18 Then Yahweh gave me another message: 19 “Now, son of humanity, assign two roads for Babylon’s king’s sword to come on. The two roads will start in the same land, and a signpost will mark one of them as leading to a city. 20 Mark one road for the Babylonian army to come to Rabbah, the Ammonite city. Mark the other to lead the army to Yehudah and the fortified city of Yerushalem, 21 because the Babylonian king will stop at the crossroads, at the junction, in order to practice divination. He’ll shake some arrows and ask direction from some idols, and he’ll examine a liver. 22 With his right hand he’ll take the sign for Yerushalem: to set battering rams against it, to open his mouth to order the slaughter, to sound a war cry, to set battering rams against the gates, to build a ramp, and to erect siege towers. 23 From the perspective of those in Yerushalem, it would seem to be a pointless sign, since they’d made a treaty with the Babylonians, but the king will accuse them of violating their treaty so he can besiege them.

24 Therefore the master Yahweh says this: You’ve caused your guilt to be noticed by revealing your disobedience, so that your sins will be obvious through all your actions. Because you’ve done that, you’ll be taken by force. 25 As for you, Yisrael’s profane and wicked ruler, your time of going against me has now ended and your day of punishment has come. 26 The master Yahweh instructs you: Remove the turban and take off the crown. Things will no longer be the same. I’ll give power to those who had none, and disgrace those who had power. 27 A ruin. A ruin. Yes, I’ll make it a ruin. It won’t be restored until the person comes who’s assigned to execute judgement.