Ezekiel 23

1 Again the word of the LORD came to me, saying,

The word of YHWH came again unto me, saying,

2 “Son of man, there were two women, daughters of the same mother,

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

3 and they played in Egypt, prostituting themselves from their youth. Their breasts were fondled there, and their virgin bosoms caressed.

And they committed whoredoms in Egypt; they committed whoredoms in their youth: there were their breasts pressed, and there they bruised the teats of their virginity.

4 The older was named Oholah, and her sister was named Oholibah. They became Mine and gave birth to sons and daughters. As for their identities, Oholah is Samaria, and Oholibah is Jerusalem.

And the names of them were Aholah the elder, and Aholibah her sister: and they were mine, and they bare sons and daughters. Thus were their names; Samaria is Aholah, and Jerusalem Aholibah.

5 Oholah prostituted herself while she was still Mine. She lusted after her lovers, the Assyrians—warriors

And Aholah played the harlot when she was mine; and she doted on her lovers, on the Assyrians her neighbours,

6 clothed in blue, governors and commanders, all desirable young men, horsemen mounted on steeds.

Which were clothed with blue, captains and rulers, all of them desirable young men, horsemen riding upon horses.

7 She offered sexual favors to all the elite of Assyria. She defiled herself with all the idols of those for whom she lusted.

Thus she committed her whoredoms with them, with all them that were the chosen men of Assyria, and with all on whom she doted: with all their idols she defiled herself.

8 She did not give up the prostitution she began in Egypt, when men slept with her in her youth, caressed her virgin bosom, and poured out their lust upon her.

Neither left she her whoredoms brought from Egypt: for in her youth they lay with her, and they bruised the breasts of her virginity, and poured their whoredom upon her.

9 Therefore I delivered her into the hands of her lovers, the Assyrians for whom she lusted.

Wherefore I have delivered her into the hand of her lovers, into the hand of the Assyrians, upon whom she doted.

10 They exposed her nakedness, seized her sons and daughters, and put her to the sword. Thus she became a byword among women, and they executed judgment against her.

These discovered her nakedness: they took her sons and her daughters, and slew her with the sword: and she became famous among women; for they had executed judgment upon her.

11 Her sister Oholibah saw this, yet in her lust and prostitution she was more depraved than her sister.

And when her sister Aholibah saw this, she was more corrupt in her inordinate love than she, and in her whoredoms more than her sister in her whoredoms.

12 She too lusted after the Assyrians—governors and commanders, warriors dressed in splendor, horsemen riding on steeds, all desirable young men.

She doted upon the Assyrians her neighbours, captains and rulers clothed most gorgeously, horsemen riding upon horses, all of them desirable young men.

13 And I saw that she too had defiled herself; both of them had taken the same path.

Then I saw that she was defiled, that they took both one way,

14 But Oholibah carried her prostitution even further. She saw the men portrayed on the wall, images of the Chaldeans, engraved in vermilion,

And that she increased her whoredoms: for when she saw men pourtrayed upon the wall, the images of the Chaldeans pourtrayed with vermilion,

15 wearing belts on their waists and flowing turbans on their heads; all of them looked like officers of the Babylonians in Chaldea, the land of their birth.

Girded with girdles upon their loins, exceeding in dyed attire upon their heads, all of them princes to look to, after the manner of the Babylonians of Chaldea, the land of their nativity:

16 At the sight of them, she lusted for them and sent messengers to them in Chaldea.

And as soon as she saw them with her eyes, she doted upon them, and sent messengers unto them into Chaldea.

17 Then the Babylonians came to her, to the bed of love, and in their lust they defiled her. But after she had been defiled by them, she turned away in disgust.

And the Babylonians came to her into the bed of love, and they defiled her with their whoredom, and she was polluted with them, and her mind was alienated from them.

18 When Oholibah openly prostituted herself and exposed her nakedness, I turned away from her in disgust, just as I had turned away from her sister.

So she discovered her whoredoms, and discovered her nakedness: then my mind was alienated from her, like as my mind was alienated from her sister.

