Ezekiel 16
1 And there is a word of YHWH to me, saying,
And the word of the Lord came to me, saying,
2 “Son of man, cause Jerusalem to know her abominations, and you have said,
Son of man, make clear to Jerusalem her disgusting ways,
3 Thus said Lord YHWH to Jerusalem: Your birth and your nativity [Are] of the land of the Canaanite, Your father the Amorite, and your mother a Hittite.
And say, This is what the Lord has said to Jerusalem: Your start and your birth was from the land of the Canaanite; an Amorite was your father and your mother was a Hittite.
4 As for your nativity, in the day you were born, Your navel has not been cut, And you were not washed in water for ease, And you have not been salted at all, And you have not been swaddled at all.
As for your birth, on the day of your birth your cord was not cut and you were not washed in water to make you clean; you were not salted or folded in linen bands.
5 No eye has had pity on you, to do any of these to you, To have compassion on you, And you are cast on the face of the field, With loathing of your soul In the day you were born!
No eye had pity on you to do any of these things to you or to be kind to you; but you were put out into the open country, because your life was hated at the time of your birth.
6 And I pass over by you, And I see you trodden down in your blood, And I say to you in your blood, Live! Indeed, I say to you in your blood, Live!
And when I went past you and saw you stretched out in your blood, I said to you, Though you are stretched out in your blood, have life;
7 I have made you a myriad as the shoot of the field, And you are multiplied, and are great, And come in with an excellent adornment, Breasts have been formed, and your hair has grown—And you, naked and bare!
And be increased in number like the buds of the field; and you were increased and became great, and you came to the time of love: your breasts were formed and your hair was long; but you were uncovered and without clothing.
8 And I pass over by you, and I see you, And behold, your time [is] a time of loves, And I spread My skirt over you, And I cover your nakedness, And I swear to you, and come into a covenant with you, A declaration of Lord YHWH, And you become Mine.
Now when I went past you, looking at you, I saw that your time was the time of love; and I put my skirts over you, covering your unclothed body: and I gave you my oath and made an agreement with you, says the Lord, and you became mine.
9 And I wash you with water, And I wash away your blood from off you, And I anoint you with oil.
Then I had you washed with water, washing away all your blood and rubbing you with oil.
10 And I clothe you with embroidery, And I shoe you with tachash [skin], And I gird you with fine linen, And I cover you with figured silk.
And I had you clothed with needlework, and put leather shoes on your feet, folding fair linen about you and covering you with silk.
11 And I adorn you with adornments, And I give bracelets for your hands, And a chain for your neck.
And I made you fair with ornaments and put jewels on your hands and a chain on your neck.
12 And I give a ring for your nose, And rings for your ears, And a crown of beauty on your head.
And I put a ring in your nose and ear-rings in your ears and a beautiful crown on your head.
13 And you put on gold and silver, And your clothing [is] fine linen, And figured silk and embroidery, You have eaten fine flour, and honey, and oil, And you are very, very beautiful, And go prosperously to the kingdom.
So you were made beautiful with gold and silver; and your clothing was of the best linen and silk and needlework; your food was the best meal and honey and oil: and you were very beautiful.
14 And your name goes forth among nations, Because of your beauty—for it [is] complete, In My honor that I have set on you, A declaration of Lord YHWH.
You were so beautiful that the story of you went out into all nations; you were completely beautiful because of my glory which I had put on you, says the Lord.
15 And you trust in your beauty, And go whoring because of your renown, And pour out your whoredoms on everyone passing by—to him [that would have] it.
But you put your faith in the fact that you were beautiful, acting like a loose woman because you were widely talked of, and offering your cheap love to everyone who went by, whoever it might be.
16 And you take from your garments, And make spotted high-places for yourself, And go whoring on them, They are not coming in—nor will it be!
And you took your robes and made high places for yourself ornamented with every colour, acting like a loose woman on them, without shame or fear.
