A reading from the book of Ezekiel.

The word of the Lord came to me.

Son of man. Set your face toward Jerusalem and preach against the sanctuaries.

Prophesy against the land of Israel 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,

and all flesh shall know that I am the Lord. I have drawn my sword from its sheath,

it shall not be sheathed again. As for you, son of man, grown with

breaking heart and bitter grief, groaned before their eyes, and when they say to you, why do you

groan? You shall say, because of the news that it is coming, every heart will melt, and all hands

will be feeble, every spirit will faint, and all knees will be weak as water. Behold, it is coming,

and it will be fulfilled, declares the Lord God. And the word of the Lord came to me, son of man,

prophesy and say, thus says the Lord, say, a sword, a sword is sharpened, and also polished,

sharpened for slaughter, polished to flash like lightning.

Or shall we rejoice? You have despised the rod, my son, with everything of wood. So the sword

is given to be polished, that it may be grasped in the hand. It is sharpened and polished to be

given into the hand of the slayer. Cry out and well, son of man, for it is against my people. It is against

all the princes of Israel. They are delivered over to the sword with my people. Strike therefore

upon your thigh, for it will not be attesting. What could it do if you despise the rod, declares the Lord

God? As for you, son of man prophesy. Clap your hands and let the sword come down twice.

Yes, three times. The sword for those to be slain. It is the sword for the great slaughter,

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