Jezekiel 23

1 And the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

The word of the Lord came to me again, saying,

2 Son of man, there were two women, daughters of one mother:

Son of man, there were two women, daughters of one mother:

3 and they went a-whoring in Egypt in their youth: there their breasts fell, there they lost their virginity.

They were acting like loose women in Egypt; when they were young their behaviour was loose: there their breasts were crushed, even the points of their young breasts were crushed.

4 And their names were Oola the elder, and Ooliba her sister: and they were mine, and bore sons and daughters: and [as for] their names, Samaria was Oola, and Jerusalem was Ooliba.

Their names were Oholah, the older, and Oholibah, her sister: and they became mine, and gave birth to sons and daughters. As for their names, Samaria is Oholah, and Jerusalem, Oholibah.

5 And Oola went a-whoring from me, and doted on her lovers, on the Assyrians that were her neighbours,

And Oholah was untrue to me when she was mine; she was full of desire for her lovers, even for the Assyrians, her neighbours,

6 clothed with purple, princes and captains; [they were] young men and choice, all horseman riding on horses.

Who were clothed in blue, captains and rulers, all of them young men to be desired, horsemen seated on horses.

7 And she bestowed her fornication upon them; all were choice sons of the Assyrians: and on whoever she doted herself, with them she defiled herself in all [their] devices.

And she gave her unclean love to them, all of them the noblest men of Assyria: and she made herself unclean with the images of all who were desired by her.

8 And she forsook not her fornication with the Egyptians: for in her youth they committed fornication with her, and they deflowered her, and poured out their fornication upon her.

And she has not given up her loose ways from the time when she was in Egypt; for when she was young they were her lovers, and by them her young breasts were crushed, and they let loose on her their unclean desire.

9 Therefore I delivered her into the hands of her lovers, into the hands of the children of the Assyrians, on whom she doted.

For this cause I gave her up into the hands of her lovers, into the hands of the Assyrians on whom her desire was fixed.

10 They uncovered her shame: they took her sons and daughters, and killed her with the sword: and she became a byword amongst women: and they wrought vengeance in her for the sake of the daughters.

By these her shame was uncovered: they took her sons and daughters and put her to death with the sword: and she became a cause of wonder to women; for they gave her the punishment which was right.

11 And her sister Ooliba saw [it], and she indulged in her fondness more corruptly than she, and in her fornication more than the fornication of her sister.

And her sister Oholibah saw this, but her desire was even more unmeasured, and her loose behaviour was worse than that of her sister.

12 She doted upon the sons of the Assyrian, princes and captains, her neighbours, clothed with fine linen, horsemen riding on horses; [they were] all choice young men.

She was full of desire for the Assyrians, captains and rulers, her neighbours, clothed in blue, horsemen going on horses, all of them young men to be desired.

13 And I saw that they were defiled, [that] the two [had] one way.

And I saw that she had become unclean; the two of them went the same way.

14 And she increased her fornication, and she saw men painted on the wall, likenesses of the Chaldeans painted with a pencil,

And her loose behaviour became worse; for she saw men pictured on a wall, pictures of the Chaldaeans painted in bright red,

15 having variegated girdles on their loins, having also richly dyed [attire] upon their heads; all had a princely appearance, the likeness of the children of the Chaldeans, of their native land.

With bands round their bodies and with head-dresses hanging round their heads, all of them looking like rulers, like the Babylonians, the land of whose birth is Chaldaea.

16 And she doted upon them as soon as she saw them, and sent forth messengers to them into the land of the Chaldeans.

And when she saw them she was full of desire for them, and sent servants to them in Chaldaea.

17 And the sons of Babylon came to her, into the bed of rest, and they defiled her in her fornication, and she was defiled by them, and her soul was alienated from them.

And the Babylonians came to her, into the bed of love, and made her unclean with their loose desire, and she became unclean with them, and her soul was turned from them.

18 And she exposed her fornication, and exposed her shame: and my soul was alienated from her, even as my soul was alienated from her sister.

