Or if I bring a sword upon that land, and say, Let a sword go through the land …: The same pattern appears in verses 17-18 as in the previous verses. Here God’s punishment of the sinful nation is a sword, which represents war (see 5.1-2). God will cause an enemy to attack the land. Contemporary English Version combines the first two clauses of this verse, saying “Or suppose I send an enemy to attack a sinful nation,” which other languages may find helpful.

And I cut off from it man and beast: See verse 13. The enemy sent by God will kill all the people and animals in the land.

Quoted with permission from Gross, Carl & Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on Ezekiel. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2016. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .