‘And to the others he said in my hearing, “Go through the city after him, and smite. Do not let your eye spare, nor have pity. Slay utterly (literally ‘slay to destruction') the old man, the young man and the maiden, and little children and women. But do not come near any man on whom is the mark. And begin at my sanctuary.” '
Then came the command for judgment. It was to be without mercy, without pity. None was to be spared. The judgment and wrath of God was to come on each one, from the oldest to the youngest. All were marked out by God for judgment in one way or another. (The Assyrians would make no distinctions). And it was to begin at His sanctuary where those who were supposed to serve Him had proved so utterly unfaithful. It is a serious thing to profess to be a leader of God's people but to lead them astray (1 Peter 4:17; compare Matthew 18:6; Mark 9:42; Luke 17:2; Hebrews 13:17).
But none who were marked by God was to be touched. They may suffer at the hands of men, but not at the hands of God's visitants. This underlines one of Ezekiel's central messages. Judgment is individual. It is the one who sins who must die in judgment. Those who are faithful to God and His covenant may die, but they will not die in judgment.
We must remember that this was a vision and a heavenly message. It symbolised God's view and purpose in what was to come. It would not be fulfilled literally as we have already been told, for some would go into captivity. But it indicated that God's judgment was upon all.