A man who attacked a sex worker with a knife in Taiwan claims it was a 'message from God'.

Horrific video footage has surfaced from a hotel where the attack took place.

It shows the armed man chasing the naked and clearly terrified escort in a hallway.

The man, 42, can be seen lunging at the woman as he attempts to stab her.

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The woman is seen using a pillow to protect herself.

Identified only as ‘Shi’ the man told police after the attack he was told by ‘the Lord’ to ‘cleanse the sins of a prostitute with blood’.

The Shanghaiist reported the fundamentalist Christian and long term unemployed man claimed he heard the direction during prayer three years ago and kept a knife with him for the attack, however it wasn’t until a month ago that he acted it out.

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After luring his victim known only by her surname ‘Dai’, Shi forced her to strip, robbed her and began to attack with the knife while saying he planned to cleanse her sins.

In video posted to non-English website appledaily.com, footage of the attack is edited and accompanied by an animated interpretation.

Shi’s mental state has been questioned however he told investigators that he felt his ‘head is very clear’.

He was charged with armed robbery and prosecutors advised to seek a medical examination for him.