17 And you take your beautiful vessels Of My gold and My silver that I gave to you, And make images of a male for yourself, And go whoring with them,
And you took the fair jewels, my silver and gold which I had given to you, and made for yourself male images, acting like a loose woman with them;
18 And you take the garments of your embroidery, And cover them, And you have set My oil and My incense before them.
And you took your robes of needlework for their clothing, and put my oil and my perfume before them.
19 And My bread, that I gave to you, Fine flour, and oil, and honey, that I caused you to eat. You have even set it before them, For a refreshing fragrance—thus it is, A declaration of Lord YHWH.
And my bread which I gave you, the best meal and oil and honey which I gave you for your food, you put it before them for a sweet smell, says the Lord.
20 And you take your sons and your daughters whom you have born to Me, And sacrifice them to them for food. Is it a little thing because of your whoredoms,
And you took your sons and your daughters whom I had by you, offering even these to them to be their food. Was your loose behaviour so small a thing,
21 that you slaughter My sons, And give them up in causing them to pass over to them?
That you put my children to death and gave them up to go through the fire to them?
22 And with all your abominations and your whoredoms, You have not remembered the days of your youth, When you were naked and bare, You were trodden down in your blood!
And in all your disgusting and false behaviour you had no memory of your early days, when you were uncovered and without clothing, stretched out in your blood.
23 And it comes to pass, after all your wickedness (Woe, woe, to you—a declaration of Lord YHWH),
And it came about, after all your evil-doing, says the Lord,
24 That you build an arch for yourself, And make a high place for yourself in every broad place.
That you made for yourself an arched room in every open place.
25 At every head of the way you have built your high place, And you make your beauty abominable, And open wide your feet to everyone passing by, And multiply your whoredoms,
You put up your high places at the top of every street, and made the grace of your form a disgusting thing, opening your feet to everyone who went by, increasing your loose ways.
26 And go whoring to sons of Egypt, Your neighbors—great of appetite! And you multiply your whoredoms, To provoke Me to anger.
And you went with the Egyptians, your neighbours, great of flesh; increasing your loose ways, moving me to wrath.
27 And behold, I have stretched out My hand against you, And I diminish your portion, And give you to the desire of those hating you, The daughters of the Philistines, Who are ashamed of your wicked way.
Now, then, my hand is stretched out against you, cutting down your fixed amount, and I have given you up to the desire of your haters, the daughters of the Philistines who are shamed by your loose ways.
28 And you go whoring to sons of Asshur, Without your being satisfied, And you go whoring with them, And also—you have not been satisfied.
And you went with the Assyrians, because of your desire which was without measure; you were acting like a loose woman with them, and still you had not enough.
29 And you multiply your whoredoms On the land of Canaan—toward Chaldea, And even with this you have not been satisfied.
And you went on in your loose ways, even as far as the land of Chaldaea, and still you had not enough.
30 How weak [is] your heart, A declaration of Lord YHWH, In your doing all these, The work of a domineering, whorish woman.
How feeble is your heart, says the Lord, seeing that you do all these things, the work of a loose and overruling woman;
31 In your building your arch at the head of every way, You have made your high place in every broad place, And have not been as a whore deriding a wage.
For you have made your arched room at the top of every street, and your high place in every open place; though you were not like a loose woman in getting together your payment.
32 The wife who commits adultery—Under her husband—receives strangers.
The untrue wife who takes strange lovers in place of her husband!
33 They give a gift to all whores, And you have given your gifts to all your lovers, And bribe them to come in to you, From all around—in your whoredoms.
They give payment to all loose women: but you give rewards to your lovers, offering them payment so that they may come to you on every side for your cheap love.
34 And you are opposite from [other] women in your whoredoms, That none go whoring after you; And in your giving a wage, And a wage has not been given to you; Therefore you are the opposite.
And in your loose behaviour you are different from other women, for no one goes after you to make love to you: and because you give payment and no payment is given to you, in this you are different from them.
