Ezekiel 9:7

7 Then he said to the men, "Make the Temple unclean, and fill the courtyards with those who have been killed. Go out!" So the men went out and killed the people in the city.

Ezekiel 9:7 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 9:7

And he said unto them, defile the house
The temple; do not be afraid of slaying any person in it, for fear of defiling it; they have defiled it with their abominations, and now do you defile it with their blood: and fill the courts with the slain;
the court of the priests, and the court of the Israelites, and the court of the women, and all the chambers where the priests and Levites were, and had their images portrayed: go ye forth;
from the brasen altar by which they stood, and out of the temple, after they had done their business there, and had slain all they should: and they went forth, and slew in the city;
they went out of the temple, and slew in the city all but those that had the mark.

Ezekiel 9:7 In-Context

5 As I listened, he said to the other men, "Go through the city behind the man dressed in linen and kill. Don't pity anyone, and don't show mercy.
6 Kill and destroy old men, young men and women, little children, and older women, but don't touch any who have the mark on them. Start at my Temple." So they started with the older leaders who were in front of the Temple.
7 Then he said to the men, "Make the Temple unclean, and fill the courtyards with those who have been killed. Go out!" So the men went out and killed the people in the city.
8 While the men were killing the people, I was left alone. I bowed facedown on the ground and I cried out, "Oh, Lord God! Will you destroy everyone left alive in Israel when you turn loose your anger on Jerusalem?"
9 Then he said to me, "The sin of the people of Israel and Judah is very great. The land is filled with people who murder, and the city is full of people who are not fair. The people say, 'The Lord has left the land, and the Lord does not see.'
Scripture taken from the New Century Version. Copyright © 1987, 1988, 1991 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.