19 Yet she multiplied her promiscuity, remembering the days of her youth, when she had prostituted herself in the land of Egypt

Yet she multiplied her whoredoms, in calling to remembrance the days of her youth, wherein she had played the harlot in the land of Egypt.

20 and lusted after their lovers, whose genitals were like those of donkeys and whose emission was like that of stallions.

For she doted upon their paramours, whose flesh is as the flesh of asses, and whose issue is like the issue of horses.

21 So you revisited the indecency of your youth, when the Egyptians caressed your bosom and pressed your young breasts.

Thus thou calledst to remembrance the lewdness of thy youth, in bruising thy teats by the Egyptians for the paps of thy youth.

22 Therefore, Oholibah, this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘I will incite your lovers against you, those from whom you turned away in disgust. And I will bring them against you from every side—

There, O Aholibah, thus saith the Sovereign YHWH; Behold, I will raise up thy lovers against thee, from whom thy mind is alienated, and I will bring them against thee on every side;

23 the Babylonians and all the Chaldeans, the men of Pekod, Shoa, and Koa, and all the Assyrians with them—all desirable young men, governors and commanders, officers and men of renown, mounted on horses.

The Babylonians, and all the Chaldeans, Pekod, and Shoa, and Koa, and all the Assyrians with them: all of them desirable young men, captains and rulers, great masters and renowned, all of them riding upon horses.

24 They will come against you with a host of peoples, with weapons, chariots, and wagons. They will array themselves against you on every side with buckler and shield and helmet. I will delegate judgment to them, and they will punish you according to their own standards.

And they shall come against thee with chariots, wagons, and wheels, and with an assembly of people, which shall set against thee buckler and shield and helmet round about: and I will set judgment before them, and they shall judge thee according to their judgments.

25 And I will set My jealous rage against you, and they will deal with you in fury. They will cut off your noses and ears, and your survivors will fall by the sword. They will seize your sons and daughters, and your remnant will be consumed by fire.

And I will set my jealousy against thee, and they shall deal furiously with thee: they shall take away thy nose and thine ears; and thy remnant shall fall by the sword: they shall take thy sons and thy daughters; and thy residue shall be devoured by the fire.

26 They will strip off your clothes and take your fine jewelry.

They shall also strip thee out of thy clothes, and take away thy fair jewels.

27 So I will put an end to your indecency and prostitution, which began in the land of Egypt, and you will not lift your eyes to them or remember Egypt anymore.’

Thus will I make thy lewdness to cease from thee, and thy whoredom brought from the land of Egypt: so that thou shalt not lift up thine eyes unto them, nor remember Egypt any more.

28 For this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Surely I will deliver you into the hands of those you hate, from whom you turned away in disgust.

For thus saith the Sovereign YHWH; Behold, I will deliver thee into the hand of them whom thou hatest, into the hand of them from whom thy mind is alienated:

29 They will treat you with hatred, take all for which you have worked, and leave you naked and bare, so that the shame of your prostitution will be exposed. Your indecency and promiscuity

And they shall deal with thee hatefully, and shall take away all thy labour, and shall leave thee naked and bare: and the nakedness of thy whoredoms shall be discovered, both thy lewdness and thy whoredoms.

30 have brought these things upon you, because you have prostituted yourself with the nations and defiled yourself with their idols.

I will do these things unto thee, because thou hast gone a whoring after the heathen, and because thou art polluted with their idols.

31 Because you have followed the path of your sister, I will put her cup into your hand.’

Thou hast walked in the way of thy sister; therefore will I give her cup into thine hand.

32 This is what the Lord GOD says: ‘You will drink your sister’s cup, a cup deep and wide. It will bring scorn and derision, for it holds so much.

Thus saith the Sovereign YHWH; Thou shalt drink of thy sister's cup deep and large: thou shalt be laughed to scorn and had in derision; it containeth much.

33 You will be filled with drunkenness and grief, with a cup of devastation and desolation, the cup of your sister Samaria.

Thou shalt be filled with drunkenness and sorrow, with the cup of astonishment and desolation, with the cup of thy sister Samaria.