35 Therefore, O whore, hear a word of YHWH!
For this cause, O loose woman, give ear to the voice of the Lord:
36 Thus said Lord YHWH: Because of your bronze being poured forth, And your nakedness is revealed in your whoredoms near your lovers, And near all the idols of your abominations, And according to the blood of your sons, Whom you have given to them;
This is what the Lord has said: Because your unclean behaviour was let loose and your body uncovered in your loose ways with your lovers and with your disgusting images, and for the blood of your children which you gave to them;
37 Therefore, behold, I am assembling all your lovers, To whom you have been sweet, And all whom you have loved, Besides all whom you have hated; And I have assembled them by you all around, And have revealed your nakedness to them, And they have seen all your nakedness.
For this cause I will get together all your lovers with whom you have taken your pleasure, and all those to whom you have given your love, with all those who were hated by you; I will even make them come together against you on every side, and I will have you uncovered before them so that they may see your shame.
38 And I have judged you—judgments of adultresses, And of women shedding blood, And have given you blood, fury, and jealousy.
And you will be judged by me as women are judged who have been untrue to their husbands and have taken life; and I will let loose against you passion and bitter feeling.
39 And I have given you into their hand, And they have thrown down your arch, And they have broken down your high places, And they have stripped you of your garments, And they have taken your beautiful vessels, And they have left you naked and bare.
I will give you into their hands, and your arched room will be overturned and your high places broken down; they will take your clothing off you and take away your fair jewels: and when they have done, you will be uncovered and shamed.
40 And have caused an assembly to come up against you, And stoned you with stones, And thrust you through with their swords,
And they will get together a meeting against you, stoning you with stones and wounding you with their swords.
41 And burned your houses with fire, And done judgments in you before the eyes of many women, And I have caused you to cease from going whoring, And also, you no longer give a wage.
And they will have you burned with fire, sending punishments on you before the eyes of great numbers of women; and I will put an end to your loose ways, and you will no longer give payment.
42 And I have caused My fury against you to rest, And My jealousy has turned aside from you, And I have been quiet, and I am not angry anymore.
And the heat of my wrath against you will have an end, and my bitter feeling will be turned away from you, and I will be quiet and will be angry no longer.
43 Because you have not remembered the days of your youth, And give trouble to Me in all these, Therefore I also—behold—I put your way on [your own] head, A declaration of Lord YHWH, And you will not have done—have done this wickedness above all your abominations.
Because you have not kept in mind the days when you were young, but have been troubling me with all these things; for this reason I will make the punishment of your ways come on your head, says the Lord, because you have done this evil thing in addition to all your disgusting acts.
44 Behold, everyone using the allegory against you, Uses [this] allegory concerning [you], saying, As the mother—her daughter!
See, in every common saying about you it will be said, As the mother is, so is her daughter.
45 You [are] your mother’s daughter, Loathing her husband and her sons, And you [are] your sisters’ sister, Who loathed their husbands and their sons, Your mother [is] a Hittite, and your father an Amorite.
You are the daughter of your mother whose soul is turned in disgust from her husband and her children; and you are the sister of your sisters who were turned in disgust from their husbands and their children: your mother was a Hittite and your father an Amorite.
46 And your older sister [is] Samaria, she and her daughters, Who is dwelling at your left hand, And your younger sister, who is dwelling on your right hand, [is] Sodom and her daughters.
Your older sister is Samaria, living at your left hand, she and her daughters: and your younger sister, living at your right hand, is Sodom and her daughters.
47 And you have not walked in their ways, And done according to their abominations, It has been loathed as a little thing, Indeed, you do more corruptly than they in all your ways.
Still you have not gone in their ways or done the disgusting things which they have done; but, as if that was only a little thing, you have gone deeper in evil than they in all your ways.
