For, lo, I begin to bring evil on the city which is called by my name, and should ye be utterly unpunished? Ye shall not be unpunished: for I will call for a sword upon all the inhabitants of the earth, saith the LORD of hosts.
I ... bring evil on the city ... called by my name, and should ye be ... unpunished - if I spared not mine elect people on account of sin, much less will I spare you. "I begin to bring evil" implies, that in bringing evil He "begins" with His elect people, as being the most guilty, in the fact of their having greater privileges than the pagan (Ezekiel 9:6, "Slay ... and begin at my sanctuary;" Obadiah 1:16; Luke 23:31; 1 Peter 4:17).
Be unpunished - Hebrew, 'be treated as innocent' х hinaaqeeh (H5352) tinaaquw (H5352), from naaqaah (H5352), to be clean or pure].