So her loose behaviour was clearly seen and her shame uncovered: then my soul was turned from her as it had been turned from her sister.

19 And you did multiply your fornication, so as to call to remembrance the days of your youth, wherein you did commit whoredom in Egypt,

But still she went on the more with her loose behaviour, keeping in mind the early days when she had been a loose woman in the land of Egypt.

20 and you did dote upon the Chaldeans, whose flesh is as the flesh of the asses, and their members [as] the members of horses.

And she was full of desire for her lovers, whose flesh is like the flesh of asses and whose seed is like the seed of horses.

21 And you did look upon the iniquity of your youth, [the things] which you wrought in Egypt in your lodgings, where were the breasts of your youth.

And she made the memory of the loose ways of her early years come back to mind, when her young breasts were crushed by the Egyptians.

22 Therefore, Ooliba, thus says the Lord; Behold, I [will] stir up your lovers against you, from whom your soul is alienated, and I will bring them upon you round about,

For this cause, O Oholibah, this is what the Lord has said: See, I will make your lovers come up against you, even those from whom your soul is turned away in disgust; and I will make them come up against you on every side;

23 the children of Babylon, and all the Chaldeans, Phacuc, and Sue, and Hychue, and all the sons of the Assyrians with them; choice young men, governors and captains, all princes and renowned, riding on horses.

The Babylonians and all the Chaldaeans, Pekod and Shoa and Koa, and all the Assyrians with them: young men to be desired, captains and rulers all of them, and chiefs, her neighbours, all of them on horseback.

24 And they all shall come upon you from the north, chariots and wheels, with a multitude of nations, shields and targets; and [the enemy] shall set a watch against you round about: and I will set judgement before them, and they shall take vengeance on you with their judgements.

And they will come against you from the north on horseback, with war-carriages and a great band of peoples; they will put themselves in order against you with breastplate and body-cover and metal head-dress round about you: and I will make them your judges, and they will give their decision against you as seems right to them.

25 And I will bring upon you my jealousy, and they shall deal with you in great wrath: they shall take away your nose and your ears; and shall cast down your remnant with the sword: they shall take your sons and your daughters; and your remnant fire shall devour.

And my bitter feeling will be working against you, and they will take you in hand with passion; they will take away your nose and your ears, and the rest of you will be put to the sword: they will take your sons and daughters, and the rest of you will be burned up in the fire.

26 And they shall strip you of your raiment, and take [away] your ornaments.

And they will take all your clothing off you and take away your ornaments.

27 So I will turn back your ungodliness from you, and your fornication from the land of Egypt: and you shall not lift up your eyes upon them, and shall no more remember Egypt.

So I will put an end to your evil ways and your loose behaviour which came from the land of Egypt: and your eyes will never be lifted up to them again, and you will have no more memory of Egypt.

28 Therefore thus says the Lord God; Behold, I [will] deliver you into the hands of those whom you hate, from whom your soul is alienated.

For this is what the Lord has said: See, I will give you up into the hands of those who are hated by you, into the hands of those from whom your soul is turned away in disgust:

29 And they shall deal with you in hatred, and shall take all [the fruits] of your labours and your toils, and you shall be naked and bare: and the shame of your fornication shall be exposed: and your ungodliness and your fornication

And they will take you in hand with hate, and take away all the fruit of your work, and let you be unveiled and without clothing: and the shame of your loose behaviour will be uncovered, your evil designs and your loose ways.

30 brought this upon you, in that you went a-whoring after the nations, and did defile yourself with their devices.

They will do these things to you because you have been untrue to me, and have gone after the nations, and have become unclean with their images.

31 You did walk in the way of your sister; and I will put her cup into your hands.

You have gone in the way of your sister; and I will give her cup into your hand.

32 Thus says the Lord; Drink your sister's cup, deep and large, and full, to cause complete drunkenness.

This is what the Lord has said: You will take a drink from your sister's cup, which is deep and wide: you will be laughed at and looked down on, more than you are able to undergo.

