God’s actual judgment is described in verses 15-16, but this verse ominously prepares the hearer for it.

Can your courage endure, or can your hands be strong, in the days that I shall deal with you?: Here God asks the people of Jerusalem if they will be able to survive the coming judgment. Can your courage endure, or can your hands be strong questions their bravery and strength (compare 21.7). In the days that I shall deal with you means God will punish them. This question may be translated as a genuine one; for example, New Century Version has “Will you still be brave and strong when I punish you?” A similar model is “When I punish you, will you remain brave? Will you be strong enough to lift your hands?” It is also possible to take this question as a rhetorical one, so Contemporary English Version says “When I’m finished with you, your courage will disappear, and you will be so weak that you won’t be able to lift your hands.”

I the LORD have spoken, and I will do it: This sentence shows that the coming punishment is certain and cannot be avoided, because God himself says he will do it (compare 17.24). I will do it may be rendered “I will act” (New Century Version) or “I keep my word” (Good News Translation). A good model for the whole sentence is “I, Yahweh, have said I will do it, and I will.”

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 .