34 You will drink it and drain it; you will dash it to pieces, and tear your breasts. For I have spoken,’

Thou shalt even drink it and suck it out, and thou shalt break the sherds thereof, and pluck off thine own breasts: for I have spoken it, saith the Sovereign YHWH.

35 Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Because you have forgotten Me and have cast Me behind your back, you must bear the consequences of your indecency and prostitution.’”

Therefore thus saith the Sovereign YHWH; Because thou hast forgotten me, and cast me behind thy back, therefore bear thou also thy lewdness and thy whoredoms.

36 Then the LORD said to me: “Son of man, will you pass judgment against Oholah and Oholibah? Then declare to them their abominations.

YHWH said moreover unto me; Son of man, wilt thou judge Aholah and Aholibah? yea, declare unto them their abominations;

37 For they have committed adultery, and blood is on their hands. They have committed adultery with their idols. They have even sacrificed their children, whom they bore to Me, in the fire as food for their idols.

That they have committed adultery, and blood is in their hands, and with their idols have they committed adultery, and have also caused their sons, whom they bare unto me, to pass for them through the fire, to devour them.

38 They have also done this to Me: On that very same day, they defiled My sanctuary and profaned My Sabbaths.

Moreover this they have done unto me: they have defiled my sanctuary in the same day, and have profaned my Sabbaths.

39 On the very day they slaughtered their children for their idols, they entered My sanctuary to profane it. Yes, they did this inside My house.

For when they had slain their children to their idols, then they came the same day into my sanctuary to profane it; and, lo, thus have they done in the midst of mine house.

40 Furthermore, you sisters sent messengers for men who came from afar; and behold, when they arrived, you bathed for them, painted your eyes, and adorned yourself with jewelry.

And furthermore, that ye have sent for men to come from far, unto whom a messenger was sent; and, lo, they came: for whom thou didst wash thyself, paintedst thy eyes, and deckedst thyself with ornaments,

41 You sat on a couch of luxury with a table spread before it, on which you had set My incense and My oil,

And satest upon a stately bed, and a table prepared before it, whereupon thou hast set mine incense and mine oil.

42 accompanied by the sound of a carefree crowd. Drunkards were brought in from the desert along with men from the rabble, who put bracelets on your wrists and beautiful crowns on your head.

And a voice of a multitude being at ease was with her: and with the men of the common sort were brought Sabeans from the wilderness, which put bracelets upon their hands, and beautiful crowns upon their heads.

43 Then I said of her who had grown old in adulteries: ‘Now let them use her as a prostitute, for that is all she is!’

Then said I unto her that was old in adulteries, Will they now commit whoredoms with her, and she with them?

44 And they slept with her as with a prostitute; they slept with Oholah and Oholibah, those lewd women.

Yet they went in unto her, as they go in unto a woman that playeth the harlot: so went they in unto Aholah and unto Aholibah, the lewd women.

45 But righteous men will sentence them to the punishment of those who commit adultery and bloodshed, because they are adulteresses with blood on their hands.

And the righteous men, they shall judge them after the manner of adulteresses, and after the manner of women that shed blood; because they are adulteresses, and blood is in their hands.

46 This is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Bring a mob against them and consign them to terror and plunder.

For thus saith the Sovereign YHWH; I will bring up a company upon them, and will give them to be removed and spoiled.

47 The mob will stone them and cut them down with their swords. They will kill their sons and daughters and burn down their houses.

And the company shall stone them with stones, and dispatch them with their swords; they shall slay their sons and their daughters, and burn up their houses with fire.

48 So I will put an end to indecency in the land, and all the women will be admonished not to imitate your behavior.

Thus will I cause lewdness to cease out of the land, that all women may be taught not to do after your lewdness.

49 They will repay you for your indecency, and you will bear the consequences of your sins of idolatry. Then you will know that I am the Lord GOD.’”

And they shall recompense your lewdness upon you, and ye shall bear the sins of your idols: and ye shall know that I am the Sovereign YHWH.