48 [As] I live—a declaration of Lord YHWH, Your sister Sodom has not done—she and her daughters—As you have done—you and your daughters.
By my life, says the Lord, Sodom your sister never did, she or her daughters, what you and your daughters have done.
49 Behold, this has been the iniquity of your sister Sodom, Arrogancy, fullness of bread, and quiet ease, Have been to her and to her daughters, And the hand of the afflicted and needy She has not strengthened.
Truly, this was the sin of your sister Sodom: pride, a full measure of food, and the comforts of wealth in peace, were seen in her and her daughters, and she gave no help to the poor or to those in need.
50 And they are haughty and do abomination before Me, And I turn them aside when I have seen.
They were full of pride and did what was disgusting to me: and so I took them away as you have seen.
51 And Samaria has not sinned even half of your sins, But you multiply your abominations more than they, And justify your sisters by all your abominations that you have done.
And Samaria has not done half your sins; but you have made the number of your disgusting acts greater than theirs, making your sisters seem more upright than you by all the disgusting things which you have done.
52 You also—bear your shame, That you have adjudged for your sisters, Because of your sins that you have done more abominably than they, They are more righteous than you, And you, also, be ashamed and bear your shame, In your justifying your sisters.
And you yourself will be put to shame, in that you have given the decision for your sisters; through your sins, which are more disgusting than theirs, they are more upright than you: truly, you will be shamed and made low, for you have made your sisters seem upright.
53 And I have turned back [to] their captivity, The captivity of Sodom and her daughters, And the captivity of Samaria and her daughters, And the captivity of your captives in their midst,
And I will let their fate be changed, the fate of Sodom and her daughters, and the fate of Samaria and her daughters, and your fate with theirs.
54 So that you bear your shame, And have been ashamed of all that you have done, In your comforting them.
So that you will be shamed and made low because of all you have done, when I have mercy on you.
55 And your sisters, Sodom and her daughters, Return to their former state, And Samaria and her daughters return to their former state, And you and your daughters return to your former state.
And your sisters, Sodom and her daughters, will go back to their first condition, and Samaria and her daughters will go back to their first condition, and you and your daughters will go back to your first condition.
56 And your sister Sodom has not been for a report in your mouth, In the day of your arrogancy,
Was not your sister Sodom an oath in your mouth in the day of your pride,
57 Before your wickedness is revealed, As [at] the time of the reproach of the daughters of Aram, And of all her neighbors, the daughters of the Philistines, Who are despising you all around.
Before your shame was uncovered? Now you have become like her a word of shame to the daughters of Edom and all who are round about you, the daughters of the Philistines who put shame on you round about.
58 Your wicked plans and your abominations, You have borne them, a declaration of YHWH.
The reward of your evil designs and your disgusting ways has come on you, says the Lord.
59 For thus said Lord YHWH: I have dealt with you as you have done, In that you have despised an oath—to break covenant.
For this is what the Lord has said: I will do to you as you have done, you who, putting the oath on one side, have let the agreement be broken.
60 And I have remembered My covenant with you, In the days of your youth, And I have established a perpetual covenant for you.
But still I will keep in mind the agreement made with you in the days when you were young, and I will make with you an eternal agreement.
61 And you have remembered your ways, And you have been ashamed, In your receiving your sisters—Your older with your younger, And I have given them to you for daughters, And not by your covenant.
Then at the memory of your ways you will be overcome with shame, when I take your sisters, the older and the younger, and give them to you for daughters, but not by your agreement.
62 And I have established My covenant with you, And you have known that I [am] YHWH.
And I will make my agreement with you; and you will be certain that I am the Lord:
63 So that you remember, And you have been ashamed, And there is not an opening of the mouth to you anymore because of your shame, In My receiving atonement for you, For all that you have done, A declaration of Lord YHWH!”
So that, at the memory of these things, you may be at a loss, never opening your mouth because of your shame; when you have my forgiveness for all you have done, says the Lord.
