Ezekiel 21:22-24

21:22 Into his right hand ¹  comes the portent for Jerusalem – to set up battering rams, to give the signal ²  for slaughter, to shout out the battle cry, ³  to set up battering rams against the gates, to erect a siege ramp, to build a siege wall. 21:23 But those in Jerusalem ⁴  will view it as a false omen. They have sworn solemn oaths, ⁵  but the king of Babylon ⁶  will accuse them of violations ⁷  in order to seize them. ⁸ 

21:24 “Therefore this is what the sovereign Lord says: ‘Because you have brought up ⁹  your own guilt by uncovering your transgressions and revealing your sins through all your actions, for this reason you will be taken by force. ¹⁰ 

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¹ tn Or “on the right side,” i.e., the omen mark on the right side of the liver.

² tn Heb “to open the mouth” for slaughter.

³ tn Heb “to raise up a voice in a battle cry.”

⁴ tn Heb “they”; the referent (the people in Jerusalem) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁵ sn When the people of Judah realized the Babylonians’ intentions, they would object on grounds that they had made a treaty with the Babylonian king (see 17:13).

⁶ tn Heb “he”; the referent (the king of Babylon) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁷ tn Or “iniquity.”

⁸ tn Heb “and he will remind of guilt for the purpose of being captured.” The king would counter their objections by pointing out that they had violated their treaty with him (see 17:18).

⁹ tn Heb “caused to be remembered.”

¹⁰ tn Heb “Because you have brought to remembrance your guilt when your transgressions are uncovered so that your sins are revealed in all your deeds – because you are remembered, by the hand you will be seized.”