it up with the sword all round the city. The last third you are to scatter to the wind, while I unsheathe the sword behind them.

³ Also take a few hairs and tie them up in the folds of your cloak;

⁴ and of these again take a few, and throw them on the fire and burn them. From them fire will come on the whole House of Israel.

⁵ 'The Lord Yahweh says this, "This is Jerusalem, which I have placed in the middle of the nations, surrounded with foreign countries.

⁶ She has rebelled more perversely against my observances than the nations have, and against my laws than the surrounding countries have; for they have rejected my observances and not kept my laws."

⁷ 'Therefore, the Lord Yahweh says this, "Because your disorders are worse than those of the nations round you, since you do not keep my laws or respect my observances, and since you do not respect even the observances of the surrounding nations,

⁸ very well, the Lord Yahweh says this: I, too, am against you and shall execute my judgements on you for the nations to see.

⁹ Because of all your loathsome practices I shall do such things as I have never done before, nor shall ever do again.

¹⁰ Those of you who are parents will eat their children, and children will eat their parents. I shall execute judgement on you and disperse what remains of you to the winds.

¹¹ For, as I live -- declares Lord Yahweh -- as sure as you have defiled my sanctuary with all your horrors and all your loathsome practices, so I too shall reject you without a glance of pity, I shall not spare you.

¹² A third of your citizens will die of plague or starve to death inside you; a third will fall by the sword round you; and a third I shall scatter to the winds, unsheathing the sword behind them.

¹³ I shall sate my anger and bring my fury to rest on them until I am avenged; and when I have sated my fury on them, then they will know that I, Yahweh, spoke out of jealousy for you.

¹⁴ Yes, I shall reduce you to a ruin, an object of derision to the surrounding nations, in the eyes of all who pass by.

¹⁵ You will be an object of derision and insults, an example, an object of amazement to the surrounding nations, when I execute judgement on you in furious anger and furious punishments. I, Yahweh, have spoken.

¹⁶ On them I shall send the deadly arrows of famine, which will destroy you -- for I shall send them to destroy you; then I shall make the famine worse and cut off your food supply.

¹⁷ I shall send famine and wild animals on you to rob you of your children; plague and bloodshed will sweep through you, and I shall bring the sword down on you. I, Yahweh, have spoken." '