Then I turned, and lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and hinei a megillah flying!
And he said unto me, What seest thou? And I answered: I see a megillah flying; the length thereof is twenty cubits, and the breadth thereof ten cubits.
Then said he unto me, This is ha'alah (the curse) that goeth forth over the face of kol ha'aretz; for every ganav that stealeth shall be purged out [i.e., banished] according to what it says on one side of the megillah; and every perjurer that sweareth falsely shall be purged out according to what it says on the other side. [Shemot 20:15,7]
I will send it [ha'alah, the curse] forth, saith Hashem Tzva'os, and it shall enter into the bais haganav, and into the bais of him that sweareth falsely biShmi (by My Name); and it [ha'alah] shall remain inside his bais, and shall destroy it with the timber thereof and the stones thereof.
Then the malach that spoke with me came forward, and said unto me, Lift up now thine eyes, and see what is this that cometh into view.
And I said, What is it? And he said, This is the eifah (measuring basket) going out. He said moreover, This is their [I.E., THAT OF GANAVIM AND PERJURORS] appearance throughout kol ha'aretz.
And, hinei, there was lifted up a lead cover; and there was an isha (woman) yoshevet (sitting) inside the eifah (measuring basket)!
And he said, This is HaRishah (The Wickedness). And he pushed her inside the eifah; and he pushed the lead cover over the mouth of the eifah.
Then lifted I up mine eyes, and looked, and, hinei, there came forth two nashim (women), and the ruach (wind) was in their kenafayim (wings); for they had kenafayim (wings) like the kenafayim of a stork: and they lifted up the eifah between ha'aretz and HaShomayim.
Then said I to the malach that spoke with me, Whither are these taking the eifah?
And he said unto me, To build it a bais [i.e., ziggurat] in Eretz Shinar (Babylon); and it is shall be placed there and set upon its own base.