Ezekiel 19

1 Moreover, take thou up a lamentation for the princes of Israel,

Sing this funeral song for the princes of Israel

2 and say, What was thy mother? A lioness: she couched among lions, in the midst of the young lions she nourished her whelps.

with these words: “What was your mother? She was a lioness among the lions! She lay down in her place among the young lions and reared her cubs.

3 And she brought up one of her whelps: he became a young lion, and he learned to catch the prey; he devoured men.

She raised one of her cubs, and he grew up to be young lion. Once he had learned how to tear up his prey, he started eating people.

4 The nations also heard of him; he was taken in their pit; and they brought him with hooks unto the land of Egypt.

But when the nations heard about him, he was caught in their trap. They used hooks to drag him away to Egypt.

5 Now when she saw that she had waited, and her hope was lost, then she took another of her whelps, and made him a young lion.

When she realized that the hope she had been waiting for was gone, she made another of her cubs into a young lion.

6 And he went up and down among the lions; he became a young lion, and he learned to catch the prey; he devoured men.

He went around with the other lions, and became strong. Once he had learned how to tear up his prey, he started eating people.

7 And he knew their palaces, and laid waste their cities; and the land was desolate, and the fulness thereof, because of the noise of his roaring.

He tore down their fortresses and destroyed their towns. All the people living in the country were appalled when they heard him roaring.

8 Then the nations set against him on every side from the provinces; and they spread their net over him; he was taken in their pit.

Then the people of the countries all around attacked him. They threw their net over him; he was caught in their trap.

9 And they put him in a cage with hooks, and brought him to the king of Babylon; they brought him into strongholds, that his voice should no more be heard upon the mountains of Israel.

They used hooks to put him in a cage and took him to the king of Babylon. They led him away and imprisoned him so his roar wasn't heard any more in Israel's mountains.

10 Thy mother was like a vine, in thy blood, planted by the waters: it was fruitful and full of branches by reason of many waters.

Your mother was like a vine planted in your vineyard at the waterside. It produced a lot of fruit and had many branches because it had plenty of water.

11 And it had strong rods for the sceptres of them that bare rule, and their stature was exalted among the thick boughs, and they were seen in their height with the multitude of their branches.

Its branches were strong like rulers' scepters. It grew high above the tree canopy. People could see how tall and full of leaves it was.

12 But it was plucked up in fury, it was cast down to the ground, and the east wind dried up its fruit: its strong rods were broken off and withered; the fire consumed them.

But it was uprooted in anger and thrown down on the ground. The east wind blew and dried up its fruit. Its strong branches were stripped of leaves and they withered. Then they were burned up in the fire.

13 And now it is planted in the wilderness, in a dry and thirsty land.

Now the vine has been replanted in the desert, in a dry and waterless land.

14 And fire is gone out of the rods of its branches, it hath devoured its fruit, so that there is in it no strong rod to be a sceptre to rule. This is a lamentation, and shall be for a lamentation.

A fire blazed out from its main trunk and burned up its fruit. None of its branches that were once like a ruler's scepter are strong any more.” This is a funeral song and is to be used for mourning.