33 And you shall be thoroughly weakened; and the cup of destruction, the cup of your sister Samaria,

You will be broken and full of sorrow, with the cup of wonder and destruction, with the cup of your sister Samaria.

34 drink you it, and I will take away her feasts and her new moons: for I have spoken [it], says the Lord.

And after drinking it and draining it out, you will take the last drops of it to the end, pulling off your breasts: for I have said it, says the Lord.

35 Therefore thus says the Lord; Because you has forgotten me, and cast me behind your back, therefore receive you [the reward] of your ungodliness and your fornication.

So this is what the Lord has said: Because you have not kept me in your memory, and because your back has been turned to me, you will even undergo the punishment of your evil designs and your loose ways.

36 And the Lord said to me, Son of man, will you not judge Oola and Ooliba? and declare to them their iniquities?

Then the Lord said to me: Son of man, will you be the judge of Oholibah? then make clear to her the disgusting things she has done.

37 For they have committed adultery, and blood was in their hands, they committed adultery with their devices, and they passed through the fire to them their children which they bore to me.

For she has been false to me, and blood is on her hands, and with her images she has been untrue; and more than this, she made her sons, whom she had by me, go through the fire to them to be burned up.

38 So long too as they did these things to me, they defiled my sanctuary, and profaned my sabbaths.

Further, this is what she has done to me: she has made my holy place unclean and has made my Sabbaths unclean.

39 And when they sacrificed their children to their idols, they also went into my sanctuary to profane it: and whereas they did thus in the midst of my house;

For when she had made an offering of her children to her images, she came into my holy place to make it unclean; see, this is what she has done inside my house.

40 and whereas they did thus to the men that came from afar, to whom they sent messengers, and as soon as they came, immediately you did wash yourself, and did paint your eyes and adorn yourself with ornaments,

And she even sent for men to come from far away, to whom a servant was sent, and they came: for whom she was washing her body and painting her eyes and making herself fair with ornaments.

41 and sat on a prepared bed, and before it [there was] a table set out, and [as for] mine incense and mine oil, they rejoiced in them,

And she took her seat on a great bed, with a table put ready before it on which she put my perfume and my oil.

42 and they raised a sound of music, and [that] with men coming from the wilderness out of a multitude of men, and they put bracelets on their hands, and a crown of glory on their heads;

... and they put jewels on her hands and beautiful crowns on her head.

43 Therefore I said, Do they not commit adultery with these? and has she also gone a-whoring [after] the manner of a harlot?

Then I said ... now she will go on with her loose ways.

44 And they went in to her, as [men] go in to a harlot; so they went in to Oola and to Ooliba to work iniquity.

And they went in to her, as men go to a loose woman: so they went in to Oholibah, the loose woman.

45 And they are just men, and shall take vengeance on them with the judgement of an adulteress and the judgement of blood: for they are adulteresses, and blood is in their hands.

And upright men will be her judges, judging her as false wives and women who take lives are judged; because she has been untrue to me and blood is on her hands.

46 Thus says the Lord God, Bring up a multitude upon them, and send trouble and plunder into the midst of them.

For this is what the Lord has said: I will make a great meeting of the people come together against her, and will send on her shaking fear and take everything from her.

47 And stone them with the stones of a multitude, and pierce them with their swords: they shall kill their sons and their daughters, and shall burn up their houses.

And the meeting, after stoning her with stones, will put an end to her with their swords; they will put her sons and daughters to death and have her house burned up with fire.

48 And I will remove ungodliness out of the land, and all the women shall be instructed, and shall not do according to their ungodliness.

And I will put an end to evil in all the land, teaching all women not to do as you have done.

49 And your ungodliness shall be recompensed upon you, and you shall bear the guilt of your devices: and you shall know that I am the Lord.

And I will send on you the punishment of your evil ways, and you will be rewarded for your sins with your images: and you will be certain that I